Keep in touch. Don't forget me. It's always easy to make those promises when graduating high school, but it's always just as hard to keep them. Ibushi Arima never intended to grow apart from his friends upon graduation, it was just one of those things that naturally happened. And it wasn't like he didn't miss them or anything; he just didn't have the time anymore.
During the first few months of college, he would constantly receive texts from Akoya or Kinshiro, and even some of the members of the Defense Club, but before too long the texts became few and far between. And after that, it was nothing. Yet instead of being devastated about it, Ibushi understood, as always. He felt he had to be the one who understood, so that way the loss of such good friends wouldn't hurt as badly. Throwing himself into his studies, he began to ignore everything else around him. But upon graduation, he felt a nagging emptiness.
From there, he would obviously work hard to be his father's successor; that much was a given. But what about for him once he achieved that? Was there anything else for him? Was this truly what his life was meant to be? It felt like some sort of trap, a dead end. Were there any other alternatives? If he were still talking to Akoya and Kinshiro, surely one of them would be able to help him, being heirs themselves, but contacting them seemed futile. After all, it had been years since the last conversation with either of them.
Twenty-five-year-old Ibushi Arima stared out the window of his limousine as it drove through Binan City, the corners of his mouth pulled into a frown. It felt like a lifetime ago when he would walk to school with his friends or visit Kurotama Bath. He almost wondered if any of that had really happened, but seeing the places he used to frequent as he rode by assured him that all of it was real.
"Welcome home, Young Master," his family butler, Soichiro Yamada, greeted as he walked through the doors of their estate. "Is there anything I can do for you?"
"No, thank you, Yamada," Ibushi replied as he walked past. He hadn't been to his family's home in years and was relieved to know that it looked the same as it always had. His feet automatically carried him straight to his bedroom as his eyes wandered down the hall to the next door down, the guest room where Akoya would always stay after getting into a fight with his sister and storming out of his family's home.
With a sigh, he opened his bedroom door and was hit with a wave of nostalgia. Nothing in there had changed a bit, which was both relieving and disheartening. His eyes gazed longingly at the photos on one of his walls, the smiling faces of him and his dearest friends seeming to mock him. He had half a mind to rip them all down and shove them into a box in the back of his closet, but what good would that do? At least he could look at them and remember a time before things had become so complicated.
A knock on his door brought him out of his thoughts as Yamada entered and bowed deeply. "My deepest apologies for disturbing you, Young Master, but your father wishes to see you," he simply stated as he rose back up to his full height. "If you would please come along with me to his study."
Ibushi had no reason to refuse Yamada and soon found himself sitting across from his father in a luxurious study in the opposite wing of the estate. Having not been there in years, he could no longer recall what the study looked like that last time he had entered, but he knew it wasn't something like this. Everything before him seemed brand new, reminding him that his father only wanted the best of the best.
"Ibushi, you seem well," Hideaki Arima greeted, looking his son up and down. He nodded, a small smile of approval playing on his lips. "It's good to have you back home with us. I noticed that you graduated top of your class in your university like a true Arima. You do our family proud, son." He cleared his throat as he continued. "I am running short on leisure time today, so I would like to keep this brief. As you know, your mother and I had you past our prime for producing an heir, under nearly impossible circumstances. That said, I feel that it would be best if I were to retire soon and leave the family business to you if you feel you are ready."
"Father, I don't know what to say," his son replied, eyes wide. Sure, he knew that this conversation would come one day, but he didn't think it would be just after he arrived back home after studying for many years. "Yes, of course, I will inherit the family business, but I wasn't expecting it to be so soon."
"I'm not getting any younger, Ibushi. We both know this." The older man sighed, his chest heaving dramatically. "But I don't want to entrust the company to you just yet, not until I know that you will be well off." He averted his gaze from his son. "That is why your mother and I have arranged for you to be married to the daughter of a future business partner of ours."
Ibushi felt his heart sink in his chest. Though he knew it was for the good of the Arima family name, he wished he had been asked before the decision was made. "M-May I ask her name?" he was finally able to choke out, throat dry.
"She is the daughter of the Gero family," Hideaki replied. "I remember how you and their heir were on the student council together back in high school, so I figured you would be well acquainted with their family. After all, I wouldn't marry my only son off to some family he didn't know the moment he returned to my home. Since you know the Gero family, we have arranged for the wedding to take place three months from now."
"Yes, Father," the green-haired man replied with a solemn nod. If he were to be married to Akoya's sister, would this perhaps be a chance to become reacquainted with Akoya himself? After all, in three months, the two of them would be brothers. But marriage? Was he truly ready for something like that?
.
Kana Gero did not resemble her brother in any way, shape, or form. One would almost guess that the two were from completely different families. She had long, pale-blonde hair that reached down just past her shoulders. It hung perfectly straight, unlike Akoya's curly, pink hair that stretched halfway down his back. Her brown eyes didn't have the same mischievous sparkle that her brother's held, and she certainly didn't seem as narcissistic as Akoya either.
"I'm pleased to meet you, Arima-san," she stated, bowing to him in the comfort of the parlour of her family's estate. "Please, have a seat. I've had some jasmine tea prepared. I hope that is to your liking. Perhaps I should have asked which tea you prefer?"
"Jasmine tea is fine," he replied, bowing in return. "And please, call me Ibushi. After all, in a matter of months, you will also be known as 'Arima-san'." It felt so embarrassing to say something like that aloud, but he knew that flattery was what worked best with the Gero family, and there was no way he wanted to let his father down.
"I understand that you were friends with my brother back in your high school days," Kana said as they sat across from each other at a tea table. "He was quite the rascal back then, wasn't he? If I recall correctly, you were always the friend he went to after he and I would argue." She elegantly brought her hand to cover her mouth as a small giggle escaped her lips. "Akoya has always been quite the dramatic one, hasn't he?" Her thin lips pulled into a fond smile. "You know, I was always curious as to what you were like, Ibushi-san," she admitted, blushing. "If you were someone whom Akoya could trust, then that obviously meant that there was something good about you."
"I wouldn't really know," Ibushi replied, flustered. He didn't exactly know what to make of her words. "At that time, I suppose I was just looking out for my kouhai from school. We were both on the student council back then, so we spent a lot of time together, along with Kinshiro Kusatsu as well."
His heart sped up as he remembered his days in the student council. Back then, he had wanted nothing more than to spend all of his days with Kinshiro and Akoya. Every day with them was one to be content with, even after the Defense Club and those twin idols began to hang out with them as well. He always believed that the more people present, the merrier, and by graduation they all appeared to be quite the rowdy bunch.
Unable to hold back his curiosity any longer, he decided to speak aloud the question that had been plaguing his mind since his father had mentioned the arranged marriage. "How is Akoya doing? I haven't heard from him in quite some time. I sincerely hope that all is well with him. After all, he was a dear friend of mine."
"A 'dear friend', huh?" a voice asked from the doorway behind him, venom seeping into his words. "Someone who considers his friends dear to him wouldn't leave them high and dry like you did."
Ibushi turned around to see none other than Akoya Gero himself leaning against the doorframe, a spiteful expression on his face. The younger man had his arms crossed over his chest, blue eyes fixed into a glare that nearly bore into his long-lost friend. Though it had been many years since he had seen him, Akoya surprisingly didn't look any different than the last time they had spoken in person.
"Akoya," he breathed, rising to his feet. "Why didn't you make your presence known beforehand? I would have loved for you to join us for tea."
"Don't make me laugh," the pink-haired man scoffed. "You're only here upon your father's orders. I won't be fooled by your words anymore, Arima. I've become wiser in the time that you've been gone. I will no longer believe your lies."
"Lies?" Ibushi asked, confused. "I don't understand what you mean, Akoya. When did I ever lie to you?"
"You disgust me," Akoya replied. "Someone like you is deplorable." With an indignant sniff, he turned on his heel and stormed from the parlour.
Just as Ibushi was about to go after him, he heard a calm and quiet voice from behind him. "I wouldn't waste my time," Kana quietly told him. "Perhaps I should have warned you ahead of time, but my brother has a strong distaste for you after you left. Though I don't know much about why he's behaving in this manner or why he despises you so much, I suggest that you give him time to warm back up to you. After all, within a matter of months, the two of you are going to be family as well."
With a silent sigh, Ibushi sat back down across the table from Kana once more. "I apologize, Kana," he told her, bowing her head in shame. "I shouldn't have turned away from you like that to speak with your brother. You deserve my full attention."
Kana smiled widely before she began giggling once again. "Ibushi-san, you're being far too serious for such a situation. I know that you and Akoya are old friends, so what makes you believe that speaking to him would warrant an apology? You sure are strange."
Ibushi blushed, embarrassed, as a maid brought in their tea. "Yeah, I am, aren't I?" he agreed, hoping that the conversation would be dropped once their tea was served.
.
That night as Ibushi prepared for bed, there was a knock on his door before Yamada entered. "Young Master," the butler began, bowing, "my sincerest apologies, but you have a guest. I have informed your guest that it is far too late to have visitors, but he refuses to leave, much like he did back in your high school days. I've shown him to the room he once occupied, but he insists on seeing you."
"Akoya!" Ibushi exclaimed, throwing his robe around himself and tying it as he made his way toward the hallway. With just a few strides, he was standing outside of the guest bedroom, noticing the light on inside. He contemplated whether or not he shoulder knock, but his curiosity got the best of him, causing him to open the door and enter.
"Arima!" Akoya exclaimed, jumping in surprise as the other man entered. "I didn't expect you to come so quickly, especially after all of those harsh things I said to you this afternoon." He frowned, staring at the bed in the room, running his hand along one of its posts. "I….wanted to talk to you about what happened. I wanted answers for why you left us all in the dust. It's just….To just cut off all communication with everyone isn't like you. Or at least, it wasn't…." He sighed as he sat down on the edge of the bed. "I don't even know why I'm here, Arima. You were always the person whom I went to whenever I was confused or upset, but with you being the source of it this time, I don't know what to do."
"I don't quite understand what you're saying," the older of the two admitted, stepping over toward the bed. He knew better than to get too close to Akoya when he was upset, but he still wanted to close at least some of the distance between them. "Despite what you may believe, I don't recall ever cutting off all contact with any of you. From my end of things, you all cut off contact with me."
For a moment, Akoya sat in silence. "No," he ground out through clenched teeth. "This is just another one of your lies, Arima. I won't fall for it. You're just manipulating me again, like you've always done, and I refuse to fall victim!" His blue eyes were sparkling with tears as he looked up at his former friend. "Two months after you left, you stopped replying to my messages. I even kept the same phone all these years, hoping that maybe you'd reply at least once, but you never did." As proof, he stood to his feet and shoved his battered phone in Ibushi's face, their text logs from all those years ago glaring back at him. "Not. One. Single. Message."
"That's not right," Ibushi replied, taking his own phone from his pocket. It was the same from back then as well, him having kept his for the same reason. He pulled up their text logs and showed Akoya. "It was you who stopped messaging me."
Putting the two cell phones side-by-side, they compared the text logs. Ibushi's phone had many texts outbound to Akoya, but Akoya's phone didn't show them. For a moment, the pink-haired boy stared at his phone in surprise, blinking profusely as if it would help Ibushi's texts make it to his cell phone.
"All these years of hating you," Akoya muttered, knees shaking, "and it was all just a misunderstanding?" His knees gave out, but Ibushi quickly caught him. "You were my best friend in high school, and now you're telling me that these past few years have been another 'Kinshiro and Atsushi' incident? It was all just a vast misunderstanding?" He began to laugh as tears spilled down his cheeks. "I don't even know what to think right now. This is all just so…." Unable to finish his sentence, he alternated between laughter and sobs for a while before finally calming down.
During Akoya's hysterics, Ibushi managed to sit him down on the bed, allowing the younger to lean against him as he got it all out. He remembered that his friend required a lot of patience and delicacy, so he waited until the younger was finished with what he was doing before he made an attempt to speak again.
"It's late, Akoya," he stated, looking to the clock on the wall. Midnight had long since passed, and he had a meeting before noon that he needed to be fully prepared for. "Why don't you stay here tonight? I can send you home by car in the morning on my way to my meeting."
Exhausted from his crying, all the other could do was nod before his friend moved to help tuck him into bed. "You haven't changed," he softly mused, eyes closed. "You're still the same Arima you were all those years ago, always caring about my comfort and always more patient than I deserve."
Ibushi walked over to the door and turned off the light in the bedroom. "Goodnight, Akoya," was all he said before exiting the room. Whether his friend heard him or not, he'd never know, but at least he was able to call him his friend once again.