I noticed an envelope on her bedside nightstand. It was from the stationary she bought during our shopping trip. It had what looked to be my name on it. Then, the nurse rushed in the doors.

"She's awake! Sir, you need to leave. The doctors are coming to do testing. You can visit tomorrow", huffed the nurse. A flood of medical staff entered the room. Through the commotion, I took the envelope addressed to me. Kaori didn't notice, luckily. Kousei didn't know what he was thinking. Was he even supposed to look at the letter?

"I'll visit tomorrow!"

"You'd better!" she replied. He strolled out of the room filled with medical staff. It was such a relief. He thought that he'd pay a visit to her parents to inform them of the good news. On his way to her parent's bakary, a few of the lamp posts flickered. Their shop lights were on. The door dinged as he entered.

"Mr. Arima! What brings you here", asked Mr. Miyazono.

"The nurses said that Kaori woke up. I just came here to tell you." They gasped.

"Oh! This is amazing!" cried Mrs. Miyazono.

"It's late. Have you had dinner yet? Why don't you stay to eat something?" asked Mr. Miyazono. To be honest, he was hungry.

"Can I just t

ake it to go? I need to go home. It is late", he asked.

"Of course", she replied. Mrs. Miyazono handed Kousei a bento box as he exited the bakery. They seemed elated. The thought brought him peace. It was 8pm when he arrived home. Tomorrow was a Friday, so he could visit Kaori during the weekend. He sat down at the table and quickly ate before getting ready for bed. Tonight, he could sleep a little easier, knowing she was awake. Another morning another day. It was still winter in late January. School was the same. Tsubaki wasn't in a good mood today… again. Kousei hoped to make up, but it would take time. Watari said that he visited Kaori, already. He reported that her parents already saw her too. Kousei decided to go home to rest a bit. As he was about to lay down for a nap, he saw Kaori's letter. Should I come clean and return it? Should I read it? His eyes closed, before any decision could be made. He was awoken by the sound of knocking on his door. It was Tsubaki.

"Can we talk?" she asked as she entered his house.

"Yeah… What's up?"

"Listen… About you and I, I'm sorry. I still like you, Kousei. We've known each other for a long time. We are growing up, so I guess what I wanted to say is that I want to be friends again. I'm not over you, but life goes on whether I'm ready to move with it or not. I heard that Kaori's awake. You've been a bit anxious lately, if you need anything, I'm always here", she explained. Years dripped down her cheeks.

"Thanks Tsubaki. Thank you for always being here for me, even if I don't feel the same way about you", he smiled.

"I should go, I've got somewhere I need to be", she lied. She desperately wanted to deny that he likes another girl. This was a step in the right direction. Though it hurts now, the scars might heal… one day. Kousei's weak smile faded. He knew this would be hard for her. Kaori was probably waiting on him, so he started heading to the hospital. The sky was dark. Snowflakes danced through the air, before landing on the ground. This reminded him of the time they were on the hospital roof. Maybe she would want to see the snow again. His breath created a white puff upon exhaling. The letter sat in his coat pocket. He figured he'd come clean and ask.

"You finally decided to visit", remarked Kaori. She turned away from him to look out the window. "Look at it! It's so beautiful. Wow! Let's go on the roof!"

"Alright, just wrap a blanket around", replied Kousei. Kaori slowly attached herself to his back. He could only blush a little bit as they climbed the stairs to the roof. It was quite cold. A small flury greeted their entry. Tiny ice fractals melted on the roof. The bench they sat on a few weeks ago was still there. Kousei carefully slid Kaori onto the wooden bench. "Did you write a letter to me?" Kaori's face flushed, and she turned her head away in embarrassment.

"Uhhh. You weren't supposed to have that. It was supposed to be given to you if I didn't make it through the surgery… How do you know about the letter?" she asked. This time Kousei was the frantic one.

"Uh… well I saw it on your nightstand. I guess my curiosity got the better of me." He pulled the letter out of his pocket and started to open it.

"What are you doing! You aren't supposed to read that! I'm alive!" He only got up and laughed. She couldn't do anything about it, because she couldn't walk yet.

"I wonder what it says", he chuckled. Then he began to read it aloud. "Dear Kousei, You were just here, and now I'm writing you a letter, kinda weird, right? You're a mess, you know that? You're meek, and a quitter, and neurotic." Kaori put her palm in her face. He continued to read, "The first time I ever saw you, I was five years old. It was at a recital for the piano school I went to back then. You marched out onto that stage, and then made us all laugh by knocking over the bench. You sat on that giant piano, and with the first note you played, the world became more colorful. It was like you found a deluxe box of crayons on the keys, and tossed them everywhere Suddenly, the girl next to me starts bawling her eyes out."

"Stop! Noo! You don't need to read the rest", she pleaded.

"Noo, I wanna hear what you have to say."

"But it's a goodbye letter. I'm still here, so there's no need." Kousei ignored her and continued.

"And now you're gonna give it up? Like you never played in the first place? Hearing you that day changed my life, what do you think of that? So I switched, then and there, no regrets. When I found out we were at the same middle school, I was thrilled! How was I actually supposed to meet you, though? Buy egg sandwiches every day 'til you notice me? In the end, all I could do was watch you guys. You were friends, and I was some stranger. It wasn't my place to barge in, so I didn't. I had surgery as a little kid, but I've never been totally well. After a bad fall in the seventh grade, I was in the hospital a bunch. Those hospitals stays got longer, bit by bit. I was hardly ever at school by then. Nobody said how sick I was exactly, but I knew it was bad. Then one night, I saw my mom and dad crying down in the lounge, when they thought I was asleep. That's when I knew I didn't have much time. I made a choice: I ran. And I didn't look back!" He could only chuckle. She was even lively in her letter.

"I started living life exactly how I wanted, so I wouldn't be all mopey in heaven. Contacts are weird, but I tried 'em. Tried eating a whole cake by myself too, because why not? Music that used to boss me around? I played it my way! And then…I told one single lie."

"Wait… you lied to me?"

"I guess you have to finish it to get the explanation", groaned Kaori.

"Are you ready for it? Here it comes: "Kaori likes Watari!" Shocking, right? But I'm glad I told it. After all, Kousei, that lie brought us together. Please tell Watari I'm sorry. Honestly though, I'm sure he's moved on to some other girl by now. That's just who he is. When it comes to friends, he's a great guy, but romantically, I want someone sincere. Also, please tell Tsubaki that I'm sorry. It turns out I was just passing through. I didn't wanna leave a big mess behind, so I couldn't be totally honest with her either. Think of it: "Hey Tsubaki, be a pal and introduce me to Arima, would ya?" That would have been a pretty messed up thing for me to ask for. I mean, everyone could tell that Tsubaki was crazy about you. Even before we were friends, I knew. The only ones who didn't get the memo were you and her." Kousei was still confused, but he continued to read on.

"When my life finally brought the two of us together, you were different than I'd imagined: stubborn, and passive, and pessimistic. Not to mention the fact that you stole my leggings. Your voice was lower than I thought. You were a guy, you know? And you were gentle, no surprise there. Remember when we jumped off that bridge? The river water felt amazing. And the moon shining down at the music room, like we could grab it on our tiptoes? When we raced that train, I really thought we could win! Singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" with you late at night felt kinda perfect. Being at school after dark, it's mysterious, right? And snow, it looks like cherry blossom petals! You must think I'm silly, finding wonder in the everyday things around us, things I saw with you. Isn't it funny how the most unforgettable scenes can be so trivial, and vice versa? So what's the verdict? Was I able to live inside someone's heart?"

"You barged in without knocking", he answered.

"And this heart, it wouldn't happen to be yours, would it? Do you think that…you'll remember me a little from time to time?"

"If I forgot you, you'd come back to haunt me", he mumbled. Kaori's face was tomato red by this point.

"No hitting the reset button! Don't you forget me, that's a promise, okay? I'm glad we found each other. Will I reach you? I hope I can."

"How could I forget you? You reached me in more ways than I can name."

"Here's the truth, Kousei: I love you! I love you! I love you!" Kousei paused for a second.

"Is it true?", he asked.

"Yeah…", she replied. He was speechless. "I'm pretty sure you feel the same way! Don't think I didn't hear your confession!"

"When did I ever confess?!" he exclaimed.

"I heard your piano when I was going through the surgery. It practically had that words 'I love you' written all over it." This time, Kousei was the one with a face as red as a beet. I'll just finish the letter.

"Sorry that I never ate those canelés, and that I beat you up so much. I was such a brat to you. I'm sorry for…everything. Thank you. P.S. I'm giving you one of my favorite pictures. You don't have to keep it, but I hope you do. 165 notas Mar 13th, 2016 ~Kaori Miyazono." Kousei sat down on the bench next to her.

"You're right. I feel the same way", he smiled.

"Yeah… Oh! Look! It's really snowing!" Larger and larger clusters of snowflakes began to fall and pile on the roof.

"We should go inside…", he said. Carefully, Kaori wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her on his back inside. Once they were back in the hospital room, he placed her back on her bed. "How long will it be before you can walk again?"

"It should be a month or so", she smiled. Kousei didn't really know what to do since they confessed. Kaori, seemingly reading his mind said, "We can talk about our feelings for each other another time."

"That's a good idea. I brought your homework. I'll help you through it, so we can go to the same high school." For the next few hours, the two of them joked around as they finished the work.