"Mom, I'm home!" I closed the door and dropped my backpack on the floor. The hallway was filled with bags of groceries. Mom had gone overboard on the shopping again.

"Mom?"

"Oh, Dai, you're home!" My mother ran to me and gave me a big hug. "M-mom—" I choked, struggling to breathe.

"Dai, I'm glad you're here. I was worried you'd forgotten your grandfather's birthday."

Huh? "Uh…Birthday?"

She stepped back and tsked at me. "Oh Dai, you did forget." She suddenly brightened. "But that's okay! I got a present just in case." She plopped a jar down on the counter. "For you to give him."

"Mom? What is this—chili peppers?"

"Well, you know how your grandpa likes spicy things, and I was at the market anyway, so I figured…Oh dear!" She turned around. "Quick, Dai! Here he comes! Take it and hide!"

"Wha—but—"

She shoved me through the door just as I heard grandpa's footsteps from the hallway.

"What's all the racket about?"

"Oh, nothing, Dad. I was just working on dinner."

"Hmm."

Something fell suddenly onto my head.

"Ack!"

Grandpa heard me yelling. "Oh, Daisuke's home. Daisuke, are you alright?"

"I'm just fine!"

"Kyuu?"

With climbed down onto my shoulder and looked inquisitively at the jar of peppers. "Kyuu."

"These aren't for you. They're for grandpa."

"Kyuu."

"And don't startle me like that! Jeez…"

Dad's voice startled me suddenly. "Is that a birthday present, Daisuke?" He was standing at the top of the stairs. "How thoughtful of you."

"Well, not really…"

He picked up the jar and read the label.

"Are these…peppers?"

"E-yeah…"

His face lit up. "Wow, Daisuke. Your grandpa is one lucky man."

"Huh?"

"Your mom won't let me have these. Says they give you bad breath. Heh." He walked out into the kitchen.

With looked at me. "Kyuu?"

………..

After the presents and lemon cake (with strawberries for With) Dad and I went out back to watch the sky. There was supposed to be a meteor shower tonight. Grandpa had fallen asleep, though, after eating all the peppers, and Mom was sorting all the groceries (which would take a while). The sky was very clear, and the air was warm enough to make me comfortable without a jacket. Dad was quiet, as usual.

"Hmm. Looking up at this…The universe is so huge, isn't it Dad?"

He leaned forward on the banister. "It sure is. There's a lot out there, Daisuke. More than we can imagine."

"Mm." The wind was picking up a little, just enough to send small rows of waves across the moonlit ocean below. I watched them for a while.

"Dad?"

"Yes, Daisuke?"

"Do you ever, just…think about how lucky you are to be human?"

He looked up. "Hmm?"

I ran my fingers through my hair. "I mean…I could have been anyone…anything else. But my life is so good—even though I complain sometimes, really, it's almost perfect."

"Life is a beautiful thing, Daisuke. I'm glad you realize how precious your own life is."

I smiled. The sky was getting darker, and the stars shone more brightly against the deep purple darkness. I love the night.

"Daisuke?"

I turned to look at him.

"If you don't mind my asking…How was your date with Riku?"

I smiled and looked back at the sky. "It was…great, Dad."

It had actually been more than great. I had taken Riku out to the beach. We rode our bikes there and walked on the sand…The sunset had been gorgeous. So had she. Then we sat for a while and watched the tides, and when we stopped talking, I leaned in and…

"Is that all I get? Just 'great?'" I looked at him, surprised. He laughed.

"It's alright, I won't pry. I'm just glad to see you so happy."

I smiled and looked away. Unlike my mother, Dad didn't pry into my private life unless it was okay with me. He was always content to let people live their lives, more or less. Unless they crossed the line, of course. Sometimes he reminded me of…

"It's getting late. I wonder if we'll see the shooting stars at all tonight."

It was dark. The moon was almost full, but it wasn't giving much light, and I couldn't see much more than my father's silhouette when I looked at him. The outline of his hair was striking.

Suddenly I felt hurt—like I had been reminded of a problem that I had forgotten. I blinked at the stars. I was so moody lately…

"Dad?"

"What is it? Do you want to go inside?"

"No, not yet. I just…" I sighed. "I've been feeling so lonely lately. And I don't know why."

"Oh? Well, Daisuke, you know you're surrounded by people who love you. You don't need to feel—"

"Yeah, I know." For some reason, his answer irritated me. I gripped the balcony and looked back down at the water. "But that doesn't stop me from feeling…" The sky, as I looked up at it, was somehow so inviting…And I felt frustrated.

"I'm sorry, Daisuke. We're here for you."

"Thanks, Dad." Clouds were edging in from the horizon, blotting out the stars. I glanced at my watch. 12:30. We watched the fog spread over the water.

Dad sighed. "Well, it's getting late, and you have school tomorrow. Looks like we won't be seeing any meteors tonight, I'm afraid. It's too cloudy to see, now, anyway. I'm sorry, Daisuke."

I looked up at him. "It's okay, Dad."

He went in. I stayed out for a while longer, anyway. On my own, the darkness seemed even more pressing. Maybe it really was just hormones or something…I couldn't understand it. There was no reason to feel like this. No reason at all. I watched until the clouds covered up the moon.

Darkness.

………..

That night, I had the dream again. I was running on a rooftop at night, and even though it was cold and dark, I could feel this warmth inside me, and I felt safe. And…whole. The feeling was sort of like holding my hands over a flame to warm them, only the fire was watching me—speaking to me—I could feel it. And then I jumped off the edge of the roof, but I wasn't scared at all—and suddenly I had wings, and I was flying. The most natural thing in the world. And I could feel the voice of the warmth inside me, reminding me of something, and I strained to hear it…But no matter how I tried, the words were just beyond the point of hearing. Then I flew, up, up, toward the moon, toward freedom…And suddenly the sky shattered into crystals, and I fell.

Then the whole world disappeared, and I was just floating, drifting in endless black space…And all around me, crystals flashed reflections of all kinds of people, places, scenes…I could see a kind of chain, hanging down from somewhere. And I cried out, but I couldn't make a sound, and no one was there to hear me. And then the weightlessness abruptly ended and I fell—

…………

I generally keep late nights and have bad dreams, and I'm used to being woken up from nightmares by my own yelling. But it is a very different thing to wake up to the screaming of a stranger in your bed. Today, I think, is going to be even more bizarre than yesterday.

…..

……..

………..

Why don't I feel lonely anymore?

…………

I

I

I

Itsu's

Note

This story has apparently caused some confusion as to what the "twist" is. It can be read straightforward as a nice little pointless story, but that's not what I meant the reader to do...Perhaps when I thought I was being subtle I was just being obtuse. Anyway, if you haven't gone "Oooh," by the end of the story, then you might want to reread the fifth volume of the manga carefully. I don't like to put disclaimer type things like this up, but I feel bad for making it so obfuscated...Cookies for anyone who can guess what's going on. Feel free to guess when you review, as I'm sure you will! Right?...