" I'll wait for you at the abandoned entrance." Haku tells Chihiro holding their hands together

"Okay." She nods

"Are you sure you don't need any help gathering your things?" Haku asks

"No I'll be okay I'm only going to bring what I absolutely need." Chihiro tells him "I'll get your kimono for you too."

"Don't worry about it I have plenty at Aburaya bathhouse." Haku tells her

"Umm ok." Chihiro says, in the back of her mind Chihiro wondered if she should tell her parents and Mrs Timmons that Chihiro was leaving to live in the spirit world with the man of her dreams but Chihiro knew they never would let her go and would probably think Haku brain washed her somehow.

"Chihiro." Haku got her attention

"Yeah?"

"I'm so happy you decided to come back with me." Haku smiles "There's so much I want to show you."

"I'm excited too even if I have to work at the bathhouse again." Chihiro smiles back

"Oh no you're not going to be working." Haku tells her "Chihiro you're going to have such a different experience when you return to Aburaya bathhouse." He adds

"I don't have to work there?" Chihiro asks

"No Chihiro." Haku chuckles " I'm in charge of the Aburaya bathhouse now."

"Oh I didn't know." Chihiro says "What happened to Yubaba?"

"You don't need to worry about Yubaba when you come back I'll make sure you're very well taken care of." Haku brushed her bangs out of her eyes.

"Haku." Chihiro blushes "I don't know what to say."

"It's okay." He kisses her forehead making Chihiro's face turn beet red

"I um better grab some of my things." Chihiro swallows

"Ok take your time don't rush yourself." Haku says

Chihiro gave Haku a quick hug before rushing back to her house, she prayed that her parents weren't home from work yet.

She was trying to decide if she should leave a note or just disappear, either way her parents would come looking for her.

Chihiro decided to take the back way up to her house just in case her parents were home so she could sneak into her room.

There was a tree Chihiro could easily climb into her bedroom and leave undetected, Chihiro never snuck out like a lot of other teenagers she knew but Chihiro knew how to get in and out of her house quietly.

Chihiro hoisted herself up into the tree and made sure she was steady on the large branch before squeezing her bedroom window open.

The wind caught the old wooden framed window sending a loud smacking noise throughout the house.

Chihiro cursed as she pulled herself into her room and hurriedly closed the window.

"Chihiro? Sweetie is that you?" Her mom called up the stairs

"Crap." She mumbles "Yeah." Chihiro calls back, Chihiro walked out of her room and went to the top of the stairs.

"Did you climb in through your window?" Her mom asks from the bottom of the stairs

"Yeah I forgot my keys at work." Chihiro lies

"Why didn't you knock?" Her mom laughs

"I don't know." Chihiro shrugs

"Okay well anyway come down stairs." Chihiro's mom tells her

"Mom I'm kinda busy." Chihiro says

"Chihiro don't lie." Her mom laughs "Come down here, your dad's best friend and his wife are here." Her mom waves as she walked away from the stairs to the living room.

Chihiro rolled her eyes heading down the stairs, Chihiro father's best friend and his wife the Nushi's always seemed to come over when it was inconvenient.

Luckily her and Haku weren't meeting until tonight so Chihiro had time but she felt anxious.

"Chihiro come sit sweetheart." Her mom pats the seat next to her on the couch

Chihiro could see her dad and Mr Nushi out on the back

porch laughing about something as they smoked and drank some kind of amber colored alcohol.

"It's been a while Chihiro." Mrs Nushi smiles at Chihiro from the love seat

"You guys came over last month." Chihiro says

"Chihiro hush." Her mom pats Chihiro's hand, she rolled her eyes in response

"It's okay I'm kind of out of it anyway." Mrs. Nushi sighs clutching her drink

"Oh I'm sorry dear can I get you something?" Mrs Ogino asks

"No Yuko it's okay." Mrs Nushi faked a smile. "Chihiro how old are you now?" Mrs Nushi asks

"I turned 18 in March." Chihiro says wondering if she could excuse herself to get a soda then sneak upstairs and outside.

"Oh you're growing up so fast." Mrs Nushi sighs "My Kohaku would have been turning 20 this year." Mrs Nushi looks down

"Uhhh." Chihiro's mouth hung open

"Chihiro close your mouth." Her mom lightly pinched her

Chihiro's head started to hurt, she hadn't forgotten that Haku's full first name was Kohaku but he never corrected her when Chihiro called him Haku.

Were Haku and Chihiro's parents friends somehow connected?

"I'm sorry Saki normally Chihiro has better manners." Chihiro's mom says

"No it's alright I'm sorry Yuko this time of year is just rough." Mrs Nushi deeply sighs "My dear husband likes to pretend he isn't hurting too but I know he is."

"Here Saki let me freshen your drink." Chihiro's mom offers

" Oh alright." Mrs Nushi nods

Chihiro's mom gathered up the drinks and went to the kitchen leaving Chihiro and Mrs Nushi.

"I'm sorry too Mrs Nushi." Chihiro didn't know what to say but she didn't want to sit in silence until her mom came back

"Oh it's alright Chihiro dear." Mrs Nushi sniffs "My Kohaku was a good boy so kind and loving well you remember him don't you?" She asks

"I'm sorry." Chihiro shook her head 'no'

"It's alright you were only four when you two knew each other." Mrs Nushi says "It's funny me and your parents used to joke that you two would end up together but then my Kohaku he he." Mrs Nushi paused as she started to cry

"Chihiro what happened?" Her mom rushes in

"I don't know she just started crying." Chihiro yelps

"Saki it's going to be okay." Chihiro's mom hugs Mrs Nushi

Chihiro took this as her que to run upstairs, the sun had started to go down and Chihiro was sure Haku was waiting for her.

Chihiro gave up gathering a bunch of things and just grabbed her pillow and her crossbody bag it had most of the things she couldn't live without anyway.

Chihiro thrust open her bedroom window and jumped out and Chihiro ended scrapping her legs on the bark of the tree.

"Owwww." Chihiro whined before shaking off the pain and praying her legs and Converses would carry her fast enough down the street before her parents would notice.

Chihiro made it to the stairs at the end of the street and took a moment to take a breath and rushed down the stairs skipping some stairs on the way down.

Chihiro finally made it to the bottom of the stairs now feeling her phone vibrating in her pocket.

It was almost a without thought Chihiro took her phone out and chucked it down the street, Chihiro had to rip off the band-aid and go back to the spirit world with Haku.

Chihiro took another deep breath and ran into the dense forest that lead to the abandoned fair grounds entrance to the spirit world. The road was dark but Chihiro felt this calm feeling, she was not afraid.

True to his word Haku was there waiting for her, he stood his back leaning against the abandoned entrance.

"Sorry Haku." Chihiro stopped in front of him

"Are you okay?" Haku asks

"I'm good." She nods "Let's go."

Haku nods and smiles before taking Chihiro's hand.


"Is it how you remember?" Haku asks when they reached the red bridge crossing over to Aburaya bathhouse

" I yeah." Chihiro nods looking up at him "Thank you." She smiles

"For what?" Haku asks

"Just everything." She looks down, Chihiro wanted to mention she was very certain that she met his parents and that she didn't know how it would be possible to live in his world but Chihiro kept it to herself.

"Come let's go inside." Haku squeezed her hand behind leading the way

Chihiro followed and hung on tight to Haku she didn't want to let go