The following day, Mira was waiting outside when Kyouma arrived.
"You're up early." He told her, sighing.
"You know I never sleep." She smiled back.
They set out without delay. The two walked side by side for a moment before Mira broke the silence.
"Do you know why?"
"Why?" He asked.
She grabbed onto the back of his jacket and pulled herself closer. Her delicate arms wrapped around his waist.
"Because you were late last night. And because you wouldn't go to bed. You said you thought about us. That you wanted to spend more time with me. So I got up earlier so we'd have a chance to talk. Well? What did you think?"
Kyouma paused for a moment, holding back the words he wished he could say. They weren't lies. It wasn't exactly true that he hadn't slept or that he had been thinking about them. His heart knew the truth, but his mind kept telling him otherwise.
"What is it, Kyouma? Come on! Spit it out. Did you really think about how much fun we can have together? Or how we could laugh at the same joke? Did you think maybe we could kiss each other? Did you wish I was wearing something sexy? Like my new dress? Maybe even…"
He stopped her there.
"Yeah, you know what? Forget it!" Kyouma pushed away from her.
Mira frowned.
"It doesn't matter anyway. I just wanted to keep going. I gave it all I got and I failed, just let it go." He said, turning his back on her.
"Kyouma! Don't walk away from me! You promised! We talked about this yesterday. Please come back. Talk to me. Tell me what's wrong. I'll listen. I promise. Just come back. No one will bother us. Come on. Please?"
Her voice caused Kyouma to turn around.
"Please?"
"No."
"If you won't tell me then I'm coming with you. Let me help. I swear I won't get in your way. I just want to be with you. You look like you need someone to hold you. Come on, Kyouma. Please." Mira pleaded as she slowly approached.
"That's it, isn't it? I know you're not doing this for yourself. You never do anything for yourself. You always do things for others. That's what makes you special. But it also makes you weak, Mira. You need to understand that. I mean, you only care about other people. You should take better care of yourself. You shouldn't rely on anyone else to make decisions. You should love yourself. Then you wouldn't need to depend on someone else to do that for you."
Mira frowned. "You're one to talk. I know you think helping all these people is important, but they aren't the most important thing in your life. Right now, I am. I'm the only person who has ever cared about you. I know you want me to stay with you. I know you don't want to be alone, but you don't tell me that. You don't react to me. Would it hurt you to show me some emotion?"
Kyouma reached out for her, but she turned away.
"Then why do you push me away? Why do you act like I don't exist? You think you can just ignore me, but I don't stop caring. I might not say anything, but I still love you. I love you so much. I've loved you since the day we met. I watched you when we first started dating. I saw how you looked at me. How you stared into my eyes. I see you looking at me now. I know you feel the same way I do. You know you love me too, Kyouma. So if you want to know why I never leave you, it's because you always bring me back. My heart isn't broken. It's yours. You won't let it go. And I don't want you to. I don't want you to ever let it go. I just want to be with you. Can I please stay? Please?"
"I—"
"Don't you dare lie to me. Don't you dare try to put on an act. If you want to be with me, then prove it. Prove it by staying with me. Show me that you love me enough to stay. Love me enough to face reality. Please, Kyouma. Don't run away. Don't pretend. Be honest. Take off your mask. Tell me you love me. Say it! Please! What are you afraid of? Do you hate me so much that you can't admit it? Are you worried I'll reject you? Is that it? You don't want to lose me, do you? Well, why didn't you tell me that you don't want to live anymore? This is a cry for help! A plea for attention. I know you're hurting. I know you want to give up. I don't blame you. I understand why you'd want to die. But I refuse to let you! I won't let you kill yourself. Not until you've made your peace with how badly you screwed up and not just for yourself, but for me too, because I want you to be happy. I have to know that you're okay before I can forgive you. So please. Stop running away. Don't hide behind a mask. Don't keep me in the dark any longer. I don't know what's bothering you, but whatever it is, I can handle it. I want to help. I want to be there for you. I want to be your friend. I want you to be mine. I want you to love me. I love you, Kyouma. I do. And no matter what you decide, I will always love you. Always."
Mira stood in front of him, hands balled into fists, face inches from his. She was smiling, but her lips were pulled tight, as if she'd been holding back tears.
He knew he should have taken her in to get checked after investigating that house. He should have expected her to behave like this after someone had tried to murder them all. No wonder she hadn't said anything to him about it yet. He should have realized that someone could try to kill her. Yet, somehow he failed to notice. And he wasn't ready. Ready to defend her. Ready to support her. Ready to stand for her.
