Rin was surprised to see a message from Riki on her phone. Ever since the secret had been revealed, he hadn't said a word to her or even looked her in the eye. Her hands were shaking as she opened the message.

'Can we talk in the baseball clubroom?'

This was a good sign, wasn't it? Riki was willing to talk to her at long last. Her heart was pounding as she texted back a response. She hurried there as fast as she could. When she arrived, Riki was already there, sitting on a bench and gazing at the floor.

"Riki." Rin closed the door behind her, staring at him with an awkward expression.

Riki raised his head, meeting her gaze. "Hey." He swallowed, looking away. "So, er, are you going to have a seat?"

Rin made her way over to the opposite bench and sat down. She drew in a deep breath which she slowly released. A thick, uncomfortable silence hung over the two. "Um... so, have you forgiven me?" She peeked up at him through her bangs.

"Eh?" Riki looked startled. "What are you talking about? Shouldn't it be the other way round?"

"Hm?" Rin tilted her head. "What do you mean? I thought you were mad at me and Kyousuke, because we were doing all that... and we were keeping it a secret too."

"Well, yeah." Riki hung his head, putting a hand to his forehead. "I was pretty angry, yeah, and I was hurt. I still don't know what to make of it. The thought of you and Kyousuke being together like that, it's really hard to wrap my head around. I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to understand. But, the way I've been treating you two, it just wasn't right. I've been ignoring you the past few days. You must have been so hurt, Rin."

"Well..." Rin looked down at her hands. "It did make me really sad. I didn't like that you weren't talking to us anymore. I thought you hated us and... I don't want that. I don't want you to hate us, Riki."

"I don't hate you." Riki dropped his hand into his lap, shaking his head. "I just needed some time to think about it. I was being unfair to you. Rin, can you forgive me?"

"Well... I don't really see what I have to forgive you for, but okay."

Riki's lips formed a small smile. "Thank you. I hope that Kyousuke can forgive me too. So, does he really make you happy, Rin? Are you happy with the way things are right now?"

"Uh huh." Rin nodded.

"Are you sure this is a good idea though?" Riki bit his lower lip. "What if something changes? Like, what if one of you falls out of love or... I don't know. Your relationship as siblings could be affected forever, but then again, I guess it's too late, isn't it? It's already changed so much. I don't suppose you could ever go back if you wanted to."

"Hmm." Rin frowned. "Well, I don't really think about complicated stuff like that."

"I guess you wouldn't." Riki smiled wryly. "It's a big deal, Rin. Aren't you even a little scared?" He saw Rin shake her head in response. "Alright. Honestly, I think the two of you are making a mistake, but I'm not going to try and change your mind. I just hope it all works out. In the end, I just want you to be happy."

"I am happy." Rin folded her arms. "Kyousuke and I are both happy together."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that." Riki exhaled. "I hope you'll have a happy future." He gazed into space for a moment, looking thoughtful. "As for everyone else... they are still pretty mixed, I suppose. Komari-san still talks to you, right?"

"Yeah. Kud too. Everyone else... well, they act really odd around me."

"Well, it's a lot to deal with. I think they just don't know how to talk to you at the moment. It's been pretty awkward between all of us. Maybe over time, the awkwardness will go away. But one thing is for sure."

"Hm?"

"I won't let the Little Busters fall apart, so don't worry." Riki stood up, smiling reassuringly at her. "I'll do my best to repair the cracks."

Rin stood up as well, nodding with a smile on her face. "I hope you can. If Kyousuke and I... if we'd destroyed the Little Busters then... that would be really sad."

Riki stepped forward, putting a hand on her head. "Don't worry," he murmured. "Just leave it to me. I can't promise you everything will go back to the way it used to be, but I'll do my best."

Rin's eyes glimmered. "Thank you, Riki."