Burning The Midnight Oil

by Ni'Rala vas Qwib Qwib

One small case of good intentions can bring forth spectacular change, or unmitigated disaster. Or both, in their case. But if things don't all come crashing down, the night might just belong to them. FutaroXNino. Rated for smut/erotica. (Arc 1: 1-14; Arc 2: 15-31; Arc 3: 32-present)

29. Forgiveness

Burning The Midnight Oil

Chapter 29

Forgiveness

~Nino~

"Web MD!" Itsuki cried as she barged through the door.

"What's that?" Futaro's father asked, stepping aside.

"It's so obvious!"

"Not to me."

Itsuki slammed the stack of books on the kotatsu and slumped like Adonis finally free of the weight. "Why didn't we just use Web MD? They're so heavy..."

Nino blinked in thought, then gasped, "You're right! We could've skipped all of this, couldn't we? How could we have forgotten that?"

Futaro asked, "What's Web MD?"

Three sets of identical eyes beamed at him with the power of Medusa. Yotsuba peered from behind her own stack of books she carried as easily as feather pillows and said, "Oh. That's why."

Itsuki wined, "Why can't you just have a decent phone? Raiha does..."

Nino sighed, "I forgot we entrusted our education to a guy as technically incompetent as a caveman."

"Still in pain here, thanks."

"Oh hush, you're getting better."

Itsuki perked up, "Huh? He's what?"

"You're getting better, Futaro? That's great!" Yotsuba cheered as she dropped her stack on the kotatsu. It towered over Itsuki's like a bully looking for lunch money.

"Of course he's getting better! Papa came by and took care of him! Didn't you see my text?"

Itsuki moaned, "With what hands? With what hands, Nino!?"

Yotsuba said, "I offered to carry more for you."

"You'd be walking blind if it got any taller."

"I could try-"

"Balancing them on your head?" Nino guessed. Futaro looked at them like they'd started speaking Mongolian.

"I mean, I could try, couldn't I? Whatever helps."

Futaro asked, "Why'd you get so many anyways? Seems like you brought this on yourself."

Itsuki shot up, glaring with hellfire, "No! You brought this on us! Could you have been any vaguer telling us what to get?"

"Yes."

"That's all you have to say for yourself?"

"What? I answered the question, didn't I?"

Itsuki groaned in defeat, realizing it was pointless to argue semantics with this second cousin of a computer. Raiha brought her a glass of water and patted her back. Itsuki hugged her and asked, "Do you know how far it is from the library to here?"

"Fourteen minutes, give or take depending on lights." Futaro knew this very well.

Itsuki's eyes widened in darkness as she realized empathy was an ethereal dream. She slumped, saying, "My poor arms."

Nino was about to remind Itsuki that she knew where she was going, she knew what a text might mean, and she should be smart enough after six months of tutoring to put two and two together. But then the doorbell rang.

His father perked up, having resigned himself to being a wallflower. "Huh? Think he's back with a bill?"

"He already left one," Futaro muttered darkly. Yotsuba looked at him expecting an explanation, and was disappointed.

Nino heard his father open the door, saying, "Hello? Oh, it's you, Miku."

Only one name could have killed their noise quicker. Nino felt her back straighten like a chiropractor was turning her spine into a highway.

"H-hello, mister Uesugi."

"Don't just stand there, in you come."

"Oh, no, I'm not," Miku started, then stopping like he shoved a sock in her mouth.

"Ah, I see. And what's this, then?"

"Just a, just something I came to deliver."

"For Futaro, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well then, would you prefer leaving it with me?"

There was a pregnant silence as everyone, Miku included, waited for her answer.

"...No, if it's alright. May I?"

"Of course."

It took her no time to slide out of her flats and step inside. Her cheeks were chilled apple red from the cool spring air. She held a large bag in front of her body like a portable wall. She closed her eyes and nodded, almost bowed to them, "Pardon my intrusion."

Futaro bit his lip, saying, "Of course."

The two stared at each other long enough that the awkwardness died for everyone else and they impatiently willed one of these two social dunces to form a bloody syllable. They were like finalists in the world staring competition.

Nino was equally proud and relieved with her boyfriend when he finally said, "I need to thank you."

"For what?"

"For helping me before."

"Oh. It wasn't any trouble."

Futaro's lips twitched like they were teasing something behind his lips. He said, "It was pretty crowded, but no one tried to help me but you. So thanks."

Miku blinked, then glanced away, and Nino suddenly worried her cheeks weren't flushed from the cold. "Please don't mention it."

She wondered when she learned to read those things Futaro left unsaid, it was like peering into mist looking for shadows. But there was something there, right now. It was shapeless, something he couldn't express. It made Nino uncomfortable.

He nodded and glanced at the package, and being the man with a primitive need to call out the obvious, stated, "You brought something."

Miku held it out, "It's for you. For your birthday."

Yotsuba lit up, "Oh! It's the-ah!" she slapped her hands over her mouth, knowing any opening would leak the surprise.

"You know it's tomorrow, right?" he asked.

"Yeah. I was going to give it to you tomorrow at school, but I thought with all this, you won't be there, so...here." She set it next to Futaro gently, then rose like a vine searching for something to grab. "I, I hope you like it."

His father asked, "You gonna be at his party tomorrow?"

Miku said, "No, I didn't..."

"Ah, well it's something Nino here was putting together, at your place, I think."

Miku shook her head, "I don't think so."

He nodded, "I see. Well, why don't you let him open it now? Better he do it with you, right?"

Miku tried waving it aside, "No, that's okay."

Itsuki took her shoulder, "It can't hurt, right? I know you put a lot of thought into this."

Miku withdrew into herself like a hedgehog curling into a dangerous ball. When she dared to poke her head out again, she meekly nodded, "Okay. Sure."

She watched Futaro take the bag and rifle through the wrapping paper. He looked skeptical at the carefully wrapped package inside, as if he had something to say about so much waste. But his expression softened like melting butter in a hot skillet when he peeled away the packaging and revealed a bold, blue world almanac.

"I always wanted one of these," he admitted softly in a voice Nino selfishly wanted only for herself. He looked at Miku and said, "Sometimes it's like you can read my mind."

Nino knew that Futaro was still trying to bring Miku back to them in his own way. But for all his emotional progress, and it was remarkable, he was still deaf to the simplest truths. He still imagined he could regain his old bond with Miku as student and teacher, like a soldier returning from a long deployment and expecting home to match his memory. But the past was nowhere to go back to. Miku had moved on, and Futaro didn't realize he had to find her in this new, unknown territory. And Miku wasn't ready to light a candle to guide him.

Miku blinked, and hastily turned away, "Well, I'm glad you like it. I should be going, then."

"Miku?" he asked. She turned, and he continued, "What'd you think of that book?"

Miku opened her mouth, paused, and admitted, "I never finished it."

"Oh," Futaro said flatly.

Miku nodded to herself, then said, "Okay. Bye."

And as she slid through the door like a handkerchief caught in a breeze, Nino watched her sister wafting away again, after having said all of two words to her. It was just like in the lobby before, her voice failed like a blown circuit. But she couldn't let her go like this. She had to push through. She would not let her sister escape again before finally finding the right words.

"I'll be right back. Miku!" She called as she slid on her shoes and hurried out the door.

Miku was already in the street. She ran down the stairs like she was racing gravity and caught her before the intersection. She said, "Miku, wait! I, look, there's something I wanna say."

Miku was a woman trapped by space and time, and would have given more than she had to her name to escape her sudden snare. But Nino suspected that somewhere inside her, she needed to hear this as much as Nino needed to say it. So she stopped and waited like an F1 racer in the pits.

Nino said, "I should've been there to stop him, but I wasn't. But you were, and I think, it's because of you that he's okay."

"I didn't do much," Miku said.

"But you did something, and it's a hell of a lot more than anyone else did. I'm so angry with our entire school for buying into all this bullshit, and now for just leaving him there when he was in so much pain! But you actually did something, despite everything. So, I owe you, okay? I owe you for that."

Miku looked surprised. She'd been expecting thanks, not debt. She shook her head and said, "You don't owe me anything."

"Yes, I do."

"No," she said sadly, "Because, because I could've warned you about your desk."

Nino stiffened, her hands balling. She didn't want to remember this now, not when they finally had a chance to heal. "So you knew? You knew and you didn't tell me?"

"Not exactly. I only found out when I arrived, and then I was too stunned to think to text you. And when I did, well, it was too late." Miku was sullen, like the sky was pushing her down. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you. And I'm sorry they called you all those names. You don't deserve that."

But Nino, she almost smiled. She was relieved, because at least Miku hadn't been in on this with Ichika.

"And I noticed something else."

"What?"

"You stopped calling him Fuu. I just noticed, you used to say it all the time."

Nino frowned, "You told me to, remember?"

"Oh. Did I?" Miku looked away guiltily. "Well, forget I said it."

"But you were right, you made it."

"It's fine. It was your idea anyways. I don't want to get in the way."

"You were never in the way," Nino insisted.

Miku muttered, "Thanks."

She sprung forward, surprising Miku with a hug. It felt so warm despite the cold, like wrapping yourself in a warm blanket. It was long overdue. But Miku only returned her affection halfheartedly, it was all of her that was ready to welcome her family back into her life. But half was better than nothing, right? It gave Nino hope that they could all be together again someday.

She let go and said, "So, we are having his party tomorrow. You can come if you want."

Miku frowned, "I already said no."

"Well just think about it, okay? I know he'd be happy if you were there. We all would."

Miku sighed, and said, "Fine, I'll think about it, okay?"

"Okay."

This time she let her go, watching Miku until she rounded the corner like a mother watching her child board the bus by themselves for the first time. She could imagine how much willpower it took Miku to wait for her in the lobby, and then to come here in the first place. It must have taken even more to turn around and face her sister in the street.

When she returned, she was greeted by Mister Uesugi, who said, "Welcome back. So, you girls planning on staying for dinner?"

Miku hadn't even considered dinner and almost panicked when she noticed the time. She was supposed to thaw the beef!

She was so distracted that she hadn't even processed his question when Itsuki answered for them, "Can we!?" she asked excitedly.

He nodded, "Of course! Just like old times for us, isn't it? Raiha, we're gonna need a few more plates, can you manage it?"

Raiha spun around, shouting, "Um, sure thing! Just about to get started!" Nino watched her rummage from one cupboard to another, tapping her foot as she scanned the ingredients. There wasn't much, but certainly enough to make a few proper meals. So it surprised Nino when Raiha opened the same cupboard twice without taking anything.

She suspected something was wrong when she made the rounds again.

"Hey Nino, come here a second."

Nino followed Futaro's father behind the kotatsu as he said, "Hey, I got a favor to ask you. You mind giving Raiha a hand tonight?"

"She's not going to let me, you saw her earlier."

"Yeah, well, things've changed. Your old man, he told us Futaro can't have anything spicy for a while."

"And?"

"And there's our problem." He smiled at his daughter as she struggled to plan, "We never had much, see, not when she was growing up. We couldn't afford the best ingredients for fancy meals, but spices are always cheap, so that's what she knows how to use. She'll do her best, I'm sure, but she'd be open for some help, if you can."

Nino glanced at the girl's back as she gently weighted some frozen fish in her palms. She couldn't help but remember all her harsh words the night Futaro introduced her as his girlfriend, or the blatant favoritism she gave her sisters, or anyone else in the same room, really. It would have been easy to say no.

But as Raiha pulled out a pan without any plan how she was going to use it, Nino imagined this must have been what her mother saw in her back when she was still alive. A little girl in a struggling family doing her best where she can.

"What are you doing?" Raiha almost shouted as Nino opened the fridge.

"I'm gonna help with dinner, you okay with that?"

"Go away, I can do it myself!"

Nino had to bite her tongue, wondering if her mother had done the same for her. She hadn't been quite as petulant as Raiha, but not by much. She said, "I'm sure, but we need to get this right, don't we? For your brother."

Raiha's eyes screamed, she wanted to say something back to get this intruder out of her space. But Nino saw they shared the same weakness. They'd always swallow their pride for their family.

Nino pulled out the milk, butter and flour, then a few colorful vegetables from the lower basket, and finally some pasta from the pantry. She checked the milk's expiration. It was expired too, but at least it wasn't the same carton as last time.

"What are you gonna make?" Raiha asked glumly.

"Vegetable pasta in cream sauce."

"We don't have any cream sauce."

"So we're gonna make some."

Raiha blinked, "You can make that?"

As she demonstrated, she could. She stirred the melted butter, flour and milk together into a smooth mixture, then had Raiha prepare the pasta and watch the stove while she cut the vegetables for stir-fry. Raiha watched when she heard the knife hitting the block like a machine gun.

"Careful, you'll cut yourself going that fast!"

"I'm fine, it's all from practice."

She used the knife to scrape the vegetables into the skillet and took over, calling for her sisters to help set the table as they worked. She boiled the sauce down until it was reasonably thick. She'd have preferred to have some heavy cream, but she worked with what was at hand, not in her dreams. She had Raiha strain the noodles and pour them into the sauce, then mixed it with the vegetables. Raiha's hand stopped her when she reached for the spices.

"Brother can't have that now!"

"It won't be enough to do hurt him, just to give this some flavor," she explained as softly as she could, "I care about him too. You better remember that."

Nino knew she would, because if she didn't, she'd remind her as many times as it took. But the way Raiha was looking at her made Nino think she understood.

"Ta da! Dinner is served," she said proudly amid six steaming plates of perfectly digestible creamy pasta. It certainly wasn't her best work, if she'd had it her way she'd be working in a kitchen stocked like they were filming a cooking show, but she thought she deserved a little praise for working with her ingredients of the day.

Futaro's father carefully helped his son sit up at the table. He took out a few of the pills after reading the printed instructions and set them on his plate. "Nino, Raiha, this looks fantastic. Thank you for your hard work for us."

Raiha watched Futaro take his first bite. Nino suspected she secretly hoped he'd be as repulsed by her dish as he'd been with her broth, but thanks to either time, medicine or her amazing culinary talent, he slowly took another bite.

Raiha looked sullen as she resigned herself to her food. Something changed when she took a bite of her own, like she turned a corner and found a city block built entirely of confetti. She chewed slowly, swallowed, and said, "It's good."

Nino tried keeping that from going to her head, and failed.

After dinner, Futaro's father handled the dishes while Raiha played with Itsuki and Yotsuba. It was an unspoken rule in Futaro's family that those that cooked did not clean. It was good to see they tried to keep some level of fairness. But then she glanced at Futaro and wondered what this lazy bum did around the house besides process air.

Well, he did know how to clean, so there was that.

After placing the last plate on the drying rack, his father spun around and checked his watch, "Wow, the hours sure flew by. You girls got any plans on getting home?"

Nino nodded, "I was just thinking-"

"'Cuz it's getting dark, and you're welcome to stay here if you prefer."

What? No. Absolutely not. Totally out of the question! What was he even thinking asking them to stay the night?

Itsuki and Yotsuba cheered, "Wow, that's so generous!"

"Can we really?" Yotsuba asked again like she was worried it was all a dream.

"Of course, Itsuki's already stayed with us and we'd be happy to have the rest of you."

While Raiha cheered with her overly-elated siblings, Nino groaned. Staying the night? With Futaro? And Raiha? And his freaking father? This just screamed awkwardness like a lost child at a theme park.

Futaro raised an eyebrow, "Huh? Why're you looking so upset? It's nothing we haven't done before."

Nino hissed, "This is totally different from the ski trip! Totally different!"

"I've stayed at your place more times than I-"

"Separate bedrooms, doofus! Totally! Different!"

"Nino, can I have a second?"

Nino went rigid as she remembered how small their home really was. These walls, thin as they were, were happy to reflect every little sound like a megaphone. She reluctantly followed his father near the door and let him draw her close.

"I'll be leaving soon to work the night shift. You won't need to worry about me."

Nino stuttered, "O-oh, I didn't mean-"

He waved it away like a whiff of smoke, "It's alright, I get it. But if you hear me out, I have a favor to ask you." He glanced to Futaro and continued, "If there's one thing he inherited from me, and it definitely wasn't my brain, it's my stubbornness. I'm sure you noticed."

"Definitely."

"Well, he can never admit when he needs some help, but I think he does. And I'm not going to be here when he needs it, and I'm not sure Raiha can handle it all by herself. So I know it's a lot to ask, but if you could help him, it would mean a lot to us."

She glanced back at Futaro, who was rummaging through all the library books her sisters brought back. He didn't show pain like before, but one of his hands was still holding his stomach.

Nino said, "I mean, my sisters probably want to stay anyways."

"Yeah, I figured."

He left an hour later, leaving the home and one bedridden son in the hands of the four young women. Raiha gave each of them a spare sweatshirt and sweatpants for sleep and let them rotate through the bathroom to wash and change. Nino pulled her head through the oversized home-wear and looked at herself in the mirror, wondering if she was wearing Futaro's clothing.

"Hey, are these yours?"

Futaro looked up from his book, "Hmm, I think so."

Wearing her boyfriend's clothes. This wasn't exactly what she had in mind, and that was the problem. Still, they were plenty comfy, like wearing an enormous rug. She held out her arms to her sides and watched as the end of the sleeves slumped over her hands, making her feel tiny. She wondered if he would miss it if she kept it.

Then she realized her sisters were also wearing his clothes and was significantly deflated.

Itsuki watched Futaro read and asked, "You're really gonna study those?"

Futaro shrugged, "Why not? Saves me a trip to the library. I was gonna get something after the exams anyways."

Itsuki sighed, "At least it wasn't for nothing."

If his father imagined this to be a hospice event, the sisters had different ideas. Nino watched as the three other girls treated the happy circumstances as an impromptu sleepover, one that she just couldn't get into the mood for. She was almost happy when it was time to pull out the futons and get to bed. All she wanted from this chaotic day was an ending.

But of course, she didn't get to pick where she slept. Yotsuba did. And of course Yotsuba thought she'd want to sleep next to her boyfriend. How kind and horribly ill-informed. She was nowhere near ready for that yet!

But arguing was a luxury for the energetic, and she used all she'd had with papa. So she resigned herself to her bed and bid her and his family goodnight.

But before she could close her eyes, she felt something shift over her head. There was another head disturbingly close to hers. Her long hair tickled her cheeks.

Raiha leaned in close to whisper, "Nino?"

"Uh, Raiha?"

"Can you show me how to make that sauce later?" she asked meekly, "Please?"

She was so blindsided by the request she forgot how to respond. She barely noticed how strained her voice sounded, and how hard it was for Raiha to ask.

I want to cook, too!

Nino could only nod under Raiha's bashful eyes. The girl whispered, "Thank you," then scurried back to her place between Itsuki and Yotsuba.

She knew she should have felt something. Maybe happiness that Raiha was looking to her as something more than an obstacle. Maybe discomfort at another commitment she wasn't ready to add. But after everything today, she just felt tired, too tired to figure out how to feel. So she pulled up her covers and tried to sleep.

The key word was tried.

She tossed and turned for over an hour, long after soft snores began to echo from the other futons. She desperately wanted to add hers to the chorus. All she wanted was for today to end and to leave its anxiety-inducing plights behind her. But she'd only felt more awake since lying down, and closing her eyes felt like a waste of time.

"Ugh," she groaned, throwing her arms out in a huff.

"Can't sleep?"

"What're you still doing up?"

Futaro stretched, "Dunno, I'm not hurting too bad or anything. Just can't sleep, I guess."

Nino snorted, "Same. What's wrong with us? We're entitled to some shut-eye after such a crappy day. Is some unhappy sandman trying to punish us?"

"Just our luck, isn't it."

"I guess," she turned to face him, "So you're really not hurting?"

"I'm not great, but definitely better than before. Guess your dad was right."

"He's a good doctor, after all. I'm just glad you're doing better," she paused, then said, "I was really worried, you know. I freaked out when Miku told us what happened, they can tell you."

"I can imagine."

"Don't you dare lie to me like that again, got it? I don't care if you think it's for our own good, you better never keep something like that from me, or else."

"Or else what?"

"Do you really wanna find out?"

"No."

"So why are you smiling?"

"Am I? I hadn't noticed."

"You are!" You-!" Nino covered her mouth, checking behind her to see if anyone heard her.

Futaro chuckled, which made Nino bristle. She said, "What're you laughing at?"

"Nothing."

"Well cut it out then."

"It's just, no."

"Say it."

"I think you look cute when you get like that."

She sneered, "Get like what? Cut it out!"

He wasn't deterred, smirking, "Proving my point."

"Oh stop it," Nino said. Her heart was racing under his stare like it was hard exercise. She rolled on her back and stared at the ceiling, muttering, "Come on. Sleep."

Futaro said, "How'd you convince him to come, anyways?"

Nino said, "I'm not sure, actually. It didn't go like I expected. Or, it did, and then it didn't. It's hard to explain."

"Still, I know what it must've meant for you to go to him," Futaro muttered, "So thanks, for doing that for me."

Nino swelled inside, because it mattered to her that he noticed. It mattered that he understood what it meant asking for his help. She reached out for his hand and found it, "It's because of you, you know? You weren't supposed to go picking a fight with my sister, of all people."

"I know."

"But," she continued, "I'm glad that you tried doing something about it. For me."

Futaro squeezed her hand, "Of course-"

"But don't you dare do something so stupid again. Got it?"

"...Of course."

Nino smirked and squeezed his hand back, pulling it a little closer. As she did, she saw the time on her watch.

"Futaro?"

"Hmm?"

"It's five past twelve."

"So?"

"...You're supposed to be the smart one."

"I don't have to prove that."

Nino sighed, then pulled off her covers. "Wait here." She quietly tiptoed to the door for her purse. She took out a small package covered in pink wrapping paper as elegant as any of her dresses.

"Here," she offered it from her bed.

Futaro took it, asking, "What's this?"

Nino leaned in and kissed his cheek, "Happy birthday, Fuu!"

He blinked, looking over the package. "Huh."

"That's all you've gotta say? You should be more excited! It's your first birthday with your wonderful girlfriend who worked so hard to get you a nice gift!"

It was probably his first time celebrating with anyone outside his family, but that was beside the point. She got to celebrate his 18th first. Just the two of them.

"Go on, open it! Open it!"

"Quiet! You'll wake them up." Futaro whispered as he peeled away the wrapping. He paused halfway through, saying, "You called me Fuu."

"Yeah, so?"

"Nothing, it's just, it's been a while."

Nino grinned, "Oh, you noticed? Does it make you happy?"

"It's just a name," he said, not wholly convincingly.

She watched him peel the rest of the wrapping away to reveal the watch case. He opened it and held the time piece between his fingers, examining it like an appraiser at a pawn shop.

"A wrist watch?"

"A gentleman's wrist watch, now that you're all grown up."

He could have joked with her, she fully expected something sarcastic to follow. Instead he slipped it on, and Nino was happy to see how closely she'd guessed his wrist size. He held it up to the moonlight and watched the crystal glitter. She thought he might be smiling.

"This is nicer than anything I own."

"Of course it is, I have an eye for these things."

"You really do," he said, and she just couldn't take it. Why was he being so sweet all of a sudden? He wasn't normally this genuinely grateful for anything, and it made him suave as a secret agent sipping shaken martinis to her. She felt her heart pounding so hard she worried he'd feel it through her hand.

But this was Futaro, who had until recently been content ignoring and being ignored by the wider world. Perhaps the first time someone with no familial bond, with no real obligation to him, when this person chose to make his day special and to spend time finding something he would love, it woke up something inside him, just like that night in the swelling music.

Futaro kissed her hand. "Thank you Nino."

She would have hidden under her blanket if it wasn't dark enough to hide her blush. She leaned in closer, kissing his hand back. "Happy birthday, Fuu."

And many more, she silently promised.

~Nino~

"Three barbecue combos without the barbecue, please."

Three identical siblings sat facing what a dietitian would only generously call meals. White rice, miso soup and pickles, with all the water they could drink.

"I'm hungry," Itsuki moaned.

"Me too," Yotsuba wined.

Nino grumbled, "You wanted to stay over, right? You made your choice."

Itsuki said, "I can't believe Futaro lived off this for two whole years. My belly would go on strike."

Yotsuba tried making the best of a bad situation with several packs of free soy sauce. "He was right though, it's the best deal for our money. It's not like we have much left."

"We have enough to get us through," Nino said, "And besides, who knows how much longer we'll be on our own."

Itsuki said, "You mean tomorrow, right? Dinner with dad?"

Nino nodded, "I promised I'd come home if he helped Futaro, but I never actually agreed to it because he demanded I stop seeing Futaro, too. But then he went and did it anyways, so I don't know. I don't know what'll happen."

Itsuki said, "He's going to try convincing us to come home."

"I think so, too. I'm just not sure how."

Yotsuba said, "I'm kinda surprised he hasn't forced us home yet, honestly."

Nino said, "I think he knows that if he tried, we'd just leave like before. He wants us to come back on our own, then he knows we'll never try it again."

Yotsuba asked, "So if he asks, we say no, right?"

Itsuki said, "I think it depends on what he says. We set out to prove a point. If he understands that-"

"And accepts Fuu!" Nino added.

"Right, and accepts Futaro, I don't see why we need to stay away."

Her sisters nodded in agreement as they ate, and Yotsuba added, "What about Ichika and Miku?"

Nino said, "I don't think Miku will be a problem. Ichika, though..." she glared across the room where Ichika was surrounded by her sycophants. She wondered how long they'd stay attached when her star faded.

Itsuki sighed, "Yeah, well we'll worry about her when we get there. Dad first."

Yotsuba frowned, "Aww, so we're still mad at her too. That's so sad."

Nino glared, did Yotsuba really think things could be okay so quickly? After everything Ichika did? She was too forgiving, that was for sure.

They returned their trays and sat through the rest of class. It wasn't long or heavy, as if their teachers developed a strain of mercy after pushing their students so ragged for so long. It'd die quickly, she was sure. The moment they got their scores, their teachers would hammer them with academic chisels to smooth out their rough edges.

After they were dismissed, they went to change shoes and leave as quickly as they could. Nino insisted they stop at a party store for a few basic supplies. They might be low on cash, but she was sure she could convince the manager to give her a couple extra shifts to cover it.

They passed a group of girls by their lockers on their way. Nino saw them eyeing her like a steak on a serving platter, giggling as she passed.

Yotsuba frowned, "That's just not fair. Why can't they just let it go?"

Itsuki took her shoes and said, "It'll die down after a while, they just need something new to gossip about."

"But it's gonna suck until then," Nino said bitterly. But there was more she didn't want to admit. Her reputation wouldn't return when the rumor mill moved on. One didn't just stop being a 'slut'. It stuck like a drunken tattoo on her forehead.

Nino growled, "I still can't believe she went this far."

Itsuki said, "She couldn't have known it'd get this bad."

"Well she sure as hell doesn't mind that it did."

"Let's just wait for tomorrow, maybe if things go well, Ichika can help make things right."

"Huh?"

They turned to a very confused Yotsuba, a bunny caught under headlights.

"What does Ichika have to do with this?"

Nino deadpanned, "You're kidding me."

Itsuki asked, "Wait, you're serious, aren't you?"

"About what?"

And Nino realized she really wasn't joking. She'd never connected the dots, she'd never been privy to the right conversations to realize that Ichika was behind all of this. Or maybe she had, but pure, innocent Yotsuba couldn't comprehend the idea that their own sister could be so cruel to another. She was too pure for this life. Too pure for this family. Nino actually felt sorry for ruining her fantasy.

Nino took a deep breath and said, "Yotsuba, Ichika was behind the rumors."

"No she wasn't."

"Sorry, but it's true."

She shook her head vigorously, like she was trying to throw off a hornet, "Uh-uh, I don't wanna know where you got to thinking that, but it's definitely wrong. There's no way she'd do that to you. Not ever."

"You're heard those rumors, right? They could only have come from one of us. It's her, she already admitted it. And did you forget how she left the mark?"

"That was an accident!"

"No, it wasn't!"

"We should talk to Futaro, he was close to figuring it all out. Maybe he has a better idea."

Nino grit her teeth, growing tired of Yotsuba's obstinate refusal to see truth. "He was the first to figure it out! How do you think he got hurt?"

"...He did?"

"Yes, he did."

Nino hated watching truth hit Yotsuba like a speeding car. She paled and lost her look of life, and Nino felt guilty when she saw the beginnings of tears in her eyes, "No, no, it can't be right. She, that's just-"

"Yotsuba," Itsuki said calmly, putting her healing hand on Yotsuba's shoulder, "It's true. I'm sorry, I know it's hard, but that's how it is."

Yotsuba's mouth opened as if ready to protest further, because accepting it was too hard to bear. But she had nothing left to deny it with. All she could see was an uncomfortable truth of her family she'd have rather never known. She dropped her head as if the truth had real weight on her neck. Her face was a picture of misery.

Nino sighed and picked up her shoes, sliding them into the locker, as she said, "Look, it's whatever. I'll deal with her later. I see why Futaro never bothered making friends at this school, they're all morons for falling for her bullshit. Let them think what they want."

Itsuki said, "It'll all reset once we graduate. No one'll care what happened after high school."

"We probably won't see any of these people again anyways," Nino said. And with them gone, the only ones left would be the ones that mattered.

Itsuki packed her bag and stood, and looked around, "Yotsuba?"

Nino glanced around for her sister. She was gone.

"Where'd she go?"

~Ichika~

She tried letting it go. She tried setting her mind on anything else, even her studies, and it was only Friday night. But it couldn't work, she was pulled back to those unwanted thoughts like iron dust to a magnet.

Futaro hadn't been at school today.

She'd wanted to ask her father after he returned, but couldn't bring herself to leave her room. She wanted to ask Miku, but she'd shut herself in her room the moment she came home. She wanted to ask Yotsuba, Itsuki, even Nino, but couldn't bring herself to approach them. Not again.

She wanted to assume that their easy mood meant he was fine. But she couldn't be sure. She'd watched it happen, after all. She'd seen the blow. She knew he hadn't just walked it off. He couldn't simply be okay.

But she refused to reach out to anyone who may know. So she tried to shut the thought out again and again, hoping that eventually it'd stay in its cage.

She flipped through the channels hoping for something to distract her. She learned to avoid the news channels, too many sad stories to be of any help there, and settled on a boisterous variety show with some of Japan's best young athletes. She wondered how much coaching they'd been forced through before their agents let them talk in front of live cameras.

The door clicked. It couldn't be dad, he needed to pull overtime today to make up for yesterday and tomorrow.

Yotsuba was standing in the doorway. She looked like she didn't know how she got here, as if some hand in the sky picked her up and dropped her where it pleased.

She caught sight of Ichika sitting on the couch. Her eyes were somewhere far away, like she'd found a dead puppy on the way home from school.

"Yotsuba?" Ichika asked softly.

Yotsuba crossed the room. She didn't take her shoes off.

Ichika got up, "What are you-"

There was a sharp snap and a dull thud.

Ichika couldn't piece together how she ended up on the floor. The tile felt cool as the other side of her pillow on her right cheek, but her left was on fire. She gently looked up to where she used to be.

Yotsuba was towering over her, her hand held out like an executioner's axe.

"How could you?"

"What?" Ichika genuinely couldn't understand. Whatever sense she had was trapped in the train wreck that was her head.

It must have been rote memory that made her muscles move, making her stand, because she was in no state to command them.

They were quintuplets. They should be the same. But even at her full height, Yotsuba looked down on her like a...Ichika didn't know. Yotsuba never looked at her like this. Not at anyone. She looked like a lost spirit jealous of the living.

"Yotsuba-"

She reared back and slapped her again. Her palm was like a category five hurricane carving through life, flesh and bone. Ichika spun back through the living room. She screamed and tried to run, but this was Yotsuba. Where could Ichika go that she couldn't follow?

She violently grabbed the back of Ichika's shirt and spun her like black ice spins a sports bike. She pulled her close, so close she could feel the heat of hell on her breath, and screamed, "How could you!?"

She threw Ichika to the floor like an unwanted doll. Ichika landed on her elbows, her every nerve and synapse screamed at her to escape. She reached out for something to grab, found a cabinet, and tried to pull herself away. But that wasn't going to happen.

Yotsuba grabbed her shoulder and roughly rolled her on her back like she were handling an unruly hog. She threw herself on top of Ichika and grabbed her shirt, roughly shaking her as she screamed.

"How could you say such horrible things! About her! We were never, ever supposed to do that to each other! Not ever! That's all mom wanted, can't you remember!? We were all we'd ever have for sure in the world, and we were never supposed to harm that! What were you thinking!? How could you do it!? How could you!?"

Ichika felt herself pulled back and forth, her head whiplashing like a knight's flail in the heat of war. It was a miracle Yotsuba didn't bash her head against the ground. But it was only luck. Yotsuba never knew her own strength, and now Ichika was receiving it all. A wayward blow, a push too hard, and there goes her head. Yotsuba was going to kill her if she didn't stop herself!

So Ichika didn't answer. She fought like a wild animal trapped in the corner, because that's all she was. She shoved and pushed and pulled, roaring for release.

Yotsuba just kept screaming.

"Why did you have to say those things!? They were nothing but dirty, rotten lies! You're a liar! A liar liar liar liar!"

Ichika screamed, "Get off! Get off me!"

And she did, whether by her command or only to berate her from above, she got up. Ichika didn't stay to listen, she pulled herself up and sprinted like an Olympian hearing the starting gun, screaming all the way up the stairs and slamming the door to her room. She shoved her body against the door, hoping her weight would keep Yotsuba out.

It didn't.

She threw open the door and Ichika with it. She rolled into a pile of clothes building on the floor. She got up, ready to fight the moment Yotsuba tried to put her hands on her.

But she didn't. Maybe the brief distance had made Yotsuba think of her sister's terror, or maybe she realized how violent she'd suddenly become. She just stayed standing in the door, huffing like she was going to blow Ichika out her window, which she feared just might happen.

Yotsuba tried to speak, but her throat cracked her words into crumbles.

"You...you were supposed to be our leader. You always looked after us. Why, Ichika? Why?"

Ichika was too busy breathing to appease her beating heart. She was too worried about surviving. She didn't care about anything else.

When Yotsuba's shoulders bobbed, she thought she was getting ready to punch her. When she began leaking tears like a failing faucet, she thought it was a ploy.

Yotsuba wiped her tears with her sleeve and hitched, "Oh no. No, no no no no."

One moment Yotsuba was there, and then she was gone.

Ichika got up and slammed the door shut. All she cared about was that Yotsuba could still be there waiting for her next strike. She waited there for, she couldn't tell, she couldn't keep track of time. Her breath felt like a vacuum feeding her lungs.

Something soft knocked on her door. Ichika flinched.

"Ichika?"

The voice was soft, too soft for force. It brought Ichika back to reality.

"Is...is she out there?"

"No. Are you okay?"

"I...I think so."

Slowly, carefully, she opened the door. Miku was waiting outside. She looked over her battered sister and asked, "Do you need help?"

"No, no. I'm fine." She wasn't sure, but it felt right to say.

Miku nodded, then looked away, "I...I knew it was you."

Ichika felt something inside her die.

"I knew, but I didn't want to believe it. You..." Miku shook her head sadly, "Never mind. I need to go."

Ichika watched her run down the stairs, to where she wasn't sure. She still wasn't ready to feel.

She shut the door and wished she had a lock. She settled for shoving her dresser in front of it. Only then could she truly breathe. She checked her four walls, her floor and her ceiling, one after the other, until she was sure she was safe.

"I'm okay. I'm okay," she repeated, nodding to herself. "I'm okay."

It took all her willpower to step in front of her mirror. It was too early to see any bruising, and maybe she'd get lucky and most of her sore spots wouldn't color. But she saw her face and knew it would be bad. Her left cheek was red as a rose in full flower. She brought up a hand to touch it, her skin was sensitive to the touch.

She looked at herself in the mirror, and all at once she began to feel the pain. It was stinging all across her body, but her cheek was the worst. It radiated like a hot coal dying in the fire.

She looked in the mirror and saw a girl hurt by her sister. She saw her holding her cheek, crying, mourning what was lost between them. It was her, and then it was not. She could see into another's most private shame and regret. And then she could see everything she'd wanted to ignore.

If it had been someone else, she could deny it. She could cast herself the victim of an unwarranted assault. If only it had been anyone else. But it had been Yotsuba, and so she could not. She could only see the truth that Yotsuba, the purest of eyes, could see.

Ichika cried while looking at her and hers' reflection. In it, she saw all the things she wanted to deny, all the results of her schemes laid bare like an unredacted history. She cried for all the things she'd done, all the pettiness she'd set loose as a plague on her family, and most of all she mourned for how she could never take it back.

~Miku~

She only had an idea where Yotsuba would be. She knew before stepping out the door it was her only chance of finding her. There was no way she would catch her on foot, not even the wind could catch Yotsuba when she wanted to get away.

But as she ran through the sliding doors into the street, she caught the vague outline of a human bunny in the distance right before it rounding a corner. It was the right way so far. If only she stayed predictable, maybe Miku would catch her.

And then, what? She wasn't sure. But like with Futaro, something made her press on.

She was out of breath long before she reached the park. By the time she was close enough to hear the children screaming down slides and chains straining with each swing, her body was ready to collapse. She was surprised she didn't. She wondered where she found the strength. It didn't feel natural to her.

She knew she'd find Yotsuba out of sight, away from prying eyes. She walked to a small outcropping of trees, to small for the children to find any adventures in, and perfect for a distressed girl to find an escape.

Yotsuba found a good place to hide. Miku would have missed her if she hadn't caught her tea rose hair nestled behind the shrubbery like an egg in its nest. She pushed through the bush and squatted in front of her sister.

Yotsuba was curled up like a cannonball, she was sobbing into her arms like an open wound that couldn't close.

"Hey," she said.

"Go away," Yotsuba begged quietly.

She asked, "You okay?" It sounded so stupid. She wished she were Nino, or Itsuki, or even Ichika right now. They'd know what to say to make this right.

Yotsuba sobbed, "Am I okay? Who cares about that! I..." she shook like a heart rate monitor during a heart attack, "I completely lost control. I don't know what I was thinking, I was just so angry that I just, everything just, like, it just came out like, that! And then..."

Now she looked up, and Miku never saw her sister in such despair. Or, she had, once. She'd had her sisters there to save her then. Now she just had Miku. She didn't think she'd be enough.

"And then, when I saw her there, she was so scared. Scared of me! Because I, I hit her! I hit my own sister! I'm as bad, no, I'm even worse! This is so, so much worse!"

She closed her eyes, and Miku felt like she never wanted to open them again. "I'm just, I'm such a terrible person."

And hearing that, Miku knew she'd never heard something so wrong in her life.

What was Yotsuba guilty of? Hitting her sister? Yes, she was. But the reason was important. Everything Yotsuba did, it all came from a place of the deepest love. Yotsuba was pure as fresh fallen snow, she believed in her sisters absolutely, and unconditionally. She saw nothing but the best in who they were and who they would be. And in their darkest moments, it was her that reminded them of all the light they still kept inside, because it was all she could see. Even in her.

If her own voice was always full of doubt, Yotsuba's was the opposite in her ear, an angel on her shoulder. When her hands went limp in defeat, Yotsuba's was there ready to pull her back up. She was always there for her, for all of them, and endless ocean of encouragement. How could you stay down when someone so good told you that you were capable, that you were worth it? She never understood why she deserved so many chances from someone like her. But Yotsuba did, and she always would.

Someone so good should never feel so terrible. Why is it that Yotsuba could see the greatness in everyone except herself? She wished she had her talent, then maybe she could remind her why everyone else loved her so dearly. But she didn't, she was only Miku. The poorest, more unexceptional of the five. It would have been better if it were any of her sisters that found Yotsuba instead of herself.

But here she was. And once more she wanted to be the hand reaching out.

She leaned in and hugged her sister, saying all she could think to say, "Yotsuba, it's okay."

"No it's not! It's not and I, I can't-"

"It's okay," she insisted again. "I know, I know it doesn't feel like it. But it's alright."

Yotsuba finally looked up, meeting Miku's eyes for the first time.

"I hit her."

"Yes," she admitted, "And she'll be alright."

"But we won't! I ruined it. We, it won't be the same."

"No. No it won't," she admitted, in so many ways, "But, if all of us want to, we can make it better."

Yotsuba didn't look hopeful. She asked, "We? Together?"

"Yes, together."

Yotsuba said, "I just want us to be together again. I hate this. I just hate it."

"I know," Miku said, "I do too. But, I think we all do. That's how we're all gonna want to fix it."

"You really think that?"

"I do," she said, not really knowing even as she wanted to. She wondered if Yotsuba ever doubted when she was comforting them. No, she always believed. Now Miku would believe for her.

Yotsuba sniffed and leaned forward into her embrace. Miku felt small, knowing this is all she could think to do. It felt like so little. But just this once, Miku hoped that Yotsuba would believe her back.

~Nino~

"Where'd you even get the money to buy this stuff?" Itsuki wined as she lugged two party bags up the stairs.

Nino said, "I told you I got a promotion and a nice, fat paycheck on the way. Now come on!"

"It's Futaro! He probably won't even notice, he's only just gotten out of bed!"

"Oh he'd better," Nino nodded firmly, "He'd better."

Let it be known that half-assing a celebration was for lesser beings. Nino Nakano was superior. When she celebrated, she lived its very definition! She had streamers! Sparklers! Ribbons! She had a big, shiny banner that read 'Happy Birthday!' in bright, multicolored letters! Futaro was gonna get the birthday of his life and he better remember it!

And when he did, maybe he'd look at her like he did last night. He'd use those big, pretty eyes to cast some man-spell over her and fill her with butterflies as he earnestly said that it was the best birthday he'd ever had.

So yeah, he'd better like it.

Itsuki dropped the bags just before they dropped her at the doorstep. She came up and gasped, "I'd better have biceps after all this!"

"It's Yotsuba's fault for running off like that. She's getting a super thin slice of cake if she doesn't get her butt over here and help decorate."

Nino opened the door and kicked off her shoes, quickly heading for the kitchen. So much to do! There was a cake to bake, walls to decorate, and even a missing girl to gather. But she'd fumed enough about her wayward sister, there was work to be done!

Itsuki steadied herself, hefted her bags, and walked the three painful steps inside before unceremoniously dropping them like a backpack at the end of a long ruck.

"Careful! It's fragile!"

"It's cheap plastic, it's all fragile," Itsuki muttered. She leaned down to take off her shoes, and paused.

"Nino?"

"What?" she asked as she grabbed her mixing bowl.

"These are Ichika's shoes."

She spun and saw them. Pretty white flats with bows on the tongue.

The bedroom door slid open.

"Pardon my intrusion."

An intrusion. It was a good word for her arrival. This wasn't her home anymore. She wasn't welcome. Nino wanted to know what the hell she thought she was doing.

On instinct, Nino gripped whatever she was holding, a whisker, and rounded the counter and thrust it like a rapier, "What do you want? Who said you could come back?"

Ichika held up her hands, "I, I just wanna talk, okay? Please?"

Nino studied her sister. She looked so innocent with her hands up, like a hostage begging for release. Then she noticed her face.

Nino waved her whisker at her cheek, "Where'd you get that?"

Itsuki asked, "Is that a bruise?"

Ichika touched her face, shaking her head, "That's not important, okay?"

Nino huffed, "Not like I care. Now out with it. You wanna talk? Well tough shit, I don't have anything to say to you. So if you've got something to say, spit it out and get gone."

Ichika's eyes swiveled to Itsuki as if expecting help. But for once, Itsuki wasn't a medium among her family, Ichika's actions had forced her to firmly pick a side. Nino felt her support like adrenaline in her chest.

Itsuki said, "Ichika, you shouldn't be here. Especially not without telling us first."

"I know, I should've asked. It's just, I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I erased your numbers."

Somehow that still stung Nino like an angry wasp. She said, "I'm not even surprised anymore. I half expect you to change your name just because I have it too. You've cut us off every other way you can."

"Yeah, I guess I did," she said, and Nino thought she looked weak, like a brittle building waiting for a good wind to knock it down. She wanted to be that wind.

"But," Ichika continued, "I was thinking that, maybe, that might be a mistake."

Nino smiled in mock-sweetness. "It might be too late for that."

"I was hoping, maybe it wasn't?"

She took a breath and in her lungs she infused it with all her fire and rage, everything that Ichika deserved. But Itsuki spoke first.

"So, you came here to apologize?"

Ichika almost smiled as she grabbed her sister's lifeline. "Yes, and, let me start by saying I know that might not be enough."

Nino shook her head, "No, I don't believe it. You said the most vile, no, the most repulsive things you could possibly think of about me! You ruined my reputation and made my own friends think I'm a filthy cock-slut and you did it all with a fucking smile on your face! And now! Now you wanna just say you're sorry!? As if it never happened!?"

"No," Ichika said sadly as her sister's fury washed over her like a tsunami, "I don't want to pretend. I know, I did all that. I can't just take it back."

"So go on then, say you're sorry and I'll tell you to fuck off and we can all get on with our lives. Because that's the only way this is gonna end, you hear me!"

"Nino," Itsuki warned.

"What!?" Nino lashed out, "It's what she fucking deserves!"

It was too much to contain. Like a powder keg meeting a candle, Nino had to explode. There was a rock slide of hurt and rage that needed to fall and wipe away the landscape of their relationship. She'd had no outlet but the innocent, and now the guilty was in front of her at last, just begging for her to scream. It was all she could do to avoid stepping right up to her face and shouting her into the floor.

"Futaro showed me the texts he took from that girl, one of your hive-minded morons you've brainwashed with your miserable bullshit! I saw everything you've been saying about me! You took all of our private moments and turned them into a knife to stab me in the back! You led them like the Pied fucking Piper and made me the laughing stock of the school! Do you have any idea what they've done!? It's not just the graffiti! The whole school thinks I'm the town bicycle! The girls treat me like a used tampon! The guys look at me like I'm a fucking prostitute, like they're hoping they'll be next! Do you have any fucking idea, the slightest fucking idea, how it feels to be looked at like meat at the butcher's every single fucking second!?"

Ichika closed her eyes, "No. Not like you, at least."

"And all of this is because of a fucking boy! One fucking boy! You wanna know something, you bitch? If he'd picked you, if he wanted you to be his girlfriend, I'd have accepted it. I'd have loved you both and been happy for you. Because you're supposed to be my family, the one thing we can never replace. But you know why I didn't tell you straight away when we started dating? There's a reason why I waited one week, yes, it was just one week, to tell you. It's because I couldn't trust you to do the same for me. And I was right. I was so, so completely right about you."

Nino didn't realize she was crying, she didn't need clear eyes to see. Rage was a hell of a precision boost.

"And now I know who really matters in my life. So fuck that class, fuck that school, and most of all, fuck you! If this is what family means to you, then I don't need that in my life. So I want you out, you hear me? I don't need you anymore!"

It hurt to say. She hoped hearing it hurt more. She hadn't given up on them until just now, but in the moment it all came tumbling out.

She would have continued then, if Ichika wasn't crying too.

"Oh, come on. Cut the acting, you spoiled little starlet. I don't want your fake tears."

"They're not," Ichika managed through her tightening throat, "I'm not acting. I just, I know. You're right."

Ichika swallowed hard, like taking an apple down whole, and tried to speak through her mess, "I told myself, when I thought that it was just me and Miku, that if he wanted to be with Miku, I'd be happy for them. I'd be happy for her finally finding something for herself, you know? She changed so much trying to get him to notice her. I was so proud. I just wanted her to succeed. But when he chose you, I just thought after everything you did, after how you treated him, it just wasn't right for him to want you back. It just didn't make any sense, and it made me so angry when I saw how Miku gave up.

So I wanted you to hurt, I thought you deserved it. I wanted you to feel a little of what Miku, and, what I was feeling. So I told them things. It was easy, they were all so interested in my life on set I could slip in whatever I wanted to. To be honest, I didn't think I was doing anything much. I was just telling them things that happened, and they did happen, Nino, but then I let them run wild. I knew what I was doing, I knew how they'd take it, but I told myself that wasn't my responsibility. I told myself that you deserved whatever came to you, that you brought it on yourself."

Nino screamed, "But I didn't! It was you! It was all you! You knew exactly what would happen and you did it anyways! I trusted you with those things, I trusted you! And you-!"

"Yes, I did it anyways," she admitted, "And I told myself it was payback for what you did to me. But I think, I was lying to myself too."

Ichika risked a step closer. Nino felt her blood pulsing like a ticking clock.

"I wanted to think I was doing it for Miku, for hurting her, and because I thought you were spoiled and needed your ego popped, but that wasn't it. The truth is, I was just jealous. I wanted it to be me. And I did whatever I needed to do to justify hurting you. I think, I'd have done it to Miku, too, if he chose her. I know, it's horrible. But I see that now."

Ichika wiped at tears that wouldn't stop. The space between them was so small she could touch her. Ichika reached out.

"And I let myself forget what made you so great and why people love you so much, and why Futaro must love you like he does. And I let my pettiness get in the way, and now I, I can't take it back. I wish I could. I wish I could rewind and start over, I wish I could undo all the things I said and take away all the hurting. But I can't. I'm sorry."

She gently touched Nino's cheek, the one still marred by her mark.

"I'm so, so sorry Nino. I'm just, so, so sorry."

She was surprised how soft Ichika's touch was. When she saw the hand coming, a part of her wanted to slap it away. This was the hand that had hurt her, she didn't want to feel that pain again.

But something deeper let her closer. She didn't want to name it now, doing so felt like a betrayal of everything she'd just said. But it came rising up, she couldn't stop it, because it was her heart. It's what inspired her to work so hard on keeping their house a home, it's what inspired her to fight Futaro so vigorously when he was new on the job.

People were transitory, they trespassed in and out of her life like leaves caught in the breeze. She learned as a little girl she could only trust others so far. One day they would leave. But her sisters were eternal. Together since birth, forever. That was their promise. No matter what, they would always have each other.

And now, when one of her own had erred so grievously and caused so much harm, could she hold true? It wasn't even a question. As she watched Ichika, who was either genuinely full of regret or the greatest actress on the planet, Nino, like her sister, was put to the test. And she realized that she would go to any lengths to keep her sisters close. She would forgive almost any imaginable crime, because this was her sister for life, and though they were five, she was the only one of her kind she'd ever have. Together, they could overcome any trial. Even this.

Nino choked and reached out, cupping Ichika's cheek. Together they held their wounds and felt each other's pain.

Then Nino pulled her into her arms.

"I should've told you."

"No, it's okay."

"I should've said something in the beginning! If I had, then-"

"No, it's not your fault. It's me, I need to-"

"No, stop. No more." Nino insisted, and together they cried their wounded hearts into each other. They felt each others' breath and the wetness of their tears, they heard the despair in their moans and saw the regret in their eyes. They saw each other as they were: imperfect, damaged, and still worthy of love.

When they pulled away, they weren't healed, no it was not so easy. But they were healing, meaning recovery was no longer so impossibly far.

Ichika looked over her shoulder, "Itsuki, I-"

Itsuki, watching from the background with tears of her own, shook her head and said, "I know."

No one came out of this clean, not even Itsuki. Watching her family torn apart and being forced to pick a side was like ripping herself in two. But her family's healing was her own, and when she hugged Ichika it was like an announcement that things will be okay.

Then the door opened.

Yotsuba's gasp echoed in the sudden silence. Miku's tilted head poked out from behind her.

Yotsuba could have taken a moment to understand what she was seeing. She didn't. It was over the instant she saw Ichika and the big, glowing bruise on her cheek.

She looked like she'd been crying, and she did again as she sprinted towards Ichika like a broken puppy. "Ichika!"

Ichika gasped and stepped back, radiating a prey's fear. Yotsuba stopped short at the sight of her sister visibly afraid. Her face sank like the Titanic and she cried, not knowing what else to do.

Ichika recovered from fear, seeing her sister's sorrow like her own, and said, "Yotsuba, it's okay."

She shook her head, "No it's not! You're really hurt! I, I'm so sorry, I didn't want to-"

Ichika surprised her with a hug, "It's okay. Really." She pulled back and tried to smile, "I, haven't been at my best. I know your heart was in the right place. It always is."

Yotsuba, the girl most deserving of forgiveness and the quickest to deny it, hugged her back and wouldn't have let go for all the money in the world. But she would for Miku, who tapped her shoulder and told her to take off her shoes. She frowned and rushed back to the entryway, promising to clean up the mess she made. Nino knew she'd be the one to do it, but she didn't mind.

Miku asked Ichika, "Did you, are we okay?"

Ichika looked at Nino before answering, "I think, we will be."

"Then we should celebrate," Itsuki said, "After all, we're all finally together at home again."

As if only just realizing it, her sisters looked from one to another as if counting to check that it was true.

Nino said, almost in awe, "Yes, we are."

Yotsuba wiped her eyes on her sleeve and cheered, "Welcome home!"

Miku smiled, "I...it's good to be back."

Ichika hesitated, but against her own feelings on what she deserved, her sisters smiled encouragingly to bring her back to them, and she said, "Yes, it is."

Nino said, "Well, there's just one thing left to do."

~Ichika~

"Surprise! Happy birthday!"

Futaro was blasted by five synchronous greetings as he stepped through the door.

"Huh? Why're they here?"

Nino fumed, "What? Seriously, we go through all this effort to surprise you and that's how you react?"

"I knew there'd be a party. It's you, connecting the dots was not that hard. They're more a surprise than the party."

"Streamers, Fuu! Look at the streamers!"

Yeah!" Yotsuba said, "Itsuki had to sit on my shoulders to get them that high!"

"It was a group effort," Itsuki said proudly.

Futaro sighed, "Alright. It looks...fancy. I can tell you put a lot of effort in."

Miku blushed, "Thank you."

"But I'm more surprised to find you five together."

Nino smiled proudly, "Yeah, well a lot happened. We can talk about it later!"

"No, we can talk about it now."

And by we, he really meant her. She'd seen this coming the moment she decided to try making ameds. Even if they were coming together as a family, they weren't the only one she'd harmed. Futaro deserved his say, too.

She still remembered that chilling fury in his eyes, like an avalanche ready to swallow her into the mountainside. She was afraid she'd see it again. But they couldn't continue until they crossed this last bridge.

"Futaro?" Ichika asked, "Can we step outside for a minute?"

Futaro looked at her like an appraiser knowing he'd spotted a fake. Still, he nodded and opened the door.

Nino ran forward, "Fuu, please listen-"

"Nino," he said firmly, "We'll talk after."

He wanted her alone where no one could interfere like before. The thought of being anywhere alone with him now, after watching him rush her with clear intent to make her hurt however he could, was chilling as a winter wind. But she wanted to heal, and healing meant taking that last, dangerous step forward.

She followed him to the walkway and watched her sisters' concerned eyes disappear behind the door. Then she turned to Futaro. He was gazing out at the river across the street. He looked somber, like a knight standing vigit for his lord.

She stepped beside him, not too close, not where he could reach her. She said, "You look like you're feeling better. I'm glad."

"Thanks." His voice was a monotone, lifeless as whatever lay beyond the event horizon. "Looks like you've patched things up."

"Looks that way, but I'm sure we still have a long ways to go. But a start's a start, right?"

She waited for him to respond, to give her something to grab on to. When he didn't, she dared to glance his way. His eyes were still somewhere far in the distance. She would have paid a high price to learn what he was thinking.

She wanted something to break the silence. She had just the thing in her purse.

"Here," she said, handing him a small display box. "I'm sorry I didn't wrap it. I got it weeks ago for your birthday, but with everything that happened, I didn't have time to wrap it before leaving today."

He took it and examined the box. "What is it?"

"It's a tie clip!"

"Oh. I see."

"I thought you'd be busy with college interviews soon, so I wanted to get you something you could-"

Futaro threw the little box with all his strength. It flew in a beautiful arc, cutting through the air as it glittered in the sunlight. It fell like a dying bird, landing in the currents of the river too far to hear the splash.

"I knew she'd forgive you. Ever since the beginning. Family matters most with her, always has. So there was no chance she wouldn't forgive you the second you apologized. That's how much she loves you," Futaro said. His voice was calm as the Nile.

"And I knew I'd have to try and forgive you, too. I told myself that I'd be ready when the time came. I told myself I could do it, if only for her. But..." then he shook his head, smiling sadly at his failure, "I can't do it. I just can't."

And then he turned, and all the light left his eyes. There was the stranger she met in the lobby, the monster who rushed her in the halls. Here was Futaro as he would be to her, now and forever. It was the Futaro she deserved.

"Now I'm going to spell out exactly what we are. You are my girlfriend's sister. I am your sister's boyfriend. If your father sees fit, I'll even be your tutor again and you'll be my student. But we will never, never, be more than that."

Ichika...she didn't cry. She didn't even flinch. Perhaps she knew this is how this would end. At last, here was someone who treated her like she deserved.

She realized that Nino taught him how to love, and she taught him how to hate.

"Do you understand?"

Ichika nodded lifelessly, "Yes, Futa-"

"No."

"I'm...sorry?"

"It's Uesugi to you."

That felt more final than a slammed door. She nodded, "Okay, Uesugi."

He nodded and looked at their home. He said, "This party's for me, you know. But if you're anywhere near it, I won't be. Do you understand? Don't ruin it for them."

Ichika nodded weakly, "I got it. I'll be off. I have my things."

He didn't say goodbye. He left her there like passing trash on the street.

She knew that once he shut the door, he'd forget about her entirely and enjoy an evening with the people that mattered. She used to be there, by his and everyone's side. So this is the true price she paid. It felt fitting. And it felt so painful.

The door opened again, and against hope she wished it was Futaro coming to say he went too far, and maybe they could try again. She'd have taken it. She wanted to be his friend and his student and to continue on where they should have been if she'd only kept herself in check, just like an older sister should. But it wasn't him.

"You okay?" Miku asked.

Ichika nodded, "I, I was just thinking I should leave."

Miku nodded, "I know. We, it wasn't hard to guess what happened between you."

"Oh. Well, I hope it won't ruin the party."

"Nino's upset, but I think they all get it."

"Well, good. I hope you have a good time."

"I'm not staying."

"What? Why? I thought, aren't you fine?"

Miku stiffened, "We are. But, I still...I'm not comfortable around him."

Ichika asked, "You still love him?"

Miku paused, "I think so."

Ichika smiled sadly and remembered being a younger girl with so many bright possibilities. Had she thrown them away, or had they never been hers to begin with? She wished she could live another day with so much hope.

"Yeah. Me too."

She hugged her lonely sister, feeling the warmth of what was still there.

"Come on, let's go home."

A/N

Let's have a peek behind the monitor into the writing process. Sometimes writing is a chore, and finishing a scene, or even a sentence is a slog where nothing seems to work. This was the cause of the January-June delay, until I finally sat down and slugged my way through the chapter. But sometimes, a chapter just works. This is such a chapter. I had such a firm vision of how it would go, and when it came time to write it, it came out so easily, and almost exactly how I wanted it to. I am so happy to have this chapter completed. I'm so happy with it.

I'm sure some people will find Ichika's forgiveness to be too easy, and I can understand why. But for her sisters, and even Nino, I think it was always going to happen. Siblings fight. Sometimes they fight badly. Sometimes people get really, deeply hurt. But Nino's foundation is her love of her sisters, and I always saw her being forgiven, if only by her. And sometimes, punishing wickedness only breeds more pain, deserved as it may be in our eyes. Love wins with the quintuplets. But all is not perfect, as Futaro shows. He has no obligation to forgive, and he won't. He's learned how wounding someone he loves wounds him, and he isn't inclined to let that go. Here's the vindictive side he's only just discovered, and Ichika won't see the end of it for a long, long time.

And Yotsuba, I hope her response was a surprise. I'd hinted at her ignorance earlier, but I wanted it to hit home here. I think if anyone was going to convince Ichika that what she was doing was wrong, it has to be her. I think I portrayed her exactly as I envisioned, and that was especially important to me.

As someone noted, there are a few divergences from Japanese culture. One noted that age of adulthood in Japan is 20, and this is true. Funny enough, Japan is changing its age of adulthood to 18 in 2022, but in this story's timeline, it's still 20. It's a minor discrepancy created by cultural distance. In any case, it's an important year for Futaro, and that's what I want to emphasize.

The first section of this chapter was originally meant to be in the last chapter, but when writing, I found it fit better in this one instead, and so moved it. This makes this the longest chapter in the story by far. I don't intend to write longer than this, and might split future chapters if they approach this length.

The next chapter is the final climax for the arc, followed by one chapter as its epilogue, and then onto arc 3. I feel the climax of this story could serve as the overall climax to the story, if I was inclined to end it there. But there's more story to tell, and so it shall be told.

I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed my story and wished me well during my recovery. Your encouragement has made this story that much more enjoyable to write and to share. I hope you'll continue enjoying the rest as it eventually comes. Please continue reviewing and be ready for the conclusion.

Chapter published: September 24th, 2020.