Sosuke woke up to the sound of roaring thunder. He squinted his eyes slightly and noticed that it was extremely dark in the room he was currently in. He grabbed hold of his phone to check the time; and realised it was 4:23am in the morning. He was just about to go back to sleep when he remembered how [name] had reacted when she heard the thunder earlier on.
Sosuke scrambled to his feet as he flung the covers to one side and quickly, with caution; made his way out of the room that he was staying in. He then noticed a light coming from a particular room as the door was not shut totally. He then made his way there and peeked through gap that was available. His eyes widened in surprise as he continued to stare at what was happening before him.
[name] was seated at her desk, writing away on a piece of paper. The floor of her room was covered in roses that were being snipped and was apparently being made into a flower crown as Sosuke saw a half done flower crown seated on the floor as well. He then realised that [name] had drew the curtains of her room and she was listening to extremely loud music. But occasionally when she sees the flash of lightning, and her room glowed slightly; she will stop and shut her eyes.
"It's going to be 5am in the morning and she's still not going to sleep." Sosuke muttered to himself as he pushed the door open and entered it; shutting it behind him. He then walked towards [name] and tapped her on the shoulder; where she flinched suddenly and stared at him.
"What is this guy doing in my room?" [name] thought to herself as she hesitantly removed one of her earphones; her music blaring from it. Sosuke then smiled softly at her and bent down slightly; causing [name] to lean backwards slightly.
"It's going to be 5am, why aren't you asleep yet?" Sosuke asked, and [name] opened her mouth to reply when a clap of thunder responded instead; causing her to shut her eyes tightly and her body to shrink down slightly. Sosuke noticed it and immediately he wrapped his arms around her shoulder and tried to calm her down. [name] immediately relaxed the moment she felt Sosuke's warmth next to her and she turned to look at him, opening her eyes slowly.
"I-I was w-writing some l-letter." [name] mumbled out, and Sosuke stared at her in response.
"Tomorrow is the death anniversary of your family isn't it?" Sosuke asked, and [name] nodded.
"I'll go with you tomorrow."
"I-It's okay, r-re-." and her answer was cut off by another clap of thunder and she shut her eyes tightly as her hands immediately went to cup both her ears; despite one of them having an earphone in it. When she removed her hands from her ears, she looked at Sosuke; and realised he was still smiling softly at her despite seeing her act this way.
"I'm right by your side, it's alright to be afraid." Sosuke spoke as his grip on [name] went tighter. [name] then hesitantly leaned against his chest and shut her eyes; thinking to herself;
"Lies."
"YAMAZAKI SOSUKE!" and [name] bolt up after hearing a shout. She looked around and realised that she was in bed; but she was warm. A little too warm. Her eyes then shifted to the side; and she spotted Sosuke laying down beside her with one eye open, and he was on the phone as well. He then shifted his eye to look at [name] and smiled softly at her; gesturing her to lie back down, which she hesitantly did.
"YOU'RE MISSING OUT ON SWIM PRACTICE ON PURPOSE SOSUKE!" and [name] recognised that voice, Rin.
"I did tell you I'm not coming for today's practice."
"BECAUSE OF A GIRL YOU JUST MET YESTERDAY?! DID THINGS PROGRESS THAT QUICKLY?!"
"I have my reasons for staying by her side today. Please excuse me."
"SOSU-." And Sosuke hung up the call.
"Sorry about that. It's 8:32am, do you want to get up? The storm has cleared up slightly; but it's still raining outside." Sosuke spoke, and [name] pushed herself up.
"You sound like you're my husband or something." [name] mumbled as she got off of bed by crawling over Sosuke; as that whale shark decided not to move one bit at all.
"I wouldn't mind!"
"WE ONLY MET YESTERDAY!" [name] snapped back as she headed towards the bathroom to wash up. Sosuke then laid back in [name]'s bed as he recalled last night events;
[name] had fallen asleep, and Sosuke carried her carefully; in order to not wake her up. He then placed her in her bed, and was about to leave when he spotted the piece of paper that [name] was writing on a little while ago. Curiosity got the better of him as he read the paper while [name] slept.
Dear dad, mum and nii-chan;
I hope you're all doing well in heaven right now. Today is your 3rd death anniversary; and I've so much to talk to you about. But I missed you all. I really do. It's really suffocating to be living in this house where it used to be all loud and happy.
School has been great for me; despite me not communicating much with everybody else. I became the captain and ace of the school volleyball team; and I'm proud of it, no doubt. Everybody in the team seems to look up to me somehow; for reasons that I'm really unsure of. It scares me.
This house, is where I used to always have nii-chan to help me out with my volleyball practices in the backyard; where I used to always have him by my side whenever a thunderstorm occurred. But now that can never ever happen anymore, and it saddens me as today morning there's a thunderstorm; and it reminded me so much of nii-chan.
I missed having mum helping me by cooking for me dinner whenever I come home from practice; since I'm always extremely hungry when I finish practice. I missed having mum patting my head whenever I'm heading out for school, and I miss having her hugs whenever I came home from school; despite being all sweaty and smelly from an intense practice.
I missed having dad too. I missed having him bringing home little surprises like nii-chan and my favourite food. I missed having him sending me to school; and I missed hearing his extremely lame dad jokes that he picked up from work.
I missed everything that used to happen in this household; but now it's just cold. The walls won't talk to me like how you all do, and that saddens me. I'm still trying to find the reason to hold on to hope that I'll live on and make you all proud; but a part of me is telling me to just end everything and join you guys wherever you are. I'm still trying, but I'm on the verge of giving up.
Like all the letters that I've written to you guys; there will always be this one part I'll write a thousand times if I must; I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I asked you guys to come watch the finals that I was playing in. Maybe if I didn't ask you guys to come; you guys would have still been alive.
Dad, mum, nii-chan; I'm afraid of asking too much from someone already. I'm afraid that they'll end up leaving me all alone. I'm
Sosuke then sighed as he remembered the contents that the letter contained, and he sat up on [name]'s bed. He now understood that [name] was honestly going through a hard time alone, yet she puts up a strong front and acts like she's exactly fine. Sosuke admired that.
Sosuke walked down the stairs and peeked into the kitchen to see that [name] was busy making breakfast. He ran his hand through his hair and let out a small chuckle; startling [name]. She then turned to him with an emotionless expression as usual and nodded to acknowledge his presence; before turning back to the stove before her. Sosuke then frowned slightly as he sat at the dining table.
He wanted to see [name] smile.
"You know; I don't know much about you." Sosuke spoke out all of a sudden, and [name] turned to face him with her usual expression on her face. He then sighed and ran a hand through his hair once more, and [name] shook her head at his action; turning back to the stove before her.
"Ask then." And Sosuke stared with wide opened eyes at the back of [name].
"Do you consider yourself a happy person?" and almost immediately did Sosuke see [name]'s body stiffened up at his question; her hands stopped flipping the contents in the frying pan. Sosuke immediately regretted his question and stood up; making his way towards [name]; when all of a sudden she answers;
"No."
Causing Sosuke to stop in his tracks as he noticed [name] had resumed flipping the now fully cooked pancakes. She then flipped them once more and placed them onto plates.
"Do you enjoy cooking? What is the most delicious meal you have ever made?" Sosuke asked another question to help ease the mood; and [name] turned to place the breakfast plates onto the dining table; which Sosuke then went back to his seat.
"I do. Curry rice."
"Oh? That's my favourite."
"It's still raining…" [name] thought to herself as she sat at the backyard porch of her house; beneath the shelter. She sighed as she looked up to the sky; dark rain clouds that apparently seems to not wanting to clear up anytime soon. She then looked towards her right as she felt a presence next to her; and wasn't surprise to see that Sosuke was standing beside her. She then looked at him from head to toe; and that's when she realised she didn't take a really good look at him ever since he changed into her brother's clothes.
Sosuke was wearing an old volleyball shorts and a simple black t-shirt; yet he looked good in it, [name] had to admit it. Maybe it was because of all the swimming he had done; that's why his body looks good in almost anything she assumed.
"Are you still going to visit them?" Sosuke asked as he leaned against the exterior wall of the house. [name] then nodded in response, and Sosuke learned that whenever he speaks to [name]; he must remember to always look at her.
"Then let's go then." And [name] nodded in response as she stood up and walked back into the house to change, as well as Sosuke; for his clothes were already dry thanks to [name] helping him to wash them and putting them into the drier.
Sosuke was wearing his previous night's outfit; which consisted of a pair of black skinny jeans with a maroon coloured long sleeve t-shirt. He waited at the front door for [name] to come out; and soon he saw her walking down the steps; clad in a pair of black skinny jeans as well as a plain white t-shirt; and in her hands held the letter that she had written and 3 flower crowns made from the roses that Sosuke saw in her room.
"Ready?" Sosuke asked and [name] nodded in response. The duo soon left [name]'s house and headed down towards the subway station to catch a train to the station; where the grave of [name]'s family was at.
Sosuke sat beside [name] on the train and he fiddled with one of the flower crowns that [name] had made. It was made perfectly; and it made Sosuke get curious about her reasons for making flower crowns. He then turned to look at [name]; but realised that she had fallen asleep, and her head was bobbing up and down due to the moving train. He smiled softly as he gently placed a hand on the side of her head and pushed it towards his shoulder. He then wrapped his arm around her shoulder as [name] was in a deep sleep.
[name] woke up the moment she heard the train station's name that she was supposed to get off being announced. She then realised she had slept on Sosuke's shoulder; and she felt guilty about it when he saw her smiling at her with a soft smile. The duo then proceeded to walk out of the train, with [name] guiding Sosuke through the route she always took whenever she was going to visit her parents.
The walk was quiet, yet it wasn't awkward anymore. Sosuke was busy holding the umbrella over the both of them, whereas [name] was walking beside him; he understood [name]'s silence. And soon, the duo reached the cemetery. [name] then guided Sosuke throughout the cemetery, and they soon came to a stop at a particular huge one. Sosuke then read the wordings off of the stone;
[L/N] Tadashi, [L/N] Hikari & [L/N] Hazuki
May they rest in peace and
Watch over their precious daughter and sister
[L/N] [name]
From wherever they are.
Sosuke then noticed [name] was getting slightly drenched in the rain, and he quickly moved closer to her; covering her with the umbrella he had in hand. [name] was busy placing the flower crowns onto the grave before her; and then she got out a lighter and held the letter by her hand. She then lit it on fire; and both Sosuke and her watched it burned.
[name] then turned to look at Sosuke, and he frowned slightly. He then bent down slightly to level his eyes with [name]; and she looked at him, tilting her head to the side slightly. Sosuke then sighed as he ran a hand through his hair and spoke out;
"It's okay to cry, you know?" and Sosuke soon realised that [name]'s expression changed the moment he had said that. Her emotionless face had changed to one where her eyes were wide opened and her mouth was left gaping. Soon she shut her mouth, and it quivered slightly…
.
.
"Damn you for saying that one sentence." [name] thought to herself as tears welled up at the corner of her eyes; threatening to fall. How she hated the way people say it; they said it with ease, but she was the one in so much pain right now. But she knew she needed to let it out sooner or later; for she had kept this to herself for the past three years. She had tried to be as emotionless as possible, so that people wouldn't get close to her. And she realised she was destroying herself by doing so as well; but she thought she deserved it. So here she is now, thinking; why now? Why did Sosuke have to be the one to say that one simple sentence just to get all her hardwork for the past three years to crumble?
.
.
[name] started to cry, and Sosuke was shocked by her actions. He immediately wrapped an arm around [name]'s waist and pulled her close to him. [name] then clung onto his shirt and started to cry her heart out.
"It's my fault they're gone… It's my fault!" [name] cried out, and Sosuke could only hold her just like that as she continued to cry out all the feelings that she had kept within herself for the past three years of her life.
"What would you like to have?" the waiter asked; and Sosuke frowned as he realised the waiter was only paying attention to [name]; who was still looking through the menu. Let's just the big whale shark was jealous at someone staring at what belonged to him.
"I'll have the matcha latte, please." [name] mumbled out, but the waiter didn't hear. He then bent down even more and got closer to [name]; which Sosuke frowned even more.
"I'm sorry miss, could you repeat your order?" and [name] flinched slightly at the closeness of his face. She then turned to look at Sosuke with pleading eyes, and he was taken aback for that was another expression he has seen from [name] today.
"Excuse me, just get us two matcha latte; and some personal space for the lady." Sosuke spoke, and the waiter immediately turned all flustered and apologised before scurrying away to get their orders.
"Seriously…" Sosuke muttered under his breath and clicked his tongue. He then heard a giggle, and he turned to look at [name] who was having an emotionless expression on her face. He then raised his eyebrow at her, and [name] couldn't help but let out a giggle once more.
"She laughed." Sosuke thought to himself as she smiled at her.
"I got a question though." [name] spoke, and Sosuke gave her a questioning look.
"What is it?"
"Is Rin really gay?" and Sosuke burst out laughing at her question; causing everybody in the café to look at them. [name] then stared at him with an emotionless expression; and he finally calmed down.
"OF COURSE HE ISN'T!" and Sosuke chuckled while [name] smiled softly; causing Sosuke to blush at the change in her facial expression…
"Feeling better?" Sosuke asked, and [name] nodded in response. The waiter soon came back with their cups of match latte; and hurriedly left them alone after he sensed Sosuke's murderous aura.
"So…" Sosuke trailed off, and [name] sighed mentally;
"We were a happy family." [name] spoke out softly, just loud enough for Sosuke to be able to hear. He then stared at her with a shocked look on his face as he realised that [name] was opening up to him.
"Nii-chan was 8 years older than me. And we were all happy. Nii-chan was the reason why I started to play volleyball; he was my first to everything. My first smile, my first hug; everything." [name] spoke softly, and Sosuke listened intently.
"He's always there whenever I needed someone to talk to. He never says no to the requests that I made; and he always surprises me. When he knows I'm about to head for an important match, he always prepares a bottle of energy drink just for me; and will secretly put it into my bag. Whenever there was a thunderstorm, nii-chan stayed with me despite having tons of work to do. He knows I was afraid of thunder." [name] spoke as her tears started to flow.
"Mum was always there. She makes sure that I'm grown up in a proper environment. Making sure I was well-pampered and of course well-fed before I head for practice and all. Dad also ensures I'm at my utmost best and he will chide me for staying up too late…" [name] trailed off, and Sosuke reached over to grab hold of her hand in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"B-But… Because of me, they're gone… I had asked them to come and watch the finals back when I was in Middle School. They promised they will come… But they got into an accident and never survived… If only I didn't ask them to come, they will still be alive." and [name] got her hand out of Sosuke's hold and cupped her face into her hands as she wept silently.
"Ne, isn't that [L/N]-senpai?" Hinami asked as she and Rumiko entered the café which Sosuke and [name] were at. Rumiko then turned to look at the direction that Hinami was pointing to, and Rumiko frowned slightly as she noticed tear stains on [name]'s cheeks. Rumiko then huffed as she made her way towards the duo, and started her rampage;
"Who do you think you are, making our beloved captain cry?!" Rumiko yelled out and pointed at Sosuke; not realising it was him. [name] then stared at what was happening before her with an emotionless expression on her face.
"W-What?" Sosuke stuttered out.
"Yamazaki-san?" Hinami called out, and Rumiko's eyes immediately went wide opened.
"OH MY GOD, I'M SO SORRY! I DIDN'T REALISE IT WAS YOU!"
"It's alright."
"So… What are you doing with our captain on a rainy day?" Rumiko asked with a smirk.
"Are you two on a date?" Hinami asked out, and she hi-fived with Rumiko.
"We're going to get our money!"
[name] then shook her head and stood up from her seat. Sosuke and her had already finished their drink, and [name] turned to walk away from Rumiko and Hinami. She then ruffled Hinami's hair on the way out and spoke in a soft manner for both the girls to hear;
"Maybe it is. Maybe it isn't. He stayed over at my house last night." And [name], with her emotionless expression; walked out of the café with Sosuke behind her; and he waved goodbye to the duo who was stunned at their previous seat.
All of a sudden their minds clicked, and they bolted towards the door and swung it opened; both yelling at the same time, the very same thing.
"DID YOU USE PROTECTION?!"
And with that the duo laughed and entered the café once again; giggling away like crazy. Whereas Sosuke was extremely flustered at what had just happened.
"Don't mind them. It will die down eventually." [name] mumbled out.
"SO DID YOU GUYS USE PROTECTION?" Rin asked with curiosity burning in his question; and Sosuke stared at him with a sweatdrop on his forehead.
"Oi Rin. It's nothing like that."
"Then what happened?"
"Thunderstorm."
"Oh right, the news did show. So, did you get her number?"
"She doesn't have a mobile phone."
"Tch, that's a way of rejecting you. Idiot."
"No, she really doesn't have a mobile phone."
"Really? Why would she not have one?!"
"Because she destroyed her own phone when a certain incident happened; and ever since then she has no mobile phone."
"Then how are you going to ask her out on dates and stuff?"
"RIN!"
"DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME THAT YOU DON'T LIKE HER."
"I DO OKAY, BUT IT TAKES TIME."
"DOES SHE KNOW YOU LIKE HER?"
"NO."
"FORGET IT, I'M GOING TO ASK THE SWIM TEAM FOR HELP."
"OI RIN! SHE ASKED IF WE WANTED TO COME WATCH THEIR PRACTICE MATCH!"
"ALRIGHT, LET'S GO!"
"AND SHE ASKED IF YOU WERE REALLY GAY!"
"FUCK SEIJURO AND HIS FUCKING FIRE HEAD. I'M NOT GAY. OH AND DON'T WORRY; IF YOU EVER WANT TO ASK [NAME] OUT ON A DATE, TELL ME. REMEMBER, WE'VE GOT THE SWIM TEAM AND GOU TO HELP!"
"MATSUOKA RIN!"