A/N: Hm. Not much to say for this one for once, haha.

One thing, actually: Please don't kill me at the end. Enjoy!

Chapter Nine
Blinded

"I can't just up and leave."

Kurosawa Kohei frowned. "And why not?"

"Because Satoshi and Ibara and Chitanda all know I'm here. If I leave without saying anything to them… I can't do that; they're my friends."

He sighed. "I can understand what you're saying, but if you tell them then they'll tell your aunt and uncle at the very least, and that'll be the end of it. You have to decide, Houtarou: it's me or them; you can't have both."

Houtarou stared down at the table, hands clenching into fists where they rested on his knees. It shouldn't be this difficult of a decision to make yet he found himself hesitating. He didn't know what to do; he knew his father was right when he said he couldn't have both, but he couldn't bring himself to betray his friends either. His uncle who had done nothing but lie to him and his friends who never had lied to him or his father whom he didn't even really know…

"How about you leave them a note? Satoshi-kun came with you today didn't he? Eventually he'll start to wonder where you are and then where you went when he realizes you aren't here…"

He bit the inside of his lip. Boy did this feel awfully familiar! Disappearing without a word and only leaving a note behind to explain his absence… It hadn't felt right then, and it certainly didn't feel right now, either. He only had two options and neither was looking particularly better than the other. And yet… If he let this opportunity go, he knew he would never have it again. But if things didn't work out, would his aunt and uncle still take him back? He didn't know. A part of him hoped he would never have to find that out, but another part was still telling him was absolutely clinically insane to place such faith in someone he didn't know. But he had always believed his uncle, and his uncle had blatantly been lying for years. He sighed; he knew what he had to do.

Satoshi hurriedly entered the café and went straight for the table he knew his friend was supposed to be occupying. "I can't believe I didn't see them leave!" Satoshi hissed. "I don't understand why he did, either."

"It's hard to say what Kurosawa said to him," Tomoe sighed. "I never realized he was such an idiot to believe it, though."

"Sometimes," Satoshi mused, "it's hard to tell the difference between truths and lies." He didn't know what he expected to find when he reached the table, but a note written on a napkin wasn't it. Frowning, he continued on. "Tomoe-chan, he's definitely gone. He's headed to the bus station with Kurosawa-sensei."

"Stop calling him 'sensei' already, Satoshi-kun; he's definitely not a real teacher. Regardless, you need to go after him; you have to stop him from leaving with that man."

"You still haven't told me why."

She sighed, irritated. "Long-story-short: Kurosawa Kohei is Houtarou's biological father. He abandoned him when he was baby, so he's grown up with me and my parents – his aunt and uncle."

Satoshi froze in place next to the table. "…Nani?"

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he hadn't told you. I think he's still trying to figure out everything for himself. Whatever the case, you need to go after them and stop him. I don't care what you have to do, Satoshi-kun."

He swallowed hard. "Okay. I'll have to call you back, though. I think I'm going to need some help to pull this off."

"Okay. Call me back as soon as you can."

"Right."

He hung up and, as he turned to exit the café, he quickly scrolled through his contacts, dialing the number as soon as he found the one for which he was searching. The other end rang once before being answered. "Mayaka? Is Chitanda-san with you? …Good. I need you do something for me: I need you to skip the rest of your classes and meet me at the bus station. It's important."

Houtarou still couldn't believe that they had managed to leave without Satoshi noticing them. He had been on the phone, it was true, but he still couldn't believe it. And now, as he sat with this father, waiting for their bus to board, he still couldn't believe he was actually doing this, either.

This situation was rather strange, he mused, and certainly not ending how he had wanted it to. He had started looking into this mess because he had simply wanted to get back to Kamiyama – back to his friends and his home –but now… Now, he was still about to lose everything he had been working toward. He was still leaving Kamiyama behind.

Was it worth it? After all, now that he knew the truth, there was no more point in continuously running away. He could have, quite possibly, ended up moving back to Kamiyama with his aunt and uncle if he hadn't left to come back on his own. What had he gained? His real father, but if he believed what he had been told about the man previously, he wasn't actually gaining anything but only losing.

Even as he sat, bus ticket in hand, he had to wonder if he was doing the right thing. Once he set foot on that bus, he knew there was no going back. Before then he had to decide. He had already made up his mind that if he wasn't completely certain by that time then he wouldn't go. But… He felt completely torn between the two options before him.

Even though he had the answers he had so desperately wanted, he still didn't know what to do with them. Somehow, even though everything had been illuminated, he still couldn't see. He had once been blinded by the darkness; now he felt blinded by the light.

He glanced up at the departure board. Ten minutes…

It was starting to rain when Eru and Mayaka sprinted into the bus station. The duo quickly located Satoshi who was right across from the doors, not far from them, waving frantically and calling out to them.

"Mayaka! Chitanda-san! Over here!"

"Fuku-chan, what is this all about?" Mayaka demanded.

"Houtarou," Satoshi spoke seriously, "is about to make a huge mistake. I don't know all the details, but his sister called me. We have to stop him from leaving with Kurosawa Kohei."

"Whoa, wait. Why is he going anywhere with Kurosawa-sensei?"

Satoshi sighed. "I don't completely get it either, Mayaka. But… Tomoe-san told me that that man is Houtarou's biological father."

Eru's hand flew to her mouth, her eyes growing wide. "Nani?"

"He abandoned Houtarou. She wasn't sure what his intentions are, but she was sure it couldn't be good. I'm guessing that's why they moved. She told me to do whatever it took to stop him."

"Do you know where it is they are going, Fuku-chan?"

"I don't, unfortunately. They could be gone already for all I know, but I did look in the front terminals while I waited for you two and didn't find them. I don't know what we're even going to do when we find him, to be honest."

"We'll find a way," Eru whispered. "If Oreki-kun's sister thinks this is a bad idea, then we'll just have to find a way."

"Let's go then," Mayaka spoke moving towards the back of the station. And let's hope we're not too late!

"Bus 142 for Kawasaki is now ready to board."

A hand clapped his shoulder. "That's us, Houtarou-kun. …Unless, of course, you've changed your mind?"

"Iie." Houtarou stood. "I'm going with you." It had taken the entire ten minutes, but his curiosity had won out. He had to know, and this was the only way.

"I'm glad to hear that. Let's go then."

Satoshi. Ibara. Chitanda. Thank you, and sorry. Sayonara.

Mayaka stopped to catch her breath in the empty terminal. An empty terminal. A lump rose in her throat. She wasn't at all sure when she had started to care so much about Oreki Houtarou, but she had to admit to herself (never out loud, and certainly never to Oreki!) that she was worried they had missed him. Life just wasn't quite the same without him in it. And then there was Chi-chan to think about, too; she was well aware of her friend's feelings and certainly didn't want to see her hurt – especially over a boy.

She glanced up at the departure board, her eyes widening. Spinning around, she frantically searched for her two other friends. "Fuku-chan!" she hollered upon spotting him not far off. "There's a bus about to leave! Hurry!" Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Eru running towards her too.

"Mayaka-chan! The bus that's leaving," Eru panted as she reached her friend. "It's headed back to where Kurosawa-sensei said he lived before he came here!"

"Nani?" Mayaka's eyes widened further.

"That just means we need to hurry!" Satoshi stopped next to them. "If it hasn't left yet, there's still a chance we can stop them!"

The trio turned and burst through the doors out to where the bus was loading.

There in front of them, waiting to board the bus with his head down and ticket clutched in his hand, was Oreki Houtarou.

Satoshi didn't stop. "Houtarou! Matte!"

At the familiar voice, Houtarou's head jerked up, a look of surprise written across his face. "Satoshi?" he muttered. "Nani…?"

Having gotten his attention, the winded trio stopped a few meters from where Houtarou was still standing in shock. Still breathing heavily, Satoshi pressed on. "Houtarou, please, don't do this. Just…think about this! You're not one to jump into things like this."

The shock on his face disappeared, replaced with one of resolve. "Believe me, Satoshi, I have thought about this. I won't back down now."

"This is… something you have to do, then," Mayaka spoke softly. "Are you sure about that, Oreki?"

He clenched his hands, crumpling his ticket. "Yes. It most definitely is something I have to do, Ibara. I don't expect any of you to understand, but I have to do this!"

"Naze…ka?" Eru finally chipped in. "What do you stand to gain from this, Oreki-kun? Don't you have a family already?" She shook her head. "I don't understand."

He scoffed. "Family? What family? They lied to me! All of these years, they lied to me!" His voice was steadily rising in volume, attracting attention from people who understood nothing of what was taking place, but he didn't care anymore. "What kind of a family does that, Chitanda? Besides, they aren't really my family! Maybe they neglected to tell you that part!"

"Tomoe-san didn't," Satoshi cut in. "She told me. We know, Houtarou."

"Then you know why I have to do this!"

"I still don't get it, Oreki," Mayaka stated calmly, crossing her arms over her chest. "A family isn't just the people you're related to by blood, you know."

"That's right, Oreki-kun! Family is the people who care about you and always place your best interests over theirs! Haven't they done that, Oreki-kun? They only wanted to protect you! They must have sacrificed quite a lot to do so!"

"Urasai!" he shouted, ducking his head, bangs overshadowing his eyes now. He had already made up his mind. He didn't need this right now. He didn't want to hear it. "They lied to me; that's all there is to it! I'm done being lied to! I'm sick of it!"

"Would we lie to you, Oreki?" Mayaka countered. "Have we ever lied to you?"

"All the three of you know is what you heard from my sister! I can't know that you're not lying to me, too!"

"And how do you know that he's not, huh? Have you ever thought about that, Oreki?"

"He has no reason to!"

"And neither do we!"

"Tch." He half turned away from them. "That doesn't change that all you know is what you heard from my sister. I need to find the truth out for myself; I can't do that if I don't go with him now."

"Why can't you wait, Houtarou? Give it some time, and think about this…"

"If I wait do you honestly think my aunt and uncle would ever let me go? They wouldn't."

"You don't know that, Houtarou."

"Yes! I do know that! I know them! They've lied to me all this time to keep me away from my father! There is no way in Hell they would ever let me go if I go back to them! They don't trust me!"

"And you don't trust them now, either, is that it? All this time –."

"Urasai! I don't want to hear this from any of you! You don't understand what this is like at all! You don't understand anything!"

"Houtarou-kun!"

The voice of Chitanda Eru easily cut through his rampage, the words he had intended to say falling dead on his tongue. What…did she just say…?

She herself just then realized how she had addressed him. Flustered, she bowed her head, hair falling in front of her face. But now wasn't the time to let it undo her; she had his attention. "W-watashi…" she whispered, hands clenching into fists at her sides. "Watashi kininarimasu…" Her eyes came up to meet his.

Houtarou was captured. He could never escape her eyes under normal circumstances; knowing that, he had purposely avoided her eyes up until just a moment ago when he couldn't help but look to her as she called his first name. But now all he could think about was what he saw there in her eyes. They didn't hold their normal sparkling curiosity but something else entirely. What was it? He couldn't seem to pinpoint the emotion he had never seen her hold.

"Watashi kininarimasu!" she repeated, her voice holding more strength than before. "Why… Why won't you trust us? Have we ever given you a reason not to? Do you honestly believe we would deceive you?"

He felt like someone had punched him in the gut with those words. Suddenly, he knew the emotion in her eyes: betrayal. He knew, and he understood. Betrayal: the very emotion that been driving his actions since he had found out the truth. He knew, and he understood. But what could he possibly do about it now? The time for thinking was passed. He had to decide, and he had to decide now.

"You say you can't trust your aunt and uncle, Houtarou," Satoshi murmured, "but why can't you trust us? Even if Tomoe-san hadn't told me about that, we would still be here trying to stop you from leaving, you know. I would still be telling you to wait, to think about this more."

He was stuck. His aunt and uncle who had lied to him… His friends who never had… His father who could be. He fell to his knees, hands raking through his hair. He couldn't think anymore; he was so tired of thinking! This was supposed to be an easy decision, so when had it become so complicated? No. It had always been complicated; he was the one who had over-simplified it. Nothing in life was simple, after all. There had never been a simple solution before, and there wasn't a simple solution now. Nothing was the same now. How did he know whom to trust? How was he supposed to know what to do if he didn't know whom he could trust?

"Houtarou-kun," Kurosawa Kohei broke into his thoughts this time, "the bus is about to leave. Are you coming or staying with your friends?"

"You don't have to decide that now, Houtarou."

"That's right, Oreki. If he's telling the truth and you can trust him, then you don't have to be afraid to turn him down now. If he's telling you the truth, you'll have another chance to reconnect with him after you've thought about it some more. Unless there's something he's hiding."

"They just don't want you to leave, which I understand," Kohei spoke softly right next to his ear, "but now you know that if you don't leave with me now, they'll just try to persuade you not to go at all. You really do have to decide now."

"Stop," he whispered. "All of you just stop! I can't think anymore…"

"You need to decide, Houtarou-kun; no one else can decide what's best for you except yourself. Just accept the truth and come home."

Home. Where was that now anyway? He wasn't sure he even knew. He felt sick; what was he supposed to do? He couldn't think straight. Who was he supposed to trust?

"Houtarou-kun."

His heart stopped at her voice. Slowly he lifted his head to meet her gaze. She had stepped closer to him and, bending slightly at the waist, she was offering her hand to him, a smile on her lips.

"Onegai, Houtarou-kun. Let's figure this out together, ne?"

He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to compose himself. Blinded by emotion, he would never be able to make a rational choice. Taking a deep, shaking breath, he opened his eyes again, all emotion pushed aside. Voice once again void of all emotion, he spoke quietly. "You're right. I'm the only one who can decide what's best for me.

"Let's go home."

~One Road Left~