Ding~ Dong~

"Yes? Who is it?" It was Satoshi.

Ryu couldn't help but flinch when he heard his little brother's voice. Even if he could be annoying sometimes, he was still his little brother.

Thankfully Mio doesn't notice Ryu flinching and continues to speak to Satoshi.

"Saotshi-kun, it's Mio. I came to give you guys something."

"Mio-neechan! Come on in! I'll open the gate for you!"

Satoshi rushes outside to open the gate when he notices Ryu...Satoshi freezes.

"Um…Mio-neechan, who's this?"

"Oh, this is Ryu. He just moved here"

Ryu gives a small grin. "Hey."

Satoshi snaps out of his trance and replies, "ah…oh. Hello…um. Anyway, please come inside. I'm sure mom would be happy to see you, Mio-neechan."

The three enter the house and dust off the snow from their clothes as Mrs. Tainaka came to the front door.

"Oh! Mio-chan! What a surprise! And…Who might this be?" For some reason, her smile seemed to…not fade..but it didn't seem like she was smiling either.

"This is a friend. He just moved here."

"My name is Ryu…just Ryu. Nice to meet you, M-Mrs. Tainaka…." *bows*

" 'just Ryu', huh?"

"I-It's a long story…"

"It's alright. Everyone has their own stories to share…or keep a secret. Oh! By the way Mio-chan" Turns to Mio, "So what brings you here, Mio-chan?"

"Well, we had some left over hotpot, and so we just wanted to share the rest of it with you." Mio hands her the container.

"You mean, get rid of it for you?" Satoshi snorts.

"N-No! Th-That's not!-" Everyone laughs, except for the flustered Mio.

"We best be going, Mrs. Tainaka…It's pretty dark, and we have school tomorrow."

"Oh. Yes, of course. It was nice seeing you, Mio-chan! And it was nice meeting you, Ryu-kun."

"H-Hai…same here." Ryu's voice faded out.

"By the way, where do you live, Ryu?" Mio asks curiously.

"What? You wanna visit sometime?" *smirk*

"argh~ just answer the question!"

"Okay, okay~ I live in the 'Heaven's cloud apartment complex'".

"What? But that's kinda far away from here isn't it?"

"It's just another 15 minute walk. No biggie."

"….Say, Ryu-kun?"

"Hai, Mrs. Tainaka?"

"Why don't you stay here for the night? We have a spare room, and it's cold and dangerous to be out this late at night."

"I'll be alright. There's no need to worry."

"I see…well…it was nice meeting you, Ryu."

Mrs. Tainaka's face gave a gentle smile, but her eyes gave a hint of sadness and hurt. Ryu couldn't bear to see his mom like this.

"Um…but I guess I COULD stay for one night…It is kinda cold out and everything."

"Wonderful! I'll go set up the room!" She rushes up the stairs to prepare Ryu's bed.

"Well, I gotta go. See you tomorrow." Mio heads out the door.

"Are you sure you'll be alright, Mio-neechan?" Says Satoshi in a worried tone.

"You sure? I can walk you back ya know." Ryu offers.

"I'll be fine. See you guys." And Mio was gone.

"…hey, Ryu-niichan."

"hm? What is it, Satoshi?"

"Do you like Mio-neechan?"

*BLUSH* Ryu's eyes grew wide as his face turned into the color of a ripe tomato.

"Um….uh.. ha ha ha~" Ryu scratches his head. "And what if I do?"

"mm…I guess that's fine. She seemed louder now because of you….besides…She's been kinda quiet since….um…." His eyes began to tear up, but Satoshi held them back. His hands clenched into fists and were shaking slightly.

Sensing Satoshi's agony, Ryu put his hand on his head and gently ruffled his hair.

"Heh~ Guys can cry too, ya know!" Ryu gives a big smile, enough to show his teeth.

Th-this guy…Is just like nee-chan….

"I-I'm not crying!" Satoshi brushes Ryu's arm away while rubbing his eyes with his sleeve.

"Something just got into my eyes! Tch! Darn dust!"

Ryu laughs and is relieved that his brother was still the same as ever. ..Always trying to act cool.

"Ryu-kun! Your bed is ready!"

"H-Hai! Coming!" Ryu makes his way upstairs and into his 'old room'.

Nothing has changed. His family had kept the room exactly as it was.

"You'll be sleeping here tonight. Sorry about the mess, but things have been…a little busy around here. Um...the bathroom is just down this hallway, and here are my husband's extra PJs. YOu should be about the same size as him." Hands Ryu a Blue and white striped PJs.

"Th-thank you….Tainaka-san…." But what he really wanted to call her was "okaa-chan"…like he always had…or at least, used to.

"No problem…You know? This was my daughter's room…" Her tone became quieter and more delicate.

"I-I'm sorry to hear about your daughter…"

"hm? Oh, no! Now I've made you feel bad. What a terrible host I am. I'm sorry, Ryu-kun. I'll just leave you to change and sleep. Goodnight."

"Goodnight. Thank you again."

Mrs. Tainaka nods and closes the door behind her.

Ryu changes into the striped PJs and climbs into his old bed.

"The bed seems so small now…I guess I grew a little bit since I became a guy huh? Kaa-chan did say that i was about as tall as otou-chan now..."

Ryu closes his eyes and inhales deeply while wrapping the familiar fabric around his body. The nostalgic scent of his old room made him feel at ease and secure…

"I'm home…."

A single tear runs down his face as Ryu drifts off to sleep.

Another Chapter done! Now, I should inform all of you that my school is coming up and things are getting pretty busy! ( I'm actually writing most of these at two in the morning!) So just a heads up that the chapters may not come out as fast as they used to. But please keep supporting me, and more chapters are sure to come your way! Thank you all very much! *bows deeply*

PS. Thanks for all the reviews and you support! * bows even more deeply*