A/N: We've finally reached the last chapter -sobs- I can't believe I reached an ending. And it took me only 3 days to update woohoo! Enjoy the last chapter! :D

Chapter 6

It was already past midnight and Kou was preparing herself to get some sleep. She sat on her bed in her pyjamas, hair out of her usual pony tail, with her phone in her hand, texting a goodnight message to Seijuuro with a smile on her face. After sending her message, she reached out to her bedside table to put away her phone but it vibrated before she could put it down and she retracted her arm, face with confusion. That was a quick reply.

Her eyebrows shot up when she saw her screen and she hesitated, looking at the clock at her bedside table. It should be around two in the morning at her brother's place, why was Erika-san calling her? Perhaps it was an emergency? Feeling alarmed now, Kou quickly swiped at her screen to accept the call and pressed the phone to her ear. "Erika-san, what's wrong?" She immediately inquired.

There was a sob from the other line and Kou's heartbeat went faster in panic. Did something really happen? "Erika-san, what happened?" She pressed in, her panic clear in her voice.

"I- I'm sorry for calling you t- this late, Kou." A sniffle. But she didn't sound hurried. It wasn't enough to appease Kou though. "I must have w- woken y- you up."

"Did something happen?" Kou asked, calmer this time but still worried. She wished Erika-san would just tell her what was happening already. She was feeling uneasy and nervous and she wanted to know if something happened to her older brother.

"I- I'm sorry but I just couldn't… I just couldn't t- take it anymore." Erika-san started through her calming sobs which gave slight relief to Kou. Good, maybe it wasn't anything too serious. She was still worried what got her brother's girlfriend crying though so she listened intently. "Rin had… Rin had a nightmare again. And just like that time he got sick too, he… he called out H- Haru's name. Except this time…" The sobbing became stronger again, and Kou worried for the next words. She bit her lower lip nervously, waiting for Erika-san to calm down enough to continue. She didn't really know what else to do except stay silent and listen.

After a minute or two, the sobs finally quieted down and there was a deep intake of breath. Kou clutched unto her phone with both hands as she softly called out, "Erika-san?"

There was a sigh and Erika continued, "This time, he said… he said 'I- I love you' after calling out Haru's name."

Kou could practically hear Erika-san breaking down as she gasped. Her brother loved Haruka-senpai. Rin felt the same as Haruka-senpai did for all those years. As the realization sunk in, Kou was torn between feeling happy for Haruka-senpai's unrequited love finally going mutual, and feeling sad for her brother's current girlfriend. Erika-san was a good person and she understood, accepted, and loved everything about Rin. But Haruka-senpai was the same and he loved Rin for even a longer time. And now their feelings were mutual.

"Kou." The redhead snapped out of her thoughts at the call of her name. She turned to her phone, worry going in full force as she listened. "What does this mean? What kind of 'love' does Rin have for Haru? It can't be… it just can't be, right?" Kou bit her lower lip hard, contemplating, hesitating. What should she do? She didn't know the whole story but she knew the gist of it. Should she tell her? "Please tell me." Erika-san pleaded, as if reading Kou's thoughts. "Please. I just can't… I just can't go on like this anymore."

The pity was overwhelming and Kou couldn't really resist. She agreed, Erika-san shouldn't go on ignorantly anymore and as her older brother's girlfriend, she deserved to know. With the girlfriend already crying for learning of the truth, how could Kou still not tell her? So she took in a deep breath and searched her mind on how she should begin to explain.

"Brother went to the same elementary school and swimming club as Haruka-senpai and two other boys." She decided to begin there. "Brother saw Haruka-senpai as his rival and he worked hard to get better than Haruka-senpai was. So he decided to go to Australia to improve. Before he left though, brother swam in a relay with Haruka-senpai and Makoto-senpai and Nagisa-kun. They won and I've never seen brother happier before. The picture on the frame that brother always kept facing down was their picture after they won the relay." She paused to think on how she should continue from there. "Well, so brother went to Australia after. But then, suddenly, when brother came back to Japan after a year, he just… wasn't the same anymore. I don't know what happened but that was the start when brother changed to be who he is right now.

When brother became a junior, he transferred to a school here in Japan that was different from Haruka-senpai's. Naturally, when tournaments came, they were against one another and brother was… he challenged Haruka-senpai. He really never got over the rivalry. And then, on a tournament, they raced and… and Haruka-senpai lost. Brother was pretty happy with his win, of course but Haruka-senpai… got upset. Then from what I heard from the others, Makoto-senpai and Nagisa-kun and Rei-kun approached brother. It seems like brother had a talk with Haruka-senpai after that and… well…" She hesitated but forced herself to finish what she started. "Err… Haruka-senpai kind of confessed to brother. Oh, but brother rejected him!" She quickly added before her tone went glum. "And after that, they never talked again."

There was a silence following after the long explanation and Kou just waited for everything to sink in to Erika-san. It took rather awhile though that she wondered if the line got cut off and she had to take a look at her phone to make sure she was still connected.

"So then," Erika-san finally spoke unhindered by sobbing. "If Rin rejected him, then why would Rin…? I don't understand." The confusion and frustration could be heard from her voice and in reality, Kou felt just the same. It wasn't until now that she knew Rin also loved Haruka-senpai after all.

"Erika-san, only brother can answer your questions now. If you had not told me, even I wouldn't know that brother felt the same way as Haruka-senpai. I suspect that maybe brother doesn't even realize his own feelings."

There was only silence again that made Kou wonder what Erika-san thought about all of this. It was really such a mess and peculiar, and she must be shocked knowing her boyfriend was in love with another man. So Kou had not expected the next question at all. "Are you going to tell Haru that Rin loves him?"

That honestly took Kou by surprise. She had not thought about that yet but when she did now, the answer was pretty obvious to her. "Well, yes." It was a good news to Haruka-senpai after all. And now that she thought about telling him, she couldn't actually wait to tell him.

"Please don't." The excitement in Kou died and she muttered an, "Eh?" incredulously. "As you said, Rin may not realize that he loves Haru. And as long as he doesn't, we will continue to be together." Without even really thinking about it, Kou started to protest, "But, Erika-san, Haruka-senpai loved my brother for-" Erika firmly cut her off, "I am currently the one going out with Rin. Please don't interfere with our relationship. As long as Rin doesn't realize his feelings for Haru and doesn't tell me himself that he wants to leave me for him, then I refuse to give him to someone else."

Kou was just starting to feel her blood rise to her cheeks and boil when Erika's sobbing returned and she pleaded, "Please give me a chance, Kou. Please give Rin a chance to love me more than Haru. If Rin really can't love me more than him, Rin will realize this and… and he'll get back with Haru. Please let me have him to myself for now."

Even though Erika-san was pleading her, it wasn't like Kou was given much choice, and that irked her. Her eyebrows knitted together into a frown and her hands balled into fists as she replied through gritted teeth, "Fine. I'll let you have your way, Erika-san. I won't interfere, but when the time comes when brother chooses Haruka-senpai over you, promise me you will give him up without a fight."

There was silence for a moment before Kou received a firm reply, "I promise."

The relationship between Rin and Erika stretched longer than expected and Kou was starting to believe that Rin actually developed feelings of love towards the woman more than his feelings of love for Haru. Thinking about it brought feelings of sadness and regret to Kou although she should really be happy that her brother was having a successful long-term relationship. But whenever she thought about how Haruka-senpai's feelings could've been reciprocated and how the dark-haired man would've been so happy if she told him about Rin's real feelings; she couldn't be filled with any more regret!

Her relationship with Erika had gone uncomfortable and stiff after that conversation, although only for awhile because it was undeniable that the woman was taking very good care of his brother and was a good person and a good friend. Sometimes, Kou consulted Erika with her relationship with Seijuuro and the woman helped her defend her beloved boyfriend from her overprotective older brother. It was partly thanks to Erika that Kou could live a happy love life with Seijuuro.

However, ever since learning that Rin loved Haruka-senpai, Kou had never looked at Haruka-senpai without guilt again. And it even made her more upset that Haruka-senpai couldn't move on from Rin and couldn't find someone else to love. She tried introducing him and hooking him up with some of her friends but nothing worked and there was only ever "Rin" written in Haruka-senpai's heart. It was paining her and the others and she knew the one way to instantly make him happy but she couldn't even give it! Still, she just couldn't back out on her words to Erika.

A phone call from her older brother immediately made her take back her own words to Erika though when he'd happily announced to her a news that stupefied her. "I proposed to her." made her pale in the face and the, "we're getting married." just horrified her. It was not that she thought Erika wouldn't be a good wife for him but what about Haruka-senpai? What would become of him?

Unable to contain herself anymore, Kou hung up on her brother quickly, without even a word of congratulations and got herself dressed. She was determined to go see the dark-haired man and tell him everything- that was Rin's feelings of love for him- no matter the consequences.

Just as she was about to leave her house, Kou got a phone call from her soon-to-be sister-in-law as if the woman knew what Kou was going to do. At first, Kou wasn't going to answer the call. But she changed her mind when she decided that she might as well tell Erika what she's going to do personally if she's going to learn about it later anyway. At least that left her some dignity of sort.

So she accepted the incoming call and determinedly said, "Erika, I'm going to tell Haru-"

"Rin will return there."

Kou froze at her doorstep and broke off from her statement as she looked at her phone with wide eyes as if Erika could see her. She pressed back the phone to her ear as she squeaked, "What?"

"I'm going to ask Rin to return there." Erika repeated and explained, "Rin have not gone back home since years even before we started dating. He never even thought about showing me his home. I realize this is also because of Haru. Everything ends up with Haru."

"Wha- what are you trying to say?"

"… I can't do this after all, Kou. Even now, I know, Rin, he… he still loves Haru." Kou could hear the sadness and hopelessness in Erika's voice but she wasn't crying. "He asked me to marry him. But, really, how can I marry a man who loves someone else more than me? I'd love to marry him, still, I do. But what if, someday, if we get to meet Haru and Rin, then, realizes that he still loves him, what will be of me?" she paused to take in a breath and continued, "I promised you that I'll let go of Rin too. So I thought, while we're not bound yet of marriage, I'll give Rin the chance to choose. After all, he cannot just keep on running away from Haru or his feelings for Haru. And I just cannot keep running away from the truth and turning a blind eye to it. Eventually, everything will be confronted, and if at that time, Rin and I are already married, I realized, we'd only hurt each other more." Her voice at the end had wavered and Kou knew that she still ended up crying after all.

"So you're going to make him come back home…"

"… to face Haru." Erika finished. "And I trust that you can find a way to let them meet."

Kou couldn't stop a smile from rising on her lips. "Please leave that to me."

Rin gaped at Erika as she calmly drank her coffee after telling him of what had happened behind his back. He couldn't believe that she knew all along about Haru when he avoided speaking about the dark-haired man; even avoided thinking about him. And he couldn't help but blush in embarrassment at the way she found out: him sleep-talking about Haru and everything. He felt so bad to know that he'd hurt her unconsciously and even now, he's trying to end his engagement with her.

"I guess Kou did a good job in a way." She said as she gently put down her coffee on the table, her blue eyes not leaving it.

They were currently sitting together in a café because Rin had wanted to tell her immediately about what had happened and that he wanted to end their engagement. Turned out that she somehow already knew. He still wanted to explain himself though. "Erika, I'm really sorry." He said sincerely. The guilt was heavy on his chest but he already decided on what he wanted to do.

Erika just waved off her hand dismissively and smiled, although it was strained. "It's fine. I already expected this… really."

"But in all those years, I've been hurting you!"

The woman slightly laughed and shook her head. "It should be me who should be sorry. I've delayed you for years on getting back with Haru, you know. I'm thankful for all the memories."

Rin opened his mouth to retort but realized that what Erika said was true. "Hey, you're right, you delayed me for years! Haru and I could've gotten together years before now but you…!" He glared at the woman. "You're always so cunning."

The laugh from Erika this time sounded much merrier and she finally looked at Rin in the eyes. "Hey, at least you're together now."

Some of the guilt was back as he shrugged. "You're right. But if you knew I'm going to be getting back with Haru anyway, why did you still want to come?"

There was a playful glint in Erika's eyes. "Well, I just had to-"

"Rin?"

Both Rin and Erika looked up at the surprised Haru who now stood beside their table. Rin's mouth fell open and he shot up to his feet. "H- Haru! What are you doing here?"

Haru looked just as confused as Rin. "What are you doing here? I was supposed to meet with-"

"Oh yes, I told Kou to make Haru come here."

Rin and Haru turned to look at Erika, then the latter turned to the former with a questioning look that seemed to already know what was the answer anyway. "Who is she, Rin?" Haru almost only whispered.

Rin met Haru's gaze and pressed his lips together into a tight line. He didn't think that Haru would be meeting Erika. He just wanted to end the engagement with her then return to him and it never occurred to him at all that the two would be meeting. And truth be told, he hoped that Haru didn't have to meet her.

When the two fell into silence, Erika stood up from her seat and faced Haru. When the two men looked at her, she smiled at the dark-haired man and held out her hand. "I'm Erika. Nice to meet you." It relieved Rin that she didn't mention that she was his fiancé.

Haru reluctantly took her hand into a handshake as he replied, "I'm Nanase Haruka. Nice to meet you too." He wanted to let go immediately but the woman pulled unto his hand and opened up his palm. He gave her a puzzled look into which she just smiled.

She made sure that Haru would let his hand be left hanging and open before she let go. Then slowly, she lifted up her left hand, a gold band hugged around her ring finger.

Both Rin and Haru watched her as she removed the ring from her finger and dropped it unto Haru's open palm. The two men just looked at it for a second then to the woman.

Erika smiled at them as she closed Haru's palm around the ring. "I believe this is yours."

Thank you so much for reading all the way to the end ! I hope I satisfied you all with the ending and I hope it doesn't feel rushed... Anyway, I'm off to another fanfic !

Thank you for the favorites and follows ! I love each one of you -hearts-

Thank you for all the support you guys gave me that enabled me to actually finish one of my fanfics :

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nessarys: here goes the end

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