Broken Fragments

Chapter 3: Whiskey

"Kira...ri?" Hiroto thought, seeing the blue-eyed girl in front of him.

Her warm smile brought shock to Hiroto's heart, reminding him of his love for Kirari. He was trying to forget how painful it was to lose her, but the person he was looking at made him weak. It was like the very first time he met Kirari. Her smiles, touch, and voice made him weak. He couldn't believe he was looking at Kirari.

"Nice to meet you," the girl said, bowing.

"I'm Yuuhi Tsubasa."

Hiroto finally realized that the girl he was looking at was not Kirari. It was a girl that looked like her. Now that he was able to focus more on the differences, he realized that the girl named Yuuhi had shoulder-length, auburn hair, unlike Kirari's, who had waist-length, dark chestnut hair. Yuuhi's blue eyes were just like Kirari's, however.

"I see…uhh…nice to meet you…too, Tsubasa-san," Hiroto said, hiding his disappointment behind a fake smile.

"Yuuhi's a new idol. She's debuting in three days," Chairman Muranishi explained, breaking the awkward mood that only he and Hiroto could feel.

"Oh, okay. Well, I have to go, Chairman Muranishi. I'll stop by again later," Hiroto said as he opened the door again.

He left after waving goodbye to Yuuhi, who kept her warm smile on her face.

"Anyways…Yuuhi-chan, please try not to be close with Hiroto-kun…he's still recovering—"

"After what? 4 years? I'm sure it doesn't take that long to forget a dead girl, Chairman," Yuuhi interrupted, walking back to where she was before she introduced herself to Hiroto.

"I'm sure he can handle it…After all," she said as she turned around to walk out the chairman's office, an evil smile carved on her face.

"I'm not Kirari."

Hiroto went to the bathroom and washed his face, water getting all over his sleeves. He looked at his wet face in the mirror, seeing how tired and stressed he looked.

"Why did she have to look like her?" Hiroto thought, anger building up.

"Why?" he asked out loud, his voice echoing in the bathroom as he pounded his fist on the granite sink.

He took deep breaths and relaxed himself again. He walked back to the parking lot and drove his car out to town. Hiroto searched for the ramen shop that he used to go to with Kirari before she passed away, but he couldn't remember where it was after all the changes that occurred in the city.

He parked his car in front of a mall and asked around if they knew where the ramen shop was located. All the people he asked shook their heads, not even knowing who Hiroto was because of his disguise. Even if it had been 4 years since they last saw him, some of his shows, concerts, and live performances are still on the Internet where people could watch them.

The whole afternoon passed and he didn't find the ramen shop. He decided to give up when he saw the setting sun. He looked at the watch wrapped around his wrist.

6:55 pm.

Since it was getting dark, he called it a day and got back in his car. He drove home and walked straight to his bedroom, not even turning on the lights in the living room. He turned the lamp on and sat on the bed, looking at Kirari's beautiful portrait.

"I knew that wasn't you," Hiroto thought, smiling in pain.

"You'll never come back. You're gone," he said, holding the picture.

Hiroto wiped some of his tears away and changed his clothes after a big sigh. He grabbed his keys and locked his house and ran to the parking lot. He drove his sports car and looked for a bar he could go to.

When he finally found an appealing bar, Hiroto parked his car nearby and went in after showing his ID to the security guard. Inside was a bar that was not too full, but not too empty. It was a perfect place for Hiroto to grab a drink.

"Whiskey, please," requested Hiroto when the bartender passed by.

The bartender quickly gave him his order and walked to the other customers that were waiting. Hiroto sat on the tall stool by the bar counter, drinking his whiskey. He took sips while his mind still tried to relax from all the stress he had been in lately. When Yuuhi's face popped in his head, Hiroto held the glass and gulped down the rest of the whiskey, feeling the soothing alcohol run down his throat.

"Hey, I didn't know you go to this bar."

Hiroto turned around and found Kirari's look-alike, Yuuhi.

"Why are you here? You're under age. You're not allowed," Hiroto said, not caring if he offended her.

"Woah, woah, woah! Me? Under age? I'm 21 years old, Kazama-san. What do you think I am? 16?" Yuuhi replied, her attitude changing.

Hiroto remembered that the one in front of him wasn't Kirari. He remembered that it was someone that looked exactly like her. Kirari would be the same age as Hiroto, but she didn't even get to reach the age of being able to drink legally.

"Sorry, sorry…I just…I…I had a bad night," Hiroto said.

"Wait, are you drunk?" Yuuhi asked.

When she looked at the counter, she found six glasses of once-filled-with-whiskey glasses which were just now filled with melting ice. Hiroto didn't realize that he drank so much that he was now drunk.

"I'll be fine. I'm leaving now," Hiroto said, setting both of his feet down on the ground.

Hiroto's body wobbled and before he could even take a step, he became dizzy and almost fell on the ground, but Yuuhi caught him and wrapped his arm around her shoulder and assisted him out.

"Get my car," Yuuhi ordered the valet, who hurriedly ran to the parking lot and got her car.

She pushed Hiroto in the passenger seat and put the seatbelt around him. Yuuhi pressed on the gas pedal and drove away from the bar with Hiroto sleeping inside her car.

Not knowing where he lived, Yuuhi brought him to her home in a luxurious apartment. With the help of some security guards, she was able to bring him to her apartment room. She placed Hiroto on her bed and undressed him.

"He smells like alcohol," Yuuhi thought, her face showing disgust.

She grabbed a small basin and filled it with cold water. Yuuhi soaked a towel in the water and wiped Hiroto's chiseled body. He was drenched in sweat from the body heat that he was producing due to the alcohol.

After cleaning Hiroto, Yuuhi dumped the water out and placed the basin back to where it was. She returned to her room and tucked Hiroto in. She dimmed the lamp and got ready to leave, but she felt something on her hand.

It was Hiroto.

He grabbed her hand, making her stop taking anymore steps to leave the room.

"Don't leave…please," Hiroto mumbled.

Yuuhi's wide blue eyes became gentle as she tucked herself in the bed by Hiroto without changing into her pajamas. Hiroto didn't let go of Yuuhi's hand. Yuuhi looked at Hiroto's kind face and fell asleep after a couple of minutes.

"Don't leave…please," Hiroto mumbled again with nobody to hear him.

"Don't leave, Kirari."