I got nervous, so I decided to leave work early today. According to my colleagues, this is the first time I've done so since I started this job 3 years ago. As a result, everyone got really worried about me for a bit. I had to shake them off by telling them I was running late for a date. I'm really not looking forward to tomorrow's interrogation...

Come to think of it, was I really that hardworking? Looking back, I was a bit of a workaholic, but only because it provided an escape from the crushing loneliness. I buried myself in work because it provided a much needed distraction from it all. From the loneliness, the hopelessness, the fears that keep me from a peaceful night's rest.

The fear that it was really just a dream.

That it wasn't real, that I would never find whatever I was looking for.

That I never found him.

I truly believed that I'd be able to find him the moment I stepped into Tokyo, but as the days stretched into weeks, then into months, and finally into years, I'd begun to imagine the unthinkable. I could not remember his face, his voice, his name. I wasn't even sure if I was looking for a person, a place for an item. The only clue I had was a faint sense of longing I could never explain. The sense of longing that has led me on many a wild goose chase all over Tokyo. To places that the high school me would have been ecstatic to visit. Places I've never once visited, yet still invites a warm feeling of nostalgia in me. In the end, I wound up exploring Tokyo during much of my free time, always chasing down that feeling of nostalgia, always feeling like I've missed a vital clue as I return home after a long day of chasing lost dreams.

Nothing I did could help with the loneliness. Tessie and Saya-chin both had their own lives and each other to worry about, Yotsuha is studying hard to get into Tokyo University, and Obaa-chan is getting on with her age. I still keep in touch with some of my classmates in University, but ultimately they all had their own lives to tend to. I really didn't have much contact with Dad, other than the usual courtesies. After all, he was the one who paid the rent for our apartment in Tokyo, but even then he didn't come by much, always busy working on whatever political play was next. I can still detect a rift between us I cannot hope to fix in my lifetime. In the end, I was still alone..

Alone.

Why? I've always been alone - having to shoulder the responsibilities of a Miko, and being the daughter of the mayor of a small town, I've always felt distanced from everyone else, even from Tessie and Sayaka. So why is it that this feeling of loneliness keeps on haunting me? Why is it so painful now, when I've been alone for most of my life already?

"Maybe because I'm a Christmas cake…" Mitsuha sighed quietly to herself as she exited the train.

No, it's not that. This feeling has been haunting me ever since the day of the incident 8 years ago. I can pinpoint it to that precise date with absolute certainty. If only I knew the reason why...

Mitsuha stepped out of the station and headed in the direction of Taki's office building. The afternoon sun has long since passed, now hanging gently just off the horizon, inviting the cool evening air. Mitsuha gazed at the cityscape as she waited by a traffic light, the towering buildings reminiscent of the mountains back in Itomori. In one of the buildings was Taki, I just have to find him now…!

!
If I suddenly showed up, would I bother him? Surprise him?

Mitsuha tightened her grip on her bag and marched forward. The flashbacks have been increasing in intensity ever since she found him.

!
What should I do? Would I annoy him? Would it be awkward?

Mitsuha found herself in front of Taki's office block, her breaths heavy. She had unconsciously been moving at a much faster pace than usual.

!
Or maybe…

"Mitsuha?"
"Tessie!"
"I got it, wait right there."
"Wait, what're you…?"

!
Maybe... he'd be a bit glad to see me?

"Mitsuha?"
"Taki!"

"Thank goodness you're alright." Taki sighed in relief at the sight of her before breaking into a smile. "When Tessie told me you were here..."

His smile was all she needed. Before Taki could take another step, Mitsuha threw her arms around his chest and pulled him into a tight embrace, drying her eyes on the newly altered jacket. It was their first hug, she realised.

It was nice. And damn it was awkward, she thought, as she chided herself for getting so worked up about meeting with him. The stares of the nearby pedestrians didn't really affect her - she had plenty of experience ignoring them. Taki, on the other hand...

"Mitsuha…?"
"Sorry, I just really wanted to see you again…"
"Actually I was just about to surprise you at work myself. Guess you beat me to it."

"Strange minds think alike, huh?"

Taki laughed at her inside joke. He was really glad Mitsuha came to see him. She's a little early though, he thought as he relaxed his embrace. He never really noticed it before, but when they hugged, Mitsuha felt really small and fragile in his arms. That completely clashed with the image he always had of her, of someone who was anything but weak…!

Taki shook off the familiar feeling. Now was not the time for flashbacks - he had to stay focused on tonight. It was all or nothing.

Mitsuha felt Taki loosen his embrace and reluctantly released hers. The warmth lingered for a moment, but she would have preferred to stay like that for just a little longer. Or perhaps forever, who knows. She just felt really happy in his arms, what else matters?

His trousers need work... Damn it, Mitsuha, get a grip!

It took Taki 3 minutes to wrap up for the day before leaving with Mitsuha. No doubt he too would be facing an equally intensive interrogation tomorrow, seeing that he was embracing Mitsuha right outside the office building, in plain view of just about everybody. Tessie in particular was displaying a particularly audacious smirk as he watched the pair make their exit.

"Teshigawara-san."

Tessie turned to the source of the voice. It was the Head Architect, and he was holding an important looking letter in his hands.

"Come to my office for a moment. Don't worry, it's about a project we're about to undertake."