Asakura Souji’s funeral was not a grand one. The scale was small and only his family attended. However, among his family was his childhood friend, Amagawa Mayuki.In front of Souji who had entered the coffin was his family with faces dyed in sadness. Unlike Souji, his older brother, Koichi, lead a bright social life, but his usual expression was gone, and his dumbfounded expression was as if he wore a Noh mask. Similar thing happened to his mother and father. No, her mother was the only one who couldn’t endure it as she sobbed and wetted her handkerchief.Having lived in the same house as family of four, it could be understood that Souji was loved from their current appearances. Souji’s paternal grandmother, who came slightly late because she lived in the country, was pounding the coffin as she let out a grieving voice. Having seen their pained appearances, Mayuki couldn’t endure it and went out. On the way, she heard Koichi’s shout, but she didn’t stop.She clenched her teeth, and as if this was just a dream that she wanted to get rid of, she kept running straight ahead. Gatsuh, she fell because she stumbled on something. As she slowly looked up, the missanga on her right wrist entered her vision. It was something created by Souji for Mayuki with leftover thread from the Academy’s Home Economic cla.s.s. ‘It’s okay even if it’s just a wish.’ There was the anecdote where missanga would grant a wish if it was cut. Even without that, Mayuki was happy because it was something Souji created for her.Since then she always wore it, but even if he noticed it, it never became a topic of conversation. Even so, Mayuki was very pleased because she could feel his gentle warmth from the missanga. They had grown up together ever since childhood.Although their families weren’t related, they got along pretty well. After becoming a high school student, Souji became slightly distant, but her mother said it was just his p.u.b.erty and told her he’d recover sooner or later, so she decided to endure it. But, he interacted with other girls normally. That made Mayuki dissatisfied. Especially when she saw the girls ate the lunch he cooked, and her dissatisfaction only increased.However, when she complained to him, she was shocked because he said are you my mom. Certainly she always worried about Souji, but she thought that remark was too cruel. At least she tried to endure it without saying anything. It was because if they could interact normally, Souji would smile at her. And that’d make her happy. Since childhood, because he said smiling suited her, Mayuki never erased her smile.She believed that would make Souji happy. When she asked if she could call him Sou-kun while smiling, he answer with what’s with that as he laughed. That’s why she decided to smile to make him smile. However…. “No more… … I can’t smile anymore… … Sou-... …-kun…..” He was no longer here. She could no longer by his side. No longer… … able to smile. A commotion appeared when the accident happened in the academy, and Mayuki was shocked because his name appeared during the commotion. However the truth was even crueler. His involvement in such accident didn’t end with him being just injured. Due to the accident, he lost his life. He died instantly. She didn’t understood what happened after that. She didn’t have the memory of how much time had pa.s.sed. She also didn’t come to the academy. His funeral was held, her feet unconsciously moved towards his house. She might be only trying to confirm it. To confirm if it was just one of his pranks.She thought it was just his mischievous prank in order to surprise her. And she thought she’d indeed be angry and crying this time.However, the him inside the coffin was as cold as ice. No matter how much she touched him, talked to him, nothing was returned. In the end, the cold reality was crueler. “Sou-kun… … Sou-kun… … Sou-kun… … Sou-kun… … Sou-kun… … -kun… …-n.” Mayuki repeated that many, many times as she collapsed on the ground. However, no answer came after all. The rain gradually fell, potsu potsu her body gradually became wet. It was as if even the sky lamented Souji’s death. Wearily, she returned to her home, and her parent’s words of comfort entered her ears. She shut herself inside her room as is, and her eyes glanced at thing that decorated her desk. A photograph of Souji with a wry smile of embarra.s.sment. Already, she couldn’t endure it. The tears that stopped were flowing again as they came out from her eyes. Although until now her tears had fell because of the sudden event, it was the first time Mayuki let out her voice. “I hate it… … I don’t want this! Come back! Sou-kuuuuuuun! Uwaaaaaaaaah!” After that, she cried for so many times. Over and over, she thought her tears had not dried up, but she believed it’d dried up someday, and she raised her voice.Having seen Mayuki’s face that swollen because of tears, her mother said “What an awful face,” as she gently hugged her. Her mother was also crying. Her mother had thought of Souji as her own son. From her mother, she heard Souji was dead because she protected a girl. Apparently, the girl only ended up with light bruises. That was the result of Souji firmly held her. ‘It’s just like Sou-chan.’ Although her mother was crying, she said that in joy. Having resulted in him losing his own life, Mayuki thought he was truly a fool. For a while, Mayuki shut herself and didn’t attend the academy, and her friends visited her because they were worried about her.Gradually she resumed, and half a year had pa.s.sed. Although she was at least able to smile towards her friends, her mind was still shackled. It was as if there was a chain inside. After a year had pa.s.sed since his death, Mayuki, who was a soph.o.m.ore, used her holiday to come visit Souji’s grave alone. “Sou-kun….” She couldn’t get accustomed to it after all. Tears always flowed every time she thought of him. But at that time, there was a presence behind her and she suddenly turned around.There was a girl she had never seen before. Maybe because the girl was shaken when Mayuki was crying, she dropped flowers in her hand and she tried to run away from there. “Ah, wait!” Mayuki spontaneously grasped her arm. “I-I am sorry if I surprised you! Are you also going to visit Sou-kun’s grave?” Even though she heard that, the girl kept averting her face. No, the gripped arm was slightly trembling. Following that, the girl’s face was as if she was scared of something.Her wavy, brown hair was cut short. But, the thing that caught attention was the lovely, small face that equipped with her blue eyes. Then, tears flowed from those blue eyes. “Eh!? Ah, that… …. did I do something?”“N-No! It was Seila’s… … my fault.” Mayuki was troubled about how to treat the girl who suddenly sat down and cried. Mayuki changed their place to calm the girl, and she handed over the juice she bought at the vending machine. “Th-Thank you very much….” The girl said her grat.i.tude in a small voice, the girl’s name was Hoshimori Seila, she was a half of American and j.a.panese origin. That’s why her eyes were blue.Moreover, she said she attended the same academy and in the same grade as Mayuki. “About Sou-kun… … do you know him?”“... … … … that’s… … eu” Maybe because it was something painful to say, she always looked down. Because of this, she somehow looked adorable just like a small animal. Mayuki thought of her like that, and Mayuki also needed considerable courage to ask her. Gokuri, Mayuki gulped, “U-Umm… … a-are you… … that’s… … Sou-kun’s… … g-girlfriend?”“Gi-girlfriend!? Th-th-th-th-th-th-that’s wrong! Th-that can’t be-!”(note: I couldn’t translated of the last sentence) Seila shook her head as she blushed. Although Mayuki felt she was so cute when she bit her tongue, she was relieved that she wasn’t his girlfriend. “Th-That’s right! I don’t have boyfriend, so it isn’t possible for Sou-kun to have a girlfriend! Aha, ahaha!” Mayuki let out an unnatural laugh as if to smoothed thing over. “Ah, then what? A friend?”“Umm… … Seila is….” Then, she began to weep again. Mayuki didn’t understand what happened and puzzled by it. Following that…. “... … sor… ...ry”“... … eh?”“I am… … sor… … ry”“... … why are you apologizing?” She said that out of curiosity. Then, the girl began to talk about a surprising thing. 純粋な興味から聞いた。そして驚くべきことを彼女が話し出した。 “... … … … at that time, Asakura-san… … helped me.”“... … eh?”“I am sorry… … I am rossy….”(note : either it was intended or typo… dunno)“... … … … maybe, the one Sou-kun helped… … was you?” Seila nodded while her body trembled. Silent continued for a while, and then Seila started to apologize again. “Because of Seila’s carelessness… … that’s why… … that’s-... ...h!?” Mayuki hugged Sarah with all of her might. Seila was stiffened while her eyes opened wide. “... … thanks for being safe.”“Eh… … but… … because of Seila….”“Uun, that’s wrong. Sou-kun only did what’s right.”“... … … … h!?”“That’s why, for you, who Sou-kun protected with his life, to be safe is a truly good thing.”“... … U… … Uu… … Uwaaaaaan!” Two people were crying together as they embraced each other.
“Ah~ we have cried it all out!”“Eu… … yes.” Mayuki and Seila’s faces were crimson, and their eyes congested. It was a face a woman wouldn’t show to a man. “But, I am truly glad… … un, thank G.o.d.”“... … I am sorry.”“Hey! Don’t apologize! Come on, let’s visit his grave together!” Mayuki pulled Seila’s hand as they moved towards the grave. The two affixed the flowers they brought respectively, and clapped their hands. “Nee, do you have some time now?”“Eh… … yes.”“Let’s go to my house.”“Eeh!?” Seila was so surprised that her face warped, and she was forcibly taken along by Mayuki. The two arrived at the house. They then laughed together as were looking through the alb.u.m in Mayuki’s room.Thus, the two became friends. They regularly visited the grave together. They also had lunch together in the academy. The two spoke about a lot of things. One day, after several months had pa.s.sed, the two visited the grave again. “Ah, Mayuki-san. You got that Missanga from Asakura-san, right?”“Un”“Fufu, a wish, do you have something like that?”“A wish huh… … it’s that after all.”“Eh?”“I want to meet Sou-kun”“eh!?”“Even Seila have thought of that, right? Wanting to meet and said your grat.i.tude.”“... … yes.”“But… … that wish… … is impossible.”“... .. that’s… … right.” The two muttered in front of Souji’s grave. “I want to meet him”“Yes….” Then, at that time, dazzling light gushed out from around their feet. Everything in front of the two turned white, and before they noticed… … they were in an unknown place.