What can I say?

Having put on their sandals and passing through the entryway, they weave their way through the courtyard upon which the veranda looks out. The kids open the bag of fireworks, their chests puffed out in eager anticipation.

Watching them rifle through their stock of firework sets and peel off the tape seals, Kagiura is struck with the profound sense that summer has truly begun.

Up until last year, it had been the job of one of the adults to light the candles and place them around the courtyard, dripping a bit of wax on the ground to fix them in place.

This year, the task falls to Kagiura.

And what had been his job up until last year—filling buckets with water—had been left to one of the elementary-aged cousins. At one point, he’d been the one getting clapped on the shoulder and told, “it’s the most important job you can have when it comes to lighting fireworks,” by…wait, which uncle was it, again?

He lines up three mosquito-repellent incense sticks on the veranda and lights them.

His middle school-aged cousin, who had just arrived this morning, is taking no chances with bites in a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, and socks. He looks as if he’d come for a camping trip.

His older cousin, who’d had a bit of a rest after drinking a glass of beer, is sitting on the veranda supervising.

It’s nice to have Hirano here—a little strange, but Kagiura’s still glad. The earrings he’d given him just the night before shine brilliantly in his earlobes.

He had told everyone at breakfast that it was Hirano’s birthday, so they’d all sung happy birthday while eating their fish.

Kagiura’s aunt had run out to buy him a cake, so Hirano spent the whole time gratefully apologetic, but he’d seemed happy.

The air is thick with the white smoke rising with the burning gunpowder.

Every so often, a large bug comes close to the group, but after a while they stop caring about them, entranced by the beauty of the multicolored fireworks.

When one fades, they light the next.

The fidgety children had been jostling each other for a turn at the fireworks set, but somehow there were no collisions.

When they reach the end of their stash, they divide up the two types of sparklers and compete to see who can make the small, round fireballs last the longest.

“So pretty!”

Who was it who’d voiced that quiet exclamation of amazement?

And once the sparks fall to the ground, suddenly the world is bathed in darkness.

They submerge all the fireworks in the buckets, throw out the garbage, and blow out the candles.

“We can leave clean-up until tomorrow, since it’s dark now.”

The words had come out of Kagiura’s own mouth, but his voice was unrecognizable, almost as if it belonged to a complete stranger. His silhouette seemed to burn out with the light of the fireworks and melt into the night. But the traces yet remain. He wants to stay just like this, immersed in the faint heat coursing through him down to his fingertips.

“We didn’t light enough fireworks, did we?” At the sound of Hirano murmuring those few words, Kagiura is struck with the feeling that if he lets the moment end like this, he’ll regret it.

“Should we go buy a few more, then?”

Having crammed just their wallets into their pockets and told Kagiura’s aunt their destination, they stood in the entryway spraying each other with insect repellant.

“Akira-kuuun, it’s not safe at this time of night, so make sure you bring your cell phone with you!”

The voice at his back was perfectly clear, but Kagiura deliberately ignores it.

When he’s with his relatives, the time seems to go by slower if he leaves his phone alone, even when it’s done charging.

Stuffing his feet into his sandals, he steals a glance to the side at Hirano, who spreads both his hands with an expression of feigned ignorance. He’s not bringing his phone, either.

Like this, they have plausible deniability.

Kagiura’s gait is light with the feeling of being free from the strict curfew of the dorms.

The intermittent street lamps are dim, and the borders between the slim waterways and the road are dangerously indistinct.

The faint hums of bugs they couldn't hear during the day tickle their ears. It almost feels like the end of summer, even though there’s no sign of cooler weather.

But today is only August 1st, Hirano’s birthday.

Summer isn’t over just yet.

“Where are we going, Kagi-kun? A convenience store?”

Walking while engulfed in the warm night air conjures the illusion that they’re spending the summer the same as when they were little kids. 

Leading the way, a little ahead of Hirano, Kagiura slowly nods.

“Yup. That’s where we’re headed.”

No matter how many times he walks down the neighboring streets, the 24-hour supermarket is the closest to their house, and always has a good selection of products. The road to the convenience store is straight, but it takes 20 minutes to get there. If they walk slowly, they can have just a bit more alone time together.

“What should we do if they’re out of fireworks?”

Given the season, that’s not even a possibility, but the words came out of Kagiura’s mouth on their own.

“Buy some ice cream and call it a day?”

Buying snacks for the road is a daily occurrence for Kagiura, but this is the first time he’s heard Hirano suggest such a thing.

“It’s gonna melt by the time we get back home!”

“We can eat it while we walk. We’ll just buy enough for us two.”

“.....Oh, that’s what you meant.”

“What, did you wanna bring something back for your younger cousins?”

“Well, it’s just, my older cousins brought stuff back for me when I was a kid, so I thought maybe that’s what you were suggesting.” 

He doesn’t snack nearly as much when he’s at home, so he has a little extra pocket change and besides, his relatives had given him some spending money—these words are on the tip of his tongue, but Kagiura leaves it at that. Even if their pockets were light, he doubts Hirano would be swayed from the idea.

“Oh, really? Yeah, sounds like a plan.”

“You think so?”

They keep their voices quiet so they don’t echo down the night road, which makes it feel like their bodies are blending in with the darkness. As Kagiura listens to the voice of the person by his side, it feels like they’re on their way to a place much further than the convenience store, and he swallows.

“Ah…you know, your relatives are kinda like you. Even though I just met them, it doesn’t feel that way at all. To be honest, before we got here, I thought, ‘it’s gonna be super awkward if I don’t fit in with them’, but just like you said, I’m glad I came.”

“You’re fitting in just fine, Hirano-san. You’re really good with the younger kids, too.”

“Yeah, ‘cuz I usually live with a young person.”

“Hm? You don’t have younger brothers or sisters, right?”

“I’m talking about you, dumbass.”

“.....Do I really seem that much younger? Am I a handful?”

“You suck at waking yourself up even on days you have morning practice, you tell me you fall asleep in class all the time, and even though you suck at studying you probably wouldn’t even cram before a test if I don’t tell you to.”

Kagiura’s at a loss for words, and his eyes swim.

Hirano had hit the nail on the head, so he doesn’t even have a comeback.

Hirano’s eyes crinkle with affection at Kagiura’s reaction.

“Of course you’re a handful. But I also know that you’re kind, and you give everything your all. I bet this is the first time you’ve gotten a break from club practice all term. The basketball hoop in the courtyard’s obviously well-worn, too. When I heard from everyone that you put your all into practice even when you come home over breaks, I thought, “man, Kagi-kun’s serious about playing basketball,” and I was impressed all over again. Even on a regular basis, if you’ve been working that hard for your club, of course you can’t help but fall asleep in class.”

Kagiura’s body temperature gets one degree warmer for each kind word spoken in Hirano’s soft voice. His silhouette, nearly dissolved in the windless night air, distinctly sharpens, and hot blood swells all the way to his fingertips.

He’s endured days of sorrow and being so tired he wants to complain that ‘working hard for something I want to do is only right’. In this world where results are everything, he’s not doing this just so he’ll be praised for his efforts. He’s also banking on the idea that he can make up for his lack of study skills with things he’s good at.

That’s why, Kagiura’s a little uncertain if it’s okay to show openly how glad he is that Hirano understands his feelings enough to be able to validate him.

He’s always tried too hard to play it cool in front of him, hasn’t it?

But a certain memory flashes into his mind.

At the beginning of May, when he’d just started school, even when he’d uttered his disgraceful feelings of jealousy towards his teammate, Hirano had praised him, hadn’t he?

He knows all too well of the uncontrollable piteousness and impatience that had seemed to line up at the starting mark beside Kagiura’s teammate.

“Thanks, Hirano-san.”

They wait a bit at the traffic light, now running on the nighttime schedule, and cross at the crosswalk, where the traffic lanes increase and the sidewalks get wider. The line of stores facing the large street contains many famous chains.

When they come near the front of the video rental store, emitting dazzlingly bright light, Hirano says “once we’re inside, you’ll have to guide me,” with a laugh. There’s still quite a few cars passing by.

As they start walking side by side, Kagiura’s fingertips, throbbing with his pulse, most definitely brush against Hirano’s hand.

Sucking in a breath, he steals a glance to the side, where the brand new earrings shine in Hirano’s earlobes. The faint sparkle of blue that matches the gentle color of his eyes shines all the more brightly against the night road.

“Hirano-san, those earrings look amazing on you.”

Having chosen them himself, Kagiura is all the more proud, and he grins from ear to ear.

“That’s ‘cause you picked them out.”

He’s right.

The one who is by Hirano’s side the longest—not quite 24/7, but from the time they come home to their dorm until they head out the next day—is none other than Kagiura.

Of course he’s the right person to pick out the perfect pair for him.

*****

Prev || Next

“Long time, no see…well, not really, huh? Your casual clothes are cool, Hirano-san.”

At the meet-up spot just outside the ticket gate, Kagiura smiles carefreely.

When complimented this straightforwardly, Hirano can’t help but be flustered. His cheeks tinged with red, he replies, “Ah, you too,” raising a hand in greeting.

Their large bags are hard to handle when they’re walking side by side, and they almost collide.

After Hirano had gone home, they had talked on the phone almost every day in order to solidify their plans. Although they just talked for five minutes before lights out, he’s gotten used to hearing Kagiura’s voice over the phone, and his tone is different in person.

Now seeing the soft-spoken Kagiura face to face, Hirano gets the feeling he’s even taller than he remembered, which elicits from him a wry smile.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder, yet Kagiura hasn’t even been absent that long.

Summer vacation hasn’t even been going on that long.

When Hirano had brought up going to the countryside to hang out with his kouhai, his mother had looked surprised, and his father had seemed amused.

After he finally received the taken-aback response of “Well, that came out of nowhere. I suppose it’s fine, though”, he’d realized the hypocrisy of him telling Kagiura to get permission from his parents.

And after I’ve been acting like an older brother to Kagi-kun.

He hadn’t shaken off the sheepishness of this blunder, and they made none of the conversation that usually follows after saying hello.

Hirano has two pieces of luggage, a gray Boston bag and a tote bag borrowed from his mother. Inside the tote bag is a hostess gift. The day after they’d discussed his trip, his mother had prepared something that would keep for a long time at room temperature.

When’s the right time to hand it over?

In his day to day life, he’s always playing the role of dorm senpai or disciplinary committee member, but in the grand scheme of things, he’s still only just a high schooler.

Playing in the river, swimming in the ocean, fireworks.

He had imagined how they’d spend time in the countryside, and had diligently researched how to get a ticket for the long-distance bus, but he hadn’t even considered the right way to give his greetings.

The night bus, with four seats to a row, leaves the terminal at 10:30; they expect to arrive at Kagiura’s countryside house at around 9:30 the following morning.

There is no way they won’t get hungry while traveling for roughly half a day.

Which is to say, as soon as they checked where to board the bus, Hirano and Kagiura decided to stock up on snacks at the convenience store.

As the two stand side by side in the blindingly-lit store, all the awkwardness of not seeing each other for a week melts away.

“I wonder if the 500 milliliter bottle of tea will be enough.”

“We’ll be stopping at a rest stop along the way, so we can probably buy more then.”

“Should I get karaage?”

“It’ll have a really strong smell.”

“Yeah, you’re right…what should I get, then…?”

It’d be prudent to get something that won’t spill easily, smell strongly, or make a loud noise when eaten, so they won’t bother the passengers around them.

Once they consider those conditions, their options are narrowed down quite a bit.

“You should get something that’ll keep you full overnight. Like onigiri or something.”

“That might be enough. Ah, I’m gonna get konbu.”

“You’re a fan of konbu, huh?”

“Yeah.”

Being away from school, in addition to being totally caught up in the excitement of the trip, makes the boundaries between senpai and kouhai fade away.

While they test out the various furnishings, each of their appetites subdued by onigiri as soon as they’d boarded the bus, the speakers crackle to life to announce that the interior lights will be shut off.

As they were instructed to do so as not to bother the passengers around them after the bus lights shut off, the reading lights flicker on all around the bus.

Hirano was among those who turned them on for the sheer novelty of it, but he had packed most of his belongings in the Boston bag, so he actually doesn’t have a book on hand.

Not quite ready to settle in yet, he looks to the side, where Kagiura has spread out a blanket and made himself completely at home.

He has turned his sling bag round to the front, as if trying to cradle his valuables. The seats must be cramped for the long-legged Kagiura.

“You’re not sleepy, are you?” His voice fading to a whisper, he adds on, “I kinda want to sleep since we ate all that food”, and his words are illustrated by the drowsy look in his eyes. There’s no helping it. It’s already past 11 o’clock.

Hirano turns off the reading light.

“...Now I’m kinda tired, too.”

Hirano spreads out his blanket, adjusts his footrest and reclining seat, and unfolds the eyemask he’d taken from his bag.

When he glances around the bus, there’s just a few people left who still have their lights on.

Hirano slowly opens his eyes, having become conscious of the tap tap of his arms being lightly poked. The aisleway lights are on, glaringly bright.

At some point the eye mask had slipped upward, and is now hanging on to the top of his head by just a hair.

“Hirano-san, we’re here—at the rest stop, I mean. Let’s go outside.”

The person whispering into his ear while gently touching his arms is Kagiura.

“Oh…Kagi-kun…”

He faintly remembers the schedule. The break at the rest stop is indeed late at night, around 1 a.m. They’d only gotten to sleep for a few hours. Hirano, who is bad with mornings at the best of times, normally wouldn’t be able to get up this early if the world was ending. But he’s been woken up by Kagiura, who is even worse at waking up in the morning, which never happens. He can’t very well just not get up.

Upon rising from his seat as prompted, he quickly realizes that his arms, bared by his short sleeves, are freezing. Just standing up is enough to get his blood moving again.

“They said the break will be 15 minutes. We’ll be more comfortable if we get off the bus and stretch. Just about everyone else’s already gotten off.”

Sure enough, when he looks around all the empty seats stand out. Walking up the narrow aisles to use the bathroom in the bus is an unappealing prospect, so it seems they’d be better off going outside.

When he follows Kagiura off the bus, the lights of the buildings shine brilliantly below the night sky as far as the eye can see. There are multiple buses stopped besides the one Hirano and Kagiura are taking, and the carpark is also bustling with personal automobiles.

“The night bus is colder than I expected.”

As they walk towards the facilities, Hirano regrets not having a long-sleeved shirt on hand.

“Yeah. If you only have that blanket, it’s a little chilly.”

It’s probably because of all the greenery. Even considering the fact that it’s night, it’s still the middle of summer, yet the open air is refreshingly cool.

“It doesn’t feel much like summer, does it?”

“It’d be nice if it felt like this during the day, too.”

As they walk, he stretches his wrists out and rolls them in relief. For Kagiura with his long legs, the seats in the bus are probably way too cramped.

Hirano had bought corn soup in a cup from a vending machine after quickly using the facilities.

He isn’t hungry, but it warms his stomach.

“Ouch!”

Even though he blew on it, it doesn’t cool down the way it would in wintertime.

As he lightly sips it to keep from burning himself, Kagiura, having returned from buying more onigiri, tilts his head.

“Hirano-san, are you gonna take that onto the bus?”

“Nah. The smell is pretty strong.”

“Can I eat some of it then? We only have three minutes left.”

“Geh. I’m leaving it to you, then.”

“You got it. I’ll take care of it for you!”

Kagiura’s refreshing smile brings his defined features into prominence, and he looks a bit like an idol. A pair of college-aged girls passing by whisper to each other, “God, he’s hot,” and “I know, right?”

After gulping down more than half, Kagiura hands the cup back to Hirano.

“It’s not hot anymore, so you should be good.”

Just as he said, when Hirano tilts the cup, he can feel the warmth where his lips touch the rim.

“Oh, you’re right.”

He drains the cup in two large sips and throws it out, and they hurry back to the bus.

Apart from the two of them, it looks like all the passengers have already returned to their seats. They made it back in the nick of time with one minute to spare.

After sharing a silent smile with Kagiura, Hirano pulls the blanket firmly up over his shoulders. There’s a short announcement, and then the bus quietly pulls out of the rest stop.

Thanks to the warmth in his stomach, he slips back into sleep easily.

***

They take their time eating a breakfast of curry at the cafe in front of the train station; the car comes to pick them up as they look around at the station tenants.

“You’ve come such a long way. Thank you for looking after Akira.”

The person who receives them fondly is Kagiura’s aunt.

Apparently, the plan is to head to a place they call the main house after stopping at a supermarket on the way for some shopping. Noticing that the side profile of the woman in the driver’s seat resembles Kagiura, Hirano says, “you look a lot like Kagi-kun,” to which Kagiura replies, “you think so?” with a grin.

Their affable expressions especially look alike.

Upon arrival and disembarkment, Hirano stands in front of the house in amazement.

“.....It’s huge!”

“Right? It makes it really easy for us all to get together.”

There are spots for six vehicles in the parking lot, a fact by which he’d been overwhelmed. And when taking in the full breadth of the house with wide eyes, he is once again at a loss for words at the vastness of Kagiura’s grandfather’s house.

He’d heard it was big ahead of time, but this is several times larger than the scale he was imagining.

The construction seems old, but it wouldn’t be out of line to call the meticulously maintained house a mansion.

Just as he’d expected from Kagiura’s description, the countryside spreads out around the house as far as the eye can see.

The sky is wide and open, and a river flows nearby.

Narrow irrigation channels for agricultural usage flow quite quickly, and it seems dangerous for small children.

“Wow…no way, this place is frickin’ huge. Do you guys have barbecues and stuff on that riverbank we passed by earlier?”

“I haven’t. It’s easy to get down into the river there, and there’s a lot of fish and other critters, so we play in the water there a lot.”

“Huh...”

The pathway leading to the entrance is paved, so he looks around at their surroundings without worrying about getting tripped up. The buildings are set quite far apart from one another, and he can’t even begin to guess the distance.

Through the front door that had been left open, he just catches a glance at the more than ten pairs of shoes lined up. The foyer itself is also wide, as is the entryway step.¹ It looks as if someone had reproduced it from a picture of a classic Japanese building.

“We’re home!”

“Pardon the intrusion.”

Following Kagiura’s lead, their larger luggage is left in the entryway for the time being. Hirano takes from his tote bag only the hostess gift and heads into the house after Kagiura.

They are greeted by a group of small children.

“Akira-kun!”

“Akkii!”

“Oh, I haven’t seen you guys since spring break!”

Going by their ages, they might be his cousins? It seems as though Kagiura is acting like the adult of this group, and his expression looks more mature.

But where are the actual adults?

Kagiura’s aunt, who’d driven them here, had gone around to a side door, so they had parted ways a bit before reaching the entryway.

Who should I give this to?

The presence of the paper bag, the corner folded down, has made him uncharacteristically antsy.

“Ummm…..Hirano-san, this way.”

Kagiura, who at some point had procured a sword fashioned from newspaper, is heading down the hallway while engaged in mock swordplay with a boy of around five.

Rather than going easy on him, he is fending off the attack strategically so as to avoid taking any hits; he seems to be taking the match seriously as he grins. He’s not even pausing for breath.

As he trails behind, a small girl follows close by Hirano’s side. As expected, she vaguely resembles Kagiura. Particularly, the part of their hair.

The girl’s eye level is only up to his legs, so he figured she must have mistaken him for a family member, but when he asks her “how old are you?” she cheerfully replies “four!”, so he probably doesn’t need to worry about it.

The fingers she has confidently thrust upward, presumably so Hirano can easily see them, are only three in number; he’s tickled by not knowing which was the correct number.

He probably did stuff like this, too, he thinks—he’s starting to get an image of how his kouhai was as a child, despite not having known him at that age.

Thanks to that, his nerves settled, and even giving his greetings to Kagiura’s grandfather, who was relaxing in a Japanese-style room listening to the radio, was enjoyable.

The hostess gift that he’d finally managed to hand over will, after being used as an offering at the household altar, be put out as today’s afternoon snack.

In the meantime, everyone is called to their seats for lunch, and proper introductions are made.

As far as Kagiura’s parents and siblings go, apparently they plan to arrive around the time of Obon.

When asked why he’d chosen to come at a separate time, Kagiura had replied, “I wanted to come before the jellyfish start coming out,” but this explanation comes under fire as a “weird reason”—the residents of this house don’t play in the nearby seaside much, since rip currents form easily there.

At that moment, Kagiura’s eyes had flitted to Hirano, meeting his gaze before darting away.

Well, it was probably just that if they came for Obon, it’d be uncomfortable to let friends tag along.

After lunch, their troupe, led by the kids, play in the river, and as soon as they return to the house to rehydrate start playing a game with a ball, so there’s no time to rest between the nonstop activities.

Hirano had intended to keep up with Kagiura, but the difference in their stamina had been made painfully clear, and before he knew it he’d found himself surrounded by a growing number of small children.

They kept on playing, but they told him, “we’ll save you!”, so they’re just putting up with the guest.

The sunlight was strong, so he had borrowed a straw hat, but having changed into a swimsuit and entered the river, his upper half had gotten quite sunburnt.

The prickling pain had been getting progressively worse, and if his skin wasn’t damaged before he got in the bath, it sure was after.

Hirano is suffering away in the second floor bedroom he’d been given when Kagiura, who’d taken a bath after him, returns holding a tube of cream in his hand.

“Hirano-san, I heard your back is bright red. Put this on. It’s for sunburns, so it’ll help a bit.”

“Oh, they told you?”

“Yeah. They said it looked super painful when you washed your back.”

Hirano, who’d ended up in charge of the kids and even been put on bath duty before he knew what was happening, had taken his bath with the three boys, aged lower grade to kindergarten.

Among them was the young boy who’d enthusiastically brandished the newspaper sword.

“Yeah, for sure. It wasn’t bothering me that much, but it hurts like a bitch when something rubs against my back.”

“Getting that lot to behave must’ve been rough.”

“They didn’t behave…they weren’t even still when I was drying them off.”

Luckily, they weren’t cowed by Hirano’s blond hair, but they kept jumping up to play with it, so they got wet again as soon as he dried them, and he’d had to put their pajamas on with their hair still soaking wet, which was a pain in the ass.

“Huh? At that age, they can dry themselves off, you know.”

“...Are you kidding me?”

Kagiura giggles.

“It’s because you’re so nice. You’ve been spoiling them rotten. …..Will you take off your top for me?”

“You gonna put the cream on for me?”

“Of course.”

He pulls his shirt off, flinching at the feeling of the fabric grazing his skin.

The sensation of the refreshingly cool fingers stroking his shoulder blades feels indescribably good.

With the hectic day finally over, he thinks he’ll go to sleep early, but strangely, drowsiness doesn’t come.

“There’s a ton of manga in this room.” At Kagiura’s prompting, he decides to begin reading a volume—it’s halfway through the series, but it’s just a gag manga.

He was under the impression that reading while lying down makes your eyes bad, but there are no chairs, so it’s the most comfortable position.

Have the younger kids fallen asleep already?

When it occurs to him to check the clock, it’s drawing near midnight.

When did that happen? Surprised, he looks over at Kagiura beside him.

Up until yesterday, he would always be asleep long before this time, but right now he’s wide awake.

“Kagi-kun, you’re not tired?”

“Nah. We had a slow morning, so I’m fine.”

Ah, that’s right. With the night bus arriving so late, he’d gotten to sleep in three hours longer than on days he has practice.

Hirano, who like Kagiura is not a morning person, had also slept in quite a long time today.

But if they don’t sleep soon, before they know it they’ll be ringing in a new day.

“We should go to bed soon, though.”

“Wait, just a little longer.”

“Hm? Didn’t you already get to a good stopping point in your book?”

The manga had already been put away, and Kagiura’s the one who finished getting ready for bed first, but for some reason he shakes his head.

No sooner has he pulled his sling bag towards him than he has withdrawn a small paper bag.

“Your birthday.”

Hirano’s eyes grow wide at Kagiura, who had passed him the bag as he spoke.

“.....Huh?”

At first, he’s surprised.

After a moment, he glances at the clock, and lets out a little huff of laughter.

It is August 1st, 12:00 a.m. on the dot.

He’d managed to get the time to the minute—and Hirano’s giving his abs quite the workout, suppressing his laughter out of respect for the fact that it’s the middle of the night.

Kagiura is stumped by Hirano’s laughter, which had continued for a while, but eventually he smiles, as Hirano certainly seems satisfied with the present, firmly clutching it in his hands.

Kagiura is stumped by Hirano’s silent laughter, which had continued for quite a while, but eventually he smiles, apparently satisfied by the fact that Hirano’s clutching the present tightly.

“Happy birthday, Hirano-san.”

“Dude, you’re such a try-hard! ….Thanks. Ah, sorry for laughing.”

He’s as overjoyed as he is shocked.

He hasn’t said as much, but with the way he can’t stop grinning, he probably doesn’t have to.

“I’m glad you’re happy about it!”

Hirano’s pretty sure his own expression now matches the soft smile on Kagiura’s face.

He checks the contents of the bag to find a small box. It’s clearly some kind of accessory.

“Now what do we have here?” With a feeling of trepidation, Hirano opens the box with a click. Inside is a set of earrings in an understated blue color lined up within the velvet fabric.

“These are…”

“I’ve been thinking it’d be a shame if your piercings closed up. Wear them every day, Hirano-san.”

“Yeah.” He nods, then goes to the mirrored dresser in the corner of the room to put them in.

The holes really have started to close, and rather than allowing the earrings through smoothly, they feel slightly obstructed.

After affixing them to each ear, he goes to stand in front of Kagiura, whose eyes are crinkled in apparent satisfaction. Like this, it is unclear which one of them had received a gift.

It’d be easy to lose them if he wore them to sleep, so Hirano takes them out soon afterward, but he’ll wake up before Kagiura tomorrow and put them in first thing.

Having made up his mind, Hirano went to sleep.

And how soft he felt.

*****

Long chapter, but we made it 😭🙏 I feel so bad it took me this long to get chapter 3 out to yall but the past 6 months have been nothing but suffering and I've basically been working on this in bits and pieces around all the other bs I've been juggling. Thanks for being patient with me!

T/N: (1) I don't know what this is called in English. I don't think it even has a name in English though I feel like I've seen it in some houses here. Basically, it's when you walk into a house and there's a step beyond the foyer leading to the rest of the house. Like this

(2) Obon is an annual event meant for honoring your ancestors. Families tend to get together and visit their family graves, and it's believed that the spirits of the deceased visit household alters. So Hirano thinks that the reason Kagi wanted to come at a different time from the rest of his family is because it might be weird to have a friend hanging around during Obon, but really it's just because Kagi wanted to be able to celebrate Hirano's birthday with him lol

(3) I don't think this is true I have no idea why he thinks this lmao (but then again, it'd be explain my terrible eyesight, so maybe he's onto something)

Prev || Next

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

[achievement unlocked! A Truthful Reminder]

you are more loved than you'll ever know. it's hard to believe sometimes, but you are important. just as important as anyone else. you reading this? you're important to me. because you took the time to read this and look at what i had to say.

i may be a friend or a stranger, but just know that what i'm saying is true. you mean something to someone. you mean the world to someone. and this will be here if you need to hear it again.

[Actions:]

> read again