Forget Me Not

Twenty-Three | 二十三

Twenty Three

"Oikawa-san?" [Name]'s voice brought Oikawa back to reality. He blinked, realizing that he was holding his breath. He looked up to find all of his friends looking at him. [Name] looked at him with a concerned expression, waiting for him to respond.

"Ah, g-gomen. What was that?" Oikawa chuckled nervously, resting his hand at the curve where his shoulder and neck meets. They had stopped on their way up the hill.

"Are you alright?" [Name] asked. His friends kept their eyes at him. He seemed a little taken aback by the question but smiled anyways.

"I'm fine." He nodded. "Now let's head up before we miss the shooting stars." He grinned, taking bigger steps. They agreed and started to pick up their pace a little.

Iwaizumi walked close to his childhood friend, carrying the two telescopes they rented from the planetarium just at the base of the hill. "Oi, are you really okay?" He asked, watching Sakura, Umi and [Name] walk up the hill before them.

"I'm alright, really." Oikawa assured the vice-captain, readjusting the telescope in his hands. "What about you, bara-kun? Carrying two telescopes?"

"Shut up," Iwaizumi growled, making Oikawa chuckle. After a while, the seriousness between them returned. "You should be the most excited to see some shooting stars, but you're kind of out of it today."

"Yeah, you're right." Oikawa nodded, looking down at his feet as they walked at the designated path, careful not to trip on anything. "When I was planning this trip, I was really excited. I wanted to make new memories with [Name]-chan. But after hearing about her brother... I can't find my excitement anymore."

"Dumbass," Iwaizumi said. "It's not your fault you know?"

"I know," Oikawa nodded. "But I still feel somewhat responsible."

"That's why you asked for her parents' permission to be the one to tell her about her brother?" Oikawa remained silent at that. Iwaizumi sighed. "You're a real dumbass sometimes, you know?"

"It's just that..." Oikawa said, looking up to the sky. The sunset was almost down completely, leaving the skies in a blue and red mixture. "[Name]-chan deserves to remember her brother. And he deserves to be remembered." He turned to his best friend, smiling sadly. "It's sad if she doesn't remember her big brother at all." Iwaizumi remained quiet, wordlessly agreeing.

They set up the telescopes as soon as they reached the top of the hill, adjusting the lenses, pointing them towards the skies. They waited a little longer for the skies to get a little darker. While doing so, they had a light picnic, enjoying what's left of the sunset.

Once it was dark enough, they peeked through the telescopes, hoping to catch a glimpse of stars and constellations. Oikawa chuckled as he watched [Name] looking through the telescope excitedly, unable to keep her mouth closed. Every time she spotted a constellation or a star, she could call out for him, tugging at his arm to have him see it too. He would then explain as much as he knew about the constellation to her, telling her to stories behind it.

Oikawa sat on the grass, the soft breeze caressing his face as he watched Iwaizumi, Umi and Sakura use the telescope. He tilted his head up, looking up at the dark skies dusted with small balls if lights. Since they were quite a distance away from the city, it was easier to spot out the stars.

He turned to his side when he felt someone sit next to him, rustling the grass. He smiled to find [Name], smiling at him. She bent her legs close to her chest, resting her hands on her knees. She looked up to the skies too, wanting to see what he was looking at. "The stars are really pretty," She said.