Unforgettable Bonds [69 DAYS- Sequel]

Bad Sign

After who-knows-how-many-years, finally, the 5th chapter.

Chapter 5- Bad sign.

    “I have to go back to Tokyo,” I told Akashi one fine morning. He looked up at me from his papers. “My mum, she’s sick.”

    He nodded and turned back to the papers. “We’ll go straight away tonight.”

    I frowned. “We?”

    He looked back at me. “Yes, why?”

    “Why? I mean—why ‘we’? It’s me who’s going.”

    He shook his head. “I’m going too, with Yukina, of course.”

    “Um, what about work?”

    “Why does internet exist in the first place?”

    I turned away and pouted. “Fine. But my house ain’t like yours. Don’t grumble about space.”

    “I won’t.”

    I walked out of his office and went to fetch a drink. Then saw Akito on his seat. He was concentrating. I went to him. He looked up at me.

    “What do you want?” he asked nonchalantly.

    “I’m sorry.” I apologized.

    He looked annoyed. “For what?”

    I shrugged. “I don’t know. You seemed pissed off at me that day. I thought I did wrong.”

    He sighed and went back to his work. “You did nothing.”

    I smiled. “Let’s go to Tokyo with me.”

    He stopped then continued. “No thank you. My work is undone.”

    I pouted. “Fine.”

*  *  *  *

Tokyo is crazy. I sighed at almost everything. The train station is crowded and noisy. Yukina didn’t visit Tokyo for a long time so she found it annoying. Akashi stayed calm as he always does and we took a cab to my hometown.

    Arriving there, my father greeted me, smiling sweetly and accepted Akashi and Yukina willingly. I was delighted to see him, as well as mum. Dad led me into mum’s room, she was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling, her breathing irregular, her face pale, she looked thinner and her eyes are swollen.

    I went to her and held her hand tightly. “Mum,” I spoke. She gently squeezed my hand back, acknowledging my presence. I frowned at the sight of her. She’s so frail, so fragile, I didn’t dare to touch any other parts of her body. She was suffering from a cancer. Dad won’t tell me what cancer it is but of course, it looks serious as hell.

    “Kizu....na....” she muttered my name painfully. I bit my lower lip and rested my forehead on his weak hand.

    “I love you, mum.”

*  *  *  *

Morning came and of course, it’s cold. It has been a month since my encounter with Akashi and Yukina. I walked a few meters down the road to a nearby river where I usually swim there when I was a kid. Obviously, my hometown ain’t anything like Akashi’s. Mine is just wooden and plainly painted with suitable colors.

    I sat at the edge and dropped my legs into the river, enjoying the cool liquid touching my legs. After a while, it wasn’t that cold so I decided to jump in. The water splashed at my face as I entered. Confident in my rusty swimming skills, I dived into the water, smiling as I opened my eyes. The river is still clean, thankfully.