Write Me a Love Story (OHSHC)

Epilogue III: Reminiscent of the Past, Looking Toward the Future

15 years post-graduation

As I sat snuggling Kotoe, my one-year-old daughter, in my arms, my mind began to wander. As I'd been doing a lot of late, I started to reminisce and let my mind wander. My first thoughts went to my mother and sister. Mom was still living in the same place, empty-nesting but more than pleased with the visits to my house and going to see Kaiyoka in school. My sister was now 19, succeeding in college and studying to be a physical therapist. It made sense, as she'd always beg to come to my doctor's visits whenever I got injured from judo, and she'd always be enamored by the machinery and the doctors themselves. By the sound of it, when she spoke to me over the phone excitedly, she would be well on her way to reaching her goal. It'd really suit her, and I was proud of my little sister.

My mind then went over the earlier years of my relationship, when Kyouya and I were still in college. That was a truly enjoyable time; of course, Kyouya was often stressed over the workload he had, as he was balancing being a business major and trying to claim the biggest business in Japan as his own, and I was always on one time-crunch or another, stuck between the pull of writing for class and writing for fun. We made it work, though. We didn't officially start dating until we were well into our freshman year, even though Kyouya and I both had an unspoken exclusivity pact. We had agreed to let ourselves get adjusted to college life and settled in first before setting anything in stone.

"Kaiyoka... Why do you love me?" He'd asked one day. Obviously, there was some insecurity in his mind regarding our relationship, and I clearly remembered being shocked by the question. But, after thinking about it for a moment, I answered him,

"I always used to ask my father why he went to fight if he was always in danger. He would say that the most important thing a person can take into battle is a reason why. Relationships are the same way." I remember looking over at Kyouya, and his eyes were wide. "There are a lot of reasons why I love you, Kyouya. Simply put, I crave your presence and your affection and your personality. I crave that you were brave enough to apologize for your mistake. I crave everything about you."

"Kaiyoka?" I snapped out of my thoughts to see Kyouya standing above me, looking concerned. He was holding Hirotoki (Kotoe's twin) in one arm, and our four-year-old son, Atsuya, had claimed his father's other hand. "Are you ready to go?" I smiled, standing up and leaning over to kiss his cheek.

"Yes, I'm ready. I love you, by the way." I walked toward the front door, glancing back at him with a grin.

"I love you too," He responded, looking slightly confused. I couldn't help but laugh, and he joined in after a moment. All of our kids started giggling, and soon, we were all laughing for no reason. It was good, innocent fun. We were laughing for no reason, but we didn't need one. Our family was no battle.

*

"Are you sure you want to take the kids, honey?" Kyouya asked, though we were already on our way to the graveyard. I nodded, feeling confident in my decision.

"Of course. They won't really know what's going on, but I feel like Dad would want to meet them." Kyouya looked at me for a moment before nodding.

"Right, of course." He looked at me a little closer before diverting his eyes. "Well, lead the way." Our family walked through the rows of tombstones, passing by each grey marker until we got to my father's, the one that was engraved with the name Hirotoki Sahni. I looked back at Kyouya, who had become increasingly more quiet the longer we were there.

"What's wrong, honey?" I asked, looking back at him. He shook his head, his eyes still cast toward the tombstone.

"Nothing. I just... Haven't had to experience this before. I don't really know what to do." I laughed quietly, rubbing his arm since both of his hands were taken.

"You don't have to do anything. I just needed a moment to talk to him." He nodded, stepping back a bit with Hiro and Atsu as I turned back toward the grave. Kotoe was in my arms, as she didn't want to walk, but she nuzzled her head into my shoulder, getting as close to me as possible. I smiled, though she couldn't see it, rubbing her back. I needed that.

I stood in front of the grave for a moment, not sure where to begin. But, with the rest of my family around me, I drew the words from them and began.

"Hi, Dad." Those words hung in the air for a moment. A small, sad smile donned my face. "It's been a long time; I'm 28 now. The last time I saw you was almost 20 years ago. That's two whole decades." I began to chuckle, suddenly recalling a memory.

"You always did hate when I measured anything by decades. You said it made you feel old." Chuckles turned to laughs, and my eyes welled up the longer I spoke.

"I wonder if you'd still feel that way, seeing me now. You would finally get to meet Kyouya, who's the best thing that's ever happened to me. You have grandchildren now, too; that'll make anyone feel old." I giggled, trying to keep the tears back, but only because they would land on Kotoe's head.

"Dad, I know you're up in heaven watching me, so I'll take the time now to just say thank you. Even though you were taken from me early, you taught me so much about the world. Your relationship with Mom gave me a target for how my relationship should be with my husband. You were a fantastic parent, and I hope I'm doing just as good a job with my bunch as you did with me." I paused, the next sentence coming to my mind but hitting me hard. "I know Kasoiya would've loved you." A tear slipped down my cheek, but I left it. "You've done so much for me, even in your absence. So... Thank you. Thank you for being such a positive impact; in nine years, you were able to have an impact in my life that I'd only hope to have on others over many, many more years." Behind me, I heard footsteps, and I turned to see that Atsuya had come to stand beside me. He grabbed my hand after a moment, looking up at me with huge, inquisitive brown eyes, and he squeezed my hand. I squeezed back lightly, feeling his tiny hand try to wrap around my much larger one. It reminded me of fonder times, of when I was younger and without a care. It made me smile.

"I love you, Dad. Thank you for all you did for me. The love you showed me could last an eternity." With that, I felt choked up beyond belief, but still happy. I put Kotoe down, steadying her on her feet before taking the geranium that I had brought with me and placing it on his grave. It was his favorite flower, in orange, his favorite color, and it brought an air of playfulness that I knew he'd appreciate. Next to me, Atsuya let go of my hand and walked up to the grave, placing a white rose down next to the geranium. He gently took Kotoe's hand and gave her another, smaller rose, and he helped her put it next to the other two flowers. I looked at them both in utter shock, and Kyouya walked over with Hiro and helped him place another. The kids all stood around the grave, looking at the flowers, and Kyouya took that moment to place his own flower on the grave. Another geranium, a red one.

Overwhelmed, more tears spilled down my face, and I turned and hugged Kyouya, burying my face in his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around me, flooding me with warmth, and he stroked my hair. From beside us, Hiro came and hugged my leg, as did Kotoe, and Atsuya took Kyouya's hand and grinned up at us. I smiled back at my children, wiping my tears away and standing up straight. Kyouya took my hand, squeezing it and then pressing a kiss to my temple. Hiro ended up in my arms, Kotoe in Kyouya's, and Atsuya stayed by my side, holding onto my dress proudly. The wind was blowing, ruffling all of our hair, and the weather was turning warmer, signaling the coming of spring. Appropriate, as it was a sign of new beginnings.

Atsuya waved goodbye to my father, prompting us all to do the same, and after a moment's pause, we turned and went back the way we came. I left feeling lighter than before, and from the back of my mind, I could imagine that my father was waving right back at us.

All of this - everything that has happened over the past two decades - started because Kyouya asked me to write him a love story. And, as it happened, we ended up writing one together.