I Get To Be With You

Chapter 8. More questions than answers

Todoroki

We were back to the usual routine of taking classes and everything seemed normal. Gone was the incident in the dormitory where Mineta made his intentions known and now he was paying for it, but there were other reasons why I was feeling abstracted.

This day marked one month since that strange encounter.

Shortly after my birthday, it would be my late brother Touya's. His room had remained untouched since his departure, and none of us dared to enter it; I don't remember ever having done so. It was then that Fuyumi decided to at least put it in order and for us to honor him.

It was covered with dust and yet his belongings seemed to be in use. It was strange.

I couldn't help but feel alien being there. The clearest image I have of him, is from a photo when he was twelve years old, shortly before his death. He had white hair like our mother, and turquoise eyes like our nefarious old man, who was a clear sign of character incompatibility.

I was cleaning one of the shelves when I came across some photos of us. One in which Fuyumi and Natsuo were happily sharing a sweet bread, they must have been around 6 and 9 years old, respectively. My first day at school, where I was clinging to my mother's skirt while my old man was standing on the other side. I remember not wanting to be separated from her for any moment.

It was then that, among so many other photos, one of them was burned and, barely a white and reddish tuft stood out. Maybe some photo of Fuyumi, but why would it be burned? As far as I knew, they were getting along fine when I only saw them from afar... I suddenly felt heavy.

How much longer would it take me to get over all this...?

I arranged the pictures in a small box on her bureau, and continued to arrange the rest. In the end, the room was in a better state, as if it were still inhabited. It no longer looked so desolate.

After changing the incense on her altar and placing some flowers, we prayed a little.

On her birthday, we went to the grave where her remains were buried, left some flowers and also lit incense there. We even left him a small pumpkin pie, which, according to our mother, was his favorite.

The old man had several intermittent days when his shadow was barely visible, this day being one on which I am sure he deliberately chose not to be present.

Just as he had done with me, he had also pushed our brother to his limit, despite the contradictory condition of his body; strong quirk of fire against a weak frame of ice. According to Fuyumi, the old man regrets it, but I found it hard to believe.

We stood there for a while, while I just watched my brothers chatting about what it was like and the things they shared together, activities they did regularly while I was training. Despite their animated tone, their faces reflected a frustrated melancholy.

I remember how, when I was growing up, Fuyumi would sometimes cry at the foot of the altar we have at home repeating to herself 'Why didn't I do more?' at the same time as Natsuo would sometimes lean against the door of his room visibly grief-stricken.

I wish I could have talked to him at least once. There was still so much I didn't know that, in order not to rub salt in the wound, I preferred to keep to myself.

"I think that's enough for today. " Said my sister, being the first to get up. "Tomorrow I have to get to work early and I promised our oba-chan that I would prepare dinner. "It was at least 6pm. As it was late winter, it was getting darker than other times.