The Lying Cherry Tree

Chapter 9

Atsumu laughed bitterly. "I was your happy ending, but I was not your forever."

Atsumu stopped dancing and he looked at the horizon. It was mid-afternoon. "It was not even a fight between two great kingdoms. It was just a small fight between neighbours, and I lost. It ended in a crash, with my heart suffering the huge casualties likened to that of a fallen kingdom."

Hinata was still at a loss of words. "A-Atsumu-san."

"I gave you my being, everything that I am, all that I had, was it still not enough?"

Atsumu clenched his fists. Tears were threatening to fall again, but he stopped himself from crying in front of Hinata. "You told me, You were not down for forever. I know we were not meant for each other but it was not fine. All I asked was for you to love me, but you never, ever, did. Everything that happened between us, all those late night stories, the hugs under the rain, and those shared moments of longing were nothing but a mere chapter in the book. I was not meant to be your story."

It was Hinata's tears that finally dropped to the ground. "I am so sorry, Atsumu-san."

"I was just a playmate while you waited for your true knight in shining armour that came in a horse-drawn carriage. It was not I who was meant to fight the dragon. I was the lonesome side character you sought for when he was not around. Because he was the king, he gave you everything. I was just a merchant, who could not give you anything but myself."

Atsumu sighed. "The battle ripped my heart out, but was it wrong to cherish every second of that battle? When there was hope that maybe, I would win and you would be mine?"

I miss you.

I am sorry.

I am sorry to long for you even if you are in someone else's arms.

I am sorry if you found what you are looking for in his arms and not mine.

Atsumu smiled. He finally looked at Hinata in the eyes. "We were all under the same sky, were we not? But Tobio-kun felt the rainbow and I felt the storm when you chose him over me."

Ah, It has been a year now but I do not think I have figured out how. How to let you go and and make myself happy.

It seems like I was happy with you, but you were not happy with me.

Would the next time I shall be seeing you, was when I get to dance you in my broken dreams? Even if after you have left, I do not think I shall ever be the same again. 

When you went away, you took my heart with you, too. Now without my heart, how was I supposed to continue? How am I supposed to live without you?

Is it wrong to beg for just one more day?

Atsumu takes Hinata's hands once again. "One last wish, Shouyou. Please answer me honestly, okay?"

"A-atsumu-san..."

"If the world ends, will you choose me? If the world was ending, would you love me? If the sky fell, would you let me hold you tight? If we have to say one final goodbye, would you come over and stay the night?"

Hinata did not say a word. The two of them were left in silence save for Hinata's silent crying.

Atsunu looks at the ground sadly. "I promise, after the world ends, I will let you go."

Hinatas's hands were shaking. "Atsumu-san, you gave me an ocean of stars. A mixture of delight and dreams. You promised me the world and everything, but you know? The ocean of stars was never ours. We need to let go and let them leave."

Atsumu's breath hitched. "I see. It was hopeless after all, huh?"

"Atsumu-san..." Hinata sniffs. "C-can we still be friends---"

"Thank you, Shouyou. At least for a short while, you made me feel like I am on top of the world. It will still be the most wonderful moment of my life, when you said you felt the same about me."

"..."

"Do not cry for me, and I promise you, I would not cry for you anymore. We need to be happy with our lives now. Especially you, since you have Tobio-kun."

"But---"

"Oh darling, it is a sad thing to realize, that you are close to me here, but your heart is not with me."

"I am so sorry---"

"Do you know how much it hurts when you apply vinegar to your open wounds?"

Hinata blinks. "What?"

"That you were happy with someone else, you are fine with him, creating happy memories, while I am left here, cramped up with what is left, and mending the broken pieces of my heart."

"I truly am sorry. I know that this sorry cannot heal the pain that I have caused you. Let me know. I will do anything for you to forgive me. I really want to stay as friends, Atsumu-san."

"Anything?"

"Yes, anything! Please name it. I---"

"Be happy and move on, Shouyou."

"..."

"Do not worry, we are friends. You can always stop by the Miya Dwelling Place."

"Atsumu-san..."

"But whenever we meet, please do not look at me with sorrow in your eyes anymore. Someday I will be fine, but I do not need anyone's pity. Especially yours for that matter."

"..."

"So, Shouyou? Move on and forget about everything that has happened between us. Forget Atsumu. I am just one of the Miya Twin Merchants from now on."

Ah, the same goes for me too. Worry not, Shouyou. I am trying. Someday I will be able to face you without hearing the sounds of my heart breaking in two anymore.

As Atsumu leaves the garden, the last blossom finally died and fell on top of a crying Hinata's head.