・・・ xxxvii ・・・
"I don't regret it," she said.
"I don't regret talking to you.
I don't regret trying to help you.
I don't regret telling you this right now.
To be honest... you're probably the only one I've confessed this to."
She paused.
"Ao-kun... you've become a very important person to me over the past few months..."
She trailed off softly.
Hashimoto Rie finally turned back to look at him.
He looked back at her, silent.
A wide smile was etched on her tear-stained face.
It was ugly.
Broken.
Mismatched.
But... it was genuine.
She made a small, hoarse laugh.
"Happy New Year, Ao-kun. Thank you for being friends with me."
・・・ xxxviii ・・・
In the end, it didn't really matter.
Even if she hadn't meant it from the start,
even if she had lied to him at the beginning,
even if she was really the kind of person she was saying she was,
it didn't change the fact that she had tried her best for him.
You... are probably the only person who was stubborn enough to keep talking to me.
It's okay.
I already noticed.
It doesn't matter.
"If that's so...
.... then why is there a pain in your chest?"
・・・ xxxix ・・・
Hey, would you like to hear a secret?
"In truth... you've already become a very special person to us, too."
・・・ xl ・・・
His footsteps were quiet on the hallway.
His mind felt dazed.
His fingers seemed numb.
His body felt too light.
Every beat of his heart sounded hollow in his ear.
The crying face of Hashimoto Rie surfaced whenever he blinked.
Her words echoed again and again.
I...
He stopped before his apartment, realizing he had already arrived.
Behind him the sun was already in the sky,
marking the start of another morning.
He stood there for a moment.
Tick. Tock.
Tick. Tock.
Tick. Tock.
He breathed out and opened the door.
Quietly, he stepped inside.