Freya giggled. 'Yes. He is totally a big kid in the heart.' Her smile was short-lived. 'But this is still a serious question. Not understanding the reason could lead to big problems. He may start suffering from depressions or social exclusion.'
She gestured him to wait a bit. With a paper and pen in her hands, she wrote her answer, "It just means those women in the magazine weren't attractive for you. You are searching for somebody to connect on an emotional level, not just with the body."
He puckered his lips as he was thinking. "Something like soulmate?"
She gave him thumbs up, writing more, "Don't let others judge you. If the love you find fills you with bliss, you are on the right path."
"Thank you. I'm still lost, but I feel better." The aura around him turned cold. "Just, please, don't tell Ri about... that freak part... I think he may kill..."
A shadow of Rigaku loomed above them with his glasses shining as two dead stars. Talking about this would hurt. They both had a weak and awkward smile.
Later, Kagetsu told her what happened after she passed out. The flames destroyed everything in her room, and the water took the rest. Thankfully, she had her personal belongings with her, and only a part of her textbooks turned into ash.
For the time being, she stayed in Kagetsu's room, who moved to Aiyoku's. Freya promised to herself to look for a new place during the summer break.
'I can't let them take care of me forever. But where can I go?'
Her uncle and aunt helped her to find this apartment building. While it was far away from the school, it was cheap and had a bus stop a few minutes away. Finding a similar place could be problematic. Freya had little experience in finding things on the Internet.
'I guess I could ask Rigaku to help me. Or Mr. Smith-san in the school library. But I can't tell him my place burned down.' She sighed. 'But I guess the school rumors would reach him sooner or later. It's better if I tell him.'
Her eyes wandered around, finding the bag that Kagetsu bought her. 'Right, there is something inside.' Pulling the bag next to her, she took out a folder filled with papers. 'Oh my gosh!' Her hands raced to cover her mouth.
Inside were pictures of Rigaku's characters with some others, he made upon inspiration hitting his head with a heavy hammer. 'He did them perfectly!' She listed through all of them, putting them on the bed next to each other.
The main trio had a few designs ranging from headshots, expression studies to small details on their clothes. Kagetsu included a lot of notes as well, giving the pictures a small story.
'Now, which ones I should pick?' Stray flocks of hair covered her sides as she examined one picture after another.
\\_(''>_<'')_//
The brothers returned from school, bringing her news, copied notes, and what they made for their future club. The casual chatter cleared her mind, easing the pain inside of her.
Only Kagetsu seemed to be a bit lost in his own thoughts as he wasn't often listening. Aiyoku teased him, but the youngest brother provided weaker reactions than usual.
They convinced her to stay out of school for at least the rest of the week. She needed to visit the police station to fill some papers, get new clothes, textbooks, and more importantly — relax. She had to admit they were right. The thoughts of visiting school sunk her mood just a few feet above the planet's core.
'But can I miss so many lessons? What if it impacts my scholarship?'
Even with those concerns, Rigaku had none of it.
By the evening, when the brothers bid her good night, she sat at the table. 'I should write to my uncle.' Taking a pen in her hand, she tapped it, unsure how to start.
'How can I tell them about the fire? Can I?' Her heartbeat increased. Sweat covered her palms. 'I have to. They need to know. They are my guardians.'
Their smiling faces came to her mind, making her feel even worse. How can she make them worried? They have enough of their own problems! Adding more would only hurt them.
'But keeping it a secret would wound them.' With heavy heart, she clicked the pen, writing the first words.
"Konnichiwa, Uncle Hiroki-san,
I'm fine, thank you for asking. I'm studying hard, so you can be proud of me. I'm sure Midori-chan can achieve her dream as long as she puts her mind into it. Dreams come true with our hard work, after all."
A small smile played along her face.
"Haru-kun is awesome! Congratulation! I know how hard he trained to be fast. And don't worry, uncle, I'm eating healthy."
A drop of sweat slid down her cheek. If she refused to eat, Rigaku would stare at her until she did. With him like that, even Death looked like a little, fluffy ball of cuteness.
"I had a plate of sushi! It was so delicious! I feel I can't get enough of it. Also, I have three—"
Her body froze. The ticking time resonated in her ears, and the large room collapsed on her shoulders.
'Three... what? Friends?'
The simple word stabbed her from inside, the burning pain and freezing sensation hit her at once. For a moment, she would swear she had seen her breath turning into a haze.
'Classmates? Yes. They are, but...'
What word fit them? Brothers? That too. Pain in the neck? They used to be one on the triple. Triplets? They said they were even if it was hard to believe it with how different they looked.
'Could they have different mothers and be passed as triplets to avoid a scandal?' Wheels in her mind whirled as if she was part of an endless Soap Opera full of tricks, intrigues, twists, betrayal, and love polygons. 'No way. That's too crazy.'
Her eyes scanned the room. 'But... it could be possible. Their father is rich, and he could manipulate the media or people.' Her teeth sank into her lip.
'Baka! So what? Even if they are half-brothers or illegal children, they love each other dearly! They helped you, baka!' Taking a deep breath, she held the air inside for a few minutes. As her throbbing heart calmed down a bit, she came to a conclusion.
'They are nice people! It's not their fault their parents could be bad people.'
Wrinkles on her forehead deepened.
"—friends. They are brothers, and they transferred from a different school. We had a bumpy start, but now we get along. They helped me a lot.
I had to move from my apartment. It's only temporary, so don't worry about me. I'm living in a new place now. It's really nice here.
With love, Feya-chan"
She put away the pen, feeling proud. Maybe she had grown a bit as a person. Perhaps those walls she had built around her heart slowly crumbled.
'Perhaps I can love again without the fear of burning me.'
Tucking the folded letter into an envelope, she wrote her uncle's address before gluing it. With a simple melody, she went in front of the building to feed her letter to the post box.
Back in her temporal room, she thought about what to do tomorrow.
Konnichiwa - Hello
Baka - idiot