Eternal Melody

Sumire sighed deeply. So, why on earth is she waiting outside the door like this? She ought to get away before he does anything to her, and yet here she is right within enemy territory. Yuhi is taking a long time, and maybe she ought to go after him. But it would be dangerous to leave Sano alone here.

So many conflicting decisions. After a few minutes, she decided to hum out her new song, and only music can calm her down in an odd situation like this.

"Is this for Tsueno?"

"Don't tell Yuhi."

"I don't have to; he will hear it."

Sumire buried her face in her arms. "He will get mad this time right? He has been so understanding of everything so far, but this time…because it's music."

"Why is it different?"

"Because Yuhi loves music."

"I don't understand you, musicians."

She laughed lightly at his words. "I see. I guess it is strange for most people. But this is how it is for us." After she said those words, Sano stopped talking, and she sighed.

Is he thinking odd things again? Her thoughts broke off when she felt somebody part her bangs. She looked up and rolled her eyes. It was Yuhi, but she saw the traces of blood on his right shoulder.

"Is that a bullet wound?"

"No, a nailgun. Relax, I removed the needle."

Yuhi sits down next to her. "You know this is an interesting situation." He commented.

"Quit it. I'm just worried he might end up drowning himself or something. I mean, whatever happened must have been traumatic."

No matter how involved Sano is in the underworld, he is still a normal guy. He should have nothing to do with people like that.

Yuhi laughed. "I know already, don't sound frantic."

This guy treats her like a kid. "You know Yuhi, and you don't have to be so overprotective of me."

She knew the main reason why Yuhi rushed off like that. He was worried that those people would hurt her. Based on what Sano said, the real target was her.

"I know you can look after yourself, Sumire, and I trust you to do so. But what I am worried about is, well, me going out of control, and you get hurt."

This person is so foolish, and she does not care about any of that stuff. "Without darkness, light cannot exist either. The darkness that exists in your heart, something similar exists in the hearts of others. Yuhi-san you're not the only one facing shadows."

"You are a piece of work."

"It's because you think that way you have a hard time looking ahead."

"Well, you're right about that."

She didn't mean to say that. The current Yuhi has changed his life, and she is the only one stuck in the past. At least, that is what she thought initially. Her thoughts broke off when he tapped a cold drink against her forehead.

"This?"

"Ice tea. You like these, right?"

Why on earth does he know that?

She took the drink from him and gulped it down. She didn't realize how parched her throat was until she drank it. To a certain degree, she has been able to control her blood urges, and thus she can drink normal drinks again.

Her thoughts break off when she hears Yuhi grumble about running out of cigarettes. She took something out of her pocket and passed it to him.

"You know, even if you do miss me a lot. I don't advise the smell of smoke."

"Who says it's for you?"

"I am sure we had this conversion before. Cigarette smoke is pervasive and lingers everywhere, so you only have to light it for it to stick."

I miss him too much when we are apart.

Besides, after he said he was going to Tokyo and left her, she did this every day. She not only lit the same brand of cigarettes he uses, but she also found out which shop he got them from and bought them. Her thoughts broke off when Yuhi reached over and intertwined their hands together.

"Are you okay?"

"Aha." Sumire laughed weakly. "Your way too straightforward." But if he beat around the bush, then it would not be right. "Tell me, Yuhi-san, I will do anything to find out the truth, but after that? After that, what will I do?"

Once she has found the answer, she is looking for and brings justice to the ones who killed Ru. What will she do afterward?

"Didn't you say you wanted to beat me?"

Right, she declared something like that.

"I don't know about you. But once we finished our respective acts of revenge, I would like to work with you properly. Singing beside you and creating music together, drawing/painting together is a lot of fun."

"Even if that future is vague and uncertain?"

Who is to say she can keep on singing forever?

"Yeah."

She sighed when she heard his response. She can never win against this person. "I wish you didn't leave me then."

If Yuhi didn't leave her, she would not have ended up in that desperate state and met Sano. If she didn't meet Sano, she would not have hurt Ren and Ru and ended up in relationships with them.

Yuhi leaving acted as a trigger for all her bottled-up emotions to come pouring out. She didn't realize how much she suppressed her feelings. It surprised her when he suddenly showed up in the Holy Knights headquarters. What on earth is he doing here? She didn't have to ask, and she could tell when she looked at him.

He came here for her. But this is not how she wanted to meet him again.

She wanted to meet him on stage and stand on equal footing, and she didn't want him to see her this way. That was why when he first came, she pretended not to know him and treated him coldly. But it did not take long before he made his way to her heart.

"Sorry, Sumire, back then, all I thought was revenge. I did join to see you again, but I changed my objectives when I saw that man. So I did what I had to."

"I already knew all that. But even then, I wish I could turn back time. I wish we had more time." She unconsciously shifted closer until their shoulders touched.

"Yeah, me too. I made the wrong decision then. You were right in front of me, and I should have focused on you and you alone."

"Dummy, you were such a fool. Why did you have to leave me?"

"If I hadn't left, you wouldn't have ended up this hurt. Meeting Nagawa scarred you even more than before."

"Even if it wasn't him, I think the outcome would not change." Maybe it would have been worse. She would have ended up becoming the type of girl who just slept around with anybody to fill her loneliness. "I felt empty after you left. I didn't realize how much I started to rely on you."

She kept her distance, and yet he still managed to get close enough for her to miss him like crazy when he left her side.