Eternal Melody

"Did you change your mind?"

"A little. I don't want to completely blame everyone; everybody suffered too. But yes, after speaking about it with Yuhi-san, I did feel slightly bitter. It was my choice to lock myself in Ru's home. However, as my friends, I wonder why you all left me there alone? Even if you couldn't drag me out, it would be easy to stay in one of the rooms without me finding out. It would have been easy to drop by and visit."

There was a time when the house was accessible to anyone before she barricaded everything. No even when she did that Toh came to see her. How did he manage to get in? Was it that simple?

"It is a good thing I only realized this after coming here. If I realized this when I was still in Star town, my feelings would explode, and I would have gotten angry and said hurtful words to Futaba and everyone."

"Sumire."

"I do not think I can meet anybody else back home for just a while longer. You and Atushi are different since you did visit me. It's the same with Kou, Jun, Ran, and Tetsuo. Masaru was abroad then, so he does not count either. But other than the seven of you, I cannot meet with anybody else."

She does not want to hurt anybody with her words ever again.

She does not want to see anybody cry because of her actions anymore.

'Suchan, I'm sorry I don't know how to help you.' The last time she saw Futaba, they exchanged those type of words. The girl did not meet with her directly; she stood outside the door for a long time.

'When I sensed it was her, I was actually going to open the door.' No matter how heartbroken she was due to Mamoru's death, how could she possibly ignore Futaba? Yet when she opened the door slightly, Futaba immediately shut it.

'I should have told you what he was up to. I should have warned you. I'm so sorry.'

Futaba also blames herself. It turns out that Futaba knew those people were behaving suspiciously. Indeed if she had warned them beforehand, she would have taken better precautions. But even then, that person is her dearest friend.

"Do you want to see her?"

"Sometimes I do. I miss her a lot; she is my best friend after all. I care about you and the others, but Futaba is special to me. However," Sumire recalled Yuhi's anger and Futaba's pained tone. "- we should not meet for now."

This is not the right time.

"Then what about Siena?"

At that comment, her sweat fell, and she sighed deeply. "I don't know where that girl has run off to. It's probably in a place where she couldn't get the news; otherwise, she would be back."

"I have tried to contact her too, but she is good at hiding."

"I feel she may have been encouraged by Ru."

"Those two were strangely similar." Asuka paused. "I think she will come sooner or later; she hasn't paid respects to Asahi yet."

Sumire flinched for a moment when she heard Asuka say those words. That is right; the reason why her unease does not disappear after achieving so much happiness is this. Her dearest friend's death that happened not too long after she arrived in Tokyo. Those debut collectors who were in line with those people.

That man Lucifer and that wretched organization. She will crush them with her own hands.

But even if she becomes a monster in the process, Yuhi-san will probably, no; he will still love her the same.

Her thoughts broke off when Asuka placed her hand on top of hers. "Until that unreliable girl returns, and you sort out your feelings towards Futaba. You can rely on me more."

Her gaze softened, even though they were both clumsy with words.

After chatting with Asuka for two hours, she eventually parted ways with her friend. Sumire felt her remaining strength from the shot vanish, and she felt dizzy. Eli did say it would not last long, but she thought she would survive until she reached home.

Home huh? To think she is starting to think of Yuhi-san's home as hers. He has truly spoiled her. But then again, he was the one who asked her to live with him when she first came to Tokyo.

When she first came to Tokyo, huh? It is strange. To think almost a year has passed by. She would not have imagined that things would turn out this way at that time. To think she ended up dating Yuhi-san. Sumire giggled when she recalled his confession.

He was so cute; how could she have possibly turned him down after hearing his sincere feelings for her? Besides that confession of his was a huge improvement from the first one.

The first time huh? Sumire exhaled deeply at the memory. Back then, he tried his best, too; it was her fault for being so stubborn. She would not have dated Sano if she had accepted Yuhi-san back then. Nor would she have met Toh and would not have given either Ren or Ru a chance.

But, she does not regret it. She has already acknowledged that meeting those four is part of her destiny.

'I took this way because I thought it would be a short cut but-' Sumire blinked when she saw somebody leaning against the lamp post. Is that Yuhi-san? How many times has she seen this sight already in the past year? He always knows where to find her.

"Yuhi." Sumire called out.

"Hey, are you finished? I thought I'd wait for you. It's raining after all."

Seeing her dearest makes her feel calm; she tries to act strong in front of Asuka. But when she can no longer hold herself back. Sumire slumped in Yuhi's arms.

Yuhi laughed and caressed her hair. "Are you tired?"

"Mm, I still feel a bit sick."

At those words, he frowned and placed his hand on her forehead. "Your fever is still there. Let's head back home quickly."

Sumire watched him fuss about her, and she clenched her fist. This is the one thing she cannot lose. This person is so very dear and so important to her.

'Sumire-sama, if Sumire-sama can smile genuinely, I will have no regrets.' Asahi, she will not let her friend's death be in vain. She will get revenge on those people and make sure no harm comes to her dearest.

Perhaps it was due to her being emotional, but before she knew it, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his lips deeply. But it was not enough. She wanted more; she tugged on his clothing.

"Hey, if you attack me here, we will have problems."

"Yuhi," Sumire said softly.

The only thing she can do now is to make sure that people understand that.

….

Hotel

She told Yuhi that she wouldn't survive the journey home and asked him if they could stay in a hotel. He seemed surprised and tried to insist on heading back, but she 'pretended to feel faint,' and before long, he was carrying her to the nearest hotel.

Sumire's gaze fell on Yuhi, who was barricading the door and inspecting the place.

It seems he would normally take measures before entering these places, but he did not have time due to her little fainting episode. Sumire scanned the room, too, but she did not see any cameras or anything that looked like spyware.

"What's wrong, Sumire?"

"Nothing."

"Really? It's not like you to invite me to a place like this. I don't mind since it was raining, but we should leave quickly in the morning." He seemed distressed.

'I know I took him here suddenly, but his behva-' Sumire noticed his red-stained ears. Truly this person amazes her every single time. The more he holds back, the more she becomes painfully aware of how much he loves and treasures her.

The more she realizes how corrupt her heart can get.