Would you like a cup of tea? || Shigeo Kageyama

To Shigeo Kageyama...

To Shigeo Kageyama,

It's weird to call you Shigeo after all of those months of calling you Hope, isn't it? The reason why I called you hope was on a whim though - a selfish whim of mine. I wanted to see if I could see a miracle or some kind of hope occurring inside of you - the you who stared out the window listlessly that day.

It wasn't supposed to turn into friendship and I wasn't expecting much. I chose you because you were the only one in the cafe that day. It was just supposed to be a shallow relationship where I shared my love for tea with anyone - my last wish before I passed away. But as time went by, in the end, you truly became hope to me - my hope to live a fulfilling life.

And so, your stories and your presence in my life helped me live every week, just one more week - to be more lively than I first expected or hoped to. Because I wanted to see... see so desperately of the way you live - the way you change for yourself. And by the time I realized how strong our friendship was, I could not stop myself from being reminded of you everywhere I went.

Hope was everywhere; you were everywhere. Even now, as I look outside, I see the sky that you like to look at.

Do you still remember the time when we talked about our favorite type of sky?

I wish I could see the miracle of rainbows, fluffy clouds, and light blue skies painted in the sky with you. It would have been a lot of fun pointing out what each cloud looked like.

But life really isn't nice to me. Apparently, when I faint again, I'll be forced into the hospital and who knows when I'll get to see you then. I'll probably die when that happens, but before I die, I wish I could see you and hear more of your stories again.

So even after I die, I have another selfish request. Can you tell me some stories whenever you visit me?

That would be quite lovely. Maybe bring some tea too!

Anyways, just know that I'll always be supporting you and that no matter what happens to me, please remember that I believe in you. Don't let my death affect you and stray you from your goal.

I want to see you. I want to see the you who changes into the you who you wanted to be for so long.

So show me. Show me as a way of remembering the person that I am. That'll be the best way for me to feel like I won't be forgotten by you - forgotten by everyone who knew the real me.

And finally, thank you, Shigeo Kageyama, for being in my life, for letting me fulfill my selfish whims, for telling me all of those stories, for being my friend, and for being my hope.

I wish I could have called you by your real name. How nice it feels to say your name right now... How nice it would have been if I said it in front of you... But I guess it can't be helped right now...

So goodbye, Shigeo. Goodbye and farewell, my precious friend.

I hope all of the good remains in your life now and in the future.

Your tea-obsessed friend,

Hotaru

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Droplets of his tears stained the letter he was reading. Mob wiped his eyes roughly with his sleeves. He did not want to ruin the letter in any way. It was too precious to him.

That was when he noticed an abundant amount of fireflies flying about.

"Ah, it's hotaru (fireflies)." He could only gaze at them as their glowing lights began to fade away, leading the way for new fireflies to release their light into the world. "Just like her..."

So tragically beautiful...

"Hotaru..." Tears trickled down his cheeks again and his breath hitched in his throat. "I... I will continue to do my best, so look after me, okay?"

The fireflies only flew around him as they tried to reach the sky, but the enchanting beauty of these attempts made him cry a little harder. "Hotaru..." He called out her name, and yet, there was only silence.

The warm, gentle wind soon embraced him as his feelings of loneliness began to dissipate with the wind, reminding him of the time when she embraced him after finding out that he was safe. "Are you worried about me again...?" He whispered to himself.

He then wiped his tears away with his sleeve again. He looked up at the sky with a determined expression. "Watch me, Hotaru. I'll keep being your hope and I definitely won't give up." He stood back up with the letter tucked into his pocket safely. "And I will never forget you, so call me by my name as much as you want now..."

That was when his expression softened as he gazed at the cafe that once made him feel so accepted and warm in the past.

And if he closed his eyes, he could probably smell the rooibos tea and see her waving at him energetically from afar.

If he closed his eyes, that is...

He soon shook his head with a melancholic smile.

"...I should head home now..."