Starting a new chapter in his life as a student in Tokyo, Haru never expected his world to be turned upside down. Across the street, he encounters Fujiwara, an aloof and enigmatic young man with a mysterious past. As Haru grapples with unfamiliar em...
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Her hands were coated in foam as she rinsed Maruyama-san's used dango plate and teacup. She grabbed a napkin and wiped them dry before neatly put them on the plate rack.
The house had returned to a quiet atmosphere because Haru and Maruyama-san had finally left for Odaiba, despite Haru unexpectedly changed his mind last night for unknown reasons. She accidentally overheard their conversation earlier; it wasn't intentional, but Haru's and Maruyama-san's voices were loud enough. They almost argue before reaching a compromise. To her, Haru and Maruyama-san seemed to get along well; their personalities seemed to complement each other perfectly, creating a harmonious balance between the two.
Passionate young lovers, she mused and chuckled. Arguing and then compromising. It had been a while since she had an argument with a man, and she found herself missing it.
Oh, wait. A sudden recollection hit her. We never argued. There was never time for arguments; they had only met six times before he was taken away from her.
She gathered the remaining four skewers of dango and placed them inside a plastic container. Outside the kitchen window, the blue-painted fence caught her attention. What is Yuki doing now? she wondered. It's Saturday. Is he going out?
Recently, she didn't have enough time for anything else and relied on Haru to assist with the daily food deliveries. Guilt struck her; she had been neglecting her other son across the street. Taking the dango container, she threw on her coat and headed to the house across the street.
After ringing the bell, Yuki answered, sporting a headband and an apron.
"Cleaning up?" she remarked.
"Yes. There are things in the cupboard I want to throw away," Yuki replied.
"I brought some dango."
Yuki nodded in understanding and invited her in. They went upstairs to the apartment, where she found the storage cupboard was open, its contents neatly stacked in several boxes.
"Please have a seat. I'll make tea," Yuki said before heading into the kitchen.
She settled at the low round table, noticing that the apartment seemed more spacious than usual. Typically, the table was cluttered with piles of papers and writing utensils, but today it was unusually clean—almost too clean.
Curious, she asked, "Where's the rest of your stuff?"
Yuki remained silent and went to the kitchen instead. She followed him. "It's already past New Year. Are you getting rid of things?"
"Yes," he replied, bringing two cups of steaming tea to the round table. "This place was already overcrowded."
"Overcrowded" didn't quite capture the apartment's previous state; it was so sparsely furnished that it was almost empty. And now, it looked even emptier.
