Rent A Girlfriend: The Past Hurts

Part Nine: A Question For Grandma

"Kazuya. Tell me the truth.."
" ...I will."
______________________________

Placing down some flowers besides the tombstone, Chizuru stood back up to examine the area. "It's been a while, grandma and grandpa."
She looked to the right of her grandmother's tomb where her grandfathers laid next to hers.

Here lies Sayori and Katsuhito Ichinose
Loving Parents and Grandparents

" I miss you guys, but..." she started but she stopped.
' They're gone. Move on, Chizuru.' She thought to herself as she shook her head slightly. Remembering why she was there, she composed herself once more as she looked down at the gravestones. "I found out something... something about Kazuya, grandma."

*************

"Kazuya..what happened to your mother?"
Chizuru watched as he stared at her with complete silence, obviously shocked with what she had just asked him. For a moment, it seemed like he was going to go inside before she decided to step closer to him.
" If you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I want..want you to know that I'm here." She said this last part with a small blush on her face, but she was oblivious of that fact.
Kazuya looked down a little before letting go of the door handle, and he still refused to look at her as he spoke. " I..ugh.. she's gone."
" What?" Chizuru asked, a bit surprised.
" She's gone. When I was seven, she was diagnosed with cancer. I was young, so I didn't really know what that was. I was eight when she died..."
Although his head was down, Chizuru could see that tears were dripping down onto the floor, each one leaving a small mark on the ground. She didn't know why, but seeing him like that made her heart ache. She hated it.
" I-" Midway through his sentence, he wiped his nose and leaned his back on the wall. "- went to live with my grandma after that. She was kind and caring, and of course I love her..but.."
Kazuya sank down onto the floor as he held his knees, struggling to get out what he wanted to say. " ..but I miss her. Everyday I do."
Chizuru watched as he started to sob quietly as he laid his head onto his knees. It was a strange sight for her to see: Normally, Kazuya was such an optimistic person, always seeking the day with high hopes. To have his mother die when he was young..she had never expected it.
She knew how he felt. When she was young, her mother had died as well, and she didn't know what grief was at the time until she was older. She was able to look past that because of the love of her grandparents, and although it still stung she still continued to put on a brave face. Even after both of them passed away, she kept on trying to be strong, but Kazuya's speech had broken her. He was the only one that she had cried in front of.
As he continued to sob, Chizuru felt her heart ache even more. She didn't like it one bit at all.
She sat down beside him and put her arms around to pull him closer to her. She felt him flinch a little as she did so, and he slowly raised his head a little so that they were now looking at each other in the eyes.
" M-Mizuhara? What are-" he started but was interrupted as she held him tighter.
" It's okay. Just let it all out. You've always been there for me..it's my turn." She told him softly.
Kazuya gave a little whimper before resting his head onto her chest, and she could feel vibrations that he gave as he cried.
She caressed his hair as he continued, and for some reason, she felt relaxed and warm as she held him. Chizuru soon found herself smiling as they stayed in that position, as if they were the only people on the earth, and she liked that feeling..

************

Still staring at the tombstones, Chizuru gave a small sigh as she continued. " .. I learned that his mother died when he was young, just like me. When he told me, he started to cry, and I didn't know what to do besides..besides.."
She felt her cheeks start to grow red as she remembered when she held him as he cried.
" I don't know what happened.." she said as she held her hands tightly. " It's like my body couldn't stand to see him like that."
She paused a little, putting one of her hands over her chest, and she could feel her heart beat a little quickly.
" Something is happening to me, grandma. It only occurs when I'm with him.." She said that last part quietly.
' Is this.. No! Don't be ridiculous. We're just two good friends who trust each other a lot. And care for one another.. willing to do anything for them.. a bit irritated if they're talking with another girl...'
After a moment of silence, she snapped out of her thoughts and kneeled down in front of the gravestones. " Grandma..grandpa.. What should I do?"
After deciding to invite him to a local diner when he was available, she picked herself up and left the cemetery, still feeling conflicted on the inside..

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The Next Day...

Kazuya laid on his futon, not planning on getting up anytime soon. It was his free day, and he was going to take advantage of that to relax.
' It's been a whole week since..' Remembering that he had told Mizuhara about what had happened when he was young, he pulled the blanket over him due to embarrassment. 'She's one of the only few people I've told about that. Grandma, Kibe and Kuri know more, though. I'm not ready to tell her about..'
A ring coming from his phone brought him out of his thoughts. He saw that the county had sent an alert to the people.

Warning:
The hurricane "Mol" is expected to pass by Tokyo later in the night. Please make sure you and others are safely secured by then.

Before he could put his phone down, he saw that someone had texted him while he was still asleep. He opened his messages and saw that Mizuhara was the one who had sent him one.

{Are you awake} ( 10:23 a.m.)

Kazuya excitedly rose up from his bed, and he couldn't help wondering what she could want. 'Why did she text me so early?' As he thought, he started to remember how he had cried onto her, and he tightened up a little. 'Right.. that happened. Oh, I hope she doesn't think less of me..'

{Are you awake} (10:23 a.m.)
{Yea. What's wrong?} ( 12:04 p.m.)
{Do you have time for lunch? At Denny's?} (12:05 p.m.)

"She wants to invite me to lunch?" He asked himself before telling her that he would be happy to go eat. Although it was supposed to be a day of relaxation for him, Kazuya could never refuse such an offer from Mizuhara.

{Okay. I'll meet you outside in ten. }
(12: 07 p.m.)

' Ten minutes!' He thought as he scrambled out of his futon. He was still in his pajamas, so he was panicking a little on the inside. Choosing to wear a white shirt with a red flannel, Kazuya also grabbed some so-so jeans alongside his black shoes. He hurriedly tied his shoes before going to brush his teeth.
' Although I'm happy she invited me..' Once he made sure that he looked okay, he made his way to the door. ' I wonder if it had to do with anything that happened last week..'
When he opened the door, he was surprised to see Mizuhara already outside. She was leaning on the railing before she noticed him.
" Oh.." She started as she turned to face Kazuya. " Hey, Kazuya-kun."
" H-hey, Mizuhara."
Kazuya awed in wonder as he looked at her. She was wearing a white sweater with a small black skirt, which was accompanied with some black boots. All in all, she looked amazing.
"Just in case, I'm bringing this." She showed him an umbrella. " I heard it might rain due to that hurricane."
He looked at the sky and saw that it was filled with dark clouds, indicating that there would be a chance of rain sooner or later. "That's a good idea."
She gave him a smile before she started to walk down the stairs. " Well then, c'mon."
Kazuya made sure that his door was locked before he made his way as well.

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~" And I told him, that's not the bathroom... that's the kitchen!"~

" Oh my!" Nagomi laughed as she watched the television. " This never gets old!"
After some while, she got thirsty and got up from the couch to get some water. She pulled out a cup from one of the cabinets and poured herself water. However, as she was walking back, Nagomi suddenly stopped.
Crash.
She had dropped the cup onto the floor, and the pieces were splattered all across the ground. Her chest had started to burn, and she had to lean herself onto the kitchen counter to prevent herself from falling.
"Ugh..!"
Once the pain was over, Nagomi started to take a few deep breaths as she started to process what had happened.
'..It's getting worse.. I don't know if it'll be too much for me to bear next time.. Oh dear.' She thought as she slowly walked back to the sofa, and she continued to watch the show.
' I'll tell you soon, Kazuya. Soon.'

To be continued ...