𝕊𝕡𝕚𝕣𝕚𝕥 || 𝕂𝕪𝕠 𝕊𝕠𝕙𝕞𝕒

It Stays Between Us

'April 27th...' Washing the dishes from breakfast that morning, Hiyori stared out the window in front of her. 'Nearly a whole year already. Time goes by impossibly fast.'

"Shigure," When Tohru spoke up, she glanced back over her shoulder to see her cousin in front of Shigure. "Is there anything you need us to do around here on May first? We'd like to go out for a few hours in the afternoon."

Shigure smiled. "Oh, take all the time you want. I'll be out on an errand most of the day myself. What's the story? Hanging out with friends?"

"Yes! It's been a year since my mom passed. We're visiting her grave."

A beat of silence went by. Hiyori returned her gaze to the dishes she was washing.

"...Good girls. First anniversary, huh?"

"That's right. But we're not doing anything too special for it."

Shigure sent her a sad smile. "I'm sorry I can't attend that day."

"Huh?!" She waved her hands. "No, please, don't worry!"

Yuki looked up at her. "Would it be okay if I joined you?"

Surprised, Tohru blinked at him. "Y-You want to..?"

"I'd like to pay my respects," He smiled. "If you don't mind the company."

She beamed. "Thank you very much! Mom will be so happy, right, Hiyori?"

Jumping upon being addressed, Hiyori dropped the sponge in the sink. "Ah -- " But when she turned to look at them, she was grinning. "Oh, of course! I bet she'll love meeting you!"

"And Kyo," Shigure glanced to where Kyo sat out on the porch. "Surely you've got nothing better to do. You should tag along with them."

But Kyo didn't say anything, nor did he turn around.

~🦋~

Hiyori never cried more than she did on May first last year. Nothing had ever hurt more than that loss.

That was a hard day. She still remembered everything that happened before and after. She woke up that morning at the same time she always did. Tohru had slept in a little because she was up late studying for a test. Hiyori and Kyoko ate breakfast together, her Aunt eased her worries about their test, then Kyoko kissed hers and the sleeping Tohru's foreheads goodbye before leaving for work. Just like she did every day.

But that was the last time she ever did it, so Hiyori clung to the memory.

Their day at school went by as normal. They were in the middle of writing that test when someone from the office came to call for them. Tohru and Hiyori had rushed out, and once they were told what happened, they took off immediately.

Hiyori still remembered her racing heart. She remembered how it dropped when they opened that door at the hospital. The sight of Kyoko in that bed -- bandaged up, bruised, and unmoving -- was something she couldn't forget.

But that was the one thing she wished she didn't remember. Her Aunt wasn't supposed to look like that. She was supposed to be healthy; smiling and laughing, telling them not to worry. She was supposed to pull them in for a warm hug and apologize for the commotion.

It wasn't fair that she was taken away. So that day, when Tohru cried while clinging to her, Hiyori cried, too.

"Hiyori!" She recognized the accent, but she didn't get the chance to see what was happening before someone grabbed her hand to tug on it. Hiyori yelped when they ran circles around her, spinning her in turn. "How come you're all by yourself?"