Beyond a Thief's Power Version 2 (Mature, for Ages 18+)

Episode 4

Hiro and Takuto: Visit to the Café

~March 25, 2007~

That night, Hiro was at home. He was still depressed over what had happened the night before as he sat on the couch in his room. His hands were clasped (his right thumb over his left) together on his thighs and he looked down, staring into space for what seemed to be a long while. At least, just before his younger twin sister Seiko barged in.

"Hiro!" she exclaimed forcefully. "Are you in here?!"

Hiro looked up and turned around. After that, he blinked. "? Seiko? What's up?"

Seiko frowned with an angered expression. "Don't 'What's up?' me! I'm here to get something from you, remember? You promised you'd have the pumpkin pudding ready, so I came in here to get it!"

Hiro eyes widened faintly once he realized what his sister was in his room for. "Oh. Okay, uh..." He trailed off, placing his right hand on the side of his head. "It's in the fridge. Did you want me to bring it over to you?"

Seiko's eyes narrowed in discontent at her older brother's tone of voice and expression. "Get a grip, Hiro! Don't you even know your twin sister's feelings about this right now? You're not usually like this! What's wrong with you tonight, anyway?" Her face relaxed a bit, and she frowned. "You'd be more upbeat than this, but it's not showing anywhere around you at all. Did something happen?"

Seiko's concern for him caused Hiro to acknowledge his gloomy vibe. His shoulders slumped and he also gave a frown of his own.

"Sorry, Seiko," he apologized. "I know I'm not myself at the moment, but there's been a lot going on since yesterday. I can't just get some things out of my head all of a sudden." Hiro sighed. "What's wrong with me? I'm not even sure what's happening anymore."

Seiko had a sad look on her face. "Hiro..."

So that's why he's acting this way? Seiko thought. She felt a twinge of pain in her chest, and it was aching so much it was too unbearable for her to endure. Hiro... Can't you even depend on me at a time like this? We're family, so it's okay to let it all out. But if you don't, it'll only make things worse between us, along with everyone else. So please... Think of me as a person you can cry in front of without holding back. I won't be able to do anything for you if you can't tell me about your feelings.

At that second, Hiro smiled sadly while looking down. "I'm pathetic, aren't I?" Those words made Seiko's eyes widen. "I can't even say anything in front of anyone about this, but I'm sure the guys all know since we're always together. Even Rina knows about it, but we never thought things would turn out this way for us. Why... did it have to come to this? Just tell me why..." He looked up in anguish, which displayed all his sorrow. "Isn't there a way I can solve this without getting the others involved? Can I really do nothing to put things back in place, Seiko?" Tears began to form in his eyes. Shortly afterward, they dripped down, landing on his hands and pants. "It hurts so much. It really does. My best friend... Things suddenly took a turn for worse between us yesterday and it's all my fault for not being honest with her. If I had only told her more about myself, Sayuri wouldn't have—"

Seiko was facing the floor and her entire body shook with many emotions welling inside. She felt she had to do something about Hiro's current state, and that she was going to. She hastily looked up with a furious look on her face. "Stop it, Hiro! Quit blaming yourself for everything and just suck it up!"

Hiro looked up with surprise. He had never seen his sister this angry at him before. "...Seiko?"

"Don't you even know how much everyone around you feels when you're like this?!" Seiko continued to argue. "You get so depressed without consulting anyone that it drives me insane to watch you, Hiro! You need to learn how to rely on someone for a change and face your problems, instead of sulking all the time! Why don't you tell your friends and I how you really feel about this?" She sighed, letting her shoulders drop after lowering her voice by an octave. "You're not alone, you know. I'm here with you, right? You can tell me about it, but don't force yourself to do so if you're not ready. We're twins, so we should know everything about each other that regular siblings don't. Even if you refuse to let me know about this, I'll always stick with you. You're my big brother, after all. No one could replace you or me no matter what happens to us."