Memories Of An Old Friend (satosugu)

Chapter 4

When Satoru stormed into the apartment with only one twin, Suguru thought he was dreaming. That this was all just a bad imagination of his brain to make him lose another night's sleep.

But Suguru had been awake too long for that, letting the day pass him by and waiting for Satoru's return.

He admitted that his mental state had become worse over the last few weeks. His nightmares had made him remember more and more. Sometimes he didn't even know if the things he dreamed had really happened. Most of the memories happened several times but with different details.

Sometimes Riko was shot, sometimes chopped into thousands of pieces. But death always came.

Suguru knew Satoru wanted to talk to him about it. To stop him following the same path he had taken back then. At the same time, he agreed with the white-haired man that his past had never been a solution. But at the same time, he wanted to do it all over again.

If only his heart weren't in the way.

But what did it matter what his heart told him now?

When Satoru stepped into the apartment, a crying Mimiko by his hand who immediately tore herself away to sob into Suguru's arms, the Sorcerer's words blurred in Suguru's ears. All the sounds blurred into a huge roar and his heart began to race.

Satoru had lost his daughter. Everything he had fought for, everything he had cared about for the last few years, he had put her in Satoru's hands. He had trusted his former best friend.

The Sorcerer had lost his trust. Shattered it. And now he stood before him, the other's blue eyes not even finding Suguru's in their shame to tell him what had happened.

"Satoru, I don't want to hear anything," Suguru stood up, having immediately silenced the other with his words.

For a moment, all that could be heard was the sobbing of the child in Suguru's arms. The curse user stood up, Mimiko clung to his hand as he took her to her room.

"I want you to find her." Suguru said as he came back out of the room to bring his daughter a glass of water, "If you can do that and not screw it up."

Satoru was still standing tied up in the living room. He only reacted when the other spoke. His whole body jerked forward, his head jerked up and his eyes snapped open.

"Suguru I-"

"Stop," Suguru shook his head, suppressing a desperate laugh, "Satoru I trusted you. I trusted you with my daughters and what happened? How am I supposed to trust you if you break my trust like this?"

Suguru looked at the other expectantly, repeating over and over the other question he hadn't said out loud.

How can I trust you with my heart if I don't know whether you will break it too?

Instead of giving a direct answer, Satoru nodded and turned to leave.

"I will find her again and bring her back safe and sound, I promise."

"Only come back if you can keep your promise"

With Suguru's words hanging in the air like a thick veil, the door closed. For a moment, he stood indecisively in front of his daughters' room, a glass of water in his hand. In the brief moment when no one saw him, his hand holding the glass trembled.

Suguru leaned his head back and exhaled shakily, praying to all the powers that be that they would bring his daughter back to him safe and sound.

As soon as Mimiko had calmed down, he would also look for his daughter.