From the Bottom to the Top

Volume 4: Chapter 5

True to his words, Masachika would join Maria at the makeshift farm the next day to help her out, but also to talk to her personally.

He had informed Alisa beforehand that she could help someone else instead of her sister today, to which she hesitantly agreed to.

As much as she wanted to apologize to her older sister, it’s clear that Maria didn’t want to speak with her at all, nor listen to her.

At the moment, Masachika was focused on collecting the crops that were fully grown by now in a basket while Maria was watering everything else. It’s a good thing that he was here to help today, because there’s a lot of them that are due for harvesting and—

“Kuze-kun…”

Hearing the girl’s familiar voice calling out to him, Masachika stopped in his work and turned his attention towards her.

“Is it okay if I confide in you about something?” asked the brunette, almost completely out of nowhere.

His eyes widened slightly, before putting on a more serious look. He was planning to initiate the talk after they work, but it seems like the opportunity to do so has just presented itself to him.

He nodded, “Of course. What do you want to tell me?”

“Yesterday… Alya-chan wanted to talk to me.”

“Is that so? What happened?” he asked, feigning ignorance.

“I… didn’t talk to her at all,” she muttered. “I couldn’t do it… I couldn’t face her… I was too much of a coward.”

“You’re not a coward, Masha-san. It’s not a coward’s move if you know you can’t do it. There’s no need to force yourself,” he walked towards her and leaving the basket of crops for the moment.

Maria shook her head in denial. “But Alya-chan looked so sad… I felt so horrible… ignoring my own sister like I did.”

“I remember you telling me you didn’t know if you could face her yet. Now you have your answer, and that’s not a bad thing. I’m sure Alya realized that your reaction was completely understandable after she left you alone.”

“That doesn’t really make me feel better. I know that there’s a part of me who wanted to talk to her, but I still couldn’t bring myself to do it…”

She let out a hollow laugh, while Masachika bore a conflicted frown on his face. As he expected, this was affecting Masha as much as it did to Alya…

“It’s ironic, isn’t it? Back then, I was the one who tried to get her to talk and now the roles have switched. I’m the one who’s ignoring her while she’s trying to get my attention…”

“None of it was your fault. And like I said before, Masha-san,” he placed his hand on her shoulder gently. “I’m here for you. If you need a shoulder to cry on, I’m here.”

Upon hearing those words, the brunette allowed herself to lean against him almost lifelessly, forcing Masachika to support her entire weight. She also grabbed his arm and hugged it to her chest, while he simply allowed her to do what she wanted.

“Kuze-kun… do you remember when I asked you if you’ve ever had to choose between two people important to you?”

“I do,” he nodded, while his mind went back to his younger sister and the day he left the Suou household yet again.

“How did you know that you were finally ready to face that other person?”

“...when I realized that that person needed me more than anyone. I didn’t realize it before, because I thought things were completely fine between us, but I was wrong. That person needed me back then, and I wasn’t there for them. I couldn’t allow myself to make the same mistake again. I had to do something before it was too late.”