After they moved the luggage and the souvenirs from Osaka into the house and got settled in, things quickly returned to a familiar rhythm.
"I really want a phone too!" said Nishimiya Yuzuru, plopping down on the Miyamura family's living room sofa, holding her sister's new white flip phone in her hands with clear envy.
Before Shouko could respond, Miyamura Shizuka chuckled and cut in, "You're still too young, kiddo. Wait till you hit junior high—Auntie will get you one too."
Yuzuru pouted but nodded, accepting the logic. Even if she had a phone, no one else in her class owned one, so it wouldn't be all that useful. She could talk to her sister and mom face-to-face anyway.
"Is your mom ho?" Shizuka asked casually, rembering sothing Yaeko had ntioned to her earlier.
"Nope, she went to work. But Grandma's ho," Yuzuru answered.
"Alright, just wondering. You all go play—I'm heading back to get so sleep," Shizuka said, standing and stretching before leaving the living room.
Night fell. The streetlights glowed, but the stars above remained vivid, scattered across the clear sky.
"Mr. Nishimiya…"
Shouko sat at the low table, repeating the na softly under her breath. She frowned and finally muttered, "It sounds a little familiar…"
She assud it must be soone on her mother's side of the family, given the surna. But seeing the concerned expressions on both Akira and Miyamura Shizuka, she realized it wasn't that simple.
"So… who is this person, really?" she asked, her curiosity finally bubbling over.
Akira opened his mouth to answer, but Shizuka gently placed a hand on his arm, signaling she'd take this one.
For the next five or six minutes, she calmly explained the full story—everything Yaeko had said on the phone, and why it might be difficult for Shouko to rember.
When she finished, Shouko simply responded with a small "Oh…" and nodded calmly.
Truth be told, she had wondered about this man before. But since the divorce, neither her mom nor her grandmother had ever brought him up. Over ti, her questions had faded away.
When she was younger, she even feared the divorce might have been because of her—because she was deaf. That had been a heavy burden for a child to carry.
But Akira had sensed sothing was wrong back then. His quiet support and constant presence helped her work through it.
Now, even hearing the na again didn't hurt. If anything, it reminded her of how Akira had helped her back then—how he always showed up, without fail. And for so reason, that thought made her heart flutter strangely, her legs subtly drawing together on instinct.
Akira had been watching her face the whole ti. The calm nod at the end reassured him that she was okay. At least, mostly.
Still, Miyamura Shizuka was watching her closely, concern lingering in her eyes.
"Auntie, I'm really fine," Shouko finally said, a bit awkwardly. "That look you're giving is making kind of uncomfortable…"
Shizuka glanced at her son, who gave her a tiny shake of his head, signaling she didn't need to push. She sighed and picked up the remote control to turn on the TV.
"Mom, Shouko and I are going upstairs," Akira said, getting up and taking Shouko's hand before she could reply.
Later, upstairs in his room, Shouko sat in a chair, leaning back and staring at the ceiling. Then a thought hit her.
"Akira… do you think we'll be assigned to the sa junior high school?"
Akira looked up from his phone and smiled reassuringly. "Relax, I already checked. Based on the zoning system here, we should be in the sa school."
In Japan, junior high placents were typically based on residential zones—ant to keep commuting short and efficient.
"And if it turns out we aren't in the sa one," he added, "I'll talk to Dad. We'll figure sothing out."
Hearing this, Shouko visibly relaxed. But when Akira turned back to his phone, she narrowed her eyes.
"Is your phone really that fun?" she asked with a hint of a pout.
Since they'd co upstairs, he'd been completely glued to that thing. What was so great about it?
When he gave her a half-hearted answer, she had enough.
Without warning, she leapt from her seat, ran up to the bed, and tackled him down in one clean jump.
The phone flew out of his hand and clattered to the floor.
"Wha—? Shouko!?"
"Play with !" she said, eyes locked with his, hair falling close to his cheek.
"...Huh?"
"Pfft—accompany !"
"But I—"
"Hmmm?" she humd nacingly.
Seeing her squinting at him with a look of mock nace, Akira abandoned his sentence and quickly changed topics.
"Alright, alright! How about we go see a movie tomorrow? Sound good?"
Shouko blinked in surprise, then slowly climbed off him and sat to the side, retrieving the phone from the floor. "Okay. What movie?"
Akira reached out for his phone, but she playfully pulled it away. Clearly, she was still half-pouting.
"I heard there's a new Action Kan movie coming out. We could see that?" he offered.
Shouko tilted her head. She was already pleased just hearing he'd make ti for her—but Action Kan? That was more his little cousin's thing than his.
"Is there… anything else?" she asked hesitantly.
Akira noticed her hesitation and gave a sheepish smile. "Alright, alright. Give the phone and I'll check."
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