[Warning 15+]
Part Five
―Even If, I Can't Treat You with That Same Energy Anymore
Chapter 197
Sleepless Night / Can't Wait
―Even If, I Can't Treat You with That Same Energy Anymore
Chapter 197
Sleepless Night / Can't Wait
That night.
Hayato had crawled into his futon early, but he just couldn't drift off to sleep.
Even though Hayato's body and mind should've been totally drained from everythin' that happened today, he felt strangely wired and wide awake.
"...Phew."
Rollin' over for the umpteenth time, Hayato let out a sigh toward the dark ceilin'.
Turnin' just his head to glance at the alarm clock on his desk, it was a little past midnight.
Hayato watched the second hand trace half a circle, but far from gettin' sleepy, he felt like he was becomin' more awake by the second.
Eventually, Hayato sat up with a defeated look, scratchin' his head as he grabbed his smartphone and stepped out onto the balcony.
In the distance, despite it bein' the middle of the night, lights from countless skyscrapers blurred the boundary between the city and the night sky, bleedin' into the darkness.
"...Nothin' like Tsukinose."
Filled with mixed emotions, Hayato quietly muttered that obvious truth to himself.
The reason Hayato couldn't sleep was blatantly obvious.
Hayato casually pulled up a certain photo on his smartphone.
On the screen was Haruki singin' alongside MOMO (Momoka).
The hype from the crowd back then, that intense energy, was still smolderin' inside Hayato's chest.
No matter how anyone looked at it, MOMO was the star of the show.
MOMO's impromptu charm, the charisma that commanded and wrapped up the whole room, her flashy presence and vibe.
Oh, figures. No wonder Himeko and the younger girls were head over heels for MOMO.
And the one flawlessly backin' up that pop-up stage was Haruki.
Haruki sang unison in a lower key just so MOMO stayed the main event, droppin' harmonies and backin' vocals in all the right spots, positionin' herself so MOMO's wild movements stood out even more.
If MOMO was the blazin' sun, Haruki was the moon catchin' that light, showin' off all kinds of different phases. You couldn't help but get spellbound watchin' them.
That's why Hayato, just like everyone else, pointed his smartphone camera and snapped away, capturin' every shiftin' moment so he wouldn't miss a thing.
"...Haruki's really pretty, huh."
Starin' at the picture of Haruki, those unexpected words slipped right out of Hayato's mouth.
Hayato's eyes widened in disbelief at himself, and he shook his head to brush off thoughts that felt totally out-of-line and impure.
Sigh~, Hayato let out a self-deprecatin' sigh. He dropped his gaze back to his smartphone.
Haruki inside Hayato's smartphone wasn't flashy by any means.
Yet Haruki captured so many captivatin' vibes—and then Hayato realized there was no one reflected in her eyes.
Suddenly, a cold shiver ran right down Hayato's spine.
'Mine is just a facade meant for strangers whose names and faces I don't even know.'
Suddenly, Hayato remembered the words Haruki had dropped back in Tsukinose.
A feelin' akin to fear that Haruki was goin' to end up somewhere far away, leavin' Hayato behind.
And the fact that a hotshot Producer like Sakurajima had his eye on Haruki felt like it just confirmed that fear.
An indescribable anxiety swirled inside Hayato's chest.
And Hayato already knew all too well that there were things beyond his control, no matter what he did.
'MOMO's real name is—Kaidō Momoka. She's my real big sis.'
This time, Hayato remembered what Kazuki had said.
All of a sudden, Hayato was hit by the sinkin' feelin' that they were livin' in totally different worlds—
"Oh, d*mn it!"
Refusin' to admit it, Hayato aggressively messed up his hair and reached his hand out toward the western sky.
Hayato tried to grasp the slightly wanin' moon that stood shrouded in the hazy glow of city lights, but it slipped right through his palm as if escapin' his reach.
Hayato's clenched fist floated aimlessly in the night sky.
"...The heck am I even doin'—!?"
Just then, Hayato's smartphone buzzed with a message notification.
'You awake?'
Reflexively tappin' it open, it was a trivial message (question) from Haruki.
Since Hayato was just thinkin' about Haruki, his heart took a sudden leap.
Furrowin' his brows, Hayato had a starin' contest with the screen for a moment.
Look at the time. Hayato thought about ignorin' it, pretendin' he was already asleep.
But wanting to confirm that Haruki was right there within arm's reach, Hayato typed back, 'I'm awake.'
Then almost instantly, an incomin' call popped up.
"What is it, Haruki? It's the middle of the night."
'Ahaha, I just couldn't sleep for some reason. Oh, were you just about to hit the sack?'
"Nah, not really?"
'Then we're good!'
"...Geez."
Hayato was well aware that his tone sounded rough around the edges.
It was completely selfish and childish, leavin' Hayato exasperated with himself.
However, Hayato caught a subtle trace of unease in Haruki's voice.
Hayato's head cooled down instantly. He forced his voice back to its usual casual tone.
"So, what's up?"
'Oh, yeah. A lot went down today, y'know?'
"Yeah, a lot of unexpected stuff happened. I checked ahead to make sure there weren't any events or anythin'... ...um, sorry about that."
'H-Hayato, it's totally not somethin' you need to apologize for, it was basically an accident! Plus, if we keep worryin' about —-san, we won't be able to go out anywhere together anymore. I'd hate that.'
"I-I see."
The sulky, needy tone in Haruki's voice made Hayato's heart skip a beat for a second, makin' him hurriedly turn his back to the moon to play it off.
'Besides that, findin' out Kaidou's Big Sis was MOMO was a huge shock too.'
"Though in a way, it kinda makes sense too."
'Right!? But well, Kaidō's Big Sis is his Big Sis, and Kaidō is Kaidō. Man, hidin' a bombshell like that.'
"You're one to talk, aren't you, Haruki?"
'Th-That's true, but still~'
"Well, but Haruki is Haruki, after all."
'Mu~'
From Haruki's tone, it was easy to picture her sulkin' and poutin' her lips in annoyance.
They kept tossin' playful banter back and forth like that.
Without realizin' it, not only had the mood of the convo lightened up, but so had Hayato's heart.
(Back in the day, even if we had a fight, the second we saw each other the next day and exchanged two or three words, we'd instantly make up and go hang out.)
Hayato reminisced about those times.
No matter what happened, Hayato's relationship with Haruki would definitely never change.
A smile relaxed Hayato's lips.
So, Hayato voiced the heartfelt feelin's currently fillin' his chest.
"Hey, Haruki."
'Yeah, what's up?'
"I'm really lookin' forward to the Fall Festival tomorrow."
Right then, Hayato heard Haruki catch her breath through the smartphone.
'Yeah, for real!'
And Haruki's heartfelt response echoed right back to Hayato.
Author's Note:
And that's a wrap on Part 5 Sub-Part 4!
Starting next chapter, we're enterin' the final act of Part 5!
The latest volume of Tenbin, Volume 4, is out now!
Please buy a copy so I can bring home a kitty!!