Intro 4: Blooming "Ren"

When I was two years old, my parents and I, a family of three, traveled from our hometown Sendai to Ryuuseimachi.

My father said we were visiting his sister who had just given birth to twins there. Actually, it had been a few months since she gave birth, but only now were we able to visit them because of my father's business.

When we arrived there, the one who opened the door was a boy, around my age or older, followed by a middle-aged man whom I later knew as my aunt's husband, Mr. Mizuno, who let us in.

My father gave him the souvenirs he had prepared beforehand, and Mizuno-san said he would bring out the snacks and ask us to wait in the living room, but my father said he wanted to talk with his sister first, and Mizuno-san said she was resting upstairs in their room.

My mother volunteered to help bring out the refreshments and followed Mizuno-san to the kitchen, while my father went upstairs.

While I just waited in the living room, sitting beside the boy who had opened the door before, I was watching a show about a superhero called Masked River(?) or something on TV.

We didn't talk, mostly because I didn't know what to say, and he was so focused on the screen that I doubted he even realized I was sitting beside him.

Not long after, my mother and Mizuno-san came bringing out snacks and drinks, and my mother asked me to call my father.

Before I went, Mizuno-san told me the exact location of the room, so I just nodded and went upstairs.

When I stood in front of the door, I raised my hand to grab the handle when....

"....both of them are boys again, huh."

"Sorry, Nii-san."

"No, don't be sorry. It's not your fault."

"I'll do my best aga--..."

"You already have 5 children. More than this will be dangerous for your body. Besides, you already got 'that,' right? Even more reason you shouldn't be getting pregnant anymore."

"...."

"I'll try thinking about a solution for this. I'll make sure you and everyone else are fine."

"Nii-san..."

"Tsk, if only my Ren was born a girl. You wouldn't have to suffer like this."

"But it's not Ren-kun's fault!"

"I know!"

When my father raised his voice, I reflexively gasped, and perhaps they heard me because they suddenly became silent.

The door then opened by my father, who saw me not having moved from my position.

"Oh, it's you, Ren. What's wrong?"

My father asked me normally. There was no hint of agitation in his voice like there had been a moment ago.

"Um, Kaa-san asked me to call you down."

"Is that so? Well then, let's go--"

"Wait, Nii-san! Is that Ren-kun? Can I see him?"

The voice from inside interrupted my father's words, and he asked me to go inside while he went downstairs.

When I stepped inside the room, I saw a beautiful woman sitting on the bed, leaning her back against the headboard, smiling while beckoning me to come closer to her.

Beside the bed, there was a big baby cradle that had 2 babies who were sleeping inside it.

I guessed they were the twins my father had talked about. One of them had black hair, while the other had brown hair.

I walked hesitantly toward her bedside, and she looked at me thoroughly before extending her hand to touch my cheek.

"You have grown so big since the last time I saw you. Ne, do you remember me, Ren-kun?"

I shook my head at that question. I didn't remember ever meeting her.

"Well, of course, you won't, huh? Actually, I was the first one to hold you when you were born. Your mother was unconscious, and your father was really panicking at that time, haha."

The time I was born.

No wonder I didn't remember her.

Her hand then stopped on top of my head and caressed my hair gently.

"Well, let me introduce myself then. My name is Mizuno Ayaka. I'm your father's sister, which means I'm your aunt. Nice to meet you, Ren-kun."

She said that while smiling brightly and beautifully.

This was my first time ever meeting Ayaka-san, my aunt.

---

★

---

One day, three years after the previous scene, Japan experienced two big disasters, an earthquake and tsunami that with the number of casualties around 20.000 people, 5.000 wounded, and 3.000 missing.

A day after the disaster, the rescue team were doing their best to find any survivors or at least a body in the midst of rubbles of building.

"Hey, I need a little help here! I find bodies! One of them is still breathing!"

One of the rescuer shouted and all others rescuer in the area ran to him to see what happened.

What they saw there made them gasped.

Under the rubbles there were bodies of 3 people; a man and woman, using their body to cover a kid under them.

The condition of the couple were already unsaveable and no more sign of life on them, but the kid was different. Though he was tattered in blood, from himself and his parents bodies, at least there was still a sign of breathing.

The rescue teams moved fast by moving the obstructive rubbles out of the way as fast as they could.

They retrieved the bodies, send the kid to the hospital, and continued their job of searching for survivors in this sea of destruction.

---

★

---

When I opened my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar ceiling.

My whole body hurts; my mind was fuzzy.

How long was I asleep?

Where am I now?

What happened?

I turned my head to the side and saw many other beds with unconscious patients in this room, and several people wearing doctor and nurse uniforms moving around.

I locked eyes with one nurse, and she said something to the nearby doctor before that doctor also landed his eyes on me.

"Go call his relatives...."

I couldn't quite hear their conversation, but after the doctor said something to the nurse, she ran out of the room, and the doctor walked to me.

"How do you feel?"

"What happened to me, sensei?"

"You..... how much do you remember?"

"...."

I couldn't answer. Not only because I didn't understand why he asked that, but also because I couldn't remember anything about what happened.

I remember my mother and father picked me up from school, and then we celebrated my achievement in class, but then.....

...

... But then what?

I couldn't remember what happened after that.

"Ren-kun!"

Just when I was lost in thought, I saw a familiar woman at the door, looking out of breath and with glistening eyes.

She walked straight to me.

"A-Aya--"

'Hug!'

She interrupted my call when she suddenly hugged me tight, pressing my head against her chest.

"Thank goodness you're fine."

"Ayaka-san?"

"Don't worry. I'm here with you."

"....Where are Tou-san and Kaa-san?"

"....."

I could feel her tense up when I asked that.

"Ayaka....-san?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

She didn't answer my question; she just tightened her hug on me while repeatedly muttering 'sorry'.

A little fragment of memories flashed in my mind.

The house was shaking, my mother was crying as she hugged me, my father was running toward us from the other room, and then everything went black in the next second.

I didn't understand.

But I felt like I should acknowledge it.

But at the same time, I didn't want to accept it.

I tried to get out of Ayaka-san's hug, but although she was trembling, her hug just got tighter again, as if she wanted to cover me from what I was about to remember.

I didn't realize it; I was already crying.

My hands, which were trying to push Ayaka-san away, slowly lay limp at my side as harsh realization hit me.

Father...

Mother...

Both of them were gone.

They had died protecting me.

I didn't know how long I cried that day.

All I remember was Ayaka-san kept hugging me the whole time while also saying, "You still have me, Ren-kun. I'm your family," repeatedly.

•

•

•

A few days after that, when my condition improved and the doctor told me that I was fine to go, Ayaka-san took care of everything.

She arranged the funeral of my parents and made sure I received the inheritance rights of my parents, although it was impossible to access it now because of my age; Ayaka-san would manage it until I came of age before it would be returned to me.

Now that I didn't have any relatives besides her, Ayaka-san also extended her hand and said she wanted to adopt me into her family.

As a kid who had just lost his parents at the age of 6, although reluctantly, I accepted her hand. But deep down, I was afraid.

I couldn't say I was close with anyone in the Mizuno family. My only involvement with them was mostly through what I heard from Ayaka-san, but I never brought myself to interact with them first at any given chance.

So when Ayaka-san brought me from Sendai to Ryuuseimachi, I was actually prepared for the worst—that they wouldn't accept me, an outsider.

But things went beyond what I imagined.

They all accepted me warmly.

They sympathized with me.

They were there for me in my lowest moments.

Just like how a family should be.

Be supportive.

That's why I promised myself.

Just like how they were there for me...

If there comes a time when they needed support, I promised I would be the first one to stand behind them.

Whatever the circumstances may be.

That day in the middle of March, I lost my family.

But in the same month, I gained a new one.

---

★

---

In the afternoon, when most students had already gone home and some students were still on school grounds doing their club activities, a group of students was resting after a quick practice match in the football field behind the school.

Ren, who was sitting and resting on a bench quite far away from the rest of the team, quietly drank water from a bottle when footsteps from behind were heard, and suddenly a pair of hands covered his eyes.

"Take a guess?"

Ren put down the water bottle and gently removed the hands from his eyes.

"Aina, please put some distance. I just sweated a lot."

"Hehe, don’t wanna~ I love Ren-kun’s scent. Sniff sniff."

Instead of moving away, the person behind him just hugged him and sniffed his scent more thoroughly.

Startled by the sudden action, Ren instinctively stood up and put distance between them while glaring at the perpetrator.

A long red-haired girl with green eyes had her hands still hanging in the air while she pouted angrily at Ren’s reaction.

Her name is Nishizumi Aina, a sunny girl from the same class as him, and also....

"There they go again, those lovebirds."

"Can someone get them a room already?"

"My single heart is screaming!"

"Ren, make sure to invite us all to the wedding, okay buddy?"

A whistle came from behind as Ren looked over to see his teammates giving him teasing remarks and knowing smiles.

Ren's face turned red from annoyance and embarrassment.

But Ren could only bear it all in silence.

It’s not like denying it would do anything anyway.

Everyone already knew about his relationship with Aina; denying it would only bring more teasing from his teammates.

Beside him, Aina walked closer with both hands behind her back and leaned forward with a mischievous smile.

"Not saying anything. Does that mean you really plan to marry me?"

Ren didn’t answer immediately but put his hand on her head and rubbed it gently.

"Maybe?"

"Hehe, love you, Ren-kun."

Aina laughed, enjoying the caressing from her boyfriend.

Behind them, the sound of the single dogs who were forcefully fed with dog fooddog food in front of them was heard howling that afternoon.

---

★

---

How or when did Ren get into a relationship with this ball of sunshine?

They met a year ago at Ren's part-time workplace by coincidence.

Ren worked as a bartender in one of the bars at the corner of the city.

He got the job through a recommendation from one of his friends when he said he wanted a job with at least decent pay.

His friend introduced him to a man who had just opened a bar and was in need of employees.

Ren thought he wouldn't take the job because it felt wrong for him as a minor to work in a bar, but since the owner said it would be fine and that he would handle everything, in the end, Ren took it.

The pay was really good anyway, and Ren really needed to start saving money for the things he planned for the future.

Surprisingly, Trail of Stars, the name of the bar he worked for, wasn't as bad as he imagined a bar would be.

Usually, the people who came there just came to drink and needed someone to talk to.

Instead of a normal bar, the place felt more like a consultation office that offered drinks on the side. Rather than a bar, maybe it's more fitting to call it a café for adults.

Ren wouldn't complain because coincidentally, he already had a good amount of experience being a listener in the Mizuno family.

Customers came, he greeted them politely, and if the customers started talking about their problems, he just listened attentively, serving them their drinks when they asked, giving them advice without crossing any boundaries, cleaning up the bar, and repeating the process.

That was the whole usual process of his work routine.

But of course, there were also times when customers came for bad purposes, just like what happened that day when Ren first met Aina.

•

•

On that day, there weren't many customers, and after the last one left and his working hours were almost finished, Ren was ready to clean up everything and close the bar when suddenly a group of five people—three girls and two guys—walked inside.

Ren went back to the counter while the group took their seats at the corner table.

Ren couldn't help but notice the weird atmosphere between the group. All of them were dressed flashily, except for one girl, the red-haired one, who was dressed quite modestly and even seemed quite nervous to be among the group.

One of the girls, a gyaru with tan skin and a flashy appearance, came up to the counter to order their drinks.

Four glasses of cheap cocktails and a glass of juice. The girl also handed him a small plastic wrap containing white powder and instructed him to mix it with the juice while also giving him a tip in cash.

Ren just nodded, took the plastic, and said he needed to go to the back to get some ice first.

The girl, satisfied with his response, went back to her group and started chatting.

Unbeknownst to them, the moment Ren went to the back, he called the owner, Munehiro-san, to report everything about this matter.

Munehiro-san said he would handle this as fast as possible and just told Ren to act normally.

Ren came back to the front, made their ordered drinks, and served them to the group, of course, without mixing that suspicious powder with the juice.

Even though he was quite far from them, Ren could see the guys lecherously eyeing the red-haired girl when she drank her juice.

There was a moment of confusion on the group's faces when they saw the girl unaffected after drinking.

Fortunately, true to Munehiro-san's words, things were indeed handled very quickly.

Three people in police uniforms arrived. Two of them walked quickly towards the group and caught the guys, while the two girls tried to flee, but Ren had already locked the door using the security mechanism in the bar counter.

One policeman who remained came to Ren asking for details, and Ren provided him with the powder in the mini plastic wrap that he got from the girl and said that the red-haired girl was most likely just a victim in this whole affair.

The police thanked him for his full cooperation, signaling to his police partners, who had already handcuffed all four suspects, to get out and bring everyone related to this case to the police station, except Ren himself.

The red-haired girl passed the counter; she stopped for a moment in front of Ren, bowing her head to say thank you before quietly following the police officer out of the bar.

Ren looked at the time; it had already passed his usual shift time. He would ask for overtime pay later from Munehiro-san for all this trouble.

•

•

A few days after that day, Ren got the news about the case from Munehiro-san.

Apparently, the group that day were delinquents from a certain school. The four of them were arrested for possession of illegal drugs and attempted rape of the red-haired girl, who was a bullied student at their school.

He also heard that after the case became public, the four delinquents were expelled while the red-haired girl transferred to another school.

Ren wasn't really interested in the case itself, but when he remembered the red-haired girl's face, he felt something indescribable.

But well, it's not like he would have a chance to meet her again.

That's what he thought.

Until a week later, in morning class, the same red-haired girl stood in front of his class.

The teacher said she was a transfer student.

The girl looked around the class until her eyes met Ren's, and a big beaming smile formed on her lips.

"My name is Nishizumi Aina. Nice to meet you all!"

Ren could only laugh in his heart at how strange fate could be.

•

•

From that day on, at school, Ren felt like he had gotten himself a small and cute puppy.

The red-haired girl, Aina, followed him anywhere in the school grounds like a little tail.

Watching him from the sidelines when he had club activities, attentively offering towels and drinks after his practice, and giving him the things she made in home economics class, etc.

Always beaming bright like sunshine every time Ren talked to her.

For everyone else, it was very clear that the girl liked Ren very much; even Ren himself noticed it, but he never addressed it since the girl herself never explicitly said anything.

Through the schemes of his friends in the club, who were itching for the progression of this youth story between a sports-crazy guy and a puppy-like girl, they were able to trap both Ren and Aina in the storage room, locked.

Knowing his friends wouldn't let them out unless they talked about the matter, Ren, who saw how fidgety Aina was in front of him, decided to address the issue that had been bothering him for a while.

"Nishizumi-san, I'm sorry to involve you in my friends' bad prank. I'll thoroughly punish those guys after we get out of here."

"No, I don't mind. I mean, I'm trapped with Ren-kun, so it's just a big plus, hehe."

"...."

"Ah, sorry, did I gross you out?"

"Not really. Anyway, Nishizumi-san, well, hmm, I don't know how to ask this."

"Ren-kun wants to ask me something? Please go on. Whatever it is, I'll answer."

Aina got excited when she heard that, and Ren was a little taken aback by that, but to get things over with, he just shot the question straight.

"Do you like me?"

"I like you."

".....Hah?"

"Did I say it too fast? Let me repeat it again. I like you, Ren-kun!"

The straight question was met with an even straighter answer that it was actually Ren himself who needed a moment to comprehend what she just said.

Ren furrowed his brow, looking over at the girl who had just confidently admitted that she liked him without any hesitation.

"Let me just confirm, the 'like' you talked about--"

"Oh right, it's the romantic kind of like. I love Ren-kun."

Without even letting Ren finish his confirmation, Aina confirmed without batting an eye.

Faced with the very straightforward confession, Ren was the one who ended up blushing and nervous, needing to take a step back away from her.

Aina, who saw this, had her smile falter a little.

She nervously laughed and tried to take back her words.

"Ahaha, I guess this is too fast, huh? How about we for--"

"Want to try going out?"

"--get... Ren-kun, what did you just say?"

Ren averted his gaze and murmured, but it was still clear enough to be heard by Aina.

"I just said, if you are serious, do you want to try going out with me?"

Aina instantly came in front of him, looking very excited, with her eyes sparkling with stars.

"Wait, really? Yes! Of course, yes! I want it! Not just trying it out, but I want to go out with Ren-kun for real!"

"Hm, is that so?"

With an apparent blush on his face, Ren still averted his gaze and didn't really know how to act in this kind of situation.

Even when faced with that curt response, Aina's happiness didn't diminish. She just thought of it as bashful and cute.

She suddenly hugged him, causing him to tense up for a brief moment.

"Please take care of me from now on, Ren-kun."

"Hm, me too, Nishizu--"

"'Aina'! Calling me by my surname is too formal. So just call me 'Aina', Ren-kun!"

".....Please take care of me too, Aina."

"Hehe~"

Ren at that moment thought that he finally understood what that indescribable feeling he felt every time he met Aina was.

It's not exactly love.

More like a sense of familiarity from her bright personality.

She reminded him of someone very important.

Yes.

Aina was very much like Ayaka-san in his memories.

•

•

Subsequently, after the door was finally unlocked by the teacher, Ren made sure to take his revenge by deliberately shooting and targeting everyone in the face or body in the practice match later that day.

---

★

---

[It's almost the end of our vacation before the new semester starts. Do you have any plans, Ren-kun?]

A few days left before school started again.

On the night when Ren was laying on his bed, a message from Aina came, asking for his plan for the rest of the vacation.

He quickly typed to reply.

[You want another date?]

[I wouldn't reject it if you offered me a date.]

[But we already went to the amusement park the other day for my date wish.]

[I had enough fun that day.]

[So now I want to do whatever Ren-kun wishes.]

[Like, don't you have anything you want to do or a place you want to visit?]

Ren pondered about it.

A place he wanted to go?

It's almost the end of March.

Oh...

March...

Now that he thought about it, it's been a while since he last visited them.

The place he could think of at the moment was only his hometown.

Or to be precise, his parents' grave.

After thinking it through, Ren was about to type it on his phone when Aina's message came first.

[You paused for a while. It means you do have one, right?]

[Just to make it clear, I'm down for everything.]

[Even 'that' kind of place.]

[I see.]

[I do have one place I want to visit.]

[Can this girlfriend of yours know?]

[My parents' grave.]

[Oh.]

[Hmm.]

[Can I follow you?]

[Why do you even want to go?]

[You said it yourself that you plan to marry me.]

[So isn't it normal for me to want to meet my in-laws?]

[Did I really say something like that?]

[You did!]

[That day after your club practice!]

[Don't tell me you forgot already!]

[Ren-kun, you evil!]

Ren chuckled when he saw the barrage of messages from his girlfriend.

He felt a bit guilty for teasing her, so he quickly tried to appease her.

[Alright. You can come along.]

[I also think it's time for me to introduce you to my parents.]

[I'll tell you the plan later.]

[It's late now. Go to sleep.]

[Ehh?]

[I still want to chat with Ren-kun.]

[Good night.]

[Meanie!]"

---

★

---

On the last day of vacation, at noon, Ren told everyone in the Mizuno family that he would work until very late so that they wouldn't worry about him.

While in reality, he had already asked for a leave from Munehiro-san for that day.

Instead, he went to the train station.

Where he met Aina, who was already waiting and waving to him in front of the train station.

"Sorry, did I make you wait long?"

Aina shook her head.

"Not really. I just arrived a few minutes ago. Rather than that, don’t you have anything to say to me?"

Ren looked at her up and down before rubbing the top of her head.

"Yeah, I know. You are as cute as ever."

"Ehehe."

Ren took Aina's hand and walked a little ahead.

"Let's go. Our train is here."

"Um!"

Aina nodded and walked faster to catch up and walked side by side with her boyfriend to their train.

---

★

---

From Ryuuseimachi to Sendai took a full 4 hours by train.

So by the time we arrived there, the sky had already taken on a bit of orange color.

After getting off the train, we still needed to take a taxi to go to the local cemetery where my parents' grave was located.

Standing in front of the cemetery gate, my mind wandered to the last time I visited this place.

When was it?

One year ago?

Maybe 2?

I couldn't remember it clearly.

I felt someone hold my hand.

"Ren-kun?"

I smiled and turned my head to her, tightening my hand to respond to her concern.

"Let's go."

She nodded, and we walked ahead, with me leading her to where my parents' grave was.

And we finally arrived, in front of 2 granite gravestones that stood beside each other, bearing the names "Hanasaki Soichiro" and "Hanasaki Tomoe" carved on each stone surface.

My parents' grave.

I stood still for a while in front of them, not knowing what I should do now that I stood before them here again.

"Ren-kun, I brought the water. Let's clean it out first, okay?"

I turned my head, saw Aina coming while holding a bucket of water that she probably took from the well over there.

How thoughtful.

I really should cherish her more thoroughly after this.

We moved quickly in cleaning up both gravestones, plucking the weeds, wiping the stones with clean water, burning incense, and putting the new flowers we brought in the vases in front of the stones.

Standing side by side with Aina, holding hands in front of the clean gravestones, I started talking.

"It's been a while, Kaa-san, Tou-san.

Sorry I couldn't come faster.

Today, I brought someone I want you both to meet, my girlfriend."

I nudged her to start whatever she wanted to say to them.

"Etto, my name is Nishizumi Aina, 18 years old, my family, um, I'm an orphan.

Your son saved me once when I was in a very bad situation, and from that time I fell in love with him.

Ren-kun has helped me a lot in many things after that too, and I can't thank him enough for that.

Etto, I know I have many shortcomings, but please, will you give me your blessing to have your son?!"

Aina slightly bowed to the stone.

This girl.

I could only sigh helplessly at her randomness of asking for a blessing here all of a sudden.

If anything, I should be the one to ask for a blessing to marry her.

As you would expect, no one answered her.

But in that moment, a gust of wind came from our front, gently lifting her hair for a second.

We didn't hear anything.

But that wind...

It felt like a silent confirmation from them that they approved of her.

Aina straightened her body with a big smile to the gravestones while tightening our handhold.

"Thank you! I'll do my best!"

She then turned to me with a small smile as she released her hand.

"Ren-kun, I'll wait for you at the front gate, okay?"

"Huh, why?"

"You still have many things you want to talk about with them, right? Something that I'm sure you still feel uncomfortable talking about if there's anyone around, even if that person is me."

"Aina...."

"Come on, don't feel bad. You are in front of your parents. Come, smile, smile."

Aina put her hands on each side of my cheeks, lifted them up with her thumbs to force a smile out of me.

I couldn't help but truly smile at her antics.

"Hehe, now that's what I'm talking about."

She tiptoed and gave me a quick kiss on my lips before she stepped back and started walking away while waving at me.

Now that I was alone, I looked straight at the stones in front of me and took a deep breath before releasing it all.

Alright.

Here we go.

"Tou-san. Kaa-san. I miss you both.

In my last visit, I couldn't say it all, but after you both were gone, so many things happened.

Ayaka-san, Tou-san's sister, took me into her family.

They treated me well there, as if I was one of them from the start.

And I thought everything would be fine this time. That nothing would happen to this family that kindly took me in.

But then...

A few years later.

Ayaka-san died in an accident, and the family crumbled before my eyes."

I took my breath once more.

The bad memories from that time resurfaced once again as I continued telling my story.

"Fortunately, lately, everyone seems to have regained their spirits.

Yuuichi tried his best to stick the family back together, and for the most part, I think it's working.

They no longer need my support.

There is no longer a role for me in that family."

I wasn't sad or blaming anyone in this.

Instead, I just felt happy.

Happy for everyone who finally could move forward.

So I smiled.

"Actually, just one more year until graduation. I planned to move out of that house to live alone.

I already have quite a sum of money saved up from my part-time job, and for the inheritance you both left me, well, I'll deal with it later.

I just want you two to know I'm doing fine. You both don't have to worry about me.

It's just... one more thing.

Something that's been on my mind for years.

Something I have always wanted to ask you."

It was something I shouldn't ask.

Asking this would make it seem like I was blaming them.

That's not true.

I loved them dearly.

It’s just...

If I didn't ask this now, I didn't know when I would get any more chances to pour out my heart like this.

I wanted to let it all out and move on.

"Tou-san, you never said it straight to me, but I sometimes overheard you say something like;

'If only Ren was born a girl' in our first visit to Ayaka-san's family.

Or...

'If only our firstborn was a girl' when our pet cat, Momo, died.

So I just wanted to ask this.

Am I...?"

I clenched my fist, bringing it to my chest that was beating fast and hard.

I took a breath again before shooting it as a question.

"Am I a curse?!"

Seconds passed.

No one answered that simple question.

Not even the wind.

Nothing.

So I continued.

"I don't understand what you meant by that, so maybe I am just overthinking it. Maybe it is just a misunderstanding on my part.

But everything that was close to me ended up dying one by one.

Momo died suddenly without any clear reason.

Then you both died protecting me in that disaster.

At that point, I still thought it was all just a mere coincidence.

But then Ayaka-san died in an accident.

It made me overthink it all again.

Am I the cause of her death?

Is it because she took me in that she died?

Am I really a curse?

Hey, please tell me!

Was it because I was born a boy that it all happened?!"

Overcome by my emotions, my voice volume went up.

It's just fortunate that no one was nearby, so at least I didn't bother anyone.

My hand, which was on my chest, could feel the increase in my heartbeat.

I took several breaths in and out to calm myself down, then I continued talking.

"I kept thinking about it over and over.

That's why, after Ayaka-san's death, I built a transparent wall around myself.

I tried my best to support everyone without including myself too much in their lives.

I only interacted to the bare minimum with them, and most of my daily activities were spent working part-time or engaging in club activities.

That is also the reason why I wanted to move out of the house.

If my existence is really a curse, as I thought, I just hope everyone in the Mizuno family can be safe from any harm.

But then, I got one more person I wanted to protect."

Without my control, a smile formed on my lips the moment I thought of her.

A girl so persistent, energetic, yet bringing a warmth that I always longed for.

If I was really a curse, the best course of action should be to put some distance between us.

But I didn't think I could extract myself from her presence anymore.

Even just seeing her in a down mood was enough to put me in such turmoil.

That's why I couldn't bear to leave her.

"If everything that happened was really because I was born a boy, then will it change anything if someday I turned into a girl?

Will I no longer need to be afraid of misfortune befalling the people I cherish if I was a girl?"

These last two sentences were just my random thoughts over all this overthinking.

It didn't amount to anything—just some wistful thinking.

I scooped up the water from the bucket and poured it on top of each gravestone for the last time.

I had said everything that had been on my mind, and I felt a load of burden lifted from my shoulders.

I stood straight in front of their gravestones with a smile.

"I'll see you guys again when I have time. I love you both. Ah, about those last two questions, please forget them. Just random rambling without any meaning."

"Oh, but I already granted that wish of yours, human."

"??!!"

I quickly turned around and didn't see anyone.

I looked everywhere, but I didn't see anyone or anything in this empty cemetery other than gravestones as far as I could see.

[Installing the System]

[Please wait patiently]

I once again heard a voice; this time it was different from the previous one, but similarly, there was no source of the voice to be seen anywhere.

The sky was getting darker, not only because it was almost night but also because it seemed like it would rain soon.

I didn't really believe in ghosts or supernatural things, but when I experienced it myself, I got this uncomfortable feeling that something would happen very soon.

I hurriedly put the bucket back in its place and got away fast from there.

When I saw Aina standing by the gate, waving at me, my once disturbed heart finally calmed down.

We got into a taxi and went on our way to the train station to go home.

•

•

However, when we reached the station, we saw that the schedule was turned off due to some maintenance on the rail or something.

In other words, we couldn't go home tonight.

What should we do now?

Should we go home by taxi? But that would be too expensive.

Besides, it most likely would rain soon, and I just had this very bad feeling that if we went in a taxi, something bad would happen.

While I was wondering about what we should do, Aina was searching for something on her phone.

I felt a tug on the hem of my shirt, and I looked over at her.

"Ren-kun, how about we stay overnight in a hotel and go home first thing in the morning? Sure, we would miss the first day of school, but I think it's better than forcing ourselves to go home in a taxi. The weather forecast said it will be raining the whole night."

Aina said while showing me her phone screen that described tonight's storm around Sendai.

"It can't be helped. Let's search for the hotel first."

"About that, can we go to the place of my choice?"

Unexpectedly, Aina was the one who recommended a hotel to stay at tonight.

She looked very excited, and the only thing I could do was nod, indulging whatever her desire.

•

•

Sitting on the bed, side by side with Aina in a very ambiguous atmosphere room, I wanted to blame my past self from a few minutes ago.

Because I just nodded and went along with Aina's choice, thinking that there wouldn't be any problem.

But it turned out the place she led us to was a love hotel.

"Why a love hotel?"

"It is the cheapest option for an overnight stay. We at least want to save money for our travel back home, right?"

"Tell me the truth."

"It is the nearest hotel available. The regular one with a similar price was two blocks away, and it was already raining outside."

"..... Aina."

"I'm sorry! I just wanted to see and experience a love hotel for the first time! I swear I didn't have any other hidden agenda! We will only use it to sleep for one night, nothing else!"

By quietly pressuring her, I was able to make her confess.

This girl was too carefree.

Well, I'll take her words for now and think nothing more of it.

"I'm not mad. You can check everything you want to check. I'll go to the toilet in the meantime."

Standing up from the bed, I walked to the bathroom, and I could hear Aina moving excitedly to check every corner of the room.

Such a kid in a very strange place.

Anyway, I got this uncomfortable feeling in my lower abdomen.

No, this wasn't arousal.

When I sat on the toilet, the uncomfortable feeling intensified.

It felt hot from the inside out.

Did I eat something bad before this?

[Install Complete]

[Running the Main Program]

"Huh?!"

That voice again?!

I looked around and didn't see anything out of the ordinary until I saw a glimmer of light coming from my chest and spreading fast to my whole body.

"Huh, WHAT THE FUCK!!"

---

★

---

Aina, who was checking the condom wrapper that was provided on top of the bedstand with curiosity, got up and ran to the bathroom door the moment she heard the scream from the toilet.

"Ren-kun, are you okay? Did something happen?"

Aina asked while her hand reached for the door handle.

"Wait, Aina, don't open--"

Too late, Aina already opened it and saw something that really blew her mind.

On the toilet seat, a person who wore identical clothes to Ren, with pants lowered and the shirt lifted up, showing two big mountains with each of her hands on her private places, top and bottom.

"Umm, Ren....-kun?"

The person on the toilet seat froze up, but a second later, her face turned red after getting caught in an embarrassing act.

"What are you standing there for?! Get out!"

•

•

After that somewhat bizarre situation, both Aina and the girl who wore Ren's clothes finally calmed down, and they both sat on the bed beside each other.

The mysterious girl was already dressed properly this time, but her face was still red; she couldn't forget the embarrassment she had just gone through.

Meanwhile, Aina stole a few quick glances at the girl beside her. Her face also flushed when remembering those big bouncing watermelons and that smooth crack on the lower part.

She shook her head, dismissing any strange thoughts in her mind for now to ask the most important question.

"So, you're Ren-kun, right?"

That was just a confirmation question.

Aina was already 100% sure this girl beside her was Ren. Because who else could she be? Ren's voice had last been heard in the bathroom screaming, and in the next moment, a girl who wore his clothes and had the same eyes and hair color (the hair had become longer, though) appeared in his place.

Ren quietly nodded.

Her mind was still confused over what was happening.

Aina continued her question.

"Do you know why this happened?"

Ren shook her head.

"Do you feel anything different other than your body changing?"

This time, Ren didn't answer, but instead, she trembled, and her eyes became moist as if she was about to cry.

Looking at all of this, a string inside Aina's head snapped.

She scooted closer to Ren, put her hand on top of Ren's hand, and gently caressed it.

So soft.

So different from Ren's usual hand.

"A-Aina?"

The uneasiness in Ren's voice could be heard, but Aina didn't let her escape.

"Ne, Ren-kun, did you know that I was bullied in my previous school?"

Suddenly, Aina asked this as if she were shifting the topic.

Ren, who heard this, thought about it for a moment before nodding; she indeed heard about it once from Munehiro-san before the case was made public.

Thinking about it, Ren never really knew the reason why a sweet girl like Aina got bullied in her previous school.

Seeing Ren's nod, a smile formed as Aina licked her lips.

"Then let me tell you the reason."

"H-Huh? Aina, kyaaa!"

Without warning, Aina pushed Ren to lay down on the bed, locking her escape path with her hands and body on top of her.

"Even that scream just now was so cute."

"Aina, what is the meaning of this?"

"In my previous school, someone found out that I was a lesbian. That's why I was ostracized and ended up bullied."

"Huh, lesbian? But then why....?"

"Why did I go out with you?"

"...."

"I didn't lie when I said I love you; if that is what you are wondering right now, that's true. At first, I was getting close to you to make everyone believe I was normal. I just didn't want to get bullied again."

"...."

"But then, at some point, I really fell in love with you. I thought I finally could become normal, falling in love with a guy. I love you, Ren-kun. This one is the truth."

"....Is that so?"

Ren averted her gaze.

Aina just smiled; it's Ren's habit of looking away when he doesn't know how to respond.

Aina lowered her head, whispering in Ren's ear.

"But now that Ren-kun has become a girl—a very beautiful one at that, so shy, so cute—I can't help but fall more in love with you, Ren-kun."

Ren squirmed. Aina's breath tickled her sensitive ears and made her heart beat faster, causing her face to flush red like a ripe tomato.

"Ooh, you're blushing. So adorable. Makes me want to eat you up whole. It's fine, right? We're dating after all."

"Hah, what do you--.... hmmpp!"

Whatever Ren wanted to ask, it was cut off by Aina’s forceful kisses.

From that point onward, the love hotel room they rented was used exactly for its purpose.

Let's leave that to everyone's imagination.

•

•

On the early morning, a figure was laying on the bed, covered in a blanket, in the love hotel room, sleeping peacefully.

The sound of an alarm disturbed her sleep as she opened her eyes and moved her hands to turn off the alarm.

She sat on the bed, the blanket slid off, revealing her tender skin, big bouncy breasts, and a bunch of love marks in many places.

The girl's face instantly went red from embarrassment when she saw her state.

It was such a humiliation.

She was a guy just yesterday but turned into a girl at night.

And in the same night, she experienced her first time having sex. Not as a guy but as a girl.

But the most humiliating thing was, throughout the whole act, she was the bottom!

Getting dominated by her own girlfriend. Ren felt her pride as a guy was shattered.

The perpetrator of it all came out of the bathroom, wearing a bathrobe, looking so refreshed, as if there were a big 'Satisfied' word banner floating above her head.

The moment Aina saw Ren had already woken up, her smile became even brighter.

"Darling, you woke up already? How do you feel—hmpp!"

Before she could finish her words, a pillow flew straight and hit her in the face.

"Shut up, you lecherous woman! Pervert! Shameless! Don't come near me!"

Even all those insults didn't affect the blissful feeling in Aina's heart. She removed the pillow from her face and looked at Ren again while licking her lips.

Ren felt a shiver down her back when Aina looked at her with that gaze. Standing up from the bed while clutching the blanket to cover herself, Ren ran to the bathroom, passing Aina without looking back.

Aina just laughed at that cute action from her boyfriend... maybe girlfriend now?

A playful smile formed on her lips as she heard the water running in the bathroom.

She turned around, discarding her bathrobe, and entered the bathroom again.

"Darling, let's bathe together!"

"Stay away from me, you lewd woman!"

"Even that frightened face is so arousing."

"Why you... Ain--!!"

They ended up did it again two more times in the bath.

---

★

---

"We take the first train in the morning to go back home, but as you guys know, we've already missed the timing for the opening ceremony, and it's not like I could go to school with my condition."

Ren finished her story, of course, without mentioning anything about what he talked about in the cemetery or the things they did in the hotel.

So basically, long story short, he only told everyone about her trip to her parent's graves with her girlfriend, Aina, where she introduced her to her parents and when they wanted to go home, the train was under maintenance, so they decided to stay overnight in the cheapest hotel around the area. She became a girl there, slept, and went home in the morning.

"You were fucked by her, right?"

Yuuki, who stood beside Ren, whispered it with a playful smile.

Ren shot her a gaze that promised punishment, but Yuuki just smiled and walked away to hide behind her father.

"You went to Sendai? Ren, why didn't you tell me? I can take you there, you know?"

Mizuno-san finally said something in this whole conversation, and it was to ask Ren.

Ren was her wife's nephew, but on paper, after her adoption, Ren also became one of her kids.

By Ren not saying anything to her, Mizuno-san felt like she had failed her wife.

Ren didn't say anything; she averted her gaze, and the living room became silent.

Amidst this awkward atmosphere, Yuuki raised her hand, attracting all the attention in the room.

"I've been meaning to ask this, but what is that thing hovering on your left shoulder, Ren-nii?"

"Eh?/Huh?/What?"

Various but similar responses to what Yuuki had said.

Everyone looked at her like she was weird because they didn't see anything on Ren's shoulder, except for Ren herself.

She looked at her left shoulder and to Yuuki, repeating it one more time before she asked.

"Wait, you can see it?"

Yuuki tilted her head, confused.

"Huh? You mean that white ball-shaped thing around the size of a baseball? Is that supposed to be invisible?"

"Yuuki, what are you talking about?"

"Yuu-chan, there's nothing there."

Even her father and Yuuichi were confused by what Yuuki had said.

While Ren...

"Hey, what is this supposed to mean? Didn't you say that only I can see you?"

[__________]

"Huh, what do you mean by a bug?"

[__________]

"I don't even understand what you mean by that."

... She was talking to the thing on her shoulder, which is invisible to everyone except Yuuki.

"Just for the record, I cannot see it like Yuuki does, but I can sense it moving around on your shoulder. Also, to make it clear, I can't hear anything from it."

"Yeah, me too! I also can't hear anything. Ren-nii, can you set it to 'voice all'? I'm really curious about what you guys are talking about."

Nao, out of nowhere, while she was still playing her game on her console, just blurted out her surprise in a flat tone. Yuuki also chimed in at the end.

Ren looked at the two youngest in the family with a puzzled expression. These two were too outgoing without a care for how confused they made her.

Even the thing on her shoulder moved frantically and seemed to say something to Ren, but no one could hear that.

Shizu looked seriously at the screen of her tablet.

"My sensors can't detect anything. No heat signals, no movement, no electricity, and no sound. But by your three reactions, that thing is really there.

So interesting. Something that is made of pure energy that doesn't let out any emission. Is it something from a higher dimension? I want to catch it and research it!"

Shizu seemed excited about the prospect of an unknown entity existing around them.

"Ah, it disappeared! Shizu-nii, you scared that little thing."

Yuuki exclaimed, moving behind Shizu and shaking her.

Ren could only sigh helplessly.

"I don't know anymore. This family is just too much."

Haruka came up beside her, placed her hand on Ren's shoulder, and nodded.

"I understand how you feel."

•

•

"By the way, Shizu-nii, how did you change into a girl?"

"Oh, right, so it's my turn now, huh? Alright, I think it started from....."