This story takes place during the time I finally became a famous author.
A dream I had cherished ever since I was young... came true while I was still in high school.
I should've been ecstatic—
And I was. I truly was.
But at the same time, she wasn't by my side.
Uguisu had to leave Japan for medical treatment in Germany.
Even though I smiled in interviews and appeared on magazine covers, there was always an empty space beside me.
And near the end of our third year...
Touka disappeared—
as if she were grains of sand swept away by the wind.
My friends... like Hiro and Kousuke, were also wrapped up in their own lives.
I heard Hiro started dating one of our classmates, Michigami Yuka.
I never would've guessed she was his type.
That kind of girls, huh?
Month after month passed by.
And before I knew it, my high school days had come to an end.
The day I graduated, I was contacted by a major publishing company—the biggest in all of Japan.
They wanted to sign me.
It was a dream come true.
And the first thing I did after getting the offer... was call Uguisu.
But she didn't pick up.
No message. No reply.
I stared at my phone screen, the silence almost deafening—
And then, just as suddenly as she had left...
She returned.
Her dark blue hair shimmered beneath the afternoon sun.
Her golden eyes, once filled with sadness, now held a quiet strength.
And her hair—
She had cut it short.
Maybe because she knew I liked it that way...?
Who knows.
"Uguisu-san...? What are you doing here?" I asked, barely able to believe my eyes.
She smiled softly, stepping closer—
Then, without a word, she wrapped her arms around me.
"I was given permission to come back..." she whispered.
Permission...
But that could mean anything.
Was her treatment successful?
Had it failed?
Was she... okay?
I didn't ask.
Instead, I embraced her tightly—
as if afraid she might vanish again.
Then, a familiar voice called from behind me.
"Ara, Uguisu-chan? Come on in, dear."
It was my mom.
She had found us mid-hug, standing frozen at the front door.
Ah... this is so embarrassing...
The scent of miso soup filled the room, mingling with the warmth of home-cooked rice and grilled salmon. It wasn't anything fancy—just the usual dinner my mom prepared on busy days. But tonight, it felt like something special.
Because Uguisu was here.
She sat across from me at the dining table, her hands politely folded, waiting for my mom to sit before she began eating. Even though it had only been a little over a year since she left, the gap between then and now felt like an eternity.
I stole a glance at her.
Her short hair suited her better than I expected. Clean, neat, and mature. But what caught me off guard the most… was the calmness in her eyes.
"So..." she said, breaking the silence between us as she picked up her chopsticks. "You really became a writer, huh?"
I scratched the back of my head. "Yeah... somehow."
Uguisu let out a small laugh. "It's not 'somehow.' You worked hard. I always knew you'd make it."
Her voice was gentle—like a breeze brushing past my shoulder. It made my heart ache in a way I couldn't quite describe.
"Well, it still doesn't feel real sometimes," I replied, poking at my rice. "One day I'm writing under the covers in my room, the next I'm signing contracts with big-shot editors in Tokyo."
Mom returned to the table with tea for both of us, her eyes quietly watching me with a smile that made my cheeks warm up.
"Is that so?" Uguisu sipped her tea. "You always used to write during lunch break, didn't you? I remember that time when you wrote a horror story and made Kirihara-kun scream."
I laughed, the memory suddenly vivid in my mind. "He spilled milk all over Yuka's bag. She chased him around the classroom for twenty minutes."
We both laughed.
The room felt lighter.
"But it wasn't just luck," she continued, placing her chopsticks down. "You didn't just become a writer. You chose to chase it—even when things were rough."
I looked up.
Her eyes met mine.
And suddenly... it was hard to breathe.
"You weren't here when it all happened," I said softly. "When She disappeared... when everything started falling apart. There were so many times I wanted to give up. But I thought... if I ever saw you again, I wanted to be someone you'd be proud of."
Uguisu blinked.
For a moment, she didn't say anything.
Then—slowly, her lips curved into a sad smile.
"You idiot," she whispered. "I was already proud of you."
Her voice trembled just slightly, just enough for me to catch it.
"Even when I was lying alone in that sterile hospital room in Berlin... I kept thinking about your stories. I read everything you posted. Every word. You didn't just keep writing for yourself, did you? You were writing for all of us. For the people who couldn't be there."
I looked down at my bowl. The rice had gone cold.
But somehow, my chest felt warmer than ever.
"I missed you," I said.
It slipped out before I could stop it.
Uguisu's cheeks turned a shade of pink, her golden eyes widening for a second—before she smiled again, this time without any sadness in it.
"I'm back," she said. "So... I'll be here now. If you'll let me."
I nodded slowly, heart pounding.
I looked around, but my mother was nowhere to be seen. The two of us then leaned in closer and kissed.
"I love you, Himeya-kun," she whispered to me.