Aoi's POV
I start with the yearbook.
It feels ridiculous—flipping through pages of half-smiling students and forced club photos—but if Mirai had a sister, maybe she was here. Maybe she left a trace.
I scan the surnames in the back index.
Saito, Mirai — Year 3, Class B.
Saito, Sora — Year 1, Class D.
My chest tightens.
She was here.
The whole time.
Flashback: Aoi & Mirai – Two Years Ago
"You ever wish you had a sibling?" I'd asked once.
Mirai had laughed.
"Are you kidding? One of me is already too much. I'd feel bad for anyone who had to share my DNA."
I'd laughed too.
I didn't realize at the time how easy it was for her to lie with charm.
Rio's POV
I meet Aoi after class.
She looks like she hasn't slept, which is fair—neither have I.
We sit on the steps outside the gym.
She hands me the yearbook, open to the photo.
"Sora Saito," she says. "First year. Quiet. No club listed."
Rio tilts her head. "Maybe Mirai kept her out of it on purpose."
"Why?"
Rio doesn't answer right away.
Then: "Maybe Mirai thought she was protecting her. Or protecting you."
I nod slowly, but something inside me stirs.
Or maybe she was protecting herself.
Natsuki's POV
I dig through Coach Kubo's old files when he's out on a smoke break he claims he doesn't take anymore.
Tournaments. Player waivers. Parent contacts.
And buried under a folder labeled 2020 Off-Season, I find it:
Emergency Contact: Saito, Sora. Sister. Legal guardian post-op.
I stare at the paper.
Mirai didn't just have a sister.
She trusted her with her life.
Aoi's POV
I find her after school.
Sora.
She's sitting by the bike racks alone, sketching something in a small notebook. Not a tennis racket. Not anything I can quite make out.
She looks up as I approach. Her face is softer than Mirai's, eyes rounder, posture tighter—like she's bracing for something.
"Aoi Minami," she says before I can speak.
Not a question.
A statement.
I freeze.
"You… know me?"
She nods, flipping the notebook shut.
"I've been watching since before Mirai died."
The way she says it is cold. Clinical.
But her hands are shaking.