Chapter LIII.

I was putting raspberries onto the cake I had baked when the color red captured my attention, reminding me of Gakkuri's words.

"I think that some lipstick would suit you. Red. Yes, red would look great on you."

Blushing a little, I moved up to the small mirror on the wall by the doorway to the living room and squeezing some of the juice of a raspberry onto two of my fingers, I painted my lips with the red liquid, making as though it was lipstick, to see how I would look.

'What are you doing?' 

I startled up at the sound of Tsunan's voice and flushed bright red as my eyes zeroed onto him where he was standing in the doorway, watching me.

He had certainly entered the house through the living room.

I turned away, brushing my lips clean on the spot. 'It-It's Gakkuri,' I stuttered. 'She told me that I should try some red lipstick and since I've never worn cosmetics in my life, I wanted to see...' I trailed off, too mortified to continue.

'You don't need to feel embarrassed.'

I relaxed a little, smiling shyly.

Then, grabbing his bag, I asked him, pleasantly, 'How was your day?'

***

'Are you ready?' I asked Gakkuri when we arrived in front of the café where her mother had given her rendezvous on the following day.

The kid was gripping my hand so tightly that my fingers were starting to tingle.

She nodded, uncertainly.

Re-arranging our clothes properly, I walked into the café with her. 

A waitress came up to us, asking us, professionally, 'Do you want a table for two?'

'Actually, we're here to meet someone,' I replied, my eyes traveling the room.

'Her name?'

'Mrs Saihara.'

She checked on her notepad, announcing, 'Oh, she's already arrived! She's waiting for you on the terrace!'

The café had an outdoor section which was the open-air terrace. 

She led us outside to the small table where Gakkuri's mother was sitting, having ordered for a cup of tea.

'Hello, ma'am!' I greeted, bowing down.

She didn't respond, her eyes shifting from Gakkuri to me and back again. 

We sat down, hesitantly. 

The kid kept her head lowered, her eyes set onto her clenched hands in her lap. 

'Would you like to order something right away?' the waitress asked us, her expression awkward, having sensed the radiating tension in the air.

'No, later, thank you!' 

Giving me a small nod, she moved away.

My eyes returned onto the woman, who was sitting across of Gakkuri and I. She was staring at the kid now, cutting me dead.

'I'll be brief,' she said, in a matter-of-fact way. 'I called you here to inform you that your father and I are getting divorced. We're going to sign the papers in a few days.'

The kid's head snapped up at her.

'I guess that it's not very surprising. There's nothing left between us ever since I became pregnant of you. He wants to settle down with his latest mistress. I doubt that he tries to get your guard. As for me, I'd rather that we don't see each other ever again.' She gritted her teeth together, a frown creasing her forehead. 'Whenever I see you, you remind of the love that doesn't exist between him and me anymore. You remind me of his deceit.' 

I stared at the woman; caught in a stupor. I had the impression that her words formed a pair of hands that were throttling my throat, choking me down.

Gakkuri jerked to her feet- the chair she had been sitting on getting knocked down by the abrupt movement- and breaking into tears, she ran away.

'Gakkuri,' I called after her, springing to my feet too. 'How could you?!' I demanded, tearfully at her mother. 'How could you tell her such a thing? How can you be so cruel? You're a monster!'

Without losing another minute, I ran after Gakkuri, to onto the street. 'Gakkuri! Gakkuri, stop! Wait!' I called after the latter, but she didn't seem to listen. 

Catching up with her, I seized her by her wrist and pulled her around into a hug.

She struggled at first but I didn't let her go. 

After a minute, she gave up fighting and simply let me hold her while she cried her little heart out. 

We stayed like this for a moment, before I walked her back to Master Kagami and Yama-san's house.

She didn't speak a word the whole way and I couldn't find myself speaking a word either, my emotions in turmoil.

'You're back!' exclaimed Yama-san, as we entered the open front door. She was sitting in the living room, waiting for us to come back. 

Getting to her feet, she half-ran to meet us in the hall-way. 

She looked at Gakkuri, then at me, taking in our staggered expression.

'What is it?' she breathed.

Breaking into tears again, Gakkuri ran off to her bedroom.

Yama-san stared after her for a few seconds, before she turned to me, asking, urgently, 'What happened?'

I opened my mouth to reply but no sound came out.

Completely alarmed, she ran after Gakkuri.

I stood there immobile for a whole minute, before I turned around and left. I walked for one long moment until I found myself in front of Tsunan's personal clinic. I decided to enter. 

He was with a patient, who was just leaving. 

I shifted out of the way outside of the door to the consultation room to let the elderly man pass with his wife. Tsunan was right behind them.

'Shun, what are you doing here?' the doctor asked me, his eyes shifting from the old couple to me.

'Do you have a moment to listen to me?' I asked, in a murmur.

'Sure,' he said and he ushered me into the consultation room. 

Pushing me down into one of the two chairs in between his desks by my shoulders, he took seat himself on the second rolling chair, facing me.

'Did the rendezvous went wrong?' he inquired. 

My eyes were lowered but I could feel his eyes scrutinizing my expression.

I nodded and began telling him about it.

'I called her a monster!' I sobbed, holding my face in my hands as I began to cry. 'That makes me no better than her!'

'Stop it! You don't have to begrudge yourself for it. If I was in your place, I would have reacted in the same way.'

I dared to look up at him and meet his eyes, his words bringing me some comfort.

Children are the fruits of the love between two persons. Very often, when the relationship between these two persons goes awry, the children are casted aside.

I felt so horrible for Gakkuri.

'Come on! Stop crying now!' he told me, pulling my chair closer to his, and taking out his handkerchief, he dabbed my cheeks dry with it.

'Thank you,' I whispered, feeling a bit appeased. 'And I'm sorry. It's not done to show up at your workplace and bother you like I'm doing.'

'It doesn't bother me. It shows that you know you can always count on me.'

I gazed at him, blushing.

'I don't have any appointments left. I think I'll close down now. We could go have a walk by the river together before we get back home, what do you think?'

I agreed, pleased by the idea. I knew that he wanted me to clear my mind and I appreciated his solicitude a lot. 

'Let me help you close down!' I said and getting to my feet, I moved up to the windows and began to close them for him.

***

It was dark by now, the evening breeze agreeable, as we walked our way down the length of the river, quietly.

I came to a stop when my eyes fell onto a lone blooming sakura standing there, where the land got flat by the coursing river. It was a mysterious brand that bloomed in September and kept its petals until May, which earned it the name of Fudan Sakura.

'Are we still in Toda?' I asked. 

I had never ventured this far ever before.

'Yes.'

We were most probably the very first persons to witness the bloom. I was utterly mesmerized by the beauty of it.

'Many people come picnicking here at this time of the year. We too, we could come have a picnic. Maybe tomorrow?'

"Hanami" was the centuries-old practice of picnicking under a blooming sakura. 

Picnicking here would seem like a dream!

I gazed at Tsunan, nodding eagerly.

***

After we got home, I called up Yama-san to apologize to her for having left without any warning earlier and to know how Gakkuri was doing.

I was reassured to learn that Gakkuri had eaten her dinner. I had feared that she'd cry herself to sleep and refuse to sustain herself.

Yama-san had that warm and soothing aura around her that could envelope anyone who got close to her. 

Knowing that Master Kagami and her were with Gakkuri and supporting her made me less worried.

***

The next day…

It was two o'clock in the afternoon when I set out to meet up with Tsunan.

He was going to meet me directly by the river under the blooming sakura, from work at his clinic.

Just as I came out of the house, I came across of Tsunan's grand-father, suddenly.

'Well, well, what you've prepared there smells really good!' he said, sniffling the tasty smell of food emanating from the picnic basket I was carrying.

'Tsunan and I are going picnicking under the Fudan Sakura by the river of Kuribayashi,' I informed him, cheerily. 

'A picnic?' He made a long face, moaning, 'Old men like me are no longer invited to picnics.'

'You want to go picnicking?' I asked, bewildered. He didn't give the image of someone who'd be interested in this kind of outing.

'Since you're asking so nicely, I accept to come!' he declared, with a large smile.

I cringed away. 

Eh? 

But I didn't invite him!

He- He tricked me!

He tagged along with me.

The old man kept surprising me time and again.

Sekien Hitachiin was a retreated doctor. He was a member of the organization in his time. After him, his son, Tsunan's father -Sōjun Hitachiin- used to occupy the post. And now, it was Tsunan. It was a kind of tradition in their family for the head of the clan to be a doctor and member of the organization.

I gazed up at the sky. 

The weather was ideal for a picnic. It wasn't too hot, nor cold. 

As I stepped out of the main door of the family compound, unexpectedly, I went into Hatsu and Heihachi.

'Yo, Shun!' they greeted.

'Hey! What are you two doing here?' I asked, pleasantly.

'We have been to the shrine,' replied the blond male. A wide grin appeared appeared on his face then as his eyes fell onto my picnic basket. 'You're going out picnicking with Tsunan, eh? Oh, it's so cute! Just the two of you, sitting under the cherry blossom, billing and cooing!' he exclaimed, flamboyantly, squirming in excitement. 

I flushed bright red.

Hatsu broke into cold sweat and went pale when his eyes fell onto Tsunan's grand-father who arrived behind me at that moment, clearing his throat.

'Ojii-san!' he giggled, in embarrassment. 'I didn't see you!' 

Hatsu glanced at me, then back at the old man with a dumb-founded look.

'Wait! Why does he have the right to join you and not us?' he demanded, vexed. 'If Ojii-san is coming, we're coming too!' 

Eh?!

'Hatsu!' Heihachi complained.

'Come on! It's gonna be fun!' the blond told him.

I sighed. 

The four of us began to set out together.

We were walking our way down the neighborhood, when we caught sight of Master Kagami.

'Master!' Hatsu waved at him.

'Hey there!' the latter called, closing the distance between us. Unexpectedly, he wounded his arm around my neck and ruffled my hair. 'Here's my favorite little mermaid!

His favorite little mermaid? My mouth went slightly agape. What's taken over him to say such a thing?

'I guess that you're going picnicking under the Fudan Sakura in Kuribayashi. Let me carry your basket!' he exclaimed, taking the basket from my hand and eyeing it hungrily.

I fixed my hair again, giving him a bewildered look.

'What?' he muttered at Tsunan's grand-father who was watching him cynically. 'I absolutely want to taste what Tsunan has right to everyday. And you're no better than me, old man! I'm sure you tricked her to invite you!'

I think I understand better now...

'Don't call me old man! I'm not that old to you!' the latter retorted and the two begun to bicker with each other as we set back walking again, the master having invited himself.

I sighed, again.

We had almost reached Kuribayashi neighborhood when, this time, we met with Ayame and Shuko, who were apparently doing some shopping together.

'Where are you all headed?' asked Ayame.

'Hanami, boy! Hanami!' replied Master Kagami. 

'Oh, right! I completely forgot that it's the season!' he said, giving Shuko a guilty look for not having thought about it, to invite her.

'It's alright!' the brown-haired girl told him, cheerfully, and she moved up to me, grabbing my arm. 'We could join them!'

Eh?

Ayame stared at me for a few seconds, hesitating, reticent due to my company, but then he averted his eyes and ran a hand in his hair, agreeing, 'Alright!'

I let out another sigh.

'Well, since we're so many, I think I'll call up Yama and ask her to come to join us with Gakkuri and bring us more food!' declared Master Kagami and he moved away to make a phone call to his spouse while we continued to walk. 

When he returned, he was accompanied by Cho. The ginger-haired girl was still using crutches to walk.

'Look whom I have found!' he exclaimed, happily, pushing her towards us. 'She's coming along!'

'But master-'

'No complaining!' he cut her off, and she gave in. 

'Shirane and Natsuhiko are supposed to come with Yama and Gakkuri to join us too,' he informed us.

I guessed that Shirane knew about Gakkuri's yesterday's rendezvous with her mother and he had gone to visit her today. Natsuhiko visited Gakkuri most weekends.

I giggled awkwardly. 

Tsunan is going to be surprised to see all this people arriving with me! 

We were making our way down the length of the river when our eyes fell onto Shuda who was lying on the grass, with his arm akimbo behind his head, his eyes closed and his headphones on, a fishing pole planted next to him with its line in the water, waiting to catch a fish.

Hatsu made his way down the small slope up to him and bending over him, he pulled off one of the other male's ear plugs.

Shuda opened his eyes to stare at the blond, then sitting up, he glanced over his shoulder at our little group.

'Oi, what kind of fish are you trying to catch here?' Hatsu asked him. 'Don't you want to drop your fishing pole for a moment and come picnicking with us?'

EH?

That was how, Shuda ended up tagging along with us too.

I let out yet another sigh.

Tsunan had already arrived on the spot when we reached and his eyes widened at me in surprise, seeing all the people who had crashed what was supposed to be a picnic set for two.

Giggling in embarrassment, I told him, 'They've invited themselves!'

Thank you for reading!

Glossary

Sakura - Cherry blossom

Fudan Sakura – ceaseless/continuous cherry

Ojii-san - Grand-father