Takichi walked with one hand in his pocket, and the soles of his feet hit the ground, making a thumping sound.

In this quiet room, he could feel the sound of footsteps echoing in all directions.

When passing by the wing where momo used to live, there was a gentle vibration in my pocket.

The vibrating sound of the cell phone made contact with the broken nerves at the tip, and Takiichi stopped in his tracks.

He put his hand in his pocket and took out an IPhone with some paint peeling off. The cold wind blew by. Although he was not afraid of this level of coldness, he had warmed his hands in his pocket and was blown away by the cold wind again.

Sliding his fingertips on the screen to unlock it, he saw a new unread text message he had received.

It's Sakura.

Takiyi raised his head slightly and looked at the bright starry night sky outside the house.

The moon, partially obscured by the black iron curtain, looks as if its initial roundness has been shaved off and turned into an angular appearance.

Looking up at the sky there, white objects were flying.

It's snowing.

It was very fine white snow that could not stand upright. It was the first time I saw snow in March when April was about to come.

Dusty snow particles fell on the flowerbed outside the house and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

At first glance, it looks very similar to the falling light spots parasitic on the windows of high-rise buildings.

At this moment, Taki thought of the snow in Tokyo.

The low-pitched vibration of the phone no longer continued, and Takiichi forgot to click on the text message to check it.

No matter what, he couldn't move his fingers.

"Foreword, I would like to send a message to Hirai Taki-kun.

I have always deeply remembered that every year on March 24th, at 11:59 midnight, this is the day when Taki-kun comes into the world.

At this time, I was sitting at my desk writing this text message. I thought that if I sent it in the form of a letter, it would be a few days before Takiichi-kun received the letter.

The weather forecast on TV said that starting today, the Shin-Tanabe area of ​​Kyoto will usher in an unprecedented heavy snowfall.

Because I couldn’t go to Miyama Kimura to witness this birthday with Taki Kazu-kun, God began to rain down snowflakes that turned into blessings and fell from the sky in Miyama Kimura. I thought it must be that God felt my prayers.

I have always looked forward to walking under the Sakurajima volcano with Taki Kazu-kun. Although I don’t know when such a thing will be witnessed in the future, I believe that Taki Kazu-kun must be looking forward to this in his heart.

Even if we no longer have that relationship, I will always miss Takiichi-kun.

Taki Yijun, I really want to say to you in person: Happy birthday.

No matter what, I hope Takiichi-kun can be happy.

At tonight's dinner, both my father and mother mentioned this matter, and I wanted to convey their blessings to Takiichi-kun.

Takiichi-kun, no matter where you are, no matter what time you are, you exist with the blessings of many people.

As you pursue your life as you reach your twenties, I hope you can see and hear that I am always cheering you on and blessing you.

Because I...

Just write it here.

Respectfully.

Miyawaki Sakura."

The scrolling writing began to reflect on Takiichi's eyeballs due to the light.

It is as transparent as glass, so you can see the structure inside the eyeball and capture these words, which penetrate the pupil and begin to enter the brain.

Because I...

It uses an ellipsis, but it is not difficult to figure out what words are hidden behind it.

Sakura, I'm trying to forget your mark little by little.

This sentence can only be thought in my heart and cannot be said out anyway.

Takiichi asked himself, why is this feeling of pursuing him so similar to the memory he felt a long time ago?

Whenever he thought he had gradually gotten used to Sakura's departure, life would suddenly pop up with "reality" in its own way, heavily smashing the fragile window of the world he had constructed.

No matter how much I search, I feel anxious that I can’t find something important...

However, after reading this text message, my desire to hug the other person into my body began to become extremely strong and restless.

Among them, just the act of reaching out is painful in itself.

"Why am I so powerless?"

I keep going back and forth between the two options of "Reply" and "Delete".

Taki thought that what he lacked was the strength to settle down like this, the strength to think seriously about the future for someone, the strength to care for others, or the strength to help someone share a little pain with his own shoulder.

Why is there a lack of these powers?

Like a rocket without boost, or a car without an engine.

In the end, Taki didn't choose to reply to this text message at first, and he didn't even delete it.

"Onii-chan, Ouka-san arranged for us to sleep in the same room."

As we were getting further and further away from the hall, we happened to bump into Momo holding a quilt.

Regarding her words, Takiichi took a few seconds to think about whether this decision was correct and appropriate.

Generally speaking, every friend who comes to Kagaya as a guest will be arranged to rest in a different wing.

This kind of situation where everyone "sleeps together" rarely happens. Even if siblings sleep together, it can be traced back to before middle school, so Takiichi was really shocked.

"So are you going to sleep together tonight?"

During the conversation with Momo, SANA walked out from the far end like a wind ninja equipped with an accelerator.

Until he caught Takiichi's figure, he forced himself to brake and stop.

"Onii-chan, hello midnight!"

Momo's expression changed. In terms of contact, the level of conversation between SANA and Takiichi at the dinner table was beyond what she could accept.

As for SANA's interested look, it was as if she had planned the time well in advance and only ran out at the moment when she could come out.

"Ah, good midnight, SANA."

Takiichi had a very good impression of this lively Osaka girl.

If it were me, I would say that even though I have spoken to someone like this many times, I am still not familiar enough to have close contact with someone like this. Even if I saw someone on the street, I would not go out of my way to say hello.

Therefore, for this kind of person who can face things calmly, a smile finally appeared on his calm face.

"Where are you going, Onii-chan?"

SANA's eyes are very beautiful, not because the color of her eyeballs is different from ordinary people's, because when she stands in front of others, she will always blink.

"The glutinous rice balls need to rest. I'm worried that Hashimoto will be worried because he can't find them, so I'll send them over first."

Taki pointed at the little guy on his left shoulder. The rising and falling of his body could tell that it was not a dead thing.

"Hey? Is it already asleep?"

SANA opened her mouth in disbelief. When she finished saying this, she boldly stepped forward and walked around Takiichi's body.

"Um...do you want to give her a hug?"

"Okay, SANA likes small animals very much." She spread her hands, her eyes full of anticipation.

SANA believes that the idea that she likes small animals will increase her impression of Takichi. In fact, this is indeed true.

Takiichi responded and picked up the glutinous rice ball on his shoulders, which had already entered sleep mode.

When any object is exchanged, skin contact is unavoidable.

Under Momo's cannibalistic gaze, she leaned forward slightly to take the "dead cat", and her fingertips seemed to scratch Takiichi's palm inadvertently.

"Hey, you Osaka pervert, what are you doing with your fingers?"
Chapter completed!