once again. a normal day, normal events... nothing special. everything's bland and constant. no change whatsoever...
"Kirin~ Kirin! oy! wake up from your dream!"
"I have returned to the physical world milady~" it's always fun when I'm with them. that is, if I'll somehow survive in this world...
Liliya... you're always happy even when Naoya's not around... pure, innocent, everything a proper girl of your age should be
"Kirin~- are you still asleep?"
"ahh! yeah- sorry, I've been out of it lately... what time is it anyway?" even though I had a wristwatch I still asked. it's working so I just blurted those out of nothing to say
"hmm... around 15:00, why? don't you have a wristwatch? is it working?"
"nah, it's delayed for around 5 minutes and it's al crooked but I can manage with it."
we're simply walking back home, Naoya lives on the other side but I'm always with Liliya thanks to us being neighbors. I'm not going to trouble their relationship though, I already know what they feel at each other in the first place. it's almost so obvious that they seem to know if they're being a nuisance to others
we arrive back at the neighborhood and enter the dorm I'm currently in... as always...
"I'm home~ even though no one's around... I feel kind of lonely but I'm used to it anyway" I give off a wry smile, it's pitiful for me to be in this situation... my parent didn't support me in any way when choosing to go in this school... they cast me off but at least they gave me this apartment, it's still moderately nice, quite small if I could say... but at least it's a home for me... better than living in the streets.
"haahhh... another day without anything to do huh? oh- right... I have my assignments... I'll do them when the time comes" I keep saying that but never have I ever even succeeding in that promise... a hollow promise always... no truth behind it, just a promise...
"maybe I can sleep it off-... like always..."
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the next day comes and here I am. back at this school again... wonder what's going to happen today?
"hey! Kirin! mind if I ask something?" a boy... probably younger than me...
"what is it?" giving a comforting aura around me is tougher than expected but there are a few people that see through that I'm really just like that... stalkers if I should say...
"can I trouble you with something? you see... there's been a problem in the garden and we need someone to manage it all, we heard you're good at this stuff so I came here asking for you" gardening... I never really passed it as something worth doing for myself... it's simply just a hobby
he's practically begging to me... ahh... "fine... but you'll pay me right?"
"b-but of course! you're not our member in the first place so payment is a must!" huh... is that a normal response? am I giving a menacing aura again?
「did you hear? Kirin's been alone in his dorm all the time」
「yeah, he must be hiding something there, maybe a body?」
the rumors just keep getting worse and worse... guess my reputation isn't that great, but why the hell anyway...
I arrived in the flower patch and it's all horrendous... the middle patch's wilting and the side's all unhealthy... "who's been taking care of these? it's..."
"ahh- well... it's been a long time since we watered the soil so... I think..." no... this isn't normal for flowers to be wilting this rough... and why the middle?
"I think something's in the middle row of the patch, I can't help with the hard labor but I think it's still manageable... still..."
I tell him everything needed to fix the patch but... something's bugging me "it's probably best to dig out the entire middle patch and replace it with something else. I think it's manageable but switching the entire thing is best for this"
he salutes and thanks me for the advice. hmm... maybe...- "ahh- wait!"
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"will this really work?" the boy asks, "well of course, I don't think you guys have tried it yet right? it's great for you guys to learn something, I'll pay the entire club of 10 each if you all succeed in this, is that fine?"
"why of course! everything for the flowers here! really, thank you for the advice. I don't know where your knowledge comes from but if it's for us then I'm alright with it!" he leaves. that was blunt of him... guess I'll finally give them this present huh?
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"Kirin! mind I come with you for tonight? my parents are out today and I have no one with me." Liliya came with... somehow a depressing look...
"y-... are you a child or something? you're 16! can't you live by yourself?"
"c'mon... y'know I can't cook... what? you're gonna let me starve to death?..."
"wha-, isn't Naoya there for you always?"
"he's going to his province... so I don't have anyone right now..."
gahh... and I can't call up for Mei since she's practically busy every day... this girl...
"haahh... fine, but only because I'm going to feed you... you're not sleeping in-" he gives me- "Liliya... stop with the puppy dog eyes... please..." she's not stopping...
"gahhh! fine... alright... you win, have it your way." she celebrates... this girl...
"if something breaks in my dorm you're going back to your house alright?"
"aye-aye! thanks Kirin!" she trots back to her class... this girl... well... I can't really let her die such a lonesome way... even if it's a joke...
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the day went by quickly and I'm together with Liliya again. I feel somewhat used in these scenarios due to Liliya's cute charms. I'm not affected but denying her would be too harsh.
"hey? Kirin... what do you think of Mei? is she useful?" this again? Liliya's been pestering me about this for quite a long time
"of course she's useful in her own way, I can't really pester her too much or I'll be interrupting her too much" Mei's quite a handful in her own ways too... a real handiwork...
we arrive back to my dorm, still as empty as ever... "I- this is my home, sorry if it's a bit cramped but it's all I can afford in my jobs"
"jobs? haven't heard any rumors regarding that... are you really working?"
"of course, how else could I feed myself? talking about food, I'll go prepare some fried rice and eggs. anything you want to mix in it?" it's technically everything I currently have that won't exhaust my ingredients...
"oh! umm... I'd like some sauce for it! something light please, I can't handle really strong blends" well... luckily I have something for it- "alright then, I'll go prepare something. if you're going to take a bath, now's the time so I won't disturb you or make any cliches like in the animes you watch with your bland face lover"
"wha- n-no... well, besides the bathing part. alright then, I'll take that offer, I'll be finished around 30 or so minutes so just wait alright?" she heads to the bath quickly... thankfully the dorms have baths for themselves... aren't all dorms like that though?
something to take note of, these dorms is something a late friend of mine gave me, although I still need to pay for it since I'm not the one who manages things here, they'll allow me here since I'm practically the only one here, there are a few others but I don't know them much and they're older than me.
that aside, I do wonder if the bath has everything that Liliya needs... well... she could just call anytime...
I finished the platter and everything... only thing left is managing my ingredients... wonder if I can scrape by for a few more rounds... no, gotta save up for that patch of roses...
"Kirin! mind giving me an unused bath towel? I don't like your stench so I'd like something that haven't been used for quite a while, washed and-"
"yes-yes princess... haahhh... here, it's in the basket just besides the door" "Yes~ thanks Kirin"
haahhh... that girl... the most normal thing for her is to stand here with only a bath towel as her cover... which is still quite a surprise considering that she's a girl... who made her grow up like that?
this isn't the first time she entered the dorms without permission from the owner... at first, I was surprised, closed my eyes as quickly as possible but- considering her, she wouldn't even be that affected...
"hey- Kirin, do you think I'm getting too fat? I feel like I'm getting fat... am I g-"
"just- haahhh... no- and never ask that from me ever again. anyway, what's going on with your things? I didn't want to answer the phone since you're not here anyway"
I didn't notice it earlier but as soon as I did, it stopped, was it a call or her alarm?
"ahh! it's here then! just wait here for a second!" she ran- what's with her today? she's actually acting a bit strange today...
still... it's quite nice for someone to be in the dorms... it's not really rowdy here and I don't plan to converse with my elders here. having a friend I can converse with is nice...
Liliya returns with rather loose clothing... I can practically see under her tank top which is so big... "uhh- do you ever wear something so..."
"huh? it's fine, I like to wear comfortably rather than stiff- I don't even liked the school uniform so I wear my tank top over rather than a bra on"
that's-... the Liliya I know... stupid girl... "well- besides that, what do you have in your hand?" she's been hiding something... she hid it well for me to not notice too which is amazing-
"tada! happy birthday! we three kinda knew that you'd forget it yourself since you practically forget your own age, so- we took a reminder every day and made a little something for you!"
my... birthday... that's right, the day that I mostly despise... well, without them at least...
she hands me three presents, one from Naoya, from Mei and... Liliya's
"c'mon- open it up!" she orders me cheerfully... well, that's quite demanding...
I open it and- it's... headphones? "we heard from Mei that you frequently go to the electronics store and since you like music, Naoya gave you headphones, just in the right coloration too, that's properly modified and changed it's color pallet to suit your tone, made from one and only-!"
the TOLE electronics and lifestyle, popular for being one of the most selling companies. there's also a diamond shape in one side-
"the diamond is a final touching from your sis actually, considering that you were practically abandoned by your parents, she concocted this plan just for you and did some research on us. did you know that she's quite demanding? really different from you!" haha- my sister... she's always by my side looking out for me when I don't want to... sometime's it's creepy to the point that I'd be paranoid...
I open Mei's present for me- "a-... phone?" a music pin on the back- this- "it's state of the art, made from the latest of Chinese electronics. durable and powerful too! has an 8-hour battery life and it's quite a price too- Mei had to pull so many strings from this you know so you better take care of it!" haha- Mei's family is quite accomplished in life, still... that girl is quite a bargain... she also knows self-defense just for in-case purposes, the only one who can fight Naoya in a one on one fight
"and lastly-" Liliya blushes- rather... embarrassed? that's new... Naoya's not here right?
"promise you won't be mad alright" for her to be nervous... what's inside?"
I open the present and it's... "a-... book?" that's... no- it's a photo album... it's filled too
"c'mon-! just tell me if it's alright!"
the pictures holds all of the times when I was with her, along with Naoya and her together- some of the underclassmen we know like Rin, and the people we stumbled across with-. Mei, Naoya, Liliya... there's also Rin, Kiana, Tion-. Helios is here too... with me in his arms when I was a child...
"so... you like it? I can't afford anything like Mei nor Naoya so... I hope you're not mad..."
it's..."beautiful..." I uttered the words unconsciously, shedding a single tear... it's... amazing...
"thanks... Liliya... this is one of the best gifts that I have ever gotten... really... thank you-..." I... can't stop crying... it's such a trivial matter...
"so-... you like it?" Liliya smiled. after a short while, her phone rang once again
"oh! I'll get it! - yes?- ahh! right!- Kirin! mind if I turn on your T.V. for a second?"
standing back up, she turns the small T.V. and suddenly, it was playing a video-
Liliya shows up, along with Naoya and Mei in the video, inside the Shed
「ahh- are we on!? wawawa- wait! I'm not ready!」
「just sit still you foolish girl!」
「right! right! ahh- ah!- r-right-」
「haahhh... sorry Mei, I'll take over for her,」 the video turns to Naoya, still- was-
「hello Kirin, sorry for being this unconventional. we had some really troubling schedules so we had to make this video. well, I should be along in my province right about now right? this should be playing in the old T.V. you have in your room-」
wait... they snuck in here?
Mei suddenly moved the camera, yes- it was Theia... my sister...「I just wish my brother would be more willing to remember his own birthday or better yet his own age... anyway, dear brother, you're room was quite messy so I had a few of my servants clean it for you, don't worry, they're more loyal to me rather than our parents so I have no trouble being ratted on.」
the video continues with the useless but, heartwarming argument...
「as mister Naoya said, we may not be around to be with you on your birthday besides miss Liliya here so she'll be giving you our presents, I haven't prepared mine so I will have to apologize for that, Liliya, would you please deliver it to him once I'm finished with it?」
「why of course!」
"haha... I... was quite energetic huh?... that's who I really am... it's... a bit embarrassing..." well... at least you're a bit self-aware with it now...
「that aside, Liliya, would you please not join in? you can join in with him later, don't worry」 inaudible disapprovement could be heard from a distance...
「alright you two, like you all practiced」the video cut to black and Liliya positioned herself and readied something...
the video returned and- 「happy birthday! sorry if we're not there to celebrate but at least let us celebrate it, we had cake earlier but save the rest to you, just go to Liliya's house when you want to take it.」 I look at Liliya and she was holding a confetti gun and wearing a party hat...
"haha- surprise..." her surprise was mild and hesitant... well, it didn't really give the full effect but... I can't help but laugh-
"h-hey! you're not allowed to laugh! c'mon... it's embarrassing..." she looks defeated...
"well... don't look embarrassed, your voice was squeaky. it's as if you weren't Liliya"
"oy! I take offense to that!"
we both argue with a little bit and enjoyed the cake she somehow packed inside the bag without and mess...
this... was the best days of my life, the time when I get to see them albeit in a video meant for me and Liliya besides me only to glue all of it together... these presents... is something I'll treasure forever
Thank you- it's hands down the memory I'll always remember, even in the afterlife