Aki came down after a moment. Everyone on the floor was busy looking for something. Aki realized Ishida must have already informed Aito so the whole building was looking for Aki. One guy screams excitedly and said that he had found Aki.
Aki sighed, 'Silly Dad!'
'Yes, I'm here.' Aki responded seeing Aito looking for him. He walked slowly towards Aito.
'Why were you on the rooftop?' Aito frowned
'To breathe.' Aki smiles as if his reasoning was normal.
'Are you having any issues with…' Aito came closer with a concerned face.
'No! I'm perfectly alright.' Aki brushed off Aito's worries.
'Good! Then let's call Ayush and let's have lunch together.'Aito demands
Aki's smile vanished, 'He is busy and I am too.'
Aito scoffed, 'Oh! How unfortunate! I have two sons but they don't have time for me.'
'Then who cooks for you every Sunday and Monday?' Aki squinted his eyes to correct Aito's false accusation.
2 days is not enough for Aito. Aito rarely gets both of his sons together. But it's a good thing that they can see each other whenever they want so Aito doesn't complain much.
Aki sees Reiji walking with someone on the office premises. But Reiji's expression was different and intimidating towards the other person who was walking with Reiji. Reiji was standing casually with hands in his hoodie's pocket. It was as if he was talking with his eyes. All the emotions were there in his eyes. The person was sweating a lot. When Aki's eyes met with Reiji, the expression on Reiji's face took a 180-degree rotation.
Aki blinked a few times in confusion,'' Why the hell is he like that!''
'Are you listening? What are you looking at?' Aito interrupted Aki's thoughts.
'Nothing...Just some…' Aki didn't finish his line.
'Oh, I heard Tanya is back.' Aito's question made him more confused.
'You too? Do you all have some sort of connection or anything?' Aki frowned because everyone was asking the same. And the reason they all have a chat group.
'And why not I am in?' Aki was not aware of that.
'You didn't join. I invited you though.' Aito told him with a smirk.
Aki has zero interest in anything other than books and photography. Never ever had any bad habits. Not even in the slightest. He is not introverted but not extroverted either. If he finds something interesting he does it unless it's harmful.
'How is your class going? Can you focus on teaching?' Aito asked
'Yes, Nothing special.' He keeps stealing glances of Reiji. Reiji is so much like Mei. That's bugging him.
'What? what are you really looking at!' Aito tries to find what Aki was staring at but Reiji was already gone.
Aki was relieved to see that Reiji was not there anymore, 'Told you...no one.'
'Ok, ok!' Aito agrees to see Aki being right.
'See it's him. So handsome! I heard his eye color is a bit odd. So sad na! Still...I…' While entering the office Aki heard some employees talking about him.
'What! Why are you girls always all over him? He will just inherit this through his father, not with his own talent. What's so attractive about him?' A male employee was irritated at them.
'Huh! You don't know! He has his own company. Magazine and other publishing companies. My cousin even saw him at university. She says he is a professor there. Photography. He is known as a down-to-earth type of person. And he also has a mysterious girlfriend.' the girls discarded his statement.
'Why mysterious?' He got curious.
'My cousin says she was his junior there but she is often…' Aki stops as if he was listening to them and wanted to listen more. Aki then looks at them.
'shhh...I guess he can hear us…' the girl panicked thinking Aki heard their conversion. Aki then smiles at them then opens the door for his father. They enter.
'You stupid! You are done! If the chairman hears it then we are done for. He never keeps any employee who bad-mouths his sons.' the girl warned her colleagues.
Aito couldn't hear anything but Aki heard all of it. Usually, he ignores those but what about Tanya they were saying, was what caught his attention and caught him off guard. He looked at them without hiding his interest. Aki exhales a breath to distract his mind.
Aki couldn't leave before lunch. He came down the stairs this time. Then leaves the building. After having a long meeting he relaxes. He watches what Ginger was doing at home from his phone. Ginger was sitting on the window seat and was watching outside the window. Then it falls asleep. His assistant saw Aki was smiling slightly.
'Anything good happened?' He asked while placing the files
'Oh...it's my cat. He just fell asleep.' Aki told him with a smile
'Oh! So he is alone at home. Must be feeling lonely.' his expression turned sympathetic.
'Surprisingly he doesn't. I guess he cares less. But once I get home he shows his mood.' Aki smiled again.
The assistant smiled too, 'Cats are like that. Always high & mighty.'
'Is that so!' Aki never knew.
While working Aki notices the card of the psychiatrist his mom gave him. He feels conflicted if he should go. But eventually chooses not to go. At 9:30 pm he gets out. The station is 30 minutes away by foot. The residential area there was once his home. But now there is nothing called home. The house is still there as his father lives in but Aki doesn't like to stay there anymore. His grandmother is not with them anymore and Mei's house is just beside theirs. So he can't. But still, he chose to walk on that familiar road because this area is both a reminder of his loving memories with friends, with Mei, and the tragic memories of his mother's death. He doesn't want to let them go. Joshua was not there when he arrived. The homeless man was not there either. He looked for him but could not find him. He stood outside on the platform. After a while, he saw Joshua was walking with someone on the other platform.
An old train stopped and that man went in. A sound started. Like something is scratching a surface with nails. It is similar to the sound before. He knows that's not a normal sound. He went in to check the train schedule. No train was scheduled for 10:10. Unless there is an emergency, the train doesn't miss any schedule. Aki got back and saw the train was not there.
"When did the train leave? I didn't hear any sound. Am I having brain fog? Or the train was really not here?" He couldn't remember if he had really heard the sound of the train's arrival.
"No! I clearly saw it.No mistake," he recalls the train arrived at 10.10 on dot and left within 10:11. "But...that's not possible." Aki was deep in thought.
'Is everything alright Azusa-kun?' Joshua asked.
'Ah yes. I think I saw a train here just now and now it's not here. I might be hallucinating.' Aki tried to smile but looked conflicted.
Joshua kept staring. So the situation became awkward.
Aki became confused and asked, 'Or perhaps there was…'
'It might be brain fog. You seem tired.' Joshua said with a friendly smile.
'Might be so…' Aki felt like Joshua didn't want to talk about it.
So he hands over a wrapped box to Joshua,' It's something for you.'
Joshua was surprised to see the gift, 'Thank...you!'
'It's chamomile Tea. I don't know if you like it or not but I thought…' Aki was stopped by Joshua
'No, no,... It's very thoughtful of you. Thank you.'
Aki smiled to see Joshua happy.
'You are here earlier than every other day?'Joshua asked.
'Oh! I have adopted a cat. Ginger...His name…' Aki was surprised at himself that he was talking to everyone about his cat.
'Cute name.' Joshua smirked.
'My friend decided on it.' Aki said.
Joshua felt Aki was talking with him more freely than before.
Joshua looks at the box and thinks to offer Aki to drink tea with him but he becomes confused thinking Aki would refuse, 'Would you like to have…'
Aki understood Joshua's hesitation, 'I would.'
Aki being surprisingly friendly today made Joshua not understand the reason but didn't say anything to Aki. The train arrived on time and Aki went in. He sat and took out his phone from his pocket. A card fell down. He saw the psychiatrist's card.
He surely had left this at the office desk,' Why is it here? I had left it at the office. So how come?'
The night was finally over.
Aki couldn't sleep at all. He went to his office. His assistant came and gave reports to him. He looked lifeless to her, 'Akkun! Are you ok?'
Aki doesn't reply but his expression was asking why she was asking that.
'You look pale and your eyes…'
'I could not sleep last night…' Aki realized he forgot to wear his contact lenses. Fortunately, he came by his car today. Otherwise, people would have noticed and he would have faced an awkward situation.
Nora is Noah's little sister so she knows about him, 'Nora, please go out and buy me a pair.'
'Ok, did you eat your breakfast?' She put her files down on the table.
Aki didn't respond and tried to avoid her stare. She got it that he didn't. So she hurried.
On the way she called Noah, 'Oi... it's me. What's wrong with Akkun?'
Noah stopped in the corridor while entering the class. He panicked, 'What happened? Is he ok?!'
'He looked pale and he forgot his contact lens…' she paused when she saw Aki's car in the parking lot. 'And he came by car today.'
'He is physically ok right!' Noah asked with a worried voice.
'Ya just looks pale. I'm gonna buy him breakfast. He must not have done…' She stopped talking as she saw Tanya outside the building. Tanya was standing on the opposite side of the road. She was looking at the top floor. Nora followed Tanya's stare to see where she was looking and saw Aki sitting on the balcony and reading.
'Tanya is here. I will call you later.' Nora told Noah with a displeased expression on her face.
'Tanya is there?! Listen! They might have really broken up this time. So, be gentle with her. Don't push your hatred on her, ok!' Noah warned Nora
'I don't hate her. I just don't like her attitude. How she treats Akkun sometimes gets on my nerves.' Nora crossed the road. Tanya saw her and smiled faintly at her.
Tanya greeted her first, 'Morning !'
'Ya! What are you doing here? Wanna come?' Nora asked her to stop by the office.
'No! Not...is he ok?' Tanya looked directly at her eyes.
'Um...not really! He looks pale and seems a bit spaced out. He forgot his contact lens so told me to buy…' Nora pauses seeing Tanya bites her lip as if Tanya was trying to suppress the tears. Nora didn't talk. Tanya gives her a packet, 'He maybe didn't do his breakfast. So…'
'Why don't you give him yourself?! You came all the way here.' Nora was conflicted about why Tanya would offer breakfast to him when Tanya can't even meet him.
'We are not...we…' Tanya was not able to express their break-up story.
Nora picked up quickly. She didn't want to pick on Tanya, 'Oh! Ok...I understand.'
Tanya leaves and Nora feels a bit sad for her. But she was ok thinking it was for the best.
That night, when Aki was happy after thanking Joshua...
Aki got off at the station.
He saw Tanya. She was waiting sitting on the bench, She walked to him. Stopped when she was so close to Aki. But Aki steps away a bit far. Tanya's expression saddens, 'Why?'
'Why not?' Aki answered her question with another question.
'It's suffocating.' Tanya's face seemed like she was about to cry.
He felt sad too. His tone got soft, 'Tanya, You know very well that I am possessive and it scares you. I cannot possibly marry someone who is not willing to give respect to that. I also don't want to hinder you...I…'
'What if I am willing?' Aki stops hearing Tanya.
Aki stares at Tanya. She is gray. Whenever people lie they turn gray. Aki didn't know what this was before but over time he noticed that when people lie they lose their color. Their aura and body-color turn gray. It's much like watching a black and white movie. Aki feels his anger rushing through his mind. But he calmed himself down, 'Tanya! Why are you still forcing yourself? Isn't 10 years long enough?'
'But I love you.' Tanya's expression said she was hurt.
Aki sees her color. He knows she loves him. But not enough to accept him as he is, 'Are you really willing to handle me? What if I say I am having those nightmares and having these brain fog things again?'
'I will trust you.' Lies. Tanya was lying, Aki's eyes filled with tears.
'Will you do not avoid me?' Aki asks again.
'I won't.' Again she Lies.
Aki doesn't take his eyes away from her. "Why is she lying to me?"
'Will you only come to me when your heart wants, not when mine calls you?! When do I need you?!' Aki's eyes became teary.
'I will come.' Tanya's answers make Aki close his eyes. He didn't want to see that anymore
'Will you love me?' Aki knows from his heart only that much is true. But he doesn't want to see only that when she can't love him as he wants.
'I do love you.' True. She didn't lie.
Aki smiles as his tears fall down. Steps towards her.
Taking her hand, he said, 'Tanya! Let's stop here.'
Silence breaks after a while when Aki spoke up, 'I am sorry. I tried only to love you and not expect. But I will always want to stop you even if you are exposed to the slightest danger and you would always see them as shackles. I can't wait anymore in uncertainty whenever you leave me without saying anything. You will always want to escape from my past when I can't help but stay with it...I have tried, haven't I?! You are still young Tanya. Don't waste your time on me. I am sorry that my past has burdened you.'
Tanya did not say anything. Because deep down she knows whatever Aki is saying is true. He moves her hair to the side which was flowing with wind then kisses her on the forehead. Then he steps back.
'I will always be there for you regardless of whatever you are to me. You can count on me. Take care.' Aki then walks away.
Tanya sits down on the bench. Keeps looking at the back of Aki hoping that maybe he would look back. But Aki doesn't.
Ginger was waiting for him at the door. He picked Ginger up. He went to the darkroom. Puts him down, 'We finally broke up today.'
He takes down Tanya's photos one by one from the wall. Some were with friends. Some were just both of them. In one last photo, he stops. Only one photo of Tanya smiling with a flower was on the wall. On the hand, there were too many photos. Too many memories. He sits on the floor crying. Ginger was looking side by side. Then came to him. Sat down beside him. Gives his paw to him.