She said that she could talk while working since all she needed to do was to clean up the perimeter. Since I didn't have anything else to do, I volunteered to help her and sweep the parking lot and other areas.
Before we started, I apologized to her since Umi and I were eavesdropping on her conversation with Riku-san. Apparently, she didn't realize that we were nearby. She forgave me easily since it was by pure coincidence that we were there, but she still gave me a light warning to not do it again.
"It was ten years ago, I think… I confessed my feelings to him… He returned to Granny's house for the first time in a while for a visit, so I took the chance to have a talk with him."
The Asanagis, including Riku-san, moved to their current house when Umi was born. Which meant the two childhood friends were separated in grade school. Shizuku-san said that they still called and texted each other from time to time until high school, though.
They would exchange texts about their studies, school life, what they did to have fun and other trivial matters. Sometimes, during long vacations, Riku-san would return to Mizore-san's house and they would hang out together like how they used to.
"When I was little, I was a clumsy and frail girl, so he always had to take care of me. Even back then, he was tall and even though he was bad at sports, he was really smart and more importantly, he was always kind to me."
"So, was he your childhood crush?"
"Something like that. I don't know when I realized that I had feelings for him, but I remembered that when I heard that he was going to move away, I was really depressed… I even cried in front of Granny's house and begged him to not leave me…"
Shizuku-san answered while putting leaves and dead weeds into a garbage bag. Her voice was filled with a sense of longing and nostalgia.
From where I stood, her profile looked really sad.
Both of them probably had feelings for each other for a long time.
Some people might say that those feelings weren't exactly romantic on the basis that they mistook it for familial love because they knew each other since childhood, but the atmosphere between those two whenever they talked disproved that.
"After we graduate and move on to college or get a job, we won't be able to keep in touch like we used to. That's why I decided to tell him my feelings before that could happen. So, when he was about to leave, I called out to him…"
"And confessed on the spot, huh?"
"Mhm. Hehe… Like they say, first love never ends well."
Like she said, her first love was left unfulfilled.
This was what made love such a difficult thing to understand. Sometimes, there were people like Shizuku-san and Riku-san, who had known each other for more than a decade, but their relationship was stuck as 'childhood friends'. And there were also people like Umi and I, who managed to fall in love and became a couple in less than a year.
"Um… If you don't mind, can I ask you what kind of response he gave you, Shizuku-san?"
"'Sorry, I don't have the time to think about such matters right now', that's what he said. He said some other things too, but I was trying too hard to hold my tears back, I don't remember the rest of it…"
Understandable, she was probably shaken by his response. After all, they had kept in touch with each other for a long time. Let alone Shizuku-san, even I was surprised that he rejected her like that.
I thought about the possibility that he had been seeing girls other than Shizuku-san, but considering his personality, he would have told her the truth if that was the case.
There was no exaggeration in Shizuku-san's words, so it seemed like Riku-san was the main problem here.
"After that, I moved to Tokyo and entered a college there. After graduating, I got a job at a company and worked there for a while… Now that I think about it, it has been ten years since I graduated from high school. I'm an old woman now, huh?"
"Um… Were you still in contact with Riku-san back then?"
"No. The next time we met was when we were already in our twenties, but because of the confession, we became distant. Besides, I was dating someone from my workplace during that time…"
"You don't need to continue, I understand. Sorry for being insensitive…"
"Don't be sorry. I brought the topic up myself, it's not your fault. Besides, my marriage might have failed, but it blessed me with Reiji's birth. He's my little sunshine after all. If anything, I should be thankful that it happened, don't you think so?"
Then, Shizuku-san looked at me and smiled.
Her eyes filled with determination to make sure that Reiji lived a happy life.
She reminded me of my mom. Back when they got divorced, my mom also had the same look in her eyes.
"Can I ask you one last question, Shizuku-san?"
"What is it?"
"Have you given up on Riku-san?"
"…I guess so."
She nodded her head and continued.
"We are busy with our lives now. Riku-kun has to look for a job and I have my hands full with housework and Reiji."
Unlike me, Reiji-kun was still a toddler. He was still in kindergarten now, but soon he would be in elementary school, middle school and so on. If Shizuku-san were to let her guard down and neglect him by accident, it wouldn't be a good thing for his growth.
With that in mind, I could understand why Shizuku-san decided to give up. Riku-san probably thought the same, that was why he acted like that. I was an unrelated person, so honestly, my opinion wouldn't mean much to them.
…But should I just let them be like this?
"That's everything I can tell you, Maki-kun. Thank you for helping me, our job here is done, so let's go back inside. I have to prepare your dinner soon. Riku-kun and Umi-chan should be back soon, so you should go back to your room."
"I guess I should… Thank you for telling me everything, Shizuku-san."
"You're welcome. Maki-kun, try not to live like us in the future, okay? Though, I'm sure that you and Umi-chan will be fine. You love each other that much, after all. Just take this as advice from a kind older sister, okay?"
"…Yes, I'll keep your words in mind."
When I got back to the front desk, Umi had just arrived with Riku-san.
"I'm back, Maki."
"Welcome back, Umi."
After we greeted each other, we looked around to see whether Riku-san and Shizuku-san were around or not.
'How was it, Umi?'
'I gave him a long sermon, but other than that, we didn't talk about anything else. You?'
'Shizuku-san told me everything… Well, let's get back to our room first.'
Based on what Shizuku-san experienced, if we let things go the way it was, the relationship between the two of them would definitely become estranged again.
Sure, maintaining the status quo as childhood friends would be simple. They only needed to keep in touch occasionally to talk about the good old days.
But that would be just running away from their problems, it wouldn't solve anything.
I took out my phone and sent Riku-san a message.
[Maehara: Riku-san, can I ask you something?]
[Asanagi Riku: Wow, a message from someone I didn't expect. What's up?]
[Maehara: Can you take a bath with me?]
This would be my second bath today. Well, the bath was a perfect place for us to have a private conversation.
Also, this would be the last time I'd stick my nose into their affairs.