I am the emotional sustenance of your deceased

Qiansui had already unlocked the door. She bent down, bowed, and extended her arms like a servant welcoming her master home.

"Okay, cat, let's go."

Even though Yao Lenai had walked on the upward path thousands of times, this was the first time he walked up it in the middle of the night.

She was very scared, after all, it was very dark, but because she was holding the hand of the year-old, Lenai couldn't be afraid.

I'm not afraid because I have Sui by my side, and I feel at ease; I can't be afraid because Lenai really wants to protect Chitose.

At least, at this moment when the other party is still staying in Tokyo, Le Na hopes that she can protect the other party completely.

"What's in your pocket? It's prickly."

"It's the mint you gave me the other day. I heard it's used by Chitose-san to treat depression."

Chitose, who had already reached the performance hall on the top floor, stopped and smiled at Lenai.

Even at this time when visibility was low and lights were missing, Kaname Rakuna could still feel how warm Chitose's smile was.

[I love it the most... I love everything about Xiaosui the most.]

You are not her, and you don't have to be her.

You are the one and only Chitose Haizuka.

"Did you just ask me why I brought you here?"

"Ah."

"Actually, I feel really bad, so I want to visit this space I've missed so much before I leave."

Chitose and Lenai slipped to the backstage of the stage, which had already been completely emptied by people from a moving company or something.

Staring at the backstage that was familiar to the core yet inexplicably felt strange, Yao Lenai suddenly felt a creepy and cold feeling.

It was like watching a family member who was once the most familiar to you but has now lost the color of life.

"I'm scared!"

Chitose playfully turned around and tried to scare Lenai, but because she was so tired her movements and expression were a little stiff, and she failed to scare anyone at all.

"No, this is our home. I'm not afraid."

Yao Le Nai kept a steady tone and then changed the subject:

"What is Xiaosui regretting? Is it that performance?"

"Yes, it was because of that performance that I had so many regrets that day."

The place further ahead was leaking because half of the roof was removed, but Chitose didn't mind at all.

She jumped into the puddle, splashing herself with rain water.

"I'm so sorry, so sorry that our band broke up that day."

"I regret that my dream was ruthlessly crushed by Tokyo! Although! Before I came here, I heard from Chitose-nee... that this big city is so cold and ruthless!"

Qiansui's hair ends were stuck together by the rain, and she shook her hair to reveal her smooth forehead.

"I'm so sorry, Lenai, you didn't give your best performance that day..."

"!!!"

To Lenai's surprise, she couldn't get over this matter.

Why did I hallucinate Chitose's voice at the end of the performance and feel relieved?

Why is this happening?

"I really regret not having a good time playing with you. I also regret that the performance that day wasn't perfect. It was clearly the beginning of my youthful dream, so why... so many setbacks?"

Lenai slowly walked into the rain, just like when she was a child, she stepped onto the terrace to hug Chitose Noshiro who was feeling miserable in the rain.

"Kitten, I'm so sorry. There are so many things I want to do, but why did I suddenly fail..."

The wild cat and the domestic cat hugging each other could no longer tell whether the water droplets sliding down each other's cheeks were tears or rain.

They looked at each other with tears in their eyes, and the resentment in each other's hearts melted away in the rain.

【Tokyo is so cruel.】

This thought filled Lenai's mind.

Tokyo swallowed up Chitose Noshiro, and now it has swallowed up Chitose Haizuka's dreams.

The universe is a beast that feeds on mediocre people and creates countless idiots just to eat them.

Smart people have the opportunity to climb to the top and ride on the back of reality.

But reality will keep trying to throw you off, and eventually it will succeed.

"Hahaha, it's the last night, I don't want to make the atmosphere too awkward... Now that we're at the center of the stage, let's perform!"

Chitose tried hard to force a smile, but anyone could see how stiff it was.

Korana still thinks Chitose looks beautiful when she smiles.

"Is it okay if I don't bring my musical instrument?"

"Of course it doesn't matter. After all, we're in the rain... Let's sing!"

Chitose and Rakuna twirled in the center of the stage.

Sometimes they strolled in the open air in the rain, and sometimes they danced in unclear corners.

But the only thing that remains unchanged is the tune they hum.

That was their unfinished "Escape".

[It seems that this time it won’t be completed. ]

Interestingly, the song composed by myself, Chitose Noshiro and Chitose Haizuka has not been completed even after eight years.

Isn't it interesting?

What a pity.

On the night of the demolition of SPACE, the two sang impromptu on the leaky stage, and their voices filled the exhibition hall.

The rain dripped down the temples of the ash mound.

I don’t know if it was because of the pale moonlight or Qiansui’s bad complexion, but she looked terrible.

The moonlight passed through the broken dome, stretching their shadows very long.

That entangled and extended thing... is their destiny.

Ch387. In the promised summer, I wait for my old friend to return

A rainy day in a dilapidated exhibition hall.

Tap, tap, tap is the sound made by the girls' soles touching the solid wood floor.

They sang their own song softly and lingeringly until the blank part came.

The lyrics hindered the song, but never stopped the girl’s dance.

In the hollow city, Chitose danced gently.

"Go on, Cat, keep jumping with me."

Kaname Lenai...you gave me a strange look.

Be it surprise or appreciation, it never messed up my dance steps.

Because what makes me fly is not your gaze, but my young heart.

……

When the song ends and people disperse, we can only feel the arc of life by relying on each other's breathing.

Sitting back to back in a less humid corner, Chitose Noshiro felt warm on her back.

"Le Nai, I've actually been hiding something from you."

When the excitement faded, Chitose Haizuka, a girl who had lost everything, spoke to her soul mate, Kaname Rakuna.

"What."

Rakuna wasn't at all curious about what Noshiro Chitose wanted to say.

She no longer cares about anything.

As long as Chitose Haizuka doesn't abandon her, as long as Chitose Haizuka is safe.

[You are not her, and I don't want you to be her... You are you, you are my Chitose Haizuka.]

"Actually, my name wasn't Chitose at first. I changed it later."

"I see."

Kaname nodded thoughtfully, not looking surprised at all.

"What's your reaction? It's so bland."

"It doesn't matter. You are not her. Even if you change your name, I still like you."

"It doesn't matter whether you are Qiansui or not, it doesn't matter who you are..."

"As long as you are still you, as long as I am still me...as long as you still belong to me, I won't care about those things."

Lenai would have let it go long ago.

Maybe it started with that drunken streak, or maybe it was when I was held down in the basement and lectured and encouraged, or maybe it was...

Kaname just shook her head. She found that there were too many moments like this.

Noshiro Chitose is Noshiro Chitose, the distant, dead Noshiro Chitose.

And Haizuka...you can call me whatever you want, you are not Chitose anyway.

"You don't have to be her at all."

"Eh! I thought I'd be called a liar."

"You are a liar, old man, and you succeeded."

"I succeeded? How did I succeed?"

"You stole my heart. I will never forget you in my life."

“So, my name is actually…”

"Don't say anything, Xiao Sui, it's not important anymore."

"The past is not important anymore. We still have a future, right? You can be anyone, whoever you want to be, but in my eyes you are just you."

You have changed the frequency of my heartbeat, and now every second of it beats because of you.

【I really will never forget you in my life. 】

It's really hard to forget a girl who can pull you back on track when you are most lost and confused.

"Lena."

"what happened?"

After a long silence, Chitose Haizuka continued:

"I...feel...never mind, it's okay, let's go home."

【What? 】

The evening breeze blew their skirts, but Lenai did not wait for Qiansui's reply.

She was taken by the hand and walked towards home.

[This shouldn't be... the last time you hold my hand and walk home.]

……

She was taken by the hand and walked towards the airport.

"Bon voyage! Bon voyage!"

After bidding farewell to her best friend, the girl turned and left without looking back.