REALITY IS A DREAM, YOUR DREAM AT NIGHT IS REALITY: 09/10/2030, 21:00 And after a little time spent chatting, it was time for Mashiro to go home.  Well, Natsuhiko, Yuuri, see you tomorrow.She made her usual farewell.  Thanks for today again, Mashiron. I should walk you home at least once in a while, shouldn't I? Nah, it's fine, it's fine. We're right in the same neighborhood, anyway. Okay, good night, you two~Mashiro returned their words with a smile as she left the house. --Once Mashiro left, there wasn't much for them to do. They basically just relaxed until nighttime came. All right... I guess I'll go take a shower. Okay, go ahead~Yuuri would apparently take her baths during the daytime in consideration for Natsuhiko. Okay, then if you'll excuse me.And with that, Natsuhiko headed to the bathroom. After a simple shower-- He brushed his teeth and went back to the living room...  ♪ BGM: Peacemaker / Theme of Yuuri ♫ Ah, welcome back, Hikorin~ I'm back. Hikorin, want to go sleep already? Or are you up for a little chat? A chat sounds good. Guess I'll go warm up some hot milk then. Ah, I'll have some too~ Roger.Natsuhiko answered affirmatively and headed to the kitchen. Both Natsuhiko and Yuuri loved hot milk. Natsuhiko warmed up hot milk for two and returned to the living room. Here you go. Thanks~Natsuhiko and Yuuri sat on the sofas surrounding the table. How'd you spend your day today, Yuuri? Well, I did a little knitting.Now that she mentioned it, Natsuhiko remembered that Yuuri had started knitting this summer. To make presents for Natsuhiko and Mashiro, apparently. Oh, how's that going? I dunno... hopefully I'll be done by winter. Hahah, I'll look forward to it, then. Mmm... I'll work hard to meet your expectations.Yuuri smiled upon hearing Natsuhiko's reply. Natsuhiko enjoyed spending time having a quiet conversation with Yuuri after Mashiro went home. Oh, also, I read two books today, and I got started on the third. Oh, what kind of books? The first one was by a South American author... a wondrous tale following a certain family from prosperity to downfall. The second one was an anthology focused on the theme of dreams. One story was about a man who waited for a hundred years after a woman died. I see, so the keywords were stuff like 'dreams' and 'illusions', huh. Or perhaps even 'solitude' and 'promises', maybe?Yuuri was quite the bookworm. She wasn't picky about genres either. She made sure to read at least one book a day, regardless of genre. And at the end of the day, she'd give Natsuhiko her impressions. Incidentally, the woman had this wonderful line. 'Will you gather the falling fragments of the stars and place them on my grave? And will you wait for me there in 100 years? Do so, and I'm sure we will meet again.' Hmm, now that's just crazy talk. A blue branch with Yuuri at 7. Huh? Now that's commitment... were they lovers? Nope~ Just two people who made a promise. And still, the woman kept her promise and reunited with the man. In the form of a flower, under the twinkling stars of the same night sky they shared 100 years prior~ I know. Isn't it romantic? So what about you, Hikorin? Do you think you could keep a promise for 100 years? Hmm, well, I don't know if I could promise to wait that long without any hesitation, but... A promise is a promise, so I'm sure I'd keep it. Exactly. You don't break promises, do you, Hikorin? Yeah, that's my only good point, after all.Natsuhiko and Yuuri smiled at each other. --To read books and do some knitting. Such was Yuuri's daily life. She didn't go to school, nor work... nor even a step outside the house. And it was Natsuhiko's responsibility to protect that daily life. --There were circumstances behind why Yuuri never left the house. It all revolved around a certain incident that occurred nine years ago.  ♪ BGM: Memento Mori ♫  But one day, as a result of his own actions-- Natsuhiko exposed Yuuri to a life and death situation.     Just remembering gave him the chills. Natsuhiko constantly regretted his actions for these past nine years. (I mustn't ever do that again...)Natsuhiko was still emotionally scarred.   Natsuhiko's mother took custody of Yuuri out of compassion, but-- By that time, the repeated tragedies had already taken their toll on the young girl's heart.  Nobody could convince her to go outside, not even by force.   N... No...!!Three days after she had begun to live in the Tenkawa residence. Natsuhiko steeled himself and tried to talk to her out of concern that she'd never leave the house.  What do you mean 'no'? You have to go out sometime, don't you? No... it's scary...! You're going to skip school and stay inside here forever? C'mon, I'll stick with you through the whole thing--The moment Natsuhiko tried to pull her by the hand, Noooooo! No! Noooo!Yuuri burst into tears. I don't want to go outside! I hate it! I don't wanna go!! Don't make me leave! Let me stay here!!Yuuri cowered in fear as she cried. *sob*... *sob*... *sob*...! Y-Yuuri...! !Yuuri twitched when Natsuhiko tried to lend her a helping hand. She froze still as a rock-- and then all he heard from her was heavy breathing. Natsuhiko could do nothing but stand there at a loss for what to do...  She would cry, she would suffer migraines, she'd have difficulty breathing-- her fear of the outside was so strong that it resulted in physiological issues.  He was afraid. Afraid he'd break Yuuri's heart. And, without Yuuri ever going outside again...  (PTSD, huh...)Tips posted:TIP: PTSD Post Traumatic Stress Disorder-- a psychological condition stemming from extreme situations like life and death experiences. Yuuri still suffered from PTSD today. Her symptoms included flashbacks or nightmares about her past experience. She tended to avoid the things that served as the sources of her trauma. A panic disorder also accompanied these symptoms-- it was classic PTSD. (I changed her...)Yuuri merely lived a quiet life within these walls without ever leaving the house. It hurt Natsuhiko's heart to think about her situation. But Yuuri was keenly aware that it distressed him, and so she would always look at him with a compassionate look on her face. ♪ BGM: Peacemaker / Theme of Yuuri ♫ ...What's wrong, Hikorin? You got quiet all of a sudden... Are you thinking about the past again? Huh...? There's nothing you have to worry about. I get to live here now... and you're so kind to me, too. I've got you, and I've got Mashiron too. Every day is fun. So you really don't need to worry about me.Yuuri spoke with a gentle smile. A very clear, and somehow, ephemeral smile. --Indeed. Despite her fragile heart, she was perfectly willing to let Natsuhiko stay by her side. And so in turn, Natsuhiko vowed to always live up to that smile. (It's my duty... to stay by her side and watch over her.)His bond with Yuuri made his friendships with his classmates seem almost inconsequential in comparison. Adding Mashiro into the mix meant he was more than content with the interpersonal relationships he already had. With that in mind, Natsuhiko returned Yuuri's smile. ...Thank you, Yuuri. You might get mad if I say this... but I'm glad to have you in my life.Yuuri looked a bit lonely when Natsuhiko said this. Ah, but you know... there's just one thing that bothers me. Huh, what's that? A blue branch with Yuuri at 7 and Mashiro at 8. Am I, well... getting in the way between you two? Wh-... what does Mashiro have to do with all this!? Well, Mashiron's such a lovely girl, she's a great cook, and she's so nice to you, too... Really? Yeah. Guys apparently keep confessing their love to her left and right. C-confess!? Go on, go on! Well, you know that Mashiro. She apparently turns them all down. And whenever I ask her why-- She says 'I'm not interested in boys or romance right now. I get enough of that in manga and anime.' But she gets along with you, doesn't she, Hikorin? Well, Mashiro says 'I've been friends with Natsuhiko for so long that I don't see him as a guy. He's not a romantic interest' and such. And, well, I feel the same way, too.Not even Natsuhiko could deny that Mashiro was a charming girl. But since they'd been friends for so long, they were almost family. It was difficult to exchange that bond for romantic feelings. So basically, we can't really advance to that sort of a relationship. Hmm... You sure...? I'm sure, I'm sure. Hmmmm...? ...Look, I said I'm sure. Seems a little fishy... Y-you don't believe me...?Yuuri was quite unsubtly using the power of suggestion, but-- ...Just kidding.She eventually said with a smile. Th-that's a terrible joke, Yuuri. I've just read a dreamy love story, so I was just thinking it would be nice to have a talk like this every now and then~ It was so fun seeing you all flustered, so I couldn't help but tease you for a bit. ...Well, you got me there.Natsuhiko and Yuuri exchanged smiles. And thus, they leisurely spent their time in peace. The room was filled with not love, not friendship, but absolute peace of mind transcending either. --And after a little bit, they talked about Yuuri's third book of the day. And before they knew it, it was already late at night. Hmm... would you look at the time.Before Natsuhiko realized it, Yuuri's sleepy eyes were drooping too. How about we head to bed soon, Yuuri? Hwaaah~ mm, yeah, you're right.Yuuri said as she stood up. ...A lot sure happened today, huh... Yeah. Hopefully tomorrow will be an ordinary uneventful day. Okay, good night, Yuuri. Night...    You're afraid, aren't you? Huh? ♪ BGM: Close to the Truth ♫ Natsuhiko jumped back and looked at Yuuri. Afraid...? Of what? Afraid of losing your peaceful days. Afraid that this cycle of repetitive days will come to an end.Yuuri's silhouette rose out from the darkness. ...You're afraid that if you do anything differently, something unexpected will happen to your peaceful days, aren't you? Afraid of getting others wrapped up in your actions even if you're fine acting on your own...Yuuri's tone of voice was different from usual. (Wh-what's going on...!?)--Yuuri's panic disorder had been triggered many times in the past before. But it had always been limited to when someone had tried to take her outside. (But... this... is different?)He wasn't trying to take her outside, and she didn't seem to be having a panic attack. Yuuri continued in spite of Natsuhiko's confusion. But Hikorin, you're no longer the child you were back in those days, are you? You may have already gained the strength necessary to overcome your sadness, and you don't even realize it... Y-Yuuri... what are you saying? But the light was indistinct, leaving her expression ambiguous. ...I think a lot of things will start happening to you from now on, Hikorin. Fun things, painful things... and things you cannot overcome without courage. But they're all things you surely mustn't avoid...Yuuri's prediction became gradually more ominous. Which disturbed Natsuhiko. Y-Yuuri...? Are you already half-asleep by any chance? You're sleep-talking, aren't you? ...Do you really think it's that obvious an answer? But, I mean, usually you're already asleep at this time... What time?To answer her question, Natsuhiko took one look at his watch--  Wha...!?Can I just pop in and say that I love this moment? That ''what time?'' line was loving perfect. His watch had broken before he had realized it. The hands were frozen, in the same way they were this morning. No way... Why...? Natsuhiko stared through the darkness at the dial in disbelief.     
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