Chapter 8 - Untold Lies

Long after I landed on that garage and after my conversation with them, I experienced periods of affinity. Half of me says so, and half of it isn't. I washed myself again and again, adjoining my scars and remembering how and when did I get those things. They also serve plenty of foods, and for me who's stomach is already an empty shelves, dig myself on their table.

"So where did you go to before?" Saori-san while asking me with a polite expression.

I didn't answer at first.

"Nevermind.. by the way I am Saori.. Tachibana Saori.. and this is my daughter, Miyaka."

"H-Hello.." She said it while turning her head down.

I don't want to say something back then... Yet...

"Fukuoka.."

"Eh? Fuwa?"

"F-Fukuoka.."

"Oh? Fukuoka.. come to think of it I also—"

"Mom, isn't that place where you work before?"

"Yes it is, that job was so full filing that i can— wait.. Fukuoka is where you live?!"

I nodded.

"You live that far?! how did you even bring yourself here?!" She shouted

"I—I don't know.. I'm just passing those green lights, and when I noticed it, I'm already in this place I've never known."

"It'll take a day or two to travel from Fukuoka to Nishihara.. does that mean you're not eating with those days?!" Saori-san said it again with a loud voice.

"And to think he's running away from home means he's walking all by himself to go here." Miyaka with a confused face.

"No, of course he wouldn't. Is he trying to swim that port from Fukuoka to Nishihara? of course not! right?!...

...RIGHT?!"

"Mom, you're too loud. And besides, you can just have alternate routes to go here, like in Kobe Bridge or Nagoya Bridge."

"Nagoya... so that was Nagoya Bridge.."

The two of them has gone silence for a mere moment.

"EEEEHHHHHHH?!?!?!?!"

"Mom! you're too loud!"

"So that.. that means you're walking all by yourself till here?! how do you even manage to survive that? even if you use a public or private transportation, it'll take a day or two to go in here."

"N–No.. actually.."

"Actually?" Saori-san with a confused expression.

"Y–You beg for food..right?" Miyaka with a sorry face.

"Y–Yes.. If I didn't, I might ended up dying along the way... No.. I mean.. why would I do that at first place.. when my only intention is to end it right? Hahaha.. it's really funny.. It's stupid.. it's.. its lame.."

"Y–You..?" Miyaka with a shocking face. But Saori-san took the lead to change the topic.

"Kid.."

"Huh?" I look at her.

"Boy.. or whatever.. You can just sta—" She scratched her head.

"I—Im sorry I talked too much.. I'm leaving.." I recently dragged out my chair to stand up, preparing myself to leave.

"No. Good thing there's something at the back that I need to pull for tommorow's delivery, can you help me with it?"

"Eh?? well I.. okay."

"Miyaka, you can go to your room now."

"Eh? O–Okay.. But you can just do it tomorrow you know? it's already late."

"Nahh.. it's okay since this boy will help. Also, you need to sleep early, tommorow is the entrance ceremony right?"

"Yeah, w–well then, goodnight."

"Sleep well!"

She goes back to their garage while calling me again. Right after I finished placing the boxes to their sofa, I asked something that might probably, probably

might not gonna change my decision in life if i didn't.

or so I thought...

"Thankyou! now it's easy for them to bring those boxes."

"Um.. S–Saori-san.."

"Hmm?"

"Wh–why did you—"

"Didn't I tell you already? just think of us with someone who wanted to offer kindness.. Does "kindness" never teach you since the day you were born?!" Saori-san said it with a mad expression.

"N–No.. I mean.. well.. yes, but.."

"Of course you know it, you're not someone who's not been educated right?"

"Eh? how do you say so—"

"Well, I'm sure that "ma'am" earlier doesn't look like you're not well mannered tho".

She smiled while I turned my head down trying to dodge her compliment.

"You ran away so badly, blaming something, isolating yourself to a darkroom, leaving your life like how you used to before. On top of that, not even knowing the danger you might encounter. Lucky for you you're not a girl.."

Again, dodging her words by not saying anything.

"..thinking miserably, finding a way to escape and then when you feel like it's done like you don't have anymore options... that's it?"

I just stand there, thinking about how should I respond to those lines. As if she's trying to provoke me for all the things that I have been doing. But this time, she didn't asked it directly on me, but to my conscience.

"Running away is the best thing to do when you're out of options. It's easy to say honestly, it's easy to do. Where as "responsibility" might be the shittiest thing you need to do, right? It's not as if, it's like an obligation or opportunity, It's a mere of volition. The more you run from, the more you suffer, the more you felt pain. And then while thinking overall the results of your actions, there's "regret". You even feel worse when you run away. Everyone knows that.. No.. Perhaps everyone might know that."

"I'm.. I.. I know it.. better than anyone.."

That's the first time I saw Saori-san feels so disappointed over something, and so even throwing me the same question again.

"Say, kid.."

"Eh?"

"You also knew right? of all the people... you also knew right? better than anyone.."

I feel frustrated when she throws me those questions. I feel frustrated yet on the other hand, I feel disappointed on myself.

"I.. I'm not like you.. You don't even know me so why—"

She smiled at me right after i I answered her.

"Yeah, right? you're not intend to be with someone else of course, its a given. But you see.. Well, I have lived most of my life; I robbed few years of it that seems to be bad, because we're craving to escape what could be a rich, or productive, or become happy. We live on a planet where we are able to provide a decent life to every soul on it, which is all ninety-nine of a hundred human beings ask, "Why in the world can't we have it?""

"W–Well.. You do have some point there. I mean, everyone is also asking that, not only us."

"Say, kid.. despite having a bad life, do you have moments or a day where you can say you're having a good one?"

She smiled while asking it to me. Thinking about that made me realize, some how, a foreshadowing of my life.

"Y–yeah.. somehow."

"You do right? me too.."

"Well, yeah.. but why–"

"Then why just deal with it?" She said while smiling.

"H–huh?"

"Despite having a bad one, there are times or moment that you're living a good one right? rather than being tied up with the past, why don't you take the opportunity of the "good" one?"

Now I'm starting to get irritated by these stupid persuasion.

"T–That's already on the past why would —"

"Exactly.." She smiled again.

"Eh?"

"Since it's the past, it can never hurt you..."

Talk about solid lies.

"How come it won't hurt you when it's—"

"...not unless you let it."

At that time, I just stood out there, standing at the back of their house, realizing something that I've never encountered before in my entire life. My eyes has started to get teary, and the tears on it won't stop, asking why it's dropping. Later on, Saori-san turned around and go back to her house again.

"I—Is it okay for me to live here?"

"If that will lessen the burden you have." She smiled at me again.

"H—Hiro.."

"Hmm?"

"Hiro.. that's.. that's my name.."

She smiled at me while asking something again.

"Hiro.. would you like to help me bring those boxes again tommorow?"

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Yes"