42 Cry Under the Rain
Ara stayed at Aki's office while he made a call to Kazehaya Gin relaying her request. As she expected, Homura International's CEO refused to agree at first, but as her brother explained what happened, the other seemed to understand, thus the call ended.
"So? What did Big Bro Kaze say?"
"He seems to be okay with it, but he said the final decision's not his to make," Aki said, and Ara nodded. "He will definitely tell Kou so we just have to wait."
"Big Bro, when you make the offer to Koharu's parents, please make sure you have witnesses," Ara advised him, and the older Suzuki agreed.
They wouldn't give Okada Koharu a chance to twist the story.
"I'm leaving," Ara then announced as she got up and picked up her bag.
"But isn't it too late to go back to class?" Aki glanced at his watch – the expensive one that Ryuu had given him last night. It read three in the afternoon.
"If you can wait for another two hours, I can go with you. You can hang out at the waiting area outside my office."
Ara shook her head. Their drama might have been finished, but the turmoil in her chest remained throbbing. She had only managed to talk to Aki normally due to sheer fighting spirit. But the emotions she'd been keeping at bay were threatening to run rampant once more.
It's time to leave.
"I want to go for a walk. Your ugly crying mug scared me so much I'll have nightmares," Ara said teasingly, so Aki had to let her leave amidst chuckles.
"See you later," he said, and Ara took this chance to escape as her eyes were feeling hot with tears again.
She hailed a cab as soon as she went out of the building.
"Where to, Miss?" the driver asked, and since she wanted to have time alone, she told him to take her to the nearest park.
Ara was thinking the driver would take her to either Shinjuku Central Park, or the Shinjuku Imperial Gardens, but instead, he stopped the cab in front of a typical playground for kids.
Seriously?
Ara didn't want to argue, however, and so she paid the cab and got out. It was school hours, and so the playground was deserted which suited her. She hurriedly entered the place and sat on one of the benches farthest from the street, almost hidden by the trees.
A heavy sigh escaped her lips as soon as she deposited her bag and plopped on the bench with her leaning back on the backrest and stared at the sky.
She didn't know why she's so affected like this. She felt so awful like she wanted to choke. Waves of regrets came crashing against the walls in her heart, and now, they finally broke down.
Dark, ominous clouds ensconced the entire sky above. Indistinct rumblings of thunder reverberated as flashes of lightning began to dance.
A thunderstorm was brewing.
Now, she was sure, that the one crying in her heart was not just Ara but also herself: Alinea, the princess of regrets. Her divine inheritance had made the sky reflect her tumultuous feelings.
Today, because she thought she was doing it for Ara, she had bared her soul to her brother Aki. However, she knew – she knew that it was also for her sake.
Memories, they were deceitful. Because most times, people tend to only remember what they wanted to remember – influenced heavily by their present circumstances.
Did she hate Alistair? Yes.
Before she died in the cave and after she woke up as a different person, her odium against the brother whom she loved and yet got betrayed by was overwhelming.
But as time passed by, she realized, in a way, that what happened to her and her vassals were also because she had let the rift between her and Alistair get bigger and bigger until they were irreparable.
Coming here, when her anger had abated, memories of her brother she had forgotten a long time ago emerged little by little, and she recognized her relationship with Alistair was not all about hate after all.
The Ritz King may have been the quiet one, but he had been doting on her in his own way before he was crowned. He had taught her many things. He had shared with her his love for books and she had listened to his stories and patiently answered her questions.
Being the King, of course, he wouldn't have time for her anymore. Because of that, she made sure to do everything to ease his burden, but it earned her disapproval from the royals as her acts seemed to declare that she was trying to usurp the throne.
It wasn't true of course. But the wagging tongues never stopped, and she never realized how much it had influenced her until that time when it came to her that she and Alistair never talked anymore.
Did her brother believe those rumors? It was obviously yes.
But, she would never know the truth from his mouth. She never tried to at least ask. She had a lot of chances, but she took things for granted and pretended that Alistair was not troubled at all.
It was a foolish move. For she knew that even if her brother didn't want her to die, as King he wouldn't have a choice if the royals asked for her head.
After talking to Aki today, those 'what ifs' came back, haunting her.
She wondered earlier if her destiny would have been different if she had done the same with Alistair. If she was courageous enough to reach out and spoke to Alistair, would her brother have still felt the need to eliminate her?
Alistair's image had never been as clear in her mind as it was today.
The beautiful older brother who she always followed around.
The brother who had lifted her in his arms whenever she fell as a child.
The brother who had taught her how to read but ended up telling her stories because she complained a lot that she hated books.
The brother who had killed the minotaur who had hurt her.
The brother who had given her Lucius, Rubic, Sven, Horgall, and Midas for company.
A bitter laugh escaped her lips, as the rain started pouring down, heavily, mercilessly, soaking her to the bone. The gaping hole that festered in her heart throbbed painfully and she choked in her sobs.
Her body fell sideward as she lay in a fetal position on the bench with her bag as her pillow. In her mind flashed the image of Alistair's anguished face that she saw when her seal appeared on her body again. Was that really him? "Brother… I'm so sorry you had to do that."
She cried like a lost child under the rain. Because, in spite of Alistair's betrayal, Ara now realized, that by refusing to talk to him, it was her who had betrayed her brother first.
