Chapter 17

After graduation, Nick took Akito to Kamakura.

It was already autumn.

After a brief sightseeing, Nick brought Akito back to the hotel.

Nick said, "Akito, tired, huh?"

Akito replied, "Let me go out for a walk."

With that, he put on his coat and went out alone.

He took a car to the seaside.

It was already evening, and the autumn wind was cold. Akito sat by the seaside, where there weren't many people. The wind blew in from the water, making it very cold.

Hugging his arms, Akito looked at the deep and light blues, all merging into one in the distance.

He lifted his right hand slowly, covering his right eye gently.

A soft voice echoed, "The boundless sea, Ryohei,it's not beautiful at all."

Akito returned to the hotel and waited for a long time before Nick came back.

Nick was sweating profusely, and he shouted, "Akito! You scared me! You scared me!"

After shouting for a while, he suddenly hugged Akito. "You scared me... scared me."

Back in their old university town, Nick bought a house, and they lived together. It took Akito a while to find a job, teaching politics at a middle school.

Nick never had a legitimate job, but they were never short of money.

Nick had told him, "Don't worry, I've never killed anyone."

Turning to Akito, he said, "But for you, I wouldn't be afraid to kill."

Akito never asked what Nick did. Every day after dinner, he sat by the TV and watched the weather forecast.

After watching, he picked up the phone and said, "It's very cold there today... wear more... don't catch a cold."

One day, Nick saw him like this and felt like he had been stabbed. He checked the phone bill and searched the call records. But there was no record of any outgoing calls.

Akito received an invitation to a classmate gathering. He kept rearranging his clothes, feeling that something wasn't right here and there.

He arrived early, and although everyone had changed a lot, they still recognized him as Akito. He waited a long time but didn't see the person he wanted to meet.

When people were almost dispersing, Ryohei arrived.

Classmates forced him to drink, and with his glasses on, Akito, from a distance, couldn't easily tell that his right eye was artificial.

He felt he could barely hold the wine glass and hurriedly placed it on the table.

After Ryohei finished socializing with everyone, he approached him.

He said, "Akito..."

This sentence was a mix of grievances, sadness, and joy.

For a moment, it was indescribable.

Ryohei looked into Akito's eyes, but Akito couldn't bring himself to meet his gaze.

With a bright left eye, he said, "Akito... I've endured it for so many years, and I can't endure it anymore... please be with me... Nick... I know about him... please be with me... I'll resign from my current job... we can go somewhere far away... somewhere he can't go... I want to be with you even if it means death."

Akito smiled gently and said, "Okay."