Tomohisa sat alone on the beach, staring at the setting sun in-front of him. He admitted he was an aggressive type of person and sometimes hot-headed. He was still planning on how to apologize to Maki when his phone started ringing. Sighing, he grabbed it from his shorts pocket; nothing good ever comes from his phone calls.

“Hai?” He answered, bringing the device up to his ear.

“Tomo!” It was his older brother Takuya. Don’t get him wrong. He loved his brother but since becoming congressman, Takuya barely had time to hang out with him.

“Ah aniki, doue?”

“Eh?” Takuya mocked hurt. “Is it wrong for an older brother to just check up on his ototo?”

Tomohisa chuckled lowly. “Yeah I would believe that but you already know me aniki and I’m fine…”

“Jaa, how’s obaa-san then?” Tomohisa could hear the clicking of keys from the other line; Takuya was probably using his laptop.

“Obaa-san’s great. The bookstore is still running functionally.”

“Ah sou desu ka…” The ellipsoidal silence continued until Takuya spoke again. “So about that board member position--”

Tomohisa clicked his tongue even before Takuya could finish what he was saying. “Look aniki, I told you times before that I don’t want to go into politics!” He never told his family that but he didn’t want to lie just to have a job. Takuya sighed from the other line. “Okay okay, I’m sorry… I had to try. But Tomo, are you really going to paint all your life? What would you get from that?”

“I hope you actually believe in me aniki…” Tomohisa said. “Just wait, my paintings will be famous.” He ended the call without another second more before burying his face into his arms and groaning in frustration.

“Anything wrong?” He looked up just in time to see Maki sitting down beside him on the sand. He looked away for a minute, not wanting Maki to see the sad expression on his face.

“No, it’s nothing…”

“You know it’s good for someone to open up their problems…”

“Well I didn’t ask for your help!” It was too late for Tomohisa to stop himself from snapping. He looked at Maki and saw a flicker of hurt register on her face but was replaced by a blank expression.

“Fine…” she started standing up but Tomohisa quickly reached for her.

“Hey hey, look…” He breathed in as Maki looked back at him, his grip firm on her wrist. “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to snap like that, sit back down.”

Though seemingly reluctant, Maki slowly sat back down. Tomohisa sighed, taking in some air. He wasn’t the most open of people but Maki was right; sometimes you just have to tell someone about your problems. He started speaking when he was ready.

“I always thought that whenever I’m alone I wouldn’t get hurt. Turns out hurt just goes to you.” He began. “My family keeps pressuring me to follow their line of work. Well I’m not like that!”

“What about your okaa-san? Is she sided with you?” Maki asked, choosing her words carefully. She knew Tomohisa was in a very delicate position. What she didn’t expect was to see the man sadly staring into the distance and saying; “Okaa-san died about two years ago… car accident.”

“Oh… I’m sorry.” And she truly was. She knew the feeling of losing someone. Tomohisa nodded in appreciation and was slowly smiling.

“Okaa-san was the only one who supported me with my painting. Well my brother did too until he was also pulled into the world of politics…”

“Well who cares about what your father and brother think.” Maki suddenly said, catching Tomohisa’s attention. She continued. “I mean, no one should ever be stopped from doing what they love. That’s just… wrong right? Look at me for example. Life is tough with my salary but I can make it work just to send Mirai to med school. I’d never want my little sister to be stopped from her dreams.”

The speech coming from the woman got that smile back on Tomohisa’s face and he couldn’t stop saying; “You’re amazing… there aren’t many people out there like you.” He stared at her, loving the way the sunset’s color reflected on her beautiful face. One could say he was enchanted in that moment. Maki suddenly started blushing. It seemed she wasn’t expecting this type of reaction. She looked away, clearing . “Anyways, just do what you want Tomo… I’m sure things will turn out great.” She quickly stood up from the sand as if trying to get away from Tomohisa as fast as possible.

The smile still on his face, Tomohisa shook his head in amusement then continued staring out into the setting sun.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

It was already dark when Tomohisa went back inside. He saw Ryosuke and Mirai helping each other out with a customer. Once the old man who had bought a book left, Ryosuke turned to Mirai, giving his best puppy dog face. “Onegai Mirai-chan, can you guard the store for a while? I wanna help Maki-nee in cooking.”

There was a slight pout on her face but Ryosuke’s puppy dog eyes prevailed for Mirai. “Alright alright, but tomorrow is my turn.”

“Yosh!” Ryosuke held two thumbs up before climbing up the stairs to the kitchen. Tomohisa chose this moment to show himself to Mirai.

“Oh, hey there Tomo-nii.” Mirai greeted, waving a small hand. She was fixing plastic bags from under the counter while Tomoisa approached, leaning an elbow on the counter surface.

“Has Ryosuke really got talent for cooking?” He asked.

Though weirded out by the question; as shown with her eyebrow raised, Mirai answered; “I’ve tasted some of his dishes and I admit defeat; he cooks better than me.”

“Mmm…” Tomohisa murmured in understanding. His eyes silently followed Ryosuke who disappeared through the loft now probably next to Maki in the kitchen. He really hoped the young man could get the education he deserved someday.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

It’s been a week since Tomohisa arrived in Chiba. Usually he’d lock up in his room and try to paint. Emphasis on the “try” part. He just wasn’t getting enough inspiration to complete a master piece! He stood up from his chair facing that damn blank canvas and exited his room. The faint music coming from downstairs clicked through his ears. Where was that coming from? He decided to follow the sound. It was coming from a room behind the loft stairs; how come he never knew of that room before?

He knocked on the door but the music won over the sound of his knuckles on the wood so he pushed it open and saw Maki and Mirai sitting together on the piano stool. The two girls had their backs to him so they couldn’t see as he viewed.

“Can you show it to me again one-chan?” Mirai asked, turning to her sister.

“Here…” Maki chuckled as she continued with a foreign piece then stopped, allowing Mirai to follow. The scene caused Tomohisa to relax. He leaned back on the door but forgot it was only half closed; it sounded with a medium-sized bang!

Maki and Mirai whirled around in their seats, surprised at the sound and the sight of a flustered Tomohisa now standing in the middle of the room.

“What are you doing here?” Maki asked, a little annoyed.

“Anouu…” Tomohisa scratched the back of his head, not knowing what to say at first. “I heard the music playing so I came here.”

“Ah, Maki-nee was teaching me piano, that’s what we usually do on Saturdays, when I don’t have make-up classes.” Mirai explained. It took some time that Tomohisa just stared at the two sisters until Maki furrowed her eyebrows at him and said;

“Well if you’re done staring, Mirai and I will be going back to our piano playing.” She turned around, gesturing for Mirai to follow as if Tomohisa was not there. The scene though… it suddenly hit the man.

“Ah!”

And once again the two sisters turned just in time to see Tomohisa with a glint in his eyes before he smiled to them.

“See you later!” He left, opening the doorand banging it close once again.

Maki and Mirai stared at each other thinking; ‘What was that all about?’

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

Sometimes Maki had those moments where she would keep tossing and turning in bed. It wasn’t because she was stressed or anything, sometimes there were just endless thoughts on her mind and those thoughts didn’t allow her to sleep. Finally admitting to herself that she wouldn’t be sleeping at this particular moment and time, she stood up from bed and headed to her balcony, viewing the wonderful beach behind their home. She was expecting to see a lot of sand and the large waves crashing along, she didn’t expect to see Tomohisa at the middle of the beach… painting. ‘What is he thinking?’ Quickly, she grabbed a shawl to protect her from the cold since she was only wearing a negligee before heading down to Tomohisa. The night was cold and she kept wondering how Tomohisa survived with only a shirt and shorts on.

“What are y--” Maki stopped midway with what she was saying as she got closer and saw what Tomohisa was painting. It was her and Mirai. There could be no mistaking it. It was the scene from a while ago brought to life by Tomohisa’s painting.

“Do you like it?” Tomohisa asked, smugly smiling as he held a brush in one hand and the palette in the other. He didn’t wait for Maki’s answer but instead continued with the unfinished painting. Maki moved closer, looking at the painting until she could no longer hold back the smile from her face.

“Tomohisa, it’s beautiful…”

“Yeah well…” Tomohisa shrugged as he continued. “Something about you and Mirai just caught me, I couldn’t not paint it.” He smiled at her. It was then that the wind blew harder and they both felt small drops of water slowly falling from the sky.

“Uh-oh, it’s going to rain.” Tomohisa declared. Quick on his feet, he was able to grab the canvas and the easel then stirred Maki closer so they could go back inside. The shutter doors sounded almost eerily and when Maki and Tomohisa came to, they almost screamed when they saw Mirai staring at them from the dark. It didn’t help that the girl’s white complexion almost made her ghostly.

“What were you two doing outside?” Mirai asked, but her question was answered when she saw the canvas and the easel Tomohisa carried in a mighty manner. Her eyes widened when she realized who the two people in the painting were. With no timidity, she strode over to Tomohisa, grabbed the painting and took a good look at it. Her eyes scanned for the artwork’s features at first before her expression turned joyous and she looked at the older man in front of her. “This is so beautiful Tomo-nii!! And for this we’re going to hang it up on the bookstore wall!” Skipping, she carried the finished artwork with her and disappeared through a corner to the store.

Maki and Tomohisa turned to each other, both amused at Mirai’s behaviour. Tomohisa turned away though when he realized he was seriously enjoying watching Maki smile.

“Anou, we should get to sleep shouldn’t we?”

“Y-yeah you’re right.” Maki replied before flashing another one of those smiles.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

Apparently the rain that night continued on for days. When the 6^th day came, the rains and the wind were so strong that classes were suspended. Unfortunately for Ryosuke, he still came for work around the bookstore and now he was stranded there.

Currently Tomohisa and Ryosuke were playing a game of chess, Mirai was catching up on some homework and Maki and Yamaa-san lounged around just talking to each other. The sudden slap of one of the wooden windows unto the pane caught their attention. Tomohisa immediately stood up and reached for it, sealing the two wooden objects with its handles. He turned to Ryosuke and shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry buddy, guess you’re stuck here.”

Ryosuke shrugged in answer, his cheek turning until Yamaa-san stood up and said; “I’ll call your father then Ryou and say you’re staying the night.”

“Thank you Yamaa-san.” Ryosuke said, bowing his head at the old woman. After that Ryosuke and Tomohisa finished their chess game with Ryosuke winning. Tomohisa smiled softly, nudging the boy’s shoulder. “Nice one Ryou.”

Once dinner was finished, they all went to their separated doings, Ryosuke followed Tomohisa to his room since he would be borrowing some clothes for the night.

“Here Ryou, this should be enough ne?” Tomohisa handed Ryosuke a tshirt and a pair of shorts, reaching out to the boy with his back turned. But he waited and no one was retrieving the shirt. He turned around and saw Ryosuke looking at his desk full of papers and sketches. It was too late when he realized why the boy was looking and was now grasping the drawings.

“Are these drawing of Maki-nee!?”

“Ssshhh!!!” Tomohisa swiftly moved, covering Ryosuke’s mouth with his hand. The sound of footsteps caught both of their attention and Tomohisa felt his heart beat faster in nervousness. It was Mirai who came and she wasted no time in finding out what all the noise was about.

“What’s going on here?” The younger Horikita asked, her hands placed lightly on her hips. Still in their earlier position, Tomohisa and Ryosuke looked at each other nervously. Mirai was quicker to move though; she snatched the papers from Ryosuke and moved farther so Tomohisa wouldn’t catch her.

“These are amazing Tomo-nii! And they’re… all drawings of Maki-nee.” A sly smile travelled up Mirai’s lips as she looked at Tomohisa with a twinkle in her eye.