against the sea breeze, I sat shoulder to shoulder beside the badly shaped Ryosuke, in silence for at least an hour. no one spoke, I was stripped off my vocabulary. he seemed to want that quietness, at the same time, the accompany. I'm glad that my presence could at least help in a way. the sound of the waves could do a bit of calming of the nerves. even I, for one who never enjoyed Mother Nature, felt that it was music to the ear.

I looked at his bandaged hand and remembered what he said a whole hour ago.   promising to get back as soon as possible, I dashed to the nearest pharmacy to get ointment for burns and cleansing liquid. while I cleaned his hands, he was almost like a statue, staring into the sea, with tears rolling down in slow frequencies; I expected some stinging pain, but there was not a slight reaction from him. I knew he was numb from whatever heartaches he has. then he spoke.   "thanks and sorry for everything today. I really messed up big time"   "a-are you okay now?" I am shaking when I'm asking, cause I'm really afraid I'll say something wrongly that triggers off a stronger reaction from his already vulnerable state of mind.   "I'll never be okay, Mirai~" his statement appalled me beyond words.   "Mirai~" then he called my name once more, causing my body to stiffen this time.   "you don't mind spending my birthday with me, do you?"   "a-ah of course i don't mind. that was my intention...b-but your family, are they s-spending time with you too?"   "no. it's only me."   "did something happen? was it about your family? did y'all quarrel?"   "just take it as that. actually, I lied to you guys. I am not staying with my family..."   "w-why?"   "don't ask please, Mirai" he begged, and I've no choice but to curb my curiosity. he took a slice of the cake and munched on it, forcing a deliberate faint smile on his face, and I did likewise, only that my smile never showed. and that was how the silence dragged...   an idea popped out that broke the silence. i looked at my watch and realised the time is right.   "Ryosuke~"    "hmm?" he turned and looked at me with those tiresome eyes.   "wanna come my house? we'll be just in time for dinner~"   "thanks for the offer but I'll be imposing on your family~ if you need to go, you can go ahead."   "no, no. I insist. my parents will love having you with us today. I won't tell them it's your birthday, if you don't want it. so just take it as a homemade dinner"    i could see hesitation in his eyes, and thought perhaps i should give a bit more push. i gathered my courage and did what i thought would be best. I can't possibly leave him sitting in this cold breeze the whole night, i can't leave him alone in this state either. My family makes good hospitality, and since he appeared to have fell out with his family, maybe showering him with some familial love would mend his heart.   "Mirai~" he called. I pulled him by his arm and dragged him out of the place, without giving up to his resistance. But his struggles this time wasn't as strong as earlier. I thought maybe he does want to come along, maybe he is hungry too.   Again, the enclosed space in the cab made my heart thump fast and loud. Why am I like this everytime he's around me. Shida Mirai, can you please stop your hopeless imagination. A perfect guy like Ryosuke will never be interested in you. But whenever I convinced myself this, he would do something out of the world to make me fall deeper into the bottomless well "take me sweater, your arms are freezing."   he must have realised when I was pulling him earlier. Frankly, the seabreeze is chilling. but he is no better, his limbs are cold too. I couldn't accept his offer. Instead, my recklessness brought us a whole lot closer. I cuddled up beside him and spread his sweater across the 2 of us. He looked at me, appalled by my action, and when I realised the awkwardness of my suggestion, all I could say was "this way, we're both warm." and his smile returned.   Frustrated I am, when the cab drove at a fast speed and we reached the entrance to my house in nearly half the time. If only time could stretch a little longer cause I became so comfortable with the citrus scent and warmth radiating from the subtle collision of our skin.   I was a little nervous, as I was afraid he would be disappointed by the look of my house. We aren't from the upperclass, and from the look of Ryosuke, I could tell he's much more well to do than I am.   "okasan!" I opened the door to my house, and I could already smell the pipping hot dishes spread across the table. I am proud of my mum, for she could prepare a sumptous dinner within such short notices when I sent her a message before we left.   "ah, is this your friend...?" her eyes was boggling over Ryosuke, and it became really awkward when she does that. "okasan, stop that. sorry about my mum. Hi, I'm Mirai's elder brother, Daiki... Long time no see, ne" Daiki stretched out his hand to Ryosuke and they exchanged a firm handshake, though Ryosuke's was stunned by his introduction. "don't you remember? I'm the valedictorian during the graduation and you were the first year student assistant who tended to the small-big matters," Daiki explained, and only then Ryosuke seemed to recall.   "ah, I remember now. Daiki senpai!" Daiki threw his arm around Ryosuke and insisted to show him around. "oi nichan" I showed him a bit of frustration when he made such decisions by himself. "It was supposed to be my job to show him around"....   "If it was you, then Ryosuke won't see the interesting stuff you have. I'll make a better tour guide" Daiki winked cheekily, and immediately I realised what he meant. Ahhhhhh those guys photos of my schoolmates.... Yuma, Ryunosuke...ahhhh is there Ryosuke's tooo? OMG!   "nichan!" I  pulled his collar and jumped on his back, giving Ryosuke quite a shock. "ITAIII, BAKA get offf meee...See Ryosuke, that's the true Mirai... I bet she has been acting feminine in front of you.... trust me, that's not her~" I quickly cupped his mouth when he tried to defame me further. Ryosuke was chuckling by the side and my mum came over to control the scene. She put her arm over Ryosuke's shoulder, and tugged him nicely under her arms and yelled at us, "stop it you two, you guys are scaring our friend". I could see and hear Ryosuke's laughter which later turned into a genuine smile, and that was enough to relief me from my worries since I saw him in such shakened state. In the end, my mum forced Daiki to give her a hand, so leaving me to guide Ryosuke around.   "The furnishing in your house is really nice, it gives off a strong sense of home," he said as he trailed behind my footsteps.   "arigatou" I giggled, but I quickly tensed up when he wandered into my room. "Ryosuke, er... that's my room...it's too messy..." it was too late to drag him out. He is already inside.   "ahhh I see what your brother mean" he broke out in laughters. Before he could scan the room, I tackled him from the back and covered his eyes with my hands, and he tried to break off my grip, and the whole scene turned out to be a mess. We twirled and turned and I totally lost track of what happened. All I recalled was tripping over his foot, and before I know it, I was leaning on something warm and supple. There was a gentle grip around my wrist...   "Mirai~" his voice recalled my senses, and I realised I was leaning on his chest, and the bo