Chapter 26: No Place Like Home
Chapter 26
Megumi sat in complete silence inside the black van, his gaze fixed on the streets as they flew by. His eyes were still tear-stained and slightly bloodshot; he was able to see a bare reflection of himself in the shaded glass windows.
Watching his sister leave was harder than he had imagined, and watching Yuki cry was perhaps the toughest part of what he had to go through. Back then, it felt like an eternity, but looking back at it now, everything had happened so fast, and he couldn’t get it out of his head.
The scene continued to resurface in his mind, and each time he thought of Yuki’s resolve, a subtle smile would appear on his face. Then what always followed was the moment when his sister walked up to him and grabbed his hands.
He touched his face a few times, trying to remember what her touch felt like. It felt surreal and once again had him pondering a different perspective on what his sister was actually like.
But more than that, a single thought circumscribed all the others as his eyes dwelled on the marvelous scenery around him. It was a question he wanted to ask Gekka, but he thought it could wait until they finally returned home.
Now, though, there was a different problem pressing down on his shoulder. He tilted his head slightly, looking over at the slender, red-haired girl currently resting with her head on his shoulder. He could feel the warm air from her breath each time she exhaled linger on his neck.
It was displeasing but not too uncomfortable, and besides, he couldn’t do much about it because she was sleeping, taking stale rhythmic breaths as her mind was drowned in darkness.
His gaze lingered on her shoulder, and then it went up to her face, where his eyes remained intently fixed for a while. Her face was puffy and tear-stained, her cheeks flushed, and her eyelids swollen, a testament to the tears she had shed an hour ago.
Gently placing his hand on her shoulder, he held her still and slowly pulled his hand away, and then he used his other hand to support her head. It took him a while to keep her hair straight so as not to have it tangled.