No matter what happens, he will remain by her side. He will be loyal to her until his last breath and if there is a life after death he will correct all his mistakes towards her.
Sumire is the most precious thing to him in this world.
But she isn't his. From the very start, she has never liked him.
There is somebody I can't forget, even then do you still want to date me?
The words she said back then echoed in his head. When he first asked her out, she said something like that.
"I was surprised you called me. I thought I was doing a good job of hiding." A familiar voice said, breaking his thoughts.
Sano sighed when he saw his visitor, "Ha? As if." He watched the pale blonde-haired boy sit on the wooden branch of a tree beside him. "Hamano will kill you; no, he has every intention of doing so. Going off and pretending to be missing."
While Hamano Atushi has remained a neutral party, according to the reports from his people, Hamano has fervently searched for this person.
He had already heard plenty of the small boy's rants.
"Ichinose."
Yes, this person was the one Sumire most likely had feelings for. Yet she probably will never be able to tell him, all the others including himself aside.
"Did you know from the start?"
"I can't say I did. But I was suspicious and conducted my investigation afterwards. However, since he was actually around that time, it was quite difficult. I only just put the final pieces together two days ago."
Sano sighed. "Once again, you did things in a roundabout way. I don't like that about you." He trails off, "That basketball match too."
After he learned about Sumire and Ichinose Arashi, there was a foolish time where he challenged Ichinose to a basketball match. That time he won, but Sumire was not impressed at all. She went home with him, but they ended up arguing.
Arashi's gaze turned soft. "Are you reminiscing?"
"There's no need to."
That's right; there wasn't any need to do something like that anymore. No matter how much he thinks about the past, those days will never return. What he needs to do now is focus on the present. He needs to find a way to get Ibuki Sumire to willingly return to his side.
"But this is surprising; you knew how to get in touch with me?"
Sano sighed. "Even if you hide, my connections are good."
He watched as Ichinose looked towards the house. "You want to see her? Go ahead; she probably isn't asleep."
"Two weeks ago, I accidentally ran into her when she was on her date with Terashima."
"I see."
"You know, before Mamoru passed away, I lectured him a little."𝑓ree𝑤𝘦𝚋𝐧𝘰ve𝑙. co𝒎
"You lectured him?"
Arashi nodded. "I saw him do foolish things like talking to people who would help Sumire in the future. But that lecture did no good because the next day I saw him speak to Terashima."
"To Terashima?"
"It was the first time I saw him so angry.
'Don't be an idiot. We all know that between everyone - between everyone who likes her. You're the one she holds dearest in her heart. You've always been by her side; you've always been protecting her. Your the only one who knows her pain, the only one who understands her. You're the only one'." Arashi repeated.
Sano dropped the cigarette when he heard those words. "Those are the words Tsueno said?"
"Yeah. Imagine how it felt when I heard that? I didn't know that the guy Sumire had in mind was Terashima Yuhi. I always assumed it was Mamoru and that she couldn't express her emotions properly. But that was not an act at all; she has always loved Terashima."
"How come?" Sano mumbled. No matter how he looked at it, he was better than Terashima in every aspect. Why does she love him so deeply?"
"That is something between the two of them."
"You are not helpful."
She didn't even need to ask him something like that. From the very start, he had been towards her. From the very start, their fates had already been entangled with each other.
"Hey, what do you think my chances are now?" Sano asked.
"Wow, I did not expect that from you."
"Shut up and just answer."
It was brave of him to ask this person that question. This guy differs from all the other guys who like her. But that is the reason he asked. If it is this person, surely he can tell.
Sano half expected him to joke around again, yet instead, a serious expression appeared on his face. "It hasn't changed since then. You're still my greatest rival for her."
At that, his eyes went wide. "Truthfully, I expected you two to start dating again. Back then, you two were already close with each other after all. And slowly, you began to stop holding yourself back; I guess I was afraid. That's probably why I never directly said it, even though I had plenty of chances to do so. Pretty cowardly, huh?"
No, it wasn't cowardly.
It was anything but that.
Sano slumped on the ground. "You're an annoying guy."
Arashi laughed. "If you find me annoying, what about Mamoru-san and Terashima?"
"On another level," Sano mumbled. "This feels like a group of losers hanging together and brooding because we can't even take first or second in her heart."
"We can't replace those two, but we can still be there for her."
"I don't want to hear it from the guy who keeps running away."
"Says the one who keeps using forceful measures on her."
Sano recalled the red mark from her wrist earlier and ran his hands through his hair with a troubled look. "I would rather turn into a devil if it means stopping her from hurting herself."
"Sumire isn't weak."
"I know she isn't," Sano mumbled. He already conducted his investigation. He understood that a lot happened in the time he did not see her. No, even back when they dated, there were times where she snuck off and did something. Back then, he never pried, but he occasionally saw her with strange people. It is not like he does not know. But even then, Sano recalled the menacing presence of that man.
"Sumire cannot match him."
Arashi frowned. "Did you meet him after all?"
"Two weeks ago, that guy summoned me. But I did not see his face directly; he hid behind a screen."
But he did not have to see the man's face to know that he was bad news.
"I've never seen you look so spooked before. Is he that dangerous?"
Sano looked away but realized there was no use hiding it. "Yeah." It was the first time in his life that he has ever felt such fear. No matter what happened, he has remained calm. But the last two weeks, he has been on edge. What is with that guy? How can another human be so scary?
To his surprise, Ichinose was calm. "I don't think you've seen Sumire fight before."
"That is beside the point-"
Arashi shook his head. "You need to see for yourself first; then you can decide who is scarier. You can decide then which side you should stand on. But I don't think the current you can hurt her, even if you have to pretend."
This guy is acting high and mighty again. But he is right. He has never seen Sumire fight before; who knows, maybe she can match that person?
Also, he just lied; that was the second time he felt such fear. The first time was when she threatened to kill him when he followed her that time.
Perhaps if it is Sumire, she can fix all this?