The rest of the day was uneventful. Afterward, Conway-san and I traveled to the gates together.

“Peace.”

“Yeah…see you tomorrow.”

With that Conway-san made her way down the eastern street alone. I looked back to my phone and couldn’t get the idea of Ma-chan out of my head. But before I could stare too long, I came to the realization that I had to meet back up with a certain flower. So, I rushed down the street. From the side, my bodyguard jumped out nearly giving me a heart attack.

“There you are. We’re going to miss the train!”

Hana-san abruptly took my hand and started walking with me.

“Eh? You don’t need to hold my hand.”

“We’re doing the same thing as this morning.”

“Oh, come on Hana-san! We don’t need to do that!”

“Mom told me to protect you and I will!”

I’m going to hurt Koda-san if this keeps up!

Luckily, we found two open seats on the train. Hana-san sat down, right next to me.

“Thank god.”

“Did you make friends, Madoka-san?”

“Hm?”

Hana-san stared at me closely, causing me to back up.

“Did you make friends?”

“Oh…yeah I did I guess.”

Satisfied, she nodded then turned back to her manga.

“It might seem a bit awkward at first…but that’ll pass.”

Hana-san spoke like she’s been through the same situation. I understood that Ma-chan isn’t here right now, but Hana-san is. When I mentioned Hana-san at lunch I wanted to tell her more about her, but I couldn’t think of much.

“Hana-san.”

“Yep.”

She flipped to the next page without moving her eyes.

“How about we get off early and buy some ingredients for dinner? You know since Mom and Koda-san won’t be home until late tonight?”

Hana looked up and nodded.

“Sure, I’m fine with that.”

“What’s your favorite food?”

“I’m fine with anything. Don’t worry about me.”

With that she engrossed herself back into the manga. It appears I was asking the wrong questions. With that in mind, I caught eyes with her book.

“What are you reading?”

“Oh?”

She opened the book wide and leaned over to me.

“It’s an Otome romance story about a wolf girl who finds herself in a din of people known as hunters. She’s one of the last ones to…”

Her face glows with excitement but then she stops herself and leans down.

“Nnn…. It’s stupid.”

“Could I read it too?”

“Hm? Are you sure…?”

“Sure, I’ll read it.”

The flower nodded, crossing her arms like a stern old man.

“Okay. It’s 5 volumes and I have all of them. I’ll let you borrow 1 volume a week.”

“Deal.”

I haven’t taken an interest in what Hana-san does, but now that we’re going to be together more often, I want to explore her life. It’s strange to know that this girl knew me years before I knew her. Not only that, but I also want to understand why she is so accepting of my mom and Koda-san’s relationship. Not that them being together is the part I’m curious about. I’m more interested in…how she sees it.

Once we got home, the gentle flower barbarically tossed her bags on the floor and raced upstairs.

“Hana-san! Take your stuff upstairs!”

But she didn't reply. So, instead, I put the food on the table and brought both of our bags up the steps.

“Here!”

I looked at the title of the manga. “A Lonely Howl in the Dark Night.” I wondered why these manga titles have been getting unnecessarily long lately. It’s like the writers are thinking, “The longer the title, the more interesting it has to be.” Or something like that. But before I could go on a tangent, I took hold of the book.

“Cool, I’ll read it before bed.”

“It has cool action in it too. And gore also!”

“Eh?”

“Yep! There’s plenty of bloody parts and the romance is adorable.”

Oh no…I might have gone into this prematurely. I get queasy looking at blood. It’s so nasty and smarmy and…But then I look at the cute flower. How could this adorable thing…read something like that?

“Here, take your books and stuff.”

Hana puffed her cheeks and ripped it from my hand.

“I’m going to make dinner so don’t snack on the chips you bought at the store.”

“Eh? How did you know I bought those?!”

After putting my own stuff away, I made dinner. At the table, we sat eating away at our food. Just as I was about to ask her a question, Hana-san leaped out of her seat.

“I’m done!”

Without even bothering to clean her plate from the table, she rushed up the steps. There I sat alone now not even close to finishing my own meal. I couldn’t understand what made Hana-san decide that she had enough either. Maybe she got bored of the taste? Maybe all she needed was water as her main source of nutrients just like an actual flower? I imagined a field of Hana-sans on a sunny day.

“Cute…”

My mind swirled as I continued to finish my dinner.

The night went on and before I knew it was time for a bath. With my bath soap in hand, I made my way out the door. Before I knew it, I knocked on Hana-san’s door.

“It’s open!”

Her childish voice called out, beckoning me to come in.

There she lied on her bed, kicking her feet as she played her handheld game.

“Hana-san, are you taking a bath tonight?”

“Oh, yeah. You can go in first, Madoka-san.”

As if glued to the light shining from the system, her eyes didn’t turn away. Her tiny feet kicked back and forth as she swung her head.

“Okay.”

With all my stuff already in hand, it would have been natural that I just take the initiative to go in first. But here I was standing outside of her door. It seemed she became immersed in her fictional world. I recalled what happened when Koda-san first came home. Hana-san marched into my room and expressed her true feelings. It was then that I noticed that we were fundamentally different.

At her age, I wouldn’t have been able to convey my feeling so clearly. Now it felt as though I was on the other side of that discussion we had back then. I certainly couldn’t be as decisive as her, but I found myself wanting to close the distance between us. So, I had an idea…

“I was actually wondering if…”

My voice peeked out.

“…We both could go in?”

I heard a sharp noise illuminate from her game. Hana-san likely paused it because she poked her head back to the doorway.

“Hm?”

The spotlight being on me I felt the blood begin to rise to my head.

“Ah…never mind.”

I tried to take back my words, but it was too late. It was already in the air and had filtered into Hana-san’s tiny ears. Again, I didn’t think it through enough before saying it. Only now did it occur to me how strange the idea was.

“Together?”

Her purple eyes gawked at me. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking by her stoic expression. She set her game system aside and sat on the corner of her bed.

I’m doing my best to get closer to Hana-san and even after today it feels as though we’re so far apart. So, I want to at least spend a bit more time together before bed.

“Like…”

Hana-san mumbled something inaudible before nodding to herself.

“A-Are you sure, Madoka-san?”

It didn’t register to me at first. After a brief silence between us I found my eyes turning away from her gaze.

“If you want…that is, Hana-san. It’s okay if you’re not comfortable with it.”

“No…”

Sternly, she replied, standing to her feet.

“I’m, okay with it.”

Hana-san sat properly on the stool. Now showing me her bareback, I noticed how translucent her skin was. I wondered how she kept her skin so pure. I gently filtered my fingers through her hair like a comb. In the nearby cabinet, I selected the shampoo to use. The scent was named “Fresh Winds” which reminded me of the botanical garden that I met her in. Why does she hold up to the name, Hana so well?

“Hm, this one’s yours, right?”

I brought my arms around her, showing her the purple bottle.

“Y-Yep.”

“Hm… I like the smell."

I sniffed the bottle, trying to open a door into a conversation. But Hana-san continued to stare forward without another word. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea after all. She’s been stiff since we entered. We rarely talked but now was a whole new low.

To give myself a motivational push, I slapped my face.

“Huh? Are you okay, Madoka-san?”

“Eh? Yeah, I’m fine.”

It appeared that I hit myself too hard. However, the slap to my face gave me an idea to try out. I took my two fingers and poked her back.

“Ehp!”

Hana-san turned around her face flushed.

"You should probably eat more, Hana-san."

I teased. Her face puffed up like a blowfish. It reminded me of mom from earlier this morning.

"It-It wouldn't matter...I won't grow any bigger… Look at my mom."

She looked down at her stomach…It took me a moment to realize that Hana-san wasn't talking about her height. Reactively, I checked my own. I'm content with what God gave me, thankfully.

“You’re embarrassed, aren’t you Hana-san?”

I taunted, poking her cheeks. I can't help but bully cute things I guess...

“I…I…I am not!”

She crossed her arms. I might have gone too far this time.

“How… aren’t you embarrassed though…Madoka-san?”

I looked up to the ceiling as if trying to catch hold of a few memories. They bounced around my head before one landed in my mind.

“Well, you see, Hana-san…”

Yeah, that’s right. There is a reason why I’m used to this sort of thing.

“When I was young, Ma-chan and I would bathe together at times and that was a fond memory of mine. Even when I was in junior high, we would occasionally.”

“Hmm…Ma-chan?”

Hana-san leaned her head to the floor. The water trickled passed her feet flowing down the nearby drain.

“I heard of her…she’s your childhood friend, right?”

I poured some shampoo in my hand and began rubbing her hair. Her tiny head moved along with me.

“Yeah, she is.”

“I never had someone that close to me before…”

“Hm?”

Her body slumped to the side like a marionette doll that the strings had been cut from.

“Mom and I would move around a lot. Especially when I was in elementary school. After my dad died…”

Before I knew it a topic that I wasn’t prepared for seeped in. I could hear the somber tone of her voice hit against the bathroom walls. I've known that Hana-san's father was out of the picture, but I didn't know it was because he died too.

“So, your dad passed away too?”

Hana-san nodded tenderly. I wouldn't have been able to tell if my hands weren't still caressing her scalp though. That’s how subtle her movements were.

“But unlike you, Madoka-san, I was only 4 years old when it happened. So, I don’t remember him much. I don’t remember crying when it happened either…For all I know…I never had a father.”

My fingers slowed down and eventually; they came to a stop... I had a fair amount of time with my dad before his passing. Hana-san on the other hand had her dad taken from her far sooner.

“But I don’t mind. Mom is all I needed, and she took good care of me.”

Earlier, on the way to school, I asked her if her mom was strange…Hana-san told me that she was just a normal mom to her. I can only imagine how Koda-san had to take care of a 4-year-old child alone.

Koda-san is 29 years old now…That would mean she was taking care of Hana-san alone at the age of 20. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her now.

Just how strong of a person would she have to have been to be widowed at such a young age? And not only that but take care of a child at that age too? It reminded me that there is a great deal that I don’t know about these two.

The lives they led before meeting my mother was still a mystery to me.

It felt like a fire burned in my stomach. Before I knew it, I held her, wrapping my arms against her petite body. They folded over her shoulders and crossed around her chest.

“So, you can say that having both our moms filled that gap. Huh, Hana-san?”

When I straightened up Hana-san’s room I saw the picture of her and Koda-san. They seemed happy, that was certain. But like any staple family in society, there are usually two parents. That left a hole in my chest that I didn’t realize was there until now. Could that be why she calls my mom…mom too? If I look at it like that...

“Eh, what are you doing?!”

I don’t know what came over me, but I just wanted to hold her tight. As if she’d vanish if I didn’t.

“S-sorry, you just made me want to hold you...Hana-san”

“S-Stop it!”

I couldn’t see her expression from behind, but her movements gave me an idea. To try and brighten the mood I decided to pull a prank. Ma-chan would do it to me when I felt down. So, I started tickling her small body. Hana-san sprang up in laughter.

“I-I said stop it!

“I can’t hear you, Hana-san!”

She kept giggling, unable to stop. I felt bad but couldn’t help myself now.

“S-Stop it! I-I said stop! "

She tugged but I pulled her back, closer to me. I held her tight and before I knew it, she cried out…

"Onee-san!”

I let go of her, unconsciously. The blood sprinted to my face as Hana-san turned to me. We gazed at one another. I could see the heat dissipating around her body.

“Ah…”

Maybe I went a bit too far? That’s what I thought but it was too late now.

Hana-san pushed her fingers together. I could see her bright cheeks as she veered to the side. I didn’t know what it could be, but something told me that this word…"Onee-san" has been in her mind for a while now. Maybe I’m not the only one who wanted to get closer to the other?

“S-Sorry, H-Hana-san?”

I started to feel a tad lightheaded. We might have been in here a bit too long. Hana-san however spun around and faced up to me.

“I-Is it too soon for me to call you, Onee-san?”

“Huh?”

The corner of her eyes was wet. I couldn’t tell if it was from her laughing earlier or not though. She then got quiet and whispered.

“…I-If it is, I won't ever say it again…”

She pushed her fingers together like Koda-san did the other day. I've never seen her this flustered. How can I say no to this? So, I put my hand on her head and caressed her silky hair.

“Of course, not... Hana-san. You can call me whatever you want.”

Her face lit up. When I thought about it, Hana-san never had a sister, one older than her neither. But…she has known me since I went into my coma. So, maybe she was wondering when the day would come that she could say…those words to me? But then, that’s just my own interpretation of the matter.

“If it’s not too soon then…”

Her face flushed as she pushed her body close to mine.

“Onee-san…Onee-san…”

Hana-san silently chanted the words to herself. I could see her face grow ruddier by the syllable. She turned back to me with a smile, causing me to clench my chest. I didn’t end up learning much more about her aside from that. But even so, I felt that I’d be able to tell people more about Hana-san now, with confidence.

After we exited the bath, Hana-san and I went our separate ways. I entered my room and rested on the bed. Suddenly my door opened and Hana-san peeked in.

“G-Good night, Onee-san.”

Without waiting for my reply, she shut the door.

“Cute…”

If I could see the smirk on my face, I would surely think I was an idiot.

I turned over to see the manga Hana-san lent to me, lying stubbornly on my nightstand. Curiously, I opened the first few pages revealing a bloodied mess of an image. My stomach churned as I closed the book, harshly.

“I’ll start reading tomorrow instead…for my cute little sister.”