Natsume stood up and, surrounded by her mother’s arm, both of them left the kitchen, leaving Katsuhiro alone while astonished. Before closing the door, Kaori looked at her husband askance, with cold eyes. Mother and daughter went upstairs and arrived into Natsume’s room, that remained the same as the last time: there was just a bed and a desk, but all over the room there were signals indicating that there were once a lot of things there: posters, books, a figure or trophy. Everything Natsume took away when she was kicked out of the soccer club and her father took with a conceited smile. The only difference is that the bed was perfectly arranged. As Natsume removed her dirty clothing, her mother took out a pajama from the wardrobe. Natsume wore it, got inside the bed and Kaori tuck her in. A childish thing perhaps, but both of them needed that small affection proof. However, Kaori didn’t want to leave yet.

-Hey… do you mind if I sit here with you for a while?- asked the mother.

Gently smiling, Natsume sat on her bed, moved a bit to the side to make some space for her mother and Kaori sat there by her side, moving her arm over her daughter’s shoulders and leaning her head on Natsume. The teen enjoyed the moment, but her mother looked at the room sadly.

-You know? I remember the day we took all your things...- said Kaori, making Natsume look up. -I also remember coming here sometimes while you were away, looking for some hint about your whereabouts. But now it’s the first time I notice… how empty your room actually is.

-Yeah...- answered Natsume breafly while looking around. -All those things made me remember my mistake. And anyways, dad wanted me to take them way, so I thought they would just make me feel sadder. I’m missing some things now…

Kaori looked at her daughter. She could see melancholy filling her eyes. There weren’t just soccer things: there were mementos and pictures with her friends. She guessed her daughter didn’t wawnt to see the memories of a lost friendship.

-This is how you felt inside, right?- Kaori continued. -You felt… empty. Not only did you lose your friends, but also the trust in everybody, including us. I guess you blamed us a lot. I’m so sorry.

-You have already apologized enough, mom- answered Natsume placing her right hand over her mother’s. -Actually, I blamed myself all this time. I thought everything that happened was some kind of punishment after hurting Sacchan and I had to accept it. I never blamed you or my friends…

The mother didn’t say anything, but she took her daughter’s hand with hers. With no words, her message was clear: she didn’t have to feel like that. Each one felt guilty and accepted their responsibility.

May I ask you something?- asked Natsume and the teen just nodded. -You… haven’t been completely honest, right?

-What?- exclaimed Natsume shocked.

-It’s not that, sweetheart, I know you told us the truth- said Kaori sweetly. -But I feel one specific detail doesn’t match.

Kaori made a playful smile, but Natsume couldn’t understand her.

-You said before that you were afraid of losing your friends, and I’m sure losing them affected you, of course. However… I think “your friends” was a very… open concept. I actually believe you weren’t afraid of losing them all, but someone really specific. Am I right?

The teen opened her eyes as wide as possible and looked at her mother. She was right: what really saddened her was losing Sacchan, but… did she know? Kaori’s face looked happy, even a bit playful. Natsume didn’t know how much her mother knew, but she felt she could trust her. She blushed and nodded slightly.

-Well, you don’t have to tell me if you aren’t ready yet- added Kaori-, but…

-No… no, you're right- murmured Natsume. -For me… what made me sad was… losing Sacchan. She’s really, really important for me. The truth is… I like Sacchan. I like her a lot, mom. And well… she likes me too, a lot, and well… we want to be together and… maybe you don’t understand…

But Kaori understood perfectly. She could see that special sparkling on her daughter’s eyes that she always had when the two girls were together. The mother didn’t know when it happened, or even that her daughter had those interests, but seeing her daughter opening her heart, she couldn’t help but hugging her.

-I’m so happy for both of you, my dear- said Kaori.

Natsume was overwhelmed with happiness. She could feel the honest affection from her mother with those words. Both teens were worried about their families accepting them (although they already knew Sacchan’s family wouldn’t approve it), but know her mother supported them made her so happy. Natsume held her mother’s arm tightly during the hug. After being released, Natsume could see her mother’s smile.

-Are you really OK?- asked Natsume.

-Of course I am, sweetheart- answered Kaori. -I never imagined you could like girls, but I think it’s great.

-Did you… know something?- asked Natsume.

-I had my suspicions- explained Kaori. -Your face always looked so bright whenever you were with Sacchan or talked about her. You had fun with all your friends, sure, but it was different with her. You had… a different aure surrounding you.

-Really?- asked Natsume as she blushed. -I didn’t even know back then…

-Well, sometimes there are things we don’t realize, including our own feelings- said Kaori with a light smile. -Sometimes the only thing you can do is waiting until those things suddenly open and then… everything makes sense.

Natsume couldn’t help but smiling dumbly. She began thinking of all the things Sacchan and her could do now that her mother knew about them, but then…

-Wait, don’t tell her parents, please!- Natsume begged her mother, making her look serious. -They… they are not good… regarding this…

-Oh, wow...- murmured Kaori. -It’s true that her parents always looked a bit… reticent, but I see now it’s more than that. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anybody unless you say something. And you can tell Sacchan she’s welcome in this house to express herself and being together with you without nobody interfering. Although, in the current situation… I wouldn’t tell your father anything yet.

-I don’t really want to tell him- added Natsume. -It’s not just all this, but… I never felt I could trust him, he never showed any affection to me. And now… I may be harsh but, I don’t know what I feel for him right now.

-Yeah, me neither…- murmured Kaori.

A brief silence. For Natsume, her father became a stranger, or she felt he always was one. However, she didn’t know her mother felt the same. A sudden thought came to her mind.

-Mom, what day is it? I know it’s weird, but I kinda lost the flow of time- said Natsume giggling.

-Today is Wednesday, dear- answered Kaori.

If it was Wednesday, next morning would be Thursday… that implied she had to go back to school. She leaned her head back to the headboard.

-I’m scared of going back to school tomorrow...- said Natsume. -People gossiped about me before… Now I will be the focus of all the stares and rumors…

-Well, you just came back…- said Kaori. -I will calle the police now to tell them you’re safe, and tomorrow morning I’ll call your counselor to say the same. If you want, you can take some rest days. You don’t have to go back immediately.

-No- answered Natsume firmly. -I don’t want to delay it, it’s better to go back now. Actually, I feel I tried to run away from all my problems and erase everything that happened, but… if I want to move forward and build a future for me and Sacchan, I have to face the challenges in my way. However, I’m worried some vandals I fought before may seek revenge.

-OK, one step at a time- said Kaori while organizing her thoughts. -If you feel confident about going back, then go ahead, but remember: you just focus on your own path. What everybody say doesn’t matter: do your thing, OK? Anyway, Sacchan will be there as well, and I’m sure she won’t leave you alone now that you are closer than ever, so to say. Regarding the vandals, if you ever feel you are in danger, tell your teachers or even call the police if necessary, understood? I will explain to them when I call them later.

Natsume nodded as she listened to her mother. She was right: the teen was not alone and never was. There was people who could help her. That was one of her defects: she tried to solve her problems by herself to not annoy anybody else. She would do right this time. Natsume felt tired after talking for so long, so Kaori tuck her in once again, kissed her on her forehead and left the room, closing the door behind her. She felt relieved: she got her daughter back and felt way better, but now she had her own problems to face. She went downstairs and a voice came out of the kitchen:

-What have you been talking about?- asked Katsuhiro loudly.

Kaori ignored her husband and went towards the phone. After some seconds, she talked to the police.

-Hi, I’m Kaori Kumojima. That’s right. I wanted to notify that my daughter just came back home. Yeah, that’s right. Yes, she’s fine. No, there’s no need for ambulance, she’s not hurt or… Oh, all right, I’ll go tomorrow to the station when you are open to withdraw the missing person report. Yes, I will call her highschool tomorrow to tell them as well. She will go back tomorrow. By the way, my daughter’s worried about the people she fought looking for her, maybe…? All right, just as I told her: she will call you immediately if something happens. Thank you so much for all your help during these hard weeks. Thank you, I don’t think anything else will happen, but I will call you if necessary. Good night.

When she hung up, the husband appeared through the kitchen door.

-Oh, now she wants to go back to school?- asked Katsuhiro with irony.

Once again, Kaori ignored him and went upstairs again. In the upper floor, there were three rooms: Natsume’s, the one the couple shared and a third room that served as an office for a while, but since Katsuhiro stopped using it, it become some sort of “improvised guest room”… although they never had guests for the night. Kaori went first to her bedroom, where she picked a futon and a blanket and took them to the guest room. She left them on the desk and made some space between all the boxes and things left on the floor, both from them and Natsume. Some seconds later, as she placed the futon on the floor, Katsuhiro appeared on the door.

-What are you doing?- asked Katsuhiro surprised.

-I’m preparing this room- answered Kaori with a severe tone. -From now on, I will sleep here every night.

Those words astonished Katsuhiro.

-Wait, what do you mean? Why are you sleeping here?- kept asking Katsuhiro.

-Why? Simple: I don’t remember ever marrying a cruel, horrible and heartless monster. And since I never married such a monster, I’m not going to sleep in the same bed as one.

Then, Kaori stood up quickly, slammed the door and locked it. She expected her husband hitting the door, but the only thing she heard was “I don’t get it”. After a while, the door of her “old room” slammed as well. The woman felt tired, so she finished preparing her bed, only removed her apron and skirt and going inside the bed just wearing her blouse. Sure, she was surrounded with boxes and it wasn’t the prettiest room in the house. However, as strange as it was, now that Natsume was back and Katsuhiro was not in that room, she felt… happy. So happy that she curled and slept as she had barely done for the last two weeks.