“Sorry?” Keishin shut the curtains. “For what?”
“Bad weather follows me around.”
“Really?” Keishin wrinkled his forehead. “The weather hates me too.”
“You are making fun of me. But it is true. I am certain that you have noticed that wherever we go, the sky soon shows its disapproval.”
“I have, but I assumed that it was because of—” The record skipped and stalled. The room shook beneath Keishin’s feet, sending him staggering against a wall.
“Kei! Your song!” Hana yelled over the rumbling of wood and bricks.
Keishin clutched the windowsill to keep from stumbling.
“Sing it in your head.Now.”
Keishin squeezed his eyes shut, summoning the song’s notes. The record resumed playing. The quake stopped.
“You got distracted,” Hana said. “The song cannot stop. You must empty yourself of thoughts that might keep it from playing in the back of your mind.”
“This is how people get lost at sea,” Keishin said, swallowing the realization that had lodged in his throat like a rock.
“Yes. That is why no matter what happens, you must not let go of the song,” Hana said. “Or me.”
“I won’t. I promise.” Keishin sat next to her, wiping cold sweat from his brow. “I won’t put you in any more danger than I already have. The Shiikuin wouldn’t be chasing us if not for me.”
“You may have chosen to stay, but I chose to let you. It was…the first real choice I made in my life.”
“Is that a good or bad thing?”
“I…don’t know yet.”
Keishin rested his neck on the couch.
“And how about you? Are you regretting your decision?”
“I’ve been scared and confused more times than I would like, but I don’t regret a single second of my time here.”
“Why?”
“Because…” Keishin sat up, finding his smile.
“Because?”
“Because I get to take you on your first date.”
“I do not recall agreeing to this being a date. Besides, you said that an official date required a view.”
“I did say that, didn’t I?” Keishin smirked, scratching his nape. “I really wish I could have taken you someplace other than this boring apartment. There are so many things and places you would enjoy seeing in my world.”
“Like what?”
“I would have loved to take you around my university. The campus is especially lovely at this time of year. The maple trees in the courtyard know how to put on a good show.”
Hana nodded, her gaze drifting to the window without a view. “There is something about autumn that makes things more beautiful. Out of all the seasons, it is the most honest about time. Summer and spring blind you to its passing with their colorful displays. Winter paints over everything in white.But autumn is not shy about things coming to an end. It welcomes it, waving leafy flags of red, yellow, and gold. It celebrates its sadness.”
“Not just sadness though, right?” Keishin said. “It’s also a celebration of all that is waiting on the other side of it.”
“Yes,” Hana said, surprised by how quickly she agreed with him when, only a day ago, she thought the season meant only melancholy. Like his dimpled smile, Keishin’s hope was contagious. “That too.”
