Chapter 656 (1/2)

The cemetery is located on a small hill in the suburbs. My aunt and uncle built my parents' gravesite here because they thought this place is great for its nice view.

For me…… this is a place I've really visited countless times since I was a child.

————Dyear Mama, Papa———— Today is my birthday. Uncle and Aunt both wished me a happy birthday, but I didn't feel happy at all…… Why? Is their greeting not working?

As I slowly walked through the cemetery, I heard a childish voice…… and saw the back of a translucent little child. Holding a tear-stained, wrinkled diary in his hand, he read aloud in front of the grave, as if he was in the middle of a book report presentation.

……Thinking about it, I guess I didn't really understand the meaning of my parents' death at that time.

I thought that Mom and Dad had just gone to a faraway place where I couldn't see them easily, and that they would come back someday…… So I started writing in my diary as if I were writing a letter to them.

Before I knew it, it became a habit, and I began to start my diary by addressing my parents.

————Dyear Mother, Father———— I also played online games today. I met a newbie named Hibis-kun and decided to teach him some things. That's right, if I remember correctly, we met at……

After another short walk, I saw another translucent guy, a little older than the previous one, somewhere between the age where one considers them a boy and a young man. He was holding a thick diary in his hand, and was reading it page by page to the grave.

Thinking about it again, I think it was at that time…… when it seemed like the amount of diary entries I made per day had rapidly increased. That was because I was writing in my diary every spare moment I have. I wrote just about everything that came to my mind, from the most trivial conversations to my state of mind at that time……

Perhaps, even the reason why I started playing online games…… it was just to create a topic to report to Mom and Dad.

That's why, even though I had been playing extremely often, I don't think there are any events that left that much of an impression on me, except for the memories I had playing with Hibis-kun…… Aoi-chan.

————Dear Mother, Father———— I have been accepted to a university. I didn't have any particular goal or a dream that I wanted to achieve, so I chose to attend a nearby university. Mom was a person who had lots of dreams, weren’t you? You also wanted to make all of them come true…… I still remember that you had this little memo pad with a list of dreams you wanted to achieve. However, I just can't seem to find a dream of my own. There's nothing I wanted to have, there's nothing I wanted to achieve…… Still holding unto this empty feeling, I feel like only my body has grown up and became an adult.

Crouching in front of the graves, and with the diary in hand, the young man read it as if he was talking to the graves…… was the me of just a short time ago. Looking at the young man objectively like this, I can really see it.

The fact that I hadn't come to terms with the death of my parents at all…… It was evident with the mountains of diaries I wrote. Every time I finished one, I went to the cemetery and read it out page by page in front of Mom and Dad's graves.

I should have known by now that I wouldn't get a reply, and yet……

Perhaps, I was scared. I was afraid that if I quit writing the diary, my memories of Mom and Dad would fade away. That's why, I continued writing in my diary…… and continuously wrote letters to my deceased parents. With such state of mind, even though my everyday life was repetitive and without change, I continued writing.

————The other world was at peace.

However, only a year ago…… the diary, which had no content, started being dyed in new colors.

————The story began.

It really felt like a stopped clock had started moving again…… it was moving slowly, yet I can clearly see it move forward……

————Being able to depend on someone……

Yes, an impetus appeared. Holding my hand, she pulled me forward.

————Fell in love.

Still, it had made me properly make my own choice and started walking.

————I'm getting closer to Kuro……

I wonder when it happened? That my time wasn't enough anymore, that I wasn't able to write about things in my diary every single day anymore……

————Filled with happiness.

I wonder when it started? That I started spending less and less time on writing my diary……

————From friends, to lovers.

I wonder, since when? That I started to feel nostalgic when I wrote in my diary……

————I want to protect that smile.

Before I knew it, Mom and Dad had started becoming memories.

————I was able to say ”I'm home”.

There shouldn't have been anything I wanted. There shouldn't have been any dream I wanted to achieve.

————Because our hearts are connected.

However…… I found my precious treasure…… in this other world.

————I'm going to live in this world.

Before I knew it, my eyes, which had only seen the past, started looking forward to the future.

————I think it's because I was able to grab it with my own power.

The things I treasure keep increasing to the point where I can't hold them within my hands, and the future I wanted shone brighter and brighter.

————I think it made me a little stronger.

Even so, I think that ”that”, which I had been holding onto for a long time, still lingers within my heart.

————I guess that is what people call bonds.

It was something that I had to face at some point. But for a long time, I couldn't find the courage to face it.

————My knees didn't bend and I was able to stand up.

I have received so many things. I was touched by the kindness of people countless times. And then…… I regained the courage to walk forward.