Chapter 17: Xiao Hei’s Secret Thoughts

Yurihana Arisu stopped her excited daughter, wrapped her up tightly, and sent her out the door.

“Don’t run around, okay? Remember to come home for lunch.”

She ruffled Yoriko Arisu’s hair.

“Got it——”

Yoriko Arisu first went to Kotsume’s house to wake him up, then took him to find Kuro.

“Kuro was acting weird yesterday. I wonder if he’s feeling better today.”

She said to Kenma Kotsume beside her as she knocked on the door, and was met with a listless Kuro.

Tetsurou Kuroo’s hair was a mess, his eyes were red, and his whole demeanor was as if he had lost ten points in a row to the opposing server.

He looked so down that the other two were stunned.

Yoriko Arisu: “Kuro, what’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare?”

Tetsurou Kuroo shook his head.

“Did you come to see me for something?”

Yoriko Arisu and Kenma Kotsume exchanged glances.

Kenma Kotsume spoke first.

“To play in the snow with you.”

Tetsurou Kuroo: “Sorry, I’m not in the mood today.”

The door closed… or rather, was blocked.

Tetsurou Kuroo and Kenma Kotsume stared in surprise at their childhood friend who did this.

The black-haired girl racked her brains for the right words.

“I think… I think we can’t just leave you alone right now!”

Kenma Kotsume tugged at her sleeve.

“If Kuro doesn’t want to talk, that’s okay.”

Everyone has secrets, things they can’t share with others.

Besides, he had a vague idea of what had happened.

“Is it something you can’t tell us?”

Yoriko Arisu looked a little sad.

“Before, whenever I fought with Kenma, Kuro would help us make up. I want to help you too.”

She lowered her head, relaxing her grip on the door.

Seeing her expression, Tetsurou Kuroo opened the door instead.

“…No, I think it’s fine to tell you.”

They went to the riverside where they used to play volleyball.

The walk was silent, Tetsurou Kuroo adjusting his emotions, the other two waiting for him to settle down.

“My mom doesn’t want me anymore.”

He finally spoke.

Tetsurou Kuroo was a sensible child.

He had a premonition when his father took him away to live with his grandparents, but it wasn’t until this special day, New Year’s, that it became real.

Kuroo’s mother often traveled for work, so at first he didn’t notice anything wrong.

Or rather, he forced himself not to notice.

Until this year, when his mother and sister didn’t come home for New Year’s.

No matter how busy things were before, the family would always eat soba noodles together.

But this year, there was only a phone call—just a couple of rushed words before hanging up.

It was like the problem he’d pretended not to see or hear had suddenly exploded, and he couldn’t ignore it any longer.

He asked his father, and learned his parents had divorced.

Honestly, he didn’t really understand what divorce meant, but he knew his mother wouldn’t be living with him anymore.

Even her belongings had disappeared from the house.

He had sensed it vaguely, but when his suspicions were confirmed, he cried all night and barely slept.

Tetsurou Kuroo spoke his feelings in broken words.

He hadn’t meant to cry, but when he saw his friends’ concerned eyes, the tears came anyway.

Big, heavy drops fell on the snow and were quickly absorbed, disappearing without a sound.

“Is it because I wasn’t obedient enough that my mom doesn’t want me anymore?”

He sobbed, his voice thick with tears.

Yoriko Arisu fumbled to wipe his tears with her own gloves. Kenma Kotsume spoke calmly.

“If you didn’t notice, then it’s probably a problem between the adults.”

Tetsurou Kuroo thought, Dad said the same thing.

It’s not that they stopped loving each other, but over time, life ground them down.

Love was buried beneath heavier and more trivial matters, until it was hard to see.

Two people who came together in their student days for passionate love, after the passion faded, found themselves growing apart due to different work schedules and interests, until they decided to part amicably.

Tetsurou Kuroo didn’t quite understand his father’s words.

He just knew it would probably be hard to see his mother from now on.

Tetsurou Kuroo’s tears kept flowing. Yoriko Arisu’s gloves were soaked, but she still couldn’t wipe them all away.

She sighed helplessly, closed her eyes, steeled herself, and hugged Tetsurou Kuroo’s head, burying it in her scarf.

“Cry if you want to. It’s okay once you let it out.”

At worst, she’d just have to wash it later, though it was a shame about her cute Eevee Scarf.

Yoriko Arisu held Tetsurou Kuroo’s head, patting his back gently with her hand, then gave Kenma Kotsume a meaningful look.

Kenma Kotsume got the message.

He swallowed the words, “This looks really silly,” and hugged Tetsurou Kuroo too.

With two scarves wrapped around him, Tetsurou Kuroo felt like he could barely breathe.

The three of them huddled together, looking a little ridiculous.

No one knew how long it was before Tetsurou Kuroo’s emotions finally calmed.

He sniffled, looking a bit embarrassed, his cheeks red.

To think he bawled like this in front of his younger friends—it was kind of humiliating.

“…Thank you.”

Because Tetsurou Kuroo had run out without breakfast, the three of them went to the konbini and ate some hot oden.

Yoriko Arisu treated them with her New Year’s Money.

Kenma Kotsume squinted in satisfaction, not wanting to leave the warm konbini.

After crying and filling his stomach, Tetsurou Kuroo’s mind had room to wander again.

He said, “If we get married in the future, will we end up like this too?”

“After all, neither of you are interested in volleyball… You only play because I asked.”

All his anxieties spilled out.

Yoriko Arisu: “Of course not! Even though we started because you pulled us in, volleyball is fun too.”

She turned to Kenma.

“Right, Kenma?”

“…Yeah.”

Kenma Kotsume nodded.

He hadn’t agreed to the three of them getting married, but now wasn’t the time to poke at Kuro’s sore spot.

“If I really didn’t want to, I’d refuse.”

Yoriko Arisu: “See? Kenma says so too, so don’t worry.”

Tetsurou Kuroo smiled, looking relieved.

“I’m glad I met you two.”

“Alright!”

Yoriko Arisu jumped off the chair, dragged the other two out of the konbini, then let go.

She bounced in place, inviting them.

“Let’s have a snowball fight!”

Tetsurou Kuroo was a little confused.

“Eh?”

He wasn’t sure how the topic had changed so suddenly.

Kenma Kotsume: “…Didn’t we say we’d build a snowman earlier?”

Yoriko Arisu had already started making a snowball by hand—she stuffed her tear-stained gloves into her pocket and insisted,

“We can do that too, but let’s play snowballs first!”

Kenma Kotsume gave up on being sensible and started speed-walking home, but still got hit by a snowball.

Loose snow fell from the back of his head to the ground.

Kenma Kotsume was quiet for a moment, then bent down with a ferocious face and began his counterattack.

Yoriko Arisu dodged Kenma Kotsume’s attack, grabbed Tetsurou Kuroo’s hand with her snow-chilled fingers, and ran off.

Tetsurou Kuroo followed her reflexively, squeezing the black-haired girl’s hand tighter to pass his warmth over.

Their intertwined hands grew steadily warmer.

Yoriko Arisu beamed.

“This way, when Kuro remembers today, there won’t be only sad memories—he’ll also remember how much fun we had playing in the snow.”

“I don’t want you to only remember sadness when you see snow.”