"Dead?"
I asked my dad back.
"What do you mean, Aika is already dead?"
My father spoke with a serious look on his face.
"He died because of me."
"Sir, that's not true!"
Mari shouted.
"My lady, my lady--"
"It's fine. I have to tell the boy the truth."
My dad told Mari to stop.
"It's my fault that Aika took her own life. Listen to me, Shindo."
A heavy atmosphere filled the room. I felt a bit embarrassed to pry into the affairs of someone else's home, but I felt like I had to know. Otherwise, I'd never understand Aihana's feelings.
"yes"
After giving a short answer, my father crossed his arms and began to speak.
"I had two children. They were twins, an older sister named Renka and a younger sister named Aika. They were very close sisters."
"Ugh..."
Mari turned away, but her father didn't seem interested in interrupting her story.
"I was the director of a certain hospital. I forced those children to receive a strict education from a young age. By the time they entered elementary school, I always made them read workbooks and reference books. Whenever they got anything other than 100 points at cram school, I would get furious and slap them."
My father frowned, perhaps remembering that incident.
"It was around the time they entered junior high school. They started yelling at each other even for the smallest of mistakes. Renka was a cheerful girl, but Aika was a bit quieter. That may have been a factor. Aika was bullied.
"Is that the reason...?"
My father gulped down his tea with difficulty.
"Apparently it was horrible. They forced her to attend one of the most prestigious schools in Tokyo and didn't allow her to have any recreational activities. Aika was a target for bullying and was always crying at home, but I didn't even know that. I only heard all of this after the fact. I honestly think I'm the worst parent ever.
It was four months ago that Aika committed suicide. She was accepted into one of the top-ranked high schools in the prefecture, and received an extremely harsh education. Aika left a suicide note and jumped off the school roof.
"But, my husband thought about the young lady--"
"It's okay, Mari. The dead girl didn't think that way. Neither did Renka. As soon as Renka found out about Aika's death, she fainted and was taken to the hospital. By the time she woke up again, the girl had become "Aika."
"Lady Renka looked a lot like Lady Aika. Even I thought that Lady Aika had come back to life."
"That child, for his part, thinks he couldn't save Aika. Unable to bear the physical and mental overload, he convinced himself that Aika was still alive by acting."
Mari said quietly.
"I never thought it would turn out like that. If only I had been more aware of my Lady's feelings..."
"Stop it Mari. Don't talk like that."
I couldn't say anything. My father was trying his best to comfort Mari, who was looking down. What should I say? I couldn't say anything. I had no right to say anything.
"Oh, sorry. That's how it is. Aika is no longer with us."
My dad said as he noticed me.
"I'm sorry for making you listen to this unpleasant story."
"What was written in Aika's will?"
There was a brief silence in response to my question. But then my father immediately replied,
"You want to hear that?"
" was the only reply I received.
"If it's okay to ask."
"...It seems that just before she died, Aika met a male student on the street. She was on her way home after being bullied at school, and was getting wet in the rain in a nearby park. She wrote about the boy she met there. She said that he made her want to live, even if just for a moment. In short, it seems that it was love at first sight."
Dad said that and stared at me intently.
"That's you, Shindo Shin."
"Eh... me?"
"From the looks of it, it seems you don't remember."
My dad didn't seem particularly disappointed.
"But that can't be helped. It only lasted a few minutes, and she just fell in love with a boy who happened to be passing by. But it must have had a tremendous meaning for her."
"I... met Aika..."
"Renka also knows this story. The girl became like that shortly after reading the suicide note. After that, no matter what we said, she was convinced that she was Aihana."
Dad paused for a moment, then,
"Do you like Aika... no, Renka?"
I asked. I knew what my dad meant.
"I don't know yet."
"law"
"I just know that he's hurting right now. There may not be anything I can do. But if there's anything I can do to help him get himself back, I want to."
At that moment, my father took out an envelope and placed it in front of me.
"This is what Aika left behind before she died. I would like to entrust this to you."
Mari looked surprised for a moment, but my father just stared at me. I took the envelope. Written in neat, yet somewhat businesslike handwriting, it said "Suicide Note" on the front.
"He loved you. You deserve him."
My dad laughed at that.
I put the envelope in my bag and stood up.
"I'll be heading home now. Thank you for the tea."
"Are you going home already? Could you please stay a little longer for the sake of the child?"
"My family will be worried. Let me just say one more thing."
I turned to Aika's father.
"You said earlier that it was your fault. That's a convenient phrase, isn't it? Even if you hurt someone, you can get away with saying you didn't mean to."
"...What do you mean?"
My father's expression became grim.
"It's easy to say it's all your fault. It's the same with Aika. In reality, it's your job to help her get back on her feet."
"That's true. I'm also very saddened that my daughter has been put through this. But what can I do? I'm the one who caused all this."
My father seemed to want to play the role of the tragic father.
No, maybe he truly believes that.
Like Koihana.
"You're free to think that way. But is it in Aiha's best interest to feel guilty and carry that feeling for the rest of her life?"
As I continued talking, it became increasingly difficult.
But I have to say it.
Aika is the same as Shiori.
"No matter how much you lament, what you did won't go away, and neither will your hatred. But that's just how human beings are. Every single one of us is selfish. But getting drunk on our own circumstances won't solve anything. Do you understand, Dad?"
My father stared at me in silence.
The calm expression he had had just a moment ago was gone.
"Go home, that's it for today."
"I'm going home. I don't want to be here."
"What do you know?"
"I don't want to understand. It's just pretending to be unhappy. So it's definitely better to try to be happy."
"I... I don't mean to..."
Dad shook his head in denial.
"I understand now."
I turned my back on my father.
"If you keep doing this, neither Aika nor Renka will ever be rewarded. Just remember that."
With that said, he left the mansion.
As I left the gate, I took a deep breath.
As expected, living in a large mansion like this makes your shoulders stiff.
"But I have to tell Aika properly."
He muttered, gazing at the murky sky.
"Y-your target."