omi is having a great time good for him

[sengokus]

Comments

[housewolf]

[And in turn Mineo will get a memory of Omi's.

--

It's a sunny, beautiful day, and your heart is full of guilt and shame. You see an older couple at the graveyard and he hesitates, unsure of what to say. How do you say sorry when their son died and your still alive?

They start reminiscing, but so much of it is foggy and unclear. Until they say, "If only Nachi had turned over a new leaf like you did, Fushimi. He might be on stage right now."

Confusion from Omi. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Oh, didn't he tell you? He always dreamed of being an actor one day. He fell in with the wrong crowd, but he never stopped loving plays."

Here you are. A man with no ambition, no dreams, and wasting his life away. Your best friend had dreams and you never even knew about them.

How unfair. You should've died instead.

--

And at the end Omi looks tired too.]

... It is.

[sengokus]

[ . . . . . ah.

mineo blinks at that, surprised.]

..... sorry, Omi-san.

I didn't.... mean to intrude.

[housewolf]

[He looks away from a moment. Collect yourself, Fushimi.]

It was a long time ago.

[That doesn't mean that hurt has completely faded.]

It's not your fault either.

[sengokus]

[ . . . . ]

It doesn't really matter how long ago it was, right? It'll still sting. For as long as you carry that person with you... and it's easy to want to carry them forever.

[housewolf]

I'm not letting go of him.

[sengokus]

[ . . . yeah. he nods.]

Yup.

That's how I feel about the friend I've lost too.

[housewolf]

[... Oh.]

How long has it been?

[sengokus]

... a couple months.

[and he looks away]

So... it's not really the same, but... I think I'm probably gonna carry his memory with me forever.

That's... what we can do for those people we've lost, right?

[housewolf]

Five years.

We carry them with us and we live on for them. We try to honor their memory.

At least... that's what I'm doing.

[sengokus]

[ . . . . his expression softens]

You don't have to if you don't want to...

But - do you wanna talk about him? Your friend.

[housewolf]

[His own smile goes soft, reminiscent.]

He's my best friend and partner. Nachi is the reason I got into acting in the first place.

[Nachi had a dream, and Omi didn't. If he was going to live, he might as well live for something.]

[sengokus]

[ . . . partner, huh. mineo thinks about that word before nodding.]

Mm. You were gonna get into it together?

[housewolf]

He didn't even tell me before he died.

[sengokus]

.... then are you doing it in his memory?

[housewolf]

Yeah.

I ended up falling in love with the stage after I'd started.

[sengokus]

[ . . . he just offers a little bit of a smile]

.... As a friend - I think.... even if something happened to me, I'd be glad to see someone I cared about pursuing something they loved.

I'm glad for you, Omi-san.

[housewolf]

I hoped... in some way, that getting into theater helps him.

It's at least a little bit selfish. But thank you, Mineo.

[sengokus]

[ . . . there's just a little bit of a huff at that.]

You're welcome. But I'm not saying much besides what I think.

I think it's... okay to want to be selfish. He was your friend too, after all. You should be able to do what you can live with.

[housewolf]

Sometimes that's what it takes.

[Gentle as ever.]

What about your friend?

mira i swear

[sengokus]

[a beat]

... what about him?

[mineo's head tilts, a little bit pained by the question]

what did i do?

[housewolf]

[He watches, calm and noting the pain.]

I'm here if you need somebody to talk to. Whenever you need it, alright?