Author's note
A little story about Takiyo's past that will explain some things. Italicized parts are narrated by Takin (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧
This is like a prologue, you could say XD

Some years ago, probably when I was about 4, I came home after playing, and I found Ka-san crying. She was holding a letter in her hands and she was very upset. I asked her what was wrong, but then she quickly put on a smile and told me I didn't have to worry about anything.

But I didn't like Ka-san crying. I didn't like to see the woman who would care for me and love me for the rather dull child I was. I didn't want anyone to hurt her.

I was described as dull and boring, with very few people who I could call 'friends'. But what is a 'true friend'? I don't know.

***

"Riko-chan was crying?" Michi asked, hanging off the monkey bars.

Takiyo was sitting against the poles. He nodded and replied, "I don't know why."

"Did Takiyo-kun do something?" Michi asked accusingly.

"Not that I know of," he said.

"Keh. You talk so fancily for a little kid." Michi clicked her tongue. "It makes me feel stupid."

"You are stupid."

"HAH! That's so rude! I can use difficult words too!" Michi scoffed. "Yesterday I said all the hiragana correctly, you know!"

(Note: Hiragana is pretty much the basics of Japanese alphabet.)

"You'll forget them by tomorrow." Takiyo pointed out. "If you weren't stupid, you wouldn't be hanging off the monkey bars like that so recklessly."

"Takiyo-kun is like a mommy!" Michi complained. "But don't worry, I'm really good at this. Watch."

"Mi-han! Taki-han!" A girl was waving her arms wildly in the distance. She had light spray of freckles on her nose, and her frizzy hair was forced into two braids. "What are you doing?" She came running at them hard and fast.

"Yuzu-chan, slow down!" Michi yelled, but the girl ended up colliding with the monkey bars. There was a loud sound as her wide forehead knocked into the pole.

"YUZU-CHAN!!"

Michi hopped down from the bars and ran over to her. "Are you okay? You're so reckless, that too with this hard head..."

Yuzuha looked up and grinned broadly, bruise clearly visible on her forehead. She touched it lightly, then laughed. "That was so cool!" she screamed. "Right, Taki-han??"

"You're more stupid," Takiyo replied.

Yuzuha blinked at him, then grinned again. "That's right! I'm stupid.  Stuuuuuupid! Taki-han, call me stupid again."

Takiyo glanced at her happy-go-lucky face. "You're an idiot."

"I am an idiot! Mi-han is an idiot! We all are idiots!" Yuzuha laughed, hugging both of them.

"Huh? Why was I roped into being an idiot?!" Michi screamed.

And everyday, these three children enjoyed their childhood in these simple ways.

***

Soon enough, I almost forgot about when Ka-san was crying. To-san usually came home from work very late (this was before he had a night shift). And he would always be very tired.

Today, he was early. He and Ka-san were sitting for a long time, holding their heads in their hands. It was such that Ka-san wouldn't even try putting up a smile and sending me to bed. I just watched, peering around the corner.

Suddenly Ka-san slammed the table, one of the first times I've seen her that angry. Not even when Yuzuha and I broke her favourite vase playing catch (she lives across the street).

She starting shouting things, words that she would probably make me wash my mouth if I were to use them. She seemed to be talking about a certain 'he'.

I got over the initial shock of Ka-san yelling and she calmed down a little, and I was able to understand what she was saying.

"What an absolute arse." she said. "What sort of friend is he? He was your friend, wasn't he? He was our friend and this is how he treats us."

Eventually, I found out the reason Ka-san was crying that day. She and To-san had a friend from college, who helped To-san in finding his job, using his connections. Also, he used to do a lot of gambling, but he wasn't very good at it. Ka-san and To-san helped him out with his debt sometimes, but eventually, there was huge mishap in their company, due to his gambling habits. And what did he do? He pushed everything onto To-san.

And yes, I learned all this at the age of 4. And at the age of 4, I learned the true danger of 'friends'.

***

"Takiyo-kun! Stop ignoring me!" Michi screamed as Takiyo walked away from her yet again. He hadn't been talking to her for almost two weeks now. He didn't want to associate with her, and it was driving her crazy.

Now she had reached breaking point. She clenched her fist, and ran at him.

"Doooooooooooooo-RYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" She violently tackled him, and pinned him to the floor, and he tried to struggle and get out.

"There's no escape!" Michi said. "So stop escaping!"

"What do you want?!" Takiyo yelled at her, and it took her by surprise, which was quickly replaced by anger.

"Why are you angry?! It's me who should be angry!" Michi scolded him. "Why aren't you hanging out with Yuzu-chan and me? You know Yuzu-chan is so sad, she doesn't know what she did to make you angry! She has been so sad!"

"What do I care?!" Takiyo shouted.

Michi looked broken. Then she raised her hands and started hitting him. "What do you mean by that?! How can you say that?!" She stopped hitting him, and now Takiyo could see her tears. "You care about Yuzu-chan, right? You care about me and Yuzu-chan, right? We're all friends. And one rule of friends is, we never leave each other!" she shouted.

Takiyo stared at her for a while as she wiped her eyes. "You really are an idiot."

"Huh?" Michi looked up at him.

***

I thought, saying that, Michi new what a true friend was. I thought maybe she could be a true friend? Because she seemed to really believe what she said. I trusted her. She made me trust her.

I continued to live, not associating myself with anyone, because I didn't want to be hurt the way my parents were hurt. Friends are reckless and unstable things. You don't have a way to be certain of it.

Yuzuha had moved away soon after that incident, and though we went to the same primary school and junior high, we hardly talked, and by junior high, she had completely drifted away, and I hate to say, I felt proud that I was right about friends being unstable and I was right about her. I was bent on thinking that what I was thinking was true.

Eventually, I forgot about that incident somewhat. I forgot what gave birth to this thinking. This thought process which I thought to be so true.

But it was false. Michi betrayed me too.

***

You liar, you absolute liar, Michi, Takiyo was thinking as he walked away from his perch during the after party of the school festival. He wasn't seeing where he was going, he just wanted to get out of there.

He ran head-first into somebody, knocking their head with his. He stepped back, disoriented.

"Ow..." This person had a hard head. He looked up, and he didn't know what to say to the dull-faced girl holding her head and looking at him. She scanned him with hazel eyes. Then she looked right into his.

"You know now, right?" she asked him, to which Takiyo didn't reply. The girl didn't say anything more, and walked passed him, but then she added something as she passed by.

"By the way, the person who betrayed your parents? That was my father, Taki-han."

Takiyo whirled around and looked after her, and saw the shadow of a smirk on her face. "Like father, like daughter, huh."

The smirk looked twisted and sly. It looked like she was enjoying his facial expressions. But not too long afterwards, he saw it falter and she turned away from him, and Takiyo heard a quiet sniff, and she seemed to be wiping her eyes.

"Sorry, Taki-han," she said faintly.

"Yuzuha-chan!!" Some of her friends were calling out to her. "Come on, we need to make this farewell party memorable! You're moving to Osaka, right?"

"Right~"

"Wah, I'll miss you sooo much!!"

And just like that, she disappeared again. And without saying anything, all he felt was emptiness.

***

As I'm standing here, watching her leave, I wondered if this was what a true friend was. I will never know. But we learn from our past. We learn from our mistakes. We need to be stronger from our hurt. Because our wounds are our only proof that we survived.

A retired military man who has been injured the most gravely has proof he had survived. Now he only had goal: keep living. Live for as long as he should.

Thanks for teaching me that.

You were the one who filled the emptiness. I don't know where Yuzuha is now, and I don't know what she is doing. But I wish I met you back then. But now, I know that I will be able to face her if she ever shows up again. I will know how to face her. I feel reassured.

Thanks for filling that emptiness.

Is this a true friend? I won't know for sure. I need to wait and see if you will leave me, or come back. Then I will know.

I'll be waiting for my answer.

I'll be waiting, Nishikawa Yuko.