But, if she does that, she will fall into this spiral of never-ending guilt and obligation towards him. 'I will marry Yuhi in a few weeks; once that happens, I won't meet with this person anymore.' She will return to seeing Atsuro, who will become her official doctor again.
Everything will return to normal, as for this person. No matter how much he tries to meet with her, she won't see him again.
"Thank you so much for helping him. I know it's a bit too late to say this, but because of you, Ru didn't have to suffer as much."
He could still spend those few months running about and causing havoc with that foolish grin on his face. It's because of Sano's medicine and treatment.
"When you say stuff like this, I am under the impression that you're still in love with Tsueno."
Sumire laughed weakly. "Do you truly want the answer to that?"
"I will pass. If I hear about you liking another guy, I will truly go crazy." Sano clicked his tongue, annoyed. "I am already annoyed."
"Mm, I can tell."
"Sumire, about Tsueno. Right now, he is-"
"I know." Sumire nodded. "Don't underestimate my connections."
"I have tried speaking to him, but he is good as ever with hiding."
Her sweat fell if both Eli and San had been trying to speak with him. It actually explains why he is running away.
"I don't know what he is planning but rest assured. That guy will never betray you."
Sumire blinked, hearing those words. "Were you worried that I would misunderstand?"
At those words, a tint of red appeared on Sano's face as he averted his gaze. "I mean, I know what the media are trying to do. I was worried that you would fall for it. I-I don't want you to-"
She crouched down and examined his expression. "You know I find this side of you very strange. You weren't this vulnerable when we were dating. You always acted calm in front of me. Although you grumbled a little when things didn't go well for you. You never behaved like this."
"Su-sumire, I-" Sano stammered. "Y-you remember?"
He suddenly seems delighted. Does he think he is special because she remembers or something? It's simply because her memories are strong.𝐟𝘳𝐞ℯ𝚠e𝑏𝒏𝑜𝙫𝘦𝙡. c𝑜𝐦
He has the expression of somebody who is truly in love with her. It's strange but interesting at the same time. It feels like if she so much holds his hand, his face would explode.
Maybe she should try it? Sumire hesitantly grabs hold of his hand, and his entire face turns several shades redder.
"It seems you truly do like me," Sumire mumbled.
"Did you not believe me?"
"I mean, I did. But I thought you had some weird twisted fetish to still like the girl you tossed away."
"I didn't want to let you go, though."
"I understand that too, but it's not like you were particularly attached to me when we were dating."
At those words, Sano frowned. "Is that what you thought? I only behaved like that because you tried to keep your distance from me."
"But, like, normally, wouldn't you be more persistent? Wouldn't you work harder to melt the icy facade of the woman you love, just like what Ru-" Sumire stopped before she could finish her sentence.
For a moment, neither spoke, and she felt a cold gust of wind blow across the room.
"Sorry, it's not like I want to compare you two. But after what Ru did for me. I just thought maybe you could have tried harder if you were truly serious about me." Sumire chose her words carefully.
She didn't want to risk angering him. Her thoughts break off when he lets go of her hand and stands up. He walked over to the window and closed it.
"I was serious. But I just didn't know how to express myself. You were younger than me."
"I-I actually feel quite bad, you know, San. That's why I don't think we should keep meeting." Sumire mumbled.
They both had their faults. San's cheating wasn't the only factor that destroyed their relationship. She shares a fair amount of the blame too. After acknowledging that, she realized it, they kept seeing each other. One day something may end up happening between them, not because she has any more feelings for him. But, because of guilt. If that happened, it would hurt him even more.
"I don't think this is the best way to get over me, though."
"I have no more feelings for you," Sumire stated flatly.
"But you admit that you had some?"
Sumire just stared at him, speechless. Ever since San underwent those experiments for her sake, his personality has become even worse than hers.
A deep sigh crossed her lips. "Okay, so I did have some feelings for you. Don't you think it was natural since we were together for at least a year and a bit?"
"When?" Sano suddenly questioned.
"Huh?"
"When did you realize you felt something for me?" Sano asked seriously.
Are they really going to talk about this now? But this shouldn't surprise her. Whenever they meet now, they end up speaking about regrets regarding their relationship.
Seeing Sano's serious gaze, Sumire knew she couldn't escape this one.
"The amusement park date. You only took me that one time, but it was probably around that time."
"Probably?"
Sumire sighed, and she raised her hands as though she was surrendering. "Okay, not probably, but it was that time. I started to think that maybe a future for the two of us was possible. Do you remember? That day, you were late, and you almost stood me up. But even though it was raining, you rushed to come meet me. You abandoned your car halfway and ran to the location. The weather let up the moment you came to me. It was during that moment I thought, ah 'I can fall in love with him; it will be okay if it's him.' You had such honest and clear eyes back then; that's why I thought if it was you, it would be okay."
It was silly of her to have such thoughts. A girl like her entering a relationship with a normal person? It's not possible.
Her thoughts break off, seeing Sano slump sideways. Sumire stands up and rushes over. "Are you alright? You have a fever, right? You should lay down?"
Right at that moment, she felt a pair of lips on hers. She tried to break free, but Sano's grip on her wrist was strong. After a long, drawn-out five minutes, he lets her go.
"Y-you! It's because you do stuff like that." Sumire exclaimed.
"Why can't I kiss you when I like you?" Sano questioned.
This person is unbelievable! The moment she shows him sympathy, he destroys her goodwill.
Sano leaned forward again, and she proceeded to back away when Sano whispered something in her ear.
"Oh."
He placed a bag of medication in her hands. "Take that; it should last until I return."
"Um, you won't be gone long, will you?"
"It shouldn't be long; continue to stick with Hino." Sano instructed.
With those words said, he pushed her out of the room, and Sumire stared at the door for a few minutes. She could hear a large thud sound coming from the inside, and she sighed.
His condition must be bad, after all. 'I will get Hino to check up on him later.'