A hospital room.
Hayashi’s father was asleep. I had never seen his face before, but seeing the anguish written on Hayashi’s features—and a face so gaunt it was clearly the result of illness rather than health—I understood the gravity of his condition.
Deep down, a small part of me had wondered.
I’d wondered if Hayashi’s mother had simply lied about his condition. It would have been a terrible thing to do, but I thought it would have been easier to handle mentally. I would have preferred being dragged into a messy family confrontation over this.
But reality is cruel.
“……Dad. It’s been a while.”
Hayashi leaned close to her father’s ear and whispered in a voice gentler than I had ever heard from her.
I was genuinely surprised. I hadn’t known Hayashi was capable of sounding so tender.
“He’s been sleeping more and more lately,” her mother said. “I’m not sure if he’ll wake up today, either.”
“……I see.”
“No matter how much you resent him, please don’t wake him, okay?”
“Yeah. I know.”
Despite being told not to wake him, Hayashi gently took her father’s hand. I think she just wanted to feel some sense of connection.
Perhaps it was the touch of her hand that did it.
Hayashi’s father, who supposedly hadn't been waking up lately, slowly and heavily pried his eyelids open.
She hadn't expected him to wake up.
That realization was written all over Hayashi’s face. The reason terror was plastered there now was likely because she expected her mother to scold her for disturbing him. Or perhaps…
His consciousness seemed fragile at first.
But after a few moments, his eyes began to wander across his surroundings until they finally settled on the young woman beside him.
“……Oh.”
“It’s been a while.”
“Have you been well? You stupid girl.”
“……Yeah.”
“……I was worried about you.”
“…………Yeah.”
From that brief exchange, I could tell how much resentment they had harbored—and that it had finally begun to dissolve, if only by a fraction.
Feeling a wave of relief, I looked to my side and met the eyes of Hayashi’s mother. We shared a faint, bitter smile.
“Is living alone difficult?” he asked.
“……No. I’m not… living alone anymore.”
“……Ah, right.”
It seemed he remembered the circumstances of her departure.
His gaze drifted across the room once more until, finally…
“……And who are you?”
His eyes met mine.
“This is Yamamoto. ……My—”
“……Hayashi.”
I cut her off.
“He was looking to me for the answer.”
Her father was likely misunderstanding the situation. Based on the fragments of his memory, Hayashi had left home to move in with a boyfriend. Now, seeing a man standing beside his beloved daughter after all this time, who else would he assume I was?
Was he angry?
I didn't particularly care if he was. It wasn't that I thought a frail, bedridden man couldn't do anything to me; it was simply that I wanted to settle things properly in my own way.
Regardless of the circumstances, I had taken Hayashi into my home. And in our daily life, I had come to rely on her for everything.
From his perspective, I was likely a disappointment. After all, he had been entrusted by his wife to ensure that their daughter led a wonderful life. He couldn't possibly be happy about his daughter being used by some random guy he didn’t even know.
That was why I had to make things clear.
“It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Yamamoto. Hayashi-san is…… my friend.”
“A guy like you isn't right for Megumi.”
“Not even as a friend?” I asked.
“Not even as a friend.”
“……You’re right about that.”
I gave a self-deprecating smile.
Back in high school, she lived in a world completely different from mine. I only knew fragments of what had happened to her since graduation and the start of her university life.
But I truly believed it.
She wasn't the kind of woman who belonged in a room like mine, acting as a caretaker for someone like me. In truth, she deserved a much more brilliant future.
“What should I do, then?”
“……You don’t know?”
“No, sir.”
“Stay by my daughter’s side.”
“……As a friend?”
“Naturally. As long as I’m still around, I won’t permit anything else.”
“I understand. You can count on me.”
“You certainly have confidence.”
“It’s not an impossible task.”
“I see……”
Hayashi’s father smiled quietly.
“I’m counting on you, Yamamoto-kun.”