It was a quiet morning, a little too quiet.
Renji zipped up his hoodie and checked the clock. He had planned to go alone. He always did. But as he grabbed his keys, Ichika stood in the doorway with her arms folded.
"I'm coming too."
Renji blinked. "What?"
"You visit your parents today, right? I'm coming."
He hesitated. "It's not exactly a fun trip."
"I know. I still want to come."
Shiori Kanzaki's car smelled like coffee and peppermint. She drove quietly, her eyes steady on the road.
"Thanks for the ride," Renji said.
"You'd do the same for me," she replied.
Ichika sat in the back, watching the city roll past.
The hospital was clean, quiet, and faintly cold. Fluorescent lights hummed above.
Renji walked slower here. More careful.
Ichika noticed how he kept his eyes down. How his hands stayed clenched in his pockets.
Room 312.
Inside, his mother and father lay side by side, surrounded by quiet machines and a stale stillness that weighed more than sound.
Ichika looked between them and then at Renji.
He didn't speak. He just stood there, jaw tight.
Ichika stepped closer to the bed.
She touched the back of Sayomi Kuroda's hand gently.
"Hi," she whispered. "I'm Ichika. I've been... staying with your son. He's kinda a disaster, but he's trying really hard. And he lets me be annoying, so that's nice."
Renji let out a soft breath.
Behind them, the door opened.
"Didn't expect to see you here," said a voice like cold glass.
Misaho Kuroda, Renji's Sister, stood in the doorway, flawless as ever. Her coat sharp, her hair tied tight.
"Didn't think you visited anymore."
Renji turned slowly. "I do. Just not when you're here."
"Hm. Hiding your failures, as usual."
Ichika bristled. "Hey—"
"Ichika," Renji said quietly.
Shiori stepped in then. She was talking to the receptionist before heaing a scandal. "Can I borrow you a minute, Miss?"
Misaho frowned. "I'm speaking to my brother—"
"And I'm your brother's boss. Come on. It won't be long…"
Reluctantly, Misaho followed her into the hallway.
"You've got some nerve judging him like that," Shiori said, arms crossed.
"He's a lazy, directionless—"
"He's raising a girl who's not even his blood. Protecting her. Feeding her. Comforting her. While you sit in a tower and judge him like if you had some moral superiority."
Misaho opened her mouth. Nothing came out.
"He's doing more with less than you've ever had to. Maybe try taking him as an example instead of pushing him down with verbal no sense."
There was a long silence.
Then Misaho quietly said, "What's her name?"
"Ichika Fushimi. Fourteen. No family. Chose your brother over an orphanage. That should tell you something."
"… why did he got an orphan on his house…?"
"Because his heart is bigger than your wealth, think about it, and maybe try to help him instead of making him feel miserable…"
Back inside, Ichika sat beside Sayomi's bed. Renji stood next to her.
Ichika whispered again. "She looks kind. Like you."
Renji nodded.
The machines beeped.
He touched his mom's shoulder, lightly. "Hi, Mom. It's me. I brought someone. You'd like her. She's kind of a handful."
Ichika elbowed him.
He smiled. "But she's family."
The drive home was slow.
Ichika watched the rain start to fall.
"You think they ever hear us?"
Renji shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe they remember us in their dreams."
"I used to think my parents would come back. Even after I knew they wouldn't."
"I think that's normal."
"Sometimes I wonder if forgetting them would be easier."
"It might be. But remembering hurts because it mattered."
Ichika leaned her head against the window.
"I'm glad you didn't go alone today."
Renji nodded. "Me too."
The car rolled on through the soft rain, warm inside, while the world outside faded into gray. The two of them were at ease, like if nothing could go wrong…
To Be Continued…