“Monsieur’s crying, darlings. Moi wonders if he’s okay?” she asked, adopting her camp tone once again. Nagare looked over at Gohtaro peering into the camera screen while crying hard enough to make his shoulders shake. The sight must have worried him too. “Are you okay there?” he asked.

“I’m okay,” Gohtaro answered, glued to the screen.

“Well... Okay then,” Nagare said, and looked down at Miki. “He says he’s okay,” he whispered.

Kazu came out from the kitchen holding a new coffee for the woman in the dress. “How did it go?” she asked Gohtaro as she stood alongside the special chair, wiped the table and served the coffee.

“Be happy...” Gohtaro said softly as he looked toward the chair “...is what he said.” He clenched his teeth.

“Oh really?” replied Kazu quietly.

The screen was showing Shuichi with his hand around Gohtaro’s shoulder urging him to “Smile, smile.”

“So okay, darlings, when will moi be able to do that?”

Gohtaro had made his way to the cash register and was getting ready to pay. Miki continued to tug at Nagare’s T-shirt sleeve.

“Well, first of all, you can quit with the moi!”

“But moi wants to do it.”

“I won’t let a person who says moi do it.”

“Well, you’re just a yellowbelly.”

“I’m just a what?”

While Nagare and Miki continued their standoff, Gohtaro started to leave but stopped midstep.

“If I may ask,” he said to Kazu, looking at the two.

“Yes?” replied Kazu.

“She was your mother, wasn’t she?” Gohtaro asked, looking over at the woman in the dress.

Kazu followed Gohtaro’s gaze. “Yes,” she answered.

Gohtaro wanted to ask why her mother hadn’t come back from the past. But Kazu was giving off an air that barred any further discussion, her expressionless face still looking at the woman in the dress.

When Gohtaro had asked the same question before going back to the past, Kazu had said that the woman had returned to meet her dead husband.

That girl has probably suffered far more than I ever have, thought Gohtaro.

Unable to find any words to express any of that, he said, “Thank you very much...”

And with that, he left the café.

clang-dong

“Twenty-two years ago...” Nagare muttered, sighing.

“You must have been just seven years old, right?” he asked from behind the counter, speaking to Kazu, who was looking at Kaname.

“Yes...”

“I’m hoping that you too find happiness...” Nagare muttered softly as if to himself.

“Well, I—”

Kazu appeared to be about to say something, but Miki didn’t wait for her.

“Hey, darlings...how long before moi is allowed to do it?” she asked, becoming entwined in Nagare’s legs.

Kazu looked at Miki and smiled warmly.

“Do you ever let up?” asked Nagare, letting out a deep sigh. “Your time will come!” he said, attempting to untangle himself from Miki wrapped around him.