The sun rises early in the summer. By just after five-thirty, the sky was already bright.
Mei was not one to sleep in. Usually, her brother had to head to work early, and she had to prepare his food for the day beforehand.
the morning light was still dim, and her senses remained somewhat hazy. As the morning breeze drifted through the paper window, its slight chill brought a touch of clarity.
Mei instinctively rubbed her face to wake herself up. The joy she had felt before falling asleep the night before hadn't faded, yet her groggy mind couldn't quite remember immediately why she was so happy today.
Propping herself up with one hand, her gaze drifted toward the spot where Izumi Kiyowa had slept before her conscious mind even realized what it was doing.
The futon there was empty. Only the faint wrinkles in the fabric remained to tell Mei that everything yesterday hadn't been a hallucination.
Staring at the vacant bedding, an inexplicable sense of emptiness suddenly hollowed out Mei's heart.
Is he gone? Did he decide this situation was too dangerous and leave?
No... he probably just stepped out to relieve himself. He'll be back in a moment, right?
Mei's thoughts were a mess. She instinctively reached out and placed her hand on the creases of the bedding where Kiyowa had lain, as if trying to catch a lingering trace of his warmth. But when her palm touched the fabric, nothing remained. He had been gone for quite some time.
Mei bit her lip. She didn't let herself spiral into a daze; instead, she stood up, coiled her hair, and tucked up her sleeves. There were many things to be done this morning, and she didn't even have the luxury of time to feel sad.
She needed to boil the cloth used for her brother's bandages and dry them out to keep them hygienic. There wasn't much food left in the house; although Kiyowa had brought quite a bit back yesterday, it wouldn't last more than two days.
She glanced at the dried rice in the bundle and took a deep breath. She needed to fetch water and start a fire, or they wouldn't be able to eat.
She checked on Gyutaro's condition. His breathing was much steadier than yesterday, and although he was still unconscious, some color had returned to his face. Seeing that he was alright allowed Mei's tightened heart to relax slightly, but looking back at that empty futon, she couldn't find any joy.
Picking up the wooden bucket by the door, Mei prepared to fetch water. The jar in the house had been nearly empty yesterday. Usually, her brother did this task, or she would go along to help, but he rarely let her. The riverbank was steep and slippery, making it easy to fall in.
There was another reason: because her brother was bullied, he worried that if she went with him, she would be ostracized too. But now that her brother was down, the task naturally fell to her.
Mei didn't feel wronged or aggrieved. On the contrary, she wanted to prove herself—to show that she could handle things so her brother wouldn't have to worry.
She carried the bucket, walking outside step by step. The bucket wasn't light. Having been chronically underfed, carrying even an empty bucket was a bit of a strain for her, let alone what it would be like once it was full of water. But Mei didn't overthink it. If she couldn't bring it all back in one trip, she would just make two or three.
Approaching the water jar, Mei leaned over to see how much was left so she could calculate how many trips she needed to make.
But the moment she looked down, she saw her own face reflected in a jar filled to the brim.
At that moment, the sun broke through the clouds. In the heat of the summer, the blistering sunlight seemed to burn a hole through the girl's back, piercing straight through to her heart.
The jar was full.
Did he really choose to leave?
Is this his way of a final repayment?
No... it shouldn't be like that. I'm just jumping to conclusions.
Ripples broke the surface of the water, shattering Mei's reflection. Right then, Kiyowa's voice rang out:
"Mei? You're up this early? I managed to find some food. Oh, and I've already filled the water jar. I haven't split the wood yet because I was worried about waking you, so I figured I'd wait until you were up. We need to get the fire going and boil some water; your brother's..."
Before Kiyowa could finish his sentence, Mei dropped the bucket. Without a moment's hesitation, she threw herself into his arms.
"I... I thought you were gone! I thought the water in the jar was your final goodbye...!"
Because her face was buried against Kiyowa's chest, her voice sounded muffled. But her trembling shoulders and her warm, shallow breaths proved that her emotions were currently in a state of upheaval.
Kiyowa looked down at the petite figure in his arms. He slowly raised his hand and gently patted her back, comforting her in a soft voice.
"What kind of nonsense are you thinking? I just felt that my body had recovered enough, so I went to get us a more nutritious breakfast. We can't just keep eating that dried stuff; it's not good for your health..."
Kiyowa rambled on for a while, and Mei stayed nestled in his arms, not struggling at all, though her ears began to turn a bright red.
She was starting to feel a surge of regret—regret for impulsively pouncing on him, and regret for blurting out those words about misunderstanding his intentions. Now that she had done it, how was she supposed to pull away naturally?!
The more she thought about it, the redder her face became. Her skin felt scalding hot, and she couldn't tell if it was from being pressed against him or from pure embarrassment.
Kiyowa, meanwhile, didn't quite know what to do either. The two of them were suddenly trapped in a moment of awkward silence. Feeling each other's heartbeats, it seemed that both of their pulses were beginning to race.
Fortunately, at that very moment, a heavy, raspy voice drifted from inside the shack:
"You... what do you two think you're doing?!"
Gyutaro was awake.
But he almost wished he hadn't!
Why? Why was it that the first thing he saw upon waking was the sister he had worked so hard to raise being held in the arms of another man?!
That feeling—like someone had made off with his prize cabbage, pot, flower, and all—made Gyutaro feel a sharp prickle of annoyance.
He let out a sigh. He had only been away for a few days to work; how had things ended up like this by the time he got back?
No! This wouldn't do! This guy hadn't even passed the probation period yet!
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Demon Slayer: Starting by Snatching Daki(89 Chapter- Ongoing)
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