Oh my gosh, I'm so late with this update! I'm super sorry, everyone! There were so many things that happened these past two weeks and it's been crazy! I had to babysit for two days STRAIGHT then I went on a small vacation to the beach with my family for two days, THEN my internet went out for two days so we can change our network, and finally I went to the beach with my friend (lol again) and the next day, my aunts and cousin came over to stay at my house -.- So many "two's" in that sentence lol but yes all of those things happened. Besides all of that, there was also the process of making this story. I had to literally redo it three times from the beginning because I didn't like how I started it. So, to make up for not updating for nearly two weeks, I give you the longest chapter up to date! Please enjoy, and thanks to you guys, this story surpassed over 300 views! That is amazing, and each day more and more people are reading this! Thank you for all the support! Please enjoy the long awaited chapter 4!

"Stay away from my son!"

Tsumugu flinched as his mother grabbed onto his arm and pulled him away from his grandfather.

"Mom, that hurts," Tsumugu mumbled, but his mother ignored him.

"We're not coming back here anymore! I knew it was a mistake coming," Tsumugu's mother spat. Isamu stood quiet. He kept his gaze over to Tsumugu, his ocean blue eyes twinkling with sadness and regret. Tsumugu clenched his fists. He didn't want to say goodbye to his grandfather.

"Mom, I don't want to leave Gramps," Tsumugu pleaded. His mother turned her head to him, her face twisted with anger and annoyance.

"You don't get to choose! Look at what you've done to my son!" She whipped her hand back and knocked down a nearby vase. Tsumugu cowered back in fear. He was scared of his mother when she was angry.

"You ruined him! This is why we've moved away from the sea! We don't want our son to get soiled by those traditions."

She flipped her hair behind her back and grabbed onto Tsumugu's arm.

"Let's go, Tsumugu. Say goodbye to your grandfather. We're not coming back."

Tsumugu sulked next to his mother's side and quietly muttered, "Goodbye, Gramps."

"Tsumugu," Isamu's low, grumbly voice vibrated throughout the whole room. He reached his hand out to Tsumugu, but Tsumugu's mother placed herself in between him and Tsumugu.

"Let's go, Tsumugu," she said more firmly. Isamu's hand fell by his side, defeated. Tsumugu's mother curtly nodded her head to Isamu, and led her son and herself out of the house.

"I told your father it was a bad idea to bring you to your grandfather. When we get home, you better forget all the things your grandfather told you. They're all lies," his mother complained. "We better hurry to the station so we can catch the next train out of here."

All Tsumugu could do was listen and obey. He didn't want to go. He didn't want to never see his grandfather again. But he didn't stand a chance against his strict mother. His father was even worse.

The only reason his father allowed Tsumugu to visit his grandfather was because Tsumugu's father felt it wasn't fair to not allow Isamu to see his grandson, not at least once. It was the first time Tsumugu has ever seen his grandfather, that summer. From the first day, the two of them instantly clicked. The sea intrigued Tsumugu, since it was the first time he has ever seen it, and his grandfather was more than willing to answer all of his questions about the vast sea. Isamu taught Tsumugu how to fish, Oshiooshi, and Shioshishio.

Tsumugu had asked Isamu the first week he was there why his father never talked about his birthplace, Shioshishio. Tsumugu remembered how his grandfather's eyes grew slightly cloudier and his voice became deeper. Isamu told Tsumugu that he simply didn't want to be associated with the sea anymore, that he wanted to have a new start.

Tsumugu stated afterwards that he didn't get it. He believed that the sea was beautiful. Isamu rubbed the top of Tsumugu's head affectionately and replied that he didn't get it either.

"I mean, what's so great about this place? The city is much better. You can have more friends there and there's so many places to eat," Tsumugu's mother continued. Tsumugu buried his face into his navy blue jacket. He didn't like the city. He didn't like the people there. He liked the people that his grandfather had introduced him to, from the fishermen at the pier to the nice, old lady who gave him candy at the store. But he couldn't say anything. He had to be the good little boy that his mother had taught him to be. He had to be obedient.

"Look, Tsumugu," his mother pointed towards the sea. "Tell me. What's so great about that? Look at how wild it is!"

Tsumugu's eyes widened. Time seemed to slow down as he admired the sea. He was captivated by the swishing of the waves against the surface, how the usual bright blue color of the sea had turned to a murky grey, how his heart raced by some unknown anticipation. He stopped walking with his mother and stared at the sea.

"Tsumugu? What are you doing? We need to hurry up or else we're going to miss the train!" His mother scolded him. She crossed her arms and tapped her right foot. "Come here right now."

"The sea…" Tsumugu said without breaking his gaze.

"Huh?! Tsumugu-"

Tsumugu spun his head to his mother and glared at her. She slightly recoiled back at how cold and hard his stormy eyes were.

"I love the sea. I'm not coming with you. I'm staying with Gramps. I'm not saying goodbye to Gramps, mother. I'm saying goodbye to you."

Tsumugu bowed his head to his mother, twirled around, and ran back to his grandfather's house. He ignored the shocked protests his mother yelled at him as he ran.

"The sea…I want to be like the sea. I don't want to be controlled. I want to be like the sea and be free!"

He ran and ran. Even when his lungs started to burn and he felt like he was about to pass out, he kept on running. The sound of the waves crashing against the surface was like music to his ears. It kept him motivated. It made him feel alive.

When he had arrived at his grandfather's little shack, Isamu was outside by the door, as if he was waiting for Tsumugu. Tsumugu stopped in front of Isamu, his fringe stuck to his forehead like glue. Isamu smirked and turned his back to Tsumugu.

"Come in, boy. There is going to be a storm soon."

A few hours later, the house phone rang. Tsumugu silently watched from his new room as his grandfather calmly picked up the phone, listened for two straight minutes, and then hung up.

"Gramps, was that-"

"Yes, Tsumugu," came his grandfather's short reply. Tsumugu clutched the frame of the sliding door and quietly asked, "What did they say?"

Isamu walked over to Tsumugu and placed his hand on the top of his head.

"They won't be coming back. Hm, not even for their own son, they won't come back," Isamu pulled his hand away and smiled. "I'm glad to see that they didn't completely ruin your view on the sea."

Tsumugu looked up at his grandfather and said, "Gramps, I want you to tell me more about the sea. I want to learn everything about it."

The things Tsumugu remembered from that day was the pitter-pattering of the rain against the house, the smell of sea salt from the wind that blew some of the sea water over, and how that was the last time he ever saw his father, and the last time he ever had a full conversation with his mother.

The whole room was in complete silence for ten whole seconds until Hikari exploded.

"Excuse me?" Hikari said exasperatedly. "What's even going on anymore? I forgot that Tsumugu even had parents!"

Akari placed the phone onto the table and rubbed her temples. "Please, Hikari. Can you calm down for at least two minutes?" Hikari pouted, but obliged to his sister's order.

"Thank you. Let me ask again. Do any of you know where Tsumugu-kun is at the moment?"

Kaname shifted on the balls of his feet and awkwardly said, "He said he was going back to his house." He quickly added, "Oh, but he probably didn't go. He left his shoes here." Akari shook her head and said, "Well, you never know. Maybe he was in such a rush that he forgot to put on his shoes."

"But Tsumugu-kun isn't like that! He isn't absent-minded! That's more like…um…who is like that?" Manaka scrunched her face and thought for a moment.

That's like you. Everyone thought, but decided it was best not to say it out loud.

"A-anyways," Miuna spluttered out. "We should try to find Tsumugu-san before his mom comes. I don't think it'll be good if she comes and finds out that we can't find him." Akari let out a low hum and agreed.

"That's true. All right, everyone. Please go out and try to find Tsumugu-kun. Then we can sort out what's going to happen with his mother." Akari clapped her hands together and gave a thumbs up.

Hikari grinned and exclaimed, "Yosh! Then let's go." He dashed out of the room before anyone else could argue with him. Miuna and Sayu wordlessly followed suit, while Kaname and Chisaki remained behind.

"You two aren't going with the rest," Akari joked. Kaname smiled kindly and asked, "Akari-san. There's more to this than you're giving, right? Why Tsumugu's mother is coming."

Akari ceased smiling at the two. Kaname lowered his gaze.

"I knew it. What-"

"Kaname, stop." Chisaki gave him a stern stare, her voice sharper than a kitchen knife. "Just stop."

She brushed past him and allowed him to stand there, dumbfounded and shock. Akari scratched the back of her neck and placed a sympathetic hand on Kaname's shoulder.

"She doesn't want to hear it, Kaname-kun," Akari's voice grew quieter as she added, "She already has a strong idea what's going on. I'm sorry, Kaname. It's better that I didn't say it."

Chisaki marched onwards, not sparing a glance even when Kaname caught up with her and repeatedly apologized. She didn't even fully know why she was so pissed at Kaname. She had an inkling that Akari was hiding something, from her especially. Chisaki felt relieved when Kaname was the one who interrogated her first, but it was as though her heart spoke out for her. She didn't want to hear what the rest of the phone conversation was. Chisaki had a bad feeling about it.

"Kaname," she stopped at the front door and directly looked at him. Kaname straightened his back and squeaked.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you like that. But please, don't mention that Akari-san was keeping the rest of the conversation a secret. The others will become distracted. There's a reason why Akari-san wanted to keep it a secret."

"But Chisaki! Don't you want to know what the rest of the conversation was about? Maybe you're wrong-"

"Oi, you two. You can have your mid-crisis spat another time. We've been waiting for nearly ten minutes for you slowpokes to get your butts out of here," Hikari swung the front door open and interrupted the two. Hikari frowned and snorted, "What's with the two of you? You both look like you're about to rip each other's head out."

Kaname was the first to break away from Chisaki's stare. "Nothing. Let's just go." He sat down and busied himself with his shoes.

"Man, you guys are acting like an old married couple. Hey, hey. Chisaki. I'm surprised you haven't freaked out yet," Hikari teased Chisaki as she easily slid her shoes on and walked outside with her head held high. "Come on, Chisaki. You were always the worrywart in our group, yet you're not really freaking out. What's up?"

Chisaki swatted Hikari away and replied, "Why should I worry? I'm more angry than worried. Why did Tsumugu lie about going back to the house? It doesn't add up."

Miuna, from a few feet away, picked up on the last few fragments of Chisaki's sentence and turned over to her. "Chisaki-san. I think you have a point. Why did Tsumugu-san lie? He left his shoes, which means it's unlikely that he went to town."

Manaka, bouncing up and down, energetically yipped, "Maybe Tsumugu-kun is doing something that secretive. Something he can't tell any of us!"

Sayu closed her eyes and sighed. "Where would he go that is secretive, doesn't involve moving far from this house, and something that Tsumugu would do?"

Manaka raised her hand high in the air. "Maybe he's playing hide and seek with Akira-kun!"

"That can't be. Akira is sleeping in his room. And that would be pretty weird seeing Tsumugu-san playing hide and seek, no offense," Miuna pointed out. Manaka deflated and silently mourned onto Chisaki's arm.

"It may be possible that he went to the sea," Kaname proposed as he closed the front door and jogged over to the group. Hikari gave him a skeptical look.

"The sea? Why would he go to the sea?" Hikari cracked his knuckles and groaned. "Why don't we just call the man instead of standing here and coming up with stupid ideas?"

Sayu pursed her lips together and snapped her fingers. "That may be the best thing octopus head has ever suggested. Chisaki-san, you have his number, right?"

Chisaki took out her phone from her pocket and waved it to everyone. It was a lime green flip phone that had a seashell phone strap.

"All right! Chisaki, go call him. Oh, and put him on speaker."

"Okay. Here I go," Chisaki flipped her phone and pressed a few buttons down on the keyboard. Everyone bunched up together and stared intensely at the phone.

"And…call."

Chisaki pushed down one final time and stretched her hand outwards until the phone was in the center of the group. The phone rang in intervals of two, and slowly, Chisaki's hand began to falter.

"Why am I starting to freak out? I've been on the edge ever since the phone call from Tsumugu's mother," Chisaki thought. Finally, the phone clicked.

Hikari quickly shouted, "Oh, Tsumu-"

"The number you have dialed is unavailable at the moment. Leave a message at the-"

Chisaki ended the call and flipped her phone shut, disheartened but at the same time slightly relieved.

"That's totally lame! I should have known that it wouldn't have worked, though." Hikari kicked a pile of saltflake snow that formed on the ground and grumbled a few more indescribable sentences.

"I guess now we have no choice but to start from scratch and try to find him. But it's going to be a wild goose chase," Sayu resigned.

Miuna clasped her hands together and said, "We don't have a lot of time left. It's only a two-hour train ride to get from the city to here. We need to hurry up t-"

Chisaki's phone suddenly began to vibrate in her hand, stopping everyone from what they were doing.

"Eh? It's Tsumugu!" Chisaki announced. Hikari rushed back to the group circle and hollered, "Hurry up and answer it already!"

"I already know. Hm," Chisaki complained. She slowly flipped it open and pressed the speaker button.

"H-hello, Tsumugu?" She answered.

"Chisaki," his cool voice responded on the other side.

"W-where the he-"

"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU, YOU JACKASS!" Hikari howled as loud as he could into the phone.

"Hikari!"

Chisaki pulled the phone to her ear and roared, "What the heck? What's wrong with you?"

Kaname hooked Hikari's arms and held him back.

"Now, now. Let's all just calm down now. Right, Hikari?" Kaname said soothingly. Hikari struggled against Kaname, but he ultimately gave up and resorted to grumbling. Chisaki gave him one last warning glare before placing the phone in the middle again.

"Tsumugu? Are you still there?"

It was silent for a few seconds. Chisaki was about to punch Hikari when the phone began to produce static.

"…mh, yeah. Sorry, that was my friend…yeah, the one I mentioned earlier." There was more sound of movement, and then Tsumugu's voice came alive again.

"Hello?"

Chisaki nearly chucked the phone on the ground. It was really starting to tick her off that he was so chill and then everyone else on the other side of the phone was about to explode. Hikari had already gone off.

"Tsumugu," she impatiently breathed out. "Where are you? Who are you with right now?"

"Chisaki, why does it matter?"

Miuna covered the phone with her hand and looked at Chisaki.

"Chisaki-san, he's dodging your questions," she whispered. "I think you need to be more direct with him."

"But why is he evading," Chisaki muttered back, but nonetheless shook her head. "Doesn't matter. Okay. Let me tell him."

Miuna nodded her head once and pulled her hand back.

"Tsumugu, I'm serious. Your mother is…at the house right now," Chisaki lied. Manaka and the others gasped.

"Chii-chan, why-"

"My mom?"

Tsumugu's voice turned from cool to ice in a matter of a second. Chisaki flinched at the cold bite of his voice.

"Why… Why won't you tell us where you're at?" Manaka spluttered out, her voice a little shaky.

"Mukaido? Is everyone with-"

"Shut up and just answer the goddamn question!" Kaname snarled. He threw Hikari over to the side and gripped the phone with both of his hands.

"Tsumugu, you better tell us where the hell you're at right now."

The phone line was silent for another few seconds until he spoke up.

"I'm at the pier, near the place where you guys used to come from Shioshishio on the way to our old school."

It was a response that Tsumugu would give in that situation. A short, to the point response.

Kaname released the phone from his hands and let off a small chuckle.

"What the heck? He was so resistant earlier and now he's willing to tell us? I can't keep up with him."

"How come you scold me when I scream at Tsumugu but then you don't with Kaname? That's not fair," Hikari complained. Chisaki slapped Hikari on the arm with her free hand and silenced him with a not-so-friendly glare. She returned her attention to her cell phone.

"Tsumugu, we're all coming over there. Stay where you're at," Chisaki explained. "What I said about your mom was, uh, a half lie. But she is going to come over soon, okay?"

"Yeah. Okay. Bye."

And the phone line went dead. Chisaki flicked her cellphone closed and placed it back into her back pocket. She inwardly sighed and glanced over to the rest.

"We know where he is now. Let's go," she ordered. Manaka, Sayu, and Miuna gathered by her side and began to walk with her. Kaname and Hikari both flashed each other a look before following shortly behind the girls.

"Tsumugu-kun doesn't really talk a whole lot during phone conversations, huh," Manaka noted. Chisaki giggled softly and replied, "He doesn't really like to commute through telephones. Tsumugu would rather talk face to face than over the phone."

"Tsumugu-san also doesn't like to talk too much about his mother, right? Not to pry into his private life, but it's just that, well…he never talks about his parents at all," Miuna mumbled. Manaka moved to the front of group and faced Chisaki.

"That's right. Tsumugu-kun doesn't really have a good relationship with his parents. This one time, Tsumugu-kun's mother came to visit him and he was all stiff! He barely said anything to her," Manaka informed Sayu and Miuna. She twirled on the heel of her right foot and launched herself at Chisaki.

"M-Manaka," Chisaki held up Manaka and forced everyone to stop walking.

Manaka beamed up at Chisaki and propelled off of her.

"What's going on up there," Kaname pestered as they caught up. Manaka grinned widely at Kaname and Hikari.

"I feel really happy, Kaname. Hii-kun."

Hikari blushed when Manaka fixated her stare at him. He moved his gaze upwards and rubbed the back of his head.

"Sometimes you say things out of context at times. Stupid Manaka."

He threw an arm around her and pushed both of them to continue walking.

"Hii-kun, wh-wh-wh-wh-"

"Shut up. We still need to pick up Tsumugu. Then deal with his mom. Then you're allowed to be happy." Hikari threw a glance behind him and smirked at the rest. "Let's go! Come on."

He lowered his arm back to his side after everyone started to walk once again. The rest of the walk, no one talked. Each step Chisaki took, her heartbeat increased steadily. She felt something bad was coming ever since the phone call from Tsumugu's mother. From the bits and pieces of information Tsumugu and Isamu had accidentally slipped up, Tsumugu's parents were completely against anything related to the sea. The one who really hated the sea was Tsumugu's mother.

Isamu once stated to Chisaki when she was in her third year of high school, "This was the age when my son met Tsumugu's mother on the surface. It was also when my son began to despise the sea, and me. By the time he graduated, he already had plans of abandoning the sea with her." He then proceeded to light a cigarette and slowly take a drag of it with a steady, solemn look on his face.

If Tsumugu's mother hated the sea, then she must hate the people from it. Or so that was what Chisaki came up with after thinking about it for some time. From the few instances that Isamu had ever mentioned them, they were all bitter and negative comments.

Chisaki felt nervous about Tsumugu's mother coming to Oshiooshi. What if his mom didn't like her? It made sense if she didn't like her. She was from the sea, the very place she hated. Also, she wanted to take Tsumugu away. Chisaki couldn't help but feel that it had to do something with her. Not entirely her, but she was sure that his mother had at least some knowledge of her son being friends with mostly seapeople and him majoring in oceanology.

"Chisaki-san, we're almost there," Miuna broke Chisaki from her thought.

Wow, that was fast! I guess after we get Tsumugu, we have to deal with his mom. Ugh, I'm not looking forward to that.

Chisaki made her way to the front of the group, right next to Hikari and Kaname.

"And now for the moment of truth! Let's see what Tsumugu's been doing for the last hour and a half that he's been alone," Hikari lowered his voice and pretended to be an announcer. Everyone rolled their eyes and ignored Hikari as they continued to walk closer and closer to the pier. Finally, they reached the far end of the concrete pier.

"This sure brings back memories of the past. I remembered when Tsumugu caught Manaka in his fishing net," Kaname reminisced.

Slightly far in the distance, Tsumugu's silhouette was visible under the bright shining sun.

"Oi! Tsumugu," Hikari called out. He waved his hands as well, but the figure in the distance remained still. "He can't hear? Maybe we should just surprise him. He's probably researching the sea again or something."

The six of them sauntered over to Tsumugu, no one speeding up or slowing down the pace. When they were close enough to see Tsumugu's back, Chisaki suddenly extended her arm out to stop everyone else.

"Chisaki-san," Sayu started but stopped when Tsumugu started to talk.

"Hey, listen. I need to tell you something." Tsumugu walked forward two steps before he stopped. Miuna, standing at the farthest right, gasped and tugged at Hikari's sleeve.

"W-what?"

"There's a girl with Tsumugu-kun! She's near the end of the dock," Miuna whispered.

"Eh? Huh? Whaaattt?" Hikari stuttered. Manaka, right next to Chisaki, peered over to the right side of Tsumugu and nodded her head.

"She looks like our age. She's…pretty."

Chisaki pushed past Hikari and Kaname and made her way towards Tsumugu.

"Chisaki, hey! Wait," Hikari grabbed onto Chisaki's arm, but she twisted her arm out of his grip and continued walking.

"K-Kihara-san…"

Tsumugu's back tensed up, his shoulders leaned forward a bit.

"What is it?"

As Chisaki got closer, she could finally make out the girl's features. She had long, black hair that went down to her waist, like Manaka's hair, brown eyes, and indeed looked the same age as Miuna and the rest. Just as Chisaki was a few feet away from Tsumugu, the girl suddenly launched herself towards Tsumugu and wrapped her arms around his mid back.

"Chii-chan!"

Manaka ran up to Chisaki's side.

"Huh? Tsumugu-kun?"

Hikari stormed over, his eyes blazing with fire.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?"

Tsumugu whirled his head behind, and made eye contact with Chisaki.

"Chisaki," he glanced down to the girl, who still held tightly onto him. "I can explain."

Chisaki's breathing hitched. He didn't even try to deny what was going on. She had expected him to at least say something like "This isn't what it looks like" but he didn't.

And so, she ran.

"Chisaki!" Hikari threw himself in front of her, but she shoved past him and kept running towards the sea.

"Chii-chan! Wait!"

She ignored them all, and dove into the slightly freezing water. She welcomed the familiar scents and feel of the seawater against her skin, and she welcomed the anger and grief that began to pour out of her heart.

"Chisaki! Dammit," Tsumugu pried the girl's arms off of him and stared at the sea. The water rippled from where Chisaki had jumped into, and as he was about to go, Hikari stopped him.

"Hey! Wait, what's even going on anymore? Tsumugu, you better explain," Hikari hissed. By now, Sayu, Miuna, and Kaname had caught up with Manaka and Hikari, but they only witnessed what happened from afar.

"Hikari. I have to go after her. I'll explain later," he looked down to the girl and muttered, "No, she'll explain to you guys. I need to go after Chisaki."

"But wait! This is happening way too fast," Hikari pointed at the girl. "At least tell us who she is."

The girl cowered back and mumbled, "I-I'm sorry for causing trouble, Sakishima-san."

"How does this girl know my name? Do I know you from somewhere?"

Hikari studied the girl closer and shook his head. She didn't seem like someone he would know.

"Eh? Wait, aren't you Ao-san from our class," Sayu said. Miuna looked at the girl and shook Sayu's arm.

"Yeah. You're Mizaki Ao from our school, right? Why are you with Tsumugu-san?"

Mizaki directed her gaze to Tsumugu, and with a reassuring but restless nod from him, she replied, "Yes. I'm Mizaki Ao. I know Kihara-san because he helped me with something earlier. He helped me with a problem and I knew I could trust him because I've seen Kihara-san with you sometimes, Shiodome-san."

Tsumugu stepped forward and towered over Hikari.

"Let me go, Hikari. I need to make things right."

"You're not going anywhere, Tsumugu."

A new voice rose from behind Sayu, Miuna, and Kaname. A hand pushed Kaname out of the way and revealed the owner of the voice.

Tsumugu froze.

"M-mother?"

Tsumugu's mother wiped the hand she used to push Kaname against her black skirt and frowned in disgust.

"You are not going into the sea to chase after that…that girl. A sea person." She dangerously walked closer to him and shot Hikari a glare, to which he returned. "I've left you here for too long, Tsumugu. You're tainted. I knew I made a mistake giving up when I saw those two sea girls with you when you were fourteen."

"They're my friends-"

"I don't care!" Tsumugu's mother snapped. "You're coming back home with me to the city. I'm going to make sure you never see your friends again."

"Why are you such a bitch?" Hikari breathed out.

"Hikari," Kaname scolded. Tsumugu's mother laughed, something that Hikari and no one else expected.

"You see, Tsumugu? These are animals. You should go back living with the fishes. You smell like rotten salmon, you lot." Tsumugu's mother pinched her nose and shooed Hikari and the rest away.

"Leave them alone, mother! You think you can come here and run my life again? Stay away from me," Tsumugu threatened. "I need to go after my girlfriend."

"Your girlfriend? Don't tell me your girlfriend is the one that jumped into the sea right now? Don't make me laugh, Tsumugu! I can't believe you would do that to me. How dare you!"

Tsumugu's mother closed the space between them and grabbed onto his shirt collar.

"They're a bad influence on you, Tsumugu! Look at yourself," she roughly grabbed onto his right wrist and brought his bandaged forearm to his face. "When I heard about this from your grandfather, I didn't believe it at first. Now that I've seen it, I know it has to do something with these seapeople!"

Tsumugu pushed her off of him and tore his arm away from her.

"Gramps told you?"

"Why don't you understand that I want to take you from this place because I have no idea what other dangers may happen when you're here. Five years ago, you almost drown during that stupid ritual you did with the people in Shioshishio. How many more near death experiences do you need until you understand?"

"Shut up! You don't know anything! You've been gone from my life ever since I was seven!"

Tsumugu gave his mom the dirtiest glare he could ever muster and hissed, "You and father never cared about me before, so why now? I'm not going to sit here and allow you to take me away from Chisaki and the others!"

Tsumugu shoved past her, gave Hikari and the others an apologetic look as he passed them, and dashed towards the spot where Chisaki jumped.

"Tsumugu! If you jump into the water, I swear on my grave that you will deeply regret it," his mother shouted in fury. Tsumugu took a sharp intake of air and propelled his body off of the concrete floor and into the slick water.

"Tsumugu!" Tsumugu's mother screeched after her son. "You! You stupid kids! You ruined my son!"

She pointed accusingly to Hikari with her right index finger. Hikari furrowed his brow and muttered, "I'm done trying to listen to this lady."

He grabbed onto her right wrist and pushed her off of the pier in one swift motion. She opened her mouth and was about to say something until she collided with the water.

"Hii-kun, you're going to get us all killed," Manaka exclaimed worriedly. Hikari waved her off and replied, "Well, I think we should get out of here before she resurfaces. Mizaki, let's go back to my place. You can tell us why you and Tsumugu were together and the 'problem' he helped you with."

Mizaki, baffled that Hikari was already using her first name, nodded her head soundlessly and allowed herself to be pulled by Miuna.

"Sorry, Ao-san, for dragging you into this mess," Miuna apologized. "Who knew that Tsumugu-san's mother would be here already."

Sayu, while running, said in between breaths, "Well…let's hope that…Tsumugu-san and…Chisaki-san make up! I feel bad…for Tsumugu-san…"

"Stupid! Stupid Tsumugu!" Chisaki landed down on the Shioshishio Bridge and stomped her way into town.

"Chii-chan! What a surprise! Huh? What's the matter, sweetie," an old lady greeted Chisaki as soon as she entered. Chisaki forced a smile on her face and kindly replied, "Nothing. I just felt like visiting Shioshishio for a change of pace. Excuse me."

"Go ahead, darling. Make sure you go and visit Uroko-sama on the way. He'll be pleased to see you again."

The old lady bowed her head and walked away from Chisaki. Chisaki sighed and began to walk through the familiar streets of Shioshishio. She felt different at Shioshishio than at Oshiooshi, she had to admit. Then again, she thought, nothing really changed from back then because of the hibernation. The town was colorful and lively again, with kids running freely on the streets and men laughing and conversing with one another. As Chisaki passed by the tree Kaname, Hikari, Manaka, and herself used to meet up before they went to the surface, she saw a little girl sitting beneath it.

"Chii-chan," the girl happily cried out. She stood up and ran to Chisaki. "I haven't seen you since before the hibernation! Wow, you look so pretty grown up!"

Chisaki offered the little girl a somber smile and said, "It has been some time since I've seen you too."

To Chisaki, it still felt strange conversing with the seapeople after the hibernation. For some of them, like the old lady from earlier, they still treated her like they would five years ago.

The little girl was no different.

"Hey, hey! So are you dating Kaname-nee-chan now," the girl asked energetically.

"What? Why would you think that," Chisaki said a bit too quickly. Was Kaname that obvious with how he felt about her that others knew?

The little girl cocked her head and replied, "Well, I always thought that you and Kaname-nee-chan would get together because Hikari-nee-chan loves Manaka-chan. The four of you are best friends, so I just assumed if Hikari-nee-chan and Manaka-chan dated, then you guys would too."

"I…that's…" Chisaki covered her mouth and stared at the little girl. Were kids always this perspective before?

"Then again, I think it would be weird now that you're older! Do you have someone you love right now, Chii-chan?"

Chisaki crouched down and buried her face in between her knees. When did little kids have the ability to ask such embarrassing questions?

"Huh? Chii-chan? Are you-"

"Oi! There you are!"

Chisaki uncovered her face from her knees and saw a young boy waving off in the distance. The little girl squealed in delight and bid Chisaki farewell.

"What the heck were you doing," the boy chided the girl. The girl laughed and pointed at Chisaki.

"I was catching up with Chii-chan! What do you want, Onee-chan?"

The boy grinned and loudly said, "Guess what? There's this outsider that just arrived in town. People are saying that he's from the surface!"

"Hm? Really? But that shouldn't be possible. Surface people can't come down here unless they have ena."

"Are you calling me a liar then? Come with me and see for yourself! It's some guy, the same age as that girl, I think," the boy pointed at Chisaki and dragged his sister away. Their conversation slowly grew distant until it was quiet again.

Chisaki sat there, under the tree, for a few minutes, trying to comprehend the boy's statement.

"There's this outsider that just arrived in town!...Surface people can't come down here unless they have ena…It's some guy, the same age as that girl, I think."

Chisaki abruptly stood up and sped walk to her house.

"He didn't. He did not come here. Oh god," Chisaki murmured to herself. She pushed past a few people who were going the opposite direction from her house, their chattering drifting in the water.

"This is the first time I heard someone from the surface being able to come into town! I wonder who it is."

"It's probably one of the Shiodome kids. You know, Akari Sakishima's children."

"No! Someone said it's someone older."

Turning a corner, Chisaki faced the front door of her house and rang the doorbell repeatedly. After the tenth ring, the door swung open and revealed a flustered woman.

"Chisaki?" The woman gasped. Chisaki squeezed in between the door and entered her house. "Not even going to say hi to your mother, Chisaki?"

"Hi, Mom. I'm going to my room for a bit. Bye." Chisaki rushed upstairs, ignoring her mother as she yelled, "At least make sure to say hi to your father when he comes back home! Geez."

Reaching the second floor, Chisaki ran her fingers across the wall, feeling the familiar touch of the material. Her home didn't change one bit since five years ago, and it gave Chisaki a sense of remembrance and serenity. She reached the last door on the left at the end of the hall. Her room.

The door creaked as she opened it gently, as if she was afraid of accidentally breaking it. She closed the door behind her and flicked the light switch on her right.

"Oh wow. Nothing has changed at all."

Chisaki stepped forward and examined her room, noting how her bed sheet was still a little messy from five years ago when she was too excited to fix it during the day of the first Ofunehiki, her study desk right next to her bed and her school backpack that laid on top of it. She went over to her bed and plopped down on it, swatting the dust that arose from it.

"I'm such an idiot. I can't believe I ran away from him again because I got jealous," Chisaki sighed and fell back. "Geez, I overreact sometimes. Ugh, I just hope he doesn't come here, though I doubt he will. He doesn't know where I live in Shioshishio."

A few minutes later, Chisaki heard her mom call her from the floor below.

"Chisaki! Your father is home. Please come down and say hi. He hasn't seen you since last month."

Chisaki lazily shouted a response back and slowly got up from her bed. She nonchalantly opened her door and left it open, not really caring about anything anymore. As she climbed down the stairs, she saw the bottom half of her father off to the side.

"Welcome home, Dad. How are you today?"

Her left foot made it to the bottom step first, and as she was about to place her right foot down, her father moved off to the side and revealed an out of breath Tsumugu.

"C…Chisaki, I found someone on the way home. This, uh, is the young man from the surface, right? The one that is your…" Chisaki's father bashfully stumbled, unable to come up with the right words.

"…I'm her boyfriend. Kihara Tsumugu," Tsumugu finished, his eyes fixated on her shocked eyes.

Her father widened his eyes and dropped his suitcase.

"I was going to say classmate from middle school, but I…I suppose that would…"

"What's going on in here, dear? Did Chisaki come down from her room," Chisaki's mother emerged from the living room and took in the sight before her. "Oh, we have a guest? Who might you be? I never seen you around here before."

Tsumugu's eyes darted to Chisaki's mother before going back to Chisaki.

"Nice to meet you. I'm dating your daughter. My name is Kihara Tsumugu."

He bowed down respectfully to Chisaki's mother and father. Chisaki's mother placed her hand onto her mouth and glanced over to Chisaki.

"Chisaki, you never told me that you were- Wow, this is a surprise indeed! I didn't know that you and this boy were a thing," her mother blabbered on.

However, her mother's words fell deaf to Chisaki's ears. Tsumugu's eyes were locked onto her, like an eagle to a mouse. His dark and cloudy eyes were powerful and intimidating. She felt as though she was trapped in a cage.

"…Chisaki? Hello, Chisaki?" Her mother frowned at her daughter's lack of response and shook her husband's shoulder. "Hey, dear. Look at your daughter. She's being rude right now to the guest."

Chisaki's father, unfortunately, was as unresponsive as his own daughter.

"Um, I…Chisaki?" Her father looked at her for answers, clearly shaken up by the news still.

"I can't."

Tsumugu overwhelmed her. By his presence, by his eyes, by him. For the first time, she felt terrified by Tsumugu.

Chisaki, in a blind panic, picked up her shoe from her foot and threw it at Tsumugu, who easily blocked it with his arm.

"Chisaki…!" her mother exclaimed in astonishment. Chisaki whirled around and ran up the stairs, her mind focus on staying away from Tsumugu.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry for my daughter's behavior right now, Kihara-kun," Chisaki's mother instantly apologized and bowed to Tsumugu. Tsumugu shook his head and replied, "No, it's my fault. I'm sorry for appearing so suddenly." Tsumugu lowered his gaze and mumbled, "This may sound wrong, but may I please go upstairs and talk to Chisaki? I really need to clear something up."

"Oh, no! It's no problem at all! Please, go and talk with her and knock some sense into her. She's always been a little bit awkward when it comes to these kinds of things," Chisaki's mother laughed it off. Tsumugu quickly muttered a thank you and rushed upstairs, leaving the two parents to comprehend what just happened.

"Wasn't it just a few days ago when Kaname-kun confessed to our daughter in this very spot?" Chisaki's father slowly said. Chisaki's mother chuckled and hugged her husband from behind.

"For us, it was. But now it's five years later and our little Chisaki grew up, at least in some aspects. She still has trouble accepting herself and others, though."

Tsumugu rubbed the arm he used to block Chisaki's shoe. He winced as pain shot up his arm.

"I hope she didn't open up one of my wounds," Tsumugu thought. He slowed down as he reached the top of the stairs and studied the house. It looked like a typical modern house, at least in Tsumugu's opinion. He opened the first door to his right and carefully peeked inside. He assumed it was their guest room, since it had simple decorations and a single bed, but nothing else. Tsumugu closed the door and continued searching for Chisaki. As he reached the end of the hallway, Tsumugu faintly heard the sound of weeping through the walls.

He approached the left door and placed his hand against it.

"Chisaki…" he called out. "Please let me in."

On the other side, Chisaki was pressed against the door, her face buried deep in her knees as her weeping converted to small whimpers and sniffling. She hated it when she cried in front of Tsumugu. It showed off the weak side of her.

"Chisaki," he said with more force in his voice. "Open the door."

"I don't want you to see me right now," she said back, her voice muffled. Tsumugu pressed his forehead on the door and exhaled.

"Chisaki, please. Let me see you."

His voice lost its usual husky and low tone. Instead, it was replaced with desperation and dejection, as if he was extremely tired. Chisaki shakily sucked in a breath and silently cried more into her knees.

She felt horrible, just by the sound of his voice. Not only that, but by his eyes. She didn't want to see them like they were earlier. His eyes mixed with pain, distress, and something else she couldn't put her finger on.

"That girl you saw. She was a classmate of Miuna's," Chisaki heard him say. "Chisaki, I'll explain everything, but it's better for you if we do it face to face."

Chisaki closed her eyes and wiped the tears from her face. He always knew how to face her, even when she didn't even know how to face herself. She pulled herself together and got up from the carpet floor. Hesitantly, she unlocked her door and held her breath. What was his face going to be like? Angry? Hurt?

The door swung open and revealed the exact opposite of what Chisaki expected. Tsumugu was calm and resigned, but his eyes were swimming with emotions.

"Tsumu-"

"I'm sorry," he interrupted. "Please don't run away from me."

He moved his right hand towards her, but she flinched back. Tsumugu visibly tensed and retracted his hand back.

"The girl you saw was a girl named Mizaki Ao. She's in the same class as Miuna and Sayu," he started. Tsumugu closed the door and walked past Chisaki, making his way over to the window. "I was on my way putting on my shoes to go back to the house when I saw her. She was being assaulted by some boy."

Chisaki hugged herself and shivered. "She was being assaulted?"

Tsumugu nodded his head and continued. "Mh. When I saw that, I ran over there and scared off the boy. As soon as the boy ran, Ao was so shaken up that I couldn't leave her alone, in case that she may do something rash. I walked with her for a while afterwards, to calm down her nerves. Before I dropped her off to her house, she told me she wanted to go to the pier at sundown because she liked the way the sun reflected off the sea."

"So you're telling me that Ao-san…that she wasn't someone you liked or anything?"

Tsumugu turned his whole body around and locked his alarmed eyes with hers. His foot kicked over her wooden chair from her study desk, the furniture rattling loudly on the ground before settling.

"What?" he paced around the room, his eyes never leaving hers. "Do you not trust me, Chisaki?"

"Eh? No, that's not it," Chisaki blushed and played around with her hair. Tsumugu stopped at the edge of her bed and leaned against its frame, his arms crossed.

"Then what's the matter? I know you ran because you assumed wrong. But if it's not because you don't trust me, then what is it?"

Chisaki bit the bottom of her lip and watched as Tsumugu closed his eyes.

"Don't be afraid of me," he whispered unexpectedly. He pushed himself from the bed and stood a foot away from Chisaki. It was as though he was too close, but not a single part of him touched her. His eyes still stayed shut, his facial expression neutral.

"Why…are your eyes closed," Chisaki cautiously placed her hand onto his chest, her other hand against her throbbing heart. He closed his eyes tighter and exhaled unevenly.

"Because," he murmured, "you won't open up when I look at you. I'm terrified that one day, you'll leave me."

"Tsumugu…" Chisaki pulled her hand away and closed the space between the two. She wrapped her hand around Tsumugu, and nuzzled closer to his chest when he returned the hug.

"I won't be like your parents. I won't leave you. I get insecure sometimes, especially over this past month," Chisaki admitted.

"Insecure about what?"

Tsumugu rested his chin on top of her head and pulled her closer. Chisaki let off a low groan and mumbled into his shirt, embarrassed.

"I didn't catch that, Chisaki."

"Geez, I feel insecure by the fact that maybe I'm not good enough! Is that loud enough for you," Chisaki burrowed further into his chest, feeling annoyed as he began to chuckle.

"Are you being serious? That's what you're worried about?"

"Don't make fun of me, you insensitive jerk! It's the truth," she argued. Tsumugu ceased laughing and instead listened to Chisaki's raw voice. "What…what do you like about me?"

Tsumugu opened his eyes and stared at the mirror by Chisaki's closet, at him and Chisaki, by their position, and by her shuddering back, as she wept some more.

"What I like about you," he started, "is that you're strong and kind. A bit reckless, but headstrong. You're unpredictable sometimes, and that makes me love you more. When we were younger, I thought you were foolish. How could you senselessly continue to love Hikari, who you knew loved Mukaido? But five years later, I learned that love makes you do some crazy things. For the second time in my life, I told my mom off."

Chisaki quickly pulled away from him and stared up at his face.

"You told your mom off?"

Tsumugu grinned sadly at her and said, "My parents hated the sea, especially my mom. Again, she wanted to take me away from it. From what I love." He wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumb and muttered, "I love you, Chisaki."

He drew his face closer to hers, enough to where he could feel her breath against his nose.

"Tsumu…gu," Chisaki whimpered out, both in fear and an unknown feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Close your eyes," he ordered her softly. He caressed her face with his right hand and hooked his left arm around her waist, bringing her near his body. Chisaki situated both her hands against his shoulders.

"W-wait, I-I-"

What the hell?! This is happening too fast!

"Chisaki."

He leaned forward and rested his forehead against hers, his right hand threading over her cheek. Chisaki shut her mouth and shakily met his dark eyes with her light ones.

"Tsumugu," she shut her eyes and quietly sighed. She was scared, but knowing it was Tsumugu, she felt strangely at ease. She heard Tsumugu clear his throat and adjust his hand so it cupped her cheek better. Chisaki's heart quickened as she felt his lips graze over hers.

"Tell me to stop if you need me to," he said tenderly. Chisaki opened one eye and looked at him.

"Okay."

Like a tidal wave, Tsumugu crashed his lips against hers, and everything went dark for Chisaki. Her knees bucked, and she thanked the Sea God that Tsumugu had a firm hold onto her with his arm or else she would have fell. All she could focus on was his lips, which were warm and gentle. He didn't try to move or deepen the kiss; it was simple and timid. Tsumugu pulled away after five seconds, and for a second, Chisaki saw uncertainty in his eyes, as though he was frightened that she didn't like it.

"Don't stop," she mumbled shyly. She brought her hands around his neck and nibbled on his bottom lip, desire suddenly blooming in his eyes. All doubt washed from Tsumugu's system, and by the time Chisaki realized it, he had pushed her against a wall and started to kiss her deeply. Caught off guard, Chisaki squeaked out in surprise, but found excitement and attraction at Tsumugu's unexpected aggression. She pried her hands from his shoulders and tangled it into his hair in an attempt to contain the fire in her stomach. Tsumugu had longed removed his own hands from her body and instead opted to place them on both sides of Chisaki's head, practically entrapping her, but neither wanted to leave any time soon.

Tsumugu brushed his tongue against Chisaki's lips, in that shy manner of his, Chisaki thought in amusement. She allowed him access, and she took the chance to explore him. With not much astonishment, she tasted the faint sweetness of tangerine and mint, but she never expected the ecstasy she felt pulse throughout her body when she accidentally touched Tsumugu's tongue. She let out a small gasp and tugged Tsumugu's hair, her self-control diminishing.

The first to break the kiss was Tsumugu, much to the disappointment of Chisaki. He rested his forehead on Chisaki's and panted lightly.

"Chisaki," he groaned, "this is what I mean when I said unpredictable."

Chisaki playfully pouted and said, "That's what you love about me, right?"

Tsumugu smiled. He took her left hand and kissed the back of it. Chisaki felt stunned when he bore his passionate and yearning eyes, the emotion Chisaki finally pinpointed that she couldn't figure out earlier, into her own.

"I promise you that I won't allow anything to break us apart, Chisaki. You're not something that my mom or anyone else can take away," he promised her.

"Is that an indirect marriage proposal to my daughter?"

Chisaki's mother smirked when Chisaki pushed Tsumugu away from her and bashfully tried to fix her hair and act like nothing had happened. Tsumugu simply straightened his shirt and coughed.

"Now, now. I just had a feeling that you two were doing more than 'talking.' I mean, for crying out loud, both of you guys are nineteen!" Chisaki's mother turned the light on in the room (it was dark the entire time, lol) and faked a glare at Tsumugu. "Kihara-kun, you certainty know how to please my daughter. I'm glad that you at least didn't do some…other things to make her happy."

"Mom!" Chisaki cried out, her face completely flushed. "Stop it!"

"What? I can say so much worse, considering the situation. I just wanted to check up on you and the first thing I see is you backed up on the wall, making out with the guy that is your supposed boyfriend that you, by the way, never told me about!"

Chisaki's mom tried her hardest to look angry, but ended up laughing. "Who am I kidding? I think I'm more embarrassed than mad," her mother admitted. Tsumugu bowed his head and said, "I apologize for doing something unacceptable in your house. I hope you don't think wrongly of me."

"Hm? You're fine, dear! Well, just don't do that again in my house, but I can see you're very serious with my daughter," Chisaki's mother nodded her head in approval. "Why don't you stay over for dinner tonight so we can know more about you, Kihara-kun?"

"As much as I liked to, Hiradaira-san, I can't today. I have some matters that I need to sort out up on the surface," Tsumugu declined. Chisaki's mother visibly deflated.

"Well, that's a disappointment. I hope that you'll come back here so we can really get to know you."

Tsumugu nodded his head and replied, "I would like that." He peered out the window and seeing how the seawater outside was beginning to glow a creamy orange, he deducted that it was already six. "I actually need to go right now. I don't trust her with the others," Tsumugu looked at Chisaki expectantly. Chisaki rolled her eyes, but knew that he needed her with him.

"Sorry, Mom. I can't stay over tonight, either. I'll bring Tsumugu with me the next time I come back to Shioshi."

After a few more minutes of endless goodbyes and farewells to Chisaki's mother and clueless father, Chisaki and Tsumugu finally left her house, with Chisaki in the lead. The streets were relatively empty besides for a few stray people and fishes that lingered. As they reached the outskirts of town and to the bridge leading into Shioshishio, Tsumugu stopped halfway.

"Chisaki, I have to tell you something," Tsumugu called out. Chisaki twirled around and frowned. "My mom isn't like your mom. She isn't accepting. That one time you saw her years ago with Mukaido is nothing how she is. She was friendly because we were in the city, in her territory."

"So you're basically telling me that your mom and I will never get along?"

Tsumugu regretfully nodded his head and spat, "Never in my life has she ever considered Gramps' or my opinion. She always told me that it was a mistake coming here. A mistake staying with Gramps and living by the sea. Never once had she ever selflessly visited me away from the city. It was always me going to her, not the other way around."

Chisaki stood quiet, amazed by Tsumugu opening his feelings. It wasn't like he kept everything to himself, but he was the type who didn't like to speak freely of his emotions. Then again, over these past few days, both of them went through an emotional rollercoaster, Chisaki thought.

"I know that things between you and your parents are shaky, but it doesn't mean they don't care about you," Chisaki walked to him and grabbed his right hand with her hands. "You say that your mother never visited you here at Oshiooshi, but here she is today, even if it's something negative. Your mother must have a good reason for being here."

"Her reason for being here is that the sea is a 'bad' impact on me," Tsumugu grumbled, but stopped when Chisaki stood on her tippy toes and pecked his lips.

"But you and I know that's not true. I'm not saying that everything your mom has to say is absolute, but try to listen to her. You can't make up lost time, but you can at least be on good terms with your parents. Take baby steps."

Tsumugu gripped her hand and softened his eyes.

"I'll try, but it won't be easy."

Chisaki giggled and replied, "I never said it would be easy."

"Aw crap, she's following us!"

Hikari tugged harder on Manaka's hand as he led her and the others throughout the outskirts of Oshiooshi.

"What are we going to do, Hii-kun," Manaka whimpered out. Kaname threw a look behind his shoulder and nearly tripped over his own shoes. Tsumugu's mother was hot on their tail, her short hair dripping with water and her makeup smudged and ruined. In short, she looked like a Japanese horror antagonist.

"Hikari, any good ideas?" Miuna yelled from the back, her legs getting tired from fast walking. Poor Mizaki was flustered and confused, at the same time terrified at the whole situation. She grasped onto Miuna's hand tightly and cut off some circulation.

Hikari scratched the back of his head with his free hand and sharply turned a corner into Saya Market. Everyone had no choice but to follow him into the shop.

"Hello! Welcome- eh? Hikari?" Shun stumbled backwards to dodge the stampede of teenagers that burst through the front door. "What the hell? What are you guys doing," he hissed. Hikari released Manaka's hand and wiped the sweat from his temples.

"H…Help us, Sayama," Hikari wheezed out, "we need to get away from this crazy lady who's going to be coming here in less than two minutes." Shun crossed his arms and chuckled. "That sounds like a cliché for a scary movie or something. What do you want me to do?"

Miuna went over to the front door took a glimpse outside. She felt her heart skip a beat.

"Saya-san! Please just say that we're not here! No matter what!"

Miuna and the rest fled towards the back of the store, leaving a flabbergasted Shun.

"Eh? You guys, wait a minute!"

Shun grumbled under his breath and shook his head. A second later, he heard a tapping on the glass door.

"Er, coming!"

He jogged over and nearly jumped back at the sight before him. A breathless woman with wet, tangled hair stood at the front of the store, her back hunched and a murderous gleam in her eyes. Hesitantly, Shun slowly opened the door and said, "H-hello, welcome. May I, um, help you?"

From the break room behind the counter of the market, Sayu peeked her head out the door and observed the two.

"What's happening out there, Sayu," Hikari whispered. Sayu strained her ear out and tried to hone in the conversation.

"Were there…were there middle schoolers who just went into this store? Particularly a whole group of Shioshishio kids," Tsumugu's mother pushed her way into the store and whipped her head back and forth. Shun nervously shut the door and replied, "Uh, miss. Our store is actually closing up right now, so there couldn't have been any kids that went in here."

"Nice save, Sayama," Hikari said in approval. Miuna hushed him as Sayu waved her hand silently.

"Excuse me, sir. There's no point in lying," Tsumugu's mother slammed her fist onto the front counter, her gaze boring into Shun's eyes. Sayu covered her mouth with her hand to prevent herself from yelling out in surprise. Miuna pulled Sayu down and signaled for everyone else to be quiet. "I'd had enough of this town, and I've only been here for an hour! I have an inkling of who you are, young man. You're the same age as my son, Tsumugu, so I assume that you know who he is."

"Uh, I might know who Tsumugu is. But I don't know the guy too personally," Shun lied, his voice rising in pitch at some parts of his sentence. Tsumugu's mother stalked up to him and jabbed a finger into his chest. "Listen here, boy. I'll give you two options. Either you tell me where those brats are, because I know they are in here, or you give me information on this girl named Chisaki."

Shun licked his dry lips and cowered back a bit. "I…I can't do that. I don't even know who you a-"

"I'm his mother. Do you see me right now?" She bristled. "I'm soaked right now in filthy seawater because of those sea brats! When I get my hands on them, they will wish that they never came out from their habitat."

"That lady needs to get off her high horse! Who does she think she is, insulting us and threatening Sayama? Not even that, but she has the nerve to tell off Tsumugu? What the heck," Hikari angrily growled. Manaka hugged Miuna's arm and whimpered quietly. Miuna patted Manaka's head and mumbled reassuring words in her ear. Sayu crouched down to the rest and crawled next to Mizaki.

"Sorry, Ao-san, for dragging you into this mess. I promise you that you won't get in trouble or anything because of this mishap," Sayu said. Mizaki shook her head and murmured, "It's no big deal. I never would think that Kihara-san's mother would despise the sea so much, considering how Kihara-san was telling me earlier how much he likes the sea."

"Kihara-san, please. I think you should calm down first…" Shun reached towards her, but she suddenly grabbed a shelf of chips and pushed it down to the ground, making the contents fall out.

"Unless you want the rest of your store in ashes, then I would recommend following my command!" Tsumugu's mother stomped on a bag of chips and kicked it to Shun's face. Shun helplessly stumbled back on his butt and looked up at her, petrified.

"Saya-kun!" Manaka tore away from Miuna and ran out of the room. "Manaka!" Hikari sputtered out. He was about to chase after her until Kaname restrain him from doing so.

Manaka sneaked behind the counter and stood behind Tsumugu's mother.

"K-Kihara-san, please stop!" Manaka shouted anxiously. She steadied herself as Tsumugu's mother slowly turned around and laughed.

"Oh my! Finally one of the twerps has revealed themself! Strangely, I would think the other girl with black long hair would come, not you. You look too much of a frightened kitten. It almost makes me feel bad for you," Tsumugu's mother taunted. Manaka shook her head and squeaked, "Kihara-san. I know that what we did to you a few minutes ago was unacceptable, but please forgive us. I promise you that us people from Shioshishio aren't bad!"

"Shut up, little girl. You don't know how bad your people are," Tsumugu's mother walked up to Manaka's face and spat, "Do you know why I don't like the sea? Why I want to take Tsumugu away from here?"

"Now she's going to tell us the reason," Kaname snorted in disbelief. Hikari made an exaggerated muffle noise in agreement.

"Listen close, girl, because I'm only going to say this once," Tsumugu's mother placed herself away from Manaka and sat down on the counter with her legs crossed.

"Imagine this. Once upon a time, your husband's father stole your son away from you and brainwashed him to think that whatever his mother says is wrong. Let me tell you something. I didn't hate the sea at first. No, in fact, I was interested in it. Now, when I was in high school in the city, I met Tsumugu's father. He was a fine man, and it was the first time I ever became acquainted with someone from the sea. When we dated, he took me to Oshiooshi and introduced me to all of his friends. I believed they were nice people, and I thought they accepted me," Tsumugu's mother paused and she closed her eyes. "But then…one day, when I visiting and went out to buy some juice, I saw his friends near the shore. I ran over there to greet them and say hello, but as I came closer to them, I picked up on their conversation. They were making fun of me and insulting me, calling me names like land monkey and pig. I cried at my husband's house for hours. The people I thought were accepting and nice were the complete opposite."

"The next day, I told my husband and he confronted them. They turned on him and told him that he was not welcomed anymore to the sea unless he dumped me. They said that sea people who date land people are traitors and that they should never come back. My husband was torn. I never saw him that broken up before. Imagine the friends you've been with since you were little, the people that you consider family, suddenly becoming strangers. Us land people and you sea people…we were never meant to be together. I learned it the hard way, and the same with my husband. I don't want my son to endure what we endured, especially what my husband felt. Betrayal."

Manaka held back the tears that formed in her eyes and sniffled, "Kihara-san…" She wiped the stray tears that leaked from the side of her eyes and said, "It's not like how it was back then. In fact, I know a couple that are happily married. One is from the sea and the other from the surface. Please don't try to tear Tsumugu-kun and Chii-chan away from each other. He really loves Chii-chan."

"Did you not just hear what I said, girl?" Tsumugu's mother shot off the counter and grabbed onto Manaka's shoulders roughly. "It won't be smooth sailing! There will always be people that will disapprove of my son! He does not deserve that crap from them! I will not allow my well-behaved, nice, kind son get criticized by them!" She dug her nails into her shoulders and shook her. Manaka yelped out in pain.

"Manaka," Miuna stood up and ran to Manaka, despite the protest from Sayu and Hikari. "Don't hurt her!"

"Hm? Oh, another rodent showed itself," she released Manaka and glared at Miuna, "actually, who are you? You reek of the sea, but you lack the eyes."

Miuna inhaled deeply, in an attempt to control her nerves.

"I am Shiodome Miuna, Kihara-san. I am a half breed," Miuna started. "I know how you're feeling. When my mother passed away, I hated the sea. My step-mom, who's also from the sea, was a friend of my late mother and took care of me when I was all by myself. Five years ago, her and my father married each other. I didn't like it when they were dating because I felt like she was replacing my mom. Later, with the help of Hikari, I learned that I loved her, but I don't have to forget my birth mom. What I'm saying is that although it was hard accepting a relationship between a sea person and a surface person, everyone will accept it from both sides if they truly love each other."

Miuna lowered her head and exhaled, feeling both satisfied with her explanation and a bit embarrassed. Manaka watched as Tsumugu's mother sauntered over to Miuna, like a snake.

She slapped Miuna across the face, the sound reverberated over the walls in the store.

"Miuna-chan!" Manaka dashed over, but Tsumugu's mother pushed her away from Miuna. Hikari and the others exited from the break room and surrounded the older woman.

"What the hell? Are you crazy? Stay away from her," Hikari threatened, his eyes sharp and deadly. "What are you going to do, dear? I don't have to listen to any of your guy's crap! You don't know anything, do you? I'm so glad your mother and father had a great ending," Tsumugu's mother mocked Miuna. "Do you know something, though? I only told you half of the story."

Kaname tried to edge his way to the back of Tsumugu's mother, but she quickly picked up Miuna by her arm and placed her in a chokehold. "One more step and I'm going to harm this girl!"

"No! Stop it, please," Sayu cried out in distress. She glanced over to Hikari, but he was as scared as everyone else in the room. Kaname held his hands in the air and calmly said, "Please, let's not do anything too rash."

She twisted her body around the room and shouted, "If any of you try to get close, I'm going to hurt her!" Miuna tried to pry the woman's grip from her throat, but she only tightened it further. It was becoming harder and harder to breath.

"H…Hikari," Miuna choked out. Hikari stared, his face contorted in frustration and pain. "God dammit! You're crazy! Can you only hear yourself when you talk?" Hikari barked. Everything slowed down even further when she lifted Miuna up and cut off more of her air supply. Miuna cried out, her voice strained. Mizaki broke down and crouched, her hands over her ears. Sayu screamed as she watched her best friend slowly being strangled. Shun, Manaka, Hikari, and Kaname were stuck in place, being unable to find an opening to ambush her.

"No, no, no. Please, don't do this," Hikari slammed his fists into the counter and hung his head. "Stop it! Stop it!" He wailed.

The sound of bells clinging interrupted Hikari before he could say more. The noise in the small market stopped as Shun whirled his head around, his ears used to the sound of the bells. It was the sound of a costumer entering the market. And that 'costumer' was Tsumugu.

The door behind him closed, emitting the same sound of bells ringing. Tsumugu swaggered over to his mother, who backed away from him.

"Stay away, Tsumugu! Or else I'll hurt this girl," Tsumugu ignored her and grabbed onto her arm. He broke her grip on Miuna and pushed his mother onto the ground while catching Miuna. Miuna wheezed and gasped for air, her body being supported by Tsumugu.

He trudged to the counter, picked Miuna up and placed her back on the hard surface. Sayu was the first to run over to her and hug her.

"I was so worried!" Sayu buried her face into her shoulder. Tsumugu swung his body back to where his mother was, his bangs covering his eyes from the rest. His mother rubbed her right knee, her tights ripped and showed that her knee was bruised from the fall.

"You ungrateful child," she chided him, "how dare you treat your mother like this!" Tsumugu clenched his fists and stopped in front of her.

"You're nothing to me anymore," he snarled. "I never thought that you would be this extreme and hurt an innocent middle schooler. What is wrong with you?" Once he realized that his mother wasn't going to say anything back, he looked over to Manaka.

"Mukaido, are you alright?" His gruff voice barely reached her ears as she shook out of her daze. "Yes! I'm fine, Tsumugu-kun. Where's Chii-chan? Did you ever find her?"

As if on cue, Chisaki burst through the front door and stopped shortly behind Tsumugu.

"Tsumugu, I called Grandpa and he said he's at the house…what's going on in here? It looks like a fight just happened!" Chisaki exclaimed. She glared over to Hikari, who squealed, "Hey, it wasn't me!"

Kaname jogged around the counter and said, "Chisaki, we need you to look at Miuna. She got badly injured by Kihara-san." Chisaki gasped and immediately ran to Miuna's side. Miuna offered her a weak smile but winced when she breathed in. "Oh my. Your neck is red! What happened in here," Chisaki examined her neck and frowned. Tsumugu bent down and grabbed onto his mother's wrists.

"You're coming with us to Gramp's house. You're not dragging anyone else in this drama." She struggled to remove his hands from her wrists, but decided to follow his orders. "I'm sorry, everyone, for this. I never meant to leave you guys with my responsibility. You guys can go home now and leave the rest of this to me and Chisaki."

Hikari crossed his arms and slid across the counter to face Tsumugu. "No way, man! We're going with you to make sure everything is cleared up. I'm not allowing your mom to think it's all right to hurt Miuna. I'm making sure she gets a proper punishment for it," he cracked his knuckles and gave Tsumugu's mother a sinister glare.

Tsumugu merely nodded and helped his mother stand up on her feet. "Hikari, why is my mom soaking wet?" Tsumugu asked nonchalantly. Hikari shivered and cheekily mumbled, "Er, well. Things kind of went down when you left. I, um, pushed your mom into the water." Hikari flinched back as Tsumugu walked over to him, but relaxed when he just passed him.

"Don't think you're getting away with that, Hikari," Tsumugu called out over his shoulder before he opened the glass door. "Oh, Saya. I'll pay for whatever products my mom ruined. Give me the bill later. I'll be waiting outside, you guys."

Shun dust off the crushed chips from his shoulder and grinned. "Don't worry, Tsumugu! It's no big deal. Besides, you seem like you have a lot to worry about." Shun glanced over to Chisaki and Miuna. "Chisaki, I can give you and Miuna a lift over to Tsumugu's house. I can probably take Tsumugu and his mother too, and two others."

"Oh, but then who's going to be left behind," Chisaki asked. Kaname looked over to Sayu, who was busy trying to comfort Mizaki and raised his hand. "I will. We need to take Ao-chan back to her house. I think she witnessed enough for today. Sayu-chan, come with me?"

"H-huh? Oh, yeah. I'll stay behind with Kaname and Ao-san. Octopus head. Manaka-san. Go with Miuna and make sure she gets treated. Miuna, I'll be there with you soon," Sayu nudged Mizaki up on her feet and guided her to the door. Chisaki noted how frightened and terrified the girl was.

"It must have been quite a scene," Chisaki thought. "Hikari, help carry Miuna out. Get ready in the car, Manaka. Thanks a lot, Sayama-kun. Seriously, you helped us out yesterday too."

Shun wholeheartedly laugh and said, "It's no problem. Honestly, it feels like five years ago when we were in middle school. Everyday back then was as eventful as today!"

Isamu took a sip of his plum wine from his glass and placed it down on the coaster. He observed the sun as it settled down, the small breeze that blew by, and the silence. He enjoyed the silence for another moment until he heard the noise of a car engine approaching.

"Ah. She always brought some excitement whenever she comes into town," Isamu mumbled as he shakily stood up and grabbed his cane that laid against the wall. He walked over to the front of the house and opened the door. Sure enough, two minutes later, a familiar white pickup truck drove up to the house. Isamu waited as Shun exited out of the driver's seat and went to the back while Hikari went out of the passenger's seat. A few moments later, Chisaki appeared while holding up the front half of Miuna with Shun carrying her feet. Tsumugu, his mother, and Manaka were the last to appear from the truck.

"Welcome," Isamu muttered out as Chisaki and Shun entered the house. "Grandpa, Miuna-chan is going to be using the guest room to rest," Chisaki informed him. Isamu grunted in reply and turned back to the rest. Tsumugu and his mother climbed into the house, neither of them greeting Isamu. Isamu bowed his head as they passed him. Finally, Hikari and Manaka reached the front of the house.

"Hello, Grandpa," Manaka greeted. Isamu nodded his head and stepped out of the way for the two teens to pass by. "It's nice to see you again, little girl. How have you been doing," Isamu grumbled back. Manaka scratched the back of her head timidly. "I think I've fully recovered. I can commute from the sea and the surface like before. My ena has gotten strong again."

The upper half of Tsumugu's body reappeared from the dining room and beckoned Hikari and Manaka to come. Manaka bid Isamu goodbye and dragged a reluctant Hikari with her to Tsumugu.

"Hikari, I'm sorry about Miuna. I never thought things would get that crazy," was the first thing that came out of Tsumugu's mouth when Hikari entered the room.

"Don't worry about that. It wasn't your fault. More like, it was mine if I hadn't acted so brash. I'm glad you were able to find Chisaki," Hikari nudged Tsumugu's arm and raised his brow. "Did you guys make up?"

"In more ways than one," Tsumugu admitted quietly. "I got to meet her parents and such…and a lot of the town folk."

"You met Auntie and Uncle? That's great, they're really nice people! They always took care of me whenever I came over Chii-chan's house," Manaka explained with zeal.

"What are you guys blabbering about now," Chisaki entered the room with Isamu, her face slightly red. "Did you tell them what happened at my house?"

"No, I didn't," Tsumugu quickly countered. Hikari eyed the two, clearly curious about what they were referring to. He shook his head and spoke up. "Hey, when you two are done having your lovers quarrel, can we please deal with her."

Hikari leered at where Tsumugu's mother was sitting. She was now dry, but her black tights were ripped at various places and the business skirt and blouse she had was wrinkled and disarrayed. She glared at Hikari, but said nothing.

"Where's Sayama at?" Tsumugu glanced behind Chisaki, but she shook her head at him. "He's not coming. He left as soon as Miuna-chan was treated and given some medicine to help with the pain." Manaka sadly looked down. "Miuna-chan…"

"Mom, Gramps. There are some things that we need to talk about." Isamu lowered his head and gripped his crane tighter. "If this is about how I informed your mother of yesterday's incident, then it is true. I told her about it," he sighed. "I can't believe that neither you or Chisaki told me about it. Akari had to call me to tell me that you got in a fight with the two boys."

"I was going to tell you, but you weren't here yesterday. You didn't even tell me that you were going to the hospital for a check up," Chisaki responded. "You still could have called me with the phone. Anyways, I'm sure this isn't what you want to argue about, is it, Tsumugu?" Isamu grew more aggressive with his tone of voice as he rested his eyes on his grandson.

"Gramps, why did you tell my mom about it? She doesn't need to know about my life. She hasn't been there for the last five years. Why does it matter now?"

Isamu calmly inhaled and replied, "Tsumugu, even if your mom hasn't been a prominent figure in your life, it doesn't mean she isn't your mother. Every mother should know what is going on with her son. I'm sorry, Tsumugu, but I did what I thought was right."

Hikari felt Manaka squeeze his arm and look up at him in fear. He placed his other hand over hers and gave her a reassuring smile. The more each side talk, the louder and rougher their speeches became. "Manaka was never really good with handling tough situations," Hikari observed. Tsumugu rubbed his face in frustration and carefully asked, "Did you know that she was going to be coming here? Today?"

Isamu nodded his head.

"Yes, I did."

"And she told you that she was coming here today to take me back to the city?"

"Yes, Tsumugu. Why don't you hear it from your mom instead of badgering and getting angry at me?" It was clear Tsumugu's questions were infuriating the old man.

"Fine." Tsumugu stared over to his mom, who sat at one of the dining tables, and asked, "Mom, please tell me why you don't like my friends? Is it because they're from the sea? If that's so, that's a really weak reason to hate someone you don't even know."

Hikari marveled at Tsumugu. He had never seen Tsumugu as angry as he was right at that moment, besides that one time when Hikari bugged Tsumugu to pretend to like Manaka so she could love again. Tsumugu's mother acted as though Tsumugu's rage was like dealing with an annoyed kitten and brushed him off. "I really hate it when I have to repeat things over and over again. Hey, red hair girl," she pointed at a bewildered Manaka and snapped her fingers, "Tell him what I told you earlier. At the store."

Manaka shakily pointed at herself. "M-me?" Tsumugu's mother rolled her eyes and hissed, "Oh who else has red hair? Honestly." She stopped when she saw Tsumugu glare at her, but still continued to sneer at Manaka. Manaka gulped and meekly mumbled, "Kihara-san doesn't like the sea because of…complicated reasons, Tsumugu-kun."

"Complicated?"

Manaka hummed out a response. "Yeah. Um, I'm not good at fully explaining things, but in short, when your father and your mother dated, the people at Shioshishio didn't like your mother and then they didn't like your father when he sided with her." Hikari shook his head at Manaka's disjointed explanation and hastily added, "No. Let's cut to this lady's reason for being here. She doesn't want you to date Chisaki because she's afraid that everyone from Shioshi will hate you."

Tsumugu's mother clapped her hands together and gave Hikari a fake smile. "Wow, good job, little boy! You're as obedient and smart as a dog! You even smell and act like one, you savage." Hikari smiled sweetly at her and took a bow. "Oh, no problem, Kihara-san. You know, you remind me of a barnyard pig. Loud, annoying, and greasy." Hikari stuck his tongue out and made a V shape with his right hand.

"Anyways," Tsumugu ignored their offhanded argument, "Mom, you don't need to worry about me. Things have changed since your time. Hikari's sister is happily dating someone from the sea and their son and daughter both had ena, meaning that it's possible for children born of someone from the sea and from the land can carry on Shioshishio heritage. There's no reason for them to hate me and vice versa. I even went there and everyone was nice."

"Wait, you went down there?" Tsumugu's mother gaped at her son. "How? Did you scuba dive? No, there's no way since the current's too strong…" Tsumugu glanced over to his three friends before twisting his arm to show off his inner forearm. Under the light of the now orange sun, his skin shimmered. "You have ena? Tsumugu, you have it?" Tsumugu's mother repeated over and over again, her eyes wide. Isamu let off a small chuckle and smiled. "His father is from the sea, and so is his grandfather. Although it's a bit hard to believe, Tsumugu does have ena."

"I still can't believe it. It doesn't matter, though! Whatever they're telling you children, it's only part of the truth. The kid has ena? That's great, but what they really want is true-bred children! No matter how much one person changed, it doesn't change everyone," Tsumugu's mother glared at Hikari and asked, "Are you Hikari?" Hikari pursed his lips and cockily said, "Yeah, that's me."

"Your sister is married to someone from the land, right? That's crap. Things must have been hard at first, right? She got kicked out of the village?" Hikari faltered at bit at her knowledge about their traditions. "Er, yeah. Only at first! After a while, everyone accepted my sister and her children! They're even allowed to go into Shioshi." Tsumugu's mother's eyes wandered over Hikari's entire body and she suddenly asked, "You look like a child of someone I used to know. Is your last name Sakishima?"

"What? How did you know that," Hikari was genuinely surprise that she was able to guess his last name. With a small bitter, but not resentful smile, Tsumugu's mother breathed out, "I knew your father. He was on his way becoming the chef of the village when I was young. He didn't do anything about the whole village hating on me, but at the same time he didn't team up with everyone and bashed on my husband and I. Anyways, your sister doesn't count. It's because she's the daughter of the chef, so of course no one is going to try to oppose."

A silence engulfed the entire room; neither Hikari nor Tsumugu's mother spoke up afterwards. Manaka felt Hikari's arm tense and relaxed, his face unsure on how to respond.

"…You're Chisaki, right?" Chisaki swiftly looked at Tsumugu's mother and yelped, "Yeah, that's me!" It was the first time that she had ever talked with his mother, and the feud between Hikari and her sort of scared her. Tsumugu pushed himself in front of his mother and shook his head.

"Mom, don't you dare threaten Chisaki," Tsumugu warned. His mother waved him off and gave him a weary sigh. "Tsumugu, I won't. Let me at least talk to the girl that is your supposed girlfriend, okay?" Chisaki bravely stepped forward and touched Tsumugu's back. He flinched and instantly turned around. "It's okay, Tsumugu. Let her talk."

Under the palm of Chisaki's hand, she felt how warm and slightly sweaty he was. Upon closer inspection, she saw how his bangs stuck to his forehead and how his lips were parted a bit, his breath short and quick. "Tsumugu, you're getting too work up," Chisaki scolded as she brought his face down to her eye level and wiped the sweat from his forehead with her sleeve. "Don't worry about me. Calm down." Chisaki gently pushed Tsumugu to the side, next to Hikari and Manaka, and faced Tsumugu's mother.

Her heart pounded against her ears, but Chisaki was determined to look presentable in front of her. "This is the first time I've heard of you, Chisaki. I remember you from back then, however, you were younger. A lot younger, probably the same age as red hair girl there." Manaka quietly whimpered, "It's Manaka, but okay…"

Chisaki licked her lips and nodded her head. "Yes, I remember you too, Kihara-san. Actually, Manaka and Hikari are my childhood friends from Shioshishio, along with another one of our friends named Kaname. We met Tsumugu during our second year in middle school." Tsumugu's mother cocked a brow and exclaimed, "Wait, you all were in the same class together in middle school? Now that you mention it, why isn't red- I mean, Manaka still looking like she did all those years ago?"

"Er, well…" Chisaki fiddled with her pointer fingers and silently cursed Tsumugu for making her explain. "Five years ago, we had the Ofunehiki and everyone in Shioshi hibernation besides…me. I was the only one left behind besides Akari-san, Hikari's sister, and a few others who were already living on the surface." Isamu coughed and pounded his crane on the floor. "I took Chisaki in during that time," he added.

"W-wait, so you and Tsumugu dated and l-lived under the same roof for five years?"

"No!" Tsumugu and Chisaki screamed at the same time. Chisaki grumbled a few words before saying, "N-no, Kihara-san. We actually only started a month ago, when everyone woke up from the hibernation. Please don't get any wrong idea about us. We haven't done anything."

Hikari crossed his arms. "Mhhhmm." He hummed suggestively. Tsumugu smacked him in the back of the head while simultaneously Manaka punched him in the stomach. Tsumugu's mother had a faint blush on her face as she fixed her posture and continued.

"You probably think I'm going to chew you out, but I want you to know that I'm not usually that…mean. I'm just looking out for my son in an 'I want to ruin your life' sort of way. Or at least that's how I think he views it. Honestly, I see nothing wrong with you, Chisaki. Actually, the only one I see has problems is Hikari."

"What did I do wrong? You started it!" Hikari huffed childishly. "What I said is true. Yes, maybe it worked with Hikari's sister. You want to know why? Because she's probably the only exception. Take it from me personally. It may seem like everyone is fine with you two being together, but secretly they don't accept it, especially old men. They're crazy about keeping full-bred generations. You and Tsumugu aren't too far from thinking about having kids. Once you mention that you want kids to everyone, you will never be allowed back."

Like a dam, everyone started to talk at once.

"What the hell, Mom? What did I just say?"

"Hey, stop acting like you know everything! What if my sister is the daughter of the chef? It still means that they accepted it!"

"Hii-kun, Tsumugu-kun, please stop!"

Manaka held both of the enraged boys back in a feeble attempt to stop them.

Tsumugu's mother got up and placed a hand onto Chisaki's shoulder.

"Listen to me. Stop now, Chisaki. If you're like my son, and you love the sea, then you would stop this hopeless love right now. Unless you're willing to leave your home and literally everything for him, then you have my blessing. But please, for the sake of yours and Tsumugu's, stop. You're going to anger more than what you think."

She released her hand and looked at the ruckus in front of her. Tsumugu's mother gave Tsumugu a regretful and sorrowful glance before walking pass them and Isamu, who waited by the hallway.

"Tsumugu, I'm leaving now. I think you're expecting an apology from me, and I believe that you deserve it too. I'm sorry for going crazy and hurting that girl in the process. I'm also sorry for misjudging your friends and especially Chisaki. However, I do not regret misjudging Hikari because, well, there was nothing I misjudged there. He's the definition of an octopus' sludge."

Hikari howled in frustration and cursed her under his breath. Tsumugu's mother smiled and bowed her head.

"Tsumugu, I'm sorry for being a horrible mother to you. I promise you this won't be the last time I will be visiting you…here, at Oshiooshi. Goodbye, everyone."

The last thing Tsumugu saw of his mother was her teary eyes, and for a moment he was tempted to chase after her. Hikari extended his arm out and glared at him.

"Don't. If you do, she might take everything back, including allowing you to stay here." Hikari swayed over to Chisaki and patted her back multiple times. "At first, Tsumugu's mother seemed like a…female dog, but by the end of the day, she's alright. Like, she's still considered a pig to me, but I can see where she's coming from. Right, Chisaki? Chisaki? Helloooo?"

Hikari turned to Manaka and Tsumugu and shrugged, clearly unaware on what was going through Chisaki's head. It was like a sandstorm erupted out of nowhere in her mind, random bits and pieces of Tsumugu's mother's words flying by at a thousand miles per hour. It took Hikari's constant whining, Manaka's desperate cries, and finally, Tsumugu shaking her to snap her out of it.

"Chisaki! Oh my god, we were all starting to freak out," Hikari yelled. Tsumugu pulled her close to him and mumbled, "Are you okay? Don't let her words get to you." Chisaki mustered a small smile and said, "Of course. Sorry, I was just thinking about Miuna-chan."

"Don't lie to me," Tsumugu berated, but pulled her to a hug. He didn't press after that, but deep down in his heart, he knew that it was bothering her. Hikari laughed awkwardly and cried, "Don't worry, Chisaki. By tomorrow, this will blow off and you won't ever think about it ever again. It's the weekend tomorrow, so we should head somewhere. All of us, that is, if Miuna is healed up and ready to go."

Chisaki giggled against Tsumugu and by then, she knew that everything would be fine, just like what Hikari had said.

Isamu stood in the dark corridor in the hallway, his eyes closed and his heart heavy.

Kaname and Sayu walked side by side as the sun finally set and the moon came to replace its counterpart. Kaname extended a hand out and caught saltflake snow midair.

"It's getting cold again, huh, " he mentioned offhandedly. Sayu looked up at the sky and saw as more snow fell at a steady rate. "Yeah, you're right. Strange, I thought that it was starting to warm up. The weather's been getting chilly again." Kaname chuckled as Sayu sneezed and hastily wiped her nose. "I know. I was looking forward to wearing my summer clothing too."

Off in the distance, small voices echoed off the seawater and into the ears of the two middle schoolers. Kaname peered off to the sea and saw three old men near the pier. There was a strong scent of liquor and smoke, and as they approached closer, Kaname could see empty bottles and discarded cigarettes littered everywhere.

"Those men are from Shioshishio," Kaname commented. "Sorry, but could we slow down a bit. I want to hear what they're talking about." Sayu willingly listened to Kaname and slowed her pace to match his.

"Man, today is something! For one, the water is getting saltier each day! It's gotten to the point where I don't even have to season my eggs in the morning!" The two other men laughed and hit each other in the back.

"Nah, nah! How about that boy from the surface? He's old man Kihara's boy! You know, the fisherman? Ain't it crazy how he was ena?" One of the men stumbled out.

"I heard he's dating Chisaki-chan. That's unbelievable and downright disappointing. She's such a good girl! Damn those surface people, taking our women again! At this rate, they're going to kill us!"

"Pft, not unless this weather will," the man with a scrubby beard joked. They all laughed and hiccupped as they continued to insult the land some more. Kaname sighed and grabbed Sayu's hand. He ran far from the three old men and only stopped when they could no longer hear them.

"Sorry. Just ignore them. They're just some of the few who are stubborn," Kaname panted. Sayu blushed and shook her head. "It's okay. I know that they don't fully mean what they say."

Kaname grinned and squeezed her hand, to which she returned enthusiastically.

"Let's hurry up and go to Tsumugu's house. We have to tell them how Mizaki-chan tripped over the steps to her house and fell face first into a pile of snow!" He tugged at her hand and started to run again, this time faster. Sayu felt light as she ran, the hand he was holding becoming degrees hotter as she shouted, "That's mean to Ao-san! Hey, are you even listening to me? You never listen!"

And there we have it! Done with this long overdue chapter that is beyond 16,000 words! Dang! So, I made Tsumugu's mother sort of bitchy and irrational because of plot development! And in the anime, Tsumugu was really curt and awkward with her, so I wanted her to be this sort of control freak. All in all, I felt pretty good about her character. Maybe a bit too extreme, but meh, whatever.

It was fun doing the Tsumugu/Chisaki scene, and I would expect her mom to be the kind of mom who would encourage her daughter to be romantic to be with her boyfriend and has a *slightly* dirty mind. But only a little, LOL. And her father would be the awkward, not sure on how to talk to his daughter about love, kind of dad.

You probably think adding Mizaki was random and…it kind of was XD. She's just there for drama. Don't worry; she won't be coming and stealing Tsumugu away.

I like to play with the format a bit with the story and see how other people add detail and break the structure up, so it may seem different from the previous chapters. And yes, chapters 2-4 are all in one day. DAMN. Haha, the next one will be a different day.

Um, I apologize with overusing some words and such. It's hard explaining and describing scenes while using different verbs, adjectives, and etc. The next update will hopefully be coming in a week or two, maybe not as long as this one, but at least over six thousand words! Look forward to that!

Do you want to know the progress of the next chapter? Look in my bio and check it out there! I will update the progress of the chapter I'm currently working on daily so you will know if I'm fifty percent done or twenty. Stuff like that!

Thanks for reading!

On the next part: The crew decides to spend the day together at Shioshishio and on Tsumugu's boat. A piece of clothing comes off, Hikari nose bleeds again, and then something happens out at sea! (Don't worry, this story is still rated T so nothing you guys are thinking about ;) )

Extra Stuff!

Hey, you guys! My friend and I did a recording of a song called "I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran! If you're bored or interested, listen to it! I play the main guitar and my friend is the one who's singing! The other instruments are taken from the original song. I'll put the link in my bio, so have fun listening! I'm out!