[Kitahara Toru once told you.]
[He has a dream.]
[In the future, he wants to conquer every mountain, ocean, and forest, set foot in places rarely touched by human traces, and explore the mysteries of the world.]
[You believe he was not lying.]
[In private, you have seen him flipping through many related books, checking foreign language materials that you cannot understand at all.]
[Although you excel academically, you are not at a level where you can afford to spend time learning foreign languages.]
[Just English alone is troublesome enough.]
[Speaking of which, Yamada Ryo and Ijichi Nijika graduated from high school a month ago. You attended their graduation ceremony at Shimokitazawa High School.]
[Because Kessoku Band has been busy with work recently, the two of them only applied to an ordinary university that was not very good, missing out on prestigious schools.]
[Yamada Ryo has a talent for quickly mastering anything she studies, but unfortunately, she forgets one thing as soon as she learns another. A single thread genius, a multi thread failure.]
[April.]
[You became a third year high school student.]
[At the beginning of the new term, your homeroom teacher stopped you and asked about your plans for higher education.]
[Last year's career survey form was left blank because you were hospitalized.]
[This question stumped you immediately, because you had never thought about the future or dreams.]
[For a girl whose life is on a countdown, is talking about something as distant as dreams not a bit too cruel?]
[Holding the career survey form, you found your boyfriend after school and asked for his opinion.]
["For something like this, it is better to discuss it with your parents," Toru replied.]
[You nodded.]
[But deep down, you felt that it did not really matter how you filled it out.]
[After discussing it briefly with your parents at home, you filled in a few schools that matched your academic level and hastily brought the matter to an end.]
[Over the following months, Toru made time to accompany you all around Japan.]
[During this period, your kissing skills became more practiced.]
[However, because of your physical condition, Toru would always restrain himself at the final moment. He said that kind of thing might be better done after marriage.]
[Next year, you will turn 18.]
[A year is not a short time. Can you, who has long suffered from heart disease, really hold on until then?]
[Unfortunately, your boyfriend is even more stubborn than you imagined. You even start to doubt your own physical charm.]
[He praises you every day for being cute and beautiful. Is it a kind lie, or a sincere truth from his heart?]
[In summer, you watched fireworks together once again.]
[In autumn, you went to Higashiyama in Kyoto to admire the maple leaves.]
[Winter…]
[You fell ill once again.]
[This time the condition was more severe than ever, and you remained unconscious for a long time…]
[When you woke up again, the scenery outside the window was still the same unchanging view.]
[It felt as though you had fallen into a terrifying time loop.]
[No matter how long or how many times Toru helped you escape this cage, you would always be dragged back in again.]
[Late at night, you stared at the ceiling of the hospital room, tears gradually soaking the pillow.]
[This was the first time you cried because of your illness.]
[You are very strong. You could have stayed strong all the way until the end, until you met Toru, put down the burden in your heart in front of him, shed the hard hedgehog shell you wore, and finally revealed your softest part to him…]
[At the very end of your life, you met the person you wanted to accompany for a lifetime.]
[Perhaps this is the real reason your tears will not stop.]
[The next day.]
[You accidentally overheard a conversation between your mother and the doctor.]
[The doctor said that a suitable heart still had not been found for you, and that you did not have much time left.]
[For the rest of your life, you may no longer be able to leave the hospital.]
[Correspondingly, you are destined to miss the entrance examinations at the end of winter.]
[Just as you expected, the choices on the career survey form never mattered, because you would not live to graduate from high school in the first place.]
[From this day on.]
[You begin to look forward to every sunrise.]
[You hate sunsets.]
[Before sleeping, you always feel anxious.]
[These days continue for several days.]
[Until your boyfriend arrives.]
[As soon as Toru comes, he gets into an argument with your mother.]
[The topic is still about him taking you all over the place.]
[Life is not just about getting by, there is also poetry and distant horizons.]
[You do not regret it. That period was the happiest time of your life, without question.]
[Toru does not comfort you. He simply chats with you about interesting things that have happened recently.]
[You do not know whether he is forcing a smile…]
[When you think about how, before long, you will leave his sight, his side, and eventually even fade from his memory with time, a wave of aching pain rises in your chest.]
["What kind of wedding should we choose? What does Kanade like? Japanese style, Western style…"]
[The more relaxed your boyfriend's tone sounds, the more painful it feels to you.]
[You cannot imagine the future he speaks of.]
["Sorry, it seems a bit early to talk about this now. Exams are more important," Toru says with a smile.]
[You nod, showing a strained expression.]
Seeing this, Tachibana Kanade closes the simulation interface.
Putting herself into the perspective of another version of herself, this situation is truly despairing.
After calming herself for a few minutes,
she finally dares to continue.
[Some time ago, you just celebrated your 18th birthday.]
[In fact, you could get married, but rather than marrying him and bringing him pain, it would be better to leave him like this.]
[One month later.]
[Your condition has not improved.]
[Toru comes to visit you again today. He brings a strange gift of a drink, and after entering the hospital room, he even deliberately locks the door.]
["What is this?"]
["A beverage made from rice…"]
So this is alcohol, you mutter to yourself.
People under 20 are not allowed to drink or buy alcohol. That is a national regulation. You really do not know where he got it from.
["I heard that in Tianchao, when people get married, they drink cross cup wine. Want to try it?"]
[Toru takes out two small cups and pours some golden colored liquid into them.]
[Poisoned wine?]
[A lovers' suicide?]
[Before you can react.]
[Toru drinks a cup by himself.]
["The taste is pretty good."]
[Only then do you feel relieved. You take the cup he hands you. Standing close together, your arms intertwine, hands crossing as you drink the cup of wine.]
[There is no bitterness. It is even slightly sweet.]
[After finishing the cross cup wine, Toru puts the bottle of golden liquid away.]
["The next time we drink, it will have to wait until the san san kudo ceremony."]
["A Japanese style wedding?" you ask back.]
[San san kudo, also called the three offerings ritual, is part of a Japanese style wedding.]
["Mm…"]
[Toru nods. "When the time comes, let me see what Kanade looks like in a white shiromuku."]
[At this moment, you cannot help but imagine the scene of the wedding, a faint smile spreading across your lips.]
[It seems that everything is moving toward a good direction.]
Could it be…
Will the ending of this story turn around?
—