My Ex-Girlfriend’s Sister Ran Away to My Room, and We Can’t Stop Making Mistakes. - Chapter 35: It’s Been a Long Time.

It’s Been a Long Time.

I found myself wishing the call wouldn’t go through.

I wished she had changed her phone ages ago, that this number was no longer in service. Right up until the very moment Ayumu answered, those were the thoughts running through my head.

For a few seconds, the words just wouldn’t come.

“It’s been a long time.”

The moment I spoke, Ayumu’s voice gave a tiny, subtle bounce.

“Saki-kun. I knew it. Wow, it really has been a long time.”

“Yeah,” I muttered.

She offered a deeply apologetic reply. “I’m sorry. I kept meaning to call you. I just… couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“Same here. I was always meaning to call you, too.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. But I could never find the nerve to actually go through with it.”

“We’re exactly the same, aren’t we?”

“Exactly the same.”

She let out a soft, nostalgic chuckle on the other end of the line. Even the sound of her laughter pulled at my memory.

“Hey, there’s so much I want to talk about, but… actually, Mii has gone missing.”

“That’s exactly why I called. She’s here, Ayumu.”

“Huh?”

“She showed up at my place, barging in with a suitcase.”

“Oh, boy…” She let out a heavy sigh. “I can’t believe she went all the way to Tokyo. Seriously, what am I going to do with her? That girl does nothing but cause worry.”

“My bad. I should’ve contacted you right away.”

“No, it’s fine. If anything, thank you for taking her in. I hope she hasn’t been a total nuisance?”

“Not at all. My room’s actually clean now. Thanks to her.”

“Ahaha,” she giggled softly, finding amusement in that. “Well, I’m glad to hear you two are getting along.”

“Right now, we’re at the hospital.”

“The hospital? Don’t tell me—”

“She’s fine. She’s on an IV drip right now and resting calmly.”

“I’m so sorry. I am so, so sorry.”

After a barrage of deeply contrite apologies, Ayumu breathed a sigh of realization. “But… that makes sense. I get it now.”

“Get what?”

“The timing of your call. Mii was throwing a tantrum, wasn’t she? Saying she didn’t want to come home.”

“Ah… yeah.”

“Figures. She hates this house. Just like I used to.”

Then, she fell silent.

The other side of the line was incredibly quiet. I had no idea where Ayumu was, but it sounded like a profoundly still place.

“Ayumu.”

“Yeah?”

“I need you to come pick her up. Pick Mii up.”

“Right… Yeah, of course.”

“Is something wrong?”

“No, it’s just… I was actually just thinking it might be better to let Mii stay with you a little longer. I know it’s a lot to ask. But if you don’t mind, Saki-kun…”

“I mean, I don’t really mind, but…”

“I’m not trying to force it on you or anything.”

“Why, though? Did something happen?”

“Nothing happened, per se. It’s just, simply put… Mii hates me.”

“That can’t be true.”

“It is true. Seriously, the rebellious phase is a nightmare to navigate. Not that I’m one to talk.” She sounded utterly at a loss. “That’s why I think she ran away from home.”

“I don’t think Mii hates you at all. She’s never said a single bad thing about you.”

Though she did tell me to hate you.

“Maybe not hate, but… what would you call it? Guilt? That girl thinks it’s her fault I dropped out of high school.”

“No way.”

“Right? I’m the one to blame, though.”

The words caught in my throat. Unable to outright deny it, I could only offer a hollow, faint response. “You think so?”

“She thinks she’s a burden. She believes that if she hadn’t been around, if she hadn’t been so attached to the family, I would have lived a normal life.”

The suffocating weight I had been feeling earlier clawed its way back into my chest. The thought that maybe, if I hadn’t been around, Ayumu would have lived a completely different life.

A happier one, for instance.

“It’s not her fault. Dropping out of high school was my own choice. It wasn’t anyone else’s fault.”

The downpour outside was gradually slackening into a drizzle.

I didn’t know how to answer her. What exactly did a “happier life” even mean? My mind scrambled, desperately searching for the right words.

“Do you really, truly believe it wasn’t anyone’s fault?”

There was a brief pause before her voice reached my ear again.

“I do. Choosing to protect the house, dropping out of high school, getting married… Sure, money played a part. But in the end, these were my choices. It wasn’t Mii’s fault, it wasn’t Dad’s fault, it wasn’t anyone’s fault.”

“Do you regret it?”

“If I said I didn’t, I’d be lying.”

“I regret it,” I confessed. “Deeply.”

“Yeah.”

“I still remember. What happened back then. I did something completely irreversible. I’ve wanted to apologize to you for so long.”

“Me too.” Her voice sank into a low, heavy register. “I wanted to apologize, too. We should have talked a little sooner. I’m sorry.”

“No… Or maybe, it would have been better if we had never met in the first place.”

“That’s not true!”

She raised her voice, cutting me off sharply.

“Back then, when you took my hand and pulled me forward… Saki-kun, you truly saved me.”

“I couldn’t do anything for you.”

“You’re wrong. It made me so happy.” Ayumu let out a soft breath, her voice dropping to a whisper. “I can’t put it into words very well, but…”

Silence blanketed the line once more. She seemed lost in thought. But when she finally spoke again, her tone had bounced back to its usual brightness.

“Anyway, I’m coming over. You even paid for her living expenses, right? And I need to hand over her insurance card. There are a lot of things we need to sort out. Can you give me your address?”

“I’ll text it to you.”

“Thanks. I want to talk to you too, Saki-kun. I’ll be there soon, so please look after Mii until then.”

“See you,” she said, and the line went dead.

Checking the call duration, I realized we had been on the phone for nearly an hour. Had we really talked that long? My conversation with Ayumu had ended with an almost unbelievable casualness.

I headed back inside the hospital, intending to stop by her room before heading home. The doctor had said she needed to rest quietly for the day. She was probably still asleep, but I just wanted to check on her face. I pushed the hospital door open.

“Mii.”

The space where she was supposed to be sleeping was completely empty.

Mii was gone from the bed.