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It had only been a few days since their eventful Golden Week, but Yu and Goro were able to settle back to the peaceful lull of their daily lives.
Between hanging out with his friends and giving vague details about how his Golden Week had been, Goro felt beat when returning home Saturday afternoon. Yu watched as the preteen collapsed onto the couch with a groan once he removed his shoes and set down his bag.
"Welcome home." The silver-haired teen greeted with a grin, only receiving a moan of annoyance as a reply from Goro.
"Nice to see again too." Yu teased, fully aware that the brunette was just too tired to reply.
It takes a minute before the preteen actually does reply, raising his head away from the couch pillows to speak.
"I'd take on a thousand Shadows if it meant getting out that stupid paper for English class..." He complained to no one in particular, lamenting over the homework they'd been assigned in class that day.
"You're over-exaggerating..." Yu hummed, as he walked over to the other's side and ruffled the preteen's fluffy chestnut locks, further aggravating Goro enough to get him to respond.
"I'm serious Yu! Entering a TV to fight creatures of another world would be far more interesting than reading over an overused work of a dead Englishman just to write and discuss about on Monday!" He whined as Yu rolled his eyes playfully, thinking the other was just being melodramatic now.
"And didn't I already tell you that you're not allowed to slip through the TVs here in Tokyo for training? I think we had enough with Persona business for at least the month..." Yu mused with a slight sigh, aware of the toll that the events of Golden Week had taken on them both.
They're both silent in agreement until Goro's cellphone rang out of the blue.
It was enough to startle the preteen, causing him to roll off the edge of the couch and onto the floor, Yu wincing as Goro hit the ground. The young preteen was still getting used to having the device as Dojima-san & Yu had surprised him with it after the first day, hoping it would keep him out of trouble. It didn't, but nonetheless he was still grateful to have it, as he'd be able to stay in contact more easily.
The cellphone chimed with its delightful ringtone rendition of the Neo Featherman theme, Yu glancing back over at Goro, holding out his hand to help him up. "You okay?"
"I'm fine..." The brunette reassured, recovering slowly and moving to sit upright. Yu grabbed the cellphone and handed it over to Goro, who immediately checked to see who was calling. He smiled softly seeing a familiar contact pop-up on its screen, labelled as "Dojimas" with a picture of Nanako and Dojima-san that Yu had taken during their vacation in Inaba.
Goro glanced over at the nearby clock in the living room. "It's too early for Dojima-san to be home from the station. It must be her." Goro deduced before laughing fondly.
His laughter piqued the silvernette's interest. "What's so funny?"
"N-Nothing." The preteen snorted before moving to accept the call. "Just thought our resident sibling-complex kingpin of steel might be interested to hear who's calling." he added briefly, watching Yu's face light up in embarrassment before attempting to snatch the phone from him.
"Goro!" The teen shouted before he heard the boy answer the call request. "We agreed not to speak of those names." he hissed in annoyance, only being acknowledged with a roll of Goro's ruby red eyes.
"Oh hi Nanako-chan~ How are you doing today?" Goro greeted with feigned innocence, completely ignoring Yu's plea, and instead moving to press the speaker button on the cellphone so she'd be heard by the teen as well. "Yu's here too, so I put you on speaker. Say hi." he exclaimed before hearing a squeal of delight from the other end.
["Big bro, little big bro! Hi~! I miss you guys!"] She answered cheerfully before Yu chuckled at her playful nicknames.
"We miss you too Nanako. Are you and uncle settling back in okay?"
["Mhm! Dad and I are fine. How about you and Goro-nii?"]
"I'm fine, but I think Yu's mad at me." Goro interjected, Yu narrowing his eyes down at the preteen, who just shrugged back.
["What? Big bro! That's not nice!"] She defended in an instant. ["Big bro! You've got to apologize."] Goro grinned when he heard Nanako chiding their older sibling, the teen shaking his head quickly to his defence.
"What-! N-No! Nanako, it's not like that... I was just telling Goro he shouldn't overreact about school now that Golden Week is over." Yu attempted to explain as Goro snorted, covering up the sound of his laughter with his hand, fully amused at how his teasing turned out.
["School...school.... Oh! Now I remember why I was calling!"]
"You do?" both of them asked simultaneously, leaving them to wonder what had happened to have made her want to call.
["Yeah! So, for art class this week, we had to make something out of clay for Mother's Day! I made a vase with lots of glitter and rhinestones. When I showed Dad, he told me she would have loved it, and asked if I wanted to keep it in the house. I told him I wanted Mom to have it, and he said it was okay! He took a picture of me and him with it after we put some flowers in it, and now we're gonna take it to Mom today."] Nanako gushed over before her voice got quieter near the the end. ["It...it reminded me of last year, when you were staying with us big bro. Do you remember?"]
Yu noticed Goro's silence and looked over. The preteen's expression had became much more distant the more Nanako went on about this. Yu's own smile faltered when he noticed, prompting him to walk over to the brunette's side and into a side-hug to provide some level of comfort as they continued their conversation.
"Yeah... I remember Nanako. You had made paper flowers at school that day for Mother's Day. You weren't sure who to give them to since your Mom isn't...with us. I said we could take them to her and you liked the idea, but still left one for your dad and I anyways." The silver-haired teen answered quietly as he looked over Goro with care, aware that mothers were a sore topic for him. "I'm glad to hear you're trying to visit her more often. She'd be happy to see you if she could."
["Mhm... but she's watching over Dad and I in heaven. And...I have new family too like my big brothers, and every one of big bro's friends! I'm not lonely, not anymore, so I want to show mom that too, and that I love her, even if I miss her."]
Silence hangs in the air for a moment, memories rushing past the duo right there. For Yu, it was the painful memories of traversing through Nanako's dungeon in the Midnight Channel, witnessing how her grief over her mother manifested. It was heartbreaking to go through, but she's safe now, and she's grown, a lot. He's proud of her.
Goro, on the other hand, could feel the rushing waves of anguish over his mother flooding his senses, his body beginning to tremble as his eyes teared up. Yu's hold became much more protective as he held Goro closer, the brunette unconsciously leaning into it as his eyes watered more, a few stray tears falling from his cheeks.
"I'm very happy to hear that Nanako... Is there anything else you wanted to tell us?" The teen questioned softly, slipping the phone out of Goro's loose hold to carry himself.
["No. I just...I'm happy. I want to be a good girl, and little things like this help me think I'm getting there."]
"Don't doubt yourself, you've grown so much Nanako. I'm glad to have such a great little sister." Yu stated fondly before glancing back at Goro. They needed to talk, if only to just help Goro snap out of it. "Nanako. Goro and I have to go now...I promised I'd do something with him before tonight. We'll call again another time, okay?" he concluded, the little girl on the other side of the line making a quiet whine of disappointment, but understood that they had to go.
["Okay... I love you big bros, and Happy Mother's Day."]
"Happy Mother's Day to you too Nanako. We love you, and say hi to Uncle for us, okay?" Yu signed off before pressing a button down to hang up. He sighed sadly, setting the phone down gently on the coffee table first before ushering Goro over to the couch. The brunette had remained catatonic since the mention of mothers during the phone call.
"Goro...”
No response from his call at all.
“Goro-kun, please... Talk to me." Yu pleaded, concern echoing in his voice before the preteen looks up at him, tears trailing down his face.
"Yu....Why did she do it..?" The brunette whimpered quietly, his voice wavering as he gripped onto Yu's side tightly.
"W-Why did she leave me behind?!" Goro bawled, his whimpers becoming full out wails as he began to cry into Yu's shirt. The older of the two tried to soothe the crying brunette as he would with Nanako. The teen wrapping his larger arms around Goro's smaller frame, pulling him into a warm hug as Yu delicately ran hand down his brown hair in a slow repetition.
"I don't know. I don't think I'll ever know why she did it...and neither will you..." The silver-haired teen began, shushing him gently as Goro broke down, his crying becoming louder at the unsure answer. Yu let Goro cry himself out, patiently awaiting for the boy's loud sobs to change into subdued weeping. With him much calmer, Yu felt it was okay to talk once more.
"What I mean is...whatever happened, it was her decision. You can't do anything when it comes to someone else's choices." He elaborated on before Goro shook his head in disagreement.
"B-But...I-I saved you . I saved you with my Persona, my powers! If I hadn't been so weak.... then maybe I could have-!!" He blubbered before Yu cut him off.
"Could have what, stopped her?! Goro, it was her decision to take her own life. We'll never understand what was going through her mind when she did it!" The teen snapped back, silencing Goro momentarily, then realizing that he was out of line there. Yu took a second to take a deep breath and calm himself before trying again.
"Personas...are the strength of the heart. When you awakened back during the P-1 Grand Prix, you were able to take hold of that power because you overcame the doubts and fears in your mind all while your heart was reaching out to one thing, to save me." He disclosed before shaking his head, his mind flashing back to the moment Goro had stepped in to protect him. Yu had been so close to death that time, exhausted, wounded, at his limits and unable to fight any further when he and his friends had been abruptly attacked out of nowhere. Without thinking, Yu had stepped forward to try and protect everyone when it happened. Had Goro not intervened when he did, there would be a gaping hole where Yu's heart is, as the attack would have gone struck right through him.
His mind swiftly returned back in the present after the grim reminder, the silver-haired teen continuing to do his best to soothe Goro. "You had seen enough, and it all stirred you action when it came to awakening. For your mother...you unknowingly walked into it, witnessing the aftermath of her actions. There was nothing you could have done at that point..."
"....she...she left me behind! A-And when I saw you throw yourself out there, I was scared! You were the one person who gave a shit about me; the one person I considered important since I lost her. Right there, you were going to leave me behind, and it was like watching a repeat of her death in slow motion... That's when I couldn't take it anymore..." The preteen described before tightening his grip onto Yu and choking back a sob. "She left me...she left me behind Yu. And I was alone for so long! I just miss her so much!!" he wailed before Yu pulled him in close.
"But...you aren't alone anymore." He reminded before squeezing him gently, continuing his thoughts from there. "You have me, Nanako, Uncle Dojima, the Investigation Team, Labrys and the Shadow Ops, all your friends at school, and even that one friend you made back in Inaba. We're here for you now, and we're not going to leave you behind." Yu whispered quietly before pulling Goro away to look him in the eyes, a few stray tears now falling from the teen's face.
"Especially me... You're my real little brother, and we're family now. Family sticks together." Yu stated warmly, teary-eyed yet still offering a small smile to him.
Goro's lips trembled before he launched himself onto the teen, hugging onto him tightly as they cried alongside each other. There was still a heavy weight laying in heart, but it seemed to have lightened as the two embraced, brothers by bond rather than blood. Perhaps, Goro would never truly get over his mother's death, but like this, he could try to learn to move on.
They cried for sometime afterwards, and once they calmed down, Yu had an idea that could help give him some closure.
"If you want, why don't we go visit your mom?"
Goro stared at him blankly, confused by his suggestion. "...What do you mean by that?"
"Well, Nanako is right. It's Mother's Day, and you love her to this day. Wouldn't it be nice to stop by, leave her some flowers, and maybe...tell her you're not alone anymore?" Yu awkwardly proposed, rubbing the back of his neck as he waited for an answer.
He wasn't sure Goro would want to do it considering how quiet the brunette looked as he thought it over. Yu was pleasantly surprised when Goro finally answered with a quiet "Yes."
"Wait, are you sure?" The teen asked, wanting confirmation that this was what Goro had decided on and didn't feel like he was forced to answer a certain way.
"...yeah. I'm sure." He answers back quietly before looking away from the ground and up at Yu, a small sparkle of determination in his burgundy colored eyes. "She deserves to know I'm doing okay now."
With that settled, Yu and Goro left the house, going off to the nearest florist they could find. Soon enough, they found themselves stopping by the Shibuya Underground Mall, ordering a custom bouquet from Rafflesia. Afterwards, they got into taxi and drove off the cemetery that Goro's mother had been buried in. It took a while to find the headstone where she was buried, but it was one of the nicer spots. Hidden in a far corner, behind a small gazebo and garden area, lied the headstone for “Nakano Tsubaki”, Goro's mother and the last reminder of his past before he took up the name “Akechi Goro”.
Yu walked away, saying he wanted to go look at the clearing that could be seen overlooking the cemetery. Goro knew it was just an excuse to give him privacy, but he was thankful nonetheless as he took the bouquet of flowers into his hands and took seat in front of his mother's tombstone.
“...It's been over five years since I last saw you.” He attempted to start, before sighing and brushing back a small tuft of his brown hair from his eyes.
“No. It's been five years since you left me behind.” Goro stated coldly, correcting himself from his earlier statement, letting some of his anger that he's hidden deep within himself seep out. “You went away, leaving me alone in a cruel, unforgiving world!”
Tears well up in his eyes as he glared at the tombstone. “You were all I had! All I knew! And yet, you still abandoned me, running away from something you never told me about!!” He shrieked as a few fat tears fell onto the grass.
Then, he noticed he was shaking, gripping onto the bouquet a bit too tightly. Goro closed his eyes and took a deep breath, the sense of silence allowing him to resonate with his Persona, letting a wave of calm wash over him as he breathed out.
“But...I can't be mad. After all, I ran away from something for so long too.” he admitted as a small breeze brushes past him.
He took a few seconds to quietly take in the moment before continuing. “But, I-I'm going to try and stop running away now. I'm going to face it head on now: face myself, face life, all of it.”
He opened his eyes, and looked back at the headstone, observing it.
“...because I'm not alone anymore. I found someone, and they wanted me in their life. Then, they showed me others who wanted me, just like him.”
"I...I have a new family now, all thanks to him, my real big brother. I think you'd like him. He's dillegent, intelligent, and so damn understanding. He's brave as hell too and can express himself. Everything...that I'm not." The brunette muttered quietly before shaking his head to snap him from his train of thought and back to the present.
Goro set down the flowers and then stands back up, holding his hands together. “I love you, and you'll always be my real mom, but I can't stay stuck forever.” he muttered before turning away to go and find Yu to head home.
“Please, just continue to watch over me, wherever you are mom...” He glanced back at the grave one more time before tightening his fists with resolution and moving forward.
The young preteen left the grave behind him, another weight feeling as if it was lifted off his shoulders. On the gravestone of Nakano Tsubaki lied the bouquet of flowers, a hint of life and color in an otherwise bleak, melancholy place. There, poppies, peonies, and white carnations all lined the bouquet, but what stood out the most were the bright, golden marigolds.
-
“I'm not going to lose my happiness again. Goodbye mom...”