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Emu loved her big sister, there was no doubt about that. She and Hinata had been friends even since the day Emu was born. Hinata was so happy to have a little sister and loved taking care of her. Hinata fed Emu, dressed her up, and even changed her diapers. It was as if the two of them were designed to be the best of friends.
Their love for each other only grew as the two got older. Hinata loved Emu’s fun bubbly personality and was able to understand Emu’s unique way of talking. Emu idolized Hinata and loved how she was always willing to listen to her and entertain her wacky ideas. The two of them were like peas in a pod, and it felt like nothing could ever come between the two of them.
But eventually, Hinata had to go off to college, as many young adults did. This event hit Emu harder than she expected. Emu knew this day was coming, but nothing could prepare her for the final goodbyes and the pain of leaving her beloved sister.
The hurt only grew as time went on. The days that followed Hinata’s departure made Emu realize just how much the two of them did together. There were no more weekend shopping trips, no more weekend movie nights, and no more talking for hours about whatever came to mind. The thing that hurt the most was Emu’s performances with her friends. Hinata had come to every one of them, sitting in the same spot in the front right next to Tsukasa’s sister, smiling the proud smile that filled Emu up inside, and clapping louder than everyone else at the show’s end. But now that Hinata was gone, the empty seat in the front made Emu want to cry.
Emu’s brothers and parents were often busy working, leaving Emu home alone. Emu used to like this, as it provided her with plenty of quality time with her sister. Now that her sister was gone though, Emu hated it when her family was gone, and she was all alone, with nothing but her massive collection of stuffed animals for companionship. The only real comfort she had was knowing that Hinata would eventually be home for spring break.
After what felt like years of waiting, spring break rolled around, and Hinata came home. Emu was overjoyed to see her sister and talk about all the things that had happened while she was gone. The two of them had so much fun together, just like old times. But spring break came and went, and Hinata had to leave again.
Emu was always able to call her sister, but talking to her through her phone wasn’t the same as the conversations they had face-to-face. Telling her sister about the new shows she put on with her friends wasn’t as fun when she couldn’t see Hinata’s proud expression. Hinata was also often busy with school, and Emu was busy with school and shows, so calls between the two of them were few and far between.
Emu’s birthday was September 9th. Emu always spent her birthday with Hinata. They would go shopping together, Hinata would make Emu her favorite cake, and the two of them would stay up until some ungodly hour of the night, watching movies and talking for hours. It was august now, and it was just beginning to sink in for Emu that this would be the first year that Hinata wouldn’t be home for Emu’s birthday. This made Emu feel a loneliness she had never felt before, even after Hinata left. The idea of Hinata not being there for one of their most beloved traditions cut like a knife, and Emu didn’t know how to handle the unbearable sadness.
So, one evening, Emu’s family was all busy with their own work commitments, leaving Emu alone. The empty house felt unbearable for Emu, so she called up Nene and Nene came by. The two of them chatted for a bit before watching some movie adaptations of their favorite musicals. They were watching the movie version of Hamilton, when out of nowhere, Emu asked,
“Hey Nene, you mind if I braid your hair?” Nene felt the question was kind of random, but she replied with
“Sure, I don’t mind.” Nene turned to face away from Emu, and Emu got to work with her hair. Nene often did her own hair, so she wasn’t used to the feeling of someone else doing things to it, but she was curious how Emu would do with her hair. The way Emu moved her fingers through Nene’s hair felt nice, and she liked listening to Emu hum along with the movie as she worked.
“How did you get so good at this?” Nene asked Emu. Without pausing her braiding, Emu replied,
“Me and my sister used to do this all the time before she left. We would stay up and watch movies or musicals like this.”
“Your sister left for college a few months ago, right?”
“Yeah, I miss her a lot.” Emu’s voice hitched as she said this, and Nene opted to change the subject out of fear of making Emu cry.
“Your birthday is coming up soon. Anything you want to do?”
“I want my sister to take me shopping, like she usually does.”
“But she can’t. You know that, right?”
“I know, but you asked what I want. That’s what I want. I know I can’t have it.” Emu’s words had an infuriated tone that made Nene know she had hit a nerve.
“Ah, I see. How have things been without Hinata? I know you two were close.”
“I miss her, she used to come to all our shows. I miss that.”
“I remember. She was always so happy to see you.”
“Keisuke and Shousuke are never home. Its lonely without her.” Emu tied the end of Nene’s braid with a rubber band conveniently stored in her pocket. Nene gently felt the braid, and noted how well done it was. It wasn’t lopsided, no stray bits poked out the sides, and all three sections were evenly sized.
“Thanks for braiding my hair. It’s really good!” Nene turned around to face Emu, only to see that her lower lip was quivering like a leaf in a windstorm and her eyes were welling up with tears. Emu practically dove forward to hug Nene, burying her face in Nene’s shoulder and sobbing.
“I miss my sister! I wish she was home!” Nene hugged Emu in return, gently rubbing her back and letting her cry as much as she needed to. “I’m happy she’s in college, but I want her back home with me!” Emu continued to wail as Nene listened to her incoherent cries. Once Emu’s cries had quieted down to soft whimpers and Emu had lifted her face from Emu’s shoulder, Nene looked her in the eye and said.
“Emu, its ok to be sad. Hinata’s been a key part of your whole life, it’s only natural for you to be upset that she’s gone.” The softness and compassion in Nene’s voice made Emu’s heart melt.
“All I want is for her to be home. I just want to braid her hair and go shopping with her and talk like we used to.”
“I know that. It must suck that she’s gone. But, maybe in the meantime, you can try filling the hole she left with new things.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, maybe on your birthday, you can go shopping and watch movies and talk with me and Tsukasa and Rui. Or, maybe when your family isn’t home and you feel lonely, you can call me, and we can hang out and you can braid my hair again. No one can replace your sister and the bond you have, but maybe we can help fill that void until she comes to visit again.”
“That would be nice. I think she’s coming back home again in October, but it would be nice to spend time with you guys more when she’s gone.”
“Exactly! We can’t fully make the hurt go away, but maybe we can make things just a little bit better while she isn’t here.” Emu hugged Nene again, and said a muffled,
“Thank you so much. For always being there for me.”
“No worries! What kind of friend would I be if I wasn’t there for you?”
Emu loved her sister, and missed her dearly, but maybe her friends would be able to make the loneliness just a bit more bearable.