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Karamatsu ran, faster than he ever had. Desperately, he ran to all the places he knew Ichimatsu liked. He went to the park, to see the stray cats, but no Ichimatsu.
There was an old building on the edge of town. It was very tall and there was a ditch on one side. The building caught Karamatsu’s attention and he started towards it.
Once at the building, Karamatsu ran directly up those stairs. Without catching his breath, he ran out to the roof.
There he was.
Karamatsu let go of a breath he didn’t know he was holding and flopped onto the ground. Ichimatsu looked back but did not get off the edge.
“Karamatsu…?” His hands trembled as he signed. At that moment, Karamatsu’s heart shattered. He looked at his brother and met eyes. Ichimatsu looked scared, upset, and, above all, excited to see Karamatsu.
“Please don’t, Ichi.” As Karamatsu signed, Ichimatsu had a look of sadness.
“I have to. I’m so useless.”
“No you don’t!”
“I learned something for you.” Ichimatsu turned back around, facing the ditch, so that he couldn’t see Karamatsu’s hands.
“Karamatsu, I’m so sorry. I’m such a burden, so I’ll leave you be. But just know, I love you.” Ichimatsu spoke. Karamatsu was speechless. Did he learn to speak?
At that moment, whilst Karamatsu was stunned by this display, Ichimatsu moved.
Forward.
Less than ten minutes later, Karamatsu followed.