Tengen sighed, steeling himself. He stepped forward, slowly approaching Giyuu.

"Hey, Tomioka..."
He called out softly.

Giyuu's eyes widened as he saw Tengen slowly approaching. He quickly got up, his face pale and his body still shivering with the cold.

"U-Uzui-San..."
He stammered softly. He looked between Tengen and Obanai, his eyes filled with confusion.

Tengen gave him a gentle smile.

"Can we talk?"
He asked softly. He gestured to the ground beside Giyuu, seeking permission to sit.

Giyuu hesitated for a moment before nodding slowly. He watched as Tengen sat down beside him, his body tensing up slightly.

Obanai took a step back, allowing Tengen to take over. He looked at Giyuu expectantly.

Giyuu didn't say anything, just kept his eyes on the river, avoiding eye contact with both Tengen and Obanai.

"What... What do you want?"
He questioned, his gaze fixed on the running water.

Tengen hesitated, unsure of how to start.

"Look, Tomioka... I know I messed up, okay? I'm sorry."
He said softly. He paused, waiting for Giyuu's reaction.

"Please, just hear me out, okay?"

Giyuu's jaw clenched as he heard Tengen's apology. His eyes welled up again.

"O-Okay..."
He mumbled, his voice cracking slightly. He glanced at Tengen, his eyes filled with tears.

"What do you want to say?"

Tengen took a deep breath before speaking.
"I know what I said back then... that promise thingy, I know it hurt you, and Shinazugawa."

Giyuu's eyes widened, he swallowed hard, facing Tengen.

"...And I'm really, really sorry. I didn't listen to the full conversation and just blurted out what I thought was true..."
Tengen added, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

Obanai watched as Tengen spoke to Giyuu, a small smile on his face. He felt a sense of relief wash over him, knowing that Tengen was handling the situation well.

"And I just thought that... that you deserved to know the truth, though what I said was absolutely false."
Tengen sighed softly as he rubbed his hands together for warmth.

Giyuu's eyes bulged, his breaths growing shorter.

"This..."

"This isn't true..."
He panicked, thinking of how he treated Sanemi all this while.

Tell me this is false! This can't be true... Shinazugawa-San, I treated him like trash! Was he honest all along!?
Giyuu wondered, holding his head as his thoughts caused a wave of guilt to wash over him.

"Y-You have to be lying!"
He stammered, his heart beating faster than ever.

"Uzui-San... You're lying right now, am I right? Iguro must've forced you to do this!"

Obanai's eyes widened.
"Excuse me-!?"

Before he could get violent, Shinobu and Mitsuri run to the three.

"Iguro-San! Please don't hurt Tomioka-San! You know he's been through a lot, am I right?"
Mitsuri pleased, holding Obanai back.

Obanai sighed softly.
"It's alright... You don't have to calm me down."

"Tomioka-San, what Uzui-San said is true... We can't do anything about this now... Whatever happened this winter, it's soon going to be the past when spring arrives."
Shinobu said, her eyes glistening under the moonlight.

"You don't have to worry about how you treated Shinazugawa-San... For I know you're worrying about that... Right now, your main concern should be to change yourself, to talk things out between you and Shinazugawa-San. To live the future you've always wanted!"

Giyuu's eyes widened as a strong gush of wind blew. His eyes were sparkling with the tears and the moonlight left a shimmery gleam over his face.

The future I've always wanted...?

Giyuu closed his eyes, his heart pounding in his chest. He put his hand over his chest, where his heart is. Feeling his own heart beat, he took a long, deep breath in as his other hand clenched into a fist.

The future... The future with Shinazugawa-San...

Giyuu remembered Sanemi's voice, which was a part of the special memories he had in his heart. He replayed their old interactions in his mind, feeling guilty for never allowing Sanemi to get a chance.

He finally opened his eyes, his gaze shifting to Tengen. He didn't say anything, but his eyes seemed to convey how much he hated himself for what he did.

Tengen looked at Giyuu, his own expression that of guilt. He sighed tiredly, his eyes on the glistening river water.

"I didn't think it'd affect y'all this bad, but by the time I came back... that is, this morning, I found out how you guys just..."
He paused, swallowing hard.

Giyuu's tears fell down his face as he heard Tengen. He quickly wiped them away.

"J-Just...?"
He asked, his voice quivering slightly.

Tengen paused, trying to find the right words.
"Well, you see... when I came back, I heard that... that you two aren't together anymore. And... I feel really guilty about it."

Giyuu could control his emotions any longer, and he ended up breaking down into tears. He cried softly, his body shaking slightly. He burried his face into his knees, soaking his pants wet.

"T-Tomioka-San!"
Mitsuri hurried, sitting down beside Giyuu and rubbing his back soothingly.

Giyuu's eyes widened at the sudden gesture.
"K-Kanroji..."

"D-Don't cry! It'll all be okay!"
Her own voice trembled, her tears threatening to spill.

"Kanroji-San..."
Shinobu took a step closer to Mitsuri and Giyuu, her heart breaking at the sight. She looked over at Obanai who also had a sad expression on.

"Look, I'm really sorry for lying to you, Tomioka... but I really thought that it was true... and now I just need a chance to sincerely apologise to you, to Shinazugawa... who would probably kill me."

Giyuu's breath hitched as he heard Tengen. His eyes widened slightly, his mind racing.

"Th-Then, it really was a misunderstanding, huh? So, Shinazugawa-San... he was saying the truth all along...?"
He asked softly, his voice barely a whisper.

He looked at Tengen, his eyes filled with hope and fear. "This..."

Tengen nodded slowly, his expression serious.

"Yeah... it was all a big misunderstanding on my part. Shinazugawa is still in love with you, and I... I messed it all up by not listening properly."
He sighed deeply, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I'm really sorry, Tomioka."

Giyuu's heart raced as he heard Tengen's words. He felt a glimmer of hope, but it was quickly replaced by fear. He looked down at his hands, his fingers trembling slightly.

"Wh-What do you want me to do, Uzui-San! I-"

Tengen placed a comforting hand on Giyuu's shoulder.

"Hey... it's okay. You don't have to do anything right now. Just... take your time to process all of this."
He said softly.

"But... if you want my opinion? You should talk to Shinazugawa."
He added.

Obanai nodded in agreement with Tengen's suggestion, sighing out softly. "Uzui's right... you need to talk to Shinazugawa."

"I agree."
Shinobu smiled softly, joining her hands together.

"I really should?"
Giyuu questioned.

"Mhm! That's a great idea!!!"
Mitsuri exclaimed, squealing internally.

___________________________________________

Wedding picture ahh pose😭🙏

See ya later, I love you soooo much!

Oh and here:
🍩🍔🍙🍦

Bye!