But to my surprise,
it was not Gilbert like I had expected.

A teenage boy stood
in front of the house
with his gaze fixed on the gates.

He was wearing a white t-shirt
and torn blue jeans.

His navy-blue baseball cap was pulled down
all the way until it obscured his eyes.

Despite that,
from the slightly-tilted posture
and the way he rubbed the back of his neck
anxiously every now and then,
I could tell who it was.

That dress style...
Those rough but awkward mannerisms...

The thunderbolt symbol on his cap
that twinkled under the faint sunlight...

"Yamakai..."

The name escaped my lips just as instinctively
as if it had come from a staged dialogue.

Hesitating a bit,
I pressed on the 'unlock' button for the gates.