Chapter 95: Making a wish to god in a place full of memories

Making a wish to god in a place full of memories

Peppy sensations on the cheeks awaken me.

“Pa-pa, wake up~”

When I open my eyes, Aki-chan’s face is right in front of my nose. Her softly smiling face resembles Aya’s.

With dark hair, closer to brown, extending to her shoulders, she’s a girl.

Her chubby cheeks are soft to the touch, red like apples. Is this also inherited from her mother?

“Ma-ma, pa-pa’s awake~”

Then Aya, sitting in the seat next to me, smiles. Outside the Shinkansen window behind her, I can see faint mountains and low cityscapes passing by at high speed.

“We’re almost at our destination.”

“Hmm… Did I fall asleep?”

“Yesterday you came home unusually late.”

“I’ve been working hard to save up for this trip.”

Accompanied by pleasant music, an announcement in the train notifies us of the approaching destination.

The trees visible from the window are adorned with yellow and orange leaves. The season is already deeply autumnal.

“For now, should we go to the Great Buddha?”

As soon as we get off the train, Aya asks.

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

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Rubbing my sleepy eyes and stretching, Aki-chan extends her hands towards me.

“Pa-pa, do that~”

“Sure, here you go.”

I make a fist and lower my arm and Aki-chan clings to it. Lifting her up gently and slowly spinning her around, cute cheers fill the air. It’s her recent favorite. It seems I’m a kind of ride for both of them.

We wave to the departing Shinkansen, holding hands with Aki-chan in the middle as we walk. Although she’s now fully capable of running, her steps are still small. We’ll probably arrive at the Great Buddha around noon.

Leaving the station, we walk along the streets while browsing for souvenirs.

Eventually, we see the building where the Great Buddha resides in the distance.

“Hey, should we make a wish to the Great Buddha?”

“Huh…?”

The Great Buddha is not someone you typically make wishes to. I’m slightly surprised by Aya’s suggestion, which is similar to mine. Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

“Well, I’ve come more to express gratitude.”

“Hmm, just like me.”

“Did you make a wish too, Aya? Like during the school trip or something?”

“Yeah… hehe and what about you, papa?”

“Yeah, I made a heartfelt wish.”

“Did it come true?”

“Yep, it did.”

For some reason, my chest feels warm and I absentmindedly pat Aki-chan’s head.

“Wow… a big person…”

By the time we arrive at the Great Buddha, it’s already afternoon. Aki-chan’s eyes widen in amazement as she looks up at the Great Buddha.

As we try to approach closer, Aya suddenly stops.

“Sorry, just a quick stop.”

She takes out her smartphone and starts snapping photos of the surroundings.

“Okay, got it. Shall we go pay our respects then?”

The area around the Great Buddha is just like when we came on our school trip. Students in uniforms take photos with the Great Buddha in the background or simply gaze at it.

After we finish sightseeing, we head to the quieter area behind for Aki-chan, who wants to sit down. The three of us line up on a bench.

“Boyan, this place brings back memories, doesn’t it?”

Aya sends a teasing smile my way.

“Yeah, it does.”

This bench is where she consulted me about her feelings for Tokita and where I earnestly prayed to the Great Buddha.

――”They just don’t understand Boyan’s goodness!”

I recall Aya’s face, tearful with that plea. In that moment, I realized my earnest love for her.

“Oh, ma-ma, you called him Boyan again~”

“Oh, really?”

Aya gives Aki-chan a look that says “I messed up”. She truly has a knack for changing expressions.

After a while of sitting on the bench, Aya suddenly stands up as if she remembered something.

“Oh right, it looks like they’re selling souvenirs over there, so I’ll go buy some. What about you, Aki-chan?”

“I’ll stay here a bit longer.”

“Okay, then pa-pa and I will wait together.”

I watch Aya’s retreating figure as she hurries off.

Next to me, Aki-chan swings her legs back and forth while staring at the ground.

“Thank you, Great Buddha.”

In a quiet voice, I express my gratitude to the god whose presence I can no longer sense.

Thanks to intuition, I was able to win Aya over.

Because intuition guided me, I was able to make choices.

Because I made choices, I was able to gain an irreplaceable family.

“There’s nothing to worry about anymore.”

I no longer rely on intuition and that’s okay.

Both Aya and I… we can now seize our own futures.

At that moment, my phone buzzes. It’s a short message from Aya.

『New wallpaper♪』

She rarely uses anything but text, so she must have taken a really good photo.

Opening the image she sent, I see three dark shadows. Figures of me, Aya and Aki-chan holding hands on the white cobblestone path. It seems this was what she was snapping photos of earlier.

The three figures somehow seem to be smiling and I find myself smiling too.

As I set it as my wallpaper, Aki-chan tugs at my sleeve.

“What’s up?”

“Hey, pa-pa, do you think the Great Buddha can grant Aki’s wish too?”

She stares at me with a serious expression. It seems she overheard our conversation earlier.

“Did Aki-chan make a wish too?”

“Yeah, umm… well, it’s, uh… I won’t say.”

“I see.”

I can vaguely imagine what her wish might be. The image of a wish written on a Tanabata strip comes to mind.

“But then, I heard a weird voice.”

“A voice? What kind?”

I lean in, intrigued.

“It said, ‘Your wish has already been granted’.”

Aki-chan swings her legs happily.

“Oh… so it’s already granted.”

A warm feeling wells up in my chest.

“Aki-chan, shall we go pick up Aya together?”

I stand up and take her small hand.

As we start walking, we see Aya coming back from afar.

“Oh, ma-ma called you ‘Boyan’ again!”

“Yeah, she did.”

I chuckle at Aki-chan’s accurate observation.

“Hey there! I got some good stuff~”

She cheerfully waves her hand as we reunite.

The three of us hold hands and slowly walk away from the Great Buddha.