A Yuletide Wish 1 - Red Handkerchief

I don't know where I have to go. I hesitated for a while, then I looked at you... ~ First Love, Park Gyuri and Han Seungyeon

xxxxxx

[Yuka]

"Where did that come from?"

It was the first words that I uttered upon arriving at the bus stop heading to the town of Mihima. I uttered that question as soon as I saw a handkerchief seemingly tied to a tree branch.

"This was just like the movie I saw the other day..." I couldn't help commenting once again as I continued staring at the handkerchief that the wind was blowing gently. Of course, I couldn't really help smiling at the sight.

But it soon faded after remembering the reason why I decided to go to Orizanillo in the first place.

A heavy sigh came out of my lips soon after.

Why did I even end up having writer's block now, of all times? Honestly, it was the only depressing thought that my mind could conjure at the moment. Great! Why did I have to think of such things at this point, of all times?

If this would continue, I'd never be able to produce anything for me to write.

"And now... things will start to feel lonely around me..." Once again, I muttered. A depressing sigh just came out of my mouth.

November cold doesn't really give me the greatest of feelings if I would be that honest.

"Yuka!"

That voice brought me out of my reverie... again. Upon turning around to know who called me like that, I smiled at the sight of my best friend and former elementary classmate Asakura Mirae approaching me.

"Mirae! Long time no see!" I greeted excitedly and ran towards her.

As soon as we were both within reach, she surprised me when she glomped on me and hugged me tightly.

"Hey, careful with that, will you? You nearly pushed me to the ground," I reprimanded, but it seemed that Mirae wasn't listening at all. She was just tightly hugging me.

It looked like she really missed me, huh?

It wasn't long before Mira released me from her incredibly tight hug.

"Sorry. I just missed you, that's all. It's been so long since you last came here," Mirae said to me with a grin.

"Yeah, I already thought of that. But you surely got heavier since the last time we met up, huh?"

"Hey, no fair! I've been working out, you know?"

Well, this banter could go on for as long as I wanted to. But for now, perhaps it would be better if I rest first since the travel from the city to Mihima was completely tiring for me. It had been a while since I went to this town, after all. So I think it would take some time for my body to get used to it again.

"Anyway, maybe we should head home for now. Mom already prepared your favorite dishes so you could eat to your heart's content and of course, let you rest as much as you'd like," Mirae said soon after.

I could only sigh at her words. "Aunt Aya is going to spoil me again," I replied, mentioning Mirae's mother.

"Oh, come on! You know she's always like that to you. You should've gotten used to that by now."

In any case, I still took the offer since I really did need to rest properly. Besides, Aunt Aya was like a second mother to me, even when I was still living in Mihima during my elementary days.

But before I could take a step away from there, my eyes soon caught sight of that tied handkerchief once again.

"So you too are interested in that, huh?"

It was enough to snap me out and made me face Mirae. She was looking at it with a sad expression. Of course, I found that weird.

"Mirae?" I called out, hoping to distract her from it.

But even after I did that, Mirae just sighed wistfully and faced me not long after. "If only people knew the real reason why that handkerchief was there in the first place..."

"What are you talking about?"

"Would you believe that the story of that tied handkerchief was something scary and quite superstitious?"

Of course, I didn't expect that to hear from her. But the words "scary" and "superstitious" only made me frown.

"The town mayor decided to do this, done on the 17th day of the month the couple who would usually meet on the spot where the handkerchief was tied to had died."

My eyes widened upon hearing that. "You're joking, right?"

But Mirae shook her head, her eyes were looking at me seriously. And trust me, they were dead serious.

"It happened a year ago. The girl had a grave illness that she kept from her lover for a long time. But even so, they would still meet underneath that tree. It didn't take long before the guy discovered his girlfriend's secret and was depressed because of it that he didn't show up to their meeting place for quite some time. And when he finally decided to appear to her and tell her that he still loved her, it was all too late. She died there. Even during her last moments, she waited for him to appear. Though they got to say goodbye, it wasn't enough. He was about to take her to the hospital even though it was hopeless when a truck driven by a drunken driver hit both of them. The guy died holding his dead lover's hand tight."

Woah... That was seriously some kind of a story if you ask me. But wait...

"What does the handkerchief has to do with that story?" I couldn't help asking.

"The red handkerchief that hanging there symbolizes the tragic fate of those lovers. And the mayor claimed to have seen the ghost of the young man wandering underneath the tree, looking up with a really sad look on his face. The mayor sort of had an epiphany that the red handkerchief the girl gave to the guy was a symbolism of trying to connect to his lover once again and also his way of trying to appease the spirit of the couple. Especially the guy who died unexpectedly, regretting that he left her despite her situation."

I couldn't believe such a story even existed. And Mirae said that it happened a year ago.

"But if you ask me," Mirae continued. "I think it's for the best if they don't know the real story why that handkerchief was there in the first place. At least they could still create beautiful stories because of that, even though some of them could be a little exaggerated in some ways."

I could only smile at my best friend's perception of this issue. And if I should say so myself, I think it was for the best to preserve the real story of that handkerchief, no matter how painful it had become for the couple.

"How about you, Yuka? Have you ever felt something like that before?" Mirae asked all of a sudden that my mind wasn't able to register the question immediately.

"Huh?"

"Don't just say 'huh'. Answer it."

"What am I suppose to answer?"

"Have you ever felt something like that before?"

"Like what?"

"Like you have chosen to stay by your lover's side despite what you've learned about him until the end. That even if it's a grave situation, you would still choose to remain by his side in spite of all that's about to come and tear you apart."

With that finally cleared, I sighed exasperatingly. Seriously, of all questions that Mira would ask me...

"Do I look like someone who already had experienced being in a relationship? My love life after all this time is like a tree waiting for the rain to fall in the middle of a drought." Okay, that turned out to be a little exaggerated as a description.

"Woah! Don't tell me you still have feelings for that high school sweetheart of yours that you were telling me before?"

"What? No! Besides, he married early after impregnating his girlfriend during college." I took a deep breath to remove the uneasiness I was beginning to feel for some reason because of bringing that memory up. "Maybe we should head home for now. I'd prefer you tell me about the story of the couple's handkerchief than focus on my story-less love life standing in the middle of its own drought."

"Enough with the drought comparison, will you?!" Miras exclaimed in frustration that only made me laugh.

Despite the sad (and possibly scary) story that the tied handkerchief held, there was a part of my heart that told me about an uncertain tale beginning to unfold at that moment.

xxxxxx

[Yohei]

This was the first time I did it.

Turning my back at least for a while to the world I've known for a long time. I could've laughed at that thought. But in the end, I couldn't. I didn't have any reason to do so.

I guess I could say that I was released somehow. At that moment, I realized something.

"Yohei!"

I sighed after hearing that before I turned to the source of that voice. I smiled at the sight of my half-brother Fujieda Kojuro approaching me with two cans of lemon soda in his hands.

"Do you really have to bring me my favorite?" I asked as I sat on the nearby bench as soon as he handed one of the lemon sodas he was holding to me.

"I just know that I have to bring you something to calm you down. You really look stressed when you arrived here."

I chose not to say anything about that. I didn't want to give stress and worries to my family just because I took a leave from work. I just smiled and finally drank the lemon soda.

And just as I thought, the taste of that lemon soda brought a lot of memories to my mind. How long has it been, anyway? Maybe since the last time I went here...

"Now that I think about it, what made you decide to move here, Kojuro?" I asked as soon as I remembered something. "Most of our family's businesses are in the city. And I remembered that Dad was supposed to make you the successor to the position of managing the company."

"Haru-nee took all of the responsibility from me when I told her that I will be moving here and live on my own as a painter," Kojuro responded, making me stop drinking.

I faced Kojuro after hearing our stepsister's name. "Harukaze-neesan did? But why?"

"I asked the same thing to her when she declared that to the board members six months ago. And you know what she said? She said that it was already a good thing that you and I are doing the things that we love. She wasn't going to let the coveted and fought-over-and-fought-for position in the family business ruin it for us. Besides, she had always been aiming of replacing Dad in taking care of the business. So all we should worry about right now is our own lives... and possibly romantic relationships to make it all the more worthwhile, she said."

I laughed at the last statement while Kojuro just shrugged and started drinking his lemon soda. Helena was the same as always. I should've expected that one coming.

But of course, I couldn't help smiling after hearing that. Even though Kawazumi Harukaze was our stepsister since she was my stepmother's child from her first marriage, I never once felt that we weren't blood-related at all with the way she was treating me and Kojuro. I supposed I was lucky to have met a person such as our neesan.

"So how's your life here, so far? I was surprised when I heard it from Mom about you moving here."

That was when Kojuro smiled and faced me. "Never been better. I definitely like living here."

"That's good to know."

A sigh escaped my lips as I looked around the town of Mihima. It was true that the place was just a small one. But I guessed I could understand why my half-brother decided to live here.

The atmosphere was really light. It seemed that the town people were quite friendly. And even though I could tell that there were people who recognized me, it appeared that they were keeping their distance as a sign of respect.

Honestly speaking, I really appreciated that.

As I continued looking around, something soon caught my attention.

"Kojuro, what's with that handkerchief over there?" I asked and pointed to the tree branch where a red handkerchief could be seen tied there.

My brother soon changed his focus on the one I'd been pointing at.

"Ah. That one, huh? It's really eye-catching, isn't it? But no one knew the true story of that handkerchief to be placed there except for the town people," Kojuro explained.

"The handkerchief's true story? What do you mean?"

"I'll let you know later. Right now, you have to rest. It's been a long journey for you, and Haru-nee said that you should take this time to rest properly.

For some reason, hearing the word "rest" had only made me heave another heavy sigh. Why was it that hearing that word could make me feel this way?

"Yeah. I guess you're right. Let's go. But don't forget to tell me the story about that handkerchief, okay?"

Kojuro chuckled as he threw the empty cans of lemon soda to the trash bin nearby. "That handkerchief really caught your attention, huh?"

"Well, it's not something I'd usually see every day in the city, you know. Especially if you consider my line of work, then I'll never get to see anything like that."

"Fine. But it's not a good story to tell if I should say so myself."

"All the more reason I have to know the true story, right? Whether it's good or bad, it's still a story. I'll be the one to decide as to what I should think of it in the end," I said as I walked beside my brother.

Kojuro sighed and nodded. "That's definitely your way of thinking, Yohei. I can't keep up with you."

"Flattery won't work on me anymore, you know?"

"I'm aware of it. But I'm saying this to you as your brother, despite not having the same mother and the two of us being born in the same year."

"Who would actually believe we were born only ten months apart?"

Now that I noticed it, even though we were talking about our family set-up like this, it looked like both of us didn't have any ill feelings towards the issue. It seemed that accepting it was one reason for that to happen.

The same way our Harukaze-neesan accepted both of us as her brothers despite the set-up that Kojuro and I had.

For some reason, I glanced at that handkerchief once again. But this time, it wasn't the handkerchief tied on the branch that caught my attention.

It was a woman looking at the same handkerchief I saw earlier.