- ̗̀ aj ! ̖́- 🍉

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: “Haruto.” Haruka gently placed her hand on her son’s cheek so he could look at her as she spoke. Haruto’s teachers told Haruka that while Haruto was soft-spoken, he was easily one of the most considerate students they had. It made Haruka proud to know that Haruto was growing up to be a good person, but it also worried her. He always looked out for others, always put everyone before himself. It was admirable, but when Haruka saw the way Haruto interacted with his classmates, she felt like she was watching herself when she was a kid. It was then that Haruka realized that she didn’t want Haruto to grow up as fast as she had to. “I want to be on stage with you, playing this song.” Haruto frowned. Haruka could see the questions swimming in his head, but all he was able to ask was, “But why?”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: “It’s just—” Haruka sniffed as she forced a smile. “It’s silly. I don’t know why I’m still crying over the fact that I can’t come up with a name for this song.” “Is that it?” Yuta asked. “Let me help, then.” “Huh?” “If it’s too much for you, then I’ll help,” Yuta said. “Let’s start with the names you’ve already come up with.” “Well…” Haruka leaned against Yuta. “I thought about naming it after Tachibana-san first. But after hearing more about the song, I didn’t think it’d be right. And then when I started to think about everything the song meant to him, his sister, Uncle Kaz, to me…” “It wasn’t as simple as you thought it’d be?” Haruka shook her head. “And giving it a straightforward name doesn’t feel right anymore. It’s not simple at all. It’s so much.” “…So Much More?”  Haruka frowned and lightly elbowed her partner. “Yuta!”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: Whatever Kiryu showed Haruka, she echoed with near perfection. Kiryu figured that if someone else taught it to her—like Tachibana—she would’ve been better and learning how to play faster. But any mistakes he made, it reflected in the way she played. If he played a part too fast, then she’d do it too until Kiryu corrected himself. In between it all, Haruka would ask Kiryu questions: when did he learn how to play, who did he learn it from, how come he hasn’t played since then. Kiryu tried to answer as honestly as he could without accidentally stepping on a landmine hidden in his memories. “Does the song have a name, Uncle Kaz?” Haruka asked as she watched her dad’s fingers work the chords. “You know what, I don’t think I ever got a name.”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: It wasn’t as if Kiryu didn’t want to stay in contact with Makoto. He did. But keeping an eye on Dojima, making sure the Tojo Clan would never go out of control like this again, was the choice Kiryu decided to make. Unfortunately, it meant that he couldn’t stay in touch with Makoto. It’d be far too dangerous for her, and she had gone through enough already. The last thing Kiryu wanted was to endanger Makoto’s life again, after everything Tachibana had done to ensure her safety. Still though, none of this seemed fair—to either of them. They were both left to grieve over someone they didn’t have enough time with. They were all that they had left of Tachibana, and soon, they wouldn’t even have each other.