CHAPTER 155: CHAPTER 154 – “HINA’S LIGHT”

The sun filtered through the tall windows of the family’s countryside home, landing on scattered blueprints, spare circuit parts, and an open sketchpad where a stick-figure robot was shaking hands with a cat.

"Hina," Aoi called from the kitchen, "did you dismantle the rice cooker again?"

"Nooo," came a sing-song reply from the workshop upstairs. "I upgraded it. Now it tells jokes."

The rice cooker beeped.

"Why did the grain go to therapy?" it said in a robotic voice."Because it couldn’t rice above its trauma!"

Aoi facepalmed with a sigh, laughing despite herself.

The Spark of Genius

At sixteen, Hina was already a storm of unfiltered creativity. While her older sister, Hikari, had always been graceful and steady, Hina was an unpredictable spark—quirky, impulsive, and brilliantly strange.

Ren had once described her mind as "a mini supernova with pigtails."

She built things that shouldn’t work, and somehow they did:A drone that followed only butterflies.A bracelet that changed color based on emotional cues.A prototype AI squirrel that stole snacks and danced to city pop.

A Letter from the Future

One peaceful afternoon, Aoi entered Hina’s room with a soft knock.

"Mail for you."

"If it’s from that creepy pencil company again, I’m not—"Hina stopped as she saw the emblem on the envelope. The seal was embossed gold, unmistakably American.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Her heart skipped.

She ripped it open, nearly tearing the paper in half.

"Dear Miss Hinako Kamishiro..."

A moment of silence. Then a gasp.

"I got in. MOM—I GOT IN!"

Aoi dropped the laundry basket.

"Wait. MIT? As in... THE MIT?!"

"Yesss!" Hina jumped up, hugging the letter to her chest and running through the halls, yelling. "Daaaaad! I’m going to MIT!!"

Ren appeared from the garden with gloves on, soil in his palms.

"You’re what?"

"I GOT IN! Full scholarship! Advanced engineering program! The AI ethics board too! They want me!"

Family Celebration

That night, they had dinner under fairy lights in the orchard.

Ren brought out vintage sparkling juice. Hikari, now married and visiting for the weekend, gave Hina a teasing look.

"Little MIT genius now, huh? Don’t burn the campus down."

"No promises," Hina grinned, sticking out her tongue.

Aoi reached out and smoothed her daughter’s hair.

"I’m so proud of you. Just... don’t forget to sleep."

"I’ll sleep after I invent teleportation," Hina winked.

A Silent Moment Between Parents

Later that night, as the celebration died down and the stars blinked above, Ren and Aoi sat outside, watching their daughters—one grown and glowing, the other just beginning her journey.

"They’ve both grown up," Aoi said softly, voice thick with pride.

"Too fast," Ren murmured. "Feels like just yesterday they were fighting over the last cream bun."

Aoi leaned on him, her hand resting over his.

"We did good."

"You did great," Ren corrected gently. "I just built the bunk beds."

She chuckled.

And somewhere inside, their hearts ached just a little—not in sadness, but in the way that all parents eventually feel when they realize they’ve raised their children into the world, and now the world is watching them shine.