CHAPTER 70: 63. YOU CAN’T GRADUATE IN A CEMETERY!_3

Hold on!

What am I thinking... Fujiwara Reya quickly shook the idea out of his mind, walked to the edge of the cemetery to the flower bed, and picked three forget-me-nots, placing them in front of the three graves separately.

Kasahara Asuka curiously asked, "Who is buried here?"

"Just like Miss Hasegawa." Fujiwara Reya bowed, his eyes scanning over the portraits on the three tombstones, "Victims with no family or friends to claim them, they need a final resting place too."

"Senpai, you’re such a weirdo!" Kasahara Asuka echoed the words again.

"Not weird at all," Fujiwara Reya retorted, then asked her, "Have you seen ’Coco’?"

"Coco..." Kasahara Asuka showed a pondering expression, her little lips slowly moving, "Death is not the end of life, forgetting is... Is that what you mean, Senpai?"

"Smart!" Fujiwara Reya praised her, "They had no place while alive, no one cared about them; in death, they shouldn’t be as pitiful as in life. Here, with flowers and grass, fresh air, bright sunshine, a healthy vibe, and neatly trimmed lawns, it’s an ideal place for a long rest."

Kasahara Asuka chuckled, "The environment is nice, but it’s built on the high maintenance fees every year."

"Do you think I can’t afford it?" Fujiwara Reya arrogantly rebutted.

"No wonder Senpai loves money so much!" Kasahara Asuka looked at him with eyes that seemed to be teasing him, very playfully.

Fujiwara Reya shrugged crudely, "What can I do, I’m poor."

"Senpai, you’re a really good person."

"Not good at all."

"Good."

"Not good!"

"Good."

"Alright, I’m good."

The argument ended once again in Fujiwara Reya’s surrender.

A bit after 2 p.m., Ikeda Aoshu returned with the finished tombstone, and the three of them together buried Miss Hasegawa’s personal belongings, while the Monk offered a free ceremony.

The process was somewhat long and a bit dull.

In the sultry afternoon sunlight, Kasahara Asuka watched, growing sleepy, and pulled Fujiwara Reya along to rest by the cemetery’s pine grove. Shortly after, she couldn’t resist sleep any longer, her head tilted, and she fell asleep on Fujiwara Reya’s shoulder.

"Namo Amitabha Yadó Thagátháyá..."

The Buddhist hymn rode the wind up the slope, rustling the pine needles.

The adolescent girl’s weight was surprisingly heavy on his shoulder.

She seemed genuinely asleep, not just teasing him.

Fujiwara Reya placed his hand on her cheek, touching her soft little lips with his fingers, feeling her warm, moist breath.

The touch was wonderful.

Plump and lively, he couldn’t resist pressing a few more times.

Ikeda Aoshu, finishing the ceremony, glanced into the grove and immediately saw Fujiwara Reya playing with his junior’s lips.

"You can’t graduate in the cemetery~" he called from afar, then clasped his hands behind his back, leaving with a wistful shake of his shoulders.

"Seems like he assumes we’re a couple..." Fujiwara Reya withdrew his hand and looked up at the sky.

Thin strands of cloud drifted between the leaves, besides a sky of shocking, vibrant blue.

The whole afternoon, he didn’t do anything, just blankly stared at the sky.

The sunlight gradually slanted westward.

The evening glow filtered through the trees and spilled onto the lawn.

The breeze carried the scent of the sea, the fragrance of leaves, and the vague emotions of youth mixed with the breath of twilight.

"How long did I sleep?" Kasahara Asuka asked drowsily.

"Just the right amount," Fujiwara Reya replied, "just in time to see the sunset."

The two lay side by side on the cool, soft grass, listening to the rustling of the trees.

"The sunset is so beautiful!" Kasahara Asuka said, looking at the western sky.

"Yeah."

Fujiwara Reya also gazed at the vivid burning clouds.

The last time he saw such a beautiful sunset was at the Meiji Park flea market, the day he took a picture but didn’t know who to send it to.