LLLLVoices

Exhaled breaths rise, becoming whiter as they fall. Each breath scatters as it searches for a place to settle. It is wrapped in something as a white blanket covers it. It feels warm even though it's cold. That's strange.

Happy New Year. I wonder what's so new about it. Maybe it's like when Ruri leaves her box. You know, a long time ago, we went to see the first sunrise of the year. I was told that this was the first sun of the year... but I didn't really get it. I figure the sun would think so too. Like... “It feels like everyone's so excited for me just for today... even though I always work really hard...” But I started getting it recently. It's important for things to end and for new things to start. Yesterday, the year ended. Today is the start of this year.cSo I should try my best. Thinking like that makes me feel like I want to try harder. I used to think that the things that stopped coming yesterday or last year made things feel sad, but that's not right. Starting today, I want to always feel like I can keep trying. So from now on, every day's New Year's Eve.

Yeah, we launched a kite. No, I don't mean the bird. We launched a kite into the sky. I know that they both go into the sky, but that's not what I mean. We let the wind carry it really high into the sky from a nearby riverbank. Letting the string go really far made it feel like it could fly forever. Saya was worried that if we sent it too high we wouldn't get it back. I really wanted to just let the string to so it could be free to fly wherever, though. But then Saya grabbed onto the string, saying that both me and the kite would be lonely if it ended up where we couldn't see it... Yeah. If it flew freely, far far away... And then it noticed that there was no one there anymore... Yeah, that wouldn't be good. Just like Saya said, I'm glad we're together again this year. That's all.

Tsuzuri: Can I really not let go? Kozue: That's just how it is.