A Love I Shouldn't Feel
Chapter 272: Invisible Truths ( 272 )

Chapter 272: Invisible Truths ( 272 )

Tokyo — Harusawa Corporation.

Inside the polished executive office, the air was cold with quiet tension.

Satomi sat across from her father, her legs crossed elegantly, flipping through reports with a bored expression.

Satoshi was scanning a document in silence when a knock came at the door.

"Come in," he said without looking up.

Their assistant stepped in, holding a white envelope. "Excuse me, Mister Harusawa, Miss Satomi. This was just delivered."

Satoshi glanced up. "What is it?"

"I’m not sure, sir. But it’s addressed to Miss Satomi."

The assistant handed it over and quickly bowed out.

Satomi flipped the envelope over, eyebrow raised. "Wedding invitation?"

She slit it open with her manicured nail and unfolded the card.

"Oh? So bold of him."

Satoshi glanced over. "Who?"

"Haruki," she replied, holding the card up. "Apparently, he’s getting married."

Satoshi snorted lightly. "That was fast."

Satomi scanned the card. Her smile faded slightly.

Wedding of Nakagawa Haruki and Takahashi Kyouko.

Her eyes narrowed. "Takahashi Kyouko?" she murmured.

Satoshi looked up. "Huh?"

"The bride. Her name is Kyouko." Satomi held up the invitation again, puzzled. "Weird, right? That’s the same name as mother."

Satoshi shrugged, uninterested. "Common name. Lots of Kyoukos out there."

Satomi’s brows furrowed. "But her full name... wasn’t Mom’s name Kyouko too? What was her maiden name again?"

"I don’t know," Satoshi muttered, not looking up from his report. "Something like... Nakadashi? Who cares. Her dad’s Kitayama. That’s all I know."

Satomi leaned back, tapping the invitation against her knee. "Still... Okinawa, huh?"

She scoffed, tossing her hair back with a click of her tongue.

"Probably just some fat, country girl from the office with the same name. How unoriginal."

But the slight flicker in her eyes betrayed her calm. That name. That place. That timing.

She stared at the elegant print again.

Takahashi Kyouko.

Wedding in Okinawa.

Her fingers tightened.

Still... I want to see her.

This woman Haruki thinks is better than me.

A cold smirk curled her lips.

"I’ll go to that wedding. And if she’s anything less than perfect... I’ll mock her to her face."

She threw the invitation down onto the desk with a thud.

"Papa~?"

Satoshi sighed, lifting his gaze from the report. "Yes, darling?"

Satomi twirled a pen between her fingers, half-smiling. "Did you ever contact Mom?"

He snorted. "No. She blocked my number."

"Oh?" Satomi raised an eyebrow, amused. "Why?"

"Don’t know," Satoshi muttered. "Maybe her new boyfriend told her to."

Satomi’s eyes gleamed. "She’s got a boyfriend now? Wow. For an old lady like her, she sure moved fast." She laughed under her breath, a sharp edge cutting through the sound. "Pathetic."

Satoshi didn’t reply. He simply went back to flipping a page, expression unreadable.

Satomi tapped the edge of the wedding invitation against her chin, her eyes flicking toward her phone.

"...Well, whatever," she murmured. "I’ll try calling her."

She unlocked her screen and searched for her mother’s contact. It rang.

Once.

Twice.

"Hello?" came Kyouko’s calm voice on the other end.

"Hi, Mom~ How are you?" Satomi said, her tone light, almost teasing.

A pause.

"...Why are you calling me?" Kyouko asked. "If it’s about your father, tell him not to call again."

"No, nothing like that," Satomi replied casually. "I just thought I’d check in. After all... I’m still your daughter. Whether you like it or not."

"...I’m busy right now."

"Oh? Busy with what?"

"Moving on with life."

Satomi smiled faintly. "Hmm~"

There was a short silence.

"So?" Kyouko asked. "Is there something you wanted?"

"Not really. I just got Haruki’s wedding invitation. Thought I’d let you know... and ask if you got one too."

"...Why would Haruki send me a wedding invitation?"

"Oh?" Satomi tilted her head. "So you didn’t get one?"

"No."

Kyouko’s voice remained composed.

"...If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up."

"Really, Mom?" Satomi’s voice took on a soft pout. "Haruki used to respect you... and now he didn’t even send an invitation to you?"

Kyouko’s tone didn’t change. "Hmm? I don’t think it’s a problem for me."

Satomi smiled into the receiver. "Oh, poor Mom~ You took care of him from the day we moved in."

"And after he divorced me... because you said so, remember?" Satomi added, her tone light as if recalling some distant joke. "Now he just... forgot you?"

Kyouko’s voice came quietly. "It’s fine. That Chapter’s over."

"Hmm~" Satomi hummed. "Still, it’s kind of cold, right? All those dinners you made for him. All those late nights you took care of him when he was sick."

"It’s not something I expect to be remembered for."

Satomi twirled a pen between her fingers. "You’re always so graceful, Mom. If it were me, I’d be pissed."

"I’m not you."

"...Right."

Satomi then softened her tone. "Well, I just thought you’d want to know. The wedding’s in Okinawa."

"I see."

"Maybe we’ll see each other there, hmm~?"

Kyouko didn’t reply.

A moment passed.

Then came her voice—gentle, quiet.

"...Take care of yourself, Satomi."

Meanwhile, in Okinawa, Kitayama Residence

Kyouko lowered the phone and gently ended the call.

She sat in silence for a moment, then slowly set the device on the low table beside her.

Inside her thoughts, a quiet murmur stirred.

Why would Haruki send me a wedding invitation?

Oh, Satomi... you don’t know, do you?

I’m the bride.

He doesn’t need to send me an invitation.

A ceremony doesn’t begin with an envelope, it begins with a promise.

And I was the one who told him... invite her. At least once.

I want you and Satoshi to see.

See me standing beside him. At the altar.

A faint smile touched her lips.

"Kyouko?" came her mother’s voice from the hallway.

She turned.

"Yes, Mother?" she replied gently.

Hanako stepped into view, drying her hands with a small towel. She paused when she noticed her daughter’s expression.

"You were smiling by yourself," Hanako said softly. "Who called?"

Kyouko stood and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Your granddaughter, Mother~"

Hanako blinked. Then let out a small breath.

"Hmm? Satomi? I don’t have a granddaughter like that."

Kyouko smiled again.

Inside Hanako’s mind.

So everyone’s waiting for that moment, hmm?

The surprise... the shock on their faces.

When they see the one they pushed aside.

The one they abandoned, neglected, left unheard.

Standing there.

With the man they never truly looked at.

Side by side.

No longer needed by anyone else.

Only needing each other.

A woman they dismissed.

A man they threw away.

And in the end...

They’ll marry each other.

Not out of defiance.

But because love chose them quietly, without asking permission.

Hanako folded the towel in her hands, her expression calm, unreadable.

( End Of Chapter )