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Though he is only six years old, Rui has a dream. He can see it very clearly. Stories of knights and wizards and mermaids and all kinds of fantastical creatures brought forth from the depths of his imagination. A colorful stage with ridiculous costumes and pyrotechnics. Bright, bursting colors exploding into a song of laughter and chaos, but best of all, a team of dear friends at his side, helping him give life to his liveliest stories.
But when he opens his eyes, the colors fade. He sits alone at the head of a dining room table full of empty chairs in a gray and dull room. He can’t help it, silent tears begin to flow down his cheeks. It was stupid of him to try and hold a birthday party. Stupid.
But he forgets the room is not entirely empty.
“Please don’t cry,” a young girl sitting next to him says, softly taking his hands and holding them tightly in hers. “I’m here. So please don’t cry, Rui.”
She looks up at him with big pleading eyes, almost on the verge of tears herself.
He nods. How could he forget? He wanted the people around him to be happy, and he certainly wasn’t setting a very good example. Even just having one person is enough.
“You’re right. I’m sorry, Nene.” He gives her hands a reassuring squeeze before releasing them to wipe his eyes with his sleeve.
“Cake time!” Rui’s mother announces as she comes into the room, placing the dessert down on the table in front of the two children. Their faces are lit up by the six candles on top.
“Make a wish.” Nene whispers to him like it is a secret of the utmost importance.
And he does. He blows out the candles and smiles.
The girl is relieved to see a hint of happiness return to his face. Smiling suits him, she thinks. Her own face turns pink as a grin spreads from ear to ear.
With wide eyes, Rui gazes upon Nene—the one person who cared about him enough to be here for him—and the tips of his ears turn red. He doesn’t feel like crying anymore.
Nene giggles. “Happy Birthday, Rui!”
Rui stares down at the myriad of people so far below him. Leaning farther against the railing, he watches from the rooftop as the school kids down below laugh and play in groups, running around screaming happily. The ground below him is a stage, the people upon it actors. He watches two boys laugh and chase each other around the courtyard. He wonders if maybe those two would be able to act out his roles perfectly. Suddenly he can see it—the colors, the chaos, the music, the stage lit up. Their smiles next to his.
But no, of course not. He remembers their disgusted glances, the classmates who he called his friends, the ones who left him alone the first chance they could. They didn’t understand—no one did—and these people below him would run away from him. Just like everyone always does. Rui stretches out an arm over the railing, reaching out. Towards something. He doesn’t know what. Reaching, but the people are always much, much too far away. The stage fades into an empty courtyard. He looks down and sighs.
Rui is awoken from his trance by a buzzing in his pocket. He pulls out his phone to check his new text.
Nene Kusanagi
Happy Birthday, Rui :) I hope you’re doing well. I miss hanging out with you. Let’s meet up sometime soon if you’re free.
Suddenly there is a weight upon his shoulder and a voice in his ear. “Hey, Rui— is it your birthday today!?” Nosy as ever, Mizuki didn’t want to miss a single detail.
“Yes, it is.” He sighs and finally acknowledges.
“Happy birthday! Aww, you should’ve told me! I would’ve brought a cake or something.”
He gives a small smile. “That’s very kind of you, but there’s really no need.”
“So… who’s Nene?” Mizuki gives a devious grin and nudges him, eager for more details.
“Ah, an important childhood friend of mine.” Rui confesses. Then he adds, “Do you enjoy reading my texts?”
“Well, there’s not much else to do up here.”
The ghost of a smile traces Rui’s face, as he is well aware of the truth behind the statement.
Mizuki turns away from him to gaze outward and the two of them lean over the railing together and look at the scenery.
“If you have someone who cares about you,” Mizuki states firmly, “you should hold on to them.”
Rui says nothing, but nods his head in response.
A strong breeze blows over them, and they stand side by side in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, just feeling the heat of the sun beat down on their backs.
“Well, don’t leave her hanging,” Mizuki finally says, gesturing towards Rui’s phone. “Go on and reply.”
He is tempted to remain in his own world—detached from everything and everyone else, in a place where his dream can still unfold—but at Mizuki’s urging he types out his response.
Thank you, Nene. I’d like that very much.
Tsukasa finds Rui and slings an arm over his shoulder. “Rui! Come over here, we have a surprise for you!”
Rui, unsure of how to be a proper party host, had been making his way around the room, and he was currently chatting with Miku and Kaito. Rin, Luka, Len, and Meiko were chatting amongst themselves as well (in their holographic forms) while Emu and Tsukasa were sowing chaos elsewhere, and Nene was somewhere just trying to keep up.
With Emu’s homemade birthday banner hanging on the wall, the blown up balloons in a rainbow of colors, and the pile of presents in the corner, Rui hardly even recognizes the room as his own workspace.
“Oh? Should I be concerned?” Rui asks while he lets Tsukasa lead him across the room to where the other guests are.
"Just trust me!"
Tsukasa escorts him towards the door, where Nene and Emu come in carrying a huge, wildly decorated chocolate cake with lit candles and “Happy Birthday, Rui” written on the top in purple frosting. The three of them beam at him proudly.
“Did you…” He almost can’t find the words. “Did you make this?”
“Emu, Tsukasa, and I worked together to make this cake for you. So if you don’t like it, it’s definitely Tsukasa’s fault,” Nene informs Rui.
“Hey!” Tsukasa huffs, but Nene just smirks back at him. Tsukasa then directs his attention back to Rui. “We wanted a proper celebration for our one and only very special stage director!”
“Ooh, ooh, make a wish, Rui-kun!” Emu bounces up and down in anticipation. The three of them watch him eagerly.
Rui stares at the cake being held up before him. His eyes flit around the room, trying to really take it all in. He stares at the chocolate cake, the lit candles, the brightly colored decorations, the balloons of all shapes and sizes, the Virtual Singers smiling at him from their holographic forms, and his three friends all watching him and waiting for his reaction. And he can’t help it, tears begin to form in the corner of his eyes. All he can do is look upon the group and laugh in disbelief. He doesn’t need to make a wish anymore.
“Did you have a good day?” Nene asks him, as she sweeps up the confetti on the floor. Rui insisted he could handle cleaning up by himself, but Nene wanted to stay and help and wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Yes, of course.”
The two of them make their way around Rui’s room, trying to make it look less like a hurricane of colors swept through it. Rui picks up the empty paper plates strewn about the now empty room and drops them all into the trash can.
“They sure are messy, aren’t they?” Nene chides as she finishes sweeping the last of the crumbs into the trash, leaning the broom against Robo-Nene in the corner of the room.
“Yes,” Rui giggles, “but that’s all right. To have enough people over here to make this much of a mess… Even for that, I’m grateful.”
At his words, Nene stops and looks at him. She casts a spare glance over her shoulder and back at Robo-Nene, her trusted partner.
“Rui, I never had a chance to thank you.”
“Oh?” He pauses his cleaning efforts, and looks over at Nene. “For what?”
“For making Robo-Nene.” She fidgets her hands restlessly. “For encouraging me to keep performing, even when I felt like quitting. You’re the reason I remembered how much I loved singing and was able to find my voice again. And now we even have friends who share our dreams… I- I just owe you so much.” Her gaze is fixated at a point on the floor, her tone unusually serious.
Rui laughs. She’s thanking him? Overwhelmed with warmth, he steps towards her and pulls Nene into a tight embrace. Her head rests against his chest, while he wraps his arms around her back.
“Wha—” Her face burns bright red, but she doesn’t pull away. “Wh-What’s this about?”
“Thank you for being here, Nene.”
“W-Well, of course I was gonna come to your party. Stupid,” she retorts, still flustered by the sudden hug.
Rui laughs. “Not just that. Throughout the years, you’re the only person that’s always been there for me. The only one who stayed by my side. And for that, I’m really grateful.”
“Oh.”
They let it sink in for a moment, neither one moving or breaking the embrace.
“I’ll always be here,” she nuzzles closer against him now, enjoying his warmth. “Dummy.”
He just smiles in response and rests his head against the top of hers.
“I’m glad you seem so much happier now,” she whispers.
Again, he doesn’t say anything, simply pulling her closer and holding her tightly.
“And Rui? There’s one more thing I forgot to mention.” She pulls back enough so she can look him in the eye.
“Yes?” He gazes down at her, still with his arms around her back.
She smiles, and it has the same radiance he remembers from all those years ago.
“Happy birthday!”