A few days later, Mizuho was driving the newly acquired Roadster to Shimosakata, he had already scheduled a meet up with Motohiro Sasagawa regarding the plan he had for this car.

Mizuho brought it home recently and told Ippei he could drive it if he wanted to. Surprisingly, Ippei was receptive, because he thought it was a cheap car, Like 1.5 or 2 million yen. Mizuho didn't want to tell him it was a lot more than that.

Mizuho knew that this Roadster RF was a wonderfully set up car, it's so intuitive to drive and handle, but there's so many things he wanted to do in order to make it the next level.

Somehow, Mizuho was very excited by the prospect, the Roadster is a sort of car you can make incredibly competent on narrow and tight roads where there's little acceleration zone, like the mountain roads such as the Tsukuba Fruits Line.

Mizuho had not tried it yet, but he reckons that with him driving, as it was now, the Roadster probably would be around 3 to 4 seconds faster than the Probox. That's a massive difference, especially if you considered this car obviously had less power than the Probox. All of the time difference was purely in the grip and handling.

Motohiro was already standing there in front of his workshop waiting for Mizuho to arrive when the Roadster drove up to the building.

"Yo, No-chan." Motohiro greeted, hewas excited about the new project.

"Mo-chan. Here it is again." Mizuho said as he presented the white Roadster.

It was still pretty much a brand new car at this point, and very lightly modified. It's actually a really well kept car as Towa kept it incredibly clean and tidy.

"The guy actually sold it to you, huh..." Motohiro mused as he looked around the car.

"Yeah, it doesn't make sense at all, he said he'd buy a Carol. I don't get it, it was like a switch was flipped and Wakisaka was done." Mizuho replied, there was a bit of concern in his voice.

"Well he must have his reason..."

"Yes, but it does make me pretty worried about him."

"Worried?"

"A guy doesn't just throw away everything once they're done with a hobby, right?"

Motohiro shrugged, he didn't know what to say about that.

It must be said that the comment did surprise Motohiro quite a lot, considering the Mizuho he knew never really cared about anyone else. At times, even the group had to warn him about the feelings of people around him, especially his ex-wife Kanoko.

Of course, it was a change for the better in Motohiro's opinion, and he couldn't help but think that maybe it was his son, Ippei, that softened the crudeness of Mizuho?

"Anyway, you've ordered the parts, right?" Mizuho turned back to the topic of why he was here today.

"Yep, and you can just leave it here if you want to." Motohiro confirmed with a nod, "I can start working on it as soon as possible, it shouldn't take more than 2 weeks."

"Haaaaaah, will it be 2 weeks?" Mizuho seemed doubtful.

"I'm not one of those garages who accepted the car not knowing if it'll be done on time." Motohiro replied, there's a bit of pride in what he said, "Besides, there's nothing booked in, and it's only your car."

"What if the parts are delayed?"

"Then it will be delayed, but it won't be because of me, if I must drive down to Tokyo to get some of it myself to save time, I will."

That's what Mizuho liked about Motohiro, he's always giving 110% even when he doesn't have to.

"Actually, right now we can start stripping the interior, do you want me to keep it here or in your warehouse?" Motohiro asked.

"Ah, will it take long to bring everything over?" Mizuho asked.

Motohiro looked around Mizuho to the warehouse entry, it was a short walk over.

"Nope. It's a small car, and we're organized." Motohiro replied, pretty certain.

"Alright, I'll open the warehouse gate for you and the kid Okamoto in advance. I wanted to drive something else anyway but I have to see which one."

"How about the Testarossa?" Motohiro cheekily asked, even if he knew Mizuho drives that car maybe once a month at most.

"No. Ippei wouldn't want to touch it otherwise, I'm thinking something else."

"Oh! Ippei already got a driver's license?! That's great! Is he a good driver though?" Motohiro excitedly asked.

"He's very careful and almost too matured. The young man without desire to drive irresponsibly? That's almost sad. I don't even know how he ended up like that as I definitely didn't teach him that way."

"You said that like you're disappointed."

"Well if he doesn't want to push to the limit, how would he know how to avoid danger?"

"Why not send him to Ko-chan and have him take a defensive driving course then?"

"It might be a good idea, but I don't know if he'll do it..."

After Mizuho was done talking, he walked over to the warehouse, and left Motohiro to deal with the Roadster.

He was deciding which of the cars in the collection he wanted to drive. Recently he brought out the gold Savanna of Kenji Kumamoto, and that felt really good to experience. The car that was parked right next to it was calling him out, well, two cars. The white Soarer and the black Leopard.

These cars were his parents'. Coincidentally, His father Hiroto bought the Leopard when he first made it big in the gaming industry, while his mother, Isuzu, bought the Soarer at the same time when she was promoted to general manager, apparently the youngest ever at the time for the company she worked with. Mizuho was just born then, and was familiar with these cars since quite a lot of his emerging years were spent in them, and it meant he was very fond of both of them.

When they were parked right out front of the Noda's Takahana family home at the time, 30 odd years ago, even then, Mizuho knew they were something special. If Mizuho had to choose a favorite between the two, it'd be impossible, he loved both just like how he loved both of his parents.

Today though, as Mizuho drove the Soarer the last time, he had to pick the Leopard.

Mizuho was checking the car over to make sure it's ready to run, when Motohiro quickly ran into the warehouse looking for him, Mizuho thought he looked pretty alarmed, and he was holding a mysterious paper bag.

"Ah, you're taking the Leopard? You don't look like Kyohei Shibata so it doesn't suit you." Motohiro jokingly said, but Mizuho was more curious about why he was there.

"What's the matter, Mo-chan?" Mizuho asked.

"Well, is this your's?"

Motohiro held out the paper bag to Mizuho, who took the bag from Motohiro, wondering what it was as it looked incredibly fancy. Mizuho got pretty alarmed too when he saw the Tiffany & Co. logo on the side of the bag.

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"Eh?!" Mizuho exclaimed.

"Is it yours? Looks like some sort of small jewelry. A ring, maybe?" Motohiro had already taken a peek.

"It's not mine, obviously." Mizuho clarified, "It's probably Wakisaka's."

"Oh? He'd leave something like that in the car he's selling? That's unusual."

It was very unusual indeed. Mizuho had put down the paper bag on the hood of the Leopard and checked the content himself.

Motohiro was right, it was a small box containing a ring. Cartier platinum ring. Quite small and plain looking. It was something worth likely in the 3 to 400,000 yen range.

Mizuho also had an inkling as to what it actually was, as it was relatively small, about the right size for an average women's ring finger, but he wouldn't be able to confirm for now.

"Shit, I have to return this to Wakisaka. It is definitely his." Mizuho said to Motohiro.

"Well I almost thought you were dating someone again..." Motohiro jokingly said, which Mizuho was quite annoyed by but didn't retort.

The image of what actually happened that caused Towa to sell the Roadster to Mizuho was clearer to him now, and suddenly there was a sense of dread in Mizuho's mind. He really wished it was not the case.

"Well, Mo-chan, take care of the Roadster for me, I have to go now." Mizuho said, as he quickly packed everything back.

"Alright." Motohiro replied.

Mizuho drove the Leopard out of the warehouse, then he called Towa.

"Hello?" Towa answered pretty quickly, and he didn't sound unusual or anything.

"Hey, Wakisaka-san, where do you live?" Mizuho asked, in his head he was thinking of what he should be saying.

"I'm in Motoyoshidacho."

"In Mito City?"

"Yeah." Towa was quite confused, "May I ask what's the matter?"

"Well, there is some stuff that I need to give you, so would you mind giving me the location via Line?"

"What stuff?"

"You'll see."

It was the moment where Mizuho's secretive nature was working in his favor, as Towa figured Mizuho probably would not tell him directly anyway.

"Okay." Towa conceded, "I'll send you a message."

"Alright, thanks."

On the drive north to Mito City, Mizuho's feelings were mixed. It's one thing that he felt the obligation to return an object to its rightful owner, but it's another when that object might remind the guy of troubling times.

Mizuho knew it was a break up, definitely a break up. There's no way it could be anything else, but he didn't know the circumstances surrounding it. Also, Mizuho was pretty triggered with the realization, because he went through the exact same thing more than 10 years ago, and even after all those times, no matter what many people think, it's not really something you can move away from entirely. Especially when Mizuho was only recently reminded of it when he met his ex-brother-in-law, Tokuro.

Well, if there's any consolation from what happened back then, it was that Mizuho hoped his experience would stop Towa from making the same mistake he did.

The black Leopard arrived at Towa's apartment, and Mizuho couldn't help but notice an old, blue Mazda Carol in the carpark, because Towa mentioned he was looking for one not long ago. It's a worthless piece of junk someone down on his luck would drive and not really something you'd look at twice.

Mizuho walked upstairs to the room that Towa told him, expecting the worst, and when that door opened, he couldn't even believe his eyes. Towa's appearance was even worse than when he sold the Roadster to him.

It was clear Towa hadn't shaved in a while, his clothes and hair were messy, his movement also had no energy. Like he hadn't been out of this room for weeks.

"Hello." Towa greeted Mizuho.

"Good day." Mizuho replied.

Mizuho peeked inside the room, and saw that it was a mess as well, although not a big, hoarder mess. More like a typical single man mess and certainly wouldn't be a place with a woman in it for sure. He was the same for a while.

"What's the matter?" Towa asked, still looking confused by Mizuho's presence.

"Ah, I just want to see you." Mizuho replied.

Towa didn't really believe that statement, if his eyebrows were to raise any higher it'd merge with his hair.

"Is that it, Noda-san?" Towa asked again, as Mizuho clearly looked upset and uneasy.

"Well, no, I have something to give to you." Mizuho repeated what he already told Towa via phone.

"So what is it? You didn't say on the phone."

"Ah, it's just something you left in the Roadster."

"Eh? I left something?"

Towa couldn't recall what he left in his old car, as in his mind he usually never kept anything important or valuable in it. He already forgot that he hid the engagement ring in the center console that he never used.

Then, Towa's stomach was rumbling, he hadn't eaten anything since this morning.

"Am I right to assume you're just up?" Mizuho asked.

It was a correct observation so Towa nodded.

"Right," Mizuho changed his expression to one of concern, "get dressed properly. We'll go for lunch. I'll treat you."

"Eh? Why?" Towa was surprised and a bit confused as to why Mizuho would offer that.

"You look like shit. Come on. Quickly. I still have to go back to the shop later."

Towa reluctantly obliged to Mizuho's request, but there was something he was unsure of.

"Do you want to come in and wait?" Towa asked as a courtesy.

"Don't mind if I do."

Mizuho barged in immediately, leaving Towa slightly flustered. Mizuho quickly made himself comfortable at home on the dinner table, and he was discreetly observing everything in the room.

"Give me a minute, okay?" Towa said, before rushing in the bedroom to get change.

"Take as long as you need..." Mizuho said while still observing everything and not looking at Towa.

Once Towa disappeared, Mizuho started looking at stuff closer.

It was weird, the room was messy of course, but personal stuff hadn't been moved much. Everything in there looked like it belonged there and had been for a while, which was unusual for a couple that broke up completely.

Stuff like the decoration, something clearly was not Towa's. Like this Pompompurin plush on the sofa, the incredibly intricate art piece sitting nearby, or the painting frame. Towa was clearly not that sophisticated of a man. The pink Playstation 2 Mizuho sold to Towa was still there as well, in front of the TV, clearly being used until very recently.

Not long after, Towa reappeared, and he looked very slightly less disheveled. It was good enough for Mizuho regardless, at least he didn't look like a complete bum now.

"Alright, let's go." Mizuho stood up and announced.

"Go where?" Towa was still confused.

"I'm thinking Oarai, what do you think?"

"Ehhhh!?" Towa was very surprised, "Oarai? Why are we going there?"

"Because I want to see the ocean?"

Towa didn't know what else to say, and he wasn't in the right mindset to make excuses not to go.

The two walked out of Towa's apartment and towards Mizuho's Leopard. Towa had seen this car before, but he didn't expect Mizuho to be driving it.

"Leopard?" Towa blurted out.

"Getting some mileage on, it's been a while since I last drove it." Mizuho explained what Towa was thinking but had yet to ask. Why was he in a Leopard?

Towa got into it, and it felt really special. A black Leopard Ultima Turbo fully optioned out including what appears to be a television in the dashboard.

Yet, at this point, Towa just wanted to know by now what Mizuho meant when he said that he left something in the Roadster that he'd now sold to him.

"Noda-san, when are you going to give me my stuff?" Towa asked.

Mizuho seemed incredibly reluctant, and it weirded Towa out quite a lot. What was this item exactly that elicited such an uneasiness from Mizuho?

Mizuho responded by sighing quite hard, he couldn't keep it in anymore. He opened the Leopard's glovebox, and Towa immediately got a glimpse of what Mizuho was talking about.

It was enough for Towa to completely break down. He was blubbering hard and he was trying to say something but Mizuho couldn't quite understand any of it.

"Let it all out. It helps." Mizuho advised, but he didn't know how exactly he should put it.

"I messed up, Noda-san," Towa was still blubbering, "I tried to message Sumire every day, and she'd read my message, but she wouldn't respond."

It was clear, Towa was at his wit's end, he still loved Sumire quite dearly, but he had no idea how to fix this.

"Can you recap what exactly happened?" Mizuho asked, he had to know at least some of the details first before he could proceed.

Towa nodded, and then he told the story in quite a concise manner. It did leave Mizuho quite sad. Still, Mizuho felt obliged to help this very troubled man.

"You idiot."

Mizuho's comment agitated Towa quite a lot, and his misery turned into one of anger and frustration.

"So easy for you to say!" Towa shouted, he felt let down as it took quite a courage to open up.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm sympathetic to your plight. I just need to established first before anything that you did, indeed, messed up."

What Mizuho was saying surprisingly made Towa less angry. It was his respect for Mizuho that made Towa listen to what he said with a more open mind, and Towa realized that Mizuho may have a point he needed to make.

"You should never put stupid hobbies as a higher priority than your life." Mizuho explained.

"I thought she'd be able to ride it through... That battle was the one last thing I needed to finish." Towa tried justifying it, but Mizuho wasn't having it.

"No matter how much people around you pressured you, or conditioned you into thinking that something like that is important, it isn't."

"I know, Noda-san..."

"I've kept repeating that since day one, and no one would listen to me..."

Towa couldn't help but notice that Mizuho was having a different expression than his usual stoic self. It was subtle, but Mizuho was still in pain emotionally when he was saying that.

"Well," Mizuho continued, "at least it's not completely unfixable..."

"Eh?" Towa wondered what exactly Mizuho meant by that.

"I hope, at least."

"What should I do, Noda-san?"

Towa turned and eagerly asked Mizuho, who was still ambivalent about this matter.

"Have you apologized to her yet?"

Mizuho's question made Towa, whose mind was very scattered by so many things right now, try to recollect the things that happened this last month.

Towa pleaded and bargained for Sumire to come back almost daily, but did he apologize? Maybe he did say sorry once or twice here and there though, it seemed an obvious thing to do and it shouldn't require any advice.

"I probably did." Towa replied, and Mizuho scoffed.

"Have you sincerely apologized to her, in person, showing actual guilt yet?" Mizuho elaborated.

No, that's not something that Towa had already done. He hadn't seen her in person in weeks.

"It'd be a good first step..." Mizuho concluded.