Aoi let out a string of obscenities through gritted teeth as Akane removed the knife.

"You can't just...ask someone...why they love you." Didn't Akane know anything? He clenched his fists into her scarf and panted while he tried to regain his breath. "It's not like...I never get mad at you...or wish things weren't so shitty...." He had resentment, but he buried it deep, and it couldn't hope to overpower his love for his little sister.

"We're both broken, in the same ways, and you still always loved me, too. I guess that's why. When we lost everything else, we still had each other. If I'd lost you, I would've lost everything."

Aoi sighed. He didn't know why she couldn't see how important she was. He was a piece of shit, and she was basically the only thing redeeming him. If anything, her shadow should've been aiming the knife at him, not at herself.