Neru threw her backpack on the hardwood floor of her house, "I'm home," she mumbled to herself. She shuffled threw the house and into the kitchen.
"Where were you?" Her mother spoke without even turning her eyes away from her cooking pot on the stove.
"It's only, like, 4:30. What's wrong?" Neru replied casually.
"I saw your room today. You're father and I are not very proud of that mess and especially the tests under your bed."
"Tests?" Neru sat down at the kitchen table.
Now her mother spun around as quickly as a hurricane and was glaring directly at Neru, "Don't try and hide it anymore! The failed tests? The unfinished homework? Any of this ring a bell now?! Or do I need to go show you?! Heck, why don't we just hang them on the fridge so that everyone who comes over can see how great you are doing at school?!" She moved from her place by the stove to directly in front of Neru.
"Please, don't…" Neru whispered.
"Then go clean up that filthy garbage in your room. The rest of the drawings, too," Her mother pointed towards the stairs. As Neru walked over, she saw the trashcan for a moment, which was filled with crumpled up papers, all signed with her name in the corner, her works of art. She just sighed and continued to lifelessly walk towards her room.
Neru quietly closed her door. She didn't want to provoke her Mom, even though Neru was furious. Her head was filled with rage that spread from her brain throughout her whole body. But, just like always, she pushed it down and ignored the feelings. Instead, she sat down and began to pull the papers out from underneath her bed and mattress.
"It's only Tuesday and my week already sucks, but it'll get better, right?" She spoke to herself. Neru always held onto that sense of false hope that everyone had. Reassuring herself was her best way to cope with her emotions.
Her trash bin was slowly but surely filling up with old pieces of paper with worksheets and tests, quizzes and homework, all with large red marks all over them. It felt good to Neru to get rid of them, though.
Neru looked up from underneath her bed when she heard the front door slam, "Yep, Dad's home," she sighed then reached back under her bed, only to find that all of the rubbish was gone. Neru sat up, flipped her ponytail over her shoulder, and put on a pair of large headphones because she knew this scene all too well.
Let's see. Dad comes home…drunk and Mom complains about how he does nothing around the house. He'll argue back, then she'll turn the subject over to me, which should be in about 3…2…1
"What?! What is wrong with that child?!" Neru heard her father's muffled yell through the closed door.
And this is the part where I should leave before they both come upstairs.
Neru pried open her window and, thankfully for her, the roof was right underneath her window, and it wasn't that far off the ground, either. She swung her leg over the edge of the windowsill and then the other and climbed down from the roof. Her feet hit the ground and she snuck over the fence in the backyard and out to the front.
"Ha, more yelling. Nice work, Neru. Just in time," The blond praised herself and strolled down the road to her friend, Teto's house, as usual.
Ding Dong
"Yo! What's up, little buddy," Teto grabbed Neru into a big hug, "Akaito! Neru's here!"
"Hey! I'm not that short!" She pushed herself out of the suffocating hug.
"Hey, haven't seen you in a few days. What's up?" Akaito asked calmly.
"Well, duh you haven't seen me. Weren't you suspended for gluing everything down on the teacher's desk?" Neru playfully punched Akaito in the arm.
"True and it was totally worth it," he smirked.
"Well, come inside, Neru. I was just kicking Akaito's ass in a videogame."
"You wish, Teto. We all know that I'm gonna win in the end," Akaito placed his hands on his hips.
"Riiiight," Neru sarcastically responded as the three walked over to the dim living room. Neru plopped down on the couch in between her two friends. She sunk into the large cushions and felt so comfortable that she could fall asleep right then and there.
"So," Akaito spoke between movements on the game, "Another fight?"
"Yeah, but it's no big deal. I kinda deserved this one," Neru put her feet up on the coffee table in front of them.
"Are you sure?" Teto looked away from the screen for a moment to see Neru.
"Yeah, I'm fine. If I go back in an hour, it'll be calmer. Can you toss me a controller?"
"Yep, but don't cry when I win by a landslide," Akaito blurted out.
"You really shouldn't make rules you're gonna break yourself," Neru laughed as she said this and Teto laughed with her.
This place is the closest thing to paradise I've ever had.
A/N: Ugh, I don't really like this chapter, but I know it's going to get better. I'm hoping to make this around four or five chapters. Hope you enjoyed this and will keep reading!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Vocaloid!
