Memory lane.
After awhile my parents fall silent, as silent as Rin sitting beside me. I can't help but worry about her. I thought that, drifting off, I guess is the best way to put it, would be over with. I accept her for her, but I don't think she's happy with those periods either. She'd probably kick me for thinking these things.
I do my best to put those thoughts aside as I look over to Rin. She looks peaceful, well as peaceful as she can when she's awake and not painting. She's wearing tan cargo pants that I helped her get into this morning and a camouflage long sleeve shirt, with the usual knots in the arms. It's the sports bra that makes it hard to keep from blushing, especially since my parents are an arms length away. She turns and notices me looking, which brings a corner of her mouth up in an evil looking smirk. "Hisaso, are you going to show me off to your home town?" She's gone full blown evil smile now. "Naw, was thinking of keeping you locked up in the workshop." I respond trying my best to keep a blank face. "Not in my work shop you are not," Father pipes up, glancing at me with a grin in the rear view mirror.
"She won't be any trouble in the shop," I laugh as Rin beats me with the stump of her left arm. "OK, the grand tour it is," I say as I raise my arms defensively. "Were almost there Rin, don't let him bully you," Mother says with a chuckle while taking in the view. "Don't worry. I can take him," she says looking up at me with her eyes a sparkle.
We spend the rest of the trip home with me pointing out different buildings from my past, my old school, the games hall where I'd play pool after school when my parents worked late and the tea house I would go to some times on lunch. The feeling of nostalgia floods over me, until I notice Rin looking up at me, her face as unreadable as ever but her eyes are as focused as I've ever seen. I catch the slightest flash of a smile before she's back to her usual self.
We pull in the drive of my parents modest home, and we all pile out, with my father and I getting the luggage while my mother opens the door. Rin is taking the whole scene in, as she does with anything that interests her. Her attention to detail working in over time as she looked over the garden, the house itself and the tall matsu that grew to the opposite side of the drive way.
"I like this," Rin said, "It feels, I don't know.." she trails off. I can't help but catch my mothers smile as she opens the door from the corner of my eye. With luggage in one hand, I wrap my free arm around Rins shoulders and gently guide her to the front door. She looks up at me "This would explain a lot," Giving me one last look before passing my Mother into the living room.
The rest of the time left before my parents went off to work was spent having lunch. This went smoother than I expected, but still had its bumps. My mother, being the one for having meals at the table when ever the family was all in one place, was a little thrown off by Rins requirements for eating, but was more than willing enough to adapt. We moved to the washitsu that my parents kept for special occasions. Rin practically fell into a cross legged position beside me, while studying the tokonoma my parents both put up before I was born.
My parents both watched as Rin deftly dug into her bowl of oyakodon. I kept my grin to myself as my father struggled not to stare. "Did you make this room?" Rin asked, turning her head to look at the tokonoma behind her. "We both did, I folded the paper flowers, and Hisaos father did the hanging scrolls," Mother says attempting to keep the pride out of her voice. "I like it," Rin simply states. "The lunch and the toko, very tasty, the lunch that is," before going back to her bowl. Father out right laughs at this earning him a cocked head from Rin with her fork raised partly to her opened mouth.
We finished lunch and bid my parents a good day at work before they left. "We'll be home late so there's money for dinner on the kitchen table if you want to go out." Mother says as father unlocks the car.
I finish washing up the lunch dishes and put them aside to air dry. Rin had perched herself on a stool my mother kept in the kitchen for when she had her morning coffee. She was now looking out the window that was over the sink into the back yard. "Calm, that's the word, calm," Rin says out of the blue. "Do I get to see your bedroom now?" That evil grin returning to her face.