Itsuko Hinata (23)

Aki Hinata (21)

Mio Hinata (19)

Kikue Hinata (15)

Mio POV

The room was so quiet. The only sound was the droplets of beer rolling off my hair and puddling on the floor. Squeezing my eyes shut, I willed myself not to cry. The sad thing is, I know every word of it is true. Itsuko hates me for ruining her life. My chest heaved as I held back my emotions. "I didn't ask for any of this." My voice barely worked.

Footsteps ran over, and Aki stood over me, blocking Itsuko from taking an actual swing at me. "Itsuko, stop it." She guided our drunk sister back down into her chair, completely ignoring me.

Unable to bring myself to speak to anyone, I did what I always do when things get out of hand. I ran away. Passing a new brother, the sports one, Subaru, I kept my head down and ran onto the elevator. Alone, I collapsed onto my knees and broke down sobbing. It had been a while since Itsuko and I had gotten into a fight.

Locking myself in my bedroom, I pulled my comforter out of the box and rolled myself into a little burrito and covered my face with a pillow. Screaming loudly into it, tears poured out of my eyes until I fell asleep on my floor like that. Itsuko doesn't drink that much too often. It's probably the stress of moving. The odds of her even remembering that it happened are slim. Her being drunk is the reason I found out that I was adopted. Dad then told me the whole story.

He always told me that he was glad to have me. He wanted to have another daughter. He said he wanted me. But… Itsuko knows the real story. Maybe I have been a burden all along. It had been a long time since I cried myself to sleep. Usually, I shoved all my emotions down and tried to stay positive. Tonight, there was no way to stop the tears.

The next morning my whole body ached from sleeping on the floor, but I couldn't convince myself to get up. The burrito of warmth kept me wrapped up in a pile on the floor. My doorbell rang, making me strain to lift my head up. "Um… hello?" There's a doorbell on my room?

"We haven't met yet, my name is Louis," a soft male voice called out.

Struggling to untangle myself, I kicked my feet around to get out of the blankets. My limbs hurt from the hard floor. I opened the door and stretched my arms above my head. "Do you need something?" I tried to smile but couldn't.

Louis reached out and touched my matted and tangled hair. "Tsubaki mentioned that your hair got really messed up last night. He said that you might like for me for to fix it for you." He must be the hairdresser dad told me about. Louis smiled at me. "Would you like that?"

Tsubaki thought about me? That made my heart skip a beat. No, calm down. It was probably just to be nice after Itsuko and I's fight. I should go apologize for that later. But for now, … "Yes, please." It might take me hours to untangle my hair by myself. Besides, Tsubaki did this for me. He might actually be worried about me. Too bad I can't bring myself to even speak to him, and… he knows that I'm a fan. Groaning to myself, I'd almost forgotten that someone else was standing right in front of me.

Louis placed his hand on my head, ruffling my messy hair. "Don't worry too much about him." My surprise made him chuckle. "Let's get going. The bathroom on the fifth floor is where I set up. Tsubaki told me that you would say yes." There was already a stool set up by the sink. He patted the seat and attached a shower head to the faucet. "Lean back. I'll get all the dry alcohol out." Something about him felt calm.

I did as he said, bracing myself for the pain of getting the tangles out. This hadn't been the first time that this had happened. Aki spent two hours with a squirt bottle and comb, clawing at my hair. After a moment, I cracked an eye open. It didn't hurt at all! It made me laugh to myself. Aki shouldn't ever go into the hair business.

"Are you going to college anywhere?" Louis asked, making small talk. His hands on my scalp gently rubbing through the strands of hair. It felt more like a massage.

"Not right now. I work at a late-night café as a barista." No college would take me. My grades in school were below average.

Wrapping a towel around my hair, Louis smiled at me again. "Maybe you can make our coffee. No one here can make a quality cup." It was nice not hear a lecture about going to college. Gently rubbing the towel to partially dry my hair, he began to straighten it, then style, splitting my hair down the middle and tied up in two panda buns. "There. All finished."

It looked amazing! I had tried to put my hair up like this myself, but it never stayed put or even. I felt much better after being here with Louis. I have to… tell Tsubaki… He did this. I have to thank him. Chewing on my lip, I stared at Louis. "Do you want some coffee now? As a thank you for doing my hair?" I smiled big. It's the least I can do!

"That sounds great. Let me clean up and I'll be down," Louis said.

Nodding, I looked down at my outfit. "I should probably change first." Returning to my room, I dug through my boxes, looking for something suitable to wear. Oh, I know. I should make Tsubaki some coffee, too! As a thank you. Nothing else. Pulling out a pastel blue dress that had small straps and a low cut, I slipped it over my head. Doing a twirl in the mirror, I was satisfied with my appearance. With this hairstyle, I look super damn cute!

Louis had already arrived in the kitchen, finding all the things I would need to make the coffee. Grateful, I thanked him and began to make the first cup. He listened to me talk about what I was doing. "It's easy to burn the coffee beans, which is why instant coffee usually tastes so horrible. Hot water is important but scalding it till there isn't anything left doesn't make a good brew." Setting the cup down in front of him, I made the second in a travel mug before making a cup for myself.

"It's delicious! Best I've ever had!" Louis praised me, making me blush. His eyes fell on the travel mug and he smiled softly. "He's probably getting ready to leave for work. If you hurry, you might catch him downstairs."

The heat in my cheeks grew hotter. "I-I doubt I'll follow through." I rubbed the back of my neck, the nerves taking over again.

Like he'd read my mind, Louis said, "Just give him the cup and say thank you. He's your family now."

Family… Does family have these insane fantasies about each other? I laughed but nodded my head. "I can at least try, right?" I held the cup in both hands, afraid I might drop it from my nervous shaking. Maybe he's already left… The elevator doors opened, and I slowly checked to see if Tsubaki was outside. My heart skipped a beat at the sight of him.

Azusa nodded his head in my direction as I stepped outside. "I'll be in the car." He walked away, leaving the two of us alone.

Tsubaki closed the distance between us, a smile growing on his face. "Good Morning, Mio!" He fiddled with a loose strand of hair in one of my buns. "I knew this hairstyle would be super cute on you. I couldn't resist asking Louis to do this for me. I hope it made you feel better."

My eyes went wide, and I slowly bobbed my head up and down, unable to make any words form.

His hand slid down to caress my cheek, slowly rubbing his thumb back and forth. "After what happened last night, I was worried about you. I stayed up late just thinking about how to console a sweet girl like you. It wasn't much but Louis is really good at what he does. Makes me like you even more."

Again, all I could do was nod and stare into his eyes. They're so pretty. I could stare at him all day. At least this moment is real life, and not a photo or poster. My imagination took off. He could totally kiss me right now. I'd let him.

"Wait for me to come home, would you? I want to spend more time with you, Mio," Tsubaki said, smiling at me again. Azusa beeped his car horn and Tsubaki kissed my nose. "Till tonight, sister dear."

I stood there frozen, in a state of total shock. The warm coffee cup burned my cold hands, reminding me why I'd even come outside. "W-Wait!" I called after him, surprised that my voice actually worked. Tsubaki had the car door open but turned to me. "I-I… uh… making coffee is the only thing I'm good at so… thanks…" oh geez. That sounded so lame.

Tsubaki took the cup from me, setting it on the roof of the car to engulf me in a tight hug. "You made this just for me? That's so sweet."

Azusa insisted they needed to leave for work and they were both gone a few moments later. My body wouldn't move from the spot until the car was out of sight. I dropped down to the ground, breathing unevenly. But I laughed. "Oh my god…" With my hands pressed to my cheeks, I shook my head. That did not just happen! He wants me to wait for him to come home! L-like a girlfriend! Biting my lip, I grinned.

He kissed me!