Hey again! I'm really sorry about the really long hiatus. Life happened and I lost a lot of my muse for writing, especially for No.6. Even though I joined a bunch of new fandoms since my last update, I've struggled to write for them too. But this fic really means a lot to me, so I wanted to persevere. This took months to write. You can probably tell where I struggled, but I'll try and get this all wrapped up in the next few chapters.
Apologies in advance if I disappear again. But please stick by me. I will complete this fic, even if it kills me.
Enjoy~
It was hot. So very, very hot. Even with both windows rolled down and the air conditioning on full blast, I was still baking. It didn't exactly help that neither myself or Nezumi had had a proper wash in over a week. A bar of soap and spraying each other with a freezing cold hose outside a gas station could hardly be considered a decent wash, but at least it had done a good job of cooling us off in the intense heat. I had never really noticed how hot summer could really be…pretty much every building in No.6 is supplied with air conditioning. I suppose I took all of that for granted.
We'd both decided that the best plan of action was to try and find some work. Not permanent or anything; offering to do chores and the like for just a bit of spare change. We were quickly running out of money and pit stops at gas stations every day had successfully sucked us dry. I wasn't sure where Nezumi had got his money in the first place, but I thought it best not to ask. He had probably stolen it from somewhere. As far as I was aware people in the west district used a completely different type of currency in comparison to No.6, so anything he did have saved up would be completely useless. Yeah, he'd probably stolen it from someone. I was hardly in the right mindset to go on at him about how stealing was wrong and he could get into trouble. He was in enough trouble as it was anyway.
After being turned down by the third house in a row, Nezumi moved to the next one, knocking on the door a few times before glancing my way and giving me a slight shrug. A heavily tattooed bald man answered. Nezumi began to explain. From where the van was parked, I couldn't make out what he was saying, but the shake of the head from the man was enough to confirm another rejection. But wait, he reached out with one arm, pointing up the road. Was he…giving Nezumi directions? I peered out of the window in the direction the man was pointing, trying to figure out which house he was talking about.
We were in a small village, about ten minutes off the highway. It was made up of about thirty houses on each side, a church and a small supermarket. I hadn't been to a place like this since before mom and I moved to No.6. The memories were hazy, but I do remember getting an ice cream off a nice lady on the corner.
The driver's side door swung open and Nezumi climbed back into the van, starting up the engine. 'Got a lead.'
'Really? Where is it?'
'About twenty minutes out. The guy said his aunt broke her arm and can't pick her vegetables to take them to market.' Nezumi began to drive in the direction given by the man, and we were soon out of the village and back on the main road.
We soon parked outside a small house which Nezumi said fit the description. He helped me out of the van, waiting for me to find my feet before he led me to the front door, knocking a few times.
Just as expected, a small, tired looking lady answered, peering at the two of us curiously. The door was chained from the inside.
Nezumi beamed at her brightly, giving my hair a quick ruffle. 'Hello, ma'am. My friend and I are looking for some work and your nephew told me you might be in need of assistance.'
She blinked a few times before giving us both a gentle smile. 'Tino sent you here?'
Nezumi nodded. 'Yes, ma'am.'
The door closed. We both blinked, glancing at one another before a slight rattling sound came from inside and the door opened again, wide enough for us both to enter. 'I really hope it isn't too much trouble. Come in, boys.'
I felt Nezumi nudge me from behind and I stepped inside, peering around curiously. The blinds were shut, probably to serve as a way to keep in the shade. The house was made up of an L-shaped corridor which led to, what I assumed to be all of the rooms in the house. A bungalow, perhaps. The kitchen was connected to the living room, with quite a modest array of furniture. I got the feeling that she was here alone…
She sat down at the round kitchen table, carefully resting her bandaged arm on it, motioning for the two of us to take a seat. Once we sat down, she began to speak.
'So what did Tino say to you…sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Matilda,' she smiled, looking at both of us expectantly.
I was about to reply with my own name when Nezumi nudged my foot.
'He's Aster. I'm Ventus,' he replied, his bright smile never faltering.
…of course…we were on the run…using our real names or aliases people were familiar with might spell disaster…but the speed of which he had replied with those names…had he planned this ahead of time? Perhaps he has forgotten to fill me in…
I gave Matilda a polite nod.
'It's a pleasure to meet you two,' she smiled. 'Now…I pretty much live off what I make from selling fruit and vegetables to the market. Usually, my daughter helps me, but she moved in with her fiancé about a month ago. I was handling perfectly well on my own, but I suppose I was a little careless…'
Nezumi shook his head. 'We can all be careless at times. I'll be very happy to help you while your arm gets better.'
Finally. My time to shine. 'I can help too!'
Another nudge from Nezumi. 'Aster here is recovering from a pretty bad case of chronic fatigue, so he can't really handle manual jobs yet. It'd be best if he stayed indoors until he's better.'
Matilda glanced at me, looking fairly worried. 'Oh, goodness. It's not contagious is it?'
'Nope. Like I said, he's recovering. Plenty of rest and liquids and he'll be better within the week.'
Usually when I was brought into a new environment or a new house I'd survey it, taking in as many of the small details that I could, hopefully learning a little about the person, perhaps using something as a conversation piece when the time came. However, at this point, I was completely transfixed by Nezumi. I know his job was acting, but I couldn't get over how...believable his lies were. He told Matilda we were traveling across states during our gap year, lying about our ages and where we came from. The No.6 accent isn't necessarily strong, but I got the feeling Matilda might guess we weren't from "outside No.2." He also explained that we had been part of a group of six, but due to a fallout, the other four parted ways with us and we were left with no money to fund ourselves. Instead of giving up and going home, we decided to just carry on our journey for the experience.
What a story...I almost wished that was what actually happened...
'And you're just living in a van? That's horrible!' Matilda was already going to boil the kettle, but Nezumi was quick to offer her a hand.
'It's alright. At least it's warm out so we don't freeze at night,' he replied.
'If you boys like, my daughter's room is free for you two to use.'
'Just the one bed?'
'That's right.'
'I'll crash on the sofa then.'
I blinked a few times, slightly confused by that...we'd spent every night practically latching onto one another in the back of the van...why did he suddenly want to sleep alone when we were finally offered a warm bed?
I thought...
'Aster,' Matilda called out.
I looked over at her. 'Y-yeah?'
'I'm going to show Ventus the garden. Would you like to rest in the bedroom?'
The prospect of having a nice comfy bed to sleep in was extremely tempting, but there was something I needed far more than a decent amount of sleep. 'I'd like a bath if that's alright...it's been ages since we had a proper one...'
She smiled widely. 'Oh, of course. I'll go get it ready for you. Ventus, could you finish on the tea?'
Nezumi was left alone in the kitchen as Matilda helped me into the bathroom, beginning to fill up the tub and set some of the products aside for me to use. 'If it gets too hot, feel free to open the window. If you want to stay in longer, you can refill it.'
'Thank you.'
'It's nothing. You're the ones helping me, after all.'
Helping...
The door closed and I started to undress, peering out of the window. Through the textured glass I could see a couple of blurs, which I assumed were the other two.
Watching them, I suddenly had a bad feeling about this...a woman living on her own...inviting two complete strangers into her home...Nezumi had already fed her a pack of lies about where we came from...what if he was planning on stealing from her too? She was living out of the way of anything...no one would notice if anything suspicious happened within the house...
I sank down under the water once I'd washed my hair, blowing bubbles over the surface, feeling the questions and worries eventually fizzle away as the warmth engulfed me and started to ease my tense, aching muscles.
I really needed this...It didn't take much for the warm water to lull me off into a light sleep, my head resting on the side of the tub.
Next thing I knew, there was a soft voice calling out to me and a set of grey eyes boring into my own. It made me jump, some of the now cool water splashing onto the floor. 'A-ah!'
'Just came to check you hadn't drowned in here,' Nezumi muttered, sitting back on his heels.
I pulled my knees up to my chest, resting my cheek on them. 'No...I just dozed off...could you help me out?'
'With what?'
'...help me out of the bath.'
Nezumi rose to his feet, leaning over me low enough for me to wrap both arms around his torso. He began to lift me out of the water and eased me out of the bath, quickly grabbing a towel off the side and bundling me up in it. He began rubbing my hair, trying to get rid of the excess water as I pulled the towel tighter around me. It was warm...considerably warmer now Nezumi was here.
'You're staring again.'
I blinked owlishly, feeling my cheeks suddenly heat up before I glanced away. Nezumi only chuckled, leaving the towel around my shoulders. 'Come on. I'd like a bath now. You go get ready for bed. Matilda's already left some clothes out for you until I can get you some new ones.'
'Nezumi.' By now I was clutching his sleeve tightly, the fabric slowly dampening from my wet skin.
'...what?'
'...why did you say that you'd sleep on the sofa?'
'Don't you want space?'
I shook my head.
'What, you'd rather have me take up all the space in the bed? I starfish, you know.'
'You didn't in the van.'
'That's because there wasn't enough room.'
I swallowed, grip tightening on his sleeve a little. This had happened a few days ago too...Nezumi had got really close to me...and all I had wanted was to pull him closer...as close as I could.
Him being there was a constant reminder of everything I had lost...everything we had both lost. We were struggling to get through every single day, yet...it was alright. He was by my side, and I was by his. I wanted to support him as much as he was supporting me.
I hated this stupid illness.
I just wanted to be there for him...repay him for everything he had done...
He was so difficult to read, but I could tell he was hurting. If only there was a way I could ease that pain...
One of my hands rose to cup his cheeks and I suddenly felt him stiffen against me.
'Sion.' Nezumi's hand was on my shoulder, firmly keeping me from getting too close to his face. 'Don't.'
'But-'
'No. Just...just don't.'
I moved back, swallowing hard as I felt my chest clench in the most unpleasant way. Everything was mixing up together...my throat was tight...my heart wouldn't stop thumping in my chest.
'Sorry...'
Silence fell between the two of us before there was a quiet knock on the door.
'I'm going to make a start on dinner soon. Could one of you give me a hand?'
I quickly moved away from Nezumi, wrapping the towel around my waist. 'Y-yeah, I'll just get dressed!'
I glanced back over my shoulder at Nezumi. That pained look in his eyes was still there. I couldn't take how we was looking at me like that, not letting me do anything to try and ease the obvious pain he was feeling.
It wasn't fair...
Not a word passed between the two of us as I left him in the bathroom and hurried into the spare bedroom to get changed. Once that was done, I went into the kitchen, glancing at the television. The news was on...more articles on what was going on in No.6. Normally, Nezumi would change the channel if something came up about it on the radio. The first time around I'd nearly broken down in tears...it'd been quite a while since I saw it on a tv...
'Horrible, isn't it?' Matilda called out from behind me. 'They say the government is going-'
'...sorry, I don't really want to discuss it,' I replied quickly.
True enough. I didn't want to hear anything about it. It was another one of those reminders for memories Nezumi had repeatedly told me to cast aside. Being constantly exposed to news reports would only make it more difficult...discussing it wouldn't help either.
'Ah...my apologies,' she murmured, reaching for the remote control and changing the channel.
I shook my head. 'It's fine...I'd just rather not hear about it...it's the same with those adverts that just guilt trip you into giving money...'
'Fair enough.'
'A-anyway...what should I help you with?'
By the time we were all sat around the table, eating dinner, a strange mood had settled between us. Nezumi was eagerly chatting away to Matilda about events that had never happened with people who didn't exist. Everytime she glanced across at me, I was unable to add anything to the conversation for fear of making a mistake in continuity...getting a name wrong...talking about a placewhere we couldn't've been...anything that would ruin Nezumi's seemingly flawless storytelling. Instead I chose to savour the meal in front of me best I could. It had been so long since I'd had a solid dinner seeing as I'd been living off soup and other soft foods once I fell ill. Matilda stressed how it wasn't her best as preparing food was significantly more difficult with one hand. Even with both Nezumi and I helping her, it wouldn't do much to help. I didn't exactly have the vision for cooking...
My body still wasn't used to eating such hefty food, so I focused on the meat and vegetables before admitting defeat. There was no way I could finish it all.
Nezumi reached across the table to ruffle my hair. 'You should rest.'
Matilda nodded in agreement. 'Don't worry about tidying up or anything, we have it covered.'
I felt pretty inadequate for not being able to help out, but the idea of having a warm bed to rest in was far too good to pass up.
After excusing myself from the table, I went to Matilda's daughter's room. Whilst I changed, I started to survey my environment. From the contents of the room I guessed her daughter had left with no intention of returning. Usually you would leave clothes or a few sentimental items, yet there wasn't a scrap of clothing left behind...although there were a few stuffed toys neatly arranged at the head of the bed...I got the feeling Matilda still wasn't ready for her daughter to leave...desperately clinging on...making her bed...keeping her room ready for her to come home...although if that was the case, why would she have offered her room to me? Was this a step forward for her as she got used to the idea of finally being alone? Was she finally letting go of her daughter, allowing her to grow up and continue her life without her mother by her side?
I briefly thought back to a few conversations I'd had with Nezumi...we'd once toyed with the idea of living together when we were old enough to leave home...but I never seemed to be able to imagine living without my mother...the thought of leaving her all alone made my stomach churn...
Now those hypothetical conversations had come true...in the most unexpected and horrible way possible...I didn't have a choice in the matter if I wanted to survive...would my mother resent the idea of me refusing to go with Nezumi and have freedom if I was given the choice?It had all happened so fast, I was unable to stop him from taking me away from No.6...
'Hey.'
His voice caught me off guard and I jumped. I quickly turned around.
'Forgotten how to get changed?'
'No...I was thinking.'
'About what?'
I glanced past Nezumi before going to shut the door behind him, lowering my voice. '...I don't want to stay here alone...'
'Why?'
'Look around.' I motioned with my arm. 'Does this look like a room belonging to someone who's getting married?'
'...No. Looks like a pampered child owns it...' He glanced around, eyes widening slightly, his own voice lowering to match the volume of mine. 'She said she'd been gone for a month, right? Why is it cleaner than the rest of the house?'
'I know...it's...really creepy.'
'You want me in here with you coz you're creeped out?'
I gave a slow nod, fiddling with my sleeves nervously.
Nezumi sighed. 'Fine, fine. Don't complain later when you're hanging off the bed.'
I instantly perked up, unable to stop myself from beaming at him. 'I won't! I promise!'
He ruffled my hair again before leaving the room and letting me get changed. I had to rearrange the toys, moving them onto the nearby chair. After weighing up my options, I turned them around, not wanting their creepy eyes watching me sleep.
By the time Nezumi came back, I was already curled up in the bed. I heard the distinct rustling of clothing before the mattress dipped under his weight. A split second later he was above me, hands going to my sides as he begun to tickle me. I let out a sharp squeal, instantly wriggling against him, trying to get away from the onslaught of tickles, begging him to stop the whole while.
'Still want me to stay~?'
'Y-Yes!'
'You sure~?'
'Nez- Aaaahahah, stop it! Cut it out!' His fingers soon stilled and I peered up at him in the darkness, reaching up to undo his ponytail. 'That was mean.'
'Am I known to be nice?'
'To me you are.'
'I'm not.'
One of my hands slid down to cup his cheek and I gave him a warm smile. 'Yes you are. Stop being stupid.'
He sighed quietly, flopping down beside me and pulling me against his body. His scent wasn't as overwhelming as it had been in days prior since he'd just bathed...still...it was soothing nonetheless. 'You smell good...'
'...why would you comment on something like that?'
I felt my cheeks begin to heat up and I started to curl away from Nezumi. 'I-I'm sorry...I didn't...I didn't think.'
He shook his head, pulling me back, one arm snaking around my waist to keep me close. I felt his nose press into my hair as he began to stroke my back gently. '...you smell pretty good too...'
'Must be the shampoo...'
'No...s'just you.'
I swallowed nervously before pressing myself a little closer, my eyes beginning to flutter shut. 'Feel better?' Nezumi asked.
I nodded.
'Was that a nod or a shake?'
'A nod.' My voice was muffled by his shirt.
'Good...'
'...what about you?'
'Me? Yeah, I'm great. Got my own personal heater.'
I giggled quietly, wrapping one arm around his torso, the other finding Nezumi's free hand, squeezing it tightly.
'Stop being cute,' he muttered.
'...no...you like it.'
'Guilty. Go to sleep already, cute thing.'
'Already halfway there...'
We lay there in silence for a few more minutes. I watched our laced together fingers in the gloom. Nezumi's thumb was stroking my knuckles gently, movements eventually slowing as his breathing began to even out. It wasn't long after that I fell asleep too, my body greatly appreciating a comfortable bed and the other's warm form surrounding me.
Hope you enjoyed this instalment~ I'll try and get the next chapter out as soon as I can.
As always, I love reading your reviews, so please let me know what you think!
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