Chapter 10.
Suzuki was waiting in Marui's kitchen when he came downstairs, running a hand through his bed hair. She was sitting at his table, resting her head in her folded arms. It was obvious she hadn't slept; the events from yesterday must have been fresh in her mind.
Marui walked over until he was behind her and pulled on Ito's scarf, which was wrapped tightly around her neck. Suzuki snapped her head up, looking left and right before tilting her head back.
"Morning," Marui said.
"Morning," she mumbled back, resting her head in her arms again.
Marui sat down across from her, pulling an orange out of the fruit basket. "Bad night?"
She nodded without lifting her head, which looked oddly painful from Marui's point of view. "I don't want to go to school."
"Is it Ito?"
"No."
"That's a first." Marui cursed, unable to peel his orange. "Then why don't you want to go?"
She sighed, lifting her head. "Because if I see Yoshida, I'm going to punch that ass and get another week of detention. I did not do well in detention, Bunta. I felt like I was a penguin in a cage full of delinquent lions."
"Ouch. Nothing's worse than delinquent lions." He dug his thumb into the orange, frowning when it still refused to peel. "And don't worry about Yoshida. A lot of people have forgotten already."
"I don't care what other people think. I care what I think. I feel like I screwed up and I'll never forget it. I mean, I'm a girl, I won't forget how he made me feel – the good and the bad."
"Oh, yeah, that's right, girls don't forget. Girls keep a hit list under their pillows and think of ways to attack at night. Then they pretend to be nice and – bam! You're dead. You girls are vicious creatures."
She smiled. Marui gave up and put the orange back in the basket.
.
The two stopped off at the Corner Market because Marui refused to go to school without something to eat, and Suzuki said that if she ate McDonalds one more time she would turn into a glob of grease.
When they got to school, they went to their cubbies, wanting to quickly change their shoes and get the day over with.
Niou was standing next to Marui's locker, nodding along to a song that was on repeat in his head.
"Hey," Marui said, grabbing his shoes out of his cubby. "Ready for afternoon practice? No Yukimura. Hallelujah."
"School hasn't even technically started and you're already thinking about afternoon practice. You're on something, and I want some," Niou said. "But, seriously, dude, why so hyped for afternoon practice?"
"No Yukimura. Do I need any other reason?" Marui rolled his shoulders and put his street shoes up in his cubby. "Come on, let's get to class, sleep, and enjoy an afternoon of Yukimura-free practice."
"Sanada's in charge, you know," Niou reminded him, "and that's not fun. He's still pissed about me putting piss in his locker. He'll have me running laps all practice."
Marui shrugged. "No Yukimura. I'm a happy camper."
.
The day seemed never ending for Yukimura. He tapped his fingers on his desk, casually talking to the kids around him, watching the clock and wishing that Sanada and Yanagi were in his class. It was days like this when he needed his friends the most, days when he was going to visit his mom.
When the last bell of the day rang, Yukimura gathered his things and said a few goodbyes to some of the people around him before hurrying out of the room and down to his cubby. He changed his shoes and left the school without a second thought, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with dozens of other students.
He pulled his phone out of his bag, scrolling through his contacts until he found his younger sister, Emiko. He hit a button and pressed his phone to his ear. A few rings later, he heard a tired and wry sigh and the question: "What is it now, Seiichi?"
"What's with that sigh? Bad day?" Yukimura asked.
"No. It's just that school literally let out like, two minutes ago and you're already calling me. I'm in junior high, I'm a big girl," Emiko said.
"You're thirteen," Yukimura reminded her, "and you'll always be my baby sister."
She sighed again. "What do you want?"
"I'm skipping practice and going into town, do you need anything?"
"Not really. I'm going to help Dad out at the shop for a bit. Does he know you're skipping practice again?"
"I already talked to him. He knows where I'm going. Who's babying who now?" She laughed. Yukimura smiled. "I'm bringing dinner home. Take-out okay?"
"Lots and lots of those spicy green beans?"
"Yes."
"Okay. Great. Love you," she said.
"Ditto."
Yukimura hung up, slipping his phone into his bag. He sighed, putting his hands in his pockets and he joined a dozen or so Rikkaidai students on the walk to the trains.
.
After a twenty minute train ride, Yukimura was slowly walking down a street towards Silly Lilies, one hand in his pocket, the other scrolling through his text messages. He told Yanagi to update him on practice, and Yukimura always found it amusing when someone snatched his friend's phone and sent odd messages to him.
While reading a message from 'Yanagi' about some first years getting caught making out behind the bleachers, he received another about how Sanada was secretly in love with him. Yukimura laughed out loud, not carrying who saw him laughing at his phone. Niou was the funniest 'Yanagi' on the team.
It seemed that the trip to the store took longer than that school day had, but he got there (eventually). He slipped his phone into his pocket and opened the door to the flower shop, Silly Lilies. When he walked inside, he felt like he was being suffocated the dozens of flamboyant flower arrangements that filled the store – it was like a being in a freaking perfume bottle.
He walked up to the counter, but didn't see anyone. He furrowed his brow and tapped the little bell thing. "Is anyone here?"
He heard the bells on the front door clink together and a soft swear. He looked over his shoulder and saw a girl in a Rikkaidai uniform rushing towards the counter.
"Sorry, just give me a second," she said, walking behind the counter. She set her bag on the floor, and grabbed a black apron with the store logo on it off a rack on the wall. Yukimura pressed his lips together and watched her struggle to tie a bow in the back. She swore so softly Yukimura wasn't sure if she said "bumble-bee" or "fuck me."
"You don't look like the kind of girl to swear," Yukimura commented, smirking when her ears turned pink. She had said the later of the two.
"Sorry," she said, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She put on a huge smile and said, "Welcome to Silly Lilies. I'm Koga, can I help you?"
"I need a dozen pink tulips."
Koga smiled and walked around the counter again, heading over towards a tub of unasserted flowers. She picked up tulip after tulip, cradling them in her arms like she would a baby.
"Is that all?" she asked, glancing at Yukimura.
Yukimura nodded. Koga walked back around the counter and set the tulips on a small wooden table.
"I stop by here pretty often for flowers, but I've never seen you here before, or at school for that matter," Yukimura said casually. She looked confused. "Your uniform."
"Oh. Well, I just started working here last month," she said, picking up the tulips again and wrapping the bouquet in white plastic. "As for school… hmm… what year are you?"
"Third."
"Second."
Koga set the flowers down again, and walked over to another table. She grabbed a roll of black ribbon and a pair of scissors, cutting off a good sized piece of ribbon.
"I forgot to ask," she said, holding the ribbon in her hand. "Is black okay?"
"That's fine," he said, smiling politely.
Koga nodded and walked back over to the flowers, gently wrapping the ribbon around the bouquet to keep the flowers in place. She turned and set the flowers on the counter next to the cash register. Yukimura reached into his bag for his wallet as she hit some buttons on the cash register. He knew the total – he got the same bouquet every time he came to the store.
"Three thousand yen," she said.
Yukimura grinned inwardly. Yanagi would be proud. He found his wallet with a "eureka!" and pulled out a few bills. She handed him a receipt and his bouquet, smiling; her expression was softer, her eyes warmer. Yukimura felt like he was in one of those cheesy romance novels.
"What's your name again?" he asked, putting his wallet and receipt into his back pocket.
Her ears turned pink. "Why?"
"In case I see you at school."
"Koga."
Yukimura said, "Good-bye, Koga-chan," and then left Silly Lilies, whistling a lullaby his mother used to sing to him about angels.
.
There was a voice in the back of his mind, replying over and over what he wanted to tell his mom. Whenever he went to go see her that voice echoed in his head. But, when it came right down to it, Yukimura could never remember what he had wanted to say.
Five minutes later, he was pushing a gate open. He walked along a concrete path silently, jogging up a set of stairs. When he got to the top he took a deep breath. The trees were dead, puffs of white came out of his mouth as he breathed, and the clouds were covering the sky – an ironic setting, or something of the sort, he thought.
He walked through the maze-like paths he knew like the back of his hand, walking by grieving families and young children, wondering why life had to be so cruel as to take people away. Suddenly, he stopped walking, and stared down at the ground.
There was a small tombstone with his mother's name and a few fresh, white lilies someone must have dropped off. He knelt down and smiled, setting in flowers down in front of his mother's grave next to the lilies.
He talked to the tombstone as though he was talking to his mother. He wasn't necessarily religious, but his mother believed in angels, so Yukimura believed for her. He talked about school, about Emiko and his father, about the tennis team, about Sanada and Yanagi – anything and everything and the nothing in-between.
"I miss you."
Six years had passed since his mother's death, and it still hurt like it was just yesterday. So much for time heals all wounds.
A/N: I'm sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up. I've wanted to post it for like, forever, but I've been one of the many with updating problems.
theglasseslover: Well, the tennis matches won't be for awhile, but I'll get to them. I can't promise they'll be amazing, seeing as how I've never written one before, but I'll worry about that when I get there.