PART VI. "Summer of Sam."
"I'm missable, invincible, behavior is despicable—if you're looking for fun you can come out with me tonight."
— Elizabeth Woolridge Grant.
Minamino.
Though my healing was faster than a human's, the pain still lingered, and the gaping hole in my side hadn't completely closed yet.
I returned the favor to Yusuke, taking the blow of Hiei's stolen sword. Yusuke had risked his life to save mine; I could do the same for him. Luckily, the only reason I wasn't dead was because my body had fully armored itself into that of a demon's caliber. Well, armored as much as possible in this body, at least.
Knuckles tapped on the wooden door and echoed throughout the bathroom, and my mother's voice soon followed. "Shuichi, come taste the fish stock I've made."
"I'll be there in a few," I replied, spreading the rest of the paste I'd created over the gaping wound.
The sunset's hue filtered into the bathroom. The glow reflected off the dull whites and pale colors of the walls and counter as I washed the residue from my hands.
Reikai arrested Hiei. I wouldn't have to deal with his threat of revenge for a while, at least until they released him.
Or escaped.
Reikai gave me probation for assisting Yusuke and returning the mirror. I wasn't sure how my mother would have taken my disappearance had they arrested me.
Bandaging my wound, I tucked in my shirt before reaching over to the water bottle. It held a soft, purple liquid that glowed orange from the lighting. I shook the solution, pushing the concoction around in the plastic bottle. Hojo would pick this up tomorrow for her appointment next week, though it still needed a few days to set into its full potential.
The solution was dangerous since her organs were already unhealthy due to her diet. I could at least reverse the effects of the solution with another.
This forced her kidneys to secrete an unhealthy amount of protein into the urine. It essentially caused Nephrotic Syndrome.
Her weight would continue to rise as her body retained fluids. If she wasn't discharged by this weigh in, we would scrap this plan and make another. If the plan was successful, she would return for the next vile that would relieve her body from the excess fluids and repair her kidneys.
The first solution apparently gave her stomach problems, so I diluted this one a tad. At least, I assumed it had given her stomach problems when we talked on the phone about how the first weigh in went.
"Jesus fucking Christ," she'd gasped, groaning over the phone. "I'll call you tomorrow about this. I need to go blow my brains out on the toilet."
It didn't sound like a side effect or symptom of Nephrotic Syndrome. I just assumed her body was unable to handle the pressure and fluid retention.
I set the bottle in the desk's drawer in my room before heading downstairs to my mother. She began pampering me again, preparing my testing plate and setting my seat for me. I should have spoken up since my mother seemed to work even harder now that the hospital discharged her. It was as if she was trying make up for being in there.
"I think I may have put too much salt in here." She gripped the handle of the pot as she leaned it over the bowl, pouring out the liquid with the ladle. "Tell me what you think, dear."
I'd have to find a way to be stricter, forcing her to settle down. I didn't need a repeat of the mirror incident; I assumed I already lost half my life. I sat down and brought the liquid to my lips with a small spoon. I could taste the amount of salt she'd put in, the intensity hit my tongue.
"Yes, you did put just a bit too much." I gave her an apologetic smile.
I didn't like worrying her over mundane things such as how much salt was in the stock, but it was better than having her fret over me.
She sighed and turned back to the stove with the pot, wondering what to do. She mumbled to herself about whether she could balance out the salt with a sweetness or acidic flavor. She didn't want to dump it out and start over.
She rubbed the back of her neck as she placed her hand on her hip, pondering what to do. But she sighed again and gave up, and turned around to sit with me at the table.
"I'll figure out what to do in a few minutes." My mother sat down across from me and exhaled in relief, remembering that she needn't fret over the little things. "Enjoying your last day before summer classes at cram school? You should, the hours will almost be the same as Meiou's."
"I was only given a few days, mother," I reminded her. "And the cram school has given plenty of assignments that I need to have ready on the first day."
"Everything will be worth it in the end," she reassured me with a wide smile and began on her motherly dreams for me. "You'll get a great paying job, a wonderful home, meet a beautiful girl and raise a beautiful family."
I could only muster a chuckle in reply, eyes downcast on the stock in front of me.
To be honest, I wasn't sure if I actually wanted to stay in the human world. Preferably, after she passed on when she was meant to—from old age—I would return to Makai.
Until then, I supposed the most suitable course of action would be to follow out her ideals. Unless I could find something I found more enjoyable.
My finger-tips traced along the subtle ridges of the bamboo placemat beneath my bowl. I debated on what I'd enjoy doing while waiting out time with my mother.
Human life was mundane, though I often liked the leisure involved. It was also interesting to stick around to see how humans acted.
Hojo was, by far, the most entertaining with her brash actions and temper tantrums. I would be lying if I said Yusuke wasn't creeping up to take her place. I'd expected him to be a skilled strategist with how he'd handled the fight with Hiei, but he was just a hopeful risk taker.
"I'll think of something, mother," I said. "I'm not exactly sure what I'm interested in doing just yet."
"It's only your first year," she reassured me. "You'll think of something by your senior year. A good rule of thumb is to just go to the best university. Even if you change your major to something simpler, that school's still on your résumé no matter where you need to apply."
If I had been Minamino, Shuichi, the boy—the soul—that should be her son…
I wonder how he would be able to handle the pressure of the human life. Humans fretted over the simplest things—like their weight, or their appearance.
Their grades, their clothing, and other's opinions of them.
Having lived in Makai under different pressures, these goals and stresses all seemed trivial in perspective. Though if I had been a human boy, I guess I would have stressed about these things because it would have been all I knew.
"What schools do you recommend?" I picked up the spoon and dipped it into the stock, watching the foamy liquid move in a fluid motion.
"Well there's the University of Tokyo." She nodded, a faint smile crossing her lips as she leaned her head in her hand, resting on the tablecloth. She closed her eyes, almost serene, as she imagined all the possible universities I could attend. "Kyoto University, as well. Oh, and Osaka University."
Of course, she would pick the top three universities in Japan.
Before I could respond, the doorbell sounding through the house cut me off. My mother all but raced to the door to answer it.
Hatanaka had been away on a business trip for the past few days and she'd been lonely without him. My company sufficed, but I could not offer her the same comfort Hatanaka could.
Talking to others that weren't her coworkers or I excited her. I felt the need to remind her that she should be resting so she wouldn't put herself back in the hospital. But her excited voice stopped me from following her to the door to deter the salesman, and I stayed put.
"Oh, you're just the cutest little boy!" My mother's voice carried into the kitchen, sparking my interest.
And to my dismay, I heard Hojo's mumbles mix in with my mother's, along with her familiar scent.
I could feel my eyes slowly rolling into the back of my head, wondering why she was here. Standing up, I made my way through the narrow hallway to the front door.
Seeing her on the front porch surprised me. She adorned a purple kimono and an attempted traditional maiko hairstyle. Her hair bore purple, faux-flowers and silver ornaments. I expected her to take a more modern approach with her hair, but it still suited her. She stared at me as she held onto Minoru's hand while he showed off his yellow kimono to my mother.
"Shuichi, look who dropped by to visit!" My mother smiled, turning to me.
And I glanced over to Hojo, who seemed bored per usual. The only difference was the slight change in her face, though it wasn't noticeable for those who saw her daily. But for someone who stayed away as often as I, the slightly plumper curvature of her cheeks were noticeable.
"Look who got discharged." Hojo nodded dryly towards Minoru as I approached the boy with a small smile.
"Discharged?" My mother's curious eyes glanced around the group of us.
"He was in the hospital for a while," Hojo replied warily, knowing she'd messed up. "Now they're doing some research experiment on him for a few months."
"Why didn't you tell me?" My mother's eyes saddened as she looked down at the boy.
Hojo stayed quiet, unsure of what to say as she already created the situation.
"We didn't want to stress you out, mother," I replied, knowing no matter what, our lies would hurt her feelings. "It was while you were in the hospital."
Her lips pursed as she looked down to Minoru, who was eyeing the inside of our house with interest.
After a moment of an awkward silence, Hojo finally broke the tension as she turned her gaze on me. "Get dressed, loser, we're going to the summer festival."
Misery did love company.
And my mother perked right up, pushing all her hurt emotions away. "That's a perfect way to spend your last day before summer cram school! Aiko, are you in the ceremony? You're all dressed up."
I was almost willing to suffocate my mother with some powder from a Makai plant to keep her from encouraging Hojo's request.
"No, I'm just fabulous," she shrugged with a simple smile. "The bun is mainly just extensions anyways."
And my mother's laughter encouraged her.
"I'm sure you have a kimono in your closet, dear." My mother faced me. "Or at least a yukata."
My eyes drifted to Hojo again. She raised her sculpted eyebrow in smug victory as if to say: "Yes, you're stuck being miserable, just like me."
"I'll go check." My mother left to the stairs, heading into my room. "Catch up with your friend."
"Are you Japanese?" The little boy perked up, grabbing Hojo's and my attention.
"Yes." I had a feeling where this was going.
If I hadn't been the one to help put him in the hospital, my voice wouldn't have been as kind and warming.
"Then why is your hair red?"
Hojo slapped him upside the back of his head, bringing about hurt mumbles as she chided him. "God, Minoru, you can't just ask people why their hair is red."
Even though she'd asked the same question before.
"I'm flattered I was your first choice to spend time with, but I'm sure you're popular enough to have found another person to take to the festival." She heard the sarcasm in my voice.
"I was going to go with Urameshi, but he went on some weird trip to talk to some old bat who's looking for a 'disciple'," she replied.
"And your henchwomen had better things to do?"
"Like I'd spend time with them when I don't have to. I was going to invite you after I dragged Urameshi with me." She rolled her eyes. "I mean, I can't leave you out. You're God's Gift to the World, after all."
She saw me attempting to repress the smug smile on my lips at her words, and she grinned.
"You're willing to step down from your high horse to give someone else that title?"
She rolled her eyes again as her grin disappeared. "Oh, shut the hell up."
"You should take your own advice sometime."
Playfully, the back of her hand jabbed towards my stomach. I moved out of the way with ease, sparking the pain in my wound to flare. I tried hiding my pain, keeping my face steady, but Hojo's all-seeing eyes caught my wince.
She stared at me, suspicious, brows furrowed.
"What's wrong?" Minoru had noticed my pain as well.
"Shuichi." My mother stopped halfway down the steps. "You have a kimono."
Inhaling deep, clearing the pain from my face, I retreated to my room to change. Hojo's eyes burned into my back all the way up the stairs.
Aiko.
Shiori gave me a snack while I waited in the foyer for Minamino to change.
I nibbled on the cookie Shiori bought from aisle fourteen as she asked how I liked my new apartment.
My parents were ambitious, buying a two bedroom with a full bathroom. I still had to share a room with Minoru, but they now had their own room.
She turned to Minoru and I looked around the area for a trashcan I could spit up the calories in, but there was none in sight. She turned around again, putting me in her line of sight.
"So, how are you both enjoying your summer break?" Shiori knelt to speak to Minoru.
"It's boring!" He complained as I regretfully swallowed the food. "Sis doesn't take me with her anywhere!"
"Yeah, Minoru." I tried keeping my sass tame around Shiori. "I'm sure you want to hang out with a bunch of girls all day and try on make-up and clothes."
"I do!" He whined, but I wasn't sure if he was serious or just trying to make a point to Shiori.
"Alright," I huffed. "Next time I call up Natsume, I'll make sure you come along and get a make-over."
"Good," he pouted and crossed his arms across his chest, and Shiori encouraged him with laughter.
My eyes found their way from Minoru to Minamino as he descended the stairs. It felt strange to see him in any clothing other than some form of casual wear or his school uniform.
He took an older, traditional approach with the colors, which was no surprise since he acted like an old man anyways. Dark blue wasn't a color I'd expect in his color wheel, but it was fine. I was more concerned about his injury. I assumed it was some mess Urameshi was in and I had other things to interrogate him about.
"Let's go, then," I addressed Minamino as I held onto Minoru's hand.
And Shiori waved us off as we left the house, sandals scuffing along the cement walkway to the sidewalk.
"Do you have a curfew, little boy?" I teased, watching him slip out a water bottle from his sleeve as we rounded the corner. "I'll make sure to get you home safe and sound to Momma."
"I'm surprised your parents let you out of the house at all." His smile may have seemed innocent to Minoru, but I knew it was smug. I brushed off his jab with a shrug. He handed me the bottle of purple liquid, and I took it quickly despite Minoru noticing it anyways.
I noticed the purple was much lighter this time as I handed Minoru the cookie I didn't want.
"What's that?" Minoru eyed the bottle, taking the food without much thought.
"Flavored water," I replied.
"Can I have some?"
"When you're old enough." I guided him towards the older boy. "Go bother Minamino."
"What's your name?" Minoru let go of my hand to walk closer to Minamino, who looked down at the five year-old with a fake smile.
Though Minoru couldn't tell the difference.
"Shuichi," he replied, wondering how annoying the boy could be.
"Shuichi." Minamino was about to find out just how annoying. "Your house is so big; do you have your own room? I have to share one with sis, and she's so mean in the morning."
His green eyes glanced up to me as I winked to Minamino, mouthing. "Have fun."
"She's so mean in the morning. She always kicks me out of the room so she can change. It's not like I want to watch her or anything I mean I'm busy getting dressed myself! And then I'm playing with my action figures and watch TV. I don't have time to look at her!"
And I walked a few paces ahead of the two to let Minamino suffer at the mouth of my little brother for a while. It was only about fifteen minutes of freedom, and we soon reached the edge of town, but the break was worth it.
They held the festival on the riverfront. Everyone had set up their stands along the dirt path next to the grass hill that rolled down to the water. The sun was a sliver on the horizon as we approached the festival stands on the dirt path, and Minoru sprinted ahead of us in excitement.
I leaned forward and latched on the back of his collar, dragging him back as Minamino stepped up next to me.
"Rules," I demanded as I untied the change purses I tied on my forearm.
"Stay within eyesight of you at all times," Minoru began.
"Next." I handed Minamino the water bottle and then dug into my change purse to filter out the money I wanted to give him.
"No pets at the end of the night."
"Next."
"Dad says I can't cuss."
"Dad's not here." I dangled his filled change pouch above his head and he reached up for it.
"If anyone tries to take my money or prizes I scream like a little bitch so you can come kick their asses."
"You got it, little dude." I dropped the pouch and he caught it, sprinting off to the nearest game of his interest.
Minamino watched as Minoru ran off to the nearest wooden stand, eyeing the prizes that dangled from the roof. "He's five years old, Hojo. He shouldn't be off on his own."
"Trust me, he's so annoying that if he gets kidnapped they'll just bring him back with a note saying 'sorry'," I scoffed. Minamino shook his head at my words, smiling in disbelief.
I nodded to the water bottle in his hand, ignoring his judgment since I knew how to take care of my little brother. "Why is that one lighter than the last?"
"You mentioned over the phone… your stomach problems."
Oh, the laxatives.
"Will it still work if it's lighter?"
He nodded in reply as he slipped the bottle back into his sleeve. "It should work all the same."
"Good, then that means you have time to explain a lot of things to me."
I tugged on his sleeve and led him to one of the games stands. I readied the questions as my sandals brushed up against the grass popping out from underneath the wood structure.
I dug in my change pouch for payment, and the stand owner came up to us. Behind him was a small sea of bottles, intricately placed in certain positions on purpose to make the game that much harder.
I set the coins on the counter as the owner leaned over towards me.
"Eh, the little lady's paying today?" He grinned, his grey kimono brought out his five o'clock shadow. "Your boyfriend ain't gonna pay today?"
Ah, should I tear him one for this gross "chivalry", or do I take advantage to embarrass Minamino?
I could fight the patriarchy any day, here comes the embarrassment.
"Ugh," I scoffed and rolled my eyes, lacing my fingers through Minamino's as I held our intertwined hand up in the old man's view. Minamino's hand stayed limp as I tightened my grip. "I know. I always get stuck with dirt bag losers."
I quickly glanced up to Minamino, who was slipping a bit in hiding his exasperation.
"You're right, darling." Minamino played along, soothing the annoyance in his voice. "As always, you have to be right."
"Am I ever not right?" I feigned a gasp as my eyes darted up to him, and the shop owner chuckled between us.
"Well, here." The stand owner grinned to me, handing me extra rings for the game. "I'll make it up to ya'."
I let go of Minamino's hand to take hold of the extra rings
"Thank you." I puckered my lips in a smile and handed Minamino a few rings, and he took them with ease.
"Ah, Yukichi-san!" An older woman's voice came from behind me.
I turned around to find a grey-haired woman leading her toddler grandson along. They headed to the stand owner.
"I haven't seen you around lately! How have you been?" She walked past me and the stand owner nodded to Minamino and I to play before stepping to the other end of stand to talk to the woman.
"Hey there, Izumi! I went to Miura City to get a fishing business started." Yukichi grinned. "After the festival, I'll move down there for good! Fishing is always best during the summer."
His life story interested me, but Minamino's was my priority at the moment.
"So, explain to me this whole merging-youko business." I kept my voice low as possible as I twirled a ring around my index finger.
He paused, loosely holding the rings, and I threw one of mine into the pit of bottles, hoping I'd land a stick.
The ring bounced of the mouth of the bottle as he replied, voice as low as mine. "In my original form, hunters attacked me in Makai. On the verge of death, I managed to escape to the human world and merge my soul into a fetus."
"So, is that another planet, or…?"
He nodded his head side to side, pondering how to explain it. "It is another planet, but also, in a way, another dimension."
I let out a heavy sigh as I tried wrapping my head around that. He tossed a ring into the bottle pit, and it caught on the bottle of the neck with ease.
Show off.
"And… you have two souls inside you?"
"No, only one." He eyed me as I chucked another ring into the bottle pit, and missed once again.
"Did you like, shove the other soul out?"
"No, I was too weak to completely take hold of another person," he replied. His features darkened from the sun's disappearance. "Since the fetus didn't have a soul, I was able to merge with it easily."
"So you got to just chill in a womb for a few months," I snorted. "You were conscious. How uncommon."
"It didn't feel long, to be honest."
"So… what put you in that situation?" I tossed my second to last ring in the bottle pit. I watched as it rolled around on the mouth of the bottle briefly before finally falling on the neck.
I fist pumped the air and muttered a triumphant "fuck yeah" before turning to view the red-head next to me.
Amused with me, I could see the corners of his lips tugging upwards. "A soldier from Reikai's Special Defense Force hunted me."
"Someone like Urameshi?"
"No, the Special Defense Force soldiers are highly trained. They deal with more important matters than what Reikai assigns him." His eyes turned to the stand owner. He was lighting the paper lights that hung from the stands roof, illuminating the area with a faint red tint.
More important matters. How important was he? If he was so important then, why was nobody hunting him now?
If Makai held many demons like Ningenkai held humans… then… becoming important wasn't easy. So…
"How old are you?"
He tossed his second to last ring. I realized he was subtly taking control of the conversation, steering me to ask certain questions. "I've lost track, honestly. I'm certain I'm at least one thousand years old."
A thousand year old youko who had specialized in armed robbery. Reikai's Special Defenses hunted him down. He was then seriously injured and stole a body from a fetus.
Yes, that made so much sense.
"Last ring." I held mine up, changing the subject. "Want to make a bet?"
"Sure." The corners of his lips tugged into a small smirk.
"If I win, you do my homework for the rest of the year." I whipped my nose in the air with confidence and pride.
"And if I win?"
"Nothing. The fuck?" I snorted. "If I'm up against some thousand year-old demon it's only fair to give me some sort of advantage."
He shrugged, amused anyways.
I kissed the ring for good luck before chucking it into the pit, only to find it bounce straight off the mouth of a bottle.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I turned to Minamino, who was outright laughing.
He tossed his ring, but before it could leave his hands I swatted at his wrist to hinder his aim. Mid-air, slow motion, I waited for the ring to fall between the bottles.
But in the end, his ring still landed perfectly on the neck.
Angered, I exhaled through my nose as he continued to laugh.
"You won'em all, young man." The stand owner appeared again and nodded to the back wall behind the sea of bottles. "Choose your prize."
A myriad of stuffed animals adorned the wall.
"Get the little pig for Shiori."
"My mother isn't immature." Blithe nonchalance in his comeback had me itching to bite his head off. "What does Minoru like?"
"Uh…" I eyed the selection, finding piglets and primates, and then what seemed to be an alligator.
Maybe a crocodile? The hell was even the difference?
"That alligator." I nodded towards the green stuffed animal that had a goofy, sharp-toothed grin sewn on. "He likes weird animals."
The stand owner handed me the prize instead of Minamino. I grinned at the thought of presenting the prize to Minoru and saying I won it for him. It was about the size of my torso, and Minoru was probably struggling with carrying whatever other prizes he won.
But I didn't want to hold this all night.
Stepping away from the stand, I eyed the area for Minoru. Crowds of people blocked my view of where he could have been, and he wasn't in my line of sight.
I roared his name over the sea of people, grabbing many pairs of eyes in the process. "Minoru!"
And within seconds, I could see Minoru's small body behind two other stuffed animals. He pushed his way past an older couple to come into view. He was talented enough to carry a cotton candy in one hand as well.
"I'm here!"
"Look at what I won for you," I grinned as I eyed Minamino, who held the small smug grin I often saw.
He didn't seem to mind I was taking credit for it.
"That's so cool! Thank you!" Minoru jumped with glee at seeing the alligator.
I almost felt bad about taking credit, but maybe that was what he wanted me to do. He wanted me to crack, show my ego wasn't as big as this festival.
But my ego was as big as the festival.
"You're welcome," I replied.
"But I can't hold it, I'm about to go play the cork shooting game!" Minoru ran off into the crowd, shoving the cotton candy in his mouth as he left.
I stared off into the distance, pondering on the cork shooting game and where it was so I could shove the crocodile down his throat. Then he'd be able to hold it.
"You mentioned he was now a research experiment?" Minamino stepped up beside me as Minoru ran up to one of the many illuminated stands and stood on his toes to shove his prizes on the counter.
"Yeah, a research facility chose a few kids that also dropped because of Gōki." I remembered the doctor and a representative sitting with my family in Minoru's hospital room. He was sniffling as the nurse unhooked his IVs. "They're willing to pay for the medical bills he accumulated in the hospital. For the duration of the experiments he gets full medical treatment and better insurance than we have."
"So if you're able to get discharged from the counseling appointments, you'll only have tuition to worry about."
The thought of not having to sit through the appointments or pay extra bills felt amazing, and I could hold back my excited smile. "Yeah, things are looking pretty good now."
He stared in the distance towards Minoru, watching the boy having gotten a small wooden stool to play the game at a reasonable level.
"They'll be doing psychological and physical tests on him to see 'what happened'," I continued. "I hope they find out he's some sort of prodigy. Then I can drop out and help put him through, like, med school so I can mooch off him forever."
I snickered a bit before deepening my voice, pretending I was older. "I put your ass through med school now buy me a new car."
"You're an amazing older sister," he noted dryly as he watched Minoru on a stool, handling the toy gun with ease.
"He reads at a higher level than the rest of his class," I mumbled. "He's naive, but learns academics quickly. When he was four he asked me to show him how to do my pre-calculus homework and I didn't explain anything algebraic. He did so many problems after I showed him just one."
I was sure he just took a look at all my old algebra textbooks, but still... that meant he was self-taught. Self-taught algebra. I was in calculus, and you know what messed me up every problem? Algebra.
"You'd be willing to drop out and give him a future?" Minamino's eyes dropped down to mine.
I didn't want to. But if they found that he was a prodigy then I should drop out. My parents couldn't put us both through college…
"I don't know," I mumbled, eyes fixed on the soft dirt below my sandals. Inhaling deep, I looked over to the stand Minoru was at and fixated on another subject. "I bet I could kick your ass in that."
He understood my struggle and reverted the conversation to a more familiar atmosphere.
"I'm sure it hurts being knocked off that pedestal," he replied. "Your ego should mend itself soon."
"My ego was never harmed." I began walking, heading towards the stand. "I'm sure yours was, being injured enough to hide in another body."
He was silent for a moment as I eyed the stands we passed by, avoiding bumping into the families and couples that walked past and with us.
"I've regained most of my strength," he answered. "Even if they damaged my ego, my abilities have developed. That makes up for it."
"Abilities?" I remembered Urameshi's little finger gun. "What abilities?"
A teasing smile and raised eyebrow only angered me further as he turned in the crowd, towards the small hill that lead to the river. "The ceremony should be starting now."
"Asshole. Answer me," I muttered as I followed him to the grassy field. Many families, friends, and couples sat on their blankets to wait for the ceremony.
He ignored me and sat himself a couple of yards away from a small family of four, and I sat next to him. Setting the stuffed animal on my lap, I leaned in to interrogate him.
"What are you talking about?"
The sounding of drums from the other side of the river echoed around us. Everyone silenced and gave their attention to the opening ceremony.
He turned his attention to me from the riverbed, features illuminated by the rising moonlight. I suddenly noticed how much more handsome he'd look if he pulled his hair up every so often.
He leaned back on his hands and gingerly lifted one up towards me. "May I?"
Thankful he asked beforehand, I decided to oblige with a quick nod. One hand pressed on the ground, and the other merely hovered in front of my face for a few moments. It wasn't until I felt the crawling sensation on my leg that I bothered to look away from him.
Fireworks whistled in the background as I leaned over to my feet. I lifted the edge of my kimono to see the grass growing rapidly, wrapping itself around my ankle.
Explosions and bursts of colors in the sky illuminated the grass around my ankle in unnatural colors of red and blue.
A shriek caught in my throat, all I could do was gasp and turn back to see Minamino.
No smug smile, no smirk—only a calm, patient expression.
But all I could think of was a cheesy comic book superhero name. "Plant Boy."
More whistling of firecrackers flew through the air, and their explosions and bursts of colors followed seconds later. As he chuckled, watching me jerk my leg back slightly while the grass clung to me with force, I let the reality sink in.
It was all real.
But the crackles and explosions of the firecrackers weren't the only noise that had my attention. A familiar cry of pain and fear reached us both.
Minoru.
The grass gently released me as I shoved the stuffed animal off my lap, and I quickly shot up to find Minoru with Minamino not far behind. Running back into the dirt pathway that held all the stands, we found a crying, snot-nosed Minoru running towards us. He clutched onto his stuffed animals for dear life.
"What? What's wrong?" He buried his face between my thighs as I approached him, and Minamino and I searched around for someone running after him, a bully.
But Minoru, who was still clinging to his stuffed animals, let out an awkward, shaky pointed finger at the ground.
Minamino and I scoped the area quickly, eyeing our now colorfully tinted surroundings. Minamino noticed it first.
"A Makai insect," he mumbled, taking my eyes to the ground, feet away.
Crushed into the dirt near a stand, as if someone stepped on it, was an unusually large bug. A slender leg twitched slowly, as its nerves were still alive even though it wasn't.
"It's just a big bug, Minoru," I lied, eyeing Minamino.
Minamino, though reserved with grave features, nodded curtly for Minoru.
"But it tried landing on me!" He cried.
"Minoru, it's dead." I smoothed his ruffled hair. "Let's forget about it and go see the fireworks and ceremony. I left the alligator there to save our spot."
Minoru wiped his eyes with the fake fur of his stuffed animals. I tugged on Minamino's kimono sleeve for his attention but his eyes stayed on the gooey mess.
"It's just a bug, right?" I whispered, tugging on his sleeve as I leaned in towards him.
After a few seconds, he finally replied with a whisper. "No."