Book I: Ushio's Story

~*13*~

- Arcade Ahoy! -

"How was he today?" Kumiko asked as she, Ushio, Juni and Yumi stood outside the arcade. They were waiting on Takeshi and Kaito.

"I don't know," Yumi replied. "I haven't seen him since he stopped coming to school on Saturday."

"So no one has seen him?" Ushio asked.

"No," Juni began. "He hasn't spoken to me since Saturday either. Aside from Kaito being in contact with him today, he's been quiet." Juni replied. The four of them stood there, looking out for their two friends. Since they had finished school for the day they had changed into their normal clothes, it was usually against school policy for them to wear their uniforms outside of school; a policy which was often ignored. Ushio wore her favourite hat along with a black jacket and slim jeans. She also had a pair of fluffy boots on her feet. Kumiko wore a blue jacket yet maintained similar attire, minus the hat. Yumi wore her usual hoodie and leggings, complete with her bright white converse. Juni stuck out from the casual outfits of the three girls. He wore a smart black jumper along with dark trousers, which he had yet to give back to Kaito. He also wore a pair of simple shoes. Juni lifted his arm up, checking his watch. "They're late." He said.

"We can give them a couple of minutes," Yumi began; she looked up to one of the roads. It lead to the area where Takeshi lived, she sighed. "They'll show up."

"Hurry up." Kaito said as Takeshi strolled along behind him.

"Why did you call for me? I mean, you live the furthest away from me. Did you move and not tell anyone?" Takeshi asked in a sarcastic manner.

"You lashed out the last time you were with Yumi ... I thought this would be for the best." Kaito muttered.

"I had my reasons." Takeshi remarked, giving a serious look towards Kaito.

"Don't take it to heart man, things just got a little crazy is all."

"Whatever."

"Just think next time, okay?" Kaito suggested.

"Are you picking a fight?" Takeshi snarled, stopping behind Kaito. The dark-haired boy came to a halt as he turned around.

"What did you say?" Kaito asked.

"Are you picking a fight?" Takeshi repeated, clenching his fist.

"I'll pretend that I didn't hear that." Kaito gibed. Takeshi took a deep breath as he relaxed his hand.

"You're starting to cross a line, the shit that's going on with me isn't any of your business."

"Keshi, I'm your friend." Kaito said, placing his hands into his pockets and taking a relaxed stance.

"You think that changes anything?" Takeshi asked. "You're making it out like I'm going to be violent towards everyone."

"No, I'm not; I do think your overreacting right now though." Kaito stated. Takeshi shook his head, pushing past his friend he continued to walk down the street. "Keshi, where are you going?" Kaito asked.

"To meet my friends."

"Aren't we gonna sort this out?!" Kaito yelled.

"There's nothing to sort out!" Takeshi snapped. Kaito sighed at his friend and followed, keeping a distance behind him.

Kaito and Takeshi maintained their silence all the way to the arcade. Juni noticed the two boys making their way over. One of them wore a white, long sleeved top under a buttoned blue shirt, with dark jeans and red shoes, Kaito. The other, Takeshi, wore a yellow zipped hoodie; he also wore dark jeans and sneakers. "They're here," Juni said nodding towards the two, they looked rather uncomfortable.

"Takeshi!" Yumi shouted as he made his way over. He gave a weak smile as he reached the four of them.

"How are you?" Ushio asked, smiling at him. Takeshi nodded at her.

"Fine," He replied. Kaito came up behind him, standing off away from the five of them; disgruntled.

"Kaito, are you okay?" Kumiko asked. The others looked over, all except Takeshi. Kaito smiled and nodded.

"Okay! Let's get going!" Yumi ordered, pushing her friends into the arcade. Kaito followed slowly behind.

The arcade wasn't very busy, only a few teenagers were inside. It had calmed down a lot over the years. "You seriously like this place?" Kaito asked Yumi.

"Of course!" She replied, "It allows me to bring out my competitive side!" She laughed.

"You're always competitive," Kaito mumbled. Yumi grabbed Takeshi by his arm and pulled him over to two racing simulators.

"Come on Takeshi, race me." She said.

"Sure." He laughed "Why not." The two placed in a coin each and began their race. On the other side of the arcade, Juni and Kumiko were playing a game of foosball, neither were doing very well. Kaito stood near the entrance; he was leaning against the wall as Ushio approached him.

"Aren't you going to play anything?" She asked with her usual smile across her face. Kaito smiled back at her and began to loosen up.

"Nah, I'm not really in the mood today." He replied

"Well if that's the case, Ill stay with you." She giggled, moving next to him as she leaned against the wall. Studying him, she could tell that something was bothering Kaito. "Is everything alright?" Ushio asked. Kaito looked towards her, but his eyes found their way towards the floor.

"I'm just … I don't know … Frustrated, I suppose." He sighed.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ushio asked. Kaito hesitated for a moment.

"That's okay Ushio; I don't want to bore you with it all." He replied, Ushio shook her head as her smile turned into a frown.

"Please don't think like that Kaito, I'd never get bored listen to yo-" She stopped her words. Kaito looked at her, raising an eyebrow. Ushio blushed. "Um, what I meant is, I- I'm always here if you feel like you need to talk ... You know?" Kaito smiled at her and nodded.

"Thank you, the same goes for you." He said. Ushio smiled back as she tilted her head.

"So, what's the matter?" She asked in her cheerful voice.

"It's just everything with Keshi ... I ..." Kaito began as he words faded. Ushio leant in closer.

"What is it?"

"There's things, reasons that I can't tell you about." Kaito said.

"To do with Takeshi?"

"No, to do with me."

"Oh … I see." Ushio uttered, looking down. Kaito sighed.

"There are a lot of things going on with me, at home I mean."

"With your parents?" Ushio asked.

"... Kind of. Look, this whole thing to do with Takeshi's dad, it's just complicated." Kaito explained. "I know I don't have a right to tell him what he should do but, I just feel like he's missing his chance to get to know his dad. I think it's one that he's lucky to have." He said. Ushio nodded.

"I suppose," she replied.

"Takeshi told me I was crossing a line. He said it didn't matter that we were friends; he wanted me to back off. I didn't even realise I was having a go at him." Kaito explained, leaning the back of his head against the wall so he was looking up towards the ceiling. Ushio placed a finger to her lips, as if she was trying to think of a response. Kaito watched as she pursed her lips up against her delicate finger.

"Kaito, everyone is different. People react to things and deal with things in different ways. Takeshi is just finding his own way to do so." Kaito looked on at her, listening intently. "I understand you're worried, that you think he's making the wrong choice but, Takeshi isn't you. Takeshi is Takeshi. Right?" She concluded, smiling. Kaito felt a warmth come over his body, he became a lot calmer from Ushio's words.

"You know, you're actually pretty smart." He smiled.

"Thank you," she uttered, blushing. "But I wouldn't say that, I just think you just need to step back and look at it all in a different way." She said as Kaito nodded. "Okay! Let's go!"

"Where are we going?" Kaito asked as Ushio lead him away.

"We're taking Kumi and Juni on at foosball; they'll be easy to beat." She laughed. Kaito grinned as he and Ushio walked over to their friends, ready to take them on.

An hour later the six of them came out of the arcade. It was around 7:00 PM; the evening was growing dark. "So what's everyone doing now?" Yumi asked.

"I should probably get going," Kaito stated. "I have a few things to do at home, you guys go look around the shops or something." Kaito said. The others nodded at his words.

"That's a shame, I'm glad you came out," Ushio smiled.

"Yeah, it was fun." Kumiko laughed "Especially when Juni and I beat you two at foosball." Kaito laughed at her words, as did the others. Going quiet, Kaito looked to Takeshi.

"Can I speak with you before I go Keshi?" He asked. Takeshi had his arms folded, he stayed quiet for a moment but nodded slowly.

"We'll go wait over by the dress shop." Yumi stated as she began walking off.

"Dresses?" Juni asked as he and Kumiko walked off after saying their goodbyes. Ushio looked at Kaito; she smiled at him and gave a thumbs up, wishing him good luck. Then, she followed her friends.

"So what is it?" Takeshi asked.

"I- I'm sorry about earlier." Kaito apologised. "I know you're going through some stuff right now." Takeshi's eyes were fixed on Kaito. Letting out a sigh, he nodded.

"Yeah, me too. I get how you feel Kaito; I know what you would do ... And why you would do it." Takeshi sighed. "You just don't understand what this guy did to my mom. She was heart broken, she's been so lonely. Then when my bro left for college, I was all she had left. I'd love for her to meet someone but not this guy. Not this person who claims to be my dad yet was drugged up enough to walk out on his family."

"Yeah, I get it." Kaito said, nodding.

"I'm sorry I got so angry the other day, it's just hard. Don't worry I'm going to apologise to Yumi." He vowed.

"Good, she seems really fond of you, she wants to help." Kaito explained.

"Yeah ..." Takeshi agreed. He let out a sigh before he continued to speak. "The reason I've missed school the past couple of days is because we've been trying to sort everything out. That guy wants to come back, to try and be a family man again. We've been arguing for days, my mom's been upset. She doesn't know what to do." Takeshi said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. Kaito was surprised to see that these weren't the usual comedic tears that Takeshi would so often fake.

"What does Takato think?" Kaito asked.

"My bro knows about it, he can't come here though. I mean he's really busy at college. I don't blame him for not coming home to sort it out, to be honest ... Though, it doesn't matter." Stated Takeshi. "You see, my mom came to a decision. She said I could decide. I could decide if this guy gets to be part of our family, whether I want him as a dad or not."

"And?"

"I haven't said anything about it yet, she told me today, before I left to come out. That's why I was so sharp with you. I- I think I need someone there with me when I tell this guy what I want to tell him. I need some support." Takeshi said. Kaito had never seen his friend so vulnerable and open. The last place Kaito wanted to be was in the centre of Takeshi's family drama, he didn't agree with Takeshi's view on it one bit. However, Kaito swallowed his pride; his friend was more important.

"I'll come with you man." He said.

"I don't want to make you." Takeshi replied, Kaito shook his head.

"Trust me, I'm here for you." Kaito told his friend, the fair-haired boy smiled.

"Thanks man." Takeshi said. "We'll do it tomorrow yeah? After school."

"Sure." Kaito nodded. They shook hands as Takeshi turned to go over to the four figures looking in the dress shop. "Wait, can I ask you something?" Kaito yelled as Takeshi walked off.

"Yeah?" His friend said, coming to a stop.

"It's interesting; you and Yumi. There's nothing going on there, right?"

"Jealous?" Takeshi said in jest.

"Yeah right," Kaito laughed.

"We're just friends … She's good to talk to. Besides, we've already got one couple in the group, there's no way we need another!" He said, laughing as he walked off. Kaito watched his friend walk away.

"I suppose so." He mumbled as he began walking away himself, listening to the laughter of his friends in the distance.

December 5th, 2023

Dear diary ... I'm probably going to stop that, or I'll go crazy from writing it.

I know I've already written in here today, but I thought I'd tell you how the trip to the arcade went. Takeshi was a little down at first but he came around. I 'owned' him at racing, his words not mine. I think we managed to take his mind of his worries for a while, he seemed to have fun.

It is strange though. A few weeks ago I couldn't stand him, after getting to know him though; he's really not a bad guy. In fact, he's lovely, for lack of a better word. He's definitely an idiot a lot of the time but, he has a good heart and … he's really funny. Don't get the wrong idea; I don't like him in that way. He's just a friend, a special one at that.

After we left the arcade, we all went to look around the shops for a while. Kaito went home early, I still think something is wrong with him, again though, Juni said not to ask. I think I'll just leave him be for a while, I've been told I can be a bit forward with certain things.

Getting back on topic, while we were shopping Takeshi took me aside and apologised for what happened Sunday. It was surreal, I have to say. Takeshi being nice is one thing but apologising is something else. It didn't matter though, I was just glad he was okay. We had a lot of fun together, all of us I mean.

For some reason I get the feeling that Ushio may be interested in Kaito, I saw them speaking in the arcade. They looked quite close while they were having their chat. I don't know though, would those two be good together? What do you think?

Okay, I'm asking you about your thoughts on relationships ... Maybe I should see a shrink?

Just to let you know, there's been no change with Kazuki … Or my parents.

- Yumi

Kaito watched the plastic wrapped food slowly spin around inside his microwave; it was barely clinging to life. He looked at the clock in his bare kitchen. It read 11:12 PM; Kaito yawned at the sight of it. He'd had quite a bit of trouble getting his grandmother into her bed that night. Feeling a vibration in his pocket, he pulled out his phone and saw that someone was calling him. A name appeared across the phone's screen; 'USHIO OKAZAKI'. Kaito became confused at the name across his phone. What is she doing calling me? He thought. Has something happened? He slid his finger across the phone, accepting the call. He brought the phone to his ear. "Ushio?" he asked.

"Hi." A gentle voice said across the phone line.

"Why are you calling?" Kaito laughed.

"I couldn't sleep ..." Ushio replied.

"How come?"

"I was thinking of you." Ushio said. Kaito felt his stomach drop as he let out an uneasy laugh.

"W- What?"

"You and Takeshi, how did it go? Your talk I mean." She laughed.

"Oh, that. Yeah it was fine, we're all good."

"That's good news." Ushio said, even though he couldn't see her, Kaito knew she was smiling.

"Yeah, he's sorting it all out tomorrow, he wants me there with him."

"You're going to help him with it?"

"I am."

"Good, see Kaito, you're looking at it in a different way. From Takeshi's view, right?" Ushio said, echoing her statement from earlier that day.

"Yeah, thanks a lot for the help. You- You're a good friend." He said quietly. There was a slight pause of silence from the two. It was fairly brief, yet it felt longer.

"Thanks." Ushio replied, "I'm sorry I called so late."

"Don't worry about it. I was bored anyway."

"Okay, well I'll see you tomorrow." She said.

"Yeah," He replied as he closed out the call. Kaito placed his phone back in his pocket. He looked over his shoulder; the microwave had come to a stop. He opened the door and pulled out his meal. "Shit." He moaned. The meal had burnt around the edges and the middle looked almost uncooked. "That's what I get for having the world's cheapest microwave." He sighed. He placed the inedible meal into the kitchen bin. Turning out the lights, he made his way to his room. Getting into his bed, stomach growling, he closed his eyes in his attempt to drift off to somewhere else, somewhere far away. A place where, he hoped, his wishes would come true.

~*13*~

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- Samuel ^_^