A/N: Hello again! Here's another chapter of Divine Will!
Since I am uploading twice a week, I don't have as much time to edit and revise each chapter, so please excuse any mistakes! I do plan on re-editing the whole story after it is completed.
I'd like to thank all of you for your support, I am continuously blown away by all your kindness. Divine Will is currently at 104 reviews, 80 favourites, and 132 follows! I never thought that my story would reach the hundreds tbh and it is very exciting but nerve wracking at the same time XD more people to please!
Just a little heads up that this chapter isn't as humourous as my previous chapters. I wouldn't be surprised if some of you didn't like it because I did tag it as a romance and humour story. Please keep in mind that I want to develop Miki's character, and the stuff that get mentioned in this chapter might come off as a surprise to you. I don't do these things by accident. I like to add the surprise element to my stories and keep my characters mysterious. I don't know if you guys noticed, but in the first chapter, I didn't refer to Miki with her name until I think it was Kimiko called her name. While this is a story, I want my characters to kind of be like real people. You don't know them well at first, but as you get to know them more, secrets get revealed, intentions/behaviours are explained, etc.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Like I said, this chapter is a bit heavier than the previous ones, but that won't change the story to like a hurt/comfort or tragedy one.
To lighten it up a bit, I will share with you guys my drawing of Midorima and Miki: art/KnB-Macarons-542904603
Disclaimer: I do not own KnB! However, I do own any characters that are not introduced in the actual manga and anime!
Chapter 14: "I guess it is the Amuro defense mechanism."
"Room 230, right?"
"Yeah, 230."
"Shiho-nee, we're going to see oka-san again?" Takeshi asked as the family walked down the hospital corridors.
"Yeah, we're going to see oka-san." Shiho nodded. "But, remember to be gentle with oka-san. You know she isn't feeling well, so don't go around jumping on her, okay?"
"Okay, nee-chan." Takeshi nodded cheerfully as he grabbed hold of Shiho's hand.
Miki's heart clenched painfully as she watched Takeshi hold Shiho's hand. It wasn't that she didn't want him to hold their sister's hand. It was just that ever since the Shiho and Takeshi came up to Tokyo, he had been ignoring Miki and had not said much to her. She had not mentioned it to Shiho, brushing it off as being awkward for not seeing her in a while. However, it sort of felt like Takeshi was purposely ignoring her.
"There it is!" Takashi cried out happily as he let go of Miki's hand and grabbed his twin's free one. "Oka-san is there!" he pointed at room 230 with a tiny finger.
"Good job, kid." Shiho smiled as she ruffled Takashi's hair with her free hand. "You seem to know this place well."
"Yeah, I have a good memory!" Takashi beamed.
"Seems like it." Shiho laughed before letting go of Takeshi's hand. "Why don't you boys go and open the door? I'm sure oka-san will be happy to see you both."
Takeshi looked up at Shiho with a thoughtful expression. "Do you think she will be able to tell us apart?"
Shiho chuckled before gesturing to the door. "There's only way to find out."
"Let's go, boys." Miki nodded towards the door before Takashi twisted the doorknob and Takeshi pushed the door open.
"Oka-san!" Takeshi yelled out in excitement as the twins ran into the room.
"Careful, careful!" Shiho called out from behind, chasing after the twins.
"Takeshi, Shiho!" their mother smiled widely as she caught sight of her two children. "Oh my goodness, it has been so long!"
"Hi, oka-san." Shiho smiled at her mother as Takeshi ran up to her and grabbed hold of her hand.
"Oka-san!"
"Hey, what about me?" Takashi pouted as he ran towards his twin and mother.
"Hello, to you too, Takashi." Their mother laughed goodheartedly
"She could tell the difference!" Takeshi looked over his shoulder to Shiho.
"She's your mother, Takeshi." Shiho shook her head. "It isn't all that surprising."
"But you did grow a lot, Takeshi." Harumi patted her son's head affectionately before looking up at her second child. "Shiho, you grew prettier."
Shiho blushed lightly before looking away from her mother. "Yeah, right."
Miki couldn't help but agree with their mother. She was actually jealous of her sister for her good looks. Shiho had long straight light brown hair that always had a healthy, glossy shine. Miki looked at a loose strand of hair that fell near her face. It was dark and boring. Thin and had no volume whatsoever. Not only did their hair differ, but also they had completely different eye colours. Shiho was the only one in the family that had inherited their father's deep gray eyes that had a silvery glint to the endless orbs of gray.
Overall, they didn't look alike whatsoever. Shiho was by far the best looking sibling in the entire family. Miki couldn't deny that she was slightly bitter for it.
Their mother just smiled, not bothering to argue with her daughter. Shiho was one of the most stubborn people many knew. She even gave the persistent mule a run for its money.
"So tell me about school." Harumi said to Shiho.
She just gave a sigh. "Well, nothing much really. The only thing that's different is that this dumb blondie model keeps bothering me."
"Oh! Nee-chan said the d-word!" Takeshi whispered to his twin before the two burst out into quiet giggles.
"Blondie model?" their mother cocked her head to the side. "Is this model a boy or a girl?"
Shiho scowled. "A boy."
Harumi laughed. "My daughters are all growing up, aren't they? Both of them have a boy chasing after them."
"Oka-san!" Miki flushed. "It's not like that!"
"Sure, sure." Harumi waved her hand dismissively. "Now Shiho, I heard you got fired from your job."
Shiho fell silent for a moment. "Oh, that. Don't worry, that was barely a job. It was like a sweat shop."
"I'm sure you're exaggerating." Their mother rolled her eyes.
"Not really." Shiho muttered.
"So, Miki and Shiho," Harumi glanced between her two daughters. "Mind telling me more about these boys that are chasing you around?"
The two sisters groaned in unison and sighed.
There was no escaping their mother's interrogation.
"I almost forgot how much of a school girl oka-san could be when it comes to boys." Shiho said dryly.
"Yeah, worse than Kimiko."
"And Yoshino."
The sisters walked in silence without their loud and energetic brothers. Takashi and Takeshi had gotten picked up by their aunt and taken back home. Their aunt had convinced them to go out and catch up without the twins there to interrupt them.
Miki glanced over to her sister who was adjusting her snapback to block the blaring sun.
"It sure is getting hot." Shiho complained with a scowl.
"Sure is. It's getting a little hard to sleep at night." Miki nodded.
"Stupid Japan and its stupid humidity."
"Do you want to go to Maji Burger?" Miki asked her younger sister. "You like that place, don't you?"
"Yeah, I could do with a cheese burger and a nice cool milkshake." Shiho nodded in response. "I just want food."
"Maji Burger, it is." Miki laughed as the two walked to Maji Burger.
"So, what have you been up to?" Shiho asked as the two took a seat in an empty booth, far away from everyone else. "You seem pretty tired these days."
Miki thought for a moment. "I suppose I have been busy. High school is a lot different than junior high. There is just so much homework and things to be done. Also, since Takashi and I are living with oba-san, I have been helping with chores. I feel bad, you know? She has to take care of us just because we decided to live in Tokyo. Oh, and not to mention work. Work isn't all that tiring, but I just have to keep moving and doing stuff all day." She finished with a chuckle.
Silence followed after her long explanation.
She looked up at her younger sister, to see a troubled and rather sad expression on her sister's pretty face.
"Nee-chan, I don't like seeing you like this." Shiho shook her head with a heavy sigh.
"What are you talking about?" Miki frowned in confusion. Had she said anything to give her sister the wrong impression?
"I can see it in your eyes," her younger sister started slowly, her gray eye's meeting Miki's hazel ones. "You are sacrificing so much for oka-san and you're not even realizing how unhappy it is making you."
Her heart thumped uneasily and she felt a lump form in her throat. She swallowed it back and laughed again. "What are you talking about? I'm perfectly happy. I don't feel sad or feel the slightest bit of unhappiness in my day-to-day life. I'm telling you, it's just school, work, and chores. I guess I am a little stressed, but that isn't anything big."
"That's what you think." Shiho shook her head again. "I'm so glad that you met that Midorima guy because yes, you have gotten a lot happier than before. And don't go ahead denying it since that isn't really the point. Anyway, I don't think you realize just how different your life is now from before."
"Change is inevitable, Shiho." Miki said in a hard tone. She really didn't want to have the discussion with her sister. She should have known it was going to come sooner or later.
"You're not getting it." Shiho sighed and pushed her tray away from her before placing her hands on the table. "What I am trying to tell you is that you don't have to change your life so drastically. Those things you pushed away because it reminds you of oka-san? It's not healthy to push them all away. You're gonna have to face them sooner or later."
Miki fell silent.
Shiho grinned a little. "You getting it now? When was the last time you baked? When was the last time you let it all out? When was the last time you had time to yourself? I know that you are distracting yourself with outside forces like school, work, chores, and whatever else. But you're going to tire yourself out. Hell, you've lost a lot of weight and probably tiring yourself already."
Miki wanted to deny every work her sister had said, but she couldn't. She knew all of those words held truth in them.
She had run away from all her problems. She never faced them head on. All those negative and reflective thoughts had been pushed to the back of her mind.
She had done on hell of a job convincing her own self that she was okay. So convinced that those thoughts never resurfaced. She hadn't even realized how she was purposely keeping herself distracting. It was no wonder she had felt so stressed and tired the week that had been filled with assignments and school evaluations. It wasn't just the amount of work that she had to do that stressed her out. It was that she had kept everything bottled in, some accumulated stress boiled over that week. It just needed a little push.
The Miki prior to her mother falling ill would have been able to calmly finish her homework and still be a nervous wreck for her grades and presentations. The Miki then wasn't the type to keep things bottled in. She always had a way to vent back then, which was baking. She used to bake to make her happy.
"When you stepped out to go to the bathroom in the hospital, oka-san started asking me about you. She asked if you were still baking. You had always wanted to be a patisserie like her. It is hurting her that you aren't pursuing your dream because it reminds you of her." Shiho explained before pausing for a brief moment. "I started running again."
Miki's head perked up at her sister's quiet declaration. "Y-You started running again?"
Shiho nodded. "Yeah, you know, I understand your position right now. I was just like you when otou-san fell into the coma. I stopped running and forced myself to not think of anything bad. You know that I blamed myself for the accident. I sacrificed a lot, so that otou-san could wake up and the guilt could be lifted off my shoulders. You remember all that, don't you?"
Miki nodded slowly as she thought back to the time their father had fallen into a coma after a serious car accident. Shiho had changed but acted as though everything was okay to everyone else. She didn't want anyone else to help her. Because Shiho had blamed herself for their father's state, she wanted to fix things herself. She had wanted to set things right on her own accord. She had pushed people away and tired herself to the point that her body couldn't handle it and collapsed.
Miki shivered as she thought back to the day she had found Shiho unconscious, lying limply on the kitchen floor. She had thought her sister had died until she found a faint pulse.
When her sister had woken up, she apologized profusely to everyone and cried, not having realized just how much she had changed and hurt everyone unintentionally. She had also apologized for their father's condition and confessed how she had blamed herself for the accident.
"I guess it is the Amuro defense mechanism." Shiho said bitterly, obviously having the same thoughts as Miki. She cleared her throat a few times before continuing to speak. "But the important thing is, I joined the track team at our school. Sure, I run for myself and for the fun of it, but I also run in otou-san's memory. I know he is watching me and cheering his lungs out as he did when he was alive. I am living my dream and otou-san's dream. That's what keeps me running."
Miki hadn't realized she had been crying until a single teardrop landed on her clenched fists.
Shiho's gaze softened and she reached out to her older sister's shaking hands. "I think…no, I know that you should do the same. Bake for oka-san. I'm sure she wants to taste those green tea sweets you always like making. Live it out for her. And most of all live it out for you. Do you really want to let go of baking? I'm sure you miss it now."
Miki nodded slowly. "I-I…I didn't realize. I-I – "
"Just shut up." Shiho smiled goodheartedly. "I'm just glad you realize it. Just promise me you will change okay? You don't have to fully revert back to your old self. Just don't push away the things that remind you of oka-san, and learn how to relieve your stress and negative emotions."
"O-Okay." Miki hiccupped in response.
A/N: So how did you guys like it? I hope you guys didn't hate it, I did like writing this chapter. It was different than the rest and I think it really helped me grow as a writer.
So here you get to understand more about their parents, Shiho's and Miki's past. There are still a lot of holes, I am aware. But they will be explained in the future. I will be explaining why Takeshi acts the way he does to Miki in the next chapter. I'm not entirely sure if Midorima will be appearing the next chapter. It all depends on how I format more explanations. But, I will try my very best to make Midorima come back for chapter 15.
I hope this chapter gave you a better insight of Miki's character and her family! I do apologize if this isn't what you expected or wanted, but as the author, I feel like chapters like these are needed if I want to explain Miki and her intentions. I am aware that some of you had questions like what happened to her father? Why does Shiho and Takeshi live in Kanagawa whereas Miki and Takashi live in Tokyo? I hope this cleared up some confusion and questions you had. I know that you guys might have more questions now, but rest assured, it will all be answered in later chapters.
Again, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Just a little side note, but more of you seem to like MidoMiki as their ship name! I have received MidoKi as a suggestion, but from what I know, that is the ship name for Midorima X Kise. ^^' So it seems that MidoMiki will be their ship name unless you guys are against it. Let me know by dropping a review!
Anyway, I will talk to you guys more on Thursday! Happy reading!