My my my, you guys' booties was saved :P Two people review last chapter. Two. Hmmmm.
I don't own YYH.
"My baby's going on a date!" My mother squealed for the thousandth time that morning. I sighed, irritated, but not willing to put out the fire of happiness running rampart through her.
"I told you Mom, I'm just taking him to visit Mama. She said she wanted to meet him." I corrected, fidgeting at the kitchen table as my father glared at his plate.
"A date!" She squealed again, bouncing in her seat from joy. And, like my mother and her squealing, I sighed for the thousandth time that morning.
"If he does anything-" My father started before I interrupted him.
"He won't, Dad."
"Yes, honey! Loosen up! You remember our first date, don't you?" Mom asked him, eyes twinkling. I pinched the bridge of my nose as my father grunted, still not content with the situation. The doorbell suddenly rang, and all of us stood from our seat at the same time.
Dad to interrogate him.
Mom to stop Dad.
And me, attempting to escape from this household unscathed.
We hurried to the door, and me arriving first, tossed it open. I had put my shoes on earlier.
"Hurry." I said, grabbing his right forearm and practically dragging him with me as I walked as fast as humanly possible off the porch.
"Wha-?" He questioned before seeing my father in the doorway, glaring, and my mother beside him, waving with a grin.
"Ten!" My father commanded; eyes on Shuichi. Shuichi nodded even as I continued to drag him onto the sidewalk.
"Have a nice time~!" My mom yelled, stepping onto the porch to continue her waving. Only when we had turned the corner down the street did I let go of him, stopping to take a breather. He chuckled as I leaned against the high wooden fence taking deep breaths. I had spent a lot of energy for two days in a row now, and it was starting to take its toll even on my regenerative body.
"Your family is quite enthusiastic." He said with a smile, sweatdropping.
"You haven't seen the half of it yet." I said with a smirk as I pushed off the fence.
Oh, I couldn't wait to see the look on his face when I showed him just how enthusiastic Mama was. He blinked in confusion before stepping beside me as I started off, hands in the pockets of my skinny jeans.
Yes, skinny jeans. God knows how they had ended up in my closet, but when Mom saw them, she demanded I wear them.
They were a light grey in color, fading into the background in comparison to my bright purple short-sleeved shirt with black stripes and neon green half-jacket. Shoes were simple white sneakers, and my hair was pulled into a ponytail. Mom chose all but the shoes and hair, if it's any explanation.
Kurama, however, probably looked better than me. He, as much as I hate to admit it, looked like a model wearing a simple pair of blue jeans, a white tee, and a black jacket.
Asshole.
Making me and my rather flashy outfit look bland.
"Where are we heading first?" He asked as I led the way into the city.
"Flower shop." I answered with my smirk still in place. He perked a brow, watching me with questioning eyes to see if I was serious. I rolled my eyes. "Oh, the irony!"
I threw my hands up and waved them around like it was such a shocking thing, but kept my face serious. He laughed, making me smile as we turned the corner into the crowded heart of the city: Mainstreet. I put my hands back in my pockets, looking around for the florists' shop I visited last time.
"That it?" Kurama asked, pointing to a flowery shop sign that hung above a rather crowded section of the sidewalk.
"Unfortunately." I said, eyeing the crowd.
"Lady's first then." He offered, faking chivalry as he held his hand out, motioning to the crowd. I sarcastically laughed, pursing my lips as I started forward, pushing my way through the crowd. After a minute or so of body slamming B.O. filled hell, I managed to step into the shop only to be immediately assaulted by the many flowery scents.
"Oh my! If it isn't To-chan!" An old voice called out from behind the register at the back of the store. The bell dinged again, signifying that Kurama had finally made it into the store. "And a friend I see!"
Kurama blinked as he looked around the store, green eyes eventually landing on what I had been looking at the entire time.
An old woman shuffled out from behind the counter, gray hair and dark eyes carrying a lot of both kindness and curiosity. The woman had been a friend of the Yumi's grandmother, and had seen me as a grandchild ever since. I came by her shop every year to order the same arrangement of flowers for Yumi on the anniversary of her death. Her shop, as old as it was, always seemed to be changing with the colors and scents.
"Yes ma'am. This is Shuichi." I said, bowing slightly as she walked up to me. Be respectful to your elders, she had often said when I was a child.
"So formal, so formal…" She said as she came, opening her arms. I bent down, giving her a quick hug. She only came up to my waist. I know Kurama at least listened with interest, as he had started walking around the store, looking at the different bouquets and arrangements. "At least call me Grammy."
I laughed shortly, nodding, "Okay, Grammy."
The old woman nodded her approval before shuffling over to one of the isles, fixing a flower that had fallen out of place in the arrangement. "A bit early in the year to be visiting the dead, my dear. I'm afraid I don't have the bouquet you're looking for ready."
Kurama paused, looking over to us as his curiosity was peaked.
"Oh, no. I'm not here for that. I was wondering if you had a bouquet that you think would brighten a very plain, boring white room." I asked, glancing around the room. It was stocked full of brightly colored arrangements, and seeing as I had no idea as to what to pick, I decided to leave it up to the expert.
"Ah, visiting her, yes? Well, let me see if I can find you something special." She hobbled off to a behind the counter, entering through a door to the back of the shop.
"I'm never going to find out who it is, am I?" Kurama asked, looking at a specifically pretty arrangement of roses. It was an assortment of all different colors, flowering in full bloom. I smirked, walking over to him with my hands behind my back.
"Not if I have a say in it." I answered. He sighed, knowing he should've known better than to ask.
"Here we go!" Grammy said as she pushed through the door and put the arrangement, in vase and all, on the counter. Pulling my wallet out of my back pocket, I walked up to the counter to pay. "What in heaven's name are you doing?"
Her answer cut in sharply just as I had pulled some yen out.
"Um… paying?" I asked, confused.
"Put that money away! This is for family, To-chan! Family! You don't make someone pay for family!" She swatted her hand at the wallet, so I put the money back in and slipped it back into my pocket. Not knowing what else to say, I smiled at her.
"Thank you." I said, turning the vase around to face me. Inside the stained glass vase stood a breathtaking assortment of flowers. Carnations, yellow roses, flowers I couldn't even name popped out at me in stunning order. Grammy had been practicing ikebana since the passing of Mr. Horawada, and had eventually become a florist.
"As amazing as always…" I said breathily, examining the arrangement. I looked back to the shopkeeper, worried that I might be taking too much. "Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure! You don't get my age before everything you say you mean! Now go on- get! We can't have you moseying around in my shop while she's waiting on you!" Grammy snapped, waving her hands to shoo me out. I nodded, taking the arrangement and walking to the door, Kurama right behind me.
"Thank you!" I called one last time before stepping back into the mad world of Mainstreet.
"I know that you are considered quite insane by some parties, Toshiko, but this is a bit much, don't you think?" Kurama teased as we approached the ward.
"Laugh now while you still can, fox." I warned with a smirk as we entered the hospital. He sweatdropped, shifting the flowers in his grasp.
Being ever the gentleman, he had offered to carry it soon after we left the shop. Seeing as Mama told me it wasn't lady like to carry things for so long, I took him up on the offer.
"Yorusta-san! I was hoping you'd be back soon!" The receptionist smiled. Seeing as how I didn't know her name, I quickly glanced at her nametag as I walked up to the desk, Kurama beside me.
"I felt that since my last visit was cut so short last time, Roti-san, I needed to come again. You said 'friends and family' last time, correct? She wanted to see my friend, so…" I died off, giving her a smile. Kurama blinked; eyes wide for a second before a small smile took its place upon his features.
Roti beamed, "That's precisely why I was hoping to see you! I looked over Ms. Horawada's case, and seeing her level's of improvement, I gave it to a doctor. He said that if she maintains her good behavior, in five years or so, she has a chance at being checked out!"
My eyes went wide, "Is that so?"
That was a pleasant surprise. Very, very pleasant. Mama would be overjoyed at that news.
Roti vigorously shook her head with a beaming smile on her features, "I was hoping you could tell her the news! Since I'm only a nurse, I only see her during lunch, and we're not allowed to mention check outs at that time as they could start riots."
"I'd be overjoyed to tell her, Roti-san! Thank you very much." We shared a smile as Kurama perked a brow. Roti then motioned to the guard, who unlocked the door and held it open.
"I figure you know the way there." The guard said, motioning through the door. I nodded, heading through the doorway with Kurama right behind me. The door was shut behind us as the guard stayed at his post, and we were maneuvering our way through the halls at a comfortable pace.
"So I've gathered that her name is Ms. Horawada, but other than that and the fact that she's somehow related to you, you've left me clueless." Kurama summarized as we made our first left turn.
"I'll be surprised if you actually figure it out." I said with a smirk.
"Underestimating your opponents is dangerous, Toshiko." He scolded as we made another left turn before a near immediate right.
"You could take the same advice, Kurama." I said as I rasped on the door. He opened his mouth to question, but was cut short by the door opening. His look was almost priceless as Mama opened the door with a smile.
"To-chan!" She exclaimed, generally surprised to see me. Her eyes trailed to Kurama, and she looked him over with an appraising eye, "And this must be Shuichi-san."
I nodded, stepping into the room and giving her a giant hug. "You told me to bring him, Mama."
One glance at Kurama told me that I had officially confused him. He schooled over his features, though, when I stepped out of the hug. Mama opened the door up, ushering us in.
"My, To-chan! You haven't even given the other flowers a chance to wither!" She exclaimed happily as she gently took the vase from Kurama and placed in on the other side of her desk. She adjusted things there for a moment, shifting the picture of all of us to make the whole desk look prettier.
"But those are from Grammy. She picked them out specially for you." I answered as she moved across the room again, shutting the door behind Kurama before taking a seat on her bed. I sat beside her, causing the bed to squeak in protest of the added weight. This time, she pulled me into a hug.
"I could get used to these visits!" She said with a bright smile before pulling us apart. Seeing that Kurama was still standing in the middle of the room, she blinked back to reality. "Oh, where are my manners? Sit, please, sit!" She motioned to the chair at her desk. Kurama nodded, taking a seat.
"Toshiko," She started with a scolding voice, "did you put your hair up purposely, remembering what I said last time?"
I blinked, shaking my head. "I'm sorry, I'd forgotten."
Wait… didn't Kurama compliment me last time I let her fix my hair? I took a glance at the fox to find him examining the picture on Mama's desk with a great amount of curiosity. The smirk I felt coming was easily hid by my years of practice: he wouldn't find it out that easily.
"Well, turn around. Best let me fix it for you." I nodded, doing as she said.
"So, what classes do you and Shuichi-san have together?" Though her question was asked to me as she tugged my hair out of the ponytail, my gaze was still on Kurama. He caught it, looking to me carefully before answering Mama's question.
"Math, Biology, and we're both in the shogi club." He answered, smiling at her.
"Shogi club? To-chan, I always knew you picked up Papa's love of the game. I remember, he and I used to go at it for hours! He always won though." She finished the last sentence with a reminiscing laugh.
My eyes fell as she spoke; reminding me that she was, in fact, insane. She still thought I was her child by birth. Mama laced her fingers through my hair, pulling out any knots she could find.
"I don't think I've ever beaten you in a game, Toshiko, have I?" Kurama asked.
"No, you haven't, and you never will." I stated it like it was a well known fact. Mama tugged on my hair in the slightest.
"That pride of yours will be the death of you, To-chan!" She scolded, taking the same part of my hair that she did last time so she could recreate the hairdo. Kurama laughed lightly. "You said you were graduating soon, didn't you?"
"Yes, I'm looking at a couple different colleges. But since they all begin the school year in September, I have a good amount of time before I start applying."
"Still planning on music for your major?"
"I'm not sure." Her shock was evident, as she paused for a moment in her braiding.
"Really? But you've always been so good at making music. I remember that one performance you had. All of your other classmates were twice your age and had been practicing so hard, but you still got the solo. What was that song you played?" I shrugged. That had occurred so often I didn't really remember.
She not only had to tell me how old I'd been, she'd also have to say the instrument. I played several.
"I'm sorry, I don't remember." She sighed, handing me the finished braid.
"You are still attending your piano practices, right?" Her tone was scolding.
"Religiously." I promised, and I could almost feel her smile.
"You never told me you played the piano, Toshiko." Kurama said; expression interested and curious. Before I could explain, Mama gasped.
"Oh, you have to hear it! When she was five she wrote this one song! She sat there on her stool all dressed for the occasion in her lacy little dress with the biggest grin! It was almost magical, with her cute voice singing so professionally as she tapped the notes! I think I cried!"
My lips pursed as I blushed slightly. How embarrassing. Before I could question why I was blushing, though, I noticed one discrepancy in the memory.
I hadn't sang, Yumi did. At that point, I hadn't been able to both sing and play at the same time. Me and Yumi had worn almost identical dresses, hers pink and mine yellow. She sang in place while I played, and both of our mothers had ended up crying. I think our fathers were teary eyed, too.
"Of course, that was before To-chan went all boyish and started tying her hair back. Sitting on the computer for who knows how long in a day just chatting away on the phone. Always into the technology. Is that what you were considering as your major now To-chan? Electronics?"
I paused for a moment, thinking it over. "I actually have no idea."
"Braid." Mama said softly, and I handed her the braid as she began to tie them back. "Well, you should be thinking about it at the very least. But, I'm not too worried. You succeed in anything you do, To-chan."
I smiled as she finished, and I turned around so she could see the finished product. "Thank you, Mama."
The rest of the time spent there was continued along those lines. Kurama asked questions every now and then, or answered them as Mama reminisced or questioned me. I'd input, too, whenever something aroused my curiosity or when I was directly asked something. The memory about what Roti said earlier that day only hit me when a knock came at the door, signaling our visiting time was up. As we went to the door, Kurama bowed partially, causing Mama to look him over one last time. This time, she gave him the same look Shiori had given me. Kurama perked a brow at it, but smiled nonetheless as Mama pulled me into one last hug.
"I forgot it earlier but, the doctors say that if you continue your good behavior, in five years they'll let you be checked out." I said as Kurama opened the door, revealing a guard.
Mama gave me a smile, but something about it was off. It wasn't happy, it was… sad? What was she sad about?
"I'll be looking forward to it, To-chan." She kissed my forehead gingerly before ushering me out of the room. The guard showed us out of the institution and into a day that had reached dusk. The sky played vibrant hues of orange and gold as the puffy white clouds turned pink off in the distance.
"Well, if your intention by that trip was to catch me off guard, you certainly succeeded, Toshiko." Kurama admitted, sighing out a deep breath. I smirked.
"Told you that you hadn't seen the half of it." We grinned at each other for a minute before starting on our way to the train station. It wasn't until he showed me to my front door did he say something so completely absurd that it caught me off guard in every way of the word.
"I do hope I'll get to see you play one day, Toshiko." I blinked; shocked that he would even bring it up- I had almost completely forgotten about that part of the conversation. He saw this, smiled, and turned away. "Goodnight."
His call was chipper, and grated on my nerves more than taking a cheese grater to my face.
"Night." I called back, calming my nerves and stepping into my house; attempting to ignore him so I could prepare myself for the interrogation my mother was sure to give me.
Sooo… fluff : ) Whatcha think? I wasn't too sure about this chapter, it just seems so… off. Was Kurama in character? Should I go back and rewrite it? I NEED TO KNOW! TELL MEEEE!
Aaaand, Toshiko blushing? Teehee ;)
Please review! I really want at least three people to review each chapter :/ And I know you're out there. I get a graph showing me how many times somebody clicks on this story, so please please please review! Even the people who don't have accounts can review!
See you next week!
P.S. And to all of you who are getting kinda sick of Toshiko, just hold on. There's a big Ryo arc coming up :D