More story!
---------------------------------------------------------
"Oh, Mitsuko..." the stranger whispered to her.
Mitsuko looked up into his face, her eyes damp with tears. "Jiro..." she whispered back. They held each other tight for many minutes.
Kate stood on the stairs watching the reunion between the two. She'd stopped trying to figure out what was going on a while ago, as things were getting too spontaneous and confusing for her. Suddenly, Mitsuko turned to her. "Kate, go upstairs and get my brother," she ordered. Kate nodded, turning and heading back up the stairs.
Okay, now I *really* want to know who this guy is, Kate thought as she headed down the upstairs hallway to Masaru's room. She knocked on his door, and entered. "Kate," he said upon seeing her.
"Your sister sent me to get you. Apparently, there's someone here she wants you to meet," Kate explained.
"That's weird. Nobody ever usually comes out to see her," Masaru replied, sounding very much like a bratty younger brother. Kate sighed.
This was the first time Masaru had used English in Kate's presence. It caught her somewhat off guard, as she thought that the reason he'd never used it was because he didn't know how to speak it. "Well, come on," Kate said, and led him out of his room and down the hall.
"Who's the visitor?" Masaru asked, curious.
"I dunno," Kate shrugged. "I think it's one of your sister's old boyfriends or something." Judging by the way she greeted him...Kate thought.
Mitsuko and her visitor were waiting in the parlor when Kate brought her brother in. To Kate's surprise, Masaru's entire face lit up upon seeing who the visitor was. "JIRO!" he cried, and he ran across the room and jumped into the stranger's lap.
Kate took a seat in a nearby armchair, bewilderment written all over her face. Mitsuko noticed, and giggled.
"What's going on here....?" Kate began to ask.
"Silly me," Mitsuko responded. "I forgot to introduce you. Kate, this is Jiro." She gestured at the young man sitting across from Kate, on the couch. Kate smiled politely, and blushed. So, the man at the door had a name....
"Jiro, this is Kate, the exchange student who's been living with us these past months." Mitsuko gestured at Kate.
"Hello," Jiro said, and smiled.
"Hello," Kate replied. There was silence.
"So, what brings you here to Japan, Kate?" Mitsuko prompted, as a conversation starter.
"Oh, I'm studying over at the University," Kate replied. "I want to minor in the Japanese language, and decided to live here for a year so that I could gain a good mastery of it."
Jiro smiled. "You're doing very well," he complemented.
"Thank you." Kate blushed, and looked down at her lap.
Just then, the phone rang. Mitsuko excused herself and went to go answer it.
This girl, this "exchange student" as Mitsuko had called her, fascinated Jiro. He'd never seen anyone like her before. She was human, he could sense that. But she looked so different from the others. Her skin was pale, almost like porcelain, and her hair was the color of gold. Her eyes were rounder and somehow seemed larger than Mitsuko's eyes, and were a brilliant shade of blue. Even the way she talked was different. Jiro's programming told him that this girl was speaking English, but her voice somehow seemed....well, the only word he could think of was flat. Jiro was puzzled. Weren't english speakers supposed to have an accent?
Kate had noticed his stare, and it was making her uncomfortable. She shifted in her chair. It wasn't that she was unaccustomed to drawing stares from people; she'd gotten quite used to that during the nine months she'd been living in Japan. However, no one had ever stared at her as intensely as this man was doing now. She wondered what he was thinking of her, and how long it would be before Mitsuko came back.
Just then Masaru, who had wrapped his arms around the stranger's neck, murmured, "I'm so glad you're finally home." The stranger glanced down at the kid, then over at Kate, whose brow had furrowed again.
Masaru's statement had taken Kate by surprise. Mitsuko hadn't mentioned anything about this...as a matter of fact, Kate realized, she'd never even mentioned this man at all.
"You live here?" Kate asked, curious to discover his claim to the family. Instead of answering her directly, however, the stranger answered back with a question of his own.
"Where do you come from?" Jiro asked.
"Huh? Oh..." Kate hesitated momentarily before responding, "California."
"Isn't that in the United States of America?"
"Yes, it is." Kate blushed. She was impressed with Jiro's knowledge. Jiro understood now why her voice had seemed flat. His linguistics programming told him that Americans didn't speak english with an accent.
Just then, Mitsuko came back into the room. She was beaming. "Mr. Hattori says he can be here in a half-hour," she said. "You do remember him, don't you, Jiro?"
"Yes, I do," Jiro responded thoughtfully. "He's the man who helped you find me, when I was lost."
"Right," Mitsuko responded with a smile and sat down next to Jiro on the loveseat. She slipped an arm around his waist.
With Masaru in Jiro's lap and Mitsuko by his side, the three almost looked like they could be a small family of their own. Kate thought they looked sweet, and she smiled. Whoever this Jiro was, he must have been a very important person who had been sorely missed by Mitsuko and her brother. Truth was, Kate didn't know the half of it. But she was about to find out.
---------------------------------------------------------
A/N: I hope my credibility as a writer isn't wrecked...I know I haven't updated in a while, but I started college and have had tons of work to do the last 2 months. Updating will probably be slow on this baby due to school. But anyway....catch ya later.
---------------------------------------------------------
"Oh, Mitsuko..." the stranger whispered to her.
Mitsuko looked up into his face, her eyes damp with tears. "Jiro..." she whispered back. They held each other tight for many minutes.
Kate stood on the stairs watching the reunion between the two. She'd stopped trying to figure out what was going on a while ago, as things were getting too spontaneous and confusing for her. Suddenly, Mitsuko turned to her. "Kate, go upstairs and get my brother," she ordered. Kate nodded, turning and heading back up the stairs.
Okay, now I *really* want to know who this guy is, Kate thought as she headed down the upstairs hallway to Masaru's room. She knocked on his door, and entered. "Kate," he said upon seeing her.
"Your sister sent me to get you. Apparently, there's someone here she wants you to meet," Kate explained.
"That's weird. Nobody ever usually comes out to see her," Masaru replied, sounding very much like a bratty younger brother. Kate sighed.
This was the first time Masaru had used English in Kate's presence. It caught her somewhat off guard, as she thought that the reason he'd never used it was because he didn't know how to speak it. "Well, come on," Kate said, and led him out of his room and down the hall.
"Who's the visitor?" Masaru asked, curious.
"I dunno," Kate shrugged. "I think it's one of your sister's old boyfriends or something." Judging by the way she greeted him...Kate thought.
Mitsuko and her visitor were waiting in the parlor when Kate brought her brother in. To Kate's surprise, Masaru's entire face lit up upon seeing who the visitor was. "JIRO!" he cried, and he ran across the room and jumped into the stranger's lap.
Kate took a seat in a nearby armchair, bewilderment written all over her face. Mitsuko noticed, and giggled.
"What's going on here....?" Kate began to ask.
"Silly me," Mitsuko responded. "I forgot to introduce you. Kate, this is Jiro." She gestured at the young man sitting across from Kate, on the couch. Kate smiled politely, and blushed. So, the man at the door had a name....
"Jiro, this is Kate, the exchange student who's been living with us these past months." Mitsuko gestured at Kate.
"Hello," Jiro said, and smiled.
"Hello," Kate replied. There was silence.
"So, what brings you here to Japan, Kate?" Mitsuko prompted, as a conversation starter.
"Oh, I'm studying over at the University," Kate replied. "I want to minor in the Japanese language, and decided to live here for a year so that I could gain a good mastery of it."
Jiro smiled. "You're doing very well," he complemented.
"Thank you." Kate blushed, and looked down at her lap.
Just then, the phone rang. Mitsuko excused herself and went to go answer it.
This girl, this "exchange student" as Mitsuko had called her, fascinated Jiro. He'd never seen anyone like her before. She was human, he could sense that. But she looked so different from the others. Her skin was pale, almost like porcelain, and her hair was the color of gold. Her eyes were rounder and somehow seemed larger than Mitsuko's eyes, and were a brilliant shade of blue. Even the way she talked was different. Jiro's programming told him that this girl was speaking English, but her voice somehow seemed....well, the only word he could think of was flat. Jiro was puzzled. Weren't english speakers supposed to have an accent?
Kate had noticed his stare, and it was making her uncomfortable. She shifted in her chair. It wasn't that she was unaccustomed to drawing stares from people; she'd gotten quite used to that during the nine months she'd been living in Japan. However, no one had ever stared at her as intensely as this man was doing now. She wondered what he was thinking of her, and how long it would be before Mitsuko came back.
Just then Masaru, who had wrapped his arms around the stranger's neck, murmured, "I'm so glad you're finally home." The stranger glanced down at the kid, then over at Kate, whose brow had furrowed again.
Masaru's statement had taken Kate by surprise. Mitsuko hadn't mentioned anything about this...as a matter of fact, Kate realized, she'd never even mentioned this man at all.
"You live here?" Kate asked, curious to discover his claim to the family. Instead of answering her directly, however, the stranger answered back with a question of his own.
"Where do you come from?" Jiro asked.
"Huh? Oh..." Kate hesitated momentarily before responding, "California."
"Isn't that in the United States of America?"
"Yes, it is." Kate blushed. She was impressed with Jiro's knowledge. Jiro understood now why her voice had seemed flat. His linguistics programming told him that Americans didn't speak english with an accent.
Just then, Mitsuko came back into the room. She was beaming. "Mr. Hattori says he can be here in a half-hour," she said. "You do remember him, don't you, Jiro?"
"Yes, I do," Jiro responded thoughtfully. "He's the man who helped you find me, when I was lost."
"Right," Mitsuko responded with a smile and sat down next to Jiro on the loveseat. She slipped an arm around his waist.
With Masaru in Jiro's lap and Mitsuko by his side, the three almost looked like they could be a small family of their own. Kate thought they looked sweet, and she smiled. Whoever this Jiro was, he must have been a very important person who had been sorely missed by Mitsuko and her brother. Truth was, Kate didn't know the half of it. But she was about to find out.
---------------------------------------------------------
A/N: I hope my credibility as a writer isn't wrecked...I know I haven't updated in a while, but I started college and have had tons of work to do the last 2 months. Updating will probably be slow on this baby due to school. But anyway....catch ya later.