Chapter 91: Father and daughter

The school bell rang, and all the classrooms were filled with the sounds of open notebooks and books closing in unison. Students of all ages, sizes and levels prepared their things for the trip home. It was finally twelve in the afternoon and everyone, even the teachers were eager to escape the confines of the educational institution.

Yuriko stepped out of the classroom, followed by her close friend Ayame. They just finished their math class, which was thankfully their last class of the day too.

Ayame had her backpack with her, while Yuriko had a little school handbag where she kept all her notebooks, books and school supplies. It was actually one of her father's old bags, and she had been using it for the past four years.

Even if her father was now earning enough money to buy her the best and most extravagant school bag, she didn't find it necessary to get a new one. Yuriko always preferred to use things that were special to her…things that her parents owned and used, like the cherry blossom hairpin that was pinned snuggly on her hair.

It was the same cherry blossom pin that her mother used to own, and the same one that her father had given her before they left Kyoto. She had been wearing it everywhere since he had given it to her four years ago. She never left the house without it on her hair. It had almost become a part of her body, a part of her soul. Whenever she had it with her, she always felt like her mother was with her too.

Having the hairpin with her all the time was her own way of keeping in touch with her mother. It had already been four long years since she last saw the beautiful grassy field and the cherry blossom tree. It had been so long since she last stood on that cliff. Both she and her father had been so busy with work and school, that they never had the time to visit Yuna's resting place. Not even once, ever since they arrived in Tokyo.

But at least she had her mother's hairpin with her. And like her father said, as long as she had it, she and her mother would never part no matter what.

"So will you be able to make it to my birthday party this Saturday?" Ayame asked her friend.

Ayame and Yuriko were both walking down the corridor outside their classroom. They were on their way to the school's main entrance, where the parents were waiting to pick their children up. Unfortunately for Yuriko, it was her bike that was waiting for her. Her father's work required him to be in the office until seven in the evening. So her means of going home was via the bike that her father bought for her three years ago.

Yuriko shrugged in response to her friend's question. "I'm really not sure, Ayame. I'd have to ask my daddy about it first." She said matter-of-factly.

Ayame was one of the few friends she had in Tokyo. She met her last year, when they were both in the third grade, and they had been friends ever since. Yuriko didn't consider Ayame as her best friend though. Though they were close friends and sat next to each other in each of their classes, their friendship was just limited to that…school. Yuriko actually looks at Ayame as more of a school-friend than a personal friend. They never even got together outside of the classroom. No sleepovers, no parties, no camping trips, no phone calls. Not even a little get-together in each others' houses.

Yuriko didn't know if she would have any 'real' friends…friends who could be with her long enough and close enough to discover who she really was. During their first month in Tokyo, her father actually told her to limit her interaction with strangers, unless he told her that he was okay. He told her that Tokyo could be harmful if one is off-guard, and that was why he wanted her to be safe for security purposes.

Her father also mentioned the dangers of his work. There was one time when he told her that there were bad people out there who might hurt them if they found out that he was working for the 'good people'. She didn't really understand what he was trying to say, but she just took it upon herself to be careful nonetheless. That was probably one of the reasons why she was never open with anyone, except for her father. She trusted her father's words and wanted to make him proud by following his rules.

There was a brief moment of silence between the two friends, and then Ayame finally spoke up. "Yuriko, how come you never go out of the house?" Her friend asked curiously. There was a hint of concern in her voice.

Yuriko's face suddenly turned towards her friend. She looked like she had been startled by the question. "What do you mean?" She asked, trying to sound innocent. She preferred that they talked about something else. She didn't like it whenever people became too curious and inquisitive about her family's life.

Ayame shrugged and tilted her head to the side. "Well, we've been friends for almost two years, and you've never gone to my house even once. You haven't even gone to any of my birthdays. And the only time I hear from you is when you're in class." She was looking at Yuriko quizzically, trying to read her reaction.

Yuriko's eyes darted from left to right and she momentarily glanced away, while she tried to come up with the right words to get her out of this awkward situation. She didn't know that her friend had been noticing her reluctance to engage in outdoor activities. Perhaps it was really odd that she always kept to herself. Most of the children her age were often talkative and eager to go outside and hang out with friends, unlike her.

Then her head perked up and she looked back at Ayame with an almost-faked smile on her face. "Well, I do go out of the house sometimes." She said. "It's just that I help around in the house a lot, so I don't have enough time to go out and play. You know, my father's always at work, so I'm the one left at home and…and…I do household chores a lot." She was almost tripping on her own words. She definitely hoped that her answer would be enough for her friend to get off this uncomfortable discussion.

Ayame shrugged. "Oh. Okay." She said snappily.

Yuriko almost wanted to sigh in relief that Ayame had stopped asking more questions…Because honestly, she wouldn't know what to say anymore. The last thing she wanted to do was lie to her friend and make up more fictional stuff about her personal life. It's not like she had a real personal life to share anyway. Most of her life revolved around her school, her father, and the faded memories of her mother.

Soon enough, the two of them reached the main entrance of the school. In front of the school stood the parents who were waiting for their children. The same goes for those children who were waiting for their parents to come and fetch them. Their school was actually just a small grade school institution for first to sixth graders.

Ayame stood beside Yuriko and she pushed herself up on her toes and looked for her mother in the crowd. Ayame's mother, Nanami, had actually come to know Yuriko since she always saw her with Ayame whenever the school day ended. Nanami would often ask Yuriko how she was doing and how her day went. And at times, whenever Yuriko was talking to Ayame's mother, she wished that her own mother was alive too, to come and pick her up from school and spend the rest of the day with her.

"Okaasan!" Ayama suddenly shouted out loud, waving her hand in the air.

In that instant, Yuriko immediately knew that her friend had finally found her mother. She looked at the crowd and saw Nanami standing alongside the other parents.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Yuriko!" Ayame said to her friend. Her voice was joyful and she had a happy smile on her face. She was always like this at the end of the day when she saw her mother standing in front of the school, waiting for her.

Yuriko smiled back and nodded her head, and Ayame ran towards her mother. Her backpack bounced up and down as she ran quickly into her mother's arms. Yuriko felt a warm, fluttering sensation within her as she watched Ayame's mother wrap her arms around her daughter. A gentle smile spread across her lips as she saw the other children with their parents.

Yuriko actually liked to watch this after-school scenery. She found it quite amusing and comforting how the parents embraced and greeted their children like they hadn't been with them for weeks, when they were only truly separated for half the day. Sometimes, Yuriko would even sit by the steps of the school and watch them for a half an hour. There were even times when she would imagine her mother standing there, waiting for her. She even imagined to herself how she would react once she saw her mother and how she would run into her arms, the way Ayame did everyday.

She breathed in and smiled to herself, then she held her school bag closer to her. At least she had her loving father, and he was all she could ever need. He may not be with her all the time whenever she needed him. But at least he loved her, and he always tried to show his fatherly love for her whenever he had the chance. Yuriko got herself moving and made her way to her bike which was chained on a bike rack near the edge of the school's lawn. Then as she walked towards the bike rack, she suddenly noticed a man standing right next to her bike. She narrowed her eyes curiously, and even when she was still quite distant from it, she immediate knew who it was.

Her face suddenly lit up like a lantern and her eyes opened wide with so much happiness. A huge, mountainous smile spread across her face and she shouted out to him. "Daddy!" She cried out as she ran towards her father.

Kenji returned Yuriko's smile with a smile of his own as he watched his extremely delighted daughter running towards him. Then he spread his arms and welcomed her with a warm and comforting embrace.

Yuriko immediately threw her arms around her father's midsection and pressed her cheek against his stomach. It was very rare that her father fetched her from school. In fact, he had only fetched her once, and that was her first day at school four years ago back when she was still in the first grade. And unsurprisingly, that was also back in the first few days when her father hadn't settled down in his Code5 laboratory yet.

Then she looked up at him and smiled. "Oh, daddy, I missed you so much!" She said happily. Her arms remained wrapped around him. Her father definitely surprised her this time. He was the last thing she was expecting to see standing by her bike.

Kenji looked down and a warm smile spread across his lips. "I missed you too, Yuriko." He said softly. Then he moved his hand towards Yuriko's face and ran a finger down her cheek. His eyes wandered at the pin on her hair and he was reminded again of his beloved wife…his wife whose grave he hadn't visited for the past four years.

Kenji did try to have enough time to visit Yuna, but every time he was on the verge of having a day off, he achieved another breakthrough in his research, which compelled him to stay within the walls of Code5 to work on it. And though he loved his work dearly, there were times when it was just too much for him to handle, especially since it took him away from his daughter every day. But at least this time, he was finally going to be able to spend enough time with both her and his work at the same time.

Yuriko gently pulled away form her father and then she looked up at him, holding her school bag close to her. There was a sweet smile on her face and her eyes sparkled with delight. She still couldn't believe that her father was there with her right now, fetching her from school. She wondered how long he had been standing there waiting for her.

"Did work you let you off early today?" She asked, smiling.

Kenji chuckled, and then he leaned down and carefully took her school bag from her. "Here. Let me hold that for you, sweetie." He said in a fatherly way. Then he placed it under his arm. "And yes. Work did let me off early today."

"That's great to hear, dad!" She said excitedly. She almost jumped on her toes. It had been a while since her father had some time off from work. "Does this mean that you'll get to spend the entire day with me?" She asked, filled with anticipation.

A coy and all-knowing grin arched up the right corner of Kenji's lips as he looked back at his overly joyous little girl. Then he walked beside Yuriko's bike and unchained it from the bike rack. "Oh yes, Rikku." He said with a smile. "…And not just this day, but tomorrow, and the day after that and the day after that." He chuckled.

Yuriko's eyes widened with so much excitement and she clasped her hands together and lifted her shoulders like an excited little girl who just got her wish. "Really, daddy!" She asked with so much anticipation. The happiness within her heart emanated from her almond-shaped eyes and her radiant smile. She couldn't believe what her daddy had just told her. For the past four years, they've never had more than a day together, and now he just told her that they'll be spending the next few days in each other's company.

Kenji laughed and nodded his head "Really, really." He said, smiling.

He could clearly see how happy his daughter was at the moment. He knew how much she wanted to spend so much time with him like they always did before he joined Code5, and he was finally going to be able to give her that 'free time' she had always wanted. He walked the bike to Yuriko's side and held it between the two of them.

"And not only that, but daddy has a bigger surprise for you too." He added.

"What's that?" Yuriko asked curiously. She knew that whatever it was, was going to be good. She could see no hint of doubt or conflict within her father's eyes. And like her, her father also seemed very excited and happy about what he was going to say next.

Kenji placed his hands on the seat and handles of the bike, and then he leaned down towards his daughter. "We're going to go to America." He said with a delighted tone in his voice. He hoped that Yuriko was willing to travel.