Yumiko was waiting for them when they got home. "Eiji called again," she told Syuusuke. "He was very annoyed that you didn't answer your cell phone." Syuusuke gave a 'Don't I have the greatest best friend ever?' grimace, and Yumiko smiled. "He's not going to leave you alone until you go."
Yuuta had never quite understood what his brother saw in his rather overenthusiastic best friend. He was nice enough, and friendly, but his babbling would have driven Yuuta crazy, and he was just very different from Syuusuke. Then again, there weren't very many people quite like Syuusuke, so maybe the important thing was that nothing he did ever got to Eiji. At any rate, Yuuta didn't think their friendship would ever make sense to him.
Syuusuke picked up the phone and started to dial. "I know," he responded, still smiling, but he sounded tired, as though maintaining his cheerful manner wasn't as effortless as usual. But when he spoke again, he sounded as jovial as always. "Eiji? Yes, sorry about that; I went to play tennis. Next time. Sure, okay. Okay. I'll meet you there. What time? Okay. See you." He hung up the phone. "I guess I'm off."
"Already?" Without waiting for an answer, Yumiko asked, "Will you be home for dinner?"
"Maybe." He dropped his tennis bag by the door. "I'll call you if I'm not coming."
"Okay. Have a good time!"
"Bye," Syuusuke called as he went out the door. Yuuta watched him go, trying to figure out how to ask 'Does this mean you're all right?', but in the end he said nothing. It didn't matter. He wouldn't have gotten an honest response anyway, and he was pretty sure already that the answer was no. It was better not to ask.
"So," Yumiko asked, turning her attention to her youngest brother. "How was tennis?"
"We won," Yuuta said with a shrug, going into the kitchen for a glass of water. He doubted she cared to hear the details of the match; Yumiko had apparently missed out on the tennis obsession genes her brothers had.
"Good," Yumiko said, following after him. She started puttering around, wiping counters and putting dishes in the sink, and Yuuta had a sneaking suspicion that she was waiting for him to say what was on his mind. Unfortunately, his sister knew him too well, and she was right that he couldn't keep it to himself any longer.
"Why would somebody beat up someone else?" he finally blurted out.
Yumiko stopped what she was doing and looked at him. "Out in the wide world, too many reasons to list. You'll have to be more specific." From her tone, it sounded like they were still making light conversation, but she must know this was serious.
It was too late to take it back now, and besides it would make him feel better to have his big sister know what was going on, so Yuuta clarified, "Why would someone hurt a friend? A kid, I mean."
For a long time, Yumiko didn't say anything, and Yuuta was tempted to say it was just an idle question and not worth talking about, but he knew she wouldn't let it go now. Finally, she said, "Well, I don't pretend to understand teenage boys, but friends could fight over a girl or a game or...I don't know." She stopped and caught his gaze despite his attempts to be looking anywhere but at her. "What's going on, Yuuta?" she demanded.
"What do you mean?" he stammered, knowing even before the words were out of his mouth that there was no point in feigning ignorance.
"I'm not as oblivious as you seem to think I am," Yumiko chided, her lips quirking into a humorless smile that made him think of his brother. "You've been following Syuusuke around like an angry puppy guarding its master since you came home, and I know you're both hiding something from me. Did something happen to him?"
Yuuta thought about hedging, but it wasn't even worth trying at this point. "I don't know," he admitted, frustrated that he had so little to show for his efforts to figure this out. "Aniki was hurt—I think someone hurt him, I mean—but I don't know how or why or anything, and he won't tell me."
"He looked okay," Yumiko said, but she sounded unsure of herself, and Yuuta was reminded that even though his sister always seemed so much older than him, she wasn't so far out of childhood herself, and she didn't know everything. She might not know how to handle this situation any more than he did.
"I don't think it was that bad," he explained. "But he came to see me at school on Thursday night and he was...he looked..." He didn't know what to say. He was starting to wonder if he'd imagined the look of fear in his brother's eyes, that hesitant expression that meant he wasn't so sure of the world anymore. Maybe he was just making a big deal out of nothing. "I don't know," he said again. "Maybe he is okay."
"You don't know who did it?" Yumiko asked, ignoring his hesitation. She didn't seem to think he was overreacting, even if she had no way of knowing what was wrong.
Yuuta shook his head. "I talked to one of his friends and he's trying to figure it out, but he doesn't know yet."
"I'll talk to him," Yumiko said decisively, and Yuuta couldn't help feeling relieved. She would find out the truth for sure, and even if she didn't the matter would be out of his hands.
"Thank you, nee-san," Yuuta said, and Yumiko smiled at him.
"Anytime."