Sleep didn't always come easy.
Not for Mob, anyway. How could it come easy with Sho being gone? He was away from her…and she had no idea when he would come back…and she knew not to smother him…but she just…she wanted him back. She had so much to tell him. So much had happened! She had made friends with someone their age! This was great because then Sho could be friends…with….ok, Mob hadn't thought that part through since Sho already knew her and had kissed her…in a really gross sort of way…and he had a girlfriend now so things might be awkward between him and Minori…but other things had happened! Lots of things. Shibata had learned how to make pancakes without burning them, that was a good thing, and Shimazaki and Minegishi were almost a couple now and….and Sho was a boy and boys didn't care about stuff like that…
Well other things had happened.
"…work better if you aimed….."
"….gotta have faith in myself boss…."
Dad and Hatori had made friends. That was a thing that had happened. Mob could hear their voices coming from down the hall. She opened her door with her powers. Now she could hear them better. She didn't know what she expected to hear, what she wanted to hear, but she just…wanted to hear. Even though she was being nosy, Minegishi had even called her nosy before, she just…wanted to know what was going on. So she could tell Sho…if she ever found a way to call him without bothering him or interrupting his work….she could tell Sho when he came back.
He would want to know about this.
Out of everything that happened since he left this was the weirdest. Dad and Hatori…they were friends now. Sort of. Night time videogame friends. Also dad liked videogames now. Well he had always liked them but now he felt better about liking them. He had been a lot nicer lately….maybe because Sho wasn't around to make him mad….but that was not something that she was going to tell Sho. Nobody needed to know that things were better when they were gone…and really they weren't. Just for dad. He had made a friend and he had been nice to Mob and stuff….but Mob missed Sho and that was not better. Shimazaki missed Sho a lot too and since his job had been protecting Sho…well he had nothing to do and when he had nothing to do he just…did everything.
Also he did mean things to Hatori.
Mob had no idea how someone so nice could be so…mean…sometimes. Well more annoying than mean but…still. That was why Hatori spent so much time with dad these days. Shimazaki didn't like to be around dad since he was boring and dad didn't like Shimazaki because he was annoying, dad had said, and also dad thought that she and Shimazaki had liked each other. So they didn't really get along and now this was a safe place for Hatori to go….being next to dad and staying up late and stuff….
Sho would definitely want to know about this.
"I don't blame you for being poor at this. A gun is a coward's weapon." She heard dad say. She wondered what they were playing. She wondered what was happening in there. She wondered why dad got along so well with Hatori to even be able to sit with him and play with him and stuff. She had never seen dad get along with anyone that well before….just her….and it was good that Hatori got along with dad. Dad needed more friends and Mob was glad that…that they got along. That one of her friends got along with dad. Just her friend. Nothing more than her friend….
"Hey, it's easier with an actual light gun. At least it was when I was a kid." Said Hatori. Mob smiled and pulled her blanket up over her head. Hatori hadn't even been talking to her and now she felt all….warm…and stuff. She felt all weird when she heard his voice sometimes. Especially when he was in her house…and it felt weird being near dad and feeling like this about someone….and she didn't even know what this feeling was.
Not doki doki.
This was not doki doki. She knew what doki doki was and this was not it…and she couldn't tell anyone about this. She couldn't tell anyone about how she felt, not even her best friend, because then….then the whole world would know how she felt. This weird, warm, and sometimes tingly feeling that she got sometimes. Usually about Hatori but sometimes when she read about people falling in love and kissing or watched people on TV fall in love and kiss….or just when she watched people kiss…because then that made her want to kiss someone….
But not in a doki doki way.
She wished that there had been someone she could ask. She couldn't ask Minegishi even though they were her best friend because then they would know…and she couldn't ask Minori even though they were friends now and Minori had kissed eight boys already because then she would know, and she of course couldn't ask dad even though he had been married to mom and probably knew what all the feelings were because then he would know, and she couldn't ask Fukuda even though she might have had something medically wrong with her based on this weird warm and sometimes tingly feeling because then he would know…and also she didn't want to talk to him since he didn't like her….so she had no one to talk to…
Maybe these feelings would go away on their own if she just ignored them.
So that was what she tried to do. She kept her blanket over her head and tried to ignore what she felt. She knew that she thought that Hatori was attractive, that was what Minegishi had told her this feeling was, but…but there was something more than that. She saw boys that she thought were attractive but she never felt like this….well not normally. It was like when she and Minori watched kpop videos. She was always talking about which of the boys were attractive….and Mob could sort of see it…but none of them made her feel like this…
She was weird.
She was weird when it came to Hatori. Everyone said that she was weird when it came to Hatori. They thought that his skin was bad, it was getting better, and that he was a weirdo…and he could be a weirdo….but he was also very nice. He played games with her and dad and he always had nice things to say….when he wasn't yelling at the screen…and also he was less weird now. He only went and hid from things when he got scared and he hadn't gotten scared in a while…and stuff. Also he could do more things for himself and he smelled nice and his glasses were cool and he had so many sweaters and they were all so nice with birds and dogs and cats….and he was just….so nice. That was why she had liked him and wanted to be his girlfriend….but she didn't want to be his girlfriend….but things would have been so much easier to understand if she had just wanted to be his girlfriend….
Sho didn't need to know about this.
She hoped that Sho came to her if he ever had feelings like this. If he had feelings like this then she would not have wanted him to figure them out on his own…so she needed to figure these feelings out so she could help him. Sho didn't have anyone else who could know about this sort of thing either. She would never make fun of him or be mad at him or embarrass him for how he felt….but he didn't know, need to know, how she felt right now….
All warm and stuff.
"….you really never had a light gun? I thought you had a Famicom." Said Hatori. Mob loved the way his voice sounded when he wasn't scared. She loved the way his aura looked when he was calm….and she loved it when he was in her house playing games with dad. Dad scared everyone, she didn't know why he didn't stop since he knew how scary he could be, and he did scare Hatori sometimes…and sometimes he didn't. Like now. Maybe she felt like this about Hatori because….because dad liked him….
Dad didn't like most people.
And he especially didn't like people who liked her. He had beaten up Shimazaki so bad he was bleeding, Sho had said, and that was because he had thought that Shimazaki liked her. Dad didn't like it even when she talked to boys….well they talked to her sometimes when she and dad were out together…..and dad was always saying how she only needed him and how he would take care of her and he would build her a house and they could live together and take care of her kids together….and she didn't know where those kids would come from since he said that she didn't need anyone….and she got the feeling that if she met someone and fell in love and he loved her back then dad would hate him and stuff….
But dad did not hate Hatori.
"I had a Famicom I just never had a light gun, a gun is a coward's weapon. Fukuda though, he was always good at those sorts of games. He had always been strange like that." Said dad. The only other person who dad liked was Fukuda….and Mob did not think that she could ever like Fukuda in any way for as long as she lived. Even if she hit her head and went crazy she would never like Fukuda like that. He was….not very nice to her these days…and as old as dad was….and also she had known him for her whole life…and also he had made fun of Minegishi's breasts and that was the worst thing of all.
She could never like someone who had been mean to Minegishi.
And she could never like someone who wanted to eat her best friend, too. That was another reason not to feel like this…but she had no idea what this feeling even was…and also Hatori was who he was and he could not help being a cannibal so there. That was what it was. That was that and this was this…and stuff. All sorts of stuff. She didn't know. All she knew was that she might have just felt….whatever this was….because dad wouldn't hurt Hatori if he knew that she had been in love with him before….and she was….whatever this was….with him now….
This weird, warm, good feeling.
"Do you think he'd want to get in on this, boss? I mean when he comes back?" asked Hatori
"Perhaps…we used to pass the time together like this…but maybe not because we are a bit old for this. Besides, this is serious work we do. It's…hand eye coordination….and conversation. Both of which are very important." said Dad
"That and you're establishing your superiority over me at most everything." Said Hatori. He never sounded like that when he talked to anyone…anyone but her…and she could imagine, almost, that he was talking to her. That they were sitting together and talking…but that was not the thing to imagine so she stopped. She took her blanket off of her head and looked up at the ceiling. She didn't need to imagine talking to him….she was his friend and she could just go and talk to him whenever she wanted to…well not now because dad was there. Dad was there and she did not want to feel…all of this…right where her dad could see her feeling all of this.
He could ask her to explain.
And her aura flares, for a moment, because it does sound like he's telling her to explain. She reached over with her powers and got her pen off of the charger. She woke up it, opened her window, sat up, and inhaled really hard and fast. She hated it when her powers stopped listening to her. She knew that she was supposed to use moderation but this seemed like one those times when maybe she could use a little less moderation.
Minegishi would have understood if they had been there and they had been able to know how she was feeling.
"Most? Explain." Said dad. Mob closed her door…and then opened it again. She had the window opened and also dad was all the way in the kitchen. It smelled like toast and ketchup even all the way to her room. They had been snacking all night again. Dad wouldn't have been able to smell this and if he did…well…she could just tell him that she was vaping….which she was. Vaping wasn't as bad as smoking and…and dad didn't need to know what it was that she was vaping. She got the feeling that he would not like her vaping hash oil. She knew that most adults weren't even allowed to do this and as much as she felt like an adult her birthday was only a couple of weeks away….her eleventh birthday…so maybe this was really not the thing for dad to see her doing….
Also she was supposed to control her powers on her own.
"Space Invaders 3D." said Hatori. She didn't know how she was supposed to control her powers on her own when Hatori was so….not scared. Not scared or freaked out or shouting mean things at his computer screen. His voice was sort of deep and also sort of not and…and she couldn't describe it but she liked listening to it…even though he was just talking to her dad about videogames that had come out before she had even been born. She wanted to hear him talk about….about stuff she liked….no. She wanted to hear him talk about stuff he liked. He was almost a totally different person when he talked about stuff he liked. Like the time when she had gone to visit him and she had sat beside him while he explained Terraria to her…and she had been so close….close enough to see the screen reflecting off of his glasses…
She inhaled again. It didn't really help.
"That was an unnecessary conversion to the third dimension. You said so yourself. You spoke at length about how the conversion to 3D destroyed many beloved franchise. Space Invaders was merely one of them and therefore the three dimensional version of the game was not worth my time." Said dad. Hearing dad's voice helped. The sound of his voice chased a lot of this feeling away and let the smoking help to calm her aura down. She could not feel this way when she was around her own dad. It felt wrong. Kind of….embarrassing and gross…and stuff. Like he might have known how she felt…and she did not want anyone to ever know how she felt...and she didn't even know how she felt.
She felt like being near Hatori.
"Yeah, I guess. You're from a different era." Said Hatori. She wanted him to stop talking and she wanted him to talk all night. She wanted him to come and sit on her bed with her and talk to her about whatever he wanted to talk about. Games or anime or why blue monster drink was the best kind of drink because they had reformulated red…even though she hated energy drinks. She would have listened to him talk about grass growing if it meant that he was near to her…and she just….she just didn't know why she had this…feeling….that she wanted to be near him.
She coughed into her blanket. She had taken too much in at once.
"Exactly. Simple works best." Said Dad. He hadn't heard her coughing. That was good. One time she had been vaping in the yard at night and she'd been coughing and then dad had practically run over to her and asked her if she was sick or dying….and it took a while to talk him down. He was always so worried about her. If he heard her coughing and saw her in this state, how warm she was, he probably would have thought that she had a fever. He would have called Fukuda and made him and Sho fly back from Korea right away and then Fukuda and Sho would know how she felt…
And she needed to slow down.
"I know. Why didn't they just stop at the original Atari…or maybe even that was too much. The Odyssey, now that was a system." Said Hatori. She needed to slow down but she felt her heart speed up. She drew her knees up to her chest and felt her socks sliding around. She slid them around a little more. They felt soft, her bed felt soft, and she liked her bed…and she felt good. The happy, swimmy, feeling was there…and she did like feeling like this…but also…also there was something else there. That other feeling was still there….just…calmer? She didn't know. She just…she felt like….like she wanted something but she didn't know what it was….
It was sitting in her kitchen, wearing square glasses, and eating ketchup bread with her dad.
"No, the Atari was perfection. The Odyssey was very repetitive and also there was no color. There is no point in doing something in black and white on a color television. Especially on one as large as my parents had." Said dad. Dad's voice helped make the feeling go away. She decided to stop smoking. She had managed to make her aura calm down but now the feeling was just…hanging around. It felt like the feeling was hanging around…her skin? Her skin had always gotten very sensitive when she smoked. She could feel the softness of her socks and the softness of her bed through her socks and the softness of her skin through her bones and…and she could feel the softness of her skin with her skin…and that made her wonder about other people's skin. She liked to cuddle when she got like this, she and Shimazaki cuddled all the time because he was the only person who let her get to this point, but this was….different than when she cuddled with him. The thought of cuddling with Hatori….it made her feel all…different.
Warm and tingly and also sort of embarrassed.
"You had a color TV when you were a kid? Weren't those, like, really expensive." Said Hatori. Mob wanted to slam her door shut and she wanted to leave it opened forever. She liked his voice, she wanted to feel his voice and she liked…she liked his aura. He didn't have much of one but she liked the way it felt…and she pulled her aura back in close before he noticed. Embarrassed. She was embarrassed and she had every reason to be embarrassed. She had been about to…she didn't even know what she had been about to do. Do…what she wanted? But what did she want? She wanted….she liked the way her skin felt. The way the skin of her arm felt against her hand….and she wanted to know what his skin felt like…and what he thought her skin would feel like….
And also she wanted to crawl into a hole and live there forever because that had been the most embarrassing thought that her brain had ever thought up in her whole, entire, life.
"Yes, they were, but my parents were wealthy people and they never said 'no' to me." Said dad. Dad's voice just made her feel even more embarrassed. Thank God that it was not a Sunday. If it had been a Sunday then dad would have come and seen what her aura was being all clingy for. He would have worried about her and….and she had no idea what to tell him. He was older than her, he was an adult, and he did have feelings. He may have pretended that he didn't but he did. He was forty four, he'd probably had every feeling that there had ever been, and he maybe could have explained this to her…but then that would involve him knowing! No one could ever know about this! She didn't know what it was but she knew that it was embarrassing…
It was like the feeling she got when she read about people falling in love and kissing….only…different.
"Well, yeah, you're the most powerful esper in the world." Said Hatori. This was…she had thought about kissing him before….but always in the way that she had been kissed before. He leaned in very quick and then kissed her. That was it. She never thought about touching him before. Well beyond the kissing part…and also the part where they held hands…but this was….different. This was different from hand holding and kissing. This was….something else….something embarrassing….
And something that she did not want to feel.
"No, they didn't fear me. They made it very clear…they had made it very clear for my entire life…that they never feared me. They simply did their duty and provided for me. When you have children then you will understand." Said dad. She wished that she had been better at exorcising emotions, like dad was, but she was not going to ask dad to teach her how to exorcise her emotions now. Usually she smoked them away and drank them away but the smoking had just made her feel all….like this. Aware of herself. She knew that she had skin but now…now she was thinking about having skin…and thinking about how he had skin…and she was thinking about how when people kissed in the movies the boy held the girl…and how much she would have liked that…
With Hatori.
"Not likely." Said Hatori. With him or….with….she didn't know who else it would have been with. Shimazaki? Yuck. She would never do that to Minegishi and also…also she didn't ever see herself being like that with him. She knew that his tattoos were cool and he was nice…and stuff…but she just…he was no Hatori. He hadn't once laughed so hard at an internet joke, one that Mob hadn't gotten, that energy drink shot out of his nose. He hadn't stayed up all night with Mob once to teach her how to play Terraria….she had known how to play after the first couple of hours but she had just liked being with him. He didn't wear super soft looking sweaters with kittens or baby birds or puppies on them. He didn't have really cool square glasses that caught the light…and his hair didn't look all shiny and soft…and he didn't smell as good…
She wondered if there was some way to exorcise her brain.
"You could have children and you should have children. Many children. You're a powerful esper, and you're young, so you really should get on that. That's a regret of mine, and I have very few regrets, I did not have children when I was your age. I could have had so many children by now….and Son and Daughter could have been adults too. You really should meet your most perfect person and get on that before you get to be my age." Said dad. Dad could exorcise anything, he had said, and the sound of his voice did exorcise this feeling….but not all the way…it just made her feel embarrassed and also sort of….not good. Like she was being watched even though he was not focused on her at all…and she needed….she needed….
She had no idea what she needed.
"That's never going to happen for me." Said Hatori. She knew that she needed something….but she had no idea what it was…and she knew that it had to do with Hatori…and kissing…and kissing Hatori…and thinking about kissing Hatori was making her feel all….weird inside. All tingly around her stomach. Like her stomach and her chest. Just all of her organs…and she had no idea what to do. She pressed a hand to her stomach. Her stomach felt normal…and her nightshirt felt soft…and she wondered….
She pulled her hand back before she could wonder anything.
"Homosexuals can reproduce. I have nothing against your people reproducing and coupling up and it's my world so I say that you can." Said dad. Dad's voice helped her not wonder anything. The embarrassment at the thought of dad catching her feeling this feeling, whatever it was, chased away any wonder that might have started to exist in her brain. Wonder at what it would have felt like to him, her night shirt, if it was as soft as his sweater looked…and she could only say looked before she had never touched his sweater before…
And now she sort of wanted to.
"I don't think that's in the cards for me. I can't see anyone ever wanting to have kids with me. I mean I've never had a gir-partner and…yeah. Not going to happen." Said Hatori. She wondered what sort of sweater he had on tonight. She wondered if it was the one with the kittens on it, the blue one, that was so incredibly soft. She wondered if his sweater was as soft as her nightshirt. She put her hand back on her stomach.
It was soft.
"Oh. Well you don't need a partner. Raising children is not that difficult. They mostly just take care of themselves. Be sure to have a girl child first. Daughters are very capable. Sons…not so much….but a Daughter is a godsend. Or at least my Daughter is. I cannot think of anyone in this world more intelligent, thoughtful, and capable than my Daughter." Said dad. She wished that dad would talk more or talk louder or tell Hatori not to talk because….because her shirt was soft and not even the thought of dad coming in and seeing her and knowing what she was thinking and feeling could make her shirt any less softer than it was. The blue parts where there were no snowflakes. This was a new nightshirt. It was blue and had snowflakes and said 'let it go' on the front and she knew that it was for kids….and she didn't want Hatori to see her in this…because then he would think that she was a little kid…or something..
Or maybe she just didn't want him to see her in this for any reason at all.
"…right. Well she's going to make someone very happy someday. Her husband or her boyfriend or someone…." Said Hatori. She just….felt…not dressed. She was in her pajamas and people saw her in her pajamas all the time…but this was….kind of short….and also she wasn't wearing an undershirt because these were her pajamas and it was hard to sleep in an undershirt…but now she wanted to wear an undershirt….she wanted to go into her drawers and wear all of her undershirts at once…
Even though that would have been terribly uncomfortable.
"Yes, she will. You will too. I have no idea how your people chose partners but you seem like a good one. You're intelligent, good company, good conversation, and your skin condition is improving by the day. I'm sure that one day some man will want to be with you and then you can get married…you people want that I think…and then you'll have children and you'll know the joy of having a Daughter….and also you should have at least one Son to keep your bloodline going….or would it be your partner's son? How are these things decided?" asked dad. She knew that she wasn't being looked at, not by dad or Hatori or anyone, but she felt like she was. She felt all….like she was being stared at…and she wanted to put all of her clothes on at once…even though she was already wearing clothes. Nightshirts were clothes. Even though one was short sleeved and short and thin…and maybe she should change…even though she didn't know why she wanted to change….
Feelings made no sense sometimes.
"Um….both of our swimmers would just fight it out inside of a test tube and whoever's swimmers win become the baby?" said Hatori. Her feelings made about as much sense as their conversation. She hadn't been paying attention to what was being said, just that words were being spoken, and that Hatori had been doing a lot of talking…but now she wished that she'd had. Hatori being there was making her feel this way and smoking hadn't helped, in fact she had just made it worse, and now…well it as mean but she wanted him to go home so she could forget about how she had been feeling and then she could go to bed and then she could forget that any of this had ever happened….
Even though nothing had happened.
"That would make the most sense. Whoever is stronger gets to have their bloodline continue. Your people are truly fascinating and when I rule this world your people will have the same rights to marriage and reproduction as mine." Said dad. She hadn't done anything but it felt like she had….and she had the vague sort of feeling that she was going to get into trouble…even though she hadn't done anything to get in trouble for. She had just….been feeling feelings that she knew she would have been embarrassed if dad had caught her feeling them….but also he would never punish her…he had told her that he loved her and because he loved her he would never punish her…..but this just felt…it felt like she had been doing something wrong even though she hadn't even done anything. She had just touched her skin, and it felt nice, it always felt nice when she smoked…was the smoking why she felt so…so….
Weirdly guilty.
"Really?" said Hatori. She had been thinking about him kissing her, she had done that before, but it had never made her feel guilty before. Maybe because she had been imagining him touching her….but not anywhere bad. Minori had said that you weren't supposed to let boys touch you under your shirt unless you had been their girlfriend for a very long time….but she hadn't even been thinking about that. That thought hadn't even crossed her mind…
But now it had.
"Yes. I don't see why you shouldn't. I don't understand you fully but the world needs more espers and you're a very powerful one. So is Shibata actually. Do you have any plans of pursuing him romantically? He seems to enjoy your company and Daughter has told me that he is oddly domestic." Said dad. It crossed her mind quickly. It ran through her mind fast, very fast, because dad had been talking and…and if dad had known that she had just imagined…thought about….what she had thought about…..then she would have died of embarrassment and Hatori for sure would have gotten beaten up so badly that he bled…because that was what dad did to people who he thought she liked….
Did this mean that she liked him?
"Um….he's not like that…and I don't like him like that…um….he's not my type…" said Hatori. Minori had said that you were only supposed to let the boy you liked, the one who was your boyfriend, do that to you…so did that mean that she wanted to be Hatori's girlfriend again? She didn't….she had only thought about it…but thinking about it had made her feel all…weird. Weird and embarrassed. Well that made sense, she had just thought of a weird and embarrassing thing. She had no idea why she would ever even think of something like that.
Nobody had touched her there since back when she had been too little to give herself a bath.
"Oh. Pity. You seemed so compatible." Said dad. She didn't want to think about this anymore. She knew that dad couldn't read minds….but what if he could and he had just never told her? Wait, no, dad would not have kept that to himself…and also he would have killed Sho a long time ago since Sho thought some very not so nice thoughts about him…and stuff. So dad could not read minds…but she needed to stop thinking about this right now, right this second, because what if he read her aura or-or-or-
She needed her brain to shut up already.
"Right….so…uh…..it's getting kind of late. I mean I'm starting to get tired…" said Hatori. But how could her brain shut up when Hatori was right there? He was still in her house and he would be there for a while. He was tired but she knew that dad would not care. He never cared. The next thing that he said would have been for Hatori to go and make coffee. He never told Hatori that he could go home and sleep, no, because he could be kind of a boss friend like that. No, Hatori would be up all night with dad and they would drink coffee and talk and then Mob would be up all night with this feeling…this weird feeling that made her think about weird and embarrassing things…
This feeling WAS a weird and embarrassing thing.
"Go and make coffee." Said dad. There, she knew that he would say that. Now they would be up all night in the kitchen and she would be up all night in her room with this feeling…this thing…this weird and embarrassing thing…and she knew that shutting her door would not help. She needed…she knew that she was being mean but she needed Hatori to get the H-word out of her house right this second.
But she couldn't just say that….because nothing could justify being mean enough to tell someone to get the H-word out of your house….even whatever this feeling was.
"Aren't you tired, boss?" asked Hatori. She wondered if dad would get annoyed by him and tell him to get the H-word out. That was something that dad would do…well not with the cursing because dad did not curse….but he would tell Hatori to get out if he got annoying enough….or he could just make Hatori stay forever and put up with it. It was hard to tell what dad as going to do sometimes….all of the times…
She needed to figure out what she was going to do.
"Yes, that's what the coffee is for. Make coffee but not the caramel or birthday cake coffee. Those are Daughter's and they're vile." Said dad. She was not going to sit there in this feeling all night. She couldn't. She didn't want to. The more she had this feeling the more weird and embarrassing stuff she would think about….and she just….she wanted to go to sleep and wake up tomorrow and spend time with Minegishi or her other friends….not Hatori….or maybe with Minori because she was far away from all of her friends or maybe she would try calling Sho again…and figure out what to say to him….or maybe she would….
She would get nothing done at all if she was up all night with this weird feeling.
"But…yes boss." Said Hatori. She knew what was going to happen…they were going to be up all night even though dad was tired…and he would be cranky in the morning if he stayed up all night…and nothing good had ever come of dad being cranky…so she needed to…to do something. She would…she would not tell Hatori to leave because that would be rude…but she would just….make dad want him to leave…
But not meanly.
It was not Sunday. She had a plan, a plan that she had thought up in five seconds but a plan, and she thought that it would work. It was not a Sunday but dad loved to cuddle. He loved to be hold onto her and he loved to cuddle and….and stuff. So that was what she was going to do. She was going to as to sleep next to him…and if she got a 'no' then…she knew that she wasn't supposed to pester him about things and all…but she also didn't want to have this feeling anymore….and he had said before that he would never punish her again….
She left her room.
She tugged up her socks with her powers as she walked down the hallway. Her legs had been rubbing up against each other and it had been itchy. That was an annoying feeling but one she understood…but not one that she had wanted to have been feeling. She tugged up her socks and went to the kitchen. Her aura was calm, it was always calm after she smoked, so it took dad a moment to notice her.
A moment too long.
"Daughter. Do you need something?" asked dad. Mob had been looking at Hatori, her eyes had been drawn to him the moment she entered the room, but then she focused on dad. There. Being near dad was good for getting rid of these feelings. There. This had been a good idea. Even though she was pretty much kicking Hatori out of her house….
Well he had been wanting to go home for a while anyway.
"Dad, I want to sleep next to you tonight. Can I please? I can't sleep on my own." Said Mob. She knew that if dad agreed to sleep next to her then Hatori would go home….and she would be all squished up in the bed next to dad but that would have been better than being up all night all alone with her thoughts.
Anything would have been better than that.
"It's not Sunday." Said Dad. Mob was glad that she had smoked so much or her aura would have flared. She had thought that he would have said 'yes' since that had been his answer to just about everything lately…and she knew that she should not have been pestering him like she had been planning on doing…
But she had heard, before, that desperate times called for desperate measures.
"I know. I still want to be next to you. Please?" asked Mob. She knew that dad loved her now and she knew that he loved to smother her. She didn't much want to be smothered but she knew that being smothered by dad would have been better than being bothered by all of these thoughts and feelings that she had never asked for in the first place. At least now she was asking to be smothered….though she didn't want to be smothered…
But at least if she was being smothered there wouldn't be any room left for this feeling….or was it a set of feelings…or…well whatever it was there would be no more room left over for it at all.
"No Daughter. It's not a Sunday. You know perfectly well by now that our day together is Sunday. Now go back to your own bed and try and get some sleep because it is very late and children your age require eight to ten hours of sleep to function." Said Dad. Mob was bad at pestering. She wasn't the pesterer, Sho was, but she wasn't going to act like Sho. He never got his way with dad when he did that…and she had never had to act this way to get her way with dad. But she could, now, because he loved her….but she had never pestered him before….and she didn't know how to even….she'd never had to know….
But she knew someone who did.
"Please, daddy?" asked Mob. She hadn't called dad 'daddy' since she had been really little…and it was weird to call him that now…but Minori had taught her that. She had said that if she wanted dad to do something or to let her do something then she should try calling him 'daddy'. Dads loved that, she said, it made them think that you were little again.
Mob didn't know why dad wanted her to be little again but at least it had worked.
"Daughter….alright. Just this once. Hatori, go home. Remember what this conversation was about and where we were in it. We'll resume this at a later date. Daughter, come to bed now." Said dad. Mob didn't need to be told twice. She said goodnight to Hatori, without looking at him of course because she didn't want to make those weird and embarrassing feelings wake up again, and then followed dad to his room where she laid down on her side of the bed, let him pull her in close, and then closed her eyes.
It wasn't always easy falling asleep with dad holding onto her like that…but sleeping came easier like this than it would have with Hatori in her house….even though that was sort of a not so nice thought to have about someone….
It was better than the alternative.