Chapter Seven: Grad Party

"Yes, I'm coming," I said, heading from the kitchen to the knocking at the door. I opened it to find what appeared to be one of Ushio's friends on the other side. "Good morning; are you here for Ushio's grad party?"

"Yup!" the short, green-haired girl chirped as she flashed a 'victory' sign. "I'm Hoshiko. May I come in?"

"Hoshiko!" Ushio squealed as she charged the door. "Come in, come in!" She grabbed her friend by the hand and nearly dragged her into our home. "I'm so glad you could make it! Do you know if the others are on their way?"

"N-No," her friend stammered as Ushio placed her by the kotatsu, "but I'm sure they'll be here."

I shook my head with a smile as I closed the door, then looked up at the kitchen clock: 10:43 AM. "A little over fifteen minutes," I said to myself as I headed back to the kitchen to work on food preparation. I'd barely picked up the knife before a knock sounded at the door again.

"H-Hi." It was the girl with the long red hair, trembling in our entryway. "M-M-May I come in?"

"Sure," I said, smiling as I stepped aside so my daughter could squeal over her as well.

The rest of the girls trickled in over the next ten minutes, the last one being the tall, blue-haired girl. "Hey, thanks for letting us do this," she said to me as she entered.

"You only graduate from middle school once," I replied, "so I wanted to make it special."

"Did your parents throw you a party when you graduated?" she asked. My expression must have darkened, because her eyes widened. "I-I'm sorry! Was that a bad question?"

"Sorry," I said, rubbing a hand over my face. "I'm…just glad to be able to do this for Ushio."

"Y-Yeah…" she said, seeming uncertain.

"You're fine; your question just surprised me."

Fortunately, Ushio saved me from any further conversation by squealing and dragging her friend into our living room as well. "Oh my gosh! I'm so glad all of you could make it!"

"Wouldn't miss it for anything," I heard the blue-haired girl say as I headed back to the kitchen, and I smiled to myself as I remembered that she had said the same thing yesterday.

I moved the mini sausages from the cooker to a serving bowl and stuck a small serving fork into it. I then realized that I hadn't put out plates for the girls yet, so I turned to the cupboard only to find the red-haired girl in my way. "C-Can I h-help?"

I smiled kindly at her. "Well, if you'll excuse me I'll get the plates and you can-"

"Kumiko! What are you doing?" Ushio suddenly materialized in my path, between me and her friend. "Y-You're a guest! Go back and sit down!" she said, shooing her friend back to the table before turning to me. "I'm sorry, I must have lost track of her."

"'Lost track'?" I repeated with a chuckle. "Ushio, they're your friends, not kindergartners."

"B-But-"

"I'll admit I was surprised to find her there. But she wasn't causing any problems; in fact, her help would have been welcome."

"Then I'll help," Ushio declared. "What do you need done?"

I blinked at her tone; she wasn't exactly defying me…maybe this was what Kyou had noticed last night? "Ushio, please go back to your friends." I turned my attention toward the table. "Kumiko-san? Is that your name?"

The red-haired girl gasped before jumping to her feet. "Y-Yes, Okazaki-sama?"

'Okazaki-sama'? I'd never been called that before. "Would you be willing to help me by bringing the plates in?"

"D-Dad?!" Ushio protested.

"S-Sure!" Kumiko squeaked as she hurried over to me. As she approached, I saw her give my daughter an apologetic look, and then saw Ushio give me what appeared to be a look of betrayal as she headed back to the table.

I retrieved the plates from the cupboard and placed them into Kumiko's trembling hands. "Are you going to be okay?" I asked her. "They're not very big or heavy, but…"

"I-I'll be fine," she said as she took the plates; to my surprise, her hands settled down the minute she had the plates within her grasp. "S-See?"

"Yes, I see," I replied with a smile. I waited several seconds, but Kumiko just stood there, staring at me. "Are you going to take the plates over?"

She blinked, then looked down at the plates in her hands as though she didn't know how they had gotten there. "Y-Yes, sir!" she quickly spun, somehow keeping her grip on the plates as she nearly slapped me with her hair, and headed to the table.

I snorted softly to myself with a smile as I turned back to the counter to finish up with food prep.

"So you have the food, you have the games, and you have the movies, right?" I asked as I stood at the entrance to the hallway.

"Y-Yes, Dad," Ushio said.

"All right, then; I'll be in my room if you need me."

I started to turn to head down the hall when a voice called out, "Can I see your room?"

Good grief. I looked back to see a hand sticking up from somewhere in the mass of girls. "Have fun, everyone," I said with a sigh before heading to my room. I went inside, grabbed a book, and reclined against a pillow I had leaned against the wall. I figured that since they were girls they wouldn't cause more trouble than one adult could handle. I heard a movie start and figured I could relax completely.

I had only been reading for a few minutes when I was startled by the sound of my door sliding open. On the other side was one of Ushio's friends, with a shocked expression. "I'm sorry!" she squeaked. "I thought this was the bathroom!"

"Next door that way," I told her, pointing back in the direction of the living room.

"Thanks." Rather than shut my door again, she looked around my room. "Wow…for such a big room, you don't have much, do you?"

"It has everything I need," I answered diplomatically, irked a little by her nosiness. "Besides, all I really need is my daughter and-"

"Shizu!" I heard Ushio cry. "That's my dad's room!" I tried to suppress a smile as I saw her arm reach out and grab her friend by the wrist. "The bathroom is here!"

Unfortunately, that left my bedroom door open, so I grumbled as I got to my feet and headed over to close it.

Before I got to the door, however, Ushio popped out from the hallway. "I'm so sorry, Dad!" she cried. "Shizu needed to use the bathroom and-"

"I'm fine," I interrupted, laying my hands on her shoulders to try to calm her. "I was just surprised, that's all."

"O-Okay," she said, laying her hands over mine. "I'll do better next time; I promise."

"Don't worry about it," I told her. "Accidents happen…okay?"

She studied my face for a moment. "Okay." She removed her hands from the top of mine to take me by my shoulders and gently pull me toward her; when I bent down, she gave me a kiss on the cheek…well, partly. "Thank you, Daddy; I love you."

I blinked; what brought that on? "Thanks, sweetie; I love you, too. Have fun with your friends."

"I-I will."

I smiled, returning her small wave as she headed back down the hallway toward the living room. Disaster averted, I headed back to my corner, picked up my book and, as I started reading again, wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. Her aim had gotten even worse, as she had gotten more of my mouth with her kiss than usual.

The movie eventually ended, and I smiled to myself as I could hear the girls chatting happily among themselves. I figured with the way they were giggling that they were talking about boys. My eyes lost focus and my book lowered as I thought back to when I was in high school, with the twins and Sunohara. "And Furukawa…" I mused, smiling nostalgically as I remembered my lost wife by her maiden name. "Those were good times…"

Nagisa was the one who had pulled me out of my own self-inflicted misery. She gave me a reason to be happy in life, with her awkward determination, and her eventual devotion to creating a home with me.

And then, of course, she was taken from me, like all the good things in my life had been. I'd been grateful for the joy Ushio brought to my life since taking custody of her, but I'd also found myself waiting for the other shoe to drop, losing her to…well, anything. So far, it appeared that she'd been spared her mother's condition, but…

My door slid open again, and Kumiko stumbled into my room before the door slammed shut again. "What the-?" I exclaimed as I shot to my feet.

"I'm sorry, Okazaki-sama!" she wailed as she backed against the door, and I could hear giggling just outside along with Ushio's protesting voice. "I-I-I chose dare!"

"Huh? Dare?"

She nodded with terror in her eyes. "I-I didn't want to choose 'truth' b-b-because I knew what they'd a-ask."

"Waitaminute…are you playing 'Truth or Dare', then?"

She nodded again. "And I thought I'd be safe choosing 'Dare'. I didn't know they'd dare me to do this, I swear!"

"Okay, calm down, sweetheart," I said in as gentle a tone as I could. "What did they dare you to do? Stay in my room for a certain amount of time?"

She shook her head, sending tears flying.

"Then what? I'll help if I can."

Her face turned completely scarlet, and I saw tears streaming from her eyes just before she covered her face. "To k…k…k…k-k-k…"

"You've got the first sound out; good job," I said softly, trying to be encouraging. Since it was Kumiko, I had a feeling I knew what the dare was, but I wanted to tread very carefully; the last thing I needed was a call from an angry parent. Or the police. "Keep going."

"…K…K...Kiss you!" she finally blurted. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

I tried to contain a grin. "That's it?"

"Huh?" she said, partly uncovering her face.

"Nothing else? They didn't say where or anything like that?"

"N-No… They just dared me to k-kiss y-you."

"That was pretty mean of them," I said. "But, there's an easy solution."

"What's that?" she asked in a still-trembling voice.

I smiled and bent down to offer her my cheek. "Put one there, and you've satisfied their dare."

Out of the corner of my eye I saw her blink several times. "Y-Yeah, you're right…"

"Think you could handle that?" I asked.

"I-I think so, O-Okazaki-sama."

"Then go for it," I told her. "I'll vouch for you. And I might even have a talk with the parents of whoever dared you."

She giggled through her tears, and then I saw her draw her lips into her mouth several times before slowly approaching me. I made sure to keep a friendly look on my face to keep her from becoming uncomfortable.

She moved, and I felt a warm pressure on my cheek. I waited, but she kept her lips pressed against me. "You, uh, planning on finishing any time soon?"

She quickly pulled away with a gasp. "I'm…I'm sorry!"

"Don't worry about it," I said with an easy smile. "That must have taken a lot of courage to do."

She said nothing, but nodded slowly.

I chuckled as I reached for the door. "Let's get you back to-" I twitched as she suddenly blocked the handle with her hand. "Kumiko-san?"

"Okazaki-sama…?" she said in a trembling voice, wringing her hands as I took my hand away from the door. "Okazaki-sama…?"

"Yeah?"

She folded her hands as she turned fearful eyes up to mine. "I…I really like you. W-Would you p-please go out with me?"

"Wh-What?"

"I-I really like you," she repeated, with more courage this time. "Would you please go out with me?"

"Would I…hm." I scratched my head as I studied her intense expression. I was surprised but not too surprised in light of her behavior at the graduation ceremony. "I'm…honored, really, but…do you even know how old I am?"

"Well…" her expression faded to one of thoughtfulness. "You have to be at least sixteen to get married-"

"Eighteen," I corrected. "It's still eighteen for boys."

Her eyes widened, as I'd hoped. "Th-Then you'd have to be at least thirty-four!"

"I'm thirty-six," I told her. "And how old are you?"

"Fifteen," she said, appearing to deflate. "I'll be sixteen next month."

"Well, happy birthday, Kumiko-san," I said warmly. "I hope it's a good one."

"Thanks," she said quietly. "But I'm too young."

"I'm afraid so," I said consolingly. "If I'm old enough to be Ushio's dad, then I'm definitely old enough to be yours. I'm sorry."

"I-It's okay," she said, starting to tear up again. "It's just…I've liked you for a long time, so it's hard, you know?"

"If you don't mind me asking; how long?"

"A-Almost as l-long as Ushio and I h-have b-been friends," she sputtered, somehow giggling through her tears.

"How long have you been friends?" I asked in the most sympathetic tone I could manage.

"S-Since the start of middle school."

I tried to keep my surprise off my face; what a precocious girl. "Three years, huh? That's a long time."

"Y-Yeah."

Something struck me as odd, though. "How come you acted like you didn't recognize me yesterday, then?"

"I…hadn't seen you in a long time, so I wanted to be sure."

"I see. Well, I'm sorry I can't be your special someone," I said, carefully laying a hand on her shoulder. "I wish you the best in finding someone…closer to your age, that is."

"Th-Thank you," she sputtered again. "M-May I cry for a minute?"

I smiled as I spread my arms, and she threw herself into me, crying her relief into the front of my shirt.

"Thanks for coming, everyone!" Ushio gushed as she saw her friends off at the door. "I had so much fun!"

"Thanks for inviting us!" one of them called as they moved off as a group. "See you at orientation!"

Kumiko, however, hung around, looking slightly uncomfortable. "Sh-Shio-chan? Could I talk with your dad for a minute?"

My daughter flashed me a suspicious look, but I gave what I hoped was a disarming smile as I indicated the kotatsu with my eyes. As she headed away I turned my attention to the very young redhead. "What did you need, Kumiko-san?"

She fidgeted as she alternated between looking at me and the floor. "I…just want to thank you for helping me with my dare."

"You're welcome. I'm sorry you had to go through all that," I said sympathetically. "Are you going to be all right?"

She nodded, a smile fading into view. "I feel better now that I've confessed, and… I can see that I have a lot of growing up to do to be worthy of someone like you. Thank you for being so amazingly kind in your rejection."

"I did my best," I said. "I really do hope you find someone who can make you smile. I'd like to suggest you wait until you decide what you want to do with your life, though; I've heard it can be hard juggling work and dating."

"I'll…keep that in mind, thank you." She studied my face for a moment. "I'm really sorry for putting you on the spot like that; you're a really awesome guy, and I hope you can find someone to make you smile again."

"I smile plenty," I said with a chuckle. "Ushio already brings a lot of happiness to my life."

"But she won't be around forever," Kumiko countered, then ducked her head. "Sorry."

"No, you're right." I exhaled noisily between my lips. "I guess…I'll cross that bridge when I get to it." I reached out and patted her on the head, unintentionally causing her to blush. "Thanks for thinking of me."

"It'll be hard not to after this," she admitted, ducking her head yet again. "A-Anyway, thank you for being such a good man."

"Thank you," I replied. "I'll do my best."

She studied me for another moment, shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"You should probably get on your way," I said softly. "Your parents are probably waiting for you."

"Y-You're right." She turned to head away, only to quickly turn back and grab my arm, pulling me until my head was low enough for her to put another kiss on my cheek. "That was the last one, I promise," she said with a giggle, then turned once more to run down the sidewalk, presumably toward home.

I straightened with a smile as I shook my head, turning to head back into the apartment.

The air felt oppressive, almost hostile, as I entered the living room, and I saw Ushio sitting at the kotatsu with an irritated expression, her eyes downturned. "Ushio? You okay?"

"Fine," she said, but I knew her well enough to know that she was upset about something. "Thanks for the party."

"You're welcome," I said as I sat across from her. "What's bothering you?"

She looked over at me, and she looked furious. "The next time I see Kumiko-san, I'm telling her she's not my friend anymore."

"What?" I couldn't believe my ears. "How come? Haven't you been friends for years?"

"She tried to take you away from me!" she snarled, causing me to lean back slightly as my eyes widened.

"Take me from you? How?"

"I know what happened!" she snapped. "The little bitch even told me what she'd done!"

I chose to ignore the language for the time being, though it did shock me to hear my daughter talking the way she was. "What did she do, Ushio?"

"You know, too! She confessed to you!"

"Yes, and I turned her down. Politely."

She glared at me, huffing, before getting to her feet and stomping over to my side of the table to plop down next to me. "Which cheek did she kiss?" she demanded.

"Huh?"

"Which. Cheek. Did. She. Kiss?"

"What does that have to do with…oh, whatever." I pointed to my left cheek. "This one. Why?"

I had absolutely no warning before my own daughter pounced on me, pushing me onto my side. Before I could react, she started peppering my left cheek with kisses.

"Ushio! What's gotten into you?" I demanded; the kisses felt more like violations than expressions of affection.

The onslaught finally slowed, and I could feel drops of moisture fall onto my face, and I realized that it couldn't have been from her lips. "Ushio?"

"I'm…sorry…" she whimpered in a tiny voice. "I'm…so…sorry…" When I looked, she had regret written all over her face, with tears streaming almost non-stop from her eyes. "Please…"

I did the only thing I could think of; I sat up, grabbed her up in my arms and simply held her while I tried to figure out what was going on. "Ushio…? Are you jealous?"

I felt her nod against my chest. "I-I'm sorry, To…Daddy," she shuddered. "I'm so sorry…"

"I forgive you," I said tenderly, rocking her as I wondered what the hell was happening to my daughter.