[Summary: Every day brings Nanako closer to her family.]
[9/17: Saturday]
Nanako followed Aunt Seta down the dirt path. Her aunt carried a bucket of water that she'd filled at the temple's water pump. Nanako had offered to carry it for her, but the woman had simply shaken her head. It was her burden.
Souji was silent next to Nanako as they walked. He was wearing his best clothes, including a dark gray vest, and that only emphasized his solemn demeanor. Nanako held his hand. In fact, she'd been holding it since the car ride that had brought them here. He squeezed her fingers sometimes, as if she needed the support more than he did.
He might not be wrong, at that.
The graveyard was an old one situated atop a hill, housing generations of departed Inaba residents. Some of the signs around the graveyard were illegible, not because the writing had been worn over time, although that was true, but because the language was too archaic to be understood. Many of the gravestones were taller than she was, and as densely packed as they were, she felt almost like she was lost in a stone jungle as she followed her aunt.
They passed several gravestones, some better-tended than others, before Aunt Seta stopped at a particular plot. It was a family grave, the name 'Seta' carved into the stone pillar.
A framed picture of Sachio Seta was sitting in front of the stone.
Nanako stared at it. The only other picture she'd seen of him had been the one Adachi had shown her. Souji took after his dad so much.
Speaking of Souji, Nanako noticed then that he was staring at the picture too. How long had it been since he'd seen a picture of his father? She recalled all of a sudden how Souji had admitted he was afraid of forgetting his father's face.
So focused on the picture, he wasn't blinking. It made her want to pull him into a hug, but then Aunt Seta moved the picture off to the side, and with it no longer in sight, Souji was left blinking, suddenly free of his trance.
Now Aunt Seta set the bucket down right by the gravestone, dipped a sponge in the water, and began to clean the monument. To Nanako's relief, the plot seemed to be well-tended. Sachio Seta hadn't been unpopular, or perhaps Aunt Seta visited more often than Nanako knew. She wondered if Adachi-san visited him, and how often.
The gravestone only needed to be washed because the recent rain had scattered dirt all over it. Oh, and some wild birds had decided to add their own decorations to it. Nanako volunteered to take care of that, since she felt the need to do something other than simply watch her aunt work, and Aunt Seta gave her the okay. While they worked on that, Souji replaced the wilted star anise flowers in the gravestone's built-in vase with some fresh ones. After that, Aunt Seta asked him to fill the water basin with fresh water, and he did so without a word.
When the gravestone was cleaned, Aunt Seta set incense into the holder and burned it. She resettled the framed photograph in front of the gravestone, then took Souji by the shoulders and pointed him towards it, murmuring that they should pray now. Souji, however, became fixated on the picture of his father and wouldn't close his eyes until his mother nudged his head down into bowing.
Nanako shouldn't have witnessed that, by all rights, because she should've had her head bowed as well. She remedied that now and silently wished her uncle well.
"All right," Aunt Seta said, breaking the ensuing silence. Her voice was... raw, dry from either emotion or lack of use. "We'll visit your teacher now."
Nanako nodded and picked up the wash bucket, for it was her burden this time. Souji was still looking at the picture, and Nanako decided she didn't have the heart to pull him away. "Souji," she said quietly. "If you'd like, you can wait for us here. We'll be back soon."
"Yes," Souji said in an unexpectedly strong and clear voice.
Even Aunt Seta seemed taken aback by this, but a moment later she motioned for Nanako to follow her.
Morooka's gravestone was a new one, and by the wooden memorial board, he was the only one interred there. There was leftover incense in the holder, and right next to it was...
A metal bracelet. Nanako inspected it without touching it, noting how the metal had been shaped into interlocking strands.
'Intricate,' she recalled.
It didn't take long for her to clean the gravestone. Aunt Seta helped by sweeping the dirt away from the base. When they were done, Nanako took a step back and bowed her head.
What did she want to say to Mr. Morooka? She thought for a second that she could come up with a haiku but dismissed it as disrespectful.
In the end, she simply told him, "Thanks."
The ensuing silence was broken by Aunt Seta. "When you went missing after his death..."
Nanako jerked her head up to look at her.
"I didn't know anything about it until your mother called me. She said you weren't answering her calls or texts, which she said wasn't like you. She'd heard the news about your teacher and was worried about your reaction."
"With good reason," Nanako murmured.
"Indeed," Aunt Seta agreed. "It was the first time she'd ever called me, and from that, I knew the situation was serious. I promised her I'd look into it, and then called the school and I found out that you'd left class. You weren't at home, either, so I called my brother for advice, and... Honestly, I did not expect him to drive all the way here on such short notice. He was very afraid for you."
Nanako wanted to apologize for that, but couldn't find any words.
Aunt Seta continued, "He searched for you all night in that pouring rain. He wasn't alone, by the way. Naoto-kun came around the house, and Kanji-kun trailed behind, looking a little like a lost puppy." Aunt Seta smiled briefly. "He didn't know where you lived, or the number to the house, but he still wanted to help, you see. Both of them did."
"Kanji-kun is a sweetie," Nanako murmured. "I knew Shirogane-san met Dad then, but... I didn't know..."
"When he couldn't find you," Aunt Seta went on, "Ryotaro was almost crushed. It was the most vulnerable I'd seen him in years." She paused, a reminiscent smile coming to her face. "The last time had been when he was a groom."
Nanako smiled sadly, too, remembering the pictures her aunt had shown her of that wedding day.
"He is such a grown man," Aunt Seta remarked. "Always was, but... you'd be surprised by how vulnerable his eyes were, like he was a little boy all over again."
"Do you mean when he was married, or when he was looking for me?" Nanako asked.
"When he couldn't find you," Aunt Seta answered. "Instead of letting out his frustration on me, as I could tell he wanted to, we ended up hugging. It was... Well, I hope to never experience his fear that night. It was a great relief that Saki-chan managed to find you in the morning."
"I... I'm sorry," Nanako finally managed. "I didn't... I didn't want anyone to worry about me like that. But I hadn't been thinking at all, and..."
Aunt Seta shook her head. "Don't apologize, Nanako-chan. You were not at fault in any way."
She paused. Around them, the wind picked up, and the wooden memorial boards from the graves nearby clacked together in their racks as if they were whispering to one another.
"Before everything happened," Aunt Seta finally went on, "I'd sometimes wonder why Ryotaro sent you here. I knew part of it had to do with the case he's currently working on. He did not want you exposed to any of it. But you were such a bright, inquisitive girl... Nothing seemed to faze you, least of all the serial murders, which you had an unhealthy interest in, even."
Nanako blinked, surprised that her aunt had noticed.
"When you went missing," Aunt Seta continued, "we thought the worst. Ryotaro said you'd always liked to play detective, and with a murder having occurred just the previous day, what else could it be? I only realized later, that despite appearances, you're quite sensitive. You even sensed..."
She trailed off, looking back the way they'd come. Towards Souji.
[9/18: Sunday]
It was a bright, sunny day at Inaba's flood plain.
"And left jab, and then... kick!"
Chie was really getting into the role of personal trainer. Nanako, Souji, and Naoto were as synchronized as they could be while they followed her instructions.
"Naoto-kun, you need to roll your shoulder into the punch," Chie said. She demonstrated, pulling her arm back just a little before letting it strike in a forward punch. "You see? Now try it."
Naoto's face was the visage of concentration as he followed Chie's example and threw a punch into the air.
"Good," said Chie. "Again!"
"Again...?" Naoto murmured. He nodded in determination and followed up with another air punch, and then another, and then another, and then...
"That's good, that's good!" Chie began to laugh. "You can stop now. I think it's time we work with our left hands!"
While they were repeating the drills, a bicycle bell began to sound nearby. So focused on following Chie's instruction, they all ignored it. It began to become insistent, however, ringing more and more furiously to get their attention. And then the bell gave up and there was a honk so loud that Souji nearly fell over in surprise.
"Stop it!" Chie snapped, turning towards the source of the sound, but then she flinched back. "Wh-wha... Yukiko?"
Nanako, still holding Souji to help him remain upright, looked at the newcomer and found it wasn't a bicyclist at all. Yukiko was sitting proudly on a brand new scooter, a red helmet in her hands.
More important perhaps than the scooter was Yukiko's wardrobe. Instead of her light red sweater, she was wearing a red vest over a blouse, and instead of a skirt, she had on a pair of black slacks. The long black hair that Nanako envied was tied back into a bun.
"When did you get a scooter?" Chie demanded. "Don't you need a license?"
"It wasn't difficult to get," Yukiko said. "It only took a few days of studying the manual."
"You... didn't tell me..."
"It was a whim," Yukiko said, "but I'm glad I went with it. There's so much freedom in not having to use the bus to get home!"
"I bet," Nanako said. Although she'd recovered from her shock much sooner than Chie, she was still reeling, because Yukiko looked damn fine and badass to boot. "You can get across town real fast with that."
Yukiko nodded her head. "If there's an emergency, I can respond in a flash."
"A flash of fire, even," Nanako said absently.
"Yes!" Yukiko giggled.
"But what's with those clothes?" Chie asked before the giggles could become untamed.
"Since we're training," Yukiko replied, "I thought I should dress the part! Without the skirt, I don't have to worry so much about, well, propriety. And the vest makes me feel like a different person."
"You should try the long skirt," Nanako said, pulling up her own skirt to demonstrate and then letting it fall back down. "It's long enough so no one can look under it. And it would go well with the scooter! Though it'd be even better if you had a motorcycle."
"I always wear shorts under my skirt," Chie said. "I've never had a problem."
"Motorcycles, a long skirt..." Naoto mused. "Are you aiming to start a gang, Nanako-san?"
"Of course not, Shirogane-san."
"Good—"
"I already have one, why would I start another?"
Naoto blinked only once. "Ah, yes. The 'DEATH Squad.' I'm not sure how to feel about being a member of this inscrutable group. My reputation is surely in jeopardy."
"Can't become worse than my own," Nanako said positively.
"Maybe one day the yakuza will really be after you," Yukiko agreed. "Oooh, that sounds exciting!"
"D-don't jinx her," Chie said, following it with a nervous laugh.
They continued to joke around, and then Nanako felt Souji tugging on her skirt. "Big sis," he said quietly while he continued to tug for her attention. "C-can I...?"
"What, honey?" she murmured back, brushing fingers through his hair.
He pulled away, and it took Nanako just a moment to realize he wanted to take a closer look at Yukiko's scooter. She followed him, protective instincts in full swing, though she knew he wouldn't be any trouble. In fact, he stopped a few feet away from the scooter, too bashful to ask if he could approach any closer. Yukiko noticed him and smiled. She got off the scooter, hung the helmet on the handlebars by its chinstrap, and then beckoned him forward.
It was a nice scooter, as far as Nanako could tell. It had a white body and its seat cushions were a red that matched the helmet. Although its engine was turned off, the pungent smell of burning gasoline lingered.
"It's sleek," Nanako commented.
"My mother helped pick it out for me," Yukiko said, "though she wondered why I wanted it."
"You know," Nanako mused. "A while ago, Yosuke wanted a scooter, but I talked him out of it."
"Yosuke-kun with a scooter," Yukiko said thoughtfully. "That sounds dangerous."
"I know, right?"
Yukiko knelt in front of Souji to meet his height. "Souji-kun, would you like to ride it? It's all right," she added when Nanako seemed about to protest. "He won't get hurt."
"N-no thank you," Souji murmured. "It's... t-tall..."
It was the elephant slide all over again, apparently. Nanako put her hands on her hips. "If Yosuke had one, he'd ride it."
"Yeah," said Chie. "He'd ride it right into the river."
Yukiko sighed dramatically. "Yes, that's right. When I said 'that sounds dangerous,' I meant to himself."
Knowing they were making fun of his friend, Souji looked a little put out. Nanako tousled his hair and gave him a soft smile, and a moment later she suddenly found herself being hugged by him.
"Aww, well that's just cute," Chie remarked at the sight. "Oh, that reminds me! Isn't the elementary school having a field trip this week?"
Nanako looked up from cuddling Souji to send Chie an alarmed look. "What?"
"Yeah! Umm, I don't know the details, but they're going to be visiting our school. Maybe we'll see this little guy during it."
"Sou-chan, do you know anything about this?"
"It's Thursday," he said.
"Wouldn't it be cool if Souji-kun's class is assigned to visit our class?" Chie said.
"Yeah!" Nanako agreed. She could show Souji the music room and the piano, the gym, the rooftop where they sometimes ate lunch... It'd be totally fun. And maybe he could bring Foxie along, too!
Excited, she picked Souji up right then and there and heaved him onto her shoulders. His cry of surprise quickly turned into a series of giggles.
"Now you're higher than the scooter," she teased.
He didn't comment on that, instead choosing to play with her hair.
"Well, I suppose that's it for training, huh?" Chie said, scratching her head.
"Chie, that's what I came here for!" Yukiko protested. "These new clothes serve a purpose. Please, show me what you're up to while I'm busy at the inn!"
Chie's face flushed with apprehension. "W-well, I..." she stuttered.
"You were teaching Shirogane-san to punch," Nanako said. "Why don't you show Yukiko that?"
"I am ready to demonstrate," Naoto said evenly, already moving into the proper stance.
"Well, all right," Chie said. "First, you need to learn to make the right kind of fist. Though it might feel more natural, don't put your thumb inside the fist!"
As Chie went on about proper punching technique, Nanako smiled to herself and lightly squeezed Souji's legs. They were a great team, weren't they?
[9/20: Tuesday]
Since Monday was Respect for the Aged day, Nanako had invited her friends to spend it eating tofu at Grandma Kujikawa's shop, much to Yosuke's distress. It wasn't until Tuesday, then, that Yukiko surprised the heck out of everyone at school by wearing a boy's school uniform.
Nanako expected someone to complain. She'd been hassled enough for simply wearing the long skirt, and that wasn't against the rules. Wearing the wrong gender's clothes would definitely attract administrative attention. It was going to be a disaster.
But during homeroom, Ms. Kashiwagi only glanced at Yukiko once and didn't say a word about it.
"It's because her grades are so good," Chie told Nanako later when she remarked about it. "She's under the radar. You know how she's missed school a few times because she needed to help the inn? The teachers never bother her for that, either."
It was totally unfair, but Nanako couldn't deny that her grades could use some work. At least their next exams were over a month away. There was plenty of time!
A month away. A lot could happen in a month. With that looming over her mind, Nanako headed right home after class, deciding it might be a good time to look over her notes for the term so far. She'd already forgotten what venison was at this point.
She was at the tea table in the living room, brushing up on trigonometric identities, when Souji came home from cram school. "Big sis, big sis!" he cried upon opening the front door. He rushed forward so fast that he nearly tripped over his own feet. "I f-finished it!"
"Careful, careful!" she said while pushing herself to her feet. "Finished what?"
He held out a crocheted thing about the size of her own hand. It was made entirely of brown yarn, making it appear like nothing more than a misshapen blob. She turned it over in her hands and then she finally realized it was supposed to be a dinosaur. A flying one, at that! One of its wings was longer than the other, and its head was smaller than its neck. It was no wonder the dinosaurs went extinct if they were proportioned like this.
But he'd tried, and that's all that mattered. "Can we show it to..." He trailed off.
"Kanji-kun?" she guessed, and he nodded. She nodded back—Kanji would at least be able to tell him how good his stitching was—and his face positively glowed.
They headed right out, though Nanako made sure Souji brought the Loveline umbrella along since it was cloudy out. The weather forecast hadn't included rain, but it hadn't been completely reliable lately. It was better to be safe than sorry, and Souji was so happy to carry it along with his crocheted dinosaur that it was worth bringing along even if it had been completely sunny outside.
In the textiles shop, Kanji was sitting on the raised floor, his legs stretched out in front of him onto the lower level. He wasn't working on anything, just apparently relaxing while he chatted with Yosuke next to him.
Wait, Yosuke? Nanako almost did a double-take. What was he doing here? The textiles shop was the last place she expected to see him.
"Finally," Yosuke said, noticing her. "I was wondering what was so—"
"Partner!" Souji cried, running up to him.
Yosuke scratched the back of his head. "Uhh... Hello, Souji." He sent a questioning look at Nanako over the boy's head.
Souji shyly offered up his crochet creation. Yosuke gingerly picked it up and held it out so that Kanji could see it too.
"You finished it!" Kanji enthused. "Good job, li'l guy. You'll be a pro in no time!"
"Oh, you made this, huh?" Yosuke said. "I, uh, like its... eyes?" It sounded so much like a question that Nanako had to suppress a chuckle.
Souji smiled widely in response to this praise. When Yosuke tried to hand the crocheted thing back to him, Souji wouldn't take it.
"I guess it's yours now, 'partner,'" Nanako said. "Cherish it always."
"Sure...? Thanks, Souji." Yosuke sounded gracious enough. It fooled Souji, anyway. He stuffed it into his pocket and turned to Nanako. "So what's the urgent business you needed me here for?"
"Urgent business?" Nanako didn't hide her puzzlement. "I'm only here because Souji asked to see Kanji-kun."
"But Saki-senpai said..." Yosuke's brow furrowed. He paused, shook his head, then started again. "See, I went in for my shift at work, and she told me she was going to take it since I needed to be here. Urgent business."
Nanako thought it over for a moment before grinning. "I think you got pranked, Yosuke!"
"If she needs the hours, she can take all my shifts," Yosuke said. "She didn't need to make me come here, though."
Souji had climbed up to the upper level to sit next to Yosuke. He was now smiling up at his friend and mimicking his sitting pose, with his arms crossed and his legs slightly bent.
Yes, she did, Nanako thought.
"While you're here," Kanji said, "maybe you can learn to crochet."
"Nahhh," Yosuke replied. "What with guitar practice, I don't really have the time for another hobby."
"Bring your guitar on Thursday," Nanako requested suddenly. "We can play for Souji's class!"
"That would be really embarrassing," Yosuke protested, but he had on a shy smile which meant he wasn't opposed to the idea.
"Do you know what you wanna make next?" Kanji asked Souji. "Come on, I'll let you pick out the colors you wanna use."
He stood up, took Souji by the hand, and led him into the back room. Yosuke also stood up, but Nanako waved him back before he followed along. "Actually, Yosuke," she said when she was sure that Souji was out of hearing range. "It's not 'urgent business' or anything, but are you working Friday?"
"On the holiday? Probably. But maybe I can switch with Saki-senpai again."
"Holiday? What holiday?" She gave him a funny look. "We just had a holiday!"
"It's the Autumnal Equinox."
"Whatever that means," she muttered. "That one always trips me up. Well, anyway, I'm thinking it's time we went into the TV. It's too late today, and I got stuff going on tomorrow, and who knows what Thursday's going to be like."
"If I'm off, I'm game," he said. "Wait a second, what's this?"
Yosuke toed something on the floor of the upper level. It rolled right off the ledge. Nanako picked it up. "Oh, it's just Souji's umbrella," she said.
"Are you sure?" He sounded skeptical. "It's pink."
"The best color," she declared, shaking the umbrella at him as if it was an extension of her finger. "And of course I'm sure. I gave it to him, after all. It's his Wand of Justice."
"His what? Nevermind, I don't think I want to know."
Nanako grinned, more to herself than anything. She needed to bring Yosuke over to Aunt Seta's sometime so that Souji could play games with him. She'd have to think of a dumb title for him to go with it.
"Now I really don't want to know," Yosuke said, noting her grin. "Oh, they're back."
The door to the back room slid open and Kanji and Souji stepped through. The little boy was carrying a basket of crochet-related goodies, mostly a few spools of yarn. They walked to where the others were, and Kanji helped Souji down to the lower level.
"I gave him some simple patterns to use," Kanji said. "They're in the basket, at the bottom. He should know all the stitches needed for them, but if he's got any problems, you bring him right over and we'll sort it all out."
"Thanks, Kanji-kun!" Nanako traded Souji the basket for the Loveline umbrella, said goodbye to both of her friends, and led Souji out of the shop.
Nanako almost whistled because she was feeling pretty good, but the urge died when they passed the shrine Kanji and his mother had built for Teddie.
She stopped walking so that she could pay her respects to it. She set the basket down at a respectable distance away, then approached the shrine, noting that someone, probably Kanji, had replaced the flowers recently.
The star mask was still present on top of the shrine, and she stared at it for a long moment. She no longer felt the stirring within her that she once had from it.
After paying her respects to the shrine, she thanked Souji for waiting for her, picked up the basket, and then continued on her way.
[9/21: Wednesday]
Nanako was so excited for Souji's field trip that she totally forgot it was Wednesday until she came home to the strong scent of freshly chopped onions. Aunt Seta was preparing a home-cooked meal in the kitchen. By the thin strips of chicken and onions on the cutting board and eggs in a bowl nearby, it was going to be oyakodon. Nanako's mouth watered at the thought.
Souji was at the tea table, apparently working on his next crochet project, something that currently looked like a green blob. Nanako reserved her judgment for now. Naoto was sitting across from him, keeping him company. Nanako joined them and she made some small talk. She was a little nervous about Adachi coming over. The last time had been so long ago, and he'd shown her that incriminating video. If he talked about the tofu shop incident at all tonight, she had to be sure not to seem too excited or give away that she knew anything!
That is, if he was even going to show up. He'd been skipping out on these family Wednesday nights so often lately that Nanako had her doubts about the status of the Adachi-Seta courtship.
A knock on the door threw those doubts to the wind. Aunt Seta answered the door, and after exchanging pleasantries, Adachi was welcomed into the house. Today the cabbage detective was wearing a magenta tie with his suit. It looked sharp on him! If only he had a matching flower in his breast pocket.
Aunt Seta informed him that her dinner wasn't quite ready, and he nodded politely at her before moving into the living room. He inclined his head at Naoto. "Shirogane-kun," he greeted.
"Ah, yes," said Aunt Seta from the kitchen. "He'll be joining us for dinner. I hope you don't mind."
"The more, the merrier," Adachi replied. "Besides, I know he lives here. You should be asking him if it's okay to have me around!"
"Of course it's quite all right, Adachi-san," Naoto said. "You are a guest here as much as I am."
"As long as you don't talk business," Nanako quipped.
"Yeah, no," said Adachi, shaking his head. "Uhh, what's that?"
Souji was holding up his crochet project by the crochet needles, trying to show it to him. "It's a dinosaur," he murmured. It was as much a mess of yarn as it had been earlier in the afternoon, which meant it was still completely unidentifiable.
"Show him the one you finished," Nanako suggested. "Oh, right, you gave that to someone."
"He has that, err, other... one," Naoto said. Halfway through that sentence he'd turned hesitant, probably regretting his words.
Souji's eyes lit up, and he put his current project down to run into his room. Moments later he came out with the egg-shaped Teddie doll he'd made some time ago and gave it to the detective.
Adachi turned it over in his hands... over and over again, trying to figure out what the heck it was.
"It's very round," he said finally.
He was saved from coming up with more faint praise by Aunt Seta announcing that dinner was served. They relocated to the dining room. The table was a bit crowded with five of them—an extra chair had to be brought out from a closet—but it definitely felt more alive with so many people there!
Or it would have felt more alive, if two of the group weren't overworked detectives. Both Adachi and Naoto ate almost mechanically, as if they were being forced to by their worried coworkers. "Psst! Taste your food!" Nanako hissed, and both of them looked up, startled. "Auntie worked hard on that!"
Adachi grinned sheepishly. "Y-yeah. Sorry, Ryoko-san. After bento for lunch and nimono for dinner every day, I almost forgot what good food tastes like!"
"Nimono for dinner every day?" Aunt Seta raised an eyebrow. "That sounds very much like torture."
"I wonder if I can arrest the fossil who keeps making it for me," Adachi agreed. "She's got me confused with her son. Seems we share the same given name." He shoveled a portion of chicken into his mouth and made a dramatic 'mmm' sound. "This is way better than nimono. Heck, it's even better than any of that 'gourmet tofu' Kujikawa-san shoveled down my throat."
"Oh, don't let her hear you saying that," Aunt Seta warned. "That old lady is quite the pistol."
More like a Gatling cannon, Nanako almost corrected. She resisted the grin that tried to come to her face at the memory of that awesome granny.
"I have a feeling if I don't check up on her after a while, she'll have my ass," Adachi said.
"That's assuming she'd want it." Aunt Seta 'hmhmhm'd after that.
Adachi pretended to look offended, and then announced ruefully, "You got me there!"
After everyone had finished dinner and the dishes had been cleared from the table, Aunt Seta invited Adachi to stay a while and relax, and he accepted with a shrug and a 'why not?' She leveled only one complaint about an annoying coworker before continuing on to talk about how Souji was doing in school.
"You're making your mama proud, huh?" Adachi asked the boy rhetorically. "Keep it up, but don't forget to have fun."
Aunt Seta waved a hand. "Oh, Nanako-chan makes sure of that."
Adachi glanced in her direction. "I'm sure she does."
"And Shirogane-san, too!" Nanako added quickly.
At that, Adachi appraised Naoto. "Huh, I wasn't aware that Shirogane-kun knew what fun was. You learn something new every day."
"Big bro..." Souji began, but he stopped. Everyone looked at him and waited expectantly for him to continue. "Big bro... bought me Featherman manga."
Adachi's eyes danced, and his grin was mischievous. "Is that so..."
"Souji-kun watches the show faithfully," Naoto said rather stiffly, "but the manga is superior in every way. I couldn't let him miss out."
"I knew you were a nerd!" Adachi declared, slapping the table to emphasize his victory.
"Souji-kun will be raised correctly under my watch." Naoto tipped his cap.
"He'll become a little nerd, too." Adachi sighed dramatically. "I suppose there are worse things he could be."
"Since you mentioned it," Aunt Seta began hesitantly. When everyone turned their heads towards her, she appeared embarrassed. "Well, I was quite a nerd in my day..."
"A photography nerd," Nanako said.
Aunt Seta grew a tight smile. "Indeed. Ah, give me a moment..."
She got up from the table and picked up a shoebox that had been stored in the kitchen's far corner. She set it on the table and opened it, sneezing once from the dust accumulated within it. She rummaged through it a moment before bringing out a photo album.
She hesitated again. "I brought these down from my closet to show Nanako-chan, but if you'd like..."
She was asking Adachi, who was blinking at her in astonishment. "Uhh..." he said before recovering. "Well, now I'm curious! What is it?"
Aunt Seta turned the album to face them. The cover was decorated in little bunny, duck, and heart stickers. She set it down on the table, and they gathered around it, Nanako getting out of her seat to crowd behind Souji's chair to get a closer look.
"No way," Nanako breathed. "Souji's baby pictures?"
"A mother's pride is her kid," Adachi remarked, looking interested despite himself.
There was a glint in Aunt Seta's eye that Nanako had never seen before. Nanako wasn't sure if it was caused by said pride, or because she was about to show these pictures to someone important to her.
Nanako gently pushed Souji out of his chair so that she could sit in it, pulling him into her lap after so that they could see album together as Aunt Seta opened it to the first page. The very first picture was a bald-headed baby with piercing silver eyes wrapped up in a soft yellow blanket. There was a date with the album. Nanako did some mental math, and...
"Right out of the hospital, huh?" Adachi said, beating her to the punch.
"They wouldn't let me bring the camera in the hospital," Aunt Seta said, "so I took as many pictures as I could when we brought him home."
"What, you mean there's no video of his birth?" Nanako pretended to be disappointed, making it clear that she was joking.
"None," Aunt Seta reported with feigned sadness. "There's no video of his conception, either."
If Nanako had been drinking anything she'd have spit it all out right there. She hadn't expect that Dojima sense of humor in front of Adachi-san!
"Forgive me if I say 'Thank god for that.'" Adachi was shaking his head, and Aunt Seta and Nanako laughed with him.
She felt Souji shift in her lap. When she looked down, she saw him curiously mouthing the word 'conception.' Quickly she distracted him by pointing to the next picture. "Do you remember being this small, Sou-chan?"
Souji shook his head.
"I remember it like yesterday," Aunt Seta volunteered. "I know there's a picture of his first steps here... Ah, there it is!"
Nanako eagerly leaned over Souji's head to look. Apparently the event had happened during a picnic at the flood plain. Little baby Souji was standing in one picture and flat on his butt in the next. He was grinning happily up at the camera, his fists grasping the grass growing around him.
"How precious," Naoto murmured.
Nanako agreed. She didn't take her eyes off the album as Aunt Seta flipped to the next page. There were so many pictures! Here Souji was on the couch—it a different couch than the one in the house now, they must've bought a new one since then—here he was in a crib, here he was in Uncle Seta's arms, the adult wearing the alarmed expression that men everywhere wear when handling such a fragile and precious item.
By the sheer amount of pictures, it was obvious they were proud parents. The album mostly went in chronological order. To see Souji as an infant, and then a toddler, and then a three-year-old, and then four...
The album ended there. "Is there another book?" Nanako asked, looking up at her aunt.
"Oh, no," Aunt Seta answered. "That's all I have."
No more? Considering the sheer volume of baby and early childhood pictures, it seemed strange that she hadn't taken any of Souji's first day of kindergarten, at least!
Though, that would have been last year, and considering what had happened then... It was probably no coincidence that Aunt Seta had dropped her favorite pastime at the same time.
"I do have an empty photo album," Aunt Seta murmured. "Actually, I've been meaning to..."
She moved to the kitchen, opened a drawer, and pulled a cell phone out of it. She returned to her seat at the table and slid the phone across the table to Nanako.
"Souji," Aunt Seta said. "That's for you. I'm sure Nanako-chan can teach you how to use it."
"Mama?" Souji looked at her for confirmation before tentatively reaching out to it.
"It's one of my old work phones. It was replaced by a newer model last month, and they allowed us to keep the old one. It's inactive, but some of its functions still work, such as... its camera."
Souji was looking up at his mother in awe. "I can... it's mine?"
"Nanako-chan has my old camera," Aunt Seta said. "Perhaps you two can go have a shoot together."
"Your old camera?" Nanako repeated. She'd left Aunt Seta's camera on the kitchen counter after the field trip. Aunt Seta had never put it away, so it was still there. Nanako hadn't realized she was meant to continue using it. She nodded now with determination. "We'll fill that photo album up, and then some!"
She showed Souji how to unlock the phone's screen after Aunt Seta gave him the passcode.
"Don't look now, but I think you've unleashed a monster," Adachi said.
Nanako opened the phone app, helped Souji hold the phone up, and had him aim it right at Adachi. "Smile!"
The grin captured by Souji's new camera was more indulgent than anything. "You should've put it in selfie mode," Adachi said. "That would have been a better picture than little old me!"
Nanako decided it was a good idea and did just that. Now Souji had a picture of him and Nanako looking right at the phone's screen. Adachi was totally right—Souji's smile was so big!
"Thanks, Aunt Seta!" Nanako said with feeling. "We're going to have a lot of fun with this."
Naoto recommended that he not use the phone at school, and Souji promised he wouldn't.
"Aww, but I want him to take pictures of his field trip to Yasogami High tomorrow!" Nanako brushed her fingers through Souji's hair while the boy continued to look at the phone's screen as it provided a live feed of its camera. He was aiming it at Adachi, who was pretending not to notice that he was being watched. Nanako pretended not to notice the funny faces he occasionally made.
"He might not be able to," Aunt Seta said, "but you..." She was smiling in a way reminiscent of Margaret. Or perhaps Igor.
"They'd confiscate my camera for sure," Nanako protested.
Aunt Seta's smile grew even more sly, if it was possible. "They won't."
[9/22: Thursday]
It started with an assembly.
Of course it did. What the elementary school kids really needed most was the adults lecturing them about how educational their field trip was while they were on it.
Nanako hummed to herself, hardly listening. The visiting kindergarteners and first graders were sitting in neat little rows on the floor near the front of the high school's gym, right before the stage. The gym could hardly hold all the students, and in fact, for that reason Yasogami's third years weren't invited. Nanako and the other first and second year high schoolers were sitting in a large group behind the kids. She could see Souji easily from her place on the floor. Gray hair really stood out in the sea of black.
According to Ms. Kashiwagi, the field trip had been inspired by the 'success' of their own trip to Gekkoukan High School. Why just the high school? some official must have thought. The elementary school and middle schools should participate in a cultural exchange as well!
A cultural exchange within the same town. It seemed a bit silly, but apparently there wasn't any funding to go with that official's decision, not to mention most parents wouldn't allow their young child to go out of town like the high schoolers had.
Nanako blinked out of her daydreams about cuddling Souji because there was sudden movement in the front few rows of students. Apparently the assembly was over. She made to get up herself, but felt someone tugging her back down. It was Chie. Nanako sent her a puzzled look and Chie just rolled her shoulders as she held in a laugh.
"You need to pay more attention!" Chie whispered too loudly.
"What's going on?" Nanako whispered back.
"The kids are gonna do a presentation for us. We're supposed to just sit and watch. Look, it's Yuuta-kun's class!"
After a bit of searching, Nanako spotted Yuuta among his classmates as they filed onto the stage and were shuffled into place by their teacher. Yuuta was carrying a big rubber ball about the size of a watermelon. Some of the other kids carried other rubber balls, too, and each was a different color and size. It wasn't obvious what the purpose was until the teacher turned on a boom box that she'd set on the stage and the students began to sing along to the music it played.
The planets,
The planets,
We're studying the planets,
Mercury and Jupiter and Marrrrrs
Well, it wasn't so much singing as mumbling along, but no one could deny it was cute. The kids carrying the rubber balls raised them excitedly when their planet was named in the song, which went on to describe the order from the sun and other solar system-related factoids that the high schoolers had already learned years ago.
"Wish our exams would be on this stuff," Yosuke muttered. "I'd pass for sure."
Nanako hushed him and tried her best not to wave at Yuuta, though she was almost bursting with excitement. The kids looked like they were having such a good time! What was Souji's class going to do? She could hardly wait. They didn't seem to have any props with them... No, they had rubber balls, too. Well, the assembly was taking place in the gym, where the Balls Club met, so she supposed it was appropriate.
When the presentation was over, Yuuta's teacher directed her students to bow to the audience. There was polite applause from the collective high schoolers, and then Nanako leaped to her feet and hollered, "Great job, Yuu-chan! You're so talented! I always knew it!"
Yuuta stood there on the stage, looking much like she must have looked when she'd faced that giant robot in Naoto's dungeon. Then he shouted a "Don't call me that!" back at her before scurrying after his classmates and off the stage.
Then Souji's class stood up, and Nanako couldn't stop herself from waving furiously at her little cousin. Because she was still standing from her outburst, she was easily noticed, and an instant later Souji was waving back at her. Takeyoshi tried to interrupt, but Souji just nudged him, and soon both of the boys were waving at her.
At least until Ms. Kashiwagi strode over from the sidelines where she and the other Yasogami High teachers had been standing. She glared at Nanako, who almost rolled her eyes. Ms. Kashiwagi's glare had nothing on Mr. Morooka, that was for sure. But Nanako's arm was getting tired of waving by then, so she sat down without a fight.
Souji's teacher switched the CD in the boom box, and then, like Yuuta's class, the students began to sing.
We love the rain,
We get all wet
The sun comes out,
It dries us up,
Where does the water go?
The teacher held up a neon orange ball that represented the sun, and the children held blue, gray, and white balls to represent water, clouds, and wind. The song went on to explain the basic rain cycle, with the kids sometimes losing their place in the song because their props and the actions they were supposed to perform with them were too distracting for them.
When the song ended, the audience began to applaud, and Nanako was halfway to her feet again when she realized the students weren't actually done with their performance. The students put on plastic ponchos, except Souji who took out his Loveline umbrella and opened it up.
Souji said something to the audience, but it was basically inaudible because he was so soft-spoken.
"That's my cousin," Nanako informed the student sitting in front of her. "The one with the incredible umbrella. My cousin."
The teacher had him repeat his words, since apparently she couldn't hear it either, and she was on the stage with him.
"That's my cousin, isn't he cute?" Nanako said to the male class representative, who nodded politely.
Souji opened his mouth to speak, and then closed it and shook his head. Takeyoshi stepped up and spoke for him: "He said IT'S RAINING CATS AND DOGS!"
All of the students on stage began to meow and bark at once in response. Twisting the umbrella in his hand, Souji meowed too.
Nanako leaned towards the girl next to her, and before she opened her mouth, Chie put a finger to her lips and said, "That's your cousin, we know."
Nanako pouted and then kissed Chie's finger, and Chie withdrew it as if it had been burned, glancing around as if afraid anyone had seen that. Yukiko just smiled and shook her head.
"He's adorable, anyway," Nanako muttered. "The best cousin. My only cousin. My darling baby boy."
"The light of your life, you love him so much?" Yosuke added.
Though she recognized that he was teasing her, she'd redirected her attention to the stage and was too focused on said light of her life to say anything other than, "Yep."
The boom box began to play the sound of falling rain. The children were now doing a very unchoreographed dance to this 'music.' It lasted for a few minutes too long, even by cute little cousin standards. When it was over, the kids once again faced the audience and bowed.
When Nanako jumped to her feet to shout, "You're the cutest, Sou-chan!" she found she wasn't the only one standing—Yosuke was by her side, waving hard at Souji.
"I didn't know you had a soft spot for kids," Chie remarked when they'd both sat down again.
"Nanako's right. Souji is cute, okay?" Yosuke crossed his arms, and Nanako nodded firmly her agreement.
It took over an hour for the other classes to make their presentations, and then they had to suffer through another speech from the principal about how happy Yasogami High was to have hosted this event that helped nurture young minds blah blah...
When it was over, everyone pretty much stood up at once. Ms. Kashiwagi attempted to organize her homeroom class and lead them out of the gym. Nanako didn't follow, intending to slip away so that she could be with her cousin, but Ms. Kashiwagi caught her. However, Nanako had an ace up her sleeve. She produced her camera and the shiny, laminated press pass that Aunt Seta had let her borrow. It didn't have any real authority, but it looked official... official enough to bluff with.
"I gotta take pictures of those cuties," Nanako told her teacher. "It's for the yearbook!" When Ms. Kashiwagi looked suspicious, she waved the press pass and added, "And the newspaper! Y'know, for the 'Local Flavor' insert."
Ms. Kashiwagi's expression changed. "Oh, well, in that case, you can take as many pictures as you want... as long as you take one good picture of me."
Nanako agreed, though she expected the woman to want her to take several outrageous pictures that would only suit someone half her age. It turned out, however, that Ms. Kashiwagi really wanted only just the one, although the woman made sure her assets were prominently displayed. Nanako took care to ensure it was tastefully done.
Nanako took, in Naoto's words, 'a truly inappropriate' amount of pictures of all the little kiddies. Though her focus was Souji—she had a whole photo album to fill up, after all—she tried to give all of the children a chance to be in the spotlight. Considering Inaba's poor track record so far, who knew how many of them needed the attention? There weren't enough hours in the day to solve everyone's problems...
"Need anything, Captain?"
She took her eyes from the lens to blink owlishly up at the towering form of Kou Ichijo. "Shouldn't you be in class?" she asked.
Kou shrugged. "The kids keep losing their balls, so..."
It was then she noticed he was carrying a couple of the rubber balls the kids had been using in their presentations under his arms. "Well, Expert Ball Wrangler is your position on the team, after all."
"Better than Expert Ball Mangler," Kou replied seamlessly. "Like Daisuke here."
"Oh?" Nanako raised her eyebrow, intrigued. She hadn't noticed that Kou's soccer friend had been recruited, too, but there he was in his teal PE tracksuit, the big neon sun ball in his hands. A couple of kids were trying to take it away from him.
"You headbutt a guy in the crotch one time," Daisuke complained, "and they never let you live it down." He lifted the rubber ball high over his head and the kids began to try and jump up to reach it.
She'd have to get the whole story sometime. For now, though, the teachers had made their decision to bring the kids back to the elementary school for an early dismissal day. Since that seemed pointless to Nanako, she asked that Souji be allowed to stay with her, and after a round of phone calls, Takeyoshi was allowed to stay under her supervision, too, as long as she brought the two boys to their cram school on time later in the afternoon.
After one last round of pictures and goodbyes to her new little friends, the students followed their teachers out of the gym to the parking lot where their buses awaited, and Nanako was left alone with Souji, Takeyoshi, Kou, and Daisuke. The sudden quiet in the gym was disorienting, but the sound of a ball bouncing brought her attention back to the present. "Ta-kun," she scolded, "you were supposed to give that back to your teacher."
"Actually, that basketball is one of ours," Kou said. "Pass it here, will you?"
Takeyoshi tossed the basketball to Kou after bouncing it twice on the floor. It was a perfect pass, and Souji went "Oh!" at the sight. Kou caught it easily, and then began to balance the ball on the tip of his index finger.
"You should show them your slick moves, Kou-kun!" Nanako suggested.
Daisuke snorted. "Slick moves? He doesn't have any."
"Not for the ball court, I suppose," Nanako remarked, raising both her eyebrows suggestively before realizing she needed to keep things G-rated when there were children present. She'd done worse in front of Souji, but Ta-kun was a relative innocent.
"Yeah?" said Kou, sounding indifferent. "I guess I could..."
"I bet you won't make the basket from here," Takeyoshi said, holding his hands behind his back and looking rather smug.
"Was I really just challenged by a 5-year-old?" Kou shook his head.
"I'm not 5," Takeyoshi retorted. "I'm 6 years, 9 months—"
"Ta-kun is older than me," Souji murmured. "And... I'll be seven next year."
"Next year?" Nanako repeated. "What... I missed your birthday this year? No... No way!"
In her disappointment, she enveloped Souji in a tight hug. The boy accepted it with an embarrassed but happy smile, and then ended up cuddling Nanako back.
Takeyoshi glanced at the two of them before returning his attention to Kou. Under that gaze, Kou looked at the ball in his hands, and then at the nearest basket. They were actually standing on one of the lines painted onto the court, which Nanako assumed meant it wasn't an impossible throw, but the basket did seem pretty darn far.
Kou rolled his shoulders and then his neck in a stretch. Then he reared back and let the ball fly. It spun through the air, soaring towards its goal.
It hit the backboard and then bounced to the far side of the gym.
Takeyoshi was grinning in the ensuing silence. Then Kou muttered, "I didn't think I'd make it..."
His whole stance screamed dejection. His shoulders drooped and even his purple-dyed hair seemed down.
Now Takeyoshi frowned. "Hey," he said. "You were kind of close. You could try again."
"'Kind of close,'" Kou repeated. "I didn't even hit the net!"
"If at first you don't succeed," Takeyoshi said, "try, try again. That's what our teacher always says. In fact, Blue Swan said that on Featherman last week."
"She did, big sis!" Souji said, looking up at Nanako from where he was still enfolded in her arms. "It was right when they were—" Nanako gently hushed him, because Daisuke had retrieved the ball and handed it back to Kou.
Kou turned the ball over in his hands, apparently thinking. He looked at Takeyoshi, then at the basket. Without another moment's hesitation, he went for it.
The ball hit the basket's rim, bounced up and then teetered on the edge. Everyone held their breath as the ball seemed indecisive.
Then it rolled inside.
Instead of cheering or shouting, Kou was just smiling at his victory. Takeyoshi held his hand up to him, and it took Kou just a moment to hand him a high five.
"See?" said Takeyoshi.
"Yeah," said Kou. "Thanks, kid. You're all right."
"Now it's Daisuke-kun's turn to show us some soccer moves!" Nanako said. She turned to Kou. "Ball Wrangler, got a soccer ball somewhere?"
"I think I'll pass on that," Daisuke said. He sent a scowl to his left, where a couple of girls were standing on the sidelines, watching them. Or rather, watching him.
"Daisuke-kun," one called. "W-would you like to umm... go to Aiya with us?"
"I already ate lunch!" Daisuke snapped back. He stomped after the basketball to retrieve it. It had rolled all the way to a far corner of the gym.
"Girl problems, huh?" Nanako remarked while he was out of earshot. "Is that why he's not into soccer anymore?"
Kou smiled, though there was no humor in it. "Maybe. It's always like this."
"You should..." Souji said slowly, looking up at Kou. "Umm, you should... Hug him, and stay like that for a while. Then the girls will leave him alone."
"Where did that idea come from, Sou-chan?" Nanako asked.
"Saki-san said you did that with her, big sis... and then the boys left her alone."
Nanako blinked hard, her brow knitting together until it clicked. "Wait, Senpai told you about that!?" she exclaimed. That had been ages ago, in that club in Okina. Huh, that must have left a strong impression on her... Nanako began to grin.
Kou scratched his head. "Uhh, you know, little guy, not everyone is like that."
Nanako let the grin drop to send Kou an unamused look.
He held up his hands defensively. "Okay so, maybe I do love, err, balls, but I'm not sure what Daisuke would think."
"I think he'd thank you," Nanako said.
Kou nibbled his lip while he considered it. "Well, it's true he never liked girls."
Takeyoshi spoke up. "I saw in a documentary that homosexuals are born this way, rather than an acquired condition."
"I thought you were six!" Kou said, incredulous.
"Just kiss him, Kou," Nanako said. "There he is now."
Daisuke was jogging back towards them, the basketball under his arm. One of the girls called after him, "If not lunch, what about dinner?"
"I guess I have nothing to lose," Kou said with a sigh. When Daisuke opened his mouth to retort to the girl, Kou stepped towards him and planted a quick peck to his cheek.
The girls gasped as one.
Daisuke was frowning now. He looked at the girls, then at Kou, who was obviously sweating, and then at the girls again.
Then he tossed the basketball aside, grabbed Kou and pulled him into rough but firm kiss right on the lips.
The expectant hush that followed was punctuated by the sound of the basketball's bounces.
Then the girls burst into cheers:
"Oh my god!"
"He didn't!"
"He did!"
"Holy shit!"
When Daisuke let go of his partner, Kou shook his head, glanced at the cheering girls, and then looked askance at Souji. "Well, that didn't work."
"What didn't work?" Daisuke grumbled. "Whatever, let's grab some lunch." He took Kou by the hand and led him out of the gym, the hysterical girls quickly following them.
"I think it worked just fine," Nanako murmured in the ensuing silence, thinking that if it was a social link, it'd definitely be maxed right then and there. She shook her head to clear it and narrowed her eyes on a certain little boy. "Ta-kun! I bet you impress your teacher every day with your worldly knowledge."
"He does!" Souji exclaimed, twisting excitedly in Nanako's arms. "She's called his mama lots of times to... t-tell her about it."
Takeyoshi looked put out after that. "Mom wouldn't let me watch TV for a week last time," he muttered.
"Did she set up parental controls, or did you find a way past them anyway?" Nanako teased.
"Big sis," Souji said, "can we have lunch? Ta-kun's hungry."
"What?" said Takeyoshi. "I didn't say that!"
"Your stomach did. I heard it."
"Heh, I guess we should eat, huh?"
Not wanting to cross a teacher by going into the classroom to grab her lunch box—everyone else was still in class, after all—Nanako took the boys to the nearest vending machine and bought a bento that they could all share. She led them to the rooftop, where she and her squad sometimes sat, though she had to help the boys up to their seats. She sat between them and opened the box after handing the boys each a set of chopsticks.
"So, Ta-kun," Nanako began conversationally. "How was your summer? You didn't come with us on our beach trip, and we missed you at the festival."
"That's because he was in Aus... er..." – Souji's face screwed up as he tried to say the word – "Aus... Auster..."
"Australia," Takeyoshi finished, pronouncing it flawlessly. "My great uncle lives there."
"Oh really?" said Nanako. "No wonder you're so worldly."
"Australia is home to the platypus, which is one of five existing mammal species that lay eggs," Takeyoshi recited.
"What are the other four?" Nanako asked.
Takeyoshi blinked, having not expected that question. "I don't know."
"Neither do I," Nanako admitted. "Maybe you can ask your cram school teacher this afternoon. Come on, now, let's eat up."
After they ate, Nanako took them to the music room. It was empty, as it always was when it wasn't in use by the club or the elective music class. Nanako set the boys on a couple of chairs and then sat at the piano bench. She idly brushed her fingers over the keys. They were almost gleaming; she and Yosuke had done a great job cleaning them.
She'd already picked out a song for this event, and had even found the sheet music for it, though she'd never played it yet. It was going to be fun.
"Ta-kun, let's see if you know this song!" she challenged.
Without further ado, she began to play. It was, of course, 'The Love Detective,' one of the opening theme songs to Magical Detective Loveline.
The little gasp that Souji emitted when he recognized it was so cute, it almost distracted her from playing.
"Oh, I know this," said Takeyoshi. "But I don't watch that—huh?"
Souji had stood up and was tugging Takeyoshi out of his seat, too. Souji then began to dance and sing to the music, mimicking some of the moves from the video that went with it, or so Nanako assumed, it was difficult to tell. Takeyoshi stared for a moment before smiling and beginning to dance too, though he didn't know any of the words so he didn't attempt to sing.
Nanako cursed her inability to simultaneously play piano and take pictures. It was just too precious. Her little Hermit child, not so Hermit-like at all anymore!
And Souji had the folded up Loveline umbrella with him, too, the perfect prop. He waved it around—it was his Wand of Justice, after all—and hit Takeyoshi with it on accident, though there was no damage done. Takeyoshi snatched it from him in apparent retaliation, and Nanako's playing slowed as she watched, worried, but Takeyoshi just twirled it around in his hands before handing it right back to Souji. Nanako smiled and continued on playing. They were both good kids.
"I'm Miss Loveline, you'd better beware!"
After playing the last few notes, Nanako clapped so hard that her hands almost hurt. "Bravo! I think you both have a stage career ahead of you."
Takeyoshi was glowing from the compliment despite himself.
"Big sis, can you dance in space?" Souji asked.
"I don't see why not, Sou-chan!" Nanako answered. "But why space?"
"Because Ta-kun wants to be an astronaut and go into space."
"No, I don't!" Takeyoshi interjected. "Not anymore."
Souji's eyes grew wide with surprise. "Wha... you didn't tell me! Big sis, he didn't tell me..."
"I wanna be a diver," Takeyoshi announced, "and see all the fish in the Great Barrier Reef! I wanna swim with the sharks."
"You might... get bitten," Souji remarked.
"Nah, most sharks only attack when provoked. I won't provoke. I just want to look at them, and watch them eat!"
"That sounds exciting, Ta-kun," Nanako said. "And the Great Barrier Reef is right by Australia. You got that idea on your trip, huh?"
Takeyoshi didn't answer, for he had turned back to his friend. "Souji, what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Souji's lips puckered. It wasn't exactly a frown, but close to it. He stared down at the umbrella in Takeyoshi's hand, but didn't answer.
Nanako decided to rescue him. "You can be anything you want, Sou-chan! And you don't have to decide right now, and you can change your mind anytime. Just like your favorite color."
The little boy continued to think. After over a minute, he said, "I don't know," and Nanako was satisfied enough with that. At least he hadn't said 'doctor' or 'lawyer' or anything else his mom wanted. Not that those were bad occupations, but they weren't for everyone, and Souji was only six, anyway!
"Hey, Sou-chan," she said as an idea came to her. "Wanna try out the piano?"
Souji perked up, his eyes sparkling. "Can I...?"
It couldn't hurt the poor old piano. She motioned Souji over and lifted him into her lap, then scooted the bench closer to the keys. Souji stared reverently at them, then slowly moved his hand out towards them, then drew back to look up at Nanako's face to make sure it was okay. Nanako smiled down at him and put her own fingers on the keys. She tapped them playfully on the surface, then pressed one key hard enough for it to sound out. She encouraged him to do the same.
He pressed the same key that she had and smiled to himself when it sounded out. Growing bolder now, he pressed the key next to it, and then the one next to that. Finally, he leaned forward and pressed one of the black keys. It was one of the sharps.
"Here," Nanako said, and she held his hand as she played a short little ditty. It was, in fact, the tune to Junes's infamous commercials.
As if he'd been called, the door to music room opened and an out-of-breath Yosuke rushed in. He was lugging his guitar case, and he stopped halfway into the room to pant loudly. "Y-you're still here!" he gasped.
"What, did something happen?" Nanako asked, alarmed. She ignored Souji's cute little cry of 'partner!'
Yosuke shook his head. "No, I just... didn't want to miss you guys. I finally found a chance to sneak out of class. Hey there, little guy!" He waved at Souji who was still in Nanako's lap. "Oh, and your friend." He nodded at Takeyoshi. "What's your name, anyway?"
"Oh, right, I told you to come here." Nanako had totally forgotten that she'd requested that he bring his guitar today. "That's Takeyoshi-kun. He sits next to Sou-chan in class, and they go to cram school together."
"Yeah, I know about you," Yosuke said. "You want to be an astronaut."
Takeyoshi crossed his arms and pouted. "I do not!"
"Sou-chan told you about Ta-kun?" Nanako said. "That's so cute."
"I've seen him before," Yosuke explained. "You know, over summer, when he and Souji were walking to cram school."
"I was wondering who you were," Takeyoshi said, regarding Yosuke with suspicion.
"It's p-partner," Souji said, as if that explained everything.
"What's that mean?"
"He's my friend." Souji said it so solemnly, like it was an immutable fact.
Takeyoshi sent Souji a querying look, and then his expression softened. "Okay." He inclined his head towards Yosuke. "Nice to meet you."
Yosuke wiped his forehead with the hand that wasn't holding his guitar case. "Felt like I just met the in-laws or something." He chuckled, then unlocked the case and brought out his guitar. He strummed it and listened, then nodded his satisfaction. "What are we going to play, Nanako?"
"Why don't you play something for us?" she suggested.
"I thought we were going to play together." Yosuke hummed thoughtfully. "I guess... no... well..." He shifted the guitar into a better position. A moment later, he smiled determinedly and began to play.
Nanako smiled too, recognizing the song pretty fast from just the first few seconds of play. She couldn't name it, but it was something foreign, a country song. Wait, didn't it have lyrics?
"Sing!" Nanako requested. "Sing!"
"No way." Yosuke shook his head emphatically. "It's Western."
"So?" she challenged.
He stopped playing to send her a hard look. "I am not going to sing in English!"
"It's just me and the kids. I won't make fun of you, I promise." Nanako whispered into Souji's ear, "Come on, you tell him too!"
"I heard that," Yosuke informed her. "All right, all right. You kids put on a show for me today, so... I guess I'll put one on for you."
Despite his reservations, Yosuke seemed to get pretty into it. He straightened his back, lifted his guitar, and restarted the song. "I keep a close watch on this heart of mine..." he sang softly.
He played on, his head bobbing in time to the beat he'd set with his foot tapping the ground. He started off sounding rather self-conscious, but as he continued on, his voice became stronger.
"What does it mean, big sis?" Souji whispered.
"Knowing Yosuke is a hopeless romantic, it's probably about a girl or something," Nanako replied. "Ask him when he's done!"
Yosuke stopped singing rather abruptly, though he continued to play the tune on his guitar. He admitted that he only knew the first stanza by heart. He'd been more interested in the tune than the lyrics, and he'd replayed the first stanza several times just to practice. "I'm still a beginner, you know," he murmured.
"Everyone has to start somewhere," Nanako said. She wasn't judging him at all.
Suddenly the dismissal bell rang, startling everyone present.
"Ah, crap." Nanako sighed. She set Souji down on the floor and reluctantly got to her feet. "I guess I gotta bring these two to their cram school now."
"We didn't get to play anything together." Yosuke sounded more disappointed than she'd expected. "I don't know the next time Souji will have a chance to hear us play."
"I'll find a way," Nanako promised. "I'm sure he wouldn't miss it for the world."
"Don't forget me!" Takeyoshi threw in rather fiercely. "I-I want to be there."
"And Yuu-chan, too," Nanako said. "Maybe we can have the music club play for the elementary school, or something."
"I dunno about that," Yosuke said. "I mean, our club leader is..."
"Grand theft piano isn't above me," Nanako answered. "Anyway, we'd better head off. Say goodbye to Yosuke, Sou-chan!"
Souji walked over to Yosuke, who was bent over a little in the chair as he carefully put his guitar back in its case. Yosuke paused to send him a smile.
Then Souji hugged him around the waist.
"Aww," Yosuke protested, "you didn't have to do that, little guy. I didn't even finish the song."
After an awkward moment, Yosuke finally patted the boy's back. Souji wasn't ready to break the hug, though, and not to be outdone, Takeyoshi strode up to them and hugged Souji from behind. Takeyoshi was a larger kid, so it was easy to do.
And also adorable to see. Nanako snapped a picture, happiness welling in her heart.