Chapter 8

Fuyumi browsed through the women's section while groups of young ladies chattered over a new outfit. They moved onto another pre-made outfit on the mannequin. She entered this exact store due to the adorable dresses and fancy peacoats she might buy for herself. The oncoming chilly months always brought a wave of sickness. She didn't want to end up in the hospital due to a small cold. Her husband would bundle her up from the first sniffle. She needed to get out more often on her own terms.

She gripped the strap of her purse while she held her phone to her ear. Her red lips pursed into a small smile. As she listened to her son, she peeked at another long skirt which reached toward her knees. He voiced his concern over a young man he tutored throughout the months. A variety of reasons surfaced and she thought she heard a tone of worry. An explanation of this certain guy having a multiple amount of jobs came about.

Fuyumi gave a sound of having heard Hiroki before he continued on. He didn't give a name to this young man in particular. She didn't mind. Not like she would meet this person in her life anyway.

She let out a sigh. "It might be that one day sweetheart. Have you tried talking to him."

"Mom, he had a serious streak in applying to college. Hours upon hours of studying and work went into preparing him for his tests. He should be on top of his responsibilities and call me. Forgetting about me just pissed me off more than anything else."

"That's certainly true or..." She stared at a knitted sweater in front of her view, she cringed at the work on the sleeves. "Did you say something might offend him? I distinctly remember that the last young man quit on you because you worked him a little too hard."

"It was nothing too serious...he knew my strictness when he came over to my place. I talked to him about how I tutored others before he agreed."

"I'm sure everything will work out just fine. From what you have told me, he is an exceptional student correct?"

"He wasted none of my time. In fact, he did well on his practice tests and completed all his work without a fuss."

"I'm sure there is nothing to worry about. He might have gotten a surge of work hours and fell asleep when he returned home. Trust me, there are tiring days where you don't want to do much."

"What the- I'm not worried about him! I have other things on my mind that take greater importance."

Fuyumi chuckled. "In the last fifteen minutes, you have talked about no one else but this young man. You're concerned about his well being."

"Because I don't understand why the idiot skipped on me! I canceled an important study session to tutor this kid and he never showed up!"

"Now, there's no need to get huffy on me." Fuyumi teased him as she peeked toward the men's section, catching sight of a nice blazer, she wanted to see it up close. "I'm curious. How much homework do you have this week?"

Hiroki answered her. "After this week, it will be a lot less. A few weeks ago, I had a few papers to complete and I wrote down the wrong deadline."

The amount surprised her, knowing her son, he took no breaks until he completed everything on his list. "I never knew you took on such a huge workload of schoolwork Hiro-chan." She fiddled with the butterfly pin in her hair as she stared at a mannequin which wore a white lace dress. "Have you taken some breaks?"

"I don't think so...wow I actually don't remember my last break."

"Hiro-chan!" Fuyumi raised her voice, she imagined him hunching his shoulders in embarrassment. "You should take regular breaks before you collapse from exhaustion. I walk around the compound whenever I feel overwhelmed! Even your father takes a break every few hours."

"I know, I know, I'd rather get everything done before I get too distracted."

She rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Please…please…take some breaks. Knowing you might collapse while I'm not around will make me worry. You know how much I think about you and your father."

"Sorry…"

"Promise me that you will take some breaks at least?"

"Yes, I will take a few after this phone call. I was wondering…are you feeling okay to walk around the stores by yourself mom?"

"Don't worry about me Hiro-chan, just eat something. I know you don't eat once you focus on something." Fuyumi giggled as she put back a red and white striped sweater on the rack.

"I'm eating grapes right now if that counts."

Fuyumi smiled lightly, she stood in front of a mannequin near the male section and looked at the long sun dress. "Sweetheart, go out and eat some lunch. Your paper is not going anywhere and it will be there once you return okay?"

She imagined the pout on her son's face as she chuckled. "Alright…I'm going to have to go to the ramen shop down the street. I'll talk to you later okay mom?"

"Of course! I'll call you later sweetheart, stay safe and I love you."

"I love you too mom…"

Hiroki hung up on her as Fuyumi found the coat she wanted but it was too high up. She observed the area and saw the salespeople helping other customers. Most of them in the left side of the store. She didn't locate the hook used to pull down clothing.

She jumped slightly when a young man appeared at her side. He reached up for the coat and grabbed it from the rack. Holding it to her level, he handed it to her with a gentle smile on his face.

Fuyumi gave him a smile of her own when she told him. "Thank you so much young man." She put out her hand when she introduced herself without suspecting anything amiss. "I'm Fuyumi Kamijou."

The taller young man gripped her hand and shook it without any force. He told her. "I'm Nowaki Kusama, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Nowaki sighed while picking up a t-shirt from the rack. His thoughts wandered back toward Hiroki. He pictured the furious expression on Hiroki's face over missing their last tutoring session. After getting a rejection of a lifetime, his mood went downhill and he felt no need to sit in front of Hiroki as if nothing occurred. The utter humiliation of Hiroki pushing him away did a number on his ego.

He carried the shirt on his arm while he checked out another one. Next, he had to buy some jeans before he left the store then went back home. This was the first time in weeks that he was able to come to the store. His part time jobs required his free time and his chores went into disarray. He tossed away ripped up clothing so new clothing was in order.

A sigh escaped his lips, his hands clenched into tight fists. Life did a number on him and he thought he acquired something worth his struggles. All the work he put into meeting Hiroki for those tutoring sessions and completing all his work gave him no results. All of it was for nothing.

The man he loved didn't want him but that wasn't going to stop him. If anything, it fueled his desire to get Hiroki to fall for him even more. No one and nothing was going to get in the way of his happiness.

Nowaki neared the corner of the male section with a few articles of clothing. He sighed as rubbed the back of his neck and felt his muscles tense from the construction work he did yesterday. His muscles were more defined because of the work and the extra stares he got on the street proved it.

He wished Hiroki stared at him like those other people. His hand grabbed onto his shirt tightly as his jaw clenched, the only person he wanted such expressions from were from Hiroki, not anyone else. He needed him to kiss him, to caress his body, to have Hiroki staring at him with a love stricken expression on his face, for both of them to be stupidly in love with each other. To have someone who he can call his family, Hiroki would fill the void in his heart and finally have something he always wanted in his life.

He knew he was being selfish but he allowed himself this one gesture. Years of placing others before him developed resentments. He deserved to be happy like all of the other couples he saw when he walked home exhausted from work. Nowaki heard comments from all his coworkers that he could get anyone he wanted if he put in the effort. Yet, he only wanted one person, Hiroki Kamijou. No one else was going to cut it.

Nowaki's hand loosened as he heard the jingle of the locket in his pocket. A small smile appeared on his face when he reached into his pocket and touched it. The cool gold heart was one of his many reminders of Hiroki and he wanted to add the real person to his collection.

When he read the inscription inside of the locket, he realized it was a nickname from Hiroki's childhood. His heart swelled slightly at imagining Hiroki's mother telling her son this nickname and he would blush ever so slightly because he was in front of other people. He would pout and say he wasn't a butterfly because he was a boy, not a girl. Either way, the manner the locket was hidden, inside of a soft handkerchief meant Hiroki enjoyed hearing the nickname from his mother. His ailing loving mother.

The locket looked particularly expensive and the engravings weren't messy, other than the wear from having it for so many years, it was almost in pristine condition. He would take care of it the same way under his care, he wasn't going to let it rust on his watch. When he inspected the locket, he found a small picture behind the paper and he saw a newborn in the arms of an exhausted looking woman with a smiling man by her side.

Nowaki realized it was Hiroki when he was just a newborn and the pair were his parents. He didn't know why he didn't get it sooner since he saw their image in Hiroki's photo album not too long ago. The stern man in traditional clothing who held his gentle woman in his arms. He knew his aching heart had him imagining Hiroki and no one else.

He took a few steps from the men's section of the store when he was blindsided. Hiroki's mother was a few feet away from him. The beauty he saw in the photo paled in comparison to the real woman herself. He noticed she stared at a coat too high for her small stature and how the other employees were busy with other customers. Nowaki carefully walked to her side and picked up the coat with ease, not noticing she jumped slightly at his sudden presence.

He handed it to her and he saw her green eyes brightening slightly at his help. She thanked him and introduced herself, the name Fuyumi Kamijou was engraved inside of his head. He couldn't forget the name of his future mother-in-law after all. He gulped when he gave her his name and she didn't seem suspicious of him at all.

Nowaki felt some relief, it seemed Hiroki didn't talk about him to his parents. Although, it stung him a bit but it meant he could gather information without a problem. "It was no problem, Kamijou-san, it would take while to get the attention of the employees when more and more people are coming inside."

Fuyumi chuckled. "I did take notice of this when I found this coat, but I didn't want to bother those ladies while they were helping someone else." She looked at the mauve colored coat when she said. "I might need to buy a coat for my husband, I found one which suits him well. He doesn't wear any other color but black when it comes to coats."

Nowaki smiled lightly when he said. "Your husband must be lucky to have such a thoughtful wife by his side."

Fuyumi waved her hand as she grinned. "I am used to getting him whatever he needs from the store. For such a busy man, he forgets that he is on his last pair of socks. I end up having to buy them for him and sneak them in the drawer. That especially goes to my only son."

"Your son?" Nowaki inquired with feign curiosity as he shuffled his shirts on his other arm.

Fuyumi smiled big when she said. "His name is Hiroki. At the moment, he is busy with university. I miss having him back home but I knew he had to leave us someday. He recently told me that he is buried under homework that I am surprised he hasn't collapsed yet. I really worry about him sometimes."

"He sounds like a really amazing person." Nowaki said as he saw her loving expression when she talked about her son. She really loved her son so much. When she spoke of her husband, she had the same expression on her face.

"He really is amazing, he took on so many extra-curricular activities as a child. I told him he could quit some of them so he could have a rest but he is stubborn to the point where he takes more than he can handle." She chuckled as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "But he slowly got out of them under the pretext that he needed to study more but he was good enough at piano that he didn't need the lessons anymore."

Nowaki stored all of his information inside of his mind for future references. "You must be really proud of him Kamijou-san, I'm sure he will do real amazing things in the future. Having such a work ethic at a young age shows his determination for his goals."

Fuyumi told him. "I just want him to be happy more than anything." She touched her wedding ring when she said. "I don't know if he will find someone to love but my son is at a different pace than when I was his age. You see, I was already married to my husband and pregnant with Hiroki. I know he isn't looking for anyone at the moment. He knows when I tease him about a lover I mean it in good nature, I am not rushing him to go with someone because I say so."

Nowaki was entranced at what she said and took it to heart. He would slow down his pace a bit but he was going to make a man who would be perfect for Hiroki in the future. Right now, he was on the right track toward that point and he would plan his manner in gaining Hiroki to be his lover. Despite the rejection, Hiroki would love him in the end. It would have made him happier if Hiroki came around someday.

For now, all he had to do was plan everything as he achieved his goals.

Fuyumi smiled. "It would be absolutely lovely if he introduced us to someone. Whenever he is ready of course. I'm sure the person who captures my son's heart will be a very kind person."

Nowaki nodded his head and he couldn't help but smile along with her. Her smile was just so infectious that he had to smile when she showed her perfect white teeth.

"I'm sure he will, in this world, everything is a possibility."

"That it is." Fuyumi said as she checked the time on her phone. "I should go to the register now after getting my husband's coat, I have half an hour before I have to meet him for lunch. I'm surprised he hasn't called me to check up on me."

Nowaki didn't want her to stop talking but if he tried keeping her around then he would seem rude. He didn't want to be rude in front of Hiroki's mother and he would have plenty of chances to talk to her in the future, he was sure of it.

She took off a black coat from the hanger when he told her . "Then I should be going as well, I need to go grocery shopping after this. I have a lot of errands to run."

Fuyumi noticed he hurried up on grabbing a pair of pants from the hanger. "I know I talked way too much, sorry about that. Once someone breaches the topic of my family I end up babbling about them."

Nowaki picked up a turtleneck from the nearest rack of clothes. "Not at all, it is really nice hearing a mother talk about her child. I can tell you really love him so much."

"Well I can't help myself, he is my only child." Fuyumi said as she put the coat back and checked another size. "I hope to see you again Kusama-san."

Nowaki smiled big at her declaration. He toned down his enthusiasm before she grew suspicious about him. "I hope so as well Kamijou-san." He went toward the register with new found determination.

Hiroki's beloved mother liked him, eventually he would need to get Hiroki's father to be on his side and then…Hiroki would come around to like him too.

TBC