Day 23: "Aced it"

Sun beat down on the back of his next like the waves of a stormy sea, sweat softening the pomade on his hair as he stalked down the busy street. No one paid him a second look. Kuwabara was just one of dozens of kids in a school uniform making their way home at the end of a long school day; no need to pay him any attention, and that was just as well. He didn't want their stares. He didn't want anyone to see the look in his eyes as he tried his best not to think about the paper in his fist—that stapled packet of papers he clutched like a heavy sword. He'd only looked at the top sheet of the packet once before rolling it into a tube and crushing it under his fingers, sweat staining the creases, making the ink bleed. Didn't need to look twice to remember his grade. It'd been written in red at the top. One big mark of shame, that letter, and one he'd hated to see again.

But the second he walked in the door at home, Shizuru practically demanded he do just that.

She sat at the kitchen table smoking, just like she always did, a bunch of random herbs and fruits and lotion samples sitting on the tabletop beside her ashtray. Kuwabara almost walked right past her as he slipped in the backdoor, but she blew a ring of smoke into his face before he could walk by. All he really wanted was to drown himself in the shower, but…

"Hey, kid," she said, smirked when he coughed into his fist. "So how'd ya do on that test, huh?"

He didn't need his psychic powers (still on the damn fritz since the tournament, predictably) to tell he wouldn't get out of this without telling her the bad news. Bracing himself for the worst, Kuwabara handed over the test clenched in his fist, watching as Shizuru unrolled it. Like an ancient scroll it unfurled, creaking and solemn. Shizuru smoothed it flat atop the table with her forearm and lifted one thin brow.

"Wow," she said, blowing out another plume of ash. "You got a B. Nice job."

But at the sound of his grade, Kuwabara flinched like he'd been shot. "It's not that nice," he said through clenched teeth. "It's not like I aced it."

Her brow lifted higher. "Back when you started middle school, you couldn't score a D, much less a B. Just be happy you did this well." She stubbed out her cigarette when Kuwabara didn't reply, the way she did when she was frustrated with him. "You know what you should do if you want to get that grade up."

"Don't rub it in," Kuwabara grumbled.

"I'm not," said Shizuru. "I'm just saying you could always call—"

"I said not to rub it in!" He bit the inside of his cheek when Shizuru's eyes widened, shame heating his cheeks. Turning away, he trudged out of the kitchen, hands jamming deep into his pockets. "And besides. Gotta learn to do it without her someday, anyway."

He didn't intend for Shizuru to hear that, but he shouldn't have underestimated her ears. "Stubborn ass!" she called as he stomped up the stairs. "Just bite the bullet and call her, dammit!"

"Standing on your own is just what a man does, Shizuru!" he shot back over his shoulder. "You wouldn't understand!"

And Kuwabara meant that, whether she liked it or not. He'd meant what he said about being a man. He'd learned that being a man meant sticking to your guns and doing what you thought was right, even if it hurt. Even if it hurt to shut out someone you cared about. Even if it meant bottling up the way you felt.

Kuwabara—the man—meant the things he said.

But he wasn't particularly happy about it, either.

Sometimes think Kuwabara's "I'm a man" sentiments could lean toxic if not nurtured with empathy. Also interesting that he ended up parroting NQK there at the end ("I mean what I say") even as he uses it to justify not calling his usual study-buddy.

I ended up cataloging which characters I've written about most in this collection. Yusuke has like 6 shorts all his own, or ones where he at least had a starring role? Kurama and Hiei star in maybe 4 apiece, but Kuwabara has just narrated 2. Thought he should have a short all his own. Will try to focus on the main four boys for the rest of the collection, and maybe the Not-Quites, too. We'll see!

Thanks to all y'all still sticking around as we enter the final stretch of this collection. Your support means the world and keeps me motivated. THANK YOU: C S Stars, xenocanaan, Kaiya Azure, tammywammy9, cestlavie, LadyEllesmere, ladyofchaos!