Author's Note: I have no legal rights over Corpse Party.
Chapter 5: Do I Care?
The melodic interchange and the audible down-tuned chug sound of the bass and the treble notes of the lead guitar's power chords, did little to calm Ken down. Despite the obvious fact he was lying down on the bed, eyes closed and pillow stuffed nicely, with the support of his arm resting on the back of it, he was far from relaxed.
A complex swirl of emotions stirred within his mind, each prominently rearing itself like a snake about to attack its victim and retreating back, at a certain passage of the song before another emotion assumed control temporarily, launching a similar effect but with a different perspective.
And then comes the portion where they all blend together and elicit a sense of divine completion within his ears. That was his favorite part about listening to music. They just…do the talking for your head. Give you the chance for you to speak out your mind, as loudly as possible, without any moral or spiritual constraints from the outside environment clogging your judgement.
The depressing part is not using one's mouth instead, in his case anyway. Not that he needed a mouth right now, or if he could still use it properly by next week.
He glanced at his phone, lying on his chest, absently, blaring out the nihilistic and emotionally vexed tracks from the Lamb Of God album, Ashes Of The Wake. Being bedridden half the time for a whole day can be frustrating, especially if this same thing happened for five days in a row. Frustrating enough for him to start listening to a whole album from these hard hitting sons of bitches from America. He was more into 'cleaner' sounding metal bands honestly.
However, the vocalist had a way with his words. Screaming, growling, and shrieking…it all at the same time at an inhuman level. That was therapy enough.
Therapy was unfortunately cut off when an unseen force yanked his right earphone off.
Annoyance came flooding in at the sight of Misa, one hand clutching her hip and glaring at him.
He glanced at his room's open door, and raised a queried eyebrow. "Do you knock?"
"You owe me five hundred yen." She flung the plastic bag, containing a single bottle she was holding directly at his face. He didn't bother to dodge it.
She pattered away without another word. Ken sighed with annoyance, placing the plastic bag aside carefully and got out of his bed.
"Uaargh…"
He hissed, realizing he moved too quickly, and winced when his breathing temporarily ceased. The air inside got stuck between his abdomen and trachea. He kept a firm grip on the headboard, lowered his head until it was level with the headboard and slowly breathed out, deflating the lungs. He groaned, keeping his current position in place, and slowly, he breathed in, and out, in and out…in and…
He suddenly gasped with pain when his efforts struck a nerve of pain somewhere along his chest.
His breathing had returned, albeit shallow and short, and it still caused minor lapses of pain in his chest. But he was breathing…and that's all that mattered
He slouched slightly as he advanced towards the door. He had to rely on his mouth for his daily air intake apparently, since his nose could not function properly, the septum fractured. And a bruised pair of ribs constantly giving him a hard time to let his lungs work properly.
The good news is, the doctor said it would take him a week at most before he could return back to school, that too with his upper body still bandaged since it would still take time for his ribs to recover, and he should take it easy. Fingers crossed he hardly expected a more honest explanation from the moronic old fart.
Plus, why would ever return to that place anyway? He hated where he was now, but at least it provided him a shredded decency of peace and quiet.
He just wanted peace and quiet…why was that so hard to understand?
He closed the door, resting his forehead on the wooden frame with a sullen look.
The Shinohara household can be summarized into two words. Erratic and loud…respectively.
Mainly because most of the time there was a five and seven year old running around the place, up to some form of shenanigans with a nine year struggling to keep things in order, although he eventually get embroiled with whatever the hell was going on at first while the sixteen year old just goes along with the present situation with a cheerful smile on her face, since she was the oldest sibling of the house and it was her job to look out and be responsible for her rambunctious and hyperactive siblings.
It was a bright Saturday afternoon, and Seiko decided it was a good time for her to put her culinary skills to good use for an after-school day, much to the delight of her siblings. In fact, they got so delighted it caused Aya and Kei, the youngest ones too start aimlessly running around in the living room gleefully shouting, "Nee-chan's cooking lunch!"
That's what kids do no? Express their enjoyment with nonsensical mannerisms?
Hilariously, Yuu, the second oldest was off put by how loud they were being. Seiko giggled at the sight from the kitchen counter, where her younger brother was trying his best to talk his much younger siblings out of causing a racket. It was too adorable to see a nine year old trying to be as mature as possible in a house where maturity is just a word off their dictionary.
"Kei, Aya, listen to your big brother." She called out gently.
The two younglings stopped instantly at the sound of their motherly elder sister. Indignantly however. "But he's only nine!" Kei whined. Yuu sputtered with childish outrage.
"And who's five and seven?" Seiko half smiled. It was Kei and Aya's turn to groan. She gave a thumbs up at a very grateful Yuu.
"Numbers stink." Aya grumbled. Seiko gave a chuckle, then telling them to just watch TV while she worked on making lunch. Being a sister with a mother role can be taxing indeed, but she enjoyed it actually. She was a natural if it helps.
She wondered if Naomi would appreciate her cooking. But obviously both of them have sampled each other's cooking for as long as they could remember, puking at first, and the second time…the third and fourth onwards became slightly tolerable. It was only in their teenage years did the compliments start flooding in for each other…but that wasn't exactly was the twin-tailed haired brunette had in mind.
If her girlish fantasies had an audio player attached to it, her siblings might have found something much more interesting to watch than a ridiculously dubbed Sesame Street.
"Ish, Seiko. Calm your tits girl. Focus on lunch for the kids. Focus on them!"
And focus she did. Somewhat. She wasn't really thinking of Naomi much to begin with anyway…
…
Yuutaro Shinohara was a composed man. Very composed. And he was very busy. How he managed to keep himself sublimely well, juggling a corporate career and being a single father with four kids without catching any form of sickness for nearly ten years is an unspoken impression.
Back to the topic, today he had to hand over some reports to the company regarding a bunch clientele emissions. It took him an hour to check in and out and hand it over to his superior without as much as another word. The fellow's asked whether he would like a coffee or a bagel, since it was his 'job' to make sure his workers were always nourished and fed, and ready for work and all that stuff.
Thankfully he took some sandwiches, else this impromptu late breakfast would have dragged on with the fellow talking about his grandiose dreams and achievements, not that Yuutaro had any hard feelings whatsoever…
Then the next and last thing to do was buy groceries for the house.
He parked his car, and set out to quickly procure the needed supplies. By now Seiko would be half done with cooking her heavenly spicy teriyaki stir-up pork chop and the curry that he compared favorably to his own mother's cooking. The thought of his daughter's cooking sent his mind into overdrive mode.
No way am I missing my darling's fresh out of the mill cooking!
(Yuutaro has a very vivid imagination of a smiling Seiko, in an apron, feeding him her cooking, and his head explodes into party streamers, then regrows completely a second late. He then gleefully hugs his daughter and ruffles her hair, much to Seiko's happiness.)
He paused momentarily from his car seat, making sure no one was looking at him.
"Phew." He quickly wiped off the drool blemishing his chin and went about with his current task.
…
Yuu, Kei, Aya and Seiko had barely even sat down on the dining table, where lunch was gloriously laid down like a banquet of sorts, that's what it looked like anyway to a bunch of kids, when a familiar sound blared from outside.
"Dad's back!" Kei exclaimed.
Seiko received him first, as always, followed by the three siblings plaintively attacking the six foot man by hugging him from the waist down.
Yuutaro smiled, gently hugging them all back.
"Okay, now that the man of the house is back, where's the grub?!" Yuutaro exclaimed hungrily.
Seiko laughed at her father's comical antics. He, like the kids were always so passionate about her cooking. She waved a finger, trying to maintain some order, "Ah ah ah, dad." She pointed at the car, "First things first we gotta bring the groceries in."
Yuutaro blinked, then scratched his head glancing back at the car and then at his daughter, chuckling. "Right…silly me." The siblings giggled momentarily, each rushing forth to help their father gather up the groceries from the car, leaving them in the kitchen first. Seiko and Yuutaro would arrange them later once lunch was over.
…
Heaven is real. Well…in a hyperbolic sense.
That's what everyone felt on their taste buds, and how it then slides down their gullets leaving behind just a small reminder that something so delicious was in their mouths just minutes ago.
That was the plaintive effect of Seiko's cooking. According to how the rest of her family members were grinning and smiling like a bunch of happy fools…
"Man, I wish I had a bigger stomach!" Yuu complained, his tiny hand resting on his stomach. "If I had one wish I'd wanted to come true, is that I want to eat more of Nee-chan's awesome cooking and nothing else!" Kei and Aya seemed to agree likewise, their heads bobbing as they voraciously consumed the leftovers of their meals.
Seiko can't help but blush. This was probably the thousandth time she'd heard Yuu compliment her cooking. But being the sensitive and emotional girl she is, it was only normal for her to respond in kind.
"Aw, Yuu…" She reached out hugged her little brother tightly from where he sat.
"Nee-chan?!"
"You're gonna make me cry! And I'm not even a mom yet!" Seiko exclaimed in a very dramatic manner.
"Nee-chan…can't breathe…" His sounds were muffled due to the fact his face (head?) was buried in between her chest.
Yuutaro smiled contently, where he was opposite Yuu and Seiko. The never changing thought of Seiko, his eldest daughter, being his pride and joy, passed his mind once again. Her lovely and cheerful nature made him happy. Her easy going mindset and humor riddled moments initiated by her, and her very presence around this household was enough to lift his spirits at the most stressful of situations. Her siblings treated her more than a mother than just an elder sister as well.
He had never considered that none of this would go wrong, as everything about Seiko seemed perfectly fine where it was.
He tried not to dwell on it now, not again, but his daughter's cheery smile looked…forced.
…
"Ha…that's does about it." Seiko sighed, and flopped herself onto her bed.
She was tired, her energy sapped from the grueling housework. The rest of her school homework could wait till tomorrow, Naomi would help her first thing in the morning and she could pass the rest of the day along with no worries.
Yet, she felt happy about taking up responsibility as the assigned authority figure. She hardly ever did what normal teenage girls would do in their spare time, whenever she could anyway it was only at a reserved level and when the time was convenient for her family.
Didn't stop her from making the most out of the moments however. She smiled, recalling a karaoke session with Mayu, Naomi, Ayumi, and the boys. Yoshiki apparently was the star of the night, able to belt out notes somewhat like a real singer would. Everyone else though, were plaintively average.
She chuckled, remembering Morishige's greened expression when Satoshi's tone deaf voice came along.
It was still fun though. Perhaps they could do it again…
"Seiko?" The characteristic knocks of two on her room's door stopped her brief reverie.
"Dad, I've already pickled your lemons and wiped the windows."
Yuutaro's face peeked from the slightly opened door. "Don't have to sound so whiny about it…"
Seiko's lower lip jutted out when she looked at her father. His smile was sheepish.
"Mind if I come in?"
"Mmm…"
He sat on the bed right next to his daughter's lying form.
"Tired?"
"Am I ever not tired Dad? Who else is gonna keep this place in tip top shape, and maintain order while you're away?"
Yuutaro half smiled. "Right…"
"What's up anyway? You don't usually come to my room a lot…"
Her father raised his eyebrows, "Eh? Am I not allowed into my daughter's room?"
Seiko got herself back up on the bed, legs in criss cross position. A ponderous finger pressed her temple. "Well…"
"Oh…I see." Seiko cringed immediately at Yuutaro's downcast expression. "Privacy? It's what you teenagers call it these days…"
"Dad…"
Yuutaro continued to swoon as if he was a stubborn weed helplessly blown by a gale, dramatically in front of his daughter. "I suppose I'll also have to stop being a bother to my Seiko, whom I've raised all by myself alongside three munchkins…like a responsible single father with a nine to five job can only do…"
Seiko bit her lip, trying not to laugh. "Daaaad…"
"A good father would want what's best for his daughter…so…from now on, I guess I'm dead to you…"
(Yuutaro curls into a ball onto the floor and starts swinging back and forth in front of Seiko, apparently weeping)
"If you don't cut it out, I'll make sure you stay dead, Daddy…"
(Yuutaro stops his dramatic antics to witness Seiko's glowering face, with red eyes and an evil smirk directed at him)
"Ah!"
Seiko finally exploded with laughter when her father accidentally bonked his head on the chair of her study desk. Was she really that convincing when she pretended to be evil as hell?
She got off her bed and gently helped her father up. He cheekily grinned and rubbed his sore crown.
"You okay Dad?"
"I made you laugh to ease your stress with my silly as hell antics, so…"
Seiko punched her father's arm playfully. "You good."
They shared a brief chuckle…and Yuutaro saw it again. That…brief flicker, in her face. That hesitation…
This had gone far enough. He had to confirm his doubts.
He stretched himself, flexing his joints, and fixated a gaze on his beaming daughter.
"Seiko?"
"Hmm?"
He lowered his tone when he addressed his lively and lovable pride and joy. He intended to actually…since he came here with intentions besides to cheer his daughter up, something that he hasn't normally done in a while honestly.
"I would like to talk to you about…well something that just came up to my mind recently."
"Oooh, lemme guess...you finally decided to go after Miss Nishimura, your hot as F co-worker -?"
Yuutaro immediately covered his daughter's mouth, flustered, "No…not about Nishimura. It's concerning you actually.'"
"Eh?"
Yuutaro bowed his head, taking a deep breath. "You see, I met this kid in the store earlier. A girl with a somewhat bad attitude. She was looking for some ointment, said it was for her brother."
"Uh huh…"
"I was getting you those breath mints…and she was just behind me, trying to reach out for the bottle on a high shelf. Being the nice guy I am – Seiko hid a smile – I casually took it from the shelf and handed it to her."
Yuutaro scratched his stubble. "She sounded thankful at first, I shrugged it off, and I then caught whiff of her mumbling something about how she shouldn't have to put up with this…excuse my language…crap."
"Next thing was she glared at me momentarily, probably because I asked if she was alright. Then she harrumphed, saying that her 'brother' – at this moment, Yuutaro did the air quote gesture - got himself beaten up in his school by some seniors and she had the unfortunate responsibility to procure the medicine and watch over him since he was bedridden, since their mother was busy working."
It took Seiko approximately seven seconds to register the undisclosed message behind her father's encounter.
No way…
"Seiko, what was that fellow's name again? The new student who came some months back to your school? Are you um…fri-I mean acquainted with him in any way?"
Seiko's forlorn look did little to bring a measure of confidence in Yuutaro's thoughts.
"I…I am." She breathed out, her chest beating unexpectedly faster than normal. "We're…classmates."
A complete answer was for naught, due to the still indomitable fact that Kenneth repeatedly tries to avoid conversation, and contact with her. They might have each other's phone numbers, but that sure as heck didn't bring them any closer…
Seiko wasn't even sure if they were even close or not.
Most cases their relationship only went as far as Seiko actively participated in it, which involved in said cases of jumping on him from nowhere and asking him for homework notes. She didn't want to admit her doubt, but she was probably being a nuisance to Kenneth in more ways than she could count.
Not that it was entirely her fault, the guy didn't function normally like a regular teenager of any sort would. Even Yoshiki and Satoshi is prone to at least react appropriately to her presence, even talk to her on separate occasions, and they're all rounded goofballs in their own right.
Ken though, she still hasn't figured out why he was so cold and indifferent towards his surroundings. And why he kept such a disposition for nearly half a year since he arrived here.
"What happened?"
Seiko could only look back at her father, blankly.
Yuutaro immediately felt guilty. This didn't turn out as well as how he expected. What could he possibly hope to do when even his own daughter's emotions are on turmoil from a problem that stemmed out from where it does not concern his involvement?
And does his daughter really have anything much more to say at all? From the looks of it, the matter seemed serious enough that Seiko wasn't willing to discuss anything about it, hiding behind a mask of taut normalcy to simply pass it off…the mask that seemingly assimilated into her personality.
That alone worried him.
The hitch of his daughter's breath alerted him.
"I…I don't know if I wanna talk about it, Dad...it's just that, Ken, he…didn't. He…he…"
"Shhh, shh….calm down. If…if you're uncomfortable with this, then you don't have to say anything. I'm sorry for bringing it up."
Seiko shook her head slowly, eyes downcast. "No…no Dad, its fine. It's not your fault. I…did I worry you all this time?"
"Well, you weren't exactly your usual self for the past week."
"You saw through me?" She grimaced.
Yuutaro gently ruffled her hair. "Sweetheart…I can tell whether the Seiko I know actually gives the proper kitty smile she's infamous for."
Dang it.
Seiko sighed, leaning onto her father's shoulder. Yuutaro calmly held her shoulder, pressing his chin on her head affectionately. The stayed in that position for an unspoken silence. An unspoken silence was a preferred medicine as of now, since Yuutaro wasn't sure if he could easily take in an explanation from his daughter right now, and Seiko herself needed some comfort after holding up her worries for five straight days without disclosure. Heck, she hadn't even told her best friend how she felt!
"Dad, can I ask you something?" Seiko looked up at her father.
"Yeah?"
"Do you judge someone for their character, or for their actions?"
Yuutaro raised an eyebrow. That was a surprisingly thoughtful question.
"Hmm…I'm not exactly sure which aspect brings the right answer here. But in my case, I guess a bit of…both? Considering the fact I got a boss younger than me, and he is kind of what you kids these days call a 'douche'. He's always acting nice and responsible with his co-workers, but he purposely drills us with plenty of work, to give the impression he's being very productive in order for our superiors to start noticing his efforts."
Seiko bit her lip, affirmative of the response. "But…what if it's not what it seems? What if the person's faking their character and what they do?"
Yuutaro never actually thought he could be dumbstruck by his own daughter.
Seiko tilted her head, wondering why her father was not responding after a whole minute or so. "Dad, dad…dad?" She snapped her fingers thrice right in front of his face.
"Whazzama…oh, Seiko?"
"So what do you think?" She asked.
"Um…" Yuutaro struggled in his thirty nine year old mind to come up with a coherent and believable answer. However, this comeback question was laden with a setting in which any answer could be actually be passed off as the right one. He could avoid answering it altogether and come up with an excuse, but that would plant the idea of Seiko thinking he was unreliable when it came to introspective matters.
Nope, there was no getting out of this. Better give an answer. Be the honest, good father.
"I…I think…"
[Saturday, 15/6/2008. 10.30 p.m.]
CrimsonGun666: Trust me, it's not going to be any easier.
Mo5hig: I'm not counting on anything particular. Either way it came down on you.
CrimsonGun666: Sounds like you don't give a flippin damn.
Mo5hig: Don't misunderstand. Yet…I still don't get this though, why you didn't report them?
CrimsonGun666: They're worse than me. You'd think I'd give myself the cheap satisfaction of revenge with the luxury of them being behind bars while the crime is still hanging on their heads? They're squirming with guilt…I say let them feel it till they lose the sane part of their heads and do something stupid.
Mo5hig: Sadist.
CrimsonGun666: I have my perks. I like to call this violence breeding vilification.
Mo5hig: Somehow, I don't think anyone else would understand that…they'd think you'll be scared after what happened and a few screws were knocked loose off you.
CrimsonGun666: Touching…if I cared what they think.
Mo5hig: Come to think about it, does this even change anything in particular?
CrimsonGun666: I'll still be a nonchalant fuck-all flipping jackass. Does that answer your query?
Mo5hig: More or less I suppose…but I there's still one thing though.
CrimsonGun666: ?
Mo5hig: Shinohara, she's definitely worried about you.
CrimsonGun666: Bullshit.
Mo5hig: Have you seen me bullshit?
CrimsonGun666: Uh…no…not yet at least.
Mo5hig: Look, I'm not one to go around beating the bush and musing about our respective emotions, considering the fact we're cut from the same cloth, but has there ever been a time for you where you might have thought of going easy on her?
CrimsonGun666: Why're you asking this?
Mo5hig: Isn't it obvious? I'm among the circle of people who she considers 'friends'.
CrimsonGun666: That's rich. You're giving a neutral reason to speak up for her.
Mo5hig: It's not exactly…easy.
CrimsonGun666: I can imagine.
Mo5hig: She can be an oddball at times…but that's just her. She's not trying to annoy you out of spite.
CrimsonGun666: I'm aware of that.
Mo5hig: And?
CrimsonGun666: Look, man. I couldn't care less if she liked me, or wanted to fuck me or not…what the hell are you expecting?
Mo5hig: Honestly…nothing. I'm not expecting you to do anything but at least understand where the world works from here.
CrimsonGun666: What if I don't want to?
Mo5hig: You make it sound difficult.
CrimsonGun666: Hello, half Jap half Brit present in Japan?!
Mo5hig: Somehow I don't think your racial mix up isn't the only problem here…
CrimsonGun666: Don't start.
Mo5hig: Wasn't going to…
Mo5hig: Are you at least going to treat her with courtesy next time you meet?
CrimsonGun666: I make no promises. If any better, she'd finally lay off me.
Mo5hig: Whatever. What happens next week for you, is on you alone.
CrimsonGun666: I won't be screaming for help.
Mo5hig: Mmm…
[Saturday, 15/6/2008, 10:48 p.m.]
(Mo5hig has left the chat)
Morishige skimmed the entire conversation which spanned for nearly an hour. This was a practical ritual between Ken and him, as to avoid attention to their not-so-friendly disposition and common-ground-based relationship with each other.
It's what they both agreed on calling it anyway.
His fingers lightly tapped on his desktop with a near rhythmic manner, his eyes flitting on the screen. He took one long look at what they shared today. Mostly it was casual nonsense and brief takes on sardonic banter exchanging for the first forty two minutes…like what they usually did whenever they jumped into their private chatroom at the wee hours before midnight.
However the last eighteen minutes strangely had a lasting impression on him. It was so unlike him to suddenly sound like he hinted at prioritizing Kenneth's well-being.
Yes, he empathized with him, but he wouldn't stoop so low. No, they both rejected pity stances. It was a moral deterrent.
Yet, what was dubbed as 'Kisaragi's Gaijin Beatdown' and his mother's 'growing cantankerous treatment' was of Ken's own folly. Perhaps it was the reaction everyone else got that was rubbing off his sensibility. That had to be the only explanation.
"Idiot."
Shaking his head with disdain, he shut down the computer and returned back to studying. This was far more important anyway.