Chapter 15: An Eye Opening Experience
"Wow, this is a lot bigger than I thought it would be."
Yasui was standing dumbstruck a few steps inside the front doors of the mall. He had imagined it would be a few stores all in one building. He had not thought it would be three stories tall and stretch beyond his eyesight around a corner. Diana joined him.
"I know. It's gotten bigger since the last time I was here."
Yasui tilted his head a bit.
"When was the last time you were here?"
"Uh… maybe ten or twelve years ago? Give or take a half decade."
Yasui frowned. He and Diana were waiting by the entrance for Charles to park the car. He had insisted they did so, and, to quote the stern gorilla, "not because he was worried about anything Yasui might do." For his part, Yasui wasn't exactly sure what he meant by that. Soon, however, the hulking chauffeur appeared and the trio set off into the mall. Charles crossed his arms.
"So, where do we go first?"
Diana began looking through her phone.
"Well, there's a big sale at Fortunate Co. where we can find some jeans and shoes, and then a few other offers I saw online for great prices on shirts and accessories."
They boarded an escalator and Yasui considered his apparently meager bank account. He could probably buy a shirt to wear to work. His pants from home were definitely plain, but compared to the other clothing he had brought with him, they were the least obviously dated. He had noticed that only old people wore shirts and jackets in the style everyone back home wore. Diana guided them to a large store with a modern and very chic design. Inside were mannequins of all shapes and sizes dressed in the summer's hottest fashions. Yasui saw one was wearing bright pink shorts.
Wow… talk about bright. I don't think I could pull those off.
Immediately, Diana began positively bouncing around the store. She started grabbing shorts, and jeans, and shoes, and shirts from all over in all different styles and colors before holding them up to Yasui and looking them over, saying such things as,
"Hmm… no, the waist is too large."
Or,
"No no no, that clashes horribly with your fur color."
Yasui felt like he was caught in the eye of a hurricane. All he could do was hold still and try not to fall over as a small collection of clothes that met her approval began to grow. She nodded and looked at her pile with satisfaction.
"Well, what do you think? Any of these strike your fancy?"
Yasui nodded.
"Yeah, they're all great. And I think I'll choose… this one."
Yasui picked up a pair of relatively plain jeans and checked the price. With the sale and the coupon he had, they were well within his price range. Diana frowned.
"What do you mean? You only like that pair?"
Yasui shook his head.
"Oh no! They're all great, you have good taste. I just can't afford more than one pair right now."
Diana paused before steepling her fingers together.
"Yasui… I acknowledge you don't want me to just buy you everything because you are not a charity case, and I respect it. But there are some things I must insist on, and this is one of them. I dragged you out to the mall to go on a shopping spree because I am bored and wanted something to do. I have to insist you allow me to cover this one. It's only fair."
Yasui grimaced.
"I really just don't want to take advantage of your generosity. It's too much! I can't just let you give me all this stuff."
Diana sighed before Charles spoke up.
"Maybe he can buy you lunch in the food court? Call it even?"
Diana nodded.
"That sounds good to me. Yasui?"
Yasui deliberated internally for a moment.
"I dunno. I'm sorry I'm being so stubborn about this, it's just a matter of principle. You taking me somewhere to eat is one thing, but this is completely different."
Diana suddenly smiled.
"I have an idea! Why don't you let me buy you some clothes for work and for running the booth during the festival, and then you can pay me back! It wouldn't be too much, it's just that you only have two days worth of salary right now, and you really need the clothes. How about it?"
Yasui winced.
"I don't like the idea of being in anyone's debt…. But Mr. Nabuyo did want me to get some work clothes. Fine, but I will pay you back. And don't get too much stuff!"
She is really persuasive. It's hard to say no to her.
Diana nodded.
"I won't, promise."
Yasui sighed. He felt a little guilty about his giving in so easily, but she seemed so excited to pick out clothes for him. Sure enough, she gathered together almost every item she had placed in the stack beside him and brought it to the register. Yasui had a sneaking suspicion she was already going overboard.
What did I just agree to!
However, she was beaming when she returned to him carrying three bags.
"You would not believe the deal I got! They practically gave me all these clothes!"
Yasui raised his eyebrows.
"Really?!"
"Mhm! Here, put these on! I want you to look stylish as you escort me around the mall."
Her excitement was infectious. In a matter of minutes Yasui had taken the clothes she handed him and utilized one of the changing rooms to swap clothes. What she had picked for him was a pair of light blue jeans, a gray button down with a small triangular geometric pattern on it, and a pair of black canvas shoes. Yasui looked himself up and down in the mirror.
Holy crap! I look so… urban! Like any other city boy! I feel so cool!
He emerged from the fitting room and presented himself to Miss Diana with a flourish. She clapped her hands and gasped.
"You look marvelous! Those clothes really
suit you."
Yasui turned around to look at his sides.
"You think so? I definitely feel more… modern now."
Charles walked over and gently adjusted his shirt a bit, smoothing the collar and flattening some creases before giving him a thumbs up.
"Very snazzy, Mr. Yasui. Might I suggest rolling the sleeves up to your elbow, though?"
Yasui did so and then looked in the mirror.
"Wow, that is better. You know your stuff."
"I try to, at any rate.."
Diana smiled widely.
"Excellent! Now, there were some new handbags I wanted to look at, as well as a new swimsuit. Then possibly the shoe store, and—"
Charles began to steer the two of them out of the store as Diana continued to list off the stores she wanted to stop at. By the time they had visited each store it was past noon and Charles was carrying what seemed to be a mountain of bags. Diana was positively glowing with joy as she strutted along with both Yasui and Charles as her entourage.
"I don't think I can remember the last time I've had this much fun! But, oh dear, it's past noon. I am feeling a bit peckish. Lunch, boys?"
Both Charles and Yasui groaned in unison.
"Yes!"
The trio made their way down to the food court and Yasui could not believe his eyes at all the options that were laid out before them. There were burgers, and noodles, and pizza, and tacos, and Chinese, and French, and some foods Yasui didn't even recognize all jumbled together in a mismatched hodgepodge. Yasui gawked at it all.
"Holy crap, that's a lot of options."
Diana pursed her lips.
"Well, Yasui, do you have any preferences?"
Yasui shook his head.
"No, it all sounds good to me. Smells good too."
Diana scanned the food court before her face lit up.
"How about pizza? It's been ages since I last had a pizza!"
Yasui followed her gaze to a section of the food court that had a sign reading "Speedy Pizza!" With a cartoonish cheetah made of melty cheese and mushrooms running while holding a pizza box. Yasui nodded.
"That sounds great. I've never had pizza before."
Diana chuckled.
"Well it is only the lifeblood of students everywhere. I say you're overdue."
As they walked over, Charles lifted his chin.
"I'll get something different for myself and find us a table. Yasui, make sure she doesn't cause trouble."
Yasui was a bit surprised at this but reluctantly nodded.
"I, uh, I'll try."
Charles nodded and moved in a different direction from them. Yasui and Diana joined the queue and began discussing toppings for the pizza.
"So, Yasui. Any preference on what we get on it?"
Yasui shrugged.
"Anything's fine with me, so long as there's no onion."
Diana nodded.
"Noted. I almost forgot that you are a canid after all. So how about… bean sausage, mushrooms, olives, and peppers. My old favorite."
"Sounds good! But, one question. What exactly is an… olive?"
"Oh it's a type of vegetable. Greek food uses a lot of them. They add a little salt and their own unique flavor to things."
"Sounds tasty."
When they got to the register, Diana ordered a medium pizza with their chosen toppings as well as two drinks. As she pulled out her card, Yasui interjected.
"Uh, Miss Diana?"
She turned to him.
"Yes?"
"You, uh, well I… aren't I paying for lunch?"
She let out an "aaah" of remembrance and nodded. Yasui pulled his shiny new bank card out of his pocket and handed it to her. She turned her back to him and finished paying for the food. Once they had their drinks, Charles waved them over to a table almost directly beside the pizza counter. He had a large bowl of rice and vegetables and a cup of tea in front of him. As they sat, Yasui noticed something.
"Whoops! Forgot the napkins. I'll be back in a sec!"
As he scurried off, Charles cleared his throat. Diana gave him an innocent look. He immediately rolled his eyes.
"You had best be glad that he isn't terribly observant, otherwise he might have seen you pull that card swap at the register."
Diana waved him off.
"I respect his dignity in not wanting to be a charity case. But I can definitely afford a lot more than he can. What he doesn't know won't hurt him."
Charles gave her a look of disappointment and shook his head. Diana simply shrugged and watched as Yasui walked back over with a handful of napkins.
"I got a couple just in case. So, when was the last time you ate pizza? You said it was a while."
Diana squinted and furrowed her brow.
"Well, let's see. It was… uh… hmm… no I actually just ate a salad then… so… my second year of college? Give or take?"
"Oh, so it has been a while."
"Yes, it has. So, tell me. Are you feeling ready for the Festival of the Meteor? It's, what, two weeks away? Not next Saturday but the one after?"
Charles nodded and Yasui gulped before whimpering.
"Oh… that's pretty soon."
Diana smiled and leaned in a bit.
"You'll do great. I believe in you."
"Well that makes one of us."
Charles spoke up at that.
"From what I saw, you're pretty well along your way to being prepared for the festival."
Yasui perked up a bit at that.
"You think so?"
Charles nodded and Diana gave him a look of surprise before returning her attention to Yasui.
"That's high praise from Charles! You must be a master chef to earn that."
Yasui blushed and looked sheepishly at his claws. Soon their pizza was ready, and Yasui witnessed for the first time what pizza was. It was a big, gooey, greasy, cheesy mess. And it was delicious. After lunch there were only a few more stores Diana wanted to visit before they were finally done at the mall. Yasui was beginning to feel worn out by the time they were driving back to Cherryton. There was silence for the most of the ride back until Diana awkwardly asked,
"I, uh, hope this wasn't too boring. I guess I got a bit carried away."
"No, I'm just a bit worn out."
There was another pause. Diana cleared her throat.
"You see, I was wondering if you could help me with something."
"Oh, uh, depends what it is."
"Well, you see, I have a list of things I've been meaning to do. A sort of bucket list, but of more... mundane things. I've been making it my whole life, things I wanted to do but never had the time or opportunity to. And, well, I'd feel silly and a little sad to do them all by myself. I was wondering if you would be willing to help me with some of them."
Yasui thought for a moment before shrugging.
"That sounds doable. What sort of things are on the list?"
"Well actually, we just did one. 'Go to the mall with a friend.' When I was a teenager I always wanted to but just never made the time for it. They're mainly all things like that."
Yasui furrowed his brow.
"That seems a little… small. I was expecting something bigger, honestly."
Diana looked out the window and sighed.
"You see, I regret a lot of things about my childhood. I was so busy trying to grow up I never let myself be a kid. And now, well, I want to see what I missed. I'm sure that sounds pretty stupid but—"
"No! Not at all! I completely understand."
She gave him a searching look.
"You do?"
"Yeah, I never really had friends, so now that I do I want to go and do all the things I missed. Like playing video games and going to see movies and all that fun stuff. So we're in the same boat!"
Diana closed her eyes and smiled brightly.
"Well I guess I found a kindred spirit. I'm glad you understand."
Charles pulled to a stop in front of the main gates. Yasui opened the door and stepped out, clutching his bag of clothes and bank information. He turned and asked,
"So how much did all these clothes cost?"
Diana snickered with a predatory gleam in her eyes.
"That's the best part! With all my coupons and sales and BOGO offers, your clothes were all free!"
Yasui gave her a suspicious look.
"Are you lying to me?"
Diana dug into her purse and pulled out a receipt.
"No I'm not! See here! 'Boys jeans, size medium, discount: 100% off.' See it right here."
Yasui followed her finger and saw that she was telling the truth.
"Huh, wow. You're really good at shopping!"
Diana gave him a mischievous smirk.
"Well, I love bargain hunting."
"Well… if it all really was free… you promise you aren't lying?"
She began sifting through her purse and pulling out receipt. Satisfied, Yasui smiled.
"Sorry I doubted you."
Diana nodded. With a smile Yasui gathered his bags and closed the door.
"Well, let me know when you want to start that list. I feel like it'll be fun!"
She grinned.
"I will. Bye now! Have a good rest of the day!"
Yasui waved after her as the two adults drove away. He sighed.
Well, she is kinda weird, but I like her. She's nice, and smart!
In the car, Charles waited until they were around the bend before asking,
"Do you really have a list like you said?"
"Yes, of course! I've been writing it since I was six. One of my nannies gave me the idea."
"How come I never knew about it?"
Diana sniffed.
"I like to have some secrets, you know."
Charles waited a bit before continuing.
"Did you really get everything of Yasui's for free?"
"Of course I did! It's why I had to buy so much stuff. I've made it my goal to not lie to him. But…."
Charles arched an eyebrow.
"Buuut?"
"I may stretch the truth from time to time. Just a little."
Charles shook his head.
"You're absurd."
Meanwhile Yasui was trekking up to his room to deposit his new stuff. He was still dressed in his new clothes and felt much more like he belonged here than he did in his hand made clothing from home. As he opened the door to his room, he saw one of his roommates was sitting in his bunk dressed in nothing but his underwear chewing on a squeaky toy. The other fox immediately locked eyes with Yasui and his face flushed with embarrassment. With only a slight *squeeee* from his toy, the other boy slowly pulled the curtain across his bunk, blocking him from Yasui's view.
Yasui blinked a few times and hurriedly put his things away. As he was about to leave, he paused and said,
"Hey, uh, I won't tell anyone. So… bye."
As Yasui rushed away, he gulped.
Oh man, how embarrassing for that guy.
Among the various canadea, using a chew toy was always seen as a sort of embarrassing moment of giving into their instincts. Canids loved to chew stuff, and if they couldn't manage to control that urge it was similar to being unable to control their bladder. Yasui remembered when he was younger and would chew anything he could fit in his mouth: sticks, rocks, raw carrots, furniture, you name it. According to his Mom he'd been the worst of the children to train not to chew stuff. And even still he had to stop himself from gnawing his claws and fingers when he was nervous.
He wandered down to the benches in front of the main building and sat down with a yawn. He hadn't really expected to have any free time today because he hadn't known when his trip with Miss Diana would be over. He pulled out his phone and fidgeted with it for a bit before opening his text messages. He looked through the three recent people he had texted. He already did something with Miss Diana so that left Shinrai and Jack. He tapped on Shinrai's name.
Y: Hi, Shinrai. What are you doing today?
Yasui hit send and waited for a bit. There was no immediate reply and he realized that the sun was glaring annoyingly off his phone. He squinted and stood to move to a better spot. He was passing a bench with two other guys on it that was nice and shady when they both stood and left. Yasui spun on his heel and sat down where they had been.
I'll wait just a bit before texting Jack, give Shinrai some time to text me back.
Yasui clicked at his phone a bit and opened the internet browser, deciding to try to familiarize himself with his new bank. He pulled out the card the clerk had given him with the information about the app on it and began typing it in. A few minutes later, a text message popped up on his phone from Shinrai.
S: Not much, wby?
Yasui frowned.
W-B-Y? Wwwwhiiibyyyy? Whiby? What's whiby?
Y: I don't understand. WBY?
S: what
Y: wby
S: I don't know what we don't understand
This makes absolutely no sense.
Y: Do you want to do something?
S: in town atm so maybe when I get back
Yasui narrowed his eyes.
ATM, I saw a couple of those today at the mall. Why is he in one? Whatever, I'll see if Jack is free.
Y: Okay. Text me when you're done.
S: ;P
Yasui looked blankly at his phone screen.
I hate texting, I really do.
He swapped to Jack.
Y: Hello, Jack. Do you want to do something with me?
He pressed send and waited before realizing just how vague that was. He typed and retyped several variations of a new message before settling on one.
Y: To clarify, I have nothing to do. So I was wondering if you didn't either and we could find something to do together. If so, please let me know.
After this, Yasui was left sitting by himself with nothing better to do. He sighed.
"Well… I, uh, guess I'll work on some homework. In advance."
Yasui made his way to the library. He knew there was a short essay due in a week or so for his science class, so he might as well do it early and be done with it. He was almost done with the first half when a familiar voice came from in front of him.
"Uh-oh. Hope you didn't leave that for the last minute."
Yasui looked up and saw the same wolf teacher from last weekend standing at his table with something under his arm. Yasui flinched and stammered out,
"Oh! Uh, Mr…."
"Nishinoya."
"Right, sorry."
The teacher laughed and adjusted his glasses.
"Relax. I kinda forgot your name too."
"It's Yasui."
"Well that makes us even then."
They both chuckled a bit at that before Yasui tapped his paper.
"No, this is just some working ahead. I don't really have anything to do so I figured I, y'know, might as well."
"Gotcha. Quite the model student then, eh?"
Yasui shrugged. He then looked more incredulously at the adult and asked,
"Mr. Nishinoya? Why exactly are you here? On a Saturday I mean."
The teacher grew embarrassed and gulped.
"So, uh, if it wasn't obvious, I have a pretty terrible memory. And I accidentally forgot my wallet here. And to make it worse, I also forgot this."
He held out what he was carrying. It was a present wrapped in colorful paper tied with a ribbon. Nishinoya grimaced.
"My daughter's birthday present."
"Uh-oh."
"Yeah, my wife is pretty upset. Anyway, nice chatting, but I really have to go. I have a birthday party to get to."
Yasui noticed he had a large red ribbon tied around his wrist and pointed at it.
"Is that what the ribbon is for? For your daughter's party?"
Mr. Nishinoya looked at the ribbon and his face grew panicked.
"Crap! The cake! I need to pick up the cake! Thanks for reminding me! See you around, uh…."
"Yasui."
"Right, Yasui. Thanks again. Bye!"
And with that he hurried off, muttering under his breath about the cake. Yasui shook his head and went back to his paper.
I bet he's a fun dad. If a little scatterbrained.
Yasui's phone vibrated and he checked it, seeing a message from Jack on it.
J: at my parents house today but lego might be free
J: you should go see if he wants to hang out otherwise he'll just sit around all day by himself
Yasui frowned.
I dunno. Would Legoshi want to spend the afternoon with me? I didn't think we were particularly close. Well… I mean we kinda are I guess? And he might be bored too. I'll go check.
As Yasui made his way back up the stairs to his dorm room, he puffed a bit, a bit out of breath from all the stairs.
"One thing *pant* is sure *huff* I'll have *gasp* strong legs! *wheeze*."
He caught his breath before knocking on the door to Legoshi's dorm room. A familiar voice came from inside.
"Who is it?"
Yasui raised his voice a bit.
"It's me! Yasui! Can I come in?"
"…Sure."
Yasui opened the door to find Legoshi sitting on the window seat reading a manga. The wolf dipped his head at Yasui as he entered.
"Hey, how's it going?"
Yasui tucked his hands into his pockets.
"Pretty good. I got some new clothes at the mall. There was a sale."
"Huh, nice. Oh, Jack's at his parent's place today, he won't get back until later."
"I know. I was texting him. I wanted to see if you wanted to do something?"
Legoshi gave him a skeptical look.
"Like, just the two of us?"
Yasui nodded.
"…Did Jack put you up to this?"
Yasui shrugged.
"He gave me the idea."
Legoshi gave him an apologetic look.
"Sorry about him. He's convinced I need to socialize and get out more."
"Oh, well I don't know about getting out somewhere, but I'm bored and ran out of homework to do."
Legoshi frowned.
"I thought you liked reading? Why not do that?"
He seemed to realize how that sounded and saw Yasui's crestfallen look. Legoshi closed the manga.
"Ah, sorry! That sounded like I didn't want to talk to you. I was more curious about why you didn't want to read is all."
Yasui shrugged.
"I have, like, four siblings. I'm not used to having this much alone time. It feels weird to me."
Legoshi nodded.
"Oh yeah, that makes sense. So, based on how often you talk about them I guess you and your family are close?"
Yasui grinned.
"Oh yeah! Super close! Even when my older brother and oldest sister would go over to their friend's houses, I'd take care of my two other sisters for Mom."
"That sounds nice."
"Yeah, what about you? I've talked to you a few times but never actually asked anything about you as a person. Are you close to your family?"
Legoshi hesitated, his mood darkening a bit.
"I, uh, well…. That's a… complicated question."
"Oh, not super close? Not even with your mother?"
"My, uh, my mother… died. When I was a kid."
Yasui winced. He just had to go making this awkward. His expression grew sad.
"Oh, Legoshi. I'm sorry. I didn't know."
The wolf shrugged, his face resigned.
"You couldn't have. Only Jack really knows much about it. The other guys haven't really asked. They just know I don't like talking about my family much, and that I live with my grandfather."
"Not your Dad?"
Why did I say that? Why did I say that!?
"He, uh, left. When my mother was pregnant."
Yasui walked over to where the larger boy was sitting. Legoshi continued.
"Yeah, so it was just me, my mom, and my grandfather for years. And before you ask, my grandmother passed away when my mother was little. It might be a family curse or something like that."
Legoshi forced a halfhearted laugh at his attempted joke. His laughter caught in his throat as he was surprised by Yasui wrapping his arms around him as best as the little fox could. He heard a sniffle from somewhere near his stomach.
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't have been so nosy!"
Legoshi held his arms out from his torso awkwardly and gulped.
"Hey, uh, Yasui. It's okay. It happened a while ago. I'm over it."
"B-but still! I keep going o-o-on and on about my family when y… *sniff* you lost most of yours. I'm sorry. I probably m-made you feel bad!"
Slowly, Legoshi reached down and carefully patted Yasui on the back.
"It's really fine. I liked hearing about your family. Really."
"…You did?"
"Yeah."
Legoshi was still trying to figure out what to do when Yasui spoke again, his sniffling dying down.
"I didn't make you feel sad?"
"Not really, no."
Slowly, Yasui let go and backed away, looking embarrassed.
"Okay… if you say so. I believe you. Sorry for… that. I've always been a bit of a crybaby. I just, when you told me that I thought about all the times I talked about my family and I thought 'oh no! I probably was really rubbing salt into the wound' and that made me sad, because we're friends and I--"
Legoshi wiped some small moisture droplets off his shirt and shrugged.
"It's fine. Jack's always been a bit overly emotional too. Uh, don't tell him I said that."
"I won't. Still, I'm sorry I brought it up, I should have noticed you didn't want to talk about it."
"Actually, it's kinda nice to talk about this stuff with someone, I guess. Jack never pushes because he doesn't want to make me depressed, so I just haven't told people about it. It's not a big secret or something."
Yasui nodded and sat across from Legoshi. He was embarrassed about his sudden emotional outburst and was still trying to dry his eyes.
"Thanks. That makes me feel a bit better. I won't pretend like I know how you feel about all that, but I kinda get it. Our next door neighbor was like a grandfather to me. He always had time to tell me a story or show me a magic trick. He was nice to me when lots of other adults in the village weren't. He made me feel like I wasn't different when I was around him. And then he died. And all I have to remember him by is this old coin of his."
Yasui reached into his pocket and pulled out the dingy, scratched old coin he always carried. It's weight in his hand was always so familiar and comforting. Legoshi looked at it curiously.
"What type of coin even is that?"
"I don't know. I just know it was a gift to him when he was younger and he used it for magic tricks. He knew I liked it so he gave it to me on his deathbed. That and a bit of advice."
"What was the advice?"
Yasui grinned.
"Avoid boiled cabbage, don't eat earwax, and never kiss a girl on the first date unless she started it."
"That's some… interesting advice."
"Yeah, he was funny like that. But then he got all serious and gave me this coin before saying, 'You have value despite what anyone else might say. You belong here, no matter what. Walk tall, kiddo.' I still don't completely get why he said that to me, but it means a lot to me."
Legoshi smiled.
"Sounds like he was a good friend."
"Yeah, the best. I miss that crazy old curmudgeon."
As they stopped talking, the tension in the room hung between them like a curtain. Finally, Legoshi broke the awkward pause.
"So, uh, do you want to go… get some ice cream?"
Yasui chuckled.
"Yes, thank God! Where should we go?"
Legoshi shrugged.
"Probably just the school store. They typically have some for sale during the summer."
Yasui eagerly followed the large canid to the main building and into the store. In the back was a small ice chest with a selection of frozen snacks to pick from. Yasui chose cherry while Legoshi picked sea salt. As they left the store, Yasui gave his companion an inquisitive look.
"Salty ice cream?"
"It's surprisingly good."
"Okay, so where to? A bench or something?"
Legoshi thought for a moment before humming to himself.
"Follow me."
They went up a few flights of stairs before emerging from a small door somewhere above the center of the main building. This was further up the school than Yasui had ever gone. As they stepped outside, Yasui saw that they were on the very top of the school roof below the sign and tree that made up the crown of the building. Below them was the main roof of the school, with the garden club and a few other small sheds and such dotted around it. And then there was the whole of the school grounds with tiny animals walking around paths as wide as Yasui's finger. And beyond that was the city itself. From this vantage point it all looked like a distant smudge. Tiny streets and micro blob cars driving them.
"Wow."
Legoshi sat down and unwrapped his ice cream.
"Yeah, the view here is pretty nice. The other guys and I come up here every once in a while if there's a meteor shower or something."
Yasui sat at what seemed a normal distance away and looked down the hill at the sea.
"I'm surprised you can see anything like that here. The stars are so dim, it makes me sad."
"Yeah, the light pollution makes it pretty hard to stargaze. I bet back home the sky is amazing."
Yasui sighed and licked his ice cream.
"Yeah. Especially on cold, clear nights during the winter. The sky looks like it's a giant campfire with clouds of smoke flying everywhere. Here there aren't any you can see. The sky is all the same color."
"I bet that's cool, to see all those stars. But you can see some here, they're just dim. But I bet you have an even better view somewhere back home, being in the mountains and all that."
Yasui leaned over a bit and looked him in the eyes, a big smile on his face.
"You should come visit sometime! Maybe over a break or something. My family would love to meet you, I can tell."
"Oh, you think?"
Yasui snickered.
"Yeah, to word it as my Mom would, you're a 'strapping young pup.'"
Legoshi gave him a half smile.
"What does that mean?"
"It means you're tall and have broad shoulders. That's, like, an essential virtue back home. And one I am clearly lacking."
Legoshi looked down at himself, inspecting his body.
"I dunno. I'm not exactly athletic."
"Oh please. A few weeks of working the fields and eating what we eat back home, and you'd look like one of those muscly guys on the cover of that manga you were reading."
"Wow, maybe you should market your village as an exercise retreat. 'Come spend a week here, leave with big biceps.'"
Yasui laughed.
"If only. I lived there my whole life and I'm still a runt."
Yasui hurriedly licked his ice cream as it began to melt. He was glad that the tree on top of the roof provided some shade. The sun was brutal today. He was halfway through his snack when he asked.
"So, Legoshi. Got any special plans for the festival?"
"Well, nothing beyond my responsibilities in the drama club. That keeps me pretty busy."
"Oh, I forgot you were in the drama club. I tried to join but this deer pretty much just called me a loser and told me to get lost. So I joined the Cooking Club."
Yasui winced.
"That must have been Louis. He can be a bit… prickly."
"No kidding."
"So… are you doing anything?"
"Yeah, we're going to set up a booth and sell snacks. Still working out the details."
"Huh, I'll have to see if I can find you and get something."
Yasui smiled.
"For you? I'll drop something off. Can't do… whatever the drama club does on an empty stomach!"
Legoshi returned the smile. Yasui had noticed that when Legoshi was away from crowds and groups, he smiled a lot more. And he had a nice smile.
"You'd really do that?"
"You bet! You did stop somebody from stealing my wallet. I'd say bringing you a snack is the least I could do."
Yasui stopped a droplet of cherry ice cream from reaching his hand and asked,
"So, what do you do in the drama club? Are you an actor?"
Legoshi shook his head.
"No, I'm in the stage crew. I mainly do the lighting."
"No kidding, that's where I'd thought of trying to be. Being the backbone of the whole production, behind the scenes and all that. Although I'm surprised they haven't cast you as a villain or something. I bet you could pull off dark and brooding super well."
Legoshi gave him a blank look.
"You make that sound like I'm not already dark and brooding."
Yasui shrugged.
"You're quiet, yeah. And you clearly don't like crowds, but that doesn't make you dark. Just a homebody."
"A homebody, huh? I guess that's the truth."
Legoshi finished his ice cream and looked at the stick. He snickered.
"Hey Yasui? Where does an elephant store their luggage?"
Yasui tilted his head.
"I dunno? Where?"
"In their trunk."
There was a pause before Legoshi continued.
"Their trunk, get it?"
"Like… a car's trunk but a pun about their trunk being a trunk?"
"Yeah, it was on the popsicle stick."
Yasui frowned.
"There's stuff written on the stick?"
"Yeah, your thumb is right over it. You didn't notice?"
Yasui moved his thumb and squinted at the stick, moving it closer to his snout. There, near the middle, were some faint characters.
"Huh, there are. Pretty faint though."
"I guess…."
Legoshi scanned the street just below the hill that Cherryton was situated on and suddenly pointed at a building.
"Oh, that place has really good filled bread. Jack loves their walnut buns."
"Huh? What place?"
"That one right there, on the corner of the street. Just follow my finger."
Yasui scoffed.
"As if I could pick it out from this distance. It's way too far away."
Legoshi shook his head and finished off his ice cream.
"Not any far away street, the one that goes parallel to the school. It's, like, two blocks down."
"Yeah, that's what I'm saying! I'd need to have the eyes of a hawk to see that."
Legoshi frowned and stayed silent for a bit before stretching his arm out away from Yasui and holding up his index and middle fingers in a peace sign.
"Hey, Yasui? How many fingers am I holding up?"
Yasui looked over and saw the wolf's large hand.
"Two, why do you ask?"
Legoshi hid it behind his back and then stretched it out again, this time he had his ring finger pressed against his middle one with no space between.
"And now?"
"Still two. Is this some kind of game?"
Legoshi winced and repeated the process, this time with all four fingers held out but with them split down the middle in a "V" shape.
"And now?"
"You held up two fingers each time? Aren't you supposed to change it?"
"Uh… Yasui. I did."
Yasui frowned and furrowed his eyebrows.
"What? No way! I saw it, two fingers each time."
"When's the last time you had your eyes checked?"
"What do you mean?"
"Like, at the doctor's office. Didn't they ever make you read a chart with letters on it?"
"No, the only time I saw a doctor was if I was sick. Why? Do you think there's something wrong with my eyes?"
Legoshi scratched his head and gulped.
"Uh… let's go see the nurse."
(A few minutes later.)
The two boys arrived in the school nurse's office to find an older female stork sitting at the main desk. She had a badge that read "Dr. Tamura." She smiled at them as they entered.
"Good afternoon. Do you need my help with anything?"
Legoshi nodded.
"Uh, yeah. Do you have… an eye chart?"
The stork tightened her beak as she looked around at some miscellaneous items stashed behind the desk.
"Hmm… let's see. I did have one, but where did it run off to. Let's see… no, no, ah! Is English okay?"
Legoshi looked down at Yasui. Yasui nodded.
"Yeah, my English is pretty good."
She stood and set the chart up on the wall across from the first bed from the door. She motioned them over and Yasui walked over and stood beside her. She stood behind him a bit and gave him directions.
"Now, I'm assuming you're wanting me to test your vision?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Hmhm, how polite! Now, just read the rows I tell you to read. Can you tell me what the one at the top is?"
Yasui looked at the chart. A big, bold letter "A" was printed in red ink on the top.
"A."
"Good. And the second row?"
"G, F."
"Okay, and the next?"
Yasui squinted. The chart was too far away to see the lowest letters clearly unless you had super vision, but he did his best to decrypt the fuzzy characters.
"It's… L, O, U… F."
"And what about the next one?"
Yasui gave her a confused look.
"Uh, Miss? There aren't any more? Just lines."
Legoshi winced as the nurse nodded her head and walked to the chart, pulling it back off the wall. She handed it to him.
"What about now?"
Sure enough, there were gradually decreasing lines of letters below the last he had read, and he had gotten some letters wrong on that line anyway. He shrugged.
"Well, that's pretty normal, right? I've always seen everything like this. Far away stuff is just a little hard to see, it's that way for everyone."
The nurse gestured for him to sit down and moved a stool over to sit across from him.
"Now, would you mind telling me your name, young man?"
"It's Yasui."
"Yasui, nice to meet you. I'm Doctor Tamura. I want to know some things about you. You don't have to answer but it will definitely help if you do. Understand?"
Yasui nodded and she continued.
"Good. Now, have you ever been to an eye doctor?"
Yasui shook his head. He had a cold pit of dread in his stomach that was growing by the second.
"I would highly recommend you make an appointment at one. I can help you if you are willing to go see one. But to tell you what I just concluded, it's clear to me that you seem to be fairly nearsighted. Have you ever had issues reading off the board in class or reading signs off buildings?"
Yasui gulped.
"I mean… a little… I guess?"
"It's odd… usually impared vision is noticed early on in life. But you've been scraping by with a major issue for years."
Yasui fidgeted with his claws a bit and croaked,
"Am… am I going… blind?"
The doctor smiled and gently patted his hand.
"I highly doubt that, so there's no need to worry. I think you just need glasses. If you want, I can take you to a friend of mine who's an optometrist. He'll fit you into his schedule as soon as possible if I ask. Does that sound okay?"
Yasui nodded. The doctor stood.
"Well then, anything else I can help with?"
Both boys shook their heads. She bowed.
"Then I hope you have a great day. Stay healthy!"
As they left, Legoshi sighed.
"Sorry, that wasn't exactly fun."
Yasui shook his head.
"Don't be upset. If anything I should be thanking you! You noticed I was kinda blind and helped me out. Who knows when I would have figured that out, if ever!"
Legoshi shrugged.
"You would have figured it out eventually, you're a pretty smart… guy."
Yasui looked at him and smirked.
"You were about to say kid, weren't you?"
Legoshi winced and gave an awkward smile.
"You got me. I keep forgetting I'm the same age as you. It's probably a little upsetting to you, being treated like a little kid."
Yasui waved him off.
"Bah! I'm used to it! But at least you try not to."
They wound their way back to the boy's dorm and Legoshi asked,
"You want to play cards or something?"
"The only card games I know are 'Go-Fish' and 'Cribbage.'"
"'Go-Fish' it is then."