Chamomile Part Three:
Dinner was peaceful. I noticed that Dojima had avoided purchasing beer and had instead chosen a fairly nice, simple sake to add to the table. I sipped the lukewarm fluid in between bites of curry and wasn't sure how I felt about the spice and alcohol mixing together to make my mouth sting.
'Hey, Nanako, I bought some of those sweet pears that you like.' Dojima grinned as his daughters smile lit her young face.
'After dinner we can all have one. I have a couple extras as well that you two can take to school this week.'
I watched Souji's face both closely and surreptitiously. I wondered what he brought with him into the television. Was there anything that he could acquire that would truly alleviate the symptoms of exposure to the fog and shadows? I doubted it. I knew he purchased unusual amounts of antibiotics, alternative medicines, and other miscellaneous objects that no teenager should have ever had to budget for, on an almost daily basis. I had been paying attention to his visits to the various shops around town.
His shoulders were always tense; he held them tighter than he needed to. His hair and clothes were neat - meticulously so - but that only suggested that he was careful to hide his real state of exhaustion and sickness to his family and friends. I suspected that Nanako, being an observant child, was slightly aware of Souji's compromised well-being. Though, for all her powers of perception, she wouldn't even be able to sympathize with half of what that boy had to be going through.
I swallowed my next bite of curry and found that my throat felt thick. I forced the food past that feeling and took a larger sip of sake to wash it away. The sake was harder to put back down after I'd taken it up.
'-So, thanks.' Dojima looked at me with a warm expression on his face. I knew he'd been speaking to me but I hadn't caught the previous part of his statement.
'Oh! Don't thank me, Dojima-San.' I feigned shyness.
'Nah, I'm really grateful to you for picking up some of the slack. It can get hard to balance work with home life, you know?'
'Yeah, for sure.' I chuckled as though I could relate.
We finished our curry, enjoying simple bits of conversation while we ate. Dojima rose from his seat and wandered into the kitchen to grab the pears he'd purchased. Nanako's attention was briefly fixed on the television as some children's program came on and during that moment, Souji turned his full attention to me.
'Adachi-San...'
'Mm?' I smiled questioningly at him through a sip of sake.
'Thank-you.'
I placed the cup of sake down gently. 'What do you need to thank me for?' I widened my eyes slightly.
'You cheer him up.' Souji had his hand placed on my shoulder and his eyes were sweet, and genuine. He sat back as Dojima returned.
The night had been both strange and pleasant. The curry had been delicious. Souji wasn't suspicious of my intentions in the slightest. Dojima was nice to talk to, and he was honestly happy to share his family's company with me. Nanako had a lighthearted disposition that she wasn't always blessed with, and I felt warm and welcome.
The pears were supposed to be sweet.
Nanako commented on it, Souji ate his with abandon, Dojima savored his bites - but mine.
Mine was somehow bitter.