Chapter 4
When Hana opened the door using her elbow and foot, there sitting on her bed and desk chair were her brothers going through yet another one of her photo albums.
Look at this, Christmas choir, Bean's first one to be precise," Rin said, pointing at the picture.
"Yeah, and if I'm not mistaken that was the Christmas concert where Hana had her first solo performance. She sang 'Silent Night', though she had to hold your hand the whole time Rin." Yukio said smiling at the picture and the memories it brought up.
"I still sing 'Silent Night' mostly when I'm doing dishes," Hana said, holding up the tray in her hands. "So, who wants a biscuit and a cup of tea?"
"Oh cookies! What kind are they?" Rin asked, actually smiling for the first time in a long while.
"Your favorite but better because they are authentic English shortbread. My mates Ryan and Riley along with their oldest brother Finn absolutely love these biscuits," Hana said as she set the tea tray down on her desk, before turning to hand each brother a cup of tea.
"Thank you, Bean," Rin said, taking the cup and a few biscuits from the tin his sister offered.
"Thank you, Flower," Yukio said, doing the same as his twin.
"Yukio, be careful, Hana made very strong black tea," Rin whispered to his brother after taking a sip. Hana rolled her eyes before sitting down in the other desk chair.
"I can see that Rin; but you have to remember that we did make Hana cry because we didn't want to take this chance to fix the rift that has grown between us." Yukio said before taking a sip of the tea; he than turned away to cough at the bitter liquid.
"Oh damn, Hana really is upset; you can tell by how strong this tea is," Rin said, forcing down his tea. Hana rolled her eyes, then placed the tin of biscuits in between the twins on her bedspread, a cloth underneath to catch any crumbs. Hana sat back down on the chair.
"For your information, the English Exwires love my strong black tea; mostly the fourth year Amelia Anderson and fifth year Ava Taylor," Hana said, playing with her empty tea cup.
"Hana, are you not going to have any tea?" Rin asked as she dunked a biscuit into the tea, being careful not to spill anything on her bedding.
"No, I don't think my stomach will be able to handle it," Hana said just as her phone started ringing. She lifted the device to see who was calling her; only for Amelia's name to flash across the screen at her. Hana smiled before getting up from her seat so that she could leave her room and not bother her brothers with her conversation only for Rin to grab her arm and pull her onto the bed next to him.
Rin whispered softly into her ear, "Stay here, Bean. This is your room, so you're free to take calls here." He held onto her arm when she tried to pull away from him. Hana relaxed in his grip before turning to her phone, which was still ringing. She sighed before hitting the green button on the keypad and holding it to her ear.
"Hey Amelia…what can I help you with?" Hana asked her voice shaking, even in her own ears. Rin took her hand and gave it a squeeze before wrapping his arm around her shoulders, trying to provide her some comfort, knowing how stressful this was for his little sister.
"My ears were ringing so I was guessing between either you or my mom...so were you talking about me?" Amelia said laughing over the other side of the line. Hana relaxed a little bit as it became clear that it was most likely just the three other girls.
"Yeah…um…my brothers were complaining about the fact that I made strong black tea; so, I told them that you and Ava actually love it when I make tea." Hana said laughing lightly, she was still stiff and if it wasn't for Rin sitting next to her softly rubbing her shoulder and back.
"While that is true Hannah, also Finn wanted me to let you know that we got a hotel near Tokyo. So, we should be there sometime tomorrow morning," Amelia said laughing with who she assumed was either Ava or Sophia.
"Okay, I'll let the Japanese branch know." Hana said playing with her pendant with her left hand trying to alleviate her anxiety, that was before Rin took her hand and gave it a squeeze. It was then that Yukio handed her the notepad that she kept on her desk with her folder file, Hana quickly shifted her phone so it was sitting between her shoulder and ear, before pulling the pen, that she was using to hold her long hair back with, free and scribbled down a quick note for her brother letting him know what was going on with the English team.
"I'm going to let everyone know, and while I'm at it, I'll make some tea that we all like," Yukio said, taking the note and the tea tray that were sitting on her desk. Hana rolled her eyes before going back to talking with her teammates. Rin took the phone from her hand the minute that Yukio was out of the room, and turned it on speaker.
"Hello Ms. Amelia, my name is Rin Okumura, I'm Hana's older brother. I was just letting you know that I have put my sister's phone on speaker." Rin said in perfect English. Hana didn't even know that her brother knew English, let alone spoke it so well. Hana looked at her brother, mouth open in confusion, until he put his hand under her chin and gently closed her mouth.
"Oh, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Okumura," Amelia said, laughing softly as she introduced herself and her teammates, "I'm Amelia Anderson, and with me are my teammates, Ava Taylor and Sophia Bond."
"So, I gotta ask who is Hana?" Ava asked after fifteen minutes of the three girls talking to Rin while Hana laid down on her bed with Angel held to her chest. It was then that Hana sat up and took the phone from her brother.
"Sorry about that Ava, it's not well known but I have two names...in English my name is Hannah but in Japanese my name is Hana...that's spelled H-a-n-a." Hana said half asleep, as she had to quickly come to her brother's rescue not knowing that she went by a different name when she was over in England.
"Oh, that makes sense…now go back to sleep Hannah Rose," Sophia said clearly having heard Hana's slurred speech, which was a dead giveaway that she was either just waking up or was half asleep and it was nap time. Hana handed the phone back to her brother before picking up Angel and curling up at the foot of her bed, head laying on her thick olive-green fleece blanket.
"I am looking forward to meeting you ladies tomorrow, and you were correct to tell Bean to go to sleep because right now she is curled up with her teddy bear half asleep on the foot of her bed. And the minute I get a chance I will make sure to send a picture to you ladies," Rin said turning off the speaker on her cell phone so as not to disturb her nap. Hana couldn't hear what was said next, but she made a note to ask the girls when she got a chance over the next few days.
"Yes, I will let Bean know…you ladies have a good night," Rin said before hanging up her phone with a snap, as she closed it. That was before Hana heard her phone being reopened, and a few buttons being pressed. She was confused, about what was going on, before someone knocked at her door. Hana rolled from her side to her knees before getting up from her bed and walking over to the door. However, she wasn't used to her new room layout just yet, so when she tried to answer the door, she was off by a few feet and ran into a wall.
"Ow...that hurts...what did I run into this time?" Hana said opening her eyes, while rubbing her nose, she looked over at Rin who was silently laughing at her before he got up from his spot on her bed to answer the door. Allowing Yukio and Suguro-senpai into the room, both of them were carrying trays full of food and drinks.
"What was that thud?" Suguro-senpai asked as he set his tray down on Hana's desk. Hana was still rubbing her nose, trying to figure out what she had run into.
Rin wrapped his arm around Hana's shoulders and led her over to the food. "Hana sleepwalks when she's half-asleep."
"She ran into the wall again while trying to answer the door," Yukio explained, which led to Rin bursting out in a fit of laughter. Hana could see the tension spread across Yukio's body as he jabbed his elbow into his brother's side, but it didn't even work.
"I'm sorry Yukio, give me a minute and I'll get him to stop," Hana said as she pushed Rin onto his bed, then pounced on top of him. She started tickling Rin nonstop.
"I'm sorry bean...stop tickling me." Rin said as she continued to tickle her brother, until Yukio handed her a bottle of black peach tea, clearly telling her that she could stop. Hana smiled before rolling off of Rin to sit next to him on her bed. Just in time for Suguro-senpai to place a plate of food on her lap.
"Okay, Okumura, Hana-chan, you both need to eat," the senpai said, looking down at the two teenagers sitting on her bed. Hana looked at the plate on her lap before swiftly removing it and rushing over to the trash can to throw up. She could hear the twins sighing before she felt a hand holding her hair out of her way while another one was rubbing her back, trying to provide her some comfort.
"Hana stomach is still tied in knots. She won't be eating tonight." Yukio said as Hana started dry heaving into her trash can, Rin right behind her trying to help.
"Is Hana-chan also starving herself?" Suguro-senpai asked as he watched the girl.
"Only in certain situations does she stop eating. One of those situations is on her birthday and for about a week and a half afterward. Another situation is when she is being bullied. Bullying often leads to a lack of self-confidence and self-esteem, which leads to isolation and self-doubt; the result of all of that is Hana doing the same thing as Rin." Yukio said, dodging the shoe that Hana had thrown at him.
"No throwing shoes, Hanako," Rin chided gently, thumping her lightly on her back.
"Okay, I thought her name was Hana?" Suguro-senpai asked confused, sitting down on one of the desk chairs, as Rin helped the girl over to her bed where he laid her down. Angel held tightly to her chest.
"Like me and Rin, Hana was adopted, but not until after the age of three. By that time, she was already used to being called Hanako. It took us close to six months to get her use to Hana," Yukio said, watching as his brother laid the thick fleece blanket over their sister, her teddy bear in her arms.
"Hana also will stop eating when she is under a great amount of stress. And with the English team coming tomorrow; it's very stressful. Stress often ties Hana's stomach into knots so bad that even the smell of food sets her off." Rin said rubbing his hands up and down his sister's back. Right away Suguro was up out of his seat and picking up the tray full of food.
"Okay, I'll remove this; Hana-chan, would you like some toast?" Suguro-senpai asked, squatting down so he was in the same eye level as the girl.
"No thank you, Senpai," Hana said as she cuddled into her teddy bear. It was then that the two familiars came into her room, the two hopping up onto her bed and curling up near her feet.
"Beans, we're going downstairs to eat," Rin said as he petted her head. "If you need anything, then just have either Kuro or Kiba come get me."
"Okay Rin, just don't push yourself," Hana said as she rubbed at her left eye with her hand.
"I won't Bean, and to tell you the truth I'll probably be up in fifteen minutes." Rin said leaning down and whispering in her ear, before placing a kiss on her forehead. Rin then got up from the side of her bed and left with the others. And just as he predicted, he was back in fifteen minutes with a plate of dry toast and a mug of hot chocolate. Hana was sitting up in bed looking through one of her photo albums, it was mostly pictures of her time over in the U.K.
"What are you looking at, Bean?" Rin asked as he set the two items on her desk before taking a seat next to her.
Hana closed the book over her right forefinger as she looked up at her brother. "These are pictures from my time in the U.K.," she said. Rin then opened the book to take a closer look at all the different people and things.
"And who are these two?" Rin asked, pointing at a picture of herself, Ryan, and Riley on a weekend in London.
"That's Ryan and Riley O'Connor. My best friends. That guy in this picture is their oldest brother, Finn; and those are Sophia Bond and Ava Taylor." Hana said, pointing at the different people.
"And who is this guy with the girl?" Rin asked, pointing at one of the pictures she had taken of Patrick on a secret date with Amelia.
"That is Patrick O'Connor. And here is a little fact that not many people know; Patrick and Amelia are dating against his mother's wishes because Amelia is the daughter of a half-demon," Hana said, flipping to the section of the secret dates she had caught them on.
"So, his mom is against all half-demons? What does your teacher say about this?" Rin asked before turning around and taking the plate off of her desk, she then put the plate of toast on her lap.
"She is our teacher; but she wasn't their first pick. They originally wanted her sister-in-law Alec O'Connor, who isn't just a top-level exorcist but married to a half demon by the name of Andrew, a very nice man. I actually have a theory that Professor O'Connor had something to do with ruining Alec's chances of getting the job, on top of everything the professor isn't even an exorcist." Hana said stopping every few minutes to munch slowly on her toast.
"Suguro-senpai was right to send the toast up with you." She said after finishing a single slice of toast.
"I'm glad bean. Here drink this while you eat, hot chocolate with marshmallows and a splash of French vanilla coffee creamer," Rin said as he handed her the mug.
"Just the way I like it. Thank you." Hana said, blowing on the steaming liquid a few times before taking a sip. A sigh escaped her lips as all the tension melted away, Rin chuckled happily knowing that his sister was finally starting to relax. "You're welcome, Hana."
"You look more relaxed already," Rin said, moving closer to her as she settled in for the night.
Rin asked, "Do you want me to read to you like when we were younger?" She picked up her book from its place on the shelf above her pillows. Hana reached up above her head and hit the switch on her reading light.
"Okay let's see here...the best way to eliminate a ghoul type demon is...this is a book about eliminating demons. Okay where is your Bible, I'll read from that." Rin said after five minutes of reading. Hana reached under her pillow and pulled out the children's Bible that her father had given her after her First Communion.
Hana said, holding the chewed-up book out to her brother. "The Old Testament... Joseph was just sold by his brothers."
Rin moved her bookmark out of his way so that he could read, saying, "I see that you still read at the same time as the monastery."
"Yeah, on top of going to an Irish Catholic church twice a week," Hana said before laying her head on her brother's shoulder, which was her favorite position to listen to her brother speak. Rin only read about two paragraphs before stopping, knowing that if he went any further Hana would be angry with him. He looked down at her, thinking that she might be asleep; Rin was about to get up and head back to his room when Hana grabbed onto his shirt tail. Rin sat back down, and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
"That doesn't sound so bad, Bean," Rin said, thinking about what his sister had said before he had read it. "That is actually much better than the monastery."
"That's what I thought too, but no it's worse. Because it was two separate days, and on top of that the masses were very different from those at the monastery. The Irish church is more traditional compared to the contemporary masses at our monastery. The most we did was either sit there listening to the father preach or kneel in prayer…it was very boring," Hana said, throwing her head back with a groan.
"And they didn't let you have a pen and notebook?" Rin asked, looking at her with wide eyes, knowing that his sister had the worst time sitting still.
Hana said, fidgeting with her teddy bear's right ear, "Every time I brought one with me, Professor O'Connor would take it away from me."
"Well how do you feel about joining me on Sunday for mass?" Rin asked as he laid Hana's Bible on the edge of her desk, leaving it right in the open for everyone to see. Hana quickly looked at the calendar on her wall surrounded by pictures, to see what date Sunday was.
"October 17th... sure I'm free this Sunday," Hana said, twisting her upper body so she was comfortable on her bed. Rin could actually hear her spine pop as her joints compressed and expelled the air from within, Hana sighed in content.
"That must have felt good bean," Rin said standing up from his spot on her bed. Hana crawled under the sheets and bedspread. Hana sighed as Rin started to straighten out her covers, before making sure that her teddy bear was tucked under her arm. "Okay bedtime, the English team will be here in the morning and we're not even halfway through with the cleaning."
"Goodnight Rin," Hana said with a yawn as she curled up on her side.
"Good night, Hana, sleep tight," Rin whispered once he was sure that his little sister was fast asleep, having made sure that her blanket was tucked tightly around the girl.