p"Miyamura, I have a question about your piercings," Hori started off, placing a cup of tea in front of him. It was a couple days after they graduated high-school.
/p
p"Oh? What do you want to know?" He subconsciously tugged on the small ring in his lower piercing. He'd wanted to get back into the habit of wearing a few daily./p
p"Do you regret them?"/p
pMiyamura froze, not expecting that heavy of a question. "Oh. I…guess a little bit? I mean, I pierced them myself, so it's a miracle they never got infected."/p
p"Not what I meant." Hori interrupted. "Do you regret the fact that they're a way you hurt yourself, so you can't wear them all without feeling bad?"/p
pMiyamura deflated a bit, but did have to nod. "Yeah. Middle school me wanted a non-obvious way to hurt myself. Piercings were easy to hide. But, I do really like how they look. Guess I made it so I can't just wear them for the look, huh?"/p
p"What if we could make it so they're associated with a happy time in your life?" Hori asked, not even knowing herself how to do that./p
p"That…that would be great!" Miyamura said, a wide smile taking over his face./p
pHori didn't have the heart to tell him she had no idea how to do that./p
p—/p
p"And that's the current dilemma," Hori says with a sigh./p
p'That's certainly a pickle!' Yuki agrees over the call./p
p"He looked so happy by the idea, and I want to make him feel better about it all, but I have no idea how…" Hori flopped back on her bed, keeping the flip phone to her ear. Yuki had been more than willing to hear Hori out, which she greatly appreciated./p
p'Well, could you get your ears pierced? You two could wear matching earrings!' Yuki suggested, breaking the silence./p
p"That's…not a bad idea. But, that'd just be two of his piercings. He has nine!" Hori complained, burying her face in her pillow./p
pYuki hummed, thinking. After a moment, she spoke up. 'Hey, topic change. When's his birthday again? I don't have it on my calendar.'/p
p"Oh, it's on the 17th." Hori replied simply. Miyamura had forgotten to tell most of their friends his birthday./p
p'17th of ithis/i month?!' Yuki exclaimed./p
p"Y- yeah?" Hori replied hesitantly./p
p'Shoot! I don't have any idea what to get him! I thought I had a few more months to think about it…'/p
pHori giggled, but then felt a light bulb go off in her head./p
p"Hey, Yuki? I think I have an idea."/p
p—/p
p"Hori?" Miyamura asked, noticing her phone ringing again. It'd been going off almost constantly the last few days./p
p"Sorry Miyamura, I really have to take this call in private!" She exclaimed, picking up her phone and dashing up to her room./p
pMiyamura was left in the living room, and felt himself deflate. He hadn't been able to just spend time with her in days./p
p"Yo, Miyamura! What's got you down in the dumps?" Kyosuke asked, plopping down next to him on the couch and slinging an arm across his shoulder./p
p"Hey Kyosuke…" He mumbled./p
p"Ah, you feelin' down 'cause Hori's always on her phone?"/p
p"How'd you guess?" Miyamura asked, perking up slightly./p
p"She's been the same way even when you aren't around. Won't tell me what she's talking about. Says I'd ruin everything." Kyosuke took a sip of his own tea./p
p"Just give it some time," He continues. "When Hori gets her mind set on something, it's best to just wait it out."/p
p"Yeah, guess so…hey, my birthday's coming up. I'll be 19." Miyamura says, trying to change the topic./p
p"Oh, growing up I see? I'm sure Sota would love to throw you a party. Hori too I suppose."/p
pMiyamura chuckles. "I'd look forward to that."/p
p—/p
p"Sorry bro, I can't come to your birthday party," Sota says a bit absentmindedly./p
p"Huh? But, Hori said-"/p
p"Hori changed the plans." Kyosuke interrupted. "But, she finally let me in on the plans. Can't tell you, 'cause she'd kill me. But, you're still coming over here."/p
pMiyamura looked at him, puzzled, but nodded hesitantly. "Al…right."/p
p"I've been wondering, how'd you do all those piercings of yours?" Kyosuke asked, taking Miyamura's ear in between his fingers, looking at the holes./p
p"Ah…I wasn't super safe. I used ice and a safety pin…" Miyamura explains, some regret in his voice./p
p"Didn't go to a proper shop? Wait, they need a parent's sign off. You were probably too young, huh?" Kyosuke chuckles, letting go. "The holes are nice, though. Not crooked or infected. You took good care of them?"/p
p"Yeah. Why are you so interested now, though? You didn't ask about any of this when we first met."/p
pKyosuke shrugged. "Been meanin' to ask. To be fair, you covered up your piercings with your hair 'round when I first met you. So, four on each ear?"/p
p"And one on my lip." Miyamura pulled down his bottom lip to show the small hole./p
p"Whoa! You have a hole in your lip?!" Sota exclaims, finally tuned in to the conversation./p
p"Yeah. Remember all that jewelry I was wearing when we first met?" Miyamura asked./p
pSota thought for a moment, and then perked up. "Oh yeah! You had that chain from your ear to your lip! Is that what that hole's for?"/p
p"Mhm. I can wear little rings in it, like my ears."/p
p"Cool!"/p
p"You're not getting any piercings any time soon, so don't even ask," Kyosuke interrupted, ruffling his son's hair./p
p"Wasn't gonna! But bro looks cool with them! Some of the guys at school have older siblings that listen to music with people that look like bro did first time I met him!" Explained Sota, a smile on his face. "I got to tell them that my bro dresses like that and they got super jealous!"/p
p"Well, I don't dress that extreme very often now…" Miyamura sighed. "I do like the look, but once I actually had friends to hang out with, I didn't have near enough time to get that dressed up."/p
p"Aww…" Sota complained, leaning against him. "Did you throw out those clothes? Did you outgrow them?"/p
p"No, and no. I just didn't have much time to wear them with school. Maybe I can dress more like that now that I have free time." He assuaged, patting Sota's head, which cheered him up./p
p"I'm sure it still works, even with the new 'do," Kyosuke commented, messing with the ends of Miyamura's new short haircut. "I knew a couple guys in high-school who dressed like that. Mostly the other guys who rode their motorbikes to school. Don't ride one of those, by the way. I broke my arm once and it was inot/i pretty."/p
p"Duly noted."/p
p"Miyamura!" Hori exclaimed happily, coming back downstairs. "I've gotten almost everything together for your surprise party!"/p
pMiyamura blinked at her, confused, "Surprise party?…was that what all those phone calls were for?"/p
p"Mhm! Me and the others have been setting everything up for a couple weeks now!"/p
p"And, it's a surprise party…but you're telling me about it?" He continued, confused./p
p"The party's not the surprise. It's what gonna be iat/i the party that's the surprise." Hori explained, excitement in her voice. "You'll have to be last to arrive, alright? Trust me on this, it's gonna be great!"/p
pMiyamura nodded, Hori's enthusiasm rubbing off on him. Whatever this unconventional surprise party held in store for him, it was going to be something to remember for sure./p
p—/p
p"Yuki! I'm so glad you're here. Help me set up the living room, please!" Hori exclaimed, giving her friend a quick hug./p
p"Hey Hori! Oh, hi Sakura!"/p
pSakura waved from the kitchen, watching the oven. "Hello Yuki! The cake is proceeding well, Hori."/p
p"Awesome. Yuki, did you bring your present?"/p
p"Mhm!" Yuki took out a small sachet from her sweater pocket. "This'll be awesome!" She reached up and fixed her hat, tugging it down./p
pHori and Yuki worked on setting up for the party, with Sakura making sure the cake didn't burn. As they worked, Hori let in each guest as they came./p
pSengoku and Remi arrived just after the Yuki, and started helping set up. Ishikawa came next, and kept Sakura company in the kitchen. Yanagi came with Iura, who talked everyone's ears off about his sister's first week of school, which helped ease some nerves, giving an air of normalcy to the whole event./p
p"We're just waiting on Shindo, Sawada, and of course Miyamura." Hori said, and was proceeded by the doorbell. She opened it, finding an out of breath Shindo./p
p"He's…coming…had…to…run to…get here first…" He panted out, quickly showing Hori his own sachet. He lumbered to the kitchen, and downed a cup of water, and practically collapsed against the counter./p
p"Dude, your hat's slipping," Ishikawa muttered, fixing the boy's hat. As he fixed it, the doorbell rang again. Hori went over and opened it. Standing in the doorway was Miyamura and Sawada./p
p"I know I was supposed to show up last, but it's hard to when one of the guests is your neighbor…" Miyamura said, waiting in the doorway with Hori as Sawada made her way inside./p
p"It's okay. You showed up at the perfect time."/p
p"You and Sawada both have hats on; what's up with that? It's not even that cold." He questioned, walking in with Hori. He was more surprised to see every guest wearing a hat. Except Sengoku, for some reason./p
p"Uh, was this a hat party and two of us just missed the memo?" Miyamura asked, breaking the silence./p
pHori shook her head, and gently lead him into the living room. She pushed him to sit on the seat put in the middle. Before he could ask more questions, Hori pushed a small sachet into his hand. He couldn't even open it, before Shindo put his own on top. Then Ishikawa, Yuki, Sakura, Remi, Iura, Yanagi, and even Sawada. Sengoku didn't add to the pile, but he held a larger bag he didn't hand over quite yet./p
p"What is this? Is this my present?" Miyamura asked, stumped. Hori gently squeezed his shoulder./p
p"Open them up!"/p
pEveryone watched in rapt anticipation as Miyamura started opening the sachets. The top one on the pile was Sawada's, so that was first./p
p"Huh?"/p
pInto his open palm dropped out a black stud earring. Just one, though. Miyamura blinked, but opened the next sachet; Yanagi's. This time it was a dark pink stud. Just the one again. Iura's, one lime green stud. Remi, a bright pink one. Sakura, a dark green stud. Yuki, a sunny yellow. Ishikawa, purple. Shindo, bright orange. Only Hori's was different, a small gold lip ring./p
p"Are…did you guys each get me an earring? But…where did the other ones go?" Miyamura asked, still confused, but starting to feel elated./p
p"That's what the hats were about…" Hori said with an embarrassed chuckle. She slid her hat off. On her right ear, a small gold hoop, matching her present to Miyamura./p
pHe looked at her, stunned. But, as the gears clicked in his brain, he realized what that meant. He looked over the rest of the group, not sure if he can even believe what he thought was happening./p
pShindo took off his hat next, pushing his hair away from his left ear. There was the other half of the pair he gave, a bright orange stud. Iura excitedly moved aside his hat to show off his lime green earring, the other half of his present. Ishikawa showed his next, and Sakura gently pushed her hair back to make her dark green stud visible. Yanagi moved his fringe to show his earring, and Remi adjusted her pigtails to sit behind her ears, showing off her stud. Yuki pushed her hat back enough for the earring to show, and Sawada flipped her hair over her shoulder to show off hers. Although, she had both ears pierced, the other one taken by a beige stud./p
pMiyamura looked on, stunned./p
p"You guys…why…you did this for me?" He eventually stumbled out./p
p"Of course, dude. You have all those piercings but couldn't wear them 'cause of how you got them. Hori thought if you instead used them to have matching pairs with all of us, it'd make you feel better!" Ishikawa explained, coming into the living room from the kitchen./p
p"So, we all pierced our ears! We did it safely at a proper shop, so you don't need to worry about that part," Yuki finished off./p
p"I couldn't because my parents wouldn't let me," Sengoku said, handing Miyamura the bag he was holding. "So, instead I got you some extra cleaning solution and earring backs. Thought it'd be a good idea to make sure you keep those all clean."/p
pMiyamura accepted the gift, and his vision was going watery. He never expected in a million years his friends to care enough about his weird issues to help him like this! He poured the studs into the bag from Sengoku, and stood up./p
p"Excuse me for a second."/p
pMiyamura went past the crowd of his friends to the bathroom, holding the bag in his hands. After the door clicked, everyone looked at each other, hesitantly excited./p
p"I hope he appreciated our gift," Yanagi fretted./p
p"Remi knows he did. Miyamura looked happy, even if he was about to cry," Remi said authoritatively./p
p"We didn't seem creepy or something, right?" Shindo asked, looking over the general group. He toyed with his stud, thinking. "Even if he thinks we're weird for it…I'm glad we did this."/p
pEveryone made small hums of agreement, except for Hori. Her gaze was kept on the bathroom door the whole time. Her eyes widened when the handle jiggled, and opened. Everyone looked over, excited./p
pOut of the bathroom came Miyamora, wearing every one of his new piercings. His watery eyes and his wide smile told it all. He was so happy./p