As long as he has been alive, Yuuki has never known a more stable, unwavering presence than his brother's. He holds Naoki with high regard. Anything Naoki enjoys, he enjoys. Anything that Naoki dislikes, Yuuki dislikes. Although he cannot understand why his brother dislikes sweets — they are Yuuki's one and only weakness.
He feels pity for all the neglected little brothers in the world, who don't have a big brother like his.
It is a surprise when Naoki comes in his room, carrying folded cardboard boxes. At first, Yuuki feels like crying, thinking they are moving away, but Naoki shushes him, consoles him, telling him that they're just moving rooms.
"There's long-term guests coming over," Naoki explains, and Yuuki groans, wondering why he's the one being kicked out.
His brother smiles at him, amused. "You've got the least amount of things," he explains, reading Yuuki's mind. Yuuki looks up at him, stunned. Naoki can read minds, too. His brother is amazing.
He sleeps well that night, and he wakes up early, at the same time as Naoki, in fact. Naoki has an annoying alarm clock, hidden away somewhere, but it is effective. Yuuki reasons that is the reason why he has that clock. Still. He can't help but tell him that his alarm clock is really noisy and too loud. He is confused when Naoki laughs at him, as they brush their teeth together.
"Clocks are supposed to be annoying," Naoki says, and Yuuki nods, as if he is a student listening attentively to a teacher. "If they were comfortable, you'd fall right back asleep."
Yuuki vows to never get a pleasant alarm clock, now that Naoki has explained the secret to him. He wonders if that's why Mom wakes up so late; her alarm is on her tiny phone, a gentle, twinkling sound. Or perhaps she is tired; Yuuki has not missed the daily deepening eye-bags on her face.
So, one morning, when he stumbles into the kitchen, seeing his mother up bright eyed at what seems to be the crack of dawn, Yuuki is startled. He peeks out the corner, staring at his mother. She does not seem to be herself. She's energized and alert, and upon closer look, her eyebags have disappeared!
Yuuki wonders who this woman is. He frowns when his mother who is not really his mother recognizes him. He can't recognize her.
"Ah," she says, clasping her hands together. "Yuuki! You're awake!"
Yuuki wishes he was like Naoki, still asleep. Naoki always sleeps in on weekends. It's such a smart idea.
"Why aren't you tired?" He asks his mother, folding his arms. Something is strange. "It's too early to be happy."
She ignores him, does a little spin in the air instead. Yuuki watches her, unimpressed.
"I put on some makeup today," she explains, leaning down to his level. "Does it look pretty?"
Yuuki takes a look at her face, and his mother squeals when he nods, reluctantly. It is not bad looking.
He sits down, lets his mother pour him a glass of orange juice. It tastes very sour, nothing like orange juice at all. Yuuki scrunches his face at the taste. He reads the label while his mother talks on and on. He's got no interest in makeup, really.
Vitamin-Enriched Orange Juice. Hmm. That must explain the strange taste.
"Yuuki!" His mother, across the table from him, a broom in her hand. "Are you listening?"
"I don't like makeup," Yuuki answers, turning the bottle over. Has the bottle been shook? Maybe it would taste better if he shook it a little bit.
The orange juice spills on the table, staining the white tablecloth, staining his pajama shirt. Yuuki's eyes widen, and he looks up at his mother's face, excepting a lecture, expecting an angry face.
He is shocked to see a concerned look on her face. "Yuuki, oh dear," she says, rushing over to him, a rag in her hand.
Something is wrong. Mama does not behave like this until it's much, much later in the afternoon. Or when she is on the phone.
He watches her, quietly, warily, as she cleans up the table, removing the wet tablecloth entirely. He's even quiet as she takes the pajama shirt off of him, watching her face carefully.
As she walks him to the stairs, Yuuki finally decides that it's the makeup. Makeup has transformative powers, it seems.
"Naoki! Yuuki had an accident, go run him a bath," his mother calls out, standing at the foot of the stairs. "Don't make me do it myself, you know we're very busy this week!"
Yuuki glares at his mother. Accident? That's not the right word to use! Now Naoki will think —
"What? His bed's dry," Naoki calls out from his room, his voice raggedy, evidently heavy with sleep.
Yuuki groans. Even Naoki thinks he still has accidents.
"He spilled juice on himself!" his mother explains, still yelling. Yuuki glances between his mother and at the top of the stairs. Today is a horrible day.
Naoki bathes him, or he stands around in the bathroom while Yuuki pulls the curtains closed, only allowing Naoki to help scrub his back. When he's all rinsed off, free of bubbles and the sticky orange juice smell, Naoki asks him if he brushed his teeth.
Yuuki freezes. So that's why the orange juice tasted bad! He rushes to the sink, and Naoki laughs.
"It's okay," Naoki tells him, pulling out his own toothbrush. "Just remember next time."
"You didn't brush your teeth yet?" Yuuki asks, toothpaste on his chin. He can't believe that Naoki forgot to as well.
"I came to help you first," Naoki says, stretching his mouth wide. He scrubs his teeth in a circular motion; Yuuki does the same. "Besides, I need to pee."
Yuuki nods. "I'll be quick," he promises, spitting into the sink.
"Otherwise," Naoki continues, taking the toothbrush out of his mouth. "I'll have an accident too."
Yuuki looks up at his brother, who's resumed brushing his teeth. He laughs, a little bit. Naoki is funny.
Naoki smiles at him, pats his head. "Go put on some clothes," he tells him, shooing him out of the bathroom. Yuuki walks fast, almost tripping in his small towel.
Still, despite his good mood, something is off. Everyone is acting strange. Even Naoki.
It turns out that Grandpa — who he has never met — is not the one who will be staying with them.
Yuuki pauses at the footing of the stairs, listening to his parents. They are discussing what to do with Yuuki's room, now that it is emptied. Yuuki can only hear snippets of the conversation; his parents are very quiet people. He has seen other children's parents, loud, arguing, crazy.
He is glad his family is not like that. Yuuki likes his family very much. Calm, sensible, smart people.
He glances warily at his mother, takes in her pearl necklace, her matching pearl bracelets, and her pink lipstick.
There are worse people than her, he supposes, and Yuuki heads back to Naoki's room. To his surprise, Naoki isn't there. Yuuki wonders what he'll do now. He returns to the foot of the stairs, and after a moment's hesitation, he climbs down the stairs.
His parents stop talking. Yuuki sighs.
"When will the girl come to our house?" He asks, frowning.
His parents look at each other.
"Did you — "
"No," his father replies, shaking his head. "I didn't tell him anything."
Yuuki smiles.
Mama stares at him. "Are you…happy about this, Yuuki?" Her eyes are watching him very carefully. He feels like a watched criminal.
He frowns. "I'm not happy about that," he replies. "I'm just happy that I'm able to trick people."
Papa smiles at him, motions for him to come over. "Of course you are, Yuuki, you're a very smart boy."
Yuuki smiles. His mother smiles at him too.
He frowns when she tries to give him a hug, but he lets her anyways. If it makes her happy, then he can tough it out, he supposes.
"Yuuki," his mother suddenly says, pulling away from the hug. "Papa and I were thinking about buying you a gift," she says, her eyes twinkling. "For being such a good sport!"
She sighs when he asks for a new notebook. When he asks for a journal, she frowns.
"You already do that in school, don't you?"
Yuuki sighs.
They settle for a new collection of math flashcards. He's never had a set of his own before, and these ones are special, they have the Gameplay Option, so he'll be able to play with Naoki. His mother is pleased to see him come back to their shopping cart with the flashcards.
He's got to place the flashcards on the smallest compartment of the cart though, because the rest of the cart is overflowing with cushions, stationary, bedsheets, decoratives, and God knows what else is hidden underneath the frilly curtains hanging on the sides of the carts. Yuuki thinks he spots a watermelon even, but he is not sure.
Who even is this girl?
Yuuki does not talk to their mother as they proceed to the checkout. Being seen with a shopping cart of pink is embarrassing enough.
They pay a huge amount of money, cash that Yuuki has never seen in his entire eight years of life. The cashier congratulates his mom for the 'birth of her new baby girl' and even Mother looks taken aback.
"Have I gone overboard, Yuuki?" She asks him sheepishly, as they leave the store. Yuuki cannot even see in front of him; the shopping bags are enormous.
He frowns behind the bag of curtains. "That lady was dumb," he says, thinking back to the loudmouth cashier. "Newborns don't sleep on large beds."
His mother chides him for being rude, but Yuuki smiles when she eventually agrees with him, in the end. Naoki would agree with him immediately.
Yuuki walks a little faster, wanting to get home quickly so he can play his new game with Naoki.
Naoki laughs at him when he asks to play. Yuuki frowns.
"Are they too easy for you?" Yuuki asks, knowing the answer.
"That's not it," he replies, leaning back in his chair. "They're too easy for you."
They open up the packaging. Yuuki is astonished to see that Naoki is right; these are far too simple for him to even entertain.
Yuuki sighs, slumping into his desk.
"We should just throw these away," he finally says, handing Naoki the thick stack of arithmetic cards. "It was a waste of money."
Naoki turns the bundle over in his hands. "They look thick enough," he mutters, to himself.
Yuuki watches him get up, walk over to his nightstand and prop the alarm up, placing the cards underneath.
"Yuuki," he calls, from the other side of the room, "go lie in your bed."
He does so, and when Naoki calls his name again he looks up.
"Can you see the alarm from here?"
Yuuki's eyes widen. It's finally visible!
"Yes!" He says, smiling. "I can see it and hear it now!"
"Good," Naoki says, and he leaves the cards there, where they stay.
Mornings are easier now, no more waking up confused and lost. He knows the time now, and he has gotten used to the shrill scream of Naoki's clock.
Yuuki goes to sleep content that night.
And every night after that.
He wakes up happily, he goes to school happily, waves goodbye to Naoki (who leaves early every morning) and then he eats breakfast with Mama.
Life is good. Life is great. School is easy. His teacher likes him.
Yuuki is happy. His life is boring, but he likes boring. He likes waking up to boring mornings.
He wakes up extra early the next morning, wiping the sleep from his eyes. He's embarrassed and confused when he climbs down the stairs, because everyone else is already sitting at the kitchen table, engaged in a seemingly tense conversation.
Yuuki thought it was only Naoki who left early — he woke up alone in the room that morning — but Mama and Papa were up as well, so something must be up. He's even more confused when he sees that Naoki hasn't left, no, he's still at home.
Besides. Yuuki is still wearing his pajamas. Everyone else is dressed. Mama has on her makeup, Papa is even wearing his tie, and Naoki has his school bag by the side of his chair.
What's going on? Things are unusual today; nothing like his usual routine. The normalcy of each day is no longer. Yuuki misses it already.
"Good morning, Yuuki," Papa says, putting down his coffee cup. "You seem well-rested," he comments, smiling at Yuuki's ruffled hair.
Yuuki wipes his eyes. "Good morning," he replies, and then Yuuki pauses.
Papa?
Mother smiles, rushes over to him. "Go brush your teeth, Yuuki. Naoki will be taking you to school today."
"What?" Yuuki glances at Naoki, who's calmly eating cereal. "Why is Papa still here? Doesn't he have work early?"
"Nope! Papa will be meeting with Uncle Aihara," Mama replies, heavy on the Uncle Aihara. "That's what you'll call him, understand? They'll be moving in today!"
"I thought it wasn't for another week," Yuuki says, even more confused. "Did their money run out?"
Naoki laughs.
Both Mama and Papa frown at Naoki.
"Nothing like that happened," Papa says, shaking his head. "It's just easier for Ai to move in this week, instead of next week. His schedule is always changing. He's such a busy man."
Mama nods. "And we're doing everything we can do help him," she finishes, smiling softly. "Uncle Aihara will be excited to see how much you've grown!" She leans in closer to Yuuki, places her hands on his shoulders. "He came to see you when you were born, did you know that?"
Yuuki's eyes widen. Both his parents laugh, presumably at his shock.
Yuuki frowns. Nothing is funny.
"How come he's never visited us before, then? I've never heard of him. He's a stranger."
"Yuuki, don't be like that," his mother says, but Papa's shaking his head, sipping from his hot coffee.
"It's alright, dear. I would be more surprised if Yuuki was open to the idea. It's a big change for him." He turns to Yuuki. "He's visited us many times before, Yuuki. You were just too little to remember. And besides, Ai is an amazing cook! If you don't remember his face, I'm sure you'll remember his food the second you taste it!"
"We can't possibly expect him to cook for us," Mama says, pausing. Her voice grows quiet. "Not after they lost everything."
Papa pauses. "About that," he starts, and even Naoki sighs. Papa takes a deep breath. "Ai already invited me for lunch."
"I'll make something for them too, then," Mother blurts. "It's only fair that way."
Papa nods, slowly. "That would be well," he says. "That's a good idea."
"Will you be taking the boys with you? You could take Yuuki with you," she says, and Yuuki ignores the way she hugs him closer, smiling.
"Take Yuuki with me…" Papa looks to Naoki, for approval, for confirmation? Perhaps he is searching for an answer in Naoki's eyes, Yuuki guesses. Naoki can do that. He can answer someone's questions just with the look on his face. It's so cool.
"Nao, do you also want to come with us? Just the three of us, me, you, and Yuuki? Mama will stay behind and bake."
"I'd rather not," Naoki admits, and Yuuki pulls free of his mother's grasp.
"I'm not going if Naoki's not going!"
His mother frowns, and her eyes squint together until her mascara looks like two thick lines. Yuuki wonders how she put it on without getting it in her eyes. "You don't do anything but sleep all day," she tells Naoki, glaring at him. "Go with your father. There's no room for further conversation."
"It's alright if he's got something else to do," Papa says, quietly and Yuuki almost wants to hug him.
Papa always goes easy!
"I'm not going to tolerate this kind of behavior, and you won't tolerate it either. This is no way to treat guests! He's going, Yuuki's going, and I will stay home preparing desserts. We'll welcome them warmly."
Yuuki sighs. His father tries to cheer him up. He's doing such a good job at being obvious.
Yuuki ignores the subtle shift in his father's voice. Is he being too nice just because he's young? He's not a baby, he can understand no.
Even if Mama's words make him unhappy — who wants to go to a restaurant and listen to adults talk about nonsense? — Yuuki can still understand what no means.
"You'll love the food, Yuuki, I promise!" Papa points to his own belly, pats it, laughs. "How do you think my belly got so big?"
Yuuki glances at his mother, who, thankfully, didn't hear anything. She's too busy scolding Naoki.
He feels bad for Naoki. If Mama yelled at him like that he would probably feel very sad. He would probably cry, actually.
Yuuki watches them closely. Naoki doesn't seem to care that Mama is yelling at him. He's just stirring his spoon in his bowl, even though it's almost empty.
Mama just cares too much about these things.
"Fine," Yuuki sighs, walking out of the kitchen. If he nears the stairs, Mama won't follow after him. Papa won't either. "I'll go."
"Naoki will be taking you there as well, Yuuki," Mama says, picking the dishes off the table. "Papa will be there earlier, so you two will meet up with him." She turns to Naoki, picks up his bowl off the table, almost dropping the spoon. "You know where Aihara's is, right?"
Naoki sighs. "I'll call when I get there," he says, standing. Yuuki pauses at the staircase, watching his brother.
"So you know the location?"
"Yes," Naoki says, glancing at the clock on the wall. "I've got to leave soon. I'll also be leaving early for the rest of this week."
"Help Yuuki get ready too," Mama says, calling after him. Yuuki sulks as he climbs up the stairs, heading towards his room. Just how old does everyone think he is?
Truthfully, if Yuuki had to chose someone to help him get ready, it would be Naoki. Mother tries too hard, Papa doesn't try at all, but Naoki is in between. He gives him privacy, he helps him whenever he asks, and Naoki always listens to him.
Naoki even waits for him to finish eating breakfast, even though he's already ate his! Yuuki smiles at the thought, kicking his legs underneath the table as he eats. Naoki's in the seat next to him, flipping through the newspaper. It looks quite boring, honestly, but if Naoki finds interest in it then Yuuki must give it a try.
Naoki glances up at him when he asks to see it, smiling slightly.
"I didn't know you were into politics," Naoki says, but he still hands it over. "Careful not to spill your milk, Yuuki."
The paper is freakishly large. It must be for old men.
"It's not really that interesting," Naoki continues, placing his hand on his chin. "They only report on tragedies."
"Then why do you read it?"
"It's new," Naoki says, half shrugging. "It discusses global happenings as well, so that's another reason."
"That's true," Yuuki says, squinting at the small text. "But you could just read a history textbook if you wanted to learn about other countries."
Naoki laughs. "Those are from the past," he explains. "Newspapers tell you things that've happened recently."
Yuuki nods, looking back at the newspaper. He is quiet for a while, thinking about textbooks and newspapers and politics and big old men squabbling. "Won't the things in the newspapers be in the textbooks too? Someday?"
"That's right," Naoki says, smiling. "You're impressive, Yuuki."
Yuuki smiles back, and he's glad to hand the newspaper back to Naoki, glad to have learned something new. He eats the rest of his breakfast quickly, and he doesn't even complain when his mother tells him to wash his hands twice.
The weather is nice when he gets outside, and he runs ahead of Naoki, stopping to pick up a leaf. He gives it to Naoki, who smiles, pockets it.
"You're surprising me a lot today," Naoki comments, but he doesn't seem angry. He seems…amused. "Usually, you're much more serious."
"It's not everyday that you walk me to school," Yuuki counters.
"True," Naoki says, glancing ahead. There's a road ahead of them, white crosswalks painted on the street. "You always glance both ways before crossing the street here, right?"
"I don't take that way," Yuuki says, slightly confused. He points to the right of the sidewalk, ways ahead of them. "I just turn the corner there, not left."
Naoki's eyebrows raise. "Really? That's different," he says. "Usually, we crossed the road here."
"Did you walk to my school as well?"
"No, Papa drove me."
Yuuki frowns. Papa doesn't drive him to school anymore these days.
He can feel Naoki smiling at him, and Yuuki shrugs off his hand when Naoki messes his hair up.
"Do you wish Papa drove you? He can, if you ask him. You'd just be at school an hour early."
"I don't want to ask him now," Yuuki says, sighing. "He's too busy these days."
Naoki nods. "His business has been really…expanding. They're partnering with a joint firm, actually. It's a good thing, I guess, but it's also stressful." He turns to Yuuki. "Still, you can ask him. Don't be scared to."
"I'm not scared of Papa! I just don't want to bother him," Yuuki admits, turning his head. The corner of the road is almost in front of them; they'll have to turn soon. "And it's not hard to walk. I can handle it. So it's not a big deal."
Naoki is quiet. Yuuki doesn't know if he's mad or not. He watches Naoki's face, watches as he glances behind him even as they turn onto the sidewalk.
"There's no cars, Naoki, you don't have to look both ways."
"You've always got to be careful, even if you're on the sidewalks. Don't you know that it's dangerous? You always need to be alert. It's the same if you're in a car, or if you're walking. Everyone needs to be aware of their surroundings."
Naoki is angry. Yuuki sighs.
"Mama already told me all of that," Yuuki says, frowning. He huffs as he walks, kicking a rock from the sidewalk. "You don't need to yell at me too, Naoki."
"She was right to yell at you," Naoki says, but there's no real bite in his voice. "She just wants you to be safe."
"I know."
The rest of the walk is quiet, but Yuuki can tell Naoki has calmed down.
Now, all eyes are on them. The lady at the school's front doors smiles broadly when Naoki and Yuuki approach. He can spot his classmates whispering, and even a teacher — a teacher! — remembers Naoki!
Yuuki feels lucky to have such a great big brother.
"Thanks for walking me to the doors," Yuuki says, a little quietly. The lady at the front door, the one who opens the doors for the students, is listening in. Yuuki feels a little nervous, for some reason.
Naoki pats his head, once, twice. "No problem. I'll pick you up after school too. Wait for me here," he tells him, and then Naoki glances behind his back. "If I'm not right at the door, then I'll be at the gate. You can walk there if you don't see me, but I'll try my best to be on time."
"Okay," Yuuki says, nodding. Front doors after school, if Naoki isn't there, go to the black gates. "I'll wait for you."
"Good," Naoki says, putting his hand back in his pocket. "Have a good day at school, Yuuki."
"You too! Bye, Naoki!"
He waves goodbye, and Yuuki is pleased to see that Naoki doesn't leave right away, waiting until Yuuki climbs up the stairs.
The lady smiles at him when she opens the door.
"I remember your brother," she comments, and Yuuki stops, squints at her. "Irie Naoki? He was the Two Time National Math Exam Winner, wasn't he? He represented our district."
Yuuki doesn't like this woman. She is nosy. Perhaps she is not paid enough.
People who are bored do their jobs terribly.
"How long ago was that now, let's see… seven years ago? Eight years now? Gosh, has it been that long?"
Yuuki sighs, and the lady turns to him, giggling. Such childish behavior from such an old lady.
"He was so bright at such a young age!" She suddenly stops giggling, takes in Yuuki's reaction. "I'm not mistaken, are I? Your brother was the winner, wasn't he?"
Yuuki glances around. Maybe? Probably? He doesn't know.
He tells her so, tells her that he is unsure about that, and the lady laughs.
"Ah, yes, you must have been too young to remember that," she says, still smiling.
Yuuki frowns as he enters the building, and he is still frowning when his friends ask him who he came in with.
He focuses harder in his math class that day, even spends lunch in the library. The librarian is a bizarre old man. He laughs when Yuuki borrows 6 books instead of the allowed 2.
"You've got peculiar study habits," the librarian tells him. "Are you planning to graduate while still in elementary school?"
Yuuki only thanks him as he receives his books, ignoring the librarian's comments. Bored people really do suck at their jobs.
Later in the day, the teacher decides to split everyone into groups, which Yuuki thinks is strange.
They're in the middle of learning how to write essays. Yuuki cannot understand why anyone would not be able to memorize the simple structure. Why break into groups when writing?
"We're going to shift course today," the teacher says, picking up a stack of sheets. "We're going to include vocabulary in our lessons from now on. I'm sure many of you are already familiar with these words, but I'd like to see them in our daily conversations, and eventually in our essays as well."
"Irie," she calls out, like Yuuki knew she would. "Would you pass these out? One per each."
He obliges, crosses over to the front of the room, examines the sheets. Just plain lists of words. Yuuki scans them, briefly. This won't be anything too difficult.
No one glances at him as he sets the papers down on their desks.
Everyone seems tired, today.
Yuuki decides to give himself the last paper, knows his teacher is a stickler about manners, and he was right; she smiles at him when he finally sits down.
"Now, if you haven't already, I'd like you to write your name on the page. We won't be turning these in, but we will refer to them often, so be sure not to lose them. I'll give you ten minutes to copy the words into your notebooks, and then we'll move on."
Yuuki finishes in the first five minutes. It's not hard to write words you already know.
He's partnered up with two girls. They smile too hard around him, and Yuuki frowns when they ask about his brother, frowns harder when they talk only about Naoki and nothing else.
It's clear they don't want to finish any work.
"He doesn't care about you," Yuuki tells them, searching for the teacher. "May I be paired up with another group?"
The teacher nods, doesn't ask why. Yuuki smiles at the girls as he leaves, walks out the door, following the teacher.
"You don't need to follow me," she tells him once they've reached the end of the hall. "I'm getting papers from the copier. I assumed you'd find a group to join by yourself."
He is furious and embarrassed when he returns back to the classroom.
The girls giggle as he sits back down at his desk, alone.
He won't partner up with anyone from now on.
Naoki is at the front doors before he even finishes the school day, Yuuki comes to realize, because everyone's talking about him. He ignores all his classmates, hopes that in the future, when he's a grade higher, that he will be placed in a class with better people.
Everyone in his class now is just a baby. They're all annoying, they're all messy, and they've got no interest in learning anything.
Yuuki won't say he hates them, but he really hates them. At least they're not stupid, he thinks. Even if they don't want to work, at least they can. It's a huge difference.
Yuuki is still angry as he leaves the building, climbs down the stairs. The same girls wave goodbye to him, and he frowns harder at them, knowing that they're only here to glance at Naoki. Naoki is practically ten years older than them!
Yuuki decides that girls are stupid. Stupid and crazy.
Their second greeting is ignored.
Why wave goodbye to him again when he ignored them the first time? Do they need him to spell it out?
When the second girl, a girl with short brown hair, stops and says, "Did you hear us, Yuuki?, he can't take it anymore.
"Shut up! I don't want to say goodbye to you!" He snaps. It comes out a little louder than he meant to. Whatever. Yuuki does not care if Naoki gets angry with him, doesn't care if Naoki tells Mama, doesn't care if Papa is disappointed.
The girls run away when Naoki approaches, watching Yuuki closely.
"Are those your friends?"
Yuuki is appalled. "No! I'm not friends with them! I would never be friends with them, not in a million years!"
Naoki is amused, Yuuki can tell that much.
Naoki is mean.
On the way home, Yuuki counts the lines on the sidewalk. His eyes feel heavy. He's even more tired when they finally arrive home, only to change outfits and start walking again. Naoki's quiet voice on the phone with Mama becomes his lullaby.
He falls asleep at Aihara's. He does not remember anything anyone said there, but he did get a glimpse of the man who would be staying with them. He had kind eyes, but he was too serious-looking as he placed the food down in front of them.
Yuuki had decided that was a good thing. At least there's someone who takes their job seriously.
He supposes the girl must be like her father.
Hm. That is something to think about.
Yuuki thinks about his old room while his mother tries to shake him awake.
When they return home, the hunger in his stomach is what wakes him up, not his mother. She sits him down on the table, tells Naoki to reheat his food.
"Papa and I will run to the grocery store quickly," Mama calls out, from the front of the door. She's putting on her shoes. "Picking up some last minute things!"
Naoki says nothing, waits until he hears the door shut, and then he leaves Yuuki alone in the kitchen, leaving to lock the front door. Yuuki isn't scared of being alone in the kitchen. He is brave. Still. He is extra attentive, listening to any scary sounds. You can never be too careful.
At least, that's what Naoki told him.
When Naoki returns, Yuuki tells him to reheat some leftovers for himself as well. That way we can eat together!
"Hm," Naoki says, thinking. He's standing in front of the stove, large spoon in his hand. "Maybe I will. The food's good."
"That guy really was a professional, wasn't he? I didn't get to see him that much," Yuuki says, frowning slightly. He can't really remember anything else.
Naoki laughs. "That guy is Uncle Shigeo. He's going to come in about an hour."
"Really? An hour? Doesn't he have the restaurant to run? He should come tomorrow morning."
"You've got to start calling him Uncle now, Yuuki. Otherwise you'll be rude."
"They're the ones coming in our house," Yuuki mumbles. "Why do we have to be the nice ones?"
Naoki stops stirring, pulls the large spoon out of the pot. "Don't say that. I don't like this either, but you don't see me being mean."
"Well, maybe you should," Yuuki tells him. "There's no reason for us to be nice! This is our house. They're the ones making things harder for us! I am sorry that their house got destroyed, but what does that have to do with us? It's not like we blew up their house ourselves."
Naoki laughs. "You're really something, Yuuki," he replies, turning back to the stove. The stovetop shuts of with a loud click when Naoki switches it off.
Yuuki watches as Naoki pours the soup into two twin bowls. He didn't spill a single drop!
"Besides," Naoki continues, setting the pot down. "I never said anything about being nice to the girl."
"Do you know her?"
"I do. She goes to my school." Naoki sets the bowls down on the table, pulls out a chair. "Don't be nice to her."
"Is she a bad person?"
Naoki laughs.
"Is she?" Yuuki leans over the table. "Did she do something to you?"
"I just don't like her," Naoki replies. "That's all."
"What if she turns out to be nice? Is she pretty?"
Naoki laughs again. "You'll find out," is all he says, raising the spoon to his mouth.
She shows up late at night, along with her father. Naoki ignores Mama when she tells him to come greet them at the door, and so Yuuki ignores her as well.
"She sounds stupid," Yuuki whispers.
No answer.
Naoki's book must be very interesting.
"…Is she not? Am I wrong?" Yuuki's voice grows even quieter. Maybe she's actually in Naoki's class!
Apprehension claws at him when Naoki still doesn't speak.
"She is," Naoki finally replies, turning the page of his book. "She's in Class F."
"Class F? The class for stupid people?"
"You'll see when you start middle school, Yuuki. Class F is the lowest of the low. She's in that class."
Yuuki giggles. "I should see how stupid she is," he says, moving off of his bed.
Naoki shuts his book, turns to Yuuki. "That's a great idea," he says, suddenly paying attention. "Get your school book," he tells him, smiling when Yuuki shows him his new vocabulary list.