Chapter 21: How Vacations Should Be
Yasui was having the stair dream again. He'd had it a few times, and each time he hated it. He was just aware enough that it was a dream to be uncomfortable as he endlessly walked up a stairwell in some nondescript building. Maybe it was a school, maybe it was a hospital, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that there was no end to this boring, boring dream. He just walked up and up and up without any doors at the next level, and only a hazy monochrome light slanting in from the window that always just seemed to be at the next floor. And still, he climbed and climbed and climbed.
Why did he keep having this dream? Was there a reason? Was some cosmic author or playwright directing him to some greater stage? If so, why was it taking so very long? Why was he aware of this dream, and yet couldn't stop walking up the stairs? Why was there a picture of some weird family on the wall…. Wait a minute… that's new.
Yasui seeme to regain some measure of control, but still never seemed to actually be able to see his body in this dream. He stopped and slowly turned towards the picture. There, on a frame on the wall, was a family portrait. The heads of the adults were out of frame, yet the young fox in between them was staring right at him. His eyes sort of followed Yasui as he looked at the picture. There had never been a picture before. It was a little creepy. Yasui happily resumed climbing up the stairs, but he heard a squeaking sound from behind him. He turned and saw that the fox had shifted in the portrait. He was closer now, and his eyes were still super creepy.
Yasui blinked. The fox's hands were gripping the picture frame, like he was trying to climb out. Yasui didn't like this dream for a whole other reason now. He wanted to wake up now. This was weird. But he felt strangely calm. He didn't like it. He was going to wake up now.
With a slight jolt, Yasui came to consciousness. He kept his eyes closed and scrunched his face up a bit. Soon he would have to go to work in the fields. Or would he? What day was it? He didn't care. He was so comfortable he just wanted to enjoy dozing in his bed for a while. Why was it that beds were always so much more comfortable when you woke up than when you got into them at night. It was a mystery. But this was so warm and soft he didn't want to get up.
Yasui yawned and nuzzled his cheek against his pillow. It was nice and soft, and smelled familiarly good. But maybe a bit different this time? Sort of a unique smell in the background, with strong notes of lavender and something almost woody, like cedar. And that unique part of the smell was… feline. The distinctive scent of feline. Why did his pillow smell like a feline? Yasui's eyes cracked open and he realized something. Well, a few somethings. Firstly, this was not his room. His eyesight might be blurry without his glasses, but he knew what his room looked like. Secondly, this was not his bed. The sheets were way too nice feeling to be his. They were too silky. And last but not least, his pillow wasn't leopard print and it wasn't this large. Yasui looked up and saw the still sleeping face of Miss Diana just a few centimeters away from his face.
Looking down, he saw that what he had been using as a pillow was in fact her shoulder, and the leopard print was the exposed fur on her neck. Yasui smiled and cuddled a bit closer, enjoying the warmth. He had slept very well, and this was very nice.
Yasui's eyes slammed open and he froze in place. He was in Miss Diana's bed. Why was he here!?
Oh no…. Wait, what happened last night?
Yasui concentrated as the events of yesterday slowly came into focus in his sleep-addled mind. He had left home, and had to stay with Miss Diana. They had watched a scary movie, and as such… they had both been too scared to sleep alone. Yasui gulped and looked up at Diana's sleeping face. Would she be mad? It had been her idea. Should he leave? Maybe he should…. But he didn't want to.
Yasui cringed a bit as the irrational and emotional part of his mind began to argue against leaving for his own room. This was practically a dream come true. No, this was literally a dream come true. Miss Diana, his constant and secret object of affection was lying right beside him. He was curled up next to the woman he fostered so much unspoken desire towards, and she had initiated it. And… she was asleep. He didn't have to be embarrassed if he decided to do something that would be embarrassing while she was awake.
No no no! I will not be creepy and weird! I-I should go!
But then again, this was his chance to do something he had wanted to do but hadn't been able to without being awkward. And… it wasn't really creepy or anything, it was just… normal canid instinct.
But still… I shouldn't….
But still, it was natural. This was his chance. Even as his rational mind weakly protested, he slowly crept his snout forward. The worst part was, he didn't want to stop. No part of him did, so he didn't. Yasui carefully let his nostrils hover just a hair's breadth away from the portion of her body where head and neck met, and took a nice long sniff. His tail wagged and he drank in her wonderful scent. It was so… her. And he liked her.
Okay, I've gotten her scent. I should stop.
But what could just a few more sniffs hurt? Like he had said, this was normal canid psychology. He sniffed everyone he was close to. He had the scents of his family and friends locked away in his mind. So it wasn't like this was perverted or anything. Like, it wasn't that he was kissing her while she slept….
...I want to kiss her….
Yasui practically held his breath as that thought washed over him. He knew that she didn't like him the same way he liked her, and definitely wouldn't ever do that with him. But he wanted to do it so bad.
No no no! That is definitely pervy and bad! I will not do it! That would violate our trust!
Yasui kept staring at the spotted fur in front of his snout. How it rose and fell somewhat as she slept. He had to resist, he would not do it. He needed to resist. Resist the temptation. Resist, resist.
Yasui sucked in a breath and hesitated, before quickly pressing his lips to her cheek. Immediately he felt embarrassed and began to slink away from her.
I can't believe I did that! I just did that! Why did I just do that!
But the more Yasui thought about it, the less awful it seemed.
I mean, people kiss people on the cheek all the time. It's not weird. It's a standard greeting in some countries. Maybe… just once more wouldn't hurt.
Slowly Yasui stretched his muzzle back up to her and hesitated before pecking her cheek again. He grinned. There was something exhilarating about being a bit… sneaky. He was acting all mischievously… and it was sort of fun. Besides, it was harmless. He was done now.
Just then, Diana stirred. Yasui froze as she shifted somewhat and her head tilted to rest with her cheek against the pillow and her snout pointing right at him. Yasui stared wide eyed at her face. She was still asleep. He could stop now, and he hadn't crossed a line. But as he looked at her mouth, he knew already that he couldn't stop himself. He had already given in. He was no better than the other nasty guys in his room who talked about girls and looked at lewd pictures. He was a slave to his instincts. He didn't even put up a good fight.
Carefully… Yasui leaned forward and got his face level to hers. How many times had he fantasized about this in class? Or dreamt about it?
No! This is definitely creepy and wrong! I will not!
Yasui squeezed his eyes shut and began to pull away. He could resist. He was stronger than his weird teenage hormones. He could just live his whole life without kissing anybody. He had so far, and he… probably never would. Especially not somebody as special as Miss Diana. He would just have to live with that.
Yasui rolled over and bit his hand hard. He winced and immediately felt a little better. But also, he now felt guilty.
I am so… disgusting. I make myself sick. She trusts me and I violated that trust.
Yasui felt an arm flop against his side. He tilted his head to look at Miss Diana. She was asleep still, but his movements must have made her shift again. Carefully, Yasui moved her hand up to the top of his head and let it rest between his ears. Yasui snickered.
This is nice, I like this.
….
I am so weird.
Miss Diana yawned widely and began to stretch. She seemed to feel Yasui's head, and pulled him closer. She rested her chin on the crown of his head and smacked her lips before purring deeply. The vibrations felt incredibly strange as Miss Diana opened her eyes and squinted.
"Hmhmm? Whaa…. Yasui?"
Yasui grinned.
"Good morning!"
Miss Diana rubbed her eyes and let go of him.
"Why are you in my bed?"
"Uh… you told me to last night after—"
"Oh! Yes yes, I remember now. Sorry, I was just a bit confused."
"Yeah, I was too…. So, uh, did you sleep well?"
She rolled over onto her back and checked the time on her phone.
"I suppose so. How about you?
"I slept great. I love being hugged, so I was very comfortable."
"Well that's good."
She fell silent for a bit before becoming alert.
"Oh gosh, Charles can never know!"
Yasui frowned.
"Why not? It's not like we did something wrong?"
"Well the two of us sleeping together in the same bed—"
"Okay, yeah. It sounds very wrong."
As Miss Diana swung her legs over the side of the bed and stretched her arms above her head, Yasui couldn't help but feel disappointed. He wished they could just cuddle for a while longer.
Yeah… I am way too weird….
Yasui followed her lead and slunk down the hall to the room that was supposed to be his. He got out his regular clothes and quickly changed before going down to the kitchen for some breakfast. Charles was already in the kitchen when Yasui arrived. The gorilla nodded to him.
"Morning."
Yasui gulped and stammered out,
"Uh, g-good morning."
Charles looked at him and narrowed his eyes. Yasui averted his gaze by looking at what Charles was cooking.
"Oh! What do you have there!"
Charles kept his eyes on him as he slowly replied.
"I'm making omelets. So… did you sleep well?"
He knows. Somehow he knows.
"Yeah, Mr. Charles. I slept… great."
"That's good."
Yasui swallowed and edged towards the door.
"So, uh, need any help?"
"Actually yes, you could set the table if you want."
Yasui scampered off to get some plates and silverware before realizing he didn't know where they were stored. He began looking around before Charles pointed to a cabinet.
"In there."
"R-right! Thanks!"
Charles narrowed his eyes but returned to his cooking. As Yasui finished setting the table, Miss Diana joined them wearing simple workout clothes. She smiled at them both.
"Good morning! How did you two sleep?"
Charles began plating the omelets and replied,
"Quite well. How about you? You seemed a little… shaken last night."
Diana rolled her eyes.
"Please, I'm not a little kitten. A movie won't give me nightmares."
Yasui was looking very intently at his plate as Diana addressed him.
"And how about you? Sleep okay? The bed was probably a bit different from yours back home."
Yasui tilted his head in confusion a bit.
Why is she asking me how I slept? She already knows…. Oooooooooooh!
"Uh… I slept… fine…."
She gave him a meaningful look.
"Really? You seem a bit ~strange~ this morning. Did you have trouble falling asleep?"
She is really good at lying. I just have to play along.
Yasui grimaced.
"Uh… maybe?"
Charles looked between the two of them and sighed.
"What happened?"
Diana feigned surprise.
"Whatever do you mean?"
Charles pointed between the two of them.
"You're both acting strange. Spit it out."
Yasui was in full blown panic mode. He could feel his stomach churning and his throat tightening. Diana waved Charles off.
"You're imagining things."
The gorilla raised an eyebrow and slowly turned to look at Yasui.
"Really…. Well, what about you, Yasui? Do you have anything to say?"
Yasui picked up his glass of orange juice and took a long… slow… concentrated sip. As he drank his beverage as slowly as possible, Yasui was quivering in his seat. He knew he couldn't lie to Charles. He would see right through him. He just had to avoid talking. Diana rolled her eyes and laughed.
"Oh heavens above, I guess you weren't lying about being terrible at lying, Yasui. Yes Charles, something happened. It was just an embarrassing little accident of sorts that—"
Yasui felt like he was about to explode. He forcibly set his cup down and gasped,
"We slept together!"
Both adults stared at him: Diana in mild confusion, and Charles in shock. He blinked a few times before roaring,
"You did what!!!!"
Diana chuckled and shook her head.
"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. Maybe it would have been better if you just kept drinking that juice and didn't stop."
Yasui gulped and sank low into his seat.
"Sorry…."
Charles held his hands up.
"Back up! I want an explanation! You two slept with each other!?!"
Diana massaged her eyebrows.
"We shared a bed, that is all."
Charles looked confused.
"Wait a minute, so you slept together, but you didn't actually… sleep together?"
Diana huffed.
"Why no, we stayed up all night making passionate love together because we're both idiots who care only about sex."
Yasui covered his ears at that last word, looking scandalized. Diana gestured towards ok as he did this.
"Indeed, Charles. The very soul of lechery, right here."
Charles scowled.
"No need to get spiteful. It's just… you can understand why I would be concerned. But… I guess if nothing happened ..."
Yasui shrank a bit lower and both Charles and Diana looked at him. Charles narrowed his eyes.
"Nothing happened… right?"
Diana was looking at Yasui with some trepidation. Yasui gulped.
"Uh… well… you see… I might have… maybe…."
Diana gave him an intense stare. As she did, she spoke a single word. It wasn't a question, it was a command.
"What."
Yasui winced and blurted out,
"I cuddled with you a bit!"
There was silence as Yasui squeezed his eyes closed. He waited for whatever reaction they would both have, and was surprised when nothing came. He opened his eyes to see Miss Diana biting back a smile as Charles held his head in his hands. Finally Diana spoke, barely containing her laughter.
"See, Charles? How lecherous!"
Charles sighed.
"Yeah yeah, I can see it."
Yasui looked hopefully up at them both.
"You're not mad?"
Diana couldn't hold back her mirth any longer. She let out a loud cackling laugh and had to use her napkin to wipe away her tears. Finally she caught her breath.
"Yasui, that's just… Why would I be mad?! Oh, you sweet little thing!"
She reached out and rubbed the top of his head. Yasui's tail wagged happily as she did so. Charles just shook his head, which was still buried in his palms. Yasui nervously smiled.
"It's just… after I did it I felt weird about it, like it might be a little creepy."
Diana waved his comment off.
"Oh please, since when has cuddling been creepy?"
"I just… I didn't ask beforehand. So I felt a little bad."
Diana shook her head.
"It's almost hilarious how very… innocent you are."
She can never know I kissed her on the cheek.
Breakfast was spent in much better spirits after the air was cleared. And soon Yasui was carrying his and Diana's plates to the kitchen. As he did, he asked her,
"So, uh, what are we going to do today?"
Diana patted at her mouth with a napkin.
"Well, I'm going to go do my yoga routine by the pool. After that I'll get ready to do whatever it is you want to do."
"Oo, can I join you? Yoga sounds fun."
Diana laughed.
"Certainly. It'll be nice to do it with someone else for a change."
It turns out that yoga was in fact not fun. Apparently it involved trying to bend your body like a pretzel and tie yourself into a knot. The difference between Diana and Yasui was astounding. She would explain what position they were supposed to be doing and help him try to imitate it before then doing it perfectly while Yasui grunted and strained before collapsing. He looked on in awe as Diana touched her hips to the ground and lifted her chest away from the ground until it was behind her hips. Yasui couldn't even make his back do a ninety degree angle. He gasped,
"How! Are you! So! Flexible!"
Diana smoothly transitioned to where her legs were practically standing with her waist in the air as she pressed her chest to the ground.
"Many many months of hard work. Also, I'm a feline. We're naturally flexible."
Yausi frowned and tried to do what she was doing. He really wasn't able to get the angle she was getting, but he did think he could feel his back beginning to loosen. Yasui grinned.
"Hey! I think, ngh, it's working!"
He tried to lower his torso a bit more when there came an unpleasant *pop* noise followed by an awful spasm in his back. Yasui gasped and flopped to the ground, making little "ooh! Ooof! Oooooo!" sounds.
Please tell me I didn't just paralyze myself!
Diana noticed and knelt down beside him. She tutted as she pulled his shirt up to see his back.
"Tsk tsk, I told you to take it easy! You've given yourself a cramp in your back. You can't force it, that's how you hurt yourself."
Yasui gasped.
"Noted!"
Diana shook her head and began massaging the clenched muscles. She leaned over a bit to catch his eye.
"Is this making it feel better?"
Yasui dug his claws into the stone that lined the pool area and hissed.
"Oooooo, I think, gah! I think a little bit!"
"Just relax. It'll pass. Calm down."
Yasui tried to relax. It helped that he was getting a backrub from Miss Diana, but the pain in his back muscles was really putting a damper on things. Eventually the muscle was unclenched and Yasui simply laid there on the ground. Diana laughed.
"Maybe you should call it quits there for today. It doesn't help to overdo it."
"But I was having fun hanging out with you."
"I didn't say you had to leave, but I think you've done enough yoga for today."
Yasui laughed.
"You're probably right."
Diana gave him a haughty look.
"Yasui, I'm always right."
Yasui laughed even more.
"Wow! Dad says the same thing about Mom!"
"Well then your father is a very smart man."
Remembering his parents reminded him of his disastrous trip home. And Yasui was sad now. He felt conflicted. He had lied to his parents, and he had broken his brother's nose. Granted it was in self defense, but still…. Yasui didn't want to be the type of person who broke people's noses. And then there had been the entire conversation he and Yone had had during their fight. His brother had said some pretty awful things, and then he had said something rather unpleasant too.
Well once again, it was definitely justified. But I just… I can't hate my own brother. At least, I shouldn't….
"Yasui? What's wrong? You look all down in the dumps all of the sudden."
Yasui blinked and realized that he had been staring vacantly at the ground for a while now. Miss Diana transitioned to a different pose as Yasui shook his head.
"Sorry, just thinking about something…."
"Oh? Penny for your thoughts?"
Yasui bit his lip and looks away across the pool. He didn't want to talk about his visit back home, not yet. But he was not a good lier. Maybe he could just roll into the pool and start drowning so she would rescue him and he wouldn't have to answer.
That thought gave Yasui an idea. He propped himself up and looked Diana in the eyes.
"I was just wondering. Would you… teach me how to swim?"
Diana seemed surprised at his request.
"Why, Yasui! I'm astounded you even want to swim after that ghastly ordeal at the beach!"
"Well I just don't want it to happen again! And… I'm really embarrassed that I can't swim. I've been invited to the pool by my friends a few times, but I always make an excuse not to go."
Diana crossed her legs and stretched her arms over her head. Her shirt pulled up a bit revealing a bit of her tummy. Yasui was suddenly very interested in his claws.
"Well, Yasui. That seems like a marvelous idea! I honestly don't use my pool enough as is, so this way it can get some use."
"Really? Great! But, uh, I don't have any of those swimming shorts."
Diana gleefully clapped her hands.
"We can go swimsuit shopping! Honestly, I need a new one. My old one is a bit too tight on me now. I got it back when I was thin as a rail. Fortunately I'm at a much healthier weight now."
Yasui's mind was suddenly invaded with the image of Miss Diana in a very tight swimsuit. His face felt a little warm.
Dang it! Stop being weird! She's… she's like a fun aunt to you! That's all! You don't have naughty thoughts about your aunt!
That seemed to snap Yasui out of it and he grinned.
"Sounds fun! I can't wait!"
And so it was that once both of them were ready, they were driving to a clothing store nearby to shop for swimwear. Yasui went to where the guys swimwear was and began looking through the various swim trunks available. He found a simple pair of gray trunks with a black stripe on them that were his size and wandered over to where Miss Diana was. She was holding up different articles of clothing and inspecting herself in a mirror. She saw him in the reflection and waved him over with one of the outfits.
"Perfect! Yasui, which do you like more? This one…." She held a light blue one piece up. "Or this one?"
Yasui examined the swimsuit in her other hand. It was black with a simple white design on the chest. Yasui tilted his head.
"Hmm… I dunno… let me think for a second."
Yasui glanced around and saw a nice burgundy swimsuit folded up on a hanger tucked into a corner. He grabbed it and held it up.
"What about this one? I think red is more your color."
She turned and saw his selection. Her eyebrows raised a bit as she pursed her lips.
"I didn't see that one. Let me look at it."
She held the material up to her fur and looked at it in the mirror. She then checked the size posted on the hanger.
"And it's my size! This one is perfect. Thank you Yasui, you're invaluable."
Yasui looked away in embarrassment when she patted his cheek as she walked by.
She said I was invaluable.
They purchased the swimwear and were soon back at Diana's house. Yasui excitedly got changed and sat waiting by the back door for Miss Diana. He heard her raised voice and footsteps as she approached.
"I don't usually go for this style of bathing suit, but I do actually like this one a lot. You really found the perfect one."
Yasui looked up and his eyes widened a bit. Miss Diana was wearing what looked like it was half one piece and half two piece. It consisted of a top part that formed a large cloth "X" that covered from her collarbone to a little above her midriff with a v-shaped neckline. The bottom piece was some sort of mini-skirt that was longer on one side than the other. Yasui thought she looked like some sort of mystical mer-beast from a fantasy book. She gestured to her outfit.
"So? What do you think? Still like it? It's not too much, is it? Sometimes swimwear like this can be too flashy."
"No, it looks great!"
She smiled.
"I'm glad you agree. Although this is definitely the only two piece I could wear. Nobody needs to see someone my age in a few cloth triangles held together with shoelaces."
Yasui tried really hard not to envision that. They waved goodbye to Charles who was making lunch and went back outside to where the pool was. It was a very nice pool, it was almost rectangular, except that there was a slope on the end closest to the house. This made it almost like a fake beach, especially as the water gently lapped on the concrete bottom of the pool. Yasui hesitantly shuffled into the pool and let the water splash against his feet. Miss Diana raised an eyebrow.
"Having second thoughts?"
Yasui took a deep breath and shook his head.
"No, I'm fine. Just… preparing."
"Well at least this pool has a slope so it's not just going right to the deep end. So relax, it's not as difficult as all that."
Yasui took a deep breath and slowly waded into the pool. It was pleasantly cool on a warm summer day, and Yasui easily got to where the water was up to his thighs. At this point he stopped. He had always been a bit embarrassed about this, but Yasui was petrified of drowning. Something about the thought of water filling his lungs made him panic like nothing else. He had had many nightmares about drowning, and as such had always been more than happy to avoid deep water. Yasui watched as Miss Diana waded past him and down to where the water was almost to her stomach. She beckoned to him.
"Come on down, the water feels great. Nothing to worry about."
Yasui steeled himself and slowly continued until the water was close to his shoulders. He felt a little nervous as the water was a little too close to his mouth and nose for comfort. To distract himself, Yasui asked,
"Uh, I thought felines, like, hated getting wet."
"Well most do, but leopards and tigers actually tend to enjoy the water. Probably because we're originally jungle dwelling creatures who have fur that isn't as thick as other felids, and as such don't get weighed down as much."
"Huh… the more you know."
Diana grinned and got closer to him.
"Okay, Yasui. Lesson number one is how to float. Are you ready?"
Yasui's head twitched in an almost nod.
"Ready as I'll ever be."
"Alright. So, the most important thing to remember while swimming is that your body naturally can float. So if you're ever worried you might be about to start drowning, just let yourself float. Like so."
She laid back in the water and floated effortlessly, her body mostly submerged with her head above the water. She then got back to a standing position and gestured at Yasui.
"Now you try."
Yasui gulped and slowly began to lean backwards. He took several deep breaths before flopping backwards. Immediately Yasui sank to the bottom of the pool and, in a panic, rocketed back up to his feet. Yasui broke the surface and gasped heavily, rubbing water out of his eyes. He had definitely made the right call to leave his glasses sitting on a chair by the pool. Diana laughed.
"No no no, don't flop backwards! Just… relax…. Let your body go limp and just… float. Okay? Here, let me help."
She gestured for him to come closer, and Yasui slowly shuffled towards her. Slowly, she placed one arm behind his neck and the other on the back of his knees before rotating him to be on his back with her supporting his weight in the water. Yasui squeezed his eyes shut and tensed up. Diana huffed.
"Yasui, relax! You're okay. Just relax. Go limp."
Yasui whimpered a bit, but slowly began to let himself go limp in her arms. Under any other circumstance he would have been happy to relax into Diana's arms, but not while submerged in water. It really was a weird thing to be afraid of.
Well, it's not that I'm scared of water… just drowning. So it's more like being in deep water is what I'm afraid of.
"There you go, just relax. See? I won't let you drown."
Yasui was trying to relax while also trying to ignore the sensation of water lapping against his face. Yasui kept his eyes screwed up and took long, hissing breaths through clenched teeth.
Just pretend it's a bathtub, just pretend you're in a bath.
"See! You're doing it!"
Yasui's eye cracked open. He looked over to see that Miss Diana had indeed let go of him. He tried really hard to not change what he was doing, but eventually he couldn't stand it anymore and got back to a standing position as fast as possible. He stood there huffing and puffing as water streamed from his now wet fur. Diana clapped her hands.
"See! Not so bad."
Yasui nodded, surprised that he could absolutely agree.
"Yeah… that wasn't so hard."
Miss Diana laughed.
"Well that's the easy part. Now, let's get you swimming. So, the most important part of swimming is using your legs. Watch as I do it."
Yasui watched as Miss Diana took off swimming to the far side of the pool and then came back. She swam strongly and confidently, something Yasui doubted he could replicate. She gestured towards him.
"Now, try to replicate that. I don't expect perfection, I just want you to try."
Yasui took a few more deep breaths before noisily splashing forward, kicking his legs as hard as he could. Miss Diana shrieked and held her hands up to cover her face and laughed.
"Yasui! Hold on! Not that hard!"
Yasui stopped, and immediately began to sink. Desperately, he flailed for Miss Diana. She grasped him under his arms and held him up in the water. She shook some water off her face and smiled.
"You don't have to kick in that wide of a pattern. Just… pretend you have a rope tied around your thighs. Here, I'll hold you while you get used to the motions."
She adjusted her grip on him to hold him horizontally in her arms, careful to keep his head above the water. Yasui began to kick, trying to do the motion she had said. He felt a hand against his leg.
"Here, let me help. So you want this type of motion. Down… up… down… up…. Good! Now try it faster. Down, up, down…."
Without having to worry about his arms, Yasui was able to become somewhat confident with the leg kicks over the course of a few minutes. Miss Diana then started lazily doing the backstroke beside him with one hand under his tummy to help support him. Eventually she called out,
"Now use your arms, like I did."
Yasui tried to make his arms do that same graceful movement she had done, but he just ended up slapping the water repeatedly and making large splashes. Diana shook her head.
"No no no, don't slap the water. Scoop it, like you're digging a hole in the dirt. Make your hand into a scoop, and scoop the water under you."
Yasui adjusted his form and slowly began to progress. It wasn't pretty, nor was it as fast and efficient as Miss Diana's swimming, but he was still doing. Sure he was more bobbing around desperately trying to stay above the water, but it was still close enough. Miss Diana clapped excitedly.
"Well done! You picked that up fast! It's been a little less than an hour and you're already swimming!"
Yasui began to swim back towards the shallow section. This was really tiring him out. He puffed,
"Yeah, *huff, but I have a, *huff, good teacher."
Diana tilted her head a bit.
"Hmm… I'd say that you could probably become a relatively strong swimmer if you practice more and build up your muscles. Swimming is great exercise."
Yasui reached a shallow area and flopped onto his rear, letting the water lap at his waist as he caught his breath.
"I'll, *huff, keep it in mind."
Just then Charles walked through the back door holding a tray of various sandwiches and chips. He held the tray up slightly to call attention to it.
"Lunch."
Diana smiled.
"Thank you, Charles. I've worked up quite an appetite. How about you, Yasui?"
Yasui's stomach growled as he was sitting feeling rather limp and shaky in the water. He winced,
"Yeah, I could use some lunch."
Charles set the tray on the table and pointed to the various varieties of sandwiches in turn.
"We have peanut butter and jelly, cucumber and cream cheese, egg salad, and two- cheese baguettes. Dig in."
Yasui couldn't remember being as hungry as he was right now. He practically inhaled the small sandwiches, showing preference to the cheese baguettes. He hadn't had a baguette before, so he wasn't quite sure what it was until he tried it and realized it just meant fancy bread. Yasui stifled a burp and slumped against his chair.
"Thank you, Mr. Charles. They were really good."
"You're quite welcome. I also brought some cards so we could play a game while your lunch settles."
Yasui raised a finger lazily.
"I only know how to play Go-Fish and Cribbage."
Charles began to expertly shuffle the deck while Miss Diana dabbed at her lips with a napkin to remove any microscopic crumbs sticking to them. The large gorilla looked at Yasui and asked,
"Do you know how to play Twenty-one?"
Yasui shook his head.
"No, what's that?"
"We each take turns drawing cards. The goal is to get the numbers of your cards to add up to as close to twenty-one as possible without going over. You can choose to stop drawing whenever you want and the round ends when everyone decides to stop drawing."
Yasui shrugged.
"Sounds simple enough. If you two want to play a game I will, even if I don't really know the rules."
Miss Diana waved a well-manicured hand dismissively.
"It's pretty easy to get the hang of, you'll learn fast."
Charles nodded and quickly dealt them each three cards. Yasui took his and held them up. He had a five, eight, and two.
Okay, fifteen total.
Charles arranged his cards and cleared his throat.
"I'll draw first, then we'll go clockwise."
Both Yasui and Diana nodded. Charles drew a card and nodded. Miss Diana then drew a card. They both kept calm expressions as they did, meaning Yasui didn't know if they got good cards or not. He reached out and took a card. It was a four.
So… nineteen total. I should stop.
Charles drew a card and then Diana did as well. Yasui shook his head.
"I'm done drawing."
Charles nodded.
"Very well, I am too. Diana?"
The leopard pursed her lips and hesitated, before drawing a card. She huffed.
"Well I'm done. Shall we score?"
They all nodded and revealed their hands. Miss Diana had gone one over with twenty-two total, and Charles had an even twenty. Yasui clapped.
"Wow, good job!"
Diana grew a sour expression.
"Any number would have been fine, but of course I drew a ten."
Charles smirked.
"Such is the game."
They played a few more rounds of this game, one of which Yasui managed to win, before Charles looked between both Yasui and Diana.
"Want to mix it up? Swap to a new game?"
Diana rolled her eyes.
"I swear you know me too well, it's a little scary. Apologies, Yasui. I just tend to get bored easily so we swap games frequently."
Yasui shrugged.
"I'm fine with that. What do you want to play?"
Charles looked at Miss Diana. She hummed before snapping her fingers.
"I know, how would you like to learn to play poker? I love poker, it's probably one of my favorite games."
Yasui cringed.
"Oh, I'm terrible at poker."
Diana seemed a bit disappointed at that so Yasui added,
"B-but I'm happy to play it! I just… kinda can't remember the rules… ever."
Mr. Charles stood and walked back into the house while Diana gave him a crash course in poker. Even after the explanation, which he had received multiple times from his father before, he couldn't quite wrap his head around it. But it didn't matter. Soon Charles returned with a large bag of almonds which were to be used for the betting. Yasui was apprehensive as Miss Diana gave them each an equal share of the nuts and Charles dealt him five cards. Yasui looked them over and bit his lip, trying to remember all the different scores.
Let's see… I have a three, five, king, two, and another three. So… I have… two of a kind? And I think that's it.
Diana slid a few almonds towards the center of the table.
"I bid five."
Charles slid five in as well.
"I'll match."
Yasui gulped. He furrowed his brow before sliding five almonds into the pot.
"Uh… ditto?"
There was a pause while they all three looked at each other. Finally, Miss Diana smirked.
"Well then, boys. Shall we?"
Charles nodded and Yasui shrugged. She placed her cards down.
"Two pairs."
Charles set his down.
"Straight."
Yasui apprehensively set his cards down too.
"Uh… I had a pair."
Charles smiled and slid all the almonds over to himself. They then dealt again, and again, and again. Yasui's pile of almonds was getting very small at this point. He really wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew he wasn't doing well. Finally they reached a point where Miss Diana coyly looked both Yasui and Charles over before sliding all of her almonds into the pot.
"Match this, I'm all in ."
Yasui gulped and pushed all his almonds forward. He was pretty sure he had to match her bet, at least he thought that was what the rules were. Charles slid all of his almonds into the center as well before they all began to place their cards down. Charles laid his hand on the table.
"Full house."
Diana nodded.
"Good hand, but not good enough. Four of a kind."
Charles grumbled as Miss Diana gave him a haughty look. Yasui gulped and set his cards down.
"Uh… I think… I have a straight? Right? Where they go up in order? Oh wait, it has to be all five, doesn't it."
Charles looked at his hand and then burst out laughing. Miss Diana was just staring at him in shock. Yasui looked down at his hand.
"Sorry, did I do it wrong?"
Charles slapped the table.
"Yes, you did it wrong. You have a royal flush! Ace, king, queen, jack, and ten. And they're all the same suite."
Yasui raised an eyebrow.
"And that's… good?"
Diana shook her head in disbelief before sliding him all the almonds.
"Yasui, it's the best possible hand in the game. Honestly, you're dangerous in poker because you're impossible to read. Mainly because you don't seem to know what you're doing."
Yasui laughed.
"You can't predict my next move if I don't even know it!"
Charles shrugged.
"He has a point."
The large ape checked his watch and then stood from the table.
"Well, I have an errand to run. Yasui, make sure she behaves while I'm gone."
Yasui gave him a thumbs up and he turned and left. The rest of the afternoon was spent with a variety of activities, mainly where Yasui would mirror what Miss Diana chose to do. They read for a bit, then they planned their next outing to scratch another item off Miss Diana's list, and finally they planned out a meal Yasui could make for them all later that week. By that evening, Yasui was tired, but he was also happy. He had a very fun day today, which was a pleasant change of pace. However, that nagging guilt still was lingering in the back of his mind as he laid down to sleep.
If the first part of his summer vacation had gone by slowly, this part was absolutely racing by. Before Yasui knew it, it was Thursday and classes started back up in four days. He had been having so much fun just swimming, going on various errands around the city, and hanging around with Miss Diana that he hadn't even realized how soon he would be leaving. After they had eaten the meal he and Charles had made, an Indian style hot madras curry with vegetable samosas, the three of them sat down in the main living room. Miss Diana was reading a magazine while Charles flipped idly through the tv guide. As they sat, Yasui asked,
"Hey, Miss Diana?"
"Hm?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"You technically already did but go ahead."
Yasui thought about that and laughed a bit. He then continued.
"So… when I first met you it was in the yarn shop."
"I recall that."
"So… how come I've never seen you knit?"
Miss Diana lifted the magazine up a little higher to cover her face and Charles chuckled. Yasui tilted his head.
"What? It's not a weird question or anything… at least I didn't think it was."
Miss Diana's voice was a bit too casual as she said,
"I just… got bored with knitting."
Charles shook his head.
"She was so frustrated with trying to learn how to knit she threw her needles through a window."
Yasui gasped as Diana suddenly dropped her magazine, red in the face.
"It was an accident! And you said that knitting was supposed to be relaxing! I felt like gouging my own eyes out with those needles every single second it dragged on!"
Yasui was trying really hard not to laugh, but apparently was doing a terrible job of hiding it. Diana looked at him and rolled her eyes.
"Yes yes, go ahead and laugh. I suck at knitting, how funny."
Yasui shook his head.
"It's just, you're so amazing at everything that it's hard to imagine you getting stumped by knitting! And then throwing them out a window?!"
Diana cracked a smile.
"I warned you I have a temper! Be careful not to get on my bad side or I'll throw you out a window!"
Yasui grinned.
"Miss Diana, you'd never throw me out of a window. You're way too nice for that."
Diana scrunched her face up and tousled his ears.
"How are you so adorable! Stop it or I'll never let you leave!"
"I'd be okay with that."
"Oh really? Then maybe I should make you my trophy husband."
Yasui blushed and stammered out,
"T-t-trophy husband? What's that?"
"Well usually it's a trophy wife. It's when some rich old person marries someone way younger and typically way too attractive for them."
There's a chance then! It's not that weird!
Yasui shook his head.
"I wouldn't be your trophy husband. We don't meet the criteria. I'm too ugly and you're not old."
Diana looked over at Charles.
"Charles, add that to the calendar. We're getting married."
The gorilla rolled his eyes as he flipped through the channels. Miss Diana gently elbowed Yasui.
"I'm serious, Yasui."
Oh gosh! Really! Yes yes yes yes!
"If you talk as smooth to girls at school as you do to me you'll have a girlfriend in no time."
Yasui had to process for a bit to realize she hadn't said she was seriously going to marry him. He felt a little disappointed as he politely nodded to her.
"Maybe, but I'm not so sure. Like I said, I don't think anyone will ever like me romantically because of how I look. It's hard not to think of me as a little kid."
Diana sighed.
"I can agree with that last bit. I sometimes want to give you a hug or something and then realize you're a teenager and it would make you uncomfortable."
Yasui frowned.
"Miss Diana. I'll always be happy to get a hug from you. Besides, I'm really affectionate. It always drives my family crazy."
And there was the guilt again. Like bile rising in his throat a wave of guilt crept over him for lying to his family and leaving home early. She seemed to notice and she gave him a concerned look.
"Yasui, what's the matter? You look troubled."
"Oh, it's nothing. I just… summer vacation is almost over and I'll miss hanging out with you."
She smiled at him.
"Summer vacation isn't over yet. So let's enjoy it while we can."
Yasui smiled back at her. Just then Charles grunted and turned to look at them.
"Have either of you seen this movie?"
Diana furrowed her brow.
"What movie?"
"Fighters."
Both Diana and Yasui shook their heads. Charles grinned.
"Well now I know what we can do tonight. This movie is amazing."
Yasui gulped.
"It's not… uh… like the last one? Is it?"
Charles shook his head.
"No no, it's about two brothers who are MMA fighters."
Yasui frowned.
"What's an MMA fighter?"
"Mixed martial arts. It's a sport." Charles replied. Both Diana and Yasui expressed their amicability to this plan so Charles put the movie on. It started out pretty slow. One brother was an alcoholic who lived on the streets, the other was a teacher with lots of debt. Their dad had been a jerk apparently so neither of them liked him, but the alcoholic brother had him train him.
Once it got to the actual tournament, it really got interesting. Yasui ended up scooting over to where Diana was so he could lean against her as the suspense got to him. The older brother who was the teacher was against the undefeated champ of the ring. And if he beat him, he would have to fight his brother. The older brother won and then had to fight his younger brother in the final round. Yasui's heart was in his throat as the fight went back and forth. Eventually the older brother ended up breaking the younger brother's arm, but still the younger brother wouldn't give up. It ended with the older brother winning, and then helping his brother out of the ring. As the credits rolled, Miss Diana held out a hand.
"That's it!? But what happens to the younger brother? Weren't the police there to arrest him for desertion? So does he get arrested? And of so, what happens to the wife and kids of his best friend who he wanted to win the prize money for?"
Charles shrugged.
"It's unclear."
Yasui was trying not to cry. The two brothers fighting was too close to home. Except he and Yone hadn't helped each other out of the ring. They hadn't spoken since their fight. In fact they hadn't spoken ever since that day. Yasui felt like something was writhing in his stomach, like he had swallowed a giant worm or something equally as squirmy and awful. He was silent as he brushed his teeth and got ready to go to bed. As he laid down in the luxurious bed he had been allowed to use, he felt all the guilt and sadness welling up inside himself. He felt like he was about to explode. He needed to talk to somebody.
Yasui crept down the hall and knocked on Miss Diana's door. She called out,
"Come in."
Yasui slowly turned the handle and pushed the door open. Miss Diana was lying in her bed propped up with her back on a pillow reading a book. She closed it and looked at him.
"Need something?"
Yasui wrung his hands.
"Can I… talk to you about something?"
Diana patted the side of her bed. Yasui accepted the invitation and sat down at the foot of her bed. He curled his knees under his chin and took a deep breath. She folded her hands in her lap and waited expectantly. Yasui squeezed his knees tighter to his chest.
"It's just… well… I feel really guilty."
"Did you do something wrong?"
Yasui nodded. Diana gestured for him to continue. He didn't want to look her in the face, so he stared at the lump in her bedding that was her legs.
"I… I lied to my parents so I could come back here early!"
"I was wondering why you were back a week early. But why did you want to leave home early? Did something happen?"
Yasui squeezed his eyes shut before opening the floodgates. He talked about how lonely and tired he had been back home. How he had to work all day and then help his siblings after that. How everyone in the village pretended he didn't exist. How walking past Old Bolboi's home made him sad. And finally, about he and Yone's fight.
"A-and then I told him he was awful and I hated him! A-a-and then I b-broke his nose and ran away!"
Diana looked horrified.
"Yasui, that's terrible! Your own brother got into a fight with you just because his friends told him to!"
Yasui gripped his head between both hands and squeezed his eyes shut.
"I s-should have just run away! Why d-didn't I just run when I-I-I saw them!"
"Yasui, it's not your fault. The blame is entirely with your brother and his friends. And it sounds like he got what was coming to him. And as for the other stuff, you should tell your parents about how you feel when you're visiting next. Based on what you've told me about them, they probably didn't know they were asking too much from you."
Yasui glowered miserably at his hands.
"But I don't want to complain. I need to do things for my family."
"Why?"
Yasui froze. Why did he need to do all these things for his family? The cooking and chores and homework help. Why did he volunteer to do it all? And then it came to him. Why he had been doing it. Something he hadn't even realized consciously before. Yasui gulped.
"Because I'm scared that if I don't do things for my family, they won't love me."
"Yasui, of course your family loves you."
"Do they?" Yasui interjected. He looked sadly up at the leopard.
"None of my siblings seem to actually like me unless I'm doing something for them. They always make fun of me and say I'm weak and weird. Even my little sisters only want to do stuff with me when their other friends are too busy. And then they just have me do what they want. My mom and dad just… don't seem to want to be around me. Dad would always do things with Yone like teaching him to whittle and going on small camping trips with him, but never me. And my mom and I only spend time together if I'm helping her with something."
Diana gave him a concerned look.
"I'm sorry, Yasui. But they probably don't mean to make you feel ostracized."
Yasui sniffled.
"I overheard my parents talking. They think it would be better for everyone if I left and didn't come back."
Diana gasped. She looked at him in shock before leaning over and placing her hands on his.
"Oh Yasui… I'm so sorry. I… I don't know what to say."
Yasui allowed himself to curl into a ball and lie on his side at the foot of the bed, eyes glued to some speck far off in the distance.
"I don't think anyone wants me. Everyone else always said so growing up, but now my parents do too. It's because I'm just… just too… too weird! I'm nothing like anyone else in my family and I hate it! I wish I was normal!"
Diana rubbed his shoulder.
"For the record, I like you because you're different. You're sweet and sincere, and if your family can't appreciate that then it's their loss."
Yasui let his eyes lose focus and just laid there feeling sorry for himself. After a bit he sighed.
"Thanks."
"Feel any better?"
"A little."
"Well I'm glad I could be of some help. And just remember, you always have a room here. What sort of honorary aunt would I be otherwise?"
Yasui smiled up at her.
"Thanks. For some reason I don't feel silly telling you stuff like this."
Miss Diana smoothed her eyebrow.
"I just have a trustworthy face."
Yasui laughed a bit at that. He just rested there for a few minutes until Miss Diana spoke.
"It's getting late. You should get some sleep. We have a busy weekend coming up."
Yasui nodded.
"Oh yeah, was it tomorrow or Saturday we were doing the big surprise you talked about?"
"Saturday. Tomorrow we're having a picnic and scratching another item off my list."
Yasui grinned.
"You really like being mysterious, huh?"
She laughed.
"Yasui, I'm a woman! I love being mysterious!"