Chapter 21 – Love, PictoChat, & Other Nonsense
Kyoko's POV
It's been a week since I've been discharged from the hospital. Not much has happened since then. I went home…once again fully coming to terms with being expelled from school and without Mom for a year…doing next to nothing for most of the days that went by.
I couldn't hang out with the others…it's Exams Week. And Rukia said that she and Uncle Kinji are still working things out with both my living situation and my enrollment into Yukako. So, there was really nothing for me to do at the moment.
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: Hey, girl! Whatcha doing?
Well… except for one thing.
toma_to: nothing much. Just sitting at home. As usual.
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: aw, that sucks. I'm pretty much doing the same thing.
toma_to: Boooo!*thumbs down emoji*
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: LOL! So tru!
During one of my soul-crushing appointments with Ana, I met this one girl who was also seeing her for therapy (and absolutely HATED going there!). Her name's Cheo Izomi. She's the same age as me and…actually, she has A LOT of things in common with me.
Due to some personal life issues of her own, she got removed from school, too. Not exactly "expelled" like me…but the school pretty much said that they didn't want her back.
We bonded almost instantly because of that. And we've been messaging each other on a regular basis just to talk about whatever came to mind. Our tragic lives or otherwise.
…
But I gotta say…HOW we communicate with each other is definitely unique.
toma_to: u know even though i've said this multiple times…I still cannot believe u managed to get PictoChat workn' again, girl!
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: I KNOW RIGHT?! All it took was some software mods and it acts like it never shut down!
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: even got a phone app in the works now!
toma_to: woah! totes insane! With this, u could make the next LINE!
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: *blushed face emoji* m-maybe not the next LINE. There still a few bugs to work out.
…
…
…
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: def wanna be better than Twitter, tho.
toma_to: yeah…that hellhole definitely gone downhill…
It turns out that Cheo's really handy when it comes to technology. She can make old computers work again in brand-new conditions and even do software modifications on old video game consoles and phones. Reviving PictoChat was one of her small just-for-fun projects. She gave me access to it through an old DSi she had shortly after we met.
…
By the way, there's an explanation for that huge gap between replies. It's just that particular reason is…r-rather hard to explain on my own. Best if you all saw it for yourselves.
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
Shortly after my last message to Cheo, I received a message, this time on my phone, from Yui. At first, I was shocked that she was messaging me while in school…
…But then I looked at the time. And saw that it was already past 3:30.
Damn, I got absorbed into PictoChat of all things…
"Hey, Kyoko. You're not busy, are you?"
"How can I be busy when I've been expelled from school?" I replied to the surprisingly stupid question.
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
"No need to be a smartass…"
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
"Mari's come to visit and she wants to see you."
"Why me specifically?"
It took a while for Yui to respond. But when she did, I could easily see why.
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
"Well…she does know about the situation with your father…"
"WHAT?! DID YOU TELL HER?! THE HELL, YUI?!"
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
"Calm down! Of course, I didn't tell her! With the news of RTM being arrested heard all over Japan, it's pretty obvious that she would find out on her own!"
She does have a point…
"Fine, fine. I believe you. I'll be there in a couple of minutes."
*NOTIFICATION CHIME*
"Thank you, Kyoko." Was the last message I got from Yui. Shortly after that, I got a new message from Cheo.
cursed_knight_1005: u wanna meet up sometime?
toma_to: meet up?
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: we don't see each other outside that damn therapy. we should totes hangout together.
toma_to: tru…
toma_to: will have to be another day, though. just promised my friend I would be at her house in a few.
I would immediately regret mentioning that last part to her. Because what came next was Cheo spamming multiple messages at once.
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: ooh~ *flirt emoji*
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: this the girl you got the hots for?
*BEEP*
cursed_knight_1005: if she inviting you to her house…*lenny face*
Seeing that analog emoji made my face as red as a tomato. As thanks to that, it got me thinking of some pretty naughty stuff.
M-Me and Chinatsu…
A-All alone…
K-Kissing…fl-flirting…s-s-s-s-s-s-s-sex…
…
WH-WHAT AM I DOING?! ST-STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP! I'M NOT SOME PERVY FREAK ANYMORE! I'VE CHANGED!
I was about to mass-message Cheo about how wrong and completely off she is for thinking that…but then I saw that she had logged off after leaving one last message.
cursed_knight_1005: go get'em, girl! I'm rootin' for ya!
*cursed_knight_1005 HAS LOGGED OFF*
"*sigh* She still has the wrong idea…but at least she's on my side." I said with a small smile on my face.
About 30 minutes later, I reached Yui's apartment complex and knocked on her door. The one thing I would normally do on a daily basis back when I still used that other personality. At least this is something that doesn't have to change.
Still couldn't believe I was here because Mari wanted to see me so badly. We don't know each other much…and I haven't seen her since the day we first met her. Back when Chinatsu wore that Mirakurun costume because she just happened to look a lot like her.
…
But now I can easily say that Chinatsu's way cuter than Mirakurun…
"Oh, good. You're here." Yui said to me as she opened the door.
"Yep. Here I am…the freeloader who eats all your food, plays all your video games, and constantly sleeps over without any advance notice."
"You're able to admit that now…" Yui gained a sweatdrop. "…By the way, what's with the scarf?"
"Oh, this." I said as I held onto part of the pink scarf I was wearing around my neck. "The doctor said that I gotta keep the cut from exposure and infection. So, I'm using this old scarf I had."
"I see…" Was all she said about the matter. "…Well, Mari's right in here. She's actually been really excited to see you girls again. Had to calm her down a few times."
…
"A-Although…you're gonna be pretty excited to see her. For a different reason."
"Huh? Why's that?" I asked. Not getting what she meant by that.
"Well…"
"Kyoko! You're here!" As Yui was about to explain, a strange girl came rushing out of the apartment and gave me a hug out of the blue. I was obviously freaked out at first…
…But then I recognized the two cat-clips in her small twintail hair and the seemingly unamused look in her face. And immediately gained a look of utter shock.
"M…M-Mari?!"
"Yep! It's me! Long time, no see!"
"Holy crap…did you get older? Like by a lot?"
"She's 11 now." Yui said with a sweatdrop. "Apparently, the series was holding her back 5 years and when it ended, she…turned into this."
"In an instant?"
"It wasn't too scary." Mari said. "Now with me looking like this, I'm a full-fledged 6th grader! My mom can finally stop treating me like a little kid! It's great!"
Mari then gained a rather derpy look while placing both hands over the chest area of the blue hoodie she's wearing.
"Plus…I'm finally growing big boobies~. Soon, I'll be even bigger than you, Cousin~."
"Don't let that be your only goal in life…" Yui and I gained huge sweatdrops.
"In any case…is it really true, Kyoko? That your father really is the…"
"M-Mari!" I yelled as I quickly covered her mouth. "*sigh* Look, I don't know why you're so excited about it…but if you really want to know details, then I'll tell you. Just…let's get inside first."
"It would be bad if my neighbors found out about their…"relation"…if you can call it that." Yui added.
"Oh, yeah. That's true. It's already bad enough with the walls super thin that they hear you masturbate, Cousin."
"*snicker*" I almost burst into laughter hearing that. But managed to hold it in for the sake of Yui's pride.
Plus, I don't want her to bash me in the head…
"M-Mari, you're too much…" Was all Yui replied with as she had a huge blush of embarrassment on her face.
And so, the conversation about what I've been through recently continued inside Yui's apartment. Still didn't know why I was telling this to Mari of all people…but it eventually got to the point where I was removing the scarf and revealing the giant scar that my own father gave me to my best friend and her 11-year-old cousin.
I don't understand how it came to this…
"Woah…" Mari said.
"Well, it looks like it's healing." Yui added.
"I guess…" I said as I wrapped the scarf back around. "…Though, I don't know if "completely healed" is a possible outcome given how deep the gash was."
"Still can't believe your father was willing to do something like that to his own daughter." Mari said. "Why is he like that, to begin with?"
"*sigh* Hell if I know. The only thing that comes to mind is that he has some…hatred towards women. And he took it out on me and my mom the most." I then gained a sad depressed look from having to think of those memories again.
"Kyoko…" Yui said. Feeling the same sadness.
"L-Look, I…I'm just gonna go home now."
"W-Wait, hold on…l-let's just hang out a little."
"Why? Aren't you in the middle of exams? In fact, for that reason alone, it's kinda weird that you invited me over here in the first place."
"W-Well, yeah…it's exams and all. But everyone could use a break at times like this. You declared that yourself."
"Don't remind me…" I gained a huge sweatdrop.
"Can't we just talk a little more?"
"Talk about what? Your latest grinding session on Final Fantasy VI?"
"Well, if that's what you're into…"
It was then that I facepalmed hard at this girl's calm nonchalant response to the idea of her basically gushing about playing video games.
She's truly a gamer geek at heart…
"*sigh* Look, Yui…when two girls our age get together and talk, the topic is usually one of three things. Fashion, TV dramas, and romantic interest. It's the very essence of being girly. Something that you're very good at…"
"H-Hey, now wait a second! I can be girly if I wanted to! I'm just not into that stuff!"
"Really?"
"Really! The clothes I wear don't matter much. I'd rather watch Shounen anime than TV dramas. And there is absolutely NO ONE that I have romantic feelings for."
"But what about that Sachiko girl from next door?" Mari asked.
"Tch!" Yui then gained a huge (and I mean HUGE) blush on her face as she looked away from both of us. And from that one reaction, I learned something new about my best friend that definitely took me by surprise.
"Y-Yui…you have a crush on Sachiko?" I asked.
And when Yui didn't answer and instead sunk her head inside the hoodie she was wearing, it confirmed my answer.
Holy crap…
"Y…Y-You know she's straight, right?"
"YES, I KNOW SHE'S STRAIGHT!" Yui yelled as she looked back at me. "But…all the times we hang out together…being next-door neighbors and all…plus, there's the fact that she's one of the few people who supports me in how I want to live my life. Unlike two others who I thought were guaranteed…"
"Yui…"
"Sounds like the relationship between them is still broken beyond repair…" Mari added.
What she means is…Yui doesn't have the best relationship with her parents. It's…basically nonexistent. Ever since the day she confessed to them that she was into girls. They pretty much disowned her and she now has to fend for herself in an apartment that her relative is letting her stay in for free.
I found out about it shortly after we started middle school. And Akari found out when she started. We never told Chinatsu and the others, though.
…
Speaking of Chinatsu…
"Hey, Yui. With you having feelings for Sachiko…does that mean that you never saw Chinatsu that way?"
"Chinatsu? She just admires me, right? It's just a kōhai-senpai relationship."
"Wh-What? Seriously? That's what you think it is?"
"Wait, who was Chinatsu again?" Mari asked.
"The girl who looked kinda like Mirakurun and dressed up like her to entertain you the day we met."
…
"Oh, yeah… that pink-haired she-devil." Mari gained an exasperated look.
"M-Mari…" Yui gained a sweatdrop.
"A-Anyway…" I continued. "…You really think that's all Chinatsu sees you as?"
"Well…yeah. Was there something else?"
"Something else? Yui, she freaking LOVES you! She's been saying that pretty much every day since she joined the club! You seriously never noticed?!"
"W-Wow, she loves me? I never would've guessed."
"Oh, my God. You're so dense…" I mumbled to myself.
"What?"
"N-Nothing. Just…*sigh* Chinatsu would be pretty upset if she were here to hear this."
"You seem to care a lot about Chinatsu's feeling for this, Kyoko. It's a bit strange coming from you."
"W-Well, I just…I-I'm looking out for her, okay?" I gained a light blush. "We bonded a lot while I was in the hospital and…I…don't want her to get hurt."
"I see." Yui went silent for a bit as she stared deeply into my embarrassed face. "Kyoko…could it be that YOU have feelings for Chinatsu?"
And hearing that made my blush grow even more.
"WH-WH-WH-WH-WH-WHAAAAAAT?! Y-Y-Y-YOU'RE CRAZY! I-I DON'T HAVE FEELINGS FOR CHINATSU! SH-SHE'S JUST A FRIEND!"
"Just a friend?"
"Y-Yeah! J-Just a friend!"
…
"A-And besides…sh-she…l-loves you more…" I then grew a lot more quiet as I turned away from Yui. Hiding the fact that I was about to cry.
"Sounds like you hate admitting that, Kyoko." Mari said.
…
…
…
"I…guess I do. A little." I said after being silent for a good while.
"I see…" Yui said. "…Well, have you thought of telling her?"
"T-Tell her?! Wh-What am I supposed to say?! "I love you! Please forget your feelings for Yui and go out with me!"?! What kind of confession is that?!"
"Well, it's worth a shot. I mean, you did say that you two had bonded a lot during your hospital stay."
"Y-Yeah, but…*sigh* if you weren't so dense about love, you would understand how awkward it is…"
"Okay, I can't pass it off this time. You just called me dense, didn't you?"
"Huh? Well…you are kinda dense, Yui. Rather…HIGHLY dense…when it comes to love."
"Wh-What?! How?!"
"Well, it took you up until now to realize that Chinatsu girl has feelings for you…" Mari said.
"Th-That doesn't make me dense! I just couldn't tell what the feelings were!"
They were pretty obvious… I gained a mental sweatdrop.
"Well, whatever." I said as I got up from the floor. "I gotta go before it gets late. It was nice seeing you again, Mari."
"Bye, Kyoko." Mari said with a happy version of her trademarked unamused look.
"W-Wait, hold on a second! How the hell am I…"
*SLAM*
I closed the door before Yui had a chance to finish her question. Fully explaining why she's dense about love was something I DID NOT want to do ever.
I may be her childhood friend, but I can't be THAT honest with her…
"*sigh* Okay, it's almost 7:00…I can probably stop somewhere and grab some take out on the way home. What to eat, though…?"
"Kyoko-chan?"
I turned to see a girl with light blonde hair tied into a single large ponytail. She was a little shorter than me…but I could tell that we were the same age.
"Wow…it really is you! Kyoko Toshinio, correct?"
"Uh…yeah?" I replied with total confusion. "D-Do I know you?"
"Do you not recognize me? The two of us were in 2nd grade together!"
"2nd grade?"
"Asaki-sensei's class…at Sekimachi Primary School…in Harajuku…"
I remember that time period. 2nd grade was when the abuse from my father began to take root. And people were starting to get suspicious of what was going on.
One person who really looked out for me was this girl who sat next to me in class. Despite the rumors about me, we played together almost every day. It was the last good memory I had before everything went spirally out of control.
This girl was my first friend ever. And her name was…
"I…Ikumi? Ikumi Morino?!"
"So, you do remember me. *sigh* That's honestly a relie-WAH!"
Before the girl could finish her sentence, I grabbed her by the waist and wrapped her in a huge tight-as-hell hug. All while screaming in utter glee:
"Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! Ikumi! IKUMI!"
"*giggle* It's good to see you again, too…Kyoko-chan."
Author's Note: From a new friend to an old friend to a friend she hasn't seen in YEARS. This was quite an eventful day for someone who's been expelled from school just weeks before exams.
If the name Ikumi Morino sounds familiar (to FanFiction readers), it's because she's originally from The Melancholy of Kyoko Toshinio. And I brought her over to this story. Ikumi is…definitely one of my favorite OCs that I've created. And to have her stuck in one story just didn't feel right to me. So, here she is. If you need a refresher on who she is, read the previously mentioned story (on FanFiction. Coming soon to AO3.).
Thanks for reading. Later.