Once More [Update: 9/26]

[Dr.Worm]

I love the story, especially the fact that there's a cool, relatable, and not-insane bro for Hisao.

Well thank you and I'm glad that... Hold on.

a cool, relatable, and not-insane bro for Hisao

That is totally not the word I would use to describe Katsuo. But thank you!

His Mom probably says he's cool.

Everything you said.

Fourteen thrilling rounds of Marvel vs. Capcom followed by a firm handsha-

Wait.

Flattery will get you everywhere. You're far too kind. Thank you very much.

[Dr.Worm]

Artwork added to the first post.

Next chapter hopefully up by the end of next week.

[forgetmenot]

Just looked at the art...

Is Katsuo an alternate-reality version of Spike from Cowboy Bebop? The resemblance is uncanny.

[Dr.Worm]

Haha. In all seriousness, despite there being a Bebop poster in my living room, I did not make that connection until just now.

I suppose he is?

Earlier sketches of Katsuo had a different hairstyle, but this is just more fun to draw.

[Dr.Worm]

I apologize in advance for a particular joke within this chapter. I couldn't resist.

--- Chapter 6, Part 1: ConveRINtion

The phone next to me goes off. Ughhhh. No.

It can't be time to get up yet. I watched two movies with Emi last night and sat against the bottom of her bed for both of them. My back had a contest with the wooden frame to see who would give up first. The bedframe won.

I just want to sleep moooooore. Pleeeeeeeaaaaase?

I manage to slide my hand over my head and pat around on the-

Oh crap. That's not my alarm.

I sit up, scraping the back of my head against the bottom of the bedframe as I do. My hand reaches up and pats the tender area as I let out a low hiss of pain. Thank god I have so much hair. That would have really hurt if I had been bald or something. But if my father's genes are what we're going on, I'm probably not going to go bald for a long time.

Wait. Phone.I grab the offending piece of circuitry and plastic off the floor and flip it open.

"Mmngh... Hello?"

"I tried calling the house phone. Are you still sleeping, son?"

My eyes strain and snap open. Dad? Really? What time is it anyway? I glance at the clock a few feet from my head. It's only ten. Why are you asking if I'm still sleeping? It's the weekend. I can sleep in as late as I want old man.

"Not anymore, I guess."

"Did you remember to feed Nori?"

I groan and stretch. My back hates me for it. Dad starts something on the other end of the phone. I push it back to my ear in time to catch the last part of it.

"-says that it's refreshing her baby brother is being so responsible and watching after the house for once." That bitch. Chieko's still the Queen of backhanded compliments it seems.

"Dad what's it like to have raised Satan's spawn?"

My dad goes quiet.

"You weren't that bad."

...

Son of a bitch. The old man reversed it on me.

"So how's the love hotel going? Is Hisao's girlfriend a looker?"

I shove myself up onto the bed before rubbing at my eyes. Floors do not make good beds. I don't remember how we managed to sleep on futons before we moved here. Ugh. My old nemesis, the Sun. I squint and hold my hands up to my face. Why is he so goddamn bright all the time? Doesn't he know I just woke up? I don't need my corneas burnt out right now.

"Uh. No. About that..."

"Your mother wants to know if you're just trying to cover up the fact that he's really your boyfriend."

I can hear my mother shouting that she'd love me no matter what my lifestyle was somewhere behind my father. I wonder if this feeling of hatred is what Hisao feels every time I crack one of these jokes.

"No. It's... ugh. Okay. Give me a second alright? I slept on the floor apparently. My back needs straightening."

"Sure thing."

I stretch again, slowly. My back thanks me for the careful movements as it pops back into place. I don't mean it actually pops back into place. I mean, it certainly feels like it. I massage my shoulder, crack my neck and then put the phone back against my ear.

"Okay. So Hisao's girlfriend is actually someone I know from Yamaku."

"It isn't that girl you dated, is it?"

Haha. Oh father. No. No it's not. We’ll get to that in a second.

"Oh no. Close though. It's Rin, her best friend. I think I told you about her, right?"

My dad must be stroking his beard, digging through the filing cabinets in his mind.

"The... artist girl? Small world."

I rub the back of my neck. Yeah. So that's why this next part is going to blow your mind, Wizard Father.

"And Emi's here too."

The line goes quiet for the third time. I hear my mother's voice in the background again. Nothing she's saying comes to me clearly, but it sounds very urgent. Maybe she needs to use the toilet and wants the phone to play a game during the process? Probably not. In fact, there's no way in hell it's that. That's a stupid idea. Why am I so stupid?

Well, I did just wake up. Rather rudely, might I add.

"Okay. Emi. That's your ex-girlfriend?"

I nod.

Oh fuck. How stupid am I going to be this morning?

"Uh, yeah. That's her." My dad gets a nervous chuckle from me. I explain the whole situation. About how Hisao brought her as a surprise for me. That he didn't know that we had dated in my third year and had a really bad falling out. He just listens as I go on about what happened yesterday and last night. I tell him about the movies and that small connection we had again. At least how I think it’s one. Maybe it’s more likely closure. The end to it all.

"Are you alright?" He finally asks when I'm finished. He’s worried I’ll go back to how I was after Yamaku. Back to being a complete mess. I don’t blame him. I’m worried too.

No. Yes. No. Well, okay. Yes and no. I'm alright right now, but I think that I'm going to be a complete mess later depending on how this weekend goes. If we can manage to keep the peace between us going, maybe I'll come out of this with minimal emotional devastation again. If we get into a shouting match then I don't know. I really don't know, Dad. But I can't just tell that to my Wizard Father. He'll never think me worthy of inheriting his magical beard gifts. And judging by the sad state of affairs of my scruffy face, I'll need those powers later in my life. So, the only question is just how am I going to put this so that he understands and I don't look like a crying pansy?

"Eh." Yeah. That should about cover it.

"Oh. You didn't sleep with her did you?"

My face scrunches up. My eyes clamp shut. My brain freezes. Somewhere on the other side of the world, the egg that a chicken was about to lay shoots right back up into her.

"Dad!"

"What? That's a perfectly reasonable question."

"Wha-"

"I'm assuming you put her in your sister's room? Please wash the sheets son."

"OhmygodDadshutup." It comes out a glob of words. I wish it could smack my father across the face. I wish it would smack the beard right off of his stupid, smug face. I wish he would come up with a new joke.

"I'm joking. I'm joking."

"I'm going to need a shower." I twist the flowery bed sheets in my fist. I'm not kidding. My brain needs to be scrubbed. Oh, it would be so nice if I could actually just unhinge the top part of my skull and pull the memories of my father's jokes out every day. I could live on in peaceful bliss when I wasn't talking to him. Also, I’m sweaty and gross feeling. So I guess I need a shower for more than the brain clean.

"Alright. You're sure you're okay?"

"Eh."

"Okay son. Just call if anything happens. Wash the-"

"GOODBYE FATHER."

I hang up before he can finish his last line. I shudder on the bed and close the phone.

Oh god. Why would anyone's father ask them that?

I shake my head to clear it and take a deep breath. Alright.Time to get through the day.

I open my eyes again.

...

Okay. This isn't my room. This is Chieko's old room. That would explain why I slept on the floor. At least Emi seems to have disappeared. Hey. Maybe this is a huge dream? Maybe I'm back from some insane asylum and my father is just calling from the other room to try to recreate some sort of long locked away memory that will solve the murder of my sister or mother or wife or- Oh man, I need to write this down. This is a brilliant movie idea.

I'm going to make trillions.

-----

The shower, while brain scrubbing free, manages to make me feel better about the day. Emi might be here, dragging up old memories and feelings and messing with my brain... But that's okay. I think. Well, probably not. But, if I can manage to keep my day relatively drama-free, I think I can make it through it. I just have to keep a clear head and try not to yell at her.

I'm still not sure what I should take away from our movies last night. We used to sit up and watch movies together all the time. Not just when we decided we wanted to mash our faces and other bits together. We started the movie tradition when she began dragging my broken ass around the track. I wish I was joking when I said that's exactly what the Nurse instructed her to do if I refused to run.

"Drag his broken ass around the track until he stops resisting."

Yeah, well, throw a pretty girl my way and I'll start drooling like Pavlov's dog, buddy. So fuck you, Nurse. If there's anyone I should blame, it's you for introducing me to her. It's your fault for mushing us together. It was only a matter of time before we kissed. You knew it would happen, didn't you? It's your fault that I got so hung up on her. It's your fault she punched me. If you hadn't made me fall in love with her, I'd have never yelled at her that day. I would have never been so bold to peek if you hadn't... Ugh. No. That is definitely not a memory I want to re-live.

Great. My heart still wants to do a belly flop into my... well, my belly. Ah-ha! I know exactly what's going to put me in the right mindset. Thank the heavens that I was smart enough to pack it.

I pull on a fresh pair of jeans and my favorite Astro-Boy shirt before my jacket. Alright day. Throw whatever you've got at me. I've got my lucky shirt on. I can take everything you've got. Nori? That fat tub of cat crap is going to love the crap out of me. I'm going to throw some shrimp from last night into his food bowl. That'll earn me some extra affection.

Emi? Who cares? I'll lock myself in my room and avoid her all day. And if, by some random chance, I have to actually socialize with her, I'll keep things nice. I can do it. I'm fucking invincible in this shirt. If she threw a punch at my jaw now, I’d totally be able to ninja flip out of the way and retaliate with a throwing star or something.

Hell, Hisao could even drag Arai up here now. I'm making fucking curry for dinner. And my curry is so good that it'll blow her pants right off and her supple butt right into my bedroom.

Today is going to be amazing. I can feel it.

I open my bedroom door.

Nori runs in and immediately jumps onto my desk. He manages to knock over exactly one- no, two, oh, just about everything on the desk and send it all tumbling to my floor. Great!

"Well fuck you too, Nori."

"Does he ever talk back?"

I turn around. Rin is standing in my doorway. She's got on a pair of jeans and a dark green tank top. So that's what her arms look like! Little stubs. Sort of like mine except shorter and thinner since she doesn't really use them. She stares at me with those deep green eyes, perfectly calm. I guess it's good that I got dressed before letting Nori in.

I glance at my clock. It's only ten thirty. I don't want to have a conveRintion at ten thirty in the morning.

"Uh. No. Well, maybe. He's a cat. He doesn't speak Japanese. He speaks... cat."

Rin nods. Did she take nodding lessons from my father? What mysteries of the cosmos does she hold in that twisted noggin of hers? How is she always so calm and serene? It's like basking in Buddha's glow. Well, at least that's what I imagine it's like. I don't personally know Buddha.

"That makes sense."

"Is everyone else up?"

"They went to the convenience store." Rin gives me a slow nod to further convince me.

"Oh. For what?"

"Food."

Right. Of course. That makes sense. Rin continues to stare at me. Is there something wrong with my face?

"The phone was ringing earlier."

"I know. It was my Dad. He called my cellphone."

Anything else?

"I'm going outside."

Rin turns on her heel and walks off. Annnnnnnnd... That's the Rin I remember. That's just how she operates. RIght? Right.

Wait. Outside? Like outside outside? In a tanktop? Damnit Rin. It's practically about to snow out there. I groan and tug my jacket on quickly.

I get that she's Hisao's girlfriend and therefor I should try to make sure she doesn't get a cold, but still.... Why do I have to play babysitter?

[Dr.Worm]

--- Chapter 6, Part 2: ConveRINtion
I throw Rin's blue jacket onto her still form on the front lawn. It lands on her head, covering it all from the sky above. I figure that's the best way to get her to pay attention.

"You're going to freeze to death out here in just that tank top."

Rin sits up and lets the jacket tumble from her face. She blinks a few times and turns to me as I sit down in the grass next to her.

"I have trouble with jackets, Katsuo." She states. Rin holds her arms out, further amplifying just why this is an impossible task.

Wonderful. I sigh and grab the blue jacket back from her lap. I really am a babysitter. I get to play dress-up with Rin now. I have to place the jacket on my outstretched legs and clench it in place with my knees to unzip it. She holds her little arms out as I slide it over her. I wonder if she pre-ties all her long sleeves like this. I know she did that for all her uniform shirts back at Yamaku. I zip the jacket back up, just in case it gets colder.

Rin just falls back down to the grass, focusing her eyes on the gray skies above us. There’s not so much “clouds” as there is one giant, gray blob covering everything. I can sort of spot familiar animal shapes in the lumps and stretches contained within it. It would probably be more enjoyable there were more than one cloud up there. But this is what it is.

"Is it always like this here?"

"What? Gray? Dreary? Quiet? Cloudy?"

Rin makes a noise that I assume is in the affirmative.

"Not really. It's getting closer to winter, so it'll probably start snowing once November passes." I explain. What does she see in the sky? I tilt my head back and stare up. My hair shifts as one giant blob in the wind. My bangs flick across my glasses.

"During the summer, it gets so hot that you'll die if you wear anything but shorts and a thin t-shirt."

"Hmm." Rin murmurs.

We pass the next few minutes quietly, both of us staring up into the bleak, gray skies above my hometown.

"You should lie down or you'll hurt your neck."

I turn to the girl in the grass next to me. She's tilted her head to actually look at me now. I guess the sky can't hold her attention forever.

"I'll be fine."

"You've already got a bad back. I would think you don't want a bad neck too."

Well shit. She's got a point. I give Rin a tiny shrug and flop backwards. My head bounces exactly once as it hits the lawn. I probably should remember that the dirt gets cold and hard during the winter months.

"Ow." I mutter. Rin says nothing to even remotely suggest she cares or even heard me. When I check on her, she's staring at my stumped arm again. She glances up at my face and I open my mouth to ask if she has a new theory. She doesn't let me even say it.

"Nothing interesting yet." She replies, before turning to the sky above us. Oh. Okay. We're doing that again. I join her in the cloud watching.

"But I think I might have it this time."

"I can't wait." I turn my eyes back to the sky. I still don't get how Rin can watch clouds for hours at a time. They're clouds. They're just... there. I mean, I get it if you're looking for shapes. That makes sense. You're expanding your imagination. But that's kid's stuff. And besides, I think my imagination practically dominates my everyday life. Either that or my thought tangents are a form of ADHD. A form that I hide pretty well with how long I stare at my computer screen as download bars slowly fill up.

"What are clouds?"

I snort. What? Clouds? What are we? Five?

"What are clouds?" I repeat back, turning my head back to Rin. I just want to be sure.

"Yeah."

"A bunch of suspended ice particles. Why do you ask?"

Rin just stares at the clouds, mouth slightly agape. I can practically hear the gears clunking back to life in her mind. I remember this. She takes forever to answer. Like her thoughts are a labyrinth and she forgot the spool of thread to lead her back out. Emi and I could have changed topics three times before Rin answered a question sometimes.

"I think they're the thoughts of people. Like what they're made out of. My thoughts feel like that sometimes. Fluffy and light."

Huh. Thanks for sharing, I guess.

“I guess this is one big angry thought then?” I point up at the gray glob cloud above us.

“Maybe.”

If it is one big angry thought, it’s probably off the pint-sized terror that Hisao brought here with him. The one that I still would love to get out of those clothes and-

"Hisao had a better answer than you did." She adds.

"About the clouds? What did he say?"

"I don't remember. Something about how all the water on the earth at some time becomes a cloud." How is it a better answer if she can’t remember it? Whatever. It’s Rin. I don’t want to try to understand.

"That's probably correct." I won't argue. Hisao's actually better with science than I am. I'm more of a "Science-Fiction" guy, I guess.

"My mother would probably say something about heaven being up there. Clouds what angels walk on, I guess. She's kind of religious." I let out a slow breath and continue to stare up into the heavens above. Well, with this amount of grey, it's probably more like purgatory. But that's supposed to be underground, isn't it?

But speaking of Hisao... sort of. I mean before I brought up that point about my mother. Yes. Okay. So speaking of Hisao...

"So you and Hisao? How'd that happen?"

Rin flicks her gaze to me for a split second. The gears churn slowly. I spot a few different animal shapes in the clouds. Turtle. Hippo. A raccoon that someone ran over in a van.

"It just did. I like him. He likes me. I think that's enough to start a relationship on."

"I suppose that's true." I chuckle. That's a relatively simple answer from Rin.

"To be honest, I didn't think you were the type of person who did that." I shove myself up on my elbows.

"Sex?" Rin frowns.

I can’t help laugh. I forgot how literally she takes things.

"No. Well, maybe yes, but no. And let's not talk about that." That's the last thing I need to have on my mind this weekend. Not just because I don't want to picture Hisao and Rin going at it, despite all my jokes. It's because I don't need to remember anything along those lines about Emi. I turn my gaze back into the clouds. Rin doesn't say anything about hurting my neck this time.

"I meant boyfriend and girlfriend stuff. I didn't take you for the type that did relationships."

"Oh." Rin's eyes droop into a half-lidded state. I hope she isn't going to fall asleep out here. I don't feel like leaving her out here and I sure as hell am not going to carry her into the house. I don't think I could with my back and only one arm.

"Don't fall asleep. You'll freeze to death." I shiver as that thought comes to mind. It is getting pretty cold out here. It would probably help if we moved around. But something about Rin just sucks the energy to do anything out of me. I just want to lay here and stare up at the clouds. And I don't even like doing this. I could be watching a movie or learning some useless bit of information on the internet.

"You're a broken record."

"Yep. I know." Seriously though. Don't fall asleep. I am not dragging you back inside, Rin.

"Why do you think I don't do relationships?"

"I don't know. You're pretty spacy. And I guess the only friends I remember you having were Emi and I." And I barely count as a friend, might I add.

Rin says nothing.

"Yeah. And... well, let's face it. You're pretty weird, Rin."

"So I've been told."

"Mhmm." I give her a smile and face the skies again. I never liked how the birds seem to disappear during the winter. It makes this part of the country feel completely dead when it gets cold. I guess they head for the warmer parts of the country.

"You once told Emi that you wanted to pilot a giant robot and defend Tokyo from sea monsters."

"Yeah. I remember." I smile again. It was after our career evaluation sheets. Of course, I didn't write "Mecha-Pilot" on the sheet. I wrote... Oh man. What did I write on that thing?

"You were eighteen."

"Yeah. I remember."

"That's pretty weird." Rin comments.

I need deadpan delivery like that. Teach me your ways, Ri- WAIT.

"Are you trying to make a point?"

"Do I need to?"

"Not really."

"Then I'm not making a point."

I shake my head. "I'm not sure I'll ever understand you, Rin."

"Do you really need to?"

"I guess not." I chuckle again. I'm not even sure how Hisao puts up with you.

"It was like Emi's, right?"

"Huh?"

Rin looks down at my arm. Oh. Right. That. The game. The game that I had almost forgotten we played until I saw you again last night.

"Oh. That. What do you mean?"

"It was an accident."

"Well I certainly didn't mean to lose part of my arm." I glance down at my arm as I hold it up.

Rin just raises an eyebrow at me. Oh. Right. She wants a straight answer for her game.

"Uh, yeah. It was an accident."

Rin just nods and turns back to the sky. Her serene aura overtakes me and I'm lying down in the grass again. I wonder if this is what it's like to be on drugs. I don't touch anything that isn't prescribed to me. I guess this is sort of like when I was on morphine back in the hospital. Is this what Rin feels like all the time? She said her thoughts were light and fluffy.

"It's important to do this sort of thing." Rin says. I'm not sure if she's talking to me or just to herself. Still, I suppose if she enjoys it.

"If you enjoy something, it's always important to put time aside for it." I mutter. "But that's just common sense, Rin."

"There are people who don't do that though."

The gears clunk along slowly. The sun flicks through the clouds for a few seconds before vanishing again. At least I still know it's there. The wind picks up again, flinging my bangs over my glasses. Grass tickles my ears and neck. Dad needs to trim the lawn.

"Was it a car accident?"

"Nope."

"Don't let me fall asleep, Rin." I close my eyes.

"Okay."

I don't know how much time actually passes as we lay there in the grass. I never really did this with Rin when we were in high school. But I do remember finding her on the roof, staring up into the clouds, quite often. Emi and I ate lunch on the roof with Rin usually. Emi said Rin skipped class a lot to watch the clouds.

"Is it difficult not having arms?"

Rin shrugs. “I don’t know. I could tell you if I knew what it was like to have them.”

I guess that makes sense. I’ve only had to deal with the one arm thing for almost seven years now. Rin’s been dealing with that her whole life. And she’s pretty talented with her feet. She’s probably equally good her mouth too. I guess Hisao would probably know if she’s talented with her mouth. HEY-YO! Oh Christ. What is wrong with me?

"When I lost mine, I thought it was the end of the world. I didn't know how I'd survive anymore. It took a long time for me to learn how to do everything with just one hand." I don't know why I'm telling Rin this. Maybe it's because Rin isn't capable of judgment. Or at least she doesn't vocalize it. Or maybe since she's kind of in the same disability boat as I am, she might understand.

"Huh."

We don't say anything else for a long time. Rin might have fallen asleep. I'd turn my head to check on her, but then I'd have to open my eyes. I guess a little nap wouldn't hurt. Besides I'm already halfway there.

Just a little nap...

[Mirage_GSM]

Two solid chapters again. Just a few nitpicks:

Damnit Rin. It's like forty degrees out there.

If it was 40 degrees, going out in a tank top wouldn't be a problem at all, except that you'd probably rather stay in a room with AC.
Japan uses Celsius scale, like practically everyone besides the US, so this should be approximately 5°.

If it is, it’s probably off the pint-sized terror that Hisao brought up with him

"You want to come with?"

Should be either "come with me" or "come along"... But I guess this is done wrong often enough to count as slang by now ^^°

[Dr.Worm]

---Chapter 6, Part 3: ConveRINtion

"What are you two doing?"

Emi's voice pulls me out of the particularly nice dream I was having about fighting aliens off in my super-powered super-hero space man of action suit. I was attempting to rescue Junko from... Something. I don't exactly remember-

What's tickling my ear?

I snap open my eyes to the sky above me.

Oh man. How long have I been outside? Sleeping? My neighbors must think I'm a freak. Or drunk.

I turn my head to find Emi and Hisao standing on the walkway to the front door of my house. Hisao's got a giant brown jacket on, while Emi has her arms crossed over the chest of her pale green hoodie. She's got her hair up in those twin tails again. Oh, right, and she looks even grumpier than yesterday. Maybe sleeping on her floor wasn't a great idea. I think this is just how she's going to talk to me this weekend. Always a bit pissed off. Well, not all weekend I guess. She was pretty alright last night. I was the cranky one. Hisao's cradling a large paper bag in his arms. Oh don't give me that look, Hisao. I was just lying in the grass with your girlfriend. Trust me. I'm not into her.

"Watching the clouds." I let the words slide from my mouth. My whole body feels numb. Not just from the cold. I think Rin's aura sucked the life right out of me. If they let us, I could probably just lay here all day with her and stare up into the clouds.

Weird. This used to annoy the crap out of me when I was in high school.

"It's important." Rin adds.

I manage to push myself up with my left arm. A giant yawn escapes me before I can ask what they bought at the convenience store.

"We brought food." Emi apparently can read minds now. I know they got food though. It's not like they would need to get much else at the convenience store. I want to know what sort of food they got.

My stomach rumbles at the mention of nourishment. Both Hisao and Emi turn to it in surprise. I guess it was pretty loud. I cough into my fist and fix my glasses. How awkward. Stop staring, you two.
Come on… My eyes are up here.

"Uh. What'd you get?" I finally ask.

"Bread. There's curry-"

"Ah sweet. Curry bread. Give it here." I wave my hand at him, beckoning. I don’t need to hear the other options. Curry bread is delicious. Give me the bread Hisao. Sate the savage beast that is my stomach.

Hisao reaches into the bag and produces a single crinkling plastic-wrapped bun. He tosses it to me and it lands perfectly in my lap. Good shot buddy. Except if you threw it just a tiny bit harder, you'd have hit my man bits. Then I'd have to kill you. You don't mess with another man's bits. That's just cruel.

It takes a few seconds for me to stand up since I’m cradling the curry bread against my chest with my right arm. I should walk over there and thank him. But Emi's standing right there. And despite the nice movie time we had last night, I don’t think she’s fully comfortable with anything but being annoyed by my presence. Wait… I guess that shouldn't really matter. I fell asleep on her bedroom floor last night. And she didn't wake me to kick me out. Is that a good sign? Or is it just because this is my house?

"What else did you get?"

Rin's sitting up now. Her boyfriend looks down into the bag as I start to struggle at opening my bag of bread.

"We've got melon, red-bean paste, chocolate, strawberry... There's a lot of bread in here."

What did he say?

The curry bread tumbles from my hand and to the ground below.

Did he say chocolate? Chocolate bread is delicious. It’s the most delicious bread there is.

I rush over and attempt to shove my hand into the bag of bread. Hisao nearly tumbles over as I slam into him.

"What the- Katsuo!"

"You said you got chocolate bread. I want the chocolate bread."

He shoves into me with his shoulder and pushes me away. I don't let up. I throw myself back at him, arm flailing in an attempt to get into the bag he's keeping so close to his chest.

"I gave you the curry bread! Could you maybe let everyone else pick one before you change your mind?"

"No! I didn't know you had chocolate bread! What if they want my chocolate bread?"

Hisao shoves me again. I nearly topple into Emi. She pushes away from me. Is she trying not to laugh? I think she is. I hope she is. I'd rather have a mildly amused Emi than a royally pissed off Emi any day.

"Well I sort of want the chocolate. Will you just eat the fucking curry bread?"

"I don't want the fucking curry bread! I want the delicious chocolate bread!"

"No! You already got to choose!"

I grab my best friend by the shoulder. There's only one way to do this. I take in a deep breath and ready myself to bellow my demand at him.

"Don't you think you're fat enough?"

What the-

Hisao and I freeze in our death-locked struggle for supremacy to turn to the offending speaker.

Emi.

That bitch.

She casually waltzes up to us and reaches into the bag. Out comes the chocolate bread.

"I'll take that, boys." And she walks right past us, towards the house.

She took my bread. My chocolate bread. She took my delicious chocolate bread.

And who is to blame for that? Hisao. The fucking traitor who wouldn't give me that one, heavenly piece of bread that I so desperately wanted.

"I hate I have for you right now, Hisao, is so potent you could bottle it."

"Just eat the damn curry bread, Katsuo."
---

The bus to the city leaves in about twenty minutes. It should take me about ten or fifteen minutes to walk to the bus stop. The ride is about an hour and a half, but it's better than staying here in the house right now. I adjust the strap to my messenger bag so that it sits on my back comfortably for the walk. I've got on my arctic tundra explorer wear on again. Well, at least that's what Hisao's taken to calling it. There's nothing wrong with my gray sweater and jacket ensemble. Maybe it's a bit tacky to wear such monochrome colors all the time, but... Well, it's my favorite jacket. And my favorite sweater. So Hisao can shut his big fat face. I'll wear whatever I damn well want to wear. He's not my father. And it's not like I'm wearing a man-kini out into public.

I give Nori a scratch behind the ears. My nice gesture is paid back with my cat swatting at my hand. He's been following Emi around all morning. It's her fault. She gave kept giving him food. Now that's what she is to him. Something that'll give him treats. Now that it's apparent she isn't always carrying delicious shrimp for him, he's taken to sleeping at the foot of my bed. He's spent most of the last two hours in a ball there. I haven't left the room either. I just put on a movie around twelve thirty and started cleaning. I figure that I can at least straighten up the room my parents have kept in such pristine condition for me. So there's no longer a mess of DVD cases all over the floor, due to Nori's earlier hyperactive spaz attack. I fixed the bed and straightened out the posters on the walls. I've even put the PlayStation up in the closet. There's no point in keeping that out anymore.

Okay. So here we go. Out of the house and to the city. Just going to leave these three here and hope for the best.

I push open the door to my room. I wince. There it is. The symphony of squeaking springs. And I know where it's coming from.

Not Emi's room.

Way to go Hisao! Good for you man. Well, I guess she is your girlfriend. I guess that would have to happen eventually. But still... I need to get out of here. This isn't going to do well with my self-esteem.

So I maneuver my way out of the house. I don't know how bed springs can be that loud, but I can hear them all the way in the living room. I can't imagine how Emi's faring. Her room is right next door to them. I hope she has headphones.

I pull on my beat up old slip-ons. I should probably get new shoes. Or at least sucker my parents into getting me a pair. I don't have the pocket money for a new pair right now. Not after Hisao and I found the Apollica. That's where all my money is going now. To the most delicious slice of cake I have ever had and a delicious piece of eye candy named Junko Arai.

Alright. Time to go.

I pull open the door and there's Emi.

My whole body freezes in the doorway at the sight of the girl sitting on my front steps. She turns to me and pulls an ear-bud out of one of her ears.

"Hey." I give her a little wave.

"Hey."

I step outside and shut the door behind me. Okay. This is weird. Why's Emi just sitting on my front steps? It's pretty cold out here. I wouldn't want to just sit out here. I mean, the only reason I'm leaving is because Hisao and Rin are finally filling the house with unwanted noises.

Oh. Wait.

That's probably it.

"Uh… Are you sitting out here because it's loud in there?"

Emi rolls her eyes. But she follows it up with a tiny nod of her head.

"Oh. Cool."

No it isn't. She's sitting out here because there's a couple having loud sex next to her room. What the hell is wrong with you, Katsuo?

"You’re going somewhere?"

I nod twice.

"Yeah. I'm catching the bus into the city. It's a long bus ride. I should be back around seven to make dinner."

Emi nods and turns away from me. I stare at the back of her neck. I used to kiss that spot when we watched movies and-

Oh right. The movies.

"Hey. You feel better today?"

Emi turns back to me. She's shocked. Is it that odd that I'm asking how she is? She had limb pains last night and so did I. I just assumed it was natural to follow up on it. That's not like a boyfriend and girlfriend only deal, right?

"Uh... yeah. I'm doing better. You?"

"Arm still kind of feels weird, but all in all..." I give her a little shrug. That should answer the question.

"Good."

I hate that we're this awkward and stiff when we talk. I mean, I guess it's my fault ultimately. But still, I can't really be all to blame. Emi has to know that it wouldn't have happened if she just opened up a tiny bit to me.

"You want to come with?"

What the- WHY DID YOU SAY THAT? I frantically try to shove the words back into my mouth and swallow them down into my gut. Of course, that doesn't work. They're there. They're out. Emi's heard them. Now she knows you want her to come with you. That you want to socialize with her. Which you do. But you don't. You do and you don't at the same time. Is there a word for that? There has to be a word for that. Wait. No. Focus! Okay. Play it cool, Katsuo. You can totally play this off.

"I mean... like... because it's better than sitting here in the cold." I try to casually shrug. I think it looks more like I'm trying to dunk my head into my torso.

Emi gives me a blank look. I’m stupid. I’m really stupid, aren't I? I shouldn't have invited you. I’ll just take that back now.

"And I can show you around the city or something. Or at least to the places I hung out at when I wasn't at Yamaku."

Okay. That wasn't what we agreed with brain to say, mouth. Let’s try that again.

I throw my thumb over my shoulder. "Or you can stay here with the two rabbits."

What the fuck is wrong with you mouth?

Emi sighs loudly. I guess I'm the lesser of two evils right now, aren't I Emi? She pulls out the other ear-bud and shoves them both into her pocket.

"Sure. Why not?"

I give her a very, very casual nod of my head. At least I hope it's casual. I don't think I do that very well.

"Cool. Come on, it's another hour and a half if we miss this bus."

[nemz]

...eh? wrong file?

Also, boo on the forced chocolate joke. Trying too hard, and not funny without the context.

[Dr.Worm]

...eh? wrong file?

Also, boo on the forced chocolate joke. Trying too hard, and not funny without the context.

As previously stated, I could not resist. I've already begun to resent myself for putting it in.

Stems from a stupid drawing I did of that last scene at lunch the other day. I will probably edit it out once I get through editing the rest of this stuff for length.

[nemz]

but where is the actual part 3? you already posted this as part 2. unless...

oh man, getting some bad endless 8 flashbacks.

[Dr.Worm]

I've been overkilling on post length. Got the notice today. However it was noted that my stuff was "not shit". So that's pretty cool.

So part three is basically half of part two and yada yada. The whole story is going through some length and consistency edits. Some stuff I should have done after the second chapter went up.

[Hans PK]

Emi is life. Emi is love.

But seriously, keep posting. I'm definitely looking forward to more.

[Comrade]

[carrion_crow]

Loving it. Can't wait to see more. I liked the Emi twist but I sincerely hope the plot doesn't get too predictable.