When he reached the door, Shiro was wet from the rain. The sun disappeared from view and his phone lit up with new messages. He was far too irritated to answer them, but he was sure Kenshin would understand once he explained himself.
He wandered around in a park for a few hours. Thinking about the altercation he’d just had with his old friend. He debated putting in a transfer request with Tetsudori. He was sure they would still take him in. He hated ruining Bura Bura’s record, but he hated the thought of having to sit next to Keiko everyday more. He couldn’t face her again. Not after he’d gotten his closure after all these years.
He would speak to Kenshin about his transfer papers when he logged on today. He hastily shoved his key in the lock and pushed the door open.
“So the girl loses her powers in the end? What a waste,”
“N-no, you see right here, she did it to save her friend.”
He heard children’s voices bickering in the living room. When he walked in, he saw a few kids sprawled out on the living room floor with some book scattered about.
Shiro glance around the room at the children. A little girl with long puffy braids wearing glasses that were far too big for her face sat kneeled by the coffee table with Aya at her side . And a little boy with black wavy hair and dark brown eyes wearing a mask over his mouth.
The boy with the mask pulled out a spray bottle of some kind.
“Oi! don’t go spraying that in someone else’s home.”
The boy sprayed in Shiro’s direction.
“A new person has entered the atmosphere. He’s brought toxins with him.” He said in a monotone voice.
Shiro wasn’t in the mood to socialize, so he simply nodded at the children and headed toward his room.
“W-wait, big brother!” Aya rushed to his side with a notebook cradled to her chest.
Shiro didn’t have the energy to entertain children at the moment. The thought of the redhead sent him further into a rage. He hadn’t felt much of anything in six years. Now all he could feel was anger.
He wished he’d never met the girl. He wished she wouldn’t have helped him that rainy day. That he would’ve never made the story together. Or that stupid promise.
“Er…These are—” Aya began
Shiro stared down at the little girl. Down at her worried expression. Down to her fidgeting feet. Then back up to her arms tightly wrapped around a blue notebook.
He almost didn’t recognize it, had it not been for the drawings peeking through Aya’s grasp.
Shiro snatched the book out of her hands.
“What are you doing with this?!” He didn’t even try to suppress his fury.
“I-I found it when I was cleaning your room.”
“Who told you to go into my room, Aya?”
“I just thought—”
“Stay out of my room, don’t touch my things, stay out of my damn life!” He yelled.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Akio pushed through the kids, who were giving him disapproving looks.
Shiro gripped the book in his hand, the embarrassment of his actions setting in at the sound of his sisters sobbing.
“Just leave me alone!” He mumbled as he made his way to his bedroom.
He shut the door behind him, ignoring the sounds of the children comforting his sister.
He looked down at the old tattered notebook. The drawing of the half snake, half human girls on the cover.
He tossed it in the trash beside his desk and checked his messages.
Shiro: Hey, sorry I'm late, It's been an eventful day.
Kenshin: What's got you so distracted? Father has already collected the files. We can work on the errors, but I couldn't keep them from him this time.
Shiro: ...That's alright. It's not your fault.
Kenshin: Something on your mind?
Shiro: I was thinking. The Tetsudori scholarship your father offered, is that still onthe table?
Kenshin: If you're serious, I can send you the application tonight and hand it to father personally. Perhaps you could enroll in some programming courses.
Shiro opened his email and downloaded the Tetsudori Institute Application. It looked simple enough.
He stepped away from his desk and into the restroom. He let the warm water hit his body and wash away the events from the day. Soon he will be in a new school, with new people. And he can forget about the redhead and the promise that ruined his life.
In the end, you won. Didn’t you dad.
He put his face under the water, closing his eyes.
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“Let’s go to that school together, okay Shiro?”
The little girl with the missing tooth made him promise.
“An art school? But I’m not an artist.” He protested.
“You don’t have to be an artist. It’s for all kinds of creative students.”
He eyed the flyer again. Still skeptical.
“You want everyone to read your stories, right? Well, we can start a club together. I can draw and you can right then we can share it with the entire school!”
She threw her hands up in the air in excitement.
“So you’re coming, right?”
“I guess so,” He said, nervous about the idea.
“Hey, you have to promise!” The girl stuck her hand out. “You have to be all in!”
Shiro jumped to his feet and took the girl’s hand.
“Okay, I’m in!” He said. He had no reason to be nervous. Even if he was shy, Keiko was definitely not. And she would be with him the entire time. He could always depend on her.
The two rushed back to their classes after recess, Shiro still holding onto the bright yellow flyer.
He fidgeted with anticipation for the rest of the school day. When the bell rang, he made his way to his parents’ car, where his parents and siblings were already waiting.
“Did you have a good day, dear?” His mother asked from the front seat. She could barely turn her body from the massive belly she protected.
“Yes, mom.” He jumped in the car next to his sisters, Kokoro and Saito.
“How are you feeling, mom?” Kokoro leaned over and caressed their mother’s belly. “How are you guys feeling?” She asked their unborn siblings as if they could understand her.
“The babies are getting restless, but they’ll be here soon enough.”
Their mother adjusted the rearview mirror before taking off.
“You probably shouldn’t be driving anymore, Momma.” Kokoro watched their mother struggle with the steering wheel.
“It was just this once. Your father is busy with work today. We’ll be home soon.”
Shiro held the flyer in his pocket. He’d bring it up after dinner, when his father was home.
At the dinner table, father paced the living room talking on the phone. The kids could barely hear a word, though everyone tried.
“Agreed. Yes, Mr. Fukui, it’s been a pleasure. We will speak again soon.”
Ryu set his phone down and took his place at the table where everyone waited to eat.
“Apologies, family.” He took a chunk of steak from the serving plate and put it on his.
“Uh-um.” Mother cleared her throat, obviously annoyed.
Father put his phone back in his pocket and added some vegetables to his plate. He leaned over and gave his wife a kiss on the cheek.
“Apologies, dear.” He took another bite of food. The kids tried to hide their giggling.
Shiro looked at his parents in awe. They had the perfect relationship. The perfect family. Dinner was pleasant. Shiro’s body felt warm and satisfied.
His sisters helped momma was the dishes as he cleared the table. His father headed to his study. Shiro pulled out the flyer from his pocket and started to follow.
“Fath—”
“Papa, I have something to ask you.” Kokoro dried her hands and followed their father into his study, Mother close behind.
Shiro disappointedly put the flyer back in his pocket and kept his younger sister company.
After a while, Saito fell asleep on the shaggy rug. Shiro glanced back at his father’s study. It was still shut. He stood up and walked over, peeking into the windowed door. He saw his pregnant mother with both hands on Kokoro’s shoulders. He could hear the muffled sounds of her crying through the door. The fireplace was on. His father poked at something in the flames. Shiro squinted for a better look.
Father pushed the pink ballet slippers deeper into the flames. Shiro was confused by the sight at first. He looked back at his sister, who was crying into her hands as their mother comforted her. His father turned to her with a dead expression.
“You are not going to be a ballerina. You may remain in dance only if it is a hobby. Do not fill your head with delusions of becoming a professional dancer. That is not a respectable career for a people like us.”
“You and your sibling are all going to be enrolled in a new school. Tetsudori Institute. Where I will work until I retire.”
“You are going to be married to the son of a wealthy business partner. We have a plan for all our children to lead successful lives. You are the eldest and you are to set the example for the rest of you siblings. Do you understand?”
“Yes, papa.” She said through her tears.
image [https://i.quotev.com/3tigbx2s7e4a.jpg]
“Good.” He straightened his tie and walked to his desk.
Mother and Kokoro turned toward him and he ran into the kitchen, hoping they wouldn’t see him.
Shiro ran toward Saito, who was still sleeping on the ground.
“Shiro, I’m going to take your sister to her room. Can you help Saito to bed, please?”
“Of course, mother.” He called out, not turning to see her face.
When he was sure they were upstairs, he ran to father’s study. He peeked over at the door again. There he saw the burned ballet shoes, still turning to ash in the fire. He saw a half charred folder with gold lettering. He could barely make out the writing, Geneva School of Dance, it said in cursive letters.
Shiro put his back to the door. Kokoro always wanted to be a ballerina. She’d been in dance classes since she was really little.
It didn’t make sense for their parents to turn down her dream. They were always so supportive of our activities.
“So long as it remains a hobby.” His father’s words echoed in his ears.
Shiro ran to the kitchen and picked up the phone. It was a little late, but he was sure Keiko would answer.
“I’m sorry. The number you are trying to reach has been disconnected.”
“Wha…disconnected?”
Shiro heard his father pacing in his study on the phone again.
He walked Saito to her bed. After making sure she was out, he climbed into his and stared at the ceiling.
He pulled the flyer out of his pocket and held it up to the moonlight shining through his bedroom window.
“I’ll just ask Keiko to come to Tetsudori instead. They could make a club there. He could still write as a hobby. As long as they were together, it didn’t matter what school they went to. If he could just be with his best friend, everything will be fine.”
But everything was not fine. When he went to school the next day, Keiko was absent. She was missing the next day, and the day after that.
Shiro wandered around aimlessly. Looking for his best friend. But she was gone. And he never saw her again.
Eventually, he had been told by his sister, who was already living in Germany with her new husband, that Keiko had moved to Spain with her mother.
Shiro waited for weeks by the mailbox, asking his parents if he’d received a called from his friend. But she never reached out. He went through middle school isolated and alone. Only making a few friends, but it was never the same. He couldn’t be sure if they would up and leave him one day, too.
When his first year of high school came closer, Shiro began to wonder if Keiko had made him the promise because she knew she was leaving. Images of reuniting filled him with hope. He ran home one day on the last week of middle school, Bura Bura flyer in hand.
“I’m going to this school,” He had said to his father, who was on a business call.
“I’ll get back to you. Something has come up.” He placed his phone down on the counter and folded his hands together, staring him down.
“I want to go to this school, father.”
Shiro placed the old crumpled sheet of paper on his desk.
“We’ve already made arrangements for you to be enrolled in the new school of technology. You will attend Tetsudori.” He stood up by his chair, adjusting his tie.
“You will attend the school of technology. You are set to marry the daughter of a prominent business partner.”
Ryu shoved the paper aside and into the trash.
“And you will never storm into my office with this nonsense again.”
Shiro squeezed his eyes shut, both panic and desperation taking over.
He dug the paper from the trash and slammed it back on his father’s desk.
“I’m going to Bura Bura Academy. I’m going to be a write and Keiko and I are going to start a club together. I’ll pay for it myself if I have to. I’m going to this school.”
Shiro held his ground.
“Keiko? Ryosuke’s daughter?” His father lifted a brow.
“We made a promise!” Shiro kept his eyes shut.
“We will discuss this later. I have to make a phone call.”
Ryu walked Shiro to the door and closed it behind him. He paced around the living room, waiting for his father to finish his phone call.
“Shiro.”
The sound of his name made him jump. He walked to his father, unsure of what was about to happen.
When he entered the door, his father shut it behind him. He walked over to the fireplace and poked around before settling in his chair.
“Have a seat.”
Shiro joined his father by the fireplace and waited for him to speak. Not sure how he could convince him.
“Take this.”
He handed Shiro a folder. When he opened it, there was a signed and paid registration to Bura Bura Academy.
Shiro couldn’t hide the smile. He could barely contain his excitement. He waited for hi father to dismiss him and he held the file in his hands as if he were holding a baby.
“You may go to this…school of art. But there will be conditions.”
“Conditions?” Shiro repeated.
“You will major in business. You will not be disillusioned by childhood wishes. Regarding your promise. Now that it will be fulfilled, you have nothing else to occupy your mind with but your studies. And your work.”
“My work?” Shiro questioned.
“Starting tomorrow. You will work with me at the Tetsudori Institute. Theyre designing a new software, to make it easier for the students to access their progress live. And you are going to help me build it.”
“But I don’t know anything about programming.”
“No, not yet, you don’t. You will be partnered with the headmaster's son, Kenshin Furotani. He is a little younger than you, but a protégé in the field.”
“But father, Keiko and I wanted to make a club together.”
“What makes you think you’ll see that girl there?”
“Well…” He hadn’t even thought of the possibility.
Of course she will be there. She’s my best friend.
“She’ll be there. We made a promise.”
“Very well. Then let’s make a bet.”
“If your friend does indeed show up at this art school…you are free to choose your own path. You can become a writer, marry whoever you wish. This Keiko girl. If that’s what you want.
He made a sour face at the thought of marrying Keiko. The little redhead girl with the missing tooth, always covered in a layer of dirt. Loud and aggressive. Definitely not the qualities he sought for in a wife.
“But if she doesn’t show.”
Ryu pulled the faded yellow paper from the counter and into the fire.
“You will abide by my rules. And you will never speak of this childhood dream of yours to me again.”
Shiro took his father’s hand and sealed the deal.
He was so nervous on the first day of school. His friends Masashi and Makoto had also enrolled in Bura Bura, so he wasn’t completely alone.
He remembered searching the class assignment list. But her name wasn’t on it. Masashi and Makoto were upset they didn’t share his class with him.
His world went dark. He heard his classmates through a filter. Like he was drowning. Drowning under the pressure of his father’s conditions, under the reality that Keiko broke her promise. Drowning in a sea of his own emotions. Just drowning.
Until he couldn’t feel anything anymore. Nothing at all.
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Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Shiro turned the shower off and wiped his face with a towel. He felt more relaxed now that he had time to wind down. He had a new plan. He was sure it would fix everything. Father would be thrilled. He’d get to meet Kenshin and his Fiance. She was a third year, too. Mayne he could get to know her before the wedding.
Shiro hurried into his boxers. The thought of his new life filling him with excitement.
He walked down the dark hall and peeked into the twins’ room. The kids were already asleep. He still felt guilty for yelling at Aya. He would make it up to her at some point.
Shiro sat at his desk and opened the application for Tetsudori. He filled it out to the best of his ability and sent it off to Kenshin.
He’d text him in the morning to let him know. It was getting late, and he was exhausted.
Shiro threw himself on his bed, hearing a thud on the ground beside him.
He reached over to grab his backpack and all the items they had fallen out of it. He checked the ground to see if he’d gotten everything when he saw a purple book he’d never seen before.
He reached for it and examined the foreign journal.
“Huh? How’d this get in here?”
The book was maybe a little bigger than his palm. It had a band looped over the front with KM initially on the bottom.
“K.M?”
Shiro flipped the book over, searching for any clue as to who it belongs to. But found none.
He opened to the front page, hoping to see a name or some more information.
Dear Diary,
Keiko here. It’s been a week since I’ve arrived in Spain and still nothing from Shiro. I told big brother to let him know where our house is so I’m sure I will hear from him soon. I wish I would’ve gotten his address before I left, but I’m so bad with directions. I couldn’t find his place to ask. So far, it’s been a little weird here. Aunty says momma is suffering because poppa is gone. She’s been really quiet lately and didn’t want to eat. I’ve been making all sorts of meals. But momma hasn’t wanted to try any. My aunties love them though they were so impressed! Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow. I think I’m being enrolled in a school nearby soon.
“This is…” He flipped to the next page.
Hey it’s me again.
I waited by the phone all day but nothing yet. Sosuke doesn’t answer his phone anymore, so I sent him a letter asking for Shiro’s address. I made a bunch of new recipes I want to send him. Since I can’t cook for him anymore, maybe he could try to make them himself. I hope he’s doing okay. I never got to tell him we were leaving. I started a new school but I haven’t made any friends. No one speaks Japanese here and I’m still learning Spanish. I’ll see you tomorrow. Momma is not feeling well today, so I’m trying to help her with the chores.
“How did this…” He looked through his bag.
Did we mix up our bags when we left today?
He searched through his things, but his items were all there.
He scanned his brain for all their interactions. They did sit next to each other. He could’ve picked this up by accident.
Then he remembered. Bumping into her on the first day of school, Her rummaging through her bag searching for something.
He held the Keiko’s diary with both hands.
Should I return it?
He flipped through a page in the middle. He knew he shouldn’t have, but his nosiness got the better of him.
Hi,
I know I haven’t written in this thing for a while. It’s my last year of middle school already. I’ve been sending Shiro letters every day for the past two years, now that I have his address…but I haven’t received anything back. I wait by the mailbox every day. Momma says I’m worthless and he’s probably always hated me. Maybe that’s true. Maybe he has forgotten me…like Papas friends forgot about him when he died…Maybe he really does hate me. But I can’t give up. I called Sosuke again yesterday and asked him to help me enroll in Bura Bura. He said he’s doing the best he can. I hope it’s not too late. I hope Shiro kept his promise. I’ll see you tomorrow. Momma’s in a bad mood. I don’t want to get hit again.
Shiro gripped the sided of the journal. He didn’t know what to make of it. What she wrote and what he knows to be true were so different. He wasn’t sure if he believed a word of it.
It’s Keiko.
Sosuke confirmed. Shiro’s in Bura Bura. I’m so glad he’s pursuing his dreams of being a writer. I’m a little bummed than I’m stuck attending the online classes. Sosuke is making arrangements for me to go back to japan but mother has been an issue. She wants to stay in the house with Sosuke, but he said he doesn’t want to deal with her. The only way he’ll take us is if she stays in the crazy house and I take full responsibility for her. I agreed, of course. I’ll do anything to get out of here. Mother is losing it. Most days she just lays in bed, she stopped showering. She won’t let me cook anymore. I can’t eat anymore instant noodle, the thought of them makes me want to vomit. I have to go. She’s really mad today.
Shiro sifted through the book. Page after page of entries. Anytime she wrote him a letter, when she received good marks at Bura Bura…when she was losing hope he would ever speak to her again.
His hands dropped to his sides, taking Keiko’s journal along with them.
Ding.
His email notification sounded. He checked his phone, dropping the journal in the process.
His eyes blurred, so he put the phone down without reading Kenshin's messages. He didn’t know how he could when his head was spinning. He felt his stomach churning as his thoughts raced.
Keiko moved to Spain without telling me. She moved away and never bothered to reach out. Never tried to keep her promise.
At least, that’s what he had always thought. That’s what made the thought of her sitting next to him everyday fill him with rage.
He picked up the journal again; he wanted to throw it away and put it out of his mind.
It’s too late for this.
He tossed the diary toward the trash from his bed, but a folded up envelope fell beside the bin.
He stayed on his bed, eying it for a while before picking it up. It was still sealed.
He turned it over to read who it was addressed to.
“Ishida Shiro” It read. March 31 of this year.
A few days before school started.
“A…letter? For me?”
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image [https://i.quotev.com/z32ghzt37qga.jpg]