"Unlike in sports, the game of war has no set time limit and no points are awarded. so how do you determine the winners and the losers?"-Andrew Waltfeld.
It's probably not over, i'm having some fun writing their little war. I'm currently debating whether to stick Lilly, Akira and Hisao's family in a cabin for xmas and seeing how long I can go without destroying the place.
something I wanted to ask though: is anyone getting confused mid-conversation without the tags?
end-
I’m woken up by a loud ringing in my ears. I reach to kill the sound of my alarm but it doesn’t stop the god awful noise.
“What the...?”
I finally locate the source, my phone.
“Who is it?”
“Hicchan?”
“Mom? Why are you calling this early?”
“Early? It’s nearly noon, this is actually the third time I’ve called.”
“Well I
was asleep. Are you feeling... better?”
“My memory’s a bit foggy around when I fainted, but nothing worse than what I’m used to.” the follow up question goes unasked, I’ve already heard enough stories about my mother to know I don’t want to hear another.
“So uh... about me and Lilly-”
“Can we talk about that later?”
“How much later?”
“Maybe dinner, maybe tomorrow, maybe never.” Teasing your son like a high school girl, dad must’ve been driven insane when he went through her actual high school years.
“Then what do you want to do? I’m free until six.”
“And then?”
“Want a lie or the truth?”
“Question answered, I’ll try not to keep you from your... uh, date.” Maybe when she fainted it triggered some kind of pent up chemical release that caused her to become more of an adult. ”I mean, we wouldn’t want people to say you
dumped a girl for your mother.” Okay, maybe I was a bit hasty to say she was an adult now.
“Give me an hour and a half and I’ll meet you in town.”
“How about I give you forty-five minutes to meet me at your dorm?”
“Why here?”
“Well I’d like to see your school.” What a... reasonable request. Damn it, stop switching between a high school girl and someone I can actually consider my mother!
“Alright then, since you’re being reasonable I’ll be down soon.”
I skip several unnecessary steps in my routine and meet my mother downstairs.
“So... you don’t go out like that normally do you?”
“What’s wrong with me?”
“The colours are off, I don’t like your hair and your shirt isn’t tucked in.”
“My favourite colours, I’ve always had my hair like this and I don’t have a uniform check today.”
“So where are you showing me first?”
“I assume you don’t need to see the nurse’s office so how about my classroom?”
I walk up the now familiar stairs without pause. I must be going faster than I thought because she seems to have a problem keeping up.
“Well here it is.” I open the door and she walks inside.
“Your desk is...?”
“Right side, second from the back.”
“This one?” she moves next to Shizune’s desk.
“Far right. If the student council president catches you messing with her desk you’ll be dead.”
“Hmmm this is Satou-”
“Shicchan, there’s no one- oh... Hisao and?”
“My mother. Mom, this is Shizune, the student council president and her interpreter Misha.”
“Awww for a second I thought you might be cheating on Satou.” Shizune signs something to add.” Oh yeah, what are you doing here? It’s Sunday.”
“Showing my mom around school, as far as I know there’s no rule against it.”
“Just be quick Hicchan, this is a school not a park.”
“Yeah yeah, you’re done looking at my classroom right?”
“I guess so.”
We leave the room and continue on. Our next stop is the library. It goes as I expect: Yuuko looked about as uncomfortable as when I first met her, my mother does nothing to help her nervousness, and I get my mother out before Yuuko has a small breakdown. Then I decide to take her to our personal refuge, the tea room. I slowly open the door, expecting to find an empty room...
“Hmm? Is that you Hisao?”
“Hi-Hisao?”
Reminds me of the first time I met Lilly... except for the person behind me.
“Oh, you two are here?”
“Yes, we both woke up a bit later than usual so we chose to have lunch now. My I assume...?”
“Hello... Satou.”
“Good afternoon Mrs. Nakai.”
“M-Mrs. Nakai?”
“Oh right, Hanako this is my mother, mom this is Hanako Ikezawa.”
“H-hello m-Mrs. Nakai.”
“Hicchan, are all your friends girls?” there’s one out of nowhere. Though when I think about it-
“Uh... I guess so. The only guy I talk with regularly makes me want to hit him.”
“Oh so you’ve got a little harem going don’t you?” I resist several urges, mostly because hitting your mother is of course wrong, but a little voice in my head reminds me that she can probably beat the hell out of me.
“I have no such aspirations, and you shouldn’t be encouraging your son to do something that stupid.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“For one, I’d like to avoid making my life hell. Plus I don’t think that someone who has only dated one person should talk about that” I calmly sit down beside Lilly after taking my shots. My mother takes the seat beside Hanako. The four of us sit in silence until Hanako apparently can’t take it anymore.
“W-would you like some tea?”
“Hmm? Yes please.”
“Could I have a cup of tea too Hanako?”
“S-sure.” She quickly hurries around making two cups of tea.
“Thank you Hanako.”
“Thank you. Your hair is quite beautiful by the way.” The complement causes Hanako to freeze. I guess she’s more kind to any girl I’m not dating.
“... W-what?”
“Your hair, I’ve wanted long hair like that since I was younger than you.”
“Th-thank... you?”
“H-hang on, Lilly’s hair is just as long. Why are you complementing Hanako and not-?”
“Because I like injured puppies.”
“Ah, you’re a person who cares for those who you believe to be less ... capable or fortunate than yourself?”
“Hurt animals, crying kids in the park, stray cats, the list goes on and on.”
“So I assume that you consider anyone who you consider in a more advantageous position to be an enemy?”
“People who are capable don’t need my help, if they’re already happy where they are, they don’t need anything else.”
“Then I can assume this is why you are-”
“Uh, I can answer that Lilly; she just doesn’t want anyone taking her stuff. Every last one of those hurt animals she considered her pet, same with the cats.”
“Done being a little smart mouth?”
“Just speaking the truth, Last time someone tried to claim a lost pet from you, you nearly started tearing them apart.” The strike hits hard enough that it quiets her down.
“S-so why did you bring your mother here?”
“She wanted to see the school.”
“Are you planning on going anywhere else?”
“We’ve been to our class, the library and now here. Do I go anywhere else?”
“The indoor gymnasium?”
“Never been there, I don’t take gym remember?”
“The p-pool?”
“Again, never been there.”
“Where
do you go?”
“Usually either the library... or here. Occasionally I go to town but that’s about it. I don’t really have a reason to go anywhere else.”
“So what you’re saying is: my son... is a failure?”
“Most of the other male students are not very sociable. We are a very accepting group of people, but we tend to keep to ourselves.”
“What about you two, did you just pick him up?”
“As I recall he got lost trying to find the library, he met Hanako shortly after. So... yes I suppose I did pick him up.” she says it with a smile on her face. I understand that it might be a good memory for her or whatever but still, it that kinda hurts. I mean couldn’t you let me preserve my dignity a little here?
“So my son... is an idiot who can’t even pick up his own girlfriend.” Can you please stop it? I still have some dignity left you know.
“I do not believe that Hisao is incapable, just that it isn’t a priority for him.” thank you for the- “But I will admit that he wasn’t the most... gathered person at times.” And down goes my pride again. Is it really necessary that Hanako and my mother hear about this?
“Well then... I suppose its better you picked him up. At least you haven’t managed to kill him yet.” I think that’s probably the most complementary thing she’s said to Lilly all week. ”My son is an idiot and I am sorry for my behaviour earlier.” an apology? The firsts just keep on coming today. ”I would rather him be with you than... well a great many things.”
“Thank you Mrs. Nakai, May I assume that this would constitute a blessing from your husband as well? “
“... He’ll just be happy his son has a girlfriend.” She says this with disapproval in her voice. I’m sure he does care who I date, he just isn’t as vibrant about it. “I won’t say you’re my first choice though, or my hundredth, in fact I’d prefer
this little girl over you.” Hanako pretty much shuts down and I’m trying to sort this out in my mind.
“Skipping the last comment, you’re actually going to stop driving me insane?”
“If you call more often, I won’t need to come back; unless I really get another urge to see you again that is.”
“Heh doesn’t sound that much different from now.”
“If he was to call you once a week, would that be sufficient? I am sure I can remind him to call you.” Lilly seems to be in a hurry to finish this. I subtly check my watch; it’s only two so she’s not worried about our date. “Hisao, would you be able to call her on Saturday?”
“I guess so, Sunday’s already uh- booked and I’ll have homework every other day.”
“Good, now Mrs. Nakai, is that fine with you?”
“I guess so.”
“then I think I should inform you that the train going to your city only comes through our town once every six hours and If I am able to recall the schedule correctly the next one leaves in a few hours.”
“Don’t worry, if I miss it I can just stay another day.” I look at her with a ‘please don’t’ painted on my face.
“Muto‘s going to hammer us with homework tomorrow so I really won’t have much time this week.” Read between the lines mom: please leave before you harm this relative peace we now have.
“Alright then, I guess your father’s probably bored and reading the paper by now. He must be miserable.”
“Want me to head down to town with you?”
“Nope, I’m good. You need to get ready right?”
“Well yeah, but I can at least see you off right? We can stop at the train station right?”
“We do usually stop there after the park.”
“Alright then. Anything you want to see before you leave?”
“I’m good, though now I kinda want to see Hicchan on his date.”
“Not happening, we’ll be down before the train leaves okay?”
She reluctantly agrees to let me walk her down to the gate where we parted so I can go do my homework and get ready.
(Time skip)
“Over here!” my mother begins waving to us from the other side of the station. It breaks the usual calm of the station. I gently pull Lilly along through the crowd toward the raised hand.
“Hicchan, you’re lucky your girlfriend is blind. That is not what you should look like on a date.”
“I didn’t choose it for colour, Lilly-“
“I told him I preferred the feel of this.”
“Oh I guess that makes sense. I assume your friend picked the dress?”
“Yes she did.”
“It’s odd, it looks very good on you but I can still tell she chose it.”
“Got all your stuff?”
“Yep, didn’t come with much more than my clothes anyways.”
“Alright then, I’ll call next week. If I see you again before Christmas I’ll be ignoring you completely.”
“Heh, I might just try to test that.” please don’t, I don’t want to know what you’d do.
*Bing pong* “that’s my cue, I love you Hicchan” she proceeds to hug me, it’s not as mortifying as I thought... well until I feel her hand slip into my back pocket. My weird meter just hit a whole new level.
“And miss Satou... if my Hicchan ever says that you caused him pain. You’ll be hearing from me.” the last part is said with a smile on her face. Since it’s not for Lilly’s benefit, I can only assume that she’s taking some kind of dark pleasure in thinking of punishment and revenge. From experience, I can only assume that it is both effective and creative.
She grabs her bag and gets on the train. I scan the windows to check for her, she must be on the other side.
“Shall we go?”
“I want to stay here until the train leaves. Is that’s alright with you?”
“Of course, we came to see her off.”
“I want to make sure it leaves with her on it.”
“If that’s what you want.”
I watch the train leave, and once I’m reasonably sure it’s gone I turn back to Lilly.
“Shall we get going?”
We head out of the station and begin our usual path around the park, though it’s an hour and a half earlier than usual. I use my free hand to check my back pocket and pull out the piece of paper that my mother slipped in. Turns out to be a list of suggestions for me to try, I dismiss the ones that I can’t do, whether that be because the town lacks the facilities, or that I don’t have the nerve to go through with them. Most of them are... more reasonable than I expected, coming from someone who doesn’t like the thought of me dating.
“Argh, guess I’ll have to thank her later”
“For?”
“Just some ideas she gave me.”
