School Girls' Stories

Chapter 41 – Moving Day

Kyoei stood in Fuji’s bedroom looking at the enormous collection of books, and dolls, and figurines of girls playing cellos. He looked to the desk with the writing supplies and the perfect amount of feminine touch to the hardwood. He looked at it all and was almost exhausted just looking at it all.

“How much of this stuff are you bringing with you?” he asked incredulously, nearly dropping the empty boxes he was carrying.

Fuji looked into the room and then looked back to Kyoei with an evil grin. Kyoei did drop the boxes and start shaking his head. “No way,” he said. “That room is bigger than my entire apartment.”

“I’m teasing!” Fuji cried, grabbing him by the arm and trying to pull him back. “Please, don’t leave me. I just want my clothes and a few sentimental items. It will probably only fill five or six boxes.”

Shai came up behind them, quiet as ever. Fuji looked to her with a kind smile. Shai’s stomach, at five months, was just really beginning to show. She began wearing much looser sweaters and jeans, and she was terribly upset for a few days over the weight gain, but logic kicked in and she began to just take it all in stride. “My dad is down stairs trying to keep your mother from coming up here and chaining you to the bed,” Shai explained. “I would hurry if I were you. I do not think Mrs. Chenbaro’s offer is going to stand for very long to let you live with us.”

Kyoei walked into the bedroom, grumbling and making boxes while the girls stood in the hallway to chat.

“You did not have to come today,” Fuji insisted. “I know you do not want to see Mr. Tennison.”

Shai shook her head. “No,” she admitted, “I don’t, but I wanted to support you, though I can not help you.”

“That’s what I am here for!” Kyoei shouted. He went to Fuji’s dresser and unceremoniously dumped a drawer into the box he had made up. “Fuji’s underwear!” he said quite clearly.

“Why didn’t Amatsu come to help?” Shai asked, looking in at Kyoei as he hefted boxes and pretty much worked by himself while the two girls gossiped.

“He had to be at the radio station today,” Fuji explained. “He said he would take the day off, but I think it better if he not meet my mother. Especially under these circumstances. She still has not figured out that I am dating the deejay from her lavish hotel ballroom party, but that is the way things should be.”

Fuji found herself with an arm full of box before she could even blink after her sentence. Kyoei had already packed three boxes full of clothes and was moving on to more. “Carry that downstairs, would you doll?” he asked, and turned back to the room he was slowly making a mess of, but packing at record breaking speed.

“I will be right back,” Fuji explained, walking down the steps.

Shai turned awkwardly towards Kyoei who moved with ease through the room. She did not know him that well and could not say she ever felt comfortable around him. It was not the type of discomfort that one felt when around a homicidal maniac, or Nakago, but it was an unease that she could never explain away.

“Oh!” she suddenly said very loudly, her hands going towards her stomach.

Kyoei dropped the box and turned to Shai hurriedly. He rushed over to her so quickly a person would have thought she was dying.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?” he asked, gripping her arms a bit too tightly.

“I’m fine,” she nearly laughed. “I just felt the baby move; at least, I think I did!” She placed her hands under her sweater to her stomach, feeling the little bubbles of life inside of her. She wondered if it had been the baby movement, but would she have been so touched by something other than the baby?

Without thinking Kyoei reached his hand under her sweater and had his hands on her stomach. He felt the small growing bump for any movement, having to admit to himself he was excited to find out what was happening.

“Kyoei, that’s a cheap way to cop a feel,” Fuji’s voice haunted them from behind. Kyoei quickly released Shai who turned to her friend, who was now accompanied by Yuki and Shinwa. Fuji waved a hand in their general direction, and with very little enthusiasm, stated, “Look who decided to join us.”

“Hi!” Shai smiled sweetly. “I felt the baby move; Kyoei was just feeling it with me.” She flushed from head to toe. Yuki suddenly had wandering ideas of what was going on with Shai, and Fuji was just ready to leave this house.

“What else do you need packed?” Shinwa asked, sensing the anger in the aura around Fuji. He began to wonder if her anger was simply a built in defense mechanism that her mother had implanted when she was very young. Instead of thinking rationally she thought like a businesswoman, and a businesswoman would take no slacking off in her jurisdiction.

“Not much more,” Fuji pointed out, walking into the bedroom behind all of her friends. “Kyoei has most of the clothing packed already, I just need to bring a few jewelry items, a couple of the cello figurines, shoes, a couple of books…”

“Yuki, Shai,” Kyoei sighed, turning Fuji towards the door, “go distract your best friend. She is doing nothing but being in the way.”
“This is my room,” Fuji argued on her way to being escorted out of her room.

“And we will not forget anything we think you need,” Shinwa pointed out.

“Oh, but don’t forget the necklace with the rubies,” Fuji argued on her way out the door, Yuki and Shai pushing her out into the hallway and closing the door behind them. “Or the book with Jim Butcher’s autograph! Or-” She was cut off by the door closing completely, and the two men were left in the room alone.

“Which necklace with the rubies?” Shinwa asked, picking up one of the jewelry boxes and looking into it. “This girl has more jewelry than any woman I have met, and I have met a lot of them.”

“Sometimes it is hard to believe that she’s running away from all of this,” Kyoei said, finishing the last box. “I mean, I know her mom is a manipulative bitch, but… she has her future set before her.”

“What, you were never a rebellious teenager before?” Shinwa asked in disbelief. “You never wanted to runaway from home before?”

“But we are supporting this girls rebellion by moving her in with a father she’s never known,” Kyoei said. He stopped sealing the box he was working on, turning to Shinwa. “Does this just seem ultimately fucked up, or is it just me?”

“What about the crush you have on your best friend’s girlfriend’s pregnant best friend?”

“Yup, that just answered my question.” Kyoei finished sealing the box and stood up to just stare at it. “This is all too fucked up. And, of your information, I have no interest in Shai. I do not even know Shai.”

Shinwa nodded, watching Kyoei’s reaction and knowing that he was lying. He was not going to throw it in his face, however. Shai was an endearing girl; even Shinwa would have been attracted to her. Actually, that’s a lie, he would not be, he was. Shai was beautiful and sweet, but there was something about Yuki that made Shinwa want her.

“Let’s go,” Kyoei said, not ready to open up to this ex-singer, nor would his masculinity allow it. He opened the door and started hauling down more boxes.

They found the girls out on the sidewalk. Shai was leaning against Kyoei’s car looking terribly tired very quickly, while Fuji and Yuki looked a bit too energetic.

Fuji turned to watch the men as they came towards the car, boxes stacked high. “Where’s Mr. Taiikuka?” she asked, not seeing Shai’s dad having come out of the overly large house.

“He’s still saying goodbye to Mrs. Chenbaro,” Kyoei snarled, meaning they were screaming at each other while Mr. Tennison stood there helplessly.

“Thank you, Kyoei, for coming with me,” Fuji thanked him, stepping closer. “I really do appreciate it.” With a second glance towards Shinwa Fuji sighed and muttered out, “And thank you Kiseki.” She kept it formal, which showed Fuji’s distaste, since she was a girl who preferred to be friendly.

“What do I have to do to get you to not hate me?” Shinwa asked, closing the lid of the trunk on her boxes. “I saved your best friend’s life, I have been nothing but amiable to you, and still you look at me like a slug. Is that your mother’s voice in your head, or do you seriously have that high of a dislike for me? What can I do to show you I am a good person?”

Fuji was not even watching him. Her eyes were focused down the sidewalk, behind Shinwa’s back. When he turned around he was surprised to see Kago walking down the street. There was nothing peculiar about him, and nothing different than how he usually looked, but the ominous cloud of hatred and anger was surrounding him. Fuji took a step back, while Shinwa took a step forward, blocking the girls behind him. Kyoei stepped forward as well, positioning his body to protect the girls, and stand behind Shinwa.

“I’m not here for any of you,” snapped Kago. “I need to talk to Yuki.”

Yuki was shaking her head and hiding behind her friends. She was afraid of what he would do to her, with very good reason to be. Shinwa saw it, the small bulge in Kago’s pants that indicate a knife, most likely a switchblade. “She doesn’t want to talk to you,” Shinwa explained in a kindly soft voice, though a hint of his menace and true strength was tainting his calm exterior.

“You speak for her now too?” Kago snarled, taking a few more steps forward until he was almost nose to nose with Shinwa. The two men, both at average height, stared each other down. They glared at one another with a hatred and malice that was consuming the entire group.

“I am not speaking for her,” Shinwa retorted, “I am only protecting her.”

Kago’s hand went to his pocket, and Shinwa watched it in slow motion. “You will have to do a better job,” and the blade was drawn.