School Girls' Stories - Year 2

Chapter 42 – The Kiseki Household

The end of winter was apparent, the small amount of snow the area of their small little town had received melted as the birds came to begin nesting. Looking around her at the nature of things Yuki gained a large lump in her stomach that reminded her how much things had changed since her first day of high school. Now she was soon going to be ready for the third, and final, year, and everything was going to change on her again. She did not know what Shinwa planned on doing, though they saw each other every day. She did not even know what she was going to do about her parents, who had barely even tried to contact her since she had left to live with Shinwa, though her father had sent a birthday card, which he had forged Mother Oshidori’s signature upon. Yuki was regretting the days that were passing so swiftly, and yet she was walking down the path of this quiet little town, up a hill to a manor lost somewhere in the trees and facing the ocean, sweetly singing to the birds while Shinwa gripped her hand with trepidation. He had not seen his family once since his return to Japan. They had given him false reasons for coming home. He had expected a family, and instead had found a broken home. He was not ready for watching his broken home take shape in front of him. A home he had helped break, but he was his father’s son, they should have expected him to make mistakes.

The trees broke into a strip of land, and upon the hill Yuki could see the manor looming before them. Shinwa had said that he had grown up in the same town Yuki hailed from, so she knew the manor had to be a newly acquired home, since he had become the lead singer of a super cool band. However, she at the same time expected to see something that was perfectly cared for, with gardens surrounding the manor and perfectly painted shutters. This house looked as if it had been used and abused, the gardens brown, and paint chipped. The little girl in the front yard was sitting in the grass looking lost with no toys, no friends, and the sun beating down on her heavily.

“It’s big,” Yuki said, not knowing what else to say instead.

“Yeah,” Shinwa nodded, knowing exactly what she was thinking. He seemed to be thinking the same thing as he released Yuki’s hand and raced up the path to the little blonde girl in the yard. The girl turned ice blue eyes up to Shinwa and Yuki knew this was his baby sister, though Yuki had never known he had one. She looked to be about four, which would have placed her conception at the point of Shinwa’s leave for London. It was then that Yuki realized she did not even know why Shinwa had gone to London.

“Yuki, this is Lilis,” Shinwa said, introducing the little girl in his arms to his girlfriend.

Yuki stuck out her hand and took Lilis’ small hand in hers. “Nice to meet you, Lilis. How old are you?”

“I’m six,” the little girl announced, much to the surprise of Yuki.

“Such a pretty girl and only six,” was all Yuki could manage to say. Six? She looked much too small for six. She looked small for four except that she had looked a bit older in the eyes. Even now Lilis looked wiser in those eyes than six, but her body was frail and small and looked to not have received enough nourishment in life.

“Come on,” Shinwa said, carrying Lilis up to the front door of the manor, which was left open for anyone, or anything, to walk in. Shinwa stepped over the threshold first, not even announcing his presence. Yuki followed him quietly, expecting the house to creak under her weight, but it never made a sound. The building was at least sound, even if the house was in lack of care.

“Shinwa!” cried a young woman from an open doorway along the halls above them. She went to the railing of the stairs and looked down happily. She did not fit the profile of the family. Her hair was a slight reddish color that Yuki could not place if it was real or dyed that way, and her eyes were closer to green than blue, though at the distance Yuki could not tell either way. The girl looked so happy to see Shinwa there that she practically slid down the banister on her way down, jumping from the stairs and leaping into Shinwa’s arms. He was then holding two girls, Lilis and this stranger, and both of them looked thrilled to be with Shinwa.

The girl looked over Shinwa’s shoulders and spotted Yuki. Her smile faltered for a moment, then was replaced with genuine happiness. She reached out her hand and took Yuki’s in hers. “I am so rude,” she apologized profusely, bowing her head and then raising back up. Upon a closer look Yuki could tell the girl was a bit older than she had anticipated. Probably closer to her thirties than her early twenties, though she still acted young. “I’m Yuuwaku Kagome,” she introduced.

Yuki shook her hand absently, wondering why the last name sounded familiar, her eyes vacant for a moment. It was not until the stranger released her hand that Yuki realized how she knew the name. “You are Kyouteki’s sister,” she blurted out.

Kagome laughed and nodded. “Yes, I’m also Shin-kun’s step-mom,” she announced.

Yuki was slightly disgusted, but she bit back her grunt of noise. Her sister and brother were no better, by any means, but… wow… She was definitely filling her head with information about Shinwa she had never known before.

“You look a lot like Kyouteki,” Yuki admitted, now knowing that the red hair was real. Kyouteki had been a natural red-head, and a beautiful one, and there was no denying that Kagome was beautiful.

“Let me go get your dad,” Kagome said, smiling to Yuki then turning to face Shinwa. “He will be so happy to see you. He’s still in bed, it was a rough night.” Kagome took Lilis with her and left Yuki and Shinwa in the main room of the manor.

“I did not know your parents were divorced,” Yuki whispered quietly.

Shinwa shifted. “They are, but they both still live here,” he admitted.

Yuki was beginning to miss her family very much.

“Shinwa!” bellowed a loud voice. Yuki and Shinwa looked up at the second floor, a man who looked the same age as Kagome standing there, but his arm was possessively around the woman, and Yuki knew this had to be Shinwa’s dad. He had the blonde hair and ice blue eyes of the Kiseki clan, and a smile that would have melted the panties off of any woman.

Mr. Kiseki clapped his hand hard on Shinwa’s back and wrapped him up in a bear hug. The man was definitely not the same type of muscular that Shinwa was. He was… large. He was the type of man who spent too many hours at the gym and it showed. He was built like a pro-wrestler, and Yuki nodded quietly to herself. He was a pro-wrestler, if she remembered correctly. Not that fake WWE wrestling, but the real stuff that Japan was known for. She had seen that man on television slammed down on someone and giving them a concussion. It made Yuki’s head further swirl. What had been his stage name?

“You must be Yuki,” he smiled at the young girl. “I’ve heard nothing about you except your name, but I am sure I will learn more about you. I’m Genma, but you can call me Killer Kore.”

Yuki now remembered him perfectly. She almost rolled her eyes at the name, but instead smiled politely and wondered if it had been a mistake to come here.

“Where’s mom?” Shinwa asked as they walked further into the manor, into a sitting room that looked in need of dusting. Shinwa and Yuki sat on the couch, Genma Kiseki and Kagome sat in a chair, or he sat in the chair and she sat on his lap, and Lilis sat on the floor looking up at her older brother idolizing him.

“Your mother hasn’t been home all week,” Genma announced, not looking at all concerned about this fact. “She probably won’t be around for a few more weeks.”

Shinwa sighed. This seemed to come as no surprise to him either. “What about Daichi and Rui, are they not home either?”

“Your brothers went away from the weekend with a few girls they just met,” Genma said. He suddenly slapped Kagome on the ass, who squealed and stood up from Genma’s lap. She instinctively reached down to Lilis and picked her up and Yuki began to wonder who’s child Lilis was, Shinwa’s mother’s or his step-mother’s.

“I am going to go make some tea,” she announced suddenly. “I will be right back.”

When Kagome was gone Genma leaned toward his son conspiratorially, ignoring the fact that Yuki was right beside Shinwa on the couch. “Look, son, we are not doing as well without the monthly checks you use to send us,” Genma announced.

That was blunt and to the point, Yuki thought bitterly.

Shinwa leaned back on the couch, crossing his arms and looking nonchalant. He was great at looking nonchalant, and Yuki had to stifle her own idolization of the man beside her. “I have not been working,” Shinwa lied. Yuki bit her tongue. She knew for a fact that he had just finished his second movie, though it would take months for it to come out in the theatre.

Genma shifted in his seat, his ice blue eyes turning to cold steel as he stared down his son. “Perhaps that woman at the agency did not tell you she had called her first looking for you to offer you a job in London.”

Woman at the agency? Why did Shinwa not look surprised to hear this? What woman at the agency? Puff was an independent agent as far as Yuki knew. Since when had Shinwa gone through… oh… no…

“Oh, she must have used the old available phone number,” Shinwa admitted. He turned to Yuki, as if needing to explain a bit, but all was clicking in quite perfectly in her mind. “I tried to get in to an agency before, and I failed miserably, but I had given them this home phone number before I had a cell phone and my own place. It was a long time ago.”

Yuki blinked. But she knows your phone number now, doesn’t she?

“Are you taking the job?” Genma asked.

That’s what I want to know!!

Shinwa hesitated. He wanted to lie, to cover his ass in front of his girlfriend and his father, but he did not know how to lie that well. “I’m not sure,” he said, not entirely honest. He had thought it through, but he had not planned on telling Yuki his decision while they were sitting in the middle of his father’s living room, his little sex toy in the kitchen, and mom nowhere in sight.

“Well, we need help,” Genma admitted.

Shinwa suddenly stood, having enough of this visit. He could hardly remember why he bothered coming out here now. “I can’t help you if I do not have a job,” Shinwa snapped. “What happened to your royalties? Why don’t you go and work for the wrestling tournaments again? Why is all of the money that Kyouteki left for you not enough? Why does Lilis look like she is starving?”
Genma stood, his height staggering over his son’s. Yuki had to take a step back not to grow dizzy. Why had she not noticed his height before? Why was she concentrating on the smaller details when she should have been angry with Shinwa, but at the same time she felt so sorry for him?

“You are still underage, and I can still claim control of your checks if I feel you are spending them unwisely,” Genma announced.

“I’m underage for what, another week?” Shinwa snapped. “Go ahead, try.” Shinwa turned his back on his father. “I do not know why I bothered coming back here, because it certainly was a rotten decision on my part. Come on, Yuki.”

Outside the two of them practically ran away from the manor, Shinwa trying to leave his demons in the home of his broken family. He did not seem too terribly upset, though he seemed to know he was about to argue with the girl beside him. She had trouble bringing it up, she knew he was upset, he threw it out there first.

“Ririka’s agent called me,” Shinwa said when they had slowed to a walk. “She is going to be my new agent, and she has offered me a job in London.”

Yuki already knew the answer to her question, but she decided to ask it, because she wanted to hear him say it. “You are going to take it, aren’t you?”

Shinwa shrugged, sighed, then nodded. “Yes,” he admitted. “I have no choice, really. I have no other skills besides my singing voice, and my money is running out as well considering my parents have sucked me dry. I have nothing.”

Yuki stepped back, releasing Shinwa’s hands swiftly. Shinwa looked to her, shocked. “I didn’t mean that, Yuki, not like you are taking it.”

“Shinwa,” she said softly, “I think we should just go home.”

Neither of them spoke on the way back to the apartment. They were silent, knowing very well that if they spoke it would just be an argument. Yuki could not deny he was making the wisest decision for him, but he was going to leave her behind, the words were unspoken, but true. He could not bring her with to every job, and she did need to study. She had to make something of herself. She had known this day would come, she just had hoped it would have been under better circumstances.

She did admit, quietly, to herself that she now saw why Shinwa ran away the first time to London. With a family like that… well, the rest need not be said.

Yuki had to go home, her home. She suddenly really missed her parents.