School Girls' Stories - New Generation

Chapter 52 – Fuji’s Heart

Fuji walked down the hall, the sound of sobbing breeching through her reverie. She had thought that she had imagined it at first, and then thought that the girls just had the television turned up too loud, but when the sobbing continued Fuji finally put the books down and stepped out into the hall. At first she was relieved to hear that the sobbing was not coming from her daughter, she knew her daughter’s sobs, and she also knew that even when racked with some unbelievable pain her daughter never sobbed so long and hard.

Relief suddenly turned into panic, because that meant it was Tiera sobbing. What could possibly have happened that had Tiera sobbing so uncontrollably? Fuji walked down the hall patiently, quietly, almost as if she were sneaking up on the room. She needed not worry; the girls would never have heard her in her bare feet if she had pounded down the hall. Tiera’s sobs were too distracting.

Fuji did not politely knock on the door of her daughter’s room, she threw open the door and stepped in, her heart pounding viciously as she looked at the two girls wrapped together on the bed, one sobbing, one crying for her, neither saying a word. Fuji walked over to Tiera and pulled her from Rhapsody and towards her, without speaking a word. She let Tiera turn to her, turning wet eyes up to look at the older woman, and then as if she saw something of Rhapsody in Fuji she wrapped herself around her best friend’s mom and began to sob to her. Fuji was beside herself but she did not hesitate to ring up a maid. A maid hurried to the door of the room and without moving from her spot on the bed wrapped around her daughter’s best friend she turned to the maid and began giving orders.

“Bring up three hot chocolates, one with Irish, then phone Yuki and tell her that Tiera fell ill and will be spending the night at our house, but that she is fine, it is most likely the flu. She is sleeping too heavily and I do not want to disturb her, and I will be calling a doctor to the house to see to her, so Yuki need not worry. If Yuki insists on coming here, you may tell her to hold on and I will take the phone call.”

Luckily Yuki never insisted on seeing her daughter, she had been arguing with Sora at the time, the screaming match shaking the whole house, and she was relieved her youngest would not be around to here the continuity of it all. It was Sora’s first rebellion against Yuki and she had been in shock over it. Tiera would be safe to sob all night if she wished without interruption from her mother.

Three hot chocolates were brought up, one with a bit of alcohol, but that was not the one Fuji drank, she gave that one to Tiera. After glugging it down unceremoniously Tiera began to calm down a bit. Fuji worried slightly about how fast the young girl had drank it, but she said not a word, just looked at her and brushed her hair to the side. “Are you all right?” Fuji finally asked. Tiera could only shake her head.

Rhapsody, who had been torn the whole time her mother comforted her friend on what to say, finally admitted the truth. “Tiera’s pregnant.”

Fuji was positively agog with emotions. Pregnant? The girl had not even started high school yet. It would be like finding out that Rhapsody was pregnant. Granted, Tiera was technically a year older than Rhapsody, but the grade was the same, and neither was mature enough to be carrying a child. That was younger than even Shai had been when she had become pregnant.

“How far along are you?” Fuji asked quietly.

“I think about two months, I’m not sure,” Tiera admitted. “I haven’t actually gone to a doctor, I took three at home pregnancy tests, all first thing in the morning, all a few days apart. All were positive instantly.”

Fuji sighed, fretted, and worried. She was not like Shai and Yuki, she worried what a baby would do to the fragile mind, and body, of Tiera. Shai had inner strength that came out for that child. Shai wanted that baby, there had never been a question about it, but Tiera… Tiera was obviously miserable enough. She did not want to raise a child, nor did she want that child in her life. But could Fuji, in good conscious, suggest what she was thinking?

“I don’t want this baby,” Tiera suddenly cried, and Fuji felt guilty for a moment at the sigh of relief she nearly released. A girl just going into high school should not be burdened with the responsibility of a baby, but she still skirted the issue and did what the adult thing was. She suggested adoption.

“But then I will have to still go to school with a bulging belly, and everyone will know,” Tiera cried.

“Have you discussed this with Daniel?” Fuji asked, still not touching it. She hoped to have the conversation go her way without needing to lead it very far.

“He wants me to get rid of it, so I broke up with him,” Tiera said honestly.

Fuji sighed, so much for not leading it. “But to me it is what it sounds like you want to do,” she said flatly, trying to rid herself of all emotion.

“It is,” Tiera admitted through a sob that was rising up again, “but I did not want HIM to tell me that. I wanted him to say he was going to stick by me, that he would still love me no matter what I chose. Instead he gave me an ultimatum, so I thought it best to leave him.”

“You did the right thing.” It was the first thing Fuji could say honestly and without pretense. “If he could not say at least one good thing for you, then he is not worth it.”

“But I can’t tell my mom,” Tiera cried. “She’ll never let me get rid of it. She’ll want me to keep it, to raise it, she’ll tell me Shai did it so I better be able to. She won’t agree with my decision, I know she won’t. I’ve heard her always preaching to us that life is precious, and she always tells us how much Shai sacrificed and that our generation is weak.”

“You are not weak, you are wise,” Fuji snapped a little too harshly. Tiera looked up shocked and Rhapsody’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry,” Fuji apologized, “but every person is different and every decision must be taken into account of that person’s whole being. You know what is best for you, and so that is the choice you have made. If you really are two months along you have very little time left. I am going to call someone, I will be back soon.”

The operation was done that night, under the supervision of someone Fuji trusted implicitly, and Fuji signed papers as guardian. The next day Tiera went home to her mother, a little paler, a little weaker, but Yuki only believed it was because Tiera had been so ill. It all had worked out perfectly…

~*~

Yuki stared at Fuji from across the table. She did not enjoy having an audience around her at that moment. Lilis, Tiera, and Rhapsody all sat to the side of the table, waiting patiently, all people who knew before Yuki had. Lilis was also hoping for a good outcome, and now wondering if she should have just asked Fuji for help on her decision.

“I think you and Rhapsody should leave,” Yuki finally said, deceptively quiet and calm.

Fuji only nodded, beginning to rise. Rhapsody looked heartbroken at having been rendered from her friend’s side, but she knew that one day Tiera would mutter the truth to her mother. Tiera had felt guilty for months, and still walked around with the burden of her guilt, but never regret. Never once did Tiera regret what she had done, for she knew it had been best, for her.

Fuji and Rhapsody quietly exited the Kiseki household at the same instant that Shinwa was walking in. He gave Rhapsody and Fuji a smile and wave, but neither could muster the same back. He instantly walked into the kitchen to find his wife and little sister sitting quietly with his daughter. He looked on in shock at the heavy atmosphere.

“Welcome home, Shinwa,” Yuki said without meeting his gaze. “Sit down, we need to talk a bit.”