Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Blossoming Friendship- Part 1

The next morning started off like any other; slow and boring, especially now that Haruki had a new problem up his sleeve: A.K.A, Mr. sprained ankle.

It turned out that yesterday when he'd finally made it into his house after a more than five-minute struggle of survival of the fittest and decided to give his injury a close examination, his soul had almost slipped out of his body.

Who knew that other than his headache, the moment he lifted up his jeans he'd be ambushed by bluish-purplish swell right round his entire ankle, making it seem as if he was growing an extra foot. He hadn't expected the situation to be so severe. Just how badly had he twisted the thing?

However, after a painful thirty minutes of treating and bandaging his injury with the help of the knowledge he'd been blessed with from his part-physician parents, the pain in his ankle had greatly improved.

Well, at least for that night.

The next morning, although the headache was somewhat gone and the swelling round his ankle had subsided, the pain had come back with full force and might, as if seeking vengeance for yesterday. Haru really could help but feel as if the universe had been greatly unjust in its judgment, whining to himself as he slowly crawled out of bed and much more slowly made his way out of his room.

He'd just reached the door when he heard the house's landline start ringing, breaking the silence in the entire house. He would've quickly gone to answer it if he hadn't been in such a condition, so there was really no way he planned on hurting himself more because of this mysterious person calling in the morning.

Thus, after a long while of debating in his mind, he really did ignore it. But that move made him suddenly remember something.

Mom said she'd call yesterday, but I never talked to her...

Only then did he recall that his mobile had been on silent since yesterday, and that he hadn't bothered to even touch it when he'd come back with his bad ankle. Right now, he was certain it still lay on the couch downstairs, right where he'd left it.

She must be worried sick right now, he thought as he continued his painful journey out of the room and towards the staircase, using the walls to support his body from toppling over. Each step was too much of a strain to him. At this rate, his ankle would never heal fast enough.

Dammit, it's just a sprained ankle! Stop being so uncooperative you stupid leg!

Under normal circumstances, he should've stayed in bed and rested longer, avoiding all forms of activity at least until he could walk a distance without complete draining his energy. But right now, he was alone. If he didn't act, then no one would do it for him.

This really was the first time.

And hurting himself only made his situation worse.

He'd already felt lonely the moment his parents had left for work, but now?

Haruki, after finally making it down the last step and into the living room, finally let out of relief as he collapsed onto the huge couch he'd been sitting on yesterday, catching his breath. Now that he'd reached his phone, there really was no need for him to answer the still-ringing mobile. He was certain the person calling him was his mother.

The first thing that greeted him the moment he lit his power button was a message informing him of the 30+ missed calls he'd received from Maki Fukuda, which he had been more than expected.

"Morning mom," were the first words that came from his mouth after dialing her number and connecting to her in success.

"SWEETY!!! FINALLY YOU'VE ANSWERED YOUR PHONE! WHERE WERE YOU? WE WERE SO WORRIED!"

Haru had to drag the phone far away from his ringing ear the moment his mother responded. He felt as if his ear would explode and rubbed between his brows, feeling as if that headache was coming back, "Your voice, Mom, your voice."

"DO YOU WANT TO GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK? WELL, DO YOU?!"

"Sorry, my phone was on silent," he explained with an exhausted sigh, "And it hadn't been with me this entire time."

"Didn't we agree on speaking in the evening?" finally her voice was back to normal, though she still sounded evidently distressed, "And I even called the house just now. You still wouldn't answer."

So I was right, it really was her, he thought. Unfortunately, it'd been impossible for him to reach the phone at that very moment.

"Sorry, at that time I'd been in that shower. I couldn't answer," he lied. The ankle wasn't important right now. He knew his mother would just overreact if she knew.

"This time? You never bathe this late. Did you oversleep?" she asked.

Oversleep? Only then did he glance at the clock on the wall. It was already past ten in the morning.

"It's summer vacation. Besides," he smiled to himself, "It's not like I'm going anywhere."

His mother seemed to sense her son's bitter mood but didn't question it. She'd even heard how tired he'd sounded but couldn't bring herself to ask, since she'd already had a rough idea. After all, she already knew her son didn't have any actual friends. This summer vacation would just be hell to him without his sister.

"Hey, Rue-rue," her tone became incredibly gentle when she spoke this time. She already knew her son was annoyed by that nickname and had warned her countless times before about calling her that since he was a little older now, that she'd almost expected him to get angry again.

But he never did. He just listened.

She went on, "Don't keep yourself cooped up in the house the entire time. Go out there, make some friends. I'm sure a lot of people would be willing to open up to you if you opened up to them. It doesn't have to be a lot, really. Even one if enough. Just one. I'm... We're both really worried about you, you know?"

There was a hint of a smile in Haru's voice, "You're being weird all of a sudden."

"WELL EXCUSE ME FOR WORRYING!!" it wouldn't take much to make Maki pissed, and Haru laughed because of it.

"But I never said I didn't have any. They just don't leave in the neighborhood," he suppressed his laughs, but it was obvious that his mother didn't believe him.

"The only time you introduced a friend to us was back in Kyoto when you were in kindergarten and early elementary. Ever since that time you only ever stuck to Ayame..." Maki trailed off abruptly, feeling that she'd blurted what she hadn't been supposed to.

She felt bad because she knew how devastated Haru's child-self had felt at that time. Bringing it up now was just like reminding him of the only true friend he'd lost. That'd been the only other person, other than his sister, Haru had ever truly felt closer to.

"Sorry, Haru."

"What are you apologizing for?" Haruki laughed it off, "It's been a long while already."

Five years. That certainly was a long time.

"Don't worry, I'll make friends eventually. It doesn't have to be now," he sounded reasonable, and his voice was gentle as he spoke, "There's really no rush. After all, I'm still growing, aren't I?"

"You're right," he could tell she sounded relieved, most probably because he wasn't in any way angry with her. She then added, "We'll only be away for a week. Be good okay? And make sure to lock the house when you go out."

"Will do," he assured her, "Good luck with work. And tell dad I said hey."

And with that, they both exchanged final words before Haru finally hung up, slowly taking his mobile from his ear and setting it on the couch beside him.

He sat there in a daze.

"Make friends."

Haruki leaned his back against the couch, not in the mood to even move.

Making real friends isn't all that easy, if I'm just going to sever my ties with them in the end. Yesterday I really don't know what I'd been trying to pull. I was just kidding myself.

At least, that's what he thought. He'd avoided creating bonds over the past five years, afraid that he'd be forced to move again and break them. His parents were always on the move after all. Who knew when they'd move to another city again? They'd already transferred once from Kyoto and moved to Ichihara in Chiba Prefecture. Despite that, they were still on demand from all over the country. What would their next destination be? Right now they would spending the week in Nagoya. Next time, it'd be somewhere even further. The time after that, it'd be further than before. Honestly, sometimes he pitied his parents for working so hard.

He wondered when they'd just give themselves a break and rest for once, instead of constantly worrying about him.

Sigh.

DING DONG!

Haruki had just relaxed when he suddenly was startled into attention by the doorbell. He immediately felt annoyed.

Mom said nothing about a delivery man today, so what the hell?

DING DONG, DING DONG!!

"I'm coming, jeez!" he yelled before standing up and making his way slowly towards the front door.

At least now that the hard task of descending the stairs had already been complete, getting to the door in the other room wouldn't take as much time.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

What, did he break our doorbell already?

This time Haruki didn't yell anything. He silently made his way to the front door while his mind made up a bunch of insults he would throw at the uncultured person the moment he opened the door.

Who knew that the moment he angrily swung his door open, the first thing he'd see would be head full of ginger and a grey gaze sizing him up indignantly. The person shorter than him was draped in casual clothing with his arms crossed as if he'd been slowly growing impatient. His mid-length hair was as messy as ever, his long fringe covering his forehead and parting at his eyes. It almost hid the tiny black mole located just under his right eye.

Having all his previous intentions suddenly vanish into thin air, Haru just stood there in the doorway, stunned.

He'd never expected Ginger to suddenly drop by. Not even a little. And so early in the morning?

Ginger, upon seeing that this person didn't plan on saying anything first, clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"What's with that expression?"

Haruki snapped out of his daze and blinked, "Ha? Why are you here?"

Ginger narrowed his eyes, "What? Want me to leave?"

"I didn't mean that. I was just surprised," Haru immediately waved a hand as if in attempt to stop him, "I really hadn't been expecting you."

"What do you mean?"

"Eh?" Exactly that I hadn't been expecting you.

"Didn't you say I could drop by at any time?" Ginger raised a brow, reminding him, "You said it yourself."

Yeah, but I didn't think you'd even consider that.

Since the person said nothing, Ginger just turned as if to go, "Fine then, I'll leave."

"No, wait," Haruki immediately grabbed his shoulder to stop him, but unfortunately worsened the pain in his leg by doing so. He released a stifled hiss.

Ginger noticed and immediately supported him by the arm, suddenly concerned, "Hey, don't rush..."

"Don't leave," came Haru's low yet desperate voice, causing Ginger to trail during his own statement. He repeated, "Don't go."

Ginger, "......"

"I didn't think you'd even consider what I'd said yesterday, so when I saw you just now I was surprised," Haru said as he raised his head to look at him, "So please, at least for now, don't leave."

Ginger said nothing at first, but the suddenly felt a wave of embarrassment flood his cheeks and immediately glanced away, feeling even more annoyed. Nevertheless, he draped Haru's arm over his shoulders to support him, while at the same time avoiding his gaze.

"Tsk, whatever."

...

In the living room, Ginger took a seat on the couch on Haru's right and watched as the guy caught his breath. He could tell how much of a burden the injured ankle had become for him and couldn't help but feel the guilt he'd stocked within himself since yesterday build up even more.

"So, how's your head now?" he asked, remembering the state he'd been in the day before.

"It's all good," Haruki said rubbing the back of his head, "By the time I slept yesterday, the pain was almost gone, thanks to a few pain-killers."

"You won't get checked at the clinic, in case you damaged your brain or something?"

"That's too intense, it's not like I hit my head against a boulder," he reassured him.

Although Ginger didn't want to say it, he still felt unsettled. But if the guy wasn't willing to co-operate then he might as well just go with it. So instead he gave a blunt comment, unwilling to let his emotions show.

"You've sure looked better."

Haru chuckled and glanced down at his foot, lifting the injured ankle slightly, "It's his fault."

His. Ginger cleared his throat, "Your foot?"

"Yeah. I'm having a little trouble keeping up with my usual schedule," Haru admitted, "As you can see, I still haven't showered."

Ginger had pretty much guessed that the moment he'd seen the pajamas. He then played around with his hands on his lap, asking in a low voice, "Is it really that bad?"

"Oh this? It's gotten a lot better," he said as he bent down, folded up his trouser leg, and began unwrapping the long white bandage around his ankle, "It think it'd be best if you saw it yourself."

"Wait, won't that affect your healing progress?" he let his concern leak out by mistake and immediately shut his mouth.

However, Haruki was completely oblivious to the boy's weird reaction and even continued saying, "Nah, I was about to shower anyway."

Ginger's breath immediately stuck in his throat the moment a purplish-reddish swell around Haru's ankle came into sight.

Even Haru looked surprised, but it was for a completely different reason. He said excitedly, "Hey, the bump's almost gone. I thought for sure it'd get bigger since I'd been moving around too much since I woke up."

Ginger was quiet.

"You should've seen it yesterday," Haru laughed, "It was as if I was growing another foot."

But in Ginger's mind, nothing seemed funny. All he could think was, this happened because he broke my fall yesterday.

"By the way," Haruki began another topic already, "Sorry for reacting the way I did earlier. It's just that yesterday you seemed as if you weren't interested in visiting, so I found it hard to believe when I saw you at the door."

Ginger, "Why?"

He scratched his head awkwardly, "With the way you kept on referring to us as strangers the entire time, who wouldn't think that way? I thought for sure you hated me," he paused talking when Ginger lowered his head, using his mid-length fringe to shield his eyes. He didn't say anything, which made Haru feel a bit ashamed, "I'm not saying that's how you truly felt, I mean I don't even know—"

"So what if I do hate you?" Ginger's tone was stiff.

Haruki tilted his head a little, as if confused, "I don't think you do."

"You don't know what goes on in my head."

"You wouldn't have come here if you did," Haru sounded reasonable, "You were even concerned about me just now, ha, ha."

Ginger's teeth clenched.

"Honestly, Ginger, you've got to stop acting like you don't care all the time. How do you expect to get friends with that bratty attitude?"

"Don't need 'em."

Haru was at a speechless at first but then sighed and said, "Come on, I was only kidding."

"Well, I wasn't," Ginger desolately spoke. "And I already told you once to stop talking as if you know me. You act as if you've been there while I was growing up."

He's angry again, Haru thought. But something like this had already happened yesterday, thus he wasn't affected by the accusation at all. He played around with his bandage in his hands and said calmly, "I know you don't have friends."

"Look who's talking."

I never denied that. But Haru knew that if he said that out loud, it'd just end in another debate. So in the end he asked, "Did you ever have friends when you were younger?"

"I don't need friends."

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"Yes, yes, you said that but," he asked him solemnly, "Have you ever tried making one?"

Silence.

Haruki went on, "I'm guessing that's a 'no'?"

"So?"

"You don't know how it feels to have someone your age you can depend on," Haru said.

That only made Ginger sneer, "You seem so proud of that 'friend', yet I don't see him anywhere right now."

"You're right," Haruki wore a sad smile, "He isn't."

Ginger's sneer slowly vanished.

Haruki noticed his reaction and laughed, "Scared you? Don't worry, it's nothing tragic. We just leave in different cities now. He's okay."

Ginger, "......"

"So," Haru leaned against the couch, "What's your story?"

"You closed off yours just like that?" Ginger spoke, staring at him in disbelief. Sure he was annoyed and pissed at the guy right now, but the least he could have done was give him a full story.

"I didn't think you'd be interested," Haruki defended himself.

"You think a half-baked tale like that would make anyone change their minds! Have a sense of responsibility," Ginger growled.

Aiya, but what did I do? Haru raked through his brain for a while before saying, "I guess he's made new friends now and we're so far apart, which makes me sad?"

"Forget it," Ginger leaned his back against the couch and looked away, "Its sappy stories like that that annoy me to death."

Haru didn't dare say anything that'd make the mood even tenser.

Ginger, after a while of brooding and contemplating, finally said, "I came here because I felt bad, okay?"

Haru: Mm-hm.

Upon noticing the smug look on Haru's face, Ginger immediately refuted, "Yeah, right, don't get over yourself! It was guilt, not concern."

"But you see, guilt is often associated with concern."

"Like hell! I couldn't care less if it took a lifetime for that broken leg to heal," he scoffed, "In fact, I hope it gets worse."

"Yeah, yeah," Haru playfully rolled his eyes and stood to his feet as if to leave, "I think I really should go shower— hiss, groan..."

"Hey," Ginger was immediately on his feet when he saw Haru suddenly sway and almost fall. He went to his side to support him, "Don't be in such a hurry to hurt yourself more."

Haruki really couldn't help but snicker, "A lifetime, huh...?" but trailed off when he was pushed back, completely losing his footing and falling back onto the couch.

"Go to hell!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Haruki laughed.

Hours later as the two boys ate brunch, Haruki just so happened to stare at the boy who had his eyes fixated on his own half-eaten plate of fried rice with some left-over sweet and sour pork. The first thing that crossed his mind was, I think he doesn't like it. Did this leg also affect my cooking skills?

"Is it bad?" he asked, snapping Ginger from his daze.

The boy shook her head and stared back in his plate again, his face a little red, "It's actually really good."

This sweet act all of a sudden. He's going to make my heart burst, Haru wiped away invisible tears.

After Haruki had finally gotten his soak and the two of them had entered the kitchen, Ginger's hot temper had somehow completely taken a one-eighty, shocking Haruki to the core. The kid had watched intently he worked; peeling and dicing as if he'd been a pro. He'd really looked like he'd wanted to help out, but also seemed as if something had been preventing him from doing so. When Haruki had asked about it, Ginger had replied with a single statement:

"I was told to never enter the kitchen again."

And that'd been enough to make Haruki realize that the boy knew nothing about cooking, or holding a knife for that matter. He had the will, but not the gift.

In the end he'd watched as Haruki did everything himself, constantly asking if his leg was okay.

"Want me to teach you how to cook?" he asked Ginger.

The kid hesitated for a while, "Your leg..."

Haruki puffed a laugh, "It's not like I'd be standing the entire time. And it doesn't have to be today. You can come by any time you want. That is, if your parents are okay with it."

Ginger took a few spoons of his food and then replied with a, "I live alone."

"Oh, they left town too?" Haru hadn't understood.

The kid shook his head and repeated, "I live alone."

"???" W-what does he mean? He cleared his throat, "So do you have relatives here then?"

He shook his head again.

"A guardian?"

He shook his head again.

Haruki said nothing as he thought, huh? But he's so young. Is he an orphan...?

It was as if Ginger read his mind, because the next thing he said was, "My mom lives somewhere else. Nothing tragic."

"And your dad?"

Ginger hesitated then said, "Don't have one."

Then that is a little tragic, Haru thought. He's always alone at the park, and when he goes back home, there's no one there. "Yesterday, you said something about bullies. When they come to you, who do you tell?"

Ginger's movements paused for a second, then he continued eating again. He wasn't going to answer.

Haruki noticed and sighed before moving on to another topic, "So your mom, where is she now?"

"Asahikawa," he was straight-forward.

"Is that where you did your elementary?"

He hesitantly nodded.

Haru didn't know whether to believe or not so he went on, "Which school?"

Ginger's voice dropped, "It doesn't concern you."

Haruki laughed it off, "Yeah, sorry about that. I actually attended two elementary schools. One in Kyoto and the other one here."

Ginger seemed a little interested and even lifted his eyes to look at him, "Why?"

"I once stayed in Kyoto with my grandparents, then moved here five years ago," he explained. "At the time I was still in elementary, so I had to take a gap year to settle and get used to the new educational environment. I guess, thinking about it now, I should probably be in my second year of middle school. What a waste."

Ginger pondered on it for a while before suddenly asking, "Which Middle School?"

"Ichihara Jnr High."

"An elite private school?"

The question made him chuckle, "A very ordinary public school. Not even five-star."

Ken nodded slowly to himself.

"You looking for elite schools?" Haru asked.

"Maybe."

Rich kid, huh? I knew it. He seriously thought about it, "If you're looking for those, then you'll have to check Tokyo. Hey, it hasn't been long since you moved here, hasn't it? How long have you been living here?"

"A couple of weeks."

"No wonder I'd never seen you before."

"Do you necessarily have to know everyone in this town?" Ginger asked.

"Uh well, most faces," he shifted his gaze from Ginger's and gave an awkward cough, "We were still talking about schools."

"I don't want those in Tokyo," Ginger simply said.

Ah, if you're looking for elite schools then what am I supposed to say? He raked through his brain, trying to look for better schools in Ichihara that would fit a spoilt child's taste but found none.

"I'll look more into it online."

"There's no need."

"But you just said—"

"I'll do it myself."

Haruki's bow twitched. Kid, what do you want from me?!!

Ginger finished off his meal and abruptly stood from the table, taking his plate with him to the kitchen.

Haruki still sat in his chair, wondering just how quick Ginger was in always changing his attitudes. One second he would seem concerned, the next angry, the other quiet, and then completely spoilt. Just how many split personalities did he have??

"He'd better know how to wash his own dishes, that tiny bastard," Haru mumbled as he finished off his own food. Just then, a thought hit him.

If Ginger truly did leave alone, and had no one to take care of him, then who made him meals? His implications earlier meant he had no cooking skills, so would he always order takeaway? He'd mentioned he'd moved to Chiba Prefecture just recently after all. Was there even a stove at his place?

But for some reason, he already knew the kid wouldn't open his lid when asked so many personal questions.

So secretive. Up until now, Haruki still had no idea what his name was.

"That's fine, I'll just call him 'Ginger' until he gets sick of it," he muttered to himself, feeling greatly satisfied. A few bites later, he'd already finished his own food and juice.

He'd been just about to stand and take his dishes to the kitchen when Ginger re-entered the room, both sleeves of his shirt rolled up and hands wet to the forearms.

Without a word, he pushed Haruki back onto his chair and took away his dishes, leaving the room before the other person could even say a word.

Haruki stared after him in a daze, and when he finally snapped out of it, he thought, I guess the kid does have a clear conscience after all.

"I only did it coz you cooked," came Ginger's blunt tone from the kitchen, interrupting Haru's thoughts.

"Can't you just let me praise you internally just once?"

No response.

Honestly, this kid, Haruki thought with a snort, "Fine, as a reward for being a good junior, let's go somewhere fun."

"I already told you I'm fourteen."

As if I believe that crap. He spoke sarcastically, "Yeah, yeah fine. As you say, sempai."

There was no response to that. After a while, Ginger's voice came, "No."

"'No' what?"

"I don't want to go."

"Tsk, you ingrate, you won't even accept my thanks?!" Haru fumed.

"If you like spending money that's fine, you can treat me to whatever you want," Ginger spoke as he came and stood by the door, wiping his hands dry with a dish towel, "But it'll have to wait. You're in no condition to go anywhere."

Only then did Haruki remember and puffed a laugh, "I'd already forgotten about that. I can't feel a thing when I'm seated. Eh, wait a minute," he realized something and wore a huge sly grin, "Are you worried about me?"

Ginger's face immediately went red, "What?!"

Haru puffed a laugh, "You're so flustered, ha! You do have a heart."

"Shut up!" Ginger immediately pounced on him, almost stuffing the dirty towel into Haru mouth, "You will eat this and you will finish it!"

Through it all, Haruki kept laughing, feeling strangely very familiar with this secretive boy.

Ginger noticed the tiny dent which had appeared on the other person's cheek once more and couldn't help but find it a little eye-catching, now that he could see it up close.

"Hey, here's an idea," Haru suddenly said, snapping him back to the present, "Since we can't go anywhere, how about some video games? Interested?"

Ginger snorted and backed away before folding his arms, "Who says I can't go anywhere? I'm not the one who broke a leg."

Haru feigned disappointment, "But it's no fun playing video games alone. And it's not like you're in a hurry to someplace else, right?"

Ginger's look was so obvious which made Haruki certain about his point.

"What? Planning to go sit in that tree again alone?" Haru mocked.

"Much more fun than hanging around you!"

"You know what, I'm not going to even debate on that," Haru suppressed the urge to laugh out loud before continuing, "It'll only be for a little while. You'll have more than enough time for you date with the tree after one or two rounds, right?"

Ginger clicked his tongue but still said, "Two, no, one. One round, got it?"

Haruki nodded crazily, "Yes, yes, yes!"

And so, that single round ended up being an entire day of fooling around.

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