Vol 1 Chapter 2 (2/2)

She must have heard it all. I faced the voice and there stood my mother with an upset face.

“You can at least call her by her name.”

“Shuttup, idiot.”

No one called for her, so I shooed her away with a *hushhush*. Probably angry from being called an “idiot” my mother drove her knee into my face. It really hurt.

“Geez, you really are an idiot. Something wrong with your eyes? Go get them checked. While you’re at it go shopping for some groceries too. Right now. If you decline, you’ll see h.e.l.l.”

I had suffered enough already today. I had no choice but to obey.

“Fine. What do you need? Crab? Crab, right? Say it’s crab!”

“…If you don’t shut up, I’ll treat your arm as a crab and break it.”

My mother gave me a glare, then looked over at Luna.

“Luna-chan, would you go with s.h.i.+n.o.bu? If I let that idiot go alone, he’ll just buy pointless stuff. So please keep an eye on him.”

“Will that be alright?”

Luna gave me a quick glance.

“Sure, sure. Get him to show you around town too. I’m sure there will be plenty of chances for you to go shopping from now on. It’s a good opportunity. No objections, right s.h.i.+n.o.bu?”

“Huh. You think you can just order me around?”

For no reason, I acted all high and mighty.

“You want the great me to be a guide? This n.o.ble and t.i.tled me? Honestly, you sure don’t see my value…Oh well, I have some time to spare anyway. Then let us proceed with haste. Go prepare at once. Or do you plan to make me wait?”

“….s.h.i.+n.o.bu-san, you are acting like the prince I saw on TV before.”

“Oh? You could tell? How was it?”

“Perfect! Great!”

“Fufu. Don’t praise me so much. Okay, Luna! Prepare for departure at once! Snacks will be up to 300 yen!”

When I swung my invisible fan and ordered “Go!”, Luna nodded a “Yes!” and happily left the living room. Most likely she went to her room to get dressed…. But she definitely hadn’t noticed that I called her Luna just now.

Well it was a hilarious scene.

“….Luna-chan seemed happy.”

“I wonder why?”

“Isn’t it because she gets to go out with you?”

I gave my mother a “Huh`” and tilted my head. Doing that made my mother let out a big sigh.

“Insensible.”

“S.e.n.s.i.b.l.e~”

I jokingly replied with the contrary, to which my mother dropped into the sofa with an “Idiot” and a small smile. Then she stared at me.

“Mh? What?”

“Nah, I was just a bit relieved.”

“…Relieved?”

I once again tilted my head. My mother gave me a jolly smile and said.

“Until recently, you thought of Luna-chan as a swindler, right?”

It was just like she said, so I couldn’t say anything back.

“So stupid. Even if she were to swindle someone like you, there wouldn’t be any great money to gain from it.”

“No, you know, she was going to coax the family, you know, then take our bank book, you know….”

I was making excuses. My mother a.s.sured me resolute.

“She wouldn’t do something like that.”

“….What makes you think that?”

My mother replied with a “Let’s see.” while looking up at the ceiling.

“I guess it’s because I have seen lots of different people so far.”

“Different people?”

“Yeah. Through your dad’s work, I have met a lot of people. I have met offenders and those that were involved in crimes. I guess that’s why I can tell somehow. Luna-chan is a good girl. She won’t do anything bad.”

“…Even if that’s true, we can’t let her stay here forever, can we? Luna has a family too.”

“That’s why I’m leaving that to you. She isn’t a bad girl, but somehow she seems to have something going on. Besides. you don’t find a girl that’s bad with machines very often. I’m sure she has her reasons. So you go and hear her out.”

“Why me?”

When I asked that, my mother teasingly poked my cheek and said.

“Because she trusts you the most. Way more than me or Nazuna. Do you know what kind of face she makes when she looks at you? A really gentle face.”

Not like I hadn’t noticed. Her soft smile appeared in my head.

“It’s only polite to respond to kindness with kindness, no?”

“…I get it.”

When I nodded, my mother patted my head with a “Good boy”. It was embarra.s.sing, so I wished she would stop it.

“But I wonder if we can really trust your evaluation, Mum.”

I cleared my throat and tried to change the topic, whereupon

“Don’t worry. I have an eye for people.”

“I wonder.”

When I shook my head, my mother looked to the side and then

“….Nanjou s.h.i.+n.o.bu is a good guy.”

She said softly.

“Wh- What are you saying.”

“You’re getting red.”

“Shut up, idiot. Don’t make a needlessly pretty face and go away.”

Geez. she was only ever praising me when I wasn’t expecting it.

I looked away from my mother and just stood up from the sofa, when Luna, who finished her preparations, came back. Then she made a strange expression after looking at me and my mother’s faces and said.

“s.h.i.+n.o.bu-san, Tomoe-san, your faces are red…What happened?”

My mother said nothing and just went back to her own room. I just said “Let’s go” and headed for the front door.

Turning around. Turning around. Turning around.

When I walked on the street, people kept turning around. That’s because I was an eye-catching pretty boy—-Is what I would like to say, but sadly that was not the case. Nearly all of those that turned around were guys. Some were women too with their cheeks flushed; spellbound, but no one was looking at me.

All the glances were directed at Luna, who was walking one step behind me.

She wore a rough outfit consisting of jeans and a s.h.i.+rt, but since the s.h.i.+rt was mine, the size didn’t fit and the sleeves were rolled up. The jeans seemed to be from my mother, but while it was a bit loose around the waist, her bottom appeared slightly cramped.

Even without that getup, Luna was attracting people. She was a walking gallery. People’s gazes filled with jealousy were piercing me, so I felt annoyed, but…there was something else bothering me more. I turned around and looked at Luna, one step behind me.

“What is the matter? Ah, is it the bag?”

She must had thought I was tired. She looked at the bag from the supermarket hanging on my arm, then extended her right hand. But carrying the bag was my job, since I wan’t doing any cooking. I stopped Luna’s extending hand and asked about what was bothering me.

“Hey, why are you walking behind me? Just walk besides me.”

For some reason Luna had been walking one step behind me without ever lining up besides me.

Maybe she was going to enact the idiom “follow in someone’s footsteps” literally. But that one step would gradually widen into two, then three steps. How was I supposed to talk with her like that.

“Come on.”

When I beckoned her, she lined up besides me with a happy smile. She was looking at me with her smile. It was embarra.s.sing, so I raised the supermarket bag in front of my face to hide it. Then Luna said “I… I cannot see your face.” and stood on her toes.

She was quite funny. Walking with that in mind, a park appeared in my vision. It was the Midorikawa Park. Just like the name said, it had greenery (midori) and a river (kawa). It was a famous dating spot.

“Shall we drop-by there?”

I thought Luna must have been tired too from walking around. With the idea of taking a break, I pointed towards the park. Luna smiling, nodded with a “Yes”. For some reason, she seemed a bit happy.

I couldn’t deduce why, but who cares as long as she was enjoying it. We entered the park and headed for the back of the park while watching the playing children when—-we could hear loud crying.

Curious about if something sad had happened, I turned around. A little girl was crying with her mouth wide open while hugging her bear plush toy.

I thought she might have gotten separated from her parents, but

“Honestly, stop being so wilful. We’re going home.”

The woman scolding her with a fierce tone must have been her mother.

When the girl was shaking her head with a “No, no”, the mother frowned.

“I don’t need such a selfish daughter.”

She turned around and slowly walked away, leaving the girl behind.

The girl continued to cry, but she surely loved her mother. So as her mother got further away from her, she started to feel insecure, then shouted “Mummy” and started running after her mother quickly. But on her way she tripped over something.

“Ah”

I heard a worried voice besides me and when I looked aside, Luna was watching the girl with a worried expression.

“Fueeh”

I could hear crying again, so I s.h.i.+fted my gaze back. The girl had grazed her knee. She was crying heavily.

“Mummy, it hurts.”

The first to react to the girl’s crying was her mother.

The mother looked at her daughter and rushed to her side. With an “Are you okay?” she hugged her. The girl cried for a while, but the patting of her mother must had calmed her, as she stopped crying and clung to her mother.

In the end, the little girl went home hand in hand with her mother.

“I am glad”

When I looked beside me, Luna was gasping in relief.

But her eyes looking at the girl were somewhat envious.

—She isn’t a bad girl, but somehow she seems to have something going on.

Suddenly I remembered my mother’s words.

“You were watching her really attentively.”

“Eh? Ah, yes. Somehow, I got worried.”

Luna vaguely smiled when I talked to her.

….After a short silence,

“What about you?”

“Come again?”

I asked Luna, who tilted her head.

“You have parents too, right? Don’t you need to contact them?”

“It is okay.”

“No, I don’t think it’s okay at all. Aren’t your parents worried?”

When I asked that, Luna lightly shook her head and said.

“If they were worried… I would…. be really happy….”

What did she mean? Before I could ask, Luna answered.

“…I was…abandoned… by my mother.”

A strong wind blew. The wind made Luna’s bangs sway.

“But I do not remember it clearly, since I was still small back then.”

Saying that, Luna smiled.

Just for a moment she looked down, bit her lip and clenched her fist tightly, then she raised her head and forced a smile. Her eyes were withholding something. Her tightly-shut mouth. Her shaking fists.

With a face that was on the verge of tears, Luna smiled.

Upon seeing that smile, my chest tightened and started to hurt.

I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know what to do.

Still, I had an intuition.

“Let’s go.”

I extended my hand and grabbed Luna’s left hand, when—-

“Eh?”

I was surprised. For a moment I didn’t understand what had happened.

….My hand was shaken off.

Luna had repelled my extended hand. But what I was even more surprised about was,

“U- Uhm, I am sorry…. Take this one please.”

She held her left hand against her chest and extended her right one.

I wonder why she didn’t want me to touch her left hand.

Without saying anything I once again extended my hand and grabbed Luna’s left hand at the wrist. Luna showed signs of uneasiness, but said nothing and just hanged her head. She must have given up.

When Luna had brushed my hand away, I’d caught a glimpse of something for a moment.

Silently I took Luna’s left hand. It had small and tender fingers. A soft touch and a warm body temperature. But when I moved my glance from the back of the hand to her palm, I clenched my teeth.

—It had a cross wound. A really deep scar. I fear it was caused by a person. On Luna’s left palm was spread a big cross-shaped scar.

She must have thought I would hate such a hand.

Now that I looked back on it, whenever Luna touched someone, she always used her right hand.

“U- Uhm, I am sorry.”

Why was she apologising. There was no need to. She hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Let’s go.”

I enveloped Luna’s left hand and started walking swiftly.

“Sh- s.h.i.+n.o.bu-san?”

I walked pulling her after me. Like before, I didn’t know what to say, but I just spoke my mind.

“Your hand is warm.”

Upon firmly gripping her hand, I felt the tension leave Luna’s body. She was following behind me without resistance. We approached the back of the park with a gasp of relief, when a small river came into sight.

There were benches set up near the river and couples were happily chatting on them. We also sat down on a bench and watched the transparent, sparkling river for a while.

“….Hey.”

I slowly started speaking to Luna, who had remained slumpedand silent.

“…You don’t have to force yourself to smile, okay?”

Luna raised her head and I continued.

“When you’re sad, just say so. I think it’s okay to cry when you want to.”

“…I wonder about that.”

While looking at me firmly, Luna asked.

“If I did that… If I cried… would I not be causing trouble?”

Crying causes trouble. Since when had she formed that opinion?

—-I was abandoned by my mother.

Her earlier words echoed in my head…. My chest heated up.

Ah, I see. She wasn’t allowed to cry. No one helped her even if she cried. No one comforted her even if she cried.

—-If I cried, would I not be causing trouble?

Was she scolded when she cried? Was she yelled at when she cried? Was she hit when she cried?

The cross wound flashed in my mind.

“None of us would think of it as trouble.”

Yeah, none of us.

“So, just tell us if something happened. All I may be able to do for you is listen….But if you talk to me, I might be able to help you.”

“…Is that okay?”

Luna asked shyly.

I wonder why, but I thought she was like a kid. I remember the crying girl from earlier.

“It’s okay.”

I gently reached out my hand.

I was bad at expressing my feelings. I didn’t know what to say.

So to make her understand, I patted her head gently, to transmit my feelings.

Upon that, Luna bit her lip, then looked down and grabbed my sleeve firmly with her left hand and with trembling shoulders. Her left hand was shaking.

Until her trembling stopped, I kept patting her head.

Weak in the knees. In front of the front door. I hesitated to open the door.

Behind me stood Luna with her head hanged in sadness. Her eyes had been wet the whole time and even now it looked like tears would roll out at anytime. Probably the reason why there hadn’t been any conversation so far. It had been like that since we left the park.

The stupid me couldn’t think of any comforting words, so I repeated lame jokes, but I couldn’t make Luna smile.

Judging by that, I figured she would cry all alone in her room, so I was against entering the house… But I couldn’t stand in front of the door forever either. I let go of Luna’s hand and reached out for the door k.n.o.b.

“Aw.”

A sad voice from behind me.

When I turned around, Luna stared at my right hand with regret, having let go of her hand.

“I’ll play some thumb wrestling or something with you later.”

In my left hand was the supermarket bag, so there was nothing I could do.

I opened the door with my free right hand and went inside the house.

“We’re home, imbeciles!”

I was trying to be funny, but there was no reaction from Luna. She just stared at my right hand. Seems like I will really have to play thumb wrestling with her.

For now I put down the bag, took off my shoes and went inside. Then I heard some quiet footsteps coming closer. Those light footsteps, that made you wonder if someone was trying to hide their presence, surely belonged to my mother.

“Welcome back, s.h.i.+n.o.bu”.

As expected, it was my mother. As I stood in the hallway, my mother pushed me aside and went to the front door.

“Brother, welcome back!”

Maybe she’d just gotten home from club activities, but Nazuna was still in her school uniform when she showed her face. Following my mother, she slipped under my arm heading towards the front door. Then

“Welcome back, Luna-chan.”

“Welcome back, Luna-san!”

The two of them faced Luna.

“How was it? Did that idiot do a proper job of showing you around?”

“Luna-san, next time I’ll be your guide.”

Completely ignoring me, my mother and Nazuna were focused on Luna.

How cruel. I turned around with a sigh, when

it suddenly happened.

—-Luna cried.

She must have been enduring it.

She bit her lip, clenched her fists and let her shoulders tremble…. but she couldn’t endure it.

She was crying big fat tears without a sound.

I wonder why she couldn’t endure it anymore?

—It will not cause trouble?

Luna’s words crossed my mind.

Ah, I see.

“—Welcome back, Luna.”

The moment I said that Luna started to sob.

I figured as much.

—Welcome back. Luna was just happy about these words.

These words alone made her happy enough to cry.

Welcome back. Words saying ‘It’s alright for you to stay here’. Words acknowledging you. Gentle words. They must have broken something inside her.

“Welcome back, Luna.”

I once again said it clearly, out loud.

“I.. I am sorry.”

A shaking voice.

“I… I know I should not cry. It causes trouble and creates anger….so I should not. But…I…I….”

Luna was covering her face with both hands and was trying her best, to form a smile. But it was in vain. There’s no way we would accept that.

“It’s okay.”

My mother put Luna’s head onto her chest.

“Cry all you want. It’s okay… It’s okay.”

My mother didn’t ask if anything had happened. She just repeated “It’s okay” and patted Luna’s head. Over and over again. To convey her feelings.

“….Mother.”

Luna mumbled quietly.

“Yes.”

My mother nodded slowly.

Right then Luna cried loudly. Raising a voice like a child, she clung tightly to my mother….and cried.

I’ll protect her. I want to make her smile and see her smile.

The moment I thought that, my chest heated up and my heart s.h.i.+vered.

A feeling like a missing piece falling silently into place.

I hadn’t remembered Luna. I didn’t know her circ.u.mstances. I didn’t understand anything. But, I would protect her from whatever might happen.

I didn’t want to see her crying again.

For some reason, even I felt like crying.

“….Don’t.”

What was the point in me crying too. I wiped my eyes, which barely stopped the tears, whereupon Nazuna came back to me.

For some reason Nazuna had her head down and just put her head onto my chest without saying anything.

“Ugh. Ugh.”

“…Hey, Nazuna. Why are you crying too?”

“Infected.”

She said teary-eyed.

Guess she couldn’t hold it in either, after looking at Luna.

Stupid as ever. But I liked that stupid side of hers.

In my opinion, crying for someone was something really amazing. Without being sarcastic.

“Hey, Nazuna. Let’s go shopping next time.”

Clearing my throat with an “Ehem”, I continued.

“We’ll take Luna with us.”

“…Brother, you dropped the -san for her.”

While patting the surprised Nazuna repeatedly, I said.

“Yeah, because…. that makes her happy.”

The moment I spoke that out aloud, I felt a warmth spreading inside me.

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