234 Chapter three, 2017, old and new: 4 (1/2)
Yukio shook his head in exasperation. Urufu, I've already told you about hatsumode. With a smile on his lips Yukio tapped Urufu's shoulder. ”Thank you, man.” 'Noriko needed that. You're a good friend.'
Urufu turned at the touch, and Yukio saw how he pretended to be just as clueless as before.
Clenching his fingers around Urufu's shoulders Yukio made him to stay, and both girls slowly got ahead of them by a few steps.
”You knew Nao never showed?” Yukio asked.
Urufu smirked. ”Yeah, Ryu told me, and I got a text from Christina that she and Nao were tied up in Kyoto.”
Two slaps on Urufu's back later, the way Urufu usually expressed sympathy in that strange Swedish way of his, Yukio cleaned away the grimace from his face. ”They're trying to break you up?”
He got a nod in return. ”But not Nao and Noriko,” Urufu hurried to add. ”That's just Nao jumping at the opportunity. Christina told me.”
Yukio couldn't understand why anyone would chose a job before love, but then that maybe was another of those grown up things. ”Would you?” he asked, more for confirmation than anything else.
Urufu took a few steps to get closer to the girls ahead of them. ”Would I what?”
Yukio caught up with him, but he wanted to know before they joined the girls in the queue. He tugged his cloak tighter around him and gave some time to his line of thought.
”Would you prioritise work before Kuri?”
A cough told Yukio the question had been unexpected. ”It's not that easy. At least if you're after a right or wrong kind of answer.” Urufu kicked at a stone, and Yukio saw how his lips had become a thin line. ”No, I wouldn't, but at the same time I guess I'm forcing Christina to.”
That made no sense, and it stank of misogyny. ”Because she's a girl?”
A sudden laugh made him turn and glance at Urufu.
”Now what made you think that way? No, don't worry. Never that. It's just that she gambled everything on an opportunity last August. I don't want to make her lose it all.”
'I wonder if you're not making her lose more if you push her away,' Yukio thought. That thought, he realised, ironically enough was the result of spending a lot of time with Urufu and Kuri. Without their perspectives from being adults caught in teen-aged bodies he'd never have grown as fast as he did.
'But I guess being an adult isn't the same as being right, or knowing everything for that matter.' After all, his parents had been adults when they married, and that didn't work out in the end.
Suddenly feeling depressed he hurried away and joined the girls. Feeling Kyoko near him helped loads, and for once he wished Urufu and Kuri could just be as childishly naive as him and Kyoko.
”What is it?” Kyoko asked.
”Sorry,” Yukio said. ”Just thinking about Urufu,” he continued and looked over his shoulder to see if his friend was joining them as well.