Vol 5 Chapter 1 (1/1)

Friday, September 2, 2016

Adolescent Adam 5: Chapter 1 - Summer DaysA little over half a els and FeTUSThe angels and hureements in that timeThey would not interfere with each other except in eencies and they would discuss terms to relieve the tension Mutsuki did not know much, but at the very least, it did not look like their relationshi+p would grow any worse than their “friendly hostile relationshi+p”The angels were apparently discussing what to do about Ange for failing in herto protect Mutsuki, but no one would uards than themNothing changed during his peaceful summer breakThe biggest change was an unspoken decision elsThe alert level of his protection had apparently been lowered He was no longersemi-monitored That o play even without Ange with himAnd as long as his bodyguard ith him, he could return home whenever he wanted

“And, and, and! I don’t wet the bed at night anymore”“Really? Way to go, Mutsumi-chan”“Eheh~♡”Mutsuki rubbed his little sister’s head while she sat in his lap HewhileHe had fully settled into his life at the apartment, but there was no place like home“I’rown up lady”“Heh heh Then are you getting up in theyou to?”“Uuh… I’”He smiled and rubbed her head as she hopped up and down in his lap“It’s just so hard to wake up in the ~ Onee-chan can’t do it either”“Onee-chan has so up to do too”“Boo”His older sister Iwai ey as the little sister in his lap and she pressed her forehead against his hand when he rubbed her headMutsuki was the only son of the Fujita faer sistersIas the oldest and in college Mutsuarten Their difference in age htHe had honestlyawayMeeting the before When he had wanted to her ups, wait for the angels to coation, and then only be allowed a few hours on the weekendNow he just had to say he wanted to go and he could go right away“~♪”He hugged Mutsumi and rubbed his older sister’s headIt was a weekday and his parents were unfortunately at work, but all of his sisters were homeHe had h it was harder than the one at the aparth it did not work very wellHe could truly relax here“…Here”“…Thanks”If not for the tense atht in front of himAnge sat on the opposite sofa with a lopsided frown and did not even touch the barley tea she was servedThe older of his younger sisters had brought out enough barley tea for everyone Fujita Chiaki looked equally displeased as she sat next to his bodyguard“…”“…”They did not speak or even look each other in the eyeWhy? This was not their first time to meet, but they had been abnormally unsociable with each other ever since they had first met“Would you like a snack?”“No, thank you”“I see”

Chiaki treated Ange like a nore replied more politely than normalFor some reason, an odd tension surrounded their interactionWere they just a poor ht over, but a threateningover them(I bet they’re just too much alike)The way they refused to look at each other was identicalAnd they were also si-willed and stubbornWas it really just dislike for someone so sigested that, so…“By the way, Chiaki Did you find what I mentioned on the phone?”“They were in the storage roo them out, Mutsuki”He brought up another topicHis little sister stood up, looking relieved, and Mutsuki followed her out of the living roomThis left Ange behind“Ange-oneetan! Hug me!”“Now’s our chance An-chan, An-chan Tell us all about Mu-chan’s life with you Does he have a girlfriend?”“Eh? U-um…”But she would be fine with his other two sisters looking after herThe generally shy girl looked nervous with these sociable girls surrounding her and she was left to fend for herself with Mutsuki and Chiaki gone to the storage roomThey found what they were looking for in the e room that contained an old bike and tools“You’re going ca?”“Yeah We’ll be staying in a cabin, but we ht still need these”They were sleeping bagsHis parents often went backpacking, so their fa suppliesHe was borrowing so with his friends There were only two, but it would be enough He decided to pull them outThey were pretty far back, so they had to s out of the way one at a time“How have things been lately?”He spoke to his little sister as they cleared the pile of clutter“What do you mean?”“Has anything changed? Are things going well in the s?”He asked about orried him most: his familyHis older sister was entirely unreliable and his other little sister was in kindergarten, so it was easiest to ask the sister closer to his own ageEveryone in the Fujita fay and all of thes He had woken them in the past, but it sounded like Chiaki had taken over that roleShe also had trouble in the s, so he orried it was hard for her But…“Everything’s going fine Didn’t I tell you that over the phone?”“I see”Chiaki answered nonchalantlyShe could be cheeky, but she was a reliable person“How about you? You’re studying a foreign language, right? Are you keeping up with that?”She pouted her lips and asked him a question of her ownHe had told his fae That was his cover story for living with Micha who (looked like she) was foreign“I’ up just fine Didn’t I tell you that over the phone?”He could not tell her the truth, but he wanted to make sure she was not worried“…I see”He felt like her determined face briefly clouded overHe quickly realized that “there’s nothing to worry about” was the second best answer she had been hoping forBut he could not give the best answer she had been hoping for: It isn’t working out, so I’ home“Sorry, Chiaki”He at least made sure to rub her head“It’s going to take a while longer, but I promise I’ll come home eventually”“…Right”This little sister was stubborn and not at all like Iwai or MutsumiBut when he rubbed her head, she happily narrowed her eyes just like those two“If you’re ever ht away”“I-I was notyou It’s just…”“It’s just?”“Mutsuht be, so make sure you visit, Onii-chan”“Yes, yes”He took his tis“By the way, Chiaki, how’s lacrosse going?”They had returned to the living roomAnge asked for help with Mutsumi on her head and Iwai on her lap, but he smiled back and told her to keep them company Then he sat on the other sofa with Chiaki“We have the day off Our practices have been so intense lately that everyone’s worn out”“Intense? Is there a tourna?”“Um… No, there isn’t a tournament…”His little sister seeShe took a sip of tea to hide it And just as he started wondering why…“Ren-chan’s co back,” cut in his older sister “Apparently Chi-chan’s elementary school lacrosse team is just as excited as the middle school one”“…shi+rohara-senpai is?”His eyes widened as soon as he spoke that name“Pwah! …shi+rohara…Ren? Who’s that?”Ange peeled Mutsumi from her face and tilted her head at the unfamiliar nameMutsuki stared into space and Chiaki kept her lips shut, so Iwai spoke froe’s lap“shi+rohara Ren is an upperclassman one year above Mu-chan She transferred soht back four rades are top notch, she has seven prefectural records in track, and she’s known across japan as a junior lacrosse player She’s an elite a elites who held the position of student council president in Megutono Academy’s elementary and then middle school And…”She looked to her unco little brother and sister“She was Mu-chan’s first love”“…! N-Nee-chan!”“And Chi-chan, didn’t you start playing lacrosse because Mu-chan was always going to watch her at practice?”“Gah! That’s…I did not!”The two younger siblings both yelled at herAnd then they both hung their blushi+ng headsAnge and Mutsumi tilted their heads in confusionIwai’s teasing elicited true anger from Mutsuki and Chiaki and the two of thee the subjectAfter killing soe leftThey walked down the road with the two sleeping bagsHe had trouble focusing the entire time(…shi+rohara-senpai)The thought of her naht an ache to his chest“Mutsuki!”“Fweh!? Eh? Oh, what is it, Ange?”“Again I’ after this”He had apparently been walking in a daze, so Ange was mad at himAt first, he did not knohat she , but then he re supplies besides the sleeping bagsHe nodded his head and she took the sleeping bag he held“Then leave these with ”“Sure”She started toward the apartmentIf Mutsuki was going cauard That was fine since it was their friends froBut she apparently did not want to deal with the preparations, so she left the shopping to himHe smiled bitterly and started to turn around, but…“shi+rohara Ren”“!”

He froze in place when she suddenly muttered that nameAnge glared at the boy“Your first love, huh?”“Well, um…”“…Hmph”With a snort, she ran offMutsuki was confused why she was acting so angry, but it was an even e had heard his older sister say shi+rohara Ren was his first loveCalling her his first love was not entirely accurateThey had not been that close He had siht she was pretty when he saw her from a distance That was all she had beenThey had barely ever spoken and then she had suddenly moved overseasBut it was true he had spent a lot of his ti at her from afarOnce…It had happened during July of the previous year, which put it over a year agoMutsuki had yet toof the forces fighting for heaven, earth, and hell He had lived as a perfectly normal boyVolleyball had been the big event of this year’s game tournament, but it had been tennis the year beforeHe had played a doubles gareat at sports, so people had had high hopes for the teamSakae had been incredibly good, but Mutsuki had been nothing but a burden They could have won easily with Sakae’s skill, but Mutsuki almost always missed when the ball came his wayFeeling pathetic, Mutsuki had started practicing afterschool He had not kno to practice tennis, so he had done nothing but silently serve the ballHe was naturally diligent, so while he focused on that, everyone else had left, leaving him all aloneAnd then…“What are you doing?”“Fwah!?”He had thought he was alone on the court, so the sudden voice caused him to miss the ball quite spectacularlyAfter just about falling onto his butt, he had turned toward the voice…and widened his eyesIt had been past six, but the evening sun had showed no sign of setting In front of it, a girl had brushed up her golden brown hair and held a lacrosse racket in one hand Anyone in Megutono Acadenized herShe had had the big round eyes of a doll, long eyelashes, a slossy lips That had been a year ago, so she had been the sae in his ly mature beautyHer ar and slender and she had had shapely curves fros had stretched down from her flared skirt A body with both the caly the name shi+rohara“shi+rohara…-senpai”As the school’s irl and his student council president, Mutsuki had of course knoho she was“You aren’t on the tennis tea here?”“Well, um…”The cowardly boy had grown flustered with the dignified upperclassman’s eyes on himshi+rohara Ren had given him a sharp look“Fujita Mutsuki Are you practicing tennis?”“Y-yes”But she had only frightened the boy for a moment“Is it for the gaence, but it’s about time to leave”“Right… S-sorry I’ll leave right away”Blushi+ng, Mutsuki had run to grab the ball on the other side of the courtBut…“Hm”As soon as he had reached the other side of the net…“Raise your racket, Fujita Mutsuki”“Eh?”

Ren had traded her lacrosse racket for a tennis one and she held a new ball“It looked like you had serving down, so you need to practice receiving next”“Eh? Eh?”“Hit this back Ready, go!”She had hit the ball without a moment’s delayIt had been a gentle shot, but it had been too sudden for the body to keep up and he had simply watched the ball bounce by He had raised his blank face and seen her already holding the next ball“What’s the matter? If you don’t raise your racket, this practice won’t be much use”Mutsuki’shim practice“Um, but, Senpai? Didn’t you say it’s time to leave?”He had still been worried about that nonsense, so the student council president had giggled“I believe rules may be broken if you are prepared to accept the consequences”“…”Mutsuki had been shocked to hear the school’s irl sound like an outlaw“It’s a selfish view, but…Fujita Mutsuki Are you prepared to be scolded by a teacher if itprepared for the tournament?”“Yes… Oh, but…”“I am too” Her tone had been casual but intense “I want to help with your practice and I a to be scolded for that”“Ah…”“Raise your racket Ready, go”She had given him a kind commandHe had stared blankly for a moment, but that had been cut short by her merciless serve“Okay!”Afterwards, his worried parents had called his cellphone because he had been so late That had been past eight, so it had lasted about two hoursThose two hours had been his only contact with shi+rohara RenAt the game tournament a few days later, he and Sakae had htHe had no idea how ht out of more than fifty teams was quite an achievement, but it had really come down to Sakae’s skill They had been kept from the best four by a doubles pair from the tennis team It had been the worst pair to run intoEven so, Mutsuki thought the receiving technique she had taught him had meant a lotHe had gone to thank her later, but she had been busy as student council president and the otten was a smile from herHe had hoped he would be able to speak with her again after Chiaki had joined the lacrosse team in the second term, but no such opportunity had presented itself Then in March of this year, she had h school entrance exa up for the third years had spawned much speculationHe did not know if his feelings for shi+rohara Ren qualified as a first loveHe had looked up to her That much was certainBut was that really a first love? He had barely known her and he had been unable to confir because she had moved awayAnd just after she had left, he had entered the second year and met Ibekusa Machina He ell aware that he had fallen in love with herBut who had that upperclassman been?“!”Mutsuki was snapped out of his thoughts by a vibration in his pantsIt was his cellphone He pulled it out and saw the call was from “Lucia-kun”They had exchanged nu cere each other without school That de up in unexpected places, so Mutsuki doubted that he needed a phone Still, Lucia often called him“hello? What is it, Lucia-kun?”“hello? Hey, where are you, Mutsuki-kun? I caels are at the apartment”“Now? Right now, I’m…ah”Only then did he notice he was at Megutono AcadeateHe could hear the yelling voices of sports tea from the schoolyardHe had hts about his upperclassman had sent him to schoolHe smiled bitterly at his carelessness“Sorry I’ and I probably won’t be back for a while”“Cheh Then I’ll go-…oh, no! Jiyuuni just spotted me!”He heard a small commotion over the phone“Oh, honestly~ …I’ll give up on seeing you today Bye bye, Mutsuki-kun I’ll try again tonight!”“S-sure”Lucia had likely appeared on the balcony and been noticed He heard Ange angrily yelling “What are ''you'' doing here!?”, so he hung up the phoneHe smiled bitterly as he put the phone away“…”Only afterwards did a real smile rise to the surfaceIt was not just Machina He loved Lucia and Ange as wellHe seeured he probably had loved shi+rohara Ren“…Oh, right”He reed his train of thoughtHe looked up and saw the clock tower in the center of the school that could be seen froe had destroyed it in the earlier trouble, but it had been restored in the past half a monthThere was so trip And she lived below that tower…There was so else he had to do as wellWith that thought, he pulled out his phone again