The building was fancy.
Fancy on an absurdly fancy level.
Huge glass windows.
Silent automatic doors.
A garden so perfect it looked fake.
Even the wind seemed expensive there.
And right in front of that elegant entrance…
…there they were.
Harumi, with a big bruise on her forehead and a cloth wrapped around her head that, by the way, was trying to hide the bruise on her forehead. On top of that, GIANT sunglasses, and a cane.
Mei, with a blue mouth.
A blue tongue.
Blue fingertips…
And missing a tooth.
Takeru, with a cast on his forearm and an eyepatch, wearing the expression of someone who'd already given up on life by nine in the morning.
Behind them, a luxurious black car parked, completely mismatched with the trio's state.
Harumi looked at her reflection in the glass door.
Sighed.
And muttered:
"…I'd rather have just an eye bag."
"…I can't feel my knee, seriously, Auntie Haru, I don't think I can walk right." Mei said, clearly exhausted.
"But you're the one who slept the best out of all of us."
"…hehe, true!" Mei remembered where she'd slept.
"…" Takeru said nothing, maybe he didn't have the strength for it.
Silence.
She closed her eyes.
Took a deep breath.
Because, honestly…
everything had gone wrong since yesterday.
Last night:
"I HAVE NOTHING TO WEEEEAR!!!!!"
The whole house heard it.
"I DON'T HAVE A SINGLE OUTFIT THAT SAYS I'M SERIOUS!!!"
"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SIGN IMPORTANT PAPERS WITHOUT LOOKING LIKE A LOST CHILD?!"
On the couch: clothes.
On the table: clothes.
On the chair: clothes.
On the floor:
papers.
So many papers.
Papers from grandpa's house.
Old papers.
New papers.
Mysterious papers.
Papers that probably weren't even important papers.
Harumi held a stack.
"…which of these do I bring…?"
Dramatic silence.
"…I DON'T KNOOOOW WHAT TO BRIIIING!!"
She started walking fast around the house, trying to think, trying to breathe, trying not to spiral.
Foot on the rug.
Slipped.
"AAA—"
Managed to catch her balance.
"okay it's fine it's fine it's fi—"
Turned quickly toward the kitchen. But chaos already reigned there too.
"Mei, come help me with the dishes!"
"No caaan't!!"
"Of course you can, all you have to do is turn OFF the TV for five minutes!"
"I DON'T WANNAAA, this show only airs right now!!"
"GET OVER HERE NOW!!"
"I'M COMIIING"
Harumi cut the conversation short so it wouldn't get worse.
"TAKERU, TURN OFF THE BLENDER, I CAN'T THIN—"
BONK.
Her forehead met, with all the force in the universe…
…the corner of the open cabinet drawer up top.
Silence.
One second.
Two.
"…."
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAI!!!!!"
Five minutes later, sitting on the floor with ice on her forehead and her dignity destroyed, and with Mei worried, Harumi made the only possible decision.
Grabbed her phone.
Called.
Ringing…
Ringing…
"That's the only way to get you to turn off the TV, huh, MEI."
"She's important, the dishes aren't." — and stuck her tongue out at Takeru.
"Calm down, you two, no fighti—"
Click.
"…hello?"
Tired voice. Low. Clearly working.
"KEI HEEEELP MEEEEE!!!"
Silence.
"…what happened?"
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO BRING TOMORROW!!"
"DOCUMENTS!! PAPERWORK!! NAME!! GUARDIAN!!"
"IF YOU WERE ABOUT TO CHANGE YOUR KIDS' NAMES, WHAT WOULD YOU BRING?!"
Silence.
A long silence.
The kind that seems to echo.
"…what time's the appointment?"
"10 in the morning…"
Another silence.
A tired sigh on the other end.
"Okay. Relax. I'll be there at 8."
"…huh?"
"I'll sort this out with you." — he took a deep breath, trying not to sound tired — "So try to get some sleep. Tomorrow's the day you've been waiting for, isn't it?"
Harumi suddenly went quiet.
Pressing the ice to her forehead.
"K-Kei… sorry… I don't even know why I called you… you must be exhaus—"
"No."
Immediate answer.
Simple.
Firm.
"You're not a bother to me. I'll be there at 8."
Her heart skipped a beat.
"Harumi, the kids are probably a little nervous too." — he took a deep breath, tired, and continued.
"So try playing with them, so they sleep well and don't end up with eye bags... Otherwise you're gonna get stopped right at the entrance on suspicion of neglect."
"HAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAH THAT'S TRUEEEE!!!! Leave it to me! — she let out another little laugh. — …thanks, Kei!! I lo—"
SHE STOPPED.
Froze.
Turned red down to her soul.
"A-AH B-BYE!! SLEEP WELL!!"
Hung up.
Buried her face in her hands.
"…oh my god."
hihi guyyyss!!
Thaaaank you for reading this far!!!!
I hope you had at least a little fuunn!!
(´▽｀)
If you want, I can post the character designs on an app called Pixiv and you can check them out!!
Pixiv:
https://www.pixiv.net/en/users/121622272
That way, when you read them, you can imagine what they look like!!
Hope to see you next time!!