|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Mar 30, 2009 22:54:22 GMT -5
It was a haunt she was familiar with, and one she could be frequently found in, but there was to be no fortune-telling or chatting with elderly fishermen today. No, Shizuka had another goal in mind, and was hurrying towards it rather quickly.
"I can't believe they couldn't have waited until practice to ask me," she muttered, giving her watch another fleeting glance. "Honestly, sometimes I feel more like their mother than their manager..."
A split second later, she laughed sheepishly at her own halfhearted complaints-- and earned herself several funny stares from the people she was passing. Well aware of it and looking appropriately embarrassed, she gave them an apologetic bow and moved on.
"All right... it's this... right here..." In a quieter voice, Shizuka finally slowed down and came to a stop beneath the gazebo-- or whatever it was. It was a bit of a run from her school and she was breathing hard as she collapsed-- no, sat down, because the last thing her parents would want to hear from the neighbors was how their daughter was seen lazing about by the river.
It was the first day she hadn't picked up her little brother directly from his school, but he had insisted that he would be fine and he would meet her here, since it wasn't that far away and he had friends to walk with. Being the older and more mature sibling (or so she hoped), Shizuka well understood the need for independence and making your own decisions, and saw no need to coddle Hideo like her parents did. She could at least do that much for him, so she had agreed to wait for him here so they could walk home together.
She was secretly concerned over how well he'd manage, or even if it was safe, but there were so many people out today... surely he'd be all right.
With a sigh, Shizuka laced her fingers together and raised her arms over a head for a good stretch. Really, all she could do now was wait for him, and wait for him she would! Come hell or high water or any other sort of disaster!!
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Mar 31, 2009 7:26:07 GMT -5
Souji walked lazily along the floodplain, hand buried in the greasy, metallic packaging of some Tater Longs. The soles of his shoes made soft scritching sounds upon connecting with the sand-strewn road, providing a back beat to the crinkle and crunch as he pulled another Tater Long from the bag and popped it into his mouth. Scritch, crinkle, crunch; scritch, crinkle, crunch. The monotony was relaxing, especially compared to the squeak of sneakers that still rang in his ears from practice that afternoon. He'd left early that day, excusing himself to the showers with a quick nod to Kou. He may have been team captain, due to some bizarre bit of reasoning from their sorta-kinda-coach, but it was no secret who was really in charge. In all honesty, not leading was refreshing. Who didn't like a change of pace every once in a while?
Hair still damp from his hasty shower, Souji glanced up at the gazebo Nanako had asked him to wait at. He'd been more than a little amused at her shy and fumbled explanation for wanting him there to intercept her at the spot where her group of friends usually dispersed. The novelty of having a Big Bro had not worn off for the little girl and who could blame her for wanting to introduce them to the person responsible for the apple bunnies and homemade onigiri mice that found their way into her Junes bento every morning. After all, he'd shown her off to his friends often enough.
Still, he hadn't expected company. The girl looked a little odd, with red cheeks and a bun that looked as if it had been through the wringer. She was small too -- impossibly so, it seemed, considering the familiar high school uniform she wore. It was for that prep school...Ino-something. Souji briefly wondered if she was borrowing her older sister's uniform (for some reason he couldn't really be bothered to come up with) and was secretly a student at the elementary school. Either way, she seemed unassuming enough, despite looking as if she'd run a marathon. With a polite smile, he settled down at the gazebo as well, sitting far enough away to give her (and himself) space while he waited for his cousin and her friends.
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Mar 31, 2009 10:11:49 GMT -5
Shizuka didn't respond to the new arrival at first, either recognizing his uniform as one belonging to that inferior high school and thus the boy himself not being worth talking to, or because she was focused on other things.
Truthfully, it was more the latter and none of the former, since she didn't really give a damn about status or money; she was just still trying to catch her breath. A quick, impatient tug on her bun transformed it into more of a ponytail for the sake of comfort and appearance, and it was then that she realized that someone was sitting there.
She didn't want to stare, but her eyes did widen slightly upon seeing his hair. Silver? That couldn't be natural! But what a weird color to dye it... even if it matched his eyes. Then again, she couldn't just make rash assumptions! What if he'd been born like that?
There were other things, of course. Unhappily for her, this boy was tall in such a way that she was glad he was sitting; he'd be towering over her otherwise. He didn't appear arrogant in his height though-- just confident, and yet there was an air of expectancy in his posture, as well as polite distance in regards to his companion.
Curiosity and the natural inclination to be friendly with complete and total strangers took over and, before she knew it, Shizuka was opening her mouth to speak, tilting her head up a bit and giving him an unguarded smile.
"You're waiting for someone." Not a question or an accusation, just a cheerfully-stated fact.
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Mar 31, 2009 13:52:50 GMT -5
Souji looked up, a little startled. It wasn't so much that she was addressing him that made him take pause, but rather the confidence of her statement. Still, despite his confusion, he smiled back and nodded once.
"Uh, that's right." His voice was polite, albeit with lingering traces of suspicion. Despite Inaba's size and the fact that everyone seemed to so enjoy talking about everyone else, people rarely did any direct talking to each other, opting instead to whisper and isolate themselves. The girl's friendly, albeit odd, smile was an endearingly refreshing change of pace when it came to meeting new people, in Souji's honest opinion.
"Why, are you too?" he shot back curiously, his smile gentle despite his nosiness.
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Mar 31, 2009 14:11:53 GMT -5
Oho, a challenge! Shizuka's eyes, already alight with curiosity, brightened even more. Instead of going the route of simply answering the question and/or ignoring her, he'd not only responded but returned the interest! It was a safe question to answer anyway, and she was delighted that he seemed willing to hold a conversation with someone who just so happened to be sharing gazebo space with him.
That, and they already had something in common. This social interaction wouldn't be as challenging as she'd thought!
"Exactly," she replied easily, nodding at the stretch of road past the gazebo. "My little brother, actually. He should be here soon, unless he gets lost, but..." A pause, and then Shizuka laughed, lightly tapping her head with her fist. "He's a lot better with direction than I am!"
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Mar 31, 2009 21:12:04 GMT -5
Souji's smile grew at her bubbly enthusiasm, impressed with how open and amicable she was despite the two of them being strangers. Casting his gaze out towards the direction she had indicated, the boy made a soft noise of realization and turned to face her again with a slightly different smile than before
"Is he coming from the elementary school?" Souji asked curiously, cocking his head slightly to the side, "If he is, I think he'll be alright. There's usually a river of kids coming through here at the end of the day. As long as he sticks with them, he'll come right to you." He laughed a little awkwardly, quickly explaining his knowledge on the subject, "I have a cousin who goes there. That's who I'm waiting for, actually."
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Mar 31, 2009 21:41:13 GMT -5
Another similarity, it seemed, and one that did nothing to diminish Shizuka's cheeriness at this unexpected fortune. It was definitely better to wait with someone else than to wait alone, and she welcomed the chance to have another opportunity to speak with someone that she wouldn't have normally had. No, after school, that was usually when the silence sank in...
"Your cousin?" She asked now, mirroring the boy's slight angling of the head. "Maybe Hideo knows him-- or her. He's... pretty quiet..." The little joke made her chipper smile a little bittersweet. "But he's a good kid, and he likes making friends. Chances are he knows more people than I do-- oh, speaking of which..."
The look she gave Souji was sheepish, as if she'd just now remembered her manners-- which she pretty much had. "I guess if we're waiting together, I should probably introduce myself. I'm Shizuka Nakano, a second-year at Inoue."
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 2, 2009 9:18:35 GMT -5
He nodded, smiling a little -- he wouldn't be surprised if Nanako did know the boy. She was a kind, generous, affable girl (Souji may have been biased, but he had yet to meet anyone who thought otherwise) and people were drawn to her unaffected charm. Even the quiet ones, he thought with a little grin at his private joke.
He was about to voice his opinion on the matter when the girl's demeanor changed from gregarious to bashful. Keeping quiet as she introduced herself, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at her mention of the school -- which he remembered with better clarity upon hearing its name. His experiences with students there had been anything but pleasant...well, up to now, anyroad.
"Souji Seta," he replied, nodding to her with an easy smile, "I'm second year too -- Yasogami." He offered her his hand, having to reach slightly to overcome the distance he'd put between them; initially a courtesy, now a bother. "I've heard about Inoue. It's a good school."
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 2, 2009 10:55:05 GMT -5
The space between them did pose a minor difficulty, and especially one for someone with shorter arms, but Shizuka only scooted a little bit closer to take the offered hand and give it a warm grip and a small shake of greeting.
"It's nice to meet you, Souji-kun! I've heard about Yasogami, too." The majority of it, though, wasn't good, and more than half of the students at Inoue were convinced that the murderer was lurking in the hallways there, but she couldn't pick up anything about this guy that seemed bad. Besides, they didn't treat their own students that well, either; she'd had problems adjusting for most of her first year and, even in her second year, she wasn't exactly close to anybody.
"Come to think of it..." Still holding his hand without thinking of it, Shizuka tapped her chin thoughtfully with a free finger. "I think I've heard of you, too. Where did I..." Two seconds later, her eyes lit up. "Oh! You're that transfer student, aren't you? Ahaha, you've got the guys on the basketball team a little worried! They were thinking of challenging Yasogami a while ago, but apparently you're a bit of a wild card."
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 2, 2009 12:47:15 GMT -5
Souji laughed, a bit louder and longer than one would at something that wasn't really meant to be funny in the first place, and gently eased his hand from her grip, "Ah, no, not me they should be worried about really -- Kou's the one to watch out for." He waited a beat, then clarified for her when there was no spark of recognition in her eyes, "You'd probably know him as Ichijo. Good guy, but no one on the other teams seem too fond of him." He chuckled softly, realizing he'd talked enough about his own friends.
"I've heard some scary things about your forward. It's the position I play, so I like to keep up on what other people are doing." He smiled, a touch of awkwardness now present in his demeanor as he rubbed the back of his neck and averted his eyes. This girl was probably only being polite when she mentioned the basketball team -- most girls he knew were either allergic to sports or into soccer.
"I'm not boring you, am I?" the boy asked, his quiet voice taking on a self-deprecating air as he offered up an apologetic smile.
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 2, 2009 13:32:59 GMT -5
"Boring?" Shizuka (although initially puzzled at just what had amused her new friend so much) shook her head earnestly, ponytail flying, and flapped a hand to disregard his unnecessary apology. "No, you're not! I'm actually the manager of the basketball team, so... wait, does that mean I'm fraternizing with the enemy?"
The thought seemed to provoke a response almost as amused as Souji's had been until she was full-out grinning. "But I'll have to let our forward know he's got some expectations to work up to, and I'm familiar with Ichijo-kun. He was the other guy the team was worried about, actually, but it's nice for them to have some competition. Maybe then they'd be more motivated..."
Realizing she was starting to babble, the girl placed her hands in her lap and toned down her smile. "But seriously, it's okay. I like basketball, I'm just... reaaaally bad at it, so I help out from the sidelines. And you don't really seem like the boring type anyway, Souji-kun."
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 4, 2009 1:21:05 GMT -5
Souji grinned as she drew another laugh out of him, unable to help being amused by her enthusiasm. He let her speak uninterrupted, a smile hedging on fondness gracing his features throughout. A manager? Souji couldn't quite guess how well she preformed her job based on one meeting alone, but something told him her motivational skills were beyond par. Couldn't tell you what, though.
"Ah, thank you," he grinned, running a hand through his damp hair with a touch of embarrassment, "And I bet you're not all that bad. You're just a little sm...well, you've got some things holding you back, but so does everyone. You just have to find a way around it."
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 4, 2009 1:57:35 GMT -5
She didn't miss the adjective Souji had nearly applied to her, and was ready to respond with a fiery defense of her height-- but then found herself opening her mouth to respond with nothing, since he'd stopped himself in time. The look she shot him now was both knowing and grateful. It was the rare person who didn't crack jokes or at least comment about her diminutive stature, and the encouragement he offered made him even more unusual in her eyes. But not bad.
"Unless I learn how to use stilts or platforms, I might be better off just practicing my jump." Shizuka snorted lightly at the absurdity of the mental image, opening up her bag in search of something-- and blinking when she discovered something else completely different, but that might help out her fellow sitter.
"Leave it to me to lose my watch and find this," she mumbled under her breath, but in the next moment, she was holding out a small, dry, and fluffy white towel to Souji. "It's a little cold today," she explained before he could stare at her too oddly. "And I don't think you want to catch a cold or anything with damp hair, and I definitely don't need this anytime soon. It'll do those guys some good to wash their own towels for once, anyway. ... Oh, and don't worry, it's clean."
Once a sister and a manager, some habits never died.
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 5, 2009 2:05:21 GMT -5
Souji glanced down at the towel, lips curving into a curious smile as he took it gratefully and threw it over his head. Drying his hair thoroughly while his hands moved rapidly against his scalp through the towel, he eventually drew it away and revealed a rather...interesting new style. The friction had caused his usually impeccable bowl-cut to frizz and tangle into what looked like pompoms stuck to a cactus. It wasn't his hair's best moment, but he wore it with a rather bashful grin.
"Thank you," he offered with a laugh on his lips, running his hand through the mess in a useless attempt to smooth it, "You're just full of surprises. I bet with a little coaching you'd be captain of that team; not manager."
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 5, 2009 2:20:08 GMT -5
"Wouldn't that be something," Shizuka mused, already having difficulty picturing the looks on the team's faces if they had to answer to her as captain rather than manager. That was already funny enough, but it was when she got a good look at Souji's new-and-not-so-improved hairstyle that whatever composed facade she'd been working on broke completely.
It started off as a faint cough, intended to be polite, but that soon gave way to soft chuckling, and then a fit of laughter. She could have fixed it, but treating people she'd just met like her brother never ended well. As it was, poor Shizuka could hardly get a word out at first, much less assist the boy.
"I-I'm sorry," she managed, having had to avert her gaze in order to suppress her mirth to a tolerable level. "I don't mean to be rude and I'm not laughing at you, it's just..." And now she sounded strained, as if she was struggling not to laugh again. "Y-you sort of look like a fluffy pineapple."
More of the elementary students were beginning to show up now, so she kept an eye out, looking for the quietest of the bunch. Knowing Hideo, he'd be here soon.
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 5, 2009 15:58:19 GMT -5
Souji attempted a scowl, but found it utterly impossible in the face of her cheerful laughter. In fact, her assessment of his new look only managed to crack his stoic veneer, allowing a soft laugh out to mingle with hers. Blushing despite himself, he rubbed the back of his neck and ran his fingers through the fluffy heap of tangles. There were more children passing by, some giving them a glance but most content to ignore the two strange, giggling high schoolers.
Still, even in the awkward yet enjoyable mirth, Souji kept watch for his cousin and her gaggle of friends. Although he doubted that he looked all that impressive currently, he had no doubt the little girl wouldn't mind.
|
|
|
Post by Nanako Doujima on Apr 5, 2009 21:43:15 GMT -5
Nanako was excited. It wasn't that often that she got to see Souji outside of the house. He was always coming home late, and even though he would spend time with her before she had to go to bed, today was one of the few days that he was able to meet up with her after school and club! And so as she walked through the floodplains with her friends, she was feeling more energetic than usual--her words coming out too quickly as she resisted the urge to bound ahead and see if he was there waiting yet.
One hand held onto that of one of her friends, the little deaf Hideo. She wanted to introduce him to her Big Bro (as well as all of her other friends), and show him the sign language that she learned over the last few weeks. He would be so proud of her!
Her pace picked up. "C'mon, look, my Big Bro is over here!" Nanako grinned over her shoulder at her small cluster of friends and pointed to the silver-haired young man sitting under the gazebo. She didn't recognize the girl he was with (and she was wearing a different uniform than him and his other friends), but that didn't deter her in the slightest.
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 5, 2009 22:14:06 GMT -5
The group of children caught her attention, but it was the little boy held firmly by the hand of a girl she didn't recognize that had Shizuka standing up to wave at the approaching mass.
At the sight of her, the boy brightened, gave his friend's hand a squeeze and released it to run the rest of the way to the waiting girl. He didn't bother to stop, and might have collided with her if she hadn't been ready for him with braced posture and open arms.
No words were exchanged between the two, but communication was still established; fingers were flying, forming letters and words at a speed that would have baffled anyone not familiar with the language they were speaking... and even some who were. This might have kept on for awhile, had the boy not noticed the older male sitting on the bench. He blinked and tilted his head, looking from him to Shizuka expectantly.
"... Oh, right." Straightening up, she glanced over her shoulder at Souji, signing to the boy and speaking out loud for the benefit of the others. "Hideo, this is Souji Seta-kun. He's waiting for his cousin. Souji-kun, this is my little brother, Hideo."
There did seem to be a similarity in their hair and eye color, but Hideo apparently lacked her openly friendly nature, as his initial reaction was to huddle behind his sister. Nonetheless, he managed a very shy smile and a polite bow before he signed to his sibling once more.
Shizuka's expression suddenly turned startled. "You know his cousin?? 'Nanako-chan'?"
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 5, 2009 22:45:53 GMT -5
Souji had been busy trying to fix his hair when the little boy suddenly raced across the grassy lawn towards the gazebo, penetrating the isolated bubble he and Shizuka had created during their exchange. Instinct told him to check again for Nanako's approach, but the sudden movement from the two siblings made him take pause. It took him a few moments to recognize the sign language for what it was and not some sort of elaborate Nakano family handshake.
Is that what she'd meant by 'quiet'?
Souji got up, abandoning his initial confusion in favor of a polite smile as he crouched down to Hideo's level, offering his hand (or rather, the first two fingers) in greeting, "It's nice to meet you." However, Hideo's hands seemed far too busy to take hold of his. Souji laughed softly, casually withdrawing it before his ears pricked up at the mention of a familiar name.
"Nanako?" Suddenly remembering that, yes, he was waiting for someone. Craning his neck to look back out towards the floodplain road, the slight crease in his brow relaxed away at the sight of familiar hair ribbons. Standing up, he couldn't suppress the rather undignified grin that spread across his face at his cousin's approach. Nor could he suppress the urge to scoop her up in his arms as soon as she got close enough, voice uncharacteristically enthused, "Nanako-chan, you decided to show! I was getting worried."
|
|
|
Post by Nanako Doujima on Apr 7, 2009 15:30:33 GMT -5
Oh, so that must have been Hideo's Big Sis! Souji's attention was focued on the two of them, and so Nanako decided that she would try and sneak up on him to take him by surprise. But when she got close enough, he turned and spotted her first. His big, somewhat goofy grin made her giggle as she grinned back. She opened her mouth to greet him, but he was quicker and scooped her up into his arms.
"B-Big Bro!" she cried out in surprise, but laughed and folded her arms around his neck. "You're very happy today," she said as she gave him a hug. "Oh, did you meet Hideo-kun? He's in my class! And these are some of my other friends--I kept talking about you and wanted to introduce them to you! Since I got to meet all of your friends!"
Nanako smiled over her cousin's shoulder at Hideo and his sister, waving as a form of greeting to Shizuka.
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 7, 2009 15:59:00 GMT -5
The initially polite and somewhat-reserved Souji Seta grinning so dorkily brought a smile of her own to Shizuka's face; he'd seemed like a genuinely nice person, and his reaction to his cousin only confirmed it. It looked as though she'd be getting a new friend out of this after all.
"Hideo's been talking about you a lot," she told the little girl now snug in Souji's arms. "It's nice to finally meet you, Nanako-chan." And she meant it. She was adorable, and her lively personality fit Hideo's description of her perfectly.
Hideo was now looking from his sister to the tall silver-haired boy, still shy, and signed something to the former.
"Is he old? His hair..."
A choked laugh escaped before Shizuka could stop it. "No, he's my age," she explained, signing as she did so. "It just makes him unique, right?"
Satisfied, the boy nodded and gained enough courage to step forward and tug on Souji's pant leg. His free hand produced a delicate red paper crane from his pocket, which he held out carefully in an offering.
"It's a friendship offering," Shizuka remarked helpfully. "He's pretty skilled at making paper cranes, and he gives one to everyone he likes." When she noticed the color, her smile only grew. "... And since red is his favorite color, I'd say you made a good impression."
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 11, 2009 15:30:39 GMT -5
"I'm always happy to see you, Nana-chan," Souji smirked, bopping her lightly on the top of the head, "And yes, Shizuka just introduced him to me. She's his big sister." Souji laughed as he felt the little girl lean over his shoulder slightly to get in better waving range and gently moved away from her after one last quick squeeze. Resuming his full height and placing the palm of his hand over Nanako's head with playful protectiveness, Souji waved to the other children who were huddled together behind his cousin.
"Hello. I'm Nanako's-huh?" he felt a small tugging behind him and craned his neck curiously, wondering if Nanako needed something. Instead he was greeted with Hideo's small, shy, curious face. Smiling a little, Souji noticed something small and brightly colored cradled in the little boy's hand. Glancing up at Shizuka for a moment as she started to speak, it wasn't long before he looked back down at the boy with a genuinely flattered expression. Kneeling down once again, he took the crane carefully and inspected it -- Shizuka hadn't exaggerated when she mentioned the boy's dexterity.
"Thank you-" he started, though his smile fell briefly once he remembered that his words of gratitude were falling on deaf ears, quite literally. Fumbling around for a moment with gestures that didn't communicate anything other than, 'I really, really don't know sign language', Souji finally just grinned at the boy and held up the crane for him to see before tucking it carefully into his pocket.
|
|
|
Post by Nanako Doujima on Apr 17, 2009 15:11:47 GMT -5
Nanako was still grinning when Souji gave her another squeeze and set her back on the ground. He didn't get a chance to finish introducing himself before Hideo distracted him, and so she took the liberty to finish it for him. She locked her hands behind her back, still grinning, as she turned to her friends. "He's actually my cousin. He's my... dad's sister's son! He came to live with us for awhile."
Her cluster of friends burst into excited chatter around her. "He's tall." "He looks nothing like your dad!" "He makes your lunches?" Those and more were all passed around as Nanako giggled with her friends. Just having Souji come to pick her up was making her so incredibly happy. Her dad never had the chance to come and pick her up any more, especially not with the murders, and so finally having someone to walk home with and talk about her day made it so she couldn't stand still.
She reached over and grabbed her cousin's hand, her's rather small in comparison, and squeezed it happily. "Ohh! Look, I got a paper crane too!" She pulled a small pink paper crane out of her bag and held it out towards Souji to see. "Hideo-kun promised he would help me learn how to make them!"
|
|
|
Post by Shizuka Nakano on Apr 17, 2009 16:23:38 GMT -5
He might not have been able to hear Souji's thanks, but Hideo got the gist of it, and his smile became a little less bashful and a little more pleased when he saw the older boy pocket the gift. That smile only grew ten times brighter when Nanako produced the crane he'd made her, and he nodded, opting to return to his sister's side. From there, he watched the exchanges between the other children, one hand sneaking into Shizuka's palm.
For her part, the girl couldn't entirely mask her relief that her little brother seemed to be managing just fine at school. He might have been babied at home, but school was a very different thing, and there wasn't anyone there to watch over him. The other students couldn't be bothered to learn sign language.
But he'd made friends. He'd made friends, and he was happy, and he was communicating with them just fine. Shizuka smiled softly, gently tousling Hideo's hair with her free hand, and half-amused that the deaf sibling was having better luck with friends than the older one.
"You'll have a good teacher, then," she told Nanako. "And I'm sure you'll be a lot better at it than I am."
At that point, the other children joined in, clamoring to be taught, too. Such a thing would probably result in the house being filled with multicolored birds, but there were worse things.
|
|
|
Post by Souji Seta on Apr 27, 2009 8:03:21 GMT -5
Souji was quite used to fielding questions about himself by now. His day was filled with curious queries about his old school, what life in the city was like, whether or not he enjoyed enka ballads, did he have a girlfriend, and so on. His nanny back home often commented on how he had one of those faces that intrigued people; like he knew a secret they didn't. Souji hoped that wasn't true, seeing as he had no clue what that secret might be, but still the questions streamed in. That's why he preferred small children, like the ones from his daycare job and Nanako's friends (and Nanako herself, but that went without saying). Their questions didn't carry the weight of anything besides innocent curiosity. It was a welcome change of pace.
Reacting to Nanako's sudden grip on his hand with an amused chuckle, squeezing it back, Souji regarded the small crane in her hand with a quirk of the eyebrow. It looked extremely carefully made, with its wings perfectly level and the folds matched up exactly. "It's beautiful, Nanako. It even matches your dress. We'll have to hang it up in your room when we get home, huh?" He glanced quickly between the two young children with the barest hint of amused suspicion, "You'll probably have a whole flock by the time Hideo's through teaching you."
He glanced sympathetically at Shizuka, shrugging, "I wish he could teach me. I volunteer folding cranes for a hospital. I keep worrying the kids that get them are going to burst into tears when they see them."
|
|