Amamiya Shinichi looked at the guy in front of him. The guy with blonde hair grabbing his shirt collar. The hands on his collar trembled. The veins on Mugi Rukio's head looked like they were about to pop anytime. He was just like a volcano on the verge of exploding.
Shinichi didn't know how to react. He just wanted to annoy the model student for scoring lower than him. While he admitted to himself that he was just being petty, he didn't know Rukio would react like this.
People always misunderstood that he was some kind of delinquent. But he was far from it. The last time he got in a fight was in middle school's final year, and it was for her. Except for that time, he was just a guy who happened to end up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Shinichi was the kind of guy who tried to apologize even if he was not in the wrong. He got very sensitive about how other people saw him. Right now, he was thinking of how to apologize to Rukio.
But before he could do so, the hands on his shirt weakened. Rukio had collapsed on the ground again. Except this time, he was barely conscious.
"Oi... man. Are you okay?" Shinichi asked in shock.
Rukio didn't say anything.
The shopkeeper, Yoshida-san, walked in a daze.
"Amamiya. Did you get in a fight again? I told you fighting is—"
Shinichi winced at the shopkeeper's sudden accusation. There he was, wrong place, wrong time—although he started the fight.
"Of course not, Yoshida-san. You can check the camera if you want. But first, we need to get this guy home."
Together, Shinichi and Yoshida-san supported weak Rukio, and the three made their way to Rukio's apartment.
Although Rukio was conscious, he didn't say anything. He just stared at the ground with tired, hollow eyes.
Soon, they arrived at the doorstep of the Mugi household.
Shinichi remembered it. Shinichi still remembered the look on Mugi Clara's face when she saw the state her son was in. Her already pale face was devoid of color, with tears streaming down her face accompanied by quiet sobs. Her lips trembled as she repeated her son's name. It was strangely heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time.
Seeing that his wife was a lost cause, it was Mugi Rentaro who sprung into action. He quickly dialed the number of their family doctor. He then brought pillows and water to make his son more comfortable. Although not as obvious as his wife, Shinichi saw the worry etched on his face.
The doctor was quick to come. He looked quite young, with a thin mustache and neatly slicked-back hair.
Much to his parents' delight, it wasn't anything serious. Rukio was just exhausted. He hadn't rested or eaten well. The doctor suggested he rest for a week before going back to basketball. Of course, Rukio didn't look too happy.
After the matter was resolved, Shinichi and Yoshida turned to leave.
"Please wait!"
It was Mugi Clara who stopped them.
"Thank you for looking over my son. I don't know how to express my gratitude." She bowed to both of them. "If you don't mind, how about staying for dinner?"
"Thank you, Mugi-san. But I left the store open. So, I have to go back," Yoshida-san declined politely.
Clara bowed her head once again to Yoshida and turned to Shinichi, who was also turning to leave.
"What about you, Amamiya-kun? Do you have anywhere to be?"
Shinichi scratched his head awkwardly.
"Uh... no. But umm..."
"Then, why don't you have dinner with us? I'm sure Rukio would be thrilled to have a friend over."
Shinichi just smiled meekly in guilt. Looked like she didn't know what happened back at the arcade.
He went back inside with Clara. She told him to rest in the living room and went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
Shinichi sat nervously on a sofa across from Mugi Rentaro's armchair. The famous artist was reading a collection of haiku. It wasn't his presence that made Shinichi nervous. It was the name on the cover that made him sweat in the cold room. Amamiya Daichi.
"So, Amamiya-kun, was it? Thanks for taking care of my dumb son," Rentaro said, his eyes still on the book.
He closed the book and looked at Shinichi with those same piercing eyes as Rukio's.
"Pardon me for my sudden question. Do you happen to be related to the famous poet, Amamiya Daichi?"
Shinichi looked away from his gaze.
"Yes, he is my father."
Rentaro raised his eyebrows.
"So, you're that Daichi's son, huh?" Rentaro smiled. "Looks like my son is making good friends after all."
Once again, Shinichi felt bad for misunderstanding. This was his second time talking with Rukio. The first time was when they bumped into each other in a hallway, which didn't even count as a conversation.
"I heard he moved to Europe for his daughter's scholarship. Didn't you go with him?"
"Uh... things happened," Shinichi said, his tone uneasy.
He didn't want to explain that he got into an ugly fight with his father and stayed behind.
Rentaro noticed that he didn't want to talk about it.
"Sorry if I am imposing too much. I was just asking."
"No, it's okay."
The conversation was quiet again. But Shinichi didn't have to sit in awkward silence for long.
"Dinner's ready!"
It was Clara's voice. They both got up from their seats and walked into the dining room. They were surprised to see Rukio sitting there.
"Rukio, shouldn't you be resting?" Rentaro asked.
"It's okay, Dad. I want to eat here."
Everyone sat down. Shinichi sat alone on the right side. Rukio sat side-by-side with his mom on the left, while Rentaro was in the middle.
"So, you guys are in the same class?" Clara asked.
"Ah yes, he sits in front of me," Shinichi replied, picking up the prawn tempura with chopsticks.
"He is Amamiya Daichi's son," Rentaro said to his wife.
Clara's eyes sparkled.
"Oh my! Why didn't you say so sooner? I am a big fan of your dad's works," Clara exclaimed. "So what about you? Have you been working on anything?"
Shinichi expected it. People would always ask that question after finding out who his father was. Although it annoyed him every time, Shinichi smiled through it and gave them the same answer. The same single answer.
"No."
The tone wasn't rude, but it wasn't sweet either. He put on the most natural smile and said it in the most neutral tone.
Of course, both Clara and Rentaro knew what he meant by that single word and didn't ask anything further.
The dinner went on quietly.
Shinichi politely declined Clara's offer to stay for dessert. Just when he was about to go, Rukio sat up from his seat.
"Let me walk you to the exit," he said.
The two "friends" quietly walked to the exit. Once at the exit, Shinichi turned back to face Rukio.
"About what happened at the arcade..." Shinichi started.
"I'm sorry," Rukio and Shinichi's voices came out in unison.
They both looked at each other in surprise and smiled slightly.
"Here," Rukio threw something at Shinichi.
Shinichi caught it with one hand. Inside his palm was a KitKat chocolate bar.
"Since you didn't stay for dessert."
Rukio waved him goodbye and closed the door.
Shinichi put the chocolate bar inside his pocket and walked through the cold road.
Yukari always called him a pushover. She was right. But he knew for sure that what happened today was his fault. To be fair, he wasn't blindly provoking Rukio because he felt like it—just like those bullies in poorly written school manhwa.
He had a reason. It was the most petty reason. Maybe it was jealousy, envy, or maybe even hatred. Feelings that shouldn't even exist. It was all because he saw Yukari walking home with Rukio.
He and Yukari always walked home together, except for the days he had practice and Yukari had to help at her parents' store. He and Yukari used to be inseparable until his useless feelings got in the way. He felt like she was drifting away from him.
Walking together was their usual routine. After constant failed rejection and awkward interactions, this was the only time they could talk freely. Just the two of them. Shinichi didn't know what Yukari thought of it. It might be a stroke of ego or even a sheer pettiness or delusion. Shinichi believed that time, that feeling belonged to him. Only to him.
How foolish.
Everything inside him crumbled after seeing her walking home with Rukio. He felt like the only thing that belonged to him was now being stolen away. He knew it was petty. He knew it was pathetic.
He knew the way Yukari looked at Rukio. The way she acted around him. Things he hadn't seen when she was with him.
He had been in love with Yukari since middle grade. Ever since she stood up for him when no one else did. For a guy who was nothing more than an invisible thin wall to his own family, Yukari was the only one who had seen him—truly seen him in his otherwise mundane existence.
He loved the way she smiled. The way she laughed. The way she cried.
Everything.
Her eyes. Her lips. Her voice.
Everything.
At this point, he knew it was impossible. He got rejected like a dozen times already. Yet he clung to it hopelessly. He just thought one day, they could end up together. It was nothing more than a hopeless delusion.
Maybe he should just give up. Just like he did with everything else.
Shinichi arrived at the apartment he was living in. The sign on the house said "Bokuda."
His elder sister's acquaintances, the Bokuda couple. They were like brother and sister to him and his guardians while his family was away.
Both of them were self-employed, and due to the nature of their professions, they were mostly traveling.
Shinichi opened the door with the spare key in his pocket and stepped into the empty apartment. The house looked clean even though there was no one in there.
Shinichi looked at a bowl on the table. It was neatly covered in plastic wrap. He smiled. They must have left something for him.
Since he was already full, Shinichi thought of eating it later and walked into his room. The room was spacious for one guy and had a two-sized bed. On the opposite side of the bed was his study table. Rather than a study table, it was more like where he played games. The unfinished stack of honkaku mystery books and computer system occupied most of the space.
Shinichi sunk into the chair in front of the table, putting a hand on his forehead. What a long day. He looked at the screen. The game was still under server maintenance.
He grabbed one of the books from the stack and started reading. But his thoughts always drifted back to everything that happened today. Seeing Rukio with his family, and having dinner with them, he felt everything inside him warm from the core.
Family, huh?
The sudden message from the chat app interrupted his thoughts.
The notification said—
[The player MONKEY is inviting you to his party]
And the message was—
[G?]
"Oh... Saru is already here. The server must be up," he said to himself and replied to him.
[G]
Shinichi put on his headset and navigated to the game login screen.
His fingers quickly ran across the keyboard as he entered his login credentials.
[Please select your profile]
Shinichi clicked on the first profile.
A character appeared on the screen. It had grotesque and chubby features with huge cuts and stitches all over its body. It had a huge hook on one hand and a meat cleaver in the other.
A window appeared on the screen.
[Welcome to League of Ancients! REI]