JJBA ♥ How to survive a Reunion & This Bizarre Town! ♥

Baby Steps

Josuke looks away from the television when hearing loud metal clanking from the kitchen. "Sis? Sis?" Nine year old Josuke calls out for the woman. His answers are met with silence. Curious, he stood up from the couch to leave the living room to approach the open doorway of the kitchen. Peeking into the kitchen, his blue eyes land on Cece sitting at the corner of the kitchen floor. Her legs hug close to her chest. Four steps in front of Cece is a fallen metal mug. Luckily, there is nothing inside the mug. 

He approaches the woman. The sound of sniffles caught his ears. Placing a hand on her right shoulder made her jump. Cece looks up to see Josuke. The sight of her wet cheeks caught him off-guard. He always sees her smiling around them and yet he can't see how sad she is behind her smile. 

A question forms in his head - Is Sis always sad when they are not around? 

"Josuke!" Cece quickly wipes her face with her sleeve, giving him a poor attempt of a smile. "Sorry, did you need something?" Cece asks. Josuke shakes his head. He grips the edge of his white shirt. "Are you always sad, Sis...?" He asks. Cece tense up for a second then let out a sigh. "Come here..." She motions him to come closer. Josuke slowly walks to Cece for her to pull him into a soft embrace with her right arm. He sits close to her side.

"Not always. There are times I am happy but there are other times I couldn't help but look back the memories I had before coming here." Cece admits. Her eyes land on her metal hand that rests on her knee. "Even though I'm sad about those memories, I wouldn't trade them for the world." She continues, "I...met wonderful people, Josuke." 

"Really?" 

"Yep, I even beat up some bad guys. Give them a good punch." Josuke looks up at the woman who holds up her left fist. "Can you tell me...about your adventure?" Josuke hesitates to ask. He blames his curiosity since he doesn't know much about Cece. "I'll tell you when you are older...it is hard to talk about it now." Josuke nods his head in understanding. With a long sigh, Cece held Josuke to her side for a comforting embrace. "You have a good heart, Josuke. I'm happy to meet you and your family." 

"You are cool especially your robot hand and your cool powers!" 

Laughter left Cece's lips. "You know what, I'll teach you a couple of my moves when punching someone." That spark Josuke to stand up and pull Cece towards the backyard.

 "Let's go! Let's go!" 

"All right! All right! Just promise me not to use it unless necessary." 

"Okay!" 

+++

Opening her store, twenty-three year old Cece doesn't regret her decision one bit. Cece wore a crème white apron over her turtle neck sweater to carry necessary things as an owner of a business. She looks proudly at the sight of the filled wooden shelves with fresh new books. The building she bought for her business is a good size to start. It doesn't feel crowded as the shelves are evenly spaced between. Sharing the same floor, she restocks the stationary space at the back of the store. 

Shelves of notebooks, pens, colored pencils, and other supplies are displayed for customers to see. Cece even ordered a small bundle of unique looking washi tape to test out what people want from her new store. Standing up, she fixes her apron and appearance to make sure she looks presentable to her new customers. 

Looking at her wristwatch around her left, it is just eight in the morning. Approaching the front door, Cece turns her handmade sign at the front down from closed to open. Grabbing the broom next to the door, Cece opens the door to sweep away any dirt or leaves into her dustpan.