Forced Manipulation

Chapter Fifty-Four

(The next morning.)

That night, Natsumiki had trouble sleeping. The constant thought of whether or not the man who he considered to be an uncle was his father remained in his mind. Every time he drifted off to sleep, the thought seemed to grab him and pull him back to reality. It had been over five hours since Mitsuki had spilled the beans about his mother's secret, yet the shock of it all made it seem like it had just happened minutes ago. Come to think about it, it seemed to make sense. He and Doug didn't look alike, but he and Jason looked as if they were carbon copies! Even with the time he had to ponder about it, he still couldn't make sense of the situation. Why would his mother keep that from him? He let out a sigh as he lifted his head from the pillow. He reached out for his nightstand, grabbing a small, charcoal black alarm clock, the bright red numbers jumping out at him. His eyes widened slightly as he saw that the time was a quarter until ten AM! He jolted upwards and tossed the blanket off him. How could he sleep in so late?! His mother usually kept him on a strict routine, regardless of whether or not it was summertime. He would never even think about breaking his mother's routine, for the consequences of doing so were awful. Natsumiki knew that his mother's temper had a tendency to get the better of her. Even before her mother died, she often snapped at the little things, taking it out on the man who he used to think his father was. But now, he had no idea what to think. Just how much did his mother keep from him? What else was she lying about? He braced himself, ready to hear his mother shriek for him and how they have a bunch of stuff planned. If Natsumiki was being honest, he enjoyed it more when he was with Doug, at least Doug cared for his wellbeing. Hell, his mother was against the fact that he wanted to go to a school that was primarily for art. She thought it was pointless and that he should pursue a school that would give him an actual career. Yet, it was Doug that stuck up for him, telling her that Natsumiki shouldn't have to sacrifice his happiness to go after a job because she wanted him to have, but instead, have one that he will enjoy for the rest of his life. Yet, as he reminisced, he realized that his mother wasn't shouting for him. He raised an eyebrow. Was his mother not up yet? It seemed strange that she wasn't awake, as she was usually the first one to wake up.

"Mom?" Natsumiki called out as he stood up and walked to the door, stretching as he did so. He began to walk down the stair, expecting all of the adults to be awake, conversing as they ate breakfast. But, to his surprise, the only adult sitting at the table was Jason! It seemed as if he was too absorbed in looking at his phone while he drank his coffee. Hell, he didn't even think he heard Natsumiki call out for his mom. He slowly began to trudge down the steps, each step causing a loud squeak from under his weight. Jason quickly turned around while trying to keep himself from spilling his coffee, his eyes locking with Natsumiki's.

"Oh, hello!" Jason smiled. "I didn't hear you get up, how was your sleep? You must've been exhausted, huh?"

Natsumiki nodded before yawning slightly.

"Uh-huh... I still a-am..." Natsumiki sleepily mumbled as he sat down at the table, resting his head in his arms. "Where's m-mom and dad...? And Aunt Mitsuki...?"

"Oh, they're heading into the city," Jason said as he took a quick sip from his coffee. "Mitsuki mentioned that she had never been to the states before, so your mom and dad set up a little trip for the day. They should be returning near the evening, so we got the whole day to ourselves. What would you like to do? I assume you want to keep sleeping?"