The Promised Revenge [Manjiro Sano]

5

May 7th 1996

"Y/n! Aarush!" Your mom called for you from downstairs as she set the breakfast table and sat down. "Hurry up, you'll be late for school!"

It had been almost a month since the three of you moved to Tokyo, and to be honest, it wasn't as bad as you thought it would be. 

The first days were hard. Your mom was trying to find a job, and you and Aaru had to stay indoors all day. It was cool for you, but Aaru's complaints made it hell.

He wanted to go out and make new friends, and that was all he was talking about for the whole week. It was becoming annoying your mom as well, till she finally gave in and took both of you to a nearby park, where Aaru befriended almost all the kids there.

As for you, all you did that day was take a kids' novel with you, sit next to your mom, and start reading your story, ignoring all the moms that approached yours, complimenting her on how nice and cute her son was, and wondering why you didn't interact with any of their kids.

Your mom was the one to answer all their questions. She knew you were going to say something that would probably ruin her new social life, so she just told them that you weren't the sociable type.

At the age of six, you already knew what your forever hobby was. And if you were good at anything, it was reading.

When someone is not good with people, when someone just can't seem to understand them, books make for excellent socialization. 

There was no fear in meeting a new character because characters couldn't perceive you. They could not decide they didn't like how odd you were or feel uncomfortable with your way of thinking, because after all, you were just a watcher, and they were the show.

As for Aaru, he was the opposite. Even though he was academically smarter, he still found pure comfort and happiness in meeting new people instead of fictional ones. 

He wasn't afraid of what they would think about him, because he knew that some of these people, at least one of them, would like him for sure. He wasn't scared that he might make them uncomfortable, because he could adapt to any situation he was in, and that was what made him adored by almost everyone he met.

As the days went on, and as your mom found work as a kindergarten teacher, she finally inroaded you and your brother to the nearby school, which happened to be her old school.

"Coming Mom!", you shouted back, running down the stairs, Aaru following you.

"I'm so excited for our first day!", Aaru said, sitting down at his seat. "Aren't you excited, Y/n?"

"Yeah", you sighed, rolling your eyes. "So excited."

"I wonder how many friends I would make!", he added, shoving the food in his mouth.

"And I wonder how many of your new friends I will make fun of till they leave you!", you answered, grinning at your brother who stuck his tongue out to you.

"Y/n", your mother spoke, calmly eating her breakfast in the work uniform she was already wearing. "Remember, be a good girl. You know how hard it already was to get you two to school this late."

"I'm just kidding", you already heard those words thousands of times, and hearing them again was torture.

"And try making friends as well", she also proposed. "Don't mess it up like you did at your old school."

"It's not my fault no one gets my sense of humor", you explained, shrugging your shoulders.

"Replaying with "your mom" to anything is not a sense of humor."