S C A N D A L

Chapter Thirteen

The bunraku was mostly performed in modern theaters with Western-style seats and divided into two segments. One would be performed in the early afternoon and another towards the evening. Each segment was further divided into acts.

Arisu Matsumoto insisted that it should be held at the mansion on the island and Gorou supported his wife wholeheartedly. Takeo was now starting to regret sending a private plane to fetch his mother. If he could have it his way, he would've just sent Kurou and Shiro to meet the old lady at her private residence. While Azumi was simply praying that the couple survived all these hullaballoos. She was also trying her best to keep everything under control given Masahiko's foul mood and Tetsuya's endless babbling. Only Raiden seemed well-behaved but that was because his attention was fixed on Shiro's cousin.

"Please tell me you didn't prepare anything embarrassing," Takeo leaned in to whisper to Masaru and Shichiro who were both assigned to organize the traditional puppet show for grandmother's entertainment.

Masaru and Shichiro laughed awkwardly and exchanged meaningful glances.

"It's all under control," Shichiro winked.

The puppeteers arrived and prepared the stage within the mansion house. Yoshihiro sat beside Shiro who was obviously looking around for his dearest husband. "It's confirmed."

"What's confirmed?" Shiro asked, not looking at him.

"Your Oka-san is arriving this afternoon."

Shiro quickly turned to glance at his cousin. "What? I thought she wouldn't be back from her overseas job until next week?"

"What am I supposed to do? Your mother-in-law invited her, of course, Auntie will do everything in her power to come home!"

Shiro's groan was akin to tears---tears of frustration! The last thing he wanted in addition to this torture was his mother.

"What's up?" Kurou arrived to sit beside him, kissing his cheek as though it was the most normal thing to do in the world.

Surprisingly, Shiro was no longer uncomfortable with the action. Something that puzzled and bothered him. After that incident between them, they reverted back to their normal selves, avoiding even eye contact.

Yet, Shiro recalled those words clearly inside his head...

Teach me how love is supposed to be

It wasn't a dream.

But the man beside was acting like it was...

"Where have you been?" he asked instead.

"Phone call."

He stiffened. Deep inside, he was dying to ask who did he call and what the phone call was about. The question was---did he have any right?

Also, did he really want to know?

"This is a disaster..." Kurou muttered beside him.

Shiro shrugged. "Not like we have any choice. Unless you tell them the truth."

"Truth about what?"

"About us."

Kurou glanced briefly but Shiro refused to meet his gaze.

Their attention quickly diverted to the situation in front of them and the excitement of Oba-chan who kept clapping her hands when the show hadn't even started. Bunraku puppets were about one-half size and each was operated by three performers---a principal and two assistants. Strings weren't used but rather puppeteers cooperate to maneuver the limbs, eyelids, eyeballs, eyebrows, and mouths of the puppets, thereby producing lifelike actions and facial expressions. Though the puppeteers were in full view of the audience, they were dressed in black to suggest that they have to be taken as "invisible".