Chihiro Hanagaki

Chapter 5

"How long have the two been dating? What does this girl see in Takemichi? Is this girl brain damaged?" Hibiki pressed. Chihiro was thoroughly annoyed by Hibiki's constant pestering. She could already feel her cheeks inflating like a squirrel with a mouth full of nuts. It was a habit she couldn't shake, even as a child. Hibiki knew all too well what the look meant. Upon noticing her puffy cheeks, she poked her inflated cheek. "I'm overreacting a little, huh?" she questioned.

Chihiro turned her head away from her hand, "More than a little." Takemichi having a girlfriend wasn't the most bizarre thing in the world. Sometimes, she felt jealous that he found someone to have such a connection with. Chihiro was always too focused on other things to worry about dating, even in her past life. Even if his reason for running to Hinata's house was to find Naoto, he still was comforted by her. Hinata was able to restore his hope and drive to fix the past. She took comfort in knowing that he'd be fine.

'Ugh, why have I never had a boyfriend?' Her cheeks puffed out more, once again feeling very single. "Chi, you look like a pufferfish now!" Hibiki commented with a bit of panic. Chihiro let out a huge sigh, allowing her face to return to normal. Chihiro frowned, asking, "Hey Ikki, why have we never had boyfriends?" The question seemed to take Hibiki by surprise. It hadn't even been fifteen minutes since the whole debacle with Takemichi.

After Chihiro assured Hibiki that Takemichi would be fine, the two began their way to her house when Hibiki had her freakout about her brother's relationship status. That's when the idea of significant others planted a seed in her head. She didn't know why she never pursued a relationship. Plenty of guys had asked her out. Chihiro just never had an interest in any of the guys. "A-are you serious?" she stammered.

Chihiro tilted her head, "Yes, I'm curious." Hibiki stopped walking to hold her sides as she cackled, "Chi-hahaha. Chichi, you're too focused on school, your brother, and karate. Hahaha, so many guys have approached you. Man, it was so hilarious to see the looks on their faces. Pft, some of them didn't even get a chance to pour their heart out to you when you turned them down." Tears were running down the pinkette's face at this point. She laughed even harder when Chihiro's cheeks puffed out again. "You seemed to forget that you're single too." she huffed.

Hibiki stood straight with a big smirk, "Fair point. But I don't turn down every guy who asks me out. I at least test the waters." Chihiro pointed an accusing finger at her, "So that's why you skip practice so much!" She knew she guessed right since Hibiki's smirk morphed into a Cheshire grin. "My point still stands. If you want a boyfriend in the future, give a guy a chance," she advised with a shrug. 'Give a guy a chance. Maybe I'll do that.' she thought as they approached her house.

It was then Hibiki's thoughts returned to the events from earlier. "By the way. How did you know Takemichi was going to his girlfriends?" she asked. Chihiro opened the front door, glancing back at Hibiki, "You saw how scared and upset he was. Even in the present, I could never make him feel better. I could never ground Takemichi when he felt everything was out of his control. Hinata is the only person who can put him back on track. I only add fuel to the flame of uncertainty. So, that's the only place I could think he'd go." In all the years she's been in this world in the Hanagaki family, she still could never help Takemichi understand. She always felt a pang in her heart to know nothing she could say would comfort or empower him. His words from a drunken bender still stuck with her, 'Do you know how embarrassing it is that my little sister is stronger, smarter, and more successful than me?! Everything you do is like a reminder of how pathetic I am!'

"Chihiro, that's not true." Hibiki gasped. She felt happy to have someone like Hibiki in her life. But she still couldn't shake those words from that night. Chihiro knew that Takemichi was going through a lot and was bitter. Chihiro knew that her brother cared about her. His words still hurt her. "Let's go inside," she muttered. Hibiki nodded and followed behind Chihiro up to her room. Her bedroom was across from Takemichi, connected to a Jack and Jill bathroom. Her room had lavender walls with a bed pressed against her window. Her desk is against another wall with a shelf full of One Piece and Yu Yu Hakusho manga.

Being in her old bedroom made her feel a little nostalgic. This room in the present was used for storage by her parents after she moved out. Chihiro collapsed on her bed while Hibiki took a seat at her desk. "Are you okay?" she asked. Chihiro lifted her face to see her reflection in the window. Her blue eyes were duller than usual, "Mentally or physically?" Hibiki shrugged, "Both." She sat up and turned to face Hibiki, "Honestly, I don't know. I just hope that I can do better with Takemichi this time." Hibiki smiled warmly and said, "I'm sure you will."

They hung out in her room watching TV, attempting to get her mind off things. That was when the two heard the front door open. "I'm home!" Takemichi called. Chihiro glanced at Hibiki, who had just hopped off the bed. "Where are you going?" she confusedly asked. "It's about time for me to head home. You should talk to Takemichi," she told her. Chihiro followed Hibiki to the front door, where they found Takemichi removing his shoes. Takemichi's left eye was starting to swell from where he'd been punched. He had a bunch of other scrapes and bruises as well. "Oh hey." he greeted the two awkwardly.

Hibiki walked past him, slipping her shoes on, "I'll see you at school tomorrow." Chihiro nodded, "Get home safe." Hibiki responded with a wave and left the two standing at the entrance. Now that they were alone, there was only one thing Chihiro could think to do. "Let's get that iced," she said, holding out her hand to her brother. Takemichi didn't say anything, but she could tell by the frown he wasn't happy. He reluctantly took her hand and allowed himself to be led into the kitchen.

She searched the freezer for a cold compress while Takemichi took a seat at the table. "Did you talk with Hina?" she asked. He made a startled noise, "How did-" Chihiro momentarily stopped her search to glance at her brother, "You'd always go to see her when you're this upset." Takemichi always seemed baffled that his sister could read him so easily. Chihiro didn't need her knowledge of the anime to know him. "I did go over there...but not to see Hina." he clarified.

Chihiro hmmed as she pulled the cold compress out. "The truth is...I went there to find Naoto," he admitted. Takemichi kept his eyes glued to the floor, gripping the edge of the chair tightly. She could see that he was ashamed of his actions. The two came back in time to prevent Hinata from getting killed. 'She's going to lecture me, I know it,' he thought. When he didn't get hit with a full-blown rant he hesitantly looked up. Chihiro was busy wrapping the compress in a thin towel. He was unsure, "I ugh...aren't you gonna lecture me?"

His sister sighed, "Do you want me to lecture you?" Takemichi frowned, "no." With the compress in hand, she went over to Takemichi and placed it gently over his eye. She sat across from him, "I'm not lecturing you because what we're doing isn't easy. I don't blame you for feeling overwhelmed." Takemichi held the compress to his eye, using the other to stare at his sister wide-eyed. 'This isn't like her at all.' he thought.

*Takemichi's POV*

She's not yelling or lecturing me. Chihiro didn't want to lecture me at all. Chihiro never hesitated to get on to me. Instead, she's just sitting there looking so sullen. Even though it always annoyed me, I didn't like seeing her this way. "Are you okay?" I asked. She leaned forward on the table, resting her chin on her hand. "I've just been thinking a lot. Takemichi, you know I don't think I'm better than you, right?" she questioned.

The vulnerable look on her face told me she was seriously asking. For our whole lives, Chihiro had always done better than me. Our parents would always compare us together. I hated to say that it made me feel resentful of her. I was in a dark place until this happened. Someone tried to kill me and my sister. I was terrified to know that my sister could have died.

I wanted to kick my own ass for even thinking such terrible things about her. Who resents their sibling for being successful? I needed to do better this time.

*No One POV*

When her brother didn't respond to her, she felt another pang in her chest. His silence only confirmed that he did think that. "For someone so smart, you're kinda dumb." he huffed. Chihiro snapped her head up, "Huh?" Takemichi ruffled her hair, "Of course, I don't think that!" Chihiro is shocked by this news. She was so shocked that she couldn't stop the tears from flowing.

Chihiro was relieved to know that he didn't feel that way. Even if it felt that way before, she didn't care. Takemichi smiled, 'I'll do better.' Chihiro jumped on Takemichi wrapping her arms around him, 'I'll do better.'