Little Tiger

Ignorance is bliss

I was lonely at school again. It appears I had been holding Callie back this whole time because she became friends with the popular girls almost immediately after her memories were erased. I was not doing well in English anymore because I did not have her answers to copy from. But I was not as sad about this new arrangement as I thought I would be. My school days were quiet again which I didn't really mind. It gave me an opportunity to do better in school (I was not doing well in any area before because Callie and I talked more than we learned), and I liked being by myself--it was much calmer than it was without Callie constantly talking into my ear, giving me no time to concentrate on anything but what she was saying. We still had to sit next to each other and it was unsettling to be able to recognize her so easily when she couldn't do the same for me. Part of me assumed she would befriend me again after she got her memories erased. I thought that she might make a comment about my hair again, like she did before. But she didn't. That could have been Hatori's mind control at work. The day before summer break began, Callie had floated to the back of the room and she was whispering quite loudly (she could never whisper in an actual whisper, her raucous tone could not permit that) to the popular girls. I couldn't make out much of their conversation, but I understood that they were gossiping about me. 

Very clearly, I made out: "I wish I could sit with you all instead. Maybe I'll tell Sensei that she smells bad or distracts me so that I could get a seat change." Then her voice faded out unintelligibly and I could not hear her anymore. 

I felt my face flush with embarrassment and I leaned over my textbook, hiding in it while I laboriously copied down notes. Just days ago, we were talking about all of those girls, saying similar things about them that she was saying about me now.  

Summer break came without the big explosion of fireworks and congratulations that I was anticipating only a week earlier. None of that mattered anymore. I was just tired and looking forward to sleeping through the whole break, and already dreading the day I had to return and see Callie and those horrible girls again. But underneath my gloom and dissatisfaction, I was still looking forward to spending time with Shigure and whatever that entailed...

Akari put me to work one afternoon in his office upon my request. I was bored already with summer break and wanted something to do besides attempt to read the books Shigure had bought me, lay in the garden, sleep in, and ask the boys to go places with me (to which they always declined).  

After four hours of filing papers, answering phone calls, and assisting Akari's appointments, we were finished with the day. 

"Would you like to grab some dinner?" Akari offered, stretching his back out with an ostentatious grunt. 

Akari had been very insistent on Hatori and I spending time with him lately. We had eaten dinner at his house every day for the past week. Dinner seemed to be the only thing Akari knew to do with us. 

"Like at your house?" I asked, even though I knew it was too formal of an invitation to only be at his house. 

"Let's go out," he suggested, waving his hand as if to say, why the hell not? "The estate isn't very lively today and I'm quite bored," he added. 

I had noticed how unusually quiet the main house was--so quiet I was sure even Akito wasn't around. Some days were like this, but they were rare so I was always surprised when they occurred. Shigure, Ayame, and Hatori had not come to see me once.  

"Where is everyone?" I asked, knitting my eyebrows together as I peered into the vacant hallway outside of Akari's office. 

He shrugged his shoulders. He never knew where anyone was. But it seemed like he kept tabs on me pretty well. "I think Akito is in the garden, but I don't know about everyone else," he explained while shuffling papers around on his desk, his glasses falling down to the tip of his nose.