one [sachio ueda]

n i n e : m a i

I shifted uncomfortably. I had fallen asleep and I didn't want to wake up. I groaned as I turned to the other side.

...

Wait a minute.

I wasn't in my house.

And I was supposed to look after the puppy.

And I could feel someone's presence in front of me.

Opening my eyes, I saw Sachio sitting straight on the couch and looking at me.

"The fuck are you looking at?" I jumped up. Looking at someone while the person is sleeping is actually creepy.

"Wondering how someone can sleep so much."

"Huh?" I looked outside. The sun had already set. "Holy shit."

"Get up. You didn't eat lunch."

"Huh?" I probably sounded like an idiot.

"Is 'huh' the only word in your vocabulary?" He got up. "Get up. There's stew on the table."

I looked around. Coco was outside in the garden, sniffing around the mud. My back was aching because of the terrible posture I slept in. I even slept without a pillow.

"I don't like stew."

Sachio turned around and stared at me. "Aren't you trying to lose weight?"

Wow, he didn't have to be so triggering.

I got up slowly. "Nevermind. It's nearly dinner time."

He didn't stop staring at me. He definitely didn't like the fact that I was skipping meals.

"Do whatever you want." He spat, turning around and heading towards the garden.

Coco was digging the ground, burying sticks inside, chewing on grass and biting off flowers. Sachio walked over to her and when she saw him, she started wagging her tail. He picked her up and started talking to her. I couldn't hear what he was saying but he was smiling.

Okay. Maybe I was a bit incorrect about him being completely indifferent with dogs.

He kept talking to Coco. The way he was talking concerned me. I wasn't concerned about him. I knew he was insane. I was concerned about Coco.

I went out in the garden. "What are you doing?" I snapped.

He ignored me and kept petting her.

"Get in. There are mosquitoes outside." I crossed my arms.

That made him stop. He picked her up and went inside, walking past me. The way he ignored me needed to be studied.

"What's there for dinner?" I asked after we went inside.

"For you? That cold stew that you didn't eat at lunch." He answered, putting Coco down on the tiled floor. Coco sprang away towards her small bed where a few toys were kept and started chewing on them.

"And what are you having?"

"Chicken." He smirked.

"Chicken?" I gaped at him. He was doing this on purpose.

"Coco is having chicken too."

Sachio knew how to make me angry. And he kept trying to make me angry because I was good at pretending to be calm. It's like he's trying to poke a needle into me so that I burst.

Later at night, when Sachio was in the kitchen preparing dinner and I was on the couch with my phone, I received a call from an unknown number.

"Hello?"