one [sachio ueda]

t h i r t e e n : m a i

Day one of me staying in Yuken's house with Sachio and I'm already pissed. It's not like I had anything better to do. During daytime, I made beaded jewellery and at night, I worked at the cafe.

Yuken had a bookshelf to keep me busy. It was mostly books of poems and mythology. I was reading one of the books when I smelled something strong and pungent. It seemed to come from the living room.

"Sachio!" I yelled, trying to be audible so that it reached the corners of the house.

"What?" He came downstairs irritated. Then he smelled the room too. "What the fuck is that?"

"Poop." I pointed near the window.

"And you couldn't clean it up?"

"You're supposed to do it."

"But you were near it."

"You're the one who's taking care of her. I'm here to supervise."

He grunted in return and went to the kitchen, returning with plastic gloves, a packet and wipes. He wore the gloves and picked it up, blocking his nose with his other hand. His face was priceless.

Not wasting another second, I clicked a picture of him quietly. This will go down in history. I sent the picture to Fujio and he replied immediately.

fujio : are you bullying him
mai : what no
fujio : why does he look constipated
mai : he always looks like that wdym
fujio : poor sachi. i am coming to visit in a few hours
mai : why
fujio : no reason just wanted to see my two fav people

Fujio wasn't lying. He came in wearing a black jacket and torn jeans, a jolly smile on his lips. Torn jeans. Not ripped ones. They tore because of all the fighting and falling.

"Sachi!" Fujio hugged him forcefully even though he didn't hug back. Instead, Sachio smiled softly at him. "Woah, your hair looks good." Fujio raised his hand to touch Sachio's hair but hesitated.

"It's just temporary. The wavy hair will be back after a wash." Sachio ran his hand through his hair.

Then Fujio's eyes fell on me. That's when I knew he was going to start lecturing. "Why did you even stay here? I was planning on buying dinner yesterday. You really don't trust Sachi at all, do you? You should learn to be nice-"

"Fujio. I styled his hair." I cut him in.

Fujio glanced at Sachio and me. "What?" His eyes widened. "You let Mai touch your hair?" He turned towards Sachio.

"She was insisting." Sachio shrugged. "And I don't care either. It's not a big deal."

Sachio really knows how to ruin my mood. What do you mean by 'it's not a big deal'? It is a big deal to me.

Fujio looked at me aggressively. Then his eyes lit up, as if he was reminded of something that he wanted to say. "Oh, Mai! One thing I forgot to mention..." He continued. "I gave Rao your number. He said he wanted to meet the weird girl at dinner that night."

I felt all my muscles stiffen. Fujio couldn't find a better timing to tell me. Sachio looked at me apprehensively. As usual, his expression was difficult to read.

"She met Rao?" He asked Fujio, not taking his eyes off me.

"They're friends now." Fujio patted Sachio's shoulder roughly and grinned. "All thanks to me."

I could see Sachio trying his best to ignore this. He's definitely going to hate me after this. Probably Rao too. He didn't need a proper reason to hate us.

"They're so different though." Sachio moves away from Fujio. "Rao is a nice guy but Mai is just annoying."

"What did you say?" I blinked. So he's not mad?

"Soon Rao will find out how horrendous you are and leave you." He continued.

"He's not like you. He doesn't judge people."

"If he doesn't scare you away, the others from Suzaran will." Sachio ignored my reply.

"What's your problem?"

"Nothing."

"It doesn't seem like it."

"I can express myself without caring about something." He narrowed his eyes. "It's called entertainment."

"Looks like you too are getting along well." Fujio grinned wider. "You'll be good friends in no time!"

"Spare me." Sachio turned away. "I don't need friends like her."

Fujio knew that was insolent. He glanced at both of nervously and quickly regained his smile back, putting his arm over Sachio's shoulder.

"Sachi, do you want to take Coco?" Fujio kept walking away with Sachio.

"Yeah, sure." He replied, their voices becoming less audible as they get out of the house with her.

I was left standing, flabbergasted and dumbfounded. Fujio didn't say anything in my defense. So much for a childhood friend. I was stuck here alone and I couldn't leave the house either since Sachio took the keys with him. The only thing I could do is go back to reading the delicate, yellowed books.