The Truth Behind His Smile

Dinner's Ready

Tenma walked along the hallway. His steps were slow. The brunet's expression was blank. His blue eyes were focused on the front, but sometimes they would switch to the side.

"It's been a while since I've come here." the brunet muttered. A small smile formed on his face. He kept walking slowly, when suddenly he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to the right and Tenma's eyes widened.

It was a large family portrait. There were three people standing in front of a mansion. On the left side, a man was standing proudly. He had straight brown hair, with dark blue eyes. He seemed to be around 20 years old. The man wore a dark brown tuxedo, with a red tie. He also wore black shoes. It was the classic formal attire.

On the right side, there was a woman. She had light brown hair, with light blue eyes. Her hair was slightly swirly like the wind. She wore a light green gown with long sleeves. She didn't wear many accessories, just a plain pearl necklace and earrings. She seemed to be around 20 too, although she looked slightly younger than the man beside her.

Both of them were gripping the back of a big golden chair. There was a young boy sitting on it. The boy had dark brown swirly hair, similar to the woman behind him. He also had big blue eyes. The color was a combination of dark and light blue. The child wore a yellow long-sleeve shirt. On top of it was a red T-shirt. He wore dark blue jeans on the bottom with green shoes. Compared to the adults behind him, it was a casual everyday outfit.

The three of them were smiling. They looked like a happy family.

Tenma's fists balled and he gritted his teeth. His eyes started fill with tears, but he held it in. He shook his head, remembering bits and pieces of the day the portrait was taken.

"Hurry up, Tenma! We can't wait forever." the woman said. Hearing his name, Tenma smiled and approached the woman. "Yes, Mom!"

Tenma's mother smiled, she then put her hand on top of a chair next to her. "Sit here and smile, okay?" she said. Tenma's smile widened and he nodded with excitement. He put one of his legs on top of the chair, desperately trying to sit on it. But, the chair was too big for a small child like him.

Tenma pouted and he tried harder. But, he just can't get on top. Beside him, Tenma's mother smiled at her son's attempt. "You need some help, Tenma?"

The brunet shook his head, "No, I can do it myself!" Tenma's mother sighed; her son was stubborn to the core. She was about to approach him, when something caught her attention.

Tenma, on the other hand, was still struggling to sit on the chair. His attempts were in vain, but that didn't stop him. Suddenly, a pair of arms lifted him off the ground. Tenma gasped, and he looked behind him. The person who lifted him was none other than his father.

"Tenma, everyone needs help sometimes." he chuckled. Tenma pouted angrily at his father. "Mou, Dad! Next time, warn me when you're going to do that!" His father giggled and he put Tenma on top of the chair.

"There, now we can take a picture!" he said, while petting his son's hair. Tenma grinned, glad that he was finally able to sit on the chair. His father grinned as well. A few feet away from them, Tenma's mother smiled softly at her boys.

"But that was a long time ago." Tenma said. He stood in front of the portrait, with his bangs covering his teary blue eyes. The brunet turned towards the woman in the portrait.  

"Everything's changed since you left, Mom." 

Tenma stood there for a few more minutes, then he continued walking back to his room.

-

*KNOCK*

*KNOCK*

Karin knocked on the girl's door. She forgot to inform them that dinner's ready. In fact, she didn't tell them that there was dinner at all. Karin sighed at her own clumsiness, when Haruna opened the door slightly. "Yes?"