Love Game

Chapter 8:

Aoba apparently lived with his grandmother. The woman was named Tae. Old, grumpy, and not really a people-person, she was some kind of expert on what he and I 'were'.

I still didn't really get it. What was I supposed to be? What was Scrap, and the clandestine atmosphere all about? Who exactly were we to hide from?

Nobody has actually said if we were hiding... As of now, it's only a theory. But why else would everything be so secretive?

Patience. All in good time. Take a breather and relax, Anna.

Aoba was the first to enter a house. Said house was average looking. In between two other homes, there was hardly any space around the house. Yard space was all but unspeakable, yet the place still looked picturesque.

So this is what it's like to see a well-preserved house. It's beautiful.

Aoba glanced around quickly, looking for someone in particular warily. He closed the door once everyone was in the foyer, and took his shoes off at the door.

"Granny I'm ho-"

"STUPID GRANDSON!"

Clear and I jump, both of us soon hiding behind Aoba. He wasn't much braver, as he had to take a deep breath in, in order to enter the house more.

I wait for another outburst, while quickly taking my shoes off as well. I keep them away from the other shoes out of respect, knowing that this isn't my household.

"Ah, so loud," Aoba whined. His hand reached up to rub his left ear.

"How many times do I have to tell you to lock the door?" An elderly woman with pink hair entered the hallway.

She silenced herself from saying anything else, her eyes landing on me and Clear. Her mood slightly changed, though she maintained her strict appearance.

"Tch, you could have said you brought guests! I'll make food. You three, get in the kitchen."

Not wanting to make the lady any more upset, I complied as quickly as possible. Clear follows me like a puppy dog, his shoulders slumped.

Tae was in the kitchen by the time I sat down. She was putting something together; something I couldn't identify. Whatever it was, it seemed to be some type of dough-based snack.

"Granny, there's something we need to discuss with you," Aoba finally said.

Although the silence broke, making the area more comfortable, Tae was just as irritable as before. Not bothering to look back at us, she started to wash a large pan.

"Help me set the table. We will talk then." Turning to me and Clear, she gave a faint unexpected smile. "I'll fetch you two some tea in a minute. Let me wash the pan first."

No rush, lady. This is your house, after all.

Despite the hospitality, I got an odd feeling that I was somehow an intruder. Could you blame me? It couldn't be any more evident that Clear and I were unanticipated company. Yet, it would seem that Clear had met Tae before. I could see that the two shared an unspoken respect for one another.

Like Tae said, about a minute later, tea was set in front of me. It was fresh from the looks of it. Steam was rolling off the surface, and there were no stains on the inside of the cup.

What the freaking hell was this? It smelled nice. It looked disgusting though. Was it supposed to be green? Was this even tea? It looked like dirty water- maybe sewage water. Nah, it's too transparent for sewage water...