The Irreversible Fate of a Coffee shop Couple

Chapter 4

"Uh, hello," a young woman's voice spoke through the phone, "Who is this?" The voice was sweet, but simple. It sounded like the voice of a woman who had known comfort, but of the most wonderful kind. Comfort from love. Alibaba took a breath.

"Ah, yeah I'm Alibaba. Uh, your friend, Seishun is it? He gave me your number. Said you were tutoring business majors?" Well that went smoothly.

"Oh, yes. When would you like to meet?"

"Would tomorrow be good?" Alibaba knew he was asking for a lot, but he really was going to have to cram if he even had a chance of passing his test.

"Um, well, it's a little sudden, but okay," the girl said, "Do you go to Sindria University? If so, then we could meet at the library. Is two okay?" Alibaba had no popularity. In life. Of course two was good.

"Yeah, see you there. Thanks."

"Goodbye." Suddenly Alibaba realized he had another question.

"Hey!"

"Huh?"

"Are you in related to a girl named Kougyoku by any chance?"

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She was. They were sisters. But also cousins. He never was sure how you would choose to refer each other when in a situation like that but Hakuei seemed to prefer sister. He found himself hoping Kougyoku would call soon. It hadn't been long, but he still felt himself drawn to her. The sad part was, he hadn't gotten her number. Which meant that whenever anyone called, he would make a race across his dorm room to pick up the phone. He had ended up answering very strange calls, half of them he couldn't tell if they were pranks or legitimate. He also had been told to VOTE NOW, YOUR FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT!!!!! Those calls were always very irritating. Dorji seemed to think that it was payback for teasing him about Touya. As two arrived the next day, Alibaba knew that he was going to ask Hakuei about Kougyoku.

Alibaba stood in front of the library, and walked inside. In a moment of panic he realized that he didn't know what Hakuei looked like, but then he saw a girl he knew had to be her. Her hair was neatly arranged, seeming almost perfect in a homely way. Her clothing was the same, in floral print that matched her scent. She gave off an aura of calm and peace. He walked over to her.

"You're Hakuei, right?" Unfazed, she smiled.

"And you must be Alibaba." He nodded. "Did you bring your textbook?" For once, Alibaba wasn't unprepared. He took it out of a bag. She nodded. "It's the same one I used when I was your grade." The two of them walked over to a table.

"Before we start, I have a question?" Alibaba said. "Is there a reason Kougyoku, uh, your sister hasn't called me?"

"No, there shouldn't be." Well great. How embarrassing. Kougyoku must have not really liked him.

"A-alright then. Let's start work." They sat down to studying, and Alibaba felt completely flustered. None of this information seemed familiar. Absolutely everything was new. Thinking back to when he had been in class, he realized that he hadn't been paying attention for a while. He had spent a lot of time dreaming up his future company. That and reading novels by his favorite author about his own adventures in the business world. Maybe he should have actually listened while the teacher was teaching. By the end of his study lesson, he asked if they could meet again the next day. Luckily for him, Hakuei had nothing for the week, so he could study with her all week. Alibaba believed in a God that day. A god with Hakuei's face. Alibaba said goodbye to her, and they parted in their ways. Alibaba began walking to his dorm when he caught a flash of pinkish reddish hair. Kougyoku! He thought. He rushed forward, chasing through the trees to try and get to her. But she seemed too far away. He ran faster, chasing after her as she turned a corner. As he turned the corner, the girl faced him. It wasn't Kougyoku. And on second look, he wasn't sure they were a girl either.

"Why are you following me?" Girl or boy... Argh this person's voice wasn't too low or too high. "Excuse me?"

"Are you... Um..."

"I'll have you know my family can sue you for stalking. 'Cause that's what this is. Stalking."

"Are you a Ren?"

"What? Why would you ask that? Yes, I am!"

"Oh, so then you're Hakuei and Kougyoku's little sister."

"Excuse me?!" The girl's voice was shrill know. "First off, I am the same age as Kougyoku! And second off, I am a guy!" Whoops. He guessed wrong. The boy took a breath. "And usually I am so calm. You are a very irritating person I'll have you know." Something told Alibaba that this wasn't a very calm person.

"Sorry, sorry, it was a mistake." He held out his hand. "I'm Alibaba." The boy didn't take it.

"I'm Kouha."

"Wow did your parents have themed naming it something? Or is it a twin thing...?" Kouha rolled his eyes.

"Kougyoku and I are not twins, we're half siblings. And it's a part of our culture!" Kouha put heavy emphasis on the last word. Wow, Alibaba really was offending him.

"Okay, wait, so Kougyoku and you are half siblings?"

"Yeah."

"But then Hakuei and you are cousins and adopted siblings?"

"Yeah." A kind of confusing family tree, but not too bad. "But then there's also Brother En, Brother Mei, Hakuryuu, Kourin, and a bunch of my other sisters, but they don't really matter." Kouha held up a hand. "So I guess I have eleven siblings." Alibaba took back what he had said before. "But anyway, you didn't answer my previous question. Why were you following me?"

"I sorta thought of were your sister." Kouha shrugged.

"It happens." So this didn't set him off?!

"Listen, I have to get going." Alibaba said. "I'll probably get the chance to see you around campus sometime." Kouha mock shuddered.

"I hope not." Alibaba rolled his eyes and walked away. He finally got home to his dorm, and sat on his bed. He kept meeting the Ren family! Pretty soon and he would be an honorary member of the family! Alibaba wondered how a family like this had caused so much damage to his father's company and the restaurant Dorji worked at. Other than Kouha and Judar, the rest of the family seemed pretty nice. But still, Alibaba got the feeling he was walking into something bigger than him.

Author's note: I'm really sorry all my chapters are so short! And late! This one is on time though! I hope you enjoyed it, and comment!