Tutor, Tutor

Chapter 5

"I'm home!" Haruko called out in her usual cheerful manner, as she opened the door to her own house. As it had been for the past few days, Rukawa had been following her home after basketball practice for his daily tutoring session.

"Welcome back, Haruko." Her brother, Takenori, loomed at the front door. Haruko squealed in excitement when she saw him; it had been a while since he was home, due to his hectic university schedule. She rushed forward to hug her brother, leaving Rukawa at the behind, staring at their sibling affection. Takenori been waiting for his little sister to return, and he did not expect to see the ice block who was his former teammate, accompanying his baby sister home. He was aware that Haruko had a giant crush on the Shohoku ace since middle school, and now that he'd left for university, suddenly the two of them were together?

"Rukawa?" Takenori couldn't hide the question in his voice, as he released Haruko from his embrace.

"Senpai." Rukawa nodded back in respect, his face indifferent.

"Oniisan, Rukawa-kun is here to study with me." Haruko tried her best to keep her voice calm, though the creep of blush in her cheeks was unmistakable.

Takenori looked at his little sister, judging her explanation, then glanced over at the boy behind her. Well, based on last year's experience, Rukawa wasn't a star student. "Right. Come on in, Rukawa." He let the sophomores enter first, raising an eyebrow at Haruko, still sceptical. Haruko ignored her brother; he was always nosy in her personal life, anyway.

Mrs Akagi, the siblings' mother, called out from the back of the house. "Welcome home, Haruko. Is Rukawa-kun with you?"

"Yes, mother!" Haruko replied, leading Rukawa to the living room, with Takenori in their wake. "We're going to start studying first!"

As the sophomores settled down, Mrs Akagi appeared in the living room, looking all motherly, wearing an apron and a smile. "Hello, Rukawa-kun. Will you join us for dinner?"

Rukawa saw no point in refusing, as Mrs Akagi had asked him the same question every night since day one. "Yes, thank you, Mrs Akagi."

"Brilliant!" Mrs Akagi smiled cheerfully, that Rukawa could clearly see from whom Haruko had inherited her sunny personality. The older lady turned to her son. "Take, don't bother them. Come and help me set the table." She said, in a firm, no-nonsense tone – Takenori's captain voice, Rukawa realised, though Mrs Akagi didn't have to yell to emphasise her point. Takenori nodded, following his mother out of the living room, heading to the kitchen.

"Rukawa-kun, let's start off with maths..." Takenori heard his sister's gentle voice as he left, though he couldn't hear Rukawa's reply.

"Mum, how long has this been going on?" He looked as his mother, who was fussing over the steaming pot on the stove.

"Few days. Pass the salt, please, Take." Mrs Akagi took a slow sip of the broth that she was brewing. Takenori wordlessly handed her the salt, which she sprinkled into the dish. "Set the table for five, will you?"

"Right." Takenori, the ever-responsible child, obediently followed his mother's orders, though he was dissatisfied with his mother's vague reply. The two of them went about their tasks in silence, though Takenori really wanted to interrogate his mother further about Rukawa. His mind was spinning with questions about Haruko's relationship with his junior.

"Rukawa-kun's a nice boy." Mrs Akagi commented, as she ladled the steaming soup into a bowl. "He really likes basketball, though he doesn't talk much."

"He was my teammate last year." Takenori said, arranging the chopsticks on the table. "Mum..."

"Your father will be home soon, and we can all have dinner together." Mrs Akagi neatly cut her son off mid-sentence. She set the bowl of soup onto the dining table and smiled at her son, knowing exactly what he wanted, yet denying it at the same time.