Her Garden

Chapter 8

1:25 AM

No matter what I did, I couldn't fall asleep and TV was getting boring. I sighed and finally got up off of the couch, quietly walking up to my room.

The first thing I noticed was that stack of papers on my bed, topped with a wilting rose.

Her smile flashed in my mind.

I wasn't ready for it. I wasn't prepared for something so happy and fragile to jump into my line of sight.

I shook my head.

Being a guy, I honestly thought she wouldn't want to talk to me after I showed her where she was supposed to go. I figured she'd just thank me and let it go.

Especially considering I was kind of an asshole.

I grabbed the stack of papers and set them on my desk, searching around for a pencil.

Where the hell would I keep a pencil? Is it acceptable to use a pen?

I eventually gave up and groaned, walking into my dads room.

He was sat on his bed, typing on his laptop while scribbling down notes on a sheet of paper.

"Dad.", I whispered to him, making him glance at me and raise his eyebrows. "You working?"

"Yep.", he sighed. "Need something?"

"Yes. A pencil. Apparently they're a luxury in this household."

"Check our everything drawer in the kitchen."

"You don't have one with you?"

"Nope. I'm using a pen. Why do you need a pencil this late anyway?"

"Because I have papers to do and turn in tomorrow that I'll need to erase on."

He raised his eyebrows so far up that they practically fused with his hairline.

"You're doing schoolwork?"

"Well...I-...Yea."

He smiled.

"If you need help, just come ask."

"Yea. Whatever."

I left his room and went down to the kitchen, opening the drawer we put random nicknacks in. And sure enough, I found a god damned pencil.

Finally.

I quickly ran back upstairs and sat down at my desk, forcing myself to read material that I barely understood.

I already don't want to do this anymore.

Doing schoolwork made me feel stupid. Though, I knew it was only because of the fact that I hadn't done it in three months.

I should ask Dad for help.

Yea. I'll do that.

I didn't move.

WHY AM I STILL SITTING HERE

YOU STUBBORN RAT GET UP AND ASK FOR HELP

I sighed.

I'm not gonna get up am I?

"Damn...", I tapped my pencil against my ring finger, trying my best to focus. My mind just kept going elsewhere.

Anything to keep me distracted.

Inappropriate scenarios, cats, food, that one song that's been stuck in my head since I was ten that I will NEVER know the name of.

I looked down at my paper and realized I had finished it.

Wait what.

I double checked my answers which were about 89% right. Maybe. Hard to tell.

Maybe I'm not as big of an idiot as I thought I was.

For some reason, thinking about other things made it a bit easier to work. I'd mindlessly scribble down my answers, sometimes accidentally writing down a word that I was thinking.

It's okay, I erased those mistakes.

I looked up at a picture of my mom, which was propped up on the corner of my desk, and smile.

"See Mom, Im actually not an idiot. Shocking isn't it?"

Seeing her looking back at me while I worked actually made me feel comforted. And a tad sick.

I missed her so much.

"You know...I probably shouldn't be distracting myself with sexual scenarios while talking to my dead mom and attempting to do homework. My bad. Also wow, I could have said anything else but that.."

I heard a laugh come from behind me, making me flinch and turn around so quickly that it made my head spin.

"Sorry! Did I scare you?"

"Yes!"

"I heard your music playing from downstairs.", she smiled softly as I paused the music on my phone. "And wow, your room is clean."

"I don't have any reason to mess it up.", I shrugged. "But did my music wake you up?"

"Nope. A girl on the TV screamed and...that woke me up"

"Well you should go back to sleep, you've got school in the morning."

"Don't you as well?", she crossed her arms and gently glared at me, as if daring me to disagree.

"I'm not going."

"But that's not fair!", she whined, running over to me and grabbing the pencil out of my hand, pressing the sharp end against the top of my nose. "You have to go!"

"Take the pencil away from my face please, Natsuko."

She rolled her eyes and set the pencil down on my desk.

"Why would you do the work if you're not going?"

"Maybe I'm just bored. Ever think of that?"

"It's like one in the morning.", she scoffed. "You have to give the work to your teachers."

"Nah."

"Are you even trying?"

"Well Yea but-"

"Look! You got this one wrong!", she pointed at a problem on my paper and frowned.

"Yea? Why don't you do it yourself then?", I retorted. She shrugged and sat down in my lap, making me completely freeze in place.

"Maybe I will."

"Idiot.", I pinched her arm quickly, grabbing her attention. "I'm not a chair."

You can't just sit on a guy like that!

"And I'm not gonna let you fail."

I crossed my arms and sighed.

"Look, you can help if you'll get off of me. I have a folding chair in my closet you can use."

She smiled brightly and jumped up, running over to my closet.

Like I said. Carefree.