Haruna and Anna finally left me after I helped them both. Once they were out of sight, I swelled with pride and joy because Haruna had complimented me. When I got home, Stjue and Haha called for me. I went in and sat in front of them.
"Doshita? Stjue?" "Franky, your grandfather called me and Haha back to Hokkaido." "Huh? Hokkaido!?" I replied, confused. "Your grandfather needs us both to help with the harvest," Haha said. "Wait a minute, so I'll be alone here?" I couldn't believe it. "Daijobu, you have company," Stjue said casually.
I just stared blankly, then Haha called someone to come in. When that person entered, I was spontaneously shocked beyond words. It was none other than Tachibana Haruna, my school friend. Haruna was wearing a complete Yukata. I absolutely couldn't believe it! How could Haruna be at my house?! Why was she even here?! I tried rubbing my eyes, disbelief washing over me, but after rubbing them multiple times, it was still Haruna.
"Osashiburi desu, Franky," Haruna smiled at me. (Long time no see, Franky) "Oh, you know Franky?" "Hai, he's in the same school as me." "Speaking of which, Stjue, a—" "UNTIL YOU GRADUATE!" Stjue cut me off.
I couldn't speak because Stjue cut me off; I just wore a dumbfounded expression. I felt like something was a bit off here. First, Haruna was at my house. What else? I still couldn't put my finger on it.
"Haruna, Franky, listen. Papa and Mama are going to Hokkaido tomorrow morning. So don't be naughty." "Hai-hai. Boku wa kodomo janai." (Yes, yes. I'm not a child.) "And don't do anything inappropriate with Haruna," Stjue teased. "STJUEEEEE!!" I was annoyed.
It's true, I'm still single and don't have a girlfriend. I haven't even thought about having a girlfriend because I'm too deeply immersed in my path as a Bushin. Every human needs love, but I've even forgotten this one thing. Love.
After talking, my family and I finally had dinner with Haruna. I still felt a little shy; Haruna was actually living in the same house as me. I even choked twice just by looking at Haruna's incredibly cute face. After dinner, I meditated standing outside the house, holding my Katana. As soon as something approached, I mercilessly sliced it with my katana. After finishing, I resumed meditating. Haruna appeared from the rooftop. Haruna landed safely (she is a Kunoichi, after all). Then Haruna slowly walked towards me.
"Haruna, how did you know this place?" "I saw the Date clan crest on your saya."
By "saya," she meant the scabbard. I saw my saya had the Date crest in the middle. Haruna showed her Kunai; it was twice the size of a normal kunai. I saw the Date crest on the handle (I forgot the name), the same as the crest on my sword scabbard. After seeing it, Haruna challenged me to a duel. The duel was just a training duel between a Samurai and a Kunoichi. I finally accepted Haruna's challenge. The training began; I often got hit by her body-swapping technique rather than hitting the real Haruna. Then I managed to find the real Haruna and avoid her substitution. When I let my guard down, Haruna managed to get behind me, pointing her Kunai. This was the first time I had been defeated by a Kunoichi.
"RINGGGGG!"
My alarm clock started ringing; my dream was still the same as the one I had back in Hokkaido. I didn't understand who the girl I met when I was little was. My childhood memories felt "self-deleted" in my mind. My mind seemed unwilling to remember the past. I got out of bed and out of my room. I saw a gray-and-white creature with a wagging tail and a tongue sticking out. No way it's a... Whoa! A dog, that's right! No way a cat would wag its tail, bark, and stick out its tongue. I looked closer, and it turned out to be a Siberian Husky. It was only two months old. So small!
I saw a letter tucked into the dog's collar. I took and unrolled the paper and read it. What I felt was shock and surprise. It turned out this dog was going to be my boredom reliever. Its name was Husky (I gave it the name; I wasn't very creative). Well... it could work, I guess. I saw Haruna come out of her room after waking up.
"Ohayo, Haruna." (Good morning, Haruna) "Ohayo, Franky.... HWAAAAAAA!"
Haruna moved away from me, who was holding the Husky that hadn't barked yet. Husky and I were both confused. I felt like Haruna had a trauma with dogs. Even though she was still a child. When I tried to get closer to Haruna, she quickly moved far away from me and went to the bathroom. I was confused again. Is Haruna allergic to dogs?
"Uh.... Haruna... what's wrong with you?" I was confused. "NOOO!! DON'T COME NEAR ME!! I'M ALLERGIC!!!" Haruna was terrified.
I almost burst out laughing seeing Haruna's behavior, being allergic to dogs. I tried to hold back my laughter, but then... THAT DAMN DOG!! IT POOPED IN MY HAND AGAIN!!! I immediately put (read: threw) Husky into the living room. And washed my hands until the nasty smell was gone.
"HARUNA!! What are you doing in the bathroom, huh!?" "I'm taking a shower!! Why!?"
Huh?! Taking a shower, good chance to peek at her body, see if it's "Nyihoi" or not. Hehehehe. Wait!? The situation is critical right now because this annoying Husky pooped on my hand!! Damn it!! The smell is terrible!!
"Haruna!! Hayaku!! Emergency!!" (Quickly!!) "He? Doshita?!" (Huh? What's wrong?!) "HUSKY POOPED ON MY HAND!!"
Haruna burst out laughing because my hand got "poop" from Husky. I felt so disgusted because Husky pooped on my favorite shirt. And I just bought this shirt! Good thing I woke up at 4 AM. Finally, Haruna came out of the bathroom. I immediately took a bath with seven kinds of flowers, for seven days and seven centuries. (If it's seven days and seven centuries, when will it end?). I even used half a bottle of my soap because Husky pooped on my hand and got on my clothes. I almost threw up because of the smell of Husky's poop on my clothes.
I came out feeling annoyed because Husky had pooped on me. I looked down and saw Husky with a guilty expression. I finally forgave the dog and petted him. Then I took out a book on how to raise a dog. I read the book while stroking Husky's head. Without realizing it, Husky saw my hand and licked it. I spontaneously felt ticklish from Husky's lick, and then I started playing with Husky.
It was 5 AM, time for breakfast and to head to school. I saw Haruna had already eaten breakfast. This time, it was a Japan-style breakfast: grilled salmon, miso shiru, rice, and pickles. Usually, I just drink low-fat milk. But this was the first time I missed seeing a breakfast like this. What can I say, I also miss Hokkaido.
"You made it, Haruna?" "Um, I made it." "Ahh~~~, I miss this so much~~~"
I immediately ate savagely because I missed my food in Hokkaido. I devoured all the salmon and rice, slurped down all the miso shiru and pickles, and I even ate all the plates and chopsticks. (No, just kidding, I was just being playful.) I instantly felt full, like a pregnant woman.
"Thanks for the meal." "Um... Franky-kun," "Hm? What is it, Haruna?" "Atashi ryoori, doo? (How's my cooking?)" Haruna asked shyly. "Hontoni sugoi!! Oishi desu!! (Truly amazing!! It's delicious!!)" I said, giving a thumbs up.
I saw Haruna's face turn red after I praised her. Haruna thanked me for complimenting her cooking. Then I stood up from my seat. Suddenly, Haruna called me and said, "I Love U!!" No, not dodot!! This is the real thing!!
"We should keep this a secret." "You mean you're living at my house?" "Hai..." (Yes) "Don't worry, I'll go in one ear and out the other."
Haruna became relieved and happy. I put on my uniform, and when I left the room, Haruna had already gone to school by leaping across rooftops. As for me, I drove myself to school. I finally arrived after Haruna. I sat in my seat, still pretending not to know Haruna. First period was Sociology, with GTH (Great Teacher Heru). The theme this time was 'Multiculturalism'. All the boys sat in the very front when discussing pornography. Oh dear... it seems my friends were immediately excited because the theme was 'Multiculturalism'. Surely there would also be something about Miss Universe and pornography. Well, you know... he's GTH, GTO's brother, it's not in vain to have a teacher like Mr. Onizuka (Huh?) I mean, someone whose behavior is similar to Onizuka's.
Sociology class finally ended. Then the second period was Indonesian, with Mr. Rossi. He teaches very firmly, clearly, and concisely, or more precisely, very clearly, like a news anchor on TV. This time, our class was assigned to write a poem. A love poem that had to be submitted right away. OMG!!
Oh no!! I still don't understand love; how am I supposed to do this? It's easy for people who are already dating. But for singles, it's so hard!! I'm not the romantic type either. I looked at my friends behind me: Erwin and Franky – Franky is my twin, the skinny and effeminate version.
"Win, do you know how?" I was confused. "I don't know either!! I'm confused too!!" Erwin replied emotionally. "Frank, can you do it?" I pleaded. "Don't ask me, I'm confused too," Franky replied.
My mind went blank, without any ideas at all. I tried to find ideas from songs. Most poems come from love songs. I thought of a song I knew by heart. Once I had it, I added and removed words. I saw Haruna doing it quickly and calmly. I looked from a distance; her handwriting was incredibly small. I was struggling to finish my messed-up, unintentionally "error-prone" poem.
Finally, Mr. Rossi told everyone to submit their work. Since I was sitting in the front, I was at the very bottom. Some people were chatting amongst themselves, and some were sleeping. I chose to sleep while listening to some of the poems Mr. Rossi read. Then I heard a very strange poem.
"From afar, I looked at you..." "I saw your beauty and ran towards you..." "When I got closer..." "I was shocked to see you..." "I saw you happily doing 'ik-ok'..."
Holy cow!! Was that supposed to be a poem or a joke?! It started well, but the ending was so messed up?! And "ik-ok" (like pooping) again!! It became chaotic. In the end, Mr. Rossi didn't read the poems made by the students. Then Mr. Rossi became interested in one of the poems. Haruna's poem.
"Humans are born male and female...." "They are born to always be together...." "They are born to love each other...." "Love sometimes comes at an uncertain time....." "Love is something everyone needs...." "Love is truly beautiful...." "More beautiful than anything..."
I was clearly touched by Haruna's poem. Her poem was very meaningful. I was even moved by Haruna's poem. But the assessment wasn't over yet; suddenly, it was my poem's turn. Damn it!! He's grading so fast?! He finished 35 books in 3 minutes?! That's crazy. And then he read my poem.
"Love..." "Comes unexpectedly... Disappears cruelly...." "Love is sometimes pleasant...." "Sometimes painful...." "True love...." "Comes from genuine feelings...." "Not deceptive feelings...."
I don't know what the reaction was like; it seemed to be a mix of error and chaos, all blended into one unclear poem. I just wrote the poem randomly, anyway. I don't know if it's good or not. Who cares, I don't mind. Finally, the books were returned to their respective owners. Some of my friends got scores from 50 upwards to 97. I myself got 75. Thank goodness~~~, even though my poem was known to be a mess, I got 75. Does that mean my poem is famous for its good message about love, or for its craziness? I looked at Haruna's; her score was 95. A score close to perfect. This was the first time I had been defeated by Haruna in Indonesian.
The break bell rang, and I stretched my body, annoyed from writing that poem earlier. I left my seat, and Haruna called me before I reached the exit door.
"What is it, Haruna?" "I made too much lunch, do you want some?"
So, Haruna, Anna, and I ate on the fourth floor, where I usually sleep. Haruna gave lunch to Anna and me. All the lunch boxes were the same; there was no difference at all. And everyone said "Itadakimasu!"
"Itadakimasu!!"
Anna, Haruna, and I ate while chatting. I still acted like I didn't know Haruna. I ate ravenously because Haruna's cooking was so delicious. Anna was shocked to see how ravenously I ate.
"Thanks for the meal," I said, full. "Wow, you eat so fast, Frank," Anna was shocked. "Well, it's Saturday, so my stomach demands to be filled."
I offered them drinks I bought at the canteen. Anna asked for plain water, Haruna asked for green tea, and I got a Diet Coke. As I was about to drink the Coke, Haruna was still chatting with Anna. Then I suddenly realized something: there was a meeting in the music room today. Coincidentally, Saturday's break is the longest. I said goodbye to Haruna and Anna.
I arrived at the music room. Andreas, Jimmy, Budi, and Nina were already gathered in the usual room. I was the only one who was four minutes late. Finally, practice began. Everyone sang their own songs in preparation for the upcoming music battle.
Nina sang "G-slide" by "Lil Mama." Andreas sang "Bad Boys" by "Bob Marley." Jimmy, who likes fast rap, sang "Hero" by "Nas." Budi, with his cool dance style, sang "Forever" by "Chris Brown." And I sang "50-50" by "Lemar." For duos, there were specific pairs. Andreas and Budi sang "What U Got" by "Colby O'Donis ft. Akon." Jimmy and I sang "Nuthin' but a G Thang" by "Snoop Dogg ft. Dr. Dre," with Nina just as a stand-in. But that song isn't definite to be performed.
After the break ended, everyone returned to their classrooms. My body was drenched in sweat from singing as loudly as I could. A little sweat dripped down, and my mouth was panting. Only three more lessons left. It was time to push hard and finish school this Saturday. After school ended, I went to the fourth floor to train; I brought my own Bokken. I practiced the movements I do during my morning training. Then I saw Haruna practicing ballet in her usual spot. I was once again mesmerized by Haruna's ballet movements. And I was mesmerized again seeing Haruna's ballet movements. "Hey, Masamune, what are you doing?" "Ah, Mitsunari. Just watching Haruna's ballet."
Finally, Kwang and I watched Haruna's ballet without getting any training done. Then Haruna looked towards me and Kwang. Kwang and I pretended to train and acted awkwardly after seeing Haruna. I suddenly wanted to try Kwang's weapon, the Tessen.
"Hey, Mitsunari. Lend me your Tessen." "Huh? Why?" "Just want to try it."
Kwang lent me his Tessen, and I lent my bokken to Kwang. As I held Kwang's Tessen, I remembered the art of Samurai using a Tessen. Finally, I tried training with Kwang, Tessen against Bokken. For some reason, I felt more agile in combat when using a Tessen. But in the end, I managed to defeat Kwang by pointing the Tessen at his neck.
I returned the Tessen to Kwang, and Kwang returned my bokken. Suddenly, the Wushu group arrived. They were also given Chinese warrior nicknames. Some were called Zhao Yun, Sun Ce, Xiahou Dun, Zhang He, Liu Bei, Cao Cao, Sun Jian, Lu Bu, and Diao Chan. I had no idea what class they were from. But I really didn't care about them. Finally, Kwang and I finished our training. And we saw Haruna. Kwang is the quickest to socialize with girls.
"Oush!! Haruna!!" "Oh, Kwang. Franky. Are your trainings over?" "Yeah, we just trained for a bit." "Mitsunari, if you want to go home, just go. I want to meditate for a bit."
Kwang acknowledged my command. I meditated across from where Haruna was practicing ballet. I also placed my Bokken next to me. I only heard the sounds of the Wushu kids training and Haruna's ballet movements. My mind had to be empty, and no other thoughts were allowed. I suddenly heard footsteps approaching me. I opened my eyes, and the person was Christian, often called Xiahou Dun.
"What are you doing?" "As fellow one-eyed people, we need to talk here."
One-eyed? I still checked if I had two eyes. It's true that in history, Masamune Date was said to have gouged out his right eye for his mother, or some say a person or a dragon took Masamune's eye. As for Xiahou Dun, he was hit by a stray arrow in his left eye. Then Christian sat next to me, watching Haruna who was practicing ballet.
"Is Haruna's dancing disturbing your training?" "Huh? You too?" "Yeah, for some reason, me too..." "Could it be... because she's attractive?" "Seems so..." Seriously. I actually chose to watch Haruna's ballet rather than train. Twice I'd been hypnotized by Haruna's ballet dancing. That kid named Christian walked away from me. I continued my meditation until Haruna finished her practice. Suddenly, I didn't hear Haruna's footsteps from her ballet anymore. All I heard was the Wushu kids training. After an hour, I opened my eyes, and it turned out Haruna had already gone home. As I stood up, there was a note on my bokken.
"Don't take too long, I'm still scared of Husky." "Haruna"
I just gave a dumb and silly look after receiving a message like that. Finally, with my determined will to go home for "sleeping beauty," I returned to my house. There, I saw my house and Haruna's still outside my house. Even dumber, I went home by ride (Kevin borrowed my car because his Ferrari Spider broke down). The kids are definitely going to gossip about crazy things. Knowing this, I should have driven my own car.
"Oh, you haven't gone in yet?" "I'm still allergic to dogs."
I entered the house, and Husky came towards me, overjoyed. I finally picked up and petted Husky like a baby. Haruna finally entered the house. For some reason, something felt strange here. My house was neatly arranged, unlike usual. My bedroom was so clean it was hard to tell the difference between pillows and marshmallows. Even though it was just me, Haruna, and Husky in the house. I didn't feel any shadows around the house. Suddenly, I heard a voice that was unfamiliar to me.
"It's been a long time, Haruna, Franky." "Frank-chan, it's been so long!!" "Ah, Onee-san!! Narika!!"
She's Haruna's older sister, then! No wonder I didn't sense her presence. And why didn't Husky bark at her? So strange. I also forgot who she and Narika were. Understandably, I hadn't been back to my house in Hokkaido for a long time.
"Do you still remember her, Frank?" "Uh... I kinda forgot." "It's me, Frank, Subaru." "Frank-chan, you also forgot Narika, huh?"
Now I finally remembered. Subaru is Haruna's older sister, three years older than me. Every time I saw Subaru training with Haruna, they always played together too. As for Narika, I've known her since my grandparents got married. My memory finally started to accept my old memories of Subaru and Narika, even if only a little.
"By the way, why is Onee-san here?" "Why? I'm here to look after both of you." "Then what about Husky, can he be calm with Subaru here?" "I calmed him down; he was just lonely."
What the!?, Me and Haruna... the outcome would definitely be inappropriate, but me and Haruna, plus Subaru and Narika, it feels a bit scary. If Subaru gets angry, I could get beaten up mercilessly. I don't know about Narika, though. But I'm confused again, when did Subaru and Narika arrive? Why didn't Stjue and Haha tell me? It feels really strange.