Mizuki woke to see that Kageru wasn't in bed.
"Tiago. Onde você está?" She asked speaking Portuguese.
"I'm down stairs." He replied almost yelling.
Mizuki got off her bed rubbing her eyes. She put on her bunny slippers and made her way down stairs.
To her surprise, everywhere was clean. All the bottles, the cigarette stubs, the trash. All was gone.
She walked into the kitchen and was even more surprised. Everywhere spotless like the rest of the house. But that's not what shocked her the most.
Tiago was wearing an apron and cooking.
He turned round with a smile on his face. "Bom dia Lara." He said in Portuguese.
He walked to the dinning table and dropped a plate for her.
"Good morning, Tiago." She said stunned.
She rushed up to him and began checking his head for any serious wound.
"What are you doing?" He asked struggling to get away from her.
"Was it mum's bat of the wall that caused this to my poor baby." She said as she squeezed him into a hug.
"I'm okay Nee-san." He said pushing away from her gently.
She sized him up to make sure she was not seeing any thing.
"Are you sure. Why are you wearing an apron and cooking?" She asked.
Then her eyes opened wide in shock. "Is the world ending!?" She asked heading for the door.
"Sorette dou iu koto?" He asked in Japanese getting angry.
"What it's supposed to mean is that you don't do things like that." She said sitting down as he brought two more plates. "Did you poison mum's food?"
"No and never. Why would you say something like that. It's actually hurtful. She still my mum even if she's mean to mean. I still love her" He said sitting beside her and started eating with a sad face.
"I'm sorry." She said softly as she planted a kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you. Plus it's because of you that I'm doing this. You helped me sleep well and I woke up happy so I decided to repay you." He said.
She smiled as she tucked some strands of her to take a bite of the egg. She smiled humming in satisfaction.
"I you want to repay me you can bathe with me." She said.
"No. We're to old for that. Even as much as I want to do that I can't." He said as he took some sausage from her plate.
"Oh come on. It's been to long. Please." She begged with puppy dog eyes.
Tiago tried not to look at her eyes and fall prey— but it always worked. "Just once."
"No. I don't know when you'll get a girlfriend and she'll take you from me. Once a month." She said playing with his hair.
He sighed. He knew that there was nothing he could do to change her mind. Last time something like this happened and he didn't agree she snuck into his room multiple times to make him sleep with her in her room twice in a week.
"Fine." He said defeatedly.
"Yay!" She said clapping like a little girl.
"But not today. I've already had a shower." He said.
She was sad but then she sized him up and saw that he was right.
"By the way, why are you up early?" She asked.
"Jenna asked me to walk to school with her." He said.
"Oh so now you've got a girlfriend." She said teasing him.
"No. I'm just walking with a friend." He said as he took their empty plates to the sink and took care of it.
"Ok." She said mischievously. "But can I still pick you up?"
"Will James be in the way?" He returned with a question.
She shook her head like a child answering a question to get a reward.
"Thank God." He said smiling. "Then please come pick me up."
"Ok baby." She said.
"You forgot the 'bro'." He said with a serious smile.
"Baby as in infant." She corrected.
"I'm going." He said head towards her.
He gave her a kiss on her head and taking his bag from the empty seat it was on.
"By Big sis." He said and went to the main door. "Tell Mum I said bye and also stop changing your contact name on my phone."
"Bye baby bro and also stop looking at my breasts. If you want to grab them just tell me. I'll allow you." She said.
" I wasn't, and don't say things like that you crazy girl." He said with red cheeks as he closed the door behind him.
Mizuki looked down at her breasts laughing. Then she grabbed them in her hands. "Hmmm... Maybe their bigger. That's why he was looking at them."
She shrugged her shoulders and went upstairs. "Mum! Foods ready. Tiago cooked it."
"Ugh that runt." She hissed coming out of her room.
"Just go and eat." She said heading to her room. "And he said bye." She added closing her door.
"So he left early like yesterday." Aiko said going downstairs.
-------
Jenna was woken up to Maria kicking her off her bed.
"Mum!" She whined.
She looked up at her mum who was already dressed for work.
"Oh keep quiet. You're late for school and you were calling some name like 'Kageru' and 'Tiago' and 'Min-jun' in your sleep." Maria said opening her curtains.
"Oh no." Jenna gasped. "Jensen."
She scrambled off the floor and ran into her bathroom.
"Is that the kid?" Maria asked.
"Yeah." Jenna said walking out with a toothbrush in her mouth.
"Well, I think he's the one waiting for you." Maria said looking through the window.
"Mummy, why didn't you wake me up." Jenna whined.
"What's that supposed to mean. You're the one that usually wakes me up." Maria said. "Well I guess I won't be dropping you at school today."
"Yes but make sure you come to pick me up." Jenna said as she undressed and wrapped a towel around herself.
"Yeah, yeah. There's some toast on the table." Maria said walking to the door.
"Thanks mummy." Jenna said giving Maria a kiss on the cheek.
"No problem sweetie." She said. "Don't forget to lock up and don't keep your boyfriend waiting."
"I'll like I didn't hear that." She said walking into the bathroom.
Maria smiled as she left Jenna's room and walked down stairs. She grabbed her car keys and house keys from the key bowl and opened the door.
She saw Kageru standing on the curb as he waited for Jenna.
He looked up and saw Maria looking at him. He quickly straightened up then bowed. "Good morning ma'am." He greeted.
"Good morning kid." She said warmly. "You can go in and wait for Jenna."
Kageru was shocked at the same time confused. Maria didn't wait for him to reply.
She was already in her car driving out. "What a nice kid." She said to herself
Min-jun cautiously walked towards the front door and opened it slightly. He peeped in then walked in. The interior was like his home. He slowly made his way to the living room and sat down.
He could hear Jenna running to and fro upstairs and couldn't help but laugh.
"Argh!" She screamed as she ran down stairs and into the kitchen.
Min-jun got up and made his way to the lobby to wait for her.
"Min-jun!" She yelled. "I'm coming." She said putting the toast in her mouth and a bottle in her bag.
Just as she made her way into the lobby she tripped on her foot as was falling forward.
Then someone caught her. She looked up to meet Min-jun's gaze.
She gasped and the toast fell out of her mouth. She blinked multiple times to make sure she wasn't seeing things. "Min-jun."
"Since when did you start calling me Min-jun?" He asked.
"You said I could call you by any name." She said trying to straighten herself.
As she got up, she tripped on him and fell down unto him taking both of them to the ground.
Min-jun groaned as his head hit the ground. Jenna was on him with her hair scattered everywhere.
She quickly rose up her head to look at him. "I'm sorry." She said.
Min-jun didn't hear her. His eyes were caught on her cleavage that was exposed from the blue oversized t shirt she was wearing. His face began to turn red but he couldn't look away.
"Not a problem." She said as she got up and knelt above him with her knees on either side of him.
The t-shirt sagged on one shoulder exposing her bra or her inner singlet— he couldn't tell.
She picked up the toast and put it in her mouth. "Bite." She mumbled as she packed her brownish hair back into a ponytail. "Come on."
He inched up uncertain and took a bit while the toast was still in her mouth.
She began to turn red as his face was so close. He noticed it and quickly finished the process.
She got off him then helped him up. "Shall we?" She asked.
"Uh-huh." He said picking her bag up.
She locked her arm in his as they walked out. "I really like the coat." She said locking the door as she took notice of the white coat that stopped below his calfs.
It had black lightning marks running down it. The short sleeves had silver and black bands on both arms.
"Thank you." He said as she took his arm again and they walked off.
------
"So... What of your sister?" Jenna asked.
"She was still at home when I left. She should have gone to class." He replied looking down at her.
"Really, she goes to our school." She asked.
"No. She's twenty-one and in college. She should be in her third year." He said. "What of you? Any siblings?"
"Yeah, my younger sister is in Nigeria with my aunt." She said.
Gabriel opened his mouth to speak, but a noise cut him off.
He turned his head to the side of the street. He and Jenna saw three boys harassing a girl and a boy.
"Come on let's go." He said.
Jenna nodded,but as she turned to go to them Gabriel walked the other way.
"Huh?" She said.
Gabriel walked to a bench and dropped their bags on it.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"You want me to save the kids right?" He asked.
"Yeah. Of you can." She said.
"If I..." He began then trailed off. A vein on his neck popped out.
He looked at Jenna with cold eyes.
She shrunk back feeling a pressure on her. "Sorry I didn't me—"
"No Jelly. It just means that I've got to show you what I'm made off." He said placing his hand on her head.
Kageru walked past Jenna and towards the boys. As he got there, he tapped on the shoulder of the boy in the middle.
"Huh?" He said turning round.
*Bam*
He landed a round house kick on his face. Blood spilled out from his nose as he fell backwards.
The other two turned to look at him. He bent his legs slightly and took a fighting stance.
"You little shit." One said
"Let's make this face. We have class." Kageru said.
The second one ran at and threw a punch. Kageru dodged it effortlessly. Then he grabbed his hand and flipped the boy over his head then twisted his arm.
"Arrrrgh!!!!" He yelled in pain.
The last one came from behind to kick Kageru. He ducked down letting go of the others hand.
He went behind him and kicked him at the back of his knee making him to fall down. He made to do a round house kick but instead used his leg to get a hold of the boys neck and began to strangle him pinning him to the ground
When he felt that he was weak enough he let go. He walked back to the other one who was still holding his hand. He knelt over him then punched him on the face knocking him out.
He got up and walked to were the kids were. Jenna came in behind him.
"Are you alright?" He asked as Jenna had caught up to him.
From his blind spot, the first guy had gotten up and picked up a steel pipe and was coming from behind.
"Yeah. Thank you." The girl said. "They tried to force my brother to give them his lunch money. I stepped in and that's how everything went off."
"Well your alright now. You should get home." Jenna said.
She sized the girl up. She looked like she was twelve and her brother seven.
Then the boy caught a motion behind Jenna. "Look out!"
Kageru instinctively and quickly turned to face Jenna. He pulled her head to his chest and raise his left hand.
The pipe collided with a loud sound and it sounded as if something had broken.
Kageru didn't move or flinch. He spun Jenna round and forced the pipe from the boys hand.
*Bang*
He swung the pipe down at his head with no remorse— not enough to kill him though.
"Wow. He did it so bluntly." Jenna said.