Slap
A sharp, stinging sound—slap—followed by a shrill cry snapped me awake. My head throbbed like someone had stuffed it full of nails and started shaking.
"What were you thinking, you ungrateful child?" a woman screamed. "Wounding Naoya-sama?!"
My vision swam into focus. Wooden ceiling. Familiar scent of incense. A futon beneath me.
"…It was an accident," a small, strained voice said.
Maki.
"There are no accidents," another voice cut in, cold and heavy with authority. "You wounded him because you are jealous of him."
Ogi Zenin.
That name alone sent a jolt through my system stronger than the pain in my head.
I forced my eyes open fully.
Maki was kneeling on the floor beside the futon, head bowed so low her bangs hid her face. Her shoulders were stiff, her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles had gone white. Mai was nowhere in sight—probably dragged away before things escalated further.
Standing over her were two adults. One was a woman I vaguely recognized as a caretaker, her face twisted with righteous anger. The other was Ogi himself, arms folded, eyes sharp and condemning, as if the verdict had already been passed.
My stomach churned. Who the fuck beats a child like that?
I tried to move—and immediately regretted it as pain flared behind my eyes. Still, I pushed myself up, groaning softly.
"Stop."
The word came out hoarse but loud enough.
Everyone froze.
Ogi's eyes snapped to me. "Naoya… you should rest. This girl—"
"I said stop."
I sat up fully now, one hand pressing against my aching temple. The room tilted for a moment, then steadied.
"It was an honest mistake," I said, forcing my voice to remain calm. "She wasn't aiming at me."
The caretaker's mouth fell open. "B-But Naoya-sama—"
"She was throwing it at the other kid," I continued. "I walked into it. That's on me."
Silence.
Maki's head lifted just enough for me to see her eyes widen. Confusion. Shock. Disbelief.
Ogi stared at me like I'd just spoken a foreign language.
"…You're defending her?" he asked slowly.
"I'm stating facts," I replied. "Punishing her for this makes no sense."
The air felt heavy. Suffocating.
Ogi's gaze sharpened, searching my face for mockery, for arrogance, for cruelty—anything familiar. Whatever he expected to find clearly wasn't there.
"…Hmph," he finally said. "You are too soft for your age."
Maybe.
But soft was better than dead in a few years.
I shifted my legs over the side of the futon and looked directly at him. "I want to talk to Maki alone."
The caretaker stiffened. "Naoya-sama, that's—"
"Leave," I said flatly.
Ogi hesitated. Just a fraction of a second. Then he turned away.
"Do not forget your place," he said to Maki as he walked toward the door. "Both of you."
The door slid shut behind them.
The room fell quiet.
Too quiet.
Maki stayed frozen, like she was waiting for the real punishment to begin.
I looked at her for a long moment.
Then sighed.
"…You throw like hell," I said. "Next time, make sure you don't hit the wrong target."
Her head snapped up.
"What?" she blurted.
I met her gaze, steady despite the pounding in my skull.
"I'm not mad," I said. "So stop looking like you're about to be executed."
"This is our first time meeting, right? My name is Naoya. What's yours?" Even though she knows my name, it is a courtesy to introduce yourself.
"My name is Maki, and we met before."
Hearing that we have met before, I was happy.
"You spit on my face previously," Maki said.
"..."
You demonic span. You are just about 14 years old or something; why did you do that? You motherfucker.
"Sorry about that," I said sincerely.
She was just a child along with Mai. Why do they have to ensure abuse becomes a birth? If not for the fact that Zenin was a prestigious family with a lot of connections, all the members would have gone to jail in the name of child abuse.
Well, law only applies to the poor, after all.
Maki looked at Naoya like it was her first time seeing him, and it was the first time anyone had even apologized to her, even. Seeing him apologize, her child's heart beat like crazy, and her eyes started to become wet. It feels like, for the first time, someone apologizes to her like her existence matters.
Because she felt like she was about to cry, she just ran away. If anyone saw her, they would bully her harder after all. So she doesn't want anyone to see her.
"Damn, I feel like I somehow pissed her off. She was really making a face at me. My first step to reconciliation was failure with Maki. Then I should next go to Mai. I will dig my way into their lives. I will become their important person," I said to myself, seeing running-away Maki.
~~~