"Say cheese!" both of Akio's parents exclaimed. Akio gazed at them, clutching his school bag tightly, his face beaming brightly as he embraced them. "Alright, Aki, don't forget to eat your packed lunch and drink plenty of water, okay?" his mother reminded him. Akio nodded. "We'll pick you up at 3 p.m.," his father added. Akio's mother enveloped him in a tight hug, her eyes glistening with tears. "We love you, and make sure to enjoy your first day, honey," she said through happy tears, finally seeing her son off to school after the challenges they'd faced. Both parents kissed Akio's pale pink cheek and waved goodbye as he entered the school building. Glancing back at his waving parents, he ventured inside.
"Good morning, everyone! Please join us in welcoming our new student, Akio Juro, to our class and school," announced the teacher, a woman.
"Would you like to introduce yourself to the class, sweetheart?" She asked Akio with a gentle expression. Akio tensed up and began to tremble, unable to speak.
"I... I am Akio," he stammered softly and fell silent, leaving the class puzzled. Realising Akio's discomfort, the teacher gestured for him to take a seat by the window and commenced the first activity.
Moments later, he heard a soft female voice say, "Hi!" One of the kids attempted to catch Akio's attention. Akio turned around to find a charming girl standing right in front of him. Despite summoning his bravery to speak, he found himself sitting in silence, casting a cold gaze upon the little girl before him.
"It's nice to meet you. I'm Yuki. Do you want to be friends?" Yuki beamed at Akio, extending her hand. Akio hesitated, briefly reaching out before retracting his hand and turning away from her.
Yuki, who resembled a female version of June, persisted in trying to connect with Akio despite his lack of response. "Hey Akio, the teacher told me that you like drawing. Would you like to draw together?" Yuki inquired. The word "drawing" caught Akio's attention, and he looked at her. Yuki was happy to see Akio finally paying attention to her and handed a pencil to Akio. "Here you go." Akio extended his hand to reach for the pencil and muttered a response. "T..thank you"
"No problem! What do you like to draw?" the girl presided
Akio looked at the girl and inquired, "I... like to draw animals."
Later, Akio and Yuki were engaged in drawing while the rest of the class focused on painting. The teacher closely monitored the children, as some of them were getting a bit mischievous, making it a challenge to ensure their safety and cleanliness. As time passed, the two young pairs, Akio and Yuki, happily sketched various animals, from rabbits to horses and even monkeys. The floor was covered in Akio and Yuki's artwork, surprising the teacher with the impressive amount of work they had accomplished during that class period.
"Oh, wow, this is amazing!" the teacher exclaimed in astonishment. "Did you two draw this?" she asked. Akio and Yuki exchanged glances before nodding in unison to the teacher. They shared a laugh and returned to their artwork.
Later in the day, lunchtime arrived, and even though Akio was getting to know Yuki, he felt too nervous to invite her to join him for lunch. He ended up sitting alone until Yuki spotted him and made the decision to join him. "Can I join you, Akio?" she asked. Akio looked at Yuki, who had brown eyes and brown hair tied up in a cute braided ponytail. He nodded shyly and began to eat his food while Yuki sat beside him. The two of them shared an awkward atmosphere as they enjoyed the lunches provided by their parents.
Yuki looked at Akio and offered a bit of her lunch to him. "Would you like to try some?" she exclaimed. Akio nodded slightly and took a bite from Yuki's fork, causing her to blush. Yuki moved back a bit, averting her gaze, and Akio felt concerned that he had done something wrong. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked with worry. Yuki looked at Akio's anxious expression and shook her head. "No, you didn't, so you don't have to worry," she reassured him, offering more food. "Here, have more if you like it."
From that day on, Akio and Yuki grew closer, spending time together at school every day. Although Akio enjoyed hanging out with Yuki, he also wanted to spend more time with June, missing the moments they shared before starting school.
"Who's that?" Yuki exclaimed, glancing in the direction of Akio's parents waving and a blond boy. Akio turned around, his eyes lighting up as he saw June coming to pick him up with his parents. "June!" Akio happily ran to him, hugging him tightly. June wrapped his arms around Akio, and Yuki joined them, introducing herself to June.
"Hi, it's nice to meet you. I'm Akio's school friend," she said joyfully, extending her hand for June to shake. June looked at Yuki and nodded without saying a word, leaving Yuki standing there, blinking, unsure of what to say.
"Oh, I'm sorry about June's manners, Yuki. It's nice to meet you," Akio's mother said, breaking the awkward silence.
"I'm so glad to hear Akio has made a new friend!" Yuki looked at Akio's mother and smiled, swinging side to side. "Are your parents coming to pick you up?" Yuki shook her head and inquired, "They will come a bit later, but I was wondering if I could go play with Akio a bit in the school playground while we wait for my parents." She requested it and looked at the floor shyly.
"Oh, of course, dear. Akio would be very happy to have his two close friends play with him, right, Aki?" Akio looked at his mother and nodded happily while holding June's hand. He then extended his hand to Yuki, inviting her to join.
Later on, they played at the playground, Akio's parents decided to get some ice cream for the kids. June joined them, leaving Akio and Yuki alone to play at the school playground.
A voice suddenly came from behind and said while the two of them were playing, "Is this who I think it is?" A deeper voice from a bunch of boys interrupted. "It's been a while since we met, blue head," they said, making mean comments to Akio. Akio knew the term 'blue head' and the voice; it sounded way deeper than he remembered from when he was smaller. Nervously, he turned around, looking at four boys who had gathered around Yuki and him. One of the boys had red hair and yellow eyes, way taller than the other three; he was the leader of this mean gang, and the others were triplets with brown hair and black eyes. "Is this your girlfriend?" One of the boys pointed at Yuki and grabbed her. Akio, feeling helpless, started to shake as he heard Yuki shouting for help. "You still can't speak. It's pathetic. " The boys teased and started forming a circle around Yuki. Akio tried to hit them, but being much younger than these boys, he couldn't hit them very hard. Instead, he used his best move: clinging onto the boys, hoping they would let Yuki go. The boys laughed and pushed him to the ground, wrestling and hitting his face, leaving it with bruises and red patches.
Later, the boys focused on Yuki; before anything could happen, June spotted them and quickly ran to protect Yuki. "Who are you?" June asked with an annoyed face, seeing them hurting his friends. "Oh, look, it's the prince charming; are you here to protect these losers?" One of the triplets questioned, laughing. June's eyes immediately spotted Akio, who was on the ground with a bruised face. He soon saw red and started wrestling with the boys, tugging on their hair and clothes anywhere he could get to hurt them, not knowing there was a sharp tree branch poking up in the air nearby. The bullies got the upper hand and pushed June hard onto the ground. He fell with a thud, hitting his head on the ground.
There was a pause and silence in the air. The four boys halted abruptly, their faces filled with fear. "Aoi, what did you do?" one of the triplets asked, his voice trembling with fright. "I...I didn't do it on purpose," Aoi replied hesitantly. The three triplets fled, leaving Aoi, the red-haired bully, in a state of shock, soon catching up with the others shouting, "Wait up." Meanwhile, June's right hand bled, impaled by a tree branch. Witnessing the struggle, Akio sprinted to June, who cried in pain. Yuki rushed to their side and, along with Akio, attempted to assist by placing something on June's injured hand.
While Akio's parents endured an eternity in the ice cream line, a scream echoed from the playground. Sharing a concerned glance, they snapped out of line. Akio's dad dashed to the scene, finding the trio of kids on the ground, blood staining the path. Witnessing Akio's bruised face, he hurriedly asked, "What happened!?" Akio gazed at his father, tears streaming down his face, and embraced him. His father held Akio in a tight hug, soothingly saying, "It's okay, it's okay." Akio stammered, "J-J-June..."
His father, bewildered, questioned, "What? What's wrong with June?" Akio reached out his hand, and his father traced the line of his pointing fingers to a bleeding June on the ground, wailing in pain. Akio's dad quickly released Akio and hurried to June. "June! Listen to me. It's going to be okay. Just breathe in and out. Try controlling your breathing while I try to call the ambulance," he said, attempting to soothe June. He tightly gripped June's other hand, stabilizing the one affected by the injury. Sakuya retrieved his phone from his pocket and dialled the ambulance. Akio's mother, arriving empty-handed due to the prolonged wait, noticed the concern. She rushed quickly to Akio, embracing him tightly as he cried. She placed her hand on his head and whispered, "Shh, it's okay, it's okay," to ease Akio's worry. Extending her arms for Yuki, who was also in tears, she hugged both of them tightly.
"What happened, Sakuya? Oh my god! —What happened to June? Is he okay?" She hurried towards June while holding Akio and Yuki. Sakuya, talking to the ambulance, glanced at his wife. "Yes, thank you. Please come here as soon as possible." Haruna looked at her husband with worry and regret. "What happened, dear?" "I'm not sure, but this seems to be a very big problem." "T...the bullies came b…back," Akio interrupted with tears, seeing his best friend in pain. "Bullies?" both parents asked, looking at each other. They realised what Akio meant. "What did they do!? They went too far this time!"
Hearing the ambulance arrive, Akio couldn't tell his parents what happened when they all went to the hospital. June was in a room undergoing a serious examination, and Akio got his face and scratches checked. Akio's parents were occupied with trying to contact June's parents.
"I just hope June and our son are okay, especially June," Sakuya said with worry, pacing back and forth. Haruna placed her hand on his shoulder and reassured him, "Don't worry; they're going to be okay. I'll go to the house of the boys who did this and have a serious conversation with their parents later on. This was so dangerous and it could get them into huge trouble."
Moments later, the doctor came to inform them that they could go see their son. Both parents rushed in, hugging Akio tightly and showering him with kisses. "Oh god, I'm so glad you're okay. How's your head? How's your face?" his mother asked, still concerned that he might be in pain.
"I'm fine, Mum I'm fine. But is June okay, though? Can I go see him? I want to go see him."
"June is still in the room with the doctors, so you can't go in, but you don't need to worry; he's in safe hands," assured his father. "It's all my fault, mum and dad; it's all my fault that he's hurt. I'm sorry!" Both of them hugged Akio tightly while Akio cried. "It's my fault he's hurt; if only I spoke more, this would not have happened." "Shh, shh, you did nothing wrong, and this is not your fault; just some people out there aren't really nice, that's all," his mother said with an assuring voice. "Son, June would not have stepped in to help you if he didn't care. And we both know he wants to protect you." His father quotes.
Minutes later, June's parents rushed in, relieved to find Akio safe. "Oh dear, I'm so glad you're okay. Do not worry, we are not angry at you; we are just so happy you are safe," June's parents expressed, hugging Akio. Akio looked down as both sets of parents engaged in a conversation. "How is he? Is he out yet? Who did this?" June's parents asked before getting interrupted by the doctor who entered, "Miss Haruna, may I have a word with you?" Akio's mother looked at the doctor as everyone turned their attention to Akio's mother as she walked outside with the doctor.
It felt like an eternity for Akio since his mother left the room. "Dad, is mum coming back?" "Yes, honey, Mum's just taking a bit longer than we expected, but don't worry, she will come back," his father assured him.
"Now let's play rock, paper, scissors, and the one who wins will have their favourite food."
"Ok!" Akio responded excitedly.
"3, 2, 1, papers!"
While they continued playing, June's parents were finally able to check up on June. Luckily for June, the tissue in his hand wasn't damaged, making it a fortunate day for Hiroshi's family.
After a few hours had passed, Akio's mother returned to talk with her husband. "So, what did the doctor say?"
"They said that they would like to keep Akio in the hospital for a bit."
"Why?"
"They want to check if he has anything that they need to diagnose."
"What do you mean?"
"When they were trying to check Akio earlier, he wouldn't speak, and he would get shaky and try to back away, making the doctors more worried that something was wrong with him."
"Yes, but he does that with us, so why do they need to diagnose him if we know what he has?"
"That's the point; we know what he has but are not sure if it's right. So please, let's just allow it to happen."
"Fine, but we need to inform the school and if anything happens, we will bring him back," Sakuya responded, expressing concern.
Although Akio's mother wasn't thrilled about the idea of keeping Akio overnight at the hospital, she understood that it would help the family better understand Akio's situation and why things happen. She then looked at Akio and cupped his cheek. "Darling, you are going to be staying at the hospital tonight, alright?" Akio looked at his parents, worried and anxious about being alone.
"No, no. I want to go home with you, Mum and Dad. Please don't leave me."
"Sweetheart, it's only for one night. The doctor wants to double-check that you're healthy tomorrow, and it's better to have you here for the night. But I promise we'll come to you as soon as we wake up, alright?" Akio nodded while shaking and cuddling both of his parents. "We love you, and we'll see you tomorrow, alright?" Akio nodded, watching his parents leave the room.
As the night approached, Akio couldn't stop thinking about June. The same goes for June, as both of them didn't see each other after arriving at the hospital. June's parents were told by the doctor that June would have to stay at the hospital for one week so that his scar would heal a bit before discharging June home.
"Good night, Akio," the nurse said, tucking him into bed.
"Good night," he responded, closing his eyes.
As the night went on, Akio kept turning side to side, trying to sleep. He was not used to the feeling of not sleeping at home, and because of that, he found it difficult to sleep, causing him to feel a bit uncomfortable. Akio sat up, his eyes looking in the direction of the full moon, while holding a pillow. He decided to leave his hospital room to find June.
As he walked through the dark, narrow corridor in search of June's room, he stumbled on a paper drawing of a flower and admired it before putting it back on the closet table next to him. As he approached, he saw June's name next to the door. He slowly opened the door, muttering his name in a soft voice. "June..." he called out while looking around the room. "Are you awake?" he asked while walking into the room towards his bed.
June heard the noise and woke up slightly, turning his head towards Akio while rubbing his eye with the hand that wasn't injured. "Akio? Is that you?" he questioned in a sleepy voice. Akio nodded in response.
"What are you doing in here? Did the nurse not see you?"
"I...I couldn't sleep... And no, there was no nurse… but…. Can I join you? I don't like sleeping alone…" he shyly inquired
June nodded with a soft smile, making room for Akio. "Okay!" he exclaimed, gesturing to the space he cleared. Akio soon joined him on the bed, snuggling close, creating a delightful atmosphere. As they nuzzled against each other, June intertwined their hands together. Despite their youth, they believed their friendship would endure, right? As June glanced back at Akio, they locked eyes for a moment. Then, to Akio's surprise, June gave him a peck on the nose, leaving him momentarily confused.
"Good night, Akio," June whispered, softly closing his eyes.
"Good night," Akio responded, as both of them drifted into a peaceful sleep.