KOF School

The Yagami House

"How was school today?" Kazuhiro Yagami asked when Iori sat down in front of him with a plate of Yakisoba.
"Lame," Iori groaned. "They put that stupid Kyo idiot in front of me."
"Kusanagi Kyo?" Aiko said in surprise, stopping midway as she brought her chopsticks towards her mouth. "He's in your class?"
"Yeah..." Iori groaned.
"His cousin is in my class, though," Aiko shrugged. "Kusanagi Aoi. Very annoying."
"Well, if they come from the Kusanagi house, they definitely are," Iori pointed out. "Right, Uncle?"
He turned to Kazuhiro and sighed when he saw the older man fast asleep on the table.
"Leave him, Niisan," Aiko patted his back. "He's been working all night, even bringing Dad in."
"Nuts, I fell asleep while studying last night," Iori sighed. "Uncle went alone? I should've went with him..."
Aiko frowned. "Wonder what he's doing now..."
"Oh, he's probably working now, and then he goes to the bar and..." Iori sighed. "Gets wasted."
Aiko sighed too. "Can we send him to a rehab or something?"
"It doesn't help, Aiko," Iori sighed tiredly, poking at his soba. "The minute he sees the pictures of our mothers..."
"He'd be back at it again," Aiko sighed. "Niisan, he needs to go to a psychiatrist."
"He doesn't want to, says we think he's crazy."
"But he needs it!"
"Why don't you try to convince him for once? Whenever Uncle or I try, it's a major fail."
Aiko sighed, defeated. "Fine, I'll try."
Iori chuckled and continued eating his Yakisoba.

"You're going to get Dad?" Iori asked, seeing how his Uncle was getting ready to leave with his saxophone.
"Yes, because... since when does he come home by himself?" Kazuhiro sighed, grabbing the car keys.
"I'm coming with you," Iori said determinedly.
Aiko poked her head out of her room and stepped out. "I'll run a bath for him."
The two men nodded and left.

"Alright, stop here," Kazuhiro said when they came to the bar that Masaomi usually performed at. "Stay here, don't come out at any cost. I'll go get him."
Iori nodded and watched as his uncle got out of the car and make his way towards the pub. He took a long time, even kicking some of the other drunkards out. Iori accidentally hit the horn when one of them fell so near to the car.
Kazuhiro eventually came out, supporting his staggering brother's arm around his shoulders. He pushed Masaomi into the car first before getting in beside him. Iori grimaced at the smell of liquor that came with his father.
"Alright, now go to TenTen," Kazuhiro heaved a sigh of relief.
Iori drove the car there and stopped. Kazuhiro grabbed his saxophone but his brother didn't want to let go for some reason.
"Niisan, let go of my sax!" Kazuhiro tugged at the black case. Masaomi mumbled something and finally let him go. Kazuhiro sighed and turned to Iori, putting a hand on the teenager's shoulder. "Iori, be careful, okay? It's really dangerous here at night."
"It's okay, Uncle," Iori assured. "I'll be fine."
"Text me when you get home, okay?"
"I will, don't worry."
Kazuhiro bade his farewell and entered the bar. Iori waited until he entered, glanced at his father, and drove straight home.

The doorbell rang and Aiko ran to look. She wasn't sure if it was her brother or a strange visitor.
"Niisan?" Aiko decided to call just in case.
"Open up, he's really heavy," she heard Iori groan at the other side of the door.
Aiko quickly opened the door and let him in. She meekly watched as Iori pushed their red-faced father into the bathroom, holding Masaomi's bass bag in his other hand.
"He's sober enough to bathe by himself, right?" Aiko asked when Iori shut the door with a sigh.
"I am!" Masaomi slurred behind the door. "I'm steady, not drunk!"
"That's a lie, but he's still okay enough to bathe," Iori sighed, siting down on the nearest chair with a groan.
"You okay, Niisan?" Aiko asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Iori nodded, running a hand down his face. "Go to bed, I need to wait for him to come out."
Aiko gulped and looked at the bathroom door, then back at her brother. "No way. I'm waiting here with you."
Iori sighed and got up, gently pulling her to her room. "Stay in there. Dad's not quite himself when he's drunk..."
Aiko looked up at her brother but to her surprise, the door slammed shut. She sighed and sat on her bed, praying that her father will get ahold of himself soon.

Iori closed the door and sighed, leaning against the wall. He'd rather do it alone than getting his sister mixed up in this. His father was suffering from depression and that was certainly taking a toll on them, especially on him and Kazuhiro. He didn't know how his uncle could actually cope with all of that and still keep composure.
Iori groaned and slid to the ground, wishing that everything was just a bad dream and it would all disappear. He also wished that his stepmother, Aiko's mother, was alive. That way, Masaomi wouldn't be so depressed.
He still remembered Keiko, a very kind woman that never once treated Iori like a stepson. He was only three when she died at childbirth, just like his own mother.
Iori sighed and buried his face in his hands. A loud clatter suddenly came from the bathroom, making him spring onto his feet to go see if his father was okay.
"Dad, are you okay?" Iori called.
"Fine, fine!" Masaomi called back. "Soap fell."
Iori sighed and sat on the dining chair. Masaomi soon came out, wearing a towel, and nearly fell. Iori carefully led him to the bedroom. Masaomi just fell into bed. Iori just left him and went back to his room to study and finish his homework.
A headache suddenly overtook him. Iori dropped his pen and held onto his head in pain. The ache was so bad that his vision blurred. He eventually fell to the ground, trembling.
This was happening a lot more often now. Iori had no idea what it was and why it was happening to him of all people.
He eventually fell unconscious and slumped onto the ground.

***

Iori woke up, startled. He found himself on the floor and wondered what he was doing there. He got up and saw his school supplies strewn around on his desk and scrambled to pack everything up and get ready with his uniform. He was already five minutes late but he managed to get everything ready. Soon, he was joining his family at the breakfast table.
"What did I do last night?" Masaomi asked, looking tired and beaten. "I can't remember anything..."
"Well, we have no idea what you did before we picked you up from the bar," Kazuhiro sighed. "Niisan, you should stop."
"I'm trying, but I can't!" Masaomi cried. "It's like whatever I touch instantly dies or leaves me. Remember Natsume? And Keiko too. They both died because of me."
"Dad, it's nothing like that," Iori sighed. "It's just a coincidence that both our mothers died at childbirth."
Aiko nodded too. "Yes, Dad! It has nothing to do with you. Stop blaming yourself!"
"No, it is my fault," Masaomi whined. "I am a cursed man!"
The others groaned in reply. There was no way to convince him.
Iori gave his sister a nudge and nodded towards his father.
Aiko gulped and turned to Masaomi. "Dad? Can I ask you something?"
"What is it?" Masaomi asked, puzzled.
Aiko gulped and tried to find the right words for it. "Dad... I feel like you need to go to the psychiatrist."
"You think I'm crazy, don't you..." Masaomi slowly said.
Aiko quickly shook her head. "It's for your own good, Dad! It's not that you're crazy or anything, but you're suffering from severe depression! You need help!"
"It's true, Niisan," Kazuhiro chimed in. "You really do need psychiatric attention. Otherwise... Niisan, depression is a real menace. If left unattended, we don't know what could happen."
Masaomi just stared at his wanpaku sandwiches. Without a word, he got up and left, leaving his bass bag behind.
Iori got up to go after him but Kazuhiro quickly stopped him.
"Let him," the older man told him. "Let him think about it. I'm sure he'll come up with a good decision in the end."
Iori sat down again and quietly ate his sandwiches.
"I hope he agrees," Aiko sighed. "I tried, I really did."
Kazuhiro smiled and patted her hair. "You really did, Aiko. Let him think about it. I'm sure he'll agree."
The siblings really hoped so. They finished their breakfast and left for school in Kazuhiro's Nissan Sunny.