Tomura Shigaraki Rewritten (Fanfiction)

Chapter 33

Eventually, my crying had sobered. I was sitting with my mother on her couch, wiping my tears with my sleeves as she stroked a strand of hair behind my ear that had gotten wet in the process of my crying. She gave me a soft smile and handed me tissue to wipe the snot collected above my upper lip.

"How are you feeling? Are you better now?" she asked in her ever so gentle voice. I slowly nodded, blinking as I tried to adjust to the bright light of the apartment. It was cold here. Very cold. But it still felt very homey.

The walls were a muted, robin's egg blue, covered in papers and canvas full of paintings. They were Hana's. I remembered she always loved to paint. Often, Hana would bug me about wanting to hang her paintings up in our apartment near Deika city, but I always protested against it. I like the more modern, sophisticated look. I told her she could hang her paintings up in her own room. Now I regret it. I wished I'd have appreciated her more and her love of art.

The kitchen and the living room were connected, and there were two doors on the right wall. My mother pointed out that one was the bathroom and one was the bedroom. Hana and her shared a bed. This apartment was definitely tiny. I shivered.

"Let me grab you a blanket," my mother said, standing up and pulling a woolen blanket out of her chest. "We couldn't pay the heater bills this month but Hana thought it'd be fine since it's spring and it's starting to get warmer."

I blinked several times as she sat down next to me again, draping the blanket over my shoulders. "You couldn't pay the bills?" My heart shattered.

Before I regressed, my mother never had a problem with paying the rent or the bills, even when we lived in our giant home back in Shizuoka. What was different now?

My mother looked away, ashamed. She rubbed her arms, trying to warm herself. "It's alright. Hana and I are living just fine here anyhow and—..."

I gently rested my hand on her shoulder. "Mom, what happened?" I asked, close to crying again. My mother looked sad and I felt sad when she was sad.

She sighed, looking back to me with a steady gaze. A strong gaze, saying she has been through a lot. "After you left, I started struggling at work. With your father gone and then you... It was just a lot, y'know?" I could tell it was hurting her to talk about this. She clearly didn't want her vulnerabilities apparent to her own daughter.

"I was able to keep up my job in Shizuoka city for many years, but after a while, I just couldn't do it anymore. I lost my job and...," she trailed off. She was close to tears but she cleared her throat and continued. "Hana and I decided to move somewhere new. A fresh start, y'know? We moved to Hosu, and this was the only place I could afford. Hana works as a helper for a manga artist and I work at an insurance office—we're getting by. We're comfortable to say the least."

"Mom, I'm so sorry...," I whispered, a pained look on my face.

She swatted me away. "Don't say that. I don't want to hear that from my daughter who's been gone for, how many years now? Ten?"

Ten. I had almost lost count. I chuckled slightly. "Yeah... Ten years. Wow."

"I want to hear all about it," my mother demanded. "Hana's at work right now, she should be back soon. Maybe you can tell us both then. I'll make dinner! A huge feast to celebrate!" She clapped her hands together, getting up to walk towards the kitchen.

I smiled gently at my mother's excited face. All of this felt so surreal. My mother continued to talk to me from her tiny kitchen. "Y'know, my daughters both grew up into such beautiful girls! You're sixteen now, right?"

"Beautiful?! When I smell like B.O. and look like this?!" I laughed, motioning to my swollen, pink eyes.

"My daughters are beautiful, inside and out! Nobody can compare!" she cheered as she scrubbed some vegetables under running water.