When The Timer Hits Zero. ~Iwaoi~

~Part Three~

I hear the front door open. I look up from my video game and see my mom walk in. She looks confused. I run up to her, glad to see that she's alright. 'Mom, welcome home!' I smile. 'Ah, hi Tooru..' she says, kind of in a daze, as she walks straight past me to sit on the couch and watch TV.

The next few days, her confusing behaviour continues, even worsens. Her timer has disappeared. This continues until she comes home a week later with the biggest smile on her face. Never have I seen her smile so bright, so happy, so careless. I feel relieved that she is happy.

'How was your day?' I ask when she comes to sit next to me. Her big smile immediately turns into a frown. 'Ah, Tooru, you' re here too.. How was school..?' she responds. 'I don't have school until next week.' I say, surprised that she didn't know.

Days pass, and my mom becomes more and more distant. It's saturday today, school starts monday. I take one of my last chances to sleep in, and lay in bed until I hear the front door close with a bang. I jolt awake. 'Mom, dad? What happened?' No answer. I quickly dress and run downstairs.

I run into the living room, but quickly come to a halt. Devastated, I try to bring out words, but they get stuck in my throat. On the couch, my dad lays with his head buried in a pillow, crying, screaming it out. I try to walk towards him, to ask him what's wrong, but I feel like the ground is sucking me in, the air not forming the words I want it to.

After a few seconds, I come to a realization. 'Where's mom?!' I ask. My dad quickly pulls his head out of the pillow. His eyes are red and swollen. I've never seen him look so bad. He stands up and gives me a big hug. 'What's wrong..?' I finally find the strength to ask him.

We sit down on the couch. My dad is trying to find the right words, clearly not knowing where to start. 'It's your mom.' He finally starts, 'she met another guy at work last week, and she fell in love with him.' Tears welled up in his eyes, but he swallowed them away. 'She decided we make her unhappy, so she ran away with him.' My dad continues about how it's gonna be alright, but I don't hear him.

She doesn't love us anymore..? We made her unhappy..? Tears start to stream down my face. All sorts of thoughts run through my head. My dad seems to notice that he lost my attention, because he suddenly pulled me into a tight hug. 'We're gonna make it, even if it's just the two of us.' We cried, screamed, until there were no more tears left and our throats were worn out.

That monday, I went to school to keep my mind busy. My dad updated the principal on our situation. I knew I wouldn't be able to concentrate, but it was better than staying at home, all alone with my own thoughts.

Just two days after the most drastic change in my life, the best thing in my life happened. He was just a transfer student. A small, fierce boy, with dark hair and emerald colored eyes. His name was Iwaizumi Hajime, a name that would be engraved in my heart until it stopped beating.

He is seated next to me. As a distraction, I start to talk to him during lunch break. Iwaizumi is a very sensitive boy, even though he may not seem like it. He must've noticed me struggling to get words out of my sore throat, my eyes glittering from the tears wanting to burst out. He asks me if I want to go outside, worry visible in his eyes, but not on his face.

And so we end up beneath a sakura tree. Iwaizumi stays silent, and so do I. For some reason, I feel like I can trust him, a comfortable feeling overcomes me as I finally let my tears stream down my face. I start shaking uncontrollably, sniffing loudly. Suddenly, I feel someone pulling me close. Iwaizumi is putting my head on his shoulder, still not saying anything. I cry and cry, unable to stop, until the bell rings, signaling the end of the lunch break. Iwaizumi stands up, grabs my hand, and leads me inside. Even though he is a bit smaller than I am, he made sure I could hide behind him.

It was the beginning of my trust in Iwaizumi, my appreciation for him, and a beautiful start of a beautiful friendship.