Part 1
She remembered. All the times she'd done as her mother asked, she remembered why she did it.
The way she instantly pacified and calmly approached Yuya didn't match the way she gripped her wrist, dragging her out of the futon and into the light of the living room.
"Meyoshi, leave the child be! This is between you and myself, that girl has no—"
"He is a boy," she said, staring at her child. "And boys do not wear hairpins, do they Yuya?"
She stood in silence, her eyes wide. Her mother tried yanking the pin from her hair, but it caught on the course tangles of the interwoven hair. With no other choice, she wrenched it straight from the source, tearing the hair strands from her scalp.
"IIAAAAAHHHHHHH!!"
"Meyoshi, enough! Leave or I will call the police!"
"Call them." she said in her ever stoic tone. "Let them investigate, I have nothing to hide. Everything I do is legal in this country, and if not, it's a simple matter of cultural difference."
Yuya could see her tossing the pin to one side. Blood streamed down the side of her ear; she could feel coarse patches of prickles beneath warm liquid.
"Yuya, dear, come with me! We'll be able—"
"Yuya, you know the punishments for disobeying your guardian, don't you?"
The little girl was still hyperventilating from the pain. When she didn't respond, her mother crouched down, grabbing her cheeks with one hand.
"Boys don't cry. Are you crying Yuya?"
"N-No. I'm not."
"You remember your punishments then?"
".........yes."
"Good, now calm down and toughen up."
The elderly woman watched in horror as Yuya's pain became replaced with fear. Her breathing was much too quick, much too silent.
"...I'm ready."
"Good."
The old woman couldn't see the backside of Meyoshi's hand, she swung too quickly. But she saw her granddaughter's head twist horribly to the side as spit ejected the side of her mouth, plastering the wall. She heard the sound, clear as day— a visceral secondhand pain filled her while Yuya didn't make a sound.
Azuka nearly vomited.
"Now tell your dear old grandmother where you're going to go."
"Home.........bye grandma."
Without another word, and without so much as looking at her grandmother, Yuya left the apartment, not bothering with her backpack. The door closed with a loud clasp, and the two of them were alone once more.
"One day you'll thank me. It may look ugly now, but good things can come from mistakes. In my case, the good would be making progress on Yuya."
"By the Lord Almighty— Meyoshi, that girl will be out of your hands by next week. I will make sure of it."
"Whatever you say," she said, blithely. "Now, I need to get that boy home. I have important business later."
With a coy smile, she waved goodbye and slipped through the door. All that was left in the tattered apartment was Azuka Itomei picking up her phone. Yet, the person on the other end couldn't understand her through her tears.
YOU ARE READING
The Promise of Yuuko Asahino - Volume 2
RomanceIt's been ten months since the incident, and Yuuko's moved to a new school. But there's one student there who's different from the others, and his father's words won't stop playing in his ears.... How do you cope with something lost? And what is it...
