Chapter Twelve

Confessions of Ghost Sightings and Bad News

~ July 9 ~

It did turn out that Yasuko and Ikeda-san – Masamune-san? – were dating. Ryuuji did not have anything against their arrangements, as he had never seen Yasuko this happy before. It seemed like Taiga, too, had started to accept it. For the past two months, life went along as Ryuuji had known it, with Taiga almost always busy with work and Yasuko sleeping over at Masamune-san's place in Roppongi every weekend. In all honesty, it was quite liberating. Ryuuji had always lived with Yasuko since forever, and high school life had been blessed with Taiga dropping over all the time for dinner. Until now, he hadn't been given the opportunity to discover the highlights of living alone.

One of those highlights was undisturbed cleaning time. How long had it been since he was able to move the washing machine and scrape at the molds thriving on their balcony floor?

Too long.

Just too very long.

Ryuuji had spent three hours of each of the days throughout May and June without Yasuko and Taiga, polishing up all the hard-to-reach places of their apartment, and by the first week of July, everything was shiny and lemony-fresh from the front door to the inner corners of Yasuko's closet. And he had been a happy camper because of that.

Aside from that, the couple of months had been very, very uneventful. A few instances, Taiga had found enough time to spend with him, which mostly composed of a quick meal and a very brief update on how their week went. Through the May and June days without having to be able to meet with Taiga, Ryuuji had spent preparing for the second semester at Ninomae. Books. Pencils. New pencil sharpeners.

More pencils…

He frowned to himself. He couldn't believe he was back to being a student. If he had his way with things, he would be busying himself, finding employment.

But here he was, in Ninomae because he had nothing better to do at the moment, thinking it a good idea to get acquainted with what the campus had to offer. He hadn't been there but a few minutes and he was already feeling like this was a mistake.

"Hey there, stranger," said a voice from behind him.

Ryuuji turned around to find Kushieda smiling up at him widely. It was still a good three months before the second semester even started, but for some reason Kushieda seemed to think that he was already a member of the student body. He grinned down at her, surprised. "Hey. I didn't know you had this hour free."

Kushieda shook her head briskly. "I have Literature, actually. But I saw you from the window of the classroom, so I thought of skipping. And here I am."

"Your teacher let you skip class?" Ryuuji asked, frowning.

"Yeah. When I told her I needed time to plot out my plans of ruling the world by October, she told me to get out and stop interrupting her class. Wasn't she just so understanding?"

"Ah," Ryuuji said eloquently, quite convinced that it had nothing to do with her teacher's understanding.

Kushieda hitched her bag over her shoulder and gestured at him. "So, what brings you here three months too early, by the way?"

Ryuuji could only scratch his head. What was he doing here three months too early? He had never been good at first days of school; his high school days had always been filled with misunderstandings and most of the time he would spend making people realize that, no, he was not after their lunch money whenever his eyes would meet theirs. And no, he was not going to chew their faces off if they bumped into him.

Right now, he hadn't even been on campus for more than thirty minutes and he's had three girls squeal then run away when they accidentally bumped into him. Right after, two guys desperately apologized to him while offering their wallets when he ended up looking at them directly in the eye.

It was hopeless. He was going to have to live with the face he inherited from the father he never even knew. It had been easier back in high school, because Taiga had effortlessly made known that Takasu Ryuuji was nothing to be afraid of with one swift punch in the gut. But now…

"Nothing really. I guess I just wanted to look around," was what Ryuuji answered her as they moved along down the side of the building that housed the class Kushieda was presently skipping.

Kushieda nodded eagerly, as if understanding. "Yeah, well it's always easier to conquer familiar territory."

No one ever said anything about conquering, but Ryuuji already knew how to deal with Kushieda's crazy ramblings. He looked down at her from the corner of his eye. It was obvious she hadn't been sleeping well. There were dark circles under her eyes, her hair that had grown considerably longer was tied back into a very, very messy ponytail and Ryuuji couldn't help eye the slight wrinkles on her shirt, and he had to fight the urge to pat them down straight or risk getting charged with sexual harassment.

Ryuuji had seen Kushieda like this back in high school. It was that time when she had taken up three jobs at a time during summer break, and she had been barely sleeping. It had surprised him to no end, because he had never heard her complain or even look like she was having a bad day. She had done well with her studies, as well as her extra-curricular activities with the softball team, and she had never made poor excuses not to hang out with her friends.

Which was one of the reasons why he was beginning to wonder if there was something that she wasn't telling him.

Not that she was entitled to tell him anything; they had never really gone past the 'friends-but-not-those-kinds-of-friends' phase, where they hung out occasionally, but didn't really butt in on each others' businesses. This, however, did not mean Ryuuji didn't worry for her.

And those wrinkles on her shirt were driving him nuts.

"You saving up for something?" he asked, which he thought to be quite an odd question to ask out of the blue but asked anyway.

Kushieda looked up at him questioningly. "Hm? What do you mean?"

"You look like you've been losing sleep. How many jobs have you added to your load this time?"

She blinked in confusion, as if really unsure of what he was talking about. Then she laughed. "Oh, me? Aside from the job at the restaurant, I gave up all my other jobs. Why? Do I look overworked?"

Ryuuji frowned as he shifted his gaze from her face to where he was going. For some weird reason, this – the setting, the way she was walking at his left side – felt very, very nostalgic. It reminded him of the days that came before their school trip back in their second year of high school, when Taiga had gone into the cupid role to match-make him and Kushieda. Taiga had been insistent, and that was the first time he had seen Taiga's determination at trying to stand on her own two feet.

In all honesty, Ryuuji had been more than willing then to give up on Kushieda completely, and had it not been for Taiga's insistence for him to ask Kushieda of her feelings for him, he just might have abandoned the thought altogether before their school trip.

At that time, little did he know that while Taiga had been thinking of Kushieda and him getting together, Kushieda had already been more than convinced that 'Taiga and Ryuuji' was the better option. Now that he thought about it, none of them really even asked him what he really wanted. They had just arbitrarily started setting him up with the girl they thought he should like.

Ryuuji shook his head, trying to get rid of the unpleasant thought. He wondered why he was suddenly thinking about this. This was definitely not the time, nor the place to be reminiscing about confusing things that even he couldn't quite understand. All that he had managed to sort out back then, was that he tried his hardest because Taiga had believed in him.

Maybe even before that school trip, he had already been unconsciously in love with Taiga but was just too stupid to notice. Maybe. Or maybe it had been Kawashima's fault. That girl had always been good at stirring things and people with her riddles.

Girls. They scared the heck out of him.

And confused him to no end. Ryuuji had been more than sure that Kushieda and Kawashima had hated each other since the second day of that school's ski trip. And now they seemed to be the best of friends.

While on the other hand, Kushieda and Taiga's friendship had…

Ryuuji gave Kushieda a quick glance. She was humming to herself happily as she skipped beside him.

Whatever happened to these two?

He thought it improper to ask. He knew that whatever it was, it didn't have anything to do with him.

"Hey, are you hungry?" Kushieda suddenly asked as the alley opened up to the university square, right in front of them, the cafeteria. "They have the summer special Morioka Reimen set with a student discount until August." Then, in a very loud whisper, added, "I heard the new chef is from China, and uses chicken feet for his noodle broth. Talons and all. Cool, huh?"

Ryuuji found himself grimacing. Whatever the circumstances, he was definitely not going to order the Morioka Reimen set. With or without the student discount. "I guess I am a bit hungry."

They made their way into the cafeteria. Except for a group of girls in one of the lounge seats at the far end, they were the only ones there. Ryuuji guessed that the place didn't get crowded until noon, and he was kind of grateful for the privacy.

They took their seats on one of the tables by the window, and Kushieda was immediately scanning the menu intently while making small talk.

"It's really rare to see you out of your daily routine, coming here for no purpose at all. I'd have thought you'd rather, I don't know, scrub at molds in your tatami mats?" Kushieda was saying as she flipped the page of the menu, keeping her eyes trained down. "Ah, but I guess you'd want a change of pace once in a while. Still a few ways away until October, though. You should try getting a job, Takasu-kun. It'll make time fly by faster. We have an opening in the restaurant where I work, you know."

Ryuuji shrugged, shook his head. Yasuko would have a fit if he even thought of getting a job. She hadn't been pleased before. He doubted she would be any forgiving now. "That's okay. I'm not fit for the service industry, anyway. Customers see my face and run the opposite direction."

That had Kushieda looking up from the menu, lowering it a few inches. She gave him a rueful look. "That's not true," she said before returning her gaze back down to browse the menu. She did not elaborate further, and Ryuuji just let the subject die. Kushieda had always been very polite and sincere when it came to other people, and she had been one of the very few who never judged him because of his looks.

That was why he wondered how such a nice, sincere person could ever severe ties with her best friend just like that.

Ryuuji bit his lower lip, unsure if he should try to ask her. Kushieda and Taiga had been inseparable back then. Were friendships between girls really that easy to forget? He hoped not. He sat straighter on his chair, resting his palms on the table.

"Say, Kushieda?"

Kushieda once again looked up from the menu. "Hn?"

"Whatever happened to you and Taiga?"

At the mention of the name, Kushieda's demeanor changed completely. She slowly closed the menu and lowered it on the table, laughing slightly. "Wow, that was kind of out of the blue. Taiga and I are fine. What's wrong?"

Ryuuji knew that face. He did not spend almost a year nursing an unrequited love for this girl enough to know when she was trying to cover up something she would rather not say. "I don't see you hanging out together anymore. We live in the same district, and meeting up for a coffee wouldn't normally be an impossibility."

Kushieda tucked an unruly lock of hair behind her ear, leaning back on her chair. "Taiga's working, and I'm studying."

"You two were glued to each others' sides back in high school."

"But this isn't high school anymore, Takasu-kun," she pointed out bluntly, her voice rising an octave. She seemed to have noticed this too, and she cleared her throat before continuing. "We're just both very busy. I mean, you hardly ever see her, right?"

And that had Ryuuji falling silent. Given, he and Taiga hadn't been spending too much time together lately. But he had a feeling that things between Taiga and Kushieda were different. He smiled a small smile. "Taiga's in a rough transition in her life right now."

"I know," she said quietly. "I know that, Takasu-kun. But so am I."

Now that had Ryuuji blinking in confusion. Kushieda? In a rough transition? Did he miss something here? He leaned forward. "Wait, what? Is… is something wrong? Did something happen to you? Your family? Can I help?"

Kushieda was now watching him intently. So intently that he could practically see his reflection in those wide open eyes of hers. She scratched her cheek lightly with a finger before opening her mouth to say – lo and behold – what only Kushieda could say in a situation like this: "I think I'm able to see ghosts now, Takasu-kun."

Ryuuji blinked once, twice. He tried to process this in his head for a bit, because a few seconds ago, he had been genuinely worried that something was really up with her. He rubbed his forehead in confusion. "Ghosts? Like, whoo-whoo scary ghosts?"

She nodded seriously. "And UFOs, I think. They've been hovering about me for some time now. Like houseflies. Annoying, annoying houseflies."

Okay…

Ryuuji tilted his head to the side, gave her a clueless look. "And… this, err, 'phenomenon'? I don't know what to call it; this 'rough transition'… is the reason why you've been avoiding Taiga? Am I right?"

"Technically, yes."

"Why?"

"It's complicated."

Well, yes. It certainly was. He gestured at her. "So… like… do you want me to accompany you to a shrine? A temple? Ask a monk to exorcise – "

"No," she blurted out suddenly.

"Why not? It's a bother, right?"

And Kushieda was taken aback. A confused look passed over her face for a few seconds before it disappeared once more, as if it never was there. She leaned forward, her hands now creeping on top of the table slowly until the tips of her middle and forefinger touched Ryuuji's hand that he had unconsciously clenched into a fist.

"I think I like seeing ghosts. And UFOs, for that matter."

The conversation just got even weirder. Actually, she had lost him with the houseflies. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted when his mobile phone started to vibrate in his pocket. Someone was calling him.

He was about to reach for it when Kushieda's hand suddenly grabbed his and held on tightly, nearly making him jump.

It had been back in high school did he actually get to hold hands with this girl. She had been warm then, he remembered. Right now, her palm was clammy and a bit cold to the touch.

"Kushieda?"

She was biting her lip anxiously. Her eyes were wide and intent on him. "Takasu-kun…"

His mobile kept on vibrating. He looked down at the hand Kushieda was holding. "Look, hold on a sec, okay? I think someone's trying to reach me."

Having said that, Ryuuji had expected for Kushieda to let his hand go. Much to his discomfort, she held on, and he was forced to fish his mobile awkwardly with his left hand. He flipped it open just in time when the call ended. His eyebrows rose when he saw that he's had ten missed calls and three messages already. Punching in a few buttons to check his directory, he found out that Yasuko had called him seven times, Taiga three. He must not have noticed them calling while he and Kushieda were walking to the cafeteria.

For some reason, Ryuuji did not have a good feeling about this. "Sorry, Kushieda. It's Taiga. I need to call her back, okay?" he said as he had already pressed the recall button and was pressing his mobile to his ear.

Kushieda was watching him, and he would actually prefer she'd let go of his hand so he could take the call in private, but she was still holding onto him, if anything her grip tightening.

It rang twice, thrice. Taiga wasn't picking up.

Ryuuji looked over to Kushieda and nearly dropped his phone when he discovered two silent tears trickling quietly down her cheeks. "Kushieda? What's wrong? Hey is – "

And that was when Taiga finally picked up. Her voice was a bit flustered, as if she had been running. Or was still running. "Ryuuji? Ryuuji, why weren't you picking up your phone? Ya-chan's been trying to reach you!"

Ryuuji, at that moment, did not know what to do. "I-I'm sorry. I had my phone on silent mode all morning since I had to take a bus. I didn't realize – can you hold on for a second?" He turned to Kushieda, shaking his hand free from her grip and reaching for his breast pocket for a handkerchief.

"Ryuuji, where are you? It's an emergency. We don't have time."

Ryuuji, listening with half an ear, extended his handkerchief and offered it to Kushieda wordlessly. "Don't have time for what? I'm on campus right now."

"It's your grandfather, Ryuuji."

"Huh? Grandpa?"

And that had to be the mother or all bad timings when Kushieda blurted out something that for a moment he could hardly believe what she just said to him. In one moment, she was silently crying there, the next, she had snatched his handkerchief quickly, leaned forward, kissed him on the forehead before uttering: "I've always loved you."

And the world had suddenly dropped from its axis.

Ryuuji felt a tingling sensation on the part where her lips touched his forehead, and he could have cried out then and there, had Kushieda not suddenly chosen that time to catapult to a standing position and storm out of the cafeteria so fast that he couldn't even react.

"Ryuuji? Ryuuji! Are you listening?"

Snapping back to reality, Ryuuji sat back against his chair, at the moment unsure of what had just happened. "I'm sorry… I'm here. What about grandpa?"

"He's had a heart attack. Ya-chan's been trying to reach you and called me instead when you wouldn't answer. They've taken him to Keidai. Your grandmother's already there, and Ya-chan and Ikeda-san are on their way. I left work early. I'll meet you there."

And nothing – probably not even news about the end of the universe – could have delivered a more fatal blow into Ryuuji's gut at that moment.

Because Kushieda Minori – the girl he had liked all of his high school days – had just told him that she had 'always loved him' before running away like a heroin of some shoujou manga.

And because Taiga had just declared that one of the very few family members that he was actually acquainted with had just been rushed to the hospital and it took them ten calls before they were finally able to reach him.

He could not even remember what happened after that. It was like his legs were on autopilot and before he knew it, he was flying through the doors of that cafeteria and running to the metro station as if his life depended on it. He had to hurry, and as he pounded down the stairs that led to the subway, he felt like Kushieda's thoughts were running after him like a…

Like a goddamned ghost.

Or UFO.

Or whatever.

Damn it.