page , thought Kotaro. Posting unsubstantiated complaints was the last thing that page was for. If they had a problem with Mika, the best thing to do was talk it out with her directly.
Normally that would’ve been the correct advice, but it just added fuel to the fire. The attacks on Glitter Kitty’s page got more aggressive, and several girls started posting attacks on Mika on their own pages, as though they were trying to outdo each other. Kotaro had seen how much venom they’d been spewing when he looked over Kenji’s shoulder in the coffee shop.
How in the world did Mika get sucked into this in the first place? Who was Gaku, and what was his relationship with Mika?
Kotaro had had enough. Obviously he wasn’t going to get anywhere until he talked to Kazumi. But just because they were siblings living under the same roof, that didn’t mean getting information out of her was going to be easy.
Kazumi hadn’t answered Kotaro’s mail. In fact, she acted like she’d never even gotten it. That too was a kind of answer, and it didn’t bode well.
There was something that Kazumi didn’t want to talk about with her brother. They may have been siblings, but he was a college freshman, five years ahead of her in school, and Kazumi was crossing the line from little girl to young woman with the usual drama and fuss. She refused to let her clothes be washed with her brother’s and father’s. She used a separate toilet and washbasin. She had to be first into the bath. If Kotaro or Takayuki were careless enough to use the water first, she threw a fit. She would drain the water and scrub the tub so single-mindedly before filling it up again that Kotaro almost wanted to ask her if she thought men were genetically unclean. Takayuki was a bit messy at home, and if Kazumi discovered his shirt and socks on the sofa, she acted like she’d been exposed to a biological agent. If Takayuki used her drinking glass by accident, she never touched it again.
Kazumi didn’t hate her father and brother. “She’s just going through a phase all girls go through,” said Asako. Kotaro was used to her hot buttons, but when he had something he needed to talk about, her sensitive antennae were a pain in the butt.
It was four days before he found a chance to corner her. Coming home well after sundown after a long day of classes, he opened the front door to find Kazumi tugging on her sneakers.
“Going somewhere?”
“Convenience store.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Her displeasure was all over her face. “What do you want? I’ll pick it up.”
“I want to check it out myself.”
He stood aside so she could go first, scowl and all. As soon as they started off he got to the point.
“You blew off my mail.”
Kazumi walked quickly ahead. The ends of her favorite checked muffler flapped in time with her stride.
“You saw it, didn’t you?”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Liar. You check your inbox fifty times a day.”
She stopped suddenly. Kotaro almost walked right into her.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” She glared at Kotaro.
“Really? I do. And I’m not the only one. Aunt Hanako is worried sick.”
Aunt Hanako talked too much and was too excitable, and she dressed too young for her age. She had lots of quirks, but she’d always been very kind to Kotaro and Kazumi. Both of them had a weak spot for her.
“Ko-chan, that’s cheating.” Kazumi’s shoulders slumped in defeat. She turned and kept walking, more slowly now. Haltingly, she began to tell the story.
“So, you want to know about Mika? I know what’s going on.”
Glitter Kitty and her pals had tried to keep their back-and-forth secret from Kazumi, but obviously they hadn’t succeeded.
“Mika asked me to keep it a secret. She doesn’t want people worrying about her.”
So the one being bullied ends up protecting her tormentors. Why am I not surprised?
“Everything is Gaku’s fault.” Kazumi sounded bitter. “He’s so
Normally that would’ve been the correct advice, but it just added fuel to the fire. The attacks on Glitter Kitty’s page got more aggressive, and several girls started posting attacks on Mika on their own pages, as though they were trying to outdo each other. Kotaro had seen how much venom they’d been spewing when he looked over Kenji’s shoulder in the coffee shop.
How in the world did Mika get sucked into this in the first place? Who was Gaku, and what was his relationship with Mika?
Kotaro had had enough. Obviously he wasn’t going to get anywhere until he talked to Kazumi. But just because they were siblings living under the same roof, that didn’t mean getting information out of her was going to be easy.
Kazumi hadn’t answered Kotaro’s mail. In fact, she acted like she’d never even gotten it. That too was a kind of answer, and it didn’t bode well.
There was something that Kazumi didn’t want to talk about with her brother. They may have been siblings, but he was a college freshman, five years ahead of her in school, and Kazumi was crossing the line from little girl to young woman with the usual drama and fuss. She refused to let her clothes be washed with her brother’s and father’s. She used a separate toilet and washbasin. She had to be first into the bath. If Kotaro or Takayuki were careless enough to use the water first, she threw a fit. She would drain the water and scrub the tub so single-mindedly before filling it up again that Kotaro almost wanted to ask her if she thought men were genetically unclean. Takayuki was a bit messy at home, and if Kazumi discovered his shirt and socks on the sofa, she acted like she’d been exposed to a biological agent. If Takayuki used her drinking glass by accident, she never touched it again.
Kazumi didn’t hate her father and brother. “She’s just going through a phase all girls go through,” said Asako. Kotaro was used to her hot buttons, but when he had something he needed to talk about, her sensitive antennae were a pain in the butt.
It was four days before he found a chance to corner her. Coming home well after sundown after a long day of classes, he opened the front door to find Kazumi tugging on her sneakers.
“Going somewhere?”
“Convenience store.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Her displeasure was all over her face. “What do you want? I’ll pick it up.”
“I want to check it out myself.”
He stood aside so she could go first, scowl and all. As soon as they started off he got to the point.
“You blew off my mail.”
Kazumi walked quickly ahead. The ends of her favorite checked muffler flapped in time with her stride.
“You saw it, didn’t you?”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Liar. You check your inbox fifty times a day.”
She stopped suddenly. Kotaro almost walked right into her.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” She glared at Kotaro.
“Really? I do. And I’m not the only one. Aunt Hanako is worried sick.”
Aunt Hanako talked too much and was too excitable, and she dressed too young for her age. She had lots of quirks, but she’d always been very kind to Kotaro and Kazumi. Both of them had a weak spot for her.
“Ko-chan, that’s cheating.” Kazumi’s shoulders slumped in defeat. She turned and kept walking, more slowly now. Haltingly, she began to tell the story.
“So, you want to know about Mika? I know what’s going on.”
Glitter Kitty and her pals had tried to keep their back-and-forth secret from Kazumi, but obviously they hadn’t succeeded.
“Mika asked me to keep it a secret. She doesn’t want people worrying about her.”
So the one being bullied ends up protecting her tormentors. Why am I not surprised?
“Everything is Gaku’s fault.” Kazumi sounded bitter. “He’s so
Similar Books
