Unexpected

It was raining that day. A man of twenty-one sat on the steps of an abandoned house. His clothes, an army uniform, were worn and dirty. He hadn’t had a bath in days. No, weeks. He hadn’t eaten in weeks either. The man had nowhere to go either.

How did he end up in this nice neighborhood? Somehow, he knew to come here. This was the newer part of the neighborhood. The construction had just finished. But no one was moving in. The economy was struggling. Right now, it was in a low period. He chuckled to himself. How fitting.

Suddenly, he looked up when he felt that he wasn’t alone.

She looked about fifteen. This petite girl held a red umbrella over her head. Her dark blue sweater and short white skirt stood out in the dreary day. Her black curls looked so fresh.

“Oh, hello,” the girl said. The young man stared at her. She seemed rather chill.

“Waiting long?” the girl asked. He shook his head. She held out her hand.

“Come with me,” the girl said. He stared at her as she waited for him to respond.

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She led him back to her home a block away. The young man sat at the kitchen table. This all felt so surreal. Why did he come here? Wasn’t she afraid of him?

“Here you are. Sorry to keep you waiting,” the girl said, handing him a glass of water.

“Thanks,” he said. The man hadn’t spoken in months. He drank up. She kept her eyes on him. She seemed to study him like a stray pet.

“You need a bath,” she said. “And a shave. And some food. New clothes. A haircut. And… And…” She wrinkled up her face in thought. He looked so confused.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked. The girl stared at him and shrugged.

“I don’t know,” she said. He blinked with a dumb look on his face. What the hell was this? Some girl takes him and cares for him like a stray pet for no reason? This kept getting weirder. The girl stood up.

“Right,” she said. “I will get your bath ready and some clean clothes. Wait here.” The girl walked toward the hall. She stopped in the doorway, looking over her shoulder.

“My name is Taira Yumi,” she said. “What’s yours.” The man stared for a second.

“Toshiki,” he said. Yumi smiled.

“Nice to meet you, Toshiki,” she said. Then she walked down the hall.

“Okay…” Toshiki said, waving. He could just leave. The front door was right there. But something about Yumi reminded him of her. He shook his head. But that could be right, could it?