Sunshine and Midnight rain

Chapter 5

-A smile made its way on my face. I just took the shower and then disinfected the cuts on my hand, bandaged everything carefully, and then went to sleep.

28th November, Wednesday

Yuji's pov 

"Listen, Fushiguro, uh...I didn't really understand this part."I indicated a paragraph on the page.
"We didn't even start explaining that, Itadori."He stated really annoyed.
"Oh, yeah, sorry."
"Are you even connected today?"Kugisaki asked. "You seem off."
"Oh, no, it's just a bad day, nothing so serious."I smiled, trying to reassure them. It is true that it's just a bad day, but I don't know, something is really off today, maybe I just feel grandpa's absence more.
"We can take a break then."Fushiguro said while standing up and laying his pencil on the table.
"Oh no, don't worry, Fushiguro, I'm okay, we can go on."I smiled again.
"Itadori, I'm not saying that with wickedness, but, there's no point in going on now if you can't focus, taking a break won't do anything bad and we are not wasting time. Eat something sweet, it'll help you focus."He said quietly.
"Yeah, okay..."I looked down at the table,  meanwhile Fushiguro went to the toilet I think, while Kugisaki was on her phone.
"Don't worry, Itadori, if something bothers you, feel free to talk with us, if you'd rather not, it's okay anyway, just know that both me and Fushiguro are here if you need something."She looked at me smiling with wide, sincere eyes.
"Thank you, Kugisaki. Everything's fine, I'm just sad I guess."
"Why?"
"My grandpa, I think. I miss him."
"What happened to him?"
"He died, not so long ago, last week."
"Oh, Itadori, I'm really sorry, it must have been difficult...it is normal you haven't moved on yet, but really, trust me, I know the pain won't go away, but you'll learn how to live with it and manage it and I hope it happens as soon as possible. You are strong, I'm sure you'll succeed successfully in this task."
"Thank you so much, Kugisaki." That helped me a little, I felt relieved somehow. Suddenly, a bar of chocolate and some biscuits flew over the table, I turned my head and found Fushiguro in front of it.
"Eat these, Itadori."
"You didn't have to, Fushiguro! I thought you went to the toilet."I complained.
"They'll help you, trust the process."He sat down.
"Itadori told me why he's in this state." Kugisaki said.
"Would you mind explaining?"He referred to me. I explained the same thing to him and Kugisaki intruded to explain as well what she said.
"She's right, Itadori. I know that it's difficult to accept someone's death and even in a lifetime you could not accept it, especially if that person was particularly special to you, but you'll surely find the way to manage it and not fall apart. If you need something we are willing to help you."By the way he said that, I kind of could sense that he probably has already lived that situation at a certain point in his life.
"Thanks, guys, I feel better now, really." I started then eating the snacks Fushiguro brought me, offering some to him even if he refused, while all three looked at our phones in peace of mind. Kugisaki also started eating a snack, paprika chips, I love them. I was scrolling on Instagram just minding my business and looking at some reels, they always find a way to amuse me and relax me.
"Uh?!"Kugisaki.
"What?"Fushiguro asked, still looking at his phone, while I raised my head.
"A post here says that a fifth of a second is enough to fall in love, idiocy!"
"Well, it is true."He said quietly.
"Uh? How can you even tell?"She asked, annoyed in a loud voice.
"Do I have to remind you we are in a library?"
"As if I care. How can you say that this is true?"
"Science says that."He said, still looking at his phone.
"Impossible, what do you think, Itadori?"
"Uh, I don't know? I mean, it kinda looks impossible to me as well, but I don't know if I would define it an idiocy if science stated that. But yeah, it's kind of strange."
"I wouldn't like falling in love that fast, if we trust this thing, that means we can fall in love with everyone very fastly."
"Not really, Kugisaki. There are lots of other processes before that, like, our mind has to establish first if we like a person and things like that."
"Crazy."She continued looking at her phone. After finishing our snacks, we decided to continue with Physics. I understood pretty well everything till now, even if with some difficulties.
"Let's just quickly revise what we did from the beginning and then let's continue." Fushiguro said.
"So, The laws of dynamics are fundamental physical laws, because they are the basis of Dynamics, which is that branch of mechanical physics that studies forces and their effects on bodies..."We continued this way till the end of the time we could spend in the library; in class we discussed this topic till the first law of the Dynamics, so theoretically there wasn't that much to study yet, the problem were the exercises we had to do in class, but we practised here a bit and Fushiguro helped both me and Kugisaki understand the passages to follow so that we could know how to start and maybe solve a problem.
"It's time to go, guys."Kugisaki said after probably 30 minutes, checking her phone. We took our things and put our jackets on, exiting the library and crossing the hallways to arrive at the exit of the school. It was already dark and freezing like the other days.
"Are you free now?"I asked both of them, hoping for a positive answer.
"Yeah."
"In an hour I gotta meet a friend of mine, we're going shopping and we'll have dinner together, but at the moment I'm free, why?"Kugisaki answered.
"Would you like to come to my place? We can spend some more time together and have a snack if you feel like it."
"That's fine for me."
"Even for me, just know that in 30 or 35 minutes I'll have to leave."
"Yeah, don't worry, let's go then." We started walking towards my house. I slipped on a slab of ice near a little flower shop and almost broke some vases, Kugisaki laughed and continued teasing me till we arrived at my place, annoying. I opened the door and let them in.
"You can hang your jackets there, then you can go in the living room if you want to, there's the tv there, make yourself at home."
"Can we leave our shoes here?"Kugisaki asked.
"Sure, really, don't worry about anything, guys."
"Wow, Itadori, what a big house!"she said, gasping, while looking around really surprised.
"It's not that big, it was my grandpa's house, it isn't an apartment it's true, but it is not that big as it looks. Anyway, would you like something to eat or drink?"I said while going towards the kitchen.
"I'd like some orange juice, please."Fushiguro said, while following me.
"Me too!"She said, yelling from the living room.
I took it from the fridge and then two glasses from the top shelf, the ones I usually use for guests since they are decorated and more well-kept, placing them on the kitchen counter after rinsing them, and then pouring the juice.
"Fushiguro, if you want to, you can stay for dinner, it's not a problem at all. I would have also asked Kugisaki but she'll be busy so yeah, I hope you'll accept."
"We'll see later maybe, thank you."I handed him both glasses and while he went to the living room I prepared a glass of juice also for me and then reached them as well. I found them sitting on the sofa, glasses placed on the little glass coffee table in front of it.
"What do you wanna watch?"I asked.
"Whatever you like."Fushiguro said. I turned on the tv and went on Netflix.
"But, would you rather watch a film or like a documentary or something?"
"Please, don't tell me you are going to choose one of those animal documentaries."
"Don't you like them, Kugisaki?" I asked confused.
"They are one of the most boring things existing on tv, I could read on your face that you liked them."She sighed.
"I like them too, they are not boring."Fushiguro said in a low voice.
"You are just two dumbasses. Itadori, let me choose what to watch."I gave her the remote control and then she chose uh, Outer Banks?
"What even is that, Kugisaki?"Fushiguro asked.
"Outer Banks, a hundred times better than a documentary."Fushiguro after only two minutes looked really annoyed and Kugisaki noticed that, he was sitting between me and her after all.
"Stop looking annoyed, in like 15 minutes I'll have to go and you'll be able to watch as many documentaries as you want."
"What even is the point in watching this thing for just 15 minutes if you gotta go and we are not even interested?"He asked.
"Shut up."We did as she said and watched in total like 18 minutes of the first episode till it was time for her to go. We accompanied her to the door, where she wore her shoes and jacket, took her backpack and exited.
"Goodbye, Kugisaki, see you tomorrow then, and have fun shopping!"I greeted her and gave her a hug.
"See you tomorrow, Kugisaki." She left then. It was now a quarter to six.
"Itadori, it is okay to have dinner together, if that's okay for you."
"Of course it is, don't worry."We sat again on the sofa.
"I should light the fireplace, it's cold in here, wait a moment."I said while getting up again.
"I also have a fireplace at home."
"Oh, so you don't live in an apartment, like me."I said, while taking out some wood from a wooden box beside the fireplace.
"No, my house is quite similar to yours actually, there's another fireplace in my room as well."
"I also have one in my room, I think they probably have the same shape."I said, while placing the pieces of wood inside and taking a lighter from a shelf and trying to set fire to wood.
"What do you wanna eat for dinner?"I asked, meanwhile the fireplace lightened. I continued to stand there looking at him.
"I don't know, you liked cooking, didn't you?"
"Yep."
"Cook whatever you like, Itadori, it's the same for me really." I looked at him in silence, then smiled and went towards him and took his hands in mine.
"I'm gonna teach you how to make meatballs!"I said, grinning from ear to ear.
"We're gonna make a mess cooking together , you know that right?"
"You are the one who's gonna make a mess, I'm not."I said in a challenging way.
"Yeah, right."
"Come on, Fushiguro, even if we make a mess this is my house and I'm gonna clean everything by myself, I swear! Furthermore, you are a guest so I'm never gonna ask you to help me clean anyway, I'm taking all the responsibility, promise."I said with a hand placed at heart level and the other raised.
"Okay."He said, annoyed.
"Let's go then!"I took his wrist and almost ran to the kitchen while he complained.
"Take this."I threw him a red apron after opening a drawer, then I took another one equal to his, apart from the colour, mine was white.
"Itadori, isn't it a bit early to start cooking? It isn't even six o' clock."
"Oh, right...it doesn't take too long to make these meatballs, so yeah, thinking about that, it is early."We stared at each other's eyes in silence then, till he broke the gaze and started looking towards the ground.
"We can wait here if you want."I said while sitting on the counter.
"It's the same."
"Okay then."
"Why do you sit that way everywhere? First in the changing room then here."
"Oh, well, I used to sit like this when my grandpa cooked, I learned everything from him and still have some of his recipes; this happened especially when I was little and couldn' cook with him, so I just sat on the counter and watched him, even if he didn't want to. During the time it just became a habit and it happens quite frequently to sit this way, a bit everywhere, like yesterday in the changing room."
"He looks like someone really important to you..."
"He is, really..."I responded smiling while looking at the ground. "You know, he represented both my parents and I grew up with him; now that I'm alone it's difficult to move on and do things by myself, but he taught me things that no one probably could have taught me. I feel his absence everyday, but especially thanks to this positivity that I have, I got well pretty soon fortunately. I know almost nothing about my parents, and when he tried to talk about them during his last moments, already in the hospital, I just said I wasn't interested. This was his house before moving in that little town I mentioned various times, he used to tell me to move here once he was dead and I just did what he said. He was important."I then looked up, finding him already looking at me, that left me a bit surprised, his gaze was confident and decisive, full of comprehension and empathy, that reassured me in a way, however, there was something wrong in it, off.
"You understand me, don't you?"I asked. That may have been too risky to ask, probably, almost challenging, sounds more like a thing Kugisaki would ask that way.
"How can you tell?"He continued looking at me.
"Your eyes speak for you, Fushiguro."I said that quietly and smiled, in a reassuring way, gently.
"Yeah, I understand you from several points of view, Itadori, we have some things in common. Thanks for opening up with me."
"You can open up too if you feel like it, if you don't, that's okay."
"I don't, however, you are the first one who has ever noticed that something is wrong by just looking into my eyes, no one has ever read me on the inside like this."He continued looking at me. That made me...skip a beat?I think...but right now I feel his gaze on me so intensely that I'm not really able to think properly, I feel my cheeks on fire, does he notice that too?..No, I don't think so, it doesn't look like it. I feel his gaze on me so intensely that it seems like a sword is piercing me but without hurting.
"Oh, uh..."Didn't know what to say. "Your eyes are pretty, I love their colour, also your eyelashes."At that he looked stunned. I embarrassed myself.
"Itadori, how does that fit in with what I said?"He was confused. I was too. His eyes really are pretty, they are dark blue, in the sun probably more of an ocean blue, and his eyelashes too, they are long and slightly curved, but I'm confused, probably more than he is. I took a breath by lowering my head a little and looking at the ground.
"Thank you, Fushiguro, I hope you'll feel at ease enough to open up with me if you'll want to, without having to see through your eyes. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to understand you by just looking into your eyes if that happens, but I'll be happy as well to help you after somehow."
"Thank you, Itadori."
"Sorry about that, the eyes thing."
"If you really mean that then it's okay."
"Oh, so...that means I can compliment you again?"I asked with a dumb and big smile.
"If you really desire to."He said in an ironic way."Anyway, Itadori, what do we need for the meatballs?"
"Oh, uh...well, ground chicken, green onions, they have to be finely chopped, ginger paste, egg yolks, and then garlic, pepper, salt, soy sauce and those kind of things, they're really easy to make. We also have to prepare the broth."
"May we start?"He asked.
"Okay, however that means we'll eat a bit earlier."
"Not bad, so we'll go to bed without having a heavy belly, I also have to go home then."
"You can sleep here if you want."
"Thank you, Itadori, but maybe next time."
"Okay okay, let's start then!"