Technical Difficulties (Brother's Conflict)

Chapter 10!

That night had been tough, speaking from any perspective. Mei had heard Ema sneak down stairs at some point while lying listlessly in bed, assuming the older girl was probably trying to study or something. She had no way of knowing that Ema would meet Hikaru or that said brother would be looking for Mei that night just in time to hear her late night workout session. 

Mei was hanging from the bar that she had put up in the opening of her closet, clad only in sweatpants and a tight tank top that displayed her pale limbs quaking with fatigue. There was a knock from her door, though she knew someone had been walking down the hall because of the sound of heels clicking on the floor. For some reason, Mei already had a bad feeling about this whole situation. She dropped gracefully before tugging on her ponytail to make it tighter and finally moving to open the door. To say she was surprised to find someone who looked like a woman with auburn hair holding a box in her arms was an understatement. "Um...hello?"

Hikaru had paused taking in the fact that the girl was clearly sweating and out of breath, meaning she must have been working out. It confounded him why she would work out at the late hour when he had arrived, but seeing the confused look on her doll like features was enough to convince him to start talking instead of just staring. "I've been dying to meet you. I'm Hikaru, the fourth son."

There was a silence as Mei stared Hikaru in the eyes for a long moment before some of the information that Rintaro had told her came flooding back about the fourth son. "Oh..I'm Mei, its nice to meet you. Though can I ask why you're here in the middle of the night?"

"Sorry I had to make a special delivery.." Hikaru gently gestured to the box in his arms, "...to you with love from your Dad and my mother."

Mei fought the urge to cringe at the word 'Dad' when referring to Rintaro, but was able to keep her calm since there was no way that the brothers would know about her aversion to calling him that. She took the box from him carefully, a childlike curiosity taking over her countenance as she began to get marginally excited at the idea of a present. "Thank you very much. I'll be sure to thank them when I see them at the wedding as well."

Mei mustered the energy to smile in a way where no one usually could tell the difference. Suddenly Hikaru's hand cupped her cheek, bringing her gaze completely to his eyes. From years of people watching she could tell his previous smile was now forced, "You're welcome. I'll take my leave so you can get some rest, it wouldn't be good for you to get sick before the wedding."

His tone of voice, the forced smile, his penetrating gaze, all of it made Mei freeze up with unrealistic fears. She was desperately afraid, although it didn't show outside of her smile dropping, so desperately afraid of someone like him or Nageki who can see right through her. His smile widened slightly at her clear displeasure at his comment. Hikaru backed away, beginning to walk away before throwing a kiss over his shoulder at the girl, "Good night, little sister."

456789045678904567890

A few days had passed since then, in that time no one spoke of what had happened at the college meeting though it wasn't tense after the first day or so it instead had become a distant memory to be revisited when the wedding wasn't so close to make everyone happy. Mei over the days had also gotten much better at hiding her fatigue, taking to more makeup than usual and trying her best to fend off nightmares long enough to keep herself going. She had to admit she was happy for Rintaro and Miwa, so she was trying her best to make it there without revealing the actual gravity of the situation. 

It was now the evening before the wedding, with Mei going down the stairs with a bag for the next day packed over her shoulder. As she was walking past the kitchen Ukyo eyed her curiously, her light jacket and jeans suggesting she was planning on going out. "Mei, where are you going?"

She froze on the spot, seemingly startled by his presence even though she usually had a decent amount of spatial awareness. "Uh..Remember my friend who's coming as my plus one? I'm going over their house and we'll be coming in together. They're not that trustworthy when it comes to dressing formally so I have to be there...sorry I forgot to tell you.."

She was refusing to look him in the eyes as she guilty wrung her hands together, waiting to be yelled at. Instead all she recieved was a sigh, "Are you sure you have everything and you know what time to be there, as well as the address?"

She looked up at him, a genuine small smile appearing on her pale features, "Yes, I've got that all covered. Don't worry."

"Well its impossible for me not to worry...but, if you take a portion for yourself and your friend with you for dinner I'll at least worry less. Would you please?" Mei nodded happily, knowing that her abuse of her cuteness factor had worked in her favor once again. She quickly got servings of curry and rice in some containers, putting them in an extra bag before giving Ukyo a big hug, something that startled him.

"Thanks, I'll see you later...big brother.." She whispered the last part before skipping off towards the elevator, leaving a still shocked Ukyo behind to stare off into space before others began to arrive for dinner.

'S-she called me her big brother...' Ukyo almost began crying motherly tears of joy into the curry.

---short---

Mei walked the rest of the way to the black expensive car that was waiting for her already a little ways from the front gate. She opened the door and got into the front seat, lightly smiling at Nageki who gave her his usual apathetic look. "Don't be like that, I brought dinner."

He immediately perked up a bit, sitting slightly straighter in his seat with glistening eyes as she closed the door and buckled herself in. "..You're gonna share with me, right..?"

"Depends on your behavior." Mei looked out of the window disinterestedly.

"Y-Yes ma'am!" He immediately started driving the two back towards his apartment, their destination for the evening. Not only because he wouldn't have put on a tie without her there but also to allow Mei to rest just in time for the wedding, killing two birds with one stone as it were.

Mei had no way of knowing that her soon-to-be older brother was watching from his bedroom window as she got into the car. Already assuming from his previous eavesdropping that his sister just got into a car with a man, now going to sleep over his house. He clenched his fist as his expression got a bit darker by the second, "She barely even talks to me..but for him.."

He was resolute in finding out as much as he could about this man the next day, though it was still up in the air if he would be able to keep himself from socking the guy right in the jaw with how much pent of anger he already had for the man he didn't know. 

I know I'm horrible for not updating for so long. Author is very very sorry to both your group and anyone from the nanbaka group who might be reading this. However, I'm trying to get my updating on some sort of track rather than the whims of my manic depression that causing insomnia, so pls bare with me. Gn since I have to get up to go to school in five and a half hours.