If only he didn't.

CHAPTER 9, WHAT STUDYING?

"Oh! Yes, of course, son. Take your time, I was just washing the dishes, I'm done now." She left the kitchen as SALLY crawled and followed.

"Wow, KEL...You made me lie for you? Tsk, tsk, tsk." I wagged my finger as I looked in the fridge and took out some stuff.

"No! I just don't want to get in MUCH trouble. Getting scolded doesn't feel nice."

"Yeah." I started cooking some fish and green vegetables, it took about an hour or 2.

After I was done.

"It taste...Munch Munch...Good! It's kinda...Munch...Funny how you didn't put a pickle in the food. Surprising." KEL munched on the food, talking and spitting everywhere.

"Actually...KEL, there's a pickle on your plate."

"WHAT?! Pwah! Pwah! Ewww, pickles."

"HA! That's what you get."

"Awwh."

We were now in the room, trying to study, again.

"So. You're not great in....Maths, English. What about Music?" I looked at his report.

"It's...Preetty good! Cuz I wake up in the morning-"

"Wow! Okay, done, please, no more."

"I feel like you don't like my singing." He stared at me.

"I do! What do you mean? It's good."

"Exactly! I know. I've been practicing in my sleep!"

"Oh right, SOMEBODY sleep-talks."

"Not always!"

"So. What about the time you had a dream that FARAWAY was on fire and Orange Joe walked to FARAWAY and used ORANGE JOE to-"

"....It was a nice dream. A very nice dream, at least to me! What about you? You sleep-talk too!"

"If I do, do you recall ANYYYTHING I ever sleep-talked?"

"Well. Once, 3 years ago. You sleep-talked about MARI-"

"Okay. that's enough proof...Can we please continue studying? We'll do math."

"NOOOO! NOT MATH!!"

"What's 9, squared?"

"9 squares."

"Wow. You're so correct. It's 81."

"It's 9 squares." 

"KEL, You're wrong, just ADMIT IT!! NOT THAT HARD! Geez I could just-" I hit my head against the heavy book and everything went blank.

Rain trickled down the windows.

"...I'm sorry we couldn't go outside with them, HERO." MARI looked at me sadly, before looking outside the window and watching BASIL, KEL, AUBREY and SUNNY laughing.

"Why are you sorry? You shouldn't be. We're just kinda cold. Do you need another blanket?" I gave her another blanket and wrapped it around her, she had like 25 blankets wrapped around her.

"Oh wow...6 blankets and counting. By the way, thanks, HERO, for letting me stay here! Obviously, my father would've killed you if you stayed at mine, just you and me." She huffed into the window and tried to write a message on it, but it went away immediately.

"Do you want to go outside?" I looked at her eyes, her eyes were light and full of life.

"I can't exactly. I pretty much caught a cold, it's nothing much but I'd rather not get awfully sick. I'd rather be able to go out during the rainbows than sulk in the corner of my room because I'm sick.

"Well. I have an idea!"

"Please, do tell! I love your ideas!" She giggled and held my hands, barely reaching them.

"Okay so. You know how babies hang onto their mothers by a wrap? Like...I don't know how to explain it but-"

"Mmhm?"

"How about...I can try to wrap you around my chest, with all the blankets you need, and, I'll never drop you.

"Sounds Interesting! But, what about my parents? They could see, couldn't they? And, isn't it a bit childish?"

"Hush! Don't worry about your parents, I'm to worry about them. Why would it matter if it's childish? We could worry about childish thing in what, 5 years?"

"Ah- Hmm, fine! Up! Up!" She let her arms out, just like a toddler. I always wondered that if we ever had children, would they be just like their mother or like me?

I picked her up gently and hugged her, wrapping her blankets around me. Finally, I held onto her so that the structure wouldn't fall.

"By the way, how do you plan to NOT get wet, HERO?"

"Umbrella!" I took an umbrella from the stand next to the door.

As I opened the door slowly, MARI was smiling brightly, no sign of being nervous and she was only experiencing happiness. 

"HEYY?? EARTH TO HERO? Are you okay? You hit the books...Not pun intended...And then you passed out. Can you hear me? Wee-woo?" KEL waved his hand in front of my face and lifted it "Hey, did you know that you talked while you were knocked out? Was it about MARI again?"

"...Hm? Oh...I'm fine, KEL. I'm just frustrated, a little." I smiled softly and regretted remembering a memory that hurt.

"Cooool! So...Uh..." He put my face down and I hit the table.

"Agh-...My forehead.." I stood up, avoiding anything, and just went downstairs for tea. 

"HENRY! Are you okay? You're quite pale. Did KEL annoy you so much that it killed you?" My mother gave me a cup of tea, lukewarm and slight sugar increase than usual.

"No. I was just tired, thanks." I leaned on the counter, almost falling asleep.

"Ay...Do you want to sleep? My poor baby."

"Sleep? No, I don't need it. KEL still needs to study."

"STILL? STILL?! OH THAT LITTLE-...KEL!!" My mother ran upstairs with a sandal, ouch.