What We've Missed Without You

chapter 16

"Some guy is in the diner because his car broke down, is Uncle Rin's garage open?"

"I can go and call him, go and entertain him while I do that." Takeru laughed, rubbing through Kana's hair before going to the telephone on the back wall to dial the local mechanic's number. The ten-year-old then scurried off to the little 'barista' bar they had in the front section of the restaurant just outside the kitchen window. She dragged a stool along with her and set it to the counter so she could climb on top of the counter and grab a container of coffee on the top shelf, the man didn't say anything specific on the brand of coffee he wanted, so Kana just grabbed a random container of instant coffee. On the way down, she also grabbed a plain white mug. The velvet pink-eyed girl got back on the stool and grabbed the pitcher of hot water under the coffee maker, pouring enough of the steaming liquid before putting the pitcher back and then getting a spoon to scoop some of the instant coffee into the mug. While working, she heard the man talking on the phone:

"  I'm sorry, I'm stuck here until I get my car fixed. You'll just have to go with Hitori-san...Look, I know she's strict, but you'll have to deal with her until I get back....Kou-san, you're an adult and a legendary idol, please act like one..."

Looks like he was someone important. She didn't know much about celebrities, but maybe she'll asks some of the girls in her class about it. They're always chattering about male idols and how handsome they were, maybe they knew who 'Kou' was. Kana stirred the brown powder into the hot water and let it diffuse into a consistent thin brown liquid; setting the spoon in the small sink next to her, she carefully took the mug of coffee to the young man waiting for her, grabbing a hand towel on the way. She set the mug in front of the man and handed him the towel. The dark brunette mouthed a 'thank you' while talking to the other man on the phone, but Kana didn't go away. She went to the seat across from him and sat down. She watched him talk on the phone for a little bit with a blank stare, studying his facial features with small thoughts zooming through her head. He's kind of handsome...He wasn't like Hiyama Mamoru, but he was a handsome guy. Was he really blind without his glasses? Reika is without hers. Does he meet all sorts of celebrities all the time? Does he make a lot of money? Judging from his appearance and formal stature, he looked like a business man or a manager. It must be nice to have all of that money from just being around people.

If Kana had money, she would buy a beautiful house for her, her siblings, and her mother. She would buy new clothes and shoes for everyone, so that they didn't have to get hand-me-downs and no one would make fun of them for wearing old clothes. Kana would also buy a dog! Yui always mentions that she wanted a dog, but was never allowed to have one! Kana would adopt the most friendly and loyal dog for her mother! A Golden Retriever, a Border Collie, or a German Shepard! She read in a book once that they were some of the most loyal dogs in the world! What else would Kana buy if she had money? Pay off Yui's hospital bills, let everyone travel around the world, give money to her grandparents so they would have a nice retirement...

Well...There was that one thing...But she wasn't sure if she could use money to get it.

"You've been staring at me for a while, am I that interesting?" The man chuckled as he dried his hair off, snapping the young girl out of her dazed set of mind. She shrugged and simply replied, "You're the most interesting thing that has happened all day, so yeah!"

"I'm honored. Thank you for serving me." He lifted the mug to his lips, blowing on it a little bit before taking a small sip. Kana propped her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her arm.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"My name is Todoroki Yukiro. What is yours?"

"Komori Kana, written with the characters of 'summer' and 'beautiful'."