Life After Death

The Now

Even though only a few years had passed since, it felt like it was only a few months before Hisato has turned six. He was a little bummed to not go to school that spring, but when he found out that meant more time with mother and her classes, he was more than satisfied to patiently wait till April came along the following year.

I was a time of many challenges. As Hisato was getting ready for his first year at elementary school, Yukari was finishing up her final year of university to get her Masters that spring. Even though she wished she had more time till she she saw her little boy off, it was every mother like her that year who were doing the same thing.

Even though Mitsuru had told them several times that they were welcome to stay as long as they like, Yukari felt six years was wearing out her welcome. So before getting Hisato signed up for elementary school, she scouted out places for them to go to. They could go almost anywhere, even out of the country, but she wanted Hisato to be raised a little closer to home. So she found some places that were close to Iwatodai and settled on a nice small, yet fully equipped town miles away from there. The local elementary school was rated one of the best in the nation and the price of single family homes were within her budget. After weeks of research, up to her graduation, she had arranged to see some homes with real estate agents, applied Hisato to the elementary school, and even sent her resume to local accounting companies.

As graduation day, came and went, everything was packed into the moving truck and it was time to say their goodbyes to Mitsuru. She could never thank her enough for the support for those past six years and even for helping her move out then. When she made a silly promise to pay her back, Mitsuru just laughed and waved it off, telling her it was a long-waited thank you for everything she had done for her years back. With the moving truck sent off toward their destination, Mitsuru took them to the airport and gave their final goodbyes and watched and waved them farewell as they went through security.

...

The town was in between being and city and being a small town. There were many shops of many kinds, both locally owned and large companies, but they were a nice distance away from the neighborhood, where the elementary school was at the edge of. It the perfect size in Yukari's mind for raising her son.

The real estate agent visited with them the day after they arrived, showing them many homes. A lot of them weren't what Yukari had hoped for until the very last one they showed her. It was a home with a room for her and a room for the growing Hisato, along with a beautiful backyard, close to the school, and with enough room to grow into. It was perfect.

They stayed in a hotel for a week as they waited for the contract to be signed and their belongings to come in from Tokyo. Once that had arrived, the movers moved all the furniture in, including the ridiculously fancy furniture from Mitsuru's. What she didn't know was that Mitsuru gifted Hisato furniture for him to grow into: a bed, a dresser, and a few new toys as well. She called Mitsuru to thank her, but all she did was laugh and say that was the last of the surprises and that she would remain there for her if she needed help.

School started in a few days, so they went into town together and bought his uniform, along with some new clothes, since he was nearly growing out his others already. Hisato grew to be a rather lanky boy, compared to the other kids his age. But had proven to have a trick or two up his sleeve when it came to his physical strength. He was able to pick up things that, normally, a kid his age would hurt himself trying to. Although she remained cautious over it, the extra help around the house made settling into their new life a lot easier.

Tearful exchanges were made on the first day of school as she said goodbye to him before he joined his fellow classmates inside. She was able to meet many mothers, both younger and older than her and both new and experienced. Some made her feel ashamed of being a younger mother, but most of them were welcoming. They invited her to lunch, playtimes with the kids, and just general mom things she never experienced at the university. Having friends from the get-go was nice, but she worried deeply about Hisato and him making friends. But when she came to pick him up that afternoon, her worries were quelled as he waved goodbye to his new friends.