My mom
Is one of a kind.
She doesn't like going out, because she's different from everyone else. "They wouldn't understand.
Bad things would happen." She says.
So I'm the one who gets stuck with all the errands.
She's rarely seen,and because of this, some question her existence.
But I first handedly can tell you that she is very real, and very special to me.
You see, I have no biological parents.
I heard that they were killed in a very big explosion with no way of survival.
Apparently some had knowledge of this and had taken time to sneak infants like me out of the country.
Yea. It was that big.
The person who did it was held responsible for their actions though, and I have a very capable replacement for what i can't remember loosing so long ago.
To this day she has taken care of me and all my necessities. Including my expensive eating habits.
Mother tells me to keep my life in our house a secret. She says it's because the outside world is completely different and that we need to keep to their social practices and laws or very bad things could happen.
I didn't know what to say to that because gennjis, my best friend, has an abnormal life as well.
He is in fact my only friend and I had the feeling we might become close since the day I met him.
It was hot in the village that afternoon, when I was being kicked to the dirt.
Exhausted and beat from the scuffle I had with maybe under 7 other kids my age, I tried to crawl away.
"I can't help it if my hair sticks up in all directions! I tried to brush it out, gel, clips, everything!" I argued.
They didn't seem to care that much and wanted to get rid of their boredom or kill time.
Who tries to beat a kid up over their hair of all things anyway? It's illogical.
I was actually doing pretty well with all their punches and kicks until an undetected hand grabbed my hair while someone's foot knocked me to the ground.
That's when the baseball bat and hard stomps of their feet came in.
The wind was knocked right out of me.
I curled into a ball instinctively to protect all my vital organs while waiting for them to stop.
I didn't want to give them the satisfaction so I kept myself quiet as possible, only letting out a few huffs here and there while grinding my teeth.
Finally when they were out of energy and couldn't do another swing, I did the first thing my brain told me to, and immediately began crawling away.
"Shit, don't you ever stop?! It's impossible you're even moving you fucking freak!!"
A foot landed hard on my back to keep me in place. I expected more hits, but none came. That's when I heard someone scream out. Everything was a blur so I couldn't tell what they were saying but I did feel the weight on my back vanishing as the brutal heat of the sun replaced it.
Curiosity got the better of me so I rolled to my side and looked up to see a scraggly looking kid run up to me while the others were leaving.
At first I wanted to run away. No point in getting beat up a second time right?
But I saw and realized that he, in fact, wasn't here to harm me.
Then the familiarity set in.
This guy had messy brown hair, maybe not as wild as mine, but it was unmistakably similar in some weird way I couldn't explain.
"Hey you okay?" He offered a hand to me. Part of me wanted to swat it away in case it was some kind of trick or prank. His face seemed sincere though.
I took the leap of faith and reluctantly accepted, letting the stranger help me back to my feet.
So far I could stand but I didn't know how well I would do with walking just yet.
I finally took the first glance at the other kids face and was met with black orbs like mine.
For some reason this comforted me. It made me feel like maybe I wasn't alone.
Maybe I wasn't just a freak by some chance?
"I'm Gennjis"
He smiled at me.
I didn't really know what to say to that other than.
"I'm Uko"
Silence filled in and I expected it to get awkward from here, but Apparently I didn't have to say very much anyway because Gennjis just so happened to be quite a talker.
"Well nice to meet you Uko how about I walk you back to your home eh? And if those guys give you any trouble just call for me and I'll take care of em!"
I just stared at him for a minute as we began walking. The pained bruises on my back and legs were already starting to subside to a dull throbbing ache. I knew my mom was going to shit when she sees.
But Was he seriously offering to be my bodyguard ? A complete stranger was offering me help? It's gotta be some kind of trick.
I realized he was waiting for me to say something so I replied with a muttered "uh, yea"
Once again the only thing to be heard was our footsteps and the wind blowing in the summer heat.
Gennjis had caught on to my quietness fairly quick and saw it as an invitation to talk even more.
With that, Familiarity between him and I felt a bit shortened.
"Damn straight Uko! don't worry about them I'm one of the strongest kids in the village! Making myself quite comfortable even though we just moved here not a week ago"
So that's why I've never seen him until now.
I wondered how he could be so outgoing. It was hard for me to mumble to a store clerk and this guy was just jabbering on to a freak who got beat up by some kids.
Maybe tomorrow he'll realize that hanging with me would just make himself a target and decide to leave me alone. Even if he was labeled "the strongest kid" he probably wouldn'tve been able to defend himself against a whole gang. Especially if I couldn't. I was a bit scrawny but by no means weak.
As far as I knew, he was completely normal.
My thoughts were interrupted by gennjis' talking.
"Wanna hear how I got the title?" He didn't wait for my reply and continued "so the first day I got here I heard the kids that lived here liked to spar, fight, whatever you wanna call it, for money. So I gambled 800 Zeni that I could beat them if they all came at me at the same time!
Crazy I know. Well, long story short, I got them all to the ground and was taking home a wad of cash while they went home with bruises and damaged pride"
Okay maybe he's not as normal as I thought.
"Hey maybe you and I could spar sometime! Without the gambling of course. You seem like a pretty tough kid if you're still walking after all that"
I kept my gaze straight ahead at the dirt road
"Yea, but you're tougher if you're not bluffing about actually beating all of them"
Where did that come from?
"Hey I'm not bluffing! I'll do it again right in front of you to prove it if I have to!"
We were only yards away from my home at this point. This guy had to be bluffing. There's no way an average kid like him could've taken on all of them.
My muscles were screaming at me for rest and I couldn't wait to get into the comfort of my bed.
"Well I just might take you up on that offer"
I smirked slightly.
"If you're willing to give half of what you bet, to me"
Gennjis raised a brow at my offer.
"Deal!"
We were now at the front door of my home. I turned to him to say goodbye when-
"Well I guess this is where we part ways, see you tomorrow for the bet? Same place, same time?" He put his hand out and for a second It didn't register till I hesitantly shook it.
"Yea" I gave a small smile and went inside to greet my very worried mother.
That was five years ago.
Ever since then Gennjis and I have been like brothers and stuck like glue. Wherever I was, he was.
Nobody mentioned one of us without the other.
Secrets and crushes were kept between me and him.
We had each other's back no matter what.
I found that out the first time I talked to him about my secret life.
No, I didn't tell him every detail, but little by little I let him put the pieces together.
Four months after we met I got the courage to tell him my first secret. I felt like maybe he'd be okay with it since he already knew about my abnormal ability to withstand attacks (even though I don't fight unless I need to defend myself). He did in fact prove himself the day after we met so I found out he wasn't a liar after all. And oh boy he could definitely withstand more than me.
We were sitting in a shady tree, pretty high up.
The sun was setting but my mother knew where I was so I wasn't worried.
Gennjis was telling me a few personal things from his old home.
"So yea, my dad said we had to get out of there because bad people wanted to take me away or something"
I furrowed my brows in thought.
"But why would they do that? Your dads a good guy from what I hear so what's up with them?"
Gennjis matched my facial expression.
"I don't know... "
it was quiet for what seemed like minutes before Gennjis spoke again.
"Uko?"
I looked at my companion to see his black eyes staring into mine.
"Is it okay if I tell you a secret? ...Promise you won't share it with anyone?" He asks.
Of course. There's nobody else I could share it with even if I wanted to.
"Promise"
We keep eye contact while he says the words that I have been so accustomed to all my life.
"My dad.. says I'm not normal.."
my eyes widened.
"What does he mean by that?"
I couldn't contain the question. If I was honest with myself it made me feel a little excited.
Even if he wasn't exactly like me, to know he wasn't completely normal or felt so was close enough to make me feel better.
"Well... I guess it's not normal for people to have black irises. And it's not normal for kids to be able to take a grown mans punch or win against several other kids...."
I didn't pry anymore even though it felt like there was more to this than what he was telling. Genjis's words felt strained, like he was trying his best to hold back whatever was eating him from the inside.
Realizing how he felt about the situation,
I decided I'd make him feel less alone too.
"You wanna hear my secret..?"
My friends face relaxed so I took it as a yes.
"I know it's gonna be hard to believe.. but please don't freak out."
I took a deep breath as my heart pounded at what I was about to do.
Never had I been able to show anyone, never had I been allowed. I still wasn't. And I still didn't know how this was going to affect our friendship.
I saw the others face turn to a curious look as he patiently waited for me.
Here goes nothing.
I lifted my shirt a bit, keeping my gaze fixed on Gennjis' expression as it changed from curious to utter shock.
"Wo-oAh!"
I cracked a nervous smile and waited for any other signs that maybe he won't run away or scream or call me a freak.
"Uko, That's incredible! Awesome!" So much Relief washed over me that the next words he said almost didn't register.
"I'm not alone then!!"
Before I knew it my best friend was lifting his shirt a bit to let loose a brunette fuzzy appendage which was now swishing around in what looked like glee.
"It feels weird having it out in the open and free from shirt prison. It's so hard trying to keep it from wiggling everywhere during the day!"
I grinned at that
"I know right! It felt like I was going to explode a few times trying to hide it from you and the rest of the world."
That's right. This feels so much better. One less thing to hide and one more reason to feel better.
My eyes followed with the constant flexible curls
Of gennjis's tail for a bit.
I was so excited The words slipped out of my mouth before I could think.
"Can I touch ?"
"Only if I can touch yours"
I tried to focus on stilling my extra limb enough so my friend could feel. It was just so dang hard! All the excitement that I've had to contain until now manifested itself into my ADHD rouge tail.
I reached out at his curling tuft and gently as I could, wrapped my fingers around it.
The fur was extremely soft which was, for once, to be expected.
I've never, however, have seen a brown tail before because mine was black. But maybe it's because we were both a part of a dead race and this was a one and a billion chance. happening right here, right now.
"I've never seen it in that color"
We both said in unison before giggling.
"I wonder who's got the longest tail"
"Only one way to find out"
"Oh and how's that ?"
I fell backwards like it was the most natural thing to do. with of course, the protesting sounds of Gennjis, who thought I was about to land several feet down on my face.
Instead of said assumption happening, my world turned upside down.
From far away if it wasn't already dark, someone might've thought I was standing under the big limb and defying gravity with magic tricks.
Gennjis caught on quickly and with a small huff of courage he tried to do the same.
He almost fell but his tail indeed proved itself useful.
"Wow I never actually thought of doing this before. Dad doesn't know much about our race other than how it nearly got obliterated"
Slightly intrigued on how he heard the story, I folded my arms back behind my head and asked "what's the story?"
Gennjis gave a smirk.
"You sure you wanna know the gruesome details?"
I nodded. By now I was familiar with how well he could tell his stories. Sometimes they dragged on but it was worth it.
"Fifty years ago...
there was a planet called Vegeta.
It was said that the planet had the strongest warriors of the galaxy... until an un-known race of alien came to the planet. He proved himself to be stronger than any of the sayians and soon became known as the strongest of the universe, Frieza.
He ruled over the sayians and made them do his bidding with little reward.
One day for some unknown reason he planned to blow up the planet. One sayian had overheard this and was trying desperately to warn the others.
They tried to play it off but soon they revolted and started a mob, believing they could defeat Frieza and his army, to be free of their slavery.
Frieza overpowered though, and blew up the whole planet along with a good portion of our race. Very few made it alive"
My jaw was wide open by the time Gennjis had finished.
I had never heard the story like that before. Worth it indeed, but something wasn't adding up.
" but wait, 50 years ago.. how are we here? I heard Vegeta was just a closed off country that got blew up with only a couple of infants to spare 8 years ago."
Gennjis nodded
"That is what happened. Dad said Somehow we repopulated. I don't know the details of all that but, I thought I'd tell you our history"
My eyes widened.
So we were... aliens?
Is that what mom was trying to hide ?
Is she alien too?
Did they blow up country Vegeta because someone knew what it was?
It was so mind boggling.
"But Gennjis how did you even hear all this, your dad is human right?"
He nodded and started swaying back and forth slightly.
"He's best buds with the owner of capsule corp and heard it from his daughter, who is married to one of the sayian survivors"
"That's crazy!" I copped my hand over my mouth right after the outburst.
Gennjis nodded in agreement.
I started to notice how my friends tail was starting to shake slightly and got back on the trunk of the tree sitting up right position. Feeling the blood rush out of my brain made me slightly light headed.
I saw it did the same for him since he swayed a little bit.
I tried to put all my thoughts in order while resting my back against the trunk of the tree.
So. We're an endangered alien race that some how repopulated into a country in the span of 50 years. And if the odds weren't odd enough, two survived, scientifically made children sayian's are in the same village, playing with each other's tails.
Okay.
To this day
I remember the first time trying what is now, and most likely will always be, my favorite drink.
I was sitting at the table reading a fantasy book when mom set down a glass in front of me.
I looked up in confusion as she never gave me beverages without asking me if I wanted one first.
I picked up the glass in question.
The first thing I noticed was that the liquid inside was a light pink.
"Nënë, what is this?"
She gave me a small smile while taking the first pan of freshly baked dragon jerky out of the oven.
"They call it 'strawberry milk'. I thought I'd let you try a sweet drink for a change"
I grinned back while looking from the glass to her skin.
"It's the same shade of pink as you..!"
She put some of the jerky on a plate and came to the table before raking a hand through my hair.
"Sweet boy"
I looked back down at the milk and took a small sip.
The sweetness of it was just right. Something so new and strangely satisfying. Something in me wanted more immediately and not a second was to spare before I downed the rest of the drink.
"Where'd you get this from?! It's so good! Mom did you sneak out to get it ?"
"Drawing on a nose seems to work just as well as actually having one" she stated simply
My eyes widened. Mother never went out unless it's too dark to buy anything, and even then, that's a rarity.
It's the little memories like this when my mom makes me feel special.
When it had reached past the 3 year anniversary of Gennjis and I's friendship, it had become an official brotherhood.
I never went to public schools so this left me one free day a week to relax and do whatever I wanted.
I always used that day to spend with Gennjis since he conveniently had the same day off as well.
We'd explore mass junk yards or get lost in the woods with our little games.
Wherever we were though, we always ended our days with rough housing.
It was an almost bond like principal.
I can't explain but it felt like an urge that needed to be fulfilled.
It was an unspoken agreement that if we needed to be home at a certain time we would spar at least 30 minutes beforehand.
It was when me and Gennjis were talking during one of these free days that the thought hit me.
For the whole 3 years that we've known each other, he had never seen or heard about my mom once.
It was weird cause I usually talk mothers head off about Gennjis but it was never the other way around.
He knew aliens existed and to tell a human about my dirty secret would be ratting himself out as well, trusted or not.
So.. that day when I got home I asked mom the question.
"Are you comfortable if I let Gennjis meet you?"
She had a blank expression as she gave it some thought.
"I guess so.. you said he was sayian like you. This means he knows there are other types of aliens as well?"
I nodded "I don't think he'd freak out. If I told him your features he should be alright"
Mom lowered her head a bit
"And how do you know he won't go off and tell his father about this?"
I tightened my lips and adverted my eyes
"Well I don't, but I trust him. And besides his dad knows he's raising a sayian kid I doubt he'd try to turn us in"
"Yes but what would stop him from trying to get prize money? My features are the least of worries, you know what it would mean for us if someone outside knew there is a sayian child live and well?"
I gave her the puppy dog eyes
"Please mom you know all about him, he's a brother to me and he's yet to let me down. I swear I'll warn him of everything he wouldn't want anything bad to happen to us, he'd take a bullet for me"
Mother sighed, which was the sign she was giving in.
"you know what we're risking. We'd have to leave the planet if someone tries to turn us in I hope you realize that."
She stated firmly.
"I'll allow him to eat dinner with us tomorrow night. I'll see how I feel about him but if he gives off aNy red flags we're moving"
I nodded "we'll be okay!!"
alas, after homeschool was done the next day I met up with Gennjis at the junkyard as usual.
"Hey bud!" He called out to me while standing up off a rusted old car.
"Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something"
He raised his brows
"What is it ? Something serious?"
I took his sitting spot on the automobile, trying to keep my composure.
"Sort of. I can trust you right?"
Gennjis took a seat next to me
"Of course! What is it? Spit it out"
I took a deep breath and sighed
"So. I was wondering if you wanted to meet my mom"
"OH hell yea dude I've never even seen your mom after all this time!"
I cleared my throats at his interruption
"Well. I wanted to prepare you beforehand"
"For what?"
"She's not human. Or sayian. It's a really big step for her and I since we're running a big risk here, but I trust you and think you're someone I can count on. You haven't let me down since the day we found out about each other" I finally let the excitement show in my face, giving a wide grin which now matched my brothers.
"Woah! If she's neither then what is she ?"
I gave it some thought and realized, I actually didn't know what she was exactly. I knew she was alien but never asked what race.
"You know, I've never thought about that before. We should ask her together over dinner"
That being said, we raced over to my house.
Gennjis beat me of course. He was the more athletic of the two of us.
I was panting as I gave a small knock on the door to show that we were about to come inside.
I could smell the scent of cooked food from outside. I had gotten pretty good at guessing what was for dinner with years of practice. "Looks like tonight we were having jabberwock stu"
"Yesss!" I heard the celebrated hiss behind me
We came in and I called out.
"Mom! Gennjis is with me"
I looked back at my friend "you don't have to hide your-" before I could finish I saw that he'd already let his tail loose.
"Really Uko, I know it's okay"
He smirked.
I nodded while letting mine loose as well and began leading him through the living room towards the kitchen.
I was correct like always. Mom was setting the third bowl on the table when she paused at Gennjis's presence.
"Hello. You must be the best friend my son always talks about"
Gennjis had to do a double take at what he saw.
He didn't expect his friend's mom to be anything like this.
Pink, no nose, black and turquoise eyes.
"You're a majin! Wow Uko I didn't know you had a majin nënë!! Nice to meet you ma-am I'm Gennjis, what's your name?"
Majin? I've never heard of such a thing. I'd have to ask one or both of them about this later.
She finished setting down the bowl and spoon
"I'm Aquiris but you can call me Aqui.
I'm sure you don't mind jabberwock stu?"
Genjis's face lit up "oh no ma-am it's one of my favorites!"
Okay so maybe I talked about my best friend a lot.
And maybe my mom listened more closely than I thought.
I sat down in my usual spot next to mother while Gennjis took a seat next to me.
I took one more whiff of the meal before digging my spoon in.
The stew was a blue purple tinge and had a fire like spice that would last only seconds before disappearing and letting the meat flavor take over.
"So, Gennjis, I assume Uko has told you what we're risking by having this little get together right ?"
Gennjis was in between the world of trying to shovel as much as he could into his mouth and being careful not to make a mess or look gross when he nodded his head.
My mom clearly saw this and took it upon herself to mention it
"Hun don't worry about table manners, raising one sayian boy, I know how hard it is trying to hide that appetite"
Gennjis chewed quickly and swallowed before talking
"It's okay ma'am my dad likes for me to practice table manners so I can be more normal out in public"
She nodded in understanding.
I was almost finished with the liter of stu, listening closely at the convo for any tension when I heard a familiar ding.
"Ah yes I almost forgot"
Mother stood up and went over to the oven before pulling out a foot long pan with something that was the size of 4 turkeys.
"The Quwhale fish is done, and so is the berry blast pie!"
She set down the giant dish and pulled out a pizza sized pie next.
My mouth watered at the mixture of smells. Wow tonight was really something.
The moment she set down the giant fish I dug in, filling my bowl with as much as I could.
"This is amazing ms. Aqui! You're such a good cook!"
My mom gave a quick smile "you're welcome"
Then quickly noticed what I was doing
"I'm guessing you both don't need plates then"
I quickly shook my head no as I was stuffing my face.
This fish is indeed tender the closer you get to the head, but tougher the closer you get to the tail.
We were done almost as quick as we started. Only few pieces of the baked seafood was left behind for mom. Thank god she didn't have an appetite like sayians. She barely eats anything now that I think about it. Maybe it's a Majin thing? She seemed healthy enough.
Next The berry blast pie was soon set in front of us.
The top of the pie had crust and whipped cream with each type of berry for each section.
Strawberry, blueberry, and raspberry.
"Hope you're not allergic to any of these, not trying to toot my own horn here but I hear my baking skills are pretty good" she winked in my direction.
Gennjis seemed to be pre occupied with downing the equivalent to 4 pieces of pie, getting all three flavors stacked on top of each other.
I wasn't far off either.
"I'll take that as a no"
Mom took up the big pot that had the stew and began cleaning the dish, only leaving the big fish so she could eat whatever was left over.
I used to feel guilty about that until she had to repeatedly tell me that it was okay, she didn't mind as long as I got full.
I learned to put down the guilt since she was being honest. She really didn't seem to mind.
Gennjis and I were finally full by the time most of the pie was gone.
This earned a big sigh from the both of us before we slumped in our chairs lazily.
"Ms.Aqui that was a killer pie, in stuffed!"
Mom gave a smile
"Glad you liked it, Gennjis you're allowed to spend nights here on free days if you'd like, Ive enjoyed your company and I'm sure Uko has too" she glanced towards my direction then checked the time
"Oh my I'll bet your father would want you back soon since you have school tomorrow no?"
IGennjis jumped out of the seat "wait what time is it ?"
Mom had to take another look at her watch "9:20, you get home earlier than that ?"
I watched as my friend gulped and nodded.
His dad wasn't abusive in any way as far as I knew, but that didn't mean he wasn't a strict parent when it came to showing up at proper times.
The reprimands were hefty if any rules were broken in his household.
"I have 10 minutes to get back or I'm grounded!"
Gennjis exclaimed, rushing towards the door
"Thank you both so much for having me, I'll see you tomorrow Uko! And if not then that means I didn't make it back in time!"
I gave a curt nod with a slight smirk on my face as he closed the door behind him.
I then turned around to see the familiar look of thought on my mothers face.
This wasn't a bad sign but I couldn't be too sure since I've never done this before.
"So? How was it?"
"Hmm.. he's a nice kid, but we'd better make some other plans so I can get a real chance to talk to him. Tonight was just greetings"
That made sense. Maybe if he doesn't get grounded, next weekend Gennjis and I could have a sleep over and nënë could get a better chance to talk with him then.
To know she's going that far tells me so far so good.
"Right! Thanks for dessert. It was really good"
This earned me another smile and a
"Of course. Don't get used to it though cause believe it or not that wore me out !"
I nodded and left the room to get ready for bed.
Next free day was gonna be a blast.