Midori unlocked her apartment door, walked in, and held the door open for her companion so she could enter. Emotionless, the blonde blinked, before she put her left foot over the threshold.
"I'm home," she said monotonously, looking at her guardian, who smiled a little.
"Welcome home, Yui-chan."
The middle-school girl took off her shoes and deposited them on the shoe mat next to the entrance. Then she picked up her bag and took a few steps into the apartment before she began to check out the environment.
Directly opposite of her was a window front, through which she could see the building across the street. In almost all apartments were the lights on, which was absolutely usual for this time of the day.
She studied the furniture with her purple eyes. To her left were two doors followed by a bookshelf and dresser with a television. On the right side there was a discreet door, behind which the girl suspected the toilet. Then an open passage followed, which allowed her to recognize a refrigerator. After that, a sofa and a cushion next to the wall, and a square table in front of it completed the interior.
The nurse marched into the kitchen. "Are you thirsty? I'll prepare tea, then I'll cook dinner."
"Don't bother, Midori-san." The blue cover of a scrapbook in the bookshelf caught Yui's attention. The patient book, as her sister had called it. Driven by curiosity, she took two steps towards the bookshelf, but then reminded herself that it was rude to simply dig into Midori's stuff.
"You must be hungry, Yui-chan."
"Not really." The blonde put her bag on the floor and then rubbed herself on the right elbow. "Thank you for allowing me to stay here."
Smiling, the black-haired woman appeared in the archway. "It's my pleasure." Midori bit her lower lip as she looked at the girl in her living room. "I just don't understand why you wanted to come to me."
"I'm sick of her lies." Contempt, which the guardian hadn't thought possible, resonated in the middle-school girl's voice.
"Yui-chan ..."
Pointing to the sofa, Yui asked, "May I sit down?"
Irritated, the nurse blinked. "Of course. Go ahead."
"Thank you." The younger one picked up her bag, walked over to the sofa and sat down on it. The bag was deposited next to the sofa beside her backpack. Then she opened the backpack, pulled out a notebook and a writing case, and sat herself up.
"What are you doing?" Midori asked.
Blinking, the blonde looked over. "My homework."
"I see." Slowly the guardian nodded. "Okay." The girl devoted herself to her work.
Nervously, the black-haired disappeared in the kitchen. She had no idea what she should do now. Such a reaction she had never expected from Yui and now she was not in the least prepared for it, even though she had offered shelter in her apartment a few days ago.
She had to try to appease the younger sister, because as she had noticed, Yui's words had hit the other Masuda girl hard.
As the water boiled, the nurse made a cup of tea before returning to her living room with the cup in her hand, where the blonde diligently worked on her homework.
"Can we talk, Yui-chan?"
The middle-school student paused in writing, raised her eyes and squinted over. Then she shrugged. "If necessary."
Innocently, Midori smiled. "I'm afraid it is." She joined her hopefully temporary roommate on the sofa. As she sipped her drink, she sought a suitable beginning for the conversation. "First, I want to apologize, Yui-chan."
Lifting a brow, Yui asked, "For what?"
"Everything. The whole situation."
"It's not your fault. It's least of all your fault, Midori-san," the girl assured her.
"Nevertheless ... as your guardian, I feel responsible."
"You can't help that Yuna is a liar." Again, the nurse displeased the hardness behind Yui's words.
"Hey, Yui-chan. Please keep in mind that Yuna also went through a lot. What has happened to you two, one can hardly imagine. Such events fundamentally change a person." Seeking the thread, Midori stroked her hair. "You also have to be lenient with her, not just with you."
"If you want to give me a lecture, I'll end this conversation right now," the blonde announced coldly. Swallowing, the black-haired woman nodded. "The fact is, Yuna is hiding things that she doesn't want to reveal at any price. I will find out what it is."
"We should trust her, Yui-chan."
Energetically, the middle-school student shook her head. "Why should we? What can be so terrible that she is keeping it from us? That she is keeping it from me? Her own sister?"
Midori licked her lips nervously as she thought of the secrets she guarded herself. "Sometimes secrets are needed to protect those we love."
"Spare me with those martyr sayings," Yui interjected. "Don't make her a heroine."
"I don't." To give herself time to think, the woman took a long sip of tea. "I just think you should get along. That's the most important thing. And if she doesn't tell you everything as she did before, then you have to learn to accept that."
"Whose side are you on?" the blonde growled.
"This is not about any sides, Yui-chan. We should all be on the same side."
"It's her who isn't on our side. Are you really closing your eyes to that?"
The nurse noticed how upset her protege was. Of course, emotional fluctuations on one hand were the everyday life of adolescents, but on the other hand could also be classified as a consequence of her traumatization.
Usually Yui was very calm and reserved, but today Midori had witnessed several episodes when the girl got frustrated.
"Yui-chan. Please calm down, okay?" the black-haired asked clearly.
"I'm calm, Midori-san. Or am I yelling at you? Do I throw objects around me and babble like a madman?"
"No," confessed the guardian. "But I realize that you are very strong-willed and a good actress. Obviously, you are struggling with the changed personality of your sister. I can understand that, but you have to admit that you changed too, didn't you?" Midori watched the girl next to her attentively.
"Of course. That's not what this is about." Yui snorted helplessly. "She hides secrets from us. Important secrets."
"That can..."
"That is!" the middle-school student cut her off.
"Okay. She doesn't tell us everything."
"Pah ... why should she leave the room in the middle of the night with the Katana?" Yui asked softly.
The nurse swallowed helplessly. "I don't know."
"See? You don't know either. Shouldn't you know as her guardian?"
The black-haired woman noticed how the blonde cleverly turned the conversation and drove her slowly into the corner. Also in this point she was surprised by the Masuda girl completely, because she hadn't expected such fluency in a minor. She had been aware that Yui was more intelligent then others of her age, but she wouldn't have believed her to be on that level.
"I ... I don't know ..." the nurse stuttered overwhelmed.
Breathing deeply, the middle-school student put her hands on her thighs. "I'm sorry. I really gotten into rage." All of a sudden, all the aggressiveness had disappeared. "I'll apologize to Yuna today, okay?" The older one nodded intimidated. "But I'll stay with you today. We see what we're going to do tomorrow. Is that okay for you?"
The black-haired had no choice but to agree with the girl. She had played her completely against the wall, and now simply offered her an opportunity to protect her face. "Of course, Yui-chan." Midori finished her tea and got up. "I'll show you the bedroom. I'll sleep on the sofa."
"Don't be ridiculous, Midori-san. You sleep in the bed and I sleep on the sofa," Yui said with the clear intention of not tolerating any argument.
"But ..."
"You're pregnant. You have to take care of yourself." Reluctantly, the adult nodded. "I'm not hungry. You don't need to cook for me. I'll do my homework now, write to my sister and then I'll go to sleep. Tomorrow morning, I'll get up on my own and go to school."
Baffled stared the nurse at her guest. The matter seemed to have been decided and she obviously was not given a saying. Again, she went through her knowledge of the two Masuda girls, but now came to the conclusion that possibly Yuna was easier to handle. Reluctantly, she had to admit that she couldn't control the younger sister.
"Agreed," whispered Midori.
An innocent expression appeared on Yui's face. "I'm sorry." She licked her lips, but her guardian couldn't determine, either by calculation or because she was really nervous. "I ... that makes me feel uncomfortable now."
"No ..." The black-haired backed away a little. "That sounds reasonable. Are you sure you are not hungry, Yui-chan?"
Friendly, the blonde smiled. "You know what? I'm a little hungry. Let me help you with the cooking."
"No. Do your homework, please? I'll take care of it," the woman refused.
"Alright. If you insist."
Determined, the nurse nodded, slowly thinking she would take the lead again. "I do."
Later in the evening they ate together, after which Midori once led her guest through the apartment and explained a few more details. Eventually they made themselves ready for bed and wished each other a good night.
Before going to sleep, Yui set her alarm clock and briefly wrote to her sister.
I'm sorry that I attacked you like this. I lost my nerve. Please forgive me, sister.