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The clock on the far side of the Spirits and Such office chimes three times.
Shigeo glances up at the clock and releases a content sigh. He leans back in the swiveling desk chair, closing the laptop placed in front of him. The quiet and still air he had become accustomed to for today would very soon be whisked away by his ever-enthusiastic student. The boy naturally came with a tone that could cut any dull atmosphere like a knife, and today would probably prove no different. Today in particular was a school day, so that meant this afternoon would be filled with the recounts of what Reigen experienced in the early hours he was away from his master—recounts that his inflection always suggested deserved the utmost attention.
Shigeo turns his chair to face the office entrance, folding his hands and placing them on his lap almost in a sort of preparation for the boy.
At 3:12 the door bursts open almost on cue. With it, Reigen’s voice erupts into the room. “Hey, Master!” Even though the exclamation carried Reigen’s brand of energy, it came off somewhat distracted. Shigeo noticed that instead of entering the office completely, Reigen chose to stand in the doorway, propping the wooden door open with his foot—an action allowing Reigen a chance to dig through the school bag that was flopped in front of him with two open hands.
“Guess what.”
Shigeo hums. “What?”
Reigen stops for a moment to look up towards his master. “I said guess.” He gives the man a quick smile before resuming his digging. “I thought I put it—Ah! There it is!” The rummaging stops, but Reigen keeps a hand hidden within the bag. “You remember that test I was worrying about the other day?”
Shigeo nods, looking up toward the ceiling and recalling a scene from two days ago. The image of a very distressed middle schooler with his face literally buried within the pages of an Algebra text book comes to mind. The memory of muffled groans and an eraser being used much too frantically makes Shigeo feel a twinge of guilt that he couldn’t offer up any help. On rare occasions he would give advice to Reigen regarding school, but math, even at a middle school level, was a place where he came up short. In the end, he had just told Reigen to relax and try his best, mentioning that worrying about what problems could appear on the test would just make things worse. It was best to study with a clear head.
He returns his attention to his student. “The math test?”
“Yup!” Reigen nods enthusiastically. “I took your advice aaaand—” Reigen draws out the last word as he dramatically pulls a crumpled sheet of paper from his bag. Shigeo squints, trying to get a good look at it from across the room. He couldn’t decipher what was on the paper, but that probably did not matter considering the only thing he was able to see was a large “100%” written across the top of the page in red.
“Ta-da!” Reigen’s smile stretches into a huge grin as he finally enters the room. He sticks out his chest proudly, pointing a finger towards himself. “One. Hundred. Percent.” He boasts, setting the test down on the small reception desk.
Shigeo couldn’t help but smile back at him. “Congrats. You see? Worrying about a test always seems to be the worst part.”
Reigen scoffs, tossing his school back underneath the chair seated behind the desk. He crosses his arms before plopping down in said chair. “Pfft, what was there to worry about?” He waves a hand dismissively. “It was way too easy!”
Shigeo raises a brow. “So, you had no reason to be as frustrated as you were before?”
This gets Reigen’s face to turn a shade of pink. He huffs. “That—that doesn’t matter at this point! What matters is that I studied hard and I passed, right?”
Shigeo nods. “Right.”
Reigen whistles “Sooooo—” He turns himself from Shigeo and to the test still placed on the desk.
“Hmm?”
Reigen picks up the paper, staring at it for a few moments before continuing. “Would it—if it’s okay, with you, I mean—” He looks back up at his master. “Would it be okay to keep this here?”
Shigeo sighs. "Reigen, I can't say I'm not proud of you and that you don’t deserve that score, but—” He pauses to shake his head, a little confused on why his student would suggest such a thing. “Don't you think your mother would enjoy that test a lot more than me?"
The boy shrugs. "Eeeh, the refrigerator at home is already full of junk. This one would just get lost.” He holds the test above his head, jumping from his seat before walking toward Shigeo’s own desk. “The fridge here though?” He waves the test in the air for emphasis, gesturing it towards the kitchenette that was located in the corner of the office. “The fridge here has nothing on it."
Shigeo raises another brow. "Huh, but didn’t you bring some magnets from home to put on there?”
“B-but! That-That was two years ago!” Reigen stammers, beginning to fluster again at the mention of the semi-embarrassing variety pack of dog magnets he insisted to be put on the office’s mini fridge. “Plus it looked boring without them!"
Shigeo lets out a small chuckle. “Don’t worry,” he says reassuringly. “I like them.”
“Good.” Reigen sighs, giving an affirmative nod. “Now’s about time we should use them” He motions to the other room again. “Can I?”
Shigeo nods his head in the direction of the kitchenette and hums. “They are you’re magnets, aren’t they?”
Reigen beams instantly. “Ah! Really?! Thanks Master!” He exclaims, fingers gripping excitedly onto the paper as he takes off to the separate room. Upon entering, he quick turns to face the mini fridge, rushing over kneeling down in front of it. He stares at the shiny surface, gazing over the four dog breeds placed in front of him. It’s a tough choice, but he decides on the magnet featuring a Welsh corgi wearing sunglasses and a party hat for his test. “There!” He looks back at the test and laughs to himself over the fact it pretty much covered the entire front area of the fridge. “Perfect.”
After admiring his handiwork, Reigen opens the fridge out of curiosity.
What’s in there doesn’t surprise him, and yet he still finds himself sighing in relief. The compartment in the door holds two cartons of milk—a larger one his master bought for himself and a pint-sized chocolate one Reigen had brought in from school. On the bottom shelf there were the leftovers from yesterday’s ramen they had together and what looked to be a box of plain rice.
He lets out another sigh.
“Do you want anything while I’m in here?” He calls out to the office lobby.
There are a few moments of silence before an answer came Reigen’s way.
“No, I’m fine. Thank you.” Shigeo responds softly, barely reaching the same volume as his student.
“Alright, just thought I should ask!” Reigen’s smile drops a bit as he closes the fridge. With one last sigh he stands back up, looking toward the familiar tea kettle placed on the counter. It was the same kettle his master used when Reigen first visited the office years ago. It wasn’t anything fancy, but the simplistic look of the thing still made the boy feel reminiscent. The burner was turned on, which, after many visits into this room lead Reigen to infer that a client was scheduled to come in later.
Reigen’s smile returns. “Typical.” He thinks to himself. His master always made tea for clients and even sometimes for Reigen on days he wasn’t feeling well or when it was way too cold outside. It was a habit made out of hospitality that Reigen didn’t quite understand considering the kind of business Shigeo was running, but for some reason, it always felt right. The gesture gave more insight to his master’s true demeanor.
Shigeo wasn’t just this ever-powerful esper who went around exercising spirits. And as cool and inspiring as Reigen originally thought that was, behind all the supernatural stuff, the real inspiration came from the kind-hearted man behind it all.
A man that was just trying to help others live their lives a little more peacefully.
Reigen gives the kettle another look before stepping back into the front office.
“So Master, who do we have coming in today?”