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"Wake up!" A voice startled him, the boy blinks half-consciously, he is still sleepy. He hears the curtain of his room being opened at the same time as someone calls to him again, "breakfast is ready!"
Morning sunlight pierces his vision, "Ah, Mooom, just a moment..." the boy sulks and hides his face behind the pillow. He knows his mother would not accept any reason but he just wants to sleep a bit longer.
Suddenly a voice from a speaker in the boy's room screams, deafening his ears, "Wake up, Fucking Brat! Don't make your mother's life difficult on her first day back to work! ” The source of his voice was his father downstairs, the father installed the speaker with a microphone to hear everything, of course not only that, several cameras and tracking machines were also installed on his son's belongings — yes, a crazy father.
"Oh, Anata, you know you don't have to use that language," his mother taps a few times on the speaker located on the boy's desk.
"Ahh, shut up..." the boy grumbles lazily. His mother just smiles at him and ruffles his son's hair before speaking again to him in a soft voice.
"Come on, we don't want all of your e-sports last game history to disappear like yesterday, no?" Her voice was calm but threatening, as soon as the that sentence comes from his mother's mouth, he shivers. He forgets his mother has total control over his father's behavior towards him and the last thing he wants is to make her angry.
The boy hurriedly gets up from his bed while his mother had walked down the stairs before him.
After he washes his face and changes his clothes, the jet-black haired boy finds his father in a white shirt and black tie, his hair neatly combed. The boy frowns, it's not like him to dress up clean in the morning, his father goes to work at unconventional time and as he likes, and he usually only brings his laptop and his phone. The boy pouts, seems like his father wouldn't send him off to school today. Meanwhile his younger sister is currently chewing rice without taking her eyes off the iPad which is playing a YouTube video in front of her.
"Finally I can go back to work," the mother who has just finished tidying the cooking utensils finally sits down at the dining table with her family, "I think the last time I teach in the kindergarten was when I was pregnant with Souichi..."
The father grins his usual, devilish smile, "Isn't that great? Is there anyone else who wants to accept you even though you haven't teach for so long? You haven't teach in six years. You sure they're not accepting the wrong person?"
"Mou, you're always like that, Youichi-kun! When will you stop teasing me?" The mother calls her husband by his name, signaling that she doesn't like what he said.
Youichi drinks his black coffee in the mug, "When I fucking die, my beloved, Mamori-chan," Youichi teases again by calling her name. The man gets up from his seat, the woman sulks as she follows him to stand and takes his coat, she fixes his tie and looks into her husband's eyes intently — she then chuckles sweetly.
Always look like in their own world when being together like that, Souichi pouts his lips.
"Aren't you bored from watching that, Naomi-chan?" Souichi turns his attention to his four-year-old sister. The little girl is watching her favorite nursery rhyme while still chewing.
"Naomi likes Sakuraba," the girl points to the boy that Souichi knows is a child star named Sakuraba Ryuuto... if he's not mistaken. The boy is singing and dancing, followed by a stupid animation in the background.
Souichi runs his hand on his sister's hair and reminds her to go back to eat. While his father and mother finish their argument — Souichi realizes this is how they flirt — the father says goodbye behind the wall, loud enough to be heard by Souichi from the dining room. Souichi's voice replies to him a few seconds later, then the sound of the door closing followed.
Mamori enters the dining room again and found Naomi has finished her rice and side dishes, "Oh, Naomi-chan! How smart~ she has finished her meal~" she also looks at his son who focuses on the natto in front of him," Souichi-kun, Dad has to meet some people today, so he can't take you to school even though it's the first day of school, I'm sorry..." Although the boy doesn't show it, he certainly wants his father to be by his side on his first day to elementary school, Mamori feels a pang inside her growing because of guilt, "...and I also have to start to teach today..."
"Mom, it's okay, it's no big deal," Souichi says between his chews, and he is really okay. For some reason he feels like throwing tantrums wouldn't change anything, his father's character was always calm when he seemed to be doing something to get what he wants, and it makes him feel like he has to behave like that too.
Mamori touches her son's hair and strokes it gently, he is only six years old, but why does he look so mature? He should cry when he is sad and laugh when he is happy like other children, but so far Souichi only stays quiet if he feels disappointed and smiles a little when he is happy. He really resembles Youichi.
"I'm always proud of you, Souichi-kun ..." Mamori brings her child into a warm hug, a routine that Mamori likes the most, "don't grow too fast, my sweetie."
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"See you later, Otousan, Okaasan!" A boy shorter than Souichi waves his hand. The boy is Kobayakawa Souta, his closest friend since who knows when. His parents, Uncle Sena and Auntie Suzuna, are his parents' best friends since high school and they are still in good relations even up to now — the Kobayakawa family happily picks up Souichi and took both of the boys to school together.
Souta is a clumsy but an honest boy, Mamori always reminds Souichi to help him if Souta is bothered by the jocks in school, but Youichi always mutters exciting ideas to bully Souta. "I heard you just got back from America, Sou-kun?" Souta asks with a beaming face.
Souichi smiles hearing the boy calling him by his first name, he never changes. They walk together toward the school entrance, "Yeah, watching the NFL! You watched it too, right? Chargers against Chiefs?" Souichi says excitedly.
"Yeah! Mahomes was great! But I watched on TV," Souta chimes in, "surely the excitement is different when watching live. Oh, I really want to watch it live! " The boy clenches his hands excitedly.
"Haven't you ever been to America already?" When Souichi reaches the school shoe rack, Souichi took off his outdoor shoes and changed into indoor shoes.
"I did, but I don't really remember," Souta also changes shoes and greets the teachers he passes by, "so I want to watch NFL live too someday!"
Souichi smiles, despite their distinctive nature, there was one common thing that was shared between both of them, and that is the love for American football.