Chapter Text
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I remember my 14th, first day of autumn.
On that night, I met him.. I remember it vividly. Like a memory that'll stay in the back of my mind forever no matter how life drastically changes.
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9.22.XX , 1:29 AM
'DING-DONG !'
..? What is that..
A ding dong ditcher..?Probably..
Why would someone---
'DING-DONG! DING-DONG! DING--'
"OKAY! Okay, I'm coming!" Sabito groaned, pushing aside his lingering drowsiness. He rolls up onto his feet, straightening his back.
Sabito swung the door open in annoyance, "It's so early in the morning, what do you wa--"
He paused, his annoyance dispersing into the air. Before him was a timid boy, who seemed to be on the verge of tears despite it being dark out.
Sabito placed his hands on the boy's shoulders, attempting to hint support and reassurance with his warmth. He doesn't pull away even if the boy in front of him seemed to grow more nervous.
How old is this guy..?
15?
13?
No-- Wait-- He must be my age.
I can tell by his eyes.
"I-- My parents-- They-" The timid boy finally stammered out, only to be interrupted with a loud shatter that seemed to come from a vase from the house next door.
Recognizing the situation, Sabito immediately steps aside to allow his neighbor inside his home. "Get inside." He instructs firmly.
The two quickly headed inside, Sabito shutting and locking the front door. Now that the black haired boy sat down comfortably on Sabito's couch, he started gathering his thoughts to ask questions.
"My name is Sabito."
"What is your name? Was that your house there?" He asked, getting straight to the point with his arms crossed. Despite being the same age as the other, he displayed maturity and security, trying to make the other feel safe.
The other scrunched up his hands, pressing it hard onto his lap as he looked down at the floor. "Tomioka Giyuu." His words were followed up by a nod, confirming that he was from the house next door.
Sabito's eyes slightly widened, and he scooted closer to analyze Giyuu's body. "Are you okay? Did they yell at you? Did they hurt you?" He continued questioning, picking up Giyuu's hand, discovering a deep wound that was formed on his hand.
"Come here, quickly! Let's disinfect it before it gets infected." Sabito spoke, bringing Giyuu towards the bathroom sink.
As he disinfected the boy's wound, his head filled up with all sorts of questions.
Is this the first time this had ever happened?
How long have his parents been like this?
It's strange, now that I think about it.
I've always heard loud voices at night, but I figured it was just hallucinations.
It was only ever voices. There were never any other sounds.
Sabito finished wrapping the bandages around Giyuu's hand, and a deep sigh escaped his lips.
"I'm going to call Child Protective Services, okay?" Sabito said, about to dial the number until he felt a firm grip on his clothes.
"Wait-- No! Please, don't!" Giyuu's expression seemed more nervous than before.
"Your parents aren't allowed to do this to you, y'know? It's okay to ask for hel--"
"No! They didn't do it on purpose! I just happened to be in their way when.. When.."
Giyuu's panic only rose when Sabito started dialing the number, and his words turned into a shout. Not an angry one, more of one that was filled with immense fear.
"Please, don't! If you do, I won't have anywhere to go! They're all I have! I don't have any extended family, my grandparents are both dead!" Giyuu reached for Sabito's phone, knocking it out of his hand.
Seeing the tears escape the boy's eyes, and his nose growing stuffier, Sabito gave in. I swear.. He didn't usually give in this easily. Something about the boy's eyes just striked a feeling within him. With a sudden exhale coming out of his nose, Sabito closed his eyes and placed his hand on top of Giyuu's head.
"There, there. It's okay. I won't call them. I understand." He rubbed the boys head, reassuring them.
"Then.. I assume.. You're staying for the night?" Sabito glanced at the clock. There were still a few hours until daybreak, and he looked over at Giyuu.
"I'll just stay here until they stop yelling at ea--"
"Shh." Sabito placed his hand over Giyuu's mouth. "It's okay. You can stay here for the night. I'll get you some blankets and pillows, so just stay at the couch for now. Okay? It won't be safe for you return until the morning." Sabito instructed with a serious tone.
Sabito removed his hand from the boy's mouth as he saw him nod, signaling that his instructions were clear.
After watching Giyuu retreat to the couch silently, Sabito huffed and started looking through the cabinets for extra bed warmths.
After maybe a few minutes of searching, Sabito returned to the couch holding blankets and pillows. "Tomioka-san, I found some. The patterns are kind of outdated, I hope you don't mind."
He awaited a response from the boy, and when he didn't get one, he tilted his head. It was dark, so he couldn't really see where he was. Sabito turned his phone on, using the screen as a flashlight to shine it on Giyuu.
He was already fast asleep on the couch, without any blankets or pillows.
Sabito stared down at him for a moment before he gently smiled, placing a blanket over him.
"Goodnight, stay here for as long as you want, okay?" Sabito whispered as he adjusted the boy's sleeping position into a more comfortable one.
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In the morning after that, I didn't see him on the couch. Instead, I saw neatly folded blankets, and the entire living room clean.
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9.22.XX , 7:04 AM
Sabito scratched his head while in his school uniform, looking around the living room until his gaze was caught by a folded up paper. Picking it up, be opened up the letter Giyuu had left for him.
Thank you, Sabito-kun. I'm sorry for the informal address, I have no idea what your last name was.
I'm sorry for being a nuisance last night. I hope it was okay to cook you breakfast as compensation, as I don't have any money.
Upon seeing the note, Sabito burst out laughing.
"This guy.. Seriously, after all that, he thought I wanted his money?!" He placed the note against the magnet on the fridge. In fact, the fridge was filled with various notes from people all over. From school, his part time job, and now, from his neighbor. It was a weird hobby to keep them all on his fridge, but he's constant reminded of the good times thanks to those stuck on his fridge.
"That's enough laughing for the morning," Sabito murmured to himself, his gaze reaching the kitchen table. The compensation was great, Sabito didn't have to cook his own breakfast today on the way to school, which was a huge time saver.
Now he'd be able to stop by the convenience store to get himself a drink.
Thank you, Giyuu!
END of ch. I