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It was nearly two in the morning when Reigen was jolted awake by the sound of his phone ringing. Why his volume was turned up so high, he was not sure. He fumbled around to find it half asleep and unplugged it from his charger. He pressed the buttons on either side to silence it and peered at the bright front screen through squinting eyes. Was it his mother? His mother was the only person who was likely to call during the middle of the night. He hoped she hadn't fallen out of bed in the night again. That would make for a long night.
Once his eyes adjusted and he could finally read the name of the caller, he immediately snapped the phone open and held it to his ear. Shigeo had never called him in the middle of the night before, and even during the daytime, he usually didn't call unless it was urgent.
"Hello?" Reigen asked, trying his best not to sound like he'd just been awakened from a dead sleep.
"Shishou?" came Shigeo's voice from the other line. He'd said only one word, and that had already been enough to let semi-conscious Reigen know that something wasn't right. "Shishou" had been his first clue. Shigeo made a point of no longer calling him that anymore since he'd stopped working for him. He was "Reigen-san" now, a formality that simultaneously felt distant and earned, based on circumstances.
The second clue something was wrong was that his voice was shaky, as if he was upset.
"Yeah, it's me. What's going on?" He sat himself up in his bed, stifling a yawn.
"Shishou, I don't..." His words ran slightly together at the ends. He paused for a moment, hiccuping. "I don't feel well, and I don't know what to do."
"You... don't feel well?" Reigen asked, confusion and concern waking him up. "That sounds like a Mom and Pop issue. Aren't your parents at home?"
"Nnno," Shigeo replied, slow and quiet. "Oh. Um. Yes. My parents are home, but I'm not."
Reigen looked over at his alarm clock, feeling the clutches of worry grip him. "You're not home? Mob, it's two in the morning. Where are you if you aren't home?"
"Outside," Shigeo answered.
"Outside your house?"
Shigeo paused again. "No, I'm... Outside the office."
Reigen brushed his blankets aside and put his bare feet down onto the cold hardwood. "Mob, buddy, I'm not at the office. I'm at home in bed. Why are you at the office? What's going on?"
"I..." Reigen could hear him take a shuddering breath, as if he was about to cry. "I can't call my parents. They'd be very upset, and I can't r'member how to go home from where I was, and -"
Reigen was trying his best to put the picture together as he threw some pants and his suit coat over his pajamas. Feeling sick, slurring his words, and not knowing where he was gave Reigen a pretty good idea of what might be going on, though the circumstances surprised him. Mob? Drinking? He had definitely grown up a lot in the last few years, but he was still only seventeen, and usually, he was so serious about following the rules. On the other line, he was rambling on about remembering street names, making very little sense. "Hey. It's fine, I get the idea. You said you're at the office, right?" A panicky "uh-huh" came from the young man. "I'm coming out. I don't live far away. Just sit down on the steps and take a few deep breaths. It's okay."
"Okay," He whimpered. Reigen could hear him clumsily sitting down on the concrete steps.
"Mob," He held the phone between his shoulder and his face as he worked his feet into his shoes, foregoing socks altogether in his urgency. "Listen. I'm not gonna be mad or get you in trouble. Have you been drinking tonight?"
He could hear the young man burst into sobs. Clearly, Reigen had been right on the money, as always. "I didn't want to!" He wailed. "But they kept asking and asking me to, and I gave in, and then they kept pouring more, and I jus' wanted to be..." He couldn't finish this sentence as he was overtaken by his own sobbing once more. So someone had peer pressured him into drinking, Reigen thought to himself. That made a lot more sense.
"Shhshhshh. Mob." He tried to soothe through the phone as he searched around his unlit apartment for his wallet and keys. The last thing he needed was to be stopped by the cops while talking to a drunk teenager in the middle of the night and not even have his wallet. "It's going to be okay. Just try and calm down a little. I'm not mad at you."
"I'm sorryyyyy," He wailed long and sorrowfully.
"Come on, now. Don't cry." He found his wallet and keys underneath a half open magazine he'd been reading and jammed them into his pocket, turning the lock as he went out the door to his apartment. "Try to take a deep breath with me, okay?" He instructed as he descended the steps down to the sidewalk. "In?"
He took in a long, deep breath. From the other line, he could hear Shigeo try to do the same. "And out." His own breath out was long and slow, but Shigeo's was like a tired sigh. "Again. In?" The two breathed in together, this time in slightly better sync. "Out." They breathed out together. After a few more iterations, Shigeo seemed to be a lot less hysterical. "Do you feel better now?" Reigen asked, walking down the sidewalk by himself in the dark.
"I feel dizzy and, and, and sick," Shigeo answered honestly.
Reigen gave a hint of a laugh. "That's normal. Don't be scared." Shigeo gave a mumble in agreement. "How far did you have to walk to get to my office?"
"Um..." Shigeo seemed to be lost in thought. He'd clearly drank quite a lot, based on his jumbled speech and short train of thought. "It's on the same street. That...uh... that karaoke place..."
"Oh, I see, I see." Reigen could see the place ahead of himself now as he walked, lights still on, music playing loudly enough to be heard from the opposite side of the street. "Did you have fun?"
"No," Shigeo answered. "They were loud and," He gave another hiccup. Again, Reigen chuckled a little. "They knew I'm too young to," He hiccuped again.
"I was gonna ask about that. Who did you go with?" Reigen asked.
"They came to our school as re," He hiccuped. "Representatives of one of the the colleges I applied for -" He hiccuped.
"Oh, so they were trying to recruit you." Reigen felt himself becoming angry about that, though he refused to let it be heard in his voice. Shame on any adult that bullies an underage student into getting drunk. "Are they still there, or did they go home?"
"They're probably still -hic!- there... I told them I have cr -hic!- ... cram school tomorrow, but then I didn't know how to g -hic!- Get home..."
Reigen could see the unlit sign for the office ahead of him in the street now. "Well, I hate to say it, kiddo, but you're probably not gonna feel well enough to go to cram school tomorrow, I'd guess. But we can worry about that later."
"Shishou, I'm so sorry for waking you up, but -hic!- but I didn't know what else to do, and -"
"Hey, no apologies. I'd much rather you call me than be trying to walk alone drunk at night." He hadn't meant to sound so serious when he said this, but the thought of those college students getting Shigeo drunk lit a fire in his chest. Shigeo was a good kid, a hard-working, honest, good kid. He imagined poor little meek Shigeo trying and trying to refuse, and people all but forcing him to drink anyway. And nobody had thought to call a cab for him? What a shitty thing to do. He was glad that Shigeo trusted him enough to call him for help in the middle of the night, though part of him wondered how his parents would feel, knowing their son had called him instead of them. "I have half a mind to go give those brats an earful," he continued irritably. "Little college age punks, thinking there's no consequences for their actions. They'll all end up salarymen with beer guts and bald heads, I'd bet money."
Shigeo was silent. Reigen couldn't tell whether it was in response to what he'd just said or not.
"You still there, Mob?"
"Yeah. Sorry. I just -hic!- really don't feel so well, Shishou..."
"That's okay. Just sit tight. I'm right up the street. I'll be there in a minute or two."
"Okay," Shigeo answered. The phone call ended.
Reigen picked up the pace a bit. Poor thing. What was he going to do with him? Should he take him upstairs to the office and let him lay down there? The new sofa was a pull-out, but it wasn't especially comfy. Should he walk him back to the apartment? It might be a bit too far to expect him to walk. He decided he'd make that choice after he'd seen him face to face.
He could hear Shigeo's hiccups before he could see him. Reigen turned into the alcove of the office steps. Beneath the awning, on the bottom step, sat Shigeo, his knees drawn up, his chin resting atop his arms. His face was vibrantly flushed red, even in the dark of the night. He looked up at Reigen, and his eyes quickly filled again with tears.
"Shishou," He uttered in a tearful voice.
"Hey, it's okay. Let's not start crying again." He crouched down beside him, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. He hiccuped, and when he did, his hair stood slightly on end, and the tears on his face became momentarily airborne with psychic energy, then both his hair and the tears dropped back down. "Are you okay?"
Shigeo shook his head, a few tears spilling down his cheeks. "I don't feel well..."
He seemed impaired, not yet to the point of being wasted, but Reigen felt the need to ask to be sure. "Do you know what it was you were drinking or how many you had?"
He shook his head again, then turned away from Reigen. "Some kind of b-beer, but I don't know which," Mob answered. Though what type of alcohol had been what Reigen was asking and not specifically what type of beer, as that didn't make any real difference, he didn't say anything to the boy. He was already upset. There was no need to embarrass him as well. "And I don't know how many gl, -hic!- glasses... they kept pouring from their bottles into mine..."
Reigen wrapped his arm around both his shoulders, giving him a bit of a squeeze. "Sounds like one hell of a night. I think we need to get you to bed. Do you feel like you can walk?"
Shigeo nodded. Reigen stood first and then offered him a hand to help him up. He took it, and Reigen could feel the heat of his skin as he helped pull the very wobbly Shigeo up and onto his feet. Right away, he could tell Shigeo was dizzy. He latched onto the of the arm of Reigen's jacket, and he looked up at Reigen with panic in his eyes.
"Hey, you're okay. Just take a few seconds and get your bearings." He stood still, allowing Shigeo to cling to his arm for several long moments until he seemed like he had his footing. He then took Shigeo's arm and pushed it behind himself, wrapping his own arm around Shigeo's shoulders to support him if he started to fall. "Hold onto my coat." He instructed, feeling Shigeo's fingers grasp onto the back of his suit coat. Reigen turned a little, looking at the door to the office. Should he just take Shigeo upstairs and lay him down there, despite how uncomfortable the pull out was? Honestly, Reigen thought to himself, an office is no place for a drunk teenager. But he knew that it would be a long walk for someone as stumbly as Shigeo. He was standing well enough, so they could probably walk, but...
"Shishou," Shigeo leaned into the crook of Reigen's arm to better steady himself, his head bumping slightly into his collar before he reeled back, almost falling if Reigen hadn't held onto him. "You smell like mouthwash..." He muttered. Reigen smirked.
"I can think of worse things," he retorted teasingly, "Like beer, for instance." He needed to make a choice. The office? Or home? "Hmm..." He muttered under his breath. The more he considered the office, the worse of an idea it seemed. He'd definitely have to close the office tomorrow in that case. There also would be a non-zero chance of customers or Serizawa or Tome barging in and seeing him this way, and that could get back to his parents. It would be a lot easier to keep his intoxicated protégé's mistake private if he took the boy to the apartment. Home it was, then, he decided.
He looked down at Shigeo, who had shut his eyes to ward off the spinning sensation he was feeling. "I think you'll rest better in a real bed, but it's gonna be a bit of a walk, alright?" Shigeo opened his eyes again, nodding a bit. "Alright, then. Come on. Let's go."
They began the slow trek back to Reigen's apartment. It was only about a block and a half, but a block and a half feels much longer when stumbling about at a snails pace. With each hiccup, Reigen could feel Shigeo's psychic energy momentarily pulse. He was glad that Shigeo still seemed mostly in control of himself, or else the whole situation might've been much worse. "I don't," he hiccuped, rubbing his eyes with his free hand, "I don't unnerstan' why anyone would want to drink something that tastes so bad for funnn..." He mumbled. Reigen laughed aloud.
"Believe it or not, what you're feeling now is what theyre going for."
"Hmm..." Shigeo hummed. "That seems dumb..." Reigen laughed.
They'd made it about ten yards past the karaoke bar when Shigeo's shoulders and back tensed. He stopped where he was on the sidewalk, causing Reigen also to stop. "You okay, Mob?" He shook his head quickly. He had gone very pale about the forehead, and his face was dotted with perspiration. His mouth was clenched as tightly as he could. "Are you gonna be sick?"
Shigeo lurched forward, and the beer he'd drank spilled violently out of his mouth and onto the concrete, his shoes, his pants, and Reigen's shoes as well. Reigen fought the urge to scramble away, knowing that if he did, Shigeo would fall.
"Ooooookaaaaay," Reigen exclaimed reflexively. He sidestepped a bit to make room for him as the culmination of a night's shenanigans made it's grand entrance all over the ground. Reigen sighed, taking his right hand to Shigeo's left shoulder to support him, and with his other hand, he patted him softly on the back. "It's gonna be alright. This is normal," He whispered quietly to him.
Reigen was suddenly quite glad that they weren't dealing with this particular symptom in the office, as the only bathroom was separate, in a downstairs hallway, another pro he hadn't thought to weigh. Shigeo gripped onto the sides of his own pants with both hands as the nausea ran its course. After a few long moments, he seemed to settle, and he stood back up straight, though now he was shaking terribly.
"Better?" Reigen asked him.
Shigeo half shrugged, his breath quick and shaky in his lungs. "Wow... Embarrasing..." His wide eyes were wet from crying, and his mouth and nose dripped from his sickness.
"Dont be embarrassed. It's fine. It's probably better for you that you threw up. You'll feel better faster." Reigen reached into his suit pocket and produced a pink handkerchief, which he handed to Shigeo. "Here. Wipe off."
He kept the steadying hands on the teen's back and shoulder to keep him in place while he cleaned himself up. Afterward, he gripped the soiled handkerchief in his trembling hands awkwardly, as if not sure what to do with it. Reigen reached forward and took it, stuffing it back into his pocket. "I..." Shigeo croaked, his voice a bit hoarse, "I think I threw up on my shoes..."
"Yeah, I think so," Reigen agreed, not bringing up his own shoes. "It's no big deal. We can worry about that later." Shigeo gave a tired and anxious sigh as another tear rolled down his cheek. "Don't get panicked. It's totally normal to barf if you've had too much to drink. It's okay." He gave his shoulder another reassuring squeeze. "Let's keep going, okay?"
It was nearly another twenty minutes before the pair made it back to Reigen's apartment complex. The stairs proved to be a bit of a problem for Shigeo's uncoordinated feet, but slowly and surely, they made it to the top. Reigen instructed him to lean against the wall while he dug out his key and opened the lock to his apartment.
"Shishoooou," Shigeo asked a bit more loudly than he realized.
"Let's keep our voices down, okay, buddy? Everyone's sleeping." He took hold of the doorknob and turned it, opening the door in and kicking off his wet loafers before turning back to collect the drunk teenager. "What did you need?"
"I didn't know you lived so... close by..." He blinked sleepily as he allowed himself to be guided inside and sat on the sofa. Despite the seriousness of the situation that had led Shigeo to him tonight, he found himself a little amused.
"Yeah. It's better than taking public transport to work." He took his suit coat back off and dropped it over the back of his desk chair. "You never know where you might find a grouchy old lady itching to put a curse on someone."
"Its... nice in here..." he mumbled, and Reigen watched as he reached forward and ran his finger along the top of Reigen's pencil cup.
"Take your shoes off. I'm going to find you something you can sleep in, okay?"
"I can... sleep here?" He asked.
Reigen smirked a little, crouching down in front of him to keep him from craning his head up to make eye contact. "Well, duh, Mob. I didn't bring you here to have a tour of the old one-bed, one-bath. You've gotta sober up before your folks see you, right?"
Shigeo's eyes widened, then scrunched shut, filling with tears again, and he clenched his fists onto his pants as he began to weep. Reigen did his best not to laugh at his poor weepy ex disciple's wildly fluctuating mood.
"Hey, hey, now. Why are you crying this time?" He asked.
"I..." He snivled pitifully, wiping at his eyes with one sleeve of his school uniform. "I thought you were gonna call my parents!"
"What?" Reigen shook his head. "No. I don't want you to get in trouble for something that's hardly your fault. People make mistakes. You were responsible and called me for help. I'm definitely not gonna snitch on you." He ruffled Shigeo's sweaty black hair. "I figure, in the morning, I can call your parents and tell them that you started feeling bad during your meet-up and asked if you could stay the night at the office or something. Nobody has to know about this. Not unless you just want to tell someone. But they're not gonna hear it from me, alright?"
Shigeo's lip quivered pitifully, and then he leaned forcefully forward in a bow, all but headbutting Reigen in the chest, and he gave a long string of sobs. "Thank you, shishou," he forced between blubbering breaths.
"Now, now, come on." Reigen took to gently patting Shigeo's head. "No need to get so worked up. It's all gonna be fine. Focus on taking your shoes off."
Shigeo sat back up, snot dribbling from his nose and tears falling onto the shaggy carpet of Reigen's area rug. Sniffling, he started trying to kick his shoes off. Reigen stood back up and walked to his dresser, keeping one cautious eye on the young esper, who had decided instead to pull his shoes off with his hands.
"Shishou, my shoes are wet," He divulged, obviously having forgotten why they were wet. Reigen tried to hide the disgust on his face.
"Just put them on the floor. I'll deal with that in the morning," Reigen said with a dismissive hand gesture. He dug into his pajama drawer, looking for something a bit smaller for Shigeo to wear. He found some, a pair of purple pajamas with a horse head on the shirt, that he'd long grown out of (he wasn't as thin as he had been when he was twenties) but had never had the heart to throw out. He turned back to Shigeo and held them out. "These are probably still going to be a little big on you, but it should be fine for one night."
"A horse..." Shigeo stared at them for a moment, and Reigen felt himself becoming self-conscious.
"Yeah, so?" He murmured, half folding them back up and tossing them to Shigeo.
"It reminds me of that... monkey tee shirt I used to like..." The young man held the shirt up so he could look at it again.
"No way. That monkey shirt was so ugly." Reigen huffed, realizing very quickly that arguing with an intoxicated child probably wasn't the best idea. "Just put them on."
Shigeo nodded. He began to fumble his way out of his school uniform, struggling until he had the top two buttons open, and then he forced it, and his white undershirt, up and over his head, dropping it onto the sofa next to himself. He wriggled his way into Reigen's pajama shirt, wobbling backward as he did and bumping his head on the wall. "Hey, be careful." Reigen warned. Shigeo seemed not to even notice, smoothing the front of his pajama shirt down and again admiring the image on it. He struggled a few seconds before he stood to his feet, and before he could start pulling his pants down, Reigen excused himself. "I'm going to go to the kitchen and get some things. If you get done before I get back, go sit on the bed."
"Okay," he replied.
Reigen closed the kitchen door behind himself to give the teen some privacy, and when he was alone, he heaved a sigh. He noticed, all at once, the tension in his own muscles. This whole thing had stressed him out much more than he'd realized. He crossed to the refrigerator and opened it, taking a water bottle out and sitting it on the countertop. Above the refrigerator, there was a cabinet that was filled with assorted medicine bottles. Reigen rifled through them until he found something for pain. He sat the bottle of pills next to the bottle of water. "Poor kid," Reigen thought to himself as he crouched down below the kitchen sink and opened another cabinet, taking a few plastic shopping bags out. "Those college kids were nasty. Don't they know how dangerous stuff like that is? Or illegal?"
He gathered up all the items under his arm and lastly stopped at the bathroom, retrieving two wash cloths, one that he wet in the bathroom sink, and one that he left dry.
When he returned to the bedroom, Shigeo was sat in Reigen's slightly too big pajamas at the end of Reigen's bed, where Reigen himself had been sleeping only around an hour ago. Shigeo's eyes looked really tired, and when he noticed that Reigen had returned, he gave a sleepy half smile as greeting. "
"How are you feeling, Mob?" He asked.
"Light headed..." He answered, rubbing his eyes.
"Yeah, I bet so." Reigen walked past him to his deskside trashcan, taking the bag that was in it out and replacing it with one of the new ones he brought. He picked the trash can up and carried it to the bedside, placing it on the floor immediately at the head of the bed. "Listen. If you wake up in the night and you need to hurl, there's a trash can right here. Do you see it?"
Shigeo nodded drowsily.
"I really don't wanna have to mop in the morning, okay? So what do you do if you wake up feeling sick?"
Shigeo pointed at the can. "Use that."
"Bingo." He then handed Shigeo the wet wash cloth. "Wipe your face and hands."
Shigeo did as he was told, and Reigen could tell by his wobbling and shifting that he was having a hard time. Once he'd wiped himself off, he handed the cloth back to Reigen, who hung it with his suit coat over the back of the chair.
"This one is for if you get sick and need to wipe your mouth." He held the dry cloth up so Shigeo could see it before sitting it on the bedside table. "There's also a bottle of water. It's for you, but take it easy." He stuck the bottle of pills in his pocket for the time being. "Do you need anything?"
Shigeo shook his head.
"Good. Now, lay down and sleep."
Shigeo looked around as though he were confused. "Where?" he asked blearily.
"What do you mean, where? In the bed, of course. Sheesh. You're killin' me, kid. The bed. Lay down." Reigen gave him a gentle shove, pulling the disheveled blankets up to allow him to lay down under them.
"But, shishou," He uttered as he laid down. "This is your bed..."
"I'm not really sleepy right now," Reigen lied, covering Shigeo up. "You just rest. Don't worry about me. You're the drunk teenager in this situation, not me."
Shigeo hummed, too tired and drunk to complain, rolling onto his side and closing his eyes. "Thank you... shishou..."
"Goodnight." Reigen patted him on the back before surveying the room. Shigeo's clothes were strewn across the floor in front of the sofa, and he took a few moments to pick them up between two fingers, his whole uniform and his white tee shirt disgusting, damp from sweat and vomit and smelling of beer. There was no way he was going to be putting any of it back on until it was washed.
He turned each article of clothing upside down and shook them. All of the contents of his pockets clattered noisily onto the floor, his wallet, his cellphone, an ink pen, a small notebook, a folded menu, and his house keys. He looked over at Shigeo, who didn't budge an inch where he laid.
Reigen stooped down to pick everything up, and he sat it in a pile on the edge of the coffee table. Next, he carried Shigeo's soiled clothes, extended his whole arm length away from his body, into his bathroom and put them into the portable laundry machine he'd gotten from his mother for Christmas. He wasn't sure he'd ever been as grateful for the device as he was now.
Once Shigeo's clothes were washing, he returned to the sofa and sat heavily down. He leaned back, arms behind his head, and plopped his feet up onto his coffee table. He was tired. He debated on closing up the office in the morning. There was no way Shigeo would be up and able to move around by 7 in the morning. There honestly wasn't much chance of Reigen being awake again at 7:30. He took his phone out of his pocket, the screen now reading 3:15 am. He sighed. "I'll come in late tomorrow," He muttered to himself as he opened his messages. He selected the group chat for his employees and sent a message.
"I'm going to be late coming into the office tomorrow morning. I'm dealing with a personal emergency. Sorry about that! Take care of business as usual!"
He put his phone down on the coffee table next to his feet, heaving another tired sigh. Across from him in the bed, Shigeo began to snore.
Reigen gave a soft smile before closing his eyes.
He awoke the next morning to his alarm clock going off. He sprung up from his spot on the sofa to turn it off. He hadn't had anywhere near enough sleep. His head was pounding.
From the bed came a low whine, and after a second or two, up rose Shigeo, levering himself up onto one elbow. Reigen could tell by the look on his face that he was a bit confused about where he was. He looked absolutely grey.
"Hey there, party boy. How are you feeling this morning?" Reigen teased.
He groaned, sitting himself up a bit more. "Terrible."
"I imagine so." He sat on the end of the bed at Shigeo's feet. "Sorry, I forgot to turn my alarm clock off for work."
"My head," Shigeo uttered, lifting both hands to his face and pressing his palms into his eyes.
"Welcome to the hangover stage." Reigen gave a smirk. "Are you nauseous?"
"Sort of," He answered, peering out from behind his hands.
"Well, go back to sleep. I'm going to call your folks and tell them where you are so they don't start panicking."
"Okay." He eased himself back down in the bed, curling up into the fetal position on one side and pulling the blankets over his head. Reigen gave a quiet chuckle. He stood up and went to collect his phone, moving to the kitchen to make the phone call. The phone rang only once before someone answered.
"Hello?" came a woman's voice, tired and anxious.
"Yes, hello. Is this Mrs. Kageyama? This is Reigen Arataka."
"Reigen... Arataka?" She asked. There was a hitch in her breath. "Please tell me you've heard from Shigeo."
"Yes, actually, that's exactly why I called." Reigen began to pace the kitchen floor as he spoke to her. "Shigeo is with me."
"Oh, thank god," She nearly cried. "I've been trying to call him all night. Is he okay?"
"Well, more or less," Reigen answered. "No need to panic. Last night, he called me after he'd met with some student recruiters from the college he applied for, but during the meet-up, he started feeling sick. I think he's got some sort of stomach bug."
"Stomach bug?" She asked.
"Uh-huh. A nasty one. He's got an upset stomach and a low-grade fever, but I'm making sure he doesn't get dehydrated. He called me since the office is close by, and I offered to let him sleep here." Reigen continued in absent circles as he easily lied. "He's still sleeping now. I'll make sure to have him call you once he's up and about."
"Thank goodness he's okay. It's not like Shigeo to stay out all night without calling. I was so worried something terrible had happened to him." He could tell by her voice that she hadn't slept. "He must really be feeling badly if he didn't even think about calling. Should I send his father to pick him up?"
"No, no, that won't be necessary." Reigen gave a dismissive gesture of the hand that she couldn't see through the phone. "He's not any trouble. He's mostly just slept. Once he's feeling a bit better, I'll pay for a taxi and send him home."
"Are you sure?" She asked. "At least let me send money for a taxi."
"No, really, I don't mind. Your son was my first part-time employee, and without him, business would never have taken off the way it did. It's the least I can do." Reigen paused, looking out the window at the beginnings of sunrise. "But I think he mentioned that he had cram school today. Would you mind calling them to let them know he won't be coming in?"
"Of course. Thank you so much, Mr. Reigen," She answered after a moment's silence. "My son really looks up to you. Thank you for being such a good role model for him."
Reigen was glad that nobody was around to see his face, eyes momentarily prickling with tears that he wiped quickly away. He needed to get some real sleep if something like that was getting the best of him. "I'll get him home to you safely in a while."
He stood quietly in the kitchen for a few moments after the phone call ended recomposing himself. When he returned to the main room, he relaxed back onto the sofa. From across the room on the bed, he could see that Shigeo was shivering a little. "You gonna make it, over there?"
Shigeo gave a long low moan of discomfort. "I feel sick..."
"Yeah, that's part of it." He crossed his arms across his chest. "I called your mother. She was worried, but I took care of it."
"Thanks..." He groaned.
"Take a few sips of water," Reigen ordered, pointing to the bottled water from the nught before. Shigeo peeked out from under rhe blanket and looked towards it, seeming surprised to see it there. "I know you're probably not feeling like it, but it'll help." He dug into his pants pocket for the bottle of pain medicine and shook it, making a rattling sound. "And here. Take these for your headache."
Shigeo pulled the blankets off his head, grimacing at the rising of the sun. He forced himself back upright, taking the water bottle into his hands and cracking the seal around the lid. "Urghhh," he sighed, looking at the open bottle with an uneasy pallor.
Reigen tossed the pill bottle onto the bed next to Shigeo. "Come on now, at least a few sips. I promised your folks I wasn't gonna let you get dehydrated. And take two of those."
Shigeo gave a queasy nod. He took the pill bottle and opened it, shaking two pale orange pills into his palm. He took a tiny sip of water and threw back the two pills. He then sat for several long minutes, gulping and sighing as he tried to determine if his stomach would tolerate the medicine. After a while, he took another small sip of water, and then another, before twisting the cap back on and laying himself back down in Reigen's bed.
"Good job, kid," Reigen encouraged sleepily. "Now get some more sleep."
Shigeo's only response was a groan of agreement.
Reigen reclined a bit on the sofa, watching as Shigeo slowly dozed back into sleep. Shigeo's mother’s comment sat heavy on his mind. He really hadn't been such a good role model for Shigeo, had he? Most of their relationship had been entirely built on his own lies.
He recalled the first time he met Shigeo, a tiny child with no emotion and an immense power. He wondered if his younger self would ever have believed that one day, that child would trust him so completely that he'd ask him for help instead of his parents.
Hmm.
Despite everything, despite his history of lying to the boy, Shigeo HAD still called him when he was in trouble. Clearly he must've done something right, he thought to himself.
He smiled, sighing. His little protégé was turning out to be a fine young man, though whether it was because of his influence or in spite of it, he may never know for sure. Maybe it was both. It could be both, right?
He wondered to himself if this was a taste of what being a father might feel like as he checked his watch, relaxed into his sofa cushions, and closed his eyes once more.