Chapter Text
Genya sat quietly in the guidance counselor's office, his arms crossed over his chests, his bottom lip split and bleeding.
He had gotten into yet another fight with a classmate. But Genya felt he had all the right to, the kid was making fun of him and his family for being poor. Which was far from their fault, before his dad had died he spent every cent he could on booze and gambling and now that his dad is dead, his mom was a single parent of seven kids working her hardest.
Well seven kids wasn’t really true, it was six, Sanemi, his older brother and oldest of the seven kids had moved out a couple years ago for college, Genya hadn't seen much of him since then.
Genya had actually lost count of how many fights he’s gotten into this year. Which was a sign it was probably far too many.
Honestly the only thing he felt bad about was inconveniencing his mother. She would get called to the school so she could pick him up and take him home. She never seemed upset or disappointed but Genya knew she was.
He never wanted to be a burden on her. As the second oldest and the de facto man of the house, he knew he had to make things easier on his mother, not harder. But Genya seemed up fuck that up at every turn.
He didn’t want to get into fights, he didn’t want to be known as one of the scariest kids in school, it just happened time and time again it felt like it was out of his control.
When his mother entered the guidance counselor's office she gave Genya a small smile, and he immediately looked down at the floor, he couldn’t bring himself to look her in the eye.
She sat next to him, "What happened this time?” she asked, her voice calm and caring.
“He was being a dick, he deserved to get punched,” Genya replied.
“You shouldn’t use that language Genya,” she scolded softly.
“Sorry,” he said meekly.
Moments later the guidance counselor entered the room. “Mrs. Shinazugawa, glad to see you could make it,” he greeted as he sat at his desk across from Genya and his mother.
“Sorry that Genya is causing you troubles again,” Shizu replied.
The guidance counselor sighed and leaned back in his chair, “this is the third time this month, and the last was only a week ago.”
“I know.”
“This behavior is unacceptable and it’s putting students and teachers at risk.”
Genya gripped the fabric of his pants, keeping his eyes locked on the floor.
“Mrs. Shinazugawa, I'm afraid the only option we have left is expulsion,” the guidance counselor explained.
“What!?” Genya was immediately sitting up right.
“Genya,” Shizu warned.
“They can’t kick me out!” Genya tried to argue.
“Genya,” the guidance counselor’s voice was sharp, “it’s actions like this that have led to the decision.”
“What if I promise to never get into another fight?”
“I’m sorry, the decision has already been made.”
Genya's shoulders dropped, he felt defeated. Would he even be able to get an education now? Without one wouldn’t he just end up like his dad? And what about his mom?
“I understand,” Shizu replied.
Genya didn’t pay attention to the rest of the meeting. He had fucked up, and fucked up bad and there was no way out of this.
Shizu signed some papers, then Genya gathered his things and he left his high school for the last time. He felt like he could have cried. He followed his mom to their van where he sat in the front seat.
He turned to look at Shizu, and she looked upset. Genya had never seen her like that before. She was always so hard working and did her best to be strong for her kids. And Genya just broke all of that.
“Sorry,” he mumbled.
Shizu started the van, “we’ll figure something out.”
“I mean it,” Genya’s voice cracked. “I fucked up really bad this time, you can’t just say it’s okay!”
“It’s not okay,” Shizu told him as she pulled out of the parking lot. “But that doesn't mean we can’t figure something out.”
“Why are you mad at me?”
“I am disappointed,” Shizu admitted, and it stung Genya, his mother never uttered those words before. “I know things haven’t been easy,” Shizu continued, “but you can’t take it out on others.”
Genya lowered his head as he felt more shame wash over him. Why was he such an awful son? Why couldn’t he be more like Sanemi?
Sanemi was smart and hard working. Mom never had to come and pick him up from school after a fight. He worked hard taking care of their little siblings. Genya was none of that.
He’d never say it outloud, but Genya knew he was a failure.
“Sorry,” Genya mumbled, unsure what else to say.
“I know,” Shizu replied. “I also know you’re actually a kind person at heart, Genya. You take care of your siblings and help around the house, you just make bad decisions and I don't want to hold that against you.”
“Why?” Genya choked out as he tried his best to hold back tears, he didn’t want to start crying, not over something like this and not in front of his mom.
“Because I love you,” Shizu said the words so earnestly it broke Genya.
He wasn’t sure why he was crying, probably because he was inconveniencing his mom, probably because that is all he had ever done. He wished he could be the perfect son for her.
“It’ll be okay,” Shizu assured him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shizu pulled into the parking lot of their home. It was an older, run down building with a dead lawn, and a landlord that Genya personally couldn’t stand, but it was a roof over their head.
“I have to get back to work, but I’ll see you tonight,” Shizu told Genya before he got out of the van.
“See you tonight,” Genya replied, then watched his mother drive away.
Genya went to the front door and unlocked it stepping inside. The house was of course quiet, his little siblings were still at school. He wasn’t used to being alone at home, he was used to having his siblings around, they always made the place so lively.
He took his shoes off then went to the living room, trying to figure out what to do. He figured it would be best to take care of some of the house chores, it would be less work for his mother when she got home.
He went to the kitchen and started washing the dishes from the morning. It was the easiest of the chores to get done, once he was finished washing, he tried them off and put them away. After that he did some of the laundry and started figuring out what to make for dinner.
Time would pass and his younger siblings would come home. When they asked him why he was home early he just smiled. He helped them with their homework before he started making dinner, and by time dinner was almost ready Shizu got home, and eventually it was time for his youngest siblings to go to bed and it was just him and Shizu.
But when Genya entered the living room after putting his siblings down his mom was on the phone.
“He was expelled,” he heard Shizu say to whoever she was talking to on the phone.
“I don’t know what to do, there isn’t another high school nearby for him,” she paused, letting the person on the other side respond. “That’s what I wanted to ask you about, is it possible for him to attend your school? I know it’s a private academy but Genya needs a proper education.”
Genya took a cautious step into the living room.
“Of course, and I’m sorry about this,” another pause, “thank you Sanemi.”
That got Genya’s attention. She was talking to Sanemi, and talking to Sanemi about him, moreso about him attending the school Sanemi taught at. Genya only vaguely knew about his brother's new job, he was making enough that he could send a bit of money to Shizu every once in a while, but the real issue was that the school wasn't close. In fact the school was a decent drive away from where he currently lived.
He would have to move.
It made him feel nauseous. Did his mom want to get rid of him?
Then the call ended.
“You’re getting rid of me?” Genya found himself asking without thinking.
“Genya,” her voice was soft. “I’m not getting rid of you.”
“But you were talking to Sanemi…”
Shizu sat down on the old worn out couch and gestured for Genya to join her which he did.
“I was talking to your brother,” she admits, “he works at a nice private academy, it’ll be a great opportunity for you.”
“But what about you?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“What about the kids?”
“They’ll also be fine.”
“But-”
“Genya,” Shizu cut him off as he was growing more frantic. “This is an amazing opportunity for you. Sanemi is going to see what he can do to get you into the school.”
“But the cost.”
“Sanemi is going to get that covered.”
“I’ll have to move away,” Genya muttered.
“I know,” Shizu’s voice was soft.
“I don’t want to leave you.”
Shizu pulled Genya into a hug, “I know.”
“I’m going to miss you,” Genya whispered on the verge of tears.
Shizu hugged Genya tighter, “I’ll miss you too.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next few days were almost a blur to Genya.
Sanemi called and confirmed he got Genya a spot at the academy, and that he was able to get the fees taken care of. After the confirmation, Genya started packing up stuff in his room. Not everything he owned it all wouldn’t fit into Sanemi’s car but at least the stuff he cared about the most.
His siblings were just as heartbroken to see Genya leave as he was, he did his best to not break down and cry in front of them, he didn't want to make the situation worse.
The night before Sanemi came to pick him up, Genya couldn’t sleep. He stared at the wall, a wall that he would never see again. He couldn’t help but think of the small things he would be leaving behind. The places he would never visit again, he was leaving the only life he had ever known.
He had no idea that moving could hurt so much.
“Genya, Sanemi is here,” Shizu called in the late morning.
Genya sighed and took one last look at the room before grabbing his bag and heading down stairs. The rest of his stuff had been brought down the night before to make the move as easy as possible.
“Hey,” Sanemi greeted when he saw Genya.
“Hey,” Genya echoed.
Sanemi lifted one of the boxes, “this all the stuff you're bringing?”
Genya nodded.
“Cool,” Sanemi replied, before taking the box outside to his car.
Genya followed Sanemi outside and to his car. He wasn’t expecting to see Sanemi driving a nice car, he wondered how much his brother was actually making and if he was making it all by just being a teacher at a private academy.
Sanemi put the box he was carrying into the trunk then turned to head back inside to grab the one. Genya threw his bag into the front seat then followed Sanemi back inside grabbing another of the boxes. Soon all of Genya’s stuff was in the back of Sanemi’s car.
Genya hugged each of his little siblings goodbye before stepping outside. He stood in the middle of the dead law staring at the place he had called home for so many years. He felt his throat tighten as he was on the verge of tears.
Shizu came over to Genya, a sad smile across her face, “take care of yourself and don’t cause Sanemi any problems.”
Genya responded by hugging her. He hugged his mom tighter than he ever had before because he was sure this is the last time he would ever be able to do that.
“You’re brothers waiting for you,” Shizu told him.
Genya was reluctant to break the hug, but he did. “I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too, Genya,” Shizu replied softly.
Genya went over to Sanemi’s car, giving the house one final glance before he climbed inside the car. He closed the door and buckled his seat belt.
“It’s not easy,” Sanemi said as he started the car.
Genya nodded as he felt tears start to roll down his cheeks.
Sanemi pulled out of the driveway and began driving down the street and Genya realized there were so many things he would never see again, which just made him cry more.
It was probably just as awkward for Sanemi as it was for him.
Eventually Genya stopped crying and was now just sniffling as he stared out the window.
“Moving out was hard for me as well,” Sanemi confessed.
Genya turned to his brother, who was focused on the road in front of him.
“The first few days I thought I made the biggest mistake of my life,” Sanemi added. “I couldn’t help but think of you, Ma and the littles. I was worried everything would fall apart without me. But you know what?”
“What?” Genya replied meekly.
“Everything went okay.”
“You say that as if I didn’t get expelled.”
“You did,” Sanemi admitted, “I don't think me being around would have stopped that. You were getting into fights since middle school just now it’s finally come to bite you in the ass.”
Genya was quiet then he shrugged, “yeah I guess so.”
“You can’t go around starting fights at the new school,” Sanemi told Genya.
“I know.”
“I mean it, Genya,” Sanemi’s tone was sharp,”it’s a private school, stuff like that won’t be tolerated, and it won’t just be your ass on the line.”
“I know,” Genya repeated.
“I also expect you to keep your grades up,” Sanemi added.
“I will.”
“Good. I won’t be soft on you just because you’re my brother.”
“I never expected you to.”
“I think you’re gonna love the school, though,” Sanemi said, changing the topic.
Genya thought it was unlikely, he wasn’t the type to enjoy school, or at least he hadn’t been. If it was anything like his old high school he knew it was going to be miserable.
“It’s a nice school,” Sanemi added, “pretty well renowned, you get good grades there you’ll get into a good college.”
Genya wasn’t even thinking about college yet, hell he was never thinking about it. He wasn’t even planning on going to college, he was going to start work as soon as he could to help his mom with the bills, he didn’t need any fancy degree.
“I also hope you’ll make friends,” Sanemi continued and Genya never remembered his brother being talkative before he moved out. “I hope you made good friends, I don’t want you getting involved with the trouble makers.”
“Trouble makers? I thought this was a nice school.”
“It is, but some kids are just problems like that.”
“Thats what people say about me,” Genya mumbled.
“Well, they’re wrong. You aren’t a bad kid Genya, you… we just got a shitty hand in life.”
Genya knew his brother was talking about their dad. He was a horribly abusive man that died six years ago. Neither of them mourned his death, and even though it made some parts of their life easier, it made other parts a lot harder and Sanemi and Genya really stepped up to take care of their little siblings, at least until Sanemi left for college.
“I won’t get in any trouble,” Genya replied. “Don’t really wanna get kicked out of another school.”
"I’ll hold you to that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was later in the afternoon when they reached Sanemi’s apartment, and it was a nice one. Genya had only ever walked past places like these before, he never imagined himself living in one.
“I know,” Sanemi said as if reading Genya’s mind.
“It’s nice,” Genya replied.
“Happy that you like it, because it’s your new home,” Sanemi said, turning the car off and popping the trunk open, "I'm on the fourth floor.”
Genya nodded before opening the car door. He went to the back of the car and grabbed his first box, Sanemi did the same.
Genya followed Sanemi up the stairs of the apartment and to his apartment. He put the box down as he pulled out the key and unlocked the door. “I already have a set of keys for you,” Sanemi told Genya as he picked the box back up and went inside.
Genya followed Sanem inside.
The apartment was neat and well organised, it almost looked like no one lived there. But Genya was used to a chaotic house full of kids, Sanemi was a single guy living alone, so it made sense that his place was tidy.
“Your room is the last door on the right,” Sanemi told him as he placed the box down. “I got you the basics like a bed, we can go shopping for more stuff later.”
“Thanks,” Genya replied.
“You take the boxes to your room, I'll bring the rest inside.”
“You sure you don’t want my help?”
“I’m on the fourth floor, Genya, that and carrying heavy boxes, I don't want your first day with me to end in the hospital.”
“I haven’t had an asthma attack that bad since I was little,” Genya told Sanemi.
“Doesn’t mean it can’t happen again,” Sanemi replied. “Just unpack your stuff.”
Genya sighed, “fine.”
He took the box he was carrying and brought it down the hall and to his new room. Towards the back of the room was a neatly laid out futon, next to it was a desk and a bookshelf and pressed against the opposite wall was a dresser.
It already was nicer than the room he had back home.
Genya placed the box he was carrying down and then went to grab the next one, taking it back to his room. He repeated this until all the boxes were in his room, stacked nicely and ready to be unpacked.
“Want help unpacking?” Sanemi asked him as he stood in the doorway.
“I got it,” Genya replied.
“My room is across the hall,” Sanemi gestured to the closed door behind him. “I’ll be grading papers, come get me if you need anything.”
“Will do,” Genya replied, as he started to open the first box.
Sanemi closed the door softly behind him as he left Genya’s room.
Once Genya had finished unpacking his things he sat down at his desk and looked around the room once more. It felt different now that it had his things in it.
But at the same time everything really started to feel real to Genya. This was his room now, this was his home now. He was hours away from his mom and little siblings. And just as the thought was becoming too overwhelming for Genya, there was a knock at his door.
“Yeah?” Genya called, knowing it was Sanemi.
“What do you want for dinner?” Sanemi asked him through the door.
Genya hadn’t even realised it had gotten that late. “I don’t know.”
“You still iffy with food?”
“Sorta,” Genya replied.
For his whole life, Genya hadn’t had the greatest relationship with food. Normally it was a texture thing and when he was really little the idea of trying new foods freaked him out. He had gotten a lot better with food as he grew older, his biggest issue now is actually eating.
“I’ll make something I know you can eat,” Sanemi told him.
“Thanks.”
Then Genya heard Sanemi walk away and Genya assumed he was going to the kitchen to start dinner.
Sometime later, Genya got bored of sitting alone in his room so he grabbed his phone and went to the kitchen.
“Dinner’s almost ready,” Sanemi told Genya.
Genya nodded.
“You can sit down, I'll bring the food out when it’s done.”
Genya nodded and went to the table in the adjacent room. And shortly after Sanemi brought dinner over.
“It's nothing fancy,” Sanemi said.
“That’s okay I don't like fancy.”
“Good thing nothing will ever be fancy,” Sanemi replied as he dished up Genya's dinner.
After Sanemi has dished up his share the two began eating and a realization hit Genya, “it's been a while since I've had your cooking.”
Sanemi paused, then nodded, “guess so.”
“It's nice to eat it again.”
“Good, you'll be eating my cooking a lot going forward in not big on takeout.”
Genya couldn’t help but smile a little. His brother hadn't changed that much since he moved away, which was comforting to Genya, some familiarity in his new life.
“There it is,” Sanemi said in a soft tone.
“What?”
“You're smiling, you haven't done that since we left Ma's place.”
“Oh.”
“it's expected, your whole life got uprooted now you have to live with me.”
“It could be worse.”
“Probably,” Sanemi said in agreement.
“Plus it's nice to talk to you again,” Genya admitted with a small shrug.
“Sorry about that.”
“Sorry about what?”
“Not staying in touch once I moved out,” Sanemi admitted.
Genya shrugged again, “I just assumed you were too busy.”
“I was,” Sanemi replied with a bit of hesitation, “but it wasn't fair to any of you. I was actually surprised when Ma called.”
“Sorry that mom called just to make you take me in.”
“She didn't, it was still my decision.”
“Still.”
“I promise it's fine Genya.”
Genya went silent; he didn't want to argue with Sanemi over something as pointless as this. “Thanks,” he eventually said.
The evening went on and soon Genya was heading off to bed. He wasn’t used to how quiet everything was. He was so used to the sounds of his little siblings in the nearby rooms, it was a bit unnerving. But somehow Genya managed to drift off to sleep, and tomorrow would be the first day of his new life.