dinohouse | [Mushverse, mostly for Liveman family] Throwing Kamen Rider Gaia into the mix

The parents are finally in bed and I sigh in relief as I hear the light get switched off. It's about time, I thought they were never coming up. I just need to wait a bit now, give them time to go to sleep before I do this. Eventually though, I get out of bed and make my way downstairs, careful to avoid the creaky stairs.

I should probably tell them I'm working with Gaia and EYES now, but they'd just try to talk me out of it and I need to do this, for any number of reasons; getting paid is only one of them. I rummage inside my bag and pull out the envelope before heading into the kitchen. That's where Megumi keeps her purse and she does the groceries so she gets more. There's a lot of us to feed, after all, and I know she worries about it, even if she won't admit it in front of us. I split the rest of the wages between Jou and Yuusuke before ripping up the envelope and dropping it in the bin.

There. All sorted for the week. I dust my hands off in satisfaction and head back to bed.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

hotshotlightning

I make sure to get a good headstart once I'm out the house so he can't catch up with me. Even if I'm early I'm sure I can find some way to pass the time before school starts.

From:

yellowlion

He's fit enough, but I still normally out-energy him in the mornings.

But I make it all the way to school without seeing him, huh.

From:

hotshotlightning

I just about make it to school before he does. It takes some doing since he has way more energy than anyone should first thing in the morning, but when I pass through the school gates it's without him catching up with me.

And now I have time to waste. Wonderful. Hm, head to the gym for some quick kendo practice or the library, with the all the bookshelves for cover.

From:

yellowlion

I wonder if he remembers he has his brace on.

From:

hotshotlightning

I browse through the library to kill some time, flipping through some of the chemistry books, although it's not as if high school science books are going to be any use against the virus.

Still, it's something to do until the bell goes.

From:

yellowlion

Oh, son.

I'm feeling more amused than pissed off today. I'll let you stew for a while.

Not too long.

From:

hotshotlightning

I sag a little with relief as the bell goes for the start of school. I was half expecting him to track me down but I guess he didn't look here.

I sling my bag over my shoulder and make my way to class, keeping a wary out for him, just in case.

From:

yellowlion

I find Yuuki and give her a note for Katsumi. She's in his first class.

No point in letting him think he's gotten away with anything.

From:

hotshotlightning

I blink in surprise as Yuuki hands me a note, flicing through it briefly before Oosugi-sensei arrives to start the class. Not that he'd notice if I read it in class anyway.

It's from Jou. Of course it is. I scowl and scrunch it up. Unfortunately I can't reach the bin from here otherwise I'd toss it in. Damn it, why can't he just let this go?

From:

spacenerd

I lean close to him and prod at him gently, while looking at the board. "Is everything okay?" I hiss.

From:

hotshotlightning

I jump as she pokes between my shoulders and I lean back in my chair to see what she wants.

Oh, to know if everything's okay. I give her a brief smile and a nod. She has enough to deal with with the KRC, she doesn't need my baggage on top of that.

From:

spacenerd

I tsk at him, because everything is obviously not okay, but he thinks he's being really calm and putting up a good act. I'll get it out of him later.

From:

hotshotlightning

I scowl at that little tsk because she sounds just like Jou and the others parents when they're not buying something. And that's really not a good association right now considering Jou's on the verge of finding out.

From:

spacenerd

"Let me help you," I tell him huffily. "Just like Gen-chan, Katsumi-chan! I can help people, too!"

From:

hotshotlightning

"I don't need help!" I say in exasperation. Why does everyone seem to think I need help?

From:

spacenerd

"Okay, if you say so," I tell him, clearly not believing him in the slightest.

From:

hotshotlightning

"I do say so."

I turn back in my seat and sigh a little, tapping my pen against my mouth. She's not going to leave this alone, so now I'll have to field her questions as well as avoiding Jou. Today's going to be... interesting.

From:

yellowlion

Ohhhhh, there he is. Cafeteria.

I grin over at him from the teachers' line.

From:

hotshotlightning

I grit my teeth and ignore him. He's trying to psych me out and it's not going to work, damn it. It's not.

From:

yellowlion

Oh, I'll get it out of him. It's only a matter of time.

From:

hotshotlightning

Well, I managed to avoid him while I was at school, I don't think I'll be that lucky when we're at home. He has Yuusuke for back-up as well.

From:

yellowlion

I manage things at home by giving him a job to do and/or checking on him every five minutes.

I'm not being an asshole in terms of giving him more work to do than the others. He can still relax. I'm just keeping an eye on him.