Stealing Spree

Even though I could’ve spent a few minutes more checking on my girls one more time, I ended up only escorting Nami and Mami to the door leading to the audience area.

The reason? Well, my phone suddenly started vibrating.

It was a phone call. But without a dedicated ringtone, I gathered that it wasn’t from any of my girls. It should be from someone related to me.

I could count those in the number of fingers in my hands and this seldom happened. It’s even rarer than the usual automatic messages for various advisories. And given that it was done during the day, it must be important, or at least, hold a little bit of it.

As soon as I sent the two girls off with my eyes, I turned around and descended the stairs before pulling my phone out.

I checked the screen first for the Caller D and sure enough, I was right with my guess.

“Mom? What’s the matter?”

“My Baby boy! Sorry for the sudden call.”

Sensing the urgency in her voice, my head just naturally started trying to figure out what this was about. It shouldn’t be an emergency, otherwise she would start with it rather than pause like this.

With the phone pressed against my ear, I started making my way back to the basketball club waiting room.

“Mom, you’re not one to say sorry for a call. Did something happen?”

“Hehe~ I wanna try it. People always flinched and stuttered whenever I called them. Only with you, baby boy, can I be this relaxed.”

This... I thought this was urgent. Right? Why was she stalling with this? Ah. No. She was going off-topic.

But then again, I could understand why. She’s still my mother, after all. Her motherly instinct would naturally trigger when it comes to me. And since this was a rare occasion, she’s trying to get the best of it by partly teasing me and relaxing through my voice. Maybe if this wasn’t a phone call, she would also cuddle me.

There’s no escape from being her baby boy even though Minoru is already there to replace me...

“Sure, mom. So, what’s this about?” Faking nonchalance, I tried to forcefully steer us back to the topic.

My mom giggled. There’s nothing that could escape her notice, I guess.

“Oh right! Your father received a call from that place.”

“That place?”

Wait... Is it about that? It wasn’t just a simple visit, huh?

“Come on, baby boy. Your father’s hometown. They called because apparently, the third grandson of that old man visited and asked around there. What are they thinking?”

Yep. It’s about Otoha’s older brother’s visit to that place... A place I don’t feel any connection to.

“It’s my fault. I should’ve considered this when I decided to face Otoha’s grandfather. Say Dad I’m sorry.”

“Shush. Your father doesn’t mind them calling. But do you think the old man ordered it?”

I see. This isn’t just about those people. My parents are trying to understand how deep my connection became from that one meeting with the eccentric old man. They’re concerned that I might be in trouble if their information isn’t up to date.

And thinking about it, they possibly already caught wind of the favor I asked which helped Juri out. Either the old man deliberately informed them or they just unearthed it with their unreal information-gathering ability.

“I’m not sure. Otoha only told me about her brother’s trip... Today, her grandfather took her with him somewhere. And I had just been informed about that guy wanting to meet me one of these days.”

Having been convinced that there was no point in hiding those things from them anymore, I spilled out what I knew. Like Miwa-nee said, if there’s someone who will help me unconditionally, it will be my parents. No matter how mysterious their job is or whatever they’re keeping from me about my past, they will always take my side, unless I do something that will topple their sense of protectiveness for me.

My mother took a while before responding again. At this point, I'd already entered the door and was only a turn away from the waiting room.

People were already rushing in and out of the hallway and a committee staff even ran past me, most likely to inform the teams that it was time.

“Heh. I get it. He set his eyes on you. Okay, baby boy, listen to me. Just go along with that old man’s whims for now. You know what you’re doing anyway. However, watch out for the people from that place. They might come knocking at your door.”

Hmm? Will they visit unannounced? If she’s reminding me about this then they probably didn’t know that they left the house to me.

“I understand. I’ll keep that in mind. But mom, who should I expect to knock?”

“Knowing how they want your father to come back... They’ll send someone close to him. It will either be your uncle or some of your cousins.”

They want him to come back, huh? Wait. Didn’t he get their permission to live independently? Thinking about it, I don’t know a lot about that side of our family. Or I cannot remember. Hell, my memory of the other side was also vague. Only Miwa-nee and a short vacation years ago – before my desire manifested – stuck to me.

“I don’t know them,” I answered. “Am I supposed to recognize them?”

“Baby boy... you don’t remember? We brought you there once. You’ve gotten close to your cousins. Oh. It’s only a week so you’ve probably forgotten about it already.” My mother laughed by the end of it. And even though I couldn’t see her, she was probably having a silly smile.

Anyway, I couldn’t remember about being there or getting close to my cousins. Maybe it happened when I was way younger. Ugh... This is too much for my poor memory.

Unknowingly, I found myself digging into my memory, trying to recall memories of years in the past. Before my desire manifested, it was all filled with Akane and Miwa-nee...

Well, it’s predominantly Akane. Nothing else mattered to me before but that silly girl. I can even remember when we were playing in a playground and I pushed her on my slide. She stumbled on the ground and cried. I hurriedly went after her and cried as well when I saw her knee scratched.

Wait... That’s a memory too far back from what I am trying to recall.

That place. The estate of my father’s family...

Uncle and cousins...

“No. I can’t remember. Akane was there, right?” That’s all I could come up with after getting stalled on that thought.

At this point, my feet already stopped in place and I saw the girls from the basketball club spilling out of the room. In particular, Satsuki was already making her way towards me.

On the other side of the call, I could only hear my mom’s breathing noise. She was speechless.

When Satsuki noticed me on the phone, the two of us conversed through our eyes, lips, and gestures. Understanding that my mother was on the other side, the look on her face toughened up as if she had just met a boss she needed to defeat.

I couldn’t help but smile from seeing that. I grabbed her hand and pulled her close to me.

Eguchi-sensei, Kawakami-senpai, and the others also reached me at this point. And seeing me on the phone, they all nodded in understanding as they continued on their way.

Well, Eguchi-sensei was more curious though but since she couldn’t just stop to check on me, she threw me a concerned glance.

“... Yes. Akane was there. You can recall that fact but not those you met at that place. Baby boy... you successfully baffled your mother today. Anyway, I’ll call you again later. I heard someone beside you. Let me say hello to Satsuki-chan.” Eventually, my mother’s response came. And with her trained ears, it didn’t escape her notice that someone had come to my side.

Satsuki probably didn’t catch it well but seeing how she started fidgeting, she clearly heard my mother mention her name.

My lips naturally curved up into a teasing smile as I handed my phone to the girl.

Although confused, Satsuki took it and held it by her ear. A few seconds later, the girl squeezed my hand tightly while saying in a shaky voice, “Y-yes It’s my pleasure to hear from you, m-mother!”