Eburi Weru No Jutsu

"Let's have dinner first before we go back to my place. Your return flight will be tomorrow evening, right?" I nodded. "Then we can do another session tomorrow morning."

She gave me a smile that made it hard for me to protest and refuse.

I'm having the feeling that she would have killed me if she knew earlier that I was coming today. Thank goodness that Nurse Dylan's baby chose this day to come out to the world.

"Okay." I smiled back. But that smile faded too soon.

"Let's go." She picked up her car keys and added. "We'll just pick up my nephew from the airport before going to the restaurant. There's this new place that's really hot lately. They make killer dumplings."

"Nephew?" Alarms went ringing in my head at the news of having an unfamiliar company.

"Yes. It's a weekly thing since he started modeling. He's been staying with me during the weekends. He was supposed to fly in yesterday evening but he was busy with school stuff so he couldn't make it till today."

"You should have told me that you have other plans. I didn't want to impose." I crossed my fingers as I sat in her car.

She gave me a side glance and a meaningful smile. "Don't try to wriggle yourself out of this one, Zee. Consider this as part of your therapy."

"How?"

"I want you to play the role of a friendly and bright teenage girl for the next 24 hours. My nephew's a really shy boy."

"How about making that a moody and quiet teenager? I can easily pull it off with my eyes closed in this situation." I thought we're done for today already!

She chuckled. "No. Moody and quiet will be played by him whether we like it or not. He's at that cute stage, you see. So I need you to be the friendly kid. I don't need two pouty kids in my company, right now."

"That's why I said I could have come some other day--"

"No excuses. Be friendly or I'll go ahead and kill you after dinner. The kid's having his own issues as it is. Don't make me kill you in front of him." She pleaded with a sweet yet dangerous smile.

I gulped. "Friendly. I can do friendly."

As soon as we reached the airport's arrival area, one person automatically caught my attention. Like a magnet, my eyes just wandered directly towards his direction and they slowly grew larger with every step that he took towards us. He was wearing a baseball cap and had a mask on but for some reason I just knew that it was him.

"No way." I muttered as I gaped at the one person that I did not expect nor wish to see.

'I didn't like having unfamiliar company but this is worse. No. It's the worst!'

He also looked at me with confusion as Teacher Kimmy obliviously introduced us to each other. "Zee, this is my nephew Craige. Craige, this is one of my... students, Zee."

Craige and I just stared at each other in disbelief for a few seconds before I reached out my hand to him with my well-rehearsed smile. "Hi, Craige. It's nice to meet you."

'Friendly. Friendly I can do. Dear brain, let's do friendly, please.'

"Hello." Was his short reply before he added as if reading the situation. "Nice to meet you."

Teacher Kimmy curiously watched our interaction then clapped her hands. "Very well, now that you're acquainted, let's go grab something to eat. I'm famished."

I scurried towards the backseat of the car while they towed his luggage on the trunk.

'What kind of development is this?! What the hell is going on?'

Craige sat on the front seat and we were silent during the first few minutes of the ride. Someone turned on the radio and a song played that made me remember my mission.

'Friendly!'

My head snapped up from my phone to see Teacher Kimmy watching me through the rearview mirror.

I cleared my throat and nervously started. "So Craige... can I call you that? I don't think you're older than me."

He turned around and looked at me with an eyebrow raised.

I checked the mirror if Teacher Kimmy was watching before I mouthed to him. JUST GO ALONG WITH IT!

He frowned and shocked me with his answer. "Eleven months."

"Huh?" My heart was pounding on my chest.

"I'm guessing that I'm that much older than you." He smiled with amusement before slowly turning back around.

'Darn brat is playing with me! He's doing this on purpose!'

I knew that very well but a single "Ah." was all I could say.

Teacher Kimmy on the other hand seemed to find it funny. "That means you're just about the same age, aren't you? That's wonderful! You can be friends then."

But Craige shook his head with the same amused smile on his face. "Nope. I'm definitely older. We have to establish that."

"Oho! You want to have seniority don't you baby boy?" She gave him a side glance and pulled down his cap. "Did something good happen to you? You seem to be brighter than usual."

He shrugged then I saw him smile at me through the side mirror. "I just think that this weekend will be fun."

The thumping in my chest went from fast to erratic.

'Palpitations again?'

'Anxiety attack?'

'Probably both.'

'Dear Lord, this is definitely going to be a very long weekend.'

***

Dear Dairy Milk,

I'm staying with Teacher Kimmy again this weekend.

But since it's been a while since I last came here, a lot has definitely changed.

Take my new fellow free-loader in the next room for example.

Who would have thought that I'd actually meet him here? And what? He's modeling?

.

.

.

So he really was a celebrity after all?

Heol.

P. S.

I guess that 'jutsu' really does exist.

Otherwise, there's just no explanation for this uncanny encounter.