02. Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it.

I entered the car to avoid looking suspicious. I'll think about what to do after getting home. Kyoko started the car, and we hit the road.

Tokonosu City, I remember it being a relatively large city; if I recall correctly, as it even has an offshore airport.

The hospital seems to be located in a more central part of the city, with several buildings around, none of which appear to be residential.

The flow of people is normal, with no signs of panic caused by a zombie apocalypse. So, I assume I'm before the beginning of the story. The question is, how much time do I have until things go south?

Thinking about where I can find a safe place for me and Kyoko-nee, 'no way I'm letting her go, you know?' The safest option would be a house detached from others, with a wall or fences around it, preferably with more than one floor on a street where I can block the entrances with old cars or metal sheets.

Yeah, the house of Shizuka-sensei's girlfriend is the best initial place. If I remember correctly, the protagonists only left because they needed to search for their parents and food. But with a little effort, we can try to make it a more lasting base.

Takagi Mansion? I'll only go there to save the milf Yuriko. It's not fair that she died because of someone's stupidity.

After a few minutes of wandering in my thoughts, I finally realized I had been silent for too long, and Kyoko-nee seemed a bit tense at the wheel. Is ADHD linked to my soul? How did I forget about her?!

After thinking a bit about what to say, I decided to break the ice with something simple.

"Kyoko-nee, what do you do for a living?"

She jumped a bit in her seat after being called suddenly. I chuckled, 'She is too cute.'

"No need to be tense like that. I thought we already had this conversation."

She blushed a bit and, after clearing her throat to disguise it, said, "I am a high school teacher. By the way, your transfer to the school is already arranged. You can start classes on Monday. The school's name is Fujimi Academy."

A teacher, redhead, hot, Fujimi Academy. AH! I remember her now! She's that hot teacher who died in the beginning at the gates. The first woman to turn undead in the school. I always thought it was such a shame for her to die.

But fear not, 'Nee-chan,' I won't leave you to that fate.

"Hee, so Nee-chan is a teacher. You do look like a teacher, so you're gonna give me a pass on your class, right?" I asked with a grin.

"No way, mister. I am a very strict teacher, so you will need to work hard. Even harder than my other students," she said with a mock-serious face.

"Ah, come on, don't do that," I said pouting like a squirrel.

"Pft… Haha… No is no, not even if you make that cute face," she said trying to hold her giggles.

"So, you think I'm cute?" I said with a smirk.

She blushed a little again. She's gonna be fun to tease.

"Behave yourself, Kazu-kun, or I will give you more homework." She said without looking in my direction, faking that she was focusing on the road.

"What a Tyrant teacher, abusing her authority!" I said in false indignation. "But ok ok, next question. By the way you spoke in the hospital, this seems to be the first time we've met in person or one of the first times we've interacted, right? Was there any reason for that?"

"Mou Kazu-kun, stop teasing your nee-chan." She said starting to pout before continuing. "But you're right, until the beginning of this year, I had never seen a picture of you. Nee-chan, I mean, your mother never let me see a picture of you and didn't allow us to have contact. I thought I had done something that hurt her, but then a few months before she died, she started sending me pictures of you, for some reason, all without a shirt..." She paused for a bit before shaking her head a little and continuing, "Don't you guys usually wear shirts in Brazil?"

'Oho, mama Kurosawa, I see what you wanted to do there. I call your bet and will double it!' I think Mama Kurosawa really liked this cousin of hers, enough to want her as a daughter-in-law.

"Hahaha, well, I lived in the northeast part of the country; my state had only two seasons in the year. Hot and Hotter, each taking their half of the year. Not only that, I exercised a lot, so that might have been why there are so many photos of me without a shirt. But tell me, did you like them?" I asked with a teasing grin.

"Yeah, I di- wait, that's not-" she started saying without thinking only to try and fix that but stopped trying when I started laughing out loud.

After I stopped laughing, I noticed she had stopped the car and was looking at me. I thought that she got angry, but she had a happy smile on her face.

"Huh, what?"

"You remembered!" She exclaimed.

'Oh? I just spoke about my own life before without thinking… No way, right?'

"Just for clarification, you knew where I lived before?" I asked unsure.

"Yes, but we're already here, let's talk while going up." She spoke before taking her bag and keys, pressing the button on the panel, and unlocking the car trunk.

Only now I noticed that we're in a parking lot outside an apartment building.

'Well, an open parking lot in a place full of small corridors and full of people. We can't even think about coming here after everything begins. This is a time bomb.'

I took my luggage from the trunk and started to follow her up the stairs, what a beautiful view. The swaying of her hips was so hypnotic that I almost didn't hear her calling me.

After she told me what she knew about Kazuki's life, I now had an understanding of what happened.

'Okaaay, without the - living in Japan until I was 5 - and the timeline being a bit strange to me (after all, HOTD happens in 2010), this is the same as the previous me.'

I didn't take over a random guy. This was a version of me in this world! Knowing that, I'm relieved that I didn't take the spot of an innocent guy.

"After hearing all that, I think it's safe to say that I remember almost everything. I think my more recent memories are the ones still missing, but those don't matter too much. I couldn't be happier to make some really good memories with you, Nee-chan." I said while mesmerized by her backside. Only in an anime world for a woman like that to exist.

I could bet that her swaying got a bit more pronounced after I said that.

After we got into her apartment, she showed me my room and told me to get settled while she made lunch for us.

'Tomorrow I will cook and take her by the stomach. Nobody can resist the Brazilian Strogonoff.' It's with an 'O'; the dish with an 'A' is the original Russian one.

After looking through my luggage, I found my wallet. 'Thank god it's the same bank, and probably the same password. I don't want to touch Japan's bank system even with a 10-meter pole.' My phone, 'Wow, how long since I saw this model?' It wasn't a smartphone; it was a Sony Ericsson G900, a model from 2008. So, no convenience of smartphones.

Alright, time to go take a bath and rest. After that, I should take advantage of the daylight and ask Kyoko to show me around the neighborhood and, if possible, guide me through the school. It's the best way to get a sense of the school layout and figure out how to navigate efficiently without looking strange for wandering everywhere.

I need to find out where the kendo club is, locate the infirmary, and identify the teachers' room. I don't know how much time I'll have to secure some melee weapons and getting close to Saeko might be the easiest way; I think we'll be in the same class, so I can probably get a shinai from her. I plan to join that bus with the protagonists, but how do I deal with that cursed teacher?

I have a lot to do, but I'm not sure how much time I have to accomplish it.

...

P.O.V – Kyoko Hayashi

A little over 6 months ago, my cousin Kanae passed away. When I found out, I was devastated. I loved Kanae-nee, and she had always been good to me, teaching me many things. But I never understood why she never let me see her son.

About 2 or 3 months before she died, she finally sent me pictures of Kazuki. And well, I must say, he's really handsome, but that's not the point. Kanae-nee started talking to me about having him come to Japan for a few years and asked if it would be okay for him to stay with me.

I was a bit surprised since she never let me see him, and now she wants him to live with me. Not that I'm complaining about the eye candy, 'Kyoko, control yourself.' I thought about it for a moment but soon accepted, 'I'm lonely OK? The guys at the school that I work for are ugly and have a really nasty mouth so I always get annoyed by them.' Unfortunately, before my cousin could explain everything to him, she passed away. I then contacted him after the funeral to invite him, telling him that everything was ready and it was an arrangement his mother had already made a few months prior. At first, he was very suspicious until I sent him some photos of myself and some of myself with Kanae-nee. He agreed shortly after. I was happy to help, 'It has nothing to do with him being a handsome young man, no way.'

On the day he arrived, I was so excited I could barely sleep. His flight was scheduled to arrive at 5:00 AM, and I was at the airport by 3:00. When he finally came out of the arrival gate, my breath caught, 'Oh my God, he is totally my type.' After my initial shock, I realized I was blushing and needed to compose myself, cough cough.

I approached him, and after introducing ourselves, he naturally gave me a tight hug. My heart skipped a beat! I forgot that Latinos are very friendly and have no problem with hugs, I'm starting to think that if he is the one hugging I won't mind at all. 'Oh, I can feel his muscles a bit... hmm.' Okay, time to stop and focus.

As we left the airport, we chatted about the trip and how tiring it was as we were crossing the pedestrian sidewalk, and he smiled wryly while telling a story about a crying child on the flight.

Maybe because I was tired too, I didn't see the car approaching, but Kazuki did and pushed me away. Then he got hit and hit his head on the car's windshield.

'OH NO, DON'T DO THIS TO ME!'

I was in shock, terrified at the thought that my dear Nee-san's son might die because of me. My breathing became rapid, and I couldn't hear anything around me. Luckily, people around were quick to call for help, and the next thing I knew, I was in his hospital room. I stayed there for a while, worried sick, but sleep eventually overcame me, and I passed out.

...

After a period ranging from a few minutes to a few hours, I heard someone chuckling. Upon regaining consciousness, I saw Kazu-kun there, alive and well! I couldn't help but hug him and cry like a child. He was very understanding and forgiving.

I still felt guilty about what happened, especially when we learned he had lost his memories. I'll take care of him; it's my duty, or at least I thought it was, as Kazu-kun reassured me again that everything was fine. 'Ah, I'm going to cry again...' He is as kind as Kanae-nee.

'Ara ara, he's still a healthy man, hehe. He thinks I haven't noticed him checking out my cleavage while we were heading to the car. I'm quite confident in my breasts after all.'

When we were heading back home in the car, he suddenly became quiet with a serious look on his face. Was he having second thoughts? My concern must have been evident on my face because he looked at me, smiled, and reassured me once again.

He even took the opportunity to tease me! 'The gall of this boy. I will also tease him later; let's see what he thinks of that.'

After that, we talked a little, but in the end, it seemed that he didn't notice that he remembered a lot of things. I'm so glad and relieved. He even said that his most recent memories could be overwritten with memories made with me.

'Onee-san will make sure to have some really good memories with you, Kazu-kun ❤️.' Given the way he was fixed on my behind while we climbed the stairs, I might not have to be so lonely anymore.