A Bamboo Slide

"ARE YOU FUCKING WITH ME?" Ms. Mari shouted, she folded her arms, tapping her feet on the wood of the back room. Fu stood beside Yao, Fu held her open palms in defense, "Ms. Mari, she came by and gave us a note and left."

"I have a daughter already!" she yelled with her hands on her hips. "Where the fuck did she go?"

Akikah joined in the room, "She left!" she said. "I even went down the street to look! She's somewhere."

"I'm not taking care of two boys! I have enough money for one child!"

"And a cat..." she added and looked at Yao. "Not you, I mean dad."

"Either way, I can't take care of both. I'm thinking about kicking my husband out." said Hata. "Well, there goes another...," Yao sighed. Hata looked at Fu, "What about your house?"

"Absuletely not," Fu placed her hands on her hips. "I work at the convenience store after work. I take care of the shift. And then I work at the strip club."

Hata gawked at Fu, "Your Kisses?" Fu nodded, "I'm the dancer Kisses. There's no way the kids are staying with me."

"How come? Are you a hoe?"

Fu sneered, she blinked and made her way to the door. "That was polite." said Yao. He looked at Hata, "Fu isn't a hoe, her cousin lives with her. She has enough to deal with."

"Her cousin?" Hata rested her hand against her left palm. "Jesus, I'm sorry."

"And a boyfriend. Actually, it started with her cousin and her boyfriend moved in."

"Oh," she bent to Akika's level who stood on the side, "Go tell Fu, I'm sorry. And ask if anyone can adopt the boys."

Jin and Imada were pressed against the wall. Jin kept his hands in his pockets while Imada sat down hugging his knees. "How did you get in Chae's custody?" Hata asked the two. "We were walking down the street." Jin lifted his shoulders. "We hanged around the store and sometimes we got candy."

"I forgot who runs the convenience store," Hata tapped her beak. She looked to Yao, "Do you know?"

"Uh…all I know is Fu." He said. "We hung around during the day. I don't mess with the pretty ones." Said Jin.

"How gentleman of you," Yao tittered. "Who gives you food?"

"No one…," Imada looks at him with big eyes. "Jin steals when the manager isn't there."

Hata paced to them, she bent down. "So, you're a thief?" Jin shrugs. "I could report you."

"And?"

"You'll go to juvenile."

"Ain't no price on my head. Why bother? And ain't nobody gon' miss me."

Hata lift off her feet. "Where's your mother?"

"The bitch just left."

Hata put her hand on her hip, "Jesus… Yao, you do something."

"Why?" He didn't want to start being a big brother. Or a father. Or a babysitter. Or anything. Who was she to ask a cat to take care of kids? His father sure didn't do it.

"How long did you stay with Chae?"

"A year…" Jin rolled his eyes. "Well, she must have been a good mom." Claimed Yao. "That's a long time."

"We didn't have money in the house." Whispered Imada. "Sometimes she made us steal."

"Steal?" Hata looked at them. "How old are you?"

Imada raised his hand, "I'm eight!"

"Going on fifteen…," said Jin. "Are you brothers?" asked Hata. "Nah, Imada was in the river when I met him. His dad just left him."

"Jesus…," her hands rested against her cheeks. She narrowed her gaze, "You could be lying."

Jin's back pushed off the wall, "Are you fucking serious!" he hollered. "I was fucking seven! Imada could only crawl. You fucking bitch!"

"hey—"

"Fuck you! I've been by myself; I became a fucking father! At goddamn seven! And you think I'm lying!" Hata stepped away, she was saying all the wrong things today. She aimed her glances at Yao. "Hey, hey. Look, you can stay with me. I live in apartment."

Jin looked at the cat, he seemed humble. "You got a job. How much you make?"

"Excuse me?"

"How much money you make?" he stared at him. "I got an 8-year-old here. Jin has one ear working. Do you have insurance? He has asthma. What will you do if my brother can't breathe? If he can't sleep! I don't care if I get a home, but he needs somebody!"

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Jin and Imada sat in the cafe at a table in the middle. Fu brought a plate of fish with potatoes on the side. She placed two bamboo sticks next to the plate. "Here you go." She pushes the plate to Imada, he looked at her with wonder. "What's the bamboo for?"

"Well, Ms. Mari thought it would be fun to make a flute out of bamboo." she sat down in the open seat between them. "I can teach you. I made a bamboo flute once."

"What does it do?" asked Jin. "It makes music," Fi replied matter a factly. "You don't have to be so mean."

"are you a rabbit?"

"I'm an angora rabbit."

Jin's eyes were emotionless. Fu didn't like the way he looked, "My dad ate one once."

Fu didn't want to respond and didn't know how. "Cool." she said. "So," Fu faced Imada. "Let's make a flute." She smiled.

Yao helped in the kitchen; he wasn't back there a lot except to sneak snacks. He looked at kitchen, the stove was better than he guest. But it wasn't the one he remembered. Ms. Mari kept an old stove built for witches. He called it the Witch Stove. She used to make food on a black stove with wood in the oven. He was around before the shop became big; it didn't get a lot of customers. Ms. Mari, made food slowly, 'It taste better when you cook it with Patience, remember that little kitty.'

Yao never thought about his kitten days. He was reminiscing about days when he sat at the table and every thing that made him happy was a simple plate of mashed potatoes and gravy with a roll. That's all it took. A tear ran down his left eye. "Hey, Yao… you're going to burn the pudding." Jae shook his shoulder. "Yao."

His mind was elsewhere.

He knew if he stood idlily, his mind would bring up the darkness. He used to sleep in the backroom. It had tatami mats back then, Ms. Mari didn't dye her feathers pink. She didn't even like the color pink… her sister, Tachino did.

In his mind, Hata Mari never left. She didn't die in a fire in the kitchen. She was reincarnated. Tachino dressed like her sister. He told himself, don't fall for the illusion. But he couldn't help it.

"Yao!" Jae shouted. "Dude move," he shoved Yao away from the shove. "Damn it, you messed up the pudding!"

"Sorry…" Yao winced, "Black cat habits."

"Dude don't call yourself a fucking curse." Jae stirred but it wasn't helping. He cut the heat off. Jae scrapped the bottom on the pot, he sighed. "It's not entirely burnt but it's close to it."

Yao sulked; Jae cried out through the open window looking out at the café. "Hope you guys like burnt pudding!"

"I don't mind—" as Imada was expressing his humbleness. Jin cut him off, "No way, Imada can't eat that! He'll get a stomachache!"

They couldn't hear in the kitchen, but Fu did. "Your being overprotective again." Imada pouted. "So, don't be mad at me. Eating burnt food can make you sick."

"I'm not as sick as you say. You're paranoid," Imada stuck his tongue out. "Worry-wart!"

"I'd rather be worried then foolish."

Fu's gazes shifted between the two, she smiled, how lovely she thought.

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After work, Tachino closed up shop and waved by at her employees. "Take care now. And take care of those kids."

"We will." They said together. Jae narrowed his glance, "My dad is racist. I can't say that any better."

"I'm a stripper." Said Fu.

"We are four feet three…" claimed the twins. "We don't have ethe insurance for children!"

"I'm not letting my brother stay with foxes anyway!" yelled Jin. "Foxes are sneaky, irresponsible. I don't trust you short fucking dogs."

"Fuck you kid!" yelled back Meng. "spoiled little boys!" chimed Cao. "Come on Meng lets fucking go home."

Yao rolled his eyes. "Well, you guys are staying with me."

Jin looked him up and down. "By any chance have you ever been homeless?"

Yao let his jaw slack, "What does that mean?"

Jin crossed his arms, "You need to understand our situation. That other money said she was homeless—"

"It doesn't matter!" Imada ran up to Yao, "Can we stay with you?"

He remembered being like that. He understood, but he also knew it was fucking stupid. "Oh course. I got neighbors."

"Do you know them?" questioned Jin. "For all I know—"

"You don't know shit!" Imada turned around and faced Yao again. "Thank you. We'll sleep on the couch."

"Or he can sleep on the couch… that's what a good person would do…"

Fu and Yao gawked at Jin. Then they gawked at each other with open mouths, they both said it, "Jesus Christ."