the love

Masaru nods again and Hiroki smiles before leading him into the kitchen.

Once he's inside the kitchen, he closes the door behind him and looks down at his son.

He ruffles Masaru's short hair and asks, "Do you wanna help?"

The little boy shakes his head and tells him, "It's okay. You should talk to him."

"About what?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Everything, silly!" Masaru exclaims excitedly and jumps up and down.

Hiroki chuckles quietly and agrees.

Chapter 2

[2]

Natsu walks through the streets with his new friend.

The two of them went to pick him up after school from the elementary school, just a few minutes ago, and they've been walking together the entire way to where they are now.

When they arrived at the store, they found the store owner, Hiroaki, talking to a girl named Asami while helping her shoplift some things from the display cases.

When they entered the store, Natsu noticed that the store looked very similar to his own mother's place. It looked like a small convenience store.

"So what did you think of school today?" Hiroaki asked, smiling and looking at Asami. Hiroaki laughs lightly and tells her, "Well I hope you have fun, Asami."

"Yeah, I guess I did," Asami replies.

Hearing that, Natsu felt a little bad for her. She seemed really tired and annoyed at school. Even though her grades have been improving lately, it's not enough to make her smile.

Natsu knows what it's like not having the best education so he can sympathize with her a lot more. Afterall, he wasn't any better himself. He spent hours studying and practicing everyday to prepare himself for exams and tests later on. Sometimes, he felt as if he had no time for sleep. And sometimes, he didn't feel like sleeping at all. Sometimes, it was hard for him to even fall asleep. But despite those struggles, he continued to study because he couldn't afford to fail. He has to stay alive and get ahead of his brothers and sisters so they can surpass him.

Hiroaki smiles at her and tells her, "That's great to hear." Then he turns to face Natsu and says, "Hey, buddy, do you need anything? Need anything specific?"

Natsu shakes his head no and replies, "No, thanks."

He looks up at Hiroaki and asks, "Should we go and find the others?"

"Sure," Hiroaki tells him. He turns around and starts heading towards the exit.

Natsu follows him, but he slows down so he's walking next to Asami.

"I'm sorry you lost the game today, Asami," he says quietly so that Hiroaki won't hear it.

Asami looks at him in surprise and replies, "Don't worry about it. It's not your fault."

Then she looks back in front of her and adds, "We'll win next time."

"Yeah," Natsu says quietly.

They walk silently for awhile until they stop in front of the exit.

"Here we are," Hiroaki announces.

"Thanks, Uncle Hiroaki. Bye, Asami," Natsu says politely.

Asami nods and waves at him.

"See ya."

The two of them leave the store and once they're outside, Hiroaki turns towards his son and tells him, "Ready to go home?"

Natsu nods and Hiroaki smiles before they both start their walk back home.

A little while later, they arrive back home.

Hiroki opens the door and leads the way in, Natsu following close behind.

The boys sit down on the couch and Natsu sits down next to his uncle.

Hiroki sets down his grocery bags and starts unpacking them.