Orphans
by Keiko no Miko

Chapter Seven
Yusuke

When I really (as in really) found myself walking towards Yuriko-san and the baby she was holding, I thought, I can’t believe I’m doing this. But somehow, I knew I had to do it—partly for Keiko, and maybe for me as well.

"Er…uh, Yuriko-san?"

Yuriko-san looked up from the baby. I knew at once that the baby was Sachio.

Yuriko-san smiled serenely. "May I help you with anything…"

"Uh…it’s Yusuke-kun," I stuttered.

"Yusuke-kun." She held a puzzled gaze at me. "Is something the matter?"

"I-I came to ask you a favor, actually." I felt myself reddening a little. I scratched the back of my head. "I-it’s about…Sachio-chan."

"Oh, Sachio?" She held the boy up. Sachio was cute in every way—it was only that he looked skinny and pale. "Why?"

I took a deep breath and clasped my hands together behind me. "C-could I…hold him…for a while?"

Yuriko-san stared at me.

I began to plead. "Maybe while these kids are holding their little program? Keiko and I can watch over him." I brought my hands together in front of me in a praying gesture. "Please?"

I knew that look from Yuriko-san quite well—she held that stare at Keiko that morning, when we had just arrived, when she broke out of our group and ran to the kids as if they were her long-lost children. She had that look on me right now.

Yuriko-san adjusted her eyeglasses and looked at me questioningly. "Did Keiko-chan tell you to bring Sachio to her?"

"Uh…er, no." I scratched the back of my head. "I came here by myself."

"Sou da. Very well." Her smile widened as she held Sachio up, for me to take in my arms. "You take care of him."

Uh-oh. I didn’t know how to hold a one-year old! Luckily for me, Yuriko-san noticed my distressed state and assisted me in carrying Sachio.

Wow, I thought when Sachio-chan was placed in my arms in an upright position. I put my right arm on his bottom and my left around his back. I heard him gurgle—a comforting babyish groan from his throat. Then, it sounded as if he was giggling.

"I think he likes you," Yuriko-san said.

"Eheh…" I grinned, adjusting my hold on Sachio. He had this scent you only smell in babies. "Arigatou ne, Yuriko-san."

Again, Yuriko-san gave me another one of her serene smiles.

The kids were arranging mono-block chairs against the wooden fence of the front yard so that the porch of the house, which was a bit raised from the ground, looked like a small stage. They were going to perform a bit, maybe a little dancing and singing, and maybe even a short play. Heh, I kinda remembered myself in an elementary school play. Yeah, I was one of those on stage. I was a tree with these large branches.

Because I was holding Sachio-chan’s delicate body in my arms, I almost bumped into Maeko, who was carrying a chair.

"Niichan!" She exclaimed, putting the chair down and reaching up to touch Sachio’s feet. "You brought Sachio here!"

"Ah, hey, hey," I muttered, sitting on the ground. "Careful now."

"You look as if it’s your first time to hold a baby," she noted.

"Yeah, it is." I was too obvious at times.

But you know what? I loved holding Sachio. I felt light, peaceful—no, I couldn’t really comprehend what I was feeling. It was the same when I held Maeko, and Toshiro.

I guess no one in his sane mind (and perhaps even deranged minds) would underestimate the feel of a child’s touch. Everyone loves a baby.

(And the good news is, I had been a child once.)

"Yusuke?"

I looked up. Keiko was helping Toshiro carry a tall stack of mono-block chairs, but her eyes were completely on me and Sachio.

"Ah, hi." I grinned, unsure of myself.

Keiko let go of her load and walked towards me in stiff, slow paces. She joined us on the grass, still staring at Sachio and me in a way that intimidated me.

She touched Sachio’s face and caressed it lightly. Sachio chuckled, and Keiko—she smiled, the same smile that you’d see on her face right before she cries.

Maybe this was a bad idea, I thought grimly.

Instead, Keiko asked me, "Could I…hold him?"

"Sure. That’s why I took him in the first place, you know." I lifted Sachio off my body and handed him to Keiko.

Keiko, it seemed, did not have any difficulty in handling babies. She held him under his shoulders, took a good look at him, and tried to make him stand on the ground.

Sachio could stand, of course, but he still needed support.

Keiko looked at me gratefully. "Thanks, Yusuke."

"Anytime." I flashed her a grin. "Hey, you know, maybe we should find our places now." I looked around. "Everyone seems ready."

"Right." Keiko stood up, still carrying Sachio. Without a word, she headed straight for a spot under a leafy tree. Maeko and Toshiro followed her.

I stared after her. She wasn’t as lively as she was before I escaped into the woods. I pitied her. Yukimura Keiko may look tough and immovable when seen from the outside, but she has a delicate, easily warmed—and hurt—soul.

I sighed heavily as I stacked the chair Maeko had been carrying on the ones Keiko and Toshiro had brought. I carried them over to a place where there were no chairs. I took four and brought them to Keiko and the kids.

"Good afternoon, everyone!" Yuriko-san’s voice was excited. She was holding a microphone. "The kids here have prepared a small program for our visitors…"

"Hey, Maeko," I heard Keiko say. "Are you going to sing for us today?"

Maeko’s eyes bulged out. "No way!" she shrieked, shaking her head. "No way am I going to sing there!"

"Why not?"

"It’s…scary," she said simply.

"Oh, come on, Maeko-chan," Toshiro cut in. "Why don’t you just try and sing for us? You’ve got a really nice voice."

Maeko ducked her head, blushing fiercely.

Keiko, who was sitting between the two kids, leaned close to Maeko. "Why don’t you just try?"

Maeko shook her head stubbornly. "No, neechan. I don’t want to!"

Keiko groaned. She got up—to my surprise—and handed Sachio to me.

She sat on the ground before Maeko and watched her. "Is trying that hard, Maeko-chan?"

"W-well…"

"Saa," Keiko took her hands in hers, "I’d be really proud of you if you go there and sing for me."

A realization suddenly shot straight into my mind. She’s helping Maeko gain self-confidence! I figured. Can she do it?

"Onegai, Maeko-chan?" Keiko beseeched, pouting her lips. "Please sing for me."

Maeko just stared at her.

"Hey, didn’t you tell me you’ve always wanted to be a singer?" Keiko asked. "How could you be one if you don’t practice it right now?"

"Hai, hai!" Toshiro urged. "Come on now, Maeko!"

"Neechan is right," I joined in.

"Don’t you want to be seen on TV?" Keiko added.

Maeko bit her lip, as if thinking hard. Come on, I persuaded her mentally. She stared long and hard at each of our pleading faces.

Finally…

"Okay," she said. "I’ll do it."

"All right!" Keiko cheered, hugging Maeko. "Why don’t you go to Yuriko-san right now and tell her?"

"B-but I have no practice…"

"Sing the one you’re always singing, Maeko," Toshiro told her. "You know, the one you always sing when you’re alone."

Maeko rolled her eyes at Toshiro. "I know what to do!"

Keiko pushed Maeko gently to the direction of the mini-stage. "Go on," she said.

At that moment, six kids were doing a modern dance number. I noticed that Kaemon, the boy with the cap, was with them. Michie, one of the girls Keiko baby-sat before Maeko, was also there, dancing her heart out. I had to smile.

Keiko, Toshiro and I watched Maeko run off to her Yuriko-obachan. She said a few words to her, occasionally looking back at us. Yuriko-san listened intently. When she gestured to us, Yuriko-san looked up.

The three of us waved.

I saw Yuriko-san beam happily and turn back to Maeko.

When Maeko returned, I knew that she was going to sing.

"Cool!" I said, almost jumping up, when I realized that I was holding Sachio.

"I’m gonna sing after everyone else do their part," Maeko explained. She hugged Keiko at the waist. "I’m really nervous, neechan…"

"Oh, don’t be! It’ll be fine from the moment you walk up the stage," Keiko assured her. "You’re going to be really great."

I looked at Maeko. She surely was pretty, and smart as well. Yeah, I definitely could see her as a singer someday…

Hmm, I wonder what the song Toshiro was talking about is…

I glanced at Keiko. I had a feeling that she’d cry again when Maeko sings…

Don’t get the wrong idea; I don’t hate Keiko because she cries at the littlest things. It’s just that…it annoys me. No, not annoy. I just…hate it when she does that. You know.

I spent the rest of the program in a daze. Not that I was bored—if anything, I was amused at the kids doing their best to put up a show. There were Megumi-san and Keiji-kun singing a duet. There was the majority of them taking the roles of the characters in "Three Little Pigs". They looked happy and whole; they looked like they didn’t deserve to be called "orphans".

I glanced at Sachio, who was sitting on my lap, seemingly intent on watching the show. He chuckled at times, but most of the while, he was silent. It was then that I took note of his eyes. Brown…

They looked like Keiko’s eyes.

I smiled.

But then again, I told myself, maybe no one deserves to be called an orphan.

Because we all have someone worth keeping.

And as I willed myself to believe in what I had thought, I slowly felt as if a huge weight was lifted off my back.

Yuriko-san stepped on the stage. "…To end with, we have a surprise number, which sure surprised me as well." A few chuckled at her statement.

I saw Keiko grip Maeko’s shoulders. "You can do it!"

Maeko nodded stiffly.

"…Please welcome, Maeko-chan!"

There was a loud buzz among the audience, especially on the kids’ side. Hah, so you guys didn’t think Maeko could do it? I told them in my mind. Well, guess what, she’s here to capture your hearts!

Keiko urged Maeko to go forward. Which Maeko did, shyly.

Yuriko-san handed Maeko the microphone and spoke a few words to her. Maeko smiled, nodded, and looked our way.

I stood up and took Maeko’s empty seat so that I was beside Keiko. "Now watch that girl," I told her. "When she appears on national TV, I’ll be really proud to brag that Maeko had a little girl’s crush on me once!"

Keiko laughed and hit me lightly on my arm. "Stop flattering yourself, Yusuke!"

Toshiro and I laughed along.

We stopped when we heard the gentle tinkle of a piano from the accompaniment. It was the intro to Maeko’s song.

"I know this song," Keiko whispered to me.

"Really?" I wasn’t much into ballad music, anyway.

I held my breath as Maeko began to sing.

"‘There’s a hero, if you look inside your heart…you don’t have to be afraid of what you are…’"

"‘There’s an answer,’" I heard Keiko sing along in her soft, beautiful voice. "‘If you reach into your soul…and the sorrow that you know will melt away…’"

I didn’t know that I had closed my eyes, with Keiko’s breath warm on my cheeks as she sang. I took in every word Maeko and Keiko sang. And I knew, with all my heart, that they were right.

There’s an answer. And we’ll know it when the right time comes.

"‘So when you feel that hope is gone, look inside you and be strong…and you’ll finally—’"

I snapped my eyes open when I heard Keiko’s voice break. She was staring at Sachio…with her lips pressed together and her tears sliding down continually.

"Kei-chan, what—"

"I…I can’t stop it, Yusuke," she whispered in agony. "I…Sachio…" She let out a gasp and let her head fall on my right shoulder.

"Oh, Keiko…" I didn’t realize that songs had that effect on her. But I wasn’t surprised. Maybe I did know her a lot better than I had thought.

Even if it was a bit difficult with Sachio on my lap, I gingerly wrapped a free arm around Keiko and pulled her close to me. "Cry it all out, Keiko," I murmured gently. "It’s okay. It’s okay."

I became more aware of her ragged breathing and her trembling body. I patted her arm, like a good friend. Like how I always did when she was sad…

And it suddenly occurred to me—this was the reason why I called her my best friend. This was why she called me her best friend. Because we always have a shoulder to cry on for each other, a hand to help us up when one of us falls down, an ear that listens to our thoughts and feelings, simple as they may be. This was the tie that kept us bonded for years. And this tie was never, ever creased by hurt or anger.

And it won’t ever be broken, I vowed silently as I watched Keiko reach out to touch Sachio’s hands. She smiled wistfully, at him…

…Then at me.

Never ever.

I smiled back assuringly, and together, we watched Maeko sing the rest of her song. Her voice was lively, sweet and hopeful—in short, it was marvelous. She did that high part very well. I felt pride swell within me.

"‘And then a hero lies in…you.’"

"Bravo!" Keiko was the first to cheer. She was followed by an uproar by the rest of the audience, so loud that it surprised Maeko as well.

I took Sachio’s hands and clapped them together.

Maeko bowed, sending an even louder cheer from the crowd. "Go, Maeko!" Toshiro yelled. "WE LOVE YOU!!!"

Yuriko-san took her place on stage. "We never knew you have such exceptional talent, Maeko-chan!" she exclaimed. "Thank you for sharing it with us!"

Maeko bowed to Yuriko-san, then again at the audience, and walked down the stage. She was greeted by congratulatory pats on the back and handshakes. Before she got to our place, she was apparently pooped.

"Maeko!" Keiko embraced Maeko tightly. "You were awesome! I knew you could do it!"

"You urged me to do it, neechan," Maeko gasped happily. "But…" She was looking at her eyes. "Were you crying again?"

"No, Maeko," Keiko told her. "I just…feel happy for you."

"Tears of joy?"

Keiko broke into a wide grin. "Yeah."

Maeko hugged her again. "Thank you very much!"

"No, thank you for singing to everyone," I told Maeko. I opened a free arm for her. "Come here."

Maeko deliberately rammed into my arm and hugged me around my neck. "Ow, hey," I grumbled, but deep inside, I was euphorically happy.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Toshiro protested. "Don’t I get a hug?"

Keiko laughed and took Toshiro in her arms. "Of course you do, Toshiro-chan."

"TOSHIRO-KUN!" Toshiro said for the last time.

I heard Sachio chuckle. Keiko smiled, then laughed, and before we knew it, the five of us were laughing together, each voice mingling with the other.

"This is really cool," Maeko said. "The five of us look like a happy family!"

"Yeah!" Toshiro asserted. He looked like he was catching her gaze on purpose. "And you know who our parents are…"

Keiko and I looked at each other accidentally-on-purpose. We realized what the two kids meant…

Okay, I get the idea.

I looked away, feeling myself color a bright red. The three kids laughed once more.

"Hey," Toshiro said, "I heard that we are gonna have snacks after this."

Snacks.

Snacks?!

As in food?!

Keiko snapped a finger. "Oh, yeah." She chuckled. "I ate your lunch, Yusuke."

"I understand," I replied, grinning. "I had a feeling, anyway."

"Very well," she told me, releasing her hold on Toshiro and spreading her arms out. "Let me have Sachio-chan so that you may eat in peace."

I didn’t know why I felt more disappointed than relieved. But I had to thank her. I carefully gave her Sachio-chan.

"Take care of him, ne?" I said, giving the infant a peck on the cheek.

"Will do," Keiko replied as she stood up, smiling. She called Maeko and Toshiro, and together, we headed towards the porch, where the table was set.

I was at the back of our group, staring at Keiko’s back and her long, flowing hair. She was practically skipping her way. Yes, I loved that. She was happy again.

I sure was glad myself.

Keiko (willfully, I think) lagged behind to walk close to me. "Hey, you know something?" she asked.

"What?"

Keiko beamed at me radiantly. "I think you’d make a good toosan."

"And you’d make a good kaasan, Keiko," I told her truthfully.

Wait a minute.

If I am the toosan…

…And she is the kaasan…

She must have thought the same, for she blushed once more and walked faster, leaving me behind. Wow, man. Why did I say that?

And why, in the first place, am I thinking like this?! I yelled at myself mentally. So what if we’d be good parents? It’s not as if we’re gonna…go to bed together, anyway! WHAT AM I THINKING?!

I imagined little blood cells hammering my brain cells to stop it from thinking about…things I shouldn’t think about. I was getting, inevitably, too caught up with adolescence. And I hated it. Argh!

I gazed at Keiko. There she was, talking to Toshiro and Maeko animatedly.

Then she caught me staring.

But she didn’t turn away. Instead, her beautiful brown eyes lit up, and she smiled at me once more.

I always loved that smile.

And I thought, maybe, just maybe, it can happen.

I can be the toosan. And she the kaasan. We’d make a good couple together, and wonderful parents….

It can happen.

Yes, it can.

It WILL.

And perhaps someday, the two of us, together, will find the answer as to why we had always been the best of friends.

I straightened my back, squared my shoulders, and returned Yukimura Keiko's smile.

In Our Hands
by David Pomeranz and Ima Castro
Written by David Shire and David Pomeranz
Taken from the album "Born for You"


Like a little child, I’ve done lots of wishing
Hoping it would make the world okay
I have wished upon a star
Then watched it moving farther away
Till today

Nothing comes from waiting for tomorrow
Hoping someone else will make it bright
It’s because of you and me
I see a future flooded with light

In our hands, there’s a world in our care
In our hands, lies the power we share
In our hands, it can grow
Even more than we know
When we all understand
All that is in our hands

Sometimes when I read the morning paper
Something in my heart just wants to scream
Thought the world a better place
Till one dying child’s face makes that seem
Still a dream

Then I hear my children’s morning laughter
And I know there’s still a chance that’s mine
After all the blinding smoke
The fires of tomorrow still shine…

In our hands, there’s a world in our care
In our hands, lies the power we share
In our hands, it can grow
Even more than we know
When we all understand
All that is in our hands…

…There’s a world in our care
In our hands, lies the power we share
In our hands, it can grow
Even more than we know
When we all understand
All that is in our hands…
In our hands…
In our hands…
In our hands….


Disclaimers: Yu Yu Hakusho, its story, and its characters are a property of Yoshihiro Togashi-sama, Studio Pierrot, Shounen Jump Comics, Fuji TV, and Shuiessha. "Hero" is sung by Mariah Carey (just in case you don't know the song Maeko-chan sang). This fic is written by Manille, a.k.a. Keiko no Miko, on May 2000. All rights reserved.

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