Chapter 80
[109]
“U-Uncle Minato!” Ren said in surprise, his blood running cold at the sight of the Prowler. “What are you doing here?” The question ended up being more hostile than Ren had intended.
“Oh? I can’t take some time off work to see my nephew?” Minato asked before furrowing his brow. “More importantly, did I just hear something about you being shot?”
Ren was silent, sweat began to run down his neck as he thought up a lie. “N-No, I didn’t get shot!” He let out a fake laugh. “I just had to go get a shot. It turns out, I’m not up to date on my immunizations, so I had to skip school to go to the doctor’s today. I honestly feel like shit after getting so many shots, that’s why I wanted to turn in early.”
“Hmm.” Minato seemed to accept that answer, or at least he did as far as Ren could tell. “And who is this lovely young lady?” He gestured to Futaba, who was now cowering behind Ren for safety. “Is she your girlfriend? She’s cute.”
“That’s my daughter.” Sojiro joined the conversation. “And they most certainly are not dating. If he even thought about it, Ren would find his butt on the curb again.” He looked over at Ren with his arms crossed.
“Yeah, definitely not like that. She’s like a little sister to me.” Ren replied, still sweating and unaware that Futaba was now glaring at him from behind.
“Oh, my bad. Sorry for making assumptions.” Minato rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before glancing at his watch. “Well, if you’re turning in for the night, I should probably get going. I didn’t sleep too well myself last night, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea for me to get some shuteye.”
‘Yeah, you were too busy trying to kill me.’ Ren thought to himself.
While Minato walked toward the door, Ren felt Futaba pinch his side over and over. Despite this, Ren made no effort to stop the man from leaving. The bell jingled once more as Minato exited the cafe.
“Well, guess I better head to bed.” Ren said awkwardly before heading up the stairs, leaving Futaba and Sojiro in the cafe. The young girl looked over at the door, then to Sojiro, then to the stairs before following after Ren.
“Hey! I’d better not hear that door close!” Sojiro called after her.
Futaba arrived at the top of the stairs and swung open the door to Ren’s room, only to find him about to remove his shirt.
“Um, a little privacy please!” Ren said, pulling his shirt back down.
“You wanna explain what that was about? Why did you just let one of the men who are out to kill you just walk out the door?” Futaba demanded.
“It’s…” Ren looked away. “It’s complicated. Okay Futaba?”
“What’s complicated about it? He’s a bad guy, you stop bad guys. And you just let a murderer walk out the door without so much as a word. He didn’t have any weapons, he wouldn’t have even seen it coming!”
“There’s more to it than that! You don’t get it Futaba!” Ren yelled.
“Don’t get what!? Having a family member who moonlights as a secret supervillain!? Ren, I might be the only other person in the world who gets it!” She yelled back.
“I’m not-! I-I can’t…” Ren’s voice began to quiver. “I just...I can’t right now.” A tear began to form in the corner of his eye.
Futaba was concerned. Even at his most physically hurt, she’d never seen him so vulnerable.
“You didn’t have to fight Wakaba. You didn’t have to hit her over and over, hoping she would go down, but trying so desperately not to hurt her. I did. And now...now I’m going to have to do the same to my uncle, the one guy who was there for me when I was growing up. ”
“I...I never knew you thought about that.”
“I think about it all the time.” Ren replied. “I don’t want to hurt anyone Futaba, least of all my uncle. Look, I know he has to be stopped, but when I saw him just now...I froze. I could only see the man who helped raise me. The man who took me to my first baseball game. Who still cared for me even after my parents stopped talking to me.”
“Ren…” Futaba watched as he put his head in his hands.
“I’ll be fine next time I see him, okay? I’m just tired tonight, so please let me rest.” With that, Ren laid down in bed and threw the covers over himself.
Not knowing what to do now, Futaba stood in the middle of the room, watching over Ren as he tried to sleep. She didn’t want to end their conversation on a bad note and wanted Ren to know that she was still in his corner, ready to help him whenever he needed it. So, remembering something her mother used to do to her after they had an argument, she walked up behind the older boy and placed a kiss on the back of his head.
“Um, Futaba? Did you just ki-”
“AGH!WELLIJUSTIMEANIGOTTAGOSEEYOUBYE!” She sprinted out of his room, slamming the door behind her and rushing down the stairs.
Ren turned over in his bed, staring at the closed door. “When did my life become such a mess?”
The next morning, Ren found himself lying down in the nurse's office before classes began for the day. Takemi was systematically removing his medical staples while the two had their usual banter.
“Looks like we can add a few more scars to your collection. You know, those could take a toll on you in the long term.” The doctor said, running her hand over the bullet wound next to his heart. Pink veiny lines protruded from the now repaired flesh where the bullet had passed through, making it seem as though Ren’s heart was visible from the outside.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Even so, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find them a little sexy.” She said, running her thumb over the scar on his eyebrow.
“I’ll *ahem* I’ll keep that in mind too.” Ren replied, his voice cracking.
After having her fun, the doctor turned her attention back to her work. “I must say,” Takemi said while pulling more of the metal from his side. “I’m impressed with the work this nurse did, she must have an incredibly steady hand. You said she operated on you in her kitchen?”
“Yeah, on the table. Apparently I was resisting in my sleep.” Ren said, flinching at the pain. “I would’ve died that night if she hadn’t found me.”
Suddenly Takemi’s demeanor changed,her brow furrowed in aggression and her hands became less delicate as she worked. “Well, maybe you should just make her your new doctor from now on.” She removed another staple, much harder this time.
“OW!” Ren yelped. “T-Takemi!”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m sure your other doctor would’ve done such a better job.”
“Wha-Are you seriously angry with me for letting someone else treat my wounds? I didn’t exactly have much say in the matter!”
Takemi merely turned her head and pouted. In reality, she wasn’t angry with Ren for getting help from someone else, she was frustrated with herself for not being there to help. If he hadn’t gotten lucky, if there hadn’t been someone around to help, he’d be dead right now. If she was going to be of any help to Ren, hell if she was going to help anyone, she needed her clinic back.
As the doctor wrapped Ren’s side to prevent any bleeding, (while still pouting) the door to the office cracked open. A familiar girl with red hair in a ponytail entered the room clutching her arm.
“Um, excuse me? Nurse?” Sumire Yoshizawa asked as she looked at Takemi’s back. “I hurt my elbow during gymnastics practice. Do you think you could take a look at-” She trailed off as she saw who the nurse was currently assisting.
Surprised by the sudden intrusion, Takemi turned to face the young girl, unintentionally revealing the large bandages wrapped around Ren’s stomach.
“S-Senpai?” She asked, concerned. “Oh my gosh! What happened to you?” The younger girl ran up to her friend. Upon inspecting his body closer, Sumire was able to see the myriad of wounds across Ren’s torso and arms. “Senpai…” She held her hand to her mouth and backed away in shock.
“Sumire!” Ren quickly threw his shirt back on and sat up from the bed. “I-I can explain. ”
“There were so many rumors. That you were in a gang, that you were violent.” She continued to back away, avoiding him as he reached out to her. “ I didn’t believe it when she told me but...maybe my sister was right. You are dangerous.”
“No! Sumire, I’m not in a gang! I’d never hurt you! I just...have a rough job.”
“What kind of job does...that to a person?” She gestures towards Ren’s chest. “If it’s not from criminal activity then tell me, where did you get those? What is it you do when you’re not here?”
Ren...couldn’t think of anything. He didn’t have any excuses. What could he even say in this situation? Without outing himself as Spider-Man, the rumors about him being a dangerous delinquent were the only feasible explanation he could fall back on. But Sumire was his friend, and while he didn’t want her to get involved with his Spider-Man business, he didn’t want her thinking he’d hurt her either.
“I…I can’t say.” He hung his head in shame.
Looking more hurt than afraid now, Sumire turned and walked out of the room, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. As she hurried through the school’s hallways, wiping her eyes as she turned a corner, she collided with another student and fell to the floor.
“Oh my goodness! Are you alright?” A soft feminine voice asked.
When Sumire looked up, she saw a fluffy haired girl wearing a pink sweater standing over her. She knew this girl, not personally but knew of her. This was Haru Okumura, heir to Okumura Enterprises and a third year at Shujin Academy. But more importantly to Sumire, it was the girl Kasumi had seen Ren with the other week.
According to her sister, she had seen Ren and Haru in a compromising position which no platonic friends would be in.
“I’m-I’m alright.” Sumire picked herself up and dusted herself off.
Looking at the girl now, Sumire could see why Ren would be attracted to her. She was tall, mature, beautiful, caring, and not to mention rich beyond belief. Haru was the full package, and as much as Sumire wanted to dislike this girl, she couldn’t, she was just that sweet.
“Are you sure? It looks like your arm is hurt.” Haru pointed out her injured elbow. Sumire mentally slapped herself. She’d forgotten the reason she went to the nurse’s office in the first place!
“I’m fine, it’s nothing.” As Sumire began to walk away, she turned back to Haru. “Um, just one thing before I go.”
“Hmm?” Haru turned to her with a curious look.
“You should be careful around your boyfriend. The rumors around him might be exaggerated, but I...I think he’s dangerous.” WIth that, the first year ran off to class, leaving a confused Haru standing alone in the hall.
“B-Boyfriend!?”