Kind Mother

It's noon now, time for our mother to come back from her work. In the meantime, I had already applied some bandages to my knee and one to Saki's forehead.

The door clicked open and walked in on the woman whose mere arrival had changed my life for the good.

However, when she looked at the two of us after placing her handbag, she frowned "What's happened to you two?"

She then takes a closer look at me and Saki, the worry on her face increasing with each moment as she squats down and inspects both of our injured body parts.

Her concern deepened as she notices that Saki had a somewhat bloody bandage on her forehead while I had more than one bandage on my knee.

From the look on her face, I could easily tell what she was thinking, 'Just what's happened? Did they two fight? And who bandaged them?'

"Don't worry, we just fell from the slide," I reassured her, shaking off her second thought before she could think anymore.

"Mommy... that slide is bad, it made Saki and little brother fall. You should call those good guys, we have to catch that bad slide," Saki hugs Fumiko as she blames the slide for the mishap and complains in her cute words.

Fumiko frowned once again before she turned to me.

Knowing very well what she wanted to ask, I explained, "Well, we're bored, so we went to the park. But don't worry, I locked the door, so there is nothing to be worried about. And I know we should not talk to any stranger, even if he gives us candy or anything."

However, my answer only made her frown deepen even more as she asked, "How do you know where the park is?"

"A kind lady told us," Saki chimes in.

"And these bandages?"

"Oh, mommy, little brother is a good magician. He said some magic words and poof, I don't feel pain anymore. And this is a magic seal, brother put it on me," Saki explained excitedly as she pointed her finger at the bandage on her head.

Looking at Saki's excited and happy face, Fukimo's worry relaxed a bit before she looked at me.

'He is way too bright for a kid,' Fumiko thought and smiled as she patted both of us, albeit a bit gently to Saki because of her bandage.

But with a somewhat stern look on her face, she turns to me a moment later and says, "Okay, listen you two, going to the park alone is not allowed. I will bring some games for you two tomorrow, so you two are going to play those if you feel bored. No park, understand, Ryuki?" She knew that Saki wouldn't go anywhere alone.

"Yes, I won't," I could only nod and smile.

"Good. Now let me make a good dinner for us," with that, Fumiko smiles and goes away to prepare dinner for the three of us.

After having yet another delicious dinner of my life, we all go to sleep and the next day as she returns from her work, Fumiko brings cards and board games for us, which makes Saki pretty excited.

After having dinner that evening, Fumiko tries to teach Saki and me how to play cards and board games, but Saki, being a child, doesn't quickly grasp them well. However, Fumiko was shocked by how fast I was able to learn cards and board games and was also surprised by the fact that I could read the characters on the board games.

I guess I shouldn't have been so casual.

This resulted in a series of questions where she asked me if I knew how to read, to which I could only answer YES before she tested me.

After learning that I can read perfectly, our mother decides to check if I can write.

Although I tried my best to write in the worst way possible, it was still bad.

For Fumiko, while my writing is not as good as my reading, for a five-year-old, my writing is way too good.

She now thinks that I am a genius, and is very happy for me, and knowing that she is happy, I am also content.

One day while all three of us were lying on the futon with Saki between me and Fumiko, I asked something that had been bothering me for a really long time.

"I have a question."

"What is it, Ryuki?" Fumiko as she smiles while pinching my cheek lightly.

"Why did you adopt me? You're living in this small house, need to work all day, and later on, come back home with a tired body, but still have to make dinner for us, then again wake up early to make breakfast, and prepare lunch in advance. If you hadn't adopted me, wouldn't that have been easier for you?"

Fumiko remains silent for a while before she opens her lips and smiles, "You are a lot more mature than someone your age."

"Maybe," I simply shrug.

"You really are," Fumiko says and smiles as she answers my previous question.

"Well, I was just like you, that's why I just couldn't think of leaving you alone. Well, my dear mature boy, you should be sleeping now."

The next day, when Fumiko returns from her work, I offer to give her a massage.

Though at first, she rejected, but as I kept insisting that I wanted to do a massage, Fumiko could only shake her head and agree.

But after I massaged her, she was pleasantly surprised that my massaging was good as all of the tension and tiredness in her body went away.