A Person You Do Not See

A loud bang came over the dimension of sleep the Prince Iscodaya was currently in, instantly getting him out of it. His eyes widened quickly as he heard the closet door open, revealing a battle-ready Kaus.

But as their eyes turned to the noise, they only saw two figures, with multiple fallen pots on the ground, their faces showed their guilt. Iscodaya gave them a sharp look as Kaus sighed, getting out of the closet to fix the royal’s mistake.

It was only yesterday, as Iscodaya arrived late at night, that he realized his two brothers, first Prince Daranya, and second Prince Senodaya, were now in their apartment. So as Iscodaya and Kaus finished getting ready, and the swordsman and Senodaya were cleaning the dishes, Iscodaya began to question his older brother.

“So~ you guys were sent by Father to do what exactly?” Hearing his little brother’s questioning, Daranya smirked.

“Initially, it was because Father wanted to keep an eye on you, but another reason came up. But since you’re busy with your academy, I’ll tell you after.” Hearing how he said it, Iscodaya knew Daranya was essentially insinuating that it was too serious for a mere table talk.

So as he finished his tea, Iscodaya called for Kaus as the two grabbed their bags, “We’ll be back in eight hours, that thing over there is our computer, you can watch videos if you want. The password is kausdrinksdragonpiss, no spaces or uppercase letters.” And with that, the two closed the door.

Daranya and Senodaya stood still for a bit, confused, one thought in both of their heads: “What is a video?”

But about half an hour ago, another person had woken from their bed. A girl with medium-length black hair groaned as her body ached from the stiffness of sleep. She rolled around her bed before finally deciding to stand up. As she looked at herself from the mirror, she saw a drool mark going down her mouth.

So she quickly went to the bathroom and cleaned her face up. She returned to her room and started to prepare for school, making sure she was comfortable with what she wore. And as she finished, she let out a small smile to herself, then went to grab her bag.

As she exited her room, she heard them, laughing, talking, and loving each other. She pretended not to notice as she put on her shoes to go out; it was easy, for they also chose not to notice her. As she prepared herself, her eyes turned to a picture, one with three people smiling. The sight made her quickly look away as she exited the door.

Kei Inoue, an unexpected child for her family due to her being a twin at birth. Though she grew up with the same amount of food and shelter as her sister Keiko, it was clear from a very young age, the love of their parents wasn’t shared. Her title of an unwanted child was evident.

Normally, she would’ve grown up without any desires or motives for anything, for no one expected anything from her, and no one saw her. And that was true, up until middle school, where she met a boy who would change her, who saw her.

As she ate an onigiri she bought from a convenience store, she saw him again, his hands covering her eyes. “Guess who it is?” a cheery voice called behind her.

Kei chuckled, “A mediocre baseball player who doesn’t know when to shut up.” A grin came over her face as she removed the boy’s hands from her eyes, turning to him and seeing his, the eyes that saw her when she had thought no one could.

“Oh, c’mon, I’m not that bad,” replied Yusuke as he signaled for a high-five. Kei scoffed as she answered it.

“Whatever you say.” Yusuke Ogawa was the one light that was in Kei’s life when she was in middle school. The young boy was always beaming with positive energy, even when the young Kei tried to distance herself from him, due to thinking he was wasting his time with her, Yusuke kept at it, breaking through her barriers.

“Has~ your sister passed her exams?” Asked the beaming boy. At the mention of her sister, Kei, gently smiled.

“I guess so, I overheard my mom congratulating her.” Though jealous of her sister, Kei never hated her and never blamed her for her parents' decision. She even cared for her a little, a care Kei herself, didn’t know she did.

But Yusuke knew, and he always made sure Kei knew too, “What a good sister you are,” he complimented, wearing a big, genuine smile on his face. Kei’s face turned red as she took in his words.

“W-well, it’s not like it’s for nothing, K-Keiko treats me normally s-so I treat her normally,” she bashfully replied, her eyes taking in the sight of a smiling Yusuke, one with a proud look. He had always given this look to her, ever since they were middle-schoolers. It was a look he gave her when she made her first friend, when she improved her speaking and lessened her stutter, when she became more sociable.

Yusuke had always made sure Kei knew how much of a wonderful person she was, and Kei loved him for that. But Kei knew Yusuke never had any romantic feelings for her, he was nice and wonderful because that was just who he was. And Kei knew that it wasn’t she who would be the one to shower love on Yusuke every day.

So instead, she appreciated him, by trying to be the person he was to her, to another boy, who doesn’t see how wonderful of a person he was. And as the two arrived at their classroom, she saw him.

Holding a broom near a student’s table. His mouth was moving, as the student next to him nodded along, her eyes staring at the book the boy was pointing at. “So I was just missing a step?” The student asked as Kei made her way to her seat.

“Yeah, basically, but it’s easily missed, so I understand how you didn’t see it,” stated Iscodaya, as he continued to sweep the floor. The student was wide-eyed as she answered her question.

“Wow! I’m surprised how much you know Kousa, you’re like a genius,” she complimented, her face beaming with admiration. But Iscodaya rolled his eyes at it.

“A genius wouldn’t have spent over three hours on that question three days ago,” replied the young boy, causing the student to smile.

“Well, thanks for even helping me, you are a lot nicer than what most people say.” Hearing her compliment, Iscodaya’s gaze wandered.

“...You don’t know me too well to say that.” The student, after hearing Iscodaya’s reply, pouted at his stubbornness. But before she could say anything, Kei walked up to Iscodaya, her arm going around his neck.

“Well as someone who knows you pretty well in my opinion, you’re a big softie, or should I say, small softie,” she taunted, poking Iscodaya’s cheek. The student saw Iscodaya’s face wide-eyed at first, but then it quickly grimaced as he looked at Kei.

“Shut up, you only know me for a few months.” The two went to their regular banter, as Kaus took Iscodaya’s broom away from him. Seeing them joke around, the student couldn’t help but notice Iscodaya’s slightly rosy cheeks, a sight that made her grin with understanding.

And as the school day went on, Kei observed Iscodaya. Constantly caring for Kaus by fixing his uniform or wiping food out of his mouth, his care even extended to the people around him. His eyes were always peeled as Yusuke and his friends did a dumb stunt. He would often take food Rin didn’t like in her lunch and give her some of his. And he would help out his classmates with their school problems but would never spoil them.

And as Kei watched Iscodaya with a proud smile, he caught her gaze, giving her a questioning glare, “What’re you looking at?” He grumbled.

But Kei’s smile widened at his annoyance, “A person you do not see.”