The Chikamori Legacy (The Sanitized Version)
Prologue - "Seeds of Dissent" Part I (Author's Note: "This is the clean, sanitized version with no links back to my blog - meaning no contraventions against rules) Vancouver, BC, Canada - 1988 ...
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Chapter One: “Love and Loss” - Part V
Chikamori Residence, Main Floor
Haruo walked into his little alcove in the hallway (according to Mayumi, he didn't rate a bedroom) and sat down on his bed, taking his shoes and socks off. He wanted to relax. Today’s revelation had genuinely shaken him up enough to warrant him actually wanting to have a drink but he was still eighteen. And age of legal majority to drink was nineteen in BC.
But between his grandmother ailing and his friend telling him that River was in love with him, he had no idea what the hell was going on.
https://i.imgur.com/4mKxIxZ.jpg
But he was a young adult. He had to make decisions for himself.
https://i.imgur.com/Z8BGXnH.jpg
And the first thing he was going to do was move out of the house because he was damned if he was going to live under his mother’s intolerable edicts any longer. He was a young adult now...he'd aged up during the course of the day and now was able to decide on what he was going to do with his life and he sure as hell wasn't going to spend another second under this roof.
What exactly was he going to do?
https://i.imgur.com/CtvL9ue.jpg
Maybe he might be able to get a place with three bedrooms so he could room with Phil and Noel. At least then they could rent a place so that they all had a roof over their head. To hell with that. He saw a nice place down in Richmond that was around §7,200.00 for a lot...and he would be able to be a property owner...and perhaps he could figure out something that he could do with getting a mobile home on the property. He may have to borrow money, but he had an idea that could potentially make some money.
https://i.imgur.com/S74GJ4o.jpg
He wasn’t sure if he wanted a relationship right now to begin with, let alone even thinking about tying the knot (frankly that would be the last thing on his mind let alone it potentially being an option) and his mind was trying to figure out who he was best suited to be with if anybody. The fact was that he liked his alone-time and he really wasn’t sure if a relationship would give him something that he truly wanted.
Was he destined to be a solitary hermit? Would he regret not pairing up with someone earlier in life when he was thirty and hadn’t gotten into a relationship? These were questions he had to ask himself. Did he truly want to fling himself into a relationship where he would feel like he was constrained and unhappy. Would he begin to resent being tied down being in a relationship?
https://i.imgur.com/NZyveZe.jpg
It was going to be an early morning tomorrow if he was going to do what he wanted to do...which was move the hell out of the house. But did logistics dictate how quickly he could move out? He probably wouldn’t be able to do it exactly the next morning. He’d have to prep the property he’d just bought first before getting out of this place. The next plan was to place a mobile home on the property. And how was he going to move out. Did that mean renting a moving van? How was he going to move out without the entire family thinking he was completely nuts in the head for striking out on his own. How was he going to get out without his mother causing a scene because to her, she would be losing control over her little lap-dog. Thinking over contingencies and plans and hashing them through in his head; figuring out if it was logistically possible in the short period of time that he wanted to do this in, and nixing other plans that didn’t meet the specifications, he fell into a restless sleep punctuated by dreams of an unhappy relationship that he didn’t want to pursue further.
Meanwhile, out in the kitchen, oblivious to Haruo’s sleeping form, his grandmother and his father talked.
“Yasubo...Haruo ni wa jibun no heya ga hitsuyōda to omoimasen ka?”
https://i.imgur.com/sC4Hyu5.jpg
“So...to omoimasu…” Yasunobu shrugged his shoulders, “Shikashi Mayumi wa sono okane o tsukatte atarashī heya o taterunoni sōshita kunai. Kanojo wa soshitara ‘Kyōtsū eria chisaku sugiru'.” He gave her an imitation of Mayumi commenting thus.
https://i.imgur.com/1RTax9b.jpg
“Mayumi wa atama wa tsukawanai…Grandpa wa sō omotta. Daigaku sotsu-gyo shita no wa mezurashi koto deshita.” Yumi said acidly, “Haruo wa koko de nokori no jikan rōka de neru koto ni natte imasu ka?”
His father shrugged his shoulders. Whatever was he going to do with his wife.
River’s Bedroom
River on the other hand was in her room, angry and feeling betrayed by her friend. She was also angry at Haruo for seeming to be just as shallow as the other boys in the school, quick to fall over a pretty face. But when she looked at it, had she actually any right to be angry? She had never once told him that she was the slightest bit interested in him other than as best friends. He probably thought he was being friend-zoned if he was in the slightest bit interested in me for all the interest I had physically presented to him, River rationalized to herself. But what if he does love Bebe and she told him that she does. Then where am I? But she reasoned that this information she’d heard over the phone was being given to her by Lisa Bunch and that witch tended to like to cause drama wherever she could so frankly anything that she said should be taken with a grain of salt.
https://i.imgur.com/LiP0qAU.jpg
River wasn’t sure how Haruo would react and she didn’t want to get rejected. I’ll see if he’s receptive to anything. She’d heard the upstairs door open and close during the night and thought nothing of it.
Morning came too quickly.
At the property
Haruo looked over at the lot...which he’d done a lot of work with. Over the past week...he’d ended up buying a mobile home – of which it had a solid roof which had taken §600.00 to put on. He’d taken his father aside to let him know his plans on the condition that he breathe not a word of it to Mayumi, which his father readily agreed. Haruo had brought his father to the mobile home and property. His father was more than happy to keep this a secret between the two of them. In fact, his father was getting tired of his wife’s behavior towards his son and he was rapidly reaching a boiling point.
https://i.imgur.com/QzsibSN.jpg
“Anata no okāsan ni wa nani mo iimasen.” his father had told him, the deep anger evident in his eyes. “Kanojo ga nan-nen mo anata o atsukatte kita taido ga kiraidesu. Anata wa yarubeki koto o yarinasai.” Yes, his dad was fed up with Mayumi. His son was fed up with Mayumi’s bull so he was packing up and moving and he sure as hell wouldn’t whisper one word to Mayumi about his son’s escape from her tyranny.
“I will do what I have to do…”
https://i.imgur.com/Ytpv5oj.jpg
“Okane ga hitsuyōnara, kanarazu yōi shimasu.” His dad would help him do whatever was necessary to break free of his mother. His father looked at the property and nodded in approval, he would respect his son’s refuge and not breathe a word of this to his wife. They headed into the mobile home...
https://i.imgur.com/pyAp3ZA.jpg
and Yasunobu got his first look at the purchase that Haruo had made. “Sorede anata wa san-man yon-sen yon-hyaku-en o harata ka?”
“Yon man ask…” was Haruo's response. “Son'nani harau no wa bakadarō. Kare no ude o hinette kare o hikizuri oroshita...” He’d have to be mentally slow to pay that kind of money.
https://i.imgur.com/szIRx76.jpg
“Hmmm…” Yasunobu raised an eyebrow. “Mā, kore de nanika deki-sōdesho. Sukunakutomo karera wa takai denka seihin kitchin o tsukurimashita. Karera wa benjo o yasuku shita.”
https://i.imgur.com/VaQaKe4.jpg
“Yeah, they did cheap out on the bathroom, didn’t they?” Haruo grinned.
“Hakujin ga utteta no ka?”
Haruo nodded.
“Sore kurai keisan shita.” Such was the dichotomy of his father. As much as he loved River and Haruo being the best of friends and he was friends with River's mother, he really wasn’t too keen on others of their race. He’d seen too much; been the recipient of too much hate to trust them.
Chikamori Residence, Main Floor
Haruo walked into his little alcove in the hallway (according to Mayumi, he didn't rate a bedroom) and sat down on his bed, taking his shoes and socks off. He wanted to relax. Today’s revelation had genuinely shaken him up enough to warrant him actually wanting to have a drink but he was still eighteen. And age of legal majority to drink was nineteen in BC.
But between his grandmother ailing and his friend telling him that River was in love with him, he had no idea what the hell was going on.
https://i.imgur.com/4mKxIxZ.jpg
But he was a young adult. He had to make decisions for himself.
https://i.imgur.com/Z8BGXnH.jpg
And the first thing he was going to do was move out of the house because he was damned if he was going to live under his mother’s intolerable edicts any longer. He was a young adult now...he'd aged up during the course of the day and now was able to decide on what he was going to do with his life and he sure as hell wasn't going to spend another second under this roof.
What exactly was he going to do?
https://i.imgur.com/CtvL9ue.jpg
Maybe he might be able to get a place with three bedrooms so he could room with Phil and Noel. At least then they could rent a place so that they all had a roof over their head. To hell with that. He saw a nice place down in Richmond that was around §7,200.00 for a lot...and he would be able to be a property owner...and perhaps he could figure out something that he could do with getting a mobile home on the property. He may have to borrow money, but he had an idea that could potentially make some money.
https://i.imgur.com/S74GJ4o.jpg
He wasn’t sure if he wanted a relationship right now to begin with, let alone even thinking about tying the knot (frankly that would be the last thing on his mind let alone it potentially being an option) and his mind was trying to figure out who he was best suited to be with if anybody. The fact was that he liked his alone-time and he really wasn’t sure if a relationship would give him something that he truly wanted.
Was he destined to be a solitary hermit? Would he regret not pairing up with someone earlier in life when he was thirty and hadn’t gotten into a relationship? These were questions he had to ask himself. Did he truly want to fling himself into a relationship where he would feel like he was constrained and unhappy. Would he begin to resent being tied down being in a relationship?
https://i.imgur.com/NZyveZe.jpg
It was going to be an early morning tomorrow if he was going to do what he wanted to do...which was move the hell out of the house. But did logistics dictate how quickly he could move out? He probably wouldn’t be able to do it exactly the next morning. He’d have to prep the property he’d just bought first before getting out of this place. The next plan was to place a mobile home on the property. And how was he going to move out. Did that mean renting a moving van? How was he going to move out without the entire family thinking he was completely nuts in the head for striking out on his own. How was he going to get out without his mother causing a scene because to her, she would be losing control over her little lap-dog. Thinking over contingencies and plans and hashing them through in his head; figuring out if it was logistically possible in the short period of time that he wanted to do this in, and nixing other plans that didn’t meet the specifications, he fell into a restless sleep punctuated by dreams of an unhappy relationship that he didn’t want to pursue further.
Meanwhile, out in the kitchen, oblivious to Haruo’s sleeping form, his grandmother and his father talked.
“Yasubo...Haruo ni wa jibun no heya ga hitsuyōda to omoimasen ka?”
https://i.imgur.com/sC4Hyu5.jpg
“So...to omoimasu…” Yasunobu shrugged his shoulders, “Shikashi Mayumi wa sono okane o tsukatte atarashī heya o taterunoni sōshita kunai. Kanojo wa soshitara ‘Kyōtsū eria chisaku sugiru'.” He gave her an imitation of Mayumi commenting thus.
https://i.imgur.com/1RTax9b.jpg
“Mayumi wa atama wa tsukawanai…Grandpa wa sō omotta. Daigaku sotsu-gyo shita no wa mezurashi koto deshita.” Yumi said acidly, “Haruo wa koko de nokori no jikan rōka de neru koto ni natte imasu ka?”
His father shrugged his shoulders. Whatever was he going to do with his wife.
River’s Bedroom
River on the other hand was in her room, angry and feeling betrayed by her friend. She was also angry at Haruo for seeming to be just as shallow as the other boys in the school, quick to fall over a pretty face. But when she looked at it, had she actually any right to be angry? She had never once told him that she was the slightest bit interested in him other than as best friends. He probably thought he was being friend-zoned if he was in the slightest bit interested in me for all the interest I had physically presented to him, River rationalized to herself. But what if he does love Bebe and she told him that she does. Then where am I? But she reasoned that this information she’d heard over the phone was being given to her by Lisa Bunch and that witch tended to like to cause drama wherever she could so frankly anything that she said should be taken with a grain of salt.
https://i.imgur.com/LiP0qAU.jpg
River wasn’t sure how Haruo would react and she didn’t want to get rejected. I’ll see if he’s receptive to anything. She’d heard the upstairs door open and close during the night and thought nothing of it.
Morning came too quickly.
At the property
Haruo looked over at the lot...which he’d done a lot of work with. Over the past week...he’d ended up buying a mobile home – of which it had a solid roof which had taken §600.00 to put on. He’d taken his father aside to let him know his plans on the condition that he breathe not a word of it to Mayumi, which his father readily agreed. Haruo had brought his father to the mobile home and property. His father was more than happy to keep this a secret between the two of them. In fact, his father was getting tired of his wife’s behavior towards his son and he was rapidly reaching a boiling point.
https://i.imgur.com/QzsibSN.jpg
“Anata no okāsan ni wa nani mo iimasen.” his father had told him, the deep anger evident in his eyes. “Kanojo ga nan-nen mo anata o atsukatte kita taido ga kiraidesu. Anata wa yarubeki koto o yarinasai.” Yes, his dad was fed up with Mayumi. His son was fed up with Mayumi’s bull so he was packing up and moving and he sure as hell wouldn’t whisper one word to Mayumi about his son’s escape from her tyranny.
“I will do what I have to do…”
https://i.imgur.com/Ytpv5oj.jpg
“Okane ga hitsuyōnara, kanarazu yōi shimasu.” His dad would help him do whatever was necessary to break free of his mother. His father looked at the property and nodded in approval, he would respect his son’s refuge and not breathe a word of this to his wife. They headed into the mobile home...
https://i.imgur.com/pyAp3ZA.jpg
and Yasunobu got his first look at the purchase that Haruo had made. “Sorede anata wa san-man yon-sen yon-hyaku-en o harata ka?”
“Yon man ask…” was Haruo's response. “Son'nani harau no wa bakadarō. Kare no ude o hinette kare o hikizuri oroshita...” He’d have to be mentally slow to pay that kind of money.
https://i.imgur.com/szIRx76.jpg
“Hmmm…” Yasunobu raised an eyebrow. “Mā, kore de nanika deki-sōdesho. Sukunakutomo karera wa takai denka seihin kitchin o tsukurimashita. Karera wa benjo o yasuku shita.”
https://i.imgur.com/VaQaKe4.jpg
“Yeah, they did cheap out on the bathroom, didn’t they?” Haruo grinned.
“Hakujin ga utteta no ka?”
Haruo nodded.
“Sore kurai keisan shita.” Such was the dichotomy of his father. As much as he loved River and Haruo being the best of friends and he was friends with River's mother, he really wasn’t too keen on others of their race. He’d seen too much; been the recipient of too much hate to trust them.
