Judgment

Sae helped Akechi set the system up and he looked to her, eyes wide with how overwhelmed he was from the game selection. Her heart sank in her chest as she realised he didn’t understand the first thing about games. She’d figured he’d been deprived of a childhood but to this extent… She picked up Y and offered it for him to open. “I’ll explain the others later, but I think this might be the best for you to start with.” Animal Crossing would be relaxing, but the general aimlessness might overwhelm him. Pokémon still had a lot of choice, but the linearity would likely serve him better until he got acclimated to games in general. “O-Okay…” Akechi swallowed and popped the cartridge in. As Professor Sycamore spoke, his eyes widened in wonder and she couldn’t help but smile. His childlike innocence was absolutely endearing, even if the reason was absolutely heartbreaking. He leaned against her as he played and she pulled her own system out to work on her next competitive team. Over the next several hours, they played in a comfortable silence, broken only by the occasional question from him. He seemed to want to figure things out on his own for the most part and she respected that, but a few things just went over his head. She didn’t mind helping since, while simple, the sheer amount of information Pokémon threw at the player could be quite a bit. For somebody as sensitive as Akechi, it would easily be overwhelming. After a bit, though, he started shifting and flipped the system shut, looking at her. She glanced at the clock and saw it read noon. Can you wait for about twenty minutes for me to cook something? In her worry that morning, they’d forgotten the bento at the office. Thankfully, Sae was a more than competent cook; it just usually fell to Makoto in the morning because she had so much to take care of in the morning. Akechi gave a small nod and Sae slipped into the kitchen, opting for a few simple comfort foods. They were more low effort than her usual, but she figured they’d be welcome. With how upset he’d been earlier, she wanted him to be as comfortable as possible. Thankfully, her thought paid off and a soft, gentle, relaxed smile spread across his face while they ate. “This really is good, Nijima-san. Thank you.” “It’s really no trouble Akechi-kun; I’m glad you like it. Since we’ve been inside so long, how about we go outside after this?” His entire face lit up and he nodded enthusiastically. He was so precious. How could anybody hate him enough to hurt him? After sticking the dishes near the sink to wash later, she started heading outside and blinked before laughing. “We should change.” How ridiculous would it look if they were going to play in the yard in a business suit and his clothes? Akechi’s cheeks reddened a little and he nodded, hustling to the bathroom and meeting her outside after he’d finished. She’d changed into loose jogging pants and long-sleeved shirt in the chill December air. Thankfully, the day was fairly mild, so they could stay outside for longer than they would have otherwise. Akechi shifted a bit and Sae smiled at him as she started removing the balls from their packaging. “Do you know how to play soccer and basketball?” He tucked some loose hair behind his ear and nodded, giving a hesitant smile. Sae held the soccer ball up and tossed it to him. His expression brightened even more as he expertly juggled it around his body. She used to be able to do that, but after starting university, then having raising Makoto being forced on her, she was very much out of practice. Akechi didn’t seem to be in the same boat, though. The next hour and a half proved to be extremely fun and light, even moreso than before. The way Akechi smiled as they played friendly games of keepaway or simply dribbled the balls back and forth… It was a levity she hadn’t seen in him before. It seemed as if whatever had happened completely slipped his mind, and she was glad. “We should probably head inside.” The temperature was starting to drop and the wind ruffled her hair, threatening to bring the snow that had been forecasted. Akechi nodded and bumped the soccer ball into his hands before heading into the house. Sae made a beeline for the kitchen with a smile, pouring some milk into a pan. A wave of nostalgia washed over her as she started on her mother’s hot chocolate recipe, reminded of the days both her parents had died. It’d been far too long since she’d made this for Makoto, so she definitely would after she got home. There were still a few hours until she did, so she’d just leave the ingredients and cooking utensils out. After finishing, she slid into the couch next to Akechi who had promptly wrapped himself in a thick blanket, resuming his Pokémon file. He brightened once again when he saw the mugs and sat the 3DS to the side. She handed him one, then popped a Featherman DVD in and settled in next to Akechi, a faint smile on her face. ♦ “Sis, what are you doing home?” Makoto’s voice made Sae tense a bit and Akechi’s hold on her shirt tightened. At some point, the boy had fallen asleep against her, but she’d been so wrapped up in Featherman she’d failed to notice both that and the time. Makoto eyed Akechi and put a finger to her lips. “I don’t want to wake him, so I’ll keep it brief. I know this looks really bad, but this is my detective partner. He’s in a horribly abusive situation, so I brought him here to decompress for a day or two.” Sae did her best to keep her work and home lives separate, but there was only so much she could do sometimes. With how terrified Akechi had been, she just hadn’t been able to leave him suffer that morning. Her sister gave a small nod and eyed her but said nothing else. “I’ll go get started on my—” “Makoto.” Sae could see the hurt in her sister’s eyes and Makoto looked away. She shifted slowly and gently so as not to jar Akechi awake. Thankfully, he seemed to be sleeping like the dead so it wasn’t a worry. She took Makoto’s hand and tugged her into the kitchen, starting to make the hot chocolate again. “I’m sorry for making this when you weren’t here, but I figured it was something Akechi-kun would appreciate. He came in more spooked than normal this morning. Whatever happened made him unable to use even JSL.” She caught Makoto’s brows drawing together and she let out a small sigh. She really hadn’t wanted to divulge such personal information about Akechi, but she really had no choice here. “Like I said, he’s in an abusive situation. From what I’ve observed over the past six months, I can tell there isn’t anything I can do to get him out of it.” As loathe as she was to admit it. “For whatever reason, he’s more comfortable with JSL than speaking. Whoever’s his abuser is beat him so badly that I had to text him to communicate this morning.” That was enough explanation for Makoto’s shoulders to drop. Sae really couldn’t blame her little sister for being jealous and hurt. It was supposed to be something special they did together and not for anybody else. Yet Sae had made it for someone else when the last time she’d made it for them had been over a year ago. “…Well, it’s hard to be mad if that’s the situation. I’m still hurt, but I understand. Plus, you were clearly thinking of making it for me when I got home.” Sae nodded. “I would have had it done when you got home, but I lost track of time.” Makoto pursed her lips as light pink dusted Sae’s cheeks, but the woman just smiled in return. Whenever she started binging on Featherman, it was pretty typical for her to lose track of time. With work, she tended to fall behind on the show,  so marathoning was nothing unusual. Sae finished and poured the hot chocolate into two mugs, sitting one down in front of Makoto. “Will you be bringing him home more often?” “Maybe.” Sae knew Akechi had nowhere else to turn but… She really didn’t want to make Makoto feel she cared about him more. She really did care about Akechi but…her sister had to come first. “Let’s talk about this later. How was student council?” Makoto brightened at the question and started talking. A warm smile spread across Sae’s face as she rested her cheek in a hand. Even if their relationship was rocky more often than not…these small moments of warm tenderness made everything worth it.