After the previous day, Yuriko had not said a single word to her grandfather. She didn't even eat dinner or breakfast with him, or do her nightly routine of listening to the police radio chatter. Simply going to bed and wondering what the conversation with her mother would have turned out to be, she still managed to stay up until one in the morning thinking.
When she awoke, her phone was ringing, which was strange. Only two people were in her contacts – her grandfather, and Tanaka. Tanaka didn't know who she was, but she took his number for emergencies. When the number was unrecognisable, she declined it, believing it was spam. Then they called again, immediately, so she sighed and picked up.
"Hello?" She answered.
"Yurikooo," A pitiful whiny yet familiar voice came from the other end.
"Miller," She sighed. "How did you get my phone number?"
"Your grandfather gave it to me a while ago," Jayce said before coughing. "I have a favour to ask…"
Yuriko rubbed between her brow. "Now is really not the time."
"I know, I know," He said quickly. "But Mystic is busy and so is Vinny. My mom had to go to work, too, and… I got sick."
"What?" She demanded.
"From yesterday, running around in the snow," Jayce explained. "I can't get up hardly and I ran out of water. I was just going to ask if you could bring me something to drink and eat?"
"I knew you weren't wearing enough layers," Yuriko growled, shaking her head. Looking up to the ceiling, she let out a huff. "Where do you live?"
(¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.-> 🖋 <-.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯)
Yuriko was surprised to find out Jayce actually lived quite close to her, and did not require a subway. In thirty minutes, she was standing in front of a small single floor house. The curtains were drawn, the yard was small, and a husky was sitting in the front lawn. They looked at Yuriko with miscoloured, calm eyes. Not moving as Yuriko opened the gate and closed it behind her, she walked up to the door and set a brisk knock on the wood.
A cough came from inside, before she heard Jayce. "It's unlocked!"
She stepped inside, holding an over the shoulder bag as she looked around. A short table and cushions were set in the middle of the room, a bathroom at the back and a kitchen to the right, two rooms on the left. She could see the open door at the farthest room, and took off her shoes before she walked over to it. Peeking in, she saw a floor mattress and Jayce laying on it.
He looked pale, a white washcloth over his forehead and covered in blankets. Empty water bottles were at his side, scattered on the floor. He slowly sat up when he saw her, his cheeks flushed and his eyes tired. Yuriko knelt down outside the room, digging through her bag and pulling out a large thermos. Taking off the cup-lid, she poured steaming hot ginger tea into the lid and handed it to him.
"Drink this," She said softly.
"You didn't have to make me tea," He said, but took the cup anyway. Blowing on it to cool it down, he slowly took a sip, his face warming up as the washcloth fell off of his head.
Yuriko climbed to her feet, leaving the thermos as she took her bag again. "I'll use your kitchen," She said, and he nodded.
Yuriko headed to the opposite side of the room, clearing the counter as she pulled out the ingredients and set them across the surface. Then, she searched around in the cabinets, finding a large stockpot and setting it on the stove. Putting it on the corresponding temperature, she poured in a homemade soup she made earlier to heat it up. She added cooked rice she also brought. Then, she put in miso, and stirred it all together. When it started to steam and bubble, she turned off the stove and moved the pot over to a towel.
During it all, she could feel Jayce's eyes on her back. "Did you drink your tea?" She asked.
"Oh, right," He said, apparently having been distracted before he began to sip at it again.
With that, she used a ladle to spoon it into a bowl, then used a soup spoon to stir it some more before walking out of the kitchen. Heading over to Jayce's open door, she knelt down again. "Here," She said, handing the warm bowl to him.
Jayce set down the empty tea cup and took the bowl, looking the soup over. "What's this?"
"A family recipe," Yuriko answered. "We call it Japanese Penicillin."
Jayce spooned up a bit, sipping it carefully. "Is that kale?"
"Yes," She said.
"It's good," He responded, taking another bite. "You didn't have to do this – you could have just thrown a store lunch and water bottle at me."
"And expect you to get better?" Yuriko raised an eyebrow.
"Well, no…" Jayce chuckled, tilting the bowl to sip from the rim. They sat there in silence for a short while, before he set the bowl in his lap and looked up at her. "I have a question."
"Yes?" She answered.
"What happened yesterday?" He asked. "You got really mad at your grandfather."
Yuriko grimaced, then sighed. "My mother came over that day."
"Did she?" Jayce frowned.
"She wanted to talk to me, but… My grandfather turned her away," She further explained, looking down.
"And you got mad because…?" He prodded further.
"Because he acted like it was his choice," Yuriko growled. "I wanted to talk to her. I wanted to tell her so many things, and he just… crushed the hope that everything I could have said would be meaningful. Now I'll never get the same chance again."
Jayce was silent for a moment, staring at her, and then into his soup. "I'm sure that's not true. There will be more chances. Hey, you could even go to her if you wanted to." He smiled a little. "I'm sure she cares enough to not stop when one person says no. Maybe when you're older, an adult, she will try again."
"That's so long from now…" She whispered. "I've never been one to be impatient, but…" She rubbed her eyes with a sigh.
"Hey, it's okay," He quickly reassured her, looking up. Reaching forward, he took her hand and smiled. "This is not the last you will get to see her."
Yuriko looked at him, then his hand. He didn't have his gloves on. She sighed. "I hope you're right, Miller," She whispered, slipping out of his grip and standing up. "Finish your soup."
With that, Yuriko turned away. She heard the click of the spoon as he started eating again, and she headed for the kitchen. Picking up the dishes, she walked over to the sink and started cleaning everything up. She placed the soup in a tupperware container and closed it tight, placing it in the fridge for him to eat more of later.
When she turned around, though, she saw him lying down. She returned to his side, kneeling down and closing the thermos. Yet, reaching for the bowl, she saw his eyes were closed and his breathing was even. She realised he was asleep, her eyes travelling to his outstretched hand. She looked at her own, scanning her palm. For a moment, she found herself reaching forward, seeing his bare skin. He had only touched her for a moment earlier… What had he felt from her? Even she didn't know.
Pulling back, she sighed, arranging the blanket over his shoulder before picking up the bowl and standing. She went over to the sink, washing it clean along with the spoon before putting it in the drying rack. Stepping back, she looked behind her and saw Jayce again, sleeping soundly. Staring at him for but a moment, she started towards the door and picked up her bag. She slipped back on her shoes, about to leave before a new set of thoughts entered her mind, and she stepped away from the door as it opened.
A woman of Japanese ethnicity stood there, wearing a coat over her diner workwear. She looked up at Yuriko, surprised to see her, dim brown eyes looking back around the room. She opened her mouth to say something, or even scream from the fact that someone unknown was in her house, but Yuriko spoke before anything could leave her.
"Hello," She said, bowing low. "You must be Jayce Miller's mother. A pleasure to meet you. My name is Yuriko Romanov."
The woman was silent for a moment, then seemed to shyly smile. "Oh, of course!" She said, closing the door behind her. "He mentioned you… But, why are you here?"
"Jayce called me and asked if I could bring him some things," Yuriko explained. "So I brought him ginger tea and some soup."
"I see," She brushed her chin thoughtfully. "It was my lunch break so I came to check on him. Thank you for taking care of him. I should have called off today…"
"Do not worry about it," She shook her head. "He is asleep now. I think he feels better."
"That is good…" The mother hummed, taking off her coat and looking at Yuriko's feet. "Are you leaving now?"
"I am," She nodded, heading for the door.
"Thank you for coming by," The woman nodded to her with a smile.
"Of course," Yuriko said, opening the door. "Goodbye, Miss Miller."
"Goodbye, Romanov," She bowed, which the teenager returned.
Yuriko stepped outside, watching the dog who had not moved an inch as she walked down the sidewalk. Opening the gate, she closed it behind her and stopped, staring at the house. Why had she reached for his hand? Why did he take hers earlier, even when he wasn't wearing any gloves? In fact, why had she come all that way to make him soup and tea? Her face immediately flushed, and she put her hand on her cheek, feeling it heat up. With a sigh, she shook her head, and started walking away.