An Unheard Voice - Chapter 33: Chapter 33

"What the fuck is wrong with you today, Toya?" Akito snarls, grabbing my wrist. What is he talking about?..
"Why won't you look at me?!"
I can't really see. Why can't I lift my head up..? What's going on?
"Akito, stop. If he doesn't want to do this today because of an audience, he doesn't have to. We can't force him to do anything!" An tries to take his arm but he pushes her away. Everyone's whispering.. is so loud.
"He never belonged here, anyway."
"What was he thinking..? Poor thing."
I look to the side and see people whispering and murmuring, staring right at me. How- How did we get on this.. stage..? It feels familiar.
"He said he was improving. Was all of that a lie for validation? That's so stupid!" He snaps at her, pointing to me. I manage to look up, but their faces.. I can't see them. He wouldn't say that. Why is he-..? Akito turns to me and I jolt.
"I don't know what your problem is, Toya. You've come so far, why did you screw everything up now?"
"Why won't he talk..?"
"That's so weird."
"A-Akito, I--" I try to speak, but it's like my voice is stuck inside of my throat.
"Shut up! If you won't speak properly, might as well keep your mouth shut! We all did everything for you. You know what? It would have been better if we never met."
What? Why is he saying all of this..?! I step back, glancing at the audience all staring at us. Does he really.. mean that..? No, he can't be telling the truth..!
"What is that on his arms? Oh my, he even lets that happen to him, too..."
"How can he think that anyone would ever like talking to him..?"
"Toya, this is all your fault for not trying to improve. You're nothing but a burden to all of us. You should have went back to your father."
Right after that I gasp, sitting up with cold sweat, my heart racing and tears streaming down my cheeks. It.. it was a dream?
I look to the side to see Akito with his arm around my waist, sleeping peacefully. I immediately cover my mouth with my trembling hands and try to calm myself down before I wake him. Why did I have a dream about a performance..? I haven't gotten on a stage since I was a child..!
And why was Akito the one yelling at me..? He seemed really angry. It was like.. I couldn't see his face the whole time. But when I finally did it was when he mentioned my father. Why..? Is this really what I'm afraid of?! My head is spinning--
"Toya?" I hear him call out to me and all of the sudden my thoughts disappear. I wipe my eyes, trying to move away from him and he sits up, gently grabbing my chin and having me face him.
"What's wrong? Are you okay?" He asks, wiping my tears with his thumb. I try to move my face away and nod, trying to hold back any hiccups.
"I'm not buying that." He frowns, almost looking disappointed.
"I-I'm sorry-.." I apologize, facing down. He scoffs and kisses my forehead.
"From now on, if you need to cry, you'll do so in my arms. But just know that I'm the only one you can cry in front of, okay? Your crying face is so cute." He laughs, kissing the corners of my eyes..
I stare at him for a moment and he gasps.
"I'm not saying I like seeing you cry! You're just mine and only mine, got it? And I'm beating up your dad no matter what you say." He grins, shutting his eyes again. My lip begins to quiver and I hug him tightly, burying my face into his chest.
I'm really grateful for Akito.
"Do you have anything you would like to say to me, Toya?" My mother grabs my shoulders with the most terrifying smile I've ever seen. She's definitely angry...
"I got so scared when I couldn't find you! I was crying more than smudge! And he can't stand being away from you for more than five seconds! Leaving to his house already?!" She points at him on my head, scolding me.
I stare at the ground and gulp.
"I.. I'm.. sorry." I finally look up at her, pitiful. She bursts into tears and hugs me tightly, shaking me around.
"I can't stay mad at my baby! I love you so much, you're my baby!!" She squeals, almost cracking my neck. It hurts!
Akito explains most of the stuff that happened, and she sighs, hugging me tightly.
"Your father isn't going to be happy... But it's okay, I'll try annoying the crap out of him for you." She winks, and then waves at Akito.
Once we go inside, I already see my father at the couch. I'm afraid.
"I'm sure you have an excuse prepared for sneaking out. After all, you went to him. I knew this would happen eventually, considering your 'friend'--" He snaps, getting up from the couch and walking up to me.
"Harumichi." My mother says harshly and he looks at her, then back at me.
That makes him go quiet immediately, quickly glancing at me before walking away again.
I'm sorry.
I wish I could say that to him, but for some reason.. I can't. I wonder why..?
I wonder if at some point this will end up affecting Akito...
"You okay?" Akito asks, poking my cheek, bringing me back to reality. I nod, sighing. Oh yeah, we're on a date.
.. Wait-
"If you don't feel well we can always meet again some other day. I.. wanted to cheer you up. Sorry if my company wasn't enough to do that." He apologizes, chuckling. I shake my head, hesitantly grabbing his hand.
"No, I.. I-I like this..." I blush, whispering as I stare at our hands.
His face turns bright red, and he scoffs while looking away. He's really cute when he's embarrassed.
"Is that Akito and Toya?!"
Crap.
"Walk away and act like you didn't hear anything." Akito stands up, dragging me away and I try my best to keep up, but I accidentally stop by bumping into a pole.
I swear they're coming out of nowhere.
"Hey, you-!!" An catches up to us and jumps on me, making me fall to the ground. I accidentally bring Akito down with me by yanking his hand. I should have let go...
"What the hell..?" He glares at her while kicking her off of me. Ouch...
"Ow! What are you guys doing here?! Are you on a date?!" She squeals, grabbing my arms and violently shakes me.
"Yes, and we would like to get back to that." He pulls me away, holding me close to him. At least stand up!
"You really like PDA, don't you? Even when you weren't dating..." An scoffs, helping us both up.
"Shut up."
"Alright, alright, I'll leave you both alone. But when you get to the weekend garage, tell my dad I can't help out tonight. Me and Kohane wanted to watch a movie together. Isn't that right, sweetheart?" An kisses Azusawa's cheek, who turns bright red all over.
"Y-Yes, dear..!" She lets out a squeak.
"You didn't have to play along..." An giggles, wrapping her hands around Azusawa's arm as they walk away.
Why not tell him yourself..?
"Alright, let's get going. Come on." He sighs, taking my hand again and leading me to the weekend garage.
I kind of want to call Akito that, too...
"No, we just started dating!" Akito panics as his face turns bright red.
"Oh, really?" Ken chuckles, raising an eyebrow.
"It's- R-Really! Why does everyone react this way..?" He grumbles, covering his face with his hand. There, there...
"Don't stress about that, kid." Ken scoffs, ruffling his hair. Is that where he gets it from..?
"From what I can see, you two are meant for eachother. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. As long as you both feel that way, nobody else's opinion matters."
Akito and I look at eachother, blushing and then looking in opposite directions.
".. Yeah. Thanks, Ken." He sighs, squeezing my hand under the table.. I nod, still feeling shy.
After a few minutes of them talking, Akito gets a call from his sister and steps out for a moment. We both watch him leave, and remain silent for a minute.
"Toya." Ken says, and my heart skips a beat. I slowly turn to him, trembling.
"You look like you've just seen a ghost. Don't worry, I just wanted to tell you something." He laughs, handing me a cup. Coffee..? I didn't order anything, though... But I appreciate it.
"I'm sure many people have told you this before, but Akito has changed so much ever since you came into his life. I'm happy for the both of you. Thank you, Toya." He says, putting down the dish he was cleaning. I look down at my coffee, nodding.
"I'm sure he's treating you well?" He raises an eyebrow, grinning. I nod rapidly, flustered.
"That's good to hear. Well, he's coming back. I'll be here if you need to talk about anything, okay?"
I nod again, slightly smiling. I feel more comfortable around him now.. I don't know why I was ever afraid of talking to him. He's really nice. It's no wonder why Akito looks up to him so much.
"I'm back." Akito hugs me from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder. I thought he didn't like doing this sort of thing in buildings with people...
"Did he say anything embarrassing about me?" Akito asks, getting close to my face. Wait just a-!!
"Of course not. Well, not today at least. After all, you two are still in your honeymoon phase."
Honeymoon?!
"To think An's friend would find love before me... I want a pretty boyfriend, too!" A lady says, sighing.
"I have a name!" Akito hisses, frowning.
"Between you and Akito, only one of you is good looking." Another one cackles.
"Ignore those assholes. Congratulations,  Akito!" A man says, patting his back and starting a conversation.
After a few minutes, I pout slightly, furrowing my eyebrows. Who is this man..? And why have I never noticed how friendly Akito is to other people?
"Yikes, Akito. Don't ditch your date so quickly..." Another woman whispers pointing at me. Did she notice that quickly..?
He turns to me, laughing as my cheeks turn red.
"I'll talk to you another time, okay?" He says, the man simply nods and goes back to his seat.
"Sorry, did I keep you waiting? I didn't know my precious Toya got jealous so easily." Akito chuckles, moving the hair out of my face. Never mind, go back to talking to that other man!!
"Did you enjoy our date today?" Akito asks, giving me a kiss on my cheek.
I nod, blushing slightly as I let go of his hand. I should hurry inside before father comes out of his room to ask where I've been... My curfew is earlier now.
I brought it on myself...
"I.. I'll see y-you soon." I whisper, looking away.
"Alright. Goodnight, Toya." He grins, ruffling my hair. I grab his before he turns around, getting nervous..
"Huh? Do you need something?"
I want to.. kiss him. It felt really nice doing it a few days ago... I don't know, for some reason I just like anything we do together.
Here goes nothing..! I touch his lips with mine for a second, and quickly pull away. My face is heating up!
"I.. Wow. You're really unpredictable, Toya. I wonder how you'll surprise me next." He laughs, giving me another kiss, except a longer one this time. I want to make this a way of saying goodbye...
I cover my face with my palms after, thanking him quietly and rushing to the door. I place my hand on the doorknob and look back, waving with a soft smile.
He waves back before walking away, sighing.
When I open the door, I look around. Nobody's in the living room? Why isn't my mother here? She usually comes out running when I come back.
"Toya..! There you are." She runs up to me, hugging me. She was in the kitchen?
"It's late.. but no worries, I-I think you should go to bed now--"
"He's not going anywhere." My father walks out of the kitchen, staring straight at me.
She looks back at him, frowning. Her hands are shaking.. what happened..?
He walks up to me, grabbing my arm and pulling me away from her. Before she can protest, he silences her and glares at me.
"I'm sure you have an explanation for what I just saw, Toya." He says.
".. What?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. I hoped my eyes were deceiving me, but now I think you've run out of excuses. Don't make me repeat myself. Toya, answer me honestly. What is your relationship with that piece of crap?" He snaps, slightly raising his voice.
This.. can't be good.