It started as a bad feeling...
"Hey, why are you spacing out, you dummy?! Pull the hook back, or the fish will be gone!" Akira was suddenly taken out of his daze by an annoyed Nobara tugging on his arm.
"Oh, sorry," Akira nodded with an awkward chuckle, tiny beads of sweat sliding down his temple before looking back at the flowing river barely three meters wide.
With a slight tug, the bedding fishing rod snapped back up like lightning, causing the water's surface to break instantly as a fish snapped out of the water, arching in the air.
"Yeah! It's a big one, alright!" Nobara immediately got into action with a grin, bending down and picking up a bucket with some water. She moved back a couple of steps, putting the bucket of water above her head in an attempt to catch the fish.
"Nobara, I don't think that's a good idea," Akira warned with a smile, shaking his head as he could already see what's gonna happen.
"No, I will definitely catch it- ah!"
Before Nobara could say anything else, she stepped on a fist-sized rock on the ground, with a pained gasp, her ankle sprained, and the bucket in her hand fell on top of her.
"Nobara!"
Akira's eyes widened in shock, and a bit of guilt as he sped forward, catching Nobara in his arms. Akira could not help but clench his fists in anger at himself.
"Damn it!" Akira let out a low shout, pulling the bucket off Nobara's head, revealing an embarrassed face, wet hair and a wet shirt, with a slight pain in her features.
"Sorry, Nobara. I should have stopped it, it's my fault-"
Slap!
"Thanks for the worry, you big bear! But it was not your fault, so stop trying to make it your fault," Akira froze as Nobara clamped her palm on his cheeks, her face turning into a grin, showing her white teeth as she spoke.
"Nobara... Come on, I'll take you home. Your ankle is sprained, but your ligaments and bones are not hurt, so it should heal in a few days," Akira sighed, taking Nobara by her legs and gently lifting her up in a princess carry.
"Hey, what's up with your holding me like a princess?!" Nobara shivered, her face heating up crazily as she felt Akira's steady arms behind her back and under her thighs.
Nobara couldn't help but look up at Akira's face, freezing in motion as she took in his face properly for the first time. His wavy red and black hair, that tiny mole adding a unique feeling, and those deep red eyes...
"Handsome..."
"What was that?" Akira raised an eyebrow as he asked, looking down at Nobara while making a slight juggle, running towards Nobara's home. He heard Nobara, but he had a sudden urge to tease.
"N-Nothing! You heard nothing!"
"Sure~,"
A few minutes of walking and chatting later, Akira and Nobara arrived back at her home. Nobara invited Akira inside for a drink, and Akira, who rarely had money for it, was tempted enough to go inside.
"Here, this is Orange juice, I bought it from the local market!" Nobara handed Akira a Capri-Sun copycat with a smile, to which Akira paid no mind as he took it.
"By the way, Akira, what's with the new shoes? That looks like an expensive pair of shoes." Suddenly, Nobara asked with a confused face. Her curiosity flowed out of her mouth.
"These shoes?" Akira looked down, his lips twitching slightly as he looked down at the pair of shoes on his feet. It resembled Itadori's red shoes, but of a higher quality.
"I don't know, but my... Mother gave it to me a week ago, it's probably some cheap offhands," Akira shrugged as he spoke, taking a sip from the straw in the Capri-Sun.
"What! Are you a dumbass? I heard those shoes cost like a freaking ton. I heard they cost like 30,000 Yen!" Nobara gained a tick mark on his head as he spoke, pointing at Akira's shoes.
"..."
"What?" Akira's face froze in shock as he turned to Nobara, the half-empty Capri-Sun falling out of his hands.
Nobara raised an eyebrow in confusion at his reaction, about to speak, when Akira suddenly bolted right past her. She looked back, worry on her face as she recalled Akira's face.
"He seemed... Scared?" Nobara muttered as she picked up the Capri-Sun, before taking a sip from the straw, only to freeze as she realised Akira also touched it.
"A... An indirect kiss!"
[Meanwhile...]
Slap!
A loud sound of a palm hitting a face echoed throughout the building, a sharp and sudden cry of pain sounding throughout the building and the sound of thigns falling over.
"Why the fuck are you here?!" Chino fell onto her desk, knocking the thigns over while holding her cheek in pain, questioning the man in anger as she looked up.
"Y-You bitch! I gave you all my money a week ago, and you don't wanna become my wife?!" The man's eyes were dilated, his hair was messy, and he had sweat on his body, with his hands and fingers shaking.
The effects of drugs.
Chino was a stunning beauty with blood-red hair, brown eyes, and a beauty mark beneath one of her eyes. She had an impressive figure, which was the reason she could cover the rent and pay the bills, especially considering she hadn't even graduated from high school.
And it seems her beauty finally brought her the final stroke of chance that god gave her...
"W-What kind of bullshit are you on about?! You willingly paid for my service; there were no strings attached!" Chino shot back, reaching behind her and picking up a hard figure of a cartoon character made from stone.
"N-No strings! No strings, HAHAHAHA! I gave you my monthly salary! You need to become my wife!" The man's eyes turned red, and he grinned before laughing with a deranged look.
"Now it's time to pay!" The man lunged forward, trying to push Chino down, but he was met with a strike to the temple from Chino, who shook in fear as blood splashed onto her face.
The statue broke on the face of the man, slicing into his skin and causing blood to splash everywhere. Chino backed up, looking around for a weapon to defend herself, but there was nothing around.
"Fuck..." Chino cursed in a low voice, turning back to the man, only for a shadow to cover her body. Chino's eyes turned into pinpoints. The man gripped her neck with his hands.
Bang!
A punch landed on her face, and she was dazed as she fell to the floor, wiht the man following up with kicks, stomps and punches. Ribs broke, face swelled, and blood gushed.
Finally, wiht a single stomp onto the face, Chino felt her vision start to fade, her face sunk in from the force, only for her ears to twitch as the sound of the door being kicked in echoed.
"MOM!!!"
Lying on the floor, her breathing fading, Chino could only muster up enough strength to look to the side, her eyes locking with Akira's, seeing the shock and fear on his face.
Her chest tightened at his face, but Chino knew her boy was special and would not be in danger from this man.
'Ha... He finally called me mom?' Chino thought, her eyes curving into a smile as blood coated the floor under her.
'I... Am...'
'So happy!'
_________________________________________
Cry, I'll allow it! You can let it all out!
Man, I almost cried myself when I was writing the end part of the chapter.
Rate the backstory of the MC!
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