WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I'd purposefully take detours through high-end neighbourhoods. It was addicting, seeing how well-off other people were compared to my shithole of a life. Knowing I could never reach that point in my lifetime left a bad taste in my mouth. In part, due to jealousy. In other, due to resentment.

The Takumi mansion stood before me, embraced by lofty gates, a winding stone path, and flowerbeds surrounded by recently trimmed grass. The heavy spring rain pattered against the umbrella Takumi carried above our heads. It didn't seem like the storm would be ending anytime soon.

Without giving me the opportunity to drink in the ostentatious sight, Takumi guided Naoya and I past the front gates—which were wider than my entire apartment complex, mind you. As soon as we crossed through the front door, I was welcomed by a gust of humid air. I gripped my forearms, relishing in the numbing warmth.

"Your heating system," I sputtered. "It works."

"Obviously, it works." Takumi's exasperation was tangible. There also lingered a bit of discomfort. Perhaps, he was having second thoughts about inviting me over after all. At least, I assumed so, until his attention dropped to the floor. Particularly, the puddle forming beneath my shoes.

My heart sank upon the realization. My clothes were soggy. Meaning, even if I removed my shoes and waddled deeper inside this grand estate, I'd leave a huge mess.

See. Inviting me over was a terrible idea.

"Wait here," Takumi said, transferring me from my thoughts. He set his umbrella on the rack by the door and kicked off his shoes. Then, he disappeared around the corner. Within seconds, he returned, with a grey towel wrapped around his neck, and another one for me. "Dry off with this."

His hair and shoulders were wet, all because I was too stubborn and wouldn't accept his initial gesture to share his umbrella.

As he pressed his towel to his cheek, and I followed suit by drying my hair with my respective towel, he paused to study my face.

"This isn't helping, is it?" he asked offhandedly. "You might have to take off your clothes."

My body froze. "Wh— Huh?"

"I'm saying, take them off. If you stay in those clothes, you'll get sick."

He most likely didn't intend for the way it came across. Hence, as soon as the words left his mouth, his skin flushed a bright crimson.

My cheeks scalded all the same.

As we looked on at one another in mortifying silence, Naoya's jaw dramatically fell, and he slapped a hand over his mouth.

"You both know what I meant by that!" Takumi stammered, and proceeded to scrub at his face as if doing so would somehow rid him of his intense blush. "Stop making this awkward."

Too late for that. I clumsily cleared my throat. Great. Now, I was uncomfortable.

Never had a boy asked me to take off my clothes and I never wanted to hear one ask me to again. Even if Takumi had semi-good intentions, the whole exchange left me more flustered than I would like to admit.

"Ren! Are you home?" Footsteps shuffled from the second floor. I craned my neck just in time to watch a woman climb down the stairs. Her black hair hung just above her ears, framing her heart-shaped face. "Honey, are you okay? The weather is atrocious! I thought something happened to you!"

From what I knew, Takumi didn't have an older sister. Which meant, this was his mom.

Her youthful demeanour didn't help me process the information.

Was this really her? She hadn't changed one bit from back then.

"Oh?" She fluttered her eyelashes. "We have visitors?"

"Thanks for having me, Mrs. Riri!" Naoya chimed in with a huge smile and wave.

A sweet laugh escaped her lips. "Of course. It's always a pleasure having you, Naoya. And this is. . ."

I unintentionally shrunk under her gaze.

"A classmate," Naoya cut in. "We found her stranded in the rain and brought her here." He paused to laugh. "Now that I've said it out loud, it sort of sounds like we picked up a stray kitten off the side of the road."

"That's an insult to kittens," Takumi corrected.

Jerk.

"I invited her to stay here until the storm passes," Takumi informed his mom. "Since it's dangerous outside."

"Oh, is that it?" she said. "That's totally all right. You're welcome to stay here for as long as you'd like. . ."

It took me a moment to notice she was asking for my name. "A-Anri Hinomori," I introduced, ever so eloquently.

Her eyebrows rose. "Anri," she repeated, tilting her head to the side. "Hmm. I could've sworn I've heard that name before. Where have I. . ."

"It's your imagination," I cut in a little too quickly. "This is the first time we've met. I should know because this is, uh, the first time I've seen you. Yeah."

Takumi eyeballed me with understandable suspicion.

My cheeks prickled with heat.

I was the classmate her son used to get into fights with. She got called to school every other day to mend the situation. Of course, she'd remember me after that. I underestimated a mother's intuition.

"Well, regardless, you may call me Riri, my dear. Any friend of Ren's is a friend of mine."

Takumi flinched, as did I.

"We're not friends," he said.

Either she didn't hear him, or she refused to accept the notion.

"More importantly." A frown crossed her face. "Look at you three! You're all soaked! What did you do? Take a swim outside? Did you not think to take shelter somewhere?"

Without giving us the time to explain our case, she forced Naoya and I out of our shoes and dragged all three of us deeper into the house.

"I-I'm making a mess," I tried to explain.

"Water isn't going to hurt anyone," Mrs. Riri responded. "You all are taking warm baths, and that is final. Anri is coming with me to the bathroom upstairs. Naoya, use the guest bathroom downstairs. Ren, show Naoya the way there, and as soon as he's done, go in after him. There's no way I'll let any of you catch colds on my watch."

Naoya's uncontrollable laughter filled the air. "As you wish, ma'am."

Mrs. Riri was a force to be reckoned with, all right. None of us could disagree with her. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I wanted to try.

This was going to be a long night.

"HAVE YOU WARMED UP, DEAR?"

Exactly like how much I despised Takumi growing up, I despised his wealthy parents and his happy-go-lucky family dynamic. He had everything I could possibly dream of and more and still put me through the hell he did. Mrs. Riri raised a questionable son, all right, but now, all these years later, it was clear to me that Mrs. Riri herself wasn't a bad person.

That being said, this situation was a lot to take in.

Within in the refurbished living room sat a piping cup of tea, courtesy of Mrs. Riri. I sunk into the furthest corner of the couch. Cheeks warm, I bobbed my head. "Thank you for letting me use your bath, Mrs. Riri. . . a-and for the tea."

"Are you sure?" Mrs. Riri snagged the throwaway blanket off the edge of the couch and swung it around my shoulders. "Would you like me to grab you another sweater? An extra pair of socks? How about—"

"I'm okay!" I answered, stopping her right before she could make a break for her bedroom. "Really, you've done a lot for me, Mrs. Riri. You even offered me your clothes to wear. You didn't have to."

It was the most ordinary outfit she could've picked out. Even then, it felt unbelievably expensive against my skin. It'd be in my best interest to not even ask her how much they cost. I'd positively faint if I heard the answer.

Mrs. Riri smiled. "Are my clothes not to your liking, perhaps? Would you have preferred I grabbed you Ren's instead?"

I raised my hand. "No. Nu-uh. These are fine."

My instantaneous rebuttal set her into a fit of laughter.

"Most young girls would've taken the bait."

She took a seat next to me. Her posture, and how she carried herself, was on a whole different level. I was a peasant in the presence of utter royalty.

"I'm surprised Ren has a friend who's a girl," she mused. "I never thought this day would arrive."

"We're not friends," I told her upfront, indulging in another sip of the scrumptious tea. "I hate Takumi's guts."

"Aw!" Mrs. Riri's ear-piercing squeal caused my heart to fail. She covered her mouth with her hands. "So, that makes you what? Enemies? Rivals? How adorable!"

Adorable?

"For some odd reason, Ren has been popular from the day he was born," she rambled. "From kindergarten, he'd come home with heaps of love letters. Back then, he couldn't read them though, so he would always ask me to interpret them. Then, as soon as he was old enough to read them on his own, he'd refuse them. But those girls wouldn't get the hint. Since love letters were out of the question, they tried giving him gifts. After that, homemade lunches and chocolates on Valentine's Day. Occasionally, they would even follow him home. It got so overwhelming that we had no choice but to pack our bags and move. We also hired a driver to take him to and from school every day."

I sort of remember something like that happening in middle school.

"As a result, Ren has absolutely no interest in love." Mrs. Riri face-palmed. "He's never looked at a girl romantically. Just his textbooks. He'd marry his homework if he could." A sigh escaped her. "Where did I go wrong with raising him? I was quite the popularity magnet in my younger days, and even I managed to find love. If only he could look past the bad, just once, I'm sure he'll fall in love too."

Her eyes glossed over for a brief second.

"Actually, there was this one girl. . ."

As if to banish the thought, she shook her head.

"I've put your clothes in the dryer machine so they should be ready to change back into before you go. Until then, feel free to make yourself at home. If the weather worsens, and you need to spend the night, or would like a ride, let me know, okay?"

"That's not necessary," I interjected. "I'll walk home. I'm perfectly capable of walking home."

She chuckled, hopping to her feet. "You're too modest, my dear. Since it is getting late, though, and I have an early shift at the hospital tomorrow, I'll be turning in for the night. If you need anything—anything at all—go ahead and bother Ren. So long as you're our guest, he'll serve your every demand. If it's one thing, I've raised him right in that regard."

Mrs. Riri was literally an angel. Then there was Takumi, the devil's spawn.

How were the two of them related?

I wish my own mom were like her.

A high-spirited bark caught my attention. Mrs. Riri was long gone. And, in her place on the ground stood a black and tanned puppy. Clearly, she had snuck into the room during my moment of distraction, and with pricked ears, she gazed upon me with an air of curiosity.

Creeper mentioned this in a text message once. That Takumi had a family dog. What he failed to bring up, however, was just how precious she was.

Her pronounced eyebrows and impishly cute looks. Her silky and smooth-seeming fur.

She pawed closer, sniffing around the blanket, then up at me. Within seconds, she was up on the couch beside me, nudging her snout closer.

"Oh. Er. Wait," I tried.

Perhaps, I looked that comfortable and that welcoming because but without the slightest hesitation, the puppy curled up right then and there on my lap.

"Um?" I called again, much to no avail.

I was trapped utterly in her cute clutches.

My shoulders drooped, and I released a hearty chuckle. For the first time since I stepped foot in this house, my guard crumbled and disappeared.

I did show up here on a whim, but, this was definitely the icing on top of the cake.

Imagine coming home to a scene like this every day.

A mom like Mrs. Riri.

An adorable pet.

A warm and welcoming house.

Here I was, at my rival's house—literal enemy territory—and all I could think about was how I never wanted to leave.

This was a news story for the ages, all right.

What was wrong with me?

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Hi, I changed the format of the chapters + chapter titles since I can't really make up my mind 😂 I hope it's not too bad.

If you enjoyed the chapter, please remember to Vote/Comment! See ya in the next update! <3