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The final bell rang, and Mizuha packed her books and thought, Hmm, about the picnic we planned this weekend—what things do I need to prepare for it? Oh, I’d better ask Mom later.
Mizuha then noticed Elly approaching Zul's desk behind her. "Zul, please wake up, or we'll be late to visit her. Today is the day we promised to visit her," she said, rousing Zul, who had slept through the last class.
"Huh, is today that day? I forgot about that," Zul mumbled while packing his books.
Mizuha suddenly turned back to face Zul and asked, "You both seem rushed. Where are you guys going?"
"We're going to see my older twin sister today," Elly replied, surprising Shimizu who had just joined them.
"Wait, you have a twin? This is the first time I'm hearing about it!" Shimizu's eyes widened.
"But doesn’t she live with you? Why do you need to visit her?"Mizuha asked.
"It’s... not that simple," Elly said, lowering her voice. Both Mizuha and Shimizu seemed confused by Elly's statement.
"I know this is a bit complicated, but why don't both of you, including Hikaru, join us to meet her too? I can introduce you guys to her," she offered.
"Really? Are we not disturbing you guys?" Mizuha hesitated.
"Don't worry, you're not disturbing at all. I bet she'd want to see you guys too," replied Elly.
Mizuha messaged Hikaru, but he couldn't join due to plans with his parents.
The group headed for the train station. "Where's the place you want to meet her?" Shimizu asked.
"It's about four stations from our train station, about eight kilometers, I think."
"Oh, it's a bit far," Shimizu remarked as they boarded.
During the ride, Mizuha asked, "What kind of person is your older twin sister, Elly-chan? Can you tell us about her?"
Elly turned to Zul, who sat beside her, seeking his approval.
Zul nudged her gently. "It's okay, Elly. Just tell them."
Elly gave a short nod. "Alright," she said. "Let me tell you about her."
Her name was Arisa, the older twin sister. Her appearance had been identical to Elly's with blonde hair, polite tones when speaking, feminine and skilled at cooking.
Meanwhile, Elly had been boyish with short hair, acting without thinking but caring about people close to her - completely different from how she was now.
One day, during their third grade, both of them were playing on a swing at the playground together.
"Push me more, onee-chan, this is too slow, push me faster," said Elly.
"Yeah, like that onee-chan, faster! Yeah!" she added after the swing started going faster.
"Enough with it, Elly-chan, it should be my turn now. Your turn to push me," said Arisa.
"Wait, this is going to be fun. I don't want to stop," said Elly. After that, the swing slowly lost its momentum, and Elly swapped places with her sister.
"Ready, I'm going to push you now, hang on tightly," said Elly. "Three, two, one, go!" She pushed her sister's swing with all her energy.
"Wargh! Elly-chan, do it slowly, this is too fast!" Arisa shouted in fear.
"Huh, what? Faster? Okay!" said Elly, pushing even harder.
"Elly-chan, stop it!" Arisa cried out. Elly was laughing hard while watching her big sister being scared.
After the swing slowed and stopped, Arisa was upset with Elly and gave her a chop to the head. "Take this," said Arisa.
"What are you doing, onee-chan? It hurts, you know," said Elly, holding her head.
"This is for what you did earlier," said Arisa, maintaining her polite tone even while upset.
Suddenly, they heard the voice of a boy crying, "Stop! Give it back!" Zul shouted, reaching for his toy.
"Why should we?" One of the boys smirked, stepping on it. "It's ugly, just like you."
"He doesn’t even belong here," the other sneered. "Look at him—he’s not like us."
"I'm not a foreigner, I'm Japanese too. I was born here," said Zul, the boy being victimized by the two kids.
"Hey, onee-chan, look over there. That boy is being bullied by them."
"Let's go help him," said Elly, rushing to Zul.
"Elly-chan, wait, do not hurt them," said Arisa, trying to chase her little sister.
"Hey, what are you doing? Leave him alone," said Elly, confronting the bullies by herself.
"Huh? What do you want, you shortie? Want to save him?" said one bully.
"Leave him alone before I defeat you two," said Elly.
"Hahaha, who wants to beat us, shorty," they laughed. "Also, what's with those cute girly-looking clothes? They're for girls, you know."
"What's wrong with it? Well, I'm a girl, you know," said Elly.
"What? You're a girl? But why do you look like a boy?" asked the bullies.
"That's not important. First, eat this!" said Elly, landing her punch on the first bully's face, throwing him down.
"It hurts," he said while starting to cry.
"What's up with this shortie girl? Why is she so strong?" wondered the second bully. "How dare you hurt my friend? Take this!" He tried to punch Elly, but she quickly dodged and landed her own punch on his face, throwing him down too.
"It hurts," he cried out.
"Hey, let's get out of here. We are no match for this girl," said one of them.
"Yes, let's go," said the other one. "We'll remember this," they said and ran away.
"Ah, you made them cry," said Arisa. She then ran to Zul to check his condition. "Hey, are you okay?"
Arisa looked at Zul's face and wondered, "Huh, is he a foreigner?"
"I'm fine, but my toy... my toy was destroyed by them," said Zul, continuing to cry.
"Oh, he can speak Japanese," Arisa realized.
"You’re still crying?" Elly sighed, hands on her hips. "You’ll just let them win if you keep sobbing like that."
You're a boy, right?" said Elly. "A boy should not cry like that. You must stay strong," she added while helping Zul stand up, with help from her sister on the other side.
"Both of you, thank you for helping me!" said Zul, crying again.
"Why are you crying again?" said Elly. She then took her toy from inside her pocket and gave it to Zul. "Here, I'll give you my toy to replace your broken one. Now please stop crying."
"Oh Elly, you know how to make him stop crying. That's what I expected from my little sister," Arisa complimented Elly. Zul stopped crying and became calm after that.
"Thank you, both of you for helping me. Who are you?" asked Zul.
"Me? I'm Elly, Sakamoto Elly. This is my older twin sister, Arisa," said Elly, introducing herself and her sister.
"I'm Sakamoto Arisa. Nice to meet you. And you, what is your name?" said Arisa.
"I'm Zul. Nice to meet you," said Zul.
"Wait, wait, wait, what do you mean you were boyish back then?" Mizuha said, shocked to hear that Elly used to be boyish and reckless in her past.
"Is it really true, Zul? This cute, innocent girl used to punch two boys to save you? Am I hearing this correctly?" she asked again.
"No, you're not wrong. It really happened; I witnessed it with my own eyes," said Zul, smiling.
"That surprised you, right, Mizuha-chan?" Elly said, smiling with a chuckle.
"Of course I'm surprised! I can't believe it. You used to behave the same way as this person?" Mizuha said, pointing her finger at Shimizu.
Shimizu was drinking her water at that time when she suddenly spat it out after Mizuha made the statement and pointed at her.
"Hey, what do you mean 'the same as me'? That's so mean, Mizuha. I don't hit people without thinking about it first, you know," said Shimizu.
The four of them laughed together before Elly continued with her stories.
After that, Arisa had seen that Zul was very dirty because the bullies had stepped on him earlier.
"Ah, Zul-kun, you're so dirty. It must be from when they stepped on you earlier," said Arisa.
Arisa and Elly were also dirty after playing together.
"Oh, we're dirty too. Let's go home, Elly," said Arisa.
"You too, Zul. You need to clean yourself up first. Come along with us," said Elly.
Zul resisted and didn't want to go, but Elly dragged him along.
"Don't say anything, just follow us," she said.
They arrived at the twins' house. "Mom, we're back!" said both of the twins.
"Oh, welcome back," replied their mom. "Huh? Who did you bring back with you? Why is he so dirty and wounded? Did you do this to him, Elly?"
"No, no, it wasn't me. I saved him earlier," said Elly.
"Yes, both of them saved me from the bullies earlier," said Zul. "Thanks to them."
"You guys saved him?" asked the mother. "That's what I expect from both of my daughters."
"Mom, can he stay here for a moment and use our bathroom?" Arisa asked.
"Sure, why not? Go ahead and clean yourself up first. I'll get you a towel," said the mother.
"Hey, take off your clothes now. We're going to bathe," said Elly, dragging Zul to the bathroom.
"No way! I'm a boy, and you're a girl! That's just weird” said Zul blushing.
"Oh, that's right. I never thought about that," said Elly.
"You just noticed that? That's funny, Elly-chan," said Arisa, chuckling.
"Then you go bathe and clean yourself first, then it's my turn next," said Elly, pushing Zul into the bathroom.
Zul thought to himself, "What's her problem, forcing me like this?"
"Arisa, can you give this towel and clothes to him?" said her mother.
"Sure," said Arisa. She took the towel and clothes to give to Zul.
"Zul-kun, I put the towel and these clothes inside this basket."
"Oh, thanks," replied Zul.
After Zul finished his bath and dried himself using the towel, he looked at the clothes they had provided.
"What's up with these clothes? Why do they have flowers on them?" Zul thought to himself. "I have no choice but to wear this as my clothes are dirty. Thank goodness they didn't give me a skirt to wear, but short pants."
Zul exited the bathroom with those clothes on. "Zul-kun, what's with those clothes? You look so cute in them. My clothes really fit you!" said Elly, laughing heartily while Arisa chuckled.
Zul was blushing because he was embarrassed. He thought to himself, "How dare you two laugh at me?"
"You two, don't laugh at him like that. It's not good, you know," said their mother.
"I'm sorry, Zul-kun. These are the only clothes we have for you that aren't too girly. Please bear with it for a while. I'm washing your clothes now," she said.
"Ah, thank you, Sakamoto-san," said Zul.
"Why don't you two go take a bath too? You two are a bit smelly from playing earlier," said their mother.
"Ah, you're right. We are smelly too. Let's go bathe together, onee-chan," said Elly to Arisa.
"Yes, yes, let's go," said Arisa, joining Elly to bathe together.
While waiting for Arisa and Elly to finish their bath, Zul sat in the living room in an awkward situation.
This feels awkward… What am I supposed to do now? he wondered to himself.
Then Mrs. Sakamoto called Zul over to treat his earlier wound. "Zul-kun, come here. I'll treat your wound," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
Zul went to Mrs. Sakamoto, and she started to apply treatment to his wound. "Hold on, I'll start treating it," she said.
"It's finished," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Thank you, Sakamoto-san," said Zul.
"Zul-kun, this is the first time I've seen you in this neighborhood. Are you new here?" asked Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Yes, I just moved here a few days ago with my family," said Zul.
"By any chance, are you the son of the Malaysian couple who just moved to this neighborhood a few days ago?" asked Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Yes, that is my family. You already heard about us?" replied Zul.
"Well, I just heard from my neighbors. I haven't met your family yet," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"By the way, your Japanese is good. I'm surprised by it," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Well, my family moved to Japan before I was born, so I was raised here with Japanese influence. My parents also taught me Japanese."
"Oh, I see. That's why you can speak Japanese so fluently," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
Both Elly and Arisa finished their bath and exited the bathroom wearing only towels. Zul accidentally looked at both of them.
"Pervert! What do you think you’re looking at?!" said Elly upset. "How dare you look at onee-chan's sweet body!"
"Onee-chan, I'll protect and cover your body. Don't let him see your body," said Elly.
"Haha, well, you're a girl too, you know. Cover your body properly as well," said Arisa with a chuckle.
"Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to look at you," said Zul awkwardly, blushing.
"Both of you, what are you waiting for? Return to your room and put on some clothes now before you catch a cold," said their mother.
"Alright!" said both Elly and Arisa, running to their room.
"Sorry about that, Zul-kun. As for my twin daughters, especially Elly, she is a bit naughty compared to Arisa," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"It's okay," said Zul. "Are they always this close?"
"They’ve always been close. Arisa is the calm, responsible one, and Elly… well, she’s loud, a little rough, but she has a big heart. She’s always been protective of her sister" said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Oh, I see. I really envy them since I'm the only child in my family," said Zul.
"By the way, Mrs. Sakamoto, your appearance is somewhat different; you look a bit like a foreigner to me. Also, both you and your daughters have similar blonde hair," said Zul.
"Well, I'm half Japanese and half Russian. My father is Japanese, and my mom's Russian, so that's where our blonde hair comes from” said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"I see," replied Zul.
"We're back," said Elly after finishing changing their clothes. "Hey Zul, let's play! I brought a bunch of toys." Arisa quietly followed after her.
"Then Zul, go play with them first while waiting for your clothes to dry," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Understood," said Zul as he approached Elly and Arisa. "What should we play first?"
"You see..." said Elly.
The three of them enjoyed playing together with Elly as the center, leading the play while Zul was waiting for his clothes to dry.
After time passed and the clock showed 5:45 pm, Zul looked up. "Oh, it's late already. I need to return home before 6 pm; that's my family rule."
"Eh, that's so quick," said Elly. "I'm not happy to end like this suddenly."
"Sorry, you guys, maybe next time," said Zul.
"Zul-kun, here are your clothes. They're already dry. Please change into them, and we're going to send you back to your house," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"No need to send me; I can go home alone, by myself," said Zul.
"Don't worry about that. I plan to meet your parents too, to say greetings to them," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
At the Zul family house, Zul's mother was a bit worried because Zul had not yet returned home, and it was almost 6 p.m. "That boy still hasn't returned yet; where could he be?" she wondered.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. "Oh, somebody is coming? Who could it be?" She opened the door and saw Zul just arriving home.
"I'm back, Mom," said Zul.
"Where have you been, my dear? It's almost 6 p.m. You know I've said before not to come home too late," said his mother.
"Sorry mom, actually... I," said Zul.
"Excuse me, actually your son was playing with my daughters at my house earlier," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Eh, who are you? Sorry, I didn't notice you earlier," said Zul's mother as she noticed another person behind Zul.
"Sorry for coming unannounced. I'm Mrs. Sakamoto. I live in this neighborhood too—so, to put it simply, I'm your neighbor. You must be the ones who just moved here a few days ago, right? I heard about it from another neighbor," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Ah, you're my neighbor. Sorry, I didn't notice. I'm not used to this neighborhood yet," said Zul's mother. "Why don't you come inside? Maybe we can talk a bit."
Mrs. Sakamoto entered, and she explained how Zul had been bullied earlier, how her daughters had saved him, and how they had brought Zul back to their house.
"I see, so my son was saved by your daughters and ended up at your house afterward. I'm sorry if my son caused any trouble for your family," Zul's mother apologized.
"No, don't worry about that. He didn't cause any trouble. Also, he seemed to enjoy playing with my daughters afterward. He is a kind boy; I can see that," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Oh, I see. Anyway, thanks for taking care of my son earlier," said Zul's mother. "Zul, have you already thanked them for what they did for you earlier?"
"Yes, I have thanked them already," said Zul while continuing to play with Arisa and Elly.
"So, your daughters are twins, huh? Both of them seem happy playing with my son right now," said Zul's mother.
"It seems so," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Which one is the oldest and which one is the youngest?" asked Zul's mother.
"The one who is a bit quieter and has long hair is the older one, Arisa, and the younger one, who is the noisy one with short hair, is Elly," said Mrs. Sakamoto.
"Oh, I see. Even though they are identical, their personalities are different," said Zul's mother.
As the day turned dark, Mrs. Sakamoto noticed it was time for them to return home. "Oh, it's already dark. Sorry, I stayed a bit longer," she said.
"No, don't worry about that. I'm glad we could have a talk as neighbors. Please come again if you want," said Zul's mother.
"Arisa, Elly, it's time for us to go back home. Let's go," said Mrs. Sakamoto to her daughters.
"Not yet, I still want to play with Zul-kun," said Elly.
"Elly-chan, let's go home now. We'll come back here next time, okay?" said Arisa, persuading her little twin sister.
"Your sister is right; we can play again next time, okay?" said Zul.
"If both of you say that, then I'll just follow. I don't have a choice," said Elly.
"By the way, which school do you attend, Zul-kun?" asked Arisa.
"Huh, my school? I don't remember. What is it, Mom?" said Zul. His mother told them the name of the school and his grade.
"Oh, that's the same as me and my sister. Also, we're in the same grade," said Elly, excited that Zul would attend the same school as them.
"Then, see you both at school tomorrow. I don't know which class I'll be in yet, but I hope I'm in the same class as you guys," said Zul.
"Actually, Zul, I'm not in the same class as Elly, so you'll end up in either my class, Elly's class, or another class," said Arisa.
"Don't worry, onee-chan. It's okay if we're not in the same class. Being in the same school is enough for me," said Elly.
"That's right, Elly," said Zul.
"Mrs. Sakamoto, please accept this. It's some food I made for you. This is my gratitude for you and your daughters taking care of my son. Please share it with your family," said Zul's mother.
"Oh, thank you. I'll return this to you next time with some food I made as well," said Mrs. Sakamoto. "Arisa, Elly, let's go home now."
"Coming!" said both of them.
"See you tomorrow, Zul-kun," said Arisa.
"See you at school," said Elly.
"See you tomorrow at school too," said Zul.
As the three of them left Zul's house, his mother turned to him, her expression filled with pride. "I'm so glad for you, Zul. You've made some friends today, and they're twins too!
And I'm also grateful we have such kind neighbors," she added, her heart swelling with joy at the budding friendships in their new life.
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To be continue……Futagomonogatari II
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