Beyond the Mountaintop - The First Fall: Ito

 

Hello and welcome back to my rotational gameplay. This time we are playing the Ito's who we met with Siobhan!

I'm not sure if my game is buggy but apparently the town is supposed to be full of lore but no one in my town has any relationships outside of their families so... I ended up trying to fill in the cracks that were missing along with adding storylines of my own.

Enjoy!

As her family slept, Nanami found refuge in her fairy tales. As she read, torch held firmly in her hand, dimming light shining on each and every page, she imagined a world of princess with carriages and balls and beautiful dresses.

Every turn she made, the page rustled against her skin, her bedsheets. She paused, waiting.  Upon hearing nothing, Nanami returned back to her imaginary world.

Morning broke over the Ito household and the family awakened to a glowing Sunday morning. The first day of fall. The trees in the garden were beginning to turn a rich golden and fiery red and the humid heat of summer was withering away into the gentle chill of an autumn breeze.

The first thing Kiyoshi does is checking his social media timeline. As he chuckled to himself about new memes popping up into his view and rolling his eyes with the worst takes he had ever seen about his favourite movies and TV shows, Nanami strolls in with a cheeky glint in her tired eyes.

The moment Kiyoshi heard her footsteps, he clicked off of the profile he had just viewed and sighed.

“You know, if you really like that new girl, you could just ask her out?” Nanami mentioned as she approached her brother’s desk. “Or did you think I wasn’t that inquisitive?”

“No, I know,” Kiyoshi muttered. “And it’s not as simple as just asking her out. I don’t even know her name.”

As he admitted this, he immediately saw the massive grin spread over Nanami’s face. She had immediately taken this to mean that a, she was incredibly right, and b, that her brother was just as awkward as any teenage boy in her favourite TV shows.

Just as she was about to tease him further, their mother’s voice rang through the house.

“Nanami! Come help me with breakfast!”

“What’s on the menu, okaasan?” Nanami asked as she approached the kitchen. There was a second of still, stunned silence as Megumi nearly chopped the tip of her index finger off with the blade.

“I was thinking,” Megumi started, inspecting her hand carefully. “Dumplings.”

Megumi grabbed another metallic bowl for Nanami to help create the dipping sauce for the dumplings.

As she poured in the sesame oil, the soy sauce and vinegar splashed back in Nanami’s face. She let out a disgusted grunt.

“I think I’m getting the hang of this!” Nanami said triumphantly as she stirred the mixture together.

However, she immediately began to get ahead of herself and let the spoon and bowl take the lead, almost whisking it off the side of the counter.

As Megumi laid the plate of dumplings on the counter for the family to enjoy, a strange question popped into her head. Perhaps it was the bitter smell of half-burnt dumplings, or perhaps it was the fact that Winterfest was only a season away. Regardless, Nanami had the burning desire to ask about receiving presents you don’t really want.

Megumi replied with a placated: “If someone has gifted you a present, they have done it with you in mind. Be grateful and find the joy in it somehow.”

Nanami didn’t appreciate the answer but took it regardless. She grabbed a plate of dumplings and a side of sauce and dug in.

That afternoon, after some begging and persuading, the Ito family visit Hanamigawa Koen. There, Nanami immediately letout all of her rambunctious energy, climbing and swinging on monkey bars whilst her family entertained idle chit-chat.

Just as she was finishing on the monkey bars, Nanami accidentally stepped into a young boy.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Nanami immediately said, bowing politely. The boy smiled shyly and returned the bow.

“It’s my fault,” the boy said. “I wasn’t watching.”

“I’m Nanami Ito,” Nanami said.

“Taku Akiyama.”

The name sounded familiar but Nanami wasn’t sure where from.

Of course, with meeting a new kid, Nanami had to know just how Taku’s mind worked.

“So, what’s your favourite colour?” She asked and Taku seemed surprised.

He paused and thought before replying: “I like orange.”

Nanami nodded, a respectable answer. Taku was definitely worth her time.

“Hey, Taku, what’s going on?” A strange girl asked. She approached Taku and Nanami with a bewildered expression.

“This is Miki,” Taku explained. “She’s my twin. Miki, this is Nanami Ito.”

“Oh, hello,” Nanami said, suddenly feeling very shy.

As Nanami was learning to get along with the Akiyama kids, Naoki had other plans on his mind – namely, his son and his future successes.

“Do you have any idea what you’ll pursue at university?” He asked.

“Oh, uh,” Kiyoshi immediately faltered. “I… I don’t…” Truth be told, he wasn’t entirely sure if he was even planning on going to university. He had entertained the idea of leaving Mt Komorebi behind and moving to San Myshuno… To do what, exactly? He didn’t know that either.

“Anata,” Megumi said softly. “Kiyoshi has plenty of time to apply to universities.”

Naoki felt the urge to argue bubble in his throat but he left it alone. It was always hard trying to get his son to talk to him, but it was near impossible when Megumi was around.

As the sun began to set, painting the park in a vibrant glow, Nanami could tell her time with Taku was falling to a close.

“Tell me something fun about you,” Nanami then insisted. “That way if we meet again at school, I know it’s you.”

Taku chuckled. “Okay,” he said with a shrug. “I like art. A lot. I like a lot of art.”

“You like art?” Nanami questioned. She definitely wasn’t expecting that. Taku nodded with his same polite smile and then bid Nanami goodbye. He promised to find her at school. Nanami watched as he left the park. 

That evening, after the kids had gone to bed, Megumi suddenly felt a strange desire fall over her.

“You know,” she said in a low voice. “It’s been a while since we were alone.”

Naoki was shocked, his eyes widened. “Are you suggesting…?”

“Yes,” was all Megumi said.

The following day was a school day and Nanami returned home with a science project. Her teacher had informed her class that they needed to create a model solar system with every planet designed and painted as accurately as possible.

Nanami immediately got to work as soon as she got into the house.

Her brother, on the other hand, was trying out a foreign recipe of grilled cheese – something he had seen on his social media timeline.

“This smells…” he grimaced. “I hope it tastes good.”

Nanami didn’t have to work on her project alone for long as her mother was eager to help her when she returned home from work.

Nanami clapped her hands with joy when she finished the model knowing that she would get the extra credit she needed to move into a B grade.

That morning Kiyoshi woke up with bitterness in his stomach. He wasn’t sure where it had come from but all he knew was that everything made him irritable. Even the fact that he couldn’t make his bed correctly sent him into a spiral of hate and anger.

His mother used to jog away her worries when he was growing up and he figured it was worth a try but as soon as he stepped out with the intention of jogging he immediately felt a sense of dread.

“Oh God,” he thought. “This is terrible!”

He decided, on his way home, that he will never ever go jogging – or do any kind of exercise – again.

“Good morning, anata,” Megumi said. “I have exciting news, I took a day off work.”

Naoki smiled lovingly and caressed his hand against her soft cheek. “Me too,” he said.

Suddenly an idea came over Megumi. “Let’s go to the mountain and do some skiing! I’ve been craving to get up there for a while.”

Naoki was hesitant but agreed when he saw the happiness in his wife’s eyes.

When they got to the summit, Megumi looked over the safety information about the mountainous area.

“It says that the weather is perfect today,” Megumi informed her husband.

“That’s great,” Naoki said. “But, I’m starving. Can we eat first?”

“That gives me an idea!” Megumi said.

“Last one down has to pay for our meals!” Megumi shouted as she readied her skis against the packed snow.

“W-wait!” Naoki called after her, unsteady on his own skis.

Megumi couldn’t stop grinning. She hadn’t had this much fun in a long time. Skiing had been one of her first loves as a teenager, and even though she could hear the wail of her low-skilled husband behind her, all she could feel was the same exhilaration from her youth.

Megumi reached the bottom long before Naoki.

“That was fun,” she said, her breath slightly staggered. Her heart raced and her fingers tingled but soon it faded away, leaving an emptiness in her heart.

What Megumi needed was to hit the big slopes, but she knew if she wanted to do that, she’d have to do it alone. And that was never going to happen.

When Naoki finally reached the bottom of the slopes, Megumi was ready to tease him about buying lunch when a familiar face caught her eye.

“Oh my- Kado?”

The man stopped walking and turned at the mention of his name. “Megumi?” He questioned, squinting at her face so slightly. “Wow!”

Naoki looked between his wife and this strange man and didn’t enjoy the look their eyes held.

Megumi was the first to talk.

“Kado was my… um… high school boyfriend,” she explained. “Though he was much cuter back then, haha.”

An embarrassed blush crept over her face.

Naoki seemed to sense the embarrassment and joined in. “Ah, well, I’m sure he’s grateful for such a compliment.”

Kado appeared much smoother in regards to Megumi’s blurted comment. He smiled coolly.

“I think we were all much cuter back when we were teenagers,” he said, his voice deep, smooth like rich chocolate.

Megumi giggled a little more, chiding herself for suddenly being so flighty.

“Right,” Naoki agreed, eyeing his wife carefully. “I think the food stand is opening and I’m starving. See you around Kado!”

As Naoki dug into his miso ramen, Megumi daydreamt about her past life with Kado. Now, there was a guy who could matching her skiing prowess. She could easily tackle the biggest of big slopes with him.

She listened to her husband slurp his noodles and decided that daydreaming was far too dangerous when he was this close. She didn’t even know he was in town anymore!

She would be happy with Naoki because Naoki was her charming husband who devoted himself to his family.

And Kado was the dream that slipped away.

The next morning Megumi woke up earlier than usual and decided to go for a morning jog.

As she traversed the depth of her neighbourhood, a sly part of her wondered if she’d bump into Kado along the way. What would she do if she did? Her heart beat raced as she imagined herself being slammed into the trunk of a tree whilst Kado-

Nope. What happened in her teenage years would stay there. Now it was Kiyoshi’s turn to feel the wonders of a first love.

And then Megumi wondered when that would actually be…

Rain poured along the plains of Mt Komorebi. It bounced from the jewelled leaves and soaked into the ground.

Autumn was finally settling in.

Unfortunately for Kiyoshi, with the change in weather brought a horrific mood swing.

It was like a hot broth boiling over. Everything felt so wrong and uncomfortable in his life.

He was single and still too awkward to talk to the new cool girl at school. His grades weren’t as good as he would like it. He still felt that silent pressure from his father to pick a major for university. The property prices of San Myshuno were looking incredibly steep too…

Thankfully Megumi was there to hug it out with him.

“You know what makes me feel better?” She said.

“If you say jogging, I’ll throw up,” Kiyoshi half-joked. Megumi laughed.

“No, when I feel sad I like to go and cry in bed for a bit. There’s something comforting about being in your bed and sobbing until you can’t anymore. And, when you're finished, we'll be down here waiting for you."

And so that was what Kiyoshi did.

He couldn’t help but admit he felt better after that.

The following day Nanami decided to tackle Kiyoshi about his love life.

“Do you know her name yet?” She asked over her geometry book.

“Who? Oh…” Kiyoshi began to stutter. “Well- I- it’s…”

“You know, you’re not ugly or a horrible person, niisan,” Nanami said. “If she’s smart, she’ll like you just as much.”

“Heh… Thanks, Nanami,” Kiyoshi said with a half-smile.

Only 24 hours passed by before another child picked up a phase. This time it was Nanami. Desperate to stand out, she decided to become a bear, because bears are cute and cuddly, but also scary.

However, she couldn’t wear her bear costume at school and that made her day unbearably sad.

That night Kiyoshi received a text from a girl at his school, Yua.

The Festival of Light is on. Don’t be a dork and come down town. I’ll introduce you to the new girl. She wants to make friends.

Whilst at the festival, Kiyoshi divulged in one of the delicacies – matcha taiyaki.

He dug into the sweet bread and enjoyed the hint of grassy bitter notes of the matcha. It was a treat he wasn’t allowed often, but when he was, it was the best food he had ever eaten.

Yua showed up 10 minutes later.

“Sorry about the wait. Apparently the new girl can’t come. Her grandma needed help cooking dinner.”

“Ah,” Kiyoshi muttered.

“You’re disappointed,” Yua noticed.

“No! No!” Kiyoshi lied. “I’m happy to be here with you, Yua. Let’s go make a wish on the tanabata.”

“You look very cute in your kimono,” Kiyoshi said.

Yua smiled, a blush reaching her ears. “Oh, um. Thanks, Kiyoshi… You look great too- but you always look great – I mean!”

Kiyoshi chuckled along with Yua as she dissolved into an embarrassed fit of giggles.

“Are you sure you’re not disappointed with the new girl not coming?” Yua asked.

“I’m sure,” Kiyoshi replied, and this time, he wasn’t lying.

After the festivities ended, Kiyoshi returned home.

He completely missed the new girl’s late arrival to the festival.

“Is that Kiyoshi Ito?” she whispered to herself before continuing through the street.

The last day of the week also happened to be Spooky Day.

The house was decked out in the best spooky décor.

Naoki, first to wake up, at the strange inkling to cook breakfast for his family before realising half-way through that he despised this hobby.

Cooking was stressful and time wasting, he mumbled to himself. But nevertheless, he still completed his task and made his family a simple breakfast of eggs and toast.

One of the Ito’s favourite things to do during Spooky Day was to dress up in costume but it seemed that Megumi didn’t get the memo.

“Are we doing a Star Wars thing?” She asked as she looked from her son, dressed as Boba Fett, to her husband donning Luke Skywalker’s costume. She sighed. “Fine.”

She returned moments later dressed as Princess Leia.

“Are you Leia before The Empire Strikes Back or after?” Naoki joked and Megumi frowned.

“Don’t be so disgusting, anata.”

The Ito kids had never carved pumpkins before, as Nanami had been too young before and Kiyoshi didn’t want to do the activity alone. But, now Nanami was old enough, Kiyoshi was eager to do pumpkin carving with his little sister.

As dusk fell, Kiyoshi invited Yua over for a small party.

To Kiyoshi’s surprise, and hidden delight, Yua had succeeded in bringing the new girl.

“Her name is Kaori,” Yua whispered into Kiyoshi’s ear as they shared a hug.

“It’s cute that we’re matching,” Kaori mentioned as they sat down at the dining table. The smell of ramen filled the kitchen.

“Don’t lie, just say you planned it,” Kiyoshi joked and Kaori let out a loud laugh.

“You wish! But we can totes be a pirate couple – just for tonight.”

As Kiyoshi and Kaori hit it off, Yua began to pout and frown before storming off.

“I need the bathroom,” she muttered but neither Kaori or Kiyoshi heard her. Even after the party came to a close neither of them had noticed that Yua had left earlier.

As winter fell over the quiet town, the Ito family fell into a peaceful sleep, tucked into their warm beds. Their favourite holiday had been a success and they all fell into a peaceful dream with warm, full hearts.

Thankyou so much for reading! Next time, we'll be visiting the Akiyamas. Will the drama begin?