After the last class, Eiko, Fumie, and I were cleaning up duty with a few other people from class. Eiko and two other students were moving the desks to the side of the class, so Fumie and her group could clean the floor, and I stood at the window cleaning some erasers. Rin, as far as I know, either went home or to her after school activity; I still had questions I wanted to ask her, oh well.

“Hey, Chiara!”

I looked out the window at the soccer field below; Katautoshi was waving up at me, I guess he saw me cleaning and wanted to say hi. He doesn’t always yell up at me, but I guess he wants to check up on me since this morning I wasn’t acting like myself. I waved down at him, to show acknowledgment that I heard him call up to me. His soccer uniform like the team’s practice was more intense than what I’ve heard; soccer shorts covered in dirt, his white uniform shirt covered by a colored mesh top covered in dust, and his soccer shoes and socks completely covered in dirt; even the back of his shirt was covered in dirt.

“Looks like we’ll be heading back home separately,” he shouted up at me; I suppose he’s going to want me to relay the message to my grandparents so that I could cover his shift, but I don’t know for sure. He’s so odd, this is probably the first time in a while that he yelled at me during practice, we’ve had small conversations at the inn or at school, but nothing significant. Of course, I don’t usually see him after school; I’m usually at the inn working, at home doing homework, or at the library studying with Fumie and Eiko.

I merely smiled and waved again, letting him know that I got the message; then watched him take off after the team captain called him back to practice. I sighed and continued to clean the erasers. I kept thinking about what Rin said and happed the other day. What could the final gift be? Has it arrived at the house already? Could I be dreaming about a past life? Are they related to the monks’ gifts? And how are all the gifts related to one another? I sighed again, then the feeling something lean against the back of my head and shoulders.

“Wha’cha day dreamin’ ‘bout, Chi,” Eiko asked while leaning against her broom, which was leaning against me.

“I’m not daydreaming,” I responded trying to shrug her off of me.

“Really? ‘Cuz you’ve been beating the same eraser for the past five minutes,” she said putting more of her weight against me as she leaned over and pointed at the eraser in my hand.

I looked at my hands, she’s right; actually, I started to make an indentation in the area of the eraser I was cleaning. I could tell she noticed my embarrassment because she broke out laughing. “You’re such a space cadet,” she continued to laugh at my expense. Then yelled at the other students when they started to laugh or stopped working and tried to figure out why she was laughing so hard. When she finally calmed down, she leaned on me again, “So, wha’cha thinkin’ about?”

I sighed, but didn’t look up at her like I normally would when something’s bothering me.

“That bad, huh?”

“No, it’s just…well, it’s hard to say,” I sputtered out, “a few days ago, I helped someone, then at the cemetery, I thought I saw some spirits and that they said something strange things…” I twisted the events so Eiko wouldn’t know the truth; or rather, think differently of me, but I also want to protect her in case the final gift is something horrible.

“And…,” she egged on. I guess her curiosity got the best of her.

“Well, um…wh-when we got home…,” I started; I can’t tell her about the gifts. I took a deep breath, and opened my mouth to tell her everything, when…

                           Ring-a-ding-ding!

“One sec,” Eiko said as she moved off of me and dug for her cell phone in her trench coat jacket pockets. Then a squeal came from her when she saw the Caller ID. She looked at me with pleading eyes, like a puppy who wanted to go outside; I rolled my eyes and waved her off. She walked away, in a very giddied motion, like she normally gets when a cute guy calls her.

Fumie walks over to me, looking back at Eiko every so often, then back at me, “What’s up with Eiko-san?”

I sighed with a small smile, “Our Yankee seems to have a new boyfriend.”

Fumie and I started to laugh, and after we finished our clean up duties, leave the classroom with our school briefcases. We walked down to the lockers to change out our school slippers to our outdoor shoes, and walked to the main gate.

“Alright, well…see you tomorrow,” Fumie said and waved goodbye.

“Yeah, be careful on your way to the cram school and on your way back home,” I said and waved.

After our goodbyes, I pulled out my cell phone from my bag and dialed my house number, and got the machine.

Hey grandmother and grandfather, I’m coming home. Katautoshi’s practice is going to be running late, so I’m going to help out at the inn. Ok, I’ll see you at home. Bye, bye.

                                -CLICK-

I walk to the bus stop and got on when it arrived, the bus was mostly empty so I could sit anywhere starred outside the window and watched the world pass by. I guess I zoned out because I made it home faster than usual. As I walked up to my house I noticed something that wasn’t there this morning.