The sun shone brightly and warmly onto a beautiful street filled with people and various stores screaming with personality.
The streets were bustling today, with significantly more people than usual, thanks to the wonderful weather.
The air was warm but not hot, and the sun shone with just the right amount of light to not feel irritating. Even the heat from the food stalls all around the streets couldn't effect this perfect environment. In fact, the smells and displays of all the uniquely made foods add to the liveliness of the area.
Standing in the middle of all of this was a pair of siblings, an older brother who was in dark casual wear and a younger sister who wore a simple but outstanding outfit.
If anyone were to look at them side by side, they'd instantly be able to tell that they were related; albeit their clothes were different, but with their red orange hair alongside their smooth orange eyes, No one could mistake them for anything other than siblings.
"I wonder what Mom and Dad are doing right now, do you, Ren?" The younger sister asked her older brother, smiling and acting clueless
"I-I don't know, probably work. They just don't want us to bother them, right? You know they're doing their best for us, so let's not be annoying, Rekka. Wow! Look at that stall over there I think it's new, we should go check it out" Ren blabbered in response to his younger sister's question. Nervously trying to change the subject
This was not the first time Rekka had asked this question today. In fact, she had asked it about five times now, but at this point, her purpose for asking wasn't to find out the answer anymore. Instead, she does it purposefully to tease her older brother to see what he does in response.
Ren tried his best to not act overly suspicious, but due to them being siblings, Rekka clearly saw through his act but pretended like she didn't know just to mess with him.
(Hehe, he's far too easy to read.) Rekka chuckled internally
Unknown to her, Ren was also able to see through her act; he just couldn't do anything about it.
Rekka was not really looking for an answer in the first place since she already had a good idea of what they were up to, so she just stopped listening halfway through, until something caught her eye.
"Oh hey, look, they're having a sale today!" Rekka's orange eyes shimmered.
Holding her right hand up, Rekka pointed at a whimsical-looking shop and ran in without waiting for Ren's response.
"I—" Ren's words got stuck as he watched helplessly at Rekka departing figure.
(Haaah... Of course it's that store), Ren thought, frustratedly.
The store mentioned had an immaculate exterior not dissimilar to a theme park's architecture and environment. There were various pictures and, models of toys and common pet animals lining the windows of the store, displaying their specialty while also adding to its whimsical appearance, promoting the sense of childlike wonder.
Due to Rekka's act earlier, some people who were passing by couldn't help but be curious about the sudden burst of noise coming from Rekka. Unfortunately however, because Rekka was out of the picture, the passerbys had no choice but to divert their attention to her older brother who was ditched by her.
(C'mon, couldn't you wait for me?) Ren thought as looked around nervously, clearly feeling the gazes on him
Helpless to the current situation, Ren followed Rekka into the store, trying his best to hide from the gazes.
"Ding ding ding!* As Ren entered the store, the door chimed, alerting the store clerk of the arrival of another customer.
"Oh, hi, Ren, you're here as well." The cashier greeted Ren with familiarity
Knowing that Ren was probably looking for his sister, the cashier then gestured in a direction with her head.
Looking in that direction, you will be able to see Rekka going rampant at the plushie section.
"Haaaah... Yup, and today is Rekka's birthday too." Ren sighed and vented
"Don't look so down; today is your lucky day since we're having a sale" the cashier attempted to cheer Ren up.
Ren planned to get Rekka a present today but didn't know what to get, so this was actually a good opportunity for him, and he seemed to have realized this as well.
"I guess you're right." Ren smiled and showed his gratitude to the cashier.
"I'll even give you guys a special discount" the cashier smiled warmly as she began feeling nostalgic
Ren had been coming to this store since he was 2 years old, before Rekka was even born, and throughout all those years, the store workers had gotten very well acquainted with their family, and in a way, the workers here are kind of like their uncles and aunts.
(I can't believe Ren is 15 now; it feels like it was just yesterday when Ren ran around our shop for the first time), the cashier reminisced fondly.
Light footsteps scampered from all the way across the room, and within less than a second, the culprit began tapping on Ren's back.
"Hey, Ren, Isn't this the new set for the card game you play?" Rekka held out a pack of cards.
Ren was surprised; he wasn't expecting Rekka to suddenly appear. Just a second ago, Rekka was on the other end of the room, but without him noticing, Rekka had somehow appeared behind him and even took a pack of cards that Ren was sure she wasn't holding before.
"..."
Ren was left speechless and instinctively took the pack of cards from Rekka's hands
Snapping out of his stupor, Ren looked at the pack of cards he now held and got really excited.
"It is!" Ren's inadvertently raised his voice as his eyes brighten.
"Alright then, I'm going back to the plushies~" Rekka sang and ran back to where she was.
As Rekka left, Ren came to his senses and looked around nervously, hoping that he didn't bother anyone with his voice.
"I'll buy this..." Ren said in a quiet voice as he placed the pack of cards onto the counter.
Taking the pack of cards, the store clerk smiled pitifully at Ren as she watched what Ren has to deal with every day.
"Alright then, that'll be 3.99," the store clerk said, with practiced ease.
"C'mon, hurry it up, Ren."
Suddenly Rekka appeared again, but this time she had a plushie in between her arms, hugging it.
Even the store clerk was surprised this time; even though she had a clear view of the store, she still didn't see where Rekka came from.
(How did she-) Before the cashier could finish her thoughts were interrupted.
"Hello, Miss Sayla," Rekka waved to the cashier.
"H-hi," the cashier, Sayla stuttered as she returned the greeting.
At this point, Ren didn't even react anymore. Learning to expect this from his sister, Ren sighed as he pulled out his wallet from his right pocket. pulling out a card with unique patterns
*haaaaa....* Ren sighed as he felt the gazes of the people in the store hovering on them.
Like he was repeating a familiar gesture, Ren slipped half of his card into a familiar device used for payment. Familiar with its activation requirement Ren's right hand began to glow orange as he Ren flared up his Node to infuse a tiny bit of Node into the card he was holding.
*Beep*
As soon as Ren infused Node into his card, the device beeped and subsequently printed a receipt, proving that the payment went through
After that, Ren pulled his card out of the device, took his pack of cards, and moved to the side with his hands still glowing.
"Excuse me~" Rekka said as she glided past her brother to get to the counter.
"This will be all!" Rekka sang as she placed a cat plushie she was holding onto the counter.
The cat plushie was 3D with cartoony features, and from the looks of it, it seemed to be on a 1-to-1 scale to an actual cat.
(Which pocket is it in again?) Rekka thought as she searched through each of her pockets, one by one.
(There it is!) Rekka celebrated as she pulled out a card to the one Ren used before from her shirt pocket.
Rekka was just about to flare up her Node to pay for her plushie when Ren suddenly stepped in and inserted his card into the device to pay for it, dismissing his Node activation right afterwards, turning his hand back to its natural colors
Rekka was surprised; she never expected her brother to take the initiative like that, but either way, she's extremely happy about it
"Thank you!" Rekka sincerely expressed her gratitude, as she grabbed her new plushie from the counter, hugging it tightly like it's the most precious thing in the world
Watching this scene, Ms. Sayla smiled. Continuing to watch the scene for a bit long, Sayla waited until Rekka attention was on something else other than them, before using her hand to gesture for Ren to come near.
"Get her another one, and I'll add on an extra discount just for you." Ms. Sayla whispered inti Ren's ear.
Hearing this, Ren got flustered and tried to silently refuse Ms. Sayla's offer because he'll feel bad.
As a response, Ms. Sayla looked at Ren sternly and gestured toward the plushie section of the store with mild intensity, somewhat misunderstanding Ren's intentions.
"I can pay for it myself; you don't need to add another discount" Ren whispered to Ms. Sayla, trying to clear up the misunderstanding.
Ren's voice slightly wavered nearing the end of his whisper. The reason being is because he finally noticed the price of the cat plushie he just bought Rekka, causing him to suck in a hiss as he struggled to commit himself to buy another plushie for Rekka without the discount Ms. Sayla offered
Noticing this, Ms. Sayla smiled and gestured toward the direction of the plushie section again, but this time, with a much warmer demeanor.
Even without exchanging words, Ren knew what Ms. Sayla was getting at. Shamefully he showed his appreciation to Ms. Sayla by bowing and then turned around to deliver the good news to Rekka.
"Let's go to the plushie section; I'll buy you one more plushie of your choice," Ren said to Rekka with a crumbling smile.
Hearing the good news, Rekka's eyes widened and sparkled, her mouth displayed shock at first but then twisted into a bright smile afterwards
"Really!" Rekka asked in disbelief.
"Yes..." Ren's smile changed after seeing how happy his sister was. From crumbling to genuine and warm
Rekka never expected Ren to voluntarily buy her a second plushie. She was already content enough as is with a new cat plushie, but after seeing her fairly timid older brother take initiative to do something like this, it made her appreciate her presents even more.
"Let's go then," Rekka said jovially, hyper and ready to pounce at any second.
Sensing Rekka's expectant eyes, Ren unconsciously nodded. However, before Ren's nod was even ended, Rekka had already disappeared from his line of sight.
"Right..." Ren showed an exhausted smile and followed after his sister.
As Ren was heading there, he noticed that the plushie section was different from it's usual organized appearance. Although the plushies weren't organized in any particular order in terms of theme, they were divided into three different sections in terms of discount.
The first section at the back of store was tempered with, as it held the non-discounted plushies, which leaves us with the other two. Both of these two sections held all the ranging from 10% to 90% off plushies, but both of them varied as well. One of the two held plushies ranging from 10% to 50% off, while the other one held plushies that were discounted all the way down to 90%, starting from 60%
Looking at the discounted sections, it looks like most of the good ones had already been poached by people before them, leaving only the mediocre plushies. Although, in the right hands, it can still be something to treasure.
After looking among the crowd of people surfing around the discounted plushies, Ren finally caught Rekka looking around the highest discounted section.
Walking up to Rekka, Ren suddenly felt the urge to spook her. After being on the other end of Rekka's antics so many times, a small grudge had built up within, and now it seemed like the perfect time to release it.
All of Ren's usual timidity suddenly disappeared. As he hid behind a shelf and everywhere he could afterwards, slowly making his way to Rekka bit by bit.
People around them looked at Ren strangely as they began to notice him sneaking around the store like a spy.
Usually Ren would've fallen prey to those gazes, spiraling into a nervous wreck, but currently, it was like his vision was linear, only showing him the path he seeks.
Finally making his way behind her, Ren saw Rekka digging through a bin filled with plushies. Her back was hunched, and half her head was in the bin.
It was then that Ren saw the perfect opportunity. He snuck up, sticking close to her back, and in that moment, Ren raised his finger and poked the unsuspecting Rekka in the back.
"Ahhhh!" Rekka screamed as she felt the ominous poke make contact.
Rekka pounces backwards like a bunny, looking around left, right, up, down, and finally center, where she found the culprit to her discomfort and surprise.
It is extremely rare for someone to successfully sneak up behind Rekka, sometimes, Rekka even goes through long periods of time of not being snuck up on by anyone or anything. So, on the rare occasion, that someone successfully sneaks up on her, she couldn't help but exaggerate her reaction
(Hahah, that's what you get.) Ren celebrated internally while not letting his true emotions show.
"Have you found the plushie you want yet?" Ren asked in a neutral tone, trying his hardest to conceal his amusement.
"Aaaa... Oh!" Rekka went from dazed to excited in seconds.
At that moment, Rekka seemed to remember what she was doing before. She didn't answer Ren and instead, kept on digging through the bin.
"Er... What are you looking for?" Not minding Rekka's disregard, Ren asked her curiously.
At that moment, Rekka stopped moving. With almost half of her body in the bin, it seemed like she was holding onto something. She tried to get out using only her legs but failed.
Ren watched this scene for a while, confused by Rekka's actions until a defeated voice came out from where Rekka's head should be in the bin of plushies.
"Can you pull me out, please, Ren?" Rekka pleaded in a muffled voice.
Realizing why Rekka hadn't gotten out of the bin yet. Ren, without saying a word, walked to where her feet were and started pulling her out, bit by bit.
"Alright! I can get out on my own now," Rekka said when her feet touched the ground.
Hearing her statement, Ren stopped and waited for her to get out on her own.
Like an ostrich pulling its head out of the ground, Rekka's arched body turned straight, and in her hand, she held up a fish plushie, the size of about 4 apples, like it was the most valuable treasure in the world.
"This is it!" Rekka announced as she looked at Ren with determined eyes.
Even Ren was mesmerized for a second; it looked almost like the fish was glowing, but it was just an illusion since, from Ren's angle, the fish was actually directly in front of a light source.
Shaking his head to snap himself out of his mesmerized state, Ren's eyes cleared up and his demeanor returned back to normal.
Looking around him, it seemed like the people around him were just as mesmerized as he was. Taking advantage of the situation, Ren gently pulled Rekka by the elbow and brought her to the counter before they start accumulating stares.
...
Ms. Sayla just finished ringing up one of the customers when she saw a familiar pair of siblings that share the same red-orange hair wander up to the counter with a fish plushie in hand.
Ms. Sayla looked at the fish plushie for a second, and looked back at the siblings with a face that said, (Really? This was what you chose...)
Perfectly deciphering Ms. Sayla's thoughts, Ren shrugged his shoulders nervously and looked at Rekka, who was entranced by the strange fish plushie she found
Looking at Rekka's passionate eyes, Ms. Sayla gave off a crumbling smile and scanned the bar code on the fish without saying anything.
(Oh yeah, I promised them an additional discount), Ms. Sayla thought as she remembered.
Ren had already pulled out his card and activated his Node, ready to pay, when he was suddenly stopped by Ms. Sayla before he could insert his card.
"Please, wait just a moment," Ms. Sayla smiled as she held her hand out in a stopping gesture.
Ren knew what this was about, and since he was found out, all he could do was smile guiltily and watch Ms. Sayla input some commands on the payment device.
Right as Ms. Sayla inputted the last command, her hand glowed light blue, and as a final confirmation, Ms. Sayla injected the device with some of her Node, and finally, without much wait, the price on the screen changed from 5.50 to 0.20.
Seeing the drastic decrease in price, Ren's pupils shrunk in surprise. He couldn't fathom that the price was lower by that large of a margin; he thought when Ms. Sayla talked about a discount that it was going to be 25% at most. But now, as he looked at the price, he suddenly felt uncomfortable receiving it.
"If you're not going to pay for it, then I will." Noticing Ren's behavior, Ms. Sayla smiled deviously and said
"Eh!" Ren exclaimed in surprise.
"W-Wait," Ren stumbled with his words.
After a second of weighing his options, Ren finally came to the conclusion that he can't do anything to fight it.
"Fine..." Ren relented and reluctantly inserted his card into the machine and infused his Node into it to confirm the payment.
"Do you need a plastic bag?" Ms. Sayla smiled and asked
"Nope," Rekka answered, unbeknownst to the battle of egos that just happened between her brother and Ms. Sayla.
Earlier, if Ren had stalled for even a second, Ms. Sayla would've instantly paid for it, but luckily, Ren seemed to have caught on to her twisted plan, trapped by her ingenuity, and in the end, he had no choice but to accept her terms.
Defeated, Ren slumped tiredly to the entrance while Rekka hugged her new fish plushie with glee and joy, creating a hilarious image as two siblings walked side by side
As the siblings left the toy store, Ms. Sayla, who was watching them leave can't help but see a mirage of Ren and Rekka when they were younger.
(Kids should stay kids forever.) Ms. Sayla thought internally.
...
Exiting the store, the huge change in ambience caught Ren a bit off guard, causing him to freeze up. They spent so much time in the serene environment of the toy store that he forgot how bustling the streets were today.
"C'mon, Ren, let's go!" Rekka pulled Ren's arm, trying to get him to move.
On the other hand however, Rekka wasn't perturbed by this at all; she even walked freely alone about 3 meters before she noticed her brother wasn't with her.
"Alright, alright, don't pull." Ren snapped out of his stunned state and complained lightheartedly.
Hearing her brother, Rekka stopped, and without saying anything, she continued on her way slowly, waiting for Ren to catch up.
"Where did your cat plushie go, by the way?" Ren asked out of curiosity while walking beside his sister.
"Oh! It's in my backpack," Rekka answered and patted her backpack.
Nodding, Ren's vision suddenly went to the fish plushie that Rekka was hugging.
"Why didn't you put away the fish plushie as well then?" Ren asked, slightly embarrassed that his sister was hugging her fish plushie out in public.
"Well... it probably wouldn't fit in it, but more importantly, it's because it's so huggable." As Rekka ended her answer, she hugged the fish plushie tighter.
Ren doesn't get it, but he does understand why she couldn't put it into her backpack now. Especially after looking at how bloated it already is, so it's better to not strain it.
...
As the siblings walked together, looking around the stores and scouting out restaurants, Ren occasionally glanced at the fish plushie that Rekka was hugging, slightly curious about Rekka's previous proclamation about it
Unfortunately, his gazes didn't go unnoticed, and now it seemed like Rekka was going to confront him about it.
"You want to try it out?" Rekka held out the fish plushie to Ren with a teasing smile.
At first, Ren was a bit hesitant to take the fish plushie from his sister, but after she continued to insist, he had no choice but to accept it before they garnered more attention.
*Haaah...* Ren sighed in defeat and regretfully took the fish plushie.
Satisfied with her work, Rekka swung around her now free hands. Running circles around her brother, looking at this and that around them as they walked
(Why are you like this...) Ren thought to himself as he hugged the plushie his sister forced on him
"Hey Ren, are we going out to eat later?" Rekka asked, finally standing still.
Behind Rekka was a very contorted and colorful-looking building with numerous enclosures blending into its architecture.
The building was about as big as a three-story house, and the enclosures had all kinds of fun animals in them, ranging from burrowing hamsters to a fluffy snake.
"Uh... maybe..." Ren looked at his sister suspiciously while hugging the fish plushie.
Hearing her brother's answer, Rekka used her eyes to gesture for Ren to look at the building behind her. After that, she looked down and fidgeted her leg while smiling nervously.
*Haaaah...* Ren sighed and gave in.
...
The light throughout the whole street suddenly got dimmer, like it was being shrouded by shadow.