(Ishida Shiki's POV)

Yamamoto and I made our way to the nearest park where we sat on the swings and chatted. Although he was only nine, he was more mature than most kids his age which I could only attribute to his neglectful parents. It wasn't like I couldn't understand him since I went through a similar thing in my first life.

I was born to a wealthy family with one older sibling. My parents were both incredibly successful in their fields of work with my father being a famous doctor and my mother, the CEO of her very own fashion design company. With such successful parents, it was a given that their children were expected to live up to their excellence.

And my older brother had no issue doing exactly that. He was born a musical prodigy and could play piano pieces by Mozart and Beethoven at the age of eight. By the time he was a teenager, he was already famous around the globe. In our city, his name became a household name and his pictures and posters were everywhere. His exceptional looks and talent garnered the attention and praise of thousands.

As for me, well, what can I say? I was born average. No talent for music, zero talent in fashion design, and I disliked the thought of becoming a doctor. I just didn't have it in me to excel at any of those things. 

Naturally, I became the black sheep of the family. People would look at me with pity in their eyes while whispering things such as;

'What a shame about him...'

'Looks like all the luck went to the first child...'

'How terrible he must feel to be so average in such a family.'

The worst part of it all was the fact that my parents didn't give a damn about me. At home, I was treated as a stranger that just happened to live and dwell in the same place as them. It was hurtful and degrading. I hated it.

By the time I grew up, I had had enough of their words and wanted to prove everyone wrong. Although I had no talent for the things my parents were expecting me to have, I had a passion for programming and software development. 

Branching away from the shadow of my family, I moved out to university where I studied further into my interests and in the process, created my first game. A very simple mobile game that I was able to sell to a gaming firm for a couple of thousand. With the money I earned, I saved it up along with my other earnings from part-time jobs. This money went towards funding my rent after I finished university and my new equipment and software for software development and programming.

As time went on, I developed more games and slowly made a stable income out of it until one firm requested to hire me for a project they were about to work on. With the fees they promised to pay me, I saw no reason to turn down the request and signed a temporary contract with them. It was the best decision of my life.

The project was an overwhelming success and due to my extensive contribution, they paid me way more than they needed to and even offered me a place at their company.

By this time, I was around thirty years old.

I didn't try to reconnect with my parents or older brother because I knew that if they did welcome me, it would only be because of my success. Not due to regret or guilt for having treated me like I was invisible for most of my life. 

I was content with my life as it was. Even though I didn't have a proper family, I had friends, a good job, and money. A girlfriend would've been nice but I was the type to commit to a long-term relationship instead of flings or one-night-stands. I wasn't ready for commitment yet as I was more passionate about my work so I didn't have a partner.

That was probably my one regret when I died.

However, now that I'm alive, perhaps I'd consider it.

"...-da-san..."

"Ishida-san!"

"Huh? What?" blinking confusedly, I looked up to find Yamamoto standing in front of me with his hands on his hips.

"I was talking to you for minutes and you weren't responding!" he exclaimed. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh uh no. I was just lost in thought for a bit," I replied with a chuckle. "What were you saying?"

"Hmph!" he snorted. Rolling his eyes, he muttered, "I was just wondering if you'd like to hang out again...this weekend..."

"As in...here or at the arcade?"

"A-Anywhere. I don't mind as long as you're there," he replied averting his eyes. "You're my friend aren't you?"

Observing his embarrassed face, I resisted the urge to pinch his cheeks and said, "Sure kid. We can meet up here again, if you want, on Saturday."

Yamamoto nodded his head vigorously, a grin sprouting on his features.

Looking down at his hands, he mumbled, "Y-You can call me Koji you know."

"If you want me to," I said with an amused grin. Reaching up, I ruffled and pat his head, "You can call me Shiki-kun in that case."

"A-Actually, can I call you Shiki-nii?" he suddenly requested. But then he waved his hands frantically, "Uh- that is- I mean if you're not okay with it - um-"

Stumbling over his words, his face slowly turned red and I quickly intervened saying, "Hey, calm down kid. You don't have to be shy about asking that. I don't mind being called 'Shiki-nii' but, I don't think I'd be able to live up to your expectation of a brother."

"What?" Yam- Koji's mouth dropped open. "What do you mean? You're already like a big brother to me..."

"If you think so," I replied sheepishly.

"Then it's settled! From now on, you're Shiki-nii!" the boy declared happily.

I could only shake my head in thinking; 'Whatever makes you happy kiddo.'

****

The sky had darkened before we knew it.

Looking at the time on my phone, I cringed and said to Koji;

"Hey, it's very late now. I better get you home now."

Koji who was happily climbing up the monkey bars pouted, and released his grip, dropping to the ground. Dusting off his backside, he stood up and jogged over to me wiping away the sweat from his face.

Once again, my instincts acted up and I pulled out a wet wipe from my bag before crouching down to wipe his sweaty, reddened face.

"Aw, not again! Why are you like this?" whined the kid.

"Shush and let me clean your dirty face," I replied with a frown. I had a thing against dirty children...or people in general.

"It's not dirty! It's just a bit of sweat," Koji muttered. "Tsk, you're more of a mom than a big bro."

"Oi!"

****

A/N: My story ain't for dirty-minded people.