"Now arriving at Otoyame, next stop Hasetsu." The computer generated voice finished speaking moments before the train doors opened. Yuuri stepped through the sliding doors and hovered on the other side for a moment. If Yuuri got back on, he would be getting out at his home station and it would be a short walk home. If he walked back to Hasetsu from Otoyame, there would be less of a chance for someone to run into him.

The doors to the train shut. There was a hiss of air and then just as quick, the train was gone. The smell of burning plastic still hung in the air at the Otoyame station. There was a turnstile in a far corner by the exit and over on the far wall, there was a huge poster advertising last year's annual Otoyama cherry blossom viewing festival.

There was a faint scent of urine mixed in with the plastic smell, though Yuuri wasn't sure if the smell came from the station or from Shouri. He touched the bottom of Shouri's front carrier, checking for moisture and bent his head down to take a whiff. Baby urine.

Yuuri changed Shouri's diaper in the first restroom he could find. Shouri's diaper bag necessities had been packed away in one rolling suitcase. Shouri woke up briefly for the change and then fell asleep again after being placed back in his carried for a walk.

Shouri had spent most of the flight from Detroit to Tokyo tucked away in his front carrier and being bounced in the back of the plane when he was too fussy from his bottle to be quiet. The flight from Tokyo to Fukuoka, however, had been a nightmare. Shouri screamed himself hoarse and spent the entire approach to Fukuoka making distressed mewls into Yuuri's chest. It had taken a while for Shouri to fall asleep again.

Yuuri hadn't walked through Otoyama in year. The last time must have been when he went with Mari to watch her girlfriend play in a basketball game. There was a new stretch of apartment buildings towered in the northeast but otherwise, no real change.

The walk was nice. Otoyama kept their roads clean and the smell of the ocean wafted along the side of the road. The vines were only start starting to set out flower buds. The road itself was fairly empty besides the one or two people driving in the middle of the afternoon. The cars felt smaller than they used to be, especially after all the rides he'd taken with Phichit in his old Dodge Ram.

Yuuri watched the cars go by, feeling a little strange when he noticed one white Toyota, coated in stickers, pull over by the side of the road in front of Yuuri. The rear of the car had a strange vertical flower drawn in the grime that looked familiar. The close Yuuri walked to the car, the more dread he felt. He reached back to pull his hoodie over his face and run his fingers over the medical mask covering his face and mouth.

The passenger window rolled down. A shock of electric blue hair came into view, and a high pitched voice said politely, "Would you care for a lift?"

Yuuri took a step back and said "No thank you!" a little faster and louder than was really polite. He walked away quickly and felt a shock of cold fear roll down his spine.

"Come on Katsuki, it's like three degrees out and you've got a baby." A hand reached up to push back the shock of blue hair. Yuuri was able to make out a familiar face. The stranger had a sharp angled nose and a birthmark staining a cheek under the right eye. There were laugh lines in the corner of her eyes, but the smile on her face was the same, pulling up a little bit at the right corner and with more self-satisfaction than anyone had the right to have.

Yuuri stepped forward and leaned in. "Kobayashi Nana-sempai? I didn't recognize you. How are you?"

"Fine," she snapped, gesturing with her thumb to the passenger seat. "Get in the car. I've got a baby seat in the back. Strap the midget up and get in."

Yuuri knew he had been backed into a corner. "Thank you, Koba-

"Oi! What ever happened to Nana, brat?" He heard through the mop.

"Thank you, senpai." The door let out a quiet pop and Yuuri didn't hesitate to open and set Shouri in. His son let out an unhappy whine. Yuuri murmured a soft apology and let himself into the front passenger seat. He could feel his anxiety just as sharp as ever.

"Oi," Nana said, eyes shining as her mouth pulling up at the corner. "You know how I feel about bullshit gratitude. This is basic fucking decency." She clicked her tongue piercing against her teeth. She started the car back up before Yuuri got a chance to try and buckle himself in. "So, Katsuki-chan, did you knock someone up?"

Yuuri flinched so hard his head hit the window.

Nana turned to look at him and laughed so far the car swerved dangerously to the right. He had forgotten how scandalous Nana could be."Fuck, I should have waited until a light to ask you. A straight edge kid like you? No way you'd ever get someone in trouble. Man, I remember the first time some gaijin gave you a tip at the onsen. You started to cry because you thought you were stealing her change. You were, what? Six? Seven?'

"Fourteen," Yuuri muttered.

"Fourteen? Same difference." Nana said, corner of her mouth twitchy. "So, did you knock someone up? Did get the stick out of your ass and knock you up?"

Yuuri felt his throat constrict. He couldn't breath. His hands reached for his throat pulling at his scarf and trying to get air in. He couldn't-

He faintly hear Nana pull over and rush to open the door, murmuring soft words and running her fingers through his hair. He had to breath through his mouth in the end because his nose was completely stuffed and Nana's shoulder was soaked. "Sorry, brat." Nana murmured. "I didn't realize it was a sore subject. Your kid's super cute. So there's that."

"Thanks, Nana." Yuuri had thought he had already cried all his tears, emptied out in the slow, gradual failure of his career. Clearly, he had been wrong.

"I've got two bastards myself, ya know, so I'm not judging you on that front. You good to drive?"

Yuuri sniffled and moved his face mask in order to wipe his nose with his sleeve. "Yeah." Nana looks him over oddly and then starts the car again.

"Okay, we're going to detour and grab some alcohol, then we're dropping the kid off with my babysitter and getting druuunk."

Yuuri shook his head and looked down at his feet resting on the crumb and dirt filled floor mat. His parents were waiting for him and Shouri. Today was supposed to be the first day they met their grandchild. Yuuri sniffed. "We should really head home."

Nana tapped her fingers along the gear shift. She groaned loudly and turned the engine back on. "Fine, brat, but I'm picking you up tomorrow and dragging you out for drinks."

Yuuri thought longing of the ice rink. What he needed right now was to be alone on the ice. He wanted to say no. "That would be nice," he murmured instead, and felt a ball of misery turn his stomach.

The drive was quiet, in between sessions of Nana beeping her horn at people. It's not far to his home, but in the village roads it's better to drive slow than hurry. As the road lead into Hasetsu, it's almost like time travelling. Everything looks the same. The pharmacy sign still flickers every few seconds. The gas station still has a trio of high school girls outside with loose socks and fingerless gloves with spikes sitting over the knuckles. The boats were resting in their dry docks and the statue outside of the train station still beckoned its people home.

The changes Yuuri could see were small. Vape pens instead of cigarettes. People texting on cell phones as they walked down the street. One old laundromat looked like it had been converted to a cafe. The old stationary store was replaced with a convenience store. A couple of apartment buildings listed advertisements for satellite offices of major businesses. Even then, that was nothing new. They drove past the sign for Minako's ballet studio and Yuuri traced his fingers over the reflections of the kanji in the window.

Nana pulled up the car in front of his home and pulled him into a hug before Yuuri had a chance to release his seatbelt.

She pulled him close a second time and ran her fingers in his hair, "You can always come to me with your problems, shitstain. Okay?"

Yuuri nodded, his throat suddenly too tight to say anything. He waiting until she started to let go and opened the door and got out before she could stop him. He had to get away.

He unbuckled Shouri from the backseat. Shouri let out an unhappy cry from being woken up. Yuuri cupped his free hand over the back of Shouri's head an closed the door with his knee. "Thank you for the ride, Nana."

Nana sniffed and rubbed her forearm across her face. "For fucks sake Yuuri," she snapped, sniffling. "You know how I feel about bullshit gratitude." She drove off before he could say anything else. It was probably for the best. Yuuri was never sure what to say in response to Nana.