Chapter 1: Permanent Visit
"Don't worry, Shizuku!" A handsome young man with dark, wavy hair grinned as he spoke. "You'll pass those exams without a problem!"
"Of course I will." A beautiful blond woman beside him replied in a somewhat cold tone. That's not the issue. I'm trying to pass at the TOP of the class, which is currently an impossible goal with you there. She released a deep sigh, shaking her head. "I still don't understand how you always get better grades than I do when you never study, Haru."
"I already told ya, I used to study all the time when I wasn't in school. I'm probably even ahead of our seniors right now."
"Guh!" The young male's words were like an arrow through Shizuku's heart, and she placed a hand over her chest as her right eye twitched. Well, there went any remaining hope she had left.
"Are you all right?" Haru inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"Fine. Just fine." She responded in her usual low, emotionless tone.
"Ah! Here we are!" Seemingly ignoring her words, the male teenager broke into a sprint when a certain building suddenly came into view. "I'll tutor you in a variety of subjects tonight... so you'll be prepared for anything!"
"Please, teach me your wisdom, Haru-sensei." There was a hint of bitterness in Shizuku's voice as she slowly followed after the boy. She obviously wasn't even half as excited about their study plans as he was. Although she did enjoy studying, the young male's overwhelming intelligence always made her feel inferior.
"Leave it to me!" Haru gave the female a thumbs up, and shortly afterward, he abruptly stopped in his tracks. Lifting his left hand, he started to rub his chin while he pondered over something deeply. "I'm not sure how I'll teach you sex ed though... this'll be my first time, too." His cheeks turned a faint shade of pink as various scenarios played out in his mind.
"We're NOT covering that subject!" She yelled, suddenly becoming quite flustered... and her cheeks began to rise in temperature as well. Only Haru was able to crack her emotionless shell. How did I manage to fall in love with this guy again? It was times like this that made her question her own sanity. She and Haru were complete opposites, so they shouldn't have fallen in love. However, it still happened. Most likely, it was due to the loneliness both of them shared. They could understand each other's pain well, and they found one another's presence comforting.
When the two students finally entered the aforementioned building, they were instantly greeted by a brunette man who was sporting a pair of sunglasses.
"Welcome back. Anything interesting happen today?" He asked, and there was a hint of uneasiness in his demeanor.
"Not re-" Before Haru could finish his response, every muscle in his body suddenly tensed up, and he immediately leapt behind Shizuku. It was taking all of his willpower to refrain from darting out of the building completely.
"What's the matter?" She blinked at Haru's strange reaction. Well, technically he reacted strangely to a variety of circumstances, so this wasn't really anything new to her. She followed the trembling boy's gaze toward the couch. "I should have known."
Another figure was currently laying on the couch. It was a young male who looked almost identical to Haru, but his hair was a few inches longer. He was busy devouring a slice of white cake with pink frosting. When he noticed the two new arrivals, he slowly turned his head in their direction. A wide grin formed on his lips, and after swallowing a mouthful of cake, he spoke up in a cheerful tone.
"Ah, Shizuku-chan! It's been a while!" There were crumbs on the corners of his mouth, but he didn't seem to care.
"Well, if it isn't Haru's older brother." She sounded completely uninterested in his presence. "I didn't expect to see you here again so soon."
"I didn't expect to return here so quickly either, so it was quite a shock for me as well. It-"
"YUZAN! WHY ARE YOU HERE?!" Haru interrupted his sibling, unable to hold in his outburst any longer.
"You're still as rude as ever, Haru." His brother's uncontrollable emotions clearly amused Yuzan. "I was just getting to that." He lifted his fork up to his mouth and took another bite of his cake. Whilst he was chewing, he continued speaking. Apparently, he didn't care that it wasn't exactly considered polite to talk with your mouth full. "Father jusht banished me. I believe he hatesh me more than he hatesh you now." He swallowed. "I've disgraced him far worse than you ever did."
"Eh?" The younger brother blinked in confusion. He never expected to hear those words come from his sibling's lips, and he was rendered utterly speechless.
"What happened?" Shizuku ended up asking the question that had been on Haru's mind.
"Well..." Yuzan began, setting his fork down. "...I..." He moved his hand down to his stomach, and his eyes narrowed slightly. His smile morphed into a slight smirk. "...went and got myself pregnant." He started to lick the stray crumbs from his mouth, rubbing his belly slowly.
"Uso!" Haru growled. He clearly wasn't in the mood for stupid jokes... especially not from his brother. "Go home!"
"Ahaha, I had a feeling you wouldn't believe me!" The older sibling chuckled. "...but it's true."
"Shut up!" Haru turned his head to look at the man with the sunglasses, Mitsuyoshi. "Mi-chan, tell him to pack his bags already!" His tone was desperate and pleading. The older male was his only hope of avoiding hell on earth.
"I'm afraid he's telling you the truth." Mitsuyoshi replied, and there was still a hint of uneasiness in his voice. "I don't know how it happened, but he's really knocked up. Your dad was furious and kicked him out... so he's gonna be staying here from now on."
That was the last straw. All of this new information was too much for Haru to handle, and he suddenly took off running out of the building as quickly as his legs would carry him. There was a hint of surprise on Shizuku's typically-emotionless face. After several moments of awkward silence, she finally spoke.
"...that was unexpected." Those were the only words she managed to conjure up.
"Right?" Mitsuyoshi agreed, stepping out from behind the counter. "I never knew it was possible for dudes to get pregnant until today either." Quickly, he made his way toward the couch. Just as Yuzan was about to consume another morsel of cake, the older male swiped the plate and fork from his grasp. "...and since male pregnancies are risky enough, the mother should strive to eat properly. That kid's gonna need all the nutrients it can get, and it can't get much from sweets."
"Aww, hidoi!" Yuzan crossed his arms over his chest as his lower lip protruded slightly... making a slight pouty expression. "You could have at least let me finish that one."
"Think of it this way: I'm saving you from losing your love for cake the next time your morning sickness acts up." Mitsuyoshi spoke in a rather serious tone, carrying the half-eaten cake back to the counter.
Yuzan shuddered in response to his cousin's words.
"Good point. I'll never be able to enjoy chocolate chip cookies the same way again."
Shizuku was feeling quite awkward just standing there in the middle of this conversation, and she was also worried about Haru. On top of that, she had a headache from overthinking about this strange phenomenon. Thus, she really wanted to leave. Slowly turning toward the doorway, she began to depart from the room. Everything I thought I knew about anatomy just went down the tubes. This would be a fatal blow to her IQ.
"Oi, Shizuku-chan!" A voice suddenly caused the blond female to halt in her tracks.
She slowly turned around to face the person on the couch once more.
"What is it?" There was a trace of annoyance present in her voice. She wanted to leave that place as soon as possible.
"Have you still been taking care of Haru?" The pregnant man asked, still sporting his usual grin.
"Of course. I always want to be with him."
"I see." Upon uttering those words, Yuzan began to stare at Shizuku quietly... as if he were looking into her very soul. It was making her rather uncomfortable. After nearly a minute of silence had passed, she finally opened her mouth again.
"If that's all you wanted to ask, I'll be going now."
"Hold on. Come here for a moment." The black-haired male gestured for her to come closer with his index finger. Reluctantly, the blond student obliged, and she stopped a few inches from the couch. "A little closer." He slowly sat up as the young woman took two more steps forward. Then, out of the blue, he reached up and grabbed onto her chin firmly, pulling her face down mere centimeters in front of his own.
Shizuku's eyes widened in shock, and her cheeks turned a bright shade of crimson from the close proximity. In fact, they were so close, she couldn't look away from his eyes even if she wanted to. He continued to gaze back into her eyes, studying her for a moment. She could feel his warm breath against her lips when he finally began to speak, and it smelled sweet.
"You seem sincere enough." He whispered softly, releasing the young woman's chin at last.
Shizuku quickly pulled away, still blushing furiously because of the male's actions.
"I-I'm leaving now!" For once, someone other than Haru was able to make her flustered. As she stormed out of the building, Mitsuyoshi sighed.
"You're not gonna try to steal Haru's girl, are you?"
"Certainly not." Yuzan laid back down, placing his hands behind his head. "She's not really my type. Besides, she's completely devoted to Haru... I could tell that much." His expression and tone became completely serious for once. "I only wish he would have been devoted like that. Then, I probably wouldn't have ended up in a situation like this." He released a deep sigh, glancing down at his stomach.
"You mean the guy who impregnated you?"
"Who else would I have been talking about?" The younger cousin closed his eyes. "After seeing how happy Shizuku-chan made Haru, I was a little jealous. I'd never felt that happy before, despite what I lead people to believe, and I wanted to find someone who made me feel that way, too." A faint smirk formed on his lips again. "I should have known better than to search for love at a bar."
"Yeah, you should have. I know idiots with better judgment than that."
"Are you referring to yourself?" Yuzan opened one eye briefly, glancing over at his family member before closing it again.
"Ouch."
"Hmph." The smirk quickly faded. "Anyway, he left me right after I finally let him in my pants, and three months later... here I am."
"Yeah, that'll definitely teach you to get your hopes up at a bar." Mitsuyoshi stretched. "You can stay here as long as you want, but try not to get under Haru's skin too much."
"I have no control over that. It seems I get under his skin whether I try to or not."
"At least tone the teasing down."
"Hai, hai." As he spoke, Yuzan rolled over on his side so that his back was facing his cousin. Then, he began to drift off to sleep.
Mitsuyoshi shook his head, glancing down at the half-eaten cake again. God, this is gonna suck.