Notes: I wrote this to give an idea of the backstory for Yamato and his parents in the 'Faith and Trust' universe. There may be additional chapters in the future as plot bunnies strike.
Otousan
You go to college because your parents are nothing if not encouraging, and you've received a sizable scholarship to Tokyo University to study the music you love. The classes are interesting until you're in your basic literature class, when you want to do anything but read or discuss what the teacher considers to be "classic" text.
On the third day of attending, you notice the girl sitting beside you. Her hair is shoulder length and somewhat lighter than most, but her eyes are brilliant and you like the way she laughs like a silver bell. When she drops a pencil and you hand it to her, your hands touch and you know right then: I'm going to marry this girl.
You ask her to help you study one day, because she's doing well in the class and you're not. She introduces herself as Takaishi Natsuko, and you go back to your dorm humming some old sappy love song that your mother used to sing while she cooked. You think you finally understand what it means to find your soul mate, and you can't help but tell your father over the phone later that weekend.
What does Takaishi-kun do? She's majoring in journalism because she wants to make a difference, and she belongs to all of those clubs that espouses animal rights and environmental conservatism and everything that a good Japanese girl is supposed to believe in. It's almost cliche but you don't care because when Takaishi-kun is tutoring you, you get a chance to listen to her voice while your mind tries to arrange the notes of a song you'll play for her on your guitar some day.
One day, it clicks. You might disagree with why the texts are considered classic, you might disagree with what the authors are saying, but you understand that the purpose is to make you think about your life differently than you have been to this point. The teacher is impressed with the change, and you get the highest score on the next essay assignment.
For the first time in your life, you feel like you've accomplished something worth while. It's not creative like music, but music isn't going anywhere. You change your major without telling your parents, and suddenly you're popular. The girls all want you to tutor them, and the guys all want to hang out after classes.
You still have eyes only for Takaishi-kun. She barely gives you the time of day after you've ousted her from her number-one spot, but then one day you both attend a party for journalism majors. There's alcohol involved, and you walk Takaishi-kun back to her dorm room like the gentleman your mother raised you to be. You're ready to leave her there at her door when she starts crying.
There's something about her tears that is so raw, so beautiful, that you can't help but press your mouth to hers.
And then she's kissing you back, her manicured fingers grasping the fabric of your shirt and pulling you close with surprising strength. You press her against the door, and there's the sound of students giggling in the hall.
Takaishi-kun fumbles with the door then, and suddenly you're both inside her dorm room. You kick the door shut, and Takaishi-kun leads you towards her bed. Her hands are tugging at your shirt where it's tucked into your trousers, her teeth nipping at your lips as she sits on the bed and pulls you down after her.
You don't know how exactly it happens, but suddenly, you're inside of her. It's like heaven, the two of you crashing together in earnest unison. Takaishi-kun moans and urges you on with her ankles wrapped tightly around your waist, and then…
It's over. You collapse in a tangled heap on Takaishi-kun's bed, and wake hours later with a hangover and the feeling that your mother would be very disappointed in your behavior. Takaishi-kun is smiling at you, though, with those soft blue eyes. You leave her with a smile, and she tells you to call her Natsuko.
The two of you date for two months before she tells you that she's pregnant. It's obviously your child, but Natsuko is trying to convince you that abortion is the only option. That her parents will kill her, if your parents don't kill her first.
You think it's ironic that Natsuko would fight for the rights of animals and the environment over the baby growing in her stomach, but you know saying that out loud would start a fight that wouldn't solve anything. Instead, you get down on your knee in the middle of campus and ask her to marry you. She cries because she's scared, and so are you, but the few students who witness it think it's because you're both so happily, stupidly in love.
When the weekend comes, you take Natsuko to Shimane to meet your parents. They love her even before you tell them that you've asked her to marry you, and when you tell them that she's pregnant, they're surprised, but supportive as always. Your mother is French, and reminds your father that love is for the young and foolish. She, for one, can't wait to become a grandmother.
Your father is practical, though, and wonders whether Natsuko's parents are aware that she's pregnant and in college. Natsuko lies and says that her parents are aware, and although disappointed, have accepted the facts. You don't like that she lies to your parents, but you understand why she does it, so you let it go.
Months go by, and you continue to excel in school. Natsuko gets horrible morning sickness that keeps her from going to class regularly, and her grades start to slide. Soon, she'll lose her scholarship and she'll have to tell her parents the truth. She pushes at you to file for the marriage certificate, and when you give in, she takes a leave of absence from school and goes to live with your parents in Shimane while you finish out the semester.
Your mother loves having Natsuko at the house, but Natsuko hates the country side. She misses the city, and hates that she has to rely on your father to drive her into town for something as simple as the ice cream and dried squid that she seems to crave constantly. According to your father, Natsuko looks ready to burst any day now, even though there's supposed to be another two weeks before she's due to give birth. You tell him that he's worried for nothing, that the doctors must know what they're talking about, and you hang up the phone.
You're almost finished with your final in ethics when a teacher's aide bursts into the room and speaks to the teacher in a hushed tone. The teacher then calls you out of the room and respectfully informs you that your young wife is in labor in Shimane. You're shaking as you apologize profusely to the teacher, and then you rush back into the room to collect your belongings and all but shove your exam into his hands. Everything's a blur as you make your way from campus to the train station, and from there it's a long, never-ending ride to Shimane.
By the time you arrive, Natsuko has been in labor almost ten hours. Her face is beaded with sweat even as your mother rubs her back between her shoulders, and she makes such pitiful noises that you just want to hug her. Every time you get within eye sight, though, Natsuko curses you and the alcohol you'd both been drinking the night she got pregnant. You tell yourself that she doesn't mean it, that it's the pain talking, not her, but it still hurts that you can't do anything to make her feel better. You let your father convince you to go down to the hospital's gift shop, and you spend hours debating which stuffed toy to buy for the baby that hasn't been born yet. By the time you return to the maternity ward with a newly purchased plush dog, your mother is crying and so is the baby Natsuko's holding in her arms.
They tell you its a boy, pressure you for a name. All you can think about is how this infant has captured your heart in the few minutes since you first laid eyes on him, and when they place him in your arms, you're conquered completely. Yamato, you tell them, and your father approves because it's a good, strong Japanese name for a boy. They ask which characters you want to use for the name, and you insist on katakana because kanji are a little too Japanese for your mother, who misses the French countryside where she grew up and still struggles at times to read the paper.
Your father seems to understand, and all you can do is grin down at the tiny baby whimpering in your arms.
In the weeks after Yamato is born, you find yourself caring for him most. It's you who changes his diapers, that burps him as carefully as possible. You feed him the bottle of formula because for whatever reason, Natsuko can't seem to produce enough milk to feed one tiny baby that is growing, in your opinion, all too fast. Natsuko takes a few days to visit her parents and calls to let you know that they're upset to be so lately informed of the marriage and Yamato. Natsuko's father insists that his daughter return to school the following semester, and you understand his concerns, so you agree. Your mother and father agree to take care of Yamato while you and Natsuko finish out school, and you're relieved because you'd rather your son grow up in the countryside where he can enjoy looking at the stars just like you did as a child.
When it's time to return to the city, Natsuko presses a reluctant kiss to the top of Yamato's head. You take the baby from your mother and you hold him carefully, trying to fix the memory of his weight and his smell in your mind because this is the reason you need to finish out your senior year well. You have a family to support, and this child is the center of your universe, and even though you don't want to leave him - can't bare the thought of not seeing him for weeks at a time - you know it's for the best. You hand Yamato back to your mother and wave good-bye to your parents before heading out to catch the train back to the city.
~ tbc...?
