AN: I really hope this chapter makes sense as I wrote it in three different sittings. I hope you enjoy it 😊
Chapter Two: We Love You Unconditionally
Rikuu held to himself nervously as he sat in his bedroom. He saw the door open and a man walk in who he hadn't seen before. He had to think clearly. There was no reason why this man would be in his house. Was this just another mirage? An image projected from his mind. The man looked a lot like a European and Caucasian Yashiro would look. He had to keep calm and try to grip onto the situation.
"Hello, Rikuu," the man said as he pulled up a chair and Rikuu took nervous breaths in and out. He was fifteen. He shouldn't be going through this. He ran a hand through his dark blond hair and closed his eyes. "You should always keep your eyes closed, you're such a freak with them. It's as if they had trouble deciding what color to be just like your dad's when he used to wear contacts."
"You're not real," Rikuu whispered but heard the man laughing at him.
"Do you know why they didn't ground you? They don't think you're even worth grounding anymore. They don't care about you because they know how much of a freak you are. You can't convince them that you aren't. If the media found out about you, you'd ruin their careers. Your mother is disgusted by you as for your father…well, he only sees you as a monster, a psychopath." The man said as he sat down on the bed and Rikuu pushed up to the wall, wrapping his arms around his legs.
"You aren't real. There's no way that you could be here," he said as he tried not to show any fear.
"Is that so?" the man asked before grabbing him and Rikuu could feel his grip. "Can you feel this. If you were dreaming this up, could you feel pain? I'm a friend of your father's from when he did his international shoots. He called me here because I'm supposed to take you away. Nobody in this house cares about a monster like you. You're a danger to normal and healthy people."
Rikuu shivered as he saw blood covering his arm. He felt tears in his eyes as he lost the short battle with his fear. This man wasn't here. This man wasn't real. "I'm not going with you. My parents love me, they wouldn't send me away."
"They hate you especially the man you admire. Your father wishes that he could disown you but think what kind of frenzy the media would be in then." The man pushed him onto the bed and took out a switchblade from his pocket. Rikuu heard his own breaths and he felt the tears in his eyes as he started shouting out for the one man who would either save him or hurt him more than anyone could.
"Dad! Dad, please! Please, Dad!" he said as his voice was loud enough to wake Kyoko up and before he could do anything the man's hand was around his neck and he felt as if he was being choked. The door opened and he saw his father wearing his pajamas but also a baggy sweater standing there.
"Rikuu?" he asked as he approached his son, he could hear the breaths and he could see that his son was in pain but other than that he didn't know what was happening. His son looked as if he was suffering from a panic attack. Acting out of instinct, Kuon came to the bed and Rikuu saw him push the other man away before wrapping his arms around his eldest child.
"I've got you, Rikuu," Kuon whispered as he saw his son shaking and pulled him tighter into him. "I've got you. Cry as much as you want to, I won't judge you. I love you. Please trust in me," Kuon said as Rikuu closed his eyes and shook, crying as much as he used to when he was smaller. Kuon rubbed his back before looking up and seeing Kyoko standing in the doorway concerned.
"I have him," Kuon told her as Rikuu clung to him as if he were a little kid who had had a nightmare. "He'll be okay. I'll stay with him."
Kyoko nodded but walked over to her son anyway and kissed the top of his head, "We both love you, we love you so much."
"Can I go to a therapist?" Rikuu asked and Kuon nodded.
"We'll try to find the best for you. I want you to stay home from school tomorrow. We need to figure this out, the three of us. We do love you. We would never want you anywhere else than with us," Kuon said as he looked at his son.
"Thanks Dad, thank you Mum," he said to both of them and Kuon smiled supportively. He wanted his son to get better, he just wasn't sure what better actually meant.
…
…
The next afternoon, Kuon got off the phone with Lory – who seemed to have the rare power to live forever – and smiled weakly. They had booked an appointment with the top therapist for this type of psychiatric illness. He was scared but he was scared for his son. There was so much judgement in the world and Rikuu seemed to have a tough enough time as it was.
He looked down nervously as he thought back how his father had tried to get him to see a doctor after Rick had passed away. It hadn't helped him but then he had refused to go and had had to be talked into it. This was a different ball game and Rikuu wanted the help.
As he stood from the sofa, he saw the door open and smiled at Kyoko who was watching him concerned. "I've got an appointment for tomorrow morning," he told her. "Kyoko if this doesn't work then I need for us to work on this together as a family. I need to know that -"
"Kuon Hizuri. I accepted every part about you didn't I? Why would I not love my child, any of my treasured children, why would I have anything less than unconditional love for them. So, Rikuu has another hurdle to jump over. It's not as if we haven't met people who thought they had seen things before. Rikuu is special and he's my son, our son." Kyoko ran her fingers through her long black hair and sighed as she looked at the ceiling. "Did you want me to take him?"
"I think that might be what's best for him. I wouldn't know what to say in those situations and I think that RIkuu might feel better if you go with him. You've always taken -"
"And if RIkuu wants you to go with him?" Kyoko asked as Kuon smiled thoughtfully and nodded.
"Then I'll go with him. It must be so scary for him. I don't know what it would be like to know that certain things that I've gone through never happened," Kuon sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm going to turn grey from all this worrying."
"It's for a good cause and you look a lot like your dad," Kyoko grinned. "In fact, you look like a younger version of the Kuu Hizuri I met the first time when we were filming Dark Mo—"
"Really?" Kuon smiled weakly, "You know my dad's hair isn't naturally blond."
"Is that what matters, Kuon," Kyoko said as she approached him and wrapped her arms around him. "What matters is that we love our son very much and we both want the best treatment for him." Kyoko let her fingers run through Kuon's hair and smiled. "You've always been so protective of me and the kids. You're a great father, you know?"
"I don't think I would have been half as good if you weren't here with me," Kuon smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. He brought her to his lap as he sat back down on the sofa. "I've learnt some very good things from researching this. It's hard to live with but we can make it work and I'm sure that with all the remote jobs that we can find something or even an online college, online high school, you should read all these forum entries that people have posted."
"I'm sure that he can do anything, we've always believed in him. So do you think you could take him to the doctor for a checkup whilst I go and pick up Kazuki from school?" he asked, "It feels nice to be a parent today and not have any work until tonight."
Kyoko nodded, "It's nice that we both have time but I think he'd prefer for you to take him to the doctor. You are his hero after all and you're mine too," Kyoko kissed him again before standing and leaving the room. As she walked towards the kitchen, she caught Rikuu staring off into space and rubbing his upper arm in a soothing manner.
"Hi, honey," Kyoko whispered as she looked him over, "How are you feeling?"
"Do you think that Dad's disappointed in me?" Rikuu asked as he ran a hand through his hair again. "I'm really sorry. I feel like I've screwed up, I've screwed everything up. I should have been a better son. All these years you put up with me and I failed you."
Kyoko looked at him before frowning, "How much of that do you think is true, Rikuu?" She came to sit beside him and smiled. "Your father and I love you with all of our hearts and so do Bella and Kaz." Kyoko wrapped her arms around her oldest son. "You've heard how I always had to fight to be able to get my mother to at least acknowledge me. I would never do that to you because I love you."
"Didn't you once swear off loving anyone?" Rikuu asked.
"Yes. I'll admit to that." Kyoko smiled, "Your father is hard not to love though and besides I met him for the first time when we were both very young. I didn't know him when he was in his teenage years but he's gone through a lot but now it makes him a stronger and more inspirational person and there isn't anything more important to him than our family. Your father would never reject you for being different or having an illness and neither would I."
Kyoko pulled out her phone and went through the photos before finding one that she had taken years ago and transferred onto the phone. It was a picture of her holding the phone and taking a selfie with her arm around Kuon and a tiny baby in his arms who he was kissing gently on the forehead. All of them were looking at the camera.
"You and Dad had me when you were young," Rikuu commented as he looked at the delicacy and affection with which his strong and noble father had held him. "Did you regret having me so -"
"No. There is nothing about you or your life that I hold regrets over. You are my son and you have no idea how much your dad cares for you. When I met him the second time, he was very disciplined on his acting and his journey to America and then I met him and realized how much of a playboy he is but also how sweet and special and wonderful and he cares about you so much. We'll work on it together but he just needs to help you so please let him." Kyoko tried to tell her son. "We love you."
"I love you too," Rikuu whispered as he saw his father step out and into the hall. "Dad," he said as he came and stood in front of his father, "May I speak to you?"
Kuon nodded, "There's something that I want to discuss with you as well," he told him with a smile. He sighed and pulled out a velvet box that Kyoko had bought for him one year and opened it. "I want to share my story about this," he said as Rikuu looked in it and blinked confused.
"You keep a stopped watch?" he asked and Kuon nodded.
End of Chapter Two
Thank you for reading
Thank you reviewers of Chapter One
Ashenvale, Crazy4Animation, Kris, Mae
