School's starting soon! Most of you guys are probably back there huh?
I'm so sorry I'm late...
Ritsu took a deep breath before crossing the street from Takafumi's apartment, alone. Sorata was back at his actual home now, last seen by Ritsu, lounging on his perch looking out the balcony window.
'Alone...' Ritsu thought, walking nonchalantly. Inside, it felt a little lonely now, especially when remembering that Masamune comes home a little late into the night. Since it was past noon and lunch time, Ritsu thought then that it was a good time to venture around a bit now. 'Maybe I can go to the bookstore?'
Minutes later when he saw the familiar shopping plaza ahead, he was set back as a small child practically rammed into him. "Oww..." Ritsu staggered over, clutching his pained stomach as he looked up to see the little girl he saw the other day at that sandbox. To his surprise, the child simply ran past him with her head down without an apology. After her, a man approached him.
"I'm sorry! I don't know what's gotten into her!" the man, likely her father, bowed quickly before running after her. "Aiyuri!"
'I wonder what happened...' Ritsu wondered, straightening up and looking ahead of him. Thinking of the bookstore now, he wondered what the new releases were- maybe he can just take a look at everything.
...
Figuring he had some time to spend, Shin strolled into Masamune's office with a snicker. The dark haired man seemed to be occupied with something on his cell phone. 'Looking at Ritsu again?' Vaguely, he remembered the times when he would visit his then-coma patient. Most of the time he went, there was Masamune looming around Ritsu like a stray cloud.
At first, he had thought of them to be lovebirds, all lovey-dovey to each other with the way he was hanging over Ritsu, but he was wrong. When Takafumi explained to him how they were, he was sure that what Masamune was simply guilt-tripping to the max. Especially with the way Masamune kept chanting his 'I love you's the first year with a sort of desperation, as if those were the magic words to wake the younger man. He remembered scoffing then as he entered the room, telling the other that it wouldn't have any meaning since he didn't mean it.
That's when he knew then, that the other man was as serious as can be. And that if Masamune had magic eyes he would have been blown into bits or transported somewhere with no return.
They have come a long way though, and now they were friends... sort of.
"What are you looking at~?" Shin sang, coming behind the desk and looking over, a hand over his mouth seeing what Masamune was reading about on his cell phone. He tried muffling his laughter before he spoke, surprising Masamune. "Why look that up when you can ask me?"
Masamune immediately put away his phone, glaring now. "No. Go back to your office."
"No way!" Shin laughs. "Anyways, I'd be happy to tell you how to do a great bl-"
"Dr. Haitani!" Eru glowered into the room, her short dark hair a little frazzled in a rush. "Dr. Hakure wants to see you about something. Now!"
"But," Shin is promptly pulled out and away. "Awww..." he lets himself be pulled in disappointment.
Glowering now, Masamune goes back to his cell phone. He didn't have a patient scheduled for another 13 minutes, and he was going to use this time wisely reading about more ways to pleasure his husband another way. It's been a long time for the both of them together, and he needed to brush up on some things.
About twenty minutes in, Ritsu found himself with four books in his arms. He was happy to see that the author Sumi was still writing, but was disappointed at the same time to see that Usami wasn't writing these days. 'He was a really good author too...' He paused his thoughts for a moment, 'Didn't Takafumi and Misaki say he was a prosecutor now? How strange.'
One thing that kept nagging him to look at it was this misplaced book among the literature: 'Pleasuring Others, a Guide'. In the back of his mind, he wondered how much Masamune was holding back. He knew the man liked having sex, even at the oddest times (from what he remembered anyway). Ritsu knew himself that he wasn't really ready yet to engage in such yet until later, and even now just kissing Masamune made him weak to his knees easily.
A faint pink lighting his cheeks, he glances around before putting his four books on the shelf next to him before taking the guide into his hands and flipping through it.
8 Minutes later...
Reaching the register with a faint flush, Ritsu handed over his four books.
"Ah, would you like paper or plastic?"
"P-Paper..." He didn't realize their added options.
"Okay!"
"Um..." Ritsu shyly hands the cashier the guide. "I found this in the literature section... I don't know where to put it back..."
"Oh!" She sees the title and puts it to the side, blushing, "I'm so sorry! Good thing it wasn't in the children's section!"
On his way out of the store, he caught something. He watched as a man, that looked Misaki's age, read his book upside down- but, he didn't seem that focused on the book, instead glancing somewhere every other second.
"Umm..." Approaching him, Ritsu nudged him at the slightest. "Your book is upside down."
"?!" The young(?) man gave him a look of utmost surprise before turning it over, chuckling nervously. "T-thanks for catching that..."
"..." 'Is it like how it was in high school?' The brunet thought, 'Is he watching someone?'
"..."
"..." 'Since it's here though, whoever he's watching must be in a different school.'
"Is... is there something that you want from me?" The man asks him, becoming fidgety. Ritsu had simply been staring at him in silence. Now he spoke in a lower voice in case someone was nearby. "D-did we sleep together or something? Cause I'm telling you now, I'm not interested-"
"No no no no no..." Ritsu steps a little bit away, flushing. "No, it's not like that all! I-I just..." he fumbles a little with his paper bag of books, "You reminded me of someone back in high school..."
"Oh..." He gives the brunet a long, strange look before saying, "Wait..." His eyes widen, "Were you the guy with the cat that one time at work?"
"A-at work?"
"Yeah..." The dark haired youth(?) looked him up and down, nodding. "I'm sure it was you! In the elevator..."
"O-oh... yes, that was me." Now it felt like it has come full turn.
After a round of awkward silence, Ritsu bowed quickly and shuffled out of the store. 'That was so embarrassing!' He walked towards home. 'He didn't figure out that 'someone' was me, did he?'
"Excuse me." He turned to see the man of that little girl from earlier, looking very apologetic.
"Yes?" Ritsu could only wonder what the man would want; to the man's side, he can see the little girl, looking down with a pout.
The father gently pushed his child to the front, "Aiyuri."
"I... I'm sorry," she says, looking at Ritsu's feet. Her little brows were furrowed. "I'm sorry."
"I-It's fine..." Ritsu gives a small smile. "You probably didn't notice me." He looked on quizzically as the girl brought her gaze up quickly, staring at him.
"I saw you."
"...Oh." He blinked in confusion. "W-what?" 'And she still collided with me?'
"I was playing in the sandbox, and I saw you walking."
"Oh, you mean from a few days ago?" 'So she really didn't see me when she was running...'
"In our neighborhood?" Her father questions, switching looks to the both of them. "Did you move in recently?"
"No, I was visiting someone..."
"I see." Suddenly, the man seemed to recall something, and looked down at his little girl. "You were playing in the sandbox out there? Aiyuri, you know you can't play out there by yourself!"
"Mommy said it was okay," she looks back to Ritsu's feet with a frown. "Mommy doesn't care."
"Aiyuri, that's not-" The man was interrupted as his cell phone rang. "Hello?'
"Now Daddy is talking to a co-worker," Aiyuri stage whispers to Ritsu, stepping closer to him. "And it's going to be something 'important,' and then he's going to leave me like always."
Ritsu felt at a loss what to do as the father answered his call, red a little in embarrassment to what his daughter said to a stranger such as him. When his eyes widened at whoever was talking to him on the phone, Ritsu assumed that the small girl was right. "I understand." The father hung up seconds later, putting his cell phone up with a resigned sigh. "Aiyuri... I-"
"'-have to work late, so eat what Mommy made.' Mommy makes rice, and some other weird stuff cause she's old." She crosses her arms, and Ritsu shuffles back in place, wanting to bolt from this odd family situation. Alas, the little girl continues, and she now had a grip on Ritsu's leg. "Mommy says I could always cook myself, but you said I'm not allowed to do that until I go to middle school."
"I-I'll cook something when we get home, Ai-" he was interrupted with another phone call. "...Hello?"
"Know they're going to tell him they need him right now," Aiyuri pouts into Ritsu's leg, having hugged that leg when the cell phone rang. "He has to call a cab, and then wonder what he's going to do with me."
"I'll get there as soon as possible," her father then hangs up for the second time, visibly troubled. After a moment's silence of decision, he looks to Ritsu in urgency. "Can you watch her? Please?!"
"H-huh?!" Ritsu had no time to react properly as bills were handed forcefully in his hand that wasn't holding the books.
"She knows her way home- make sure she gets there before 9, or my wife will get worried." He bends down to his daughter and kisses her on the forehead. "Your mother does love you, but she's just so wrapped up in her own world. And I love you too." With that, he runs off in search of a close cab.
...
'What... just happened?' Ritsu felt so drained now. His paper bag containing books felt like a sack of sand in his arm.
He looked down at the little girl, who looked up at him. 'What do I do now? I won't be able to lift her when she gets tired,' he was worried now. 'I really need to up my strength to where it should be.'
"Um..." He hands her the money given to him. "I don't want it, s-so I guess you can save it... or is there something you want to buy?"
"Really?!" Her eyes light up, and she looks down at the money with a bright smile. As her attention was occupied by that, Ritsu brought out his cell phone and went through his contacts. 'Please pick up, please pick up!'
"Hello?" He sighs in relief hearing the voice.
"An, I need your help..."
"Where are we going?" Aiyuri asks him, a hand on the end of his coat. Her other arm held a small, simple designed rabbit that had a skinny red ribbon around its neck. After using a part of her given money on that, she put the rest up in her coat pocket.
"We're going to visit my Mom and sister, An."
She tightens her grip on his coat. "You're going to dump me on them?"
"No! I just..." Ritsu looks down at her as they walk. "I'm not strong enough to carry you anywhere if you get tired."
"Why?"
"I was in a coma for a long time, so my muscles aren't working well just yet. The heaviest thing I can lift is a medium-sized bag of rice."
"I see." She walks a little ahead of him and sees his ring. "You're married?"
"Yes."
"Are they at work?"
"Yes. He works at the hospital."
"He?" She thinks to herself for a moment. "Daddy told me Mommy's first husband was a doctor that operated on people. Mommy doesn't like talking about before she met Daddy." She stops him with a tug and tiptoes up with a hand in a way that meant she was going to whisper something to him. He went down to her level by squatting down. "Guess what?"
"What?"
"I think Mommy was hiding something from me about that, and she was."
"What was it?" Ritsu couldn't help but smile as he asked. It reminded him of when his father would squat or kneel to talk like this or hug him.
"A few months ago I went up in the attic to explore, and I found a little book with a baby that wasn't me."
He looked at her in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah. And it looked a little old, so do you know what that means?"
"What does it mean?"
"It means I have a big sibling somewhere! But..." she seemed disappointed now, "They're probably really old."
"It can't be that bad," he pauses for a split second, "Maybe it's like, if you and me were siblings."
"Ehh..." She beams at him. "So they'll give me money and take me to places?"
"I... I guess?" 'I only took her to one place- two places now.'
...
"Woahh..." Aiyuri looks at An in wonder, seeing the small pregnant bump. "We give you guys our seats on the subway!"
An raises her brow at that before taking her upstairs to show her the baby's room.
"So her father just left her with you?" Ritsu's mother asks, the two of them sitting in the kitchen as An kept Aiyuri busy.
"Yeah. He gave me money too, but I just gave it to her and she bought that rabbit. I think she's used to her parents being gone a lot too."
"She said I could be her mother," his mother put a hand to her cheek, troubled. "A child at my age... I would get so much ulcers..."
"I wonder how she is," Ritsu says, "She seemed to be more busy than the father."
"I believe An said that he grew up in that kind of environment. Your husband."
"Masamune?"
"Yes, him. No wonder he looked so gloomy when you brought him the first time. And with that hair."
"There's nothing wrong with his hair! Mom..." Ritsu whines.
"I'm trying, I'm trying!" She pats his cheeks lightly. "I don't know why myself, but he looks more like him than anyone else in my eyes."
"Him?"
"Your father's closest friend. I swear, when you brought him to us at first, I thought I was reliving one of my worst nightmares!"
Ritsu blinks, confused. "W-what?"
"It was so long ago, while I was pregnant with you. We're in the living room together, and he wants to tell me a secret- and he brings him in! I was so shocked," she cries. "They kissed right in front of me! I went with him everywhere as much as I could after that if they were in the same place. I was not ready to confess to your father yet, but I had to show him that he was mine!" she ends, fuming at the memory. "Also, I was kidnapped a few years back then by the likes of him! They show no mercy in compensation! They get what they want, their way! I despise them!"
"..." Ritsu is at a loss. "M-Mom..." 'It feels like she is young inside right now...'
"I know," she begins, "They were probably just very good friends. And that it can be quite hard for me to get over things... but I'll try my best to make... Masamune feel welcome."
"Mom..." he smiles at her. "Thank you."
"He seems to be taking good care of you, and since you love him there must be some good qualities on him." She frowns, "There is a saying that men fall for those like their mother..." She looks at him worriedly. "Am I-"
"No! You two are nothing alike!"
"Then..." she continues frowning. "You chose him because we're nothing alike?"
"No, no! All that had nothing to do with how I fell in love with him!"
"Are you sure?"
"I'm really sure!"
"I see." She reaches over the table to take her mug of tea back to her to drink it. "That's good then."
'Mom, at this rate, I'm going to get an ulcer...' Ritsu reached over to get his mug of tea and took a long sip. Sometimes, his mother was just too much for him. Hearing footsteps, he watched along with his mother as Aiyuri came in, followed by An.
"I thought of a good name for the baby," the young girl announces proudly. "Her name is going to be Megumi."
"You can't name her," Ritsu says, "I'm the one who's going to be naming her."
"What?" She pouts, "Then choose Megumi! Megumi is a pretty name!"
"I thought Maeko would be a nice name," his mother pitched in, "Or Sachi, Suzuka..."
'I wanted to combine names somehow... but I can't really do that without it sounding strange or too simple.' He took another sip of his tea. 'And this is a living being! Certain things will happen to her depending on her name! And I don't want her to hate me!'
"Don't worry about it too much, Rittie," An says, sitting on the other side of him. "I think no matter what, you'll choose a wonderful name."
"What if she doesn't like it?"
"She won't!"
"What's your name?" They turn to see Aiyuri address his- their mother. "My Mommy's name is Kotoko. My Daddy Tatsuo named me after his mother and sister."
'Masamune's mother was named that too,' Ritsu thought, thinking it was a coincidence.
"We never properly introduced ourselves, haven't we?" His mother smiles at her. "I'm Onodera Tsubaki." She bows from her seat slightly.
"Ooh!" Aiyuri steps back once and bows a little too enthusiastically. "My name is Takagake Aiyuri! I'm five years old and I like rabbits and pudding!"
"That's nice!" After his mother claps for her, she looks to Ritsu and An with some nostalgia. "I remember when you two were so crazy for pudding..."
"What?!" Aiyuri looks between the three. "You mean it's a phase? I won't like pudding forever?!"
"That's up to you, I'm afraid." Tsubaki pats her on the head fondly. "You change as you grow."
"I actually like gelato more than pudding," An admits. "Sometimes greek yogurt, or macaroons when Kazuto brings some home."
Aiyuri's brows furrow to the unknown. "What's gelato?"
Later that night...
"Ritsu?" Masamune walked in, seeing the lights on but hearing nothing. He received a text saying that they were going to simply clear the leftovers in the fridge, to which Masamune was all for, but wondered what Ritsu was doing. He had called once when he was halfway home, but the brunet didn't pick up. When he spotted the brunet sleeping on the couch, Masamune noted that Ritsu didn't seem to be having a good dream.
Seeing the latter's face a little scrunched up to a frown, displeased at something in his dream, Masamune shook him awake. "Naa..." Ritsu turned, shivering. "No more..."
"Ritsu." Masamune shook him a little harder. "Ritsu!"
"Ah!" Ritsu sat up, his eyes wide open as he glanced around before facing Masamune. "Masamune?"
"You were having a bad dream. What happened?"
"It..." The brunet scratches the back of his head, "They kept feeding me gelato... but I didn't even eat the gelato when I was over there, how strange..."
"Oh, were you at your Mother's?"
"Yeah... I ended up babysitting this little girl and I was afraid I wouldn't be to carry her if she got tired so I called An for help. Then I went over there after we got her stuffed rabbit. Her name was Aiyuri."
Masamune went to sit next to him. "How did you end up babysitting a little girl?"
"I-It's a long story... anyway, Kazuto came home after she took a nap, and he dropped me off before he and An dropped her off. I felt kind of bad. She really wanted to stay with us some more. Her parents were too busy."
"I think I can understand that." He ruffles Ritsu's hair. "I'll go warm something up for the both of us." As he did so, Ritsu followed behind him. "So, was your Mom there?"
"Yeah. And I found out why she doesn't seem to like you more than Kazuto."
"Really? What?"
"To her, you looked a lot like my Dad's closest friend. She didn't like him, and that," he sighs, "She also didn't like how you and Kazuto looked."
"Are you sure that's it?"
Ritsu looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, that is probably it, but I think for some time back then when you introduced me, she really was upset at me. Not because I looked like someone she didn't like, but because well, you got married. Most parents don't like it when their children leave them to live their own life with their spouse you know? But eventually, they come to accept it as a part of life. You'll always be her son of course."
"Oh... Yeah," Ritsu nods, "I understand that." He pauses in thought, "But-"
"Since it took her almost a decade though," Masamune's expression darkened, "Was she just being shallow and unyielding the rest of the time?"
"Y-yeah... I'm so sorry. I tend to forget about that side of my mother..."
"No, it's not your fault. And I don't care about what she thinks about my looks." After pressing two minutes for the microwave after putting in some leftovers on two plates, he turned back to Ritsu. "Do you like how I look?"
"W-what?"
"Do you ever think I'm sexy or anything like that?" He went towards Ritsu, and the latter found himself back against the refrigerator with a blush. "You have never really said anything about what you like about me physically. Do you think I'm attractive?"
"W-wh-what kind of a question is that?!" He averts his gaze. "I-I... I didn't-"
"-Fall in love with me because of my looks, I know. But," he brought up one hand to tilt Ritsu's face towards him. "What do you think now? We've come this far, and obviously we're just as physically attracted to each other as we are emotionally."
"T-then you know!" He shut his eyes as Masamune's face hovered over his, their noses touching. "You know..."
"Know what?" His warm breath ghosted over Ritsu's tightly shut lips.
"Y-you know," Ritsu swallowed, his eyes opening to look to his side at the counter across from them. "I... I... t-think... you're very... h-handsome..."
When no response came seconds later until a light laugh broke through, Ritsu frowned and turned to look, only to have Masamune press his lips against his hard and happily.
"I find you handsome too," Masamune whispered closely as they drew away for breath, "And cute at the same time. How do you do it?" Before Ritsu could answer his lover took his lips again with his own, and he moaned as hands felt their way down his sides. Gradually, he rest his own hands on Masamune's chest before steadily bringing them up to his shoulders. When the older's tongue sought it's way through, Ritsu automatically complied, shuddering as their tongues clashed together.
Faintly, a beeping noise registered through his pounding ears, but he paid no mind when his legs gave away. As Masamune brought his hand against his behind to stay up against him, Ritsu groaned when they broke away, feeling that achingly familiar hardness connecting the both of them.
"Ritsu," Masamune whispered hoarsely, trailing his lips hungrily down his husband's neck before sucking sensually, sure to leave marks.
Ritsu tilted his head to the side as those lips went their way, his hands now gripping on to that dark head of hair. His panting and Masamune's lips against his skin were all he could hear at the moment, and-
*KNOCK KNOCK* They froze. *KNOCK KNOCK*
"..." Loosening his grip on his lover's hair, Ritsu still maintained a hold on his shoulders. He can feel the deadly intent seeping off his husband in waves. "M-Masamune..."
"I'm going to kill them," The older simply growled, steadying Ritsu before planting a kiss to his lips. He sauntered off towards the door. In worry for whoever's on the other side of the door, Ritsu follows.
Opening the door with a gusto, Masamune glared at Henmi and Misaki. "What could you guys possibly want at 10:30 at night?"
"A-actually, it's 10:48," Henmi hesitantly says, as Misaki went past them to Ritsu.
...
"-and that's why we need you guys' help." Misaki finishes, as Henmi took out and turned on the laptop.
Masamune frowns. "So... he doesn't know that you're doing this?"
"Yep!"
"But..." Ritsu thinks for a moment, "Can't you also access your email through your cell phone? Wouldn't Takafumi notice something? That's his laptop too right? Is he sleeping?"
"Yeah, out like a-" they freeze as the door opens, Takafumi walking in with a glare. He was wearing a coat over his pajamas. "H-hi..." Misaki meekly greets.
Takafumi brought out his iphone, it's screen on his emails. "You put me on a dating site?!"
Nudging Ritsu away to the kitchen so they can eat together, they ate in silence as they watched Takafumi scold the two. Minutes later, Misaki and Henmi then managed to draw a reluctant Takafumi in to the world of online dating.
It would only be about three hours later until Masamune kicked them out, and Ritsu wondering how Takafumi knew Henmi and Misaki were here.
Woah... Shouta made his first appearance!
I understand that in Japan, there is a civil law when you get married that you have to choose one surname...? (I don't know if that has been changed as of recently) If any of you were wondering or anything like that...
It's different in here, especially when in this story's time, homosexual marriage is legal and has been legal for a pretty good amount of time (which is why everyone doesn't really bat an eye in here).
Some of the older group is sort of miffed about it though, understandably (though way back in the past, like way back in the past before westernization, it was pretty normal- from what I read anyway).
For Masamune's mother, she decided to keep her surname (as she has become pretty well-known in the attorney world), while her young daughter takes on her father's surname.
Ritsu's mother kept her surname because she... well, wanted to, and to keep her husband in memory.
Ritsu and Masamune don't really care about that in particular, and the paperwork to change all that is a little troublesome.
Normally, I guess, the wife taking on the surname of her husband (or vice versa if the wife is an only child and the husband isn't) is one of those traditional standards. For example, like Misaki's parents.
And like Akihiko's father, who had married his mother (An Usami) to become an Usami. *shrugs*