Things started changing from that day forward. Rin started speaking to Haruka again, and for a while he even refused to have anything to do with Sousuke. He had gotten a membership of a swim club in the center of Tokyo because he was a really good swimmer, and so he invited Haruka to come with him all the time. These memberships were financed by the swim club, so as long as Rin performed well and did good at tournaments, he could keep his membership.
The only issue in Rin's opinion was that Sousuke came there on a regular basis as well.
"You should start talking to Yamasaki-kun again," Aki said to Rin on the Friday after the incident with the serial killer. "It's not really his fault,"
Rin glared at the table where Sousuke was sitting all alone. "I'm not talking to him until he apologizes," he said and turned away.
"He is sorry," Aiichirou said and looked over at the other boy as well. "I think you should make up with him, Rin-senpai,"
Rin snorted, but didn't comment on it. He looked at Haruka, hoping to find a clue of what to do in his eyes, though Haruka let nothing show. He wanted Rin to decide for himself on what he wanted to do. Though he found that Aki and Aiichirou were right. It wasn't really Sousuke's fault that all this had happened. He won't forgive the tall boy himself, but he had a feeling that Rin should try to forgive him. It would be easier for him.
Rin sighed, unable to decide on what to do. "Give me time to think about this," he said finally, and Aki and Aiichirou had to accept that.
On the following Monday Sousuke asked if he could talk to Rin privately for a few seconds and they both left the classroom. Afterwards they returned and he and Sousuke went up to Haruka and the others and Sousuke apologized to Haruka for pulling that prank. Haruka accepted the apology.
Now sometimes Rin would spend time with Sousuke and other times he would be with Haruka. Though he wasn't as much with Sousuke as before and spend more time at home, also with Nagisa and Rei.
A week after Sousuke and Rin made up, a letter came to Makoto's apartment and Haruka just happened to be the first to find it. He went to the kitchen where Rin was reading a manga while Nagisa was stuffing his face with strawberries and Rei was doing some mathematic things for fun.
"What's that Haru-chan?" Nagisa asked as he saw the letter. "Who is it for?"
"It's addressed to Rin and me," Haruka said, causing Rin to look up from the manga and look at the letter.
"Do you know what it says?" he asked stupidly.
"No," Haruka said, showing that the letter hadn't been opened yet, and so Rin took it and opened it before Haruka could think to stop him.
"Haru…" he said after taking a few seconds to look over the letter. "It's the results of the blood-tests," he said. "We are related to Gou,"
It only took them seconds after that to get their shoes and jackets on and hurry out the apartment to go to Gou's place and tell her the news. She had told them her address before they had parted ways outside the hospital and Rin had it on his phone now, leading the way to her home.
He was surprised to see it was the little fishing shop that he had bought fish at with Sousuke a couple of times now.
They entered and the woman behind the desk looked at them.
"Where is Yamasaki-kun?" she asked.
"We don't speak to each other as much anymore," Rin answered. "We came here to see Matsuoka Gou,"
"She's in the apartment," the woman answered. "Just come on behind here," she led them behind the desk and to the back where a set of stairs let up to the apartment that she and Gou shared.
The door was torn open before the woman had the time to reach out for the handle and Gou stood there with an excited expression on her face. "Mom!" she yelled, and then laid eyes on Rin and Haruka. "You got the letter too?" she asked.
Haruka nodded and Rin smiled. "Of course we did," he said.
"Come in!" Gou cheered and led the way inside. "You too mom, this is important!"
Rin, Haruka and Gou's mother entered the apartment and Gou came running up to them and handed her mother a letter, similar to the one Rin and Haruka had got.
"I understand," Gou's mother said. "Boys, I assume I should give you some answers as to why you don't live here," she said before leading the way into the living room. "Gou, could you prepare some tea and come on sit with us?" she asked.
"Yes," Gou answered before hurrying out to prepare tea. Rin and Haruka followed her mother, both feeling awkward about the situation. Things were going way too fast for any of their liking.
The boys were set in the couch and Gou's mother and Gou sat in chairs in front of them.
"I met a man about 18 years ago," Gou's mother started as she held a cup of tea between her hands. Haruka and Rin held their cups too. "He was nice and beautiful looking. He was working as a fisherman, but had once had a dream of becoming an Olympic swimmer. We were young and in love, and before I knew it, we lived together up here and I was pregnant," she took a sip of the tea before continuing.
She gave birth to a set of twin boys on April 18th. One of them had maroon hair and red eyes while the other had black hair and blue eyes.
"Aren't they adorable?" she asked her boyfriend with a smile on her face as she looked up at him. She held both twins in her arms.
Her boyfriend sent his family an admiring look. Then he nodded. "They do look like some sweet boys. I have no doubt they will become someone we can be proud of someday," he said.
The four of them lived happily together for about half a year. The couple took their babies with them on a small sightseeing trip in the south of Japan. This was where the photo Gou had found was taken. But the peace didn't last forever. The time soon came when the couple couldn't just call them by Aka and Ao anymore (Red and Blue)
"What would we call them?" she asked while holding 'red' close to her chest.
Her boyfriend held 'blue' while having a thoughtful look on his face. "Don't know… But Aka and Ao really aren't working well,"
"Yes, we did agree they were temporary," she said. "There are those two main characters of the manga I read as a young girl," she said with a thoughtful smile on her face. "Rin and Haruka were their names,"
"Aren't they a bit girly though?" he asked her while looking down at the boys. "You have to remember we got sons,"
"Well yeah, but you said your grandfather's name was Rin, and my first boyfriend's name was Haruka, that's proof it's not just names for girls," she argued.
Her boyfriend nodded. "I also do like the meaning of both names if we use this and this kanji," he wrote the kanji down for the names. His girlfriend nodded at this with a smile. They had easily agreed on their first names.
"But who is who?" She asked then.
"You hold Rin, I sit with Haruka," he informed her. This she also agreed on and they fell silent for a while.
"What about their surnames though?" she asked.
"I think that's easy too. You hold your kid, I hold mine," he said. "So yours is Matsuoka Rin, and mine is Nanase Haruka,"
"What do you mean 'yours and mine'?" she asked in confusion. "I thought we shared both of them equally. We are both their mother and father and have even responsibility towards both of them,"
Her boyfriend shook his head. "That's where you're wrong. I want to make sure I actually have a child of my own. That's why I need one. Just be happy you got the older twin,"
He stood up in an attempt to leave but his girlfriend reached out and before anyone could react she had pulled Haruka close to her and hugged both boys like her life depended on it.
Her boyfriend didn't say a word. He just marched out the apartment and slammed the door. She didn't see more of him until around dinner time.
That same night she woke up in the bed and noticed that her boyfriend was missing next to her. She shrugged it off. He was probably just in the bathroom or something. She wanted to know what had awoken her though and she got out of bed to check if one of her sons were upset or something. She looked down in the small baby bed which they shared and noticed that only Rin was there. His eyes were full of tears and he looked like he was about to cry. It didn't take long for his mother to figure out what was going on.
She ran to the entrée and there she saw her boyfriend pulling on a jacket and her missing son sitting in a baby lift, moving around with a look of discomfort on his face. He too was wide awake.
"What do you think you're doing?" she asked.
"Taking what is rightfully mine," he said while having his back turned on her.
She grabbed the baby lift with Haruka in it and freed him. Then she pulled him close to her again. "Get the hell out of my house!" She exclaimed. "I don't ever want to see you near my boys again!"
She never did see him again afterwards. He never returned to their home after leaving the house that night. All she had to do was throw his belongings out. Her friends among the other fishermen would make sure to keep him away from there.
There is more to this story about Rin and Haruka. This is the part that I edited a while ago since I found the chapter a bit long. I originally wrote the entire story in one chapter. I don't think cutting it in two and going a bit more into detail with the story didn't help much on the length. But at least I'm more satisfied with my work now.
I wasn't sure of the names. You never get the name of Rin's and Gou's mother and even though you do get the name of their father in one of the light novels, I refuse to use that because I just couldn't picture Rin's father do this.
I hope you liked this chapter even if it is at a pretty fast pace all the way through.
Jackie