Chapter Thirty-Six: Approval Ratings

"I feel terrible; I feel so sorry for them," Yukine said quietly as she sipped at her coffee. "Not in a pitying way, it's just…" she trailed off, seemingly out of steam.

"Yukine?"

She put her mug down and looked me in the eye…or at least she tried to; we were both still feeling self-conscious about what had happened. "I think they both like you, so seeing us like that was…"

"Yeah…" She didn't have to finish her thought for me to understand what she meant. "I'm really sorry about that, Yukine; I had no right to treat you like that."

She blushed attractively as she covered my hand with her own. "It's not your fault, Tomoya. M-Maybe we could have known better, but there was no way we could have known that it would have happened then."

I couldn't argue with her logic. "I see what you mean…but I'm still going to be careful in the future."

"Me, too," she said, nodding. "I…didn't know I could get like that."

"It surprised me, too," I admitted. "It was a pleasant surprise, but we'll still have to watch ourselves so we don't end up doing that in public again. Or in private, for that matter."

"On that note…" she said, finally meeting my gaze, "maybe we really should work on planning our wedding?"

"Married?" Rentarou sputtered as we sat around the dinner table. "Th-This is rather sudden, isn't it?"

"From your standpoint, yes," I answered carefully. "But your daughter and I have been through a lot together, and…well, let's just say we want to go through more together," I finished as I took Yukine's hand in mine, bringing a smile to her lips.

Rentarou crossed his arms as he sat back in his chair. "And why should I give my only daughter to you?"

"Well, my grades have improved dramatically – wait, please," I held up a hand to stop him as he opened his mouth. "I only mention that to show a willingness to change, improve. As far as employment: I assume that Michael has told you that I'm now an agent of FLAG?"

His crossed arms slowly fell as his face took an expression of disbelief. "I-Is that so? No, I didn't know that."

I nodded emphatically. "Yes, sir. You can check with the Knights if it would help. To be honest, I still have a hard time believing it myself."

"Does it pay well?"

"Not yet, but after I graduate I'll be able to go full-time. Based on what I'm getting just from working on the weekends, your daughter will live comfortably."

"You've grown, Tomoya," Haruka said with a gentle smile.

I ducked my head, still uncomfortable with praise. "Thank you, ma'am. I think all the work that I had to do to rescue Yukine forced me to grow up, rethink myself. I wish I could have done that without her being kidnapped, but…" I looked over at my fiancée and squeezed her hand. "I'm glad some good came from it."

"Me, too," Yukine replied, returning my squeeze.

"I'll definitely consider it," Rentarou said. "I do think you have a lot to learn, but then, so do we all, so…" He scratched at his five-o-clock shadow. "I'll talk with my wife as well as with the Knights and give you my answer within a week."

"Thank you for your consideration," I said, blowing as low as the table between us would allow.

"In the meantime…" he said, waving a dismissive hand. "…go let your father know."

"Yes, sir," I said, and Yukine and I rose from our seats. "If you'll excuse us."

He simply grunted, and I thought I saw a twinkle in his eye.

We were halfway to my dad's place when it hit me: "Wait a minute…LET HIM KNOW?!"

Yukine was still giggling as we approached the front door to my old home. "Don't feel bad; I didn't notice it until your outburst."

"Yeah," I said, scratching the back of my neck. "I still feel kinda stupid for not catching it sooner. Some detective I am."

"It's okay," she said comfortingly as she patted my arm. "You'll be as great as Michael-sama someday. Believe in yourself; I do."

We stopped in front of the door, and I turned her to face me. "Milady, you're too good for me."

She giggled as she averted her gaze. "Will you accept me, anyway?"

I answered by lowering my face toward hers and, as she turned her head toward me, I captured her lips with mine.

"Tomoya!" she gasped, fanning herself after I released her. "Don't surprise me like that! I don't want another Reference Room situation on your front porch!"

"Ouch, you're right," I conceded. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," she puffed. "I just don't want to make another scene….not yet, at least."

That caused my eyebrows to raise as I reached out to knock on the door. A short time later, the door opened to reveal: "Ah, Tomoya-kun; are you here for a visit?"

"Sort of," I said, and I was surprised to feel no irritation in the presence of my dad. I must have matured even more than I thought. "I'd like to introduce you to Miyazawa Yukine. She's a second-year at my school."

"Indeed?" his eyebrows raised, and I found myself wondering if my eyebrows looked like that. "What a lovely young lady. Please, come in," he offered, stepping back from the entrance."I was preparing tea when you arrived."

My smile still felt forced, but not as much as I thought it would. "Thank you. We'll try not to overstay our welcome." And with that, Yukine entered my childhood home for the very first time.

"What a nice place," Yukine breathed as she looked around the common area. "Everything's so easy to get to."

"It's comfortable," Dad said as he shuffled over to the kitchen area…wait, shuffled? "I have everything I need here, and the convenience stores are close…it's cozy."

"Dad?" I asked. "Is there something wrong with your foot? You're walking funny."

"I'm fine," he replied soothingly. "I accidentally broke my foot at work a while ago; it's just taking a while to heal."

My jaw dropped; I never heard about that. "Broke…your…" I looked over at Yukine equally shocked expression.

She quickly got to her feet and hurried over to the kitchen. "Please, Okazaki-sama; let me do this for you."

"Are you certain, young lady? You're my guest."

"Yes, please!" She was almost begging. "Please let me help!"

He looked over at me with a question mark over his head. "You may as well let her," I told him with an awkward smile. "When she wants to help someone, she finds a way to do it, anyway."

He chuckled softly. "Very well, dear; thank you very much." He started to shuffle back over to the table.

I quickly got up from my spot and teleported to Dad's side. "Can I help, too? You look really uncomfortable."

He studied my face for a moment before moving me to his other side to lean heavily on my shoulder. "Thank you very much," he grunted.

The tea was made and we helped Dad get seated. "So," he grunted, adjusting himself to a more comfortable position, "why have you brought this young lady here?"

I decided to cut to the chase. "We want to get married and, since I'm still under twenty, I was hoping that you'd give permission."

He smiled gently. "You don't need my permission, Tomoya." He gestured to a nearby bookcase. "Would you get the slim black folder from there? Second shelf down, all the way on the left."

I retrieved the requested item, but when I tried to give it to him, he just smiled sadly. "I don't need it, but I think you'll find what's inside useful."

Confused, I plopped down back it my spot and opened the binder.

"You're free, Tomoya."

I wasn't very good at understanding legal documents, but if I understood correctly what I was reading, Dad had basically had me declared 'emancipated'. "I…I don't understand…"

I heard him clear his throat, which drew my attention. "I…have been a poor father and, as such, I no longer wish to be a burden to you."

"Wh-What…?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

He smiled kindly, though a tinge of sadness remained. "You are free to choose your own path in life, without interference from me. You may do what you want, marry who you want, do whatever job you can and want to do…you're free."

I looked down at the document through blurred vision before looking up at him again. "Thank you…Dad."