Chapter Twenty Seven

"Am I doing this right?" Kuon asks as he stands at the head of the table with the carving knife in his hands and the turkey in front of him. He smiles to the girls as they eagerly watch him, both of them are hungry. I have to admit that I'm hungry too but then my stomach is broken, it doesn't have an off switch but Kyoko has joked that my son doesn't have an on switch.

"You're doing fine, darling," Julie attempts to encourage him.

There's not much of a trick to carving a turkey but Kuon has always asked if he's doing okay. He's a great father but the self-doubt is still there. He finally cuts into the turkey and gives us each a piece. Kyoko has such a strong smile on her face. I know that Thanksgiving is an American holiday and so she lets Kuon take the lead but she has expressed that being with family makes the day one of her favorite of the year.

"Daddy?" Rose asks with a smile. "Did you cook the turkey?"

Kuon laughs. "No, Mommy and Grandpa did it together," he says before Rose laughs. Everyone knows that Julie and Kuon have similar skill levels in the kitchen but they both enjoy it. I can see the happiness that my son has to be helping his wife prepare food for the girls. I'm glad that he has that in his life. Kuon and Kyoko are much more attentive to their daughters than Julie and I were to him.

"Daddy can you color with us?" Rose asks before holding up her hand. "I want to make the turkey."

"Sure," Kuon says as he finishes serving up the bird. Kuon would do anything for his kids. They mean the world to him and despite him constantly asking whether he's a good father, he is one of the best, most loving parents I have seen. Kyoko says that he gets that from me but I think it's all him. He definitely has a lot of love which outranks his self-doubt. I feel overjoyed with every smile Kuon has because I know that he's smiling out of love for his little girls and acceptance by the woman he loves more than anyone.

….

…

I watch as Kuu cleans up after the Thanksgiving dinner with the girls. I know that this is what Kuon wants most right now. He wants for us to continue to spend time with the girls making sure that they have positive lasting memories. I understand that. Kuon is their father, of course he would prioritize Rose and Ana above himself but the truth is that it doesn't really feel the same without having our whole family here. Ana is sleeping on a pillow with one of her toys by her, a hot pink unicorn that I think Kyoko and Kuon said was the color of Love-Me pink.

Rose is sitting with a book and so I go over to sit down next to her. Ana has been cheerful and talkative as always but Rose has been much more distant. I guess it's the difference between a six year old and a three year old. "Hey," I smile as I come over to her and Rose puts her book down, placing it on her lap. I place a comforting hand on her back. "What are you thinking about, darling?"

Rose looks away before shaking her head. She smiles but I can still sense her sadness. "It's not fun without Mommy and Daddy," she finally tells me and I nod sadly. It is true. Last year there was a lot of fun in the house. Kuon attempted to help Kyoko make the dinner and she would keep an eye on him to make sure that he wasn't going overboard. We got to see how those two really care about their kids.

Kuon was always so energetic and excited when Kyoko and the kids were with him. He was always able to cheer them up even when they were infants. He knew the best songs, the best books, and the best games. Kuon devoted himself entirely to trying to be a good father and despite how he would always say he was lacking in those areas, he was an amazing father. Without him here it seems empty and wrong but this isn't about me. This is about Rose.

"I miss Daddy," Rose whispers and I look at her sympathetically. I know. I miss seeing Kuon the way he once was as well and even though I know that he'll fight to get to that point again, it's not as if he's here right now and that is what the girls need. As hard as it is for me to accept that my son has changed dramatically because of his injuries, a child doesn't really understand everything that might be happening to their parent.

"Daddy is….Daddy got really hurt. He is different but he loves you just the same as he always has. Rose, your father loves you so so much. He loves you and Ana and Mommy with everything inside of him. He is so happy to be with you guys." I sit down next to Rose and she immediately snuggles in closer to me. I would hate for Kuon to have them push him away for being different but it could easily happen if these moments aren't handled skilfully enough. "Rose, have your parents ever told you about death?"

"Yeah," Rose nods and I see the sad expression on her face. "Daddy did when the bird wasn't moving and then when we watched the Disney movies with Simba's daddy." I see tears in Rose's eyes and I hug her close.

"Well, you know how Mufasa," I pause, I think that's the name of the lion the kids have seen that movie so many times and so did Kuon, I've always been more into the princess movies like Kyoko. Sleeping Beauty is one of my personal favorites. "He wanted to protect Simba right, from the buffalo?"

"Wilderbeast, grandma" Rose tries to correct me and I smile with a weak laugh.

"Yes, and so he managed to get a hold of Simba and he saved him but then -"

"Then Scar went 'Long live the king' and threw him off the cliff," Rose announces as she acts it out a little and I smile. She is having fun despite this situation being so serious.

"Well, a similar thing happened to Daddy. Daddy saw that Mommy was in trouble, just like Simba's daddy saw that Simba needed help so he risked his own life to help but then he got hurt because someone else interfered and Daddy nearly died like Simba's daddy did when he wasn't moving," I try to explain but Rose begins to cry and hides her face in my shirt. She sobs painfully and I pick her up, seating her on my lap, and carefully wrapping my arms around her.

"I remember Daddy's body was limp like a doll's and he had too much blood and he wasn't moving and the ambulance came and Grandpa and the police and everyone came and Mommy was crying and Daddy looked just like Simba's daddy when he died but Simba's daddy never got better he just disappeared." Rose sobs and curls herself up into a ball, I grab a blanket and wrap it around us. "I was so scared but then Daddy got better but he was still really hurt."

"That's because your daddy doesn't want to leave you guys," I tell them. I wrap my arms around Rose even closer. "Daddy is fighting his hardest so that you guys can be together, so that you and Ana and Mommy and Daddy are all together. He's having a lot of trouble though but if we give him our love and wait patiently, he will hopefully get better again because your dad never will give up. Even when he was a kid like you, if he fell down, he would get up again because he wanted to play in the sky."

Rose sighs and then bows her head, curling closer to me. "What about true love's kiss? What about if Mommy heals him with true love?"

"I'm sure your mother has tried that," I attempt to joke but meet Rose's confused expression. "Some healing magic requires extra time." I try to explain and Rose sighs but I feel as if she can understand that explanation and I do hate to admit it but I miss Kuon as well. He's very different from my energetic son but I'm not going to abandon him because of a brain injury. I just know how much time it'll take to get used to his new limitations.

…

….

I know that Kuon feels guilty for pulling me away from the girls again but I'm just hoping that as he heals, we'll be able to celebrate these holidays next year. I don't want him to feel lonely because he can't participate in them like he could last year. I put my hand on his shoulder and kiss his cheek. "Do you feel comfortable about coming home at the end of next week?" I ask and Kuon looks to the side. "The president and Father managed to hire some security around the house and we'll have the doctor coming every morning."

Kuon looks in front of him before picking up the plush turkey that the girls picked out for him. He also looks at the drawings that each of the girls made him and he gets silent again. I know he's most likely thinking about how it'll be with the girls. He doesn't really speak and I don't know what's happened with his muscles apparently it's harder to move them but he does have the ability to move them.

The doctors have also suggested for him to start wearing glasses and I think that look is going to be so cute on him. He turns to me before shaking his head and looking forward.

"What?" I ask as I lean down next to him. If Kuon comes home next week, at least he'll be there for Christmas Eve and my birthday. He'll be there for our wedding anniversary in January. He'll be there for his own birthday. We're going to have to not put too much emphasis into the celebrations but at least he'll be there.

"I…'brass" he says before tapping the pictures. I know that he speaks much differently than before and tends to slur his words but that has absolutely nothing to do with this idea that the girls won't be able to accept him as he is now.

"I don't think that you embarrass our daughters," I tell him gently, speaking slow enough to give him comfort without his brain working harder to catch onto my words. "They are young, Kuon. They don't really understand. I promise you they want their Daddy."

Kuon shakes his head and I frown. How can he question that? He's always been such a great father to them and they love him. I know there's been this forced separation between them because of the injuries he's sustained but he's improved so much. The doctors didn't think he'd wake up but he woke up only a couple of days after they said that. They said he wouldn't be able to communicate with us or that they had to operate on his throat. He's speaking well enough that I can understand him. Maybe it's slurred. Maybe his voice sounds much different. He's still speaking to me and we're having a conversation. He could have wound up in a vegetative state.

"W'er….hi" Kuon says before sighing and looking away again.

Where is their father? I know that he's changed because of the injuries but under the surface and ignoring the injuries and his new disabilities, he's the same Kuon. He's still their sweet father who is always doing his best. He's still the man who would go the extra mile just to prove how much he loves me. I grab his hand in mine.

"You are still their daddy," I try to convince him. "You are still the son of Kuu and Julie. You are still my husband. You just need to heal, you'll recover slowly but we can be patient. You're Kuon Hizuri and I love you." I hear a knock on the hospital door and look back imagining it to be Shotaro on the other side. I freeze. No. He can't come here. Please lock him up. Kuon needs to heal.

I stand and squeeze Kuon's hand once again before making my way to the door. I cautiously open it to see the doctor and see the professional way he's standing.

"Kuon has guests," the doctor says and I nod. If it was Kuu and Julie they would have been allowed in right away. They are family and I can imagine them visiting but someone needs my approval to see him. Hopefully it's not Kanae. I can't deal with seeing Moko again right now and I don't want her to comment on Kuon's condition and make him feel worse.

The doctor leads me a few steps from Kuon's room and I see a member of security step closer to the closed door. As the doctor takes me to the seats I start to tear up and as one of the men stand, I rush into his arms and sob. I can't help it. The president and Yashiro, both family friends and almost family themselves are sat there. After Yashiro has hugged me, I bow to the president.

"Yes," I nod with a weak smile. "I'll allow them to visit."

"Maria wants to visit too," the president says to me and I nod weakly. Maria is now a teenager and although she still loves the occult, she would never be mean to Kuon. "She's with her father right now celebrating the holiday. I could bring her by tomorrow."

I nod. These people are support and I know they would never hurt or tease Kuon when he might break from it.

End of Chapter Twenty Seven

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