"Ha! I won!" Yato threw his arms up and smiled widely, feeling victorious. His energy was similar to that of a child's.
"Neither of us won, dumbass!" Yukine argued. "You got caught up blocking out all my available spaces that you hardly tried getting three in a row!"
The god threw an accusing hand down at the paper of their scribbled tic-tac-toe game. "That counts as a victory for me! That was my goal!"
Yukine's eyebrow twitched in frustration. "You don't even know how to play this game, do you?"
Hiyori peeked over her tray of food at the paper game by the end of the hospital bed. She sweatdropped, realizing how immature the boys were acting over something ridiculous.
"Hmm…" Hiyori thought aloud. "Can I play?" She asked, setting aside her chopsticks and bento box.
"O-oh, sure." Yato blinked, and handed her a pen.
Hiyori grabbed the piece of paper, flipped it over and drew out the lines on the blank side to start a new game. She looked up at the god and smiled, pushing the paper towards him, but he handed it back.
"You go first, Hiyori," he smiled warmly. "I call the X's."
Hiyori felt her cheeks warm up. "Oh, r-right."
Yukine rolled his eyes at their lovey-dovey interaction. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, watching the game.
"Hmmm…" Hiyori thought for a second before choosing one of the open boxes.
The blonde boy continued watching them before they finally both seemed to come to an end. Yato looked at Hiyori with another warm grin.
"Looks like you win, huh?" He chuckled.
Hiyori glanced back down at the paper, and gasped to herself in surprise. "Oh! I guess I did!"
"Huh?" Yukine blinked in confusion and lifted the paper to get a better look at it. He seemed shocked at how quickly they finished.
Why was it so difficult when he was playing with his master, but Hiyori solved it within thirty seconds against him?
Yukine tore his gaze away from the page and glared at the god. "Hey! You totally let her win!"
Yato crossed his arms defensively. "No I didn't! She beat me fair n' square!"
It was Yukine's turn to fold his arms. Yato was never one to give up his high position so easily.
"Really?" He asked skeptically. "And the fact that you two are dating has nothing to do with it?"
"You're just jealous that you lost the first round!" Yato retorted.
Hiyori giggled, finding their constant bickering to be humorous.
"G-gomen'nasai! I came as soon as I heard!"
All three of them turned to see Masaomi rushing toward them from the doorway, looking clearly disheveled and out of breath.
"Onii-chan!"
Hiyori's brother rushed towards her side, coming to a slow halt when he noticed the dark-haired god.
"Yato." He glared at him.
Yato crossed his arms. "Masaomi."
Yukine was about to say something, but he quickly remembered decided otherwise. He remained silent.
"Alright, you two. Calm down." Hiyori sighed, adjusting herself in the bed so that she was sitting upright. She then turned to look at Masaomi.
She observed his loose black tie and formal wear. He settled down a briefcase beside a chair and sat down to speak.
"What's all this? Where were you?" Hiyori asked curiously.
Her brother's demeanor completely changed as he redirected his full attention on his sister. He suddenly perked up and engaged himself in their conversation.
"Ahh! This?" He gestured to his suit, shoving off his black coat. "I just got back from a job interview."
Hiyori gasped, clasping her hands together. "Really? How did it go?"
Masaomi fixed his collared-down shirt, letting out a sigh of relief. "I think it went pretty well! They said they'd be in touch with me soon."
Hiyori found herself grinning widely with pride. "That's wonderful!"
"Congratulations," Yukine said, bowing.
Masaomi blinked in surprise, wondering why he hadn't noticed the young boy when he walked in earlier. "Oh, g-gomen'nasai! Yukine - was it?"
Yukine nodded with a grin, secretly surprised he still remembered him. "Uh - hai!"
Masaomi rose from his seat and gave the boy a polite bow before sitting back down. Yato felt a wave of appreciation radiate through him, knowing he was feeling what his Blessed Vessel had been feeling. He glanced at his Regalia standing beside him.
"Don't get too comfortable with him, Yukine. He's anything but kind," Yato murmured quietly enough that the siblings couldn't hear.
"Maybe that's just 'cuz you got his younger sister pregnant," Yukine mumbled back.
The god gasped dramatically and grabbed his chest, reenacting a heart attack.
"You two are behaving, I hope?" Hiyori spoke up, hearing their secretive conversation. She smiled at them, but it was strangely intimidating.
Yato and Yukine quickly adjusted themselves. "Y-yes, ma'am," they declared in unison.
Masaomi smirked. "Wow - you sure have them wrapped around your finger!"
Hiyori giggled. "Someone has to keep them in line."
Yato sighed and pulled up a chair on the other side of Hiyori's bedside.
"Daijoubu?" The brunette asked him, taking the hand he reached out to hold hers.
"Y-yeah…" the god smiled weakly. "Just a bit tired, I guess."
"Oh, dear." Hiyori chuckled lightheartedly. "You didn't keep Yukine-kun up all night with your constant pacing, did you?"
Yato blushed, his gaze ripping away from his lover's. He lowered his head in embarrassment, ruffling his dark hair with the hand he wasn't holding Hiyori's with.
"N-no?" His voice cracked slightly, silently shocked at how well she knew him and his nervous tendencies.
Hiyori let out another little giggle, finding his reaction a bit amusing. She unhooked her hand from his to reach for the god's face. Their eyes locked when Yato finally lifted his head.
"Don't worry - you can get some rest when we go back home."
A small smile formed on Yato's face, and he nodded in response.
"That's my god," she smiled back.
They found themselves leaning in, aligning their lips. Hiyori readjusted her hand to cradle his head, feeling Yato wrap an arm around her waist to steady her.
Yukine used his hand to shield his orange eyes from the hideous sight. Meanwhile, Masaomi curiously watched the couple's interaction, unable to avoid feeling somewhat guilty.
When they finally pulled away, their foreheads gently bumped together. Yato tucked some hair behind Hiyori's ear. They remained together for a short moment, enjoying their close proximity.
Hiyori finally pulled away completely, and it was only when she met her brother's gaze that she realized he was still there. "Uh - g-gomen!" She blushed.
Masaomi laughed it off. "It's fine." He glanced down at her stomach. "How's the baby doing? What did the doctors say?"
"Oh! Right!" Hiyori brightened up. "They said that the baby's doing alright. They just can't seem to figure out what's wrong with me."
Masaomi sighed. "Let me guess - they just called it another one of your 'narcoleptic attacks,' right?" He asked, using finger quotes on the term.
His sister nodded, then looked down at her lap in deep thought. "It still doesn't make sense, though…"
She looked over at Yato for his opinion, but he seemed to be caught up in thought as well.
The moment of silence suddenly came to an end when two more people joined them in the hospital room.
"Oh goodness, Hiyori - dear! I'm so glad you're alright!"
Without any warning, Hiyori suddenly found her mother rushing towards her side to hug her. Yato moved aside to make room for the family, not seeming to mind it so much because he found a spot by the window to stand and continue his train of thought. Yukine cluelessly kept his distance and watched the interactions.
"M-Mother!" Hiyori blinked, sounding surprised. Her eyes landed on her father approaching her in his white lab coat. "Father…?"
"Hiyori…" Her father's eyes looked remorseful.
The sound of their voices and the familiarity of their faces was suddenly enough to overwhelm her, and Hiyori found herself tearing up.
"G-...g-gomen…!" The brunette sobbed into her mother's shoulder, holding her. "Gomen!"
The sound of Hiyori's broken apologies tore Yato from his thoughts, and he couldn't help but feel guilty about the whole situation. It was his fault her parents rejected her - his fault that Hiyori was suffering.
"No, no! It's not your fault!" Her mother pleaded, pulling away to look her daughter in the face. Hiyori noticed her mother's tears right away.
"Ahh, so I see now." Mr. Iki spoke up, breaking the conversation, his eyes landing on Masaomi. "You were living with Masaomi then." The tone in his voice was clear with displeasure.
Masaomi seemed to take this as a challenge. "Yes. Because the ones who are responsible for caring for their own daughter weren't around to do their job."
"Masaomi…!" Hiyori hissed under her breath, using his real name.
Yato smirked to himself. I'll be damned if I ever get the balls to speak up to my father like that! He thought. Not to mention; he was standing up for her - for my Hiyori.
Hiyori's father sighed. Her mother bit her lip before she spoke.
"No, Hiyori. H-he's right…" Mrs. Iki became sympathetic as she hung her head. "We should've been more concerned about your health and your well-being. What we did was unforgivable!"
Masaomi rolled his eyes to himself. He didn't believe a single minute of their apologies.
"Hiyori," her father stepped in, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder to calm her from her fit of emotions. "We care about you - we really do."
He placed his hand on Hiyori's shoulder as well. "But I believe you still owe us an explanation."
Oh, Gods! Here it is. What am I supposed to say? Hiyori panicked inside. "Mother, Father, I've been dating a God of War who lives on the streets, then I decided to let him in my bed one night, and now we're having a baby together"?
Hiyori felt Yato and Masaomi's tension. She anxiously avoided eye contact with any of them, twiddling her fingers. "U-ummm...well, I-"
"Well, y'see," Masaomi suddenly spoke up, causing everyone's attention to turn to him. " Hiyori...had been secretly seeing this guy from her class who she knew since junior high-" Hiyori blinked at her brother in confusion, wondering where his story was going. "And then one night, they decided to s-sleep together."
Yato covered his young Regalia's ears, trying to prevent himself from being stung.
"They were very safe about it, actually, but then...i-it broke. About two weeks afterwards, her boyfriend ended up moving to another town across the country so they broke up. But Hiyori never had the guts to tell him about the baby, s-so...he probably isn't coming back." Masaomi said, to which Hiyori and Yato glanced at each other in surprise.
"I-...I see…" Their mother finally said after a long silence.
"Well,in that case," her father began "no one's telling you to keep it. I'm sure once it's born, th-there will be other mothers and fathers that can take care of it properly-"
Masaomi saw the panic rise in his sister's face, and noticed Yato glare at their father with disgust. Yukine came to his master's side to keep him tame.
"No! No, no, no! I want my baby, Father," Hiyori practically pleaded. "I'll just finish my classes online, I swear! Please."
Yato's expression finally softened, and he waited for her parents' reaction.
The mother and father looked at each other with sympathy before redirecting to Hiyori again.
"We understand, dear," her mother explained, moving some hair out of her daughter's face. "That being said…"
Her father spoke up now. "We'd like you to come back home. With us. We can keep a close eye on you, and you'll be safer."
Masaomi took that personally. "You're saying you don't trust her in my care then?" He said with a threatening tone, rising from his seat.
Yato and Yukine watched with wide eyes, suddenly expecting an argument to break out.
"This isn't about you, Masaomi. We're asking what Hiyori wants," Mr. Iki said back in a strict voice.
"'Asking?'" The young man scoffed back, and threw an accusing hand at his sister. "As far as I heard, it wasn't a question as much as it was a statement."
"My decision-!" Hiyori held out both of her hands towards her family as if to signal them to stop arguing, and caught their attention before it could get too far. "My decision - what I want..." she said again, softer "I'm not entirely sure what I want. S-so, maybe...it would be best if I…" she sighed, her gaze falling to the white tiles on the floor below her hospital bed "if I continued to live with Onii-chan for the time being. I'm not choosing favorites - I just think...I need some space to think everything over. And I'd like to look over Onii-chan as well…"
Everyone seemed to either blink at her, or stare at her with surprise. Hiyori felt her cheeks heat up.
"A-are...are you sure?" Her mother finally asked, worry written across her face. "Because your father n' I can-"
"Mother." Hiyori took one of her mother's hands, and gave her a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine!"
Mrs. Iki seemed to settle herself down, her shoulders releasing her earlier tension. Her eyes became soft.
"Whenever you're ready to come home," she said "we'll be ready too."
Masaomi eased back down into his seat as he watched his sister and mother share one last hug.
"Just remember you can call us if there's an emergency - if you're having any symptoms you're not sure of."
"Mm!" Hiyori nodded with a grin.
"Dr. Iki?!" A nurse called from the hallway, then quickly spotted him inside the room. "We have a child with a broken wrist in room 204 in the ER. We request your assistance."
Mr. Iki sighed and stood from his daughter's bed. His wife soon followed him out of the room, stopping to give Hiyori a wave from the doorway. "Good luck. Be careful, Hiyori."
Hiyori smiled and waved back. Her mother then paused again, seeming to stare curiously at where Yato and Yukine were standing.
"Are you coming, dear?" Mr. Iki called over his shoulder from the hallway.
"Oh! Yes!" Mrs. Iki called back, tipping her gaze away from the god and Regalia without even seeing them.
Hiyori let out a heavy sigh, leaning back into her pillows. "That was nerve-wracking."
"No kidding," Yato mumbled, then looked to Masaomi. "Nice lie, though."
Masaomi took off his glasses and rubbed sweat off his temple. "Yeah, thanks. I was worried they wouldn't believe it at first."
"Judging by their reactions, I think they bought it," Yato laughed, to which Masaomi chuckled nervously in response.
Yato noticed Hiyori close her eyes and fan her face. "A-are you alright, my goddess?"
She peeked through one of her eyes at him, and smiled slightly to reassure him. "It's okay - I'm just a bit warm is all."
"O-oh, I'll open a window," Yukine suggested, already hurrying to force open one of the hospital's wide windows next to her.
Hiyori seemed to ease down a bit once she felt the cool breeze seep in. Yato then suggested she sit up. Hiyori blinked in slight confusion, but did so anyway. Then, the god started digging through her purse on the nightstand until he seemed to come across what he'd been searching for.
"Yato?" Hiyori looked over her shoulder to see what he was doing - what with all the noise he had been making. "What're you-?"
"Just face the other way."
Hiyori blinked once again, and adjusted herself so that her back was facing the god's. Her gaze now on her brother, she gave him a questioning look, and he shrugged in response.
Hiyori felt Yato's fingers carefully comb through her hair. She felt him pull her brown locks back, twisting them. He continued doing so for a few minutes until she heard tie her hair back.
"There!" He said cheerfully. "Beautiful!"
"Huh? Really?" Hiyori said, glancing back at the smiling god before turning to hear her brother's opinion.
Masaomi grinned. "Not too bad," he answered, and Hiyori noticed the nod of confirmation he passed to Yato standing behind her.
She reached behind her and pulled her hair over her shoulder to see it. "A braid?" She turned to look at Yato. "I didn't know you knew how to style hair."
"Hai hai!" Yato gloated, basking in her admiration.
Hiyori's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Arigato. My god." She spoke tenderly.
By then, Yukine had grown bored and wandered away from the group to read some magazines on the couch. The lovers shared a loving embrace. They only pulled away when Masaomi finally spoke up.
"So… Yato?"
Yato turned his attention on the young man.
"You said you were a god?" Hiyori's brother asked, seeming interested. "A god of what, specifically?"
"Uh-" Yato blinked in surprise, rubbing the back of his head and looking to the top left of his vision "I'm…"
Yato and Hiyori exchanged serious glances before he finally answered.
"I'm a delivery god."
"Is that right?" Masaomi scoffed to himself, a half smile forming on his face as he grabbed his suitcase and stood up from his chair. "Well, you certainly do deliver, don't you?"
Hiyori curiously watched the two interact.
"Huh?" Yato blinked twice, dumbfounded. "W-what's that supposed to mean?"
Masaomi chuckled to himself. "Nothing. Nevermind it. I'll give you two some space for now." He then turned to his sister, holding a hand up to gesture goodbye. "They release you tomorrow afternoon? I'll be there to walk you home, alright?"
Hiyori gleefully nodded. "Mm! Arigato, Onii-chan."
As Masaomi passed the young blonde boy, he politely bowed to him before finally leave the hospital room. The boy didn't have time to react beyond hiding his pink face behind the pages of the magazine.
