Chapter 4

Narrator's PoV

Hotohori looked, almost stunned, at Nuriko, realizing for the first time the fellow seishi was holding back tears as Nuriko moved away and looked at the ground. He moved over to Nuriko, holding on to him. "Nuriko..." He started.

"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" He asked a few seconds later. Nuriko looked as if he had been hit with something hard. He stared Hotohori in the eyes, but quickly looked away. "You seemed so happy to get the job in Washington, I didn't want to stop you... Or sound selfish. But I mean, I feel as if we're drifting apart, but I don't want that... I have all my memories from before, and it's as if they're still fresh in my mind when I think of what's happening now... And I'm rambling..." He explained with a cynical laugh, tears finally flowing free. He wiped them away and looked at Hotohori apologetically. He laughed, a forced laugh, and said, "I'm sorry, I probably made no sense."

But Hotohori couldn't speak, it was his turn to feel hit. He just shook his head, and forced out, "No, I understood."

Later that afternoon, Hotohori collapsed on the couch, deep in thought. He never

realized how Nuriko was feeling. He knew what it was like to face an unrequited love,

but this time, it wasn't Miaka he had wanted. And now, without realizing it, he was

making Nuriko relive what they had both experienced during their previous lives.

'What time did Nuriko say he'd get back?' He wondered, looking at his watch. Nuriko had taken Reishin and Hikari to the park that was just built a town over. He got up and called Nuriko's cell phone.

"Hotohori?" Nuriko answered almost questioningly, he still sounded a bit depressed

about their talk that morning.

"Hey... Umm... What time did you say you'd be home?" He asked.

"Oh, about four, We're gonna meet Miaka after she gets off work and go hang out for a bit." Nuriko explained.

"Do you think you could get Miaka to watch Reishin for a bit afterwards? I wanna

take you somewhere for dinner, just the two of us." He explained. He could almost see the

stars in Nuriko's eyes.

"Yeah, I'll ask her and call you back around four, okay?"

"Okay. Bye." He said and hung up. He was supposed to go to work soon, so

he figured he could work until four. He called his boss, whom Hotohori knew wouldn't

be happy.

With Nuriko and the children

"Nuriko!" Hikari called. The girls ran over to their supervisor for the day. Both

smiling, Nuriko knew what they were going to ask before they asked it-he could hear the bells.

"Can you have ice cream, right?" He asked with a small smile. They both nodded. Nuriko's smile widened, but he shook his head.

"I'm okay with Reishin getting ice cream, but your mother said no sweets Hikari. It

would only be fair if I didn't let you get ice cream..." Nuriko looked around, as if expecting

Miaka to appear out of nowhere.

"After we eat lunch, I'll treat you both to a sundae, okay? That's better than a stupid

popsicle."

"Yes!" They both replied happily. Nuriko smiled as the girls went to go play again.

Another mother sat down next to him.

"Are they both yours?" She asked politely.

"Oh no, just the taller one." Nuriko said happily. He grabbed Miaka's son

out of the carriage, and glanced at the other mother's baby boy. "That's a cute baby." He

told her.

"Thank you. You know, it's not often the father is out here..." Nuriko looked a little

shocked. He wasn't necessarily in a dress, but he wasn't in the most masculine clothing

either. He laughed nervously.

"Heh heh... Well... " He debated. He knew there were people who wouldn't like

it if he admitted Reishin had two dads, but for some reason, he knew he could trust this

person. There was something familiar about this person, but he couldn't quite put a finger

on it. He decided to go for it. He smiled, still polite, "She has two dads, so it's just us

guys..." The mother looked surprised for a moment, silent for what seemed like forever,

before the mother laughed. "I'm surprised to meet someone else like me here..." She stated.

Nuriko was dumbfounded. "Wha-Whaaat!" He said, almost too loud. The other "mother"

extended their hand out.

"I'm Tama-Tama, nice to meet you..."

"Nuriko." He smiled and shook Tama-Tama's hand.

'That name...' He thought. 'But it can't be!' He just smiled again, and then looked over

towards Reishin and Hikari. He felt like he was going insane. 'First Korin, then the other Seishi,now Tama-Tama!" He thought. 'Having the same siblings is weird enough...' He collapsed onto the bench. Hikari and Reishin ran over to Nuriko, out of breath but still smiling.

"We're hungry Nuriko." Hikari stated. Reishin nodded in agreement. "We want our sundaes

now." Reishin said and this time, Hikari smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Woah! I said lunch first, then sundaes! Not the other way around..." Nuriko looked

back to Tama-Tama. "This is my first time here, but I'll probably be coming here weekly, wanna meet up again next week, if we have time?" He offered.

Tama-Tama smiled, and responded, "Sure! I'll make sure to have time, it was great meeting you." They smiled at each other, their common bond linking them as if they had been friends forever. Nuriko laughed slightly at the irony of their actions, "Likewise," He replied.

--

Tama-Tama is the person that taught Nuriko how to pass as a girl. In Yukiyasha Den (Nuriko's Gaiden novel), they meet after Nuriko leaves his hometown, and they became friends quickly because Tama-Tama was well, an experienced cross-dresser and Nuriko was still a novice.