A/N: Hi guys! I am starting my bachelor's degree in Nanoscience on Monday! I'm so excited :D I have also been writing for GrayLu week 2014, hence the tardiness of my uploads. Enjoy!

Chapter 10

The next day was awfully awkward for Shouta. He had gotten up earlier than usual and gone to work in a hurry. Once there, he was able to somewhat calm down. The day passed without anything interesting happening and he soon returned home. Sawako was already preparing dinner, and he soon joined her. He greeted her with a kiss to her temple and gave her a hand.

"How were classes?" He asked, trying to make conversation.

"Great. There is a new student in class this year. She is incredibly sweet and intelligent. She wants to become a doctor." Sawako always had a smile on her face when she spoke of her class.

"That's good." Shouta nodded and peeled some potatoes.

"How did the meeting go?" Sawako's dark eyes peered up at him from beneath her fringe.

"Meeting?" He looked at her with a raised brow.

"The one you had today." Crap. It hadn't exactly been a meeting, but more of a quick status check.

"It was fine… Nothing interesting happened." That, at least, was true. He returned to the task of peeling potatoes, and almost missed what Sawako told him next.

"I prepared the guestroom for your grandmother. Do you know what kind of food she prefers? It will be her first time coming over and I want her to have a happy experience." The noirette had thought a lot about what to make for the next couple of days, but found it incredibly difficult to actually settle on something.

"Um, anything traditional will do." Shouta answered hesitantly. Truth be told, he wasn't looking forward to meeting his grandma again. She had been very much against his relationship with Sawako in the beginning, but Sawako had managed to make her approve of it.

"Alright." Sawako went quiet for a few minutes. She liked the peaceful atmosphere in the kitchen and often spent her time planning her upcoming days while cooking. The thing about cooking that intrigued her was the combining of different ingredients to make something new altogether. She sometimes lost herself in the process, but it definitely was one of her favorite pastimes.

"I'm sorry for acting weird yesterday." Shouta glanced sideways at his wife. He hated feeling uncomfortable around Sawako, and was determined to make up for it. She didn't say anything at first, just kept stirring the pot.

"Did it have something to do with Pin-sensei?" Her question caught him off guard, even though he should have expected it. Sawako had become very perceptive as of lately, especially when it came to Shouta. She was exceptional at reading him.

"I guess you could say that." He once again returned his attention to the vegetables he had started cutting up. He should just have kept his mouth shut. He refused to lie to Sawako, but it was embarrassing to admit what had happened.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She peered up at him again. He looked incredibly uncomfortable. Shouta was spared from having to answer by the doorbell chiming.

"I'll get it." Sawako flashed him a smile and left him in charge of watching the food. Shouta breathed a sigh of relief, before grimacing at his situation. How was he supposed to explain to Sawako that he had punched Pin yesterday? He just wanted to come clean and tell her, but he knew they had a busy couple of days ahead of them and he was dreading having that conversation.

Sawako returned with Touta in tow. Shouta was actually relieved to see his younger brother in their kitchen. He had brought over a bag of something from their mother and was asking Sawako about his homework. He stayed for dinner and kept conversation going, momentarily taking Shouta's mind off the matters at hand.

"It's been a while since we hung out, Shouta-nii."

"Yeah." The older Kazehaya nodded. He had been busy with work and everything else and had neglected his brotherly duties. Once Touta left it had gotten pretty late and the couple went to bed.

After returning from work the next day, they both went to Shouta's parents' house to pick up his grandmother. Sawako was excited beyond belief and also a little nervous. Her husband, on the other hand, wished he a hole would open up and swallow him. He felt nauseous all of a sudden. Ryu had called him earlier that day and asked how he was doing. Pin, apparently, was sporting a pretty big bruise.

They had talked for a while and both agreed that he needed to tell Sawako what had happened. Not only was Shouta embarrassed, but he was incredibly disappointed in himself. He turned to look at Sawako, who was already greeting his grandmother, and watched how happy she was. He wanted that smile to be present forever.

"Well, aren't you going to greet me?" Shouta snapped his eyes to the owner of the voice. He had been spacing out and completely forgot why they were at his parents' house in the first place.

"Hello Grandma." Shouta said a little tensely. Her face was the same as ever, portraying pride, arrogance and something close to disdain.

"I see you haven't changed at all." She sniffed at him. She looked him up and down before shaking her head.

"Neither have you." That shut her up. How were they supposed to get along the next few days? They hadn't even been in the same room for five minutes. Shouta decided for that he would tolerate his grandmother and be civil to her for Sawako's sake. And he would tell her what had happened with Pin.

During dinner, the tension was so thick it could be cut with a knife. Shouta was scowling at his grandmother, who paid him no mind. They had been at each other's throats all day long, and Shouta would honestly have preferred if she had stayed away. She was currently judging a dish Sawako had made, and while his wife was waiting in suspense, Shouta knew his grandmother would say something insulting.

"A bit too salty." He was astounded when those were the only words that came from her mouth. He watched as Sawako nodded and made a mental note to decrease the amount of salt in the food.

"That's all?" He asked, shocked. He was used to hearing her pick everything apart and lecture people about the correct way of doing things.

"Yes, that's all." She snapped at him. She returned her attention to Sawako and started giving her tips on how to balance the flavors. Sawako was hanging off her every word, completely oblivious to Shouta's baffled expression. He was starting to feel trapped, so he hurriedly finished his dinner and excused himself to get some air.

Out in the backyard, Shouta sat down on the stairs and stared out into the night. The sun had set and the stars were shining brightly. It always calmed him down when he could just stare blankly into space without having to think for a while.

"it's getting chilly." Shouta felt his dad approach and waited for him to take a seat beside him.

"It is nearly September, dad." He replied dryly. Mamoru chuckled and shook his head. They sat for a few moments, before Mamoru broke the silence.

"Listen, Shouta, I know you aren't very excited about your grandma being here, but I want you to try and get along with her." He felt bad for his sons. None of them had a very good relationship with his mother, and he knew it was mostly his fault. He and his mother were equally stubborn and that had led to many fights over the years.

"Yeah sure, because Grandma is the nicest person to be around." Shouta felt childish for thinking like that, but he couldn't help himself. He had grown up with his grandparents being somewhat cold to him, so he preferred to keep his distance.

"I know it may seem that way, but she wasn't always like that." Mamoru muttered. He looked up at his son with sadness in his eyes. Shouta prompted him to elaborate.

"Your grandmother had always wanted an obedient son, but she got stuck with me. All through my childhood I wanted her to see that I wasn't the prefect child she wanted me to be. She expected so much from me and would get furious whenever I disappointed her. She was always strict and she scolded me a lot," Mamoru chuckled a little, "so as I got older, I started to purposely do things that I knew would annoy her. She would always rant about how ungrateful I was and how my sisters were turned out a lot better than me.

"My father spent most of his time working, so it was mostly mom who was around. Can you imagine the arguments we would get into? It was stupid. Anyways, once I was an adult, she wanted me to settle down with a respectable girl, but I had already fallen in love with your mother. I wanted to marry Kaori and she was against it, so I cut off ties with her and we eloped. It was only after you were born that we spoke again. I think she always saw a part of me in you and your brother and that she was reminded of the failure she had raised. When you wanted to marry Sawako-chan, you must have resembled me so much that she forbade it, but believe me, she really does love you. Otherwise, she wouldn't have wanted to visit us. She is trying to reconcile."

"…I didn't know you and mom eloped." Shouta couldn't believe his own ears. The sole reason for his enmity with his grandmother was that he reminded her of his father. It was unbelievable. It certainly explained why she always seemed cold towards him and Touta. Shouta was torn between feeling angry and pitying his grandmother.

"I didn't know whether to tell you or not." Mamoru shrugged. It wasn't something he was particularly proud of. He felt like he had gone behind his family's back, but getting to marry Kaori was worth it. He just wished he could have had his parents' support back then.

"The reason I told you all this is so you can put yourself in your grandma's shoes, see things from her perspective. It's not you she is angry with, it's me. I hurt her a lot over the years, and I never manned up enough to apologize to her." Mamoru admitted with a sad expression. It was obvious how much he regretted not having made up with his mother.

"You should talk to her." Shouta suggested quietly. His father looked up at him with a questioning look.

"If there is one thing that Sawako has taught me, it is that mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them." He quoted wisely. It was only now that he realized how much meaning the words held. Now he just needed to apply it to his own life.

"Sawako-chan is very wise." Mamoru mused with amusement. His klutzy daughter-in-law was one of the most honest beings he knew. She was something out of the ordinary.

"She is." Shouta agreed. His father left him and once he was alone with his thoughts, he resolved to tell Sawako about what Pin had said. He just hoped she wouldn't be too mad.

"Shouta?" He heard Sawako call his name in her sweet voice and looked over his shoulder to see her standing with her hands folded. She was fiddling with her wedding ring. The sight made him smile and he beckoned for her to come closer. She gingerly sat down next to him, where his father had been moments prior.

"What time is it?" He took one of her hands and held in both of his.

"A little past ten."

"Oh." Sawako reached her free hand up and pushed away some hair from his forehead. He needed to get his hair cut. She let her hand linger on the side of his face, running her thumb up and down his cheekbone.

"What's wrong?" She asked softly. They locked eyes for a few seconds before Shouta took a deep breath.

"I need to tell you something."

Cliffhangers, gotta love them! I should warn you that most of the occurrences and issues from here on out, are the product of my imagination combined with things I myself have experienced. That being said, I want to thank everyone for the support! We are starting to get to the part of the plot that I have put the most effort into. (=w=)/