Makoto was at home. He had been since noon after having taken a morning shift from four in the night until then. He was supposed to sleep, but that had been next to impossible. His senses as a parent had told him that something wasn't right and kept him awake all afternoon.
Nobody else had been home until about half an hour ago when Rei had returned from his university. Nagisa had texted him, informing him that he would hang out with his friends at the swimming club and perfect his breast stroke even more. Kisumi was having some stylist practice at a show tonight and won't be home until about 10 or so.
Just then, Makoto's phone started ringing and he picked it up almost immediately like he was expecting an important call. In reality he wasn't, it was just that feeling that caused him to act like this. And besides, it was Rin who was calling.
"Hello, what is it, Rin?" he asked as he picked up.
"Uh… excuse me, Tachibana-san?" It was a female voice. It took a short while before Makoto could place it and he smiled as he did.
"Yazaki-san?" he asked. "What is it?" he asked.
"Well… We think we have found out where Nanase-kun is," she said. "Matsuoka-kun and Yamasaki-kun went in to save him about 10 minutes ago and Nitori-kun and I were left outside the building,"
"And you're worried?" Makoto asked.
"Yes," Aki answered. "Yamasaki-kun said to call you if something went wrong, it's not like anything has gone wrong yet, but it has been a little too long, and so we thought it would be best to inform you about what is happening,"
"Where are you at now?" Makoto asked. He got up from the couch he had been sitting in almost all afternoon and headed to the hallway to prepare to get outside.
"We're in Shinjuku," Aki gave the address. "How long do you think it'll take for you to get here, Tachibana-san?" she asked.
"Five to ten minutes if I go max speed," Makoto said.
"Like… Like driving more than what's allowed?" Aki asked worriedly.
"Yes," Makoto said while pulling on his shoes. "It's not something I like to do, but in this case, the sooner I can get there the better," he said.
"I understand. Please be careful, Tachibana-san," Yazaki said. "Nitori-kun and I will be outside,"
"Okay, thanks," Makoto said. "I'll see you then," he hung up and was about to leave when Rei came out.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Rin, Yamasaki and the others have found Haru," Makoto said. "I'm going to the place to help out. You stay here and inform Nagisa once he gets home. I don't know when I'll be back," he grabbed his keys and opened the door.
"Be careful," Rei warned.
"I will," Makoto said before half running out the apartment, leaving the door open for Rei to close behind him.
Makoto's head was full of thoughts as he hurried to Kisumi's car and unlocked it. Of course the car was for both him and Kisumi to use, but it was originally Kisumi who had bought it and therefore they had all just declared it to be his car, seeing as it was more right that way.
Makoto sat in and started the car. He had already typed the address on his phone and placed it in the window, using the directions to guide him.
While driving, he allowed all the latest events to pass through his mind.
A lot had happened since spring. Rin and Haruka had been called to Australia for swimming, Nagisa had gotten a job as babysitter and Rei was preparing to move out. These were good things that showed just how much his children had grown up. He couldn't believe they had already been with him for 11 years and grown so much since then. Back then they had just been some troubled children who needed someone to care about them. Now, they were all nearing adulthood and had matured way more than those back in Iwatobi could have ever imagined.
Of course, Rei and Nagisa's relationship had almost fallen apart too. Nagisa had been kicked out of math class but was supposed to attend it again starting today. He had also run away less than one week ago because of a lot of troublesome stuff. Makoto hadn't been aware of half of it until Rin and Haruka told him about it. Those two had seen it all.
Then Haruka had gotten kidnapped, causing the entire family to grow worried. Makoto remembered that they had had to call Rei home from Osaka and ask him to bring Nagisa along while he was at it. They had returned on Saturday morning.
Rin had been acting strange since about that time though. He had been much less talkative than usual and Makoto had had a feeling he was hiding something. He had just left it be for two reason. Rin was not the type to hide something, and if he did hide something, it wasn't for too long, the other reason was that Makoto was hiding something from Rin too and would rather not tell him that he knew the identity of the one who had kidnapped Haruka.
He had spoken to Matsuoka-san about it. She had told him about Rin and Haruka's biological father and grown really worried when Makoto had shared his information with her. She had said it wasn't impossible though.
"Could he be after Rin too?" Makoto had asked her.
"I don't know…" Matsuoka-san had looked worriedly at him. "It is possible. I shall admit, if it turns out he is after Rin too I won't be surprised,"
This conversation had caused Makoto to worry even more, especially about how Rin had seemed to be hiding something.
He wondered how Rin had managed to find Haruka so quickly. Something had had to happen. A thought that had been in Makoto's head since Saturday morning, surfaced once again. Maybe Taichi had taken contact to Rin and asked him to come to wherever Haruka was. Was that how this had happened? He would have to confront Rin about this later.
But first things first, he would have to find his boys and make sure they were both okay.
Makoto sped up. He was nearing Shinjuku fast, breaking every speed limit. He knew this was dangerous, not only for everyone else, but also for himself. He had met a few children who had been involved in car accidents, caused by people driving too fast. He had an idea of how it would end up if he wasn't careful. He wasn't an experienced driver, which only made it even more important that he watched out for the people around him.
After around 2 more minutes he turned down the street in Shinjuku where the apartment was supposed to be. He slowed down a bit and caught sight of a young boy and girl who were standing together outside a five-storey building. He pulled to the side and stopped right in front of them before jumping out of the car.
"Where are they?" he asked as Aki and Aiichirou walked towards him.
"They're inside," Aki said. "No one has come out yet," she was holding Rin's phone tightly in one hand and Haruka's phone in the other. She was holding them tightly as she spoke worriedly to Makoto.
"What floor?" Makoto asked.
"The fourth," Aiichirou answered.
"Okay," Makoto smiled. "I'll go in, you two stay put. Everything will be fine, I'm sure," he assured them before heading inside the building, seeming way calmer than he actually felt.