Valentine's Day was the next day, the fourteenth, which was a Friday. Atsuko was flying around the classroom, decorating after school, for her two classes. Come hell or high water, her classes were going to have a party, with cupcakes and everything.

"You know, it's a nice view from down here Suko-chan" It was Masaomi, staring at her rear-end from the doorway.

"Masaomi, I could give you a detention for that you know" She stated stepping down from the ladder

"You know I wouldn't go anyway, and besides, you wouldn't. I'm your favorite student" He chortled, flicking his head to the side to adjust his hair.

Blinking her coal eyes at him, Atsuko shook her head sadly. She refilled her stapler with the tiny pieces of metal that were holding her decorations together.

"So, what're your plans for tomorrow?" Masaomi asked bumping his hip against hers gently

Grinning brightly at this question Atsuko waved her index fingers in the air "Shizuo and I are going out tomorrow"

There was a deathly silence before the younger blonde answered "But…I thought you…me…sushi"

Atsuko braced herself for the waves of nauseous guilt that were bound to hit her any moment. He has actually started to care about her, and she had been so callous. No, indecisive. No, not indecisive, responsible. She had been responsible.

Her inner monologue was interrupted by him asking "So, you like him more, yeah?"

Furiously stapling the last of the streamers up Atsuko shook her head before slamming her stapler on her desk, slipping her own coat on, and wrapping her scarf around her neck a few times. Masaomi's coat was quickly shoved back at him, and she was gone within moments. The blonde stared at the door in confounded at the young lady's answer.

Peering out into the hall, there was no sign of the teacher anywhere.

"You're out of breath" Tom chuckled holding his sister's child in his arms, "couldn't get away from that Kida kid fast enough, could you?"

Resting her hands on her knees, the younger Tanaka glared up at her brother "Nii-san, please, let's not talk about it"

"Oh! Oji-sensei! Hey Tanaka-sensei!" There was shouting from behind the duo

Turning the Tanaka family came face-to-face with two bleach blonde girls and a lilac tressed girl who stood in the middle of them. Their skirts were rolled up considerably, exhibiting extremely tanned skin.

"Erm, yes, can I help you Yuki-chan?" Atsuko scratched the back of her head as she took Hotaru from her brother

"Is this your husband?" The lilac-haired girl, Yuki, asked nosily

The siblings looked at each other in horror for a few moments before swiftly shaking their heads, Tom answered for her "No. She's my sister."

Turning red, Yuki bowed deeply "I apologize, I just thought…"

"Gosh Yuki! You're such an idiot!" one of the bleached girls shook her head "I'm so sorry Tanaka-sensei"

"Well, uhm, I've got to go" The elder woman began inching away before turning and briskly walking away with Tom in pursuit

"You know, we look too much alike to actually be, god! Ew! Tom-nii, how could someone think that?"

"Because we don't actually look alike?"

"Yes we do! My nose is just more feminine, but it's the same nose!"

"But you're pale because you never go outside"

"Well I don't want skin cancer!"

"You're not going to get skin cancer from laying out in the sun for moderate amounts of time"

"Do you want me to be orange?"

"No, I don't want you to be an Oompa-Loompa…"

"Exactly."

The duo slipped into the small backroom of Russia Sushi where Shizuo, Shinra, and a woman wearing a motorcycle helmet sat comfortably waiting.

"How's my favorite godchild?" Shinra asked happily rising from the table and sweeping Hotaru out of Atsuko's arms "Oh I missed you, yes I did! Me and Celty are going to have babies just like you, maybe even prettier! What? No! Don't cry baby! Don't cry!"

Atsuko shook her head, finally giving into the day and laughing at how absurd her friends- no, her family was. She smiled as Celty gently held the baby in her arms, watching it with something akin to amazement.

"You know, Celty, you could probably get a better look at Hotaru without the helmet" Shinra prodded.

There was swift rushing sound from behind the helmet "What? No! And scar this child for life?"

"Celty, she's a baby, she's not going to know it's bad. She'll grow up thinking you're a perfectly, normal, beautiful person, dullahan, thing." The mother smiled brightly scratching the back of her head

"See Celty!" Shinra insisted "This baby will think you're beautiful too!"

If on cue, Hotaru gurgled happily reaching her tiny hands up towards the dullahan. Taking that as a cue, Shinra poked the helmet roughly and let it fall back onto the ground. Smoke billowed up from the woman's neck, from what appeared to be a gaping hole. Cautiously the smoke trickled down her neck and floated around the infant in her arms.

"She likes it" Tom stated as the smoke took the form of a mobile

"Well I would hope so" Celty snorted

"I have news" Atsuko puffed her chest up proudly as she smoothed her pink chiffon sweater

All eyes were suddenly directed towards her, surprised at the sudden announcement.

"I, Tanaka Atsuko, have been offered a job. As a secretary" She grinned

"Be a secretary, you dress like one anyway" Tom snorted, "and besides, I thought you liked being the teacher with the school age boyfriend?"

"I fly solo Tom-nii" She stuck her arms out at the sides and mimed being a plane for a few moments.

"See, this is why we don't let her out of the house" Tom shook his head

"Tom-nii, you love me!" she stuck her tongue out indignantly before shaking her head "And besides, I don't even like him. He likes me"

"Wait. You didn't tell them who you're working for!" Shinra blurted out happily

Atsuko shook her head laughing, pointing her thumb in the bespectacled doctor's direction "I'm working for this idiot over here, I also tend to small wounds, well, I will after he teaches me"

Tom patted his sister on the back and smiled softly. He was so happy that Kida boy wouldn't be hanging around anymore. He couldn't stand that little blonde pervert. And now, Atsuko was giving up her dreams of being an educator over a boy and for more time with her daughter.

Of course, Atsuko still had her flaws, like how she drank the orange juice straight out of the carton or how she only listened to news stations on the radio. There was also the fact that she woke up impossibly early and always nearly managed to scare Tom to his grave. But through and through, the debt collector loved his sister and the baby she had adopted.

"Tom, you're looking at me weird" The youth squinted at him while sipping her tea

The dreadlocked man smiled, "I'm just thinking"

Hotaru gurgled in Celty's arms, reaching slightly for her mother, who took her into her arms. She kissed the top of the infant's head and smiled.