Chapter 4

14.) What is the x intercept of the line -3x + y = 3?

A.) (0,0)

B.) (-1,0)

C.) (0,-1)

D.) None of the Above

This was the last problem to solve on Satoshi Tainaka's algebra homework. A simple enough equation for him. Though the problem was multiple choice, his teacher had given the direct order to his students to "Show your work for each problem." Satoshi found that sort of redundant because, well, what is the point of making it multiple choice if you have to show your work anyway, which gives the answer already. Regardless he proceeded to write out his solution, replacing the y with zero and getting and answer of x = -1, and thus mean the answer to the multiple choice was (B).

"Finally," he sighed to himself. "Finished."

With that last equation solved, the boy packed up the books and papers that littered the surface of his computer desk back into his backpack. It had only taken him an hour's time to finish his homework for all his school subjects, bringing the time of the day to 16:00 exactly. He then spent the next hour or two engaging in several rounds of online shooters, during which time he heard her sister return from her after school club, head upstairs, and go into her room, and then his parents come home not too long after that.

He only became aware of the current time when his cell phone, which sat in his right pant pocket, began to vibrate. He quickly quit his game and retrieved the device to see that not only was it currently 18:23, but it was his girlfriend that was calling. He smiled to himself as he brought the phone to his ear and answered with a casual "Sup, Misa-chan."

The reply he got back couldn't have been more opposite. "This is not good," Misao's panicked voice said back. "This is so not fucking good!"

The boy blinked. "… W-What? Misa-chan? Is that you?"

"Yes, it's me ya idiot! And right now, we are both in deep shit. Deep deep shit!"

"H-Hold on, what are you talking about!"

"Sato-kun, I… I- I'm four day's late!"

Again the boy blinked. "… Late for what?" he asked back.

"Wha-? Are you a fucking idiot? I'm four day's late on my period!" Misao explained. "Do you at least know what that means?"

"No, I don't, Misa-chan. Why are you getting so worked up?" The boy truly had no clue.

"You dumbass! It means- It means that I might be pregnant!"

*Beep* Satoshi terminated the call.

Immediately the boy collapsed to his knees, his mind now racing with panicked thoughts. His face turned an intense livid shade. "Oh God, oh God, oh God- W-Wha- How could this happen! If Misa-chan really is- Oh fuck, why!"

The boy's phone vibrated once more in his hand and he answered after a split instant. Misao sounded none too pleased on the other end. "Did you just fucking hang up on me?" she screamed.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to," Satoshi apologized as he got back onto his feet.

"What do you mean you 'didn't mean to'!"

"M-My finger slipped- Look, whatever! Misa-chan, what makes you think you might be p-pregnant?"

"Because you stop having your period when you are pregnant, Sato-kun! Didn't they teach you this stuff in school?"

"W-Well, we were only taught about the male anatomy in Sex Ed. I think they teach the female half next yea-"

"Whatever! Sato-kun, do you get what I'm saying here?"

"I-I get it, I get it! B-But I thought because, well, since we use condoms and stuff, that things like this wouldn't happen!"

"There's always a chance something like this could happen. It's like less than 1%, but it's still there."

"… You never told me that!"

"I thought you knew!"

"Well hell of a fucking time to tell me now!" Satoshi himself gasped at his own words. This was the first time he had ever sworn at Misao like this. In fact, this was their first real fight. "… I-I'm sorry, Misa-chan. I didn't mean to-… L-Look, how do you know you're pregnant? Aren't there tests that you pee on the-?"

"Well yeah, but I can't get any," Misao answered.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not allowed out of the house, Sato-kun. I'm confined to my room."

"Not allo-? Oh shit… M-Misa-chan, d-did you tell your parents that you were…?"

"I had to tell them. I told them I was late on my period and they just- blew up! I asked if I could go and buy some tests but they just sent me to my room. That's why I'm calling you now, Sato-kun. They're planning to call your parents later tonight so they can set up some sort of meeting."

" What? You mean they're going to call my house?"

"Yes… How do you think they will react, Sato-kun?"

The very thought of imaging how his parents would react to such news sent an icy chill down the boy's spine. He knew exactly how they were going to react: they were going to be furious, no doubt about it. "… Badly," he replied.

"Hmm… Do you think… You think they'll keep us from seeing each other?"

"Yeah, Misa-chan, that's pretty much a given… Uh, t-thanks for telling me before my parents figured out. I-I promise, we'll talk later, ok-?"

"Wait, Sato-kun!" Misao cut the boy off before he could hang up. "What will you do if, well, I really am pregnant?"

"… I-I don't know, Misa-chan- B-But we'll think of something… Jesus, I feel a little light-headed right now. I think I need to lie down."

"Y-Yeah, probably a good idea. Give me a call later tonight?"

"Sure. Talk to you soon, then."

"'Kay… I love you, Sato-kun."

"… Bye." And once again, the line was terminated.

The boy felt weak enough to faint at any given moment. His legs quivered with both shock and fear, threatening to bring him to his knees once again. Not only that, but his hands shook with just as much ferocity, causing him to stumble a few times as he slipped his phone back into his pant pocket. And on top of all of this, he legitimately felt like throwing up. The fear was that intense.

After all, he was but a thirteen year old boy. At his age, what are life's dilemmas but homework and the occasional pimple or two? Now, Satoshi had placed before him a crisis that he himself felt idiotic at not thinking about it earlier: parenthood. And he had not a single idea of how to proceed next, except to ask for help. But who…?

There was only one person he felt that could garnish sympathy to his cause. Upon quaking legs did Satoshi walk himself out of his room, down the upstairs hall, and to the second door on his left: the door to his sister's room.

He banged his fist thrice upon its surface. "Nee-chan!" he uttered. "Nee-chan I need your help."

Ritsu's annoyed voice sounded from the other side. "Go away, twerp!" she said. "I'm busy!"

"But I really need your help with something!"

"I'm doing my homework right now. Can't it wait?"

"No, it- Wait. You're not doing your homework, Nee-chan. You never do your homework!"

"I am too, twerp!"

"Then tell me what subject you're doing right now." With any luck, Satoshi's bluff would be correct.

There was a pause. "… What do you want, Satoshi?" It was correct.

"I-" He stopped to glance at the stairs to his right and to hear if anyone was coming up or near them. When he heard nothing of the sort, he continued, but in a whisper. "Nee-chan, I am in seriously deep shit right now. I need your help. Please."

Again, a pause of silence came from within the room, but this time, it was followed by the sound of approaching footsteps. A second later, the door opened away from Satoshi, revealing Ritsu on the other side, dressed down in regular, non-school attire. Currently the bangs of her hair were held up vertically by a single yellow hair clip (which made her look rather silly to the boy.) He would have laughed had the situation not been so grim.

The girl heaved an immediate sigh of annoyance before asking her brother "What's going on then- AH!" She yelped when she took notice of the state the boy was in: his livid skin and the shaking of his extremities being the most noticeable. "Jesus, what's wrong with you? You look like you've seen a ghost, Satoshi… Hell, you look like a ghost."

The boy stuttered back a response. "That's b-because I'm freakin' terrified! I'm seriously freaking out, Nee-chan, and I need your help!" The desperation in his eyes was impossible to miss.

"Uh, sure..." Ritsu said back to Satoshi. She then motioned her gaze back into her room, a silent command for Satoshi to get in. The boy did just that, his sister shutting and locking the door. "Sit down, too. You look like you're about to collapse at any second." Satoshi pulled out the chair at Ritsu's desk and literally fell backwards into it. "Ok… What the hell's up, Sato?"

The boy Tainaka heaved a long, heavy, drawn-out breath before replying. "Well, i-it's about Misao." A chill shot up Ritsu's spine in an instant. Already she feared what was about to be said. She remained quite though. "She just called me a few minutes ago. S-She said that she might b-be… pregnant…"

Ritsu gasped. "Oh Jesus…" she sighed. Her expression quickly switched from shocked to angry in a blink. "Damnit, Satoshi, I thought you were smarter than this. You told me you weren't stupid enough to go bareback!"

"B-But I haven't!"

"And I- Huh? You haven't?" The boy shook his head. "Not once? Ever?" Again, his head shook. "Then how do you know she's even-"

"She called me, I told you. She said that she was- Well, late on her period, she said."

"Oh… Oh…" Worry now flooded onto her visage. "That's… That's not good, Satoshi. That is not good at all."

"W-What? Nee-chan, it that really that bad?"

"Well… Well, it's not unheard of for women to have late periods, but it's only for a day or two at the most. Did Misao say how many days late she was?"

"Four."

"Oh shit."

"Nee-chan! You're not helping me here!" Satoshi exclaimed.

"Well sorry," she apologized, "but everything you're telling me is not good at all! If a woman has missed a period for that long, it usually means one of two things: one, that she has hit menopause, or two, she's pregnant, and seeing as Misao's only eighteen, chances are its Number Two here."

Satoshi again looked like he was about to collapse, his skin turning a whiter shade of pale. "Shit, shit, shit," he began to mutter to himself, his palms pressed firmly against the sides of his head. And he would have continued further had Ritsu not stepped in and placed a hand on his right shoulder, causing him to stop and look up.

"Sato, breathe," she commanded. "Deep breaths, before you have a heart attack or something." The boy did as instructed and took deep, measured breaths in and out for a few moments. The color in his skin returned after half a minute or so. "Listen," Ritsu continued. "I know shit sucks right now, but I have to be straight with you. What's happened has happened and ya can't change that. The best thing you can do now is just man up and face this head-on. Understand?"

"… Y-Yeah," he shakily replied. "B-But, what should I do, Nee-chan?"

"Hmm…" she thought. "Do Misao's parents know about this?"

"Yes, they do. Actually, that was part of the reason Misa-chan called me. Her parents are going to call Mom and Dad tonight."

"I see… Well, I think I know what you should do then, Sato: tell Mom and Dad before they do. They might be slightly less furious if you're the one to tell them, know what I mean?"

"Hmm, you might be right… *Sigh* Ok then… Damnit, this fucking sucks."

"Yeah, I know it does, but you gotta man up and take responsibility for this, Satoshi. Running away will only make things worse."

"Right, right…" The boy stood up from the chair upon still-shaking legs. "Better do it now, before Misa-chan's parents think to call."

"I'll be there to back ya up," Ritsu reassured him. Then, with his sister following close behind, Satoshi left Ritsu's room and headed downstairs and into the home's kitchen, where both their mother and father were.

Yuko Tainaka, the mother, was standing in front of a counter surface adjacent to the oven, where she was mincing a portion of onions. It was clear that Ritsu gained her hair color from her mother, for it was the exactly same (of which Yuko's was longer in length and tied into a bun.) Unlike a certain Hiiragi, the experience of childbirth struck Yuko in a bad way. Nearly two decades later and it seemed she still was having trouble shedding off the baby weight. Not to mention the sag of her breasts was evident, no doubt due to the amount of breast feeding she endured.

The father, Yuji Tainaka, in contrast, was quite svelte for his age, not to mention tall. He was a giant amongst Japanese, standing an impressive six-foot-two. It was clear as well that Satoshi inherited his father's hair gene. His hair was cut short as well. It seemed that Yuji didn't bother to change out of his work clothes: a white button-down shirt, skinny black tie, and black khakis. He currently sat at the dinner table reading the newspaper, his prescription glasses sitting at the end of his nose.

Satoshi stood in the open doorway that separated the hallway from the kitchen, Ritsu standing right behind him. It would take a full ten seconds or so before their mother lifted her eyes off her cooking long enough to notice the two. "Oh, you two came down," she said to them with a grin. "Dinner's not quite ready yet." Yuji glanced up for a brief moment but returned to his newspaper just as quickly.

Once more, the boy breathed in a huge gulp of air before he proceeded. "… Everyone, I-"

The phone rang. "I'll get it," Yuji immediately offered, and before Satoshi could choke out an interjection, his father had already got up from his seat, tossing the paper aside onto the kitchen table's surface, and walked himself over to the wall mounted telephone near him.

"Hello, Tainaka residence… Yes, I am Satoshi's father, but what-… He did WHAT?"

If Satoshi didn't die right then and there, it wasn't because he didn't want to.

-o0o-

Since the next day was Saturday, the parents of Misao and Satoshi decided to have a meet-up that very next day, as soon as possible. The morning of that day was extraordinarily quiet. The mister and misses of the Tainaka family seemed to speak very little to Satoshi, both of them furious at the major bombshell dropped the night previous. At around noon, the family set off in the mother's sedan to the Kusakabe residence. It could have been considered the most silent car ride one could ever endure and none spoke during its entirety. Even the car radio seemed too fearful to utter a sound.

Eventually the vehicle reached its destination and pulled into the driveway. Everyone left the car and the parents, side by side, made their slow approach of the front door, Satoshi and Ritsu following close behind, the both of them side by side.

The door opened up only a few second after Yuji rang the doorbell. Both mister and misses Kusakabe greeted them on the other side: Kyuske and Misato, respectively. Both parents looked physically fit for their age (which seemed, for the both of them, to be no more than their exact forties.) The father's short hair was a dark blond while the mother shared the exact same color hair as Misao herself (though Misato's was done in a lengthier style than that of her daughter.)

The parents all bowed to each other and greeted themselves in modest tones before the Kusakabes invited the Tainakas inside. Once inside and after the visiting family removed their shoes, they migrated into the kitchen where Misato has prepared tea for everyone, where Misao also waited. Her and Satoshi's eyes locked the very moment the boy entered. Then, as Ritsu's eyes met Misao's, both flashed with remembrance. Both recognized each other from the airsoft match between Sawako and Nanako.

Also in the room was another member of the Kusakabe family: Ren, Misao's older brother of twenty one years, who had the same color hair as his father (though longer) and the toned physique of a competitive swimmer. His jaw nearly dropped the second Satoshi appeared before him. He had only heard about the pregnancy scare yesterday (as did Satoshi) and decided to leave his university dorm to provide emotional support for his little sister. He knew Satoshi only by name and by what Misao has told of him to him. He had assumed all this time Satoshi was the same age as Misao, so imagine his surprise and anger to see a thirteen year old arrive at his home.

After a few minutes of formalities amongst the adults, their intentions were finally made clear to the children. Kyuske turned to Ren. "Ren," he began, "can I count on you to keep Misao and the others in the living room while we," which referred to the adults exclusively, "discuss things?"

Ren turned his now glaring eyes back to Satoshi, shooting him a heated look that made the young boy flinch. He grinned and replied "Gladly." Murderous intent was written all over his face.

With that, all the parents left the kitchen and headed into the adjacent dining room. As they left, Ren stood up from his chair, standing just a tall as Yuji, and forcefully grabbed Satoshi by the back on his neck, leading him and the girls to the home's living room. In the room's center was a glass coffee table and around it was placed both a couch and loveseat (the very same loveseat Misao's and Satoshi's first time occurred atop of.)

Misao was the first to sit out of the four, taking a seat on the loveseat. Ren released his grip of Satoshi's neck and, once free, he made a drawn-out hesitation of a few minutes before he began his approach of the loveseat, intent of sitting next to Misao. But he soon found himself back in Ren's grip. "You aren't sitting anywhere near her, lover boy," he threatened through clenched teeth. Ren then nearly threw Satoshi ass-first onto the couch, putting as much distance between him and his sister.

Ritsu finally spoke up at this. "Hey!" she snapped. "That's my brother you're knocking around, bub." She looked none too intimidated by the taller man, giving him a glare.

He returned the glare back at her. "Yeah, your brother that knocked up my sister. I don't know how the hell you're so calm about all this…"

"Ritsu. The name's Ritsu. And I'm calm about this because I know Satoshi didn't do this on purpose! It was an accident."

"Yeah, hell of a freakin' accident. I mean, for Christ's sake, I thought this kid was going to be Misao's age, so-" He quickly turned back to Satoshi to aim a finger at him. "How the hell old are you, kid!"

"T-Thirteen," he meekly replied.

"Thirt-? Jesus Christ… You know what, you little punk? I ought to kick you freakin' ass right now for-!"

"Ren!" Misao finally spoke, shooting up from her seat simultaneously. "Knock it off!"

"Wha-? But, Misao, I'm trying to do what's best for you. I mean come on, he-"

"I get you mean well and all, be Sato-kun's still my boyfriend, so I don't appreciate you threatening him like that."

"But imouto-"

"Don't give me that 'imouto' crap, Ren. Besides, who are you to tell me what's best for me anyway? Maybe I should tell all your friends about Ayano, huh?"

Her brother's head reeled back at the mention of the name. "You wouldn't!"

"Keep threatening Sato-kun and I just might."

Both Satoshi and Ritsu watched the back-and-forth not know anything about what they were talking about, but judging from how Misao seemed to have the upper hand, something told them that if Ren's friends or peers knew about this "Ayano", his credibility could possibly be damaged or ruined.

Ren seemed to visibly back down after his sister's backlash, but he nevertheless continued to speak his mind. "Still doesn't matter," he said. "Mom and Dad are still going to bring the hammer down on 'Sato-kun' here." He said the name in an obvious mock. "You're still gonna fry, kid, believe me." The boy voiced a worried moan at this.

Just then, Ritsu stepped in. "Well then, if you, Ren, can grill my little brother, I think that gives me the right to drill a few question into your sister." She calmly and, with a surprising amount of confidence in her step, walked over to the loveseat and stood directly in front of Misao, face to face. "Sit," she commanded, to which Misao did just that.

The drummer crossed her arms across her chest before proceeding with her first question. "So, you're the chick that's been fucking my little brother, eh?" Everyone but Ritsu's face (Misao the more so) turned a bright red in the blink of an eye. "You know, when Satoshi told me he had a girlfriend, I was honestly surprised. Hell, before then, I thought he was gay."

"N-Nee-chan!" Satoshi protested, but his sister continued unabated.

"At first I didn't think much of it. I thought it was just a stupid little crush he had… But then when he let it slip that you two were having sex, that's when I actually believed what he was saying. Then he told me how old you were…" She bent forward and brought herself back face-to-face with Misao, said faces no more than a foot distance apart. "Now I'm not sure how to feel…" Her eyes narrowed to something reminiscent of a glare. "Worried or otherwise?"

Misao swallowed a fearful gulp. Any second now, she was expecting Ritsu to jump her. She seemed angry enough to do so at the moment, if her tone of voice was any indication.

"Well?" Ritsu pressed. "Tell me, Misa-chan. How should I feel right now?"

"U-Uh… W-Well, I-I think you should-" She paused. "… Hold on a second. Are you trying to guilt trip me or something?"

"No. I just want answers. Now answer me this: For what reasons should I not beat the shit out of you right now for taking advantage of my little brother, a thirteen year old boy, the way you did?

Well?"

Misao was legitimately frightened of the girl standing before her. She felt that every second she stalled with her answer would bring the looming threat of the ass-whooping in her future closer and closer to reality. But what could she say back? In truth, she felt that there was only one thing she could say, regardless of whether she felt it would bring upon her safety or a beating: the truth.

Misao stood herself up from her seat once again, forcing Ritsu to stand back up straight. Both remained face to face. "You want an answer, huh?" she shot back. "Well here's the truth… I love your brother, Ritsu. I love Satoshi."

Silence, much like that of the car ride over, filled the room. From a distance Satoshi stifled back a gasp while Ren used all his strength not to blow up from a mix of anger and shock. Ritsu, however, gave the girl back a somewhat blank look, one that was hard to read. Was she shocked? Angered? Upset? It was all hard to accurately say.

Misao continued to prove her point without hesitation. She slipped past Ritsu and walked right over to Satoshi, grabbed him by a wrist, and jerked him out of his seat before forcefully interlocking her right arm into his left and pulling him tight against himself. Now Ren really looked to be on the edge of exploding. "You're really Sato-kun's sister, right?" Misao asked Ritsu.

"Eh- W-Well, yeah, but-"

"Then you wouldn't have a problem answering a few questions from me about him, right?"

"I-I guess, but I don't see what this-"

"Do you think Satoshi is the kind of person to hit a woman?" Misao asked firstly.

"Wha-? N-No! Of course not!"

"Do you think Satoshi would ever cheat on someone?"

"Before a month ago, I didn't Satoshi could even have a girlfriend."

"That doesn't answer my question. I'll ask again: Do you think Satoshi is the kind of person to-?"

"No, Misao, I don't think he's capable of cheating."

"And last question: If you had to name three distinct, good qualities about Satoshi, what would they be?"

"Well, he-" Suddenly it hit her. Misao had spun things around in such a way that now, Ritsu was answering her own question. With every answer she gave Misao back, Ritsu was, in essence, naming off every reason why Misao would find her brother interesting. Reasons why she would love him.

The drummer grinned. "Three qualities, right…? He's kind, first off. Wouldn't hurt anyone that didn't deserve it. He's loyal, secondly. Like I said, I don't see him leaving you in the dust anytime soon. And thirdly… Well, he's a man." Misao's lips curled upward into a distinct grin. Ritsu was finally seeing it from her point of view. "After you called him yesterday, he came straight to me and asked for help. If being able to willingly admit that you're scared and to ask for help is not a sign of true manliness, I don't know what is."

Misao's smile widened slightly. "Now you're getting it."

Ritsu lifted her gaze from Misao and drifted it to her brother. "Well, Sato? Got something to add? Actually, better yet, maybe you should say something to Ren here because he still looks an inch from knocking your head off."

Satoshi looked back to Ren and, indeed, he looked just as close to meltdown as he did moments ago. "… Ren-san," Satoshi finally began. "I get why you're mad at me. You think I'm too young to know what I'm talking about. You probably think I'm just a kid and not deserving of your sister..." Ren seemed to nod in agreement with everything Satoshi was listing off. "But I want you to know that I respect you sister. In fact, I treat her just as I would my own sister."

…

"…W-Wait, that came out wrong. Uh, l-let me reword that… I treat Misao like a member of the family- Wait, no, that's just as bad!" Ren's fists clenched in preparation to punch, but a moment before his Ritsu jumped in and positioned herself between the couple and Ren.

"What he means to say," she cut in, "is that Satoshi would never do anything to hurt your sister, that he'll stick by her side no matter what. Right, Sato?" The boy nodded his head rapidly in reply.

Ren, in reply, averted his gaze and scoffed. "… Whatever," he muttered before then looking back to the boy. "But there's still one more glaring issue left, boy: What are you going to do about this child, huh?"

At this question the room turned silent once again. Satoshi's eyes fell to the floor. Misao still had her arm interlocked with his. "I… I'm not sure…" he replied.

"Humph… Well, it doesn't matter in the end. It's going to be up to Mom and Dad, Misao, to decide what's going to happen."

A voice sounded from outside the room. "Actually, maybe not."

Ren, Misao, Satoshi, and Ritsu all whipped around to the doorway they had entered through earlier, to where the voice came from. A short moment passed before a pair stepped out from behind the wall and into view: Yuji and Yuko. A second later Misato and Kyuske appeared from behind the wall.

"Uh… How long were you guys listening in?" Ren finally asked.

Yuko was the one to reply. "Somewhere after 'So you're the chick that's been fucking my brother.'" Her eyes fell directly onto her daughter's now embarrassed face.

Kyuske took over from there. "Some conversation you four were having there. Maybe keeping you all in another room while we talked was a good idea after all."

"So what's going to happen?" Ren interjected. "What did you decide on?"

"Well," answered Kyuske, the man's gaze fell onto that of Satoshi, "Misato and I had a pretty good back-and-forth going between your parents. Who knew such a skinny guy could intimidate like that."

Yuji chuckled at that. "Yeah, well, one of fine arts you learn working at the stock exchange is yelling. I got that down pat, pretty much."

Misato continued. "We were about to head back here and render our judgment, but once we heard the back-and-forth you all were having, we sort of… decided to eavesdrop." She chuckled and grinned, revealing a fang identical to that of her daughter, poking out from behind her upper lip. It seemed Misao inherited a lot more than merely hair color from her mother.

Yuko then continued. "And after we heard most of it, we decided that… We'll let the two of them decide.

Finally, Ren could take the situation no longer and burst into outrage. "W-what? You're all joking, right? You can't seriously put that kind of a choice in the hands of a thirteen year old! Thi-This is crazy!" The other three (Satoshi, Misao, and Ritsu) merely shared shocked looks, choosing to remain silent.

"Please, Ren, calm down," his father advised. "They got themselves into this mess, so they're going to decide their own path through this… Get that, you two?"

"Y-Yes!" Misao and Satoshi snapped back instantly.

"… So, Satoshi? What are you going to do?" he then asked the boy directly.

"Eh? W-What I'm going to do? W-Well…" The expression on his visage suddenly changed from nervous to a look of a bit more confidence. "First thing I'm going to do is, well, actually buy a pregnancy test, to see if Misao really is pregnant."

Both Yuko and Yuji's faces turned a shade of enraged red and turned to the other parents in unison. "You mean you didn't do this already?" Yuko snapped at the both of them. "You don't even know if she is pregnant, do you!"

At this, mister and misses Kusakabe could only hang their heads in shame. "… S-Sorry," Misato apologized. "I guess we both got so worked up over finding this whole thing out that we sort of… got a little blinded with anger."

Even Ren was shaking his head, facepalm and everything. "Jesus, Mom and Dad," he sighed. "How the hell did you not think to do that! That would have been, like, the first thing I would have done."

Kyuske's embarrassment deepened. "Ok Ren, we get it, we screwed up… Jeez, now I'm getting told off by my own son."

Satoshi's father then spoke to his son directly, making explicit eye-contact. "That was very mature of you to say, Satoshi," he complemented, giving a slight grin. Satoshi grinned back, but it went away when the grin of his father disappeared a blink of an eye later. "However, this doesn't mean I'm not going to shirk punishment for not only this, but for not telling us about Misao earlier… No matter the outcome of this test, you are forbidden to see or speak with Misao."

"W-Wha-!" the boy gasped back. Even Ritsu seemed to do a slight double-take. "For how long!" he asked back.

"Indefinitely. Until we say otherwise."

Satoshi felt like speaking up again, to make retort to this new rule… but he remained silent. He had already been placed upon thin ice, that much he already knew. And furthermore, if he was ever going to regain the respect of his parents, he needed to prove his responsibility and maturity, and that meant not talking back to them… However, this did not stop his sister from speaking up.

"Oh come on," Ritsu said, "don't you think that's a little extreme. I get why you'd do this, sure, but – I mean come on! If I'm worth my weight in salt as a sister, I know that Satoshi's probably scared shitless right now- Pardon the language. I mean, I'll be there to give him advice, support, or whatever the hell he needs, but he'll need all the support we can get." One could see the elation swell on the boy's face in appreciation.

"Well, you can always talk to us, Satoshi," Yuko offered.

"Well… Not exactly the kind of comfort I was referring to…" Ritsu added, a slight blush creeping across her face. It didn't take a degree to figure out what type of comfort she was talking about. The parents blushed a second or two after.

"W-Well, there's no way in hell I'm letting that happen," Yuji stammered back, "not after this little incident."

"Wha-? B-But you said I was mature a few second ago!" the boy protested.

"You still lied to us, Satoshi. You didn't tell us about Misao, and so, you lied to us. And because of that you're not allowed to-"

"Now wait a second here!" Misato suddenly spoke up, bringing the attention of the entire room onto her. Her narrowed eyes were firmly locked onto both Yuji and Yuko. "We have a child involved in this too, you know. Maybe she needs comfort in this as well, ever think of that?"

After Yuji retorted with a "Then she should go to her irresponsible parents!", what then proceeded was a furry of back-and-forths between the four of them. Each of their voices seemed to blend together into a loud calamity as their argument slowly escalated. At one point Ren stepped into the fray, seemingly taking the sides of Satoshi's parents. And as all this occurred, Ritsu, Satoshi, and Misao looked on in stun.

Ritsu glanced over to her brother and they shared concerned looks between themselves. His eyes moved slowly back onto the feuding. "My God," he whispered aloud. "I didn't think it would end up becoming like this. Right, Misa-chan?

… Misa-chan?"

He looked over to his right, to Misao, to see that her eyes had fallen to the floor beneath her feet. Furthermore, the bangs of her hair cast her eyes in shadow, further visualizing her current state of emotion: despair. Satoshi had never seen her in such a state before. Not once.

"M-Misa-chan? Are you ok-?"

"I can't listen to this any longer," she said. Before Satoshi could say anything back, Misao, with her head still hung low, marched right past both her and Satoshi's parents, retreating to another part of the house. The argument amongst the parents halted in an instant. Misato called out her daughter's name and when she received no reply back, left the living room to go after her.

The room remained dead quite still after she left. A vibe of emotion prevented anyone from resuming speech. For some, it was shame for their lack of humility. For others, it was fear of reviving the argument all over again. Nevertheless, not a soul spoke until Misato returned to the living room. "She's locked herself in the bathroom. She's not answering me at all."

"Let me see if I can get her talking," Ritsu offered, stepping out of the room and heading toward the bathroom. Meanwhile Satoshi, as the adults and Ren began to talk amongst themselves (and inadvertently forgetting about the boy), felt his legs begin to give out from beneath him, and he fell backwards into the closest seat: the loveseat, where he became a man not too long ago. Once seated, his thoughts instantly went back to that day, to that moment: the sights, feel, and smells of that day, how crippling fear and the inexperience of his first time caused him to finish before Misao, and then how he pushed himself afterward to prove the girl wrong.

The boy began to remember why he loved Misao in the first place: Satoshi had become a stronger person because of her. If it wasn't for Misao, Satoshi imagined he would have been the same person he was before, and it was someone he didn't want to be again: overly timid, socially awkward, and lacking in self-confidence, to name a few. And not only that, but because of Misao, he felt loved.

"They do say love is a strange thing…" And oh how it changes us.

Lost in the memories of Misao, the boy forgot others were in the room for a brief moment of time. He sunk further back into the chair, a grin creeping up in the corners of his mouth. He worries seemed to wan (though present they still were.) "I guess I really do have Misao to thank for a lot. She helped me feel better about myself… and now, she's stuck between a rock and a hard place. I'll help her as much as I possibly can, but I don't know how much I can do… Damnit, I wish this situation would just go away, but I know all too well that it-"

The sound of fast-approaching footsteps sounded in the hallway and Misao came rushing into the room, coming to a near-stumbling halt. Ritsu came running in a second after, apparently having trouble catching up with the track athlete. Satoshi shot back onto his feet as he and everyone else whipped around to the girl. Misao had on her face a gigantic look of relief.

"Guys!" she exclaimed. "It's alright! Everything's going to be ok!"

"Wha-What? What's going on?" Misato asked back in a panic.

"I just got my period!" Misao announced. "I'm not pregnant!"

In unison, all four parents, Ren, and Satoshi collapsed to their knees, each and every one of them expelling a giant sigh of relief. In one glorious statement, all feelings of regret, shame, anxiety, and fear were cleansed from everyone's faces and hearts, replaced with elation the likes of which few could ever know. Misao rushed over to the now sitting Satoshi and knelt down next to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

"Isn't this great, Sato-kun?" asked Misao.

"… yeah…" It was all he really could say back. He was incredibly elated at the revealing of this news, yes, but at the same time, he felt a hint of sadness, knowing that one less life would exist in this world… But perhaps it was for the best that this was so. After all, there was no telling what kind of life he or Misao could offer their child, and most likely he/she would have been put up for adoption. There was simply no possible way of knowing how things would have turned out. Such are life's mysteries.

Ritsu looked on at the scene before her, the uplifting of everyone's spirits, and after waiting an appropriate amount of time, she finally spoke up about her secret. "Well then," she began, "now that the mood here seems to have lifted quite a lot, I got something to say. Mom, Dad, Mio and I have been going out for the past few weeks… Oh, and I'm a lesbian."

Suddenly, the pregnancy scare didn't seem all that shocking anymore.

-o0o-

With the shedding of her last article of clothing, Misao now wore nothing more than the suit of her birth. She walked with intentional swagger in her hips as she approached her boyfriend's bed, where said boy (fully clothed) sat in anticipation. Just another day for them? Perhaps, but Satoshi still got slightly nervous when these moments came about.

Misao hopped onto the bed, crawled herself over, and then grabbed the boy by the shoulder and quite literally pounced onto him, pinning him to the mattress, where she began her work kissing and sucking at the other's neck. She figured out (through much trial and error) how to do this little deed well enough not to leave any embarrassing marks on the skin.

As she continued her work, Satoshi discretely reached into his left pant pocket, retrieving his protection and was just about upzip his pants and put it on. But Misao cut him short. She grabbed both his wrists with one hand and gripped them tight. "Wha- Misa-chan? What are you-?" the boy exclaimed.

The girl lifted her face from the other' neck and brought it in front of Satoshi's, the tips of their noses touching. A certain devilish, fanged grin adorned her face. "And what do you think you're doing?" she teased.

"U-Uh, well, I thought that we-"

"Not today, Satoh-kun… Today, you work for me."

Misao stood herself up on the mattress on her knees before walking herself forward, bring a certain part of her body (which had been at Satoshi's eye level the entire time) ever closer until it the distance between it and his face was no more than a few inches. The boy could smell it's sweet aroma at this point. Then, Misao did a move she had never done before: she reached a hand down and pinned the boy's head to the mattress before moving herself forward again, putting that certain part of her body hovering above his face. His eye could not have been any wider. "H-Holy shit…" he managed to whisper from shock.

Misao continued to grin devilishly. "Go ahead," she whispered back, letting go of the boy's head. "Make my day…"

He hesitated for a second or two… but then plunged his head forward, bringing his lips to hers and insert his tongue deep. Misao stifled a yelp at the initial touch, forcing herself to keep her moans under control. It was only Satoshi's second attempt at this sort of thing so he felt that much was riding on his performance.

He increased the tempo of his tongue, taking more care to give attention to her more sensitive parts. Already Misao was beginning to moan. "O-Oh God…" She attempted to keep herself quiet by biting down on her left index finger, but that did not seem to do much.

If Satoshi had to complain about one thing with Misao, it was this: she tended to be a bit… well, loud. In most cases and situations Satoshi enjoyed this (quite the confidence booster for many.) However, in situations such as this, her tendency to yell was problematic, especially given that a pair of parents was just downstairs.

Satoshi regretfully tore his lips from Misao's to whisper to her "Damnit, keep quite! They'll hear us!"

Misao was still coming down of her "stimulation high" so it took a moment for her to reply. "… S-Sorry, Sato-kun," she breathily said back. "I just can't help myself sometimes."

"You can never help yourself, Misa-chan…J-Just do your best, please…" He reached up and clutched the outside of Misao's thighs before bringing his mouth back to work. Misao did well to quiet herself for a few minutes thereafter, but it didn't take long before she turned just as loud as before.

Soon enough the girl felt a climax coming forth from the horizon. "O-Oh shit… S-Sato-kun, I'm close," she warned. "I-I'll try not to scream." She knew she was going to, and in preparation, as her left hand lifted to clutch her left breast she bit down on her index finger again, biting down even harder than before. Satoshi in the meanwhile, with no relent, increased his tempo and furiously lashed his tongue around within Misao until finally she reached her peak.

Though try as she might to prevent it, Misao's climax caused her to outcry, but at the very last moment she clamped a hand over her entire mouth, muffling the scream enough to keep the others in the house from becoming aware. The orgasm struck her so hard, in fact, that almost immediately after it happened she quite literally collapsed onto Satoshi, her head resting on the boy's left shoulder, her body becoming somewhat flaccid and limp.

Satoshi, after taking a moment to catch his own breath, asked Misao "You ok?" His reply was a continuation of what she did before: her kissing and sucking on his neck. "I'll take that as a 'Yes' then…"

Misao giggled a "You know it… You were pretty good for your second time, Sato-kun… You haven't been getting private lessons somewhere, have you?"

"Wh- No, of course not. Like I'd ever cheat on you."

"Awwww, you're sweet."

"… Besides, who the hell would I get lessons from anyway? I go to an all-boy's school, remember? And no other girls like me…"

"Well, could be some outside the school," Misao supplied.

"Such as?"

"… I dunno. Sister, maybe?"

"W-Wha-!"

The brunette burst into laughter. "Ah-hahahaha! Oh man, if you could see the look your face just had, Sato-kun! It was hilarious! Ha ha ha!"

"Misa-chan, that's disgusting!" the boy whined. "I don't nearly find it as funny as you do…! Maybe I should ask how you're so good at what you do. Maybe your brother helped out?"

"Hey, at least I can give an explanation as how he might have a thing or two to teach. He's had other girlfriends besides Ayano before, but you-"

"Yeah yeah," he dismissed. "Fresh as a newborn chick and as bare-assed as-… Damnit, I forgot the turn-of-phrase." Satoshi got from the bed and put his red jacket back on after taking a moment to straighten out his clothing.

"Going somewhere?" Misao joked.

"Just downstairs. Thought I'd get something to drink."

"Yeah, you look like you could use one," Misao quipped. Satoshi seemed to ignore the remark and head toward the door, but just as he reached for the knob, Misao had one more thing to ask. "Wait a second, Sato-kun… I-I need you to be honest with me right now…"

The boy turned back around. "Yeah?"

The short-haired girl sat her nude self up on the bed, sitting in "Indian style" (perhaps or perhaps not aware at how of a view she was giving the boy.) "I need to know something… I-I know it's been a month, but… What would you have done if I really was pregnant? I don't care what you say, I just want you to be honest."

His eyes lowered to the carpet beneath his feet. "… Honestly?... Well, considering if the child was not aborted…" The "A-word" seemed to stain the very air of the room, as if he had uttered the name "Voldemort." "… I think that I would have wanted to put him or her up for adoption… Sorry, Misa-chan, but honestly I don't think I could have handled it. I know you keep saying I act mature for my age and all that, but I'm still a kid. I'm only thirteen, after all! I-I just-"

The boy was cut short when Misao lifted a palm to him. "Say no more," she commanded. "Sato-kun, you don't need to remind me that you're still a kid. Trust me, I know." She grinned after that remark, leaving Satoshi unsure whether he was supposed to feel insulted or not by it. "Believe me, I'm not rearing and ready for parenthood anytime soon as well… I just needed to hear what you would have wanted to do.

… Thanks, Sato-kun, for being straight with me."

He smiled back. "No problem… Uh, do you want anything from downstairs?"

"Sure, I guess. Surprise me."

And with that, Satoshi turned back and left his room, making sure to quickly shut and lock the door behind him. Yes, you read correctly. The two had just done it in Satoshi's room. In fact, this was their first romp outside of the confines of the Kusakabe residence.

The hatchet between the Tainakas and the Kusakabes seemed to be buried deep after the day of the parents' meet-up. Even so, even after it was discover that Misao was not with child, punishment was still given: both were forbidden to see or talk to each other for an entire month's time. Both were instructed to come home right after school (unless a friend could vouch their location) so there wouldn't be any secret meet-ups. That being said though, the two still spoke to each other by means of cell phones.

But yesterday was the last day of their punishment, thus explaining her presence at the Tainaka household (and by the looks of things, the two were making up for the lost time.) Satoshi headed for the stairs, but before making it halfway there, the door to Ritsu's room shot open, causing the boy to jump. The sister in question, casually dressed, stood on the other side, giving an almost accusatory look. "Where do you think you're going, lover boy?" she interrogated, though it was rather obvious she was just messing around with him.

"Eh- J-Just downstairs," he replied.

"For?"

"A drink."

"Yeah, you look like you could use one."

That was the second time in no more than five minutes that Satoshi heard that said, and now, he wanted to know "What do you mean by that?"

Instead of replying verbally just yet, Ritsu reached over with her right hand, poked her index finger on the boy's forehead, whipped it across, and then held the same finger out in front of him. The tip of the finger was wet with sweat. Satoshi's sweat. "You look like a pig in heat, Sato."

The boy naturally blushed from embarrassment. "… Uh, pigs don't really sweat, Nee-chan," he corrected.

"Oh whatever… So, what were you two doing just then? Huh?" She already had a pretty damn good idea what but she couldn't pass up the chance to embarrass Satoshi.

"N-Nothing, really…" Which, of course, was a lie that Ritsu saw right through.

"Suuuure… *Sigh* Ok, I'm done with you. You can leave I guess."

"What, no jokes at my expense, Nee-chan? Losing your edge?"

"*Sigh* It's no fun to make fun of you anymore, Satoshi. What did you have to grow up for, huh?" Then, when she took a step back and was about to shut the door to her room, Ritsu seemed to have a change of heart. "… Actually, Satoshi, I take that back. Maybe making fun of you just got a little easier."

"Eh? What do you mean?" he asked back.

"Well… You might want to wait a few minutes before heading downstairs, Satoshi. I don't think Mom and Dad would appreciate seeing you 'at attention.'"

Ritsu shut the door and it took Satoshi a fill fifteen seconds before he looked down and finally got what Ritsu meant.

[Author's Notes] Long, long chapter... Eeyup.

Ok, I'm gonna explain the Ren/Ayano thing. If you're unaware, in Lucky Star, the character Ayano Minegishi has a boyfriend who is Misao's older brother (who actually has no given name, but I've called "Ren" for two different stories.) Now you might have asked "Why would Ren be worried about his friends knowing about Ayano?" Well, I sort of looked at how Scott Pilgrim's friends viewed him dating Knives Chow: they gave him nothing but grief for it. I took that kind of approach.

Now for me to explain time continuity. The beginning of this chapter takes place somewhere around the same time Chapter 3 ends, but ends a month later. Chapter 5 will take place around the same time as the conclusion of this chapter, but Chapter 6 will take place a month previous. So, to slimplify, most of the events of Chapter 4, and the events of Chapter 5 and 6 will take place in the same timespan of about a month. This probably isn't necessary to know, but I felt I needed to clarify this to avoid any sort of confusion.

We return to Kotoyuki for the next installment and, dare I say it, another pairing...? Stay tuned, bitches.