This chapter is all QKyu. There's nothing shippy yet, but if that's not your ish then don't be bothered. Next chapter we got back to the main couple.
A car had picked Q-vier up and driven him to Inuzuka's home. Beyond a silver gate lay a mansion fit for a man of his wealth. Q-vier walked up the stairs leading to the door, which was opened by a man in a suit. As he entered, Inuzuka was walking down a grand staircase, maids and butlers standing in a line on both sides.
"Welcome!", Inuzuka greeted as he got to the last step. "This is Yui. She's the head of all my servants", he pointed to one of the maids.
At her name, she walked forward and smiled down at Q-vier. "Welcome to your new home, young master. What would you like to do first?"
He looked around, thinking it over. "First...we should check the perimeter and secure it. I can shoot anyone who trespasses. Oh! before that, I should take a look at your arsenal to get acquainted with your weaponry-"
"No, no", Yui interrupted. "Young master, you won't have to do any of that while you're here."
"Huh? Then, how will I earn my food?"
She just smiled. "You're our young master. Shoyou will pick out your clothes, your bath is drawn by Mr. Goro, Ayano will come to make your bed", Yui went on to explain the roles of the other servants.
"I think I'm gonna like it here", Q-vier grinned.
The first two days Inuzuka hardly saw his new adopted child. He was running between his office and meeting with other people. Being a CEO was tough work. Q-vier busied himself with playing video games most of the day. His legal guardian had a pretty nice gaming system.
That was why he was surprised on the third morning when he came down for breakfast, cooked by a chef and served by a maid, to find Inuzuka sitting calmly with some coffee and his phone. He didn't expect this, but he wasn't really bothered. As far as he was concerned, he was living the life. He took out his portable game and opened from his last save spot as his breakfast was served before him. You'd think it would be a long, extravagant dining table, but it was actually small and intimate. There was a formal dining room for dinner parties, of course. But for breakfast alone, or now with his adopted child, there was this room, which was cozier and felt more like a home.
"Ham and eggs, with a tall glass of milk to make you big and strong", the maid smiled brightly as she laid it out. "You're just so cute. We've never had a little boy in this house."
"Do you eat ham and eggs like this over in Dorssia?", Inuzuka asked, looking up from his phone.
Q-vier didn't answer. His focus was on multitasking between his food and game. He was actually pretty good at it. The elder could see how concentrated he was and decided to tease him a little. Inuzuka's fork sneaked towards's the other's plate. before he could even get close to any food, he felt the stab of something on his hand.
"Don't go near my stuff", Q-vier warned without looking away from his game. Inuzuka looked at his hand and saw that it was just a spoon and while it didn't break the skin it hurt considerably. He laughed it off nervously and moved his hand away.
"It was just a joke. A joke." He'd forgotten that this kid was a child soldier from a foreign country. He shouldn't be so careless.
The ham and eggs disappeared, almost as if Q-vier was afraid that there would be another attempted theft, and he left the dining room. For Inuzuka, it was technically a day off but he still stayed aware of his dealings. After breakfast he checked stocks and profits until lunch. Q-vier was there too, playing a different game, if the sound effects were any indication. Inuzuka watched his silently as they ate. He looked like a normal child. His eyes shined as he completed levels, he smiled as he enjoyed the activity, and there was some garlic butter sauce dripping down his mouth that he just licked off.
It made him wonder just what he went through over in Dorssia to make him this way; so innocent looking one moment and prepared to stab him with a spoon the next. Another dribble of sauce spilled from the corner of Q-vier's mouth. He was about to wipe it away with his sleeve when he felt a presence and grabbed it without thinking. In the next second he paused his game and looked up to see that he was holding Inuzukua's wrist which was holding a napkin.
They stayed like that for a moment, Q-vier confused as to what this man was trying to do, Inuzuka confused from just never being in this situation before. Finally, he cleared his throat and spoke up.
"You just...had a little..something..." He used his free hand to gesture at the other's mouth.
Q-vier's fingers slowly unfurled and Inuzukua wiped off his mouth. "You shouldn't use your sleeve for that kind of thing."
"Are you my servant too?", he grinned.
"No, I'm your legal guardian. But that's too long. Just think of me as your big brother."
"Gross. You're more like a benefactor."
Inuzuka sighed. This kid was going to be his responsibility for the next few years. First and foremost it was for publicity, but he wanted them to get along. And he always had a soft spot for people younger than him. He wanted to find a way to relate to the boy.
"You're pretty good at those games."
"Yeah, I already beat all your high scores on them", Q-vier bragged.
"Oh? Then, how about we go head to head?"
"You think you can take me on? Adults are so naive."
A minute later, Inuzuka was on the floor and Q-vier was on the couch. The game started with the screen split in half. It was a harmless racing game that Q-vier had picked. Inuzuka refrained from pointing out that he thought the boy would choose a fighting game. The race began and Q-vier was relentless. While Inuzuka began in the lead, the other quickly caught up and managed to bump Inuzuka into a spin on his way to first place.
Q-vier was ruthless with his items and for a moment Inuzuka wondered if he had it out for the character he'd chosen. With a triumphant smile, Q-vier passed the finish line first, leaving Inuzuka in his dust.
"See? You can't beat me."
"I don't give up so easily. Again." He wouldn't underestimate the boy.
A few hours later, they'd torn through some more games, all ending in Inuzuka's loss. He stopped to use the bathroom and noticed the sun was setting, then checked the time.
"It's that late already? We played games most of the day."
"Sounds like a good day."
Inuzuka sighed. He didn't mean to get so distracted. "At least it's the weekend." During the week he had hired a tutor for Q-vier. The boy was still at the compulsory age, after all. But immediately enrolling him into a school might not be wise. Without the arrival of the home tutor, Q-vier had lost track of time as well.
"Still, I haven't totally forgotten about the flow of time like that in a while", he smiled fondly at some memory.
"You look like a pervert. Are you thinking of ero things?", Q-vier teased.
Inuzuka choked. "Where'd a kid like you learn that?"
"I'm not a kid. I'll be 15 soon!"
"That's still considered a child...I need to check up on some things, so I'll be in my office. Save our last place, okay?"
"Roger! I was going to do that even without you telling me!"
Inuzuka had kept himself busy until it was about time for dinner. He sat down and was surprised to see yakisoba being served.
"I haven't had this in a while."
"We had a nice array of vegetables, sir. We wanted you to experience them all. And it will certainly be healthy for the young master", the maid serving at the moment smiled.
He began to eat when he noticed Q-vier poking around at it. Something awakened inside of him and his hand was moving before he realized it.
"I'll take those shiitake off your hands."
Q-vier had stopped him again. "Don't go near my food." He glared while the other was just trying to understand what had gotten into himself. "But...you can take the rest." Q-vier started to pick out the onions with his tongue sticking out. Inuzuka watched the onions pile onto his plate before breaking out into a laugh.
Meanwhile...on the other side of town, Haruto was coming across another complication in his "marry Shoko eventually" plan.
If the beginning sounds a little familiar, it's because I started this chapter during the breakfast scene and then I realized that Q-vier is just like goddamn Annie. Red hair, "problem child", orphan adopted by rich guy. This was completely unintentional, but I'm rolling with it. So I put a little "I'm Think I'm Gonna Like it Here" in the very first part to introduce him to his new home. I'm open to any idea you guys have if there's anything specific you want to go down.