And On The Seventh Day

It was the seventh day that Heracles had been here. Kiku did not begrudge him the room, but it was slightly awkward for him to house someone else that was not a dog. Even when he and Alfred had sleepovers... it was just for one night. And usually because they had fallen asleep during a movie or a game, never planned. Kiku had the extra bedroom, that was all fine and dandy, but...

Well, it was certainly a wake up call to someone with low blood pressure when he would almost walk into the other every single morning. Even Kiku was beginning to tire of the constant apologies which rained from his mouth.

It was after breakfast, on this day, that Kiku finally decided he could ask the questions which had been running through his mind and it would be appropriate enough. He could ask them as a friend, as a confidante, and Heracles would answer with all that he cared to and Kiku would listen and (if asked) give his advice.

"It is the most punctual I have ever seen you be."

"What?" Heracles asked, looking over to him.

"Your going to Gupta's house. It is always around noon."

Heracles looked at the clock, as if either reaffirming that (even though it was not time and Heracles was not going anywhere yet) or in making certain it was not time to go. "...yeah." Looking out the window, Heracles absently stroked Pochi. Pochi stood for that for a few moments before hopping off the couch. Heracles stroked him like he would a cat and the dog apparently did not like it. "Do you think he'll let me in today?"

Kiku hesitated, not wanting to lie, but not wanting to make Heracles feel bad. "I do not know," he responded truthfully. Gupta would have to leave his house eventually. Whether or not Gupta would want to face anyone by that point was a different thing. "Heracles... I have asked this before and you did not answer. I do not know why, but if you do not want to talk about it we do not have to. Why do you hate Sadiq so much?"

"Because he is a stupid, wretched–"

Bad idea. Kiku interrupted him in order to save himself a head. "I am sorry – I meant what did he do, first and foremost, which caused this?"

Heracles stopped, blinking at him a few times, reverting back to his slow pace now that his anger was past. "It... was a conversation I heard. On the phone. He knows who my father is."

"Eh?" Kiku turned to look at Heracles straight on, his shock evident in his voice and face.

Heracles was now leaning forward, arms on his knees as he stared at the ground. "So I asked him. It... it meant a lot to me then, to know who. He would not tell me. He knew I heard him talk about it, but lied all the same. I just wanted to know. I guess everything else just followed from there. Everything else I could not stand about him... It all came out."

"...have you ever tried to find out since then?" Kiku questioned. Heracles shook his head.

"I don't think I care anymore."

Considering that, Kiku leaned back in his chair. "Is that something you have told yourself, or something you really think?"

Heracles hesitated. "I don't know." Rubbing his hands together slowly, Heracles continued. "I do not think I would have cared so much... but he was talking about Gupta as well. I think he knows about his father too. He even could have been talking to one of them."

Of course, Kiku should have guessed that Gupta had a part in their breaking apart. But by the way Gupta acted about it, either he did not care so much about finding any remaining family, or Heracles had never told him about this. Considering Heracles... Kiku was likely to think it was the latter. Hearing some whining by his side door, Kiku got to his feet and went over to let Pochi out.

"It is so easy to ignore him in the city," Heracles sighed, now on his side on the couch and poking at a cushion. "Even when I want to yell at him... I have a cardboard standup of him that I can attack with a kitchen knife."

Kiku stopped immediately before he even returned fully into the room. "Wh-what?"

"It's a great stress reliever."

He stared at his friend. Heracles seemed to notice and looked over toward him.

"You could probably use one too. Of Yao, or someone."

"Why would..." Kiku could not finish voicing his thoughts. He went and sat back down as he regathered himself. "Why?"

"I am not the only one with problems right now," Heracles reminded him as he went back to staring out the window. Kiku followed his gaze and from his upright position could see the very tip of the house down the hill from him. Alfred's house.

Yes. He still had not found the courage to fix that yet.

"I know he feels the same, even if he does not," Kiku sighed, shaking his head. "Why am I so hesitant to tell him?"

Heracles had slowly flipped over and was now lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling. "It depends. If you have some other big secret which would play some part in your relationship that you have not told him yet... That could be why."

It explained why Heracles had not mentioned his own (currently confused) feelings to Gupta, especially if he had never told Gupta why it was he suddenly turned to hating Sadiq. As for himself, however... Kiku was a private man, but it was just because he did not openly volunteer information about himself, not that he was keeping anything huge away from...

Kiku stopped, thinking about it.

He thought about his job.

Suddenly he knew why.


Notes:

Yep, there is another reference to Kiku's job. Or Kiku thinking about his job. Oh Kiku, I doubt Alfred would mind too much if you did not tell him. Sure he is curious, but I think you could manage to distract him for a very long time before he even thought about it.