Ch. 6 – Father Dearest

I tried turning to my right side, but my left arm was completely numb. I finally was able to turn around just enough for *FLAP* my arm to smack me right in the face.

My eyes are still closed and all I can think about…. Is Riko. Sweet Riko. The act we committed last night…. Was it really ok? We've only just met that same day. But, it was weird. Granted I'm only 17 and I've never really got too intimate with girls. Sure, I've dated plenty of girls, but never went past making out. I try to smoke out the thought of love. She was my first. Was I hers? She did talk about the way her and Ako use to tease Keita, and since I wasn't able to control myself within the first day, surely Keita couldn't either.

Either way, I must not think too much about it. It happened. Little flashes from the night before start to come back. The way she smelled, the way she felt, the way she said my name. I can feel someone else is awake now. Oh, good morning Lil' Leon, are you proud of me?

I turned back on my back and slowly opened my eyes to adjust to the light. What a shame being blind, my first view in the morning is always so blurry. I can make out to what looks like figures standing before me. 1 blink… 2 blink….

"AAAAH!"

"Ah! You must be Leon!"

The man's voice was not that of Keita's. He sounded older. I could only make out the dark hair of the one talking, and then the person to his right had a smaller figure.

"Oh Leon, we're so happy you're here."

This one is clearly an older female.

"Rise son, and let us see the man you've become."

"This isn't exactly a good time for me to rise…."

I could hear their confused tones as both of their hides tilted to the side towards each other.

"Could one of you please hand me my glasses? Over by the computer desk."

"Oh, I'll get them."

The woman said with a pleasant voice. She gently put the glasses on my face, and I straightened them out to get a better view of the 2 strangers who are obviously leaning over me.

The man did have dark hair, and wore dark glasses where it was hard to see his eyes. They were more like sunglasses.

"Ah, you take after you old man and wear glasses too. But, you're not as cool as me, or you would wear sunglasses."

"Why do you say that?"

"When you're as cool as me, the sun shines on you 24/7."

That's from a movie. Science Fiction, I believe. One of those corny late 80's movies with the lines to match.

"You better hurry, everyone is waiting downstairs for you. Your breakfast will get cold.

After the woman said those words, I gently nodded and they both left. I looked up towards Keita's bed, neither Keita or Ako was there. And… Riko wasn't next to me. I wonder why they didn't wake me up? Guess they were just being generous since I did make a really long trip.

I put on some gray sweatpants and a plain black t-shirt. I think I'll take it easy today and just get to know everyone. I have 3 months to check out the 4 universities that interested me. I heard that Keita, Riko, and Ako were still in school, so I'll venture out while they're in school.

I walked down the stairs and it sounded lively in the dining room. The smell was quite familiar. It was kind of like walking down for breakfast back with my aunt. I walked through the door and what a surprise! Banners that said 'Welcome!' along with the smell of bacon and eggs and gravy.

"What is all this?"

My father was the first to speak.

"Your aunt told me of your picky eating habits, so she sent us ideas of how to cook for you. You're actually quite simple, and a change in this house wouldn't hurt."

It was kind of embarrassing… yet moving. To go through all this trouble for a stranger. Yeah, we were family but we never met each other.

"Oh Leon, we never actually introduced ourselves. I'm father."

"And I'm mother."

Did they really want me to call them that? I guess I'll play along.

"Nice to meet you… Father… Mother."

Mother's eyes started to fill with tears.

"I didn't mean to offend."

"No, you're such a sweet boy. Much better than Keita."

Keita, who was sitting at the table seemed to fall over from that comment from Mother.

"Mother, that's so mean. Keita is a good boy."

Ako was there for his defense.

"Leon, I hope you don't mind. This house can get loud at times. Especially when love hits."

The sudden stare from my father was kind of weird. The little smirk of his that seemed to have a gleam of light sparkle from the side of his mouth.

I just gave a small laugh.

I looked around the dining room and the table in the middle only had 5 chairs. Mother, Father, Ako, Riko, Keita…. Hmmm, guess it's been the 5 of them for a long time.

The door behind me suddenly opened and it was Riko walking in with a chair. Must be my chair. She turned to look at me and gave a wink.

"Good morning, Leon."

"Good morning."

We just stared at each other. It was like room went dark and only Riko and I were left.

"Oooo, I see Riko has finally become a woman. And Leon! Meeting you as a man? Such a blessing."

Riko just looked away and blushed.

"It finally happened, Father."

I'm a bit confused right now. Is he saying he knows what happened between Riko and I, and he's perfectly ok with it?

"Father, I too am a woman."

I looked over to Ako, and the same blushed face was upon her. Mother turned to her with a smile.

"With Leon too?"

"NO! IT WAS WITH KEITA! I DON'T SLEEP WITH STRANGERS!"

Keita now had the same blushed face, scratching the back of his head. Father and Mother looked like they were about to cry.

"So much love and passion! All with the new coming of my son!"

Let me get this straight… Both of these parents are ok with their kids hooking up with each other?

Father rose up with both of his hands on the table, tilted his glasses down the brim of his nose and cleared his throat.

"Men! Tonight we drink amongst men! It's a celebration!"

"Dear, let us eat now. I'm sure Leon is confused and he must have a million questions. Worry about drinking afterwards."

Father nodded to Mother's response.

"So, Leon. Take a seat son. I'll answer anything you want. Normally, I would just have a one-on-one, but I think everyone else is pretty confused on the whole situation."

The room grew silent. Almost uncomfortable. How should I start?

"Fa…Father… My aunt and uncle never talked about you. And it seems they didn't tell you of my existence until recently. If Keita and I are indeed twins, you should've at least known about me."

Father took a sip of his coffee and looked to the ceiling. It took home about 20 seconds.

"Well, I guess it's best we do get the hard questions out of the way. You and Keita are indeed twins. I knew about you. In fact, Leon was the name your birth mother picked, while I picked Keita. Your mother was actually an American, and like you, was here studying at a university. I was working at a convenience store at the time, and she use to come in everyday after her 5km run for water. But, we'll skip that… It's make Mother uncomfortable and I'll stick to the basics of things. When you and Keita were only 14 months old….. there was…."

It looked like he was having the hardest time saying what was next. He was getting choked on his words. I already knew what happened to my mother.

"The car accident."

"Yes, Leon… a drunk driver hit us and the car flipped numerous times. Your birth mother… didn't make it. And up until now, I didn't think you did either."

Everyone stopped to look at me with a shocked face. Surely they can't be more shocked than I am.

"Let me better explain that. Your mother died on site, and you were in critical condition being on the same side that hit. Luckily, Keita and I came out with a few scrapes and bruises. I was mentally broke by it."

Tears started to rush down his face and his voice became hoarse.

"I didn't know what to do. They told me that it would be a miracle if you made it past the week. That's when your mother's sister, your aunt, came in. She was living in Japan at the time, and her husband was about to get a job in America. She said that she would look over you and do what she can. At first I was hesitant, but I don't think I could deal with another death so soon. Fathers aren't supposed to bury their sons. After weeks and months, I never heard back from you aunt. I thought you died, and she was just trying to help me deal by not telling me of your passing. That's what I told myself every day. I remarried a few years after that and here we are now. Your aunt truly is a great person, so I don't blame her for not telling me. I'm not one to dwell in the past, and I couldn't be happier knowing that you're back in my life."

It took me a minute to wrap those words around my head. I honestly thought I was going to hate either my father or my aunt after hearing the words I've been waiting to hear for so long. But, there was no hate towards either of them. I understood why they went the route they did.

"Now son, I have a question for you."

I looked up and nodded.

"How was Riko last night?"

What looked like a hundred fists came out of nowhere and punched Father right in the face. His mouth looked too swollen to produce another word.

"Geez… how can you follow up a sad story with a perverted question?"

After that, Mother looked at me and smiled with her eyes closed.

"Don't mind him, he's always like that."

Never a dull moment with this family. It's kind of…. Nice.