Chapter 14: Dark Horse

"Aniki?"

Ryosuke couldn't help but wear a sick smirk on his face, the sight of Furuya slumping over thrilling him to the bone. "Haruichi," he purred. "That bastard is dead now. Are you pleased?"

Haruichi shook his head. "Why would I be pleased? You just killed Satoru!"

"But he wasn't even treating you right. Why are you sad?"

"It doesn't matter! He was still someone special to me! I never asked you to do this!"

"No wonder I never liked you. You were such a huge disappointment. Always clinging onto silly things that didn't matter. I'm the only one you never clung onto, though. Why?"

The maid gulped as his older brother grabbed Furuya by the hood and tossed him across the room, his blood creating a violent streak of red underneath him. He didn't move. "You were too close to me, Aniki. All you ever wanted was for me to follow in your exact footsteps, from our kindergarten days till highschool. I wanted a break, okay? I wanted to be myself…"

"Huh, how many times am I going to tell you this? Without me you're nothing. I was fixated on making sure that you were by my side at all times and that no one would hurt you. Look at you now. You got played by a usurper who was about to kill you, just because you decided to follow your best friend. That Sawamura was no good for you. I kept warning you to come to my turf but you refused."

"So what? I don't regret it! I learned my lesson the hard way, but it was worth it! I got to see the dark things in life and not the light that you always see! I count this as experience and I'll be prepared for next time!"

Ryosuke ran his hand through his younger brother's hair. "I apologize. There won't be a next time."

"What are you talking about–" Haruichi gasped as Ryosuke suddenly wrapped his hands around his neck and pushed him to the ground.

The older male tightened his grip on his brother's neck and relished at the sensation of his fingers pressing against bones. He hummed as Haruichi glared at him with wide eyes, evidently struggling to breathe. "Sorry, Haruichi," he said. "I have a bad habit of killing people I don't like. I understand that we're related, but that wasn't going to stop me in the first place. I've been waiting so long to finish you off with my bare hands that it even came up in my dreams."

Haruichi screamed in pain as he felt a bone in his neck snap, blood gushing out of his mouth. Piss began to stream down his legs due to shock, his body shivering at the sudden discharge. "Ani… ki…" Vision fading, the last thing he saw was Furuya's dead eyes staring right at him before his body went completely limp.

Eijun sucked his teeth as he stepped out of a taxi. "Man, why isn't Harucchi answering? He should've been released from the hospital by now." Pocketing his phone, he opened his umbrella and quickly hopped onto the sidewalk. He had to be extremely alert because of the paparazzi and stalkers, but he was pretty sure no one would've followed him this far.

Crossing the street, his anxiety quelled as he pushed open the gate of a certain orphanage and listened to the sound of his heels splashing against the multi-colored pathway. He eyed the vibrant pigments of the garden around him. 'It's been a while since I last visited,' he thought, his grip tightening on the umbrella.

At the end of the path was a beige colored building with decorative bells and designs hanging from the top. Knocking on the door, the brunette closed his umbrella and walked inside. He spotted a middle aged lady who was folding up some blankets. "Hello?"

The lady turned around. "Welcome…" Her face suddenly transformed into a wide smile as she recognized Eijun immediately. She put down her blankets and ran towards him, beaming from ear to ear. "Sawamura-chan! Is that you? My, you've gotten taller! Prettier too!"

Eijun blushed as the lady felt him up in amazement. "Thank you, thank you. I came here to ask you something."

"Go ahead."

"I want to take Kizunari back."

The lady froze. "Kizunari? So soon? There's no way you can take her back with all the rumors about you going on. That's reckless!"

The mastermind clenched his fist. "I know. But I've left her alone for so long. I can't take it anymore. I need her; I want her. I'm ready to be a real mother from now on. Sure, she'll be swallowed up in paparazzi and the media… but it would have been worse if they got here before I did. So please. I'm ready."

The lady reluctantly nodded, intertwining her fingers with Eijun's. "It's going to be rough, but I'll put my trust in you. Keep her safe and make her feel loved, alright?"

"Gotcha."

"She's two rooms down from this one."

Eijun bowed to the lady and excused himself, heading for the hallway. The wooden floor creaked with each step he took. The walls were covered with paintings and drawings the orphans created during their free time. Pictures of them from field trips and special events were lined up neatly as well. As Eijun had suspected, his daughter participated in none of them.

A few moments later he arrived at the room with his child's name on it. He was about to knock until some thoughts made him hesitate. What if she didn't remember him? What if she resented him for leaving her all alone? 'No! I can't afford to think like that!' Hitting himself on the head, the cross-dresser exhaled as he knocked three times.

"Go away," a voice from inside said.

"It's me… mommy's here."

Rushed footsteps approached the door and then they stopped. "Mommy? For reals?"

"Yep." Eijun's eyes watered in sheer happiness as his daughter Kizunari opened the door, her mouth wide open. She immediately leaped into his arms and squealed. "Mommy! Mommy! It's really mommy!"

The brunette dropped to his knees and returned the embrace, inhaling his child's sweet scent. "God, I missed you so much. You grew up without me, haven't you?"

"Mhm!" Kizunari pulled back and grinned. "I'm eight years old now!"

"I know, I know." Eijun kissed her on the cheek and gave her a once over. Strange grey eyes that weren't his and lengthy brown hair. It was a shade lighter than his, but who cared? This was his sole source of happiness. "So, how've you been? Did you make any friends?"

Kizunari pouted. "I don't want friends."

"Eh? Why? It's crucial to be social."

"I thought that if I wasn't able to have you, I wasn't able to have friends."

"Your speech improved a lot."

"I got it from you, mommy. I want to be smart just like you."

"Then you'll need to work hard and study a lot!"

"Mhm!" Kizunari smiled again. She noticed that Eijun had matured by a large scale since the last time she saw him… whenever that was. But the juicy red lips and short brown hair were still the same, and she was glad. "Mommy, did you come to visit?"

Eijun's brows narrowed. "No. I came here to bring you home. Permanently."

The younger Sawamura's jaw went slack in surprise. She hadn't heard the word "home" in forever and it was music to her ears. She couldn't believe it. "H-Home? Like… with you?"

A promising nod. "We'll live together and I'll take care of you like a real mother should. I'm tired of wallowing in thoughts of how you sleep at night without me tucking you in, or how you deal with being lonely. I want to be a positive influence on you."

Kizunari grabbed Eijun's hand and squeezed it. "I can't say no! Let's go!"