A/N: Oh boy, this chapter took me for a ride...but also, like, zero time to write it. I don't know why I was so motivated and inspired, but whatever it was *pats myself on the back* I made it. I finished this story, yay~
Thank all of you dears who keep reading and reviewing and PMing me. I hope you know it means the world. Nothing makes me happier than seeing you interact with my work. Love you all, here's the conclusion. I hope you enjoy
Title: Fake it till you make it
Genre:Romance, humour, slice of life, child care(kind of)
AU: Fake Marriage, Modernday
"No, Tuna, come back here!"
There was barking and giggles; the woman, desperate, looked up at the heavens, literally kicking off her shoes and making a run for the puppy that ran inside the house, wipes in her hands. "You could help a little," she accused the tall man who leisurely took off his shoes and his coat and then deposited the leash on the chair as if nothing was amiss, while she laboured to reach the golden retriever before he climbed anything. "Like, catch him, after you already let him go before I told you."
His smirk was immediate."I was not aware there was a wipe protocol."
"I'll wipe that smirk off your face with it, if you keep this up." He threw his head back laughing, watching her struggle with the still relatively small animal, but she finally had him in her grip, one foot already getting cleaned.
"Look, you were the one who was so on board with the idea of a dog; there was a ten-minute window to return it to your father, as the people told us, but you said we should keep it."
"But look how happy Aiko is!" she challenged, nodding at the girl who was running circles all around the living room, singing "I have a puppy" to the furniture.
"So, suffer."
"Help a little at least, asshole," she complained in a quiet voice.
"Not today; today I'm pissed."
Rolling her eyes, she accepted her fate as she finished with the last paw and let the animal go after the small girl. "So, we have a very nice bicycle, a very expensive dress and now a puppy, as presents for my daughter from your family."
"We got her ears pierced and now Miki can give her Yaso's earrings on Saturday."
"My parents got her a really nice, age-appropriate chemistry set."
"Oooh, nice; and we still haven't gotten her anything."
"Yeah; even Okita picked it out already." To her obvious question he elaborated. "He got her a doll; Doctor Barbie, if I recall."
"So cute...! am I detecting a pattern? Chemistry set, doctor Barbie...are you trying to get her in the mindset?"
He chuckled. "She seems to like it. But she's still young. Lately she's been talking of dresses and fashion and I think you're the reason for that."
"...how about we open an account for her? We could put money in it every time on her birthday—a good amount. For her education."
He did not expect to hear that; but his surprise was misinterpreted by the woman who rushed to excuse herself. "Naturally, we'll get her an actual present, too...I was just brainstorming, in general."
He smiled. "I did that two years ago, but that's very thoughtful."
"Oh. Oh I wish you had told me sooner! Dad would have made a nice donation—"
"If I wanted your father's donation, I'd have told him; same reason I said nothing to you, too." She pouted. "And no, you won't be making one now, either; we aren't even married yet. Look, I'm annoyed enough as it is that your father gave her a dog for her birthday without consulting me."
"But he did make sure to pick one that was trained to do his business outside; Tuna is four months old for that exact reason." He gave her a look. "Look, I may disagree with my father on a lot of things but this one was a thoughtful gift, despite it being a...surprise." He shook his head. "Say what you want, the problem still remains; what will we get her? If she likes the idea of becoming a doctor I could easily come up with something along those lines; a game, maybe—a tabletop game, you know? It would be fun."
"We'll see..."
"And I demand to know where the four of you went when you left me alone with the people to sign the paperwork for the dog; I waited an extra fifteen minutes!"
"All in due time, dear."
He was very self-satisfied when he said that. She didn't like the answer but it was pretty obvious she would not be getting a proper one, so she didn't probe. He did instead. "What was up with your father's phone call? I saw you; he said something you didn't like."
She heaved a very deep sigh.
"...he called off our family tradition; and I was so excited to share it with you two, too."
His expression spoke of needing something more. "Every year, on my birthday, we all get together and celebrate; but it's more than just my birthday—the entire family comes together and we go all out. And it's only family, no outsiders; my parents, my brother, my brother-in-law, my sister, my sister-in-law and their children. So I was hoping...but, basically, dad says because I'm not actually married yet or just in a relationship, we won't be doing it this year, in case we break up the children won't get attached to one another." She shook her head. "Bullshit, with all due respect. He's only doing it to further annoy and discourage me. But he won't get his way."
The way he looked at her, alarmed her slightly. It was as if he felt he was personally responsible for this turn of events, although she never even insinuated anything of the sort. Oh no, was he taking this the wrong way? Because if there was one person she was furious with that was good old dad. She tried to make crystal clear what she thought about this, so she waved him away.
"He'll come around, don't worry about him. When he realises he's only making me sad and to no avail, he'll stop. The important part is...Miki actually acted like a decent person after all. I was surprised. It was good they came with us; it was very nice of you to formally invite them to the party on Saturday, too. I hope we all get along in the end."
"True; that's one huge burden off."
"Though, I must say, in the end, my presence didn't help all that much. They'd have given her back to you anyway." She smiled warmly. "I told you; there's no reason to take her from you."
"...I am relieved," he sighed, finally sitting, choosing the sofa's arm. He looked up at her then, offering his hand. She took it. "But you did help; just being there, or being here with me, all the time leading up to the hearing, you helped a lot." He kissed it; she hugged him. "I don't know what kind of mindset I'd be in otherwise."
"All is well; all is as they should be." He grumbled his agreement; she planted a fleeting kiss on the top of his head. "Now let's eat or I fear Aiko will bring down the entire building if she keeps running with the dog like that."
He thought about it for a moment. "Tuna," his tone was commandeering, made the dog stop immediately "come here." The puppy easily did as asked. "Sit." He didn't seem to know that command; Saitou sighed. "You'll learn." Tuna rubbed himself against his leg. "You're a good boy."
So, now they had a dog to take care of and even more responsibility to shoulder; just great. But, he did agree to it—they both did. Now they'd have to take care of it. The only upside was...the dog was allowed in Tokio's building and she had a big, private office, so the dog was with someone always. At least that's how Thursday and Friday went and then Saturday came and they both only worked from home because they had all sorts of preparations to make.
Still, Saturday breezed past them. When it was time for guests to arrive, she barely had had the time to get ready, thank Okita and Saitou who were there to distract the first ones as she applied her finishing touches. Children started coming in, in alarming rates, one or both parents entering at the same time. Thank god it was a good day and they had the window doors open and they had taken the space of the balcony, too.
What mostly surprised both adults was the presence of one child in particular: little Sissy had come, too, with both parents. They had looked at one another for a very brief moment but the disbelief was there. The girl was acting like she usually did lately, per Aiko's descriptions, but her father was way too timid. It was his wife who had taken the lead, a blond, tall woman, with what appeared to be an iron set of rules, judging by what she advised her daughter the moment she came in ("take off your shoes first; go wish happy birthday to little Aiko and give her the present; don't run") and the fact the girl did everything as her mother said it. She was an unapologetic type of person, yet the first thing she did was hand them her husband's letter of apology, as well her own deep bow of gratitude for inviting their daughter regardless. Saitou mirrored her and bowed, too, expressing his own gratitude for coming, and how sorry he was his daughter hit their daughter's nose. They laughed it off and they headed inside, while the husband just stayed silent and contented himself in bows or handshakes.
There were around fifteen children and almost twice as many adults; seeing the only two apartments on this floor belonged to the Saitou household, they had kindly taken over the hall between the two homes as well as his parent's house for everyone to be comfortable. Of course, the party couldn't come to a peak without Tokio's parents coming out of the elevator...with the cake.
Oh, the cake. It was a three-tier cake that had three colours: pink, petrol and grey. It was decorated with numerous stars and hearts and bows in these colours, as well as little doctor syringes and stethoscopes, seeing Aiko had been so very interested in them lately. It was huge and fun and heavy, so Saitou had rushed to help Takagi Kojuuro who didn't let his struggle show, but appreciated deeply when the man relieved him of the burden.
Upon seeing it, all children cheered wildly and rushed to take photos of it with the birthday girl. Then, they cut the cake and slowly children, chaperoned by their parents, left one by one, and only family was left.
"Happy birthday to the cutest girl in the world," Okita wished her then and handed her the doll; it was too big for her, so she had to put it to the floor to open it—it was adorable.
"Thank you, Souji-jii-san!" She hugged him tightly; Okita kissed her cheek noisily and she giggled. "Now it's daddy's turn." he directed her and Saitou knelt in front of her then.
"Happy birthday little plum." He handed her an envelope.
"What's this?"
"Your present," he goaded, glancing up at Tokio who smiled "open it."
Curious, the little girl carefully tore the seal and took whatever was inside; it was a coupon. It was pink and blue and she had to read it for some time before her eyes snapped up at them in disbelief and contained excitement.
"Is this right?"
"What did you read, Aiko-chan?" Tokio wondered, kneeling next to her.
"It says here I will go on a two-day trip to the set of my favourite show."
"Oh; then yes." Aiko tackled Tokio to the ground, in her effort to hug her; Tuna, who had been allowed out of the room and back balcony, saw it and rushed to join the fun, coming at full speed for both, licking Tokio's face who had fallen down.
"Thank you so much! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Tuna was only getting more excited and Tokio would laugh and try to stop the dog at the same time, but both was a lost cause, so she simply pat Aiko's back, feeling fulfilled. They made the right choice.
"Thank you daddy," she finally let go of her and turned to hug her father, who swept her up, both to relish the attention a little and spare Tokio Tuna's love attack, who naturally became distracted immediately and started jumping up and down to reach Aiko but couldn't, so simply got pet on the head by the tall man.
"You're very welcome," Tokio kissed her cheek, on her tip toes, when she finally stood and Hajime wouldn't let her down.
"I love you very much; you are the best."
"She says now that she got her way," her father scolded, remembering how difficult she'd been yesterday when they told her they hadn't found the flavour of ice cream she wanted.
Tokio elbowed him. "Let her enjoy it; it's her day."
"Happy birthday to you, too, sweetie," her mother said then out of the blue and produced, how fitting, another envelope, this one to give to Tokio. "It's your day, too after all." Mildly curious and maybe a little cautious, but certainly amused, Tokio took it and opened it delicately. "It's from all of us; I hope you like it." As Tokio saw what was inside and read what it wrote, she gaped at her mother. "I may say it is from all of us, but what I mean is, we all pitched in. I had the idea, a long time ago."
"Mother..."
Saitou almost stared; was she...tearing up? Wow, what was in that envelope? He didn't want to pry but he wanted to know. Tokio begun airing herself and when that didn't work and tears did escape her, she hugged her mom. "Thank you...I love you very much." She turned her eyes to her father. "Both. Thank you very much." She wiped away her tears. "I...I don't know what to say. I...thank you."
"Aren't you happy kaa-san? Way are you crying?"
"Sometimes people cry when they are too happy; it happens when we become overwhelmed with emotion."
"What does overwhelm mean daddy?"
"When something is too much and we cannot properly express or conduct ourselves, it means we are overwhelmed." He considered. "Not everyone cries; other people become withdrawn instead or expressionless."
"What does withdrawn mean, Souji-jii-san?"
"It means they shut down and turn their feelings inwards."
She nodded appreciatively; then the silence got too much. But, thankfully, Okita was too curious and had to ask. "What is it, Tokio-chan?"
"I have been in contact with certain Universities, trying to establish a fund for a fully-paid scholarship in Tooru's name; but they have been slow in our correspondence and I was starting to lose hope. But now I see why. Thank you so much, really."
"That's...amazing," was all Okita could say about it and nod towards her mother with appreciation.
"Thank you, dear."
"It is; and considerate." Saitou nodded. "Kinda tough to compete with that though."
The adults laughed. "It's not a competition," his mother scolded him.
"But if it was, you lost son."
"Oh hush," Tokio waved them away, still trying to make the moisture go.
"I don't think so, Jirou-san," Tooka retorted, ignoring her daughter "your son has already given her a gift we will never compete with" and played with her fingers to signal the ring on Tokio's hand.
"Really, stop," Tokio chuckled and got a hold of herself.
"Now, now Hajime, give Tokio her present, too so we can all go! Well, I hope someone stays back to help with the cleaning, but we will go," her mother rushed them, and actually pushed him to go faster.
"Don't worry Tooka-san, I'll definitely stay behind," Okita assured, brightly, winking at the older woman.
"You better; you made my house a mess, too so I have to clean up there. Unless you wait for tomorrow of course, in which case I'm more than available."
"It's fine, Masu-san, we'll manage," Tokio assured her, chuckling.
"Don't stall Hajime," his father hit him on the back "give your gift."
"I don't have it; Aiko does. She went to bring it...there she is." The small girl had indeed disappeared when grandma-san spoke the word "present" and now she was skipping back, in the company of Tuna, with a small, paper bag. "Come little plum, give it to her."
Shyly, looking away but holding both hands out in front of her, she offered the black bag with the golden engraved letters. Tokio thanked her and opened it...she spotted a deep blue, leather small box and pulled it out, noticing it wrote Police in capital letters, engraved on the leather, in silver. She knew exactly what it was; the smirk that came to her lips was immediate.
When she opened it, she found a beautiful watch in it, just as she expected. The dial was larger than most watches for women were, in a rich dark blue colour that popped behind the rose gold details the rest of it had. It told the hour in Latin numerals only where 12, 3, 6 and 9 were supposed to be, the date in regular numerals in a smaller circle at the right as well as the day in an even smaller dial. The band was stainless steel, silver and rose gold, in a pattern.
She gave Hajime a look, trying not to smirk too much. "How did you know?"
He shrugged, as if he knew nothing. "Not me; Aiko did the reconnaissance." She gaped; Aiko secretly looked up, with pride. "She saw you were searching for something and came to tell me."
"A little detective!" Tooka exclaimed enthusiastic.
"Awww, baby." Tokio wrapped her up in a hug. "You are so sweet." Aiko simply savoured the moment and said nothing.
"I showed her how to save images and send them to other devices and she gave me the picture of the watch."
"That's so cute! Underhanded, but cute. Thank you so much. You are very smart and sneaky." she let go of the girl, in favour of pinching her nose but then she stood to her full height and grabbed Saitou's cheek. "Thank you very, very much. I've been wanting to buy a new watch for months now." She kissed the other cheek. "I love you both very much."
He smiled and kissed the top of her head; Okita was extremely happy by the turn of events. Nudging both people on the back, he turned to the guests, as if this was his own house. "And now everyone please leave."
"We are, we are," her mother assured.
"It's a nice watch," Kojuuro commented instead, eyes lingering on it and then the man who gave it.
"Of course it is; my taste is flawless," Tokio jabbed at her father, words all laced with a double meaning he did not fail to catch; so, he simply nodded, smirked a tiny bit and proceeded to bid everyone goodbye.
Everyone else followed until it was just them and Okita; and an overly enthusiastic puppy.
"Here's how we do this: Aiko goes to her room and put it in order; we pick up all the trash. Then, we assign each one a station. Who's going to do the dishes; who's going to swipe surfaces clean and who's going to swipe the floors?"
"Aiko, sweetie, you go do your thing," Tokio urged her and she did it, even though she appeared reluctant. "I propose we give Okita the dishes because he already did enough for tonight and they aren't much—most where paper plates and disposable glasses."
"No, come on, let me help."
"You are; now, let's get to work."
It was around ten they had finished with everything; that was when Okita and Tokio decided to take Tuna out for a walk so Hajime could put his daughter to sleep. When they came back, an hour later, Aiko was fast asleep and Saitou had made himself comfortable on the couch, already in his house clothes. Tuna, once paws were clean, ran into Aiko's room where he undoubtedly made himself comfortable at the foot of the bed, or, as they discovered him all previous mornings, curled around the girl protectively.
"I should leave now, too," Okita spoke through a yawn after a drink "gotta get home."
"You can stay; I'll set up the guest house."
"Ah, no; Sakura's waiting up for me."
The couple looked at one another immediately; smirks formed. Despite the nonchalant way he said it, Okita expected this reaction and decided to dart all questions for now by standing up almost the exact same second and heading for his coat.
"Are you two spending nights together now? At your place or hers?"
"...both."
"Awww!"
"Why didn't you say anything, idiot?" was all Saitou commented, hitting him in the gut. "Would have invited her, too."
"Not yet," Okita cut them both off, but just the fact that that "yet" was there was a huge step forward for him, if Saitou's smug expression said anything. "But thanks for the offer."
"We could go on a double date next Friday, too," Tokio suggested, all excitement "I'll have mom babysit."
Okita beamed. "Sounds nice; I'll try to make it happen."
"No, you better."
"Don't stifle him," Saitou tried to calm her down "and if she says yes let them decide where to go." She deflated visibly at that; he knew her so well, he was sure she had already made a plan for where and when and how they'd go. He bet she had something themed in mind. If her pout was to be trusted, she had just been thwarted completely.
"Just give her my contact info; maybe, after and if she says yes, we can come to a common decision."
Saitou's eyes grew a little wide. "Don't; let her decide on her own. Tokio has this ability to somehow project what she wants into your mind and then you simply agree with her; you never have a choice, no matter what she says."
Okita laughed; she was not amused. "Oh yeah? Name one example."
"We had so many people over today, to start off; we let her father buy the cake; we have. A puppy."
She said nothing, but innocently looked away. "If Sakura is okay with being man-handled and doesn't have an opinion, give her Tokio's number."
"What does that make you then?"
"I knew what I was getting into."
She shook her head, but did crack a smile; Okita laughed off the last of his mirth, waved them goodbye and left. As soon as the door was closed, Tokio sighed. "I am so happy for him."
"Me, too; now let's go to sleep please. I feel like I haven't slept in days."
"Children are exhausting."
Chuckling their agreement, both adults headed off to sleep.
Three days later, she had a visit from her father in her office. He'd informed her, her mother would be picking up Aiko and would go visit Masu-san, while the two of them had an honest conversation. Once more, he established his distaste for her fiance and the way this whole thing was announced. He expressed his doubts about them being in a real relationship for the first time, but was quick to add that yes, his worries and suspicions were finally dispelled. She was a little scared of the way her father could so easily figure out the way her brain operated and accurately guess her next move, but, like she'd already said, the same could be said about her. She hated to admit, but, they were one and the same.
"So, I admit defeat. Do you have any idea how insufferable your mother's been? She really liked him. And that daughter of his—so unfair. I can't be too mean around her, either." She laughed. "She's adorable. Your mother had been giving me a hard time βecause, she says, she wants more grandchildren. Aiko is the perfect age for her to baby until a baby comes along."
Tokio, realising what her mother meant, felt her skin crawl. Ugh, no babies for the foreseeable future, thank you very much; at the very least in three years from now. But that's a conversation for another time and for another person.
"Other than being stubborn then, I have no reason to refuse you. The board of directors favours you; your brother favours you; everyone favours you. Why should I be any different?"
She looked at him for a long time. "...what are you saying?"
"That if you are still willing to step up, once I step down, the position is yours." She stared. "But first, let's talk terms."
.
.
.
When Saitou came home that day, he went through the motions, as always; kissed Aiko on the top of her head, petted Tuna's head and was greeted by Tokio, who took his coat and kissed him fleetingly as he removed his shoes. Everything was normal...but something was off. They sat down to have dinner and nothing seemed out of the ordinary, other than the fact it looked like Tokio was trying too hard. To be nice, polite, cheerful; she was putting on a show. She wasn't really feeling it.
Keeping an eye on her for most of the day, the moment she came out of Aiko's room, he watched her come sit next to him on the couch. The tired look, the almost defeated body language urged him to think of her father. He told her something to make her like this. He didn't like this at all. On one hand, he wanted them to get along; on the other, he made her sad for no reason.
"What happened?"
"Father."
There; he knew, didn't he? "What did he do this once?"
"He...agreed to give me what I wanted."
That was news to him. His heart beat faster, joy threatening to spill. Was she being like this just to distract him and make the news all the more shocking then? Because she was really misleading...but no. This wasn't an act; the words weren't spoken with excitement. His eyes grew small as his mind worked through the probabilities. He must have said something more; there was a "but" in there, he was certain.
"And you're still like this?"
"He told me he suspected our engagement was a lie, but no longer thinks so; and seeing us together, he realised how stubborn he was being and how I should be rewarded with what I want...if I'm proven to be capable."
"That's perfect."
Her smile was strained. "He said, then, it would be no big deal if I took the position of branch manager, just to prove my administrative skills one step beyond and dispel all doubts once and for all." He waited for her to go on at her own pace; she looked at him straight in the eye. "He said I could choose whichever I want; either the European or American branch." She took a deep breath and exhaled. "Naturally, most choose the American but, honestly, the European is more challenging and the one most like our branch, so the best choice would be that one." She nodded along, as if verifying her statement. He still failed to see the problem. "So, if I were to choose, I'd choose that one...and once I accept, I'll promptly fly to Germany."
His mind went blank.
"That's where the headquarters are; and branch manager is mandatory to live in the same city as headquarters."
He said nothing; he only kept looking at her for a long time, expressionless as ever. When she swallowed her nervousness, he sat back, head reeling. "So, he's giving you exactly what you wanted...with asterisks."
He remembered those asterisks; they had come up in conversation with her before. And she had said that time, she hated loving and being loved by people with asterisks. He did not know what she meant then; now he did. He considered. Cautious, he turned his head to her.
"What do you want to do?"
She opened her mouth; she closed it again. "I don't know. I honestly don't. No one else, ever, had to go through so many hoops before. I feel like he's doing this on purpose to see if our relationship can survive it. He had the nerve to say it to my face basically;" she cleared her throat and mimicked her father's tone "if you've been together for so long, he won't mind; and if he loves you as much as you claim, he'll want you to take this opportunity."
That goddamn asshole. He'd said it. He put it in words. Now what else could he say other than "I think he's right; you should take it." She looked at him sharply. "I think you should go to Germany." She gaped at him. "How long will you be?"
"Anywhere from a couple of months to a year..."
He bit his tongue; maybe he shouldn't have said anything, but now he did. "That's longer than I expected to hear, but..." he shrugged. "Do what you need to do."
She blinked. "...it's not about what I need to do, it's about what I want."
"Look, when we started off, which was barely three months ago, we both had two very clear goals: I wanted to keep Aiko and you wanted to be CEO. Well, I have Aiko. And now, you get a chance to make CEO." She blinked again. "I'm not so selfish as to tell you not to go."
She opened her mouth wide, disbelieving of what she was hearing, trying to articulate her unfathomable shock. She closed it again, realising no sound was coming. She gathered her thoughts. "So you want me to go?"
"Yes." She gave him a look. "I want you to go because all this time, you've been playing the good wife, the perfect partner and sacrificed too much time and effort to make this believable, all because you wanted what your father is offering you right now. It would be a shame for you to decline, simply because you've gotten into a habit of doing what it's best for Aiko and then, two years from now, you turn around and accuse me of missing the biggest opportunity of your life. Go. I don't want you to regret not going; because you'll easily grow resentful and that's the last thing I want. Go."
"...I know it sounds like a long time, but it's not like I'll be gone forever. But the fact you treat this as if me going overseas will end our relationship is telling. Do you want to be with me? Or do you prefer I left and went to Germany and hope I forget about you in the meantime? How...?" She was at a loss. "Hajime this isn't a "you or the job" situation as much as you made it out to be and I was mostly worrying over things like distance and how to keep in touch if I do go or if I don't what could the alternative be, not—..." She shook her head. "I know what I want; I just don't know what I want more. But if you're telling me you'd rather I left and be done with it than actually put some effort into it, all because you're looking for an easy way out and this is the perfect chance," she put her hands up, shrugging "I don't know what to tell you."
"That's not true."
"Then what is?"
"I don't want you to regret this."
"So you're telling me I should go; then don't make it sound like things are going to be over if I do!"
He clicked his tongue. "But won't they?"
The fact his tone was so matter-of-fact drove her crazy. "Of course not!"
"Come on, Tokio; you'll change continents. Work will be hard, but rewarding; before you know it, you'll have fallen into a new routine that you know you're going to enjoy. Before long you'll regret staying with me because now you're tethered to someone with a child and the fact you get along with her will make you guilty enough not to end it over the phone and then you'll have wasted a year of your life for no reason. I can tell you right now, if you leave, I doubt you'll ever come back."
"Do you think me so shallow?"
"You've been trying to get me interested in you for so long; now that you did, you're happy, but soon enough, you'll lose your interest. When we were interviewing you way back when, both Okita and I could see you were that kind of person: took up fencing, became an expert, never picked up a sword again. You were taught krav maga, you learnt what you needed, you stopped; you get what you want and stop. But this once, it's not just me. I have a daughter to think about, too. I don't want to put her through that kind of an experience."
"You are so...stupid!"
She kept her voice down, despite the moisture in her eyes; he had this unreadable expression on his face and she hated it because shit, it was so indisputable. And she was really on the fence about this whole thing. Yes, she loved them very much; she wanted to be a part of their lives. But the matter of fact remained that her first thought when she heard her father make her the proposal was "finally!" and almost said yes, without even pretending to consult her future husband, or so much as get his opinion. She had felt so guilty.
"You think you know everything and you sit there high and mighty but you don't care about the consequences of your words! Do you think—...? I don't want that to happen. I want to come back to both of you."
"Forget Aiko for a moment, Tokio; what do you think you'd do if she wasn't in the picture? Say we were just dating and suddenly this came up. You'd have said yes before you ever told me anything. So don't give me that. I don't want your pity."
And now, how did he just find that and brought it up like that? It wasn't fair, at all.
"What do you want? Me to go so you can go back to pitying yourself? To be alone forever? The lone wolf, the lonely father; is that it? So just want to drive me away so you can rebuild all of your walls? Even Okita seemed to grow! Don't just go back to what you know because you think it's safer."
"Oh, so you plan on staying just to spite me? Or because you love me so much?"
She looked away as if he slapped her, though petulant as ever. He sighed. "Don't push yourself. Go; that's what you really want. All I'm trying to tell you is, you can do whatever you want and I won't judge you. I understand. So go do what you want."
How was it that he didn't even sound all that upset? Did nothing get this man? Or was it that it just didn't pain him all that much? After all, if he believed, just as he had said once, that all this was built on a lie...why should he ever be truly emotionally invested in their relationship working? How could she be such an idiot? How could she be so blind? And how could he be so cold?
"Fine," she agreed weakly, "I'm going." She wiped away a tear. "The flight is in two days..."
"...I'll drive you."
Her smile was very, very vengeful. "Thank you," she scathingly remarked and stood up. "We'll talk about the rest tomorrow...for now, I have to think of how to tell Aiko."
And she left.
Why was he not surprised? Of course she knew when her plane would be leaving; he could bet that was the first thing she looked up. She didn't know if she would go? As if. She had already drawn up a schedule in her mind about when to call them, what to say to Aiko, all she needed was to think of the way. Tch. Why was he being bitter about this? He was the one who just told her to go. And basically told her she shouldn't bother to come back to him whence she returned.
Great going, Hajime, piss her off before she leaves; now she'll only talk to you in front of your daughter.
Not that he was all that removed from reality. He bet she would very easily discard her current lifestyle for the title of future CEO and Europe branch manager, with all the parties and the public speeches and long hours. If she wanted, he'd be right here; it was her who wouldn't want to come back. Not that he actually spoke that part out loud—he never did say, as he wanted, it's all up to you to prove me wrong by coming back, and how he was not in fact, hurt by this. No, he wasn't hurt, not at all. He was sad. He was sad because he knew her ambition and skill and character. It almost felt like he would be doing her a disservice not to let her go.
He took a deep breath.
What felt like minutes but in fact was at least an hour later, he too went to bed. If she was still awake, she did not show.
.
.
"We talked about this sweetie, I'm not leaving forever; just some months."
"But you took everything with you!" Aiko kept accusing her, face buried in Tokio's chest as she was crying insatiably.
"I only took what I need; most of my stuff is still at home."
"But it's so much...!"
"I'll need much. But, like I promised, I'll see you everyday. I won't be there to take you to school, but I've already set my alarm clocks and I'll call you every day at seven in the morning and then when you go to sleep. Yes? I'll see you every single day."
"I don't remember how to use it well though."
"Daddy will show you again and again and as many times as you need."
"...you promise to come back?"
"I already did, didn't I?" she tried to be humorous but Aiko wouldn't hear of it. "I promise."
"Be back soon mamma," she cried again and hugged her closer "very soon."
"As soon as I can," she assured.
Seeing the girl inconsolable, Okita picked her up instead, and she started crying in his shoulder. Tokio wanted to die right about then.
"Be safe," Hajime said.
Despite the chilly, nearly Arctic climate between the two of them these last two days, there was great warmth in his voice. She nodded, sniffled and never answered him. She simply put her hands around him and squeezed. She rested her head on his chest and just kept squeezing. He enveloped her in a hug, too, kissed the top of her head and put his chin there for the duration of the hug. Neither seemed willing to let go; no matter the fights and the snappy comments, nothing had really changed. She still loved him and wanted him close; he still felt like a part of himself was leaving with her. But both were too proud to admit it, not now, not as she was leaving.
What drew them apart was the voice on the speakers that announced boarding was about to start. That's when Okita decided to hand the child back to his father and hug Tokio himself. "You can still not go," he whispered in her ear "stay for our double date."
"I'll miss you," she said instead, actually about to cry.
Oof, she had held it together so well with Hajime why was she being moved by Souji? And he sounded so straightforward, too, made her sentimental. "I'll miss you, too, Tokio-chan. We all will."
"Goodbye; be good—all of you." She might have looked at Aiko in a way and pinched her nose but it was Saitou her eyes lingered on. "Goodbye."
"Goodbye mamma! Be back soon! Goodbye!"
She took her suitcases and headed to the gate; the girl ran to the glass and pressed her face and hands against it, sending the woman kisses, while she did the same. A sigh escaped Okita's lips. "So, what? Not even a goodbye, asshole?" He said nothing. "Look at your daughter. If it were up to her, she'd have broken that glass and made Tokio stay." He remained tactfully silent. "What did you do to convince her not to go?"
He didn't deign to answer. He simply walked to his daughter. "Little plum," he offered his hand "we can no longer see mamma from here. Let's go; once she arrives, she'll call us."
"Why did mamma have to leave?"
"Because of her job."
"But her job was here."
"She was offered a better position."
"But did she have to take it?"
"...yes."
But no. No, she didn't.
And maybe, deep down, he was blaming her for doing it, even if he all but demanded she took it. If she really cared...no. That was a wrong train of thought, too. If he minded all that much, why did he push her so much anyway? He tried not to swear—at himself, her father, the situation, her. Right now, everything was wrong and nothing was as it should be. And as they walked to the car, with Okita driving them back home and then waiting for Tokio to call them from Germany, there were only two thoughts in his mind: why did they both have to be so stubborn? And why did this feel like he would never see her again?
.
.
It'd been two months.
It felt like two years.
Tokio called everyday, as she promised; her mother would visit every other day at first then twice a week, without fail. His mother came by more often again, like before she ever came into their lives and messed everything up, while Okita made it a point to visit often so he too could speak to Tokio.
Because he sure as hell didn't.
After five days, at most, he only answered the Skype call to give it to Aiko. He would spend no time on formalities, wouldn't ask her how her day went nor what she was doing over there. He wouldn't tell her about him, too. He didn't want to. He could see that must have been weighing on her, for every time she called, she would try to strike up conversation and talk to him, but he simply shut her down. It was so easy and addictive to do it when she wasn't physically there, to force her own opinions or ways and he could easily dismiss her, he almost did it out of spite.
Well, it was out of spite; spite he had to see her through a screen instead of having her there. Anger she had made the decision to be over there alone on the first place. He knew her work was important to her, he knew; he also knew he only came into his life so drastically because of it. And yet, she claimed that she loved them. Where was her love then? Was it too much she had to call all the time but too little to actively choose to stay away? Was it a lie? Was it not enough?
Or was it him that wasn't enough?
Maybe if he'd tried harder, she wouldn't have left. Maybe if he hadn't been such a self-sabotaging idiot, she wouldn't have gone across the world. She would have stayed. If he hadn't urged her to go, she might haven't. If he'd been brave enough to ask her to stay with them, maybe she would have.
Maybe.
And that maybe spited him all the more. Because of course he and his daughter should come first. It was just a job for barely a year, his sense told him, it wasn't that long. And, since he was planning on asking her to actually get married and make that engagement ring all the more real, it was nothing in the grand scheme of things. But his ego made it bigger than it was and so did that little voice in his head that told him it was better for his daughter, too; forget her as if she never existed. She'd cry, a lot, but he would console her. And the two of them would get over it, like they always did. Just the two of them.
And yet, it wasn't all that bad when they had a third person there; not bad at all. In fact, it was good, great! It was amazing. It only helped and made things better; it was his fear of rejection that told him otherwise. Because he feared if he told her to please not go, please stay, please marry me, she'd do it...but wouldn't really want it. And maybe in a year, or maybe two, she'd start feeling caged; at best, in five years she'd ask for a divorce while accusing him he was the reason she never realised her true potential and leave then...and she had so much potential. So much drive and talent and intellect—no one was better than her for it. But if she was going to leave in five years anyway what's the point of stalling? Better leave now and do her thing, too than stay, be happy for two years and unhappy the next three and leave without doing what she really loved.
He loved her enough to wish her the best and was selfish enough not to want to be blamed if things got south. Not to taste rejection. So much so that he expressedly asked her not to bother with him when she called, not three days ago.
He had never seen someone struggle so much to keep their composure and in the end managing it—most people broke when they got to that point. But not her; never her...
When he told Okita about it, they almost threw hands. "I love you man, but you are too proud;" Okita spat some blood "and too much of an idiot."
"Thank you," Hajime spoke through gritted teeth, as he tried to ease the pain from his jaw, without much success.
"You should call her yourself right now and tell her how sorry you are for saying such monumentally stupid shit." He noticed Hajime opened the freezer. "Bring me some, too," he asked him when he saw he took a towel and put some ice-cubes in it. Saitou obliged and the first one he gave to his friend, who immediately pressed it to his left eye.
"Keep your opinions to yourself; and your hands." He put the second towel he prepared at the back of his neck. "I think we both need a doctor."
"You need two kinds of them; one for your neck and one for your brain."
"...idiot." He clicked his tongue. "Thank Buddha Aiko wasn't here."
"Yeah thank him; she wouldn't be on your side, I can tell you that and lately her kicks are killing. Your shin would be worse than your chin."
They both snorted with laughter. "So, do you want a beer or not?"
"Yeah I do, you moron."
"No more attacking me then."
"Fine," he barked as he glared with one eye. "For today at least."
"...fair enough."
And that was yesterday; this day, as punishment, Okita had left him all alone and made sure so did everyone else: he picked up Aiko to take her to his apartment to meet Sakura and finally introduce one to the other; his parents never came over and Tooka-san, who was supposed to come today, called to let him know she came down with something and wouldn't make it. His ex-in-laws invited them to a trip because they knew he'd say no, thus, this particular day, he was all alone. He was forced to stay in his apartment all on his lonesome without anyone being there for comfort.
They had made it a point not to leave him alone this entire time, to make her absence easier on him, but now Okita worked in crueler ways: leave him be to see what his life will be like without her. Let him shimmer.
So, it took two months of absence, one altercation with his best friend, three days without contact and only one whine from Tuna, to make him admit it to himself, and not out loud, that yes; he did not like this. He hated it. He wanted her back. He wanted her around and he missed her so much, he couldn't listen to his daughter's giggles from her room when Tokio called because it sounded as if she was still there, putting Aiko to sleep; she was about to come out of Aiko's room, sighing as she always did. He couldn't look at Tuna go to their bedroom around the time Tokio went to sleep and look for her. He didn't want to live like this: always something missing, always someone right here but oh so far away; out of reach but ever-present.
No, not anymore. He did love her, damn it, and he wanted her back. He...wanted her. That's it. That's that.
And just this once, he was going to fight for it.
Decided, he took his phone, connected to the wifi and went to Skype; he called her. It was an ungodly hour of the morning, he knew, he was probably going to wake her up. He didn't care. He just waited and waited and let it ring. The first time, she didn't answer; the second, he worried she might not have her cellphone connected to the internet but he tried again; the fifth time, she answered.
It was a video call on purpose; he wanted to be able to see her. And what he saw was a disheveled, sleepy Tokio, eyes closed for the most part, mumbling a tired yes while still lying on the bed.
"Aiko sweetie...is that you?"
"No; it's me."
That woke her up; his voice made her visibly flinch while her eyes snapped open. "Hajime, is Aiko alright? What happened? Did you call the hospital? Dad said—!"
"Aiko is fine; she's with Okita, he's introducing her to Sakura."
She laughed the tension away. "Oh thank Buddha, you worried me...and it was about time. Good thing you told me, too, I'll mess with her tomorrow." As her laughter died down, there was silence. She fought the urge to yawn. "So, why did you call?"
"I missed you."
She blinked at the screen; she must have misheard. He could see that in her lack of reaction as well as her expectant face and, other than guiltier than ever, he decided to elaborate. "I haven't heard from you for a few days; I wanted to hear your voice."
Oh boy; he said the wrong thing. Sleep lost its grip on her and now anger started slowly overtaking her. "Oh, I'm sorry, weren't you the one who asked me not to call you anymore?" He tried to stop her but he wasn't sure if she could really see him all that well. "Didn't you announce to me all serious and posturing how I should stop talking to you? And now you're trying to accuse me of not calling? Is it my fault!?"
"No, no Tokio; no. Listen to me, please; just listen to me. I'm sorry."
There it was; she finally focused on him.
"I was wrong. I miss you so much." He was being incredibly honest and that seemed to work in his favour; she relaxed her shoulders and lay back down to hear him. "I love you; I'm sorry. Please forgive me for acting like that. I was upset and afraid and at the same time I really think you deserve to get what you want so I didn't want to stop you from doing what you wanted."
He pressed his eyes with his hand to make sure he wasn't going to do anything stupid as tear up in front of the phone. Why was his head such a mess?
"I didn't really want you to leave; I just want you to be happy. I thought that's what would make you happy, so I wanted you to do it. But I can see it's not working, at least not for me. I don't know why you're sleeping with that phone of yours, but if it's because it makes you feel like someone's there with you, that makes two of us."
He heard her sob; he was too busy feeling sorry for himself so he hadn't dared to look at her again but now that he did, he could see she was about to burst into tears. "I love you. Please come back as soon as you can; and if my bad choices miraculously haven't damaged your opinion and your feelings for me irreversibly, then I'm asking you now: marry me." She sobbed again. "Whenever you come back, please marry me."
"You are such an idiot," was all she could say for about two minutes, all with different inflections and tones, as she cried and sobbed, sobbed and cried in front of her phone unabashedly. "I sleep next to my phone because my screensaver is a picture Okita took when we weren't watching and it's so cute because Aiko's drinking some chocolate and you're reading a book to her and I'm washing the dishes in the background, you asshole!"
She screamed it at him as if accusing him for something.
"You are all I can think about you asshole!" she "accused" again and actually hit the phone with a pillow. "I was feeling guilty when I left because yes, of course I wanted this since forever and I was excited and flattered; but people change! What people want changes, too and I don't want this; I don't want to fight with you and be away from you and only see Aiko through a screen. I love you. I...love you very much; I love you both, you prick." Just as she had calmed down, she took a deep breath again through her nose. "And if you love me as much as you say you do, then you better hop on the next flight to Germany and come here to get me because I'm not leaving on my own!"
She said all she had to say and then stopped. Still sniffling and rubbing at her eyes, she calmed down and finally looked at her phone again. That's when she noticed how withdrawn he looked, how expressionless. She raised her eyebrows, daring to be defied.
But all he said was "...are you sure?" He was calm; he was cautious. "If I come to you, will you come back with me?"
"...you get here first and we'll see about the rest."
He chuckled. "I deserved that." She smiled at him through the tears; Buddha help him, he almost reached out to wipe it all away but he couldn't. He simply looked at her even more intensely. "I'm sorry; I'll make it up to you."
"You better."
She hit the end call button, but it didn't work, or, most possibly, it didn't connect properly and she never ended the call. So, he watched her get comfortable in her bed, look at her screen and then drift off almost immediately. He realised he had to end the call nearly ten minutes later, when he had his fill of simply looking at her. Smiling, he ended the call properly. Then, he took a deep breath.
Time to call Hijikata, although something told him he'd be difficult about it. He'd be forced to go to Kondou; Kondou was always more sentimental. He'd definitely give him the leave. And Okita, he knew, would gladly shoulder most of his workload if it meant he'd come back with Tokio.
.
.
"Daddy! Mommy! You are back!"
Aiko ran faster than any of the five adults on her side of the airport expected; the two she ran towards had seen her do it once more, when she was "training" for gym class. Before anyone could blink, Tuna had taken off after her, catching up, and both little human and pupper landed in Saitou's open arms who somehow managed to stay on his feet, despite the fact hr had to lift both off the ground. Tokio, laughing but anxious, supported the dog who had started licking one side of his face with the same ferocity Aiko was littering the other side with kisses. And just as she did, the dog turned to her ecstatic and changed targets with ease.
Aiko started crying of happiness, unable to believe what was happening and all but demanded to be freed from her father's embrace to get to her mother. Hajime handed over the girl and let the dog down in the same smooth motion and it was the cutest thing in the world to watch his daughter bury her face in Tokio's neck and just squeeze, without speaking, but crying happy tears all the while. At the same time, Tokio simply stood there, drinking the moment, the love and enthusiasm in, as she too squeezed the little girl as tightly as she could. Once she put her down, they grabbed one hand each and headed to their parents and Okita, Tuna in tow with his tail wagging wildly.
"Welcome home darling," her mother all but jumped her, satisfaction evident in her tone. "We missed you."
"We did," Jirou affirmed and glanced at his son "it was too depressing without you."
His wife laughed but scolded him. "Honey, your son was gone for a week, too."
"I hardly noticed; Souji filled in for him admirably."
"Ugh, yes, I meant to thank you," Tokio actually hugged him, too "thank you for being such a good sport and for staying at our place; and for being such a great friend; and, you know what, everything, thank you so much. Thank you all, too, for helping. I missed you, too."
"It was for a good cause," Okita winked at her "I'd gladly do it again."
"I am just so happy to be back! I don't know how I made, these past two months."
"Two and a half," Okita reminded meaningfully.
She nodded severely. "Indeed; god, I missed you so much." This one was directed at Aiko. "I missed you so much I thought I'd burst!"
"I missed you so much I wanted to cry!" she retorted as if it was a competition and every adult melted.
"I love you very much; please don't cry."
They laughed. "I missed daddy, too," she surprised everyone then and hugged his leg, letting go of Tokio "I never couldn't see you before. You were gone for more than a day." That bit was spoken petulantly. "Don't do that again; I didn't like it."
"I won't; I promise."
"Hahaha, don't worry Aiko-chan; in a few years, you'll be begging to be left alone," Okita boisterously stated, earning a very pointed glare from Saitou "give it a decade or less."
"Shut up or I'll make you."
"You lost your chance, son" Kojuuro spoke for the first time, a knowing, heavy sigh escaping him "should have made her promise you the same. But you didn't. Now it's too late."
"Father!"
"No, I should know; I raised two of you."
"And apparently, the later you had them in life, the more attached you got," Tooka accused, shaking her head "and now ended up sending your daughter who's about to get married all the way to Europe. Europe! And she had the stupidity to take it; thank Buddha she learnt better fast."
"Mother, relax."
"No, I won't. He's been trying to sabotage this wedding from the very beginning! Weren't you the one who wanted her to get married? Why are you being like this?"
"Honey, we've been over this a thousand times."
"We might have, but you have never apologised to your daughter for it—or Hajime. You just disliked him for no reason from the get go and now look what you did. Because of you he took two weeks worth of leave from work. Now, if they get married this calendar year, they won't be able to go on a honeymoon!"
Kojuuro sighed; Hajime's parents looked at one another as if witnessing something very interesting while Okita tried very hard not to laugh. "Fine; I'm sorry. Is that what you want me to say?"
"Yes; but not to me. To them."
When he turned to the young couple, looking as if they were on his side, he was surprised to find out they were, in fact, not; this was not a stupid whim of his wife's to say it but something they expected to hear. A little taken aback, but he could see he was outnumbered. He bit the bullet.
"I am incredibly sorry I made your life hard; both of your lives. And I am sorry I was biased against you, but you need to underhand—"
"No buts; and they don't need to understand anything," his wife made perfectly clear. "Now say it again."
"...I am sorry; I was biased. I was mean-spirited. Please forgive me."
"Daddy why is grandpa-san apologising?" Aiko asked breathless.
"Because he did something he shouldn't," Tokio answered instead and by her tone alone, one could tell she was not ready to forgive and forget.
But Hajime was; he was so ready to put this entire thing behind him and make himself look good at the same time and score major brownie cookies with the man. So he waited for his chance to talk.
"Was it bad?"
"Very," she insisted.
"Like that time you were called to my school or like that time when you scolded me about my homework?"
"Called to school bad," she continued and Aiko seemed to be both impressed and upset.
That's when he decided to intervene. "But that doesn't mean that makes someone a bad person. Are you a bad person, little plum?" She shook her head emphatically "no". "Because one bad thing does not undo all the good ones; and you asked for forgiveness. And it takes a special kind of person to not only realise but also admit to others they were wrong and ask for forgiveness, because that means they appreciate the people they have around them more than themselves."
And it worked like a charm; he saw the man looked both flattered and thankful at the "advice" Hajime gave his daughter. Heh, he knew he'd be like this. If only they got to this part sooner. He almost lost a wife over it. Sighing, he took a furtive look at his wife; she was trying not to smile, because she could see what he was doing and apparently, if she didn't protest, she didn't mind. If anything, she condoned the underhandedness; her father would, too, actually, one more reason he was quick to do it.
Okita discreetly patted his back. "You did good, you asshole," he whispered in passing, as he pried Aiko's hand out of his. Then he led her at the front with the grandparents, to give them some more space. Sighing, Tokio put her head on his shoulder.
"You did do good," she corroborated. "I love you."
Well, that was all the assurance he needed. "I love you, too...but your mother's right. We won't be going on a honeymoon." She burst out laughing. "There's no way Hijikata allows me to take so much as another day this year, unless it's an emergency. It hurt him too much I got two weeks off out of the blue like that."
She shook her head. "We already did, sort of." He gave her a look. "An entire week all by ourselves in Europe? We lived in Berlin, visited Dresden, hopped over to the Czech Republic—we even visited France. What more do you want?"
Well, she was not wrong. "So, then, we're getting married this year?" She shrugged. "Um, how do you feel about children?"
Her look was sharp. "I feel like I found myself with one without expecting it this year, I'm not going to give myself any more surprises; but I'm not opposed to having them, when I feel ready."
"That's...reasonable."
After all, sure, why not? Because if he was going to get married again, then he was definitely going to aim high and hit that perfect number – 3 – as he had originally planned and wanted. Now if Tokio wasn't willing to have a second child, he wouldn't mind; or if she wanted to have more. Considering what she made in a year, he had a feeling they could afford it. Hell, they could afford seven. Oh well, whatever. The more the merrier.
He took her hand in his and walked alongside her, feeling content, with a secret wish that the rest of his life was just as satisfying as this moment.
A/N: Correct me if I'm wrong but I have this idea and image of Hajime in my mind where he's very "all or nothing" kinda guy so once he decided he's in...he's all in. He either won't talk to you or will be panning your future together. That's where I drew inspiration from, for the certain incarnation.
Now I'm off to write the next one! Which should it be? I can't decide; both are very, very dear to me as ideas. But I don't want to give too much away so I can't ask you which one you'd prefer but what should I do? A or B? Daaaaaaaaaaamn it.
Anywho, thank you very much and I love you to bits.
Kisses, FAI~!