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Chapter 26

The Return

When Nino woke up the next morning she smiled and stretched, feeling very refreshed. It had been a while since she had slept so well.

As she stretched she saw the bracelet dangling from her wrist. Her smile deepened and she spent the next few minutes playing with it as the fogginess of sleep left her. She had done the same thing last night after going to bed. Fuutarou's sister had made such a simple yet beautiful gift for him to give. It had touched her so deeply she could only love him even more.

It was enough that if Fuutarou did choose to be with Yotsuba after all she could accept it and move on. She was now content with accepting whatever decision he made. She got to have her date with him, that was enough for her.

But is that all you want?

She shoved the thought away. She didn't want to start acting selfish again. She had to respect Fuutarou's own feelings whatever they were. He had shown that he changed and that he cared very much for her, but that didn't mean that he actually loved her. Not on that level. Time would only tell when he finally figured things out for himself, be it now or several years later.

Sitting up on her bed Nino glanced at the clock. It was just before eight. Perfect. On the weekends the others usually woke around nine at the earliest. After the little celebration they had last night, however, they probably would prefer to sleep in.

Grabbing her phone she sent a quick text to Ebata, telling him that he didn't have to come and make breakfast today. She wanted to surprise her sisters by doing it herself. To show how grateful she was to them. Ebata replied back with a thumbs up emoji and thanked her for giving him the day off. With a cheerful smile Nino got dressed and stepped out of her bedroom door.

A quick glance around the apartment confirmed that no one else was awake and she went downstairs. After making a quick trip to the bathroom she made her way to the kitchen and opened the fridge to see what ingredients there were. She wanted to make something very special. A quick scan of the fridge followed by a childhood memory gave her an idea of what to make for breakfast. Taking out the ingredients Nino got to work.

An half an hour later her sisters seemed to have been aroused by the smell of food, for they all came down at once.

"Hmm," Ichika smiled as she stretched, "Something smells good!"

"You decided to make us breakfast for us," Miku said cheerfully.

"I wanted to returned the favor for you guys helping me yesterday," Nino grinned at them, "I felt that this was the best way to do it."

"Oh! You made pancakes! My favorite!" Yotsuba was like a little kid again.

Itsuki was already drooling as she looked closer, "It's been a long time since we had pancakes. Are they all different?"

"They are," Nino pointed to the five different sets of pancakes she'd made, "While I was looking through the fridge I suddenly remembered how Mama would sometimes make us different kinds of pancakes for each of us. So I thought, why not do the same for old times sake? So, first we have raspberry pancakes for Itsuki."

"Thank you," the youngest quint was fighting the urge to lick her lips in anticipation.

"Chocolate chip pancakes for Yotsuba."

"Oh, boy," Yotsuba rubbed her hands in anticipation.

"Strawberry pancakes for me. Blueberry pancakes for Miku."

"I do love blueberries," Miku beamed.

"And last but not least..." Nino gave an exaggerated sigh, "Plain ole pancakes for Ichika. Sorry, there weren't any bananas."

"Eh," Ichika waved it off, "I'll stick to my plain ole pancakes, thank you very much."

Everyone laughed. It was good that things were finally back to normal.

"I haven't put butter or whipped cream on them yet," Nino pointed to the bathroom, "Why don't you go wash up while I put in the finishing touches?"

"Sure thing," Itsuki gestured the others to follow.

"Good to see you cooking again, Nino," Miku smiled at her, "We really missed it."

Nino smiled back and went back to work. Ichika came back first and offered to set the table. The rest soon returned and sat down at the table, eagerly awaiting for Nino's masterpiece. When she finally brought the plates over and set them down, complete with orange juice, everyone oohed in delight.

"Wow!" Ichika was impressed, "I don't think we've ever seen you put this much effort before!"

Nino grinned, pleased with herself, "I guess I was really in the mood this morning."

She sat down in the center chair, Itsuki and Ichika to her left and Miku and Yotsuba to her right. Together they said, "Itadakimasu!" before digging in.

"By the way, Miku," Nino said a short time later, "Those sandwiches you made yesterday were really good."

"Thank you," the third quint pouted a little, "I still would like to cook something good someday."

"You'll get there," Nino assured, "You just got to keep at it."

"Or maybe she just needs to be inspired," put in Ichika.

Nino noticed a mischievous glint in her eye and wondered what she meant by that.

"So... what's been happening lately?" she asked, then glanced over at Yotsuba, "What did you do after... you were kicked you out?"

She saw the others grimaced slightly but Yotsuba actually smiled a little.

"Well... a lot of things happened," she said, "To start off with, we met an old friend of Mama's."

Yotsuba went on to explain how they all met Izumi Himuro and how she made them realize the error of their ways. She then told Nino what their mother was like when she was young.

"She was a lot like you?" Nino was surprised to hear that.

"Yeah," Yotsuba grinned a little, "She also wanted to help people like, just like me, only she wasn't as selfish about it as I was."

Just like her sisters Nino always thought that their mother was more like Itsuki giving how strict and stern she was. Learning that she was a lot more like Yotsuba made it clear just how little they knew about her.

"Yotsuba has also started taking tennis lessons," said Miku, "With Himuro-san as her coach."

Nino looked at Yotsuba in surprise, "Really? Tennis?"

Yotsuba gave a lopsided grin and shrugged.

"She also got an athletic scholarship from an American College," said Itsuki.

Now she was stunned. Yotsuba, the least of the quints when it came to academics, had actually gotten a scholarship?

"I'll show you it along with my tennis gear after breakfast," said Yotsuba.

"I'm eager to see it," Nino smiled proudly at her, "Congratulations on getting a scholarship. I'm glad to hear that you've also taken an interest in something."

"In other news..." Ichika grinned devilishly, "Miku has gotten rather chummy with Takeda lately."

Miku choked on her orange juice, "Ichika!"

"What? We've all noticed. I don't know why you're so embarrassed."

Nino looked at the third quint curiously, "You and Takeda?"

"Ugh..." Miku ran a hand over her face, "It's not what you think. After we had our fallout Takeda-san came and cheered me up. He invited me to join his friends at a arcade and restaurant they like to hang out at and..." she started laughing before pulling out her phone, "Well... This happened."

The others leaned in as Miku started playing a recorded video. In it was Takeda and his friends performing the "Smooth Criminal" dance. The others were quickly impressed by Takeda's hidden talent.

"Wow," Ichika grinned, "That boy sure can dance!"

"I know," Miku laughed again, "When I saw this I had to record it for you to see."

"I think we may have to keep an eye on him from now," Ichika winked at the others, "Otherwise, Takeda-san might try to steal Miku away from us when we're not looking while having to fight off Fuutarou-kun in the process."

Miku shook her head, smiling, "Yusuke wouldn't do that. He has no grudge against Fuutarou."

When she was greeted with silence she looked up to see that her sisters were all looking at her funny.

"What?" she blinked at them.

Setting down her fork Nino propped her chin, looked into Miku's eyes, and slowly said, "Yusuke?"

Miku went beet red as she realized her blunder.

"Miku..." Nino was trying not to giggle, "You just called Takeda by his first name. Without any prefixes either."

"And you immediately came to his defense without hesitation," Ichika leaned closer, "Is there something you want to tell us?"

Miku abruptly stood, clearly flustered, "Excuse me, I have something-"

"Uh-huh!" Yotsuba yanked her back down, "You're not going anywhere!"

"Cat's out of the bag," Itsuki took a motherly tone, "Spill it. What's going on between you and Takeda? Are you secretly dating?"

"No, we're not!" Miku frantically waved her hands when they raised their brows, "Honest! We're not! It's just that... Takeda-san... he confessed his feelings to me the other day."

"Oh? Is that so?" they all echoed, making her blush even more.

"I asked him why he's done so much for me and... well, the truth is he's had a crush on me since the day we first arrived at Fuutarou's school."

She told them about Takeda's struggles and concerns and how he came to have feelings for her.

"So that's how it is," Ichika chuckled, "I was right. It's no wonder he got so upset when that girl assaulted you."

"Yeah," Miku nodded, blushing again when she remembered how Yusuke carried her to the infirmary.

"Good for you, Miku" Nino grinned at her, "It's nice to see that there was someone looking out for you. Have you given him your answer yet?"

"No," she replied, "I still need to sort things out with Fuutarou out before I do, and he understands that too."

"Yeah," Yotsuba solemnly agreed, "I think each of us are going to have a talk with him soon."

The quints finished their breakfast and were in the process of cleaning the table when Itsuki's phone suddenly rang.

"Good morning, Papa!" she answered cheerfully, "Checking in on us?"

A moment later her smile suddenly vanished.

"What?! What happened?"

Her sisters froze in their spots.

What was happening now? Was it Grandpa? Things had just been getting back to normal!

"Are they okay?" Itsuki listened to their stepfather before she nodded rapidly, "Alright, we'll be right there."

She ended the call and announced, "Uesugi-kun's apartment complex caught fire this morning. Both he and his sister are fine, but he dad was injured. They're at the hospital right now. Papa wants us to come over right away."

Ebata came to pick them up right after they got dressed and in ten minutes they were at the hospital again.

They found them in the lobby along with their stepdad. Fuutarou was sitting in a chair with an upset Raiha in his arms while his dad was speaking with Maruo, his left arm in a sling. They were also in their nightclothes, but none seemed to be seriously hurt or burned.

Fuutarou saw them come in, "Hey."

"Hey!" they all breathed a sigh of relief.

Raiha, however, didn't look up. It was clear that she had been crying nonstop. Concerned, Itsuki came over to her.

"Raiha? It's me, Itsuki-chan."

The girl lifted her little face hidden in Fuutarou's chest. As soon as she saw her she let go of her brother and threw herself into Itsuki's arms sobbing.

"Hey, hey," she rubbed her back, "It's okay. You're safe now."

"She's been like that since it happened," said Fuutarou, "She was really shaken up by the whole event. I've been trying to calm her down since we got here."

"I see," Itsuki tightened her arms around her, "Everything's going to be fine, Raiha."

"No, it's not!" the little girl cried, "We lost everything! Our apartment's gone! Burned!"

All of them looked at Fuutarou in shock.

"Is that true?" said Yotsuba.

"I'm afraid so," he sighed, "The fire burned down most of the building, including our own apartment."

"Oh, no," Nino gasped.

"How did it even start?" asked Ichika.

"They don't know yet," Isanari replied in a frustrated voice, "But if I were to guess it was because of all that trash that was sitting behind the building. I kept trying to tell the landlord that it was a serious fire hazard because of the material there but he never listened. I hope he gets thrown in jail."

"Was anyone hurt?" asked Nino.

"Not that I know of. Everyone got out safely as far as I'm aware."

"What happened to you?" Itsuki pointed to the sling.

"Ah, I was helping others get to safety after Fuutarou and Raiha got out. One couple almost died from being trapped. I ended up cutting my arm while helping them escape. It's okay though, nothing serious," he smiled at them, "Your stepdad has assured me that I'll live."

Maruo only rolled his eyes.

"We were lucky," said Fuutarou, "Dad smelled the smoke before either of us did."

"It's all because I'm a light sleeper," Isanari shrugged.

"Well..." Miku breathed a sigh of relief, "I'm glad to see all of you are alive and well."

Everyone agreed, but Raiha was still upset.

"But what are we going to do now?" she cried, "We will we go? We got no place to live!"

"Shh," Itsuki cooed, "Don't worry. We'll figure something out."

"You really have nowhere else to go?" asked Ichika.

"Afraid not," Isanari gestured to Maruo, "Him and I were talking about it when you arrived."

"Would it be alright for you girls if Fuutarou stayed at your apartment again?" he asked the quints, "At least until they can find a new place?"

"Absolutely!" Itsuki said before anyone else, "He's our friend after all."

"Good," he looked at Isarnari, "In the meantime you and Raiha can stay at my place. That way I won't have to pay you a visit to look at your arm."

"Sounds good," Isanari agreed.

Maruo's phone rang and when he saw who it was he frowned.

"Excuse me, I'll be right back," he turned and went out the door.

"Thanks for helping us out," Fuutarou smiled at them, "It means a lot to us."

"Of course," Nino smiled back, "We weren't just going to abandon you."

The other quints noticed the affectionate look between them and inwardly smiled. Yotsuba herself was pleased to see it.

"But what are we going to wear?" Raiha suddenly asked, "All we have is nightclothes."

"Oh, yeah," Fuutarou grimaced as he looked down at himself, "Everything we had went up in smoke, including all our clothes."

"Don't worry," Ichika assured him, "We can drop by the mall later today and pick up anything you need."

"I don't want you guys to have to spend your money-"

"How else are you going to get some new clothes?" she pointed out, making him shut his mouth.

"Hey, Itsuki," Yotsuba tapped her shoulder, "Do we still have that box of our old clothes?"

"Yeah, I think we do," Itsuki thought back, "I think it's in the closet downstairs."

"We can give those to Raiha. They'll probably be too big for her but we can just cut them down to size."

"That should work," Itsuki smiled at Raiha.

"Well then," Ichika nodded to the Uesugi family, "As soon as you're ready we can go."

But at that moment Maruo returned.

"One second, girls," he took a breath before saying, "Would you be willing to take in another?"

The quints all blinked at him in surprise.

"Who?" asked Ichika.

"Takeda," Maruo bitterly spat, "His dad just kicked him out."

Isanari and Raiha stay behind at the hospital while Fuutarou and Maruo went with the quints. After they were dropped off Ebata took Maruo to pick up Takeda.

When they entered the apartment Fuutarou took a moment to look around and grinned.

"Feels like it was only yesterday that I was here," he suddenly gave a huge yawn, "Oh, boy."

"Sleepy?" grinned Yotsuba.

"Yeah," he yawned again, "I haven't slept since the fire."

He looked ready to fall asleep on the spot.

"Why don't you go on up and take a nap?" Miku gestured upstairs, "You can use my room."

"Thanks, I'll do that," he smiled at the others, "Thanks again for all your help."

After he shut the door Yotsuba patted Itsuki's shoulder.

"Let's see if that box is still there," she pointed to the downstairs closet.

"Oh, right," Itsuki went over and opened it, "I think it's this one," she did a quick check, "Yep, this is it. Feels a bit heavy though."

"Here, I'll carry it," Yotsuba lifted the box easily, "Let's go to your room so we can sort them out."

The two younger quints went to Itsuki's room and shut the door. It would take a while to make new clothes for Fuutarou's sister.

Nino glanced at the clock, "Ten-thirty right now. I'll go ahead and start making lunch. I imagine both Fuu-kun and Takeda-san will be hungry later on."

"Guess the rest will just sit tight and wait for him to arrive," Ichika winked at Miku, who blushed.

It was going to be interesting, having two guys in their apartment instead of one.

While the others remained downstairs Yotsuba took the opportunity to speak with her younger sister as they worked.

"Hey, Itsuki?" she waited until she looked at her, "Can we talk for a bit?"

She could see that Itsuki already knew what she wanted to talk about, but she bobbed her head while she continued to sew.

"Go ahead," she replied.

Yotsuba took a breath, "I know I already said it through the letter I left for you guys, but I think I need to say it to you in person," she looked up into Itsuki's eyes, "I'm really, really sorry for using you the way I did. It was wrong and inexcusable. You only wanted to help me and I took advantage of your kindness. You even went as far as sacrificing your own feelings for Fuutarou for me. You should have had a fair in winning Fuutarou as everyone else did, and I took that away from you by making you feel sorry for me. You had every right to be mad at me that night. I fully deserved that slap you gave me."

She saw Itsuki cringe, remembering that moment. Itsuki was temperamental, but she never liked losing control. Yotsuba was well aware of how she felt when she had to punish Nino for her bad behavior back then. With her, however, it had been far worse because Yotsuba was someone Itsuki had complete faith in, only to find that it had been misplaced. Yotsuba couldn't fault her for losing control as she did before bursting into tears and running to her room.

"Actually, I did worse than you did," said Itsuki.

Yotsuba saw the guilt in her eyes and she remembered what Izumi-sensei had said to her. She still couldn't believe that Itsuki would do such things. It just wasn't like her, but now she would find out for herself.

"I didn't just sacrifice my own feelings, I sacrificed the others as well."

Yotsuba inwardly sighed. So it was true. Itsuki had done something far more selfish than she did.

"I thought I was doing the right thing," the youngest quint went on, "I wanted to bring an end to your suffering. I didn't believe that the others could make Uesugi-kun happy. I believed that you were the right one for him because you loved him for so long," she sighed, "Turned out I was wrong. About everything."

"Itsuki-" her sister held up a hand.

"Please, let me finish," she took a deep breath, "After Mama died I made it my mission to protect all of you. I know Ichika had to change to be our leader but I knew she couldn't handle everything on her own, and with her pursuing an acting career someone had to step in to take her place whenever she wasn't around. I thought that was my duty, but now I realize that I was doing everything wrong. I was only thinking about myself and what I wanted," she swallowed nervously, "I wanted to put an end to us fighting over Uesugi-kun. I wanted to keep us together as we promised Mama and not tear each other apart over a boy, but what I failed to realize was that... it was already too late. We had already broken our promise."

Yotsuba shook her head, "I broke it long before any of you did. By the time we reached middle school I already despised all of you."

And it was all our fault. We really should have told Ichika to stop picking on you when we were kids."

"No, it was my fault for not being able to let it go. When Fuutarou became our tutor it only got worse. I was jealous of how all of you were interested in him, but I hated how well he and Ichika got along. I couldn't stand the thought of them being together. It would've made hate her even more. What I did in Kyoto was so unfair to her. She was working so hard to keep a roof over our heads after we moved into that rundown apartment. She deserved to have a chance as much as the rest of you did."

"Were you really that jealous of her? Before then."

"Well, just look at her, Itsuki. She's got everything. She gets all the boys, all the attention, has a talent none of us could ever have. Wouldn't you be jealous? Even a little? Wouldn't you wish to be like her? To have what she has?"

Itsuki paused for a while, "I guess I would, but to be fair I never was that kind of person."

At that Yotsuba smiled, "And that's what makes you unique, Itsuki. You know, if things were different and Fuutarou had been a much nicer person I think he would've chosen you that night."

She saw her jaw drop, obviously stunned by what she just said.

"What makes you say that?" Itsuki replied in an exasperated tone, "I mean, we're friends now but we've never gotten along that well."

"Yeah, but I know he appreciates you and your efforts in trying to help us get along with him and to not give him a hard time. Plus, you were also paying his family a visit and seeing how they were doing every chance you got. I'm sure he really appreciates that, for none of us did the same and Raiha's loves you very much. It's no wonder she prefers you over me."

Itsuki's breath hitched as she remembered...

"Yotsuba-"

"I'm just stating the facts, Itsuki. I don't blame Raiha for being angry at me. Putting that aside, learning that you actually had feelings for Fuutarou really surprised us, but now that I think about it I got a feeling that it started not long after you met him."

Itsuki didn't say anything. She just continued staring at Yotsuba in confusion.

"When you first talked about him you just wouldn't shut up," she explained, "and I also noticed how flustered you were. I mean, it wasn't the first time you encountered someone who was smarter than you, but it was apparent that Fuutarou had really gotten under your skin."

"Well, yeah. I mean..." Itsuki pouted, "It was the first time I had ever met someone who had Straight A's. It hurt my pride. Plus, him saying that I'll get fat didn't help."

Yotsuba chuckled, "I remember you mentioning that. That's Fuutarou for you. He calls it as he sees it."

A while passed before Itsuki suddenly asked, "Do you think Uesugi-kun... actually likes Nino?"

Yotsuba didn't stop what she was doing, which surprised Itsuki.

"I think he's starting to realize what his true feelings are," Yotsuba replied, "We all saw the way they looked at each other at the hospital."

"And you're okay with that? I mean, he's still technically your boyfriend."

Yotsuba shook her head, "I don't think either of us really see it that way anymore. We never really treated each other as such. Our relationship has been nothing more than a good, close friendship."

"But you love him, don't you?"

"Yes, I do, but not in the way I thought. I see him much differently now, and I can't force him to accept my feelings. That's what got us in trouble in the first place. I need to consider his own feelings and not just my own. I also have to think about his happiness, as well as Nino's."

"But what about your happiness? I mean... I know you acted very selfishly, but you still want to be with Fuutarou, right?"

"What I wanted, Itsuki, was an excuse to exist. Throughout my entire life I've been a loser. I've never been confident with myself, have never stood up for anything, and have never pursued anything worthwhile. I was just running around looking for things to do in order to avoid facing my fears. I don't even have a dream of my own," she held up a hand when Itsuki parted her lips, "I know I said I wanted to be a bride and to help people, but those were nothing but selfish desires. They weren't a real goal. I wanted to use Fuutarou for the same reason. To validate my existence. Having learned a great deal about Mama and what she went through for us I know she would've been so disappointed with me. I nearly threw my whole life away because I was too scared to face the outside world."

Itsuki paused for a while before asking, "So what do you want to do now?"

Yotsuba took a moment to think about it, "I'm not sure just yet, but I've been doing a lot of thinking since I got back. About myself, my future, and what I want to do with my life. I've also been looking at that scholarship a lot lately."

She saw Itsuki stiffen slightly.

"Are you thinking about accepting it? Are you thinking going to America for college?"

Yotsuba heard the concern and the worry in her voice.

"It's been on my mind," she looked up at Itsuki, "You don't think I should?"

"Whatever you decide I won't stop you, but..." Itsuki sighed deeply, "I'm really not comfortable with the idea of you going somewhere so far away. I mean... you'd be all by yourself. You wouldn't have any friends and you don't speak English very well. What if something happened to you? What if you can't communicate with anyone?"

Yotsuba couldn't help but smile fondly.

"I appreciate your concern, Itsuki, and I'm glad you still care about me even after all the things I've done. However... I need to start standing on my own two feet. I can't rely on your guys forever. Or even Fuutarou for that matter. I've got to be able to take care of myself and not remain dependent on others. Also... I want to do something for myself. Something that I can look back and be proud of without any regrets."

"Couldn't you do that here?"

Yotsuba paused again, "I could, but... the only thing I'm good at is sports. You know as well as I do how demanding the education here in Japan. I honestly wouldn't do so well. If I accept that scholarship and go to America to play sports while getting an education, I would have a much better chance at graduating there then I would here. That's why I'm thinking about it."

Itsuki didn't look convinced. She could see the deep worry in her eyes. Yotsuba moved closer and placed a hand on her wrist.

"I know you're worried about me, Itsuki. I also know that you would like me to play it safe. You would prefer it if I stayed in Japan, found a good job, and got married to someone who can take good care of me. I would feel the same way too, but for me..." she shrugged, "I just wouldn't be satisfied with that. I would feel like I haven't done enough in my life, or that I was missing out on something. I just wouldn't be able to sit still until I fulfilled that need. Like I said, I really do appreciate all you've done for me, Itsuki, even if it was for the wrong reasons, but this is something I need to do. If I don't find out for myself what I'm capable of... I'll end up regretting it forever."

Itsuki looked into her sister's eyes, trying to see some form of doubt. That she didn't actually believe she could do what she declared. That it was all just a sham just to make her feel better. But the more she looked the more she realized that Yotsuba was serious. Dead serious. She wanted to do this.

If there was one thing they all knew about Yotsuba it was that when she set her mind on something she wanted she would not stop until she got it. It was one defining trait that she had, one that she had been using for the wrong reasons.

But now Itsuki saw that Yotsuba had changed. She meant what she said. Instead of being driven by fear and the need to protect herself Yotsuba was now driven by the need to do something right in her life. To accomplish something in her life.

It wasn't a selfish desire.

It was a goal.

A goal that Yotsuba had entirely set for herself.

Itsuki suddenly felt very proud and with a sigh of relief she squeezed Yotsuba's hand.

"You really have changed, Yotsuba. You've grown up. Two weeks ago you never would've said anything like that."

Yotsuba gave her goofy grin and squeezed back.

"Took me long enough, didn't it?" she quipped, "All I needed was for someone to slap some sense into me."

Itsuki laughed nervously, "I guess I did something right after all."

"Actually, no. Chihori-san got to me first before you did."

Itsuki blinked, "She did?"

"When I told her that I had asked you guys for permission to date Fuutarou she just let me have it. She didn't slap me as hard as you did, but it was enough to make me realize how badly I had screwed up," Yotsuba bit her lips, "You know, if it wasn't for her, this whole thing could've ended in tragedy."

"Yeah," Itsuki agreed, "We really do owe her. We should try to invite her over sometime so we can thank her."

Five minutes later they had finished making five set of new clothes for Raiha.

"So what will you do if... if they do get together?" Itsuki asked, "How would you feel about it?"

"How I feel is irrelevant. In the end it all comes down to how Fuutarou feels. If he really feels that way about Nino..." she suddenly smiled, "Then I'll be happy for him."

"You will?" Itsuki was surprised to hear this.

"Yes, for a number of reasons. For one, Fuutarou has matured as much as I have. More importantly he's regaining his humanity. He's finally able to put the death of his mother behind him. He's discovering what it's like to have emotions and to be in love. For now I'm just going to step aside and let him figure out what his feelings are, which is what we should've done in the first place. I know he's going to be talking with us individually once he does. It'll show how much he's grown in the past few weeks. It'll also makes things easier for me."

"Such as?"

"Deciding what I want to do with my life and where to go from there. Izumi-sensei was in the same exact situation when it came to the boy she loved. Once she realized what his true feelings were she had to respect his feelings. She had to let him go. She wanted him to be happy and to be with the girl he loved. It also made it easier for her to pursue her own goals without having to worry about him. I got a feeling that I'll be doing the exact same thing should Fuutarou reveal that he really loves Nino. If it comes to that, then I have to let him go. Because I want him to be happy too, and Nino deserves a chance to be happy after all the pain she's gone through. If they can bring each other happiness then that'll be more than enough for me I can do what I want to do without having something to hold me back."

Itsuki was truly stunned. Was this really Yotsuba? She almost didn't recognize her anymore. The goofy yet selfish girl she had known was gone, replaced by this mature and kind individual. She was saddened a little by this change, but she was very happy for Yotsuba. The fourth quint had become a responsible person and was making mature decisions to pursue her own happiness instead of handing it to another.

Her cell phone beeped, indicating that she was receiving a text. Grateful for a little distraction she reached for it.

"It's Papa. He's on his way here with Takeda-san. He says he'll take the clothes over for Raiha."

Yotsuba looked at the box that still had clothes.

"We're not even halfway finished," she said.

"It's okay, we can just send these for now and do the rest later."

Yostuba and Itsuki put the clothes in a bag and went downstairs.

A few minutes later Yusuke arrived with Ebata right behind him. He carried a suitcase in one hand while pulling a larger one behind him. There was a laptop bag over his shoulder. Ebata pushing cart that had a pair of cardboard boxes and a large shopping bag on top.

Ichika raised a finger to his lips, telling Yusuke that Fuutarou was asleep. Then they all gasped when they saw the bandage above his left eyebrow.

"What happened to you?" Miku immediately rushed over and reached up to Yusuke's brow, who caught her hand.

"It's okay," he smiled, "It's just a graze, nothing serious. It's just a little parting gift from my dad."

They could hear both the bitterness and the disappointment in his voice.

"Well, what happened?" asked Ichika, "Papa told us that your dad had kicked you out but he didn't say why."

"I stood up to him," he explained, "I finally told him that I wasn't going to let him control my life anymore and that I was going to pursue my dream of becoming an astronaut. I even threatened to leave if he refused to accept my decision. Well, as you can imagine he didn't take it well. He got so angry that he threw his stapler at me. Then he told me to get out and never return, saying that I was an ungrateful brat and that I was no longer his son."

"Oh, my goodness," Itsuki groaned.

"I'm so sorry," whispered Miku.

"Hey," Yusuke squeezed her hand, "Don't be. It's not your fault. I expected no less from him. I'm eighteen now so he can't dictate what I can and cannot do anymore. This was bound to happen at some. I was going to stay with one of my friends but your stepdad insisted that I come here instead. Thank you for your hospitality."

"Or course," Ichika grinned, "Miku would've been worried sick if we hadn't."

Miku blushed, remembering what they had talked about this morning. Then she realized that Yusuke was still holding her hand and pulled it away, her blush deepening. The other quints looked at each and grinned.

Yotsuba gave the bag of clothes to Ebata before he left, promising to return later to pick the rest up.

"You moving in?" she pointed to the boxes Yusuke brought, "You got quite a lot there."

"Those are actually for Fuutarou," he said, "Your stepdad told me about the fire this morning and I remembered that one of my older nephews had had left a box of clothes for me but they were too big to wear. I think they'll fit him. He went to the same school so I also brough his uniform with me. You said Fuutarou was asleep?"

"He's upstairs in Miku's room," Nino gestured upstairs.

He raised a brow, "Miku's?"

"When he was our tutor he often spent the night here," Miku explained, "I let him use my room sometimes because it was the only one that wasn't clutter with a bunch of junk."

"And both mine and Itsuki's room have double size beds," put in Yotsuba, "The idea was that if we ever had any guests we could let them use our rooms to sleep in while we slept with each other."

"Ah, I see," Yusuke nodded, then sniffed, "Is that coffee I smell?"

"Yeah," replied Nino, "Would you like a cup?"

"Please, with cream too if you have it."

At that moment Miku's bedroom door opened and they looked up to see Fuutarou stepping out.

"Hey!" he waved at Yusuke, "I thought I heard your voice."

"Hey, Uesugi," Yusuke waved back, "Come on down. I got a few things for you."

The other boy came downstairs and Yusuke showed him the boxes.

"We also dropped by the store and got some school supplies for you, including textbooks. There's also some bathroom for you too and some underwear."

"Oh, good," Fuutarou pulled out a bottle of body wash, "I was hoping I could take a bath. I smell like smoke and soot right now," he glanced at the quints, "Tell your stepdad I said thank you."

"We will," they replied.

Fuutarou opened one of the boxes and picked out a t-shirt and a pair shorts, "These should do. I'll go through the rest later. Anyone need to use the bathroom?"

Everyone shook their head.

"I'm making lunch right now," said Nino, "It should be ready after you're done."

After Fuutarou went into the bathroom Yusuke finally took the time to look around as he sipped his coffee.

"So this is where you really live?" he was genuinely impressed, "Very nice place. Even the view is fantastic. Definitely better than that rundown apartment you lived in when I first met all of you."

"Yeah," Nino chuckled nervously, "We were acting very foolishly at the time."

Yusuke chuckled back and glanced over at the TV, "I see you also got a PS4."

"Yeah," Ichika shrugged, "but we never really used it. We wanted a Nintendo but Papa never got one for us."

"Well, in that case, you're in luck. I brought my GameCube with me."

"A GameCube?!" the quints' eyes all lit up like fireworks.

"You didn't by any chance happen to bring any Mario Party games, did you?" said a hopeful Nino.

"As a matter of fact I did," Yusuke opened the large suitcase and pulled out four video game cases, "All four of them."

"Wahoo!" The quints all let out a huge cheer.

"You just became our new best friend, Takeda-san!" Yotsuba bounced up and down, "We haven't played Mario Party in years!"

"When we were little Mama got us a GameCube along with Mario Party 4, 5, and 6," Miku explained as she looked over the games, "We never got to play 7."

"In that case you'll like that one because it's got 8-player capability. How about we play it after lunch?"

Everyone instantly agreed.

"So I've been wondering," Ichika asked Yusuke a minute later, "Since you're a descendant of the Takeda-Clan do you have an ancestral home that you live in?"

"Well, not an ancestral one, but we do have a family house that's been around since the 1920s. Here, let me show you."

He took out his laptop and sat down on the couch, asking the quints to gather around. Miku sat at his left and Yotsuba to his right while the rest leaned over at the back. A moment later Yusuke brought up some pictures for them to see.

"This is our country home up in the Yamanashi Prefecture, once known as the Kai Province, the ancient homeland of the Takeda-Clan," he started scrolling through the pictures, "As you can see, it's a very traditional Japanese house. It was during the Taisho period, almost a hundred years ago. I spent the early part of my childhood there. We even have our own hot spring."

"Wow, that is a very nice house," said Itsuki.

"Hey! There's Mt. Fuji!" Yotsuba pointed.

Yusuke nodded, "When the sky's all clear you can get a perfect view of it."

As he continued to scroll through they started to see some pictures of him in his youth.

"Is that your mom?" Nino asked.

Miku recognized it as the very same picture Yusuke carried in his wallet.

"That's her," he replied, "That was taken at her garden. I used to play with her there when I was little."

"She's very beautiful," said Itsuki.

"Yes, she was."

A sad look came to Yusuke's eyes. Miku was tempted to reach and touch his arm but refrained from it.

"Whoa!" she stared at the next picture, "Is that you whole family?"

"Mostly on my mom's side, but yeah. That's them. It's a pretty big family. That was taken when I was seven."

"Hey," Yotsuba spoke up, "Now that I think about it, where did you learn how to dance like Michael Jackson?"

"Oh, Miku showed you that, huh? My uncle taught me," he pointed to the screen, "That's him right there. He was a big Michael Jackson fan back in the day. He used to babysit me and he would entertain me by showing off his dance moves. When I got older I started doing it myself and he taught me the rest. He now says that I'm a better dancer than him."

Ichika chuckled, "You know girls, I'm beginning to think that we made a huge mistake by not letting Takeda-kun be our new tutor. He's definitely far more interesting than Fuutarou-kun ever was."

"I heard that!"

Fuutarou's voice echoed from the bathroom and they all started laughing.

Maruo watched as Raiha slept in his bed, her father sleeping on the couch outside.

He had to return to work soon, but he wanted to watch for just a little while longer. In his hands was a picture that he had kept hidden inside a drawer for a long time. He hated this very picture, but at the same time he couldn't bring himself to throw it away because it was still important to him.

The memories came back and he sighed deeply.

It was time.

He couldn't stay silent any longer.

Raiha, her family, and even his own, deserved to know the truth.

Tomorrow, he decided.