Exasperated from his latest assignment, Toji Fushiguro fell into the plush cushions of an armchair, his back crying out in anguish as his body began to relax. In his lap, a broadsheet newspaper and to his side, a cup of green tea accompanied by a slice of strawberry cake. At this moment in time, the man was grateful that his wife had taken both children on an outing to the zoo with a friend and their children, kicking off his shoes and raising his arms above his head to stretch. He wasn't quite in the mood to be jumped on like a bounce house and have several Pokémon playing cards thrust way too close to his face for him to decipher what they were called. Whilst casually reading the newspaper in his possession and sipping his piping hot beverage, a demanding moan from his stomach commanded Toji's attention. The man raised an eyebrow, shaking his head in merriment and dropping his newspaper in favour of the delectable delight that called his name. As he took a generous bite of the dessert, Toji reflected on the assignment he'd just completed: it hadn't been difficult necessarily, but it posed complications when reinforces showed up.
Still, the man held the title of 'sorcerer killer' for a reason and had handled the situation, earning him a generous payout and a heap of praise. Once he'd finished his cake, gulped down the remaining remnants of his tea and finished reading his newspaper, Toji felt his eyes cloud with the desire to sleep. The man consulted the wall clock for the time: he still had roughly an hour before his wife and children were due home. Toji settled down in his place and closed his eyes, succumbing to the call for slumber as his mind drifted off to fond, happy memories to soothe him into a world of dreams. One hour later, the front door flung open and Aoi entered the home with Tsumiki and Megumi in tow, the children running upstairs to their rooms to play with the souvenirs they'd bought as advised by the woman. Entering the home, Aoi followed the soft snoring that echoed from the living room to see her husband home from work and fast asleep. The woman carefully crept to the man's side and planted a kiss on cheek, prompting Toji's emerald eyes to flutter open.
"Hey baby, we're home. The kids have had dinner out, so there's no need to cook tonight. I'll need to head out to work soon, I'm on nights this week." Aoi tenderly stroked Toji's chin, her eyes locked into his.
"Hey babe, thanks for taking them out while I was working, I'll take it from here." Toji yawned, sitting up from where he sat and running a hand through his wife's brunette locks.
"See you when I'm home, love you." Aoi whispered, motioning to move away only to be pulled into a passionate kiss by her husband.
"Love you." The man spoke, licking his lips as Aoi made her exit, her face flush and hot with temptation.
After getting ready for work and bidding farewell to Toji and the children, Aoi set off which left Toji solely responsible for Megumi and Tsumiki.
As soon as the front door clicked shut, Megumi emerged from his bedroom and came down to the living room, clambering onto the couch and obtaining the television remote. Toji, who'd resigned to making another cup of tea in the kitchen, poked his head around the door. "Not even a hello to your old man?" Toji called, earning a small, but brief wave of acknowledgement from Megumi, who was now absorbed in a cartoon that had just started. "Toji, can I get a drink please?" Tsumiki stood in the doorway, shyly fiddling with a strand of her hair. "Well hello to you too and of course you may, go ahead" the man stood aside, allowing the young girl to retrieve a small cup to fill with water. "Did you enjoy visiting the zoo?" Toji asked, leaning with his back against the counter with a hand holding his freshly made drink. "Yeah, we saw lots of animals and then Mummy and her friend Yoko took us to an American diner!" Tsumiki beamed up at the man, continuing to converse with him about the different kinds of animals she saw, which one were her favourites and how the American diner had really big ice cream sundaes while Toji sipped at his tea. Once Tsumiki finished her drink, she excused herself to go and play in her room, leaving her empty cup on the side next to the sink.
"Daddy! Drink!" Megumi called from the couch, his eyes glued to the television screen.
"Come here and get it yourself" Toji responded, shaking his head in jest at the child's antics. Megumi, unamused in having to pull himself away from the cartoon he was heavily invested in, plodded into the kitchen.
"Daddy, juice." The boy mumbled, his bottom lip turned into a prominent pout.
"Ahem. I don't hear a certain magic word..." The man encouraged his son, cupping his hand around his ear.
"...Daddy, juice pwease." Megumi grumbled hesitatingly. Satisfied, Toji fixed the child some weak diluted juice in a cup and handed it to him. Just as the child had thanked his father and spun to leave, he suddenly let out a little gasp.
"Oh, daddy! Daddy strawberry cake! My cake pwease!" Megumi chirped, setting his cup down and pushing up a chair to the fridge. The boy figured that since he was peckish, the slice of cake he'd saved would be perfect to enjoy his cartoon with. Toji hadn't a clue what the boy was talking about, until realisation dawned instantaneously on him. The strawberry cake. The only slice of strawberry cake that was given to Megumi by a neighbour during a child's birthday party...which he ate. As Megumi prised open the magnetic fridge door, he scanned each shelf for his precious dessert but could not see it. All the while, Toji was silently kicking himself and pondering how to handle the situation.
"Daddy...cake gone. Where is my cake?" The child turned to his father for answers, confusion splashed across his face. This was when Toji took a deep breath and approached the boy, closing the refrigerator door and setting the child down from the chair he stood on, kneeling so that he could speak with his son at his level. God, he prayed Megumi would take this better than he anticipated.
"Megumi, Daddy forgot that the strawberry cake was yours and well...I ate it. I'm really sorry kid, I'll buy you some in the morning, I promise." Toji looked to his son, who remained quiet momentarily as the information his father had given him was being processed in his brain. Then, the reality of there being no strawberry cake for him to eat hit him hard and the child began to tear up.
"Daddy, why? Bad daddy!" Tears began to scroll down the boy's cheeks, causing Toji's stomach to knot with guilt. Then, in true toddler fashion, Megumi sprawled himself across the floor and began to throw an almighty tantrum, kicking his feet and lashing his fists against the kicthen tiles with all the force a toddler could muster.
Toji, unsure of how to handle the situation, resorted to letting Megumi cry it out and merely watched on as his son continued to flail about on the floor with snot leaking from his nose and his face as red as a tomato. After what felt like an age, the boy finally began to calm down to which, Toji gently picked up the child and cradled him in his arms. The boy, who'd exhausted himself from kicking and screaming, had no strength to repel his father and gave in to the man's embrace. Sniffling miserably, Megumi wiped his nose using the sleeve of his shirt and then wiggled down to Toji's stomach, where he placed his head against his father's abdomen, curling up on the man's lap, and uttered a statement that made the man feel even worse about the whole affair.
"Cake are you in 'dere?"
'I am buying a whole cake at this rate' Toji repeatedly told himself.