In every breath, life or universe

by FallenAngelItachi

A collection of multiple takes on the relationship of the same two people: Saitou and Tokio. AUs galore. Each take will span a couple of chapters, maybe three. Credit to legalronin, she did it first. Just wanted to try my hand, too.

28. Fake it till you make it, Part six

A/N: Hello lovely people on the internet, how have you been? Is everything alright on your end? To the wonderful anon, take care of yourself and don't feel too bad being less active that usual; one's health is important, especially if it's in any way compromised. Stay safe! Here in Greece quarantine still holds and will go on for another three weeks. Oof. But it's necessary, so I don't complain. To be honest, this is the first time I ever have this much money in my bank account at this point in time so um, yay for savings? I only spend money for food and bills, heh!

Anyway, that's that. Let's get back to the writing.

No beta this once, she's too tired; essential personnel and all that. Other than that, if you ignore the small mistakes and such - because they are bound to be there - we pick up right where we left off, literally. Hope you guys have fun reading; I hope the end makes you as happy as it made me while writing it. Looking forward to your thoughts.

Title: Fake it till you make it
Genre:Romance, humour, slice of life, child care(kind of)
AU: Fake Marriage, Modernday

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The bell rang; Tokio was bothered by the sound. What was going on? It sounded way closer than it was supposed to. It rang again; it really sounded way too close. "Hajime, you get it," she mumbled. No answer came. Finally realising something is out of the ordinary, she cracked one eye open.

Only to find herself staring at the TV. What? Taking a quick look around, she noticed she was, as a matter of fact, in the living room; not the bedroom, or her bed. No wonder she felt her entire body scream out in protest the second she tried to move...when she also felt a small weight on her stomach that didn't come from her. Looking down, she saw Hajime's hand. Looking behind her, she saw the man sleeping deeply, head hanging back.

Oh shit, they fell asleep on the couch. Wait, the bell. She stood, as fast as she could and shook Hajime. He didn't even stir, talk about a heavy sleeper. Then the bell ran a third time and she ran to the bathroom, threw some water on her face and then ran to the door. Looking through the eyehole, oh, it was her mother with Aiko-chan.

"Good morning you two!"

Tokio greeted them with as much enthusiasm as she could muster, sleep still somewhat weighing her down. Opening her arms wide open, she allowed Aiko crush into them and squeezed; once the hug was over, she kissed her mother. The moment she let go of the girl, Aiko forgot all decorum, threw her shoes and coat off and ran to the bedro—she stopped immediately, seeing her father on the couch and changed directions easily. Tokio saw what was about to come and felt sorry for him.

"Wanna come inside for a coffee?"

Her mother looked over her daughter's shoulder, where Aiko jumped into her dad's arms that were now empty and the poor man woke up a little too indelicately. "Better not; I'll come by another day."

"Grandma-san, come in, come in! Daddy is awake now."

"Hello, Tooka-san," he gave a pained salutation, grabbing onto the "scratch" from yesterday night; he said nothing about it though, just kissed his daughter's head, keeping her as still as possible. "Please, come inside for a coffee. I'll go change now anyway."

If Tooka was here, it was after ten. They overslept—he hadn't even heard the bell. Mortified at the though of what else he slept through, he rose with his daughter, giving her a big hug but then he rushed to get to his cellphone. Shit, three missed calls from Hijikata. Goddamn it. He put Aiko down carefully, pinched her cheek, and left to wash his face, teeth, call Hijikata and be on his way – if that was needed – as soon as possible.

"Want some coffee, too hon?" she called out to him, whence she saw him look at his phone.

"Most probably to take with me."

"You got it."

"Look who finally decided to answer at his phone," Hijikata snubbed; he had just called again, just as Saitou had finished with his teeth.

"I'd forgotten it on silent," he lied, because saying he slept through it would be too much for his ego. "Tell me what's needed."

"I want you to come in and try and get something out of the bastards we arrested yesterday. Could take an hour; could take the entire day."

"That's all, right?" he asked, to be absolutely certain nothing like last night was going to happen.

"...she gave you that much of a hard time, huh? Impressive."

"You try and contend with an angry Tokio; I ain't doing it again. If you feel like it, be my guest."

"Will I have to give all my of orders in writing from now on, to make sure they are indisputable?"

Saitou heard the smirk and amusement in his voice; he shook his head. "Or so Tokio can approve of them."

In a rare show of emotion, his captain laughed. "As you wish; you come here and I'll have prepared the order in cursive, if she so desires."

"Great; I'll be there in half an hour."

When he reemerged, dressed in a casual suit, she knew he'd be leaving; a little disappointed, she held out his thermos and a lunch bag, as she prepared breakfast for the rest of them. "Thanks," he said with such gratitude and yearning, she had to look at him.

"Will you be gone for long?"

He shrugged, taking a sip already. "Depends on how easily they'll talk."

"The ones from yesterday?"

He nodded; she immediately soured, hands on her waist, spatula included. "Don't be like that, I'll only ask a few questions; they are apprehended anyway, handcuffed and all." She gave him another look. "They can't be nearly as stubborn as you, so I think I'll be back home long before dinner."

Alright, she wasn't made of stone; she cracked a smile. "You better be; I'm making beef stew."

"Yum!" Aiko commented from her chair on the kitchen table, next to grandma-san.

"You'll be working from home, I take it."

"Yeah, can't be bothered to wear make up today," she admitted, going back to cooking; it was her mother who laughed.

"See you when I get back then. Have a nice day, Tooka-san." He nodded and went to his daughter. "Have fun little plum."

He went to kiss her, but Aiko grabbed his face with both of her little hands and kissed his cheek noisily, first; ruffling her hair, he kissed the top of her head. Tokio extended her head then, trying to catch him before he left. He put a hand around her middle, took a bite out of whatever she had pulled out of the pan to taste – gracing him with her are-you-kidding-me look – and gave her a quick peck.

"Bye daddy!"

"Bye girls."

"...bye!" Tokio rushed to say, just as he was leaving, only now snapping out of it.

He...he hadn't kissed her before, not on his own; at least not like that. It was very hard trying to look unaffected for Aiko and her mother when her entire mind had gone numb. He would always complain she was being too forward, if not verbally, then with his body language, but now it was her turn to experience that. Well, she didn't mind, like he did; she was just surprised. Pleasantly so, she wouldn't lie. Otherwise, it'd be hard to excuse the faint smile developing on her lips that still tasted like the fried egg roll she wanted to make sure was done.

It was because her mother was there, she figured, but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy it; it was because her mother was there, he excused himself, too, and most certainly not because she looked very inviting in that apron of hers, with her hair in a messy bun.

Definitely.

"Honey," her mother started talking again, causing her to look back "how are things between you?"

"Kaa-san is very nice!" Aiko answered jumped in, naturally thinking Tooka meant her. "She cooks for us and always helps with my homework. When I'm sad she brushes my hair and reads me stories and makes me chocolate! Sometimes, when she has more time, we even go for a walk, just the two of us. But before dark, because daddy doesn't like it."

"Is that so? My, how lovely! And you are a good girl, too yes?"

"Yes! I do my homework and I clean up when it's my turn at school and I always tidy my room."

"Always?" Tokio teased.

"Almost."

They all chuckled. "Why don't you take your backpack to your room, sweetie?" Tooka urged her. "Not to mention, you need to change, yes? Been wearing these clothes for two days! Go pick something out."

Her eyes shone. "Anything I want?"

"I'd rather you wore two different colours," Tokio clarified "but, why not, wear whatever you want." Aiko cheered. "Be back in five minutes though; we need to have our breakfast."

"Yes, kaa-san."

"And don't run."

She stopped short; looking back guilty, but not all that regretful, she skipped all the way to her room.

"So, how are things between you and Hajime?"

"We're great; can't complain about much, other than his job." She snorted. "It's been getting a little dangerous lately. But I knew that was a possibility, I guess." She chuckled. "I did make him promise to be more careful though."

She sighed. Looking at her mother's smile, wide and accepting, it compelled her to talk. There was something she needed to get off her chest, maybe telling her mother would help and she'd stop thinking about it.

"Lately we've been spending much more time together than when I first got here; we have Friday night to ourselves; he comes home later, but once he's back, he doesn't spend all that much time on work, we watch a show, have dinner...yet somehow, I feel like I don't see him enough. I know I do; I see him more than I used to. But for some reason I feel like I don't. Is...is that normal?"

The way her mother smiled, told her she knew something Tokio didn't. "Makes you think there aren't enough hours in a day to do and say all you want?" Tokio nodded, relieved. "Maybe you feel a little ignored but not really and you catch yourself feeling moody for no reason?"

"Yes! Exactly; oh thank Buddha, this isn't something...weird."

Her mother's smile only got more mischievous. "Did you know your father had this ridiculous notion you're only getting married to antagonise him?"

Oh wow; daddy knows best, huh? "Did he now?" she played it off perfectly, distaste easy on her lips.

"Yeah; said you couldn't possibly be in a relationship with such a man, he doesn't suit you." For some reason, Tokio felt very annoyed at that. "But I told him that's unheard of. And when I met him, I immediately knew what you saw in him. He's a good man; and a great father. He may not be rich like some other men you dated and never told us, but he's a great fit for you. I can tell he soothes you, he has that sort of personality." Tokio felt her cheeks aflame. "You know what I think? You should speed up that wedding."

"Mother."

"No really; I'm not just saying it because I want more grandchildren, which I do, to be honest," Tokio rolled her eyes "but because I used to be in your shoes; that was how I knew your father was the one. I would spend hours upon hours with him yet somehow, feel I didn't spend them right—or wanted more. That's how I knew. And now, I see that's how you know, too."

She took her daughter's hand in hers, tenderly; Tokio felt her heart hammer in her chest by all these information. "Listen to me for once and accept what I can easily see: he's the man for you. Marry him. Don't stay engaged forever."

This...was the last thing she wanted to hear. Literally, the last.

Looking away, she swallowed, going back to her cooking, which was finished. "Thank you, mother..." Yeah, thanks for nothing. What was she going to do with this? She didn't want to admit to herself she was starting to having feelings for him, and mother basically says, oh you're already in love.

Perfect.

"Dad was right about one thing though; if he hadn't proposed this ridiculous thing, I wouldn't have been engaged yet. Hajime told me he was going to propose on my birthday, but when I told him, he popped the question a week later. He was already ring-shopping, he said, what's a couple of months earlier?"

"See? Your father is only talking nonsense. Let me help you set the table honey." As they went through the motions, her mother became curious again. "You never did tell me how you two started dating though; I clearly remember you complaining about the tall detective not paying any attention to you."

"Mother, stop, where did that come from?"

"Oh I'm sorry, didn't it happen? You kept complaining how he never flirted with you, the first time you ran into one another, after your case was closed." She blushed. "Come on, tell me, what did you do? Did you make the first move?"

"Mother, stop," she chuckled.

"Or maybe you saw you were getting nowhere and decided to get him drunk and sleep with him?"

"Mother!"

"Even I can tell he's not the type to do that; he'd feel compelled to ask you out again." Tokio laughed. "Right? And before you know it, he's asking you to marry him."

"Alright, just to set the record straight, I did none of those things. I admit, it would have been a solid tactic," she couldn't help the laughter "but no."

She took a moment to think how she was going to spin this and found the perfect thing. "He was about to leave, when he saw me coming in at a bar, and decided to buy me a drink. I convinced him to stay until I finished it. One thing led to another, he asked for a repeat, I accepted. And now we're here."

"So he made the first move."

"Yes mother, yes."

"Oh how interesting. I wouldn't have guessed."

"Obviously." She looked at the clock on the wall. "Aiko sweetie," she called out then "where are you? Come here already; we are all starving."

Three seconds later, she was seen skipping into the room. What a delightful child.

Hajime came back relatively early that day. "I'm home," he'd called out and both women came out of nowhere to greet him.

With a smirk, he produced a small piece of paper. He handed it to her; curious she read...she burst out laughing not ten seconds later. "Tell Hijikata he has excellent penmanship. Better yet, I shall tell him myself."

She made a mental note to write him a physical note later. But Hajime was all kinds of exhausted. Once he washed up and changed, he literally threw himself on his chair in the kitchen and didn't move for anything. In fact, he had chosen to relax there because as soon as he came, Tokio announced they'd be having early dinner. Thankfully, Tokio had made Aiko tired, too and she did nothing more than come and kiss him, hug him, jump a little up and down, and talk in that unique way of hers.

They ate and then Aiko was allowed to watch one hour of TV, to catch up on her favourite show. Tokio used that time to work and so did Saitou. Then, it was another hour until bedtime and Hajime spent it reading to her.

When he finished putting Aiko to sleep – the only reason he decided to move - Tokio was pouring over her emails again, which was rare, but even more so tonight, given it was a Saturday. He couldn't help but notice how she'd rub her eyes, take deep breaths trying to calm herself and send messages on her phone. That last one happened too much for just another day at work.

"Bad day, too?"

"Bad week."

He could relate. "Need anything?"

"A hole to hide in; maybe then people won't be able to reach me."

"I was thinking more in the lines of a chamomile, a snack."

"I want a hug." He chuckled. "No, I mean it. I want a hug."

"That bad?"

She nodded. Sighing, she put her laptop away and rubbed her temples. "Remember those two people I had to fire because they were working my system?"

He had stood from his chair, but otherwise made no attempts to reach her; it was her who actually went to him, crushing in his chest. "I recall; I think it was just when you came here."

She nodded.

"Well, I decided to be responsible and go the extra mile and look into each and every case of sexual harassment the woman ever filed, just to make sure this was an isolated incident." She buried her face in his chest. "But she'd made almost one hundred claims."

"And you had to look through all of them?"

She nodded, morosely. He could understand her issue now. "Finished last week; and, sadly, turns out, it wasn't an isolated incident. There were three more poor sods she did this to."

She heaved a deep sigh.

"And now, as a PR manager, I have to contain this shit storm and make sure it doesn't come bite us in the ass, because she has already made claims about how we fired her under false pretenses. And I have no doubt in my mind she contacted some of those who got fired because of her—she had no shame before, why start now? So I wanted to get to those three, who are the only ones we fired over basically nothing and offer them their job back before the media gets wind of them. Right now, I'm in the process of getting them to agree to my terms. But it's such a slow process." She made desperate noises. "I just want this to be over with..."

"Is this why HR has a claim on you, too?"

"Yes, those greedy, selfish asses say I'm either going to handle all of their cases, or none of them. It isn't like that, though."

"I get it," he comforted her "be strong. It'll pass."

"Not soon enough." A sigh. "At least now we set a date for the press conference, which is a miracle all on its own."

"So it's coming together."

"Of course it is." She smirked. "I'm good at what I do."

He mirrored her. "Go get them."

"Damn right I will."

"That's my girl."

Tokio was about to let go, but stopped; so did Hajime. For a second, they both stood there unmoving.

There were all sorts of alarm bells going off in his head right that moment. Was he an idiot? Why did he call her that? That was...personal! And definitely not something to call her. Tokio on the other hand was very surprised. She could remember exactly when was the last time he called her that—two months ago, when he was too drunk to remember. This would make the second. She felt...an odd sense of pride at that. She got him to say it sober. A small smile on her lips, she climbed on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"I feel much better; thank you Hajime."

The panic didn't set in, in the end, thanks to her timely intervention, but he was no simpleton, he could tell she saw him freeze up. She simply chose to ignore it. For some reason, her words from back then returned to his mind and he was pretty sure he now knew what she was talking about: he wasn't making it any easier for her, not to care, not to get involved, or attached; he wasn't making it easier for her at all. Because he was acting like this. Aw man, he was not being a decent person with her. He bet he just made the day of goodbye, no matter when that was going to be, all that harder for her. He was such an asshole...!

He went back to his own work, feeling guilty. But he refused to acknowledge that the feeling of concern embedded deep within him, brewing just underneath the surface, never too much but always there, came from the thought he, too would have to say goodbye to her. And, just this once, it wasn't his daughter's reaction that he feared; it was his.

.

"Tokio, hey, I need a favour."

She had to blink at how fast he said it all. "What is it?"

"I need to go to Aiko's school, they called me. Won't tell me what it is about, only that it's urgent, but not health-related."

She sighed, relieved. "Thank Buddha."

"I can't go though; from one to ten, I'm needed at work around twelve. It's crazy."

"Ouch."

"I know you're busy, too with the upcoming press conference—"

"No, honey, don't worry about it." She was absolute, already going for her jacket and coat. "Don't worry about it at all. It's fine, I can spare half a day."

"You're a life saver, thanks. I'll let them know you'll show up in my place. Be there as soon as possible."

"I'm getting ready as we speak; will let you know what happened as soon as I'm able."

"I'm calling them right now; bye."

Two hours of looking at his phone every five minutes later, he heard it ring; it'd been three hours in total, but he figured the least would be an hour, given her work was a forty minute drive away. He didn't even have to fish it out of his pocket, it was in his hand. "Excuse me," he said to the rest of the people at the crime scene and walked somewhere he'd be alone. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry."

His stomach dropped to his feet; he looked at the phone.

"I want you to know I am so, incredibly sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, I just reacted."

Shit. she sounded so guilty—"Tokio what happened?"

"Aiko-chan, tell daddy we're sorry."

He breathed a deep sigh of relief; the way she went on he feared something had happened to his daughter! But no, she just did something stupid, apparently, if she had to use Aiko to make additional apologies.

"We're very sorry daddy."

Tokio took the phone back. "I am sorry to have caused you trouble, really; too sorry for words." A breath. "But I don't regret it at all—not one bit. When they call you from the school and trust me they will, tell them I told you something happened, you don't know the details but you'll come with me tomorrow morning to drop Aiko off so we'll all talk then. Okay? I'll explain everything when you get home."

"Tokio, what did you do?" he asked, suspicions rising, as well as amusement. If she was sorry but at the same time would not take back her words, something must have happened.

"I'll explain once you get home, I promise." A pause from her, during which his daughter repeated how sorry they were. "We love you very, very much; and I'm so, so sorry. Bye."

She hanged up. He looked at his phone with mixed feelings.

"What is it, Saitou-san?" Okita asked a little more upbeat than proper, given they were investigating a murder; it was the third in this case.

"Tokio did something, but won't tell me what. Only that it has to do with the school."

Okita snorted with laughter. "Interesting."

"Said she'll explain everything when I get back."

"Then," Okita hit his arm with the back of his hand "let's get to work. The sooner we clear the crime scene, the bett—..." His phone rang again; he tried not to laugh. "You gotta be kidding. Take it, I'll be right there."

He pointed at the victim; nodding, he picked up. "This is Saitou Hajime."

"Saitou-san, I demand an explanation and an apology! What your fiance did was—"

Ah, there it was; to think Tokio was so exact in her assumption, how impressive. "I have been informed of the argument but not what it was about; I'll come by the school tomorrow morning and we can talk about it, like the responsible adults we are."

"No, Saitou-san, you don't understand the gravity of the situation!"

"I'm afraid you don't understand the gravity of mine; I cannot be excused from work, nor can I waste any more of my time talking to you. I'll be there tomorrow. Have a nice day."

The woman on the line tried to protest again, but he had heard enough; he hang up and turned back to his victim, the only one in need of immediate attention. Maybe now, with more evidence and a clearer MO they could finally find the perpetrator. Hopefully.

When he returned home that night, he was both in better and worse spirits; the idea they needed more dead bodies to get their guy was never good—nor the acceptance of its truth when, actually, they had much more to go on now, which at the same time gave them confidence, as well as made them feel bad. After all, they did have more leads and they could both see a very clear path they needed to take to get to the bottom of this. Physical evidence were important, too and the medical examiner was very optimistic about obtaining some crucial ones from this poor woman.

He'd definitely have to work till late the next few days, too.

"Hey," Tokio came right at him; at first she did it to see his mood and work from there, but when she saw him so dispirited, she was worried. "Welcome back...is everything alright?"

"Hey," he said in return, almost whispered, in fact, as he removed shoes and coat. "Difficult day."

Her sympathy was instant; putting a hand on his back and rubbing it, she led him to sit down. "Want to talk about it?" He nodded no. "Want me to get you anything before we eat?"

"My daughter."

She chuckled. "We just had a bath; she's still getting dressed." He gave her a look, noticing Tokio's hair were dry. She smirked. "She wouldn't put on the clothes I picked for her." He shook his head, finally cracking a smile. "Yeah, exactly. But now she came to terms with it, so she'll be out in a second."

"What a stubborn child."

"Like father, like daughter."

He pretended that didn't fill him with pride. "So, are you going to tell me what happened today or are you going to beat around the bush longer?"

She became annoyed, angry and defeated, all at the same time. "Once Aiko has gone sleep."

"Was she present for any of it?"

She shook her head. "Not my part. We only called her in to tell us what happened, then I kindly asked her to wait outside." She clicked her tongue. "It was very fortunate you decided to send me; to be honest, I don't know how you'd have reacted, but even I felt like punching someone."

"Little plum, come out already," he called out towards the hallway, seeing there was no movement yet. "I want to ask her what happened, too; then we'll eat."

"Alright; come help me set the table."

"I'm coming," was heard once they had finished with their task. They were only house clothes she was wearing, but for some reason she looked petulant. "I don't like these clothes."

"But you look so pretty in them," Tokio tried to sweet talk her. "Not to mention, they both have grey in it."

"Grey is a stupid colour..."

Both adults stopped what they were doing, to look at her; then, at each other. She was...sad, not petulant. She was about to cry, in fact. Silently communicating what to do next, Tokio urged him with her eyes to go first. He squatted in front of her, taking her hands in his. "But you love grey, little plum."

"N, no I don't," she sniffled "I don't like it anymore; it's a stupid colour..."

"There is no such things as a stupid colour," Tokio shared her wisdom, as she came next to both, kneeling. "What makes a colour good for us or not, is how well it matches us and baby, grey looks great on you. Most colours do; grey is just one of them and you happen to like it more than others."

She was ready to cry, her little hands kept rubbing at her eyes. "Bu, but grey isn't a happy colour...so I'm not happy either...!"

The waterworks started; and no matter what was said and done between them, of course it was her father's arms she fell in. Tokio couldn't help the small smile on her face, despite the tears welling in her eyes. Someone told a child she wasn't happy because she wore an unhappy colour? That had better been little Sissy who said it, otherwise she was going to be very aggressive tomorrow.

"Little plum, no one can tell you if you're happy or not; you know for yourself. Do you feel happy?" She nodded, between the tears and the sobs. "Then don't care if someone doesn't like the same colour as you. If liking it makes you happy, even if it's a dark colour, then like it. I'm telling you it's fine."

The crying got worse, sobbing with abandon; he soothingly rubbed her back, picking her up in a hug. "No one has a right to make you feel bad, for no reason." She rubbed her face on his shoulder. "Who said it?"

"Hana-sensei," she managed to string together and both adults had to widen their eyes, looking at one another in shock.

Tokio felt her blood pressure rise. "She said what exactly?"

"How grey was a sad colour and how I should not wear it all the time because it's making me sad and that's why other children won't play with me."

As if what she heard today wasn't enough, Tokio had to add this to the pile.

"But children play with you, little plum. Whenever grandma, or kaa-san, or I pick you up, you're always playing with friends."

"She said I don't have enough friends..."

Tokio looked to the side, eyes wide, breaths coming in slowly, as she was trying to control her temper; she could only imagine what Hajime must have felt like, but other than extremely calm, she could tell nothing; he had his poker-face on, trying to comfort his daughter.

"Honey," Tokio went behind Hajime, to succeed in making eye-contact with the child, putting on her kindest smile "you have as many friends as you need and colours have nothing to do with it. You are cute and nice and play fairly with other children; that's why you have friends. You don't take their stuff without asking and you are very polite. And if you happen to like grey, so be it!"

She sniffled, rubbing at her eyes, but the crying had stopped for the most part now; timidly, she nodded she agreed. "And if you happen to not like grey anymore, that's fine, too. But I'd hate to see it was because someone else told you to stop." She kept nodding, tears almost spent. "So, do you or do you not like grey?"

"I like it," she admitted, mumbling.

"Then wear your house clothes. But, if you feel like you want to wear pink to school tomorrow, that's fine. You choose whatever colour you want."

Hajime felt her move abnormally and had to put her down; he only realised she was trying to get to Tokio when he saw her grabby hands, extended to the woman, who took her in her arms before she touched the floor.

Oh.

Tokio kissed the top of her head and held her there, though with difficulty; instead of supporting them, he guided both safely to the floor, and Tokio simply knelt, kept hugging her close, kissing her everywhere on her face she could find. That worked and in less than a minute, Aiko giggled. Relieved beyond belief, both adults spared a look for the other.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes, mamma."

"Then let's go eat! I made fish." Aiko clapped; she had a fondness for fish. "And then we'll choose what to wear tomorrow."

"Yes! I want to wear the tiger blouse! Or, or the dress with the rose! Mmm, or my favourite sweater with the shiny stuff."

"After dinner, honey, come on."

Tokio took Aiko by the hand and guided her on her chair, swallowing the knot in her throat; she called her mamma—not kaa-san, mamma. She...she hadn't done that before. Goddamn, it was a roller-coaster of emotions today and they just didn't stop. Ah, she felt like crying again. Hajime, on the other hand, looked at the two of them with increasing worry. Now she was mamma. Perfect. Aiko was now of the clear belief Tokio was her mother. If she repeated it in a less emotional moment, too, it was done. He could feel his anxiety waking up again.

Of course, he still needed to ask Aiko about today and he decided to save that for last. As she was having a glass of milk, right before bedtime, he brought her close. "Tell me little plum, what did you tell your teachers and Tokio today at school?"

"Sissy was being mean to me again," she said, absolute, "and started calling me names. Hori-chan wasn't at school today, he's sick." She looked pouty. "And then she called me something I don't know what it means, but I know it's a no-no word, because I've only heard grown-ups say it so I told her I'd tell Rei-sensei. She screamed and said I shouldn't but I didn't care...so she pulled on my pigtails."

Hajime shook his head, visibly upset.

"I pushed her to let go of me, because it hurt. She stumbled a little, but she didn't fall! She was still standing when I tried to run to sensei—that's how she caught up with me. Then she pushed me, too and we both fell down because I grabbed her hand. Then we started fighting on the ground and in the end, I must have hit her nose because it started bleeding and she was crying..."

"Little plum, were you hurt?"

"My elbows and knees got scratched." She showed them to him with an impressive pout; he noticed how they were already covered with a band-aid. "Mamma took care of me."

He sighed. "And then what happened?"

"Sissy went crying to Rei-sensei and she said I should apologise for making her nose bleed...but didn't ask Sissy to apologise to me! So I didn't. I refused. And then mamma came out after some minutes, we left and mamma was upset. But she said it wasn't my fault."

"Of course it wasn't, baby," she cooed, petting her head.

"Alright, listen to me now, too. You were very right to go tell Rei-sensei about what happened. You should, no matter what Sissy calls you. And you did well to try to leave. But you shouldn't push; and you shouldn't fight. See, her nose got hurt. You didn't mean to, but that's what happens when you fight someone, even if they were the ones who started it. But Sissy had no right to call you anything, or lay a hand on you on the first place. So, if Sissy doesn't apologise to you for everything, you won't apologise to her for her nose. But if she does, you have to. Okay?"

"...okay."

"But she has to mean it," Tokio stressed "if she says, I'm sorry but whatever, that's not a real apology. A real apology has no "but" in it."

Aiko smiled. "Alright."

"Now, tell us what she called you and we go to bed."

"...I am not allowed. Papa, you don't let me say those words."

"Just this once, and only because someone else called you that and I have to know; just this once, you can say it. But never again."

"She called me a bastard."

Her ignorance was obvious because she simply shrugged and said it as if she was saying any other word. And yet, she was easily informed on how bad it could be, whence she looked upon her father's face and the sheer anger it expressed just through his eyes. "I see." He clenched his teeth. "Never, ever, ever repeat this word to anyone. And never, ever allow anyone to call you that again. If she does, you go to Rei-sensei immediately—or better yet, call me and I'll deal with it."

"Yes daddy."

"Let's get you to bed now."

He came back half an hour later. Tokio smiled; she knew he was going to coddle her, she needed it and it appears, he did, too. Sitting down in his kitchen chair when he reemerged, he turned it the other way and sat cross legged. He took a deep breath.

"Tell me what happened with you now and take care; I am already pissed as is. Try to...soften the blow."

She sighed. "I wish I could," she put her hand on his shoulder as she went to the sink to wash the dishes, "but I don't think that's possible."

"No, no, no, come here." He grabbed her hand and slowly brought her in front of him. "You sit in that chair and tell me everything. No distractions."

Very well; she dragged a chair opposite him and drew in a long breath. "When I went there, it was me and another couple, waiting outside the principal's office. Rei-sensei was there, so was that other one Aiko spoke of earlier that I can never remember her name, talking to him. They had me waiting outside for almost an hour, mind you, before they were finally ready to have me."

Another reason it took her forever to call him back.

"I go in, I ask what's up. They tell me, Aiko got in a fight with a girl. Oh, I say; a physical fight they clarify. Oof, that's worse; what happened I ask. They tell me nothing particular. It was all generalizations about this and that and we shouldn't promote violence as a life style or whatever. I naturally agree. Perfect, they say; then please make Aiko apologise to the girl whom she gave a bloody nose to."

She tried to relax. "I sort of freaked out on the inside a little because, you know, Aiko wouldn't hurt a fly. She did what? What was done to her, I ask? Nothing they say, as if her scratches and scrapes were nonexistent. I didn't believe them. So I ask what the girl's name was and they tell me, would you know it, Sissy."

She shook her head, righteous anger swelling in her chest. "So I ask oh could it be the same Sissy who's been constantly bullying her? That was their first sign of shutting the fuck up. Yes, says Rei-sensei finally. That gives her no right to attack her, whatshername snaps back. Why are you so certain it wasn't Sissy who escalated things and Aiko just happened to come out on top?"

Tokio scoffed. "That was the second time they had nothing to say, other than mumble how poor little Sissy was bleeding and Aiko didn't even apologise and all that. So, I say, bring me her parents, both girls, and we'll ask the children in front of all of us. We can't do that, they say. Why the hell not, I ask, they are sitting right over there! And what do they tell me?" She tried to contain her temper. "What did they have the nerve to say in my face?"

Oh boy, he was going to hate this.

"Those people are not Sissy's parents." She snorted, scoffed and chuckled all at the same time. "Those are just some random people, waiting for their child. Sissy's parents weren't called in at all!"

"What? Why?"

"Those were my exact questions! Glad to see I'm not the only one confounded by their stupendous idiocy. No matter, I refused, refused to so much as exchange any more words with the lot of them unless the other girl's parents came in front of me and we could all come to a conclusion together." She waved an imaginary problem away then "not both parents, at least one of them; we're all busy people, I say; and they have the nerve to answer back that they, Sissy's parents, had been notified of the event and simply demanded for it to be solved by the time the nanny would come to pick her up from school. They fucking what; how fucking dare they? Their child was the problem on the first place because I bet mine only acted in self-defense, given it's well documented their little brat has an animosity against Aiko."

She shook her head. "And that was when I honestly lost it; they dared imply you have taught her to use violence effectively against those who mistreat her simply because you're a cop—not even a detective, just a cop."

Ah fucking shit.

"Like I said, it was a miracle you were so swamped at work today...anyway." She exhaled. "I kindly told them to fuck right off, and how dare they make such an accusation. They said, oh we didn't say anything, and I told them to sell their crap to someone who buys it and I don't have a lawyer on speed dial just to look important and that's when they figuratively shat their pants and tried to play it off as the victims and I had enough of their bullshit and demanded to bring Aiko in there and tell her side of the story, as it was obvious they only listened to Sissy; and they accepted, to appease me. And when Aiko shared, oh ho, ho, I snapped."

She looked to the side. "I waited until Aiko was out the door and oh. Dear. Buddha. Even I don't remember all the threats I shot at them but I was not happy. I do remember calling my lawyer and asking if there were any witnesses. They tried to be vindictive by informing me the girls were all alone, no children or teacher around, but when I "innocently" wondered if that was considered a crime, leaving small children unattended, especially if you're paid to keep them safe, they rushed to complain and try to make me hang up, to which I told them, if you are no better than the children you take care of, speaking one over the other and especially when someone's on the phone, then I think I have much more reasons to sue you and they finally shut the fuck up. Once my intimidation tactics seemed to take full effect, I did hang up and looked at them straight in the eye and informed them how tomorrow, I'd visit either on my own or with you and I would consider it only natural that I will find Sissy's parents or parent, whatever, there to talk to; if not, Wednesday I'll pay them yet another visit, only this once, in the company of my attorney."

She scoffed, yet again. "They assured me I would find him or her there and I was on my merry way."

"So, after hearing all of that, why did you feel like you had to apologise to me?"

She just looked at him for an entire second; then, she cackled. She couldn't help it, she literally cackled. What with the stress of her own job and this problem out of nowhere, she really needed to blow of some steam and this did the trick. "I," she said through hiccups "I was worried you'd be mad I tried to get lawyers involved."

"Not for a moment; what you don't know is that her parents are stuck up pricks who think they can do whatever they want." An eyebrow was raised. "It starts with the fact the school is not private, but not public either; in the end, it does have a tuition fee and the more of it you can cover, the less they have to get from the government. It's a good deal...and it's in correlation with how much you make. I'm a single parent, who happens to be a detective; Sissy's parents though are both doctors, both practicing."

"Ah."

"You can guess their contribution is much larger than mine, so they want to keep them happy. Most of the students' parents are people who just want the best for their children; the rest...are plain assholes. I don't know what they are trying to do, flaunt? Bottom mind, they are unlikable. I can't stand them."

"I see..." A shit-eating grin tugged on her lips. "So the school doesn't know."

"Doesn't know what?"

"Who I am; if they discriminate, as you insinuate, based on how much money a parent gives, then they definitely don't know who I am."

"...yeah," he realised, amused "most possibly."

"After all, if we got married, your income would skyrocket and you too would pay full tuition. Only you wouldn't be a dick about it." She scoffed. "Don't speak a single word tomorrow; just stand at the back and look intimidating. I'll deal with the rest."

"Whatever you want."

She sighed. "I feel exhausted...!" She considered. "I'll be going to sleep early today; I'll check my emails, see if there's anything urgent and then I'm off to bed." Stretching, she stood. "I'll leave the dishes for tomorrow."

"I'll do the dishes; I have nothing to do tonight. The workload will be crazy from tomorrow on."

"Eh, works for me."

They went on and worked on their self-appointed tasks in silence; it took about half an hour for both people to sort things out and then, looking at the clock on the wall then at one another, they nodded simultaneously. "It's fine," they assured one another "we'll be waking up early tomorrow anyway."

"Right, because we need to talk to the teachers...let's go to sleep."

They followed their nighttime routine to a T; she went first, changing, he followed, changing, and they were lying down in ten minutes time. "I'm sorry if I caused you trouble," she murmured, after a minute "I didn't know how you'd want to handle this. And I didn't have the time to stop and call you..."

"You caused no trouble."

He was dumbfounded to see she was insecure about this, of all things; he turned to his side, elbow on pillow, head resting on his hand. "They'll get what's coming to them."

She wiggled her eyebrows, propping herself on her elbows. "That sounds ominous detective."

"I have been having issues with their official stance as far as bullying is concerned, so this was just the cherry on top of the cake—the culmination of all of my protests and fears. I promise I won't interject tomorrow, so long as they don't make this a personal attack against Aiko."

"Oh, don't you worry about it; they so much as dare be petty towards her, they'll be wishing they had never met me."

Heh; looking at her like this, he could easily say she was a strong, no-nonsense woman. He could tell how truly intimidating she could be to those who did not know her or were going against her. With unlimited – compared to their reality – resources and an unyielding sense of justice, set morals and stubbornness to match only his, she was the type of opponent one would call imposing. Good thing she was on his side. Also, there was too much to be said about her general reaction to this entire incident—but he'd get unnecessarily emotional and there was no need, not when they were going to sleep and he'd be lying there next to her for so many hours.

"Thank you Tokio," was all he said about it "I appreciate you reacting this way, actually."

Her smirk turned into an honest smile. "I take care of my own, Hajime," she said softly, as if it was only natural "and no one dares talk to anyone I am personally responsible for in that way..." A yawn escaped her. "Alright, enough—sleep; set the alarm clock for half an hour earlier, too."

"Ah right."

At one moment she was trying to help Hajime find his cellphone; the next, she was sleeping. A moment later something jolted her awake. Snapping her eyes open, she searched for what caused her to open her eyes...and found it in the form of a certain young girl, cracking the door open with extreme caution. She tried blinking the sleep away, but it didn't work.

"What is it honey?" she managed to ask, without sounding too slurry.

"I had a nightmare...can I come sleep with you?"

She looked down; Hajime was draped around her, sleeping unbothered. Did nothing wake that man? No cellphones, no bells, no creaking doors or people speaking next to his ear...amazing. Bottom mind, he was of no help. Well, whatever.

"Of course you can, sweetie," she said as fast as her sleep-addled mind allowed her, extending her arms in a hugging motion. Smile brilliant, the small girl ran to the bed in full speed and actually jumped there with them. Saitou was still fast asleep.

"Scootch over here," she urged, seeing the girl landed close to their feet. Aiko crawled there and Tokio covered her; she wiggled until she found the perfect space between her father and Tokio—it wasn't much but it was the perfect hole for her to burrow into so she'd be hugged by both people at the same time. "Are you feeling better now?" She nodded. "Great; close your eyes and go to sleep."

"Mamma?"

"Hm?"

Aiko gave her a hug. "I love you very much."

"I love you more." She was not going to cry, she promised, but her voice still cracked a little. "Now go to sleep."

She thought it impossible, but it happened; Hajime had warned her, too but she didn't believe him and now that it did come to pass, she had to wonder: who was going to hurt more when all of this came to an end? Would it be Aiko-chan, or her? Because shit; Aiko could easily forget her, or brush her off as just a woman she knew when she was a child. But Tokio was a grown woman; and she would not forget. Oh boy this was not good for her heart; also, her worst idea to date.

Though, it was really hard to regret her decision when she could hear the heartbeat of not one but two people wrapped up in her arms, as she closed her eyes. Fine, she was wrong, it was impossible not to get attached; mistakes were made in her calculations. But she always believed it was better to have a broken heart than a lonely one. And mistakes were, sometimes, part of the plan.

Next morning felt like an entire day all on its own. Excluding the fact they all woke up at the same time, given Aiko slept with them other than her five-more-minutes, they had to get ready faster and discuss their strategy for the meeting. Tokio was very absolute about the entire affair: I take the lead, I explain the situation, you act like you knew exactly what I was going to say even if you have no idea, don't worry, I'm putting the pieces in place as we speak, and just stand at the background, looking scary. You only speak up if you find any inconsistencies between what they are saying now and used to say before this in any other case.

Since she had it all figured out, he simply agreed. She was way more convincing than him to begin with and she was the better negotiator—them being in this mess together was a prime example of that. So, let her have her fun and her way. He'd get all the relief he was deserved when they'd all apologise to his daughter, or else, as well as the reward of getting Sissy off her back for good. He bet his gun and his old riot gear, Sissy's parents wouldn't never again so much as allow their child close to his. And to think that would be because they got humiliated and not because their child got a bloody nose...deplorable parenting. He felt bad for the girl. Whatever she'd grow up to be, he knew she'd only have her parents to blame.

So, with no time to spare to actually be surprised that Aiko was there when he woke up, they all went through their routine extremely rushed and they were out the door in record time. The drive to the school was pleasant, as Tokio did all in her power to have Aiko giggling and giddy by the time they got to the door, as a nice fuck you to the other adults, which of course, she managed to do.

They kissed Aiko goodbye and had her huddle with the rest of the early comers.

"Good morning," Tokio saluted the principal, Rei-sensei and whatshername, who were waiting for them by the door.

"Hello," Hajime curtly spoke, making sure all three knew just how angry he was at what had happened.

Tokio, bless her soul, didn't let them say anything, not even good morning in return; she simply rushed them through all of the formalities, setting the tone of this meeting from the very start: she'd be directing people and calling the shots, they liked it or not. "I trust the parent or parents in question have already arrived, yes?"

They didn't seem to like her initiative. "Her father, Rick-san, is on his way."

"Why is he not already here?"

"...we didn't set a specific time, did we?"

"I thought I was quite clear: if I don't see him here when I arrive—"

Just as everyone was about to protest, Hajime put a hand on her shoulder. "They did say the man is on his way. Let's be lenient..."

She didn't like the sound of that word one bit, judging by her soured expression, but it looked like she had no intention of going against him. "Very well." She looked at her watch. "We shall wait no longer than fifteen minutes; guide us to wherever you want this meeting to be held."

The way she curtly brought her hand forward, twisted her wrist and brought it in front of her to check the time was way too practiced and professional, no doubt another small sign she was not to be trifled with. She even wore a suit today, one of her stricter ones, fashionable, but timeless. High-waist, slim, grey tailored cigarette pants with that slick crease at the front and the back; white dress shirt on top, with a band collar to the side, with not one, but three top buttons, underneath the matching grey jacket. Other than her engagement ring and her very expensive wrist watch, she wore no other jewellery.

And she carried no handbag with her, only her briefcase, rectangular, leather and polished. And they noticed it all.

They were escorted to the principal's office; once they got inside, Hajime pulled the chair for her and he simply stood next to her. She immediately set an alarm clock for fifteen minutes. The three looked at one another slightly nervous; communicating through looks alone, whatshername excused herself and another minute later, she came back, announcing the man had just arrived. Tokio made no motion to stop her timer though. They all noticed, again.

When eight minutes had gone by, the door opened and a tall, blond man walked in. He was clearly not Japanese; she guessed he was American, given he was as tall as Hajime and his built was less muscular but the same size. He had pale blue eyes, he was wearing a nice, blue windowpane suit and had his hair all combed back.

"Good morning," he said as he entered, looking around him carefully. His eyes lingered on the woman on the chair, a clear sign he was assessing her but she made zero attempts to hide the fact she did the exact same thing, eyebrows high, eyes running up and down his frame very critically.

"I am Rick Morrison, Sissy's father."

Only then did Tokio stop her timer; then, she opened another app and pressed the red button in the middle. "My name is Takagi Tokio; I am present with my fiance, Saitou Hajime, Sissy's father Rick Morrison, two teachers—" she gestured for them to speak.

"Higuchi Rei."

"Fujino Hana."

"—and the principal," she gestured at him then.

"Date Ken."

"I'm recording this session, per my lawyer's wishes. If anyone protests for a legal reason, please state so now." None spoke, although they did seem to worry for the reason she was doing it. "Lack of response confirms all parties are willing. Let the record show Rick-san just arrived; he's late."

"Late? To come here?" He snorted. "Do you have any idea how late you are making me by requesting my presence for no reason?"

"My words to these people were, I believe, I demand to speak to you or else; and you have no right to refuse this meeting. If your daughter's emotional and physical well-being is not a real reason to you, then maybe you should have reconsidered having her. Or, maybe you could have sent your wife instead."

He said nothing, which was a big mistake, considering they were recording this.

"You are clearly wasting my time," he snubbed, looking at his watch "and if you don't hurry it up, I'm going to sue you for lost wages."

"Lost wages? You?" She scoffed. "Not that you have any legal standing, but I'm not concerned over small change; what am I concerned about—"

"Small change?" he echoed, disbelieving.

"—is the deplorable behaviour—"

"Small change?" he repeated, heated, standing from the chair he was sitting at, opposite her.

"—your daughter exhibited towards mine."

"Oh yeah?"

"Indeed."

"I make three times what your fiance does!"

"Incredible; you didn't hear a single word of what I just said. And I would advise you to sit back down, Rick-san, for if you think you can intimidate me by proving you're taller, you are sorely mistaken."

"How about I actually sue you over my "insignificant" lost wages then, see how well you fair then!"

"You have no legal standpoint, as I said before, but please, do; then you shall give me ample right to do the same and then we'll see who comes out on top." She said it so casually, she could have been speaking about how tight her shirt feels; he didn't like that. "I mean, I'm no financial manager, although I do have a degree for that, but I gather I make much more than you, hourly. Say...more than what you make an entire week? Maybe month. So, I'd hate to take it there, seeing I'm not trying to bankrupt you."

A meaningful stare followed.

"After all, if you think I shouldn't be feeling like I'm wasting my time by coming here for a second time because you couldn't be bothered the first, even though you clearly should have, you can't be further from the truth. Parental responsibilities are amongst the most excusable reasons one has being late to or absent from work, thus, if you consciously decided to have a child, this should be only natural to you, not cause for a lawsuit. You should have predicted for that, if you are self-employed. But that takes forethought and reason, qualities I much doubt you have. No matter, I did not bring you here to remark on what you're obviously lacking, but to clear up this mess with our children. We heard Aiko's side of the story yesterday; bring your daughter in to hear hers, too."

"Who...who are you?" the man wondered, eyes smaller and concern finally visible.

"I introduced myself as soon as I started recording."

He didn't remember; she could tell by the copious amounts of effort he put into it but still came up empty. She shook her head. "I don't care if you don't recall."

"It's Takagi Tokio," whatshername informed him; the man gaped.

"Takagi; from that Takagi family—the billionaires?"

"You are confusing me with my father; I'm barely a millionaire. Money is not the subject here."

"Then why are you making it?" Rick exclaimed, feeling trapped.

"Rick-san, you were the one who talked about lost wages and how much more than my fiance you make in a year; I simply mentioned you don't have a single leg to stand on to if you do sue me because if anyone is entitled to lost wages is me, and yet, I do not wish to pursue such a route...yet, at least. And if you finally agree to bring our daughters in so they can tell us what happened, I'd be more than happy to keep it that way." She looked at her watch. "It's almost eight after all and today is a very busy day at the office."

She needn't say it a second time; the man nodded instantly and Rei-sensei flew out, to get both girls. First came Sissy. Tokio was very sad to see such a well-dressed, clean and nice-looking girl walking in, because it was always sad to her, to see the effects of adults on children. She had a posture much like her dad's though, she had to admit, the ginger hair as well as green eyes must have been her mother's. She would have had a pleasant face if it wasn't so changed by fear and apprehension.

Then came Aiko, nearly as scared as the first time, but slightly wary of Sissy's father.

"Hello, Sissy, my name is Takagi Tokio," she introduced herself, actually standing from her chair for the first time and squatting, to reach the girl's height "we're here because you fought with Aiko. Can you please tell us what happened yesterday?"

"She hurt my nose!" the girl exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at Aiko; Aiko stood a little straighter, looking away.

"We know that and we know that it isn't right; but why did she do that?" Sissy shrugged. "Did she just come up to you and did it?"

"No...we were already fighting..."

"Why were you fighting?"

"Because we fell down."

"Hmmm, I see. Why did you fall?"

Sissy looked down and away from the adult, not daring to even glimpse at Aiko's father, whom she knew who it was. She remained silent.

"We fell because she pushed me down," Aiko couldn't help but saying, crossing her hands in a pout.

"Is that true?" she probed; Sissy nodded.

"And why would you do that? What if you hadn't fallen both down and only Aiko had? Wouldn't she be more hurt than you?"

Sissy remained silent but Tokio noticed something interesting; the girl would look up towards her father occasionally and when she peaked, she saw the father furious, almost oppressing her just by his presence. So that's how it was.

"Sweetie, if you tell us the truth, you'll have done the right thing. You both did something bad; why don't you tell us what that was, so you get in less trouble? And I promise to you, no one will scream or shout."

"I...I called her a bad word; I don't know what it means, I swear, so I didn't know it was a no-no word until Aiko told me and then she said she'd tell on me and I'd get detention but I didn't want to get detention and I told her not to say but she didn't care and tried to leave, so I pulled her hair but she pushed me so she left and I tried to stop her...and we both fell down."

She said it all in one breath; impressive. Both teachers and principal were looking like they had just gotten a slap in the face, because if their stories matched, why didn't they know? Her father on the other hand looked like he could kill someone. Shit, just for that? The man had temper issues.

"I believe that you didn't know what you called her was a no-no word, but why would you call her anything anyway?"

"...she always gets better grades than me. She's cheating! The teachers say she doesn't but she can't be better than me; she's cheating. I'm smarter."

"Why do you think she's cheating? Did you see her do something?" Rei-sensei calmly probed, someone acting like a teacher for the first time.

"No...but I'm smarter than her. She can't get better grades."

"Are you two top of your class?" Tokio asked and Sissy nodded; she could finally see what was going on. For a non-Japanese this man surely a) speaks great Japanese and b) has gotten the bad hang of the system for sure. But to think this man – and maybe her mother, too – dumped all of their issues on their child like this, ridiculous. "Are you maybe told at home to be the best?" She nodded again.

Tokio sighed. To think she saw so much of herself in this misguided child, it was crazy.

"Sweetie, you are a very smart child. But you are a child. You both are, don't be too hard on yourself so soon. There's nothing wrong with being second and there's nothing wrong with wanting to be first. You just have to know how to get there. You don't call other people names and hurt them; you study harder and better yourself. Don't care about how others are doing—only how you're doing. I know it's difficult; and maybe being a little jealous is fine. But if you're too jealous this is what happens and no one wants that. Also," she turned to her father "if overachieving adults have no compassion, sense and self-control."

She turned back to Sissy. "So, she did better than you; it happens. Not every subject is for everyone after all—maybe, in the future, you'll find that one thing you love and you'll excel at it. Maybe you won't. Maybe she's better at academics but you're better at athletics. But even if she's better than you at everything, it's okay. Try to beat her next time. And if your dad tells you, once you leave, how what I'm telling you is all wrong, you don't have to listen to him."

"Tokio," Hajime spoke for the first time, in warning.

"Right, no, listen to your parents. But know, even adults make mistakes and sometimes we don't know until it's too late."

"Tokio, stop talking and sit down."

"Just remember my words," she said in the end, sufficiently scolded and sat back on her chair. "You can decide for yourself," Tokio mouthed at the child, hiding from Sissy's father to the best of her ability "and trust in your friends."

Rick indeed hadn't seen her, but Aiko's giggles and the look of the world being opened on Sissy's face, caused the man to suspect something, so Hajime simply put his hand on her shoulder, trying to salvage all he could, by blocking Tokio's line of sight to the girl.

"I think it's only fair both girls apologise to one another," Rei-sensei spoke first, "and your daughter writes a formal letter of apology to Aiko."

"That I too believe is appropriate," Rick admitted, and nodded. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to be going."

"No, Rick-san, you will wait." Tokio stated; for some reason Hajime didn't know, he just did as she said; smart choice to let her do the talking.

"Go on girls," whatshername urged "say what you must."

The girls looked at one another; the walls; their parents; the teachers; the floor, for a very long time. Finally, Sissy gave in first, seeing Aiko wouldn't even so much as open her mouth, encouraged in silence by both her parents.

"I'm sorry I called you mean things; and pulled your hair; and pushed you to the ground. I hurt you, too."

"I'm sorry I hit your nose and I'm sorry you were bleeding. I didn't mean it."

"Good girls," Rei-sensei cooed "and if you accepted the apology you must say it. If you haven't yet, that's fine. But when you do, you have to tell each other."

"When should we accept it?"

"It has no set time honey; when you feel like it."

"When, with their reformed behaviour, they show each other they won't be doing the same thing again," Tokio interjected, eyes sharp towards the teachers, as a warning she was not going to tolerate Sissy being verbally abusive to her daughter again.

"Oh." both children said at the same time. "What does reformed mean?" they asked in sync yet again and that caused them to look at one another surprised.

Tokio smiled. "When you change the way you act for the best; so be good, yes?"

"Y, yes," Sissy said, blushing, looking down.

"You have to write a letter of apology to Aiko-chan," Rei-sensei reminded her "and I want you to think about why you did what you did and try to stop from doing it the next time. Explain your feelings if you want, but remember, that is not an excuse—just a reason." She nodded. "You are both excused."

The girls rushed outside immediately. The moment they did, Rick glared at Tokio. "I'd thank you not to tell my daughter not to listen to me."

"I admit, I was carried away; but I did make amends."

"You have no right to give her advise on life anyway."

"I have every right to do that," she countered, reverting back to her casual attitude "when I can see the fear of failure is greater than her sense of morality. Which, of course, also only means you haven't emphasized on it enough. Hori, a boy in their class, has such strong morals he keeps scolding your daughter for talking like that to Aiko, but apparently, you didn't even know this was a thing. So let me give you some advice too: nannies don't raise your children for you, simply keep them company. And if you keep ignoring her for the sake of your practice and at the same time only tell her to be the best, this will be the least of the problems she'll cause. Trust me."

She was raised by half a mother, two siblings and two nannies after all; she knew. She had experience.

"If that is all," Rick stood from the chair "I think I'll be leaving now."

"You must wait until I finish the recording: I hereby demand a formal letter of apology be sent to me and my fiance from the school as well, for making us come here for a second time, when this should have been resolved yesterday, and a promise to do better next time."

The principal tried to oppose her, whatshername included, as frantic as she would have guessed them but she raised a flat palm. "I find the fact you only conformed to what was absolutely reasonable only after you heard the word lawyer, telling, as well as the fact you were quick to decide it was my daughter's fault when you hadn't asked any questions even more damning. If you don't feel like apologizing to me for giving me so much trouble, my daughter so much anguish and our family so much worry, then I can only assume it was indeed deliberate and flagrantly discriminatory and not simply a lapse of judgment on your part."

Both shut up. "I would expect only the same from the doctor, Morrison Rick, for wasting our time for no reason. I am willing to accept he hadn't fully understood the gravity of the situation hence he brushed it aside yesterday, but if it was done deliberately, I would not hesitate—"

"I'll write the damn letter," he snubbed "get it over with."

"How about you, principal," she gestured at him and he spoke his name "teacher Higuchi Rei and teacher," she gestured at whatshername and she spoke her name too "are we all in agreement?"

"Yes." They had spoke in unison and she scolded them; they spoke one after another then.

"Great; let the record show they all agreed; lack to do so within the next two weeks, would only compel me to pursue this matter legally. These letters will also serve as evidence in anything pertinent to the girl's squabble and whatever that might entail in the future." She paused for any objections, but none came. "We are all in agreement, since no one opposed. This recording came to its end." She pressed pause; it started saving. "Thank you everyone. I believe that is all. See you tomorrow, Rei-sensei, goodbye."

"Before we go," Saitou turned to Rick for the first time just as Tokio was ready to open the door "answer me one thing: how the hell did your daughter know to call mine a bastard?"

Oh shit she had forgotten about that. Everyone's eyes snapped to the man, who was in shock himself. He started looking all around him trying to find an excuse, but Hajime's eyes never left him; he visibly swallowed. "What did she call her now?"

"Don't sweat," he said it as if he was swearing "the recording stopped."

Of course that helped none with his nervousness seeing Hajime was just as tall as him but much more aware on how to cause maximum damage with minimum effort; his hand was still in a small bandage, too so he looked even more threatening.

"Ah, I don't know, why...she would..."

"If you so much as dare speak of me or my daughter again, for whatever reason, I'll know; and I'll be sure to drop by your practice, to talk about it. But I won't be visiting with Tokio."

He had never raised his voice, come closer to anyone or even made any other movement other than going for the door. Hell, half of what he said, he said it without looking at them. He even walked out first...and yet, he had sounded way too threatening. He must have been very good at interrogations, Tokio thought absently, everyone was frozen in place. Maybe not looking, when being purposefully vague, was more intimidating than glaring.

Tokio nodded, as if she didn't feel the drop of temperature and pretended Hajime hadn't scared everyone shitless. "He'll be visiting with my lawyer, naturally; or alone even. He too has a degree in law after all. Goodbye everyone."

"You could have been less threatening though," she complained two seconds later when she caught up with him "I think they are all afraid of you now."

"If they had done their jobs right, they wouldn't have to be. But I see being nice didn't do me or my daughter any favours. If it weren't for the fact the curriculum of this school is very good, I would have pulled her three months ago."

"You know best. All I'm saying is, it was a good thing you didn't remind me of that before I stopped the recording"

He smirked. "I know what I'm doing. And sometimes the fear of legal repercussions isn't enough; you have to instill real fear."

She laughed. "The man thought you were going to beat him up, at best."

"Because that's what I wanted him to think; no one disrespects my daughter or my living like that and gets away with it."

"So cute," she cooed, grabbing onto his arm "papa bear."

A chuckle followed. "If you think that's cute there's something very wrong with you, but whatever; I'll take the compliment."

They walked out with her holding onto his arm, until they reached her car; there, she finally untangled herself, unlocking it. Just as she made the motion to sit, he grabbed her hand and squeezed. "I...have been meaning to thank you for this."

"You're welcome; but you don't have to."

She tried to get inside again, but he squeezed harder, never letting go. "This means a lot to me. And not just because you made my life easier, but I don't know how to say it right." He looked away, visibly annoyed. "I'm nearly as eloquent as you, I don't know how to express myself in a better way..."

He had come to terms with it, there was no harm admitting the truth to her.

If he had been less proud maybe they could have avoided misunderstandings and she would know exactly how much this meant to him without needing to be told—just like she always did what was beneficial for him and Aiko without needing to be told. He just squeezed her hand harder and hoped it conveyed all of those things left unsaid, raging in his chest. He appreciated her; he was glad she came into their lives, even the random way she did. She helped him with matters he knew he needed it and shed light to some truths he felt comfortable leaving in the dark, but needed to be brought to light.

She was fearless; and, as far as he was concerned, that was the biggest, most profound compliment he could ever pay anyone. But he didn't know how to put it in words or express it without fear of sounding pathetic and he just kept quiet, once more.

"I understand," was all she said, subdued, but there was something very accepting in the way she looked at him; there was something raging in his chest again, yet for an entirely different reason. "I appreciate it."

Acting more on an instinct than what was appropriate or used to between the two of them, and although she was technically excused, seeing they were still in a public place, she placed her free hand on his cheek, smiled softly and climbed on her tiptoes to plant a fleeting kiss on his lips.

"Hope you have good news on your case," she said instead of goodbye, and finally got into her seat.

Still a little numb, he nodded, as she closed the door. "I hope you have an easy day at the office," he replied and she smiled wider.

Shit, his heart was beating fast.

It beat so fast, he felt it was trying to talk—scream in his face, actually, to do something, anything, but he had no idea what. He just stood there as she reversed, turned the car and drove away. He didn't move until he could no longer see her, not physically, but in his mind's eye, reaching for him, coming closer and closing her eyes for that small moment it took her to touch her lips to his. Why she did it completely escaped him; she was to some point entitled to it, but it wasn't needed. He didn't know why she did it.

He only knew it awakened feelings he hadn't had for such a long time, he had a hard time recognising what they were; he only knew that he liked it...and he wanted her to do it again.

Fuck.

Two grueling days later, he was positively an exhausted mess. Work had been so hard and hectic, he thankfully had little time to dwell on that morning. In fact, he was pulling long shifts again, from morning to night, going home at nine. He made it a point not to be much later than that so he could speak with Aiko for at least half an hour, hear her news, maybe something she needed, or an emergency...thankfully, so far, so good; Sissy seemed to have toned it down, too. Good things were finally happening—considering the chaos at work was because they finally had a serious shot at catching their perp.

While at the office, going through some files, trying to be one hundred percent of what he'd written and later read, just so no one would be able to dispute him, he saw a grinning Harada walk towards him, pointing at their TV.

"Yo, Saitou, isn't that Tokio?"

His head snapped up; it was indeed Tokio, standing directly behind a black pedestal, situated right outside their corporation—the front, grand entrance was visible by the way they positioned the camera on purpose. There were six microphones put in front of it, propped not to mess with each other's reception. The scroll underneath read "this is live feed of the press conference about the scandal within Takagi Corp that started two months ago". There was a big crowd two metres in front of her, most seated in the row of chairs they had laid out – at least four rows of six – and there were two people on her left and two on the right—one he recognised as her father.

"It is," he assured, as he stood.

It was finally happening; he looked at his watch. It was starting earlier than she estimated. He went close and asked them to turn up the volume, as he crossed his hands and waited for her to start speaking.

"She looks sharp!" Nagakura commented, slightly impressed not by her clothes but her expression.

"She's been preparing to give this speech for a week."

Toudou approached just as Harada wondered out loud "I thought it was a press conference."

Saitou smirked. "It's supposed to be..."

"She looks focused, that's for sure." Toudou noticed.

"Hush," Nagakura shushed them "it's starting."

She needed no big breaths, no large signals; she simply leaned a little closer to the microphones and there was quiet. She started talking then, breezing past the salutation to the people gathered, anyone watching from home, colleagues and so on so forth and went right to the heart of the matter from the first minute. She must have taken the journalists in the crowd by surprise as half of the audience rushed to fiddle with their phones or take out their notepads; Saitou could tell this was her plan from before she started the conference because he didn't miss the gleam in her eye.

"Oh, ho, ho, she gave them a heart attack!" Toudou commented amused; slowly a crowd had started gathering around the man, too.

"She likes keeping people on their toes," he informed, smirk growing.

"I love her tone; like she's the only one who's right and everyone else is wrong," Chou said with a laugh.

"I don't, not always," he answered honestly and his friends and colleagues laughed.

She spoke at a length, fifteen minutes maybe. She had given any possible information the situation had called for, as well as a very realistic and honest description of the procedures that followed as soon as the woman's deception was made certain, as well as the exact reason she and her "accomplish" as Tokio dubbed him, had been fired. He was not going to lie, he hadn't expected her to be so transparent. Her father hadn't either, discomfort visible.

"She's gonna give the old man on her right a heart attack, too," Harada commented, elbowing the person closest to him. "He's gonna start sweating soon."

"That's her father," Saitou told them "and I don't think you're that far off. She should tone it down; last thing I want is him blaming me for this, too."

"Ooof, he doesn't like you, huh?"

"Not one bit."

Nagakura knew that feeling; he patted his back. "Patience my friend; nothing else works."

"I know..."

"Hasn't been a good year for you; first Yaso's mother, now this...at least it's only two weeks for the hearing." He nodded, morose.

They watched for a while longer, as they went to the Q and A portion of the day and she answered or blatantly refused to answer some questions, because, as she claimed, if they had paid any attention to her while her mouth was working ten minutes ago, they needn't have wasted everyone's time, including someone's who had a real question to make.

"I can see what attracted you to her," Hijikata commented, a shrewd expression on his face.

Ten more minutes passed; the press conference was concluded, they turned down the volume and the crowd dispersed. He took some time looking at the screen though, to watch her make her exit; once she was away from the cameras, he took out his phone and called.

"You alright?"

"Hey," she sounded breathless and the formality of her tone washed away in barely two syllables; he could see her in his mind's eye, shoulders relaxing, head tilting to the side. "Yes, I think it did."

He smirked. "You were great; I just don't know if you were aiming to sound like a know-it-all or not."

"You watched it?" That seemed to brighten her a little; a chuckle followed. "It was deliberate; it's always deliberate. I can't know everything; but I do know all three of those we fired for no reason took our deal and came back."

"Mark the date, once again." To her silence, he elaborated "you admitted you don't, in fact, know everything."

She laughed, tension leaving her all at once. "What an idiot...since you called though, I need to talk about date night; and tonight."

"I'm listening."

"Well, given the press conference went well and since they wanted it to be a surprise, people from work, father included, decided to throw a small party; not for me exactly, but kind of...so I really want to go. But I know this is an awkward time for you, so, I'm proposing this: let's go to the party tonight and if you feel too tired or pressured or whatever, we don't go out tomorrow and you do what you need." He was silent for a long time. "Or I can decline for tonight..."

"No, we can't," he said instantly, clicking his tongue "they are celebrating you. You can't miss it. Not if you want your father to believe you want him to like me, too." Her chuckle was expected. "We'll go; but I won't make any promises for tomorrow."

"...fair enough. It starts around eight, so be home by six thirty, seven; I don't mind being a little late."

"Alright, bye Tokio."

"Buh bye~!"

Somehow, the invitation worked as a very good motivator to go through the motions quicker; he didn't discount on the quality of his work, just at the urgency to see certain procedures done, so he too could focus on fieldwork tomorrow—he left Okita all on his own for too long. Despite the guys' jabs at how he was whipped, since they all watched him call once her press conference was over, and then rush through his day because she asked him to be home early, he was happy to do it. It meant she would be happy, he would be happier if she was happy and certainly Aiko wouldn't—shit!

He took out his phone; it was six.

"Hey, mom, about tonight—"

"I know, I know; no TV and no sweets. Tokio told me, too."

"Did she now?"

"Yes, she called around midday, an hour later maybe, about babysitting her tonight. I just can't be over at your place, so I'll bring Aiko to us but she said that was ok. I live across the hall Hajime," she scolded in the end, huffily "come collect her in the morning. And if anything happens you'll be there in no time."

"...as long as we're clear."

His mother clicked her tongue. "This son of mine, always worrying over every little detail. See you tonight."

He was surprised to find his mother already in the loop; where he forgot, Tokio remembered. Heh, would've thunk. He worked even harder, to be finished by six thirty; he left the building around twenty to seven, but he managed to be back home around seven. After Aiko made her presence known, giving him hugs and kisses, Tokio appeared, in a towel, covering most of her, hair wrapped up in a much smaller one.

"Yes, yes, welcome back, hurry; I drew the bath for you. We have little time to spare. I picked out a suit, too but go see it before you go for your bath—if you don't like it, I can pick out something else."

"I trust your taste," he dismissed her as he was already losing articles of clothing as he went.

"Your towel is behind the thing, over the washing machine," she informed just before he closed the door behind him "and stop throwing your clothes on the floor, damn it!"

"Language," he reprimanded, knowing Aiko was somewhere there.

"Then stop throwing them on the floor and I won't have anything to say about it. I've told you a thousand times," she stood directly behind the door "don't do it, it's messy, it makes wearable clothes unwearable and it pisses me off."

"One bath; can I have one bath in peace? Water's already running and you're still talking. Go get dressed instead."

Just as she was about to walk away, she glared lethally at the door. "I was going to before you told me," she spat venomously, but she doubted he heard that, it was too low.

By the time he was out, she was dressed. By the time he was dressed, she had finished with her make up; by the time he was ready, coat crisp and shoes shinning, she was finishing her hair and selecting her jewelry.

"You look great, let's just go; mom, stop enabling her."

"I'm doing no such thing; I only mentioned how this beautiful shade of green needs to match her neck piece. I mean, she can't take off her engagement ring, even if it's blue, but she doesn't have to match everything other piece of jewelry to it."

"She is making a very good point," Tokio considered, eyeing her emeralds with interest. "The dress isn't a show-stopper, so the jewelry can be a little fancy."

"It's almost eight; we're going to be very late."

"Wear the green stones mama! They look so pretty with the dress."

Of course Aiko would be a staunch defender of the "all one colour" logic her grandma was pushing. But just this once, "you know what? Why not? I haven't worn them in a long time." So it was decided.

"Help her in it," he instructed his mother, losing patience.

"You help her in it," she snapped right back "do something other than complain, why don't you?"

"Fine," he gave in, seeing she made no attempt to honour his wishes and Tokio stood suspiciously still. "There; you look amazing. Let's go."

"Aw, she does, doesn't she? Ne, Aiko-chan?" The girl nodded wildly, eyes sparkling, focused on the emeralds. "Please, tell me how did he ever manage to find you, dear? Or keep you, for that matter."

Looking up to the heavens disappointed, he muttered "my own mother..." but Tokio giggled.

"I'd love to, but exactly because you're his mother, I don't think I should."

Hajime turned to look at her, expression scolding; his mother clicked her tongue and shook her head, abashed. "I'm an old woman, don't say such things."

She laughed. "Younger than my mother though;" she winked, but let it go "thank you for keeping our cutie tonight, much obliged."

"We thanked her enough already, let's go; and behave."

"No, I don't think I will," she teased, walking into her shoes; she took a moment to turn back to the remaining occupants of the house. "Have fun," she blew a kiss to Aiko "I love you baby; don't give grandma a hard time."

"I promise! Have fun on your date, too!"

Hajime practically pulled Tokio out of the door, as she kept talking, looking behind her and blowing kisses or waving and didn't stop until she was well into the elevator. From there to the car it was quick work; the hard part would be making it to the party before half past eight. Which they didn't. It was almost nine when they did arrive, but, correct in his prediction, nothing had really happened without her. The moment they were spotted, he noticed everything going dark in the place and the music dying down. They were going to surprise her with something, from the looks of it.

"Preferably, with a cake!"

He slid his eyes to her. "You on your period again?" He expected the pursed lips and small eyes; that's exactly why he'd said it. But it was an honest question, too because he noticed whenever she had her period, she'd eat more sweets than usual. "Must have been wrong then," he said when time passed and she kept glaring.

"...actually I am," she admitted, voice low "but so what?"

He had to laugh; she smacked him on the shoulder once or twice. Finally, the time came and the man at the door opened it for them; there was complete darkness and silence for a moment. The next, lights flashed and music blared! Confetti were released from the ceiling and people he had never met before came at them, hugging or high-fiving Tokio, bumping fists, or tapping her on the shoulder or arm.

"Congratulations for the quickest, less damaging handling on a major scandal of the corporation!" the strangers sung in unison and clapped.

A microphone came out of nowhere and was put in front of her face; a middle-aged woman was holding it close to Tokio's mouth, nails manicured to perfection. "Any comments, Tokio-san?"

She smirked. "Thank you for the appreciation; and party to your heart's content tonight, because you may never get to celebrate something like this again...for, once I take proper control of things, this will be just another Thursday. No need to celebrate that."

Cheers followed her words; Saitou watched her with fascination. She was always so confident, always had an answer to everything, he could tell why they cheered. Also, she was charismatic enough to lead people, as a CEO, like she wanted. Whether a handful or ten dozens, she could pull it off. He just knew. There was something very convincing about her tone and attitude. The fact it wasn't decided if she'd succeed her father or not, but she already acted like she was and lobbied so hard made him smirk. She sure knew how to play the game.

Once the cheers died down, the music returned to its previous state, which mostly consisted of ballads and other famous lyrical songs. It had the space for people to dance and everything—a bar that savoured of a club. Some went back to dancing, some hovered, but they were mostly left alone to their devices. Someone came and took their coats and they headed to one of the comfortable looking couches at the far end. Only one was left empty, saved for her, as every other seat, couch or not, was taken.

Once they sat down, four people came up to them; two men, two women, all around Tokio's age. She appeared to be quite pleased with their approach, but he had spent a lot of time with her to know this was a fake smile. Mm, maybe fake was a stretch; it was a little forced, a little standardized. It was the same she'd use when she was tired and his mother came over for a tea or overstayed her welcome, or even when she was exhausted, but Aiko wouldn't stop talking. Ugh, he could relate.

"Hello everyone!"

"Tokio, it's been so long," one of the women, the one who had dyed her hair blond, wearing an impressively short skirt, coupled with an incredibly long top, was the first to speak. "I am very happy I got to be invited to your first big thing."

"Thank you, Yoru," she started, talking a deep breath; her hand moved towards him. "Thi—"

"Oh my god, that dress is amazing," the other woman praised, hand over her half-exposed cleavage "I am so jealous."

"That is a nice dress," the shorter man of the two commented, looking at her up and down, in a very invasive way. He was wearing a too fashionable ensemble for Saitou to appreciate although his probing gaze was not vulgar. It only lingered on dressed parts of her body—on the opposite of the other guy. "Did you have it made? It sits on you perfectly. Is it taffeta?"

"It's a mixture of fabrics, chiffon definitely one of them; and yes, I did have it made."

"It speaks on you," he kept complimenting, seemingly taken. "It looks exactly like the one I made for Nori-chan, two weeks ago." He almost reached out, but thought better of it; at least the fact he was a designer explained both his interest in her dress as well as his own clothes. "Do you mind if I feel the fabric?"

"Yes," Tokio cut him off, edge of her eyes turning to her fiance for a moment and the apprehensive look on his face "please don't. Allow me to int—"

"You do look amazing though; success becomes you."

There it was. The other man, the one with the black and white suit – as if he was going to get married and not simply attend a party – complimented her as if seeing a beautiful woman for the first time in his life. Saitou didn't like it—or him, one bit; he felt all sorts of trouble coming.

Still, she smirked, quite pleased. "I know." Just as he was about to speak again, she cut him off by finally managing to say "this is Hajime, my fiance." Eyes became wider, a chin hung. "Honey, these are: Yoru, Haru, Tadashi and Hideo; they are all people I know from my University days."

Hideo shut his mouth, quite lamely. "When did you get engaged?"

"Congratulations are in order first," Yoru spoke absolutely, scolding him.

"Right, of course; congratulations."

All started congratulating them then, but he wasn't finished; he could tell Hideo had more to say, but none let him. In fact, it felt like they went out of their way to make sure he didn't get the chance to speak, talking over him and starting an entirely different conversation, much like they kept doing to Tokio in a much more discreet way before, only this once, they didn't care to be discreet. Why this was happening, he had no idea, but maybe it was an inside thing, if they went so far back.

"We're here fifteen minutes already and no one came to take our order," Tokio complained out of the blue.

"I want a drink, too," Saitou realised "I'll go order something for both of us."

"Ah, okay; thanks honey. You know what to get me."

He nodded; but as he did, he was sure to look back and take note of how Hideo moved, compared to everyone else—he took this chance to actually stand from where he was and go sit next to Tokio. That, Saitou really didn't like. Very brazen and foolish. He'd better go back to his chair once he returned...

Just as Tokio was about to give him a piece of her mind for taking Hajime's seat, Yoru attracted her attention. "Tokio, what the hell? You got engaged? And said nothing?"

"It was very sudden and hush hush," she excused herself, "even my parents knew nothing about it until I showed them the ring."

Everyone looked at the finger she presented; oohs and aahs followed. "That's a very nice sapphire," Tadashi noted, "very much like you, too; not small but not big either—just right."

"Oh you."

"I'd kill for that engagement ring," Haru almost salivated over it. "It's gorgeous."

"I know; Hajime has excellent taste, evident by giving this ring to me." The three of them chuckled, but Hideo would not be won over.

"Tokio, when did you even meet this guy?"

"We met a year and a half ago."

"When Tooru died?"

She nodded, a little annoyed by his casual tone. "He's a detective; he was in charge of my case."

"Aw, almost like it was meant to be," Yoru waxed, palms coming together underneath her chin "despite the thorns all around, love blossoms in the end..."

"What? No! It's disgusting," Hideo snubbed, absolute "he took advantage of you! He knew you were grieving and used it to get close to you—he had real power over you!" Tadashi looked scandalised, but the girls brushed him off. "No, don't; that's not right. And here I was wondering why would you of all people date a simple cop..."

"What are you on about, you oaf?" she instantly became irritated; lately, it tended to happen a lot when people were badmouthing Hajime, she realised. "We never dated before the case was over; and he never took advantage of anything." Actually, if one of the two could be accused of taking advantage of a situation... "Try to keep that forked tongue of yours behind your teeth—I don't want to hear it. And I definitely don't want Hajime to hear it. He's already extending himself for my sake, just by being here."

Tokio clicked her tongue annoyed; the girls giggled.

"We've never seen you so defensive of someone before," Haru noticed, eyebrows wiggling "the sex must be great."

All four burst out laughing; Hideo pursed his lips, annoyed, distaste evident. "Great? Please; try boring instead. I mean, look at him. The only non-boring thing about him is how he managed to snag himself such a bride. Many would kill to be in his place..."

"Such as you?" Yoru couldn't help but quip, but he said nothing, just shrugged.

"At least I know I'm not boring."

"It's better to be boring than adventurous; with repetition comes practice and with practice comes expertise. Better be phenomenally good at two things than be mediocre – at best – at multiple ones," Tokio supposedly generalized, but there was a very piercing look sent his way as she said it. "Take it from me, a woman; after all, it's way easier to get someone out of their comfort zone once they see ninety percent of the times they are successful than convince someone who always tries new things to just focus on one in hopes they get better at something. In my and my friends' experience, if not all, most guys who are these sexually adventurous types, they just have no idea what they're doing and how to please a woman to begin with, and they try to cover it up by presenting themselves as interesting."

"Congratulations to Tokio, for tearing another human apart without so much as raising her voice," Tadashi said after a beat of disbelieving silence, where the two women tried not to laugh "a round of applause, everyone."

They started slowly clapping, when Hajime just came back with the drinks; he watched the developing scene keenly. "What did I miss?"

"Nothing sweetie," she assured, extending her hand.

He offered her both drinks and she put them on the table. Then she took hers back and had a sip. Meanwhile, he hadn't sat back down; instead, he stood right in front of Hideo, casually, but somehow very oppressively. Hideo looked up, to see a calm but resolute expression from the man. "What?" The do-I-really-have-to-tell-you stare Hajime shot back, made Hideo falter. "What do you want...?"

A smirk came to his lips. "Guess," was all he said.

"You want to sit here...?"

"Before the sun is out."

Snickering followed, as Hideo went back to his own seat. Then, Hajime easily spread himself in whatever was left of the couch, which wasn't little: one leg on the other in a way that took up more space, his hand resting on the back of the couch, behind Tokio, the other reaching for his drink. He took a sip, watching the people around him and how they all paid very close attention to his every move, especially after what had just happened.

"Do I want to know?" he asked.

"You don't; you wouldn't like it."

"Why?" Haru emphatically questioned.

"He doesn't like that sort of thing."

He rolled his eyes instantly. "Behave; all of you," he added, staring at everyone.

"See? Boring," Hideo meaningfully drawled.

"I said, all of you," he repeated, staring intensifying, but focusing on Hideo. He took another sip, as the man waved him away, but they saw him jolt. He fished his phone out of his jacket. "Excuse me, I have to take this." He turned to Tokio, a little upset. "It's my mother," he informed and now she shared his worry, too.

If it was his mother there were only two possibilities: either something happened with Aiko, or his parents and if she had to call, it couldn't be good. She nodded, making room for him to pass.

"What happened?"

"We'll find out once he's back, but I fear we may have to leave much, much earlier than we planned..." She shook her head. "I do hope all is well. We'll see."

For these five minutes he was gone, she couldn't properly concentrate. They tried asking her who and what but she didn't respond as she should have, so they gave up that line of questioning entirely and tried to change subjects. When he came back, she searched for his face, only to see him relaxed; she instantly exhaled, shoulders falling.

"What was it?"

He tried not to smile too much. "Aiko was trying to convince her we allow her to have chocolate every time she spends away from home; she had to call to make sure she was full of it."

Tokio laughed. "How conniving."

"She didn't used to be, you know..."

She tried very hard to hide her pride at that, but she still failed. "If you try to insinuate I am a bad influence on your daughter, shame."

"Your what?" Tadashi exclaimed.

"My daughter, Aiko," he repeated, as if it was only natural "she's six."

"Is she yours—did you have a child? Is that why you're getting married?" Hideo immediately asked Tokio all in one breath and she had to laugh.

"Look at him," she urged "would he ever have a child outside of wedlock and then wait six entire years to make it official?" She shook her head. "She didn't come from me, if that's what you're asking. She's Hajime's daughter from his previous marriage."

"Oh, sorry; did it not work out?" Yoru asked, sympathetic.

"...she died at birth," he answered, taking another sip of his drink; everyone went completely silent for a moment. Condolences followed. "Thank you but it's quite alright."

"Lucky for you," Hideo jabbed at Tokio "now you have him all to yourself."

"Friend," Tadashi put a hand on his shoulder "you should really learn how to control what comes out of your mouth."

"And how to read the mood while you're at it," Haru continued.

"It did get a little depressing," Hajime admitted and turned to his "fiance" "care for a dance?"

She drew a breath in, eyes going wide at his proposal; looking at him at a length to make sure he was being honest about this and not teasing her, she nodded repeatedly. "Great; come on. Let's go."

It was a slow song and a relative bearable one; he led her to the space everyone was idly swaying to the music in pairs and chose a spot that was a little removed from the bulk of the crowd, as well as easily seen by her friends on the couch. He put a hand on her waist and with the other he took hers; he brought his lips next to her ear.

"What the hell is Hideo's problem?"

Her chuckle was soft and she hoped it tickled him exactly as much as his breath did her. "They are too many to list right now, but the main one is he still thinks I'm one phone call away from taking him back."

"He did sound like an ex."

"He is; of ten years ago. And he hasn't grown up one bit."

"Why is he here?"

"Father invited him; don't forget, he's still the CEO and has every right to do so."

"...are there more exes of yours around I should be worried about?"

She laughed this once, burying her head in his shoulder. "I spotted two more; out of five, three are here. I think father is trying to tell us something."

"That he still hates me?"

"Yeah and I don't get it; Aiko adores him, he takes time to play with her, get to know her."

"He has nothing against my daughter."

"One would think he came to terms with it, is what I'm trying to say; and you're sort of a package deal."

He simply nodded, smile warm. A sigh followed. "I just don't like Hideo," he came full circle, "he was clearly ogling at you; he had the gall to take my seat as soon as I stood. As far as he's concerned, we're about to be married; he shouldn't be so much as looking at you."

"Should've been there to hear what he said about you once you left...!" He was slightly alarmed at that; she patted his shoulder. "He is the type of person who thinks so long he gets what he wants, everything is justified; besides, he never learnt to follow rules. One of the reasons my father likes him so much is because he too is rich and heir to a corporation—thus, was raised a certain obnoxious way, too." Hajime clicked his tongue. "I know; I agree."

"What did you see in him?"

"I was young and naive; how do you think I developed my current taste?"

"True that."

His hand snaked around her waist, bringing her too close; it held her lightly, but certainly. Her skin crawled in all sorts of delightful ways...and that was precisely the problem. She needed to stop thinking about it, stop thinking about it, stop thinking about it. When the silence got too heavy and all she could think about was how alarmingly close he was to her, his breath on her neck, she finally spoke.

"For a man who doesn't like dancing though, you sure know how to do it; I was surprised when you asked me."

He snorted. "Can't tell you come talk to me privately for five minutes right over there, can I? Even I'm not that rude."

"So it would seem," she teased.

Then his look changed, becoming arrogant. "And for the record, my willingness to perform a duty or a task has nothing to do with my level of skill at said duty or task."

As if to emphasize and prove his word, he let go of her hand and put both hands around her waist as the song changed to a slower tune; hers, circled his neck.

"But I thought you'd said you haven't danced since before your wedding."

His smirk only grew. "Need I repeat my previous statement?"

Hers mirrored his, but then it became crooked. "Bless the heavens; there's still hope for you..."

"Oh yeah?"

"Mmhmm..."

"In what department I wonder."

"Oh but you know," she teased again and he started shaking his head.

"Didn't I say behave barely ten minutes ago?"

"You said so before we left home, too and I'll simply repeat what I told you then: no, I don't think I will."

He stopped dancing and turned to look at her properly; that suggestive look on her face was too much. Eyebrows high, a sly smirk plastered on red lips; that pleasant aroma that always wafted off of her hitting his nostrils, mingling with the scent of alcohol from all around...he only had to take a small breath. He leaned in very close, lips grazing her chin, causing her to shudder.

"Then don't expect me to behave either."

That was all the warning she got. From chin to full, luscious lips was a small trip and he made it before she could so much as tease him back for his sudden bout of pluck. He kissed her with fervour; he kissed her with drive. She could feel her limbs tingle pleasantly, fingertips most of all, itching for something to grab. He was being daring and, should she say it, intrusive. It was...fun.

But just as she thought she had gotten used to it and could enjoy it for what it was, he deepened the kiss; she let him. She finally let go of his neck and her hands descended to the front of his chest, curling around his jacket collar; it was unexpected but welcomed as he responded by squeezing her to him. The more she leaned backwards to try and regain some semblance of control, the more he pushed forward. Not many things went through her mind that moment; only how she tasted whiskey she never drank. It was a bittersweet flavour, but bold, strong on her tongue, like she just had a shot. It mixed with her apple martini to create an explosive combination and she was not afraid to ask for more.

She felt lightheaded. Her heart raced. Everything about this moment, she wanted it to last for at least another hour.

But it was mere seconds later that their breath was spent. They pulled apart slowly. She was almost sad to see it stop, but she did welcome the chance to calm her erratic heartbeat. Eyes hooded, she could barely see his chest from where she was. He touched his forehead to hers.

The moment passed; she looked up, a challenging look in her eyes. She still felt lightheaded and her chest heaved, but now she was far more focused. "You...don't play fairly," she whispered and he had to blink.

She wasn't the only one all out of sorts, after all, and despite her satisfaction at the thought, it brought nothing else, because he was the one who had initiated this whole thing. But she did feel gracious enough to answer his questioning look.

"Although this is perfectly excusable and all within the bounds of your rules, and yes, since I am the person of the hour many heads will turn, thus is will successfully reach my father's ears if not tonight, definitely by tomorrow and he will have to face the fact you aren't going away...I very much doubt this is why you did it. You just felt slighted someone, anyone else, tried to flirt with me while your ring is on my finger. And there are two more somewhere in the crowd, so that served as a clear message to them, too."

She was very calm, maybe even suggestive when she said it, so he took no offense, despite distinguishing there was a real complaint somewhere in there. "What are you trying to say?"

"That you only kissed me because your ego was bruised; and that thought can't help but bruise my ego a little, too. Not to mention if I ever kissed you like that, I'd never hear the end of it, but because it's you, it's fine."

"Do you mind I kissed you, how I did it or why?"

"...I don't mind," she said though a chuckle "not one—ahem," don't say too much, Tokio "I don't. But I can't help but be a little bitter it was your ego and outside influences that urged you to do it, instead of, I don't know, me..."

He looked at her for a long time; she held his gaze, all the while, cheeks rosy, but it was neither offense nor shame colouring them. He just stared, trying to come to terms with what he heard. "Are you being serious?"

"Perfectly. When have I ever lied to you?"

"What do you want me to say?"

She shook her head, her smile breaking through. "I don't want you to say anything..." Right; she wanted him to do something, preferably what he just did ten seconds ago, but decided not to give voice to those thoughts.

"You want me to apologise?"

"You didn't do something that would require you to apologise," she assured him "I simply complained a little, I'm only human, after all. Am I not allowed to?"

"So what should I get away from this conversation?"

She couldn't help the smirk this once. "I've seen you in action, Hajime; you're a good detective. Come to your own conclusions." She kissed his cheek and extricated herself. "I'm going to make a couple of rounds, say hi to some people I haven't seen in a while, and I'm coming back to our seats, okay? If you want to come with me, you're welcome."

"No, I'll go sit down; I'm actually very tired. Might order another drink."

"Whatever you want."

She noticed he watched her go, eyes trained on her. She didn't know, but oh how she hoped he felt even half as hot and bothered as she did, because damn, she needed to fan herself. Still, she dealt with it by simply removing herself from the source of heat and headed straight to a cluster of people from another department that just so happened to have one of the old boyfriends in its epicentre. Smiling, joking, she made merry for the next twelve minutes. When she went back to her seat though, she found something she did not expect.

Hajime was upset.

The mood had changed completely. He was sitting there, not listening to the rest of her friends talking about this and that and only nodded to pretend he was part of the conversation. Drink in hand, his eyes snapped to her as soon as she sat next to him, clearly in waiting. She could tell something had happened in her short absence that she had not foreseen. Carefully, she raised her eyebrows probing, as non-confrontational as possible; instead, he slid his eyes in front of him again.

Then he spoke in a very low voice. "Care to tell me why your friend Ari just informed me you were complaining to her about me not paying attention to you, almost a year ago?"

Just as she had opened her mouth to dismiss him, she froze with one finger in the air, the moment she heard the last of his sentence. Her shoulders dropped, her mouth closed and her hand returned to her lap.

Shit.

She swallowed, dared glimpse at him – inwardly cringe and despair at the look he had on his face – and looked to the side. "What exactly did she say?"

"How she still doesn't believe how she could not have picked up on our relationship before, when you'd insatiably complain to her and your mother about me, not paying you any attention, just right before we started dating, apparently. Strongly believes you were the one who made the first move, out of sheer frustration."

Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit.

"This isn't the first time I hear it, too, which is why I'm bringing it up." The shocked look she gave him was unrivaled; he remained calm and voice low. "Aiko said the same thing a couple of days ago, maybe a little earlier; I dismissed her, thought she heard something and mixed up the dates. But not anymore."

"You look upset," she noticed, taking a sip.

"You are very observant."

She sighed. "This is nearly as big as you're making it out to be in your head, but this is no place to talk about it." A bigger sigh followed. "I can tell you want an explanation though. If you don't feel like I dragged you out here over nothing, we can stay ten more minutes and leave."

"I'd like that."

"That's what we'll do then."

She was a woman of her word; just as the ten minutes were up and she finished her drink, she stood, reaching for her clutch. She informed everyone in their company they would be leaving and then did the same with whoever managed to catch a glimpse of her. Soon enough, they would all know, news travel fast, so she didn't need to tell each and everyone of them personally. She simply gave her thanks to whoever was listening once more, smiled big and left the venue without ever answering even one single person who asked "aw, why so early?"

During the car ride back, Saitou was extremely silent. Tokio tried to speak, once they were a five good minutes away, but he simply shook his head. "I want to focus on getting us home and I'm upset enough as it is. Don't make it worse." She respected his wishes and didn't say a word, although she was dying to defend herself. It was a good thing Aiko was with her grandmother, Tokio assumed, because they were going to have a very interesting talk and she shouldn't hear it.

The time of reckoning came the moment Hajime loosened his tie, jacket thrown haphazardly on a chair, one hand in his pocket already.

"What the hell Tokio?" There it was. "What. The hell?"

"Listen," she began but he stopped her.

"You listen and you listen good. Either this is all some elaborate plan of yours, and your friend lied for some unfathomable reason, or this is the truth and you lied to me three months ago, point is, you weren't being honest."

"I never lied."

"You hid part of the truth and it's the same."

"No, it isn't."

"Oh bullshit it isn't."

"Hajime, fine, Hajime, listen to me. You asked me, didn't you?" He stopped resisting the idea and stood in front of her resolute. "The truth is, after Tooru was killed, I was in a weird place; once you found out who did it and why and I could finally breath again, everything became too real and confusing. I felt...everything! To be honest, he was ninety eight percent of my impulse control and you just happened to be the first person there. It's...it was a silly infatuation. And, to top it all off, like Ari told you, you paid zero attention to me and it became worse. Like, we met three weeks after the case was closed and I was flirting with you so much—you didn't even notice."

Heh, she'd been right, he hadn't, otherwise the look of question on his face right now would never be so convincing.

"I felt both horrible, because insecurities but also kind of like it was a challenge? You know, like I was challenging myself to make you notice; but you didn't. Never; to this day, you hadn't even realised, hence this came as such a big shock to you."

"Don't try to blame this on me."

"No, no; no such thing. I'm only trying to demonstrate how oblivious you were, that's all. And I, uh, kind of hated that. I kept thinking maybe next time, maybe next time...we didn't meet all that much anyway, so I became a little desperate: I'd complain to people, mop around, nag my mother about it, the usual." She shrugged. "Ari was one of them. But, well, you never noticed; and I moved on."

"You moved on."

"I made the informed decision to stop being interested in a person who doesn't even think of me as a potential romantic partner, not flirt back. Like, I get it now; I didn't then. No matter, I got the concept and moved on...or so I thought."

He took a deep breath, looking at her quite incensed. She looked away. "Meaning?" Impressive; he still sounded composed.

"I was under the impression I had successfully managed to stop thinking about it; turns out I was wrong." His glare intensified. "Look, what do you want me to say? Feelings are hard to go away, turns out; it never was before to be honest, so I was just as surprised as you. I'd really thought I'd moved on but then...yeah, I didn't. It wasn't as silly and insignificant of an infatuation as I'd hoped."

He sighed; yeah, she could understand. "I'm not a masochist; I hoped I was wrong. I mean, let's be honest, I didn't come sit with you because I magically knew about your issue with your daughter and thought how could I best manipulate the situation to better suit me; I did it because I felt like it. But then you said all you did and back at work I had just gone through all of whatever that was and I just, I guess, I cracked. And I suggested what I suggested."

She shrugged, hugging herself. "I was hoping I wouldn't...I am a grown woman, I can control myself, for the most part. I am very good at compartmentalizing in general, I didn't think it would pose a problem." She bit her lip. "Only it did."

"You mean to tell me," he made the realisation, anger swelling his chest "you realised you were still interested in me before you made your ridiculous pitch?"

She froze again, eyes a little wide, lips pursed. "Um...yes...?"

"You mean to tell me, you made a quick introspection, realised you still had feelings for me and instead of telling me, or walking away, or whatever any other person would do," the volume never raised, but the intensity did, scarily so "you decided to make an offer that, should I agree to, would torture you on the daily just because you can compartmentalize?"

Well, when he put it like that it did sound terrible.

"Do you have any idea how manipulative that is? This whole arrangement is ridiculous on the first place, but do you have any idea how—...? Tokio, why are you like this?"

"Like what?"

"Like that! Why can't you be reasonable?"

"I am perfectly reasonable," she countered and she could feel her own temper getting the better of her. Here she was, confessing her honest feelings to him and all he did was accuse her.

"I can't believe you just told me all of that with a straight face, too. People don't react like that."

"Well, I do; and I'm a person, I think, so maybe people do react like that—just not people you know."

"You preferred, no, arranged an entire situation where day in day out you'd have to deal with me in a very personal way, out of what? Spite? An effort to prove to yourself you are disciplined?"

"I wasn't try to get advantage of you, if that's where you're getting at."

"Don't be stupid," he clicked his tongue "this arrangement doesn't hurt me, bottom mind; I get to keep Aiko and with little effort."

She was at a loss. "Then what's your issue? Why are you being like this?"

"The fact you can't tell is all the more alarming! You don't understand? Tokio, do you know why the first thing I established was rules? Because that's what one does to keep things in perspective and under control—"

"—there's no control Hajime!" Her anger had reached the boiling point. "Control is an illusion. You have all these rules that you adhere to so religiously, all in an effort to keep yourself away from anything even remotely resembling human connection and the big great unknown, all in an effort to build an even bigger wall around your heart! I—"

She deflated abruptly; she seemed to regret ever saying that, hand on her forehead, but the damage was done; Hajime was clenching his teeth, thunderous.

"I may have too many rules, but you have none. You entered into an agreement with me under false pretenses, only because you are so used to always getting what you wanted that you didn't even think about the complications this whole thing would bring, even to you. Your first instinct, once realising you still had feelings for me, was to completely disregard it and hope for the best and never tell me anything about it, since you knew; you knew I would say no, if I had known." he shook his head, angry, but still calm and somehow still all the more scary. "You are so used to keeping your private life a secret that once it threatened to come into the light, you had to have ridiculous terms so it would always benefit you—strings most definitely attached in a twisted way."

"O, oh..."

Tears came to her eyes.

"I see." She looked away, blinking as hard as she could; he was taken aback he heard her voice crack a little. "I was wrong; you were right." She nodded her head. "You were right. It was much more complicated than I had anticipated; I feel like shit. And every day I try so hard...I'm sorry; you were right. Is that what you wanted to hear? I have to say though, you must be the first person to ever act like that to hearing that someone likes you..." She licked her lips, feeling all kinds of horrible. "Let's just call it a night, because I can't—..."

She was defeated; welling up, she pointed towards the bedroom, blinking as hard as she could to keep the tears at bay, before she disappeared into the hall and away from him. And this day had gone so well...! Why did this have to happen now? But she would stay composed. She would not cry; she was a grown up. She was a grown up. She was. She...

"Tokio, don't."

He reached out, grabbing her hand. "I didn't...please don't go like that. All I'm trying to do is understand why you would do this." She said nothing, but didn't go through with shrugging him off. "I didn't want to make you cry."

"Right; you only wanted to make me feel as hurt as you were."

"That's actually quite perceptive of you," he mumbled; she snorted, pitifully "but I really don't get it. Why would you put yourself through that? And me with it?"

She tried to speak, but thought better of it.

"What did you expect would happen? You thought you moved on but turns out you didn't and you barely saw me three times in six months." He sighed. "Tokio, I'm a thirty one year old workaholic, with a small child, who's still not over his late wife; I would never even think this vivacious, successful, young woman in front of me is trying to flirt. Ever."

That was it; he had just described himself in the cruelest truth possible, not just for him but for her, too. She refused to cry, shaking the urge away, and put her hands around him, in a tight embrace. He sighed, sagging.

"This is so ridiculous. I wish you'd told me the truth."

She snorted, humour returning a little. "So you could push me away better? I know your reason for agreeing to this is much more important than mine, but in the end, it'll be much easier for you to move on, you know. You will have your daughter, and you have your parents and your friends, to help and support you; and if, once I'm gone, you decide you actually liked not being alone, you can easily find someone to replace me. But I? My loss will not be a human-shaped figure on my bed; it will be everything. How do you replace a—...?"

She stopped, once again not giving in to her tears.

"I have no support system to speak of; it all disappeared the moment Tooru died. Ari, who was the only other person I trusted so much, who was also best friends with him, literally took time off of our friendship when the case was over and the reason he was murdered came to light. She'd said, she'll be a horrible friend once so we can keep being friends in general; because, she'd said, she blamed me for his death. But knew I didn't deserve it, so she walked away, to let me heal. So basically, I'm on my own. It's not the same when you only have your mother to lean on, who will blame you for the dissolving of this engagement on the first place. I..."

She couldn't; not anymore. It was ridiculous. She had to apologise for her affections and she couldn't bear it. Was he right? Yes, she'd been dishonest; and a tad masochistic; and maybe she did do it all to prove a point to herself, about how self-sufficient she was and how she didn't need anyone; how the one person who had ever truly understood her and loved her for what she was and not what he expected her to be, had died. He was her friend but she considered him a brother; he was the best. And he would be never coming back.

It took her exactly one week worth of spending time with Hajime to realise that was the exact same mindset he was in, too, only he hadn't lost a friend. He had lost what he considered his better half. It must have been unbearable...so, once she came to terms with the fact she was still grieving and all that thinking was, was grief, she decided to move on. Take a deep breath and let the chips fall. Maybe help Hajime, too, a little, if possible, that would be grand.

But it was only a bit of hope. She never expected him to care for her, the way she does; the very reason she said nothing. He had so much on his plate, there was no need to put more. But, it seems, it was not in his cards to be at peace.

"Do you know what I really hated, when Yaso passed?" He spoke after a long time of the two of them just standing in the middle of the living room, hands around one another. "The way everyone would so casually tell me, I would move on; life moves on, I'll follow its path. How it looks bad now, but it will get better. And I'll find someone new."

He took a breath. "I was so upset; it'd only been a week, a month, a year...but do you know what I hated even more than that? How I knew they were right. I should go on. For my sake as well as Aiko's. I'd been feeling she needed a mother for a long time, but I just couldn't bring myself to...go through the motions again. Meet someone new; an impossible task. Even those couple of times I did make an effort, it was wasted; I kept comparing them to Yaso, from the very first moment—was I really making an effort? I couldn't tell. I could only tell I was so against the idea, I felt sick. But after all this time, do you know what I absolutely despise?"

She dared look up at him, when he didn't go on; he was looking down at her, expression so serious but restrained at the same time, it hurt her psyche.

"The past few weeks, I can't remember what my mornings with Yaso used to look like." Her heart stopped. "I need to physically stop what I'm doing, focus, and actively try to bring back memories of certain moments, otherwise, all I can see is you."

Maybe crying wasn't so bad. She gave completely up and felt her tears escape as she closed her eyes for a moment.

"All I smell is that ridiculous perfume you wear and I have to stop and think what her favourite food was, whenever you bring me a plate. I..." He stopped, wiping away the moisture on her face. "I fear I am moving on; and it's happening not only out of nowhere, but underhandedly and I am upset. I'm upset because I felt so pathetic and guilty it only took two measly months of being coddled and helped and that was it—and it wasn't even real. I fell for someone and something that had an expiration date; it was all built on a lie and yet I still got attached. Fake feelings and—"

"There's no such thing as fake feelings Hajime," she mumbled, trying not to sniffle too much.

"And yet, I blamed myself for falling for something that wasn't really there. I honestly thought you had no real emotional involvement in this but it turns out, it was for no reason; turns out, you are much more involved than I am and I hate you had to put me through that and that's why I called you manipulative because damn it all, Tokio, I also believe if you had been honest, I would have never agreed and we never would have been here."

Silence settled between them. Both people tried their best to digest the information and reconcile the idea they had of the other person to the truth of their matter. They never moved, though, simply kept staring at one another, with increasing intensity or concentration. Her tears had stopped flowing relatively easily and his ire had subsided. Then, she took a deep breath and extricated herself; taking his hand, she led him to their favourite spot on the couch. He followed without protest.

She sat next to him, hands in her lap. "So, where does that leave us?"

He took her left hand in his and idly started playing with the ring on her finger. He was quiet for a long time. "I want to get to know you," he deliberated. "I want you to be comfortable enough to tell me things on your own. I can see your friend's passing has affected you deeply; I want you to tell me about it, too. But I know so I don't want you to pressure yourself to speak. I want you to tell me when you think you can. And I promise, I too will try to do the same." A small smile tugged on his lips. "I already did, to be honest; but I know that's nearly as much as I would have liked, or you deserve."

"What you're saying is, you want us to start over."

"That's a little impossible, considering we sleep together" they both chuckled "but I would like to take as many things as possible from the beginning."

She hummed. "Let's see then. For the past year, I've been trying to get you to buy me a drink, because I really like you. Let's go out on a real date, once. And even if you can't make it tomorrow, I don't mind; there's always next week."

"...I really can't, tomorrow, but I'll be sure to take you out next Friday. Until then, please cook my meals and take care of my home for me, when I can't; you do it very well."

"Thank you. I enjoy doing it."

"And please, keep being a good role-model for my daughter; she loves you and looks up to you."

"I love her, too; she's a great child. She's been raised with lots of love and care. And I think that's very important. I think it's very admirable, too what you did and still do for her. I can't imagine the sacrifices you had to make."

"Thank you."

He took a deep breath; he released it. Taking so many things off of his chest, caused him to feel lighter and at peace with himself; he could finally breathe right after a long time. Taking his time to look at her, watching her watch him, calmed him. The roaring in his chest had settled and he could hear his thoughts clearly. He could see her clearly, too: all of her strengths, her weaknesses, her quirks, in a much more defined way. As if the fog had lifted, everything had been clearer.

"Hajime," she started, new purpose in her little lift "let's go to sleep. I know it's early, but let's go lie down for a while."

"Right, about that; if you don't want me to—"

"Shut up, idiot." She pulled him to his feet as she rolled her eyes. "I was going to take advantage of the new status quo to earn myself a hug you know. Don't try to mess with my plans."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

She grunted. "You're warm," she said seemingly without cause, but then took his hand, put it over her shoulders and matched her pace to his, as they walked to the bedroom. "Hey, do you want to go pick up Aiko-chan?"

"Let her be; mom'll take care of everything tomorrow morning, too. Besides, she'll be sleeping by now, no need to wake her."

"Suit yourself."

She went to the bathroom first, per usual; when he too came back, she wasn't in bed, just this once, she was still putting her things in their place: jewelry in their boxes, dress and coat on the hanger, her little clutch dangling on one side. She had a routine: the clothes she wore that were still wearable for one more time, she'd put on hangers and let them out of the closet all night. When the night had passed, she'd take them to the other room, with her clothes. Tonight was no exception. Somehow though, seeing her seated in front of the vanity, taking off her earrings, felt a little special.

He stood at the threshold, watching her, for as long as she remained there. "Well?" she probed, nodding towards the bed. "Come in detective."

"...always so demanding," he complained, shaking his head, humour evident. He still did as she asked. He walked to the bed, in fact and lay down first. "Turn the lights off when you're done."

"Did you remember to pick a suit for work?"

He clicked his tongue. "I knew I was forgetting something." But he had gotten comfortable; he wasn't going to stand. "Choose something and leave it there."

She did exactly as he asked, mildly surprised he gave her this much "power"; five minutes later, she was lying there next to him, a little numb but very happy with the turn of events. He had raised his arm so she'd get under it, which she readily did, and she put one hand across his chest.

"Today was wild," she remarked.

"It had a bit of everything."

"About tomorrow," she began "since we can't go anywhere, do you mind if instead I send Aiko off to my mother?" He seemed interested. "You know, take her to the park, walk, and when she's tired I drop her off to grandma san." They both chuckled at the nickname. "I'll cook whatever you want."

"That sounds nice...but I'll definitely be late."

"That's okay; just think about what you want to eat."

"I will." A yawn. "Tomorrow is going to be crazy at work. We're very close to catching our guy, so everyone is on edge."

"Just be careful; and be safe."

"I'll be fine." She pinched his most recent wound; he winced. "I'll be careful."

She smiled, satisfaction evident. Laying her head next to her hand, on his chest, she decompressed. It was going to be a stressful day at work tomorrow for her, too, for no other reason than her father would drive her crazy. She felt a light tugging at her hair and as she looked back, she saw Hajime, deep in thought, playing with them.

"What's on your mind?"

"What my next steps should be; when we're so close to the end, we have to be extra careful and Okita has been playing his part perfectly so far. I have to follow his act equally impeccably."

"I'm sure you will. Just draw out a timetable in your head and put everything in the correct order; if it helps, draw it out in actual paper. That always helped me."

"Yeah, you're not wrong."

"I scarcely am," she gloated, but that irked him enough to pull on her hair, just the once. "Hey...!"

Conversation dwindled after that; lost in thought, both preferred silence to work out their individual problems, ones that wouldn't be solved before morning came, so what was the use worrying about it to that extent? Soon enough, they had started drifting off. At least, they managed a mumbled "goodnight" to one another before completely falling asleep. And for the first time since she came into their home, the first since she was welcomed in their family, she had a dreamless, unbothered sleep. She didn't wake up a single time during the entire night.

She was finally at ease.

---

A/N: You didn't expect that to happen at this point, did you? E he he he...but this is not over yet. I have one more chapter to go. Might break the next one into two, depends on how big they come out (this one came out huuuuge). Hope you liked it, hope you enjoyed it, hope it gave you palpitations. You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear you guys get emotional about my stories. Thank you for reading, thank you for reviewing and thank you for being awesome.

Love you all; hugs and kisses,
FAI~