Guess which loser is up at 3 a.m. again?

Hello! Because my sleep schedule is beyond saving and I'm more productive in the nighttime, here I am. I'm alive but just barely, running on a whole thing of garlic bread, two donuts and a rather large cup of Ribena *sigh* I need a better diet. Anyway it's updating time again so I hope you're ready for another chapter!

To TheSilverHunt3r: Your question is literally answered after the first few paragraphs so just read for about thirty or so seconds and you'll find what you're looking for.

To agirlwithgoodergrammar: Hell yeah there's gonna be an epilogue! I've already got an idea of what I want to be in it, so I hope that once the main story is over, you can tune in to that last little bit!

To Sayounara Watashi: First of all your username is hilarious because of the irony of the situation, also I can't believe my chapter actually made somebody cry that's-kinda fucked up that I'm celebrating someone else's tears but this is pretty exciting! It means I'm doing my job right! I'm glad I made it emotional enough for you.

AS ANOTHER SIDE-NOTE:

May I just ask politely for some people who review to stop breathing down my neck to update? I'm aware that I can take a bit of time with some chapters and that can be frustrating because I'm not updating when you want me to, but please understand that I have my own life and my own schedule. I am not a mindless robot who writes chapters from time to time. Not to mention I literally started university this year, and there will be times where I'm doing coursework. Please keep this in mind if you're sitting there two weeks after my last update wondering what the hell I'm doing.

Coursework. The answer will always be coursework.

Thank you for understanding.

Anyway, enough ranting. I've been sitting in this chair for way too many hours to finish this update. Without further ado...

Please enjoy!

Chapter 16

It was a Thursday evening and Bokushi had just been called down for dinner. Coming down the stairs and making his way to his chair in the dining room, he sat down and waited to be served.

A few moments after he sat down, his father came into the dining room as well, Bokushi looking up from the table and nodding to the man in greeting.

"Good evening, father."

His father nodded back. "Good evening, Bokushi."

Ever since that conversation Bokushi and his father shared in the garden, he found that it became easier to share conversations with him. Even if they were short, or they weren't as deep and insightful as that one occasion, he still found that his father was actually willing to talk.

Another thing that happened since that conversation was that his father finally started addressing him by name. Bokushi was no longer referred to as 'child' or 'boy'. His father was calling him properly, and the young boy thought that his father was at last beginning to put effort into, well, whatever this relationship was.

Yes, Bokushi and Masaomi were not close by any means—this was the type of relationship Bokushi would have with an acquaintance, not a father. But maybe, just maybe, they were taking steps towards that. Baby steps, but steps all the same. A little at a time was better than nothing.

That time they talked in the garden, they, unfortunately, got cut off when Masaomi had to go to a meeting. Bokushi realized that his father was more of an emotional man than he was ever made out to be. To think that every time the man looked at him, he thought of his mother, someone so precious to him, it made him wonder that day.

"Um…Father…"

"What is it, child?"

"I…"

I…

I was wondering…

If, maybe…

You felt the same way about me…

That was what he would have liked to ask. In such a once-in-a-lifetime moment, he would have gotten his answer—he could have gotten his answer—had he just asked even a few seconds earlier instead of hesitating so much. Now, his nerves wouldn't let him ask again, and God knows when another opportunity like that afternoon would ever turn up. He might never know the answer unless his father had some other tragic backstory about a loved one he would like to share. For now, he'd just stick to their dinner-time talks.

Today's topic of conversation at the dinner table was about his father's business. Well, it was more of Bokushi listening to his father complain about several of his underlings and business partners (Bokushi came to realize that one way or another, every conversation always ended up with his father complaining about someone) and whatever faults he found with what they were doing. It could be pretty amusing at times, and Bokushi realized that whenever he let his father vent out his endless frustration at whichever unsuspecting victim he wanted, it actually made him easier to approach afterward.

He tended to imagine his father as a ferocious beast at times. On some days, he should be approached with caution, and one single slip-up could cost you your life. But, if the beast is appeased, then he becomes docile and more likely to comply with Bokushi's requests. Whenever his father went on tirades like these, Bokushi always let him, because it decreased his father's stress levels. And when his father's stress levels were down, it benefited everyone.

On this night, the conversation took a rather interesting turn. It happened so suddenly after their previous conversation had ended, and it would be an understatement to say that he was taken off guard.

"Bokushi, tell me about this Miyoko girl that you are acquainted with."

Bokushi nearly inhaled his water.

Why? Why does he want to know all of a sudden? Bokushi thought to himself.

It wasn't like his father ever cared before about who he associated with, as long as it didn't affect his grades, so why was he asking now? Ever since he came back home, his father just kept surprising him one day after another. This was not good for his blood pressure.

"May I ask why it is you want to know about her?" he asked, putting his glass on the table. He observed those mysterious golden eyes of his father flash with contemplation.

"I suppose you could say I was curious."

Bokushi quirked a brow. "Curious…?"

"Indeed." Masaomi folded his arms on the table. "She must be quite the interesting character since you are always willing to give her your time."

Well, he isn't wrong, the boy mused.

Whether it was him or Seijuro, any one person that they deemed a nuisance would not be given the time of day. That was what it was like with any person, actually. Everyone always had at least one person whom they would not tolerate in any situation. The only difference was that all members of the Akashi family tended to have inhumanly high standards for the people they surrounded themselves with. Well, it was much less apparent in the newer generation since Seijuro didn't favor such prim and perfect company, but similar rules still applied. Only the people who held the most sentimental value had the pleasure of being friends with Seijuro or Bokushi. Anyone else was a mere stranger in their eyes.

Bokushi gazed off to the side and nodded. "Yes," he said carefully. "She is quite the interesting character…"

He saw his father nod, but he continued to sit in silence, and so Bokushi took that as a sign that he wanted him to keep going.

"She's very kind-hearted, I suppose… and also very enthusiastic, on many occasions…"

Why wasn't his father saying anything? Just having him explain why he enjoyed Miyoko's company was way more awkward than he thought it would be, and Bokushi found himself periodically pausing, hesitant to keep talking, but forcing himself to continue while his father was still listening.

"She is always eager to learn new things. However, she is also eager to teach me things as well. It is a bit endearing in a way…" He really didn't need to mention that last part, and he was starting to regret it, but it's already slipped out of his mouth and he can't backtrack anymore. He hurriedly cleared his throat and tried to steer his answer back.

"Anyway, I enjoy spending time with her, and it most definitely keeps me occupied. I do frequent their house often, perhaps three maybe four times a week. It's more entertaining than sitting around in the library. Not that the books aren't engaging—but the same pattern can get tiring. Miyoko was very interested in the kinds of books I read, though, but they're probably too complex for her. After all, she only started proper school this year so she's just barely started to learn her first-ever set of kanji. Perhaps I should visit more often to teach her. Although I suppose if I did that it wouldn't be easy on Shimizu-san…"

Where was this conversation even going? He had no idea. At some point, this all became incessant rambling. He could just stop talking and find a better way to conclude his reasoning but with his father staring at him like that he honestly had no idea what to do. What was the question again?

Right when he was about to attempt to change the subject altogether, he perked up when he heard the phone ring in the other room. After two rings, he heard a deep, mature voice answer the phone which he recognized as the butler's. There was a short exchange of words before Bokushi heard a brief "I will go and get him, please hold on for a moment" and brisk but quiet footsteps approached the dining area. They weren't going toward his father like Bokushi expected, they were toward him.

The butler in front of him bowed politely. "Young Master," he began. "If you are finished, then there is a phone call for you. Your friend."

He was saved!

Bokushi nodded fervently. "I see. I will answer it immediately."

Bokushi jumped off the chair and politely excused himself from the table (It was supposed to be the other way around, wasn't it? Oh well.) before padding off to the phone and answering it.

Masaomi turned to the butler. "Abe-san. Would that be the younger sister of Midorima calling?"

The elderly man turned around. "Yes, Akashi-sama," he answered. "She has informed me that her fever has passed, and so she felt it imperative to put Young Master on the phone."

The butler seemed quite amused, looking at his face and the tone of his voice. It was to be expected, Masaomi knew, for that was how all the staff were around children. Even when Seijuro was a child, there were times when they would fawn over his son whenever he did or said something. Masaomi admitted, yes, that back in those days he could be amused by his son at random times when he did something that marginally surprised him, but it was only for rare and fleeting moments, and there was never usually anything to fuss over too much. One could only imagine what it would be like if Miyoko actually came over.

If Miyoko came over…

Hmm…

Masaomi excused himself from the table as well.

"I'm sure your fever wasn't that high, Miyoko. Five million degrees is a bit of an exaggeration, don't you think?"

Bokushi was still on the phone with his friend, discussing some trivial topics.

Miyoko huffed on the other line. "It was super high!" she told him. "I was sick for four whole days! Do you know how long four days are?"

"Four days long, I'm guessing," he replied drily. "Anyway, I hope you were able to catch up on whatever lessons you missed in school."

"Onii-chan would chew my head off if I didn't. When it comes to school, he nags me even more than my mommy."

Bokushi chuckled when he heard an irritated "Oi" come from Midorima in the background.

"Glad to know he's keeping track of your progress," he replied. "At least tomorrow is Friday, so you can have the whole weekend to relax. Being sick can always be stressful."

"You should come over tomorrow! You can teach me some more basketball!"

Bokushi smiled. "Tomorrow?" he said. "If that is what you would like, then just tell me when I should come over and I will stop by."

In the midst of their conversation, Bokushi heard footsteps and turned to see his father coming over to the phone and frowned.

What was his father coming over to the phone for? What should he do? Does he keep talking or does he address his father? He doesn't even know at this point. He just kept staring at his father, blocking out the sound of Miyoko's voice so he could pay attention to what his father was going to do. He decided to go for broke and address him.

"Yes, father?" He held a hand over the speaker of the phone. "Did you want me to…"

He trailed off when he felt something slip out of his grasp, and he looked down at his hands, only to realize that he wasn't even holding the phone anymore. His eyes widened in surprise, looking up at his father and praying that he wouldn't see what he was desperately hoping against. Lo and behold, his father was holding the phone, and Bokushi was more horrified than ever.

"Midorima Miyoko, I presume? Good evening, this is Bokushi's father."

"FATHER, WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING?" was what Bokushi would like to have said at this point, but he couldn't and settled for screaming internally while he stood there, tongue-tied at the concept of his father talking to Miyoko.

His emotions were all over the place at the moment, he could barely identify what he was feeling. What was it? Was it fear? Was it embarrassment? No, this was far beyond embarrassment. This was pure mortification.

The phone wasn't on speaker, so he couldn't properly make out what his friend was saying on the other line, all he could hear was that Miyoko sounded excited to talk to his father which she absolutely shouldn't be because she had no idea what she was getting herself into and oh my God what was his father even going to say to her—

"Yes, yes, it is a pleasure. Bokushi has told me a bit about you in fact. I overheard your conversation just now—" ("You mean eavesdropped", Bokushi wanted to point out) "And I heard that he was planning to pay you a visit tomorrow."

Bokushi froze. What did it matter to his father? What he did at Midorima's house and when he goes there shouldn't concern him, so why was he even bringing it up?

A feeling of dread crept over him… His father wasn't planning on canceling it, was he? No, that couldn't be possible, there was no reason for him to cancel. But still, Bokushi was suspicious of what he was going to say. If his father dared not let him go tomorrow, he swore he would lock himself in his room for the whole day.

He narrowed his eyes as he heard some form of agreement from Miyoko on the other line, completely silent to hear what his father was going to say, expecting something along the lines of 'I'm sorry but Bokushi will not be able to make it' with some generic excuse following after. What he was not expecting, however, were the words that his father had actually said in response.

"Would you like to visit our home instead?"

Bokushi was five hundred percent certain that his brain just short-circuited. Had his father completely lost his mind?!

Now he could clearly hear Miyoko from where he was standing because she was now shouting in glee at the prospect of visiting Bokushi this time around instead of him visiting their house.

He inwardly cursed. Great, she's already excited.

He wasn't going to intervene before, but he most certainly was now. He was staring at his father, the look on his face screaming 'Hang up the phone, now!'. His father stared back, then turned away with a disinterested expression, going back to the phone call.

"If you so wished, you may even stay for the weekend."

NO, NO, NO, THAT'S ENOUGH, FATHER.

Bokushi was now trying to grab the phone from him because Miyoko was voicing her exclamations on the other line even louder than before, and Bokushi was having a sinking feeling that it was too late for him. Unfortunately for this five-year-old boy, he was still three and a half feet tall, so attempting to take the phone off a six-foot-tall man was out of the question. And his father still continued the call.

"Yes, would you please put one of your parents on the phone? I would like to arrange the details with them."

If word reached her parents, then Bokushi wouldn't be able to stop it. He threw away whatever dignity he had left and resorted to jumping to grab the phone, but his father just effortlessly dodged his attempts and began speaking with Midorima's mother.

"Of course. It would not be any trouble at all, Midorima-san. I assure you there is plenty of room for her."

God how Bokushi wanted to slam his head into the table. Or perhaps he could just keep pinching himself to wake up from this absurd nightmare. Miyoko, here, in his house, under the scrutinizing gaze of his father? The thought of it sent chills down his spine. If people thought Bokushi was intimidating enough, then they would not be ready to meet his father. He would probably assess her for the entire duration of the weekend with those critical eyes of his like he was analyzing a biological specimen of some sort. Miyoko was the last person he wanted to go through that.

"I am sure that she is excited. We will be looking forward to seeing her tomorrow."

Bokushi whipped his head up to his father to see that, much to his dismay, Midorima's mother had agreed and they had everything set. It was already too late, and he was in the process of ending the call.

"Yes, until tomorrow then. Goodbye."

He jolted. "No, wait—"

He hung up the phone before Bokushi even had a say. As for Bokushi, well, he was looking at the phone as if his life was about to end. He held his head in his hands and groaned in despair.

"Father…" He took a very deep breath and exhaled sharply, glaring up at the man in question. "What have you done?"

"Exactly what it looked like," Masaomi replied without missing a beat. "I was curious to meet this girl you have befriended."

"Yes—but why bring her here?" That question almost left his mouth. Almost. But he didn't ask. His mind was in shambles at the moment, just thinking about her staying here for an entire weekend. While two and a half days didn't seem like much to anyone else, it most certainly did when it came to this particular situation.

Why did he disapprove of this so much, anyway? It wasn't embarrassment or humiliation or anything. But still, he was feeling something and he didn't know what it was. All he could do was nod, forcing himself to come to terms with this arrangement.

"If…If you say so…"

"Good then."

His father didn't even wait to see if Bokushi had anything else left to say. He began walking back to the dining room, leaving the young redheaded boy to stare at his disappearing figure, still in this trance of his. It was only after a few moments that he finally shook himself out of it.

This was insane. Absolutely insane. His mind could barely function as he had no idea what to do. As soon as his father was out of earshot, Bokushi, out of pure instinct, grabbed the phone one more time and hurriedly dialed a number…

~O~

Seijuro was in his room, in the process of wrapping up some homework when his phone began to ring. Looking down at the ringing phone on his desk, he picked it up and eyed the Caller ID. It was his house number.

He got quite a lot of calls from home these days. It was probably Bokushi, anyway. So, he answered it on the third ring and put the phone up to his ear.

"Hello?"

"I think our father is planning the murder of a five-year-old girl."

Well. That was unexpected.

"As usual, your topic starters never fail to surprise me, Bokushi." Normal people would probably be concerned if someone told them that their own father was planning to kill someone, but this was Bokushi he was talking to and Bokushi was a very dramatic person. "What has he done this time?"

"Miyoko is coming over to our house for the weekend."

"…I don't think I understand how this all connects." Seijuro wasn't necessarily getting the logic on how a simple playdate could link in with homicide but, well, a lot of people wouldn't. "What does this have to do with father?"

"Seijuro-nii. Father is the one who invited her."

Seijuro furrowed his eyebrows. "He did?"

"Exactly my point," Bokushi said to him, seemingly thankful that someone else shared his surprise. "It came out of nowhere as well. I was talking to Miyoko on the phone and he just took the phone from my hands and suggested that she come here instead. I don't even know why."

Now, this changed things. He thought that his father simply approved of this arrangement that Bokushi had made. He didn't think he was the one who did it himself. Now he was really curious.

Self-control be damned, Seijuro just had to know the reason behind this.

"Bokushi," he said to the boy. "Do you think you can get father on the phone?"

His younger brother let out a small noise of confusion before hesitantly agreeing.

"I suppose I could… Please wait a moment."

There was a click, signifying that he had put the phone down and Seijuro heard small footsteps hurriedly leave the vicinity. Then there were a few distant verbal exchanges, and moments later more footsteps came back, and the phone was picked up again.

"Seijuro-nii, I'm putting this on speaker."

"Alright…? If you want to…" He didn't know why that was necessary, but Bokushi was not about to tell him that he was only putting it on speaker because he didn't want to be left out of the loop (which was something he probably should have done when his father took the phone from him). Never mind. He just shrugged and went along with it. Their father finally spoke on the other line.

"Yes?"

"Good evening, father," Seijuro greeted him. "How has your week been?"

"Fine, I suppose. We have just finished dinner."

"I see." How was he to approach this topic? He wasn't quite sure what the deal was with their father's attitude at the moment towards Bokushi, or him, or anyone for that matter. Maybe he should just get to the point. "So, I hear the house is expecting company tomorrow."

"We are indeed," their father answered. "Bokushi's friend, Miyoko, will be coming to stay over."

"Did Bokushi invite her?" Seijuro already knew the answer was no, but he wanted to see what his father would say in response. Bokushi must have noticed this as well and refrained from correcting him, understanding what Seijuro was trying to do.

"I did, in fact, invite her over," their father said. "I had arranged everything with her parents."

Well, Seijuro figured he'd say as much, but he wasn't really expecting him to be that honest with his answer. Although, in all fairness, he didn't even know what he was expecting.

"May I ask what brought up the suggestion?"

Unbeknownst to Seijuro, on the other line, Bokushi was looking expectantly up at their father, anticipating his answer with bated breath.

"I admittedly wanted to see what she was like," their father explained. "And it would make perfect sense for her to come here. Shimizu-san has had to do many back-and-forths to take Bokushi to and from their house as well, so by doing this he would not need to drive anywhere."

Well, when he put it like that, it made it very hard for Seijuro to side with Bokushi, because if there was one thing he knew about their father, he knew how to make a point.

Seijuro felt his breath hitch, audibly wavering because he agreed with their father's reasoning, but remembered that he was supposed to be backing Bokushi up.

Somehow, he could not decide what to do.

"Uh-huh…" With just that one utterance he probably dropped a level in formality, but that was honestly the best response he could come up with at the moment. Bokushi must have recognized the indecisiveness in his response and decided to speak up as well.

"Seijuro-nii."

Seijuro recognized his tone. It was the tone that he sometimes used to slacking teammates during basketball practice. As in the tone of voice he used when he was about to tell someone to get their act together. He was starting to think that Bokushi was becoming agitated.

Well, unfortunately, Seijuro would have to become the parental figure this time around.

He took a deep breath, exhaled, and resigned to his fate.

Forgive me this once, Bokushi.

"I think it might be a nice idea, actually," Seijuro finally says after several seconds of contemplation (Several seconds too many, he thought to himself). "You do go to her house often, Bokushi. It would only be common courtesy to invite her to yours."

Bokushi seemed scandalized by the comment. "I know what common courtesy is," he shoots back. "It's just…"

"Just what?" Seijuro asked him. "Are you embarrassed to have her over?"

"No," Bokushi grinds out. He was an Akashi, and embarrassment wasn't in their spectrum of emotions... or at least that was what he was trying to convince himself of. "I'm not embarrassed to invite her over."

"Then what might you be feeling?"

"I don't know" Bokushi wanted to respond but decided against it. Perhaps this conversation would have gone differently, had their father not been in the room because at the moment Bokushi didn't know what to say. For starters, he wasn't going to start talking about what he 'might be feeling' in front of their father. If he was going to feel embarrassed over anything tonight, that would be it. And even if he wanted to, again, he didn't know. He was still trying to get accustomed to feeling emotions, so sorting them out was completely out of the question. Because of this, he was left floundering for words.

"I…it's…ugh." This was so unfair…

Ah. I flustered him. Seijuro realized he probably shouldn't have asked that as he continued to listen to Bokushi struggle to produce a coherent sentence.

"Never mind, you don't have to answer," he managed to add, effectively silencing his younger brother. "I do hope it goes well for you, though, Bokushi. I'll call tomorrow to check up on things. Or Skype, perhaps—"

"Yes." Bokushi would later think to himself that could have sounded a little less desperate, but whatever. "We could Skype."

"If that is what you would like, then I will allow him to borrow my laptop," his father offered. "You will have to tell me ahead of time when you plan on using it, however."

"Thank you, father. After dinnertime would be good. Anyway, I should be going now, I still have a few things left to do. I'll be available to talk around the evening, Bokushi."

"Okay." Was Bokushi's voice suddenly lighter? Maybe that was Seijuro's imagination. "I will talk to you tomorrow… and you can say hi to Miyoko."

Ah. Right. That was still a thing. And it was still happening. Well, one more person to chat with over Skype seemed nice.

"Of course," Seijuro said. "I'll be looking forward to it. Goodnight, father. Goodnight, Bokushi."

"Goodnight, Seijuro-nii."

"Yes. Goodnight."

The call ended and Seijuro locked his phone before putting it down. As he began to start organizing his things and move on to his next assignment, he realized that this was actually the first conversation with his father that he didn't actually hate. He considered this for a moment, and then slowly but surely, a small grin slipped onto his face.

Interesting…

~O~

Bokushi lay in his bed after bathing and slipping into his pajamas, staring at the ceiling above him once he had turned off his lights.

He honestly couldn't believe that Miyoko was going to actually come to their house tomorrow. He still had mixed feelings about that, and he didn't quite know what to do. And Seijuro (that traitor) had still sided with their father in the end.

He turned over on his side and stared at Yuki, who was sitting there complacently, watching his owner with those black beaded eyes. Bokushi absentmindedly patted the stuffed horse once on its head before sighing, thinking back to the phone conversation some hours ago.

"You do go to her house often, Bokushi. It would only be common courtesy to invite her to yours."

"I know what common courtesy is. It's just…"

It's just that father is acting weird and I don't know whether or not I will be able to deal with that.

His father must have been in some sort of weird transitioning phase that he wasn't completely aware of, half of what he used to be and the other half—well—Bokushi could only imagine. He wished that it didn't feel so awkward, though.

He wasn't used to his father talking to him so much, or being more lenient, or humoring his requests, or doing things like voluntarily suggesting that Bokushi invite his friends over and then proceeding to arrange the details himself.

At the same time, it wasn't like he wanted his father to go back to how he was before. By all means, that part of him could stay in the past where it belonged. But seeing the way he interacts with both of them now… it just felt weird. Bokushi sighed and decided to drop the matter, letting his eyes fall shut to let sleep overtake him.

Well, I guess I'll have to get used to weird.

What is going to become of the fated play-date? Well you're just gonna have to stay tuned, aren't you? I'm going to bed now and hopefully this should leave your curiosity piqued until Chapter 17. But be ready; fluffiness is sure to ensue! So until my next update, you know what to do...

Read and review please!