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Throwing Stones
Chapter Thirty-Five: New Responsibility
Touya had known that something had happened when Hawks suddenly took an unexpected phone call and immediately announced that a new person would be living with them from now on. The hero also warned them not to pressure the new person too much as they were still incredibly young.
The announcement had gotten a mixed reaction from the others. Kenji, Himiko and Atsuhiro were all excited but Tenko and Shuichi weren't all that enthused. Jin had flipped between arguing with himself over it.
Himself on the other hand, well he already knew that something must've happened at the dorm for Kagome to decide to take on an extra responsibility especially considering how fragile her body was at the moment.
His brows furrowed at the thought.
All he wanted to do was go back home and check on her. There was absolutely no way in hell he'd be able to focus while wondering about the details of who and why this new person was moving in.
Touya twitched as the bus finally arrived to take them home. They all boarded the vehicle and the twenty minute drive back felt like an eternity.
He wasn't ashamed to admit that at times like this he hated the fact that he wasn't allowed to have something as simple as a dumb flip phone to call Kagome with. He was concerned that whatever occurred earlier might have put too much strain on her already weak heart.
Before the bus even finished pulling up to the dorm, Touya was out of his seat and disembarking. He pointedly ignored Hawks' cry for him to wait and made a beeline for the front entrance. The latch was undone but he was able to open it easily—a sure sign that Kagome was already anticipating their arrival.
He made his way inside. He heard the sound of Kagome singing a soft lullaby. His walk slowed as he came around the corner and found Kagome on the couch. He couldn't see the new person but his girlfriend had her arms wrapped around them protectively. When he approached, he found a small child tucked securely in her arms. The girl was fast asleep but red streaks stained her cheeks as if she'd spent most of the day crying. Ohagi had curled himself against the girl, butting his head against her cheek and purring away happily.
Kagome took notice of his arrival. She offered him a small smile before pressing her index finger to her lips in a silent request to not disturb the girl.
Touya nodded in return.
He watched as she went back to singing to the child, comforting her into a restful slumber. He wasn't ashamed to admit that the image of his girlfriend being so affectionate towards the child had hit him in a way that he hadn't expected. It'd briefly given him the thought of a future where she would be cradling their own child in her harms, singing them the same tune. He swiftly shook the thought from his mind. No matter how much he desires it, there was no way Kagome's body would hold up. It was better if he simply put it out of his mind.
Touya slid into the seat next to Kagome and dropped his arm over the backrest behind her. The girl stirred before she eventually awoke. Scarlet eyes blinked as she steadily took in her surroundings.
"Finally awake?" Kagome brushed her hand through the girl's hair.
Said child sat up. She blinked in surprise when Ohagi clamored onto her lap and continued to butt his head against her cheek, demanding more attention.
"Eri," The young woman called her name. "I'd like for you to meet the rest of the house." Kagome gestured towards him, "This is Touya."
Eri tucked herself into Kagome's side. She held Ohagi close to her chest as she tried to hide her face from view. It was the sort of reaction he'd expected. Not many people could honestly look at his face and not feel frightened or disgusted by it.
"Touya! Don't run off on us like that!" Kenji complained as the rest of the group caught up to them. "Oh is that the new girl? Why isn't she such a doll?!"
Kenji immediately squealed over the child's cuteness.
Eri winced, tucking her head almost completely into Kagome's side.
"It's alright Eri, this is Kenji." She then encouraged Eri to look up as she introduced everyone else to the child.
"What's a kid doing here?" Tenko asked curiously. His brows were furrowed with concern as he took in the girl's red and swollen cheeks.
"I'll explain after dinner," Kagome responded, a subtle indication that she didn't want to talk about it in front of the girl. "Why don't we help Eri get settled in for now?"
Touya trailed after Kagome as she lifted Eri into her arms.
"Is there an open room for her?" He questioned curiously.
There were plenty of unused rooms in the second floor but how many of them were furnished? Kagome didn't have a lot of money left since she'd already invested most of it into getting this program off the ground. Would she be able to affording buying Eri everything she needed on what little savings she did have left?
His girlfriend smiled at him, "I've furnished every room in this building as a safety precaution. I do have some old clothes in the shrine she might be able to wear for now but Aizawa will be bringing some clothes for her tomorrow when he stops over to help with her quirk training."
Touya quirked a brow at that.
Quirk training?
Just what kind of power did this girl even have?
"Here you go," Kagome led Eri into the room next to his own. "This will be yours from now on. If you ever need me, I'm just at the end of the hall over there." She pointed towards her own door at the far end of the hallway. "Now let's get you settled in. It's getting late."
Touya watched as Kagome tucked Eri into bed and helped Ohagi get comfortable next to the child. The cat purred away happily while Eri slowly drifted off to sleep.
"Has she eaten yet?" He kept his voice low as he asked.
Kagome nodded, "I got her a hearty meal earlier, so she'll be full for a little while."
Touya glanced around the room. It was way too dark for a child to feel safe in. As an older brother himself, he could remember all the times Fuyumi and Natsuo would run to him afraid of the darkness. Their dad didn't believe in 'coddling' them so they were never allowed to have any night lights. So he simply used his fire in the palm of his hand to give his younger siblings the comfort of light before they fell asleep.
He made his way towards the bathroom and flipped on the light. He then closed the door to where it'd just be cracked open. He couldn't do the same for Eri with that damn monitor on his ankle but this should suffice for the time being.
Touya curled his arm around Kagome's waist as he led her towards the elevator.
"Come on," He pulled her flush against his side. "We all want to know more about what happened today."
With a new member came new responsibility. If Kagome was determined to help this child then he would put in the same amount of effort. After all, that's what relationships were about right?
He flashed his girlfriend a small smirk, "We going to give her your surname or mine?"
He was curious.
