Chapter 45: Sow the Wind…
By Monday morning, Yasui felt a weight lift off his chest. Miss Diana had finally replied to him and explained that she had been suffering some serious after effects of her injury and was still not back to full strength. However, she said not for him to worry and that she'd let him know when she was feeling well enough for them to get together. While not exactly what he wanted to hear, Yasui was at least relieved that she was seemingly okay and talking to him again.
His day went smoothly, and Cooking Club was fun and accident free. It was nice to just feel a bit more normal again. With how crazy things had gotten recently, Yasui had started to feel like he was losing himself and acting less and less how he wanted to.
This positive energy continued into Tuesday, leaving Yasui in a particularly good mood as he worked his shift at Cafe Lapin. It was a little after six o'clock when the door opened and Yasui gave his usual greeting.
"Good evening, and welcome to Cafe Lapin!"
Through the doors walked a beautiful female fox. She was wearing a fashionable outfit like a high profile businesswoman would and high heels. On her face rested a pair of large black sunglasses that gave her a cool, anonymous vibe. Yasui smiled as she approached the counter.
"What can I get for you today, Ma'am?"
The fox rested one hand on her hip and looked over the menu from behind her mirrored glasses. Once she had made up her mind, she turned her face back to Yasui.
"I'll take a latte with cinnamon. Medium."
Yasui froze. That voice was so familiar. He'd met this lady before, but where? Shaking himself out of it, Yasui rang up her order. Once she had paid, Yasui spoke as an afterthought.
"Uh, I'll bring your order to you once it's ready. Please, sit back and relax."
As she walked away, Yasui's feeling of deja-vous grew stronger. He had met her before, but when and where? Yasui approached Mimi with the order and spoke quietly as she made it.
"That fox lady, has she been here before?"
"Nope." Was Mimi's monotone reply. Yasui frowned and stuck his hands in his pockets.
"I swear, I know her. I just don't know from where."
Mimi shrugged and gave Yasui the beverage once it was done. As Yasui walked over to the corner table she had chosen, he carefully scrutinized the female. She was clearly in her thirties or so, maybe a little younger. But definitely not middle aged. She was very pretty, but had a somewhat aloof posture to her that spoke of authority. Maybe someone from Diana's company?
Yasui watched as the mysterious fox slipped one shoe off and stretched her heel. A little pit formed in his stomach as he immediately remembered that appendage. Yasui had gotten a very intimate view of that foot before, earlier this year. Well, technically last year. If he had to guess, the sunglasses hid a damaged eye too. As Yasui set down the drink, he nodded and slowly moved back a bit. He watched the fox for confirmation of his growing suspicion. The fox took a drink before apparently noticing Yasui's continued presence.
"Can I help you?"
Yasui moved forward and sat down across from her where he could speak quietly without anyone knowing or overhearing.
"Are you… Miss Ten?"
The fox went still as she raised her cup to her lips for a brief moment before carefully setting it down again. Those mirrored eyes turned to him as Yasui whispered.
"You know, of the Inarigumi? I'm sure of it! I—"
Yasui was interrupted as a sudden pressure against his crotch made him choke on the discomfort. He felt Ten adjust her shoe to be pressing down on his family jewels. Without looking phased in the slightest, Ten spoke quietly and nonchalantly.
"Make a scene, or do anything I don't like and I'll pop your little balls like grapes. Who are you, and how do you know me? Because I definitely don't know you."
Yasui winced and doubled over a bit, trying to alleviate the pressure.
"It's me! Yasui!" He said in a hoarse whisper. "From this winter! Before Rexmas! The little fox with the eyepatch! I had a growth spurt!"
Ten scoffed.
"Really? You look completely different."
"Turns out I'm only half fox." Yasui moaned. "Which sucked. Please, Miss Ten, stop crushing my nuts!"
Ten's face was stony and she didn't seem to have heard what Yasui said. If Yasui wasn't currently occupied with other things, he might have noticed her hand tremble as she set down her cup. Ten shook herself and quickly removed her foot from its position and Yasui grit his teeth while he gingerly adjusted his abused bits. He was glad he was sitting. As Yasui tended to his injuries, Ten crossed her arms and stared at him from behind her opaque glasses.
"I-I have to say… Yasui, right? I wasn't expecting to ever see you again. I'm surprised you recognized me in this outfit. You're the first."
Yasui did his best to lower his voice back down an octave as he replied.
"I recognized… your voice. And… your feet when you took your shoe off. You did force me to get very… familiar with them."
Ten slowly picked up her cup and sipped her coffee while looking away.
"That's right. I'd forgotten most of our encounter…. It seems you kicked your pill problem after all."
Yasui nodded and shuddered. He couldn't take any pills without immediately remembering tonguing the crime boss's feet. It made it difficult to take the multivitamin Gouhin had put him on. Ten either ignored or didn't notice Yasui's reaction as she sat forward a bit, rapidly changing the topic.
"You might be interested to know I learned the backstory of that coin you had."
"You did?!" Yasui eagerly sat forward as well. "What is it?"
Ten adjusted her glasses and examined her claws.
"Well, apparently this Bolboi individual was a pharmacist here decades ago. Infections and disease were common in the Back Alley at that time, and he'd give life saving medication to those who couldn't pay without charging. As such, he was given that Marker as a sign of gratitude when he saved a member of Management's life. Of course, they phased those old things out ages ago. Back then much of the underbelly of the city was run by the Yakuza, before the police dismantled much of their operations about two decades ago."
Yasui looked down at the odd coin as he pulled it out of the pocket where he always kept it, as a good luck charm. It was funny, he never really thought about the coin much, but he still would slip it into his pocket each day. As Ten returned to her drink, Yasui asked the question which was eating at him.
"Uh, Miss Ten? What are you doing here?"
The fox idly smoothed her fur.
"I like to get away from my usual locale every once in a while. Go somewhere I can just blend in and enjoy some peace and quiet. So I visit random cafes around the city, looking for a new favorite one. Of course, I'll never be able to come back here. Because you recognized me."
Yasui frowned.
"Well, I won't tell anyone. Your secret is safe with me. And if anyone did ask I could throw them off your trail! I've gotten better at lying."
"…Really?" Ten quietly murmured. "And why would you do something like that?"
Yasui frowned at himself. It was hard to explain why, but it was something he still felt from their first encounter.
"I don't know why, but there's just… something about you that I like. Even after all the stuff that happened, which actually I'm very grateful for because of how bad things were then, I just still… really like you. It's hard to explain."
Ten dried her lips with a napkin and examined her mostly empty cup of coffee. After a while she sniffed.
"That's just silly. There's no reason for you to, it's not like we're friends or have any sort of connection."
Yasui shrugged and went to stand, taking that as a cool dismissal. However, Ten elegantly caught the tip of his tail between two fingers.
"But… perhaps I could come back sometime. Just to humor you of course. And to make sure you don't rat me out."
"I'd like that." Yasui said as he smiled. "And I'll be sure to keep on my best behavior."
Yasui then headed back towards the counter where Mimi was watching with a bored look. As Yasui got back behind the counter, Mimi dryly spoke.
"What was that about?"
"Oh, just chatting." Yasui hurriedly replied. Mimi stared at him before rolling her eyes and muttering a quiet "whatever" under her breath. But other than Ten's sudden visit, Yasui's shift was quiet and uneventful. It was on Wednesday that things began to get interesting.
Wednesday morning, as Yasui was getting breakfast with Shinrai, he noticed that everyone was a bit more animated and talkative than usual. As Yasui ate with his best friend, he asked him what was going on. Shinrai glanced around before shrugging.
"Oh, next Wednesday is Valentine's Day. So everyone is gossiping about who's going to get what for who."
Yasui tilted his head.
"Valentine's Day? I've heard about it, but never actually took part in it. My old school didn't really care about it. So what do you guys typically do here in the city?"
Shinrai chewed his toast with peanut butter and spoke through a mouthful.
"Welp, on the fourteenth of February girls will get gifts for guys they like. Then on March fourteenth boys do the same. So of course girls go wild and get all giggly over who's getting gifts. It's a bit stupid if you ask me."
Yasui nodded before returning to his eggs. Nothing to worry about on his end. Yasui doubted if any girls particularly cared to give him gifts. As such, Yasui remained oblivious to a conversation going on during Cooking Club that afternoon. As Yasui was busy in the pantry, Yufine huddled together with Chaussette and Maihime to excitedly gossip.
"Okay, gals!" Yufine enthusiastically whispered. "Are you getting anyone anything?"
Maihime shook her head.
"No. Boys are dumb. Besides, I like a boy with a cute butt, and nobody at this school has a nice juicy rear."
Yufine giggled and jerked her chin towards where Baz was carefully cleaning the countertop. He had accidentally smashed a few eggs and was trying to make up for it.
"What about Baz? He has a pretty big butt."
Maihime turned a skeptical eye to the polar bear and clicked her tongue.
"You know, when he's bent over like that you can actually get a nice look at his ass. It's very round and bouncy looking. I'd never noticed that before. Interesting. Are you giving anyone a gift, Yufine?"
Yufine giggled.
"Well, there's this one guy I might give something to. The cutest little beagle has started sitting next to me in my Math class, and I could just scoop him up and squeeze him forever!"
It was then that Yufine turned her gaze to Chaussette.
"What about you, Chaussette? Got anyone special in mind?"
Chaussette shyly shrank away.
"Oh… well… I don't know."
"Oooooh!" Yufine giggled. "That means you do have someone in mind! C'mon, tell us! We can keep a secret!"
Chaussette glanced towards where Yasui was and flicked her tongue.
"Well… I wasss thinking about maybe doing ssssomething for Yassssui. A-assss a friend of coursssse! Nothing major!"
Yufine clasped her hands and beamed at the snake.
"Daw, that's so sweet! What do you have in mind?"
Chaussette hung her head and wriggled a bit.
"Well… maybe I could make him ssssomething nice. Like cookiesss or whatever."
As Yufine giggled again, Maihime tilted her head.
"What's going on with you, Chaussette? You look different and you're all squirmy."
Chaussette grew a mortified look and drew back a bit.
"Ah! It'sssss nothing! I'm okay! Jusssst feeling a bit nervoussss."
Yufine and Maihime seemed satisfied at that and moved on, but Chaussette set her jaw and tried not to writhe anymore. It was embarrassing, but she was due to shed her skin. It was hard to explain what it felt like. It wasn't an itch per-say, more like an unpleasant tightness. Like wearing clothes that were way too tight and made moving uncomfortable. And even worse, it made her eyesight blurry because the scales over her eyes were cloudy. Once club was over she would return to her room and begin the slow, arduous, and icky process of peeling her dead scales off.
It was while Chaussette and Yasui were cleaning up after the club meeting that he really noticed something was bothering Chaussette. Concerned, he stopped beside her as she put utensils away.
"Hey, Chaussette? You okay? You seem a bit uncomfortable."
Chaussette nodded but wouldn't look Yasui in the eyes.
"I'm okay. Jusssst… a little tired isssss all."
Yasui frowned and was about to walk away when he noticed what he thought was a cut on her back.
"Oh geez!" Yasui gasped. "Are you okay? How did you cut yourself?"
Chaussette flinched and hurriedly looked back to where a large flap of skin had torn and was peeling away. She felt mortified that Yasui had seen that.
"Ah! It'ssss nothing! Pleassssse ignore that!"
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?"
"No! It'ssss jusssst… a sssssnake thing."
Yasui crossed his arms.
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
"No! I'm jussssst sssshedding! It'ssss nasty and embarrasssssing and I really didn't want anyone to sssssee."
Yasui nodded.
"Alright, I don't mean to pry. If you want to leave now I can finish cleaning up and you can go take care of it."
Chaussette sighed and hung her head.
"It doessssn't matter. It'll take me a while to completely ssshed. I have a patch of sssssandpaper attached to the possst of my bed to help me ssssscrape the old ssssscales off. It'sssss a long processssss."
Yasui frowned.
"Are you sure you don't want any help? I'd imagine it would be easier if I just peeled your old scales off with my claws."
"But it'sssss nassssty!" Chaussette groaned. "I don't want you to have to deal with that!"
Yasui laughed and leaned down to her level.
"It's no more gross than all the fur I shed everywhere. Please let me help. I promise I won't mind."
Chaussette looked abashedly down before nodding.
"Okay, but only becausssse it'ssss you."
Yasui sat cross legged on the floor and watched Chaussette intently.
"Just tell me what to do."
"Well." Chaussette murmured. "If you want to gently sssscratch my back until the sssscalesss begin to peel away that would help get thingssss going."
Yasui nodded and carefully began scratching the snake's back. Sure enough, patches of translucent scales began to peel off under his fingers. Carefully, Yasui pinched the shedding scales and peeled them away. Chaussette shuddered and sighed as a massive patch of dead scales pulled off her body.
"Oh, that feelssss sssssso much better."
"What does it feel like to need to shed your skin?" Yasui asked. Chaussette hummed a bit before squirming as Yasui peeled another section of scale off.
"Well, my whole body feelsss too tight. And alsssso like my ssscales will rip apart if I breathe too deeply. Not very fun."
Yasui nodded as he continued gently peeling snakeskin away. It was oddly satisfying if he was being honest, sort of like popping bubble wrap. Eventually, Chaussette nervously stammered.
"Y-you know, I've been thinking. I… really missss the old dayssss of the Cooking Club. When it wassss jusssst the two of ussss. Not that I don't like everyone who joined, but I misssss how much fun we usssed to have together."
Yasui grinned.
"I know, I feel the same way."
"You do?!" Chaussette eagerly replied. Yasui laughed.
"Yeah, everything was so much more simple back then. We met when we wanted to and did whatever we felt like. No voting on what to do when or scheduling things, and no big messes because people aren't following directions. We just hung out, made snacks, and goofed off. Things have definitely gotten more serious with the club these days."
Chaussette nodded.
"It'ssss not a bad thing, but it issss a little lessss fun."
Yasui leaned back against the wall and smiled fondly as he recalled that summer.
"Remember our food stall at the Festival of the Meteor? We were so busy I thought we'd never be able to catch a break!"
"And then we ran out of food! And we got thosssse hatsss and apronsss!"
Yasui rubbed his neck and gently bumped Chaussette with his elbow.
"It was only a few months ago, but it feels like ages. So much has changed since then, myself included. Gosh, I barely recognize myself anymore. I look different, act different, heck I even talk different!"
"You've definitely grown up a lot." Chaussette said with a flick of her tongue. "You're much more mature and confident now. You were sssso nervousss back then, and you overthought everything. You wanted everyone to like you ssssso much that you drove yoursssself crazy."
Yasui snorted and shrugged.
"You've got a point."
They fell silent as Yasui removed the last of the dead scales. As he threw the pale strips of material away, he sighed and looked out the window. He suddenly felt… sad. Time was just such a fickle thing. It seemed like it moved slowly until you looked back and realized how much you miss everything you knew before. And then there was how all those changes crept up on you. Little at first, but slowly getting more and more drastic. As he stared out the window, Yasui heard Chaussette sigh.
"I missss thisss sssso much. Jusssst hanging around talking with you. We never talk anymore, except for club busssinesssss."
Yasui paused as he heard that. Thinking about it, she was right. They never just hung out anymore.
(Some friend I am.)
"You're right. We should hang out more. Want to grab dinner with me after we're done here? We can catch up a bit!"
"Really? You mean it?"
Yasui nodded.
"Of course! We are friends after all. I should have made more of an effort to keep in touch. So if you want to do stuff together, I'm happy to make some time. Sound good?"
Chaussette nodded happily.
"I'd like that a lot. I… don't have many friendssss. Only you, actually. And the others in the club, but we don't really sssspend time together outsssside of club meetingssss."
Yasui frowned a little at that. He remembered what that was like. It had been hard for him to make his first friend, but after he became friends with Shinrai it got a lot easier. Now he actually had many friends.
As Yasui disposed of the shed snakeskin, he stood back to admire his handiwork.
"Well? How'd I do? Miss anything?"
Chaussette inspected herself and happily twitched the tip of her tail.
"You did great! And it wassss ssso quick too! I really can't thank you enough."
Yasui waved her comment off with a reflexive "No worries" and gathered his things. As he helped Chaussette up onto his shoulders so he could carry her to the cafeteria, Yasui laughed.
"Wow! Your scales look so shiny and smooth now! That's so cool!"
"Really?" Chaussette shyly asked. "Well… you can touch them if you want. I don't mind."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Charles shouldered the door to Miss Diana's room open carrying a tray of food.
"I made you an omelet. You need to eat something."
The leopard was lying in her bed again, like she had been all day. For days now she had barely moved from her bed, hardly eating anything. Already she was beginning to look slightly gaunt and sickly, much as she had over a year ago. Diana sighed and kept staring vacantly up at the ceiling.
"I'm not hungry."
Charles grit his teeth and set the food down on the nightstand.
"You haven't eaten in days. You're wasting away."
"I don't care." Diana sighed morosely. Charles furrowed his brows. It was just like when she had been made to retire from her role in the company following her accident a few months before she met Yasui. It had only been after that meeting that she had actually started living again. But Charles was afraid that once more, Miss Diana had given up on life.
"You know you could try talking to him. From what I gather he still wants to talk to you."
Diana covered her eyes.
"How can I ever face him again after what I did? I'd hate me if I was him, and heaven knows I already hate myself."
"I don't think it was as bad as—"
Diana sluggishly turned her head and fixed Charles with a dead stare.
"I molested him. I sexually assaulted someone I deeply care about. I can barely bring myself to think about what happened, and everytime I do I hate myself even more. I'm a monster."
"You weren't in your right mind." Charles growled. "And he understands that. Nothing happened in the end, he was sitting downstairs when I got back calm as can be. You might have tried to do something, but clearly it didn't go past that."
"It doesn't make it okay!" Diana sobbed. "For all I know I did go through with everything and he's just too embarrassed to admit it. How would you feel if you got victimized by a woman? Society would just laugh at you or say you probably wanted it to happen! I wish I had never taken that medicine! I wish I was dead!"
Charles took a deep breath as Diana turned her back to him. There was no talking to her right now. He could only try to keep her functioning as best as he could until she recovered. And of course, Charles had a plan to help.
Thursday saw a school day like any other for Yasui. However, he got an unexpected text from Nishinoya during lunch that would alter his schedule somewhat.
N: Hello, Yasui! Sorry to bother you, but could you do me a little favor? My wife ran out of antacids and really needs more. Her acid reflux is really bothering her right now. If you could swing by the house after class today I'd appreciate it so much. The pharmacy two blocks away has the prescription, you just need to pick it up.
Y: Of course! Happy to help your wife. The baby must be due any week now.
N: Should be by the end of the month. Until then, Leora will keep eating antacids like candy and washing it down with ice cream and lemonade. They're her current routine cravings.
Yasui chuckled at that, and texted Mr. Nabuyo that he might be a little late to work because he had to run to the pharmacist. The old rabbit told him it was completely fine, which settled things for Yasui.
And so, with antacids in hand, Yasui climbed the stairs to Nishinoya's home and looked for the spare key hidden under the rug like Nishinoya had said. Once he found it, Yasui unlocked the door and walked inside.
"Hello, Mrs. Leora. How are you doing today?"
Yasui froze as a pained cry came from deeper inside. He dropped the medicine and ran towards the direction of the noise.
"Mrs. Leora?! Where are you?!"
Another loud groan was followed by a gasped "in here!" From the bathroom. Yasui threw the door to the bathroom open to see a naked Leora with a pained expression lying in an empty bathtub. Well, it wasn't completely empty. A decent sized puddle of fluids coated the tub between the wolf's legs. Leora pressed a hand to her swollen belly and cried out in pain.
"Yasui, thank God! Please, help me!"
"What happened!?" Yasui yelled as he ran over. Leora took another strained breath and gripped the sides of the tub to steady herself.
"I was going— gyaaah!— to take a bath! But my water— aaah!— broke! I-I can't get up! It— AAAAAAGH— hurts too much!"
Yasui frantically looked around.
"I-I can get you up and help you get to a hospital! Or maybe run and get help! Yeah, I'll go get a—"
Leora grabbed his arm and panickedly looked up at him.
"No! The baby is— grrrrr— coming! There's no time!"
Yasui felt his mouth go dry.
"I'll call an ambulance! Hang on."
Yasui frantically pulled out his phone and dialed 119. After a few rings a pleasant female voice answered.
"119, what's your emergency?"
"I'm here with… a friend of mine! And she's pregnant and her water broke and can't get up and she says the baby is coming and we need help and I don't know what to do!"
"Slow down and take a breath." The voice replied. As Yasui steadied himself, the dispatcher kept talking.
"What's your name?"
"Yasui!"
"Can you tell me where you are?"
"Hold on, uh… the address is…." Before Yasui could continue Leora shouted the address followed by a pained yell. The dispatcher immediately asked,
"Was that the pregnant lady?"
"Yes!" Yasui hurriedly responded.
"Can you put me on speaker so I can talk to her."
Yasui did as told and anxiously listened.
"Hello, ma'am. Can you tell me how frequently the contractions are coming?"
"Constantly!" Leora cried out before biting her lip and stifling a groan. The operator addressed Yasui again.
"Sir, I'm dispatching an ambulance to you now. However I need you to check how dilated she is."
"You mean her… lady parts?"
"That is correct, sir."
As Yasui hesitated and pulled back a bit, Leora fixed him with a steely expression.
"Yasui! Don't you dare wuss out on me! I can't do this alone!"
Reluctantly, Yasui looked into the tub between Leora's legs with a whimpered "Sorry about this!" Yasui tried not to gag at the rather gruesome "miracle of birth" he was experiencing before speaking again.
"She's… really dilated. Like… really really."
"That means she's preparing to give birth immediately. I'm going to walk you through how to deliver the baby."
"What?!" Yasui screamed. "I can't deliver a baby! I'm still in high school! I don't know anything about what I need to do!"
"I can tell you everything you need to know until the ambulance arrives. Now, pay attention. I need you to get a bowl of warm water. Warm, not hot. As well as rubbing alcohol, clean towels, scissors, and two clips of some sort."
Yasui nodded, still panicking.
"Right, okay. I can get those. Uhh, be back in a sec."
As Yasui scrambled through the house tearing open drawers and cupboards looking for what he needed, the regular groans and cries of Leora kept him moving as fast as he could. Yasui returned to the bathroom clutching everything but the water to his chest.
"I got everything but the water! I don't know where I should get the warm water from!"
Leora shot him a pained look.
"For the love of God! We're in the— hrrNNG!— damn bathroom! Fill up the sink!"
Yasui nodded and did as he was told. Once the sink was filled with warm water, he knelt down beside the tub again.
"Okay, what do I do now?"
"Start disinfecting yourself and your surroundings." The dispatcher calmly replied. "Clean your arms, the scissors, and the clips with the alcohol."
Yasui nodded and hurriedly splashed the strong smelling liquid onto his hands and his tools. Once completed, he shifted towards the phone again.
"Okay, what's next?"
"Now you need to get ready to catch the baby once they emerge from the birth canal. Just wait for the head to emerge and gently guide it into your arms. Once that's done I'll walk you through the next steps. But for now, I need to talk with the mother."
Yasui dry swallowed and hesitantly moved into the tub, crouching in the puddle of stuff Yasui didn't want to think about. As he did, the lady on the phone addressed Leora.
"Hello, Ma'am. How are you feeling?"
"Like I'm pushing a baby out of my pelvis! What do you think!" Leora growled. The operator ignored the comment and pushed ahead.
"Okay, could you tell me your name, and if this is your first pregnancy?"
"Leora, and no! I ha—aaaaaaah—ave two other kids!"
As the woman on the phone continued to reassure Leora, Yasui stared in terror at her looming womanhood. A baby was about to come out of… that. And there was just so much… stuff.
(Crap, I might be sick! Ooooooooh.)
"Okay, now push!" The dispatcher said as Leora gave a loud cry of exertion. Yasui snapped out of it and resumed his stomach turning vigil. To Yasui, and most likely to Leora, it seemed to last hours. However, soon Yasui saw something.
"I-I see it! I see the baby!"
"That's good, now just a little more, Leora. Big push."
Leora gasped and strained with all her might, yelling as with one final effort the baby emerged. Yasui desperately tried to catch the newborn, but with how slippery it was he almost dropped it. He felt his heart skip a beat as it seemed like the baby was about to slide out of his hands before he managed to safely get it into his arms. Immediately, the child screamed and wailed as loud as its tiny lungs allowed. Yasui laughed.
"I did it! I caught him!"
Leora went limp and sat panting in the tub.
"Him?" Leora asked, completely exhausted. Yasui nodded as he held the tiny wolf.
"Yeah. It's a boy. You were right."
Leora smiled happily and closed her eyes. Yasui figured she'd earned the rest. It was then that the lady on the phone returned her attention to Yasui.
"Yasui, now you need to cut the umbilical cord and wash the baby. Follow my instructions exactly."
Slowly, carefully, Yasui clamped the cord that connected mother and child before cutting it with the scissors between the two clamps. He then gently carried the still squalling baby to the sink where he gently washed the fluids off it and swaddled it with a clean towel. Eventually, the baby stopped crying as Yasui held it swaddled against his chest.
It was so… tiny. Like a little doll. Yasui stared down into the little face with its eyes still squeezed shut as it occasionally wriggled and squeaked in his embrace. He walked as carefully as he could to Leora and placed the bundle in her arms. Leora smiled happily and cradled her son in her arms.
"Hello, baby. Oh, you're so beautiful."
The pup whimpered and Leora stroked its cheek with a finger. She beamed up at Yasui and patted his arm.
"Thank you, Yasui. Thank you so much."
Yasui was too numb to speak, so he just nodded stupidly before sitting on the toilet and staring at the pair of wolves. He had done it, he'd successfully delivered a child. Yasui's whole body was shaking like a leaf now that the adrenaline was wearing off, and he still couldn't believe what he'd done. It was just too incredible.
Eventually, Yasui heard hurried steps inside the house and two paramedics rushed in with their bags. The one in the lead, a tall ram with black and white patched wool, looked from Yasui to Leora and the baby. Immediately he moved over to them and began looking them over while his partner, a hyena wearing glasses, spoke to Yasui.
"I'm guessing you're Yasui?" The hyena asked. Yasui nodded once again, still a little out of it. The hyena looked him up and down, examining him.
"You okay? Any dizziness or lightheadedness?"
"No. I'm okay. Just… still shocked that I managed to do it."
The ram stood and spoke into his walkie talkie, asking for a stretcher. He moved over to Yasui and the hyena and nodded.
"Both mother and baby seem fine, but we'll run some tests at the hospital just to be sure. I'm assuming you're the one who delivered the baby?" He addressed that last bit to Yasui. Yasui nodded once again, and the ram clapped him on the shoulder.
"You did one hell of a job, you should be proud. Now, let's load up and get on our way. Is there anyone we need to call for you, kid?"
Yasui paused to think about it before Leora spoke up.
"Can he come with us? I'll need him to help take care of my other children and husband. They don't know what happened."
The hyena shifted awkwardly.
"Usually it's only family members who accompany you in the ambulance."
"That's fine." Leora said with a little smile. "He's my step-son."
Both paramedics nodded and went back outside to grab the stretcher. Once they had loaded Leora and the baby into the back of the ambulance, Yasui took a seat beside them and they were off. As they drove to the nearest hospital, Leora looked intently at Yasui.
"Yasui, I need you to call Nishinoya and let him know to meet us at the hospital. After that we can call the kids' school and my mother so she can pick them up. You should be able to get those phone numbers from Nishinoya."
"Got it." Yasui said with a nod. As he found Nishinoya's contact information, the baby began crying again. As Leora soothed the squalling pup, Yasui plugged one ear so he could hear his phone call. Yasui impatiently waited for five rings before Nishinoya finally answered the phone.
"Yasui, what's going on? Why are you calling me? I'm in the middle of an extremely important meeting."
"Sorry to interrupt, but it's about your wife!"
"My wife?!" Nishinoya frantically replied. "What happened?! What's going on?!"
"It's the baby! She had the baby! We're on our way to the hospital right now. She said to call you so you can come meet us here, and also take care of calling your kid's school. Something about her mother or something."
Yasui held the phone away from his ear as Nishinoya frantically yelled "The baby! My wife's having the baby!" Yasui assumed Nishinoya was yelling that out loud for everyone to hear, especially because he then hung up the phone. Yasui frowned.
"He hung up. Well, hopefully he knows where he's going."
Upon reaching the hospital, nurses whisked away Leora and the baby while Yasui was directed to the front desk. Behind the counter was a cheerful looking flamingo who smiled at him.
"Good afternoon! I was told you're accompanying the woman and her baby you came in with?"
Yasui nodded.
"Yeah, her name is Leora."
The flamingo clicked away on her keyboard before glancing at Yasui.
"And your relationship to Leora?"
"Uh… I guess she's my stepmother? Because her husband, Nishinoya, is my father but she's not my mother."
The flamingo nodded and kept typing.
"Alright, can I see your ID?"
Yasui fumbled out his wallet and handed over his school ID. The flamingo clacked away at her computer before asking,
"And is there a good way to contact this Nishinoya?"
"Yeah, he's a teacher at Cherryton Academy."
The flamingo kept typing before sliding the ID card back to him and handing him a visitor pass.
"Alright, I'll let you get back to her. I can handle everything else."
"Thank you, Ma'am." Yasui with a bow before nervously trotting to where the nurse's station was so he could get directions to Leora. He had unfortunately grown pretty familiar with how hospitals worked after his extended stay in one last year.
Inside the small hospital room, Leora was lying in the adjustable bed looking antsy. She turned her head as Yasui entered and smiled.
"Boy am I glad to see you. Mind if I borrow your phone? Mine is still sitting on my nightstand at home where I left it before my bath."
"Of course." Yasui said and handed over his phone. He looked around in confusion.
"Where's the baby?"
"You know how it is." Leora huffed. "They need to do some tests and give him his shots. Once Nishinoya gets here we'll have to fill out the birth certificate. Now, I need to let my mother know what's happening. I doubt Nishinoya satisfactorily filled her in on the situation. I love the guy, but he can be a bit of a bonehead sometimes."
As Leora called her mother, Yasui sat in one of the chairs and looked down at his hands. He finally had an opportunity to calm down and think, and boy was there a lot to think about. He still couldn't believe he had delivered a baby. It was just so unreal to Yasui. He had helped bring a child into the world and made his arrival safe and as comfortable as possible. It felt… good. So incredibly good. If Yasui had to describe the feeling it was like his heart was glowing somehow, as corny as that was.
Soon, a nurse brought the baby back to Leora who immediately insisted on holding it again. Yasui could understand. If he'd had to give birth to a child without any painkillers he'd probably want to at least get to cuddle with the thing. It was about fifteen minutes later when Nishinoya flung open the door to the room, looking frantic. Immediately, the baby began to cry because of the loud noise. Leora gave her husband an unamused look as she lifted the baby out of the rolling crib it was in and began soothing it. Nishinoya immediately adopted a crestfallen look.
"I missed it? But I got here as fast as I could."
Leora shook her head with a tired smile.
"Everyone missed the delivery, except Yasui. I went into labor in the tub and couldn't call for help. Fortunately he came by and was able to handle the delivery before the ambulance arrived."
Nishinoya gave Yasui a stunned look.
"You delivered the baby?!"
"The lady from 119 walked me through it." Yasui said with a shrug. "Sorry I didn't think to call you earlier, I was a little panicked."
Nishinoya broke into a grin.
"I'm pretty sure calling 119 first was a better decision. I just… I can't ever thank you enough! I just… I just…."
At a loss for words, Nishinoya wrapped Yasui in a hug and enthusiastically thumped him on the back. Yasui returned the grin and the hug as well. Upon breaking away, Nishinoya rubbed his eyes and adjusted his glasses.
"Gaaaah. I still can't believe I wasn't around to help!"
Nishinoya suddenly snapped his attention towards his wife and newborn child. His face grew giddy with joy.
"The baby! Oh I have to see the baby! Is it a boy or girl?"
"It's a boy." Leora said proudly before passing the bundled up pup to her husband. Nishinoya eagerly picked him up and teased his nose with a finger.
"Aren't you a handsome little fellow! Daaaw, he definitely has his mommy's looks!"
Nishinoya looked towards Leora and chuckled.
"Am I at least here in time to help name him?"
"Don't worry, I waited." Leora said with a roll of her eyes. "But I was actually thinking of naming him something different than what we had planned."
Nishinoya raised an eyebrow expectantly. With a slight shift, Leora moved to where she could look at Yasui.
"I was thinking about naming him in honor or the person who brought him into the world."
Yasui stared at her uncomprehendingly before suddenly realizing what she meant.
"You want to name him after me?" Yasui said incredulously. Leora nodded.
"I was thinking… 'Yasuo'. It means 'Calm one' which hopefully he will be, and sounds a lot like your name."
Yasui swallowed a sudden lump that appeared in his throat and shuffled his feet.
"I… I don't know what to say."
Nishinoya nodded thoughtfully.
"Hmm, it has a nice ring to it. I think it's a great idea."
Yasui smiled in embarrassment before moving over to get a better look at baby Yasuo. Suddenly Yasui grimaced and smacked his forehead.
"Crap, I am so late for work!"
Even with that realization, Yasui was delayed a few more minutes. He couldn't resist the urge to hold baby Yasui for a while and let Nishinoya take a picture of the two of them. And then Yasui took a picture of both Nishinoya and Leora with the baby. It was as he was walking towards the exit to the hospital that one of the nurses who had received Leora and the baby from the ambulance stopped him.
"Hey, Yasui, right?"
Yasui nodded. The nurse, a tall male giraffe wearing blue scrubs, handed Yasui a brochure.
"We heard all about how well you handled yourself while delivering that baby. I figured I'd give you this. We hold a first aid training class here every few weeks where you learn some basic medical skills like bandaging, CPR, and how to use an AED. If you're interested, we'll let you join for free."
"Wait, really?" Yasui said in amazement. The giraffe smiled.
"Some people have a knack for medicine, and you seem like you do. That way you can get some exposure to it while you're still young. Who knows, you might decide to go to medical school because of it. That's what happened to me."
"This is amazing!" Yasui beamed. "Thank you!"
"Details are inside. Also… you might want to get some clean clothes. Yours are still covered in delivery fluids."
That same night in the Cherryton cafeteria, two of the three dogs from Yasui's Advanced Literature Studies class were sitting around the table chatting while they waited for the third, Rebecca. The former member of the class, Shiki, was also in attendance. Even still, in the minds of the four canines, she was rightfully number four.
As Rebecca the golden retriever sat down, everyone noticed a wide smile on her face, Kojo the beagle cocked his head.
"What's got you in such a good mood?"
Rebecca pointed her nose up and smiled contentedly.
"I'm glad you ask! You see, I was at the school office earlier when I overheard the most unusual phone call between the lady at the front desk and a hospital."
"A hospital?" Jimin the Newfoundland dog asked. "What exactly made that interesting?"
Rebecca took a sip of water and folded her hands.
"Well, apparently that stupid half-breed Yasui was at the hospital."
"Good." Kojo sniffed. "Please tell me he did everyone a favor and died this time."
Once the laughter died down, Rebecca continued.
"No, actually. They were calling the school to inform them that he was at the hospital with his family and to confirm some details. Well, the office lady was confused how his family was at the hospital when their address is hours away. And, get this, he was at the hospital with his stepmother and his father… a certain professor here named Nishinoya."
The group fell silent. Eventually, Shiki the poodle shook her head.
"Wait, you're telling me that Professor Nishinoya is actually Yasui's father?!"
"That's what the hospital said." Rebecca said with a devious smile. "And apparently they've been keeping it a secret because the front desk lady was just as surprised as I was. Turns out Nishinoya had Yasui with another woman who wasn't his wife."
Jimin slammed down his silverware.
"This is it! This is how we can get rid of him! We just have to inform the headmaster that Yasui has been blackmailing the Professor to boost his grades! He'll get kicked out immediately!"
Kojo nodded eagerly.
"Yeah! If we all submit anonymous reports about this the headmaster will have no choice but to do something! Shiki can finally get back to her rightful place in our class!"
Shiki looked down at her fingers.
"But… won't this hurt Professor Nishinoya too?"
Rebecca waved her hand dismissively.
"Who cares. He knocked up some fox floozy and had a half-breed bastard with her. He deserves to be punished for that."
Jimin growled.
"Well what are we waiting for! I want that freak gone immediately!"
Everything seemed to be going normally that Friday, up until Yasui was intercepted on his way to his Friday study group by a message to go to the headmaster's office. Curious, Yasui immediately changed course and made his way towards the main school building.
Outside the doors to Headmaster Gon's office, Yasui saw Nishinoya sitting in one of the chairs that lined the halls looking puzzled as well. As soon as he saw the wolf, Yasui tilted his head in confusion.
"Professor? What are you doing here?"
Nishinoya shrugged.
"I'm not sure. I just got a phone call saying that the headmaster urgently needed to speak to me. What about you?"
"Well I got called to the headmaster's office." Yasui said with a frown.
(Maybe it's just a coincidence. Why would the headmaster need to see both of us? Unless it's about yesterday, but why would he care about that? And how would he have even found out?)
The door opened and Headmaster Gon smiled out at them.
"Ah, good. You're both here. Please, come in."
As Nishinoya and Yasui both took seats in front of his desk, Gon smiled at Nishinoya.
"I hear congratulations are in order! How's your wife and the baby doing?"
"Oh! They're great!" Nishinoya said with a laugh. "Leora definitely is happy to not be pregnant anymore, although she's definitely taking some time to recover and spent most of today in bed. Fortunately her mother could help out with the baby while I was here."
"That's good to hear." Gon said with a nod. The tiger folded his hands and took a deep breath. Nishinoya furrowed his brow.
"But that's not why you called me and Yasui here into your office, is it?"
"No, I'm afraid not. You see, we've received some complaints of unfair treatment of your students, Nishinoya. Several students have apparently felt that you play favorites, and unfairly assist one student over the rest."
As Nishinoya looked incredulously at Gon, Yasui jumped in.
"Headmaster, sir! That's completely and totally false! Professor Nishinoya treats us all equally!"
Gon held up a hand.
"Unfortunately I can't take your word for it. The complaints all name you as having been the recipient of this unethical assistance, as well as several claims that students believe you've been blackmailing Professor Nishinoya in order to force him to help you."
This time it was Nishinoya's turn to burst out a response while Yasui was at a loss for words.
"Blackmail?! That's ridiculous! How could Yasui be blackmailing me?"
Gon sighed and rubbed his eyebrows.
"Well, it's come to the attention of the school that you and Yasui have been keeping a secret from us. Specifically, the fact that you're Yasui's father, Nishinoya. Now, I personally believe that all of these complaints arriving the same week that we are made aware of this information is a little too much of a coincidence. I personally don't believe there has been any foul play."
Yasui let out a breath he had been holding with a relieved sigh. It was a good thing the headmaster was so logical and didn't jump to conclusions. But before either Yasui or Nishinoya could say anything the tiger continued.
"However, these are serious allegations and neither myself or the school can ignore them. It especially doesn't look good because you were hiding the truth behind your relationship to each other. It unfortunately does look pretty bad because of that."
"Headmaster Gon." Nishinoya said with a determined set to his jaw. "The fault for that is all mine. Yasui agreed to not tell anyone about our relationship in order to spare myself and my family from embarrassment. If anyone has been pressuring the other into silence, it's been me. Yasui stands to gain nothing by concealing that I'm his father."
Gon shook his head.
"Be that as it is, I still have to take action. Some members of the board wanted to immediately suspend you both, or worse. However, I managed to convince enough of them to pursue a thorough investigation of the situation before passing judgment. In the meantime, I'm afraid both of you are officially on probation."
Yasui felt his stomach drop out of his torso. He was going to be sick, or faint, or both! He was in trouble at school, he'd never been in trouble at school! He'd never even had to go to the headmaster's office before this unless it was for good things! What if they revoked his scholarship? He'd have to go back home and explain to everyone how badly he screwed up and ruined everything! He'd have to leave all his friends and go back to being alone all the time!
Yasui jumped as Gon placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and smiled warmly at him.
"Now now, it's nothing serious. It just means you need to be on your best behavior for a while. I'd recommend staying off campus whenever you can to avoid whoever is complaining about you. Best not to take risks after all. Don't worry, you have a spotless record and great academic scores. I'm sure this will all blow over soon."
Yasui nodded rigidly but remained silent. With everything taken care of, Gon dry washed his hands and sighed.
"Now that we have that unpleasant business out of the way, would either of you care for some coffee? I personally could use a nice strong cup of it right now."
Yasui shook his head while Nishinoya explained how he needed to get back home to his wife and baby. With comments of encouragement from Gon, Yasui and Nishinoya sullenly left the office and walked back down the hall. As they did, Yasui's mind was still reeling from the conversation. But above all, he didn't know how people had found out about his relationship with Nishinoya. And then it struck him.
"The hospital!" Yasui groaned as he covered his face with his hands. "The hospital must have called the school to verify my ID! I'm pretty sure hospitals have to check those things whenever they admit minors for any reason."
Nishinoya patted Yasui on the back.
"It's not your fault, Yasui. I'm to blame for not realizing the situation I was putting you in."
"I'm just terrified I'll lose my scholarship." Yasui moaned. "I don't want to lose my chance to be here!"
"If it comes down to it, I will happily pay your tuition. It's the least I can do for… my son."
Yasui smiled wanly at the adult. At least they didn't have to hide that they were father and son anymore. As they left the main building, Nishinoya glanced at Yasui.
"You're welcome to come over to my place and see Yasuo if you want. Leora will definitely be more than happy to see you again."
"I appreciate it, but you probably have enough to deal with without adding a houseguest to the mix. And besides, I have something I need to do tonight."