Chapter 44: Hatsuinode
"Tetsu!"
The latter groaned, not bothering to open his eyes.
"Come on, Tetsu!" Kasumi insisted.
He sighed, grabbed his phone, and unlocked the screen.
"Katsu, it's 6:30 a.m for fuck's sake!"
"Exactly."
"What do you mean, exactly?"
"Hatsuinode."
Hatsuinode.
The first sunrise of the year.
It was a tradition they had followed since childhood. They would go to the temple at dawn and watch the sunset from the cliff.
"Mom and Dad said we weren't going... that we'd go to the temple with Grandpa and Grandma."
"I don't care if they don't want to come, I do."
"You want to go to the temple of your own free will?"
"Yes. Are you coming?"
Tetsurō weighed the pros and cons. Cons: he wanted to sleep. Pros...
"Please," she pleaded in a dragging voice.
He sighed but eventually gave in.
"Okay... let me get dressed."
"Nice!"
She jumped out of the bed, and the bounce nearly made him fall to the floor. It took Kuroo a few more seconds to fully wake up. Finally, he got up, put on some sweatpants and a sweater and left his room. His sister cornered him as soon as he appeared in the hallway.
"Wait, I need to brush my teeth."
"Can't you do that when we get back? Come on, let's go."
"I wouldn't want to offend the Gods with my bad breath."
Katsu giggled. Tetsurō headed to the bathroom and had to hurry so his sister wouldn't complain.
"Alright, I'm ready, let's go."
Katsu threw his shoes and coat at him.
"Oh, how kind of you, thank you very much."
He got ready and joined his sister.
"Wait for me, I'm coming too!"
Natsume had just burst into the entryway. Her two older siblings nodded.
"You were really going to leave without me? With all your whispering and shit..."
"Whispering?"
"Don't play innocent, Tetsu. I've seen the two of you! Since you came back, you've been in your own little world, giving each other knowing looks and giggling and... Whispering and all."
"Not at all."
"Like I'll believe that. Well, I'm coming."
"We didn't say you couldn't come."
"Perfect, let's go then, or we'll miss the sunrise."
The air outside was freezing, and everything around was covered in snow. They walked in silence, only the sound of their footsteps in the snow and the distant gurgle of the sea breaking the stillness. As they reached the edge of the forest, they soon found themselves facing a torii gate rising among the trees. Its crimson color contrasted beautifully with the surrounding white, enhancing its mystical aura. They bowed to the gate and passed underneath it.
They climbed all the way to the top, and another torii signaled that they were near the temple. The water in the small purification well had frozen overnight. They finally reached the temple, which looked like an old wooden hut built by a fisherman a century ago (which it most likely was). Tetsurō approached the honden and dropped in three small coins. He went to the bell installed under the small wooden awning and pulled the rope to make it ring. Finally, he rejoined his sisters. Together they bowed twice, clapped twice, and began their prayer.
Tetsurō wasn't particularly religious, but he loved these moments. He savored the silence and the serenity of the place. Natsume was the first to stop; he heard her footsteps on the small gravel of the path. Eventually, he made a quick prayer, opened his eyes, and bowed. Katsu did the same a few seconds later.
When their eyes met, they smiled.
"Hey, are you coming?" Natsume called out. She was already on the path leading to the cliff.
They set off.
Tetsu raised an eyebrow when he saw the peaceful smile on Kasumi's lips.
"What?" she finally asked.
"What did you wish for?"
"It's not Santa Claus, I didn't ask for anything!"
Tetsu chuckled and leaned over to whisper in a sappy voice :
"Kami-sama, please let me always be with my lovely girlfriend, whom I love very much!"
Kasumi shoved him.
"You're blushing."
"I'm cold."
"Yeah, right."
"Bet you did the same thing."
"Me? No, I prayed for the prosperity, safety, and happiness of my family."
"Sure, like I'd believe that."
"I'm not lying!"
"Kami-sama, please let me always be with my lovely boyfriends, whom I love very much," Katsu repeated with the same overly satiric tone.
"That's ridiculous..."
"Oh, here we go again with the whispering!" Natsume complained.
"We're not whispering!"
"Oh yeah? So what were you talking about?"
"About the soup Grandpa's going to make for us, and how he'll put who-knows-what in it again because he's going blind and hasn't had any functioning tastebuds since 1952," said Kasumi.
The other two laughed.
"Alright, come on, let's move it."
They finally reached the edge of the cliff. The sea breeze brushed their faces. In the distance, beyond the waters, the sun spread its first rays, casting hues of orange and pink into the atmosphere. They sat together and watched the sunrise in silence.
The first sunrise of the year.
-/-
The rest of his vacation passed in the blink of an eye. Thankfully, he hadn't booked a flight at the crack of dawn this time around. His parents didn't accompany him to the gates; the goodbyes were done at the drop-off. His mother babbled a long list of recommendations, tears in her eyes. But Tetsurō was far too cold to really pay attention. He said goodbye to his sisters and parents before heading for the airport entrance.
"Wait! I'll come with you!" Kasumi called out to him.
He turned around when he heard his sister's voice. She got out of the car and retrieved her things from the trunk.
"Aren't we driving you back to your apartment?" Hatsuko asked.
"No need. I can take a train from here."
Their mother reluctantly agreed, and their father waved goodbye again and started the car. Kasumi and Tetsurō waved vaguely, and Natsume shot them a sulky look from the back of the car, which they pretended not to notice. Finally, they were alone.
"So, you want to see your big brother off on his plane?" Tetsurō teased.
His sister elbowed him.
"Don't give yourself so much credit. I'm just taking the train from here; it's less of a hassle."
Tetsurō rolled his eyes and made no further comment. That didn't stop his sister from following him to the security gates.
"You know the train station is on the other side, right?"
"Oh, shut up, I'm just here to say goodbye. You're such a pain; I should've just left you behind."
Tetsurō smiled.
"Well, work hard, see you next time."
"Yeah, you too."
Neither of them moved. Finally, Tetsurō opened his arms. Kasumi rolled her eyes for show but accepted his hug.
"I'm going to miss you, jerk."
"I'm gonna miss you too."
Silence settled for a few seconds.
"Take care of her," the brunet murmured.
Kasumi tightened the hug.
"Take care of them."
His heart clenched, deeply moved.
"Well, see you soon."
He broke the embrace and turned.
"Yeah, see you."
And he passed through the security gates. He turned one last time; Kasumi had already left. He smiled and kept walking.
-/-
"You just need to find what he's interested in, but once you've tamed him, he's a pretty nice kid," commented Kenma, sprawled out on the living room rug.
Keiji, sitting next to him, raised an eyebrow.
"Nice? Maybe to you. He barely spoke to me..."
"Keiji, you have to understand that you can be intimidating; it's not always easy to talk to you."
The remark surprised him.
"No one has ever told me that before... Kōtarō, Tetsurō?"
The ones concerned, slumped over each other right next to him, turned their attention to him.
"Not them; they could talk to inanimate objects. They aren't a good example."
"Hey!"
"Am I wrong?"
Kōtarō mumbled an inaudible response.
"The same could be said about you, Kenma. Honestly, at first, you're hard to talk to," continued Bokuto.
"Really?"
"Well, then again, you couldn't stand me back then, so it wasn't easy..."
Kenma chuckled.
"Times have changed," Kōtarō went on, raising an eyebrow, seductive.
The blond rolled his eyes but agreed before turning to kiss him.
"I get that, but he is my little brother; he should not feel uncomfortable around me," said Keiji, bringing the conversation back to its original topic.
"Well, make sure he doesn't feel uncomfortable, then..."
Keiji sighed.
"I tried... When we went to the gallery, I did try to..."
"That's what you were trying to do?" the blond interrupted, genuinely surprised.
Kuroo shifted his attention when he heard his phone buzz. He unlocked it and smiled when he saw the photo his sister had sent him of her and her girlfriend. At the bottom of the picture, she had written, "Reunion!".
Tetsurō raised his phone to take a picture in return. It was a bit tricky to get all four of them in the photo, but it was good enough.
"What are you doing?" Kenma asked.
"My sister sent me a photo of her and her girlfriend, so I'm doing the same," he replied, still typing on his phone.
"Oh, let me see!"
Kuroo opened the picture again and handed his phone to Kōtarō.
"Hmm, they're cute," the latter commented, passing the phone to Kenma.
Kenma and Keiji smiled as they looked at the photo.
"I agree..."
"It's crazy that they met, I mean, what are the chances?!"
"Hmm... Although I wasn't really thrilled about it at first."
"We kind of figured that out," the blond commented.
"Oh, come on... I still have one sister left. She's almost the same age as your brother, Keiji, you never know," joked Kuroo. "Well, now it's not ideal, but in 10 years, 27 and 23 is fine... 20 years? 37 and 33?"
His boyfriend didn't seem amused by the comment.
"I wouldn't wish that on your sister..."
"Oh, Keiji, stop being so mean to Yuu..."
The latter rolled his eyes.
It was Kōtarō's phone that buzzed this time. He sighed.
"Oh crap, I forgot about that..." he said, checking his text.
"What?"
He turned to Kenma and Keiji.
"It's my dad letting me know we have the New Year's ceremony at my grandmother's next weekend."
The other two sighed in turn.
"Oh crap... Do we really have to go?"
"You know we do..."
"What's that about?" asked Tetsurō.
"It is a rite to honor the new year and the matriarch of the clan. It's customary for her entire holy lineage to attend with their mates to, I don't know, honor the clan's prosperity or something. Basically, it's a drag."
"Oh... It doesn't sound that bad. Sounds a bit like Obon."
"Except his grandmother is alive and a lot less cheerful than a corpse," Kenma commented.
"Hey! Come on, she's not that bad!" Kōtarō retorted.
The other two didn't seem to share his opinion.
"It's just... it's long, it's boring, there are a ton of boring protocols, the vibe sucks, and we're always waiting around forever..."
"I'm gonna have nightmares," Kenma complained.
"Same," added Keiji.
"Stop being so dramatic you two!"
"You're lucky you don't have to go, Tetsu..."
The remark caught him off guard.
Oh...
He had almost forgotten.
He wasn't their mate...
He had no reason to go.
He tried to hold himself together:
"Yeah, sounds like it, I'm dodging a bullet there."
He then distanced himself from the conversation, texting with his sister. Eventually, he pretended he had to go make dinner to get out of the situation.
"Shut up, keep it to yourself, keep it to yourself," he repeated to himself over and over.
-/-
And just like that, after a meager week of vacation, they were back on the benches of the university. It was hard to get back into the swing of things. The nights still came early, it was cold, and Tetsurō just wanted to sleep, not listen to lectures...
Above all, he needed to take naps as much as possible. In spring and summer, he could settle outside, but falling asleep outdoors in the middle of January was practically suicidal.
A few months ago, he discovered a sanctuary after meeting Keiji following one of his classes. On the top floor of a building in the Faculty of Arts, just behind an auditorium, there was a small hall with a couch. He wondered what it was doing there, how it had gotten there, and who had brought it. He had no answers to these questions, but he knew one thing: it was far more comfortable to sleep on that couch than on the steps leading to the roof of the university library. He had only shown this hideaway to a select few people: Oikawa, Chris, and Kōtarō.
Wanting to start his year off on the right foot, he had decided to take a nap there right after lunch. Kōtarō had insisted on joining him there. He had hesitated, wanting to savor the peacefulness of the silence for a bit, but now that he was sprawled out on the couch in the arms of his boyfriend, who was gently stroking his hair, he could only be delighted with the decision he had made. Just as he was about to fall asleep, he heard footsteps on the stairs leading to their hideout. Tetsurō suddenly sat up and moved away from Kōtarō, pretending to read the textbook he had brought with him. His boyfriend chuckled. Finally, a figure appeared.
"Keiji, you scared the shit out of me!"
"What are you two doing here?"
"Napping. How did you find us?"
"I asked Oikawa," he came to sit down beside them, "Kōtarō, you should check your phone from time to time. Kenma has been trying to call you for a while."
The latter frowned and pulled out his phone.
"Shit, it was on silent mode... What does he want?"
"Your parents are there and want to see you."
Kōtarō frowned.
"What are they doing there, why didn't they call me directly?"
Keiji shrugged.
"Well, hang on, I'm calling Kenma."
The ringtone didn't even have time to ring once before Kenma picked up:
"Kō, come on, I've called you three times already!"
"Sorry, my phone was on silent mode. What's up?"
"I..."
Kenma didn't have time to finish his sentence.
The voice on the other end of the line changed.
"Kōtarō, what is this I hear?"
"''tto-san? What... What? What are you talking about?"
"You were planning to come this weekend without Tetsurō-kun?"
Kōtarō looked confused. He raised his eyes to the brunet facing him. The latter was far more confused by the use of 'Tetsurō-kun' than anything else.
"Uh... Well, I don't know, 'tto-san... Can he come?"
"Of course he can come!" Bokuto-san chimed in.
"Daddy, you're here too? Uh, but I don't know, Grandma..."
"It doesn't matter," Naruhito cut him off.
The interruption seemed to deeply trouble his son.
"What do you mean, it doesn't matter? Kenma had to wait two years before... I had to complain for Oba-san to let us come together."
"It doesn't matter, it's settled. But there's still a lot to prepare. Is Tetsurō-kun with you?"
"Um..."
Kuroo straightened up so they could hear him.
"Yes, I'm here. Hello, Bokuto-san, Nakayama-san."
"Hello, my boy!" Hiroshi greeted him.
"Hello..."
"Ah, at last. What time do you finish?"
Kuroo, completely caught off guard by the way they were addressing him, took several seconds to process the question.
"Um, I still have two hours of classes this afternoon. I finish at 4:30."
"Perfect, we'll come to pick you up then."
"Pick me up?"
"Wait for us by the north gate, we'll meet you there," added Hiroshi.
"Uh, oka..."
"Perfect."
And he hung up.
"What the fuck was that about?!"
"Honestly, I don't know," said Kōtarō.
"I think you have dethroned Kenma as Nakayama-san's favorite," Keiji remarked.
"Uh... I still don't quite understand why, but..."
"Don't get too excited just yet," Kōtarō interjected. "We'll see after this weekend if you still think it's so great."
-/-
Tetsurō arrived at the north gate right on time. Since Kōtarō and Keiji still had classes, he had to go alone, which only increased his stress. He stood in the middle of the parking lot, feeling his heartbeat quicken each time a car slowed down in front of him to go over the speed bump.
"Tetsurō-kun," he finally heard from behind him.
Turning around, he saw Bokuto-san waving enthusiastically.
He sighed, throwing off as far as he could the anxiety that was beginning to rise, and smiled politely.
When he reached Bokuto-san, he bowed to greet him. But before he could see it coming, Bokuto-san stepped forward and hugged him.
"My boy, there you are! "
"Uh, yes... um, hello, Bokuto-san."
The man nodded and gave him a big smile.
"Hiroshi, hurry up, I don't want to be late."
Tetsurō turned: Nakayama-san was behind the wheel, wearing sunglasses even though it was about 5C outside. Kuroo held back a grin: Damn, the man had style.
"Nakayama-san, good afternoon," the brunet greeted him, bowing.
The man clicked his tongue, making Kuroo look up. Nakayama lowered his sunglasses to meet his eyes. It took Tetsurō a few seconds to understand:
"Oh, um, Naruhito-san."
The latter nodded, satisfied with the correction.
"Get in, we have to go."
Kuroo obeyed and sat in the back of the car.
"Hey, how come you get to be 'Naruhito-san' while I'm just 'Bokuto-san'? " the latter noted as he got into the car.
"Because I asked," Naruhito replied, starting the car.
"Oh!"
Bokuto-san suddenly turned around, startling Kuroo, who was busy fastening his seatbelt.
"Tetsurō-kun, you can call me Hiroshi if you'd like!"
Kuroo was stunned for a few seconds, seatbelt in hand.
"Uh… okay… Hiroshi-san."
A bright smile appeared on the man's face, and he nodded, satisfied.
Honestly, Kuroo had trouble understanding Kōtarō's parents' enthusiasm for him, but he wasn't going to complain either.
"Tokami-san knows we're coming, right?" Hiroshi asked his mate.
"Of course. I informed him earlier. He's expecting us."
"Do you think he'll be able to finish on time?"
"He assured me he would."
Kuroo was completely lost. He hadn't dared to ask, but he had no idea where Kōtarō's parents were taking him. Naruhito must have seen his confused expression in the rearview mirror because he said:
"We're going to get your measurements taken at the tailor's."
"The tailor's?"
"For the kimono."
The kimono? What kimono?
"Did you really think you could attend the ceremony in jeans and sneakers?"
"To be honest, I didn't have time to think about it..."
Really, when he got up this morning, he was far, far from imagining he would end up in this situation.
Nakayama-san nodded.
"It's for the new sun celebration."
"The new sun?"
"Hmm, for the new year. "
"Oh… uh, Kōtarō mentioned it."
Naruhito nodded.
And nothing... Naruhito-san didn't give him more ample explanation. And again, Kuroo didn't dare to ask.
"We're here."
Kuroo turned him to the window. All around him, tall glass towers stretched into the sky. Naruhito and Hiroshi got out of the car and Tetsurō followed them.
They walked between the glass towers, quickly reaching narrow, winding alleys. Night had already fallen, and the bright signs and lantern lights obscured any view of the night sky, their glow reflecting off the wet pavement. Eventually, they stopped in front of a small building made of brown wood, swollen with humidity and time, squeezed between the concrete of the neighboring buildings. Naruhito entered first, followed by Tetsurō, who closed the door behind him.
In the small shop, kimonos, fabric scraps, and obis were spread out everywhere, neatly arranged on rickety shelves. Naruhito stepped up to the counter and rang the little bell that sat there, the sound echoing all around.
"I'm coming, I'm coming," a small voice called out.
Then appeared a little old man, easily around eighty years old, with a bent back and a balding head, wearing a white montsuki kimono. His eyes had turned almost blue with age. A polite smile formed on his lips.
"Nakayama-san, Bokuto-san, it's been so long. I'm glad to see you again," he greeted, bowing.
They returned his bow.
"Tokami-san, we thank you for providing your services on such short notice."
"Oh," he dismissed their words with a wave of his hand, "it's never a problem. Have your little ones grown that much since last year?"
"They're growing so fast, yes, but I think they're good for this year."
"We've had a new addition to the family," added Bokuto-san.
The old man's eyes found Tetsurō, and he bowed again.
"Oh, that's a color I'm not used to seeing," Tokami-san commented.
Tetsurō frowned.
The old man smiled again.
"I'll see what I have," Tokami-san announced, heading to the back of the shop.
"A... color?" Tetsurō ventured asking, turning to Bokuto-san.
"Traditionally, the color and style of the garment depend on the secondary of the person wearing it," Nakayama-san explained.
Hiroshi smiled at him.
"Omegas wear blue, alphas wear red, and for betas..."
"Here's what I have to offer," Tokami-san announced.
He held out a piece of purple fabric: a delicate blend of blue and red.
Naruhito took the fabric to feel its texture.
"Good, we'll take this one then."
He gestured with his hand, inviting Tetsurō to join him. He handed him the fabric, and the brunet mimicked his movements, feeling the texture. He simply nodded, unsure of what opinion to have on a piece of fabric.
"Perfect, we can move on to the measurements now."
They moved to a corner of the store. There was an alcove with a large mirror.
"Please young man, remove your shirt and pants so I can take accurate measurements," the old man instructed.
Tetsurō felt his cheeks flush. He turned his eyes to Bokuto-san and Nakayama-san, terrified. But they showed him no sympathy, continuing to chat. Reluctantly, Tetsurō complied. Standing there in nothing but his penguin-print boxers in front of his in-laws had not been on his agenda for the day. He stood there, his discomfort oozing from every pore of his skin.
Tokami-san returned with a small stool and measuring tape in hand. He settled next to the Tetsurō and began to unroll his tape.
"Now that we're here," Naruhito began, "we had a few questions."
Tetsurō tensed up. What kind of trap had he fallen into?
"Don't worry, we just want to talk," Bokuto-san added with a smile.
What was going on here? Were his in-laws playing good cop/bad cop with him now?
"Yes?"
"Please, stand still," Tokami-san ordered.
"Sorry."
Naruhito cleared his throat. That was not a good sign.
"We heard that our daughter, Suki, has met someone."
"And that you know the person in question."
Oh crap... Was it because of his stupid sister that he was in this situation now?!
"Ah really? Suki, uh... I..."
"No need to lie to us, we already know."
If they already knew, why were they trying to squeeze information out of him?
"Oh, um, yes... Uh..."
"Kasumi, is that right?"
Tetsurō held his breath. After a few seconds, he nodded. Damn it, he should never work for the secret service; he'd give away all his accomplices in less than 10 minutes. Honestly, he wasn't sure if even the most experienced and hardened spy could last long facing Naruhito-san.
"I see... And how old is she?"
"... 20."
Naruhito raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.
"So young."
"Weren't you 17, Naru, when you met Yūma?" Hiroshi commented, amused.
Naruhito brushed off his remark with his hand.
"That's different; we were practically the same age."
Bokuto-san let out a chuckle. Naruhito-san remained unfazed.
"And tell me, Tetsurō-kun, what does she do?"
"... The same as Suki."
"I see... Does she have a good academic record?"
"Uh... yes, I think so. I... haven't really checked, but I know she's always been studious."
"Hmm... First relationship?"
"Uh... no..."
Naruhito seemed surprised.
"But it's her first girlfriend."
Really, Tetsurō wouldn't have lasted five seconds against the KGB.
"Oh..."
Naruhito didn't seem pleased with that. His mate laughed again, giving him a teasing look.
"I was your first boyfriend, too."
The comment threw Naruhito off, completely knocking him out of his bad cop role.
"Hiro, please, you're not helping me here."
"Hmm, hmm," the latter conceded, amused.
"And... is she like you?"
"Like me?"
Naruhito insisted with his gaze.
"Oh... well... yes... beta. Like me and... the rest of my family."
Nakayama instinctively made a face but quickly got over it.
"I see..."
"Naru..."
"I have no problem with that."
Hiro raised an eyebrow. Naruhito crossed his arms again.
"I've changed."
His mate smiled at him, and Nakayama quickly averted his eyes.
"I think we're done here."
"Okay..."
"Well, I think I'm done too," announced Tokami-san, rolling up his tape.
Tetsurō jumped at the sound of the tailor's voice; he had almost forgotten he was there.
"Perfect."
"I should have it ready by Saturday, just in time. If there are any adjustments, I'll make them on-site, but I'm afraid I won't have time to finish before then."
"That's not a problem," Nakayama assured him, standing up. "Thank you so much for taking this order on such short notice."
They all went to the counter and Kuroo quickly got dressed again.
He barely remembered the way back, too absorbed in his thoughts.
What had just happened?
-end of the chapter-
Next chapter : "The sap"
As he turned to ask Kōtarō something, Keiji fell silent:
"Are you seriously going to wear that?" he finally remarked.
Kuroo turned to look at Kōtarō and snickered when he saw that he had put on a canary-yellow puffer jacket over his traditional outfit.
"But I'm freezing!"
"Do you really think you'll be able to escape your father wrath with that thing?" Kenma observed.
"Isn't that why we parked here, so he wouldn't find us?"
"Your father's here, Kōtarō," Keiji informed him.
As they turned, they saw that Naruhito was indeed striding toward them.
"Shit..."