Chapter 6

After finally achieving one of his goals, Taiki takes some time to relax with his friends.

After a month in the hospital, Mother and Eri came home. It had been much to the doctor’s surprise, but Taiki had always been adamant that she would. The doctor had clapped Taiki on the back when he and Father came by to take the ladies home, giving him a wry grin.

Mother and Eri settled back home easily enough. Taiki was, once again, shirking off as many sessions with Mr. Takeuchi as he could swing, to spend time with them. 

Mother and Father both watched in amusement as Taiki bustled around the kitchen making dinner while Mother held and tended to Eri.

“You really don’t have to go to so much effort,” Father said with a deep laugh. “We managed just fine when you were a baby.”

Taiki chuckled, slightly embarrassed. “Uh, yeah, no, I know that. I just. Want to be helpful?”

Mother pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Taiki, you’re so helpful,” she assured him. “But please don’t ignore yourself in favor of this. We have it, trust me. Take some time for yourself, too. You said you wanted to be a doctor, right? And don’t forget your own friends…”

Taiki slowed in his movements. That was all true… It would be a shame to just… throw away all his effort up to now. “Yeah, alright…” he said, making his sigh extra loud and dramatic just to pull a laugh out of his parents. It worked.

Taiki returned to going between study sessions and babysitting at the Takeuchi house, though continued spending long hours with Eri. When Mother needed a break, Taiki would bring Eri over with him and look after both babies at once, which was only a slight problem as the end of the year came about and Makoto started crawling.

In true male lead fashion, pretty much as soon as he’d set his mind to it, off he went. 

By the time the end of Taiki’s first year of high school came about, the Abysmal Student label had turned fully white, though it still stubbornly lingered. 

When Mr. Takeuchi had learned that Taiki had not, in fact, talked to either of his parents about the dyslexia or glasses thing (because Taiki knew he didn’t have dyslexia and didn’t need glasses), he did so himself, and Father took Taiki for an eye exam the very next day. 

Taiki came out with a pair of thin rimmed rectangular black glasses that made his crimson eyes seem sharper, and a dyslexia diagnosis. 

“Novel logic,” he bemoaned to Patch when he found Needs glasses on his list of character traits, right under Dyslexic. Patch barked a laugh and Taiki lightly pushed it with his lips thinned. 

By the time Eri was six months old, she had a full head of pure white hair, soft to the touch. While she loved to be held by all of her family members, it was obvious who was her favorite. 

She loved to cuddle in Taiki’s arms while he sat in the living room doing his homework, or make him read her stories or play with toys with her. When he first came home wearing his glasses, Eri blinked owlishly at him with those crystal-clear eyes of hers and reach out to smack them off.

Mother let out a gasp of shock. “Eri! No, naughty girl…” But Taiki just snorted and adjusted his glasses, grinning at her while holding her on his knee just out of reach of his face. 

“This is just the new normal, Eri-chan,” he said, poking her nose. “You’ll get used to it. It’s still me.” He lifted the glasses, showing Eri his face. And he hated how the character trait had made the world blurry without them now. Not only was the world blurry, but it was now effectively impossible to see without the glasses, everything just large blobs around him.

Makoto grew into more of a troublemaker the older he got. Now that he had more control of his motor functions, he’d really taken a shine to Eri. And found her hair fascinating. Of course, her hair was naturally white, while the rest of the Kuroda family had black hair. (How, exactly, had no one questioned it? Neither Mother nor Father had thought to say something about it, literally ever, so Taiki hadn’t spoken up about it either.)

Taiki was a few weeks into his second year when he went out with Yuzuki to a small cafe. They sat down with hot coffee at an outdoor table, watching the cherry blossoms in the breeze.

“Father officially cancelled the engagement,” Yuzuki told Taiki. She frowned a bit, looking into her teacup. “Mother wasn’t happy about it. Most of the things I’d been learning had been for the purpose of marrying you. She’s certain I’ll never find a proper husband now.” Yuzuki pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, though it just fell back out again. “But Father’s also been talking to me more about the business. I think he wants me to take it over, now that I’m not otherwise engaged. I think he’s just testing the water right now.”

Taiki grinned, matching Yuzuki’s soft smile that formed at the end of her statement. “Congratulations,” he said. “Though I guess it’d be more appropriate to ask… what do you think of it? Taking over after your father.”

Yuzuki looked up, tapping her chin. “I think I’d like to,” she said. “I’ll have to work harder and learn all that I can. I’m nowhere near where Sano-kun and Megumi are. They’ve been preparing for the succession of their families’ business since they were children. I’ll have a lot of catching up to do.”

Taiki gave her a deadpan look. “We’re still children,” he said, though he leaned on the table, hand in his chin, and grinned at her. “But for what it’s worth, I think you’ll do just fine. You are, quite literally, the smartest person I know. Well, besides Patch. But Patch is a dog, so it doesn’t count.”

Patch yipped from its place at their feet, sitting up and bonking Taiki with its nose. Yuzuki chuckled, scratching behind Patch’s ear.

She sat back up, quietly contemplating Taiki for a moment. “Have you talked to your parents yet?” Yuzuki asked. 

Taiki was quiet, slowly twisting the cup in his hands. “No,” he said. “It’s… really hard.” He thought of Mother and Father, two kind people who he couldn’t imagine hating him for being gay, but then again… well, they assumed he was straight. Sometimes kind people turned out to actually be cruel when confronted with things they didn’t agree with.

Yuzuki nodded before taking a drink. “Yeah… I think you should only come out when you’re ready. Are you going to come out to the others?”

Taiki was even less sure about telling his friends than his parents. They were wildcards, wild and unpredictable as the word suggested. Either they’d be totally accepting, not even batting an eye before going back to whatever they’d been doing. Or… Taiki would suddenly find himself without friends. Well, he’d have one. Yuzuki knew and liked him.

“I think they’ll be okay with it,” Yuzuki continued at Taiki’s silence. “We’re your friends. You’re the same person you’ve always been.”

Taiki snorted. That was, for a fact, not true. The Taiki they’d become friends with was not the one he was portraying. He wasn’t much of a troublemaker, he was enamored with his sister, and was actually responsible. The same could not be said for the original. It wasn’t just coincidence that those changes had come right around the time he’d told Yuzuki he was gay.

The others would probably catch onto that too.

How many times had he lost people he cared about, for less reasons?

“…I don’t know if I can.”

Yuzuki smiled pityingly at Taiki. “I hope one day you’ll be able to change your mind.”

And that was the end of that. 

Taiki had quickly become aware that part of the reason that he was there to watch Makoto, despite Mrs. Takeuchi never going anywhere and instead lingering in corners and shadows, was so Makoto could have that affection she’d even told Taiki she was unable to give. 

Some part of her, Taiki could tell, cared about her son. It just wasn’t enough. It was the same way people cared about others or donated to homeless shelters: kindness and compassion for humanity’s sake. Not parental love.

All that is to say, Makoto’s first word was ‘Mama’. It wasn’t directed at Mrs. Takeuchi.

Taiki held Makoto up, his hands under Makoto’s armpits, a furrow between his brows. Makoto wore a pout and his own furrow, helplessly kicking his feet back and forth.

“Mama,” Makoto said.

“If you have to call me anything, call me Kiki,” Taiki said.

“Mama.”

“Kiki.”

“Mama.”

“Kiki- Oh, never mind. You can’t even make the ‘cuh’ sound right now, can you?” Taiki slumped onto the couch, letting Makoto fall into his lap. Eri crawled over to them and pulled herself up against the couch.

Mrs. Takeuchi leaned against the doorframe, blush and small smile adorning her face, half full wine glass in hand despite it being early for drinking. “He likes you,” she commented, voice filled with mirth. 

Taiki snorted. “Doesn’t make me his mother.”

“You’d make a wonderful father.”

Taiki stopped in his movements, eyes moving from Makoto to Eri before closing. He held in his sigh, even as he thought about his own world. “I don’t think I’m cut to be a dad.” His world had prevented it at every possible turn, and he wasn’t technically the parent of the child he was tasked with raising, if Patch’s words were true.

When he opened his eyes again, Mrs. Takeuchi was staring at him, her smile now more sad than before, brows bunched at the corners. “Much better than I, Kuroda-kun.” She tilted her head to the side, resting it on the doorframe. “Nice nails, by the way.”

Taiki looked down to his fingers. Megumi had gotten ahold of him once again, painting the nails a bright red that she claimed matched his eyes. Truth be told, he hadn’t even tried very hard to stop her when she grabbed his hands. Or when she’d pressed a small bottle of polish into his chest with a wink, telling him “In case you want to do it yourself.”

“Thanks,” Taiki said, suddenly very aware of the small weight in the pocket of his school blazar. Megumi certainly did have an eye for style, since the color also matched the red of their uniform.

Makoto pushed out of Taiki’s arms, running over to Mrs. Takeuchi and holding his arms up. “Up!” he demanded. 

Mrs. Takeuchi hesitated, downed the rest of her wine, then patted Makoto’s head and briskly walked out of the room, shoulders tense with nerves.

Tears bubbled in Makoto’s eyes, hands clenched into tiny fists at his sides. Taiki gathered Eri into his arms and called out to him. “Hey, Mako-chan, come here. Let’s read a storybook with Eri-chan, okay? I think she’d like to read with you…”

Makoto immediately brightened and dashed over to Taiki, climbing up on the couch and cuddling into Taiki’s side. Patch lifted its head just enough to let out a little woof in their direction before settling by Taiki’s feet once again. Taiki grabbed one of the nearby books and pulled it over, immediately launching into the tale of a prince and a noble lady who wielded a sword and how they saved a kingdom.

Studying for end of first semester finals brought about Taiki’s first time able to complete his materials without Mr. Takeuchi’s help. He was rewarded for his efforts with Abysmal Student being replaced with Studious. 

The quiet ding that came from Patch as he finished the worksheet almost made Taiki jump for joy. Instead, he excitedly and proudly handed it over to Mr. Takeuchi, who graded it with a serious stone face.

When he was done, he grinned at Taiki. “I suppose after finals, you may be allowed your Fridays and Saturdays back,” he said. Taiki took the worksheet back and grinned down at the score written at the top.

100%.

Right there in bright red. 

Finally, he was no longer hindered by the defaults.

“Thank you so much, Takeuchi-sensei!” Taiki exclaimed, bowing deeply. “Thank you for not giving up on me!”

Mr. Takeuchi chuckled, crossing one leg over the other. “The least I could do,” he said, amusement lace through his voice. “After all, I think you’ve seen almost as many if not more of my own son’s firsts than me.”

Taiki chuckled, scratching his cheek. “Uh, right, no, sorry,” he said, going red in the ears.

Mr. Takeuchi’s gaze softened. “Don’t apologize for that,” he said. “It’s my own fault for being so busy, and your own kindness that saw you to stick around.”

Taiki pouted slightly, turning his gaze away and grumbling under his breath; “More like Mother’s blackmail…”

When he looked at Mr. Takeuchi out of the corner of his eye, it was clear he’d heard Taiki’s words, and found them amusing. The look sent a tight clenching through Taiki’s stomach, something that made his chest ache.

Inappropriate, Kaoru. Get ahold of yourself. There’s no possible way this situation is okay.

He licked his lips, even as his ears got darker, the shade moving down his neck. “Uh, ye-yeah, anyway… Um, I should go tell Mother and Father.”

Mr. Takeuchi nodded. “Of course. They’ll be proud of how far you’ve come.”

With only a silent nod, Taiki packed up his things and dashed for the door, crossing the space between their backyards and into his own home. 

Mother and Eri were nowhere in sight when he returned home, only his father sitting in the living room with a book. 

“Good work, son,” he said with an approving smile. “It seems your mother was right. That dog has done you good.”

He patted Patch’s head, and if dogs could purr, that’s exactly what it would have been doing. “I had nothing to do with it, but if I get credit, I’ll take it!” Patch exclaimed giddily. “Though of course I know it was all Master’s hard work!”

Taiki snorted, kneeling down and using both hands to scratch behind Patch’s ears. “Yeah, Patch is good,” he said. Patch nuzzled under his chin. 

“I think you’ve earned a break,” Father said, standing and clapping Taiki on the back. “Now, go spend some time with your friends tonight. It’s good to relax a little before tests to release the stress.”

Taiki nodded, and quickly headed up to his room to change and call up his friends for a night out. 

He met up with them at one of the hotels the Sano family owned. Akimitsu’s parents had both been in business before getting married, his father in line with hotels and apartments, while his mother had focused more on expensive clubs and restaurants for the elite.

The hotel room they gathered in was only for their use for a few hours, but suited five teenagers about to head into finals just fine. 

“How’s every feeling about this next week?” Megumi asked, fiddling around in her purse to fish out her makeup bag. She eventually found it, pulling out a tube of bright pink lipstick and a small handheld mirror. “We all know Tama-chan is going to ace them, but frankly, I think I’m simply doomed.”

Yuzuki blushed under Megumi’s praise, shrinking in on herself and clutching at her knees. “Um… Well, I don’t actually know if I’ll ace them…” she mumbled, though her words fell on deaf ears. 

Haichirou slapped her back good-naturedly. “C’mon, you’ve been studying like, nonstop since school started. Lighten up!”

“I think Kuroda’s also a contender for passing,” Akimitsu said, turning his gaze on Taiki. “I mean, if not, what the hell’re all those study sessions for?”

Megumi snorted and chuckled, having to pull her lipstick away from her face so she didn't smear it. “That’ll be the day. Taiki Kuroda, a*****e extraordinaire. You already went to glasses, which make you look like a nerd, by the way.”

Taiki gave her an exaggerated, affronted look, but Yuzuki spoke before he could retort back. Her hands were held up by her sides, balled into fists. “No way!” she exclaimed. “I think it gives Taiki-kun a mysterious charm!”

Both Haichirou and Taiki snorted at that. If anyone was going to agree with Megumi, it was going to be Taiki. He really did look like a nerd now.

Megumi shrugged, clapping her mirror closed and tossing both it and the lipstick back in her bag. She sprawled out along the edge of the bed, twisting her legs together. “A hot nerd,” she said. “Like, muss up the hair a little more, and he gets a dangerous spark, maybe. He’s the guy you don’t wanna mess with. But underneath the scary exterior, he’s just a harmless little nerd.”

She cackled, and Akimitsu joined her with loud chuckles of his own. He looked at Taiki with a fond look. “She’s not entirely wrong about that.”

Taiki rolled his eyes, though brought a hand up to his hair and ruffled it a bit, leaving it a bit of a mess and letting it fall completely over one of his eyes, little frays falling in the other. He sat with his back straighter, crossing one leg over the other, and tried to pull off the stern but amused grin Mr. Takeuchi had had before. 

The others stared at him wide eyed. Yuzuki flushed a dark pink, darker than even Megumi’s teasing could bring out. Megumi wolf whistled. 

“Earlier I was just hot, but now I’m hot and horny.”

“Keep it in your skirt, Megumi-chan,” Taiki said, pushing the hair back out of his face and giving her a teasing grin. “I’m not interested.”

Megumi cackled again. “Ooooo, that’s right. Your type is sweet and innocent, right? Like our sweet little Tama-chan over here.”

Taiki chuckled wryly. “No, not quite…” If only they knew…

Megumi groaned, flopping backwards on the bed. “Uuuuugh…! We need boooooze. It’s so much easier to make people spill when they’re drunk and I want you all to suffer this horniness with meeeee.”

Akimitsu laughed then. “Look beneath the bed,” he said mysteriously. 

Megumi shot up, gracefully untangling her legs and jumping down from the bed. She got on her knees and let out a triumphant shriek of joy. “Sake!” she shrieked, holding up two bottles of the drink. She flopped back on the bed, this time dragging Haichirou with her. “Now, I think it’s time we play a game! Let’s play spin the bottle!”

Akimitsu groaned. “What are we, twelve? I suggest Never Have I Ever.”

Yuzuki raised a hand. “I won’t be drinking much if we do that.”

“And it’s not much better than spin the bottle,” Haichirou said. “Truth or dare also feels immature…”

“What about Kings Game?” Taiki offered. The others turned to him. 

Megumi’s face split into a wide grin, showing off all her teeth and excitement. “Ooo, new drinking game? Give me the deets!”

Taiki placed a hand under his chin and leaned on his elbow. “The simple rules; we have enough sticks for each of us and number them. Except one, which we put the character for ‘king’ on. Then we all draw, and whoever draws the king stick commands someone by their number to do something. If they don’t want to, they drink.”

Megumi clapped her hands. “I don’t even care about the complicated rules, I want to play that! Gimme some sticks!”

In the end, it was Yuzuki who found some cuticle sticks in her purse and a cup to put them all in, labeling each neatly. She shook the cup, making sure all the sticks were fully mixed up, before going around the group and letting everyone grab one.

“I’m the king!” Megumi shouted with joy, jumping up and brandishing her stick.

Yuzuki leaned over to whisper in Taiki’s ear. “I let her get that one,” she admitted. “She’s so excited, so I thought that might help her calm down.” Taiki chuckled along with her, which only made Megumi pout, hands on her hips.

“Hey, hey, no, none of that,” she declared. She surveyed the group, a wicked grin making its way to her face. “Alright- I declare! Number three, strip! And make a show out of it! Number one, give ‘em some music!”

Yuzuki let out a gasp, followed by a high-pitched whine. Taiki looked over her shoulder. She had #3 written on her stick. Slowly, she handed Taiki her stick and stood up, going into the center of the room.

“Uh, um, do I- do I have to take everything off?” she asked, blushing furiously.

Megumi waved her hand. “Nah, keep on the bra and panties,” she said. 

“I have number one,” Haichirou sighed, pulling out his phone. It took a moment, but he eventually started playing a song that was a fast paced and bouncy song, totally different than the sensual vibe Megumi had clearly been trying to go for. She glared at him, but Haichirou only smirked back at her.

Yuzuki pulled off her sweater, then her button up, followed by her socks and skirt. She did a little spin, letting her silky slip spin out, before moving to remove that too.

“Nah, keep it on,” Megumi said. “You look cute.”

Yuzuki squeaked and collected her clothes, running back to her seat by Taiki with them. She pulled a blanket off the back of the chair and wrapped it around her whole body in a cocoon, looking adorable while she was at it. Taiki gave her a fond look as Megumi shook the cup after tossing her stick in. 

“Alright, who’s next!?”

Haichirou was, it seemed. He told #4 to feel up #2, and Megumi was all too happy to rub her hands all over Akimitsu.

Yuzuki went next, telling #1 to sit on #2’s lap for the next three rounds. Akimitsu had drank rather than sit on Haichirou, and Haichirou drank in solidarity.

Akimitsu went, telling #4 to take off one of #1’s clothing items, using only their toes. Megumi had tried, very hard, to pull off Taiki’s shirt, but he was being distinctly unhelpful, and in the end they’d all agreed that a fail also meant they had to drink. Megumi hadn’t seen a problem with that.

Akimitsu went again, this time telling #3 to drink as much from one of the bottles as possible in thirty seconds. Either way, Taiki was doomed to drink, so drink he did, taking down at least a third of the bottle before his time was up.

Taiki got his revenge when he told #3 to kiss #1 with sake in their mouth, leaving Yuzuki to kiss Haichirou and give him her sake. Though Taiki was sure she swallowed more than she gave him.

And so the game went on. Stupid things being demanded of each other, drinking when it was dubbed too stupid, until they were all at the very least tipsy. Taiki usually had a tolerance, but it was clear his body was unused to alcohol, so it affected him much more than before. He felt it surge through his veins, making everything seem just a little distorted, mind fuddled just enough to lower his inhibitions.

“Alright!” Megumi slurred, button up shirt open to reveal her undershirt. She held up the king stick. “#4 has to k- yup. Kiss number one! That’s what I said! Make it nice and- and juicy! Hehe…” 

She delved into giggles, and Taiki looked down at his stick. #4. He looked around the group, and Akimitsu slowly raised his hand, a flush on his cheeks. Taiki, just drunk enough to not care, stumbled to his feet and over to Akimitsu and straddled him. 

Akimitsu’s eyes widened, but Taiki closed his as he wrapped his arms around Akimitsu’s shoulders, leaning in and pressing his lips to the other boy’s. It was drunkenly sloppy, nowhere near Taiki’s usual level and standards. But it didn’t seem to matter to Akimitsu, who started out awkward and unsure, but just as easily kissed him back with fervor, though his touch made it clear he didn’t know what to do with his hands. Too rough, too tight, too soft, in awkward places. 

He broke away from Taiki with a gasp when he reached for Taiki’s chest, quickly remembering that Taiki was a guy. Taiki lightly patted Akimitsu’s cheek.

“Hmm, good job,” he said, almost falling when he climbed off Akimitsu’s lap. Akimitsu shrunk in on himself, trying to hide his blushing face. Megumi cackled maniacally from the bed, falling onto her back and shaking, as Taiki made his way back to his seat. 

Yuzuki snorted and laughed as she flopped over Taiki. “You looked soooo good kissing him,” she said, in a whisper that was too loud for anyone to not hear. “You looked- Hu-ic. You looked so happy. You gotta- You gotta tell ‘em you’re gay.”

Taiki couldn’t help but snort and burrow down with her, motions over exaggerated by his inebriation. “Shhh, shh, it’s supposed to be a secret,” he said, though he was giggling too much for it to be taken seriously.

Yuzuki gasped and leaned further against him, though she turned out to the rest of the group. “Sorry. TAIKI IS NOT GAY, HE JUST LIKES BOYS.”

Taiki snorted his laughter, collapsing on Yuzuki while giggling. “That’s what being gay is,” he said, unable to contain his giggling.

Megumi sat up and immediately turned pale, holding a hand to her mouth as her cheeks puffed out. “Oh… M‘ma a little drunk… I think… Ngh… Don’t feel good…”

Haichirou groaned. “Nooooo… Don’t get sick on the bed…”

Akimitsu’s flush still hadn’t abated, but he shot up into a standing position. “I’m gonna… water.”

“AND SNACKS!” Yuzuki cheered. “FOOD IS GOOD!”

Taiki had to rub his ear to try to clear away the ache after Yuzuki’s shout right close to it. He was feeling so sleepy… He felt Yuzuki pat his head and lay his head down on her lap, gently removing his glasses.

She began to sing, in that same loud whisper from before, some sort of lullaby Taiki didn’t recognize. He thought, very assuredly, that he was only resting his eyes until Akimitsu returned with food and drink, so he didn’t wake up with a raging hangover. Just what he’d need before finals…

But all thoughts drifted off as he did, surrendering to the darkness.

When Taiki woke up, the room was dark and there was a ringing in his ears. It took a moment, but he quickly realized it wasn’t just in his ears. It was his cellphone. He quickly snatched it up and answered it.

“Hello?” he said. A wet nose touched his hand, and Taiki looked down to see Patch staring up at him with sad puppy dog eyes. His head didn’t feel like it was splitting open and he didn't feel sick to his stomach, a definite surprise. 

“Sorry to call you while you’re out having fun,” Father said, voice tired and achy. He let out a long-suffering sigh. “Your sister got sick so your mother and I are at the hospital with her. The Takeuchi’s said you could stay with them tonight.”

Taiki froze, barely able to breathe. Patch put its head on his lap. He licked his lips. “How- How sick?”

Father hesitated. “She wasn’t breathing,” he said finally, trying to remain gentle. “She was coughing too much, and her fever wasn’t breaking. They think it’s ammonia, but they want to observe her overnight before they make a sure diagnosis.”

Taiki nodded, though Father couldn’t see it. “I… so with Sensei and Takeuchi-san?”

Father hummed. “Don’t bother them too much, son. They’re being good enough to allow you to stay.”

“Of course,” Taiki agreed. “Give… Give Eri-chan my love, okay?”

Father chuckled. “Truly besotted, aren’t you? I will. Get back safe, son. I don’t need to worry about both my children tonight.”

After exchanging goodbyes, Taiki slumped against the couch, phone held tightly in hand. His head fell against the back and Patch jumped up onto the couch, curling into Taiki’s side.

“I didn’t mean to come and shove into your fun, but I thought you should have a clear head for that conversation,” Patch whimpered, ears flat and curling in on itself pitifully.

Taiki sighed, running his fingers through Patch’s fur. “I’m not angry at you. I’m angry at myself. I couldn’t… I couldn’t do anything. How am I going to raise her and pass this mission if I’m out here getting drunk and stupid and not there when she needs me?”

Patch nosed at Taiki’s knee before laying its head down there. “You’re only human,” it said. “And still a kid. What can you do right now? Let the parents do some of the raising too, okay?”

Taiki hummed, continuing to pet Patch. “You’re right…” 

He sat up and surveyed the room. The two girls were curled up under the covers of the bed, thankfully appearing free of puke. Since Taiki had been taking up the entirety of the couch, the other boys had sprawled out on the floor.

He spotted a room service cart near the door with several bottles of water. He took one for himself, then put one by each of his friends, along with some medicine to help with coming hangovers. 

He quietly snuck out of the room, calling a cab to pick him up from the hotel. While waiting just outside, he sent a text to Akimitsu, explaining that he’d left for home after waking up and apologizing for his actions while drunk, while internally hoping that Akimitsu didn’t remember anything. 

He very much hoped that Haichirou and Megumi didn’t remember anything either. Neither of them had seemed sober enough to, but it would just be Taiki’s luck that they would. It wasn’t the way he wanted to tell them he was gay. 

When the cab arrived, Taiki slid into the backseat with Patch. The driver huffed. “Hey, kid, I don’t allow pe-”

“Just this one time, please,” Taiki said, voice quieter than he’d meant it to come out. He swallowed thickly. It had started out as such a good night. How had it become such a mess so quickly?

The driver sighed. “Fine, fine, just don’t let it up on the seat. I don’t want dog hair left behind.”

Patch sniffed, but the driver ignored it and began driving Taiki back home. 

When they arrived, Taiki looked up at the large house, looking larger and more imposing than ever. He’d never seen it entirely dark, with no single light on. Knowing that Father, Mother, and Eri were gone made it feel cold and lonely.

Taiki flinched when light hit him from the Takeuchi residence. He turned to see Mr. Takeuchi smiling at him, and gestured him over. 

“Come on, Kuroda-kun. It’s late. We have a room for you.”

Taiki nodded solemnly, following him into the house. 

Taiki stayed with the Takeuchi’s for practically the next month. He was old enough to take care of himself and stay alone, but Father and Mother fretted over him and Taiki himself often found himself too anxious to stay still. There was always the chance that if he was allowed to stay alone, he’d work himself into a nervous wreck. It was a miracle he’d gotten through finals during that time.

His parents started coming back interchangeably, one always at home while the other was with Eri. It allowed Taiki to return home, though it felt empty and filled with anxious energy. 

When Eri returned home, she looked so small.

The doctors said she was weak, and under no circumstances was she allowed to overexert herself. That meant that she was not allowed to run, and even walking was dangerous if she started showing signs of difficulty breathing or fainting.

They’d set up an appointment for further testing a week or so after she’d finally been released, but that had only begun the long, complicated process of constant tests and doctors visits and lengthy hospital stays.

It only came to a head when she was five years old.

Despite the restrictions on Eri that prevented her from running around like other children, even with all that childish energy in her on good days, she’d become a sweet, precious little thing, just as attached to Taiki as he was to her, often wanting to sleep in his bed instead of in with their parents or her own bed. She cried whenever he left for school, even harder when he’d started university and had longer hours than before. 

Still, he spent as many hours with her as he could, playing with her and reading to her and watching over her as she played with Makoto Takeuchi. 

He supposed he liked Makoto well enough. He was Eri’s companion, a friend her own age and an easy way to distract her when Taiki had to leave. But Makoto didn’t slow down. He apparently didn’t know the meaning of the word, and didn’t understand why he couldn’t play rough with Eri like he did with the other kids.

It was quickly turning him into a pain in the a*s that Taiki wanted to keep far away from his little sister. But he wouldn’t do that to Eri, because then she’d cry and probably hate him. At least for a little while, but any length of time of her disliking him felt cruel.

So Taiki left him alone.

For now.

But then on what was supposed to be a regular checkup while Taiki was in classes, Eri’s doctor told them that she had a rare heart condition. Her heart was small and weak, prone to bursting if she didn’t take care. 

“It’s unnamed,” Taiki said in frustration, sitting at his desk in his parents’ house. He twirled his pen around his fingers, finished coursework set to the side of the desk. With all those points put into medicine and his Studious character trait, he was able to fly right through it, despite how difficult it should be due to no prior knowledge in the field. “And vague symptoms at that. And such a specific death date…”

“Novel worlds are really strange,” Patch agreed. 

It would be almost impossible to diagnose Eri’s condition and find a cure for her, without discovering more. Taiki needed to grow up faster. He needed to learn more.

A sudden thought struck him, making a pit form in his stomach. It made him uneasy, just thinking about it. 

“…I think I have to leave,” Taiki said finally, closing his eyes and heaving a heavy sigh. Patch understood without him having said a word. It was for Eri, because everything was for Eri. But if he stuck around, he’d put all his attention on her and her current wellbeing. 

It was just like what Patch kept telling him; their parents would love and care for her as much as she needed, up until that fateful day. And if Taiki could prevent that, that would be one obstacle jumped over. But just one. After that, she’d still be on the track to die by fourteen. If a cure wasn’t found…

Taiki needed to be able to focus on his studies to be able to look for that cure. And in order to focus better…

He looked over at his phone, abandoned on the bed. “Akimitsu said university housing is nice.”

Akimitsu had joined a close by university to work through a business degree, so he could join his parents afterwards. He’d immediately moved into one of the dorm rooms, ready to savor his first taste of freedom after years of harsh restrictions due to his family’s social position.

Yuzuki was also getting a degree, in a farther school, meaning they didn’t keep in as close contact anymore. That wasn’t to say they didn’t keep in contact at all, because Yuzuki was still his closest confidant. Despite having been different from the Taiki she’d always known, she’d learned to read him quickly.

Haichirou had gone overseas to England, looking for inspiration for himself. As the youngest son in a whole family of boys, well, there weren’t a lot of prospects for him at home and he had no plans to fight for his family’s company.

Megumi had immediately started interning at a fashion company a month after graduation. They’d barely had their final celebration when she was heading off and acting all adult already. In just the few years that had passed, she’d been hired as a full employee and was rising in the ranks faster than anyone had ever thought. She’d complained over drinks just a few days before that her coworkers were s**t talking her, saying she was either sleeping with people to rise as quickly as she was or it was entirely because of her family’s fortune, never mind that Megumi was the only one to get a job after three generations of lazy rich people.

Taiki was, admittedly, proud of how far they’d all come. And surprised, too, when they all admitted to remembering the night Yuzuki had spilled his secret while drunk. Yuzuki had, understandably, been horrified and embarrassed at herself, but they’d all waited as long as they could for him to tell them himself. The night had been a mess as it was, with everything that happened with Eri.

He hadn’t ever decided to, instead resigned to avoiding it for the rest of his time in the world, but then Haichirou had told him, in a quiet whisper on the school roof just weeks before graduation, that they knew, and could see how clearly it was beating him up to keep it secret.

They all supported him, and respected his silence from then on. 

But now, they were all scattered to the four corners. 

And what a turn it was coming to be.

A light outside caught Taiki’s attention. He stood from his chair to look out the window towards the Takeuchi residence. It was dark outside, already late into the night, but the light in the front room had turned on. Through the sheer curtains, Taiki could see Mrs. Takeuchi moving about with a suitcase.

He started heading towards the door, Patch on his heels. “Master, where’re we going?”

“Just outside,” Taiki said. “I have to… I don’t know.”

The street was empty when Taiki exited the house, but the light was still on. He took a seat on the curb, Patch sitting beside him, tail lightly thumping against the ground. 

They didn’t have to wait long before Mrs. Takeuchi exited her residence, wearing a thick jacket and carrying a suitcase. Taiki jumped to his feet, though tried to seem casual as he walked over to her.

“Takeuchi-san…”

She let out a yelp, whirling around to face him, her face pale. “Oh, Kuroda-kun… You scared me.”

He looked down at her suitcase, a frown forming on his lips. “…You’re leaving.”

Mrs. Takeuchi seemed to stop breathing, a faraway look forming in her eyes. “Yes,” she said decisively, her tone trying to be bitter but only coming out weak. “I don’t love them. Either of them. I should be gone before they realize that and we all become cruel in our hate of each other.”

Taiki’s hands clenched in his pockets. “You care enough to leave,” he said. 

A sad, fond smile overtook whatever look she’d had before. She reached out and touched Taiki’s cheek. “I wasn’t supposed to be a mother. Makoto is a child, so I cared for him as an adult is supposed to care for a child. Takuya was my husband, so I cared for him as a wife would. That caring allowed me to see that I was not good for them. It could not replace love and affection. One day, you might understand, but for your sake, I hope you never do.”

She pulled away and took a step back. Taiki forced a small smile. “So… this is goodbye.”

She hummed sadly. “Better than what I’d done to the other two…”

Taiki turned his gaze to the ground. “I hope you find something that does make you happy,” he said. “And… for what it’s worth, you made a great kid.”

She didn’t say a word to him, only scrunching up her gaze just a bit, before walking away from the dark house towards the curb as a taxi arrived to pick her up. Taiki watched her go solemnly, right up until the taxi turned a corner and drove far out of sight.

He headed back home, Patch keeping in step. “That happened in the original, too,” Patch chimed. “Not with you being there, but Nemuri Takeuchi still left in the middle of the night. In a couple weeks, Sensei will be sent divorce papers.”

Taiki hummed as he reached the door to the house, looking back to the Takeuchi residence. “And so the first flag to make a protagonist appears…”

Author's Note

As seems obvious, I have no idea how to write rich OR drunk people. Also, I think the drunk scene is partially what's giving me anxiety? Is it weird? Like, TOO weird? What would be good to be changed about it, if anything?