"Ha! What do you mean, ‘father’? Are you crazy? Are you even saying that with a straight face?!"
After getting her pregnant and forcing a relationship on her as if it were nothing, and now he wanted to act all proper and call himself her "father"?
Furious, Ichigo shot to his feet, and Kaoru lifted his head with a grim, death-defying resolve, his blue eyes flashing.
"I will take [responsibility] with my life."
"......"
"I proved my sincerity by forcing my retirement from entertainment. My declaration that I will take responsibility for the child is for the exact same reason I gave you before. If I didn’t love Ai, I would never have said it, not even as a lie!"
"How? Huh? Do you have some plan? You’re a minor, aren’t you? Do you know how much it costs to raise a kid? You’re about to enter high school, aren’t you? Can you even afford formula? Can you support a child while going to high school? You won’t be making that much money as an actor, either, will you? Do you think life is that easy?"
Kaoru reached into his bag and took out the transcript recording all three years of middle school, the application form for Kaisei High School Academy he had just submitted, and a bankbook containing his current stock portfolio and full asset details.
Ichigo glared at them with angry eyes and asked as if to say what the hell this was.
"What is all this?"
"I understand that you don’t trust me. But as a man who loves Ai, I can assure you I have never lived my life carelessly. As you can see, there is absolutely no need to worry about my financial situation. My studies and my schedule are also no problem. From the start, I managed my grades so I could apply to Kaisei High School Academy while continuing my acting career. You don’t need to worry about that either."
"......"
"If you want, I’ll give up on using my family name as well. The same goes for the child to be born. I will become one family with Ai and stay by her side for the rest of my life. Please, grant your permission."
"You... haah! Damn it!"
Ichigo sprang up with the face of a man staring at a mortal enemy, then forced himself back into his chair with superhuman restraint and swallowed his boiling rage.
Thinking back, he had been like this from the very first time they met.
Even though he was just a kid about to enter high school, he kept his composure and cool in every situation like some seasoned adult who had already weathered every storm in the world.
If you tried to trap him by the tail, he would slip away cleanly and turn the tables, leaving you speechless with his thorough preparation and logical way of speaking, then knock you flat and render you helpless.
Setting aside the boy’s handsome face, those blue eyes of his were as hard as stone, yet they shone without wavering. Looking into them made every word and every feeling from this bastard in front of him seem true.
It was so annoying it almost made the angry one look like the fool.
When he glanced at the many things Kaoru had brought out, he even felt a little ashamed of his own empty life, especially compared to a boy so much younger than him.
Just how had Ai met a guy like that...?
Rubbing at his throbbing temple, Ichigo lifted a hand, then looked toward his wife, Miyako, who was quietly slipping out of the master bedroom, and let out a silent sigh.
Miyako came out of the master bedroom quietly and walked over to Kaoru, who was still kneeling. She patted his shoulder and said, "Kaoru, it’s okay, so get up now. For now, sit down comfortably and let’s talk some more."
"Why are you making him sit? He’s the one who committed the crime."
Still not over his anger, Ichigo’s stubborn retort made Miyako frown deeply. She put a hand on her hip and raised her voice like a teacher.
"Mr. President! Then do you want Ai to live the rest of her life without a husband? She’s even got a baby in her belly! You already know that just getting angry won’t solve anything!"
Mr. President... Ichigo flinched, unable to say a word in the face of Miyako’s outburst.
"......"
"And what’s more, you’re acting like some thug! The moment you heard the story, you punched the kid! Even if Kaoru was prepared for it, what do you think Ai would say if she saw that? She wouldn’t thank you—she’d probably get so mad she’d try to smash your sunglasses!!!"
"........."
"Stand up, Kaoru! No house in Japan treats a guest like a criminal and makes him kneel like this."
"No, ma’am. I-"
"I said get up!!"
Miyako grabbed Kaoru’s arm and forcibly pulled him to his feet when he refused to rise, then sat him back down in the chair. She immediately took the seat beside him instead of the one next to Ichigo and continued speaking.
It was obvious she had not fled into the bedroom at all, but had been watching the situation from a distance, because there was no hesitation in her words.
"Honestly! How many boys would have the courage to come here in person like Kaoru did? Do you know what kind of awful things can happen? Watch the news! There are pathetic guys everywhere getting girls pregnant and running off!
Look at Kaoru, a high school student, coming here with his transcript and bankbook just to convince you, Mr. President. I was angry at him at first too, and this whole situation was truly awful and shocking, but at the very least Kaoru was trying to [take responsibility] for what he did! Responsibility!
He’s saying he’ll stay by the child’s side for life, that he’ll devote his life to the child, and he’s saying it with the kind of intensity that makes it sound like he’s ready to perform seppuku! As an adult, shouldn’t you calm down for a moment and at least listen to Kaoru’s words?! Huh?"
"......A-alright. I get it, so calm down, Miyako."
Ichigo, the one who was actually sweating bullets, tried to soothe her, but Miyako slammed the table and kept huffing like an angry cat whose rage still hadn’t cooled.
"Huff— huff— I’m hearing this from the room and my blood is boiling!! A handsome, princely-looking boy straight out of a fairy tale has fallen in love with Ai and is even kneeling to ask your permission—what woman in the world could just stand there and watch?! A boy who might become my son-in-law!"
That was the reason?!
Ichigo nearly choked, covering his mouth with a fist as he coughed. Miyako looked at Kaoru’s face, his lip split and bleeding from being hit by Ichigo, and wore a pained expression as if her heart was breaking for him.
What a shame, such a handsome face with an injury on it! Miyako hurriedly fetched a basic first-aid kit from a shelf and, with quick and practiced hands, found the antiseptic and disinfected the boy’s wound.
"Y-you don’t have to..."
"Kaoru, you’re still growing, so your skin is delicate. It could even leave a scar if you’re not careful. I’ll just put on some medicine, so hold still for a moment."
"...Yes. Th-thank you."
Kaoru accepted the treatment quietly, glancing at Ichigo’s mood as he did. Watching him in silence, Ichigo let out a long, ground-sinking sigh and shook his head.
Miyako was right... No matter how he thought about it, she was right. He couldn’t even logically refute her. For all that he was an adult and a senior in life, this boy was already living properly at an age younger than his own.
Ichigo thought it over calmly, his face clouded with complexity.
If it were him? Could he, like Kaoru, have boldly come to the house, knelt down, and resolved to persuade the parents...?
Could he have endured the violent fists of the man who might become his father-in-law?
No, more than that.
Could he have retired from a successful acting career for the woman he loved, and had the nerve to declare that he would take responsibility for his pregnant lover and the child in her belly...?
"......"
And the fact that his younger wife was fussing over Kaoru in such an obvious way, as if to show him up, probably meant she felt the same way he did now.
Remembering the first meeting with the scarred, lonely girl who had longed for love, Ichigo finally stood from his chair and walked into the living room.
Staring somewhere beyond the window at the city outside, Ichigo opened his tightly shut mouth.
"First, we need to find a hospital to examine Ai."
"!"
At Ichigo’s calm voice, Kaoru’s blue eyes trembled violently for a moment.
Kaoru rose from the chair, clenched both fists lightly, and looked at Ichigo’s back with a trembling heart.
"Not Tokyo. The outskirts nearby are out too, obviously. Ai’s face is too well known. The moment someone recognizes her and even a single word of gossip leaks out, it’s all over that day."
"Yes."
"I, as Ai’s guardian, will take responsibility for finding the hospital myself, so you make sure Ai can rest in complete peace. From now on, as her lover and as the father—carry out your role faithfully, with your life on the line. That is the [first condition] I’m placing on you."
"Yes. I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you!"
Even as Kaoru bowed deeply in gratitude, Ichigo continued speaking in the same indifferent tone.
"Even if we find an obstetrician and the baby is born safely, there are still mountains of practical problems. Until the two of you are old enough to register a marriage, the baby’s family registry will go under my wife’s and my names for now. Your child might end up as the child’s sibling. You understand that, and you’re prepared for it, right?"
"...Yes. I understand. I’m prepared."
"Even after the two of you register your marriage and put the child under your family registry again, if this becomes public, not only you but Ai and your child could all be condemned. The public hates [truth] the most.
In the chaos that follows when the [illusion] packaged by the media shatters, you’ll have to protect your [family] with your life. You’re prepared for that too, right?"
Turning back, Ichigo looked at Kaoru and said it.
As an adult, as a man, and as Hoshino Ai’s guardian. Could he really do it? In answer to that question, Kaoru took one big step forward and let the red [starlight] flicker in his blue eyes.
"Yes."
Meeting those blue eyes, Ichigo still felt uneasy, but he also felt a faint hope seeping into his heart.
His own instinct, the one that had brought him this far all alone, finally burst out in a confident cry.
The boy, Kaoru, would surely overcome the difficult obstacles and crises ahead and succeed.
"...Yeah. For now... let’s eat lunch or something. I’m hungry."
The father-in-law(?) decided to feed the prospective son-in-law(?).
-
Thanks to Ichigo’s arrangement, Kaoru was able to meet Ai after her schedule ended.
The two of them met in a dark practice room in another building that had been left empty and unused, and the moment they saw each other, they ran to one another as if they had agreed on it beforehand.
"Ai!"
"Kaoru!"
Even though she was no longer alone.
Ai’s starlit eyes sparkled as she ran toward him with her usual wide stride, her face overflowing with happiness, and threw herself into Kaoru’s arms.
Even though they had hugged so much just yesterday, the moment she saw him she wanted to hold him more, feel him more. She only wanted to sweep away all the fatigue, anxiety, and stress that had piled up in his arms.
The one and only person in this world. The one and only person before whom she could freely show her [sincerity].
"...I missed you."
"Yeah."
Kaoru answered softly, then held her tightly as she clung to him and breathed in Ai’s scent deep into his lungs.
It was sweet.
Even the scent of cosmetics couldn’t erase the pleasant fragrance coming from Ai’s body.
How could such a small body be so warm? The moment Kaoru held Ai, he felt as if all the worries and anxieties he had carried until now were blown away.
"Miyako told me... Ahh. What do I do? Why didn’t you go to the hospital? Is your lip okay?!"
After pulling away, Ai looked over Kaoru’s face with starlit eyes full of worry and tears. His lip, split by a fist, had ointment on it. The cheek that had been hit was slightly swollen around the edges. Her chest felt like it was being torn apart, and even her breathing trembled as if it might crumble.
When Miyako picked her up separately after her schedule ended and explained what had happened in the car, how shocked and flustered had she been?
She had glossed over the details and told her to hear the rest from Kaoru, but the moment she heard that Ichigo had hit him again, her mind went blank and her hands shook uncontrollably.
Kaoru had suffered because of her again.
At that guilt and despair, Ai’s eyes filled with tears as she kept letting out one sorrowful sigh after another.
Of course, Miyako could only look at Ai’s private pain, something she had never even imagined before, and feel that Ai’s behavior was adorable now that she had someone precious to care about, while also feeling deeply sorry for the girl who had only belatedly learned what it meant to worry for someone precious.
"I’m fine. Miyako-san treated it. It’ll heal quickly."
How much had she suffered on the way here? He felt sorry for making his lover suffer, and yet grateful that she worried about him so much.
Kaoru smiled lightly and gently covered the hand that was touching his face over and over.
"In America, fathers sometimes pull out a gun on the man who’s going to become their son-in-law."
"Eh—?!"
A gun?! Startled by Kaoru’s unexpected joke, Ai widened her rabbit-like eyes and cried out—
"This much... is nothing."
Kaoru smiled and shrugged, then gently cupped her cheeks in both hands and kissed her softly before whispering,
"And... I’m sorry, Ai. For deciding on my own."
"......"
Kaoru pulled Ai close and lowered his forehead to hers. When their warm skin touched and Ai’s scent drifted around his nose, Kaoru finally found the courage to speak the feelings he had never told anyone.
"I didn’t want to leave you to handle it alone. I could never just stand by and let you carry everything by yourself. I spent all night thinking about what I could do in your place now that you’re not alone anymore, but... this was the only thing I could come up with."
"......"
"For you, I’d gladly take a beating. If it means I can stay with you, if it means protecting you and the baby you’re going to have, I’ll do anything."
"Idiot Oru...! Even so— you didn’t have to go this far— getting hit like that— kneeling down like that... Kaoru didn’t need to push himself this much...!!"
"A, Ai..."
"Even if you say it was for me! Kaoru didn’t need to end up this battered! No matter... no matter if it’s something you have to do someday... there was no need for Kaoru to shoulder it all by yourself without me... We promised we’d do anything together, didn’t we... Why do you keep... trying to get hurt all by yourself without telling me...! Please— don’t get hurt... don’t get hurt. I don’t care what happens, so stay with Ai. Kaoru..."
With tears in her brilliant starlit eyes, Ai threw her arms around Kaoru as hard as she could.
At her lover’s whisper, offering to sacrifice himself without hesitation for the sake of a lonely, incomplete girl like her, she felt so happy and relieved that it almost made her float away, but at the same time she was filled with worry and so sorry for him that she could not feel at ease.
[Love].
Ah.
So this was what it was like—so sweet, and yet so frighteningly sad.
Because she knew love, she could cry because of the lover she loved and feel pain so sharp it tore her heart apart.
It wasn’t always happy... and shining brilliantly.
...Love.
As Ai wept in Kaoru’s arms, she finally realized that the feeling called [love] had a dual nature, where happiness and sorrow existed in fierce coexistence.
Looking at her lover’s battered face with his split lip, guilt that she couldn’t share his pain and hurt that he had tried to bear all of this alone without saying a single word surged through her body, enough to make her shudder.
But on the other hand, if she thought about how Kaoru must have felt the exact same way when he learned she was pregnant, then even in this moment, being held tightly by her silent lover made her feel endless guilt and tenderness.
"Okay. I won’t try to carry everything alone again. I promise. Ai..."
"H-huuk... hrrrgh..."
"I love you."
"I love you too... Kaoru!"
There was still a long, rough road ahead before everything would be resolved.
But because they were together, Kaoru and Ai were not afraid at all of the harsh future waiting for them.
The two of them held each other and shared [sincerity] for a long time after that.
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