Chapter Text
About an hour later, the four of them wandered into a ramen restaurant a short drive away in the next neighborhood. They had wanted to go to Sugoaku to visit the twins, but it was too far to go to and be able to make it back in time to meet Takemichi and Hina, so they had chosen a more local restaurant with similar food choices instead. The place was dimly lit inside and was decorated with fresh plants and pictures plastered all over the walls featuring various chefs who had worked there and dishes they’d made. It was small, but busy and lively, and Baji immediately liked it.
Aiko was bouncing on her feet as they asked for a table at the reservation desk, looking around herself in awe as she clutched onto Baji’s middle finger with enough force to give him arthritis.
Once they were seated and a waitress had taken their orders with a pleasant smile at Aiko’s excitement, Chifuyu leaned over to the young girl and asked, “What’s been your favorite part of this week? Are you ready to go back to your parents?”
She considered the question for a moment as she swung her legs off her chair, then announced, “My day with Uncle Baji was really fun. And I liked seeing all your friends. Like when we got to see Uncle Ken-chin! And I loved the kitties because they were really, really cute.” She tilted her head, then added, “You guys are more fun than Mama and Dad, you have pets and say lots of funny things.”
Kazutora laughed loudly at Aiko’s blunt assessment, which had also earned a smile from Baji and Chifuyu. “Fuyu, you better tell Takemichi that his daughter likes us better than him,” he snickered. “The fun uncles always win the popularity contest.”
“I miss them, though,” Aiko piped up again, her bottom lip sticking out in an adorable pout. “Mama’s cooking is a lot better than Uncle Fuyu’s, and she plays with my toys with me. And Dad plays dress up with me.”
Baji raised an eyebrow at that and asked, “Dress up?” at the same time as Chifuyu replied indignantly, “Oh, come on, my cooking isn’t that bad.”
“It is,” Aiko said plainly to Chifuyu, then, “And Dad and I play pretend a lot. He looks funny when he wears one of my tutus,” to Baji.
“Oh my god,” Kazutora grinned. “We knew Fuyu is an awful cook, but Takemichi wears skirts? The things parents do for their children.”
Chifuyu mumbled something in offense and Baji whispered back, low enough that Aiko couldn’t hear him, “As if you didn’t literally wear a thong to work once because you had a date right after we closed up.”
Kazutora’s mouth dropped open, and Chifuyu exploded into laughter so violently that he almost instantly began choking on his own spit. Aiko looked confused, having missed the joke, and Kazutora simply glared at Baji and said, “Bastard. You promised to never bring that up again.”
“You bent over to pick up a box and I could see it sticking out of your pants. It was one of the funniest things that’s ever happened to me, you’re not off the hook that easily.”
“What’s so funny?” Aiko interrupted sharply, an abrupt exasperation noticeable in her voice as she began kicking her legs more aggressively under the table. “You guys never explain the things you say around me. I wanna know!”
Baji was caught off guard by how suddenly Aiko sounded as if she were on the brink of becoming genuinely upset, and he sighed internally at the whims of children and attempted to switch into damage control mode before she threw a tantrum over not being let in on an inside joke about Kazutora’s underwear, but Kazutora beat him to it.
“Actually, you’ve got a point, kid,” the tattooed man hummed thoughtfully. “Feels kind of bad to not tell you things when we never shut up with each other.” He paused for a moment, and Aiko stared at him expectantly as he considered his words. Eventually, apparently choosing a slightly different event to explain, he continued with, “You asked earlier why I went to jail.”
Baji’s eyes widened and he sat up straighter in his chair at the disarmingly sudden change in topic, and he and Kazutora locked eyes for a moment as Aiko leaned forward in interest. The two of them had been close for long enough that they could very nearly have a whole conversation by only looking at one another, as some best friends can, and the glance they shared confirmed that they were both okay with telling an abridged, yet honest, version of what had really happened in order to appease Aiko as long as the other was okay with it too. Kazutora slowly said, “I’ve been in prison twice. The first time was because I tried to steal something that didn’t belong to me. It was supposed to be a present for Uncle Mikey, but… it didn’t go well. I got caught.”
Baji’s brow wrinkled when he noticed that Kazutora was purposefully leaving him out of the story, presumably to protect his image in Aiko’s eyes. As much as he appreciated it, it felt worse to him to not be fully honest with her and let Kazutora take all the heat than it would be to reveal that he had made a mistake too. The abrupt shift in the atmosphere at the table was definitely a little jarring, but if they were already here and discussing the topic, then they might as well do it fully.
“I was there too,” Baji added as casually as possible, despite the choking feeling that appeared in the back of his throat whenever he thought about the incident. “But, uh, I didn’t go to jail because I didn’t get caught.”
She didn’t need to know about Shinichiro.
Kazutora blinked at him owlishly before smiling slightly and adding, “Ah. Yeah. Me and Baji, partners in crime since day one.” Chifuyu reached over from his seat next to Baji and subtly grabbed the older man’s hand, rubbing his knuckles with his thumb in circles.
Aiko seemed confused by the subdued nature of the conversation --after all, to be fair, she had asked about a joke, not for Kazutora’s sob story. Apparently the man was in the mood to run the gauntlet of the confessional. “But that’s not that bad,” she said simply, and Baji nearly breathed an audible sigh of relief that she hadn’t lost all respect for them just yet.
Kazutora chuckled at that and said, “It was bad enough. That was two years in jail for me. The second time… well. I stabbed Baji.”
Chifuyu snorted at the plain bluntness with which Kazutora had delivered the statement, and Baji barely resisted doing the same. Aiko stared at Kazutora with some strange mix of dismay and confusion in her eyes, and she asked in a hushed yet emphatic voice, “Why?”
Baji and Kazutora exchanged another look before Baji answered, “We were all pretty crazy when we were kids. We got into a lot of fights with other people and stuff. And, uh, me and Tora got into a disagreement once, and well…”
There was so much more to it than just that, but in all honesty that was all that Baji really cared about. A disagreement. In the end, he had pulled through and survived the stab wound at the Valhalla gang battle, and that’s what mattered. Hell, even if he had died, he probably wouldn’t have held it against Kazutora —he didn’t have it in him to ever hate the other man. They had been through too much together for that.
Kazutora was a total shithead, but he was still Baji’s best friend, and he was proud of how far he had come from the unstable, easily-manipulated kid he had once been. Tora lived a good life now --he was healthy, had a job and many friends who loved him, and he was learning to be easier on himself. Baji he didn’t tell him how happy he was for him enough.
“Tora’s changed a lot since then, though. And so have I. So we’re still friends, even though that happened,” Baji explained to Aiko. “He’s had a rough time, but he pulled through it all, and I’m proud of him.”
Kazutora looked away and placed his chin in his hand, noticeably embarrassed by the attention. “Well, it wasn’t all me. It took all of you guys being around, being on constant suicide watch in prison, and enough anti-depressants to kill an elephant, too,” he joked awkwardly.
Neither Baji nor Chifuyu laughed, and Kazutora scowled at them. “What! It’s funny now!”
“Don’t ruin the moment,” Chifuyu teased.
Aiko had seemingly been considering the seriousness of the discussion, and she finally concluded, “I don’t really get all of that, but I’m happy you’re still friends.”
Baji certainly was too, and when their food arrived shortly later, he forced Kazutora and Chifuyu to clink their glasses against his in a toast.
“To what?” Kazutora asked dryly.
“To friends and family,” Chifuyu answered for Baji, who was about to say something similar himself.
“That’s the corniest shit I’ve ever heard in my life. Sounds like something a middle aged white woman would hang up on her wall,” Kazutora snarked unwelcomely as he clinked his glass against Baji and Chifuyu’s nonetheless.
Aiko giggled gleefully, and Baji reached across the table and roughly yanked his friend’s hair out of its bun in retaliation.
The food was delicious. It was flavorful and homey, just like Sugoaku was, although none of the men could say it was better that the twins’ cooking --nothing beat the twins’ cooking. The four of them left the restaurant with full stomachs and hearts, and Baji and Chifuyu soon had to take Aiko back to their apartment so that Takemichi and Hina could pick her up.
Kazutora leaned over Aiko and gave her an few enthusiastic pats on the cheek --hard enough to rock her head back and forth slightly.
“It’s been really fun hanging out with you, Aiko,” he hummed as the girl stared up at him. “Behave yourself with your parents, but not too much. Keep them on their toes.”
The young girl froze for a moment before shyly holding her arms out and up toward Kazutora, gesturing for him to give her a hug.
Kazutora’s face lit up and he dropped to his knees to wrap his arms around Aiko’s shoulders. “Aww!” he exclaimed. “I’ll miss you, lil’ gremlin! See you soon, hopefully.”
“I’ll miss you too, Uncle Tora,” Aiko said, her tone bittersweet as she placed a small kiss on Kazutora’s cheek.
The man looked nearly starstruck by the small display of affection, and Baji laughed meanly at him in a false display of mockery as he grabbed Aiko’s hand and they turned to leave, waving goodbye to the tattooed man. Yeah --Baji was definitely proud of how far Tora had come.
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Their week babysitting Aiko ended much like it started --with the two couples and the young girl meeting in the parking lot of Baji and Chifuyu’s apartment complex.
As per usual, the waterworks started the second Takemichi stepped out of his and Hina’s car, and the man practically sprinted the short distance to his daughter’s side. Hina followed quickly after, albeit with much more dignity.
“Aiko! My little angel, we missed you so much!” Takemichi blubbered as he scooped his daughter off the ground and into his arms. She let loose an ecstatic little laugh as she wrapped her arms around her Dad’s neck, then squealed in delight when Hina joined the hug and placed a kiss on her forehead.
Baji watched with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans as the parents smothered their daughter with affection. He couldn’t quite describe the feeling in his chest as he watched the happy family reunion, but much to his shame, he knew it wasn’t entirely positive.
Chifuyu glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, then slipped his hand around Baji’s wrist to gingerly pull his hand out of his pocket and interlace their fingers. “I know you have resting bitch face, but stop looking like you want to murder somebody,” Chifuyu whispered teasingly. “I’ll miss her too.”
With a sigh, Baji shook his head as if to fling away any unwanted thoughts and brought their hands to his face to place a quick kiss on Chifuyu’s knuckles. Then, he returned his attention to the Hanagaki family and asked, “How was Okinawa, you two?”
Hina lit up at the question and launched into a brief retelling of their week, emphasizing every other sentence how romantic it was and how well Takemichi treated her. The man in question became endearingly flustered every time his wife complimented him, and Baji smiled at how the two still managed to act like newlyweds even after being married for five years. He supposed that was part of the magic of a second honeymoon, but it was also just the two of them --Takemichi and Hinata, soulmates from the start. They were like something out of one of Chifuyu’s beloved shoujo mangas that he still read under the covers of their bed when he thought Baji wasn’t paying attention.
“Our week was great, but I bet Aiko had even more fun than we did,” Takemichi said, giving his daughter an extra tight squeeze when Hina was done relaying the details of their vacation.
Aiko enthusiastically agreed. “I love it here! I got to go to the pet store and see kitties and Uncle Tora, and they have a cat named Peke J who is super cute, and I got to visit Uncle Ken-chin and eat lots of yummy food. Uncle Chifuyu and Uncle Baji are fun,” the girl began eagerly, and Baji contentedly took note of how happy she looked to be talking about her time spent with them. “And,” she continued, “I learned a lot of fun new stuff too. Like, Uncle Tora said Uncle Baji is having something called an affair, and I know a lot of new words for when you get angry, and that Uncle Mikey’s name is actually Manjirou. Oh, and that none of the people you call my uncles are actually my uncles except Uncle Naoto. Uncle Baji told me that.” Her tone was matter-of-fact with a hint of satisfaction, as if she was proud to report her new knowledge.
Baji was at a loss for words as Takemichi and Hina blinked at him, both of them visibly trying to digest Aiko’s comments. The tension of the uncomfortable pause was shattered by Chifuyu latching onto Baji’s arm and erupting into laughter.
“Oh my god!” he wheezed. “All of those things are true except for Kei having an affair! Stop looking at him like that, Tora and I were just giving him a hard time because he spent six years on his lunch break the other day.”
Takemichi noticeably relaxed as he too began to laugh at Baji’s expense. The latter’s eyebrow twitched slightly. He hoped the stupid affair joke didn’t continue to bite him in the ass after this.
“Well, it sounds like you three had a fantastic time,” Hina hummed, smoothing down Aiko’s messily combed hair. “Although, I’m curious to know more about what words for when you get angry Aiko learned,” she added, and Baji couldn’t tell whether she was joking lightheartedly or mentally preparing to rip his head off the second Aiko let a curse word slip. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling; if he had learned anything during the many, long years of Takemichi and Hina’s relationship, it was that Hinata Tachibana was a wonderful, beautiful person --but absolutely not someone to be fucked with. He prayed that Aiko wouldn’t dig him into a hole as soon as she got home.
“We should probably get going, we’re pretty tired,” Takemichi said regretfully. “Again, thank you guys so, so much for helping us out.”
“If you need anything, and I mean literally anything, we’ll help you out. We can even just pick up your groceries or something silly like that,” Hina added enthusiastically. “It means a lot that you took such good care of her.”
“You guys act like it was such a chore for us,” Baji replied, scratching at the back of his head abashedly. “We loved it. We’re gonna miss her.” Chifuyu nodded in agreement, then added, “Especially Kei. I think he’s been scheming all week to think of a way to avoid having to send her back home with you two.”
Baji shot him a look as Takemichi laughed and set Aiko down, and Chifuyu and Baji kneeled down to give her a hug goodbye. The girl wrapped her small arms around their necks and squeezed, and Baji felt tears prickle in the corners of his eyes. Oh God, was he really about to let himself cry over this? He was acting as if Takemichi’s house wasn’t a half-hour drive away.
When they pulled away from each other, Aiko grabbed Baji’s hand and gripped onto it extra tightly before returning to her mom’s side.
Baji attempted to wipe the tears from his eyes as discreetly as possible, but, of course, Chifuyu noticed and elbowed him gently in the ribs with a knowing smile on his face. Baji shoved him back with a grunt, immature, like they were middle schoolers again.
Takemichi grabbed Aiko’s hand, and the girl waved at her faux uncles happily. “Bye Baji and Fuyu! See you next week,” she called.
Her father glanced down at her, then said, “Sorry, Aiko, I don’t know if they’ll be able to visit us next week, they’ll be busy again with work.”
“When will I come back and stay here?” Aiko blinked.
“Ah, the next time we go on vacation? Which might not be for a while, sorry angel. But, Baji and Chifuyu can come visit us.”
Aiko stared at Takemichi as if he had just said she was never going to be able to see them again, her eyes so wide she looked appalled. It occured to Baji that the girl had probably assumed she would be staying with them regularly from now on, and that this wasn’t a one-time occasion, and he mentally kicked himself for not making that more clear to her. He could practically see the mental somersaults Aiko’s brain was making as she took in that information.
“A while?” she said quietly, and her eyebrows scrunched upwards in the most adorable display of sadness Baji had ever seen. Her bright eyes were suddenly shining with tears, and one leaked out and fell down her pouted cheek as she said, “Then, I don’t wanna leave.”
“Aw, sweetheart, don’t cry,” Hina comforted as she crouched down to her daughter’s eye level. “Keisuke and Chifuyu will come visit us when they can, you’ll see them again soon.”
Aiko shook her head vehemently and began to cry in earnest, sniffling loudly as she wiped her eye with her sleeve. “But I don’t wanna leave!” she insisted, dropping Takemichi’s hand and running to Baji to throw her arms around his legs and latch onto him so hard he almost lost his balance and tipped over.
Baji was too stunned to react for a second, but when he did, he gently placed his hand in Aiko’s hair and leaned over. “Aw, Aiko, I’m gonna miss you too. Having you around really livened everything up,” he said softly as he rubbed her head in an attempt to comfort her. “But, I’ll come see you as soon as I can, and we can get ice cream again or something.” And when Aiko looked up at him with her eyes still wet and her mouth still quivering as she held back more vehement tears, Baji knew he would do just about anything to cheer her up. “Next week,” he said firmly. “Me and Fuyu will come visit next week.”
Aiko’s eyes flashed wider at the statement, then she whimpered, “Promise?”
“Promise,” Baji guaranteed.
“I promise too,” Chifuyu joined in as he bent over to give Aiko a quick pinch on the cheek.
That seemed to be enough for Aiko, because she gave Baji’s lower legs one last hug, then separated from the two men and walked back to her father, who was once again holding back tears of his own.
“She likes to cry, just like her dad,” Baji teased halfheartedly, more in an attempt to lift the mood than anything else.
“Oh, shut up,” Takemichi replied. “That was so cute, how could I not cry a little? I didn’t think she’d get so attached to you guys.”
“What’s that supposed to mean, Michi?” Chifuyu grinned at his best friend.
“Huh? No, I didn’t mean that I didn’t think she’d like you, I just--”
Baji watched as the two went back and forth, and he simply savored the moment with all five of them together. As much as it felt like a let-down to have to say goodbye to Aiko --and, accordingly, slightly embarrassing to have to admit how attached he had gotten to her in only six days-- he knew that he would see her again soon, and much more often than he had before from now on. He’d make sure of it.
Chifuyu and Baji waved one last goodbye to the Hanagaki family as they clambered into their car. Aiko pressed her face up against the car window once the door was closed and flashed them a dazzling smile as the car pulled out of the parking lot and down the street.
The two men stood in silence for a beat before Baji leaned back and let out a long sigh.
“Quit being so dramatic,” Chifuyu snarked immediately. “We promised to visit her literally next week, anyways. It’s not like we’ve lost a child forever.”
“Oh, be quiet,” Baji snapped back mildly as they returned to their apartment. “You’re going to miss her too and you know it.”
“I never said I wouldn’t,” Chifuyu replied with a toothy smile. “Just don’t be so emo about it, Edward.”
Once they had stepped through their doorway, Baji responded to that comment by leaping forward and tickling the side of Chifuyu’s abdomen from behind. The man yelped and attempted to squirm away, but Baji grabbed a hold of his waist and reached around him to tickle his stomach.
“Asshole!” Chifuyu squealed through his laughter as he swatted at Baji’s arms, to little avail. “Quit using my biggest weakness against me when I can’t get you back!”
Chifuyu was detrimentally, embarrassingly ticklish, and Baji took advantage of that fact as often as he could. Chifuyu was sitting on the couch with his feet stretched out and vulnerable? Tickle him. Chifuyu was on his computer and was too engrossed in his work to notice Baji sneaking up behind him? Tickle him. Chifuyu was falling asleep during a movie they decided to watch late at night? Tickle him. On the other hand, you could attack Baji with all the tickling power in the world and he would barely flinch.
“Being tickled may be your biggest weakness, but my biggest weakness is you. Checkmate,” Baji replied contentedly as he finally released Chifuyu from his mischievous clutches.
“Sap. You’re so corny,” Chifuyu huffed as he scurried away from his fiancé --probably to hide the blush and small smile on his face, which Baji noticed anyways.
He knew he would miss having Aiko around, but it didn’t hurt that he now had Chifuyu all to himself again.
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Aiko had only stayed with them for six days, but Baji quickly realized how used to her presence he had gotten in that short amount of time as the next week flew by.
He woke up without having been kicked in the face by small, constantly moving limbs all night; he and Chifuyu ate what was left of the mac and cheese they had bought without the company of the girl they bought it for; he kept expecting to see or hear Aiko sitting in her chair by the register when they were at work. It was strange to him; frankly, he was shocked by how immediately and intensely he had become accustomed to having a child around the house and at work.
“You literally look like you’re having drug withdrawals,” Kazutora had commented dryly at work the day after Aiko left their care. “And I should know, that’s how I get when I don’t get my smoke break. You need to start bringing Peke J in so you have some other small, cute creature to take care of.”
“Oh, fuck off,” Baji replied dully.
“You know, as much as I actually also miss the little twerp, it’s great for you and Fuyu that she’s gone. You can have a sex life again and shit.” Kazutora’s face twisted into a hideously scheming expression. “Oh my god, maybe we can finally have that threesome we’ve been planning.”
“Who the fuck is we?” Baji barked. “You’re the one who keeps saying shit like that. Nobody agreed to that. Honestly, at this point I feel like you’re not even kidding anymore.”
Kazutora stifled a laugh and hid his smile behind his hand. “You’re the downer here,” he giggled. “Fuyu said he’d do it.”
“Of course he did. Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but I would rather eat a bullet than see your dick anywhere near my fiancé. Or see your dick in general, actually.”
“Okay. Homophobe.”
“If you don’t shut the fuck up--”
Later in the week, he and Chifuyu stayed true to their promise to visit Aiko, Takemichi, and Hina for dinner at their house. They had a wonderful time, and Aiko was more than delighted that they had actually shown up --as if she hadn’t expected them to. She showed them the many various toys and dolls she owned, then demanded to get to play with Baji’s hair again.
Baji enjoyed seeing Aiko interact with her parents. Takemichi was just as doting a father as anyone would expect him to be considering how well he treated his wife, and Hina was a kind yet firm mother. It was amusing to see her be stern with Aiko, in that soft but unmoveable way of hers; Baji had reprimanded the young girl for exactly nothing while she had stayed with them, and he found it entertaining to watch Aiko pout and tightly cross her arms across her chest when her mother denied her something that she wanted. But, most of all, he loved being a witness to how obviously close-knit and caring a family they were. Chifuyu had long ago told Baji, in as much detail as he could, about Takemichi’s time-traveling adventures, and Baji often thought about what the man was willing to do to create and protect the future they were currently living in. It was blatantly apparent in every interaction Takemichi had with his family and friends that this was exactly what he had fought so hard for.
Baji left the Hanagaki household feeling refreshed.
However, as the next few weeks went by, he kept thinking. And thinking, and thinking, and thinking. Thinking about taking care of Aiko; about Draken and Inui’s comments about his potential parenting abilities; about his conversation with Mitsuya; about his now bi-weekly visits to Takemichi, Hina, and their daughter.
Frankly, Baji wasn’t used to thinking about anything this much. He was the type of man who proposed to his boyfriend after exactly thirty seconds of consideration. He saw someone and simply adopted them as a friend, as he had done with Kazutora as a kid, or someone bumped into him on the street, and he picked a fight with no hesitation. He may now have outlets for his impulsivity other than outright crime, but that recklessness was certainly still strong in him.
Baji wanted to be thoughtful for once. Although what he was considering really wasn’t something to be crammed into a decision-making period of a few weeks, that was much more time to think than he gave much else, and that was enough for him.
After about a month had passed, he decided he was finally ready to talk with Chifuyu.
They were getting ready for bed one night when Baji decided to bring it up. They had stayed late at the shop with Kazutora that day doing inventory, which took much longer than they anticipated it would, and they were tired and were going to sleep early as a result.
Chifuyu was washing off one of the fancy, moisturizing face masks Hina had given him at their last visit to her house. At the time, he had only taken them to humor her because she kept pointing out the quickly worsening dark circles under his eyes (from the lack of quality sleep Chifuyu had suffered as a result of his latest bout of insomnia), but, much to Baji’s amusement, he had found that he actually enjoyed using them.
“I feel ten years younger,” Chifuyu said as he emerged from the bathroom and did a small twirl in their room, as if to show off his newfound youth.
“You’re only twenty-seven, quit acting like a grandpa or you’ll turn into Draken,” Baji snickered as he held up the edge of the blanket on the vacant side of the bed. Chifuyu took the invitation and slipped under the covers, shuffling over as close to Baji’s side as he could get.
“Oh god, you’re right. He literally signs his texts sometimes, he’s basically eighty at heart,” Chifuyu grinned in response as he wrapped his arms around Baji’s torso and dipped his face into the crook between his fiancé’s neck and his shoulder. Baji leaned his head on top of Chifuyu’s, noting that he smelled vaguely like the peach-scented facemask he had just used. It was a fitting smell for Chifuyu --something somewhat cutesy and sweet.
Baji wrapped his arm around the smaller man’s shoulders and held him closer, then placed a gentle kiss to the crown of his head.
He wanted to give Chifuyu everything. Anything and everything, he’d do it for him. It was what Baji had wanted to do when Chifuyu had first suggested making their pipe dreams of owning a pet shop a reality, it was what he had wanted to do when the short haired man said he wanted to move in together, and it was definitely what he wanted to do when he proposed to Chifuyu on the beach. He hadn’t known it at the time, but it was even what he wanted to do when he saw Chifuyu fighting against that large group of shitty boys all alone after they first met in middle school. At the time, all he had to offer was his own strength and a half —not even a whole— pack of instant noodles, but that was the beginning of him wanting to give his heart and soul to the other boy.
Frankly, it was a little scary to realize how much he wanted to spend his life with Chifuyu. It was an alarmingly overwhelming feeling that he often thought that, even at twenty-seven years of age, he was too immature to experience. But that didn’t stop him from feeling it —not in the slightest.
He wanted to give Chifuyu everything, and he wanted to share a life full of joy and fulfillment with him. And he wanted to know if Chifuyu also felt that there was a way to make their life together even more worthwhile.
Lost in his thoughts, Baji hadn’t noticed how tightly he’d been holding onto Chifuyu until he said, “Wow, Kei, you’re awfully cuddly tonight. Not that I’m complaining,” in that lilted tone of his that instantly let Baji know how widely he was smiling, even if he couldn’t see his face.
“Can we talk about something?” Baji said abruptly, sitting up in bed so that he and Chifuyu could face each other.
Chifuyu tensed slightly, and his brows furrowed in concern. “Is something wrong?”
“No! No, I just…” Baji was quick to comfort, hating the look of even mild perturbation on Chifuyu’s face. He never wanted to see him with any expression other than a smile.
Spit it out, Keisuke, he told himself. Spit it out before you chicken shit out.
His stomach tightened and his adrenaline spiked, and he latched onto the feeling and clung to it for courage.
“I think I want to adopt a kid,” he said finally.
And there it was. The thought at the back of his mind, the light feeling in his chest, and sweet taste in his mouth that had taken root who knows how long ago and had recently bloomed into something thriving with the attention and care the last few weeks had given it. The reason for all that thinking, thinking, thinking he had been doing.
“It doesn’t have to be now, or even anytime soon,” he added quickly, “And I don’t know how you feel about it, but you know how much I loved taking care of Aiko, and I’ve talked to a couple of people about it, and… and it just feels right to me. All of a sudden, really it just feels so right. And I figured we could at least talk about it.”
Baji hadn’t said much, but he still felt like he was rambling, and he forced himself to pause to take a proper look at Chifuyu’s reaction.
And Chifuyu was smiling. He was smiling so broadly, the small dimples that only appeared on his cheeks when he was overcome with laughter were etched onto his face, and his sea colored eyes were practically foaming with sparkling waves.
“I knew it,” Chifuyu said simply in response. “I got a feeling. When we were watching Aiko. I had so much fun, but Kei, you loved it so, so much, and seeing how much you loved being a fake dad for a little while made me love it even more.”
He shuffled across the small gap between them and placed his hands on Baji’s cheeks, framing his face with his touch.
“So, I was sort of thinking the same thing, actually,” he grinned.
Baji blinked at him, nearly lost at Chifuyu’s admission. “Really?” was all he could think to say.
Chifuyu kissed the tip of his nose and replied, “Yes, really, you idiot. We’ve been together for a long time, and I think it would make both of us really happy to have a little brat like Michi and Hina do. Obviously, we don’t want to decide too hastily, but I really think we should consider it.”
Unsure what else to do with the sudden, nearly debilitating happiness that surged through his body like a lightning strike, Baji leaped forward and tackled Chifuyu into the bed. He planted kisses all over his face and even onto his neck and what was exposed of his collarbones, and when Chifuyu shrieked in laughter, he had never been happier that his fiancé was so ticklish.
“Quit attacking me, you bastard!” Chifuyu cackled, rolling them over so that he was lying on top of Baji’s chest. He looked at the long haired man with such obvious fondness, Baji thought he might cry.
“Who did you talk to about it?” Chifuyu asked finally, curious. “You mentioned you asked people about it when you were blabbering earlier.”
“Mitsuya,” Baji said instantly, and Chifuyu giggled into his chest.
“Of course you did. The fucker has been parenting since he was like, eight. Wait,” he said, abruptly sitting up and staring at Baji, “Was that what you were talking about when you took that centuries-long lunch break you spent on the phone with him while Aiko was here?”
Baji rolled his eyes. “Every time you mention that, the break time gets longer. Centuries? It was two hours,” he grumbled mildly. “But, yeah, that’s what we were talking about. I asked him if he thought I would be a good dad, and the bastard gave me some of the most backhanded compliments I’ve ever gotten.” Chifuyu laughed airily at that, agreeing that that certainly sounded like Mitsuya, and Baji added, “I also kind of inadvertently talked with Draken and Inui. And my mom, last week.”
Chifuyu settled back against Baji’s chest with a small grunt and replied, “You really pulled out all the stops with that one. Grilled the whole friend group about your parenting skills, huh?”
Ignoring the teasing, Baji instead grabbed Chifuyu by the chin to give him a gentle kiss on the lips, effectively catching him off guard and shutting him up.
They stared at each other in a comfortable, contemplative silence for a moment that Baji would think about often from then on before Chifuyu quietly smiled, “You know, considering how quickly Aiko determined that you were her favorite, I think whatever little monster we might find for ourselves is going to love you.”
And Baji really did cry at that, if only just a small sniffle with a tear in his eye, because as happy as it made him to hear his friends —and his mom— say similar things, it meant a millions times more to him hearing it from Chifuyu.
Everything was exceptionally special to him when it involved Chifuyu.