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“Shuu?” Kaneki asked, eyes wandering to his lover who had returned to him childless. “Where’s Laramie?”
“Le bébé?” Tsukiyama gestured to a large pit, bigger than the whole of Kaneki’s bedroom. The pit itself sported many brightly colored plastic balls. Tsukiyama scowled at the sight. “Even I don’t wear colors that clash so poorly.” Tsukiyama found himself to dress quite nicely; Kaneki on the other hand referred to his entire wardrobe as tacky.
“Shuu. He’s not there.”
“What?”
Kaneki pointed to the ball pit. “Our son is not in there.” And sure enough, there was only one other kid in the ball pit, and the crying child with snot dripping down its face looked nothing like their ghoul offspring. “You lost our kid.”
“Kaneki-kun~” Kaneki silenced Tsukiyama’s playful honorific with a glare. “I dropped him in the ball pit not two minutes ago; je le jure.”
“You did what?”
“I dropped—“
“I heard you the first time!”
“Then why would you ask—“
“Shuu! You can’t just drop toddlers into ball pits! Ball pits aren’t for toddlers.” Kaneki reprimanded, recalling all of his childhood memories from playing at places like this. The ball pits were fun, but absolutely terrifying when you approached the middle and couldn’t get back out. “Get him out of there.”
With that order is when the screaming and thrashing started. Kaneki quickly realized there was no sound more horrific than hearing the sound of your child’s frantic screaming and scared whimpers, and he froze, ghoul instinct nearly kicking in. They were in public; that absolutely could not happen here.
“The horror! Très dramatique!” Tsukiyama stood with the back of his hand placed dramatically against his forehead. It was but a show, and he eventually turned to rush to the pit. He wasn’t that concerned for the safety of the child; the boy was known to be dramatic. However, he would comply to avoid the wrath of his lover, that which was scarier above all others.The sight he was greeted with was certainly not what he expected. In front of him stood a scowling Nishiki who was holding a whimpering Laramie by the shirt.
“It looks like you lost something.”
“P-papa!” Laramie cried, reaching out for Tsukiyama.
“Laramie!” Kaneki cried in echo, rushing forward to close the difference in between him and Shuu, in an attempt to reassure the child who now had his arms around Tsukiyama’s neck, his small body shaking with slight sobs.
“Keep an eye on your twerp next time,” Nishiki scowled at Tsukiyama, who he had never quite forgiven and the brat who only served to remind him of Shuu, despite the similarities he shared with younger Kaneki.
Kaneki reached out to take his child from Shuu who look positively confounded with what to do with the small life clinging desperately to him for reassurance and affection. “Thank you, Nishiki.”
“…yeah.”