Chapter Text
Let me know when you’re free.
We need to talk about what happened to Aqua today
“Ah, Karu-kun! It’s been so long! Didn’t you ask me not to contact you? What’s up?” Ai’s voice crashed into him like a tidal wave. Hikaru closed his eyes for a second and just enjoyed the voice of his former love coming from the video call on the phone in front of him.
“Ai, I just- “Hikaru said only to get cut off.
“And What Happened To Aqua?” She asked, her voice like hell frozen over, the light in her eyes collapsing inward like neutron star of malevolence and motherly fury. The frigid tone and vicious eyes froze him for a second as the sheer dichotomy as her actions and visage of the legendary Idol clashed. He smiled inwardly as he saw his lost love’s darkness piercing through the veil of the screen and grasping his heart in a vice grip.
“Don’t worry, our son is safe. But before that I wanted to discuss something with you.” He said looking down at his lap, his features falling and misery creeping across his features like an indestructible blight. Unseen Ai’s cold eyes studied his features for a second before she spoke.
“Is this about Himekawa-san?” She asked as he froze.
‘How does she know? What does she know? Why is she asking?’ Questions whipped through his mind at light speed, his expression faltering and his eyes growing wide with confusion and no small bit of panic.
“Hikaru! Calm down, you’re safe and sound. I don’t know anything concrete; I was just taking a guess.” She said, her words dragging back down into the present.
“A guess? Why would guess it was about Hime-, about her?” He asked.
“Himekawa-san came back to Lala Lie several times even after she left the group and every time you would stare at her with a breathtaking amount of hatred and every time she smiled at you, you would freeze from fear. I know you have been working toward a goal even all the way back then and when I saw the article about her and Uehara-san’s double suicide, I knew that it had to have been you.” She said, her eyes still cold and cynical without even a flicker of any other emotion when talking about the deaths of that wretch and her plus one.
“…Yes, I did it. Back before you joined Lala Lie, Himekawa Airi singled me out and cornered me after practice one day, most every one else had left and so she dragged me into her changing room and locked the door behind her. That day she molested me, she told me that as far as anyone knew she had already left for an appointment and that no one would ever be coming to save me. She did it again and again and again until the time came for her to leave the theatre. On that day as I saw her leave with a smile on her face and no consequences, I promised myself that I would kill her. Just a short time ago, I finally succeeded.” He said, his own voice somewhat distant as he recounted the feeling of her hands as she pinned him down and the sight of her eyes shining with hunger and cruel joy.
“I see.” Ai said, her eyes soft and understanding as she looked at him. “Did you make her suffer in her final moments?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” Ai nodded. “But what does this have to with Aq-.” She cut herself off as her eyes widened with sickened understanding. “Please, please tell me he’s ok, please tell me that my dear little boy is okay, is he?” She asked stumbling over her words in her haste to get an answer, her eyes filled with tears and self-hatred for leaving her child alone to potentially be preyed upon by such a monstrous creature.
“Aqua’s fine. I decided on a whim that I wanted to see what my children looked like. So, I visited the set of the movie that he’s a part of. It was only when my stomach started rolling and fear grabbed my heart that I noticed that fiend cut from the same cloth as Himekawa Airi. I knew I couldn’t just stand there let that happened to my son, that I couldn’t let him experience what I had.” Hikaru said, his heart feeling lighter than it had for long time from being able to share the darkness that burdened him and the satisfaction of saving his child from the same fate he had.
“Thank you, Thank you!” Ai said breaking down into tears as the horror of what could have happened crashed upon her. “I… I need to talk to him. To see that he’s okay.” She said, her body filling with a manic energy. “I’m sorry I’ll call you back another time Karu-kun.” She said as the video call went black, the ending tone echoing in his ear. He looked at it softly, glad that his children had someone to protect them. He regarded a picture that Ai had sent shortly after the twin’s birth, a picture of her sitting in the hospital with their two beautiful children held in her arms. He smiled softly before refocusing on what he had been doing before Ai called.
He swivelled his chair around and gazed out the window of his budding agency. Gazing up at the spires of metal and glass that comprised the Tokyo skyline as they pierced the low hanging clouds. The sky dark and overcast with grey clouds, he closed his eyes and for second, he could smell the scent of damp dirt, feel the cold wind as it penetrated his skin and flesh and chilled his bones. It would rain soon, a dark omen, the beginning of a funeral procession for a woman not quite dead. Not dead yet, that is. Hikaru smiled with a gentle little grin, a boyish and malicious joy glinting darkly in his eyes.
‘Now, what kind of accident will I use to take your life Ito-san.’
The door banged open, the crashing noise startling the residents of the apartment. Miyako immediately stood up with alarm, gesturing with a finger over her mouth to her charges as she gentle and silently stepped toward the door to the hallway. She peaked through the slight opening of the glass paneled door, only breathing a sigh of relief when she spotted the dark hair and brilliantly sparkling purple eyes of her honorary little sister.
“Ai!” Miyako said sternly as she walked into the hallway to the front door. “Why did you slam the door so hard, you almost gave me a heart attack thinking someone was trying to break in!”
“Ah! Sorry Miyako” Ai said quickly. “Do you know where Aqua and Ruby are?” She asked, more like demanded really.
“They’re just over in the living room why?” Miyako asked to no avail as Ai ran past her into the living room. Miyako quickly followed her only to see Ai down on her knees with her arms wrapped tightly around Aqua, the boy looking confused and panicked as looked over at her, his anxiety only increasing as they began to hear sobbing coming from Ai as she buried her head in Aqua’s blond hair. Ruby quickly ran over from where she sat in front of the TV.
“Mama! What’s wrong?” She asked fearfully. Ai quickly raised her head, tears making trails down her cheeks and her eyes rimmed with a miserable crimson as she reached over and pulled Ruby into the desperate embrace.
“I love you.” Ai sobbed as she embraced them. “I love both of you so much! I’m sorry if I haven’t been the best mother but I want you to know that I love you both so much. For the first time, this absolutely isn’t a lie, I love you. I’m sorry that I wasn’t there to protect you, I won’t ever let this happen again. I want to be there for you two, when you wear your backpacks to school, when you have parent teacher days, when you finally reach for your dreams. I want to be there every step of the way.” She sobbed as she pulled them into an even fiercer embrace.
“Protect us? Ai, is this about Ito-san?” Aqua asked, clearly to reach for an answer.
“Ito-san? Who’s that, Onii-chan?” Ruby said, sending a questioning look over at her brother.
“Ruby, Aqua, would you two like to meet your father?” Ai inquired as she looked down at her beloved children.