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“Tachibana-san?”
He hears the office door slide open and spins his chair around to face the man addressing him, a fellow teacher older than he is by the name Kazuhito, but before he’s really got the chance to speak up there’s a tiny ball of energy colliding with his midsection, forcing his desk chair back though not by all that much.
“Kotaki?” Makoto asks, almost worried as the girl tightens her grip around him, nuzzling into his chest as she struggles to keep her legs in his lap with the angle she’s sitting at.
“Daddy!” she chirps happily, pulling away so far and so sudden that he’s got to throw his arms around her to prevent a tumble to the ground. Just as quickly, her bright smile fades and she looks much too serious for a 7-year-old. “Daddy, I’m done with class, now. It’s time to go home.”
“Kota-chan,” he says in a laugh, ruffling up her already unruly dark hair. “You know that’s not how it works. But I’ll be done soon, promise.”
She narrows her hazel eyes up his way, wrinkling her nose a moment before she sighs and begins clambering off him with a resigned and drawled, ‘oookaaay’. “I guess I could do my homework…”
“And maybe if you finish it all, we’ll stop by the candy shop,” he lilts enticingly, and it doesn’t escape him how she makes more of a hurry to grab a chair and sit next to him.
---
Kotaki chats excitedly about her day as they ascend the steps to their home. It’s weird, he thinks, to consider it ‘their home’—not ‘Haru’s house’ or the ‘Nanase’s’. The property had been a sort of ‘wedding gift’, as per his parent-in-law’s words, though they’d given it to them just after university, when they first moved back to Iwatobi and way before they were legally bound in any way.
What’s weirder, though, is always walking past his house—his parent’s house. But, it isn’t a bad weird, he thinks. It’s nice, that he doesn’t have to worry about losing contact with his family, and he’s been able to see the twins grow into young adults.
When they make it up to where they’re going, he goes to unlock the front door… only to find that it locks it, instead. Had he forgotten to this morning, when they left? He panics as he keeps a hold of Kotaki’s hand. Because although Iwatobi is a quiet, sleepy town, he won’t risk the off-chance someone’s broken in and has lingered. His daughter’s safety isn’t worth it. But, when they step into the entryway, and he smells food cooking, hears the faint scrape of a pan and spatula, he instantly sighs and lets Kotaki run to the kitchen with chirps of ‘Papa! You’re home!!’
The small girl returns to let him know that Papa is back from his trip while he removes his shoes, babbling on about what it is exactly they’re having for dinner, and that there’ll even be dessert! He smiles, warm and genuine, chuckling as he fakes hurt when he asks how come she doesn’t get this excited when he cooks. She sputters, worried she’s actually offended him, and he shakes his head, apologizing for kidding and agrees, yeah, Papa’s cooking really is worth getting excited for. With an unfazed ‘right?!’ she suddenly remembers her small tank of fish and scampers up the stairs with a call of ‘hey, be careful!’ following close behind.
His frown is short-lived, however, and he stands to trek into the kitchen himself. For a moment, he merely stands at the edge of the doorway, admiring the sight of his husband that he’s been deprived of for nearly two weeks, now. Then he gets to realizing just looking isn’t enough and he closes the distance between them, arms easily fitting around the other’s waist. There used to be a time, if even for a fraction of a second, Haru would freeze up at the contact. Now he just automatically melts back into his chest.
“You weren’t supposed to be back until this weekend,” is what Makoto says, head tilted to press his cheek and nose into the side of his head.
“Finished early,” Haru answers, flipping the fish in the skillet without missing a beat, even as he tilts his head into Makoto’s. “America sucks, and Skype calls just weren’t the same.”
---
No matter how many years pass, there’s no change or lull in Haru’s love for water. He’s always the first in the bath, and tonight’s no exception. By the time he’s put away the leftovers and set everything in the sink to soak, both he and Kotaki are already submerged and water’s all over the floor.
“Daddy!” Kotaki cries, her limbs flailing helplessly from where she’s caught in Haru’s grip. “Help!! The awful sea pirate’s got me!”
“Yar,” Haru comments calmly, chin rested atop her head and Makoto’s got to cover his mouth to stifle the laugh that threatens to escape. “If a certain little porpoise hadn’t been in my territory, I wouldn’t have had to capture her.”
“Hmm,” Makoto hums, turning on the water to the shower head as he plops down on the stool in front of it. “Sounds like the sea pirate’s got a good point.”
“Whaaat?! You’re not supposed to agree with him! He’s the bad guy!” Kotaki rebukes, utterly scandalized. “You’re not supposed to agree with bad guys!”
“But, why not?” Makoto questions with a tilt of his head, an innocent look. “It’s hard not to, when he’s so handsome.”
“Makoto,” Haru warns, eyes narrowing and he merely bats his lashes and smiles as if he’s done nothing wrong.
“Ugh, ew!! Don’t be gross, Daddy,” Kotaki groans, two tiny hands lifting from the water to cover her face as though to hide from the words.
“Tell you what,” Haru says, leaning down to their daughter’s ear and that’s the rest he can hear because by the time he’s turned the shower off to catch the rest both of them look at him with a similar glint of mischief in their eyes and he fears for his ticklish spots.