Chapter Text
Riku glanced at Iori, raising a brow at his mate and asking, “Why’re you pacing?”
“It’s the first time we’re leaving them alone in the evening,” Iori huffed, brows furrowed. Akane and Aoi were seated on their bed, their eyes curiously following Iori as he walked from one end of the room to another. “We’re always home to put them to bed. It's not my fault that I’m kind of antsy.”
“Do you want to stay home instead?” Riku suggested. He'd been looking forward to their plans this evening for a while now, but if Iori was going to be stressed out the entire time, then he’d rather scrap it and stay at home with the kids. “We can get Banri-san to get the cake.”
“No,” Iori was quick to answer. “I didn’t even get to do much for your birthday last year. I promised that we’d go on a nice date today and not think of the twins, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. It's not that I don’t trust Banri-san, either; it’s just the omega in me.”
It was Riku’s 27th birthday, the first since the twins’ birth, and Iori was determined to make up for not doing anything the previous year. Riku’s present was wrapped neatly and already sitting in the car, and Banri was already sitting in their living room. They were going to go out for a nice dinner, watch a movie for the first time in nearly two years, and maybe do a little shopping before heading home. They also had to drop by Fonte Chocolat on the way back for cake and Riku’s presents from their parents.
The only problem was that they’d arrive home after 10pm, and the twins were usually asleep by 8pm. For the past several months since returning to work, at least one of them would be home to put the twins to bed. They were avoiding having group schedules in the evenings until their kids were slightly older, which was admittedly difficult to plan, but they’d managed so far with Tsumugi and Banri’s help.
Iori knew, logically, that it was fine to just miss one bedtime. That didn’t mean he had to like it.
Still, the longer he delayed leaving the house, the later they’d get home. With a soft sigh, Iori picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder before walking over to the bed. “Let’s go then,” Iori said, wanting to leave before he changed his mind and ruined their date night. He picked Aoi up and kissed him on the nose, eliciting excited giggles from the almost one-year-old. “Aoi-chan and Akane-chan will be okay going to sleep without papa and mama around, right? You'll listen to Banri-san?”
Aoi blinked in response, not quite knowing how to nod yet, and Iori chuckled. “Alright then.”
They headed downstairs together, setting the twins on their playmat in the living room. “We already prepped their milk in the fridge, so you can heat it up and feed them before bed,” Iori said. He pressed a kiss to each twin’s cheek. “They haven’t had their dinner yet though; there’s a chart in the kitchen with what they usually have. Please call us if there’s any problem, Banri-san.”
Banri rolled his eyes and smiled at the younger. “This isn’t my first time settling their dinner, Iori-kun,” he pointed out. It was slightly amusing how much of an overprotective parent Iori was being. “Just go and have fun on your date today, alright? Akane-chan, Aoi-kun, can you wave bye-bye to mama and papa? Tell them to enjoy their evening.”
“Ba!” Akane squealed, waving at her parents. Aoi parroted the action, and Riku pulled Iori out of the house before the omega started swooning over the cuteness of their kids. The last thing they heard before closing the door was Banri correcting Akane, telling her that it wasn’t bye, but bye-bye, and her babbling baby speak back at him in response.
---
Iori glanced at his phone as it lit up with a notification. “What did you post?” he asked curiously. He had the notifications on for all the IDOLiSH7 members’ social media accounts, and Riku’s name was now illuminated on the screen. He raised a brow when Riku shrugged in response, starting the car and pulling out of the driveway instead of replying. “What...”
Barely a second later, Iori was shooting his mate an incredulous look. “Really?”
“What?” Riku asked innocently. “I’d rather not have fans coming up to us.”
“And your solution was to announce to everyone that we’re going on a date for your birthday?” the omega questioned, though he sounded more bemused than angry. The fans already knew that they were married and mated, so it wasn’t as if there was a need to hide from them. Still, this was their first date since announcing their relationship over half a year ago – it was their first date outside since before the twins were born.
They hadn’t gone out for Iori’s birthday, nor had they gone out for Valentine’s Day or their wedding anniversary, because Iori had been worried about leaving the twins alone for too long. Now that they were nearly a year old, Iori felt a lot better about going out for the evening and leaving them in Banri’s care. Riku wasn’t the only one looking forward to a night out with just the two of them.
Riku shrugged again. “It’s fine, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know... I mean, if fans do happen to see us, even if they don’t approach us, you know someone is going to secretly take photos of us and post them online,” Iori sighed. It was part and parcel of being an idol, but that didn’t mean he liked the invasion of privacy. “I’m going to spend too much time wondering if our photos are being taken.”
“Don’t think so much about the fans and let’s just enjoy our date, okay? It's my birthday, and you said you’d do anything I ask, so now I’m asking you to focus on me and me alone,” the alpha countered with an easy smile. “Who cares if people want to take our photos? I actually think it'd be great if we manage to find candid shots online of us enjoying ourselves.”
“Ever the optimistic one,” Iori commented with a slight roll of his eyes. “Alright, I’ll do my best. Like you said, it’s your birthday, and I have to make sure you have enough fun to make up for last year. I do wish you’d at least tell me what you planned for yourself.”
Riku’s smile widened. “Nope. You know I don’t really care that it’s my birthday. I'm just happy to be able to go out on a date with you, plus we can even do couple-like stuff now without worrying about being found out!” he said. “I love the twins, but I do miss having you all to myself.”
“How cheesy,” Iori chuckled, leaning against Riku’s shoulder with a contented sigh. Riku laced their fingers together with practiced ease. “I’ll just look forward to whatever you have in store for us then. It'd better be one hell of a date.”
“Have more faith in me, Iori,” Riku chided playfully. “But I guess I could tell you where we’re headed for dinner so you can check out the menu on the way there. Can you get my phone? I have the restaurant’s website open in my internet browser somewhere.”
Iori nodded and grabbed Riku’s phone, unlocking it with ease; his password was the twins’ birthday. It didn’t take long for Iori to locate the tab he was looking for. “Oh, I remember this restaurant,” the omega commented, looking through the menu. “Didn’t we celebrate... Gaku-san's birthday, was it? A few years back?”
“Yeah,” Riku confirmed. “You said you liked it and wanted to go back again, after we got home. It's a little overdue, I guess, but then you got pregnant and we haven’t had time to ourselves since. I hope the menu didn’t change too much.”
“I can’t believe you even remembered.”
“I’m hurt. Didn't I just tell you to have more faith in me?”
“Can you blame me? All things considered, you’re still pretty airheaded.”
“Hey!” Riku protested with a pout. “You’re not supposed to bully the birthday boy!”
“I’m just teasing,” Iori laughed. He leaned in to press a kiss to the corner of Riku’s mouth. “Thank you for remembering. Did you decide what you’re going to order already? The grilled fish looks pretty good. I can’t seem to find what I ordered when we went last time, though.”
“They probably revamped the menu then,” Riku said. “I was thinking of getting steak, so we can share if you want. I guess we’re not getting dessert, right? I kind of want to have popcorn during the movie and we still have to get cake from Fonte Chocolat afterwards.”
Iori raised a brow. “Look at you making mature decisions.”
“Stop teasing me or I’m going to make you drive,” Riku warned, his tone equally teasing. Iori just smiled and leaned back against Riku.
The rest of the drive was spent in relative silence, both of them relishing in the rare moment of peace and quiet. In a way, it was odd having time to themselves without having to worry about the twins. Now that the twins were getting older, though, they’d agreed to have more date nights, something that their parents had repeated on several occasions. “To keep the romance alive, otherwise your lives would only revolve around your children,” they’d said. If the couple was being honest with themselves, it was already beginning to feel like that. There was simply too little time to be alone.
Eventually, they reached their destination. Riku found a parking lot nearby and cut the engine, getting out of his seat and telling Iori, “Stay there! I want to open your door for you!”
Iori did as told, though he did comment, “You’re like a little kid, Riku,” once the alpha opened his door.
“We haven’t been on a date in forever,” Riku grumbled, taking Iori’s hand and locking the doors. They made their way to the restaurant slowly; there was still some time before their reservation. “And this is the first time we’re using the car to go on a date! I want it to be romantic.”
“You’re very romantic,” Iori assured with a small chuckle. It was heartening to see that Riku hadn’t changed all that much even after several years of being together. Iori wasn’t one to feel insecure, but he was aware that he wasn’t the same as before pregnancy. It was hard to ignore the obvious stretch marks adorning his belly every time he took his shirt off, and it was even harder not to think about what Riku felt about his body now. “It’s starting to feel a little like it’s my birthday now, though.”
“Just let me do what I want,” Riku said, grinning. Already there were eyes on them, mainly because neither of them had worn anything to disguise themselves. They were open enough with their private lives now that most people knew they were together, so they hadn’t quite seen a point.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Riku flashed a smile at the waitress. “For Nanase Riku, please.”
The lady didn’t bother looking at her list of reservations, instead quickly showing the couple to their seats and getting two glasses of water for them. Their orders were taken quickly, and they lapsed into an easy conversation about the first time they’d celebrated Riku’s birthday together while waiting for their food to arrive.
---
Banri handed Aoi a square block and pointed at the box. “Aoi-kun, can you find where to put this?” he asked, turning the square-shaped hole so that it was facing the baby. Aoi tried jamming it into the hole and failed spectacularly, earning a soft chuckle from Banri as he checked on what Akane was doing.
He was met with the sight of Akane trying to push herself up into a standing position while refusing to let go of her stuffed bear. She still wasn’t very good at standing just yet, so it was virtually impossible for her to push herself up with just one hand, but that didn’t stop her from trying. “Do you need some help there, Akane-chan?” he asked. He got a rather determined huff in response. “Why don’t you let me take your bear first? I'll give it back to you after you manage to stand.”
She stared at him for a long second before shaking her head, tightening her hold on her bear instead. Banri chuckled and nodded in understanding. “Alright, then keep at it, Akane-chan,” he encouraged. He looked back at Aoi who was still trying to stuff the block into the hole. When he tried taking the block from Aoi, he looked at Banri and loosened his grip. “Much less stubborn than your sister, huh? Put it in like this, okay? Can you try it?”
It took a few more tries, but Aoi eventually managed to succeed. He turned to Banri with a toothy smile and the omega beamed back at him, clapping for the boy excitedly. “Good job, Aoi-kun!” he praised.
He picked Aoi up and walked over to the kitchen, seating him down in the baby chair before going back for Akane. She was still trying her best to stand, so she got understandably annoyed when Banri abruptly brought her to her baby chair. “Da! Dadamada!” she babbled angrily.
All it elicited was a confused raise of the brow from Banri. “Sorry, Akane-chan, but I have no idea what you’re trying to say,” he said. “I’ll let you get back to standing later, alright? First, I need to get some food into your bellies before you both start complaining that you’re hungry.”
Akane stayed huffy while Banri prepared their dinner, at least at the start. After a few minutes, Aoi began to talk, albeit incoherently, to Akane, and they ended up conversing in baby speak that Banri could not for the life of him understand. Still, he was glad that Akane had calmed down, and he focused his attention on their food.
Once he had the pasta and vegetables boiling, he cut up some banana and gave a bowl to each twin to occupy them for a bit. They were already capable of eating with their hands, even though it always ended up being an extremely messy affair with food ending up on the floor. With any luck, it’d only be this bad for a couple more months.
It took Banri a little over an hour to finish feeding them both, then he left the dishes in the sink for after the twins were put to bed. “Let’s go back to the living room to watch TV,” he told them. The twins sat in front of the couch as Banri turned the TV on and flipped through the channels, eventually settling on the variety show that Iori and Tamaki had recorded a few weeks ago. “Can you recognise your mother? He's over there, beside your Uncle Tamaki.”
Akane and Aoi stared at the screen with rapt attention, their gaze focused on Iori whenever his face came up. Banri was quick to whip his phone out and start recording the twins; he was sure that Riku and Iori watched TV with them often and got to see their reactions when they saw their parents onscreen, but he couldn’t resist it. I can show Otoharu-san and Tsumugi-san later.
“I have to say, it’s pretty challenging balancing work and being a parent,” Iori admitted with a sheepish smile. Beside him, Tamaki nodded seriously. “It’s even harder with twins, really, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world. They might even be watching this, so I have to work hard not to let them down.”
“Same here,” Tamaki drawled in agreement. “Souta, if you’re watching this, please start sleeping through the night soon. We know you can do it but you just don’t want to.”
The host laughed and said, “Tamaki-san can’t stop being a parent even now, huh?”
Banri chuckled along with the other guests. “It’s a good thing you two are sleeping through the night already,” he commented. Akane paid him no heed, too focused on watching Iori, while Aoi got onto his hands and knees and crawled closer to the TV. Banri turned the camera to him. “Aoi-kun, don’t get so close to the TV. It's bad for your eyes.”
Plopping back down on his butt, Aoi pointed at Iori. “Mama!”
Banri blinked. “Can you say that again, Aoi-kun?”
“Mama!” the boy squealed excitedly. “Mama! Mama!”
“Y-yeah, that’s your mama,” Banri replied, eyes wide. Oh boy.
---
Iori studied his wedding ring before wiping it on the hem of his shirt. Their date had gone perfectly as planned; they’d enjoyed their dinner and movie, then gone shopping for themselves and the twins, and had just picked up Riku’s cake from Fonte Chocolat. They hadn’t stayed long, leaving right after collecting the cake and briefly greeting Riku’s parents.
Riku glanced over at the action. “I know I’ve asked this before, but do you sometimes wish that we didn’t get married on the same day as Tamaki and Sougo-san?” he asked.
All things considered, Iori really hadn’t had a choice when it came to the timing of their wedding. Sometimes Riku did feel guilty that they shared a wedding anniversary with their friends instead of having a day special to them, even though he had been the one who’d set the wedding up in the first place. “Like, I know some people don’t like to have others piggybacking on their wedding day, but you didn’t even have a choice to say no to them.”
Raising a brow with a slightly amused smile, Iori asked, “You know you’ve asked this before, and you’re still asking? Haven't I told you before that I’m really alright with it? It would’ve been a different matter if I’d known that, you know, that was going to be our actual wedding, and had been the one spending several months planning for it. If that’d been the case, and Tamaki-san and Sougo-san suddenly announced that they were getting married at our wedding, then naturally I would’ve been pissed off. But the fact is that it wasn’t me who’d poured months into planning it, and Tamaki-san did consult you about it, and it will still forever be one of the most memorable days of my life. Besides, it’s not like it really takes anything away from us just because our anniversary’s on the same day. Stop feeling guilty about it already, Riku.”
Riku wrinkled his nose slightly and asked, “What do you mean one of the most memorable days? You mean it wasn’t the most memorable? That hurts.”
“Spending over half a day in labour alone and then popping two babies out was, arguably, more memorable than our surprise wedding, so,” Iori said, shrugging. “Nothing tops that.”
“Oh yeah, there’s nothing more fun than finding out that you were in labour while filming for Friends’ Day,” Riku agreed with a chuckle. He, too, couldn’t deny that that was the most memorable day of his life. “Fine, I won’t ask about it anymore. I'm kind of curious what my birthday present is, though.”
Iori flashed his mate a sneaky grin. “We can open it when we get home, before going back into the house. We're not that far, so just wait a little.”
Just as Iori had said, it was only a few minutes more until they were pulling up into their driveway. Riku turned the engine off and immediately reached over to the neatly wrapped present sitting in the back of the car. He opened it quickly, tearing the wrapping paper off and tossing it aside. His eyes widened when he saw what the present was, and Riku turned to Iori excitedly. “You bought me a Switch?!”
“You’ve been wanting one for really long now, and I wanted to get it for you last year, but the twins were on the way and it didn’t seem like a good time to get a console,” Iori shrugged, smiling when Riku put the box down before pulling him into a hug. “I’m glad you like it. You might want to open the entire thing though.”
Riku pulled back with a raised brow. “I assumed the console was the only thing in here,” he said, but picked the package back up and tore the rest of the wrapping paper away. There were a few extra pairs of controllers as well as a whole bunch of games packed together with the console. “How much did this cost you?”
“Don’t be ridiculous; I only paid for the console,” Iori assured. “The rest where shared between our parents and friends. The games were recommended by Tamaki-san and Gaku-san for the most part, since they’re the ones who play the most often. Tenn-niisan bought gift cards so that you can use them on new games being released.”
“Let’s set it up over the weekend and play something together,” Riku suggested, picking everything up and unlocking the car doors.
Iori helped to grab a few controllers, and they headed back into the house with everything in tow.
They met Banri at the door the moment they walked in. “Oh, Banri-san, were you waiting for us?”
The older omega smiled sheepishly at the couple. “Yes. I have some good news, some bad news, and news that could be either good or bad. It really can go both ways,” he told them. When he received tentative looks from the duo, he sighed and continued, “The bad news is that the twins haven’t gone to sleep yet. They took their bath already, though.”
“...okay,” Riku responded. He could see the twins sitting on their playmat in front of the TV. “It’s not too late yet, so I guess that’s fine.”
“The good news is that I recorded a video of... well, the news that could be good or bad.”
“And what’s that?”
Instead of replying, Banri pulled his phone out and played the video. He watched Riku’s and Iori’s faces for their reactions, wincing when their eyes widened simultaneously as Aoi repeatedly exclaimed mama! while pointing at the TV. He put his phone back into his pocket when the video ended. “So... I wasn’t sure if he’s said his first word yet,” he said, though judging by how Riku and Iori were looking at him now, the answer was rather obvious. “At least I caught it on video? And there’s still Akane-chan?”
“I can’t believe we missed his first word!” Iori said frustratedly. “He’s said it before, but it wasn’t ever directed at me, so we didn’t really count it as his official first word... I can’t believe...”
Riku managed a smile and put an arm around Iori’s shoulders. “Aren’t you happy that his first word is mama?” he asked, though he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t also slightly upset that they’d missed Aoi’s first word.
Like Iori’d said, both Akane and Aoi had said mama and papa on various occasions, but because it’d never been directed towards them, they’d always just considered it as meaningless babbling. It was the first time that Aoi was intentionally saying mama to refer to Iori, and they’d missed it by just a few hours. “Let’s see if we can get him to say it again, okay?”
“This might be his birthday present to you, Riku-kun,” Banri chuckled, trying to lift the mood. It wasn’t his fault, per se, but he still felt terrible being the one to witness Aoi’s first word. It felt like he’d stolen the moment from the couple. “I’ll send the video to you guys now, then I’ll make myself scarce.”
“Did you have dinner yet, Banri-san?” Riku asked. Banri shook his head, and the alpha frowned. “Do you want me to make something for you? It shouldn’t take too long. We could order in too, if you’d like.”
Banri shook his head. “Otoharu-san kept some food for me and he’s waiting at home now.”
Riku glanced at Iori, not sure if he should feel bad for wanting to chuckle at Iori’s expression. The omega looked like he was still in shock. “Then you should get back,” he said, moving out of the way so that Banri could leave. “Thanks as always, Banri-san. Have a good night.”
“Goodnight to you two too. I’m going, Akane-chan, Aoi-kun.”
“Ba!”
“It’s bye-bye,” Banri corrected again with a smile, though it was Aoi who’d exclaimed the word this time round. “Sorry again, Iori-kun. I’ll see you at work.”
Riku locked the door once Banri was out, putting down his presents on the coffee table and grinning at the twins. “We’re home!” he greeted cheerfully, plopping onto the floor between them. Akane was quick to crawl to her father, unceremoniously draping herself over Riku’s lap and giggling at herself. “Are you excited to see papa? Why aren’t you sleeping yet, anyway?”
As expected, the only reply he got was happy, albeit completely incoherent, babbling from the baby. He glanced at Aoi as he too began crawling over, though he went straight past Riku and headed for Iori instead. He stopped at his feet, grabbed onto Iori's pant leg for support, and pulled himself up before hugging his calf and looking up. Then, beaming at Iori with the smile they’d both inherited from Riku, he exclaimed, “Mama!”
This time, Riku couldn’t help bursting into laughter. “Do you really need to look so shocked, Iori? It's not like you didn’t know he already said it earlier,” he commented, an amused smile on his face. Iori was gaping at Aoi with wide eyes. “Praise him and come over here already.”
That seemed to snap Iori out of his shock, and the omega bent down, setting everything down in favour of carrying Aoi. “Can you say that again, Aoi-chan?” he asked, trying to hold back the tears. He didn’t want him thinking that he’d done something wrong. “Say mama.”
“...mama?”
“Yes!” Iori cooed, pride and happiness blatant in his tone. “Our Aoi-chan is so smart!”
Riku watched the interaction with a tender smile. He looked down at Akane, who’d situated herself comfortably in his lap and was watching the TV once more. “You’re next, Akane,” he said, pressing a kiss to the baby’s head. “And do it when we’re home. Don't be like your brother!” the alpha added. “Iori, come over so that I can wipe your tears away. I know you’re about to cry.”
Iori made a face; he hated being seen through so easily. “Yeah, yeah.”
Luckily enough for them, they were home to witness Akane’s first word two weeks later, just a few days shy of the twins’ first birthday.