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You and Josuke lay on opposite sides of your son while he lays in his bed under his Sesame Street blankets. The only light coming from the room in the rocketship lamp on the nightstand as you tuck your son in for bed. The three of you still have the hazy afterglow of happiness from a day spent having fun.
“Did you have fun today, Bean?” Josuke.
Your son rolls onto his side to hold onto Josuke. Much like yourself, he loved cuddling up to Josuke right before bedtime. ‘Daddy is always warm’ he always says. You can't really argue with that and neither can Josuke. Josuke would hold your son for as long as he could bear it. He wants time to slow down. He's very aware that there will come a day where his son won't want to cuddle with him anymore. Until that day comes, Josuke won't take his father-son bonding time for granted.
“So much fun! Can we go to the museum again tomorrow? Please? Please? Pleaseeeeee?” your son begs.
Josuke laughs at how your son is practically squeezing him. It's rare for Josuke to get an entire weekend off. Since he worked as a nurse, his schedule was constantly rotating and he hardly ever had two consecutive days off, much less a weekend. Josuke took full advantage of his Saturday with his little family and made breakfast for the three of you. After breakfast, you got dressed and took your son to the museum where you guys ate dinosaur shaped pizza. As the sun set, the three of you drove to your favorite local mom n’ pop ice cream shop for a sweet treat. Your little one had been so tired from his exciting day that he fell asleep during the car ride home. Even after your son was bathed and tucked in, he still gushed about all the fun he had.
“We’ll go back one day, I promise, Bean. ”
Your son quiets and gets comfortable in Josuke's arms. He begins to slacken when Josuke softly rubs his back.
“Daddy? Mommy? Do you love me?” he asks, his face still buried in Josuke's side.
You answer without hesitation.
“What?! Of course we love you, Bean! We love you so much.”
“A lot?”
Josuke is quick to chime in this time.
“Yeah, Bean! You're our son. We love you so much, buddy. No matter how old you get, we're always going to love you. What's up, buddy? Are you okay?”
The sadness in Josuke's voice has your heart breaking. Josuke told you guys that he loved you what must be a million times a day and you both said it back. Always. You could see Josuke's mind already bouncing around with a million questions. Did his son not think he was loved? Did Josuke not tell him enough? Did Josuke not show it enough?
Your son, being a kid, answers Josuke's question with a question.
“Do you remember everything, Daddy?”
“Hmm. I wish I did, but I don't. That's why sometimes you and your mom have to remind me of stuff. Is everything okay, Bean?”
“Do you remember the first time you told me you loved me?”
“Of course I do! It was before you were born. You were still in your mom's tummy. Bean, I love you so much, you know that right?
“I know, Daddy. I love you too.”
“Then what's up with the questions, buddy? Is everything okay?”
“What about mommy? When was the first time you said ‘I love you’ to her?”
Josuke looks over at you and you both smile. Your son wants to know about the very first time Josuke told you that he loved you. How could you ever forget? Josuke tells you that he loves you so many times a day and each time it's like the first time. It's always so genuine. He always means it, even when he's stressed or upset. According to him, you're the love of his life and he refuses to take you for granted.
“I remember the first time I told your mom I loved her. It was a long time ago, waaaaaayyyy before you were born. I was friends with your mom for a while, but the truth is, I really, really liked your mom for a long time. So one day, I asked her on a date. She must have really liked me too because she said yes. We went on a few dates together and I knew. I knew I loved your mom. I loved her so much that I told her that I loved her after only six weeks of dating.”
“Wow! A whole six weeks! Why did you wait so long, Daddy?”
“Well in adult time, that's not very long. I was scared that I freaked your mom out. I hadn't even asked her to be my girlfriend yet, Bean! I remember, I planned a really nice date. It was night time and we drove to Grassy Peak. You remember that cliff I took you to so we could look at the constellations?”
“Yeah! We used the telescope to see Mars!
“Yup! That's Grassy Peak. Well, I took that same telescope with a blanket and a picnic basket and drove your mom up there. It was a clear night and you could see all of the stars. I left the radio on in the car and your mom asked me if I wanted to dance. I told her that I'm not a good dancer and she said…” he trails off.
“Don't worry. I'll show you,” you finish.
“I was holding your mom really, really tight and we started dancing.”
“I wouldn't call that dancing, Josuke,” you chuckle.
“Well, we started swaying. Your mom smiled up at me and, I kid you not, she was the most beautiful woman in the world. She is the most beautiful woman in the world. I got really, really nervous. My hands started sweating, Bean! Then I just blurted it out. I told your mom that I loved her and I remember she was so surprised. She didn't say anything at first and I started to get even more nervous! But before I could say anything, she smiled at me and told me she loved me too. Then I kissed your mom and a meteor shower started. It was perfect,” Josuke says as he looks at you with so much love in his eyes.
You love him so much. He told you that he loved you after only six weeks of dating and for anyone else, it may have been too early, but you can't even remember a time when you weren't in love with Josuke Higashikata. Seeing him tackle fatherhood everyday only made you love him more. He was a great father and husband. He was the love of your life. Life wasn't always easy, but having Josuke by your side definitely made things easier.
Your son is silent for a little while as he digests Josuke's watered down version of the story.
“And you're still alive?” you hear your son question.
Both of your brows furrow as confusion sets in. What was this kid talking about?
“Wha...what do you mean, Bean?”
“You started the meteor shower, Daddy?” your son asks.
You laugh at how that's the only part of the story that your son seems to take an interest in, but what did you expect? He's a five year old.
“Well no, I didn't start the—”
“You made the dinosaurs go extinct, Daddy?”
“Wait, Bean–”
“You started the meteor shower that killed all the dinosaurs. What about all the mommy and daddy and baby dinosaurs? You made them go extinct just so you could kiss mommy?!”
You can physically see the moment that panic begins to set into Josuke's features and you're trying very hard not to laugh. Your son quickly unravels himself from Josuke's arms and crawls over to you so you can hold him. Your son had inherited Josuke's bleeding heart. It was another trait they shared. God, this kid was a copy and paste of his father. At times, you could swear Josuke made this kid by himself. Had you even been in the room?
“All of the dinosaurs in the whole wide world! I can't believe it. My daddy killed all the dinosaurs!” Your son says with a huff.
“Bean it's not that kind of–”
“My daddy killed all the dinosaurs! Why didn't you stop the meteor, Daddy?!”
You can see that Josuke is starting to sweat under your son's harsh questioning.
“I didn't…Bean, I…” he begins. Josuke gulps as he looks over at you. “Babe, help me out here.”
“Oh, no. You dug this hole for yourself. You have to get yourself out,” you tell him with a laugh as you cradle your son to your chest.
You don't know what's funnier; the fact that your son thinks Josuke is powerful enough to summon a meteor or that your son thinks you're so old that you were alive at the same time as the dinosaurs. You'd always known that kids have no concept of time, but your son must've thought you guys were ancient. You're kind of nervous to ask him when he thinks Tomoko was born.
“How could you do that, Daddy?”
The hilarity of the situation begins to dissolve as you realize that your son is actually upset with Josuke. The fun is over. You give Josuke an apologetic smile as you prepare to chime in.
“Okay Bean, I think there was a misunderstanding. Remember the nice lady at the museum said that the dinosaurs were alive millions and millions of years ago?”
He doesn't answer you as he turns his head away from Josuke to start the silent treatment. You and Josuke both sit up and have your son sit across from you.
“Bean, you know Mr. Miyagi from down the street?”
“Yeah, Mommy.”
“You know how he's very old? Well, even though he's old, even he wasn't born yet when the dinosaurs were around. You don't think we're as old as Mr. Miyagi, do you?”
“Almost.”
You laugh a bit. Mid-20s must be the new 70.
“Bean, meteor showers happen all the time. You know all the times we've seen shooting stars? Well, shooting stars are usually a part of meteor showers. They're so common that sometimes we don't even know they're happening. The meteor shower that your dad took me to see is different from the one that made the dinosaurs go extinct. It was much, much smaller and didn't hurt anyone.”
“Daddy didn't start the meteor shower?”
You hear Josuke breathe a sigh of relief.
“No I didn't, buddy. Like your mom said, they happen all the time. Scientists can even tell when they're going to happen. That's why I took your mom up to Grassy Peak. I knew the meteor shower was going to happen,” Josuke tells your son.
Your son visibly relaxes as he realizes that Josuke did not in fact kill all of the dinosaurs.
“If they happen all the time, does that mean another meteor is going to come and make us go extinct?”
“Of course not. Nothing like that is ever going to happen again.”
“If the meteor does come back, will you protect me?
“Of course, Bean! Your mom and I will always protect you. No matter what,” Josuke says enthusiastically.
Your son jumps onto Josuke, causing him to fall backwards on the bed. He's already back to being on good terms with his dad.
“I love you Mommy and Daddy,” your son says as he begins to get comfortable with Josuke once again.
“We love you too, Bean,” Josuke says as he kisses your son on the forehead.
Before you know it, your son is fast asleep. You take one last look at him as Josuke quietly closes his bedroom door. As soon as the door closes, Josuke turns on his heels to walk toward your bedroom, not even sparing you a glance. You trail behind him, trying not to laugh at him giving you the silent treatment. This is where your son gets it from. He's just like his father.
“Josuke,” you call out to him, trying to mask your giggling.
When you make it to your bedroom, Josuke remains silent as he climbs into bed.
“Josuke, come on. You would've done the same thing,” you laugh as you climb into bed behind him and throw and arm over his waist.
He continues to brush you off, but it only makes you laugh more. You snuggle closer to Josuke, your chest meeting his back. You kiss the junction of his neck where his star shaped birthmark should be under his tee-shirt.
“I'm sorry, baby. I should've intervened earlier,” you say as you place a soft kiss on the side of his neck.
You're hoping Josuke sees past your stifled laughter. You are sorry. Really. Josuke rolls onto his back with a huff to look at you. He's still pouting when his eyes meet yours.
“I was dying in there and you let me drown,” he says with a frown.
You erupt with laughter. Josuke is about to turn back onto his side facing away from you before you stop him.
“Wait! I'm sorry, Josuke,” you tell him with a smile still on your lips. “I'm sorry I let you drown. I gave you CPR in the end though?” You question with another apologetic smile.
Josuke stares at you for a few seconds and you try your best to look sorry. He relents with a sigh.
“Fine. I forgive you. You're lucky you're so cu—”
You place a giddy kiss to his lips before he can finish his sentence. Before you can retreat, he pulls you in for a sweeter, longer kiss. When you pull away, he's smiling.
“Your son is quite the character, Josuke.”
“Oh my son? Last I remember, he's your son too!” Josuke says with a laugh.
“Your son thinks you can summon meteors.”
“Yeah, well he also thinks we're decrepit as hell.”
“Are we really that old?”
“Well it's 9:00 and we're already in bed. Sounds very geriatric to me.”
“Hey! I'm happy to be in bed with you by 9:00!”
Josuke hums and gives you a warm smile that shines brightly in your dark bedroom. His blue eyes are almost sparkling in the dark as he looks at you.
“Me too. I love you.”
“I love you too, Josuke.”