Work Text:
Sugiura stood in his and Higashi’s bedroom, all the drawers opened and clothes thrown on the bed. He and Higashi had plans to go see Mikiko and Jun; they had run into the two a couple of weeks ago at the store and Mikiko had mentioned wanting to invite the men over.
“Fumiya, are you–” Higashi had come in. He was staring at the bed, his eye twitching. He looked at his lover, who was just standing there staring down at the clothes. “Did you fall carrying the laundry or something?”
“I have no idea what to wear,” Sugiura said. Higashi furrowed his eyebrows, gave Sugiura a onceover. He was in his usual hoodie and joggers, sans the jacket. Sugiura looked at him. “I want to look nice for Mikiko-san. I know she and Jun had some problems before, I don’t want to look bad now that things are right again.”
“Ah,” Higashi knew how much Jun meant to Sugiura; the younger man had confided that he thought of Jun like a little brother. Higashi knew Sugiura well, knew he wanted to be for Jun what Emi had been for him. “I mean, it’s Mikiko-chan, she’s easy-going. You two fight together on the streets, right? You’re fine wearing whatever, you’re not gonna make anything bad.”
“Yeah,” Sugiura mumbled. He knew he was overthinking it; Mikiko would think no less of him, but Sugiura just wanted the visit to be perfect; Mikiko meant a lot to the people Sugiura cared about, he wanted to do his best. He smiled. “She seemed so happy when she saw it was you.”
“It’d been so long; I was barely twenty when I’d last seen her,” Higashi explained. He sighed. “And she wasn’t really lying when she said I didn’t keep company; I used to get nervous around people. Always felt like they could see through me and see what a wreck I was.”
“Aw. That’s so cute. I bet you were really cool,” Sugiura said. He knew Higashi had to step up big time once Kaito was out of the Matsugane Family; Hamura had helped force his hand, but Higashi felt such fierce loyalty to Matsugane that once he found out Hamura was plotting and calling the shots, he took it upon himself to look out for the patriarch. Sugiura knew that man would’ve had to come from someone strong, even if that strength was buried and needed time before it could grow. “It feels special that you chose me, you know? Even years later, you mostly seemed to keep to yourself at Charles.”
“Sometimes a man just needs a special place to brood,” Higashi stated. He knew what Sugiura was getting at though; happy as he was to get Kaito back once Higashi had gotten that order to take out Yagami, he couldn’t help but keep to himself. So much had changed during the AD-9 case, Higashi felt like he needed room to breathe and process everything once it was over. His Family was gone, he had no idea what would become of Charles, and for once in his life he’d met someone who gave him complicated feelings he’d never dealt with before on top of everything else he was going through.
It was just a lot going on, the man just needed hours to himself to smoke and contemplate his life.
“So, are we ready to go?” he asked. He eyed the mess on the bed again; they’d need to clean it at some point because they needed to sleep, but Higashi thought that if Sugiura was given anymore time to contemplate, he’d make them late.
“Yeah,” Sugiura smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, Higashi-san.”
“I get it. You love Jun, you want Mikiko-chan to think well of you,” Higashi said. Sugiura’s relationship with his parents was complicated, but Higashi knew that family was still important to the younger man. He had found his own family within their group and that strength was what helped Sugiura to become the man he was today. Sugiura just wanted everything perfect for the new little brother he had found in Jun.
Higashi gave Sugiura a kiss. Sugiura smiled, followed the man out of the room, grabbing his denim jacket before they left. They made sure to lock up before leaving the apartment.
They got to Mikiko and Jun’s place around four. It was a Sunday; Jun didn’t have any meetings with his clubs. Sugiura waited in the living room, smiled when Jun came out from his room.
“Hey, Ju– Sadamoto-kun,” Sugiura greeted. Higashi always just called Jun by his name; the kid was twenty years his junior and the two were close just on account of Higashi being the one to watch over him when Kaito had landed in the hospital. Sugiura didn’t want to seem overbearing just because he felt incredibly close with Jun.
“You can call me Jun, Sugiura-san,” Jun said, grinning. “We’ve known each other for a while now, you’re always there for me when I need anything. Higashi-san calls me Jun anyway; I don’t mind if you do too.”
“Well, Higashi-san doesn’t really care for the rules when it comes to that kind of thing,” Sugiura replied.
“And Higashi-san is right here,” Higashi stated. He was helping Mikiko with tea and snacks. He put the tray of tea and food down as Mikiko placed the mugs and sugar. Everyone gathered to make their drink, and they all took their seats. “Mikiko-chan, the apartment’s really nice.”
“It’s big!” Sugiura added. He knew a house was too much for two people, but he also recalled Jun mentioning how cramped Kaito’s apartment was. Their new apartment just felt so spacious! “I’m glad you two are settling in well here. Ijincho is really nice.”
“So much calmer than Kamurocho,” Mikiko said. Sugiura laughed; he loved Kamurocho, still missed the city and its roofs, but it was nice to feel so at ease just walking to the convenience store. She looked at Higashi and Sugiura. “You both live here?”
“I usually stay here for Charles. My arcade,” Higashi answered. As time went on, the Ijincho branch of Charles was becoming more stable; it was making money and the couple of guys Higashi had hired as clerks were settling in and getting used to arcade life. He didn’t need to stick around as much, but he tended to take his time in the city anyway. “Sugiura lets me stay with him when I’m in town.”
Jun looked at Sugiura and grinned. Sugiura narrowed his eyes at the teen. Jun had asked him about Higashi a few times and Sugiura answered as best he could. As time went on, Sugiura had no doubt that Jun had put together that they were more than just friends, but he really never knew how to broach the subject the rare times that the teen brought it up. It felt so awkward to talk about and they were always in public when Jun asked.
Once upon a time Sugiura really thought Jun had a colossal crush on Higashi, but he started to wonder if maybe Higashi just happened to be the only person who gave Jun and his feelings credence, so he just felt special in the man’s presence because of it.
“Charles,” Mikiko muttered. “The arcade, right? Matsugane-san had just acquired it, I think, when Masaharu and I had gotten engaged.”
“And it’s a great arcade!” Jun explained. “It’s the gem of Kamurocho, mom!”
“I see,” Mikiko laughed, Sugiura joined in. Jun was like a different kid when he wasn’t under so much stress and pressure. He was full of energy and seemed genuinely happy. Mikiko looked at Higashi. “It sounds like you’ve really come a long way, Higashi-kun. Your own business and everything. I bet it’s exciting!”
“It’s pretty boring, honestly,” Higashi shrugged his shoulders, glanced at Sugiura. “But it’s something I’ve worked hard to keep going, so I can say I’m at least proud of how it’s turned out. But you’ve come a long way too, Mikiko-chan.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” Mikiko replied. She put her arm around Jun. “My biggest pride is Jun, though. Even though I’ve made horrible mistakes, he’s kept me in check and shown me what a fine young man he already is.”
“Mom,” Jun groaned. Somehow it felt embarrassing when she admitted it in his presence. But he also knew how much she loved him and he loved her just as much.
“Jun couldn’t be who he is without you though, Mikiko-san!” Sugiura smiled. “You’ve been through hell and back and you still remain so positive and try only your best for Jun. Even if you make a mistake, you learn and try harder every day. For him. So don’t discount yourself. You’re a strong woman, please don’t downplay your accomplishments. You’ve had to be strong given everything you’ve gone through and you still keep going every day.”
“Well, that means a lot to me, Sugiura-kun,” Mikiko said. She didn’t like to play up and act like she was anymore than she was, nor did she like to brag. She followed her heart and morals, thought nothing of it as she navigated through her life. But still, it felt good to hear praise. She smiled at the detective.
“You remind me of my sister,” it was out of Sugiura’s mouth before he could think about it. Higashi stared at him.
“You have a sister?” Jun asked. He never knew; Sugiura didn’t mention her at all, but he bet she was just as kind and kickass as Sugiura was. He hoped that he could meet her one day.
“Uh,” Sugiura stared at his mug. He took a deep breath, hands shaking. He hadn’t meant to bring Emi up, hadn’t even thought of her all that much in a while. Briefly he would think of her at points in his life, but she hadn’t occupied his mind as she had so many years ago when he was so messed up over her death and the circumstances surrounding it.
Higashi took Sugiura’s mug and plate, placed them gently on the table.
“Are you okay, Sugiura-kun?” Mikiko asked. Sugiura was paler than normal and he was barely moving. He didn’t like to open up that wound that had healed years ago; everyone who was important knew about Emi and it was always a hard subject to broach that he never mentioned her because it was something he just never thought to bring up. It was something he didn’t want to bring up.
“Breathe,” Higashi murmured, putting his hand on the small of Sugiura’s back. Sugiura had already psyched himself out earlier thinking he was going to look bad for Jun, Higashi just knew the man was in a bad place now.
Sugiura blinked, took another deep breath. He tried to focus on the gentle, subtle pattern that Higashi was rubbing on his back. The detective breathed out, tried to just keep visual focus on anything. Jun’s hair; it had been very red when Sugiura met him, but it was starting to fade. Sugiura wondered if he planned on keeping up with it now that he was busy with school, dancing, and being Seiryo High’s resident detective.
“Sorry,” Sugiura muttered. He shrugged his shoulders, tried to get himself back down to Earth. The last time he had really thought about Emi was during the Mikoshiba case; when Sawa had been killed and Sugiura saw the body, all he thought about was Emi. She was stabbed repeatedly and it shot him down a rabbit hole of wondering if Emi had died immediately after Shono had stabbed her the first time, or if she suffered in pain, having been stabbed repeatedly, before she left the world.
And he felt terrible, too. He should’ve been focused on Sawa, and in a way he was, physically. He did all he could to help. But it reminded him too much of Emi; an innocent woman cut down in her prime.
“I had a sister,” Sugiura said. He smiled sadly, tried to blink away the tears he could just feel welling in his eyes. “She was my best friend, always there to talk to me when I had a bad day… which honestly, pathetic as it sounds, was kind of everyday. But she didn’t seem to ever care about that; she did what she could to cheer me up.”
“She was your older sister?” Mikiko smiled, felt like she already knew the answer. She’d been an older sister, knew it was practically in the job description to be that rock.
“Yeah,” Sugiura wiped his eyes. Higashi kept up with the small circular motion. “I, uh… dropped out of school when I was in my second year of highschool, kept to myself at home and never left the house. She was already in university, but she called every day if she wasn’t visiting. Talked to me about her day, her classes, what she ate, or anything that got me open enough to talk.”
Jun felt horrible. Sugiura had talked to him before about being bullied in school, how he had tried so hard just to get by every day. He never knew that Sugiura eventually just quit, didn’t even know he’d shut himself away. Jun never asked questions, felt like he wasn’t a good friend at all. Sugiura always asked Jun about his life and feelings.
“She was a nurse, got really busy once she finished her degree and found work,” Sugiura continued. “But she still made time for me anyway. She was really strong, never let me see how tired she was. So, Mikiko-san, when you deny how far you’ve come… I know it’s not true. I know how much you love Jun, and I know what you’ve done so you can be here now. It doesn’t matter if some of the choices you’ve made weren’t the best ones because you’re human. And despite your mistakes, you work hard to keep being the best you can be for the one who means the most to you. And I think that’s very special.”
Mikiko wanted to cry. She felt like it was her duty to be there for Jun, do all she could to ensure he could be whoever he wanted to be. Even if they disagreed on things, she wanted to give him the tools he needed to grow into the man he had to be. Just like she wanted to give her baby sister the freedom to be who she was.
And it broke her heart knowing she never got to see who Maho would’ve become.
“What was her name?” Mikiko asked.
“Emi,” Sugiura replied.
“Emi,” Mikiko repeated. Emi. It rang a bell and she didn’t know why. Emi the nurse. Mikiko looked at Sugiura. Did she know a nurse Emi?
It dawned on Mikiko; Emi Terasawa. She was in the news years ago; she had been stabbed and burned in a fire. It stuck with Mikiko; a young woman killed and then burned to destroy the evidence, or it’s what had been presumed back then. The boyfriend was found guilty and it reminded Mikiko too much of what had happened to her sister and parents, she felt for the family that she knew had to be devastated.
It couldn’t be her though; the names didn’t match up. But they looked so similar if Mikiko thought about it. Everything about that news report stuck in her mind, filed in the back of her head as years passed.
“Mom?” Jun looked at Mikiko. Mikiko snapped out of her thoughts, looked at her son. She turned to Sugiura who looked like he was regaining some of his color.
She’d have to ask a hard question.
“Was your sister… in the news?” Mikiko asked. There had been an update over three years ago; Emi’s boyfriend had never killed her or started the fire, and it had actually been a doctor over at the ADDC. Mikiko remembered because Kyoya was surprisingly fascinated by the whole situation; it was a big news report involving a scandal for the whole medical field. It was a lot to take in, really.
“Y-yeah,” Sugiura stared at Mikiko. “I, uh… my name’s not really Sugiura.”
“What?” Jun asked. Everyone called him Sugiura and he responded to it every time. Jun just couldn’t believe it wasn’t his name. “So… what is your name?”
Sugiura sighed. Despite coming clean so many years ago, he stuck with his fake name. It’s the name he used when he learned to like himself again, and it’s what had given him the confidence to come out of his shell. Despite throwing away the mask he had led with when he came into himself, he stuck with Sugiura; it felt like such a big part of him that he couldn’t throw away.
“Terasawa,” he answered. He wasn’t ashamed of the name, but a part of him felt like it had died with Emi. But he couldn’t deny that Emi’s case had been a big deal when she died, and then it was brought back up once the ADDC was in hot water with everything Shono had done; it was all over the news that not only had he been testing on patients and other humans, even went so far as to become his last victim, but he had also been the true perpetrator behind Emi’s death.
Sugiura knew eventually, he’d run into someone who had been paying attention to that news so long ago.
“I’m sorry,” Mikiko said. Sugiura looked at her. “I know that it was a long time ago, but I also know what it’s like to lose family. I’m sorry that I asked, but more importantly, I’m sorry that someone so important to you was… taken like that. I lost my little sister and parents to a fire. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been, it can still seem so fresh.”
“Yeah,” Sugiura laughed, but it turned into a sob. “I’m just… everything I am now is because she never gave up on me even when I had given up on myself.”
There was silence. Sugiura stared at the floor, regretted that he had ever opened his big mouth. He knew he had made things awkward, and even worse, he didn’t even like talking about himself at all, let alone Emi.
“It’s an honor for you to say I remind you of her,” Mikiko stated. Sugiura looked at her again. “I always tried to look out for my sister, keep her out of trouble. Sometimes I used to wonder if I was too overbearing; my sister was always getting into trouble, and I wondered if maybe constantly stepping in stopped her from being able to learn from her mistakes and grow. Looking back, I’m glad I could make her feel so safe for as long as I did; all I ever wanted was her safety and happiness, and even if it was for as short a time in her life as it was, I’m glad she saw me as a safe place.”
Sugiura was crying now. He never expected to feel as close to Mikiko as he did right now; they’d both lost their beloved siblings to tragedy. And maybe it’s why he tried so hard all the time with Jun; he wanted Emi’s light to live on with the love she had given him, so Sugiura wanted to reflect that with Jun.
“It’s hard when you love someone so much,” Sugiura murmured. “When they’re gone, it’s like a part of you goes with them. And no matter how much time passes and that wound heals, it never really goes away.”
Higashi hung his head, thought of that strong, dignified man he had dedicated his life to. Matsugane had a tough love approach, but he also sincerely cared for all of the men that had sworn loyalty to him. He looked out for them like a father, and Higashi knew that even though no one mentioned it, they all saw him as their father.
Every day he walked into Charles, he thanked whoever would listen that he could keep something of Matsugane’s, help it to get back to the bustling little arcade it had once been. In some way, he could keep the man’s memory alive even if it was some sad, dinky arcade. Matsugane used to come into the arcade, say that he was too old for games when Kaito would try and get him to play, but he was fascinated regardless and had spent a little too much money to try and get on the high-score table.
Matsugane was never able to even hit the lowest high score, but Higashi threw MAT on the high-score table anyway, always made sure to replace it when it got knocked off. He knew it might’ve been silly, but he wanted to preserve the man’s small hope even to this day.
The last time he’d been at the Kamurocho branch of the arcade, Genda had come over to visit, said he wanted to check in on Higashi. He’d seen the name MAT pop up as he looked around, teared up immediately, though he tried to hide it. But Higashi knew; even so many years later, the loss of Genda’s beloved partner was still such a deep wound. Higashi made the man tea and they quietly sat there, grieved together in silence. Genda smiled, put his hand over Higashi’s, thanked him for all he had done for Matsugane despite the risks.
And truly, it had been Higashi’s honor to do anything he could for the patriarch, even if it was making the tea he loved so much.
“Sorry I ruined the mood, everyone,” Sugiura tried to laugh, but he was sniffling from his crying. Jun wanted to cry seeing him in such a state; he had only ever seen Sugiura in a good mood, always listening and always speaking happily with the teen. To know that he’d gone through so much in his life and it all still seemed so sore for Sugiura, it just hit Jun hard.
“It’s why we’re here, isn’t it?” Mikiko asked. She got up, kneeled in front of Sugiura and took his hands in hers. She smiled at him. “I wanted to catch up with Higashi-kun, and I wanted to know not only the man who it seemed he’d let his guard down for, but the man who also was so good to my son when he needed it the most.”
In the past she might have been mad; she used to so desperately want a good, normal, happy life. But as years passed and so much had happened, she learned that normal was different for everyone and it was sometimes what you made of it.
Mikiko got up, looked down at the detective.
“The mood isn’t ruined at all, Sugiura-kun,” she continued. If he was using the name so many years after Emi’s death, it was probably one he wanted to keep. She didn’t need to know why, figured one day he’d tell her. And if he didn’t, that was fine too. “Maybe it’s a good thing we all got to know each other a little more.”
“I’m sorry about your family, Mikiko-chan,” Higashi said. He sighed. “I’d read about it in the newspaper. I didn’t know if I should send you a letter or flowers… anything, really, after everything that had happened with Kaito-aniki. I knew you’d moved on, had a husband and a kid. Figured you didn’t need someone like me walking into your new life.”
“I understand,” Mikiko replied. She had hurried to move on after Kaito; she was so angry and hurt at the time, but she understood now. The Matsugane Family had been his life and he felt loyalty to the man that had saved him from his miserable upbringing; he never would have just sat still while the man he saw as a father was in trouble. She had been so naive and didn’t understand anything even though she thought she knew everything. And even to this day she still felt she had much to learn. “I know you would have sent the nicest bouquet, probably even made me so much tea I’d drown.”
“He’s surprisingly good at comforting people, right?” Sugiura smiled. “He plays all cool and tough, but he remembers the things that comfort you and he does what he can to make you feel better.”
“Sh-shut up,” Higashi blushed. All this time, he still hated praise. Sugiura and Mikiko laughed. Mikiko looked at her watch, saw that it was nearly half past five.
“Should I order some pizza?” she asked.
“Whoa, really!?” Jun asked. Mikiko still cooked for them every night even when she worked; she told him they both deserved good food that would give them the proper nutrients, especially with Jun in dance club.
“We don’t need to get it if it might be a problem,” Mikiko grinned. Jun shook his head. Mikiko turned to Higashi. “Do you mind helping me choose the toppings? I want to make sure we’re all happy.”
“Not at all,” Higashi got up, followed Mikiko to the kitchen.
Jun sat down where Higashi had been, looked over at Sugiura. He kept his hands folded in his lap, but he looked at the teen.
“Don’t worry, I’m okay,” Sugiura said. He sniffled and took a deep breath. He never wanted Jun to see him in such a down state, but he knew he couldn’t just hide himself like that. “I hadn’t really thought of Emi-chan in so long.”
“I never knew you even had a sister,” Jun murmured. He knew that considering the circumstances, there would be no reason for Sugiura to even bring her up. If he had been in such a bad place during his teen years, and Emi had been the only one on his side, why bring up something so tragic?
After what had happened on that roof with his father and everything, Mikiko had told Jun about her family and what had happened. They cried together; Jun never knew Mikiko had dealt with such loss, only ever saw her happy and smiling. He never knew she was keeping so much to herself so she wouldn’t fall apart because she wanted to be on top of things for him.
“It must be weird knowing now that Sugiura isn’t even my actual name, right?” Sugiura asked. Jun nodded his head. Sugiura sighed, moved to sit closer to the boy. “I never wanted to hide it; I just never had any reason to bring it up, I guess. But now you know my whole embarrassing past of what I got up to when I was around your age. So if you ever feel like you’re having a shitty day, please know that I understand and I’m always willing to listen.”
“I never asked about any of it when you told me you used to get bullied at school,” Jun said. He sighed. “You spend so much time always listening to me, it never occurred to me to ask you the deeper questions or ask more about anything.”
Sugiura shrugged his shoulders.
“You’re fifteen, you shouldn’t feel like you need to be a shoulder for an adult,” he said. Jun had so much life to live and Sugiura knew that he’d already experienced more than any kid his age should have. “Don’t be upset at yourself, Jun. We have a lot of time to talk about those kinds of things, you know?”
“Yeah,” Jun nodded his head. Somehow, he felt closer to the detective. “So you and Higashi-san, huh?”
“Yeah,” Sugiura admitted. He’d never told anyone officially, not even Tsukumo, though he knew that his partner knew. If Jun was going to be so bold as to finally ask him directly, Sugiura would answer.
“Yeah,” Jun repeated. “If Kaito-san is with my mom, and Higashi-san considers Kaito his aniki, and you’re with Higashi-san… does that make us family?”
Sugiura laughed. Somehow he wasn’t shocked Jun would think that deeply about it. Or maybe all the talk about family and loss was having the teen feeling a certain way. Even if his father had been a monster, he was still family and half of the reason Jun was even with them in the first place.
“I will scream if you call me oji-san,” Sugiura stated.
“What about onii-chan?” Jun smiled. Sugiura stared at him. Jun could see tears welling in Sugiura’s eyes again, knew it was probably a bad time to ask. “Sorry, I didn–”
“I’d be honored,” Sugiura said quickly. He wiped his eyes, knew he’d have to get himself together; he didn’t want to go crying on his pizza. “Or aniki works too. If onii-chan feels too weird.”
“Ooh, aniki!” Jun’s eyes widened. He’d felt so positive about Sugiura since they’d awkwardly met months ago at the carnival; they’d made a connection over games, but they’d grown so much closer so quickly. He didn’t want to just thrust his feelings on the detective; he was the one with issues and didn’t want to just smother Sugiura.
“I don’t mind being your aniki,” Sugiura said. He smiled at the teen. “I’d like to think if Emi-chan were around, she’d be happy to see she’s the reason I can still be here today. And that I can be so good to you because she gave me the blueprint on what it means to be a good sibling.”
Jun smiled, rested head against Sugiura’s shoulder. Sugiura smiled too, put his arm around the teen. As hard as it was, it felt good to let it all out. Sugiura had just never talked about his feelings after the Mikoshiba case; he had to be strong for everyone. But now and then, it didn’t hurt to just be vulnerable around the people that mattered, and Sugiura was learning that at the tender age of twenty-nine.
“I don’t want to break up this moment, but I think we should make sure Higashi-san and Mikiko-san order enough pizza,” he stated. He felt like he could eat two pizzas by himself and he’d seen Jun cram food in his mouth; the kid could eat.
“Okay,” Jun replied. They got up, made their way into the kitchen. Mikiko and Higashi were at the small table talking. “Did we get enough pizzas?”
“We got several large pizzas, all different toppings. You two could probably eat a whole house together,” Higashi grinned. He looked at Sugiura, noticed he was looking a little better. His eyes weren’t as red and he seemed to have calmed down. “Everything okay now?”
“Yeah,” Sugiura smiled. “Everything’s more than okay now.”
He had started the day panicked he’d fuck something up somehow during the visit. He wanted everything perfect for Jun because the kid had been through so much, Sugiura just wanted to do right by him. And Sugiura had opened his mouth, dragged the mood down because Mikiko was a loving, caring, doting woman to Jun as Emi had been to Sugiura.
But it was okay. Because things had shifted and they all learned about each other a little more. Sugiura and Mikiko had suffered loss at the cruel hands of others, both came out stronger because of it. And they could share that loss with each other, grieve over what they no longer had, and it wouldn’t ruin them anymore.
“Sugiura-aniki and I can get the pizzas if you want, mom!” Jun exclaimed. Higashi looked at Sugiura, and the younger man smiled back at him. Mikiko laughed as she looked at the two.
“That would be great, actually,” she said.
She got up to get the phone as Sugiura and Jun left. It had been awhile since Sugiura just felt so happy. And he’d been quite happy before, but it was a certain kind of happiness he was feeling; the kind of happiness he hadn’t felt since he was young and he, Emi, and their parents would go out for a day.
Sugiura was happy with his lot in life, but sometimes wished things had been a bit different. He had felt like a stray even when Higashi told him he’d found his place. But now he felt like he could fully believe what Higashi said; he was a stray, but he’d found his family. And it was a big family, but it’s Sugiura’s family.
And he wouldn’t trade them for the world.