Chapter Text
Illumi tapped his pen absently on the table enjoying the muffled tap of the lid on a heaped pile of paper. Workbooks balanced in teetering piles around him, his own homework all but forgotten in the mess. All his focus zeroed in on helping Killua with his reading. Alluka gripped a crayon in one fist, scribbling in her favourite dogeared colouring book, waiting her turn with Illumi. She had a small pile of school library books that had been absorbed into the stack.
Illumi felt a small tug on his sleeve and turned towards where Kalluto knelt on a cushioned seat next to him. He’d been diligently tracing his abc’s in bright purple crayon. Now he waved the sheet under Illumi’s nose showing off his hard work.
“Very good.” Illumi smiled. Sliding papers round until he found a sheet with dotted numbers in faint grey. “Try this one now.”
Illumi placed the new sheet before Kalluto while still following along with Killua’s attempts at sounding out the word ‘house’. Kalluto very seriously picked out a new colour for the numbers.
Faintly in the distance the front door banged shut. Illumi tracked the footsteps through the house until Milluki arrived in the dining room, hovering next to Illumi’s seat. Silently, and still looking at the picture book, Illumi held out his hand waiting until the homeschool planner was placed on his outstretched palm. He flipped to todays date while still tracing the words for Killua to read. Several comments were written in the teachers big looping letters.
‘Milluki got full marks on his spelling test…’
‘Sats practice papers are being sent home…’
‘Milluki earned a reward…’
“Good job today Millu.” Illumi said, uncapping his pen and signing in the designated box. Snapping the planner shut he passed it back. Instead of taking a seat at the table with the rest of them, Milluki hovered by his shoulder still. “Yes?”
Milluki looked down, fiddling with his fingers. Was he nervous? Illumi couldn’t imagine why.
“Er,” Milluki fumbled in his bag before shoving a letter in front of Illumi. Carefully Illumi smoothed it out before scanning the words. A smiled tugged at his mouth and he clapped his hands together.
“Open day. I had no idea that was coming up so soon. Which day shall we attend?”
Milluki smiled at him and inexplicably threw his arms around Illumi. While Illumi had no idea why, he was never going to complain about receiving affection from his siblings. Especially Milluki, who got embarrassed now when Illumi hugged him in public.
“Thanks Illu.” Illumi hugged him until he pulled away. “Can we go next Thursday? Are you free then?”
“Of course.” He patted Milluki absently on the head as he got to his feet, heading to the intercom carefully hidden under a panel beside the door. Sliding the panel to the side he pressed the button waiting for his call to be answered.
“Good afternoon. What can I do for you today sir?”
Illumi blinked. He had no idea who had picked up.
“Yes. Hello.” He constructed his sentence in his head before speaking. "I need someone to be available to watch the kids next Thursday evening after school.”
“Of course sir. I’ll schedule it in. Will that be all?”
“Yes. That’s all. Thank you.” Illumi took his finger off the button. The panel slid closed with a soft swish. “There we go Millu, all sorted. Now let’s have a look at those SAT’s papers.”
Glancing at his watch, Illumi calmly and efficiently packed up his school work. If he hurried he would have time to grab coffee before he needed to meet Milluki for the tour. Once more he ran through the plan in his head. Milluki would be waiting for him at the after-school club, held by the prep school. That was normal, his sibling normally went there on a Thursday as Illumi’s own classes went on until 4:30pm on this day. The other three got to go home early this time, Gotoh had texted half an hour ago that they were all home safe and being made to do their homework.
That was one thing he could check off the list in his mind. One less thing to worry about. Illumi was unreasonably stressed about the night. He wanted everything to go perfectly for Milluki. At least the prep school and upper school were on the same campus, so he didn’t need to travel to either collect Milluki or get the to the upper school. They would have been late then he thought as he got into the line at the campus coffee shop. Twisting a stray bit of cotton on his sleeve around his fingers he kept running through the plan in his mind as he moved up the line.
“Hey, what can I get you today?”
“Ice oat milk late please.” He glanced over at the menu. “Oh do you do hot chocolate?”
“We do.”
“A small one of those too.”
“Coming right up, if you could wait to the side to collect.”
Illumi moved to the side. 4:40pm. He still had time to collect Millu and get there. They weren’t going to be late. That would be embarrassing and it would not show their family in good stead. Illumi started anxiously bouncing on his toes as he waited for the drinks to be done, lost in his thoughts. He jumped a mile when he felt a hand touch his elbow.
“Sorry.” It was the barista. “I called your name like three times, your drinks are done.”
“Right thank you.” He picked up a drink in each hand. What an odd sensation. One was very hot and one was very cold. Illumi clenched his hands a little tighter around both. One hand had condensation and the other didn’t. He shivered. Then he realised that he was standing in the middle of the coffee shop, completely in the way of everyone. Slightly embarrassed he looked down before hastily leaving.
Another glance at his watch showed it was nearing 4:50pm. Damn, he really needed to get a move on. Quickly he walked into the prep school building nodding to the receptionist as he passed. Milluki would be in the small hall, where they held after school club. He poked his head around the doorway. The supervisor, Miss Khara noticed him straight away, a smile lighting up her face.
“Illumi. How good to see you. How are you?”
“I’m good thank you.” Khara had worked in the after school club when Illumi had been there. They’d gotten to know each other really well as Illumi had been there every day. And she’d even stayed late with him sometimes when no one remembered to pick him up. She was always very kind and was never annoyed at the extra work. She saw less of his siblings, as they only needed to go once a week, when he had his later class. It had been a while since he’d seen her as normally the driver would come and collect them while Illumi waited in the car. Then he remembered she’d asked a question. “Oh, how are you?”
“I’m good sweetheart. Look at you. You’ve grown so tall.” She pinched his cheek while he stared blankly at her hadn’t. “Right, you’re here for your brother. Milluki,” she called. “Your big brother’s here to collect you.”
“We are going to his upper school open house.” Illumi offered.
“Yes he said. He’s really excited about it.”
Milluki shuffled over, backpack half open and slung over one shoulder. His blazer, one arm knotted around the bag strap dragged on the floor behind him. Illumi winced.
“Put your blazer on. And straighten up your tie.” Illumi instructed, attempting in vain to dust off the dirt from the floor. Mentally he made a note to send the blazer for dry cleaning over the weekend. Looking over milluki, and brushing back his hair, Illumi deemed him presentable. “Good job. Shall we. Thank you Miss Khara, it was good to see you again.”
“You should drop by more often Illumi. I’d like to hear what you’re up to now.” She smiled.
“I’ll see what I can do. Are you ready Millu?”
“Yep.”
“Here, this is for you.” He pressed the hot chocolate into Milluki’s hands as they started walking towards the upper school main building on the other side of the campus.
“Really. Thanks!” Milluki took a big sip, then he looked curiously at the paper cup. “Illu, theres a number on here.”
“Really. Is it a good number?” Illumi asked curiously. He was partial to palindromic numbers himself. “Do you think it’s a combination to something?”
“Huh? No?” Milluki was laughing. “No, Illu, it’s a phone number.”
“What a strange thing to be on a cup. How do you propose it got there?”
Milluki started laughing harder. “I think someone probably wrote it on there.”
“With a fountain pen?” Illumi nodded to himself. “That has good ink.”
Milluki nearly chocked on the hot chocolate he was laughing so hard. Concerned, Illumi patted him on the back.
“No. I think whoever made the coffee, Lizzy. She wrote it on here, was giving you her number.”
Illumi shook his head. What a silly notion.
“Poor girl.” Milluki carried on. “But I mean, you ordered an iced oat milk late. She really should have known she had no chance.”
“Milluki, you are making no sense.”
“How did Hisoka ask you out?”
“With words. Why are you changing the subject?”
Milluki giggled. “Thank god you’re pretty.”
“Milluki.” Illumi raised his voice. Milluki ducked and bounded ahead, still giggling. “Millu, you do not talk to me like that. Where did you learn that?”
“Sorry.” Milluki shouted.
Putting a hand to his head, Illumi bit back a sigh. He was going to kill Hisoka. Really the man needed to be more careful about what he said around the siblings. Walking faster to catch up, Illumi put a hand on Millu’s shoulder as they approached the assembly auditorium, a vast stone building. It loomed over the small courtyard, casting shadows that were great for sitting in in the heat of summer. A clock in the centre chimed each hour, the sound ringing out over the whole campus. No student had an excuse for being late to class with the clock keeping them to schedule.
Inside Illumi went to take a seat in the front row, but Milluki tugged on his sleeve, face red, moving them further back. What was wrong with the front row? It was where Illumi always sat. Although come to think of it, Hisoka also hated sitting in the front row. He constantly tried to persuade Illumi to sit with him in the back.
The view from the middle was certainly no better. Illumi had to strain to see the presentation being given up on the stage. Finally the overhead projector turned off and Headmaster Tezagerra strutted on stage, his heavy boots echoing around the auditorium.
“Thank you all for coming out to view our school tonight. Before we start the tours, some of our current students have performances and presentations just for our up and coming first formers. So parents, join me in the staff room for a glass of wine while your children watch the show.”
All around them parents rose to their feet. Milluki nudged him.
“Oh. Yes me. See you in a bit.”
Illumi joined the crowd, though he hesitated slightly at the door to the staff lounge. He was still in his own school uniform after all. Even if sixth formers did have a bit more freedom in regards to uniform, the school logo still showed clearly on most every item.
Mr. Bari, Illumi’s history teacher, spotted him hovering by the door and smiled.
“In you come young Zoldyck. Here with your younger brother are you?”
“Yes sir.” Illumi entered inside with his history teacher, who nudged him over to where a group of parents were chatting. Illumi felt so out of place and looked desperately around but his teacher had disappeared into the crowd. One of the waiters, hired for the evening, passed him a glass of wine, same as with the other parents in the little group that had formed.
Illumi looked around in a panic again. This wasn’t allowed. Trembling hands nearly spilled the bright red liquid as he imagined his mother reaction if she caught wind of this. After several terrifying seconds he managed to catch Mr. Bari’s attention. The smile dropped as he made his way over.
“Illumi, you alright?”
“I’m not old enough to drink sir.” He held out the glass of wine to his teacher, the liquid swirling in time to the shake of his hand.
“You’ve not had wine before? Not even with your father at dinner?”
“No sir.”
“Alright Illumi. I’ll take that for you then. Sure you don’t want to taste it first.”
“No, thank you, sir. What if I get drunk?”
The teacher laughed. “Well I can’t argue with that. You’re a good kid Illumi.” He patted his shoulder. “Now, go talk to the other guardians. I know you can do it, it’ll be good practice for you.”
The other guardians stood in little groups, even smaller than before, all conversing easily with one another, sipping their wine and gently boasting about their kids. Soft laughter floated above the general chatter. Some of them were looking curiously at him after the little exchange with his teacher. Illumi didn’t know which group to join. They all seemed so closed off and unattainable. And really, what right did he have to join them. He wasn’t even his siblings legal guardian. He was just their brother.
But Mr. Bari was expecting him to join in, and he hated failing any assignment. So, taking a deep breath he sidled up to the nearest group and silently inserted himself into the circle. “Hello.” He said, then remembered he needed to smile. Which probably came across as completely unnatural. Maybe he shouldn’t have tried in the first place.
Before he could walk away again, the women next to him smiled in return. “Good to meet you.” She held out her hand, which Illumi stared at just a bit too long before remembering he was supposed to shake it. “I couldn’t help but notice the uniform. Are you a student here?”
“Yes. I’m in upper sixth. Er, I’m a prefect and I’m here with my younger brother.” Illumi checked the points on his fingers as he went.
“How lovely. So, do you like it here?”
“Very much. I’ll miss it when I leave. But all of my younger sibling go to the prep school, so I’m sure I’ll be back lots.” Illumi looked down. Was that to much talking all at once? “What about you. I mean, what about your child?”
“Linn goes to the local prep school near us. But this is such a good school my husband and I are thinking about having him board. Do you and your siblings board here?”
“No ma’am. We’re local. The Zoldyck estate is only a twenty minute drive, so it’s very easy for us to get in.” Several parents drifted closer to the conversation as soon as the name Zoldyck was mentioned. People crowded around Illumi. Elbows jostled him no matter how much he tried to move out the way. His hand kept being grabbed and shook, names he couldn’t hear much less remember all but shouted at him. They all acted as if he was their best friend despite never having met any of these people before in his life.
Why did everyone have to stand so close?
Was it getting warmer in here?
Gosh, his palms were rather sweaty. Discreetly he tried to wipe them on his trousers. He hoped no one noticed when they shook his hand.
It was loud.
Why were so many people talking to him at once. How was he meant to focus on one conversation.
Was the room spinning?
Suddenly the weight of an arm wound around his shoulder. Automatically he flinched from the touch, but when he looked up it was his headmaster. He tried to greet him, but the words got caught in his throat. Tears prickled his eyes. Don’t be stupid. He told himself firmly. There’s nothing to get upset about. Don’t be an embarrassment to your family.
Deep breath in. Calm down. You have no reason to be acting out like this.
Laughter erupted around him and he shrank back, wondering what he’d done. People always seemed to be laughing at him. Keeping his eyes down he tuned back into the conversation. Oh, Headmaster Tezagarera had just told a joke. No one was laughing at him.
The sound of his name caught his attention. “Yes, Illumi is one of our top students. He was in the top 100 in the country for his GCSE results. The school is very proud of him. We’re expecting great thing’s from all the Zoldyck siblings too.”
“Thank you sir.”
Time seemed to drag by, but the other parents didn’t seem to notice, happy to chat. Tezagarera glanced at his watch. “Time to be getting back to the hall I think. Shall we everyone.” He gestured for the parents to proceed him out the door, keeping Illumi close to his side. “You did well. Feeling alright now?” He whispered to Illumi.
Illumi looked at him quizzically. “Of course.”
“Good, good.”
All his teachers treated him like this and Illumi had no idea why. He’d noticed years ago that he was treated differently from his peers, the adults around him always checking in and asking how he was. His teachers always seemed to be rescuing him from situations that really shouldn’t require a rescue in the first place. They were endlessly patient when he messed up simple interactions. And never seemed annoyed about it. Illumi shivered. It was the complete opposite to the reactions he got at home.
Back in the hall he took his seat next to Milluki again, watching the fifth form prefects line up in front of the stage, waiting to be assigned their groups for the tour.
“They’re going to give us the tour,” Milluki said, handing him several pieces of paper. Illumi smoothed out the creases before stacking them neatly. Honestly how did Milluki managed to mess them up already? “Then, we get to choose some activity’s that the different departments are putting on.”
Milluki grinned as he caught Illumi up, obviously forgetting that Illumi had already been to his own open evening seven years before.
“I see. Do you know which activities you want to do?”
“Definitely the computer lab.”
Illumi nodded. “Of course.” They got up as they were assigned a group and followed the fifth former out of the hall.
“Then maybe art.”
“Art?” Illumi titled his head.
“You’re surprised?” Milluki sounded worried.
“No. I just didn’t know you were into art. Should I get you better supplies for at home?” A sick feeling settle in his stomach. He should have known this about his brother. He was a failure. Of course his brother would have interests other than just computer games. How stupid and self absorbed he was being.
“That might be fun.” Milluki interrupted his spiralling thoughts, answering the question he’d almost forgot he asked. “We could go together?”
“Of course we can. I enjoy spending time with you.” Illumi made sure that was clear. Never did he want his little siblings to feel like they were a bother to him. He was rewarded by Milluki’s grin.
The first destination on the tour was the gym, a giant ugly building pushed to the edge of campus. The green metal roof meant it was boiling in the summer and freezing in the winter. A shiver ran down Illumi’s spine as they made their way through the doors. To his left loomed the door to the boys changing room. It was stressful, trying to stay hidden while he changed into his sports uniform. Never had he been so relieved than when he could drop P.E. when he entered sixth form.
The place did have a good gym with excellent workout equipment, which he and Hisoka went to regularly in their free lessons. It wasn’t so bad with just his boyfriend there rather than the 50 or so other boys in his year, who would all stare. And sixth formers had their own section of the changing room.
Despite his hatred of the lesson, the gym teacher was always trying to recruit him for some team or another. Idly he wondered if he would try to recruit Millu that way. Illumi cast an impartial eye over his brother. Maybe being on a sports team wouldn’t be the worst thing for him. And Milluki would never have to worry about the changing like he did. He’d make sure to encourage him to do so.
Milluki exhaled sharply as they made their way around the south academic building. The prep school often came up to the upper school campus, so none of this was unfamiliar to Milluki. It was understandable that he was a bit board. Illumi was board too. This was his seventh year here, fourteenth if you also included Prep. Illumi could navigate the school blindfolded, he knew every crevice. The good hiding spots where no one could hear you cry. The places you could curl up and read.
“If you go into that supply closet,” Illumi pointed it out to Milluki as they passed, “you can lift one of the roof tiles and get inside the ceiling.”
“That’s so cool.” Milluki grinned. Some of the other kids in the group were looking hesitantly their way. “What else?”
Illumi continued to quietly point things out as they finished up in the academic blocks and made their way to the design tech and woodwork hut. Various framed posters hung in a corridor ending in a long staircase, which was used as a shortcut instead of walking along all the outside pathways.
“Oh.” Illumi said as he set foot on the first stair. By this point the children were hanging off his every word. “They say that someone once died by falling down these stairs and the ghost still remains. I don’t know if I believe it, but there is always a breeze over the fourth step.”
All the kids in the group raced down to stand on the forth step, Milluki among them. Shouts and exclamations rang up the stairwell as the kids moved their hands through the ever persistent breeze. The prefect grinned at Illumi.
“You’re making my job easier.” He grinned.
“Sorry.” Illumi winced but the prefect patted him on the arm.
“Did you tell the kids this when you had to do the tours in fifth year.”
“Certainly not. I stuck to the script.”
The tour resumed, the state of the art equipment in the woodwork hut being shown off as the parents hummed over the elaborate set up. Milluki stayed with the other children in the group, as they all crowed around the examples of student work, listening to the tour guide explain a third year project. Milluki chatted and laughed, getting along with the others easily. Unclenching his jaw and shaking his hands out slightly, Illumi allowed the relief to flood over him. He’d fretted that Milluki would have as hard a time making friends as he himself had, but it seemed he’d been worrying for nothing.
The end of the tour brought them back to the auditorium. The tiered seating had been drawn back, leaving the full hall open. Even more current students were crammed into the space, waiting to escort individuals to the various activities on offer. Dozens of voices talked over each other. Illumi stood off to the side, fiddling with the button on his blazer as he waited for Milluki to finish exchanging numbers with his new friends. He forced a smile onto his face as Milluki trotted back over to him.
“Computers first or art?”
“Computers.”
“Er, do you want to find a guide? I can just take you there?”
Milluki snorted and gestured for Illumi to lead the way.
Milluki lit up as Illumi pushed open the door and the computer lab was revealed. State of the art computers lined up in neat rows on the desks, comfortable chairs tucking in underneath. The place shimmered with a soft glow from the screens. Milluki approached a nearby computer and examined it.
“These are like top notch.” He said grinning up at Illumi. "Do you know what programs they have installed?”
“Programs?” Illumi tilted his head to one side, while Milluki shook his head.
“Young Zoldyck. And Younger Zoldyck I assume?” The head of the IT department strolled over to greet them.
“Yes miss. This is my brother Milluki.”
“Milluki, good to meet you.” She held out her hand which Milluki shook without hesitation. “Good to know you’ll be joining us. Though I pray you are nothing like your brother when it comes to computers. I think he holds the record for most computers crashed.”
“I really didn’t do anything. They just broke.”
Milluki giggled. “He does that here too? One time at home he touched the security system and the whole thing went down. They had to get a whole team out to fix it and no one could work out what he did.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.” The teacher grinned.
Illumi rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry. Milluki’s brilliant with computers. He’s always helping me with technology.”
“Glad to hear it.” She pulled up second chair to the computer by them and wiggled the mouse. “I’ve got a coding game for you to have a play around with. It’s part of the first year syllabus. You,” she turned fondly to Illumi, “Don’t crash the system today please.”
Watching his brother, Illumi was once again amazed at just how easily Milluki got found his way around the unfamiliar screen. And how good he was at the game. It all looked like gibberish to Illumi. Something about making automatons work by using flow charts. Illumi might not understand it but Milluki excelled. Soon the automaton worked efficiently. The teacher was very impressed and Illumi beamed with pride.
Next stop was the art room and Illumi took Milluki the long way round, so he could show his favourite spot to have a quiet lunch. He explained how no one ever came there so people wouldn’t make fun of you for being on your own. Milluki had an unreadable expression on his face as he looked out over the dried up pond. Illumi put an arm around his shoulder and Milluki turned and hugged him. He pulled away seconds later looking around to make sure no one had seen.
The art department sprawled out in a maze of rooms all on the ground floor. Floor to ceiling windows let in natural light, perfect for drawing. Illumi also liked the natural light, as it meant the overhead lights were off and didn’t hum loudly the whole lesson, drowning out the teachers words.
The art teacher grinned as soon as Illumi stepped through the door, greeting him enthusiastically. Once again Illumi introduced Milluki, who watched the interaction with a keen eye.
“I had no idea you were so popular.” Milluki said as the two of them took their seats at the table. Paper and charcoal pencils lay out ready to sketch the still life arrangement in front of them.
“I’m really not.” Illumi muttered, staring hard at the old camera surrounded by dried flowers.
“Are you kidding. All the teachers love you. All the younger students respect you. I heard one of the prefects saying you really should’ve been head-boy.”
“I didn’t apply.”
“Yeah? Why not?”
Illumi shrugged. “I wouldn’t have had time to commit to the role.”
Milluki deflated. “Because of us?” Illumi looked round sharply. That same expression from the pond was back on Milluki’s face.
“No.” He shouted, wincing when people turned to look at him. “No Millu. Of course not. I love all of you. So so much.”
He reached out to put his hand on Milluki’s head, resting his fingers gently on the soft hair, willing Milluki to know just how much he cared.
Then Illumi lied through his teeth. “This had nothing to do with you.”
He would do anything for his siblings. All he wanted was for them to be safe and happy and loved. Thing’s he’d lacked in his own childhood. The fact remained they were the reason he hadn’t applied. His teachers had pushed him to. Kept suggesting with less subtlety each time he’d be perfect for the position. He’d refused them. Using different excuses until they accepted it wasn’t something he wanted. He used one of those excuses now. “You know me Millu, I’m not good with people. I would have found it far too stressful.”
“Yeah, I suppose you would.” They sketched silently for a while. “Illumi?”
Milluki was quiet again. Illumi hummed, waiting for him to continue.
“You don’t like, hate us, do you? Because you have to look after us.” Milluki focused intently on his paper and charcoal.
Illumi’s chest tightened. When had Milluki grown up enough to notice, enough to care that their lives weren’t normal. The littler kids had never know any different. To them, Illumi had always been their caregiver. Illumi wasn’t sure Kalluto would even recognise their parents out of context. But Milluki must remember a time when their parents had been around more. It had been a time filled with fear and Illumi wasn’t sure how well he’d sheltered Milluki from everything.
Illumi put his arms around his little brother and pulled him close.
“I could never hate any of you Milluki. You all mean the world to me. I promise.”
Milluki hugged him, patting him awkwardly on the back. Then he shifted. “Illu, people are staring.”
Illumi bit down a chuckle and perhaps a couple of tears before releasing Milluki, patting him on the head just to be annoying. Milluki swatted his hand away, face a bright red, trying to make sure none of his potential new classmates had seen the exchange.
Illumi zoned out after that, focussing on the charcoal in his hand, getting his breathing steady. It wasn’t long before both siblings had completed their sketches.
“That’s really good.” Illumi said, peering closely at Milluki’s drawing. “I’m going to put it on the fridge.”
“Oh my god, please don’t.”
“Why not?” Milluki wined and complained all the way back to the main hall. Illumi wandered in a counterclockwise circle to grab all the brochures and leaflets on offer. Milluki found himself with a tote bag and a water bottle emblazoned with the school logo.
“I drove in today,” Illumi announced as he led them to the carpark. “If you want, we could grab takeout on the way home?”
“Really, hell yeah.”
“Milluki language.” Illumi scolded getting into the car. “Where do you want to go?”
“Pizza?”
Illumi nodded. “Sure. We’ll have to eat it in the car, otherwise all your siblings will want some too.”
Milluki grinned conspiratorially. “That’s fine with me.”
Illumi sent Milluki into the shop to order while he stayed in the car, thumbing through some of the leaflets he’d collected. Opening his phone he noted important upcoming dates in the calendar. A small tap on the window pulled him from his task. Milluki clutched at three boxes, grinning while Illumi opened the door for him.
“I got us pudding too.”
“Wonderful.”
Illumi drove to a park, the space he pulled into facing out into a small wooded area.
“Hey, Illu?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
“For the pizza? That’s quite alright.”
“For the pizza… and for bringing me tonight. I’m really grateful.”
“You don’t need to thank me for that.” Illumi stared straight ahead at the shadowy trees. “I’m always going to be here for you. I want to be there. I want to be able to experience all the important milestones with you. Please don’t feel like you are bothering me by asking.”
Milluki gave a small sniffle, which he tried to hide. Illumi didn’t call him out on it, not wanting to embarrass him. Discreetly he passed over one of the napkins from the food. While Milluki was clearly upset, Illumi was glad they’d talked about this. The neglect from their early childhood clearly effected Milluki more than Illumi had realised. In the future Illumi would have to be more aware of it, make sure he never felt like a burden. For now though, a distraction was needed.
“Hey, Millu? When should we go get some new art supplies? Theres a nice independent store a couple of towns over, we could get some lunch too, just the two of us? What do you say?”
“I’d love that.”
Milluki smiled and this time Illumi found it easy to smile back.