Chapter Text
Sakusa never thought he’d end up as a single dad. To be fair, he never thought he’d be the type to have one-night stands either, but university was rough. Being suddenly thrown into an environment where he knew no one and his personal space didn’t matter, he had a hard time adjusting to college. One-night stands became his outlet as a means to reduce stress from all the pressures on him; although, this came to bite him in the ass during his second year.
‘I don’t want this pup,’ the note read, the one Sakusa frantically ripped off the stroller that the newborn was in. He’d heard some shuffling outside his door, and thought nothing of it until he heard a baby crying. When he opened his door to see the pup sitting at his door, wailing, with a baby bag next to him, he’d all but snatched him up. His protective instincts flared, his alpha growling at the fact a pup was left by themselves in the hallway. What kind of irresponsible parents left their newborn by themselves? Trying to calm down, Sakusa continued reading the note, but it only led to him becoming more and more incredulous as it kept going.
‘I never had any plans to become a mother. I only kept him because I didn’t realize in time to get an abortion, but I should’ve just given him up for adoption. I can’t keep him, but I thought maybe you’d want him. Sorry I never told you, but I didn’t think it was fair to give you an out, since you’re the one that knocked me up. Do whatever you want with him, Kiyoomi. It’s your choice now. Good luck,” was how the note concluded. The contents made him want to vomit. He knew exactly who’s child this was, and he was livid.
“She thought it was unfair to give me an out, when she’s just dumping him on me?” Sakusa growled, the note making his blood boil. His ex-lab partner had just abandoned their baby on his front step, like he was a piece of trash. Like he wasn’t a person, a pup. She hadn’t even told him she was pregnant, yet he was at fault here? He didn’t even know she was in her heat when they’d had sex!
Sakusa wanted to find her, to curse her out and ruin her life for just discarding a baby, when his pup’s crying intensified. It startled him out of his alpha-induced rage, and he rushed to attend to the baby. Sakusa was completely out of his element here; he’d never been around a pup so little before, and this one was his. How the hell was he going to take care of him?
Picking the baby up, Sakusa began to bounce him as he walked around the room, copying what he’d seen in the dramas that Komori had forced him to watch growing up. Thinking of his cousin, Sakusa wanted to do nothing more than call him and beg him for help, for advice. What should he even do here? Should he force the mother of his child back into their pup’s life? He wasn’t sure that was a good idea, seeing how she just abandoned her baby with no regards for his life outside Sakusa’s door. No, she was definitely unfit to be a mother; but then, what should he do? Should he put the pup up for adoption? Could he even handle being a father? He was only 20 years old, he wasn’t responsible enough for a baby!
But then, he heard his pup gurgle, and looked down. Up close, he saw that the pup, his pup, had his eyes. Dark, obsidian eyes looked back at him, seemingly questioning who he was. He noticed there were two moles on his forehead, on the opposite side where Sakusa’s were. The sight was suddenly too much, tears welling in Sakusa’s eyes as he looked down and realized: this was his baby. Not hers, not anymore. No, this pup was his.
“Hi little one,” Sakusa whispered, still bouncing the pup in his arms, “What’s your name, huh? Your birth mother didn’t write it in the note. Did she give you one?” He walked over to the baby bag, rifling through it and successfully finding the birth certificate. At least she’d been thorough when giving up her kid, Sakusa thought darkly.
When he read the name, he smiled, before turning back to his pup, “Your name is Rei, huh? That’s a cute name, at least. Hi, Rei-chan. I’m your dad,” he whispered to his son, voice cracking on the last word. The tears began to fall as the realization of what happened to his son dawned on him, “I’m sorry I didn’t know about you. And that your birth mother just abandoned you. It’s not your fault, okay? I’m here. I won’t leave. You’ll never be abandoned again. I promise, I’m here.” Sakusa continued to coo sweet words at his son, concerns slowly fading as his son began to settle, falling asleep in his arms.
“It’s just going to be you and me now, okay? It’ll be hard, but we’ll make it work,” Sakusa mumbled, pressing his son to his chest. He swore it to himself: he’d find a way to make this work, for the both of them.
It took a little longer than he wanted, but Sakusa was eventually able to graduate university at the age of 24, with his pup in tow. The newborn that had been left on his front doorstep at age 20 was now a rambunctious four-year old, and was extremely excited about their move to Osaka.
“Tou-chan, can we paint my room? Please?” Rei asked, excitedly bouncing around their new apartment. He’d been hyper the entire evening, and Sakusa was starting to wonder if this was Rei’s birth mother’s characteristics coming out. There was no way he was like this as a kid; Rei was more like Komori than like him.
Sakusa sighed, “Yes, baby, we can paint your room. Not today though, okay? We’re going to get dinner and then take a bath and sleep. We’ve both had a long day today. And then tomorrow you’re going to the daycare I was telling you about while I go to work, okay?” The thought of sending Rei to daycare had almost given Sakusa hives, his alpha snarling that no one else should be allowed to care for his son but him, but he knew it would be impossible to bring his son with him to his practices. He was already lucky that his new team had no qualms with him being a single parent, management agreeing that he could take time off when he needed for his son. He didn’t want to push his luck with them, no matter how much he hated the idea of leaving his baby in someone else’s care. He’d barely let his parents or Komori watch Rei without him present as is.
“Okay, Tou-chan. Don’t forget, ‘kay? I wanna paint it a fun color!” Sakusa chuckled at his son’s antics, ruffling his dark hair that was starting to curl at the ends (his son was turning out to be his carbon copy, to his glee). His alpha preened at how cute his son was, making Sakusa roll his eyes. He wondered when the intimidating, standoffish alpha he used to be turned into a soft, squishy father, always melting at his son’s attention.
“I won’t, baby. Let’s go get dinner now, hm?” And with that, the pair made their way out of their new home. Sakusa had already looked up restaurants in the area, and seen that there was an onigiri place nearby. The name had given him some pause, as it reminded him of his new teammate that he was dreading seeing again, but he pushed the feeling away. After all, there was no way Atsumu was a restaurant owner and a full-time setter for the MSBY Black Jackals, right?
Well, Sakusa quickly found out that he was partially right. No, this restaurant wasn’t Atsumu’s. But it was his twin brother’s.
Now, to be honest, Sakusa had kind of forgotten about Miya Osamu’s existence. Of course, he knew Osamu in high school briefly, but after he’d gone to university, he hadn’t heard anything about Osamu playing professionally. His name was never brought up again when discussing volleyball, leading to Sakusa to just….forgetting about him. He’d kept up with some of the people he’d played with in high school, seeing how they were faring in the professional setting, but even then, he had barely paid any attention to their lives outside of that. After all, he became a father at 20; it wasn’t like he was drowning in free-time.
So when he walked into Onigiri Miya, Sakusa almost got whiplash seeing Osamu behind the counter, calling out a light greeting, “Welcome! I’ll be with you in a minute!”
For a moment, Sakusa debated turning around and leaving. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt like he’d been caught. Now, he wasn’t ashamed that he was a single father, not at all. He would never be ashamed of his son, or that he was raising him alone. No, that wasn’t it; it was just that Sakusa was sure that the amount of people who knew that he was a single father was close to zero. The only ones who knew outside of his family were a few friends from college, some of his old teammates from Itachiyama (Iizuna had almost fainted when Sakusa brought Rei to a reunion. Komori had been sent into a laughing fit, while the rest of their old teammates had just stared at him like Rei was the second coming of Christ) and his new team; and even then, he’d only told them out of necessity. He just didn’t want to deal with any concerned looks or pity. And he really did not want to deal with snide comments or rude assumptions about him or his son. It was just easier if he avoided Osamu.
But, when he felt a tug on his hand and saw his son’s sparkly eyes, excited to eat onigiri, Sakusa knew he couldn’t avoid this place. After all, Sakusa Kiyoomi would do anything for his son. So, he sighed, before smiling at Rei and walked up to the counter.
Osamu then looked up, eyes widening at the sight of Sakusa, “Oh! Sakusa, right? Woah, I haven’t seen ya in years. Uh – how are ya?” Sakusa wanted to cringe at the attempt at small talk, but instead soldiered on.
“I’m fine, Osamu. It’s been a while,” he replied, before he was interrupted by a small voice.
“Hi! I’m Rei. Are you Tou-chan’s friend?” Rei asked, curious eyes scanning Osamu. Osamu seemed to finally realize there was someone holding Sakusa’s hands, his eyes widening even more.
Sakusa tried to brace himself for the onslaught of questions, but was surprised when Osamu just smiled, “Hi, Rei-chan, ‘ts nice ta meet ya. I used ta play volleyball with yer tou-chan in high school.” Sakusa blinked at Osamu’s expression, taken aback by how calm he was being. He’d always assumed that Miya Osamu was just as obnoxious as his twin. Was that not the case?
Rei was immediately thrilled at hearing Osamu’s response, “Oh! You play volleyball, mister? Tou-chan is gonna join the Jackals! He’s gonna be the best player on the team!”
“Oh really? That’s very cool, Rei-chan. D’ya wanna play volleyball like yer Tou-chan?” Osamu asked, bending down a bit to look at Rei better.
His son nodded enthusiastically, “Yes! I’m gonna be just like Tou-chan when I get big!” His response made Sakusa smile warmly and his alpha purr happily, so fond, before turning back to Osamu, who was also smiling at them. He figured he should say something now, clearing his throat.
“Ah, this is Rei, my son. He’s four. We just moved to the neighborhood so I can start on the Jackals,” Sakusa explained, Osamu nodding along.
Osamu smiled again, “Tsumu told me there were new players bein’ added to the roster, but he didn’t mention it was you. Glad ta see ya went pro, Sakusa. You were the best hitter when we were in school.”
“I can’t say that I wasn’t surprised that you didn’t. I thought you would go pro with your brother,” Sakusa said. Osamu shook his head, although he was still smiling.
“Nah, I never wanted that. This place was my dream,” Osamu explained, before turning back to Rei, “Now, what can I getcha? What type of onigiri d’ya like, Rei-chan?”
Excited to be included in the conversation again, Rei bounced on his toes, “Oh! I like salmon onigiri. And umeboshi. And shrimp tempura –“ As Rei began babbling the list of onigiri he liked, Osamu laughed, before setting out to make some. He then turned back to Sakusa, who felt himself flush at the attention.
“And fer you, Sakusa?” Osamu asked.
Sakusa shook his head, “I don’t eat food that was touched by others, thanks. Whatever Rei-chan wants is enough.” Osamu only raised a brow back, challenging.
“I can make ya ochazuke, if ya want. No reason fer ya not to eat with yer pup. That okay?” Osamu asked. Sakusa stated back in surprise, not used to having accommodations made for his preferences. It took a second, but he nodded at Osamu, who smiled and went to cooking, “Ya can sit wherever, I’ll have it ready fer you in a moment!”
As Sakusa sat down at a table with his son babbling, he thought about Osamu and his reaction. He was pleasantly surprised that Osamu showed no qualms about Sakusa having a child, and that he’d been so friendly to Rei off the bat. As he watched Osamu cook from afar, he took in his appearance: broad shoulders, a small waist, pretty eyes. Osamu was even more handsome than he was in high school, he noted. He did a quick sweep of the chef’s neck, noting there was no claim mark. Briefly, Sakusa wondered how Osamu wasn’t claimed yet, remembering that he was an omega, before another little voice interrupted his thoughts.
“Hi,” a small voice said next to him, making Sakusa’s attention snap to it. It wasn’t Rei’s voice, but a little girl’s. She looked to be about Rei’s age from a glance.
She stared up at Sakusa, who flustered a bit under her gaze, “Um, hi,” he stammered, wondering where the hell she came from and why she was alone.
“Hi!” Rei said enthusiastically, waving at the little girl. She looked over at him, before turning back to Sakusa. Okay. Well.
“Are you friends with Papa?” she asked, stumping Sakusa even more.
“Uh,” Sakusa responded, unintelligently. Who’s kid was she?
Then, “Ah, baby, yer makin’ friends with Rei-chan?” Osamu asked, the little girl immediately latching onto Osamu’s calf as he walked over. He chuckled at her antics, while Sakusa just watched, confused.
Osamu looked up, noticing how confused Sakusa looked and explained, “This is my daughter, Rika. Rika-chan, can ya say hi to Sakusa-san and Rei-chan? Sakusa-san is gonna be playin’ with Uncle Tsumu on the Jackals.” Sakusa watched as the little girl, Rika’s, expression lit up at the mention of Atsumu.
“With Uncle Tsumu?” she asked, making Osamu smile. He looked at Sakusa to respond to her, making him jump.
“Ah, yes. With your uncle,” Sakusa said robotically, before turning to Osamu, “I didn’t know you had a child too,” he said, watching as Osamu turned a bit sheepish.
He began setting the food down as he spoke, “Yeah, when I was in college. Got pregnant by my situationship. He didn’t wanna have a kid, so it’s just me and Rika-chan. Tsumu helps a lot though, and it’s a lifesaver. Don’t tell ‘im I said that.” Sakusa chuckled at that, making Osamu smile too.
“I’m sure that was hard,” Sakusa said sympathetically. He had a child in college too, but he hadn’t been the one pregnant. And to be rejected by the father of his kid too? Sakusa’s alpha growled at the thought, although he tried to keep his expression neutral.
Osamu shrugged, “I mean, it wasn’t great, but I have no regrets. Havin’ Rika-chan in my life has been the best decision I’ve ever made. ‘M grateful fer her, and I’m sure ya feel the same about Rei-chan.” Sakusa chuckled, looking over at his son who was desperately trying to get Rika’s attention, to no luck. The little girl, who had Osamu’s eyes and warm brown hair, just kept looking at Sakusa, much to his son’s dismay.
“Well, I’ll leave ya to it! I hope ya enjoy, Sakusa, Rei-chan. Lemme know if ya need anythin’ else,” Osamu said, before scooping up his daughter and walking back to the counter. Sakusa watched as he placed her at a children’s table near the counter, crayons and coloring books littering the surface. It looked like Rika was a staple at Onigiri Miya, to his amusement.
He then turned to his son, who was pouting. Worried, Sakusa asked, “Are you alright, Rei? Do you not want onigiri?”
Rei shook his head, “She didn’t say hi to me,” he mumbled, making Sakusa’s eyes widen. He wanted to laugh honestly; his son was so cute, bummed that Rika didn’t talk to him. He decided to ruffle his pup’s hair instead, making Rei whine.
“She’s probably just shy, Rei. Don’t talk too loudly to her, okay? She might be scared,” Sakusa told his son, who nodded determinedly. He hoped that Rei wouldn’t be too persistent with Rika if she didn’t want to be friends, but he also hoped that Rika would warm up to his son. He didn’t like seeing Rei so down.
As the pair ate their dinner, Osamu bustled around the restaurant, greeting new customers and taking orders. It seemed like most of them were regulars as they cooed at Rika and talked sweetly to Osamu. Sakusa watched as some of the older women handed Rika candy, giggling when Rika ran away after accepting it. Osamu took everything in stride, playfully scolding his daughter as he beamed at his customers. The sight made Sakusa smile as well; it seemed like everything was going well for Osamu’s business and his little family.
When they finished their meal around closing time, Sakusa cleaned off their table and took Rei’s hand, making their way to the counter to say goodbye to Osamu and Rika. He smiled as he watched Osamu wiping the counter, his daughter in his arms, falling asleep on his shoulder.
“Thank you for the meal, Osamu. It was delicious,” Sakusa said, making Osamu look up and smile kindly.
“I’m glad ya enjoyed it, Sakusa. Didja like the onigiri, Rei-chan?” Osamu said softly, trying not to disturb his daughter.
Rei nodded enthusiastically, “Yes! It was very yummy, mister. Can I have them again tomorrow?” Sakusa cringed at his son’s loud voice, about to shush him, when Rika lifted her head, whining.
“Ah, sorry baby, you can sleep,” Osamu whispered to her, putting the towel down to pet the back of her head and coax her back down. Rika turned to look at Sakusa again, and then down at Rei. She pouted, before turning her head and resting against her dad again.
Sakusa grimaced, “Sorry, we didn’t mean to disturb her,” he apologized, but Osamu just shook his head.
“It’s fine, she’s just a little cranky today. Don’t worry about it,” he said, before turning to Rei, who was pouting at the ground, “Rei-chan, ‘m sorry. Rika is just a little shy. She’s a year younger than ya, so can you be patient with her? ‘M sure she’ll wanna be your friend,” Osamu reassured the young boy, who looked up, hopeful.
Sakusa looked at Rei as well, and tried to encourage him, “You need to be a little gentler with her, okay Rei? Talk to her softly, like she’s a baby. Can you do that?”
“Yes, Tou-chan,” Rei said softly, smiling at his dad. Sakusa smiled back, looking up at Osamu who flushed a bit.
“You can come by whenever ya want, okay Rei-chan? Rika is almost always here with me, so you can play with her when ya come over, and I’ll make whatever onigiri ya want,” Osamu said, eyes flicking back to Rei.
Rei nodded happily, while Sakusa chuckled, “Thank you, Osamu. I’m sure he’ll love that. I’m meeting the Jackals tomorrow so I’m taking Rei to a daycare, but we’ll stop by afterwards if it’s not too much trouble.”
Osamu shook his head, “Course not. It’s nice ta have someone my age ta talk to who can relate. Our kids bein’ friends would be nice fer both of them. And… I’d like ta be friends as well, Sakusa. If ya want,” Osamu hastily added. Sakusa couldn’t help but chuckle at his flustered state, amused and endeared.
“I would like that as well. I’m relieved to be able to talk to you like this,” Sakusa replied, smirking when Osamu blushed. He was really cute, wasn’t he?
He continued, “I need to give Rei a bath, but can I get your number? So we could talk sometimes,” Sakusa said. Osamu easily handed his number over, making the spiker smirk again. He waved goodbye to the father-daughter pair, taking his own pup home. That night, he went to bed with thoughts of the omega and little girl in mind. Wondering how, if at all, they would fit into his life.