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He was supposed to be enjoying himself, but the takoyaki wasn’t doing it for him. Hell if he knew why, but it was just… salty.
He scowled at his snack, glancing at the other thieves before his gaze locked with- “Gramps?”
“There you are, kid,” he panted, holding up two bags. “Two bowls for you and Amamiya, like you asked."
Like he asked? Ryuji frowned, standing up straighter with his barely-touched food. “Huh? I didn’t ask for anyth- ohhh, I get it. You got duped.”
Zenkichi looked offended. “Hey, I’m just the delivery guy; your fearless leader said you looked like you could use ten, but I put the limit at two for right now.”
Ryuji sighed, dropping the snack in the trash can and rubbing his head. “Yeah, that- sounds like Ren. Gramps, I think he meant it for you and me.” God, his best friend wasn’t subtle at all; Zenkichi was smart as hell, the teen would give him that. He just had no idea how Ren knew exactly how to read people.
…which just so happened to be ‘like shit.’
Ryuji took the bag and shook his head. “C’mon, there’s a bench somewhere around here. Let’s go eat these while they’re still hot.”
Zenkichi raised an eyebrow. “Uh, you sure you don’t wanna eat this with someone your age- like Takamaki?”
The boy nodded to Ann, who was holding another crepe and chatting with Makoto as Ren held up his phone for a girl on the screen. The newest Thief sighed. “Alright, alright. I get your drift. You lead, kid.”
“This is about Konoe, isn’t it?”
Ryuji jerked his head up. “Huh?”
“You’ve been staring at the same page for the last seven minutes, thumbing it up and down. Rereading an article or something,” Zenkichi explained, pointing his chopsticks at the blonde and back to the ramen bowl. “And your food is getting cold, which- last time I checked, you never let ramen go uneaten.”
“Ugh. Anyone ever told you that you sound like a really nosy cop?”
Zenkichi sighed exasperatedly. “Repeatedly. Over the last few weeks; same wise guy too.”
“You leave yourself open for a lot of jokes, Gramps.”
“This ‘gramps’ can also kick your ass in a fight,” he retorted, once again pointing with his chopsticks. “Don’t you forget it.”
Ryuji was biting back a small grin. He did like getting the old man’s hackles up.
“Now I know I’m probably the- last person you want to talk to about this. But I’m also being serious; what’s got you so pent up over this one?”
The blond’s grin faded quickly. “It…” He looked around. “...look. Can you keep a secret, Gramps?”
Zenkichi’s gaze was serious as he nodded.
“It- the trauma cell and all? With his dad?” Ryuji looked away. “Just. It…”
The man’s blood began to run cold, fighting to keep his gaze blank. “You don’t need to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, no. I- I think you deserve to know. More than anyone else.” He finally took a bite out of his noodles and nodded. “...these are still good cold, though. I gotta see if this is somewhere in Tokyo.”
Zenkichi waited patiently as the boy continued with his food, already having a not-so-great thought tickling the back of his mind. His face remained carefully blank, inhaling slowly and exhaling silently as he put away his own phone and turned his entire focus on Ryuji with hands folding in front of his face.
After several moments, Ryuji finally set down his food and looked at the table. “Konoe’s dad was a real shitbag, wasn’t he?”
“Sure seemed like it,” Hasegawa agreed. “Usually, there’d be some kind of dispute for it building character and the like, but in his youth, it didn’t sound like Konoe was at all the kind of kid who’d even think about rebelling against his old man unless it had something to do with his mother.”
Ryuji pondered this. “You mean like a momma’s boy.”
“Sound familiar?”
The boy’s face grew hot. “Shuddup!”
“But that’s also not what you wanted to talk to me about,” Zenkichi continued, waving a hand. “You wanted to talk about your old man too, right?”
Ryuji bit his lip. “I dunno if talk is the right word, Gramps.”
God, he hated talking about his old man, much less to any kind of adult. Every time it slipped out, there were the usual apologies and then asking him if they could do anything to help him or whatever. Or even worse, they’d tell him if he wasn’t such a brat or a rebellious teen, he wouldn’t have gotten hit. ‘Don’t talk back to adults,’ they’d chide him.
Was Gramps any different?
He could hear the man’s firm statement in Konoe’s trauma cell echoing in his ears. “Whatever happened back then, it doesn’t justify what he’s doing now.”
“I just- it’s really hard to explain. Without getting brushed off like I’m some kid again.”
“Try me,” Zenkichi challenged gently.
Ryuji’s stomach churned; when he looked up at the man across from him, he didn’t see the phone anywhere on his person or on the table. In fact, Hasegawa was studying him intently. The teenager looked away again. “Promise you won’t, like. Tell the others?”
A wordless nod was his answer. Ryuji shuddered. “Konoe’s lucky his old man is dead. Sometimes I wish… I dunno, like.”
Zenkichi’s face remained carefully blank, even though his folded hands looked to have whiter knuckles.
“I don’t wanna say I want him dead, but I’d… he.” The blond ruffled his hair with one hand, groaning in frustration. “Ugh, why’s this shit so hard to explain?”
He knew exactly why it was a pain in the ass to get through, but admitting it was a whole different story. Still, Zenkichi never wavered from his gaze at the other teenager. “Something tells me you’ve never been one to speak up after being chewed out for years."
“What else is new, right?” Ryuji laughed hoarsely. “Come on now, Gramps. Me, not wantin’ to spill the beans about shit?”
Zenkichi bit his tongue. “You guys are really keen about not letting down the walls around adults- not that I blame you after things. But from- ehem. ‘Using my sleuthing skills’, as you guys like to say constantly… would you mind if I- took a guess?”
“I. Sure. I guess.”
Zenkichi’s noodles were finished and bowl set aside- wasn’t he sweating? Ren had gotten the spicy stuff!- before he pursed his lips.”It’s been years; you’ve been dealing with him for years. And it wasn’t trying to make him mad, it was… trying to keep your mom safe. Right?”
Ryuji, again, didn’t look up.
“Except everyone said you started it, like a troublemaker. So when it started getting thrown around everywhere, you decided to make a name for yourself and be the troublemaker.” Zenkichi looked at the people passing them by for a minute. “But it didn’t work out; you’d come to school with long sleeves, poor attitude- all to keep up appearances.”
Dammit, he was good.
“And whenever you tried to tell someone, they’d wave you off about it. So you shut up and quit telling people what was going on.” Zenkichi’s eyes softened as he turned his gaze back to the teenager. “...just like Konoe.”
Ryuji bit his lip. “Yeah, well. His old man’s dead. Mine’s- not. Not like I can ask for help or anything either… or that I need it.”
A scoff escaped Zenkichi. Ryuji scowled. “What? You gonna tell me I’m wrong?”
“Well, I’d say on the record that cases like yours aren’t always solved in a short time. Evidence has to stack up, meetings and interviews need to happen… typical red tape crap and laws that have to be followed,” Zenkichi said, waving a hand dismissively. “Off the record, though…”
Ryuji’s eyes widened in panic. “Gramps, no. No, that’s a horrible effin’ idea.”
Zenkichi took a sip of his coffee. “Oh, I won’t. Not on official business.”
“My dad would kill me if a friggin’ cop comes over and starts poking his nose around!”
Zenkichi snorted. “My ‘knight in shining armor’ joke isn’t just that.”
“I’m serious, Gramps. Don’t like. Go snooping around his place. I’m fine; my ma’s fine. We don’t see him much anyway. He stays away and doesn’t ever come over anymore.” For now, anyway.
The inspector shook his head and exhaled. “Look. Sakamo- Ryuji. Kid. I’m not gonna bust open his door and kick his face in. I’m not that stupid. I’ve made some stupid decisions in the past, but I’ve… learned from them. And other cases I’ve read about over the years.” He folded his arms. “Trying to come in unannounced to a suspected abuser’s home is a recipe for disaster; even I know that.
“What I’ve wanted to try and get across to you,” he continued, seeing Ryuji’s mouth open, “is that if you need a dad for some wild excuse to get away from a party or a ‘cop’ you have on speed-dial to scare off some assholes or any other weird excuse you kids use these days… you can always use my number.”
Ryuji shut his mouth and looked down. “Dude. You live in Kyoto. You can’t just drop it all and come see us, especially with Akane and you trying to get shit back together.”
“Maybe I can’t,” Zenkichi conceded. “But… I can always try. Besides.” He had to hold in a chuckle. “This voice in my head is yapping at me that you guys are practically my adopted family now.”
Ryuji quirked a brow. “Waaait, you can hear your Persona?”
The detective rolled his eyes. “Or I’m just crazy at this point.”
“Yeah, I’d say you’ve uh. Lost the marbles, Gramps. Again.”
“Hey, no thanks to you kids,” Zenkichi retorted. “And my coworkers already thought I was nuts.”
Ryuji allowed himself a smirk. “They ain’t wrong about that!”
“Oh. Thanks.” His companion pouted. “And here I was gonna give you my personal takoyaki recommendation whenever I get sent here on a case. Guess that’s–“
“Okay, okay! I’m sorry.”
Zenkichi chuckled finally. “Yeah. I bet. You wanna check it out before we go back to the others? My treat.”
“If it breaks your wallet, hell yeah!” Ryuji was already standing up, rolling his arm. “Or the wallet of the cops.”
“Ugh. Don’t remind me.” The agent wrinkled his nose. “I’m already getting written up for the hotel I put you kids in. Pretty sure one order of octopus balls is the least of their worries now.”
Ryuji burst out laughing. “HAH. You said–!”
“Balls. Yes. Very funny,” Zenkichi replied dryly. “Come on, before Sakura blows up my phone with panic texts.”
The grin on the kid’s face was much brighter than it had been in a long time: sunshine after a thunderstorm. It only made Zenkichi’s resolve to protect it that much stronger, to keep him safe from another shitty parent on a growing list.
He glanced down at his texts to see one new message from Ryuji, who had run ahead of the other man. It only had two simple words.
[ Thank you. ]