Chapter Text
5-year-old Makoto woke up when he heard yelling outside of his room. Lately his parents were always angry at each other, but he didn't know why.
He had seen his mother crying silent tears in her room many times, when she thought Makoto was not around and he noticed how her smiles seemed different lately.
Slowly and carefully, Makoto left his bed and went to the bedroom door, peeking outside for a moment. Their apartment was big, and his parents were in the kitchen.
He took silent little steps, and his cute face was hidden by the shadows.
"We've been together since high school! Didn't you say you would always take care of me and Makoto?! Your vows at our wedding mean nothing to you anymore?!" his mother's beautiful face was marked with tears.
"I never wanted to get married that young in the first place! You got pregnant to trick me!" the tall young man with orange hair and dark green eyes yelled back and Makoto didn't understand why his father was so angry.
Akari looked at him with the most heartbroken expression and the saddest chuckle escaped from her lips.
"I... tricked you? Do you think I wanted things to happen the way they did?! Me dropping out of college, my parents disowned me because I chose to be with you!"
"So you regret him as well! Why are you so surprised that I want something I chose for myself?!"
"I do not regret giving birth to him! He's my son, I love him! I would never do anything to hurt Makoto in any way! Things didn't happen properly, but we got the most precious little boy!" she lowered her head. "It's okay if you don't love me anymore, but how could you not think how your infidelity was going to affect your child?"
"He's going to be fine." his father scoffed. "People get divorce all the time."
Makoto sat down and hugged his little legs close to his body. What was going on? What was infidelity? What divorce meant?
"We need to think what's best for him." his mother dried her face with the back of her hands. "We need to sit down and explain things to Makoto."
"Yeah, yeah..." he replied in a dismissive tone. "We will get into that. I need to pick up some of my clothes. I'm staying somewhere else from now on."
Makoto's little heart raced when he heard his father's steps coming close. The little boy rushed back to his room and went to his bed, under the covers and closing his eyes to pretend he was asleep.
He listened while his dad was packing in the room next door. Where was he going? His father was staying away from home a lot in those last months and his mother said it was because of work.
When Makoto heard his steps again, he jumped from the bed and went to the hallway.
"Daddy..." he asked shyly. "Where are you going?"
"Makoto..." he stopped and kneeled in front of the little boy. "Why are you up? It's late."
"Were you and Mommy having a fight again? You shouldn't fight, you love each other, right?"
"Listen..." he caressed his orange hair. "I'll be away for a while, I need you to take care of things while I am gone, okay? Can you do that?"
He nodded with enthusiasm.
"Good boy. Always obey your mom and help her out. Do not leave your toys all around the house."
"I'll be good, Daddy!" he smiled happily. "I'll wait for you. Come back soon!"
His father stood up and just rubbed his hair before leaving.
Makoto waited until he heard the door being close to go after his mom.
Akari was sitting on the sofa, her head down, the long light pink hair over her face and her narrow shoulders were trembling.
"Mommy..." Makoto called in a quiet voice, and she looked at him surprised.
"Hey, honey. Why are you up?" she picked him up and sat him on her lap.
"I went to say bye-bye to Daddy. He is traveling for work again, right?"
"Oh, I see." she caressed his hair when Makoto leaned his head on her chest.
"Mommy..." he looked at her and smiled. "Don't be sad, I'll take care of you while Daddy is away. I promise!"
Her dark brown eyes filled with tears and she hugged her son tight.
"Thank you, Makoto. Let's take care of each other, okay?"
"Yes!"
Akari continued to hold her son and caressed his hair until Makoto fell asleep again.
She cried many tears, silently mourning the end of her marriage and asking Makoto forgiveness for all the changes that would come to his life soon.
#############
"Noooooooooooo!" Makoto cried loudly, sitting in the middle of the empty living room. The movers had finished carrying the last boxes out to the moving truck and it was time for Makoto and Akari to leave.
"Makoto, please. We need to go." Akari asked, doing her best to keep her patience.
Two months had passed by, and the divorce was finally settled. Makoto's dad fought hard to not be held responsible for anything related to his wife and son, but in the end, he was obligated to continue paying for Makoto's school at least. He even had sold the only place Makoto knew as his home.
During all that time, Makoto asked for his father. He would sit quietly for hours at the entrance, patiently waiting for his dad. Rarely he would call and give his son some excuse about work and being busy, always promising he would return as soon as possible.
The days turned into weeks and the weeks turned into months. Makoto would cry and beg for his father and Akari felt like her heart was breaking in a million pieces. She felt like a failure as a woman, as a wife and mother.
She would do her best to comfort her child, but she also was desperately in need of some comfort herself. She was hurt and exhausted.
"This is our home! I don't want to leave! If we leave, how is Daddy coming back?! We need to wait for him!"
The tears were falling from his round cheeks like a waterfall.
"Honey..." Akari sat in front of him and held his little hands. "We cannot stay here. It is not our home anymore; we need to leave."
"Mommy, where's Daddy?!" he grabbed her fingers tight. The poor child was so confused. "Why he is not here?! We can't go without him! Please, Mommy..." he sobbed. "Please, I want my daddy!"
She picked him up and held his small body very tight, doing her best to not cry as well.
"I know, honey. I know." she caressed his small back while Makoto's arms were around her neck and he continued to cry. "But Daddy will meet you soon, okay? It doesn't matter where you are, he loves you and he will find you."
"He... " he sobbed and looked at his mother with the dark brown eyes filled with hope. "He will?"
"Of course." she forced a smile. "We'll have a new home and you'll be in a new school; you'll make new friends! And there'll be a spelling competition soon, I'm sure your father is going to be so proud! So we have to do our best while he is away, okay? Can you help me out with that?"
A last tear ran down his reddish cheek and Makoto put on his most serious face.
"I'll help out, Mommy!"
"Ah, you're perfect!" she kissed his cheek. "Thank you so much. Don't worry, even when Daddy is not around, I'll always take good care of you, right?"
"Okay." he smiled, hugging his mother's neck again.
##############
"I'm sorry I don't have anything better, Hirano-san." the old lady said before giving Akari a small plastic bag. It was the end of her shift at work and the elderly woman was a co-worker.
"No, please, don't worry about it!" she smiled. "I'm really thankful! Makoto always loves the obentos!"
"How did Makoto-kun settle in with the new school? Did he make friends yet?"
"Not yet, but I'm sure it will be okay." she smiled sadly. "There were a lot of new things he had to deal with."
"You should take care of yourself as well, Hirano-san." the co-worker was worried. "You also have a lot to deal with."
Akari looked at her for a silent moment, before forcing another smile.
"Thank you so much for your concern" she made a quick bow. "And thank you again for these! See you tomorrow!"
############
"What do you think, Makoto? Is it good?" she asked when they were having dinner together. They had moved into a small LDK near Akari's work.
Makoto nodded happily while eating the takeout. At first his mother was embarrassed to ask for the obento leftovers at the supermarket she worked at, but with the tight budget she had after the divorce, she had to forget about her shame to guarantee food on their table. She would also get fruits, eggs and other products that wouldn't sell on the day.
"Very yummy!" he said, before eating more of his fried noodles. They were sitting on a short table in the middle of the small living room. "Thank you, Mommy!"
"You're welcome." she smiled, before caressing his hair.
"Mommy, can we go to the mall this weekend?"
"Oh, honey..." she put her hashi down. "I'm sorry, money is still a little short at the moment. Tell me what you want to buy, is it something for school?"
"Mommy, did you forget?!" he was surprised. "It's Daddy's birthday soon! If we buy him a nice gift, maybe he will come to get it!"
Akari felt her heart shattering with the way Makoto still talked about his father, even though the man had completely forgotten about his son already. She had done her best to not make her child sad about him leaving them, but it was also not fair for Makoto to be so hopeful still.
His father was probably never reaching out to him again, he was enjoying life with his new family and, as he had said before, Makoto and Akari were nothing but an expensive reminder of his past mistakes.
Akari turned around and touched Makoto's little face, smiling at him.
"Makoto... we need to talk about your dad."
"Mommy... what's wrong?" he noticed how pained her eyes were. "Does your tummy hurt?"
"Honey, I'm so sorry, but... we're not going to see Daddy anymore."
"What?" he stood up and looked at her worried. "Why?! Did something bad happen to Daddy?! Is he sick?!"
"No, Makoto." she was trying her best not to cry. "Your father... he has a new family. He has a new wife and a new baby. He's not coming back for us."
"I... I don't understand." he was so confused. "But... a new family?! Why? We're his family! He doesn't need a new one, Mommy!"
"I'm really sorry. I know this is hard to understand, but..."
"No." he lowered his head and closed his hands tightly. "NO! You're wrong! Daddy said he would be back! And you..." he looked up to his mother and he was devastated. "You said Daddy would find me no matter what! You... you said that!"
"Makoto..." she cupped his face, about to cry as well. "Things don't always happen as we like, honey. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"Did I... did I do something wrong? Did Daddy... left because of me?"
"What are you talking about? You did nothing wrong." she hugged him tight. "You're the most wonderful child ever!"
He grabbed his mother tight and cried so hard that Akari could feel his little heart shattering.
"Everything will be okay. I promise you; we'll be fine."
She said, caressing his hair, not being sure if she was trying to comfort her child or herself.
It took a while for Makoto to calm down and he looked at his mother, still sobbing.
"Mommy..."
"Yes, honey?"
"Please... don't disappear too. Don't... leave me alone."
And all of Akari's resolve crumbled with her little boy's request. Makoto looked so afraid.
A small tear rolled down her face, but she was able to smile at her child, looking into his dark brown eyes.
"I'm not going anywhere. Ever. I'll always be with you." she kissed his wet cheek. "We'll be together forever, until I'm an old lady. I'll always take care of you; I love you more than anything. Do you believe in me?"
He sobbed one last time before nodding and Akari hugged him even tighter.
"I'm going to take care of you too, Mommy." he said inside her embrace. "I promise."
############
"Are you poor?" a little girl asked Makoto while he was eating his lunch by himself. It was two weeks after he had moved classes in kindergarten, and he still didn't make friends.
He looked at the girl confused.
"No, poor people live in the streets. I live in an apartment with Mommy."
"But your clothes look poor." she pointed at the needle work on Makoto's shirt and his worn-out sneakers.
Makoto got even more confused and looked at his clothes and shoes.
"They are clean. What are poor clothes?"
"Your Mommy works at the supermarket and you're always eating take out from there."
"They are yummy!" he smiled happily, showing her one colorful onigiri. "And everyone at Mommy's work is nice to me! They always give us food! And it's free!"
"You are poor." his classmate said before turning around and Makoto had the puzzlest expression on his little face.
############
"Mommy?" Makoto looked at his mother shyly after Akari went to bed. They shared a futon since their place only had one bedroom.
"Yes, honey?" she asked with a tired smile. After running around the supermarket the whole day, from 9 am to 8 pm to help with the restoking for the next day, Akari was always exhausted by the time they arrived home. She still had to feed Makoto dinner, fix up the house a little and give her son a shower and play a little with him before bedtime.
"Are we poor?"
The question made Akari's heart tight.
"Why are you asking me this?"
"A girl in my class asked me if I was poor. She said my clothes looked poor and because I'm always eating take out."
"Oh, Makoto..." she caressed his hair while choosing her words.
"I told her I'm not poor because poor people live on the streets, right? And we have our home!" he smiled happily, and it made his mother feel even more guilty.
"Honey... we don't have much money indeed. I'm sorry I cannot buy you new clothes all the time like your father did and I don't have the time to prepare homemade food for you like before. I'm really sorry." her eyes glistened with tears. "But when you go to elementary school, I'll be able to go back to study and I'll become a nurse. Things will get better, I promise."
"No, Mommy, it's okay!" he cupped her face. "Even if we don't have much money now, I have you! And the yummy food you always bring from your work! It's fine!"
Akari held her son tightly. She was sure she was blessed with the most perfect child ever.
"Thank you, Makoto. I love you so much."
"I love you too, Mommy!"
##############
"You two look funny." Makoto giggled at Hiroto and Akari. They were both blushing and fidgeting. They were at the doctor's fancy home having breakfast. His mother and Kannou had been dating for a whole year and, since the beginning, Makoto and Hiroto had gotten along great. After things were serious, they would sometimes spend the weekends at his place.
Hiroto was trying his best to control his nerves. He had proposed to Akari the weekend before and, to his utmost happiness, she had said yes, but she asked him for some time so they could talk to Makoto properly first before sharing the good news with friends and family.
"Honey, there's something Hiroto and I want to talk to you about."
"What is it?" Makoto asked before eating a spoonful of his fruit salad.
"Ah, you know, Makoto... your mother and I... we...." he was blushing so hard! "I... I asked Akari to be my wife."
The boy stopped eating and looked at them surprised.
"We want to get married. Is that okay?"
"I promise I'll take good care of her for the rest of our lives." Hiroto had the most serious look on his light blue eyes.
Suddenly, big and round tears overflowed and rolled down from Makoto's cheeks, shocking the adults.
"NO!" he stood up angrily. "NO! Mom doesn't need that! I'm the one who is taking care of her! She already has me!"
"Makoto..." Akari stood up and went to kneel in front of him, cupping his face. "Honey, what's wrong?"
"Mom, please! You..." he sobbed. "You promised you wouldn't leave me alone! Please, don't marry Hiroto-san and leave me behind, please!"
"Oh, honey, no! I'm not going anywhere! No one is leaving you behind, Makoto!" she caressed his hair, her heart hurting for seeing her child so afraid.
"But..." he sobbed and more tears fell down. "Hiroto-san... if he's taking care of you... what am I going to do?!"
Hiroto stood up as well and went to sit in front of the 8-year-old. He smiled at Makoto before holding one of his little hands.
"Makoto... can we talk man to man?"
He was able to hold back a sob and nodded, doing his best to act though even though his adorable face was completely taken by tears.
"I love your mom very much. And I love you too. Taking care of Akari-san also means I'll take care of you. I'm sorry I didn't make myself clear."
"You..." he sniffled. "You love me too?"
"Of course." he smiled and caressed his orange hair. "I want the three of us to be a family. I want to take care of both of you and you could help me take care of your mom as well. Is that okay?"
"Really?" his dark brown eyes were huge in surprise. "You... want me too?"
"Yes. Would you like to be my son?"
Makoto blushed up to his ears, his little heart was beating so fast!
"Mom! He... is serious, right?!"
The adults laughed.
"Of course he is, honey."
"Hiroto-san..." he looked at the doctor shyly. "This means... I... could call you Dad?"
Kannou's blue eyes filled up with emotional tears and he lowered his head to the boy.
"That..." his voice failed him. "That would make me... extremely happy, Makoto."
###########
Makoto's eyes opened in slow motion. It was already night, and he was in his private room in a half sitting position. His surgery happened without any incidents and, after spending an hour at the recovery room, he was moved to a regular room at the surgical floor. His mind was all foggy for the first hours after he woke up, but now, after sleeping properly, he was okay. There were all kinds of machines beeping around his bed and pain medication and antibiotics still hooked in one of his hands.
But his tired expression shifted to one of pure adoration when he saw Hotaru by his side. She was asleep, her head on his mattress, while holding his free hand and Makoto's heart swayed.
He caressed her red hair, making Hotaru move a little and she opened her beautiful dark blue eyes to him.
"Hey, you." he showed her a small smile, speaking in a quiet, tired voice.
"Ma-kun..." she sat down, and both of her hands were holding his tight. "How... how are you feeling?"
"Like I was run over by a truck."
"I'm so sorry."
His hand touched a strand of her red hair, putting it behind her ear so he could better see her face.
"What are you doing here? It's late."
"Your mom and Hiroto-san were exhausted. I promised them I would be here with you while they went home to eat something and take a little rest. They are coming back soon."
"Ah, I see."
"I'm sorry." she lowered her head. "You probably don't want me here, right?"
"I'm the one who has to apologize." his voice was so gentle. "I'm sorry I acted like a dick with you on my birthday." he smiled. "Sakura told me about your new job. I'm very happy for you. Sorry I didn't even give you the chance to tell me about it. This is probably some divine punishment for being stupid."
"Ma-kun..." she got extremely sad.
"I understand if you want to break up with me, Ta-chan." the dark brown eyes were serious. "You have every right to do so. But..." he placed her hand over his heart and looked at her with the most earnest expression. "If you give me another chance, I promise it will be the last time I will ever make you sad. I'm asking for one more chance, because it's all I need. You won't regret it."
"I..." she lowered her head, the red bangs in front of her eyes. "I have missed you so much."
"Ta-chan..." Makoto gently touched her chin, making the dark blue eyes look at him. "I want to kiss you so badly. May I?"
For a moment the air in Hotaru's lungs failed. The man had just gone under the knife, he was literally recovering in a hospital bed, how could he make her shiver entirely only with those sweet, soft-spoken words?
Hotaru touched Makoto's lips, and the kiss felt like home.
"So..." he asked, still looking into her eyes. "Do you still want to be my girlfriend?"
"Yes." she blushed a little and showed him a small smile that made Makoto's heart so happy. "But... you need to tell me what happened." she held his hand again. "I need to know. Why did you say we were not the same?"
"Ah, man..." he took a deep breath, putting his forearm in front of his eyes.
"Please, tell me."
"You know, Ta-chan..." he looked at her again. "Things were not easy for my mom after her divorce. I was too young to understand back then, but she had to make a lot of sacrifices to support me. Things only got better when she was able to finish nursing school and got another job. And then... she met Dad." he smiled sadly to himself. "She had worked so hard for me; I just wanted her to achieve happiness. So... I promised I would never give Dad any reasons to regret having me as his child."
"Ma-kun... what are you talking about?"
"I was not a planned baby, my parents had a shotgun wedding, my mom's family turned their back on her because she chose to keep me. My father abandoned us like we were nothing. You were always surrounded by love. You were always wanted. I'm not telling you all those things to make you feel bad, that is how things are supposed to be. Children must be wanted and loved. You probably never noticed that I never went on any of the expensive trips you, your sisters and Hikaru had when we were younger. Disneyland and going abroad. Even with the Kajis and your parents inviting me, I never had the courage to ask to go, because I didn't want to give Dad any trouble. For him to think "Ah, this kid is annoying, always asking stuff" or "Ah, this boy is expensive".
Hotaru noticed how tense Makoto's shoulders were while he talked to her.
"I know that... it sounds so stupid, but... I... I'd rather die than do anything to make him regret having me as his child or to risk my mother's happiness in any way."
His girlfriend climbed on his bed and it surprised Makoto a little when she kissed his cheek.
"It's not stupid at all. Ma-kun, I'm so sorry, I had no idea." her nose was against his face. "Is that why you are always working so hard? And why you didn't let him help you financially when you left their place?"
"Yes." he lowered his head. "I didn't choose a fancy college like Hikaru, Sakura and you. I wanted to get a scholarship in volleyball, but I couldn't even get taller enough." he sighed. "I just want Mom and Dad to be proud of me."
"You know, I arrived here a little after you went into surgery. I met your dad outside and Hiroto-san was so worried about you. I'm sure that, if it was possible, he would gladly exchange places with you. Akari-san too. She was so relieved when Mom told them you were okay." she smiled gently at him. "Your parents love you very much. Hiroto-san would cry for sure if he knew you thought you could be a hassle for him. And I'm sure Akari-san does not hold you responsible for anything that happened in her previous marriage." she caressed his face. "How could they not be proud of you? You're amazing."
He blushed a little.
"You told me not to be so hard on myself regarding my studies, I'll tell you the same now. I'm sure your parents have no regrets towards you."
"Thank you, Ta-chan." he held her hand, the dark brown eyes filled with tears. "I'm so happy you're here."
"No need to thank me, Ma-kun. Just get better soon."
They kissed again and neither of them were aware that Mafuyu was standing in front of Makoto's door, the most surprised look on his pinkish eyes.