Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Narumi Gen
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“Do ya remember your parents at all?”
Narumi Gen doesn’t react at first. It takes him a couple seconds, fingers rapidly pressing against his game controller, before he realizes the question was directed at him. Once Narumi registers the words, his hands freeze and his on-screen character falls off the platform—Game Over.
“My parents?” Narumi echoes incredulously. He turns to stare at the inquirer—his newly acquired boyfriend—Hoshina Soshiro. The other man is sitting next to him on the couch with his nose buried in a book. “Where is this coming from?”
“Just curious,” Hoshina shrugs. He doesn’t look up, but he leans closer to Narumi so their shoulders touch. “Ya never talk bout them.”
Narumi frowns. Of course he doesn’t. Why would he? They’re dead, and his recollection of them is nonexistant even on the best of days.
Hoshina doesn’t continue, flipping to the next page of his book, and Narumi doesn’t question, restarting his game.
---
Narumi hasn’t thought about his parents for a while now. They went from the anomaly of Kaiju No. 8 to the battle with Kaiju No. 9 to the rebuilding of Tokyo to—well, the continued subjugation of kaiju ever since.
Truthfully, Narumi doesn’t even remember their names. He had been too young when some government officials gave him a piece of paper to replace the destroyed family register. Eventually, that piece of paper got lost in the hands of careless orphanage staff transferring their problem child to the next facility.
The Defense Force counselors say its normal for people with traumatic childhoods to have a certain level of memory loss. They say it’s a human coping mechanism. That it wasn’t his fault he couldn’t remember their names, their faces, their voices—after all, there was a high likelihood his last memory of his parents were of them dying in the kaiju attack.
Narumi is sure he can find information on his parents if he really wanted to. In his youth, he didn’t want to because what was the point? What was the point of putting a face and name to the distant memory of warmth and safety? Just because he knew who she was wouldn’t bring his mother back. In his early adulthood, he decided to push off the past and gain the recognition of those presently in front of him. After all, no matter how strong or impressive Narumi becomes, he had a higher chance of Shinomiya Isao acknowledging him than a dead father. Ah, well, Narumi supposes now that’s a bad comparison.
Regardless, it’s been years since he’s allowed himself to sit in his thoughts and the past: would they be proud of me? a monster of a son?
Narumi has to physically shake his head—shake out the thoughts that would start a downward spiral. He’s not sure why Hoshina brought it up randomly. Narumi supposes it’s normal to be curious of your romantic partner.
He frowns. Should he be asking Hoshina about his family?
---
“How are your parents?” Narumi asks in faux nonchalance as Hoshina closes the apartment door behind him.
There’s another series of multiday meetings with the Eastern Divisions, and Hoshina Soshiro has been tasked to represent the Third Division. While Hoshina could have returned to Tachikawa for the evening, Narumi immediately jumped on the chance to get his newly acquired boyfriend to stay the night. There’s something achingly domestic about Soshiro taking off his boots in Narumi’s doorway with groceries in hand.
“My parents?” Hoshina echoes. He tilts his head and blinks—oh god, Narumi wants to kiss him so bad. “They’re doin’ the same as usual. Dad’s still runnin’ the dojo and Mom’s still hostin’ her flower arrangement classes.”
“That’s—uh, that’s good,” Narumi doesn’t stutter. “How that Sixth Division bastard—er, how is your brother?”
“He’s insufferable as usual,” Hoshina answers slowly. Those wine red eyes fix on him in a silent question, but Narumi doesn’t know how to answer—I wanted to be a good boyfriend probably wouldn’t dispel the confusion. “Ya need something from the grand ol’ Hoshina family?”
“Is your family really that impressive?” Narumi asks, deflecting quickly. He goes to grab the grocery bag and shuffles quickly into the kitchenette. Yes, put the meat in the fridge and the ice cream in the freezer.
“My family?” Hoshina echoes again. Narumi can’t see it but he hears the light pitter-patter of feet following him. “We’re only the largest and oldest kaiju exterminatin' family in Japan’s modern history.”
“Are you guys really?” Narumi continues questioning. He’s heard things about the Hoshina family and how they essentially wrote the first manuals for kaiju subjugation. Some of the oldest architecture in Japan stood in the Hoshina family’s territory because the kaiju couldn’t get to it. They were almost royalty in the field.
It’s hard not to acknowledge the Hoshina family with the heir to the main family being Narumi’s counterpart in the West, the Sixth Division Captain Hoshina Soichirou; and their youngest being the Third Division Vice-Captain, Numbers Weapon 10 user, and most importantly, Narumi Gen’s newly acquired Boyfriend Hoshina Soshiro.
“Yep,” Hoshina says. He makes a long humming sound in contemplation before continuing. “Our family has a sayin’: Not all Hoshina’s work on kaijus but there is no kaiju work that doesn’t involve a Hoshina. We have family members in extermination, in clean up, in research, in historical record keeping—anything revolving around kaiju, I could probably give you a name of family who works in that.”
“So you’re not all sword masters?” Narumi asks.
“We’re all trained in the Hoshina style swordsmanship,” Hoshina answers. “But no, not everyone uses it for battle. My twin sisters practice their form for meditation. Oh, the older works at Izumo Tech and younger works at the National Library—she preserves and protects historical records. In a weird way, she actually uses her sword more than our older sister. Do ya know how many times that the National Library was in the crossfires of a kaiju attack? Wild how a librarian fights more than a weapons R&D specialist.”
“Ah, your twin sisters,” Narumi pauses. Wait.
“You have sisters?!” he shouts the when the words register. Narumi nearly breaks the door off the refrigerator in shock. “What do you mean you have twin sisters?!”
“Wha—“ Hoshina doesn’t get a word in as Narumi’s revelation overwhelms the small kitchenette.
“How have I known you for like what six, no, seven years and never knew you had twin sisters?” Eyes bulging, Narumi spins around right into Hoshina’s hysterical laughter. “You have other siblings other than that stupid smirking fox face brother? Are you going to say next that you have like four more younger siblings too?”
“Do you really think—haha, we went from Soichiro, the first son. Oh god, I can’t breathe—to Soshiro, the fourth son, without anyone in between?” Hoshina asks in between cackles. “Why are you so—ha hahaha, why are you so surprised?!”
“No—I just, I thought,” Narumi sputters as his face heats up. In the face of Hoshina’s mirth, he doesn’t know how to explain how he’s mortified at how little he knows of his boyfriend. In a startling moment of clarity, Narumi wonders if this is why Hoshina asked about his parents—did Hoshina realize how much he doesn’t know about Narumi Gen outside of the Defense Force?—and his mouth moves faster than his brain can catch up. “I don’t remember them.”
“Them?” Hoshina questions in between gasps. He still has the stupidly beautiful smile on his face. Narumi needs to kiss it but in a moment.
“My parents,” Narumi answers truthfully. The refrigerator door finally swings shut yet somehow the kitchenette gets colder. “I don’t remember them. Just vague feelings and shapes. They say it’s cause of trauma and shit like that.”
“Gen,” Hoshina says gently. He steps forward slowly and slides a hand behind Narumi’s neck—Narumi recently learned it was a grounding technique Hoshina likes using and also a sneaky way to get in position to pinch his cheeks. Hoshina stops a hairbreadths away, giving Narumi the option to either talk or lean in for a kiss. “Sorry, we don’t have’ta talk about it.”
Narumi hadn’t realize how his tense his body had gotten or how quick his heart rate had spiked. Hoshina slips his other hand behind Narumi’s neck as well and pulls them together so their foreheads pressed against each other. Narumi takes a few slow breathes to bring down the adrenaline and Hoshina lets him, holding him through it all.
“Sorry,” Hoshina repeats. He seems to hesitate on his next words so Narumi takes the silence for himself.
“Don’t apologize,” Narumi sighs. “I—I didn’t think…I haven’t, well,” he struggles with the various words flying through his brain and none of them land on his tongue. Eventually, Narumi settles for, “They’ve been gone for a long time.”
“Still,” Hoshina says quietly. His head slides down into the crook of Narumi’s neck. Hoshina’s next words come out muffled. “I’m sorry.”
“If you truly are, you should post to your social media about how amazing I am,” Narumi huffs, rolling his eyes in exaggerated fashion. Hoshina giggles into his shoulder but now he’s the tense one. Narumi won’t stand for it so he tries to diffuse it in the only way he knows how—with childish petulance. “Come on, get out your phone! I’ll type it out for you!”
“Not sure where my phone went,” Hoshina teases. He looks up at Narumi with that damn smile and this time the captain doesn’t hesitate—he kisses his newly aquired boyfriend. Hoshina does that stupid head tilt thing and deepens the kiss only to break it a second later much to Narumi’s frustration. “Do ya wanna find it? I’m sure it’s in one of my pockets.”
Narumi dives back into those mischievous lips and his hands fumble against the zipper of their standard issue uniforms—Game on.
—
Their story is actually quite typical of a Defense Force romance—rivals to lovers.
Not everyone knew how the infamous Narumi Gen and Hoshina Soshiro rivalry started, but everyone in the Defense Force has at least heard about it if not experienced it. They said that Shinomiya Isao and Shinomiya Hikari also started their relationship with a rivalry that shook every subjugation mission they both took part in. Sure, they didn’t bicker the same way Narumi and Hoshina did and, you know, Shinomiya Hikari actually accepted the invitation to the First Division eventually being Isao’s vice captain—
“Ya still sore about that?” Hoshina sighs, taking his eyes off his book to stare down at a pouty First Division captain clinging to his waist. They’re once again seated on the couch in Narumi’s apartment—they’re here a lot now and Narumi’s apartment has never felt more like a home. The captain had long given up on his play-through to cuddle his boyfriend, but said boyfriend had ignored him until he started rambling on about the stereotypes of Defense Force couples.
“No,” Narumi grumbles into the other’s hip. “You only turned me down in front of all my platoon leaders.”
“Your posse,” Hoshina clarifies.
“My division,” Narumi huffs, shifting even closer so he’s mostly wrapped around the sitting vice captain. “You turned me down in front of my division.”
“And your ego has never recovered since,” Hoshina continues, shifting back to his book and turning to the next page. Narumi does not whine but he does try to snatch Hoshina’s book. Hoshina clicks his tongue and bats away Narumi’s hand. “Bad boy.”
“Why did you even agree to be my boyfriend if you’re going to treat me like this?” Narumi complains. “Always rejecting me.”
Honestly, Narumi’s not mad about it anymore—hindsight twenty-twenty. If Hoshina had joined the First Division, Narumi couldn’t guarantee that Hoshina would have been his vice captain as much as he fantasizes about it sometimes. All of his platoon leaders could be future captains, and talent gets buried in the First Division more often than not. Even Shinomiya Hikari left the First Division and flourished in her own captaincy, burning brighter than any Defense Force officer before her.
Hoshina had worked up to his role as vice captain of the Third Division with a finesse that the First Division could never have cultivated. And Narumi begrudgingly acknowledges the excellent partnership between the Third Division captain and vice captain—slash the obstacles and shoot the threat, how much more efficient can they get?
Just because he’s objectively accepted the outcome for the sake of national security doesn’t mean he can’t be petty over it!
Distracted by his own thoughts, Narumi doesn’t notice how Hoshina stills or how the vice captain’s hand hovers over Narumi’s head with uncertainty. Hoshina’s hand eventually settles on Narumi’s shoulder but even that touch is flighty like he’s not sure whether he’s allowed it.
“I’ve never rejected you,” Hoshina says with unusual seriousness. Narumi blinks, staring up at the other man. “I rejected your offer to join the First Division but never you. Had I known you thought of it that way, I wouldn’t have said no quite so…quite so flippantly.”
“Soshiro,” Narumi tries to interrupt, pushing up from his curled position. He sits facing his boyfriend with words on his tongue—I know, I’m not mad, it’s childish, you’re my boyfriend for goodness sake—but they don’t make it out. Hoshina quiets him with a kiss on the lips.
“Gen, back then, I didn’t know how much you equated yourself to the First Division,” Hoshina admits. He gives another quick peck on the cheek. “Vice captain—well, your former vice captain Hasegawa, he mentioned that you found belonging there”—a kiss on the other cheek—“that it was a place that you built up for you to belong. And had I known that back then”—a kiss on the forehead, Narumi’s heart skips a beat—“I would have still turned your offer down.”
The words register a little late as Narumi is drunk on the overwhelming affection. But once he processes them, Narumi glowers and Hoshina laughs. His stupid boyfriend is laughing in his face.
“But not like that,” Hoshina says once his giggles subside. “Not in a way that made you think I rejected you. That I didn’t want Narumi Gen.”
“Narumi Gen is the captain of the First Division,” Narumi scowls. “What else could turning down an offer to join the First Division mean?”
“Just that: I was turning down a spot in the First Division,” Hoshina answers. He pauses and takes Narumi’s hands, bringing them to his lips. Narumi shivers as the next words vibrated against his knuckles. “I’m sorry that I never noticed how much you wanted me, even—no, especially back then.”
Narumi’s gut reaction is to deny it, but he bites back the words. Hoshina is rarely this honest about their beginnings, and Narumi selfishly wants to hear all about it.
“There’s no amount of training records I broke that could take away from your undeniable strength,” Hoshina continues. He looks to the side sheepishly. “I guess I didn’t think about why you kept coming back when you had nothing to prove. You were—no, even now, you are still the strongest officer in the Defense Force.”
Narumi preens under the praise. What can he say? He’s spent years trying to get Hoshina’s acknowledgement and knowing that he’s always had it—well, if he were one of those street cats Hoshina liked to pet, he’d be purring.
“So thank you,” Hoshina says, pressing his lips against the back of Narumi’s hand. “Thank you for wanting me and chasing me this entire time.”
“Me, chasing you—?” Narumi scoffs but his face is a brilliant scarlet. After the No. 9 cataclysm, Narumi had done some pretty desperate chasing. With his enhanced RT-0001, he had seen and felt like he experienced some gruesome futures. They had rattled him to the point his inflated ego took a quiet backseat as he reached out to the pretty vice captain that had haunted his mind for years.
“But now that I have you, I won’t let you feel that way again,” Hoshina interrupts. His gaze is heavy and hungry and possessive—Narumi swallows loudly, oh. Oh. With a forceful push, his back hits the couch and Hoshina straddles his lap. “I will make sure you know just how much I want you.“
Narumi’s breath hitches and Hoshina leans down to nip his bottom lip.
“And I ain’t sharing.”
—
“Do you want to go to my hometown with me?” Narumi asks. He’s tucked himself in Hoshina’s arms, feeling the other’s chest raise and fall with each slow breath. Narumi slides his hands up Hoshina’s sleep shirt to get more skin-to-skin contact and Hoshina shivers against him, slotting their legs together. In any other circumstance, Narumi would have taken that as an invitation, but it’s been several months since he’s gotten to enjoy Hoshina’s warmth in a proper bed. Narumi is going to make the most of it, morning meetings be damned!
Hoshina makes a sleepy noise and then a less sleepy noise, “Your hometown?”
“Yeah, to see my parents I guess,” Narumi says, trying to sound nonchalant even though his heart is racing. “They don’t have graves or anything, but there’s a temple that has a memorial for all the victims of that kaiju attack.”
“Have you been recently?” Hoshina asks, shifting away presumably to make eye contact, but Narumi doesn’t let him. He burrows himself into Hoshina’s chest and refuses to let the other man gain distance. Hoshina chuckles. “Clingy baby.”
“Hmph,” Narumi puffs into Hoshina’s chest. He’s not sure whether the honest truth was depressing or not, but Narumi figures that if there’s anyone he could be honest with, it would be with his boyfriend, right? “No, not recently. Last time I was there, I was still with the Second Division. Haven’t been back since.”
“Oh,” Hoshina says. Neither of them mention that it’s been more than a decade since Narumi was a young officer in the Second Division. “Ya want me to come with you?”
“Yeah,” Narumi answers. He’s still hiding in the other’s embrace—it feels warm and safe like nothing could hurt him. With Hoshina’s arms around him, Narumi finally allows himself to remember the indiscernible screams of humans and kaiju and the fires that had burned and burned and burned his childhood away. “I’d like that.”
“Okay,” Hoshina agrees. Narumi doesn’t cry but he shakes. Hoshina just holds him like his arms are the only thing keeping Narumi together. “Let’s go together then.”
—
To be continued...
Chapter 2: Hoshina Soshiro