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The Matsuno sextuplets were playing ball in a park near their house — running back and forth, shouting and teasing each other. They got home just a few hours earlier, and having done their homework and rested for a while, they had no idea how to entertain themselves. It was a perfect day for getting out: the sun was not too hot, and the wind wasn't strong enough to make them cold either. So, the decision was made.
They were playing in teams of three — though to say they were playing at all hid a bit of the truth, seeing as they didn't know what the game was to begin with. They just kept taking and passing the ball to and from one another. The rules didn't matter much, when everyone was having fun.
Osomatsu had the ball; he was running around the park and kicking it while laughing — while Choromatsu came running from the side to try and take it from him (even though, supposedly, they were on the same team). In his attempts to grab it, Choromatsu managed to accidentally trip his slightly older brother, sending them both tumbling down. Choromatsu was lucky — he simply fell to the ground on his stomach, and was not hurt more; yet Osomatsu's damage fell to his knees, scraping the skin on the grass and the dirt — before doing the same to his hands. In moments, their brothers ran to their side to see if they were okay.
“Are you alright?!” Karamatsu asked, helping Choromatsu up.
“Yeah, yeah — don't worry!” Choromatsu said, standing up and brushing off any dirt or debris from his clothes and smiling despite the fall. Then, his gaze turned to Osomatsu, who was still on the ground, trying to roll over and sit up in the grass. “Niisan, are you okay?”
“Y-Yeah… I just scraped my knees…” He grimaced, hissing with pain. A few tears were forming in the corners of his eyes.
“But you're bleeding, Osomatsu-niisan!” Todomatsu retorted. The eldest looked stared at him in disbelief — until he looked down at his legs, to see that they were covered in blood and dirt.
“O-Oh… Oh… I guess I better go home and clean this up. Keep playing! Don't worry, I can go myself.” Osomatsu tried to get up from the ground, groaning in pain. Others just looked at him worriedly. When he finally stood up, he wobbled; almost falling back to the ground — until Choromatsu helped him back up, “Choromatsu, it's okay—”
“No. I'm sorry, this is my fault. I'll help you.” His brother was completely determined. And Osomatsu knew that when Choromatsu gave him that look, there was absolutely nothing he could do to change his mind. He just sighed, accepting his help.
The two children said goodbye to their brothers and went back to their home — just a few blocks from the park, so it didn't take long. The whole way back, Choromatsu held his brother, just so he wouldn't fall again. All Osomatsu could do was pretend he wasn't in that much pain — telling Choromatsu not to worry so much. That it wasn't something serious. But his pained expressions and limping weren't going to fool anyone.
Having arrived home, they both took off their shoes and headed to the living room, only to come face to face with the man who has been lodging at their house for a little while now — reading a newspaper with a serious expression.
“Hey kid— Wow, what happened to you?” He asked, surprised to see them covered in dirt — and injured, in case of one of them.
“Hello, Tougou-san,” Choromatsu greeted, “We were playing, but we fell. I'm okay, but Osomatsu hurt his knees.” After which, he helped his older brother sit down on the floor.
“Oh, that looks ugly. Let me help.” The man offered with a kind smile.
“Really? Thank you! Let me get the first-aid kid!” Choromatsu quickly left, heading for the bathroom — leaving the room silent. Their parents weren't home; Matsuyo had gone shopping, and Matsuzo was still at work. The three of them were the only ones at home.
Osomatsu hadn't said a single word so far. Whenever he was with Tougou, he got so nervous, he had no idea what to say. He was already blushing a little — just because the man was close to him, touching his legs to examine the damage.
Choromatu quickly returned and handed the first-aid kit to the older man. Tougou thanked him and began cleaning the wounds, as the boy sat beside them to watch. Things were silent, for a while, until Osomatsu finally spoke.
“Choromatsu,” He said, making Choromatsu turn to him at full attention, “If you want to, you can go back to others. Don't worry about me, Tougou-san is gonna take care of everything. Just go have fun.”
“Are you sure? I don't mind being here.” Choromatsu replied — only to see Osomatsu nod with a smile on his face. “Okay, fine.” He said, before standing up and biding them goodbye, heading out the front door to go back to playing with their other brothers, leaving the man and the boy alone.
“—You kicked him out just to be alone here with me?” The man asked with a hint of mocking. Osomatsu nearly jumped, when the man began to speak.
“…Maybe…” He replied, looking away in embarrassment. It earned him a chuckle from the man.
Tougou had already finished cleaning the wounds, so he put some alcohol on a cotton ball and pressed it against one of the boy's injured knees, which that had already stopped bleeding by the time they got home. Feeling the burn of the alcohol against his skin, Osomatsu let out a surprised little high-pitched squeak.
“Does it hurt?”
“Um, a little… It feels cold.”
Reigning in the room was complete silence. But it was not an uncomfortable one. The only thing that would, from time to time, interrupt it, were Osomatsu's hisses of pain. Tougou had finished the disinfection, and finally, he got some gauze to cover the wounds and finish the process. Osomatsu barely noticed — he was distracted enough not to see that Tougou had alreaady finished. The only reaction he gave was when he felt a hand cross the boundary just a little under his shorts, caressing his thigh. He stared at Tougou with his face flushed.
“Show me your hands.”
Still saying nothing, Osomatsu did as he was told. His hands were just as dirty: covered in little pebbles and the usual debris from the ground. The man took some wet wipes from the medicine cabinet and carefully cleaned them, cleaned them as if they were something delicate and precious. Paying utmost attention to each finger and every line of his palm. When he finished, he took both of Osomatsu's hands — so tiny, compared to his own — and stared at them. Appreciatively. Osomatsu still kept his silence, looking at the old man without the slightest idea of what to expect. But feeling the warmth of the hands holding his made him feel fuzzy inside. Slowly, Tougou brought his hands up and kissed them softly.
Looking up at Osomatsu's face — cheeks aglow and sparkling eyes. He leaned forward, bringing his face closer to the little boy, and finally placed a kiss to his soft lips. Still holding his hands lovingly.