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Hiyoko should know better. How could she miss all of this? How could she be so blind? How could everything fly over her head? Was she always this oblivious? Was she always that ignorant?
She leaned to the door, once again.
Yeah, that's—there's no way Takashi could sound like that on his own—
Hiyoko hated the way she trembled.
If only she was aware of the sign, if only she knew what was coming, if only she could tell the telltales—all of these could be so easily avoided.
Hiyoko could prevent this from happening.
Was she so busy that she failed to notice the small, tiny change?
Was she so full of herself that it left no room for other occurrences that might hide in the plain sight?
Was she too confident that everything would just go in her way?
She leaned to the door, once again.
How long has this been going on?
How long has Takashi kept this from her?
How could Hiyoko not know?
She tried to recall if there was anything weird or strange, but Hiyoko genuinely could remember anything.
Takashi, once again, had been a model student and a perfect son.
He went to the high school of Hiyoko's choice. He had been great with his grades so far. Takashi also joined the club, as she expected. It wasn't the art club like she had predicted, but it was the handicraft club.
Apparently those sketches she found on her son's notebook was a fashion design. She was glad that after a few snooping, she found less male outfits, and more feminine ones, like dresses and sweaters.
Occasionally, there were masculine designs, but Hiyoko didn't think it was something that Takashi would create unless he had an unlimited budget for it.
If Takashi wanted to pursue his career in this field, he'd gotta be versatile and Hiyoko could let him get away with that.
Takashi had been busy with school, Hiyoko barely saw him hanging out. He always went straight home after a long day of school and club activity.
Despite how tired he sometimes looked, he also seemed happier.
Hiyoko knew, she was responsible for it.
Takashi was happy because she had picked the best school for him.
Hiyoko should know better. How could she miss all of this? How could she be so blind? How could everything fly over her head? Was she always this oblivious? Was she always that ignorant?
She leaned to the door, once again.
A bone-chilling thought flashed in her mind.
Did Takashi do all of this because he knew Hiyoko wouldn't be here? Because he knew she wouldn't be at home?
Did Takashi think, this was the only moment he could get away with it?
Ever since Takashi got into high school, Hiyoko had tried to limit her work load, reducing her work trip so she could be present more for her children.
With Takashi having a full day of school, she didn't want to burden him with more responsibility to take care of his sisters too.
Luna and Mana had been happy with this development and Hiyoko thought that they both went less rebellious than Takashi was, because she was present more. Takashi didn't explicitly tell her, but Hiyoko knew, he was happy with this too.
"I'm sorry, Takashi, but I have to rely on you, this week," Hiyoko told him over breakfast a couple days ago.
Even if she had been taking less work load, her position was still crucial for regional meetings. Hiyoko had to take a 3-4 day trip for her work. She regretted that she couldn't get anyone to be her replacement and it was not something that she could work remotely.
After months of no work trips, this would be the first time Takashi had to take care of the household and his sisters, after a long time he hadn't done it.
"It's okay, Mom," Takashi comforted her. "Luna and Mana weren't babies you know, you can definitely trust them to me."
Fortunately, the work finished earlier than she expected, so she could go home way faster. She didn't tell her kids about this, with the intention of surprising them. She had brought a bunch of gifts from her work trips, each to cater to her kids' interest. Hiyoko had to profusely apologize for missing the after-work party, but she had insisted on taking the first train schedule to get back home.
She couldn't wait to watch the surprise on Takashi, Luna, and Mana's faces when she appeared at the door unprompted.
Until she arrived and she heard something that stopped her from knocking on the door.
Hiyoko could hear Takashi laughing.
And not just that, she could also hear the same delight from Luna and Mana too.
Those wouldn't deter her from entering the apartment, until she heard another strange laugh.
Hiyoko was surprised that she could even recognize the sound, even after years of not hearing it.
She leaned to the door.
It didn't take long to get confirmation at the first eavesdropping.
"Draken, it's cheating!"
She scrambled back like she had been electrocuted.
Hiyoko should know better. How could she miss all of this? How could she be so blind? How could everything fly over her head? Was she always this oblivious? Was she always that ignorant?
Since when Takashi was bold enough to invite his friends over, especially the one that Hiyoko had expressed her dislike to them the most?
Since when did Takashi let Draken into this house?
How long had this been going?
Was this the first time since the last time Hiyoko kicked him out of the house for basically ruining her son?
She leaned to the door, once again.
"Draken-nii is even better than Nii-san!"
Hearing Draken was bad already, but Draken-nii?
Hiyoko couldn't take it anymore.
She fixed herself and schooled her expression to be something neutral.
This should be a surprise. A good surprise. Even if she ended up being surprised.
With a forced smile, Hiyoko pushed the door open.
"I'm home!"
Let's hear how Takashi reasons with me over you, Draken, Hiyoko thought.
It didn't take long for her to hear the rushed steps towards the door, welcoming her.
Luna and Mana shrieked happily before they both ran to Hiyoko, hugging her while also asking millions of questions of her unexpected homecoming.
Takashi was slower, tailing behind them. His face seemed to have a mix of emotions all at once, but it was still quite unreadable.
Hiyoko couldn't tell exactly what ran in her son's mind.
"You're home early."
Hiyoko couldn't tell if that was a statement or accusation.
"It's all wrapped up faster than expected, so I'm able to go home sooner," she kissed the top of Luna and Mana's head. She flicked her gaze to the sneaker in the front door. "Do we have a guest coming over?"
Takashi flustered at that, but Luna preceded her to answer the question.
"Draken-nii is here!"
Like given a cue, Draken popped his head behind Takashi. Hiyoko didn't bother to hide her true feeling revealed itself on her face and she was pretty sure Takashi could tell.
"Good evening, Mitsuya-san," Draken walked past Takashi to give her a bow.
Hiyoko gave him a slight nod in return.
"I didn't expect you to be here, Draken," She responded, looking at Takashi rather sharply.
Something flashed on her son's face, and he responded automatically like Hiyoko's blatant dislike woke up something in him.
"I invited him over because I cooked too many curry," Takashi answered, the flush creeping up his cheeks, only turned darker. As for an afterthought, he added hastily, "it's been a while since the last time we hung out together."
Hiyoko sniffed the air subtly and true to his words, she could smell Takashi's infamous curry permeating the air.
Mana pulled her hand. "Mama, let's have Nii-chan's curry! Let's eat together!"
Hiyoko let herself be pulled to the living room, where Takashi had served the dinner on the table for four people. He went to the kitchen and Draken immediately followed behind. Hiyoko tried her best to not appear judgemental, but she couldn't help herself. She wondered if Takashi told something to Draken while they were in there.
When they came out, Draken took a seat next to Takashi, while Hiyoko sat down between her son and Luna.
The atmosphere clearly had changed, even if Luna and Mana were excited with her surprise arrival, Hiyoko could feel a weird, restrained tension in the air. Draken acted quite politely, trying to have a conversation with everyone on the table. Takashi had been eerily silent, only responding when he was directly addressed.
Even then, Hiyoko could tell how different he acted when he was talking to Draken.
The subtle smile, the fondness seeping into his words, the way Takashi naturally synchronized his thoughts and words with Draken, how Takashi had masterfully masked the whole thing under the pretense of friendliness.
Hiyoko should know better. How could she miss all of this? How could she be so blind? How could everything fly over her head? Was she always this oblivious? Was she always that ignorant?
Even then, Hiyoko could tell how different Draken had acted since the last time she saw him.
He was more mature and controlled; he could adjust his tone and voice accordingly when he talked to the girls, Takashi, or even Hiyoko herself. Hiyoko also noticed how he was always softer in a distinguished way, when he talked to Takashi. It wasn't anything she remembered from him back when he was a kid.
Hiyoko should know better. How could she miss all of this? How could she be so blind? How could everything fly over her head? Was she always this oblivious? Was she always that ignorant?
Hiyoko steeled herself. She could always do her investigation later.
Right now, it was important to gain Takashi's trust because it would be much easier to interrogate him if Takashi didn't even know he was being interrogated.
She could do this.
"It's been a while, Draken," Hiyoko started. "How are you doing?"