Chapter Text
Akari has been sitting on his bed, book in hand and earphones in his ears listening to music, when his father's voice breaks through the quiet, yelling about something Akari can't exactly make out. He decides to go downstairs and see what all the commotion is about.
In a swift motion, Akari jumps off his bed, the wooden floor creaking beneath his feet. Slowly he makes his way to the door, as he reaches for the door handle, he suddenly gets this sinking feeling in his stomach that something is very wrong.
He takes a few steps towards the stairs when he suddenly stops dead in his tracks, looking down to see his parents arguing intensely in the downstairs kitchen, completely unaware of his presence.
Being 6 years old at the time, Akari couldn't make sense of the situation, why are his parents arguing? Why are they so upset? Is it his fault?
Akari is brought back to reality when he hears his father’s voice yelling his name. He quickly makes his way downstairs, towards his father. The first thing he notices is the tears streaming down his mother's face. Panic begins to set in. What is going on? What are his parents fighting about that has managed to make him mom cry?
"What's wrong mom, why are you crying?" He says concerned, feeling his heartbeat violently against his chest.
Before his mom could give an answer, his father interrupts her.
"Me and your mother are getting a divorce." He says firmly, trying to remain calm. His father notices his son's confused expression, so he continues. "In other words, mommy and daddy are not going to live together anymore and you will have to choose who you want to live with."
The world as Akari knew it had just been turned upside down. He couldn't understand any of this, why are his parents splitting up? Why did he have to choose between them? And why can't they stay together?
Struggling to register the situation, he feels a warm sensation behind his eyes, his lip quavers and the view in front of him slowly blurs before tears start streaming down his face.
Seeing this, his mom rushes to side to comfort him, pulling him into a tight hug while rubbing his back in continuous motions whispering the words "It's okay."
Feeling the pressure of it all, he cries harder in his mom's warm embrace. After a while he eventually stops crying, pulling away from the hug he wipes his face with the back of his hand.
"Are you feeling better now, Kari?" His mom asks in a gentle yet concerned tone.
"Kari" is the nickname given to him by his mother; she has been calling him that for as long as he could remember.
"I'm fine" he says, although it seems as if he’s trying to convince himself more than his mother.
"Akari?" His father calls out to him authoritatively. Amidst all the crying he had forgotten about his father's presence in the room and was a bit startled when he called out to him. He turns to face his father, and his father continues speaking. "So, who do you want to live with, me or your mother?"
"Why do you have to split up?", "Did I do something wrong?", "Why do I have to choose?", "Can't we stay together?" He answers, voice shakier with each question.
"No son... It has been decided. You must choose" his father says avoiding his son’s desperate gaze and completely disregarding his questions.
Easier said than done for a 6-year-old, choosing between his parents meant that he loved the one parent more than the other. Obviously, this isn't true, but Akari doesn't know any better. Deep down he had already decided, he wants to live with, his mom.
He loves his dad to bits, but he’s rarely ever home, always on a work trip or busy with some work-related issue. His father never spends enough time with him, so he never got the chance to build a real father-son relationship, where they would build Lego towers together or play football outside. He played his part as a father, he provided for the family, but he was never really a dad.
"I want to live with mom." He says voice so soft it could pass as a whisper.
His father turns to look at him, shock and hurt written all over his face, but the expression went away faster than its appearance. He straightens up and quickly clears his throat before he begins speaking.
"Okay then son, you'll continue living with your mother and I will leave." He says voice low trying to mask the pain in his voice.
With that, his dad takes his already packed bags off the kitchen floor and walks towards the door.
He stops in front of the door and gestures for Akari to come to him. He gets down on one knee and hugs his son, whispering the words "Daddy will always love you." Before he gets up and opens the front door.
Before he walks out, he turns to Akari with a smile on his face and waves goodbye at him one last time before he turns to leave.
Only when the door shuts does the realization finally set in, his father was gone. He didn't know it then, but that would be the last time he ever saw or heard from his father.