"Lower... left... Rib..."
Hearing those three words, Mr. Kamitani froze.
The busy, frantic movement that had been driving him a second ago completely vanished. Every single drop of color drained from his face, leaving him as white as a sheet.
His features didn't twist or show panic; instead, his expression went entirely blank, completely devoid of any emotion or composure.
The sharp, calculating lawyer was gone. The father was gone.
No words came out of his throat, and his mind couldn't form a single logical thought. He didn't even blink. He just lost his grip on the situation entirely.
As the phone slipped from his limp fingers and began to fall toward the kitchen tiles, his mind shattered backward, pulled violently into a memory from Sixteen Years Ago.
The air was heavy and thick with the humid heat of a mid-July afternoon in Tokyo. Outside the wide living room windows, the bright summer sky was quickly turning dark and bruised as heavy storm clouds rolled aggressively over the city.
In the corner, a heavy, iron-bladed floor fan sat on the tatami mats. It moved its head back and forth with a low, rhythmic Whir-click, Whir-click sound, dragging the sticky air across the room.
The house was quiet. It smelled of fresh tatami, drying laundry, and baby powder. The living room was small and cozy, entirely lacking the expensive furniture that would come years later.
Back then, Mr. Kamitani was Twenty-nine Years old and still new to his job as a lawyer, and Mrs. Kamitani was home on maternity leave. They had lived in that house for only a single year.
Despite the storm gathering outside, the room felt completely peaceful.
Down on the floor, right in front of the floor fan, an Eight-month-old infant was cushioned up on a soft, stitched mat. He was a thick, heavy baby with fat folds on his chubby thighs, kicking his legs lazily against the blanket. "Dih-dih... Da!"
The infant let out a group of milky, bubbling sounds, a tiny drop of drool sliding down his chin. His oversized green eyes blinked up at the ceiling, and he reached his small, soft fists up into the air.
"That's it... look at you. You're almost there, aren't you?"
A low, gentle man's voice spoke from right above the mat. A young Mr. Kamitani was lying flat on his stomach right next to the baby.
His face was softer back then, completely free of lines or worry, and his hair was slightly messy. He didn't look like a strict lawyer at all.
He leaned closer, a warm smile breaking across his face as he extended a single finger toward the child.
"Come on, my boy. Say it again for Dad." he murmured in a playful, happy voice. He gently nudged the baby's chubby cheek with his knuckle, his chest filling with an absolute, pure happiness. "You've been practicing all morning. Let's hear it, Kento. Da-d. Can you say Dad?"
The thick baby let out a short, breathless giggle, his heavy chest shaking as his tiny fingers wrapped tightly around his father's finger, pulling it straight toward his mouth.
Across the small living room, away from the path of the floor fan, two women sat on the woven mats, their voices a soft, gentle murmur against the low hum of the iron fan.
The first was an old woman, her body slightly bent with age. She wore a simple, olive-colored kimono. Her grey hair was pulled back into a neat, tight bun, held together by a
wooden pin. Deep, elegant wrinkles lined the corners of her eyes and mouth—lines carved by a lifetime of both smiles and heavy worries.
Her hands, resting on her lap, were spotted and rough, telling the story of a mother who had worked hard to raise her household.
Sitting right across from her was a much younger woman in her mid-twenties. Her brown hair was long and glossy, falling softly over her shoulders, and she wore a light, breathable cotton dress to combat the sticky July heat. Her skin was smooth, her eyes bright and filled with the gentle, soft warmth of a new mother.
"Fufu... look at him..." the younger woman whispered, a small, elegant smile curving her lips as she watched the young lawyer roll around on the floor. "I've never seen him look so completely defenseless."
The old woman let out a soft, dry chuckle, her eyes crinkling up. "Don't let him fool you, Yuna. Ayato might look like a doting father now, but when he was an infant himself, he was an absolute terror. A tiny, loud monster."
The young Mrs. Kamitani laughed softly, a beautiful, clear sound that made her shoulders shake slightly. "Really, Mother? He always talks about how quiet and disciplined he was as a child."
"Ayato? Disciplined?" The grandmother sighed, a fond, amused look crossing her wrinkled face as she shook her head.
"That boy wouldn't sleep unless I walked him around the courtyard three times in the middle of the night. And if the blanket touched his feet? He would scream so loudly the neighbors thought the house was collapsing. He had the stubbornness of a donkey from the day he was born."
Down on the mat, the young Mr. Kamitani stopped his playing. He sat up slightly, his messy hair sticking out as he looked over his shoulder, giving the two women a helpless, mock-offended look.
"Hey, that's completely unfair..." Ayato nagged, his voice rising in a playful complaint. "Mother, you're ruining my reputation in front of my own wife. You two are clearly ganging up against me to make me look bad."
He turned back around, looking down at the thick baby with a big, bright grin. He leaned over, gently touching the infant's little nose.
"They don't know what they're talking about, right, Kento? It's okay. Dad doesn't care, because my big boy is on my side. We're a team, aren't we?"
"Da! Buuuu..." Kento babbled, his fat little cheeks puffing out.
Suddenly, the thick baby raised his chubby, soft arm and brought his tiny palm down with a sharp Smack right across Ayato's cheek.
Before his father could even react, the infant twisted his heavy body around, looking completely away toward the wall as if his dad was The Most Annoying Person In The Room.
"Pfftt—hahaha!"
A loud, burst of elegant laughter instantly broke out from the young Mrs. Kamitani, her hand flying up to cover her mouth as her green eyes crinkled with pure joy.
"Ahaha... ah, dear." the grandmother joined in, her shoulders shaking as she let out a joyful laugh. "It seems your teammate just fired you."
Ayato sat frozen on the floor, his hand pressing against his cheek where the baby had just slapped him. He stared at the back of Kento's bald little head, blinking in utter disbelief.
"Well..." Ayato muttered, a dry, sheepish smile twitching on his lips. "Maybe not."
"Da-daaa! Ah-da!" Kento mumbled happily to the wall, kicking his heavy legs against the mat, completely unbothered by the laughter filling the peaceful room.
Ayato sat on the floor, his eyes shifting away from the stubborn baby to look across the room at his wife. Yuna was still laughing, her green eyes bright and shiny, her long brown hair shifting softly against her shoulders. She looked incredibly beautiful, illuminated by the soft, warm light of the living room.
"Aya... Aya-ta!" Kento suddenly babbled from the mat, his thick little arms waving in the air as he tried to pronounce his father's name in broken words.
Ayato let out a soft sigh, a gentle, warm smile fixing on his lips. He kept his gaze locked onto his beautiful wife, completely captivated by her smile.
"My, my... Kento, you don't have to call out Dad's name just to prevent me from looking at your mother." he murmured in a soft, loving voice, his heart swelling with affection.
Yuna stopped laughing, blinking as she
caught him staring. "Did you say something to me, dear?"
Ayato instantly came back to his senses, his chest tightening as his ears turned completely red from embarrassment.
He cleared his throat quickly, his words coming out slightly broken. "N-Nothing! It's... it's just that, the way you are making fun of me right now... I just wish one day Kento does the exact same thing to you. So I can sit back and laugh."
Yuna smiled back, her chin lifting with absolute confidence. "NEVER."
"How are you so sure?" Ayato asked, raising an eyebrow.
Yuna's soft expression suddenly shifted into an evil glare, her eyes narrowing playfully as she looked down at the infant. "Because I'll hit him if he ever tries something like that with me."
Across the table, the old woman's face turned into a soft worried expression. She let out a small, worried cough, her voice dropping into a gentle whisper. "Oh, My Precious Crown Prince Of The Kamitani Bloodline... your mother is being terrifying."
Ayato immediately leaned down, wrapping his arms protectively around his thick, heavy son. He gave his wife an amused, nagging look.
"Look at that, Kento. Your mother is a Witch for threatening to hit a literal Angel."
Hearing his father's voice, Kento blinked his large green eyes. He slowly turned his head, locking his gaze directly onto his mother. He widened his eyes, making them look completely large, round, and full of innocent, angel-like sweetness.
Yuna closed her eyes, letting out a small laugh as she cleared her throat. "Fine... I'll think about it," she murmured, her expression softening completely under the baby's gaze.
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🌸 AUTHOR'S THOUGHTS 🔍 🌸
Well then... after all the screaming, collapsing, and emotional damage from the previous chapter, I think everyone deserved a chance to breathe. (• ▽ •;)
Honestly, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Seeing Mr. Kamitani before the lines of worry settled on his face, seeing Yuna laughing so freely, and watching baby Kento casually betray his own father... it somehow made me smile throughout the entire process. (＾∇＾)ﾉ♪
Poor Ayato really thought he had found his lifelong teammate, only to receive a slap and immediate abandonment. Truly tragic. 😔☕
But jokes aside, this chapter is very precious to me.
Sometimes, before mysteries, tragedies, and impossible questions begin to consume our lives, there are ordinary days. Quiet days. Days so simple that we hardly realize how precious they are until they become memories.
And perhaps...
Those memories are what make the people we become worth protecting. 🌙✨
I hope this little glimpse into the Kamitani family's past brought a smile to your face. (〃ﾟ3ﾟ〃)
As always, thank you for reading.
And please take care of yourselves. 🌸
(＾∇＾)ﾉ♪
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✦ 🔮 A GLIMPSE INTO THE NEXT CHAPTER 🔮 ✦
"What awaits beyond this page...?" 🌙
(灬･◡･灬)♡
"Darling... it's just... I told you about it before, remember?"
Why does such ridiculous nonsense have to exist in the first place..."
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❓ QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER ❓
After witnessing this peaceful glimpse into the past, which moment touched your heart the most? 🌸✨
🍼 Baby Kento betraying his father with a single slap? (＾∇＾)ﾉ♪
☕ Ayato and Yuna teasing each other like newlyweds?
🌷 Grandma Kamitani doting on her precious Crown Prince?
💚 Or simply seeing a family that once knew nothing but peace?
And one more question... 👀🌙
What do you think happened during those sixteen years that transformed this warm, carefree father into the man burdened by so many lines of worry?
✨ Loss?
✨ Regret?
✨ A secret?
✨ Or something far more impossible?
I'd love to hear your thoughts and theories~ (〃ﾟ3ﾟ〃)
Though, as always...
I won't be confirming anything. 😈🌌
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🌙 PAGES FROM FORGOTTEN RECORDS 📖
It is often said that the deepest lines of worry are not born from hatred or regret...
But from love.
For only those who have known happiness can truly understand the pain of losing it.
(｡ŏ﹏ŏ)
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🌙 The stars may fade, and memories may sleep...
But the Spiral continues to turn.
Until we meet again beneath the same forgotten sky.
ಥ╭╮ಥ
— SakuraShinomiya