Sato and Hikari stared at each other, their faces a furious shade of crimson. The silence in the small bathroom stretched, thick with unspoken embarrassment.
Finally, Hikari broke the tension, her voice a little shaky. "I see you're doing better."
Before she could say anything else, Sato slammed the bathroom door shut, his back hitting it with a soft thud. "I'm sorry! I promise I didn't see anything!" he blurted out, then, still utterly flustered, added, "And by the way, when did you get here?"
From inside the tub, Hikari's voice drifted through the door. "I told you I was going to stay behind to look after you. You don't remember?"
Sato rubbed his head, a groan escaping him. I guess it was not a dream, he thought, the reality of his illness and the previous night's events slowly crashing down on him.
"I'm really sorry for coming in here without your permission," Hikari said, her voice softer now. "I'll leave now."
Sato immediately countered, "No, no, it's fine! Just finish up. I'll wait outside." He quickly exited his room, closing the door behind him. As he stood in the hallway, his stomach rumbled loudly. "Oh, that's right," he mumbled to himself. "I haven't had anything to eat yet. Well, gotta go whip up something to eat." He headed downstairs, the aroma of impending food already a welcome thought.
A few minutes later, as Hikari was drying herself with Sato's towel, a delicious aroma wafted up from downstairs. "What smells so good?" she wondered aloud. She quickly donned her clothes, eager to investigate the source of the enticing scent, and headed downstairs.
She found Sato in the dining area, arranging plates of steaming dishes on the table. He looked up as she entered. "Oh, I see you're done. The food you brought wouldn't be enough for us, so I made some more since I know you eat too much," he said with a slight tease in his voice.
Hikari's cheeks immediately flushed, and she covered her face with her hands. "How did you know I eat too much?! I was trying to hide it from you!"
Sato chuckled, a rare, genuine sound. "Well, yesterday, when you were eating, I could tell you were holding back the actual way you eat because I was there. And when you finished that massive lunch, I could tell you were disappointed and wanted more but couldn't say. I have a gift called 'reading the room,' so I picked up on it."
Hikari's blush deepened, but a smile touched her lips. "Heh, I guess you caught me. I'm supposed to act girly, but when I eat, I can't help myself. I just love food, and I also have a big appetite," she confessed, letting her hands fall from her face.
Sato smiled. "Yeah, it was like I was watching Goku eat."
Hikari pouted playfully. "Now you're just being mean!"
Sato finished dishing out the last of the food. "Well, I don't eat much myself, so this is all yours. Eat till your heart's content."
With a wide, happy smile, Hikari sat down, her eyes sparkling at the feast before her. Sato took a seat on the opposite side of the table, equally pleased with his culinary efforts.
Moments later, Hikari was still staring at him, her expression shifting to one of playful annoyance. Sato looked at her, confused. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?"
Hikari pouted. "Why are you so far away? Come sit with me!" she insisted, tapping an empty spot next to her.
Sato swallowed his food. "Yeah, so you can eat me too? No way!" he teased, a smirk on his face.
"Fine, be that way," Hikari said, feigning indignation. "Then I'm not eating!"
"More food for me then," Sato replied, reaching for another serving.
Immediately, Hikari's facade broke. "Just kidding!" she declared, digging into her plate with renewed vigor. Sato smiled, resuming his own meal, enjoying their banter.
Hikari's gaze drifted to a sturdy wooden door at the back of the kitchen, partially obscured by a pantry. "Where does that door lead to?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. "It looks important."
Sato turned to see the door she was talking about. "Oh, that door," he explained. "That leads to the restaurant I once told you about."
Hikari's eyes widened in shock. "Wait, you never told me the restaurant was part of your house!"
"It's just at the back of it," Sato clarified. "You wouldn't know if you came in from the front."
Hikari nodded slowly. "So, you and your mom run it?"
"Pretty much," Sato answered, taking another bite of his food.
Then, Hikari asked, her voice softer, "What about your dad?"
The question hung in the air. Immediately, Sato stopped eating. He remained quiet for a long moment, the playful atmosphere dissipating. Finally, he spoke, his voice flat. "I've told you before, you don't need to know about my personal life."
"Yeah, but that was then," Hikari gently countered, her gaze unwavering. "Don't you
trust me? Come on, I have to know, right?"
Sato remained silent, his gaze distant. Hikari eventually gave up, sensing she was pushing too hard, and quietly continued eating.
Then, Sato's voice, barely above a whisper, broke the silence. "I don't really even know what happened to my dad."
Hikari stared at him in shock, her fork halfway to her mouth. Sato continued, his voice gaining a quiet intensity. "I know he's dead, but I don't know how. I was still like, three months old, give or take, when my dad died, according to my mom. So I didn't know him well enough to miss him. But as I grew, I wanted to know who my dad was. And anytime I asked, my mom would come up with the most fucked up way imaginable to tell me how he died, not sticking to one story."
He took a shaky breath. "The first time I asked, she said he died in a car accident. The second time, she would say he killed himself. And the third, she said a Mafia killed him. Just like that, she kept telling me different bullshit. Plus, she wouldn't tell me anything about my dad, so I don't know a single thing about him."
"You can use your surname to trace him, since he's your father," Hikari suggested softly, trying to offer a solution. "Tanaka, right? You can find out the truth."
Sato shook his head, a bitter smile on his lips. "No. Tanaka is my mom's surname. I don't even know my dad's name or surname. Nothing. And the more I looked into it, the more it got to me. This person they call my father really doesn't exist. I started wondering if I even really had a dad. So, I stopped caring, because it was affecting me too much."
His voice dropped, filled with a raw emotion Hikari hadn't heard before. "But one night, I was passing my mom's room. Then I heard the quiet sound I hear each night coming from Mom's room. When I went to check, I realized those sounds were my mom holding back her tears. She always does this every night, holding the pain in her as she cries, holding a picture. That's why I try my best to make her happy, because she has sacrificed a lot for me. But I wanted to know what made her Sad, so when she wasn't around, I decided to go and check the picture that was in her arm as she was crying."
He paused, reliving the memory. "I looked and looked but still couldn't find it. I almost gave up. Then I laid down on her bed, and when I looked up, I saw it, hidden on top of the fan blade. I immediately brought it down. And in the picture were three figures: one, a man that looks just like me, and the other, a woman... but not my mom. It was a different woman. And there was a little boy with them. I can never forget that day. On the picture, there was writing too. It said 'Akagi.'"
"I wonder what that means," Hikari murmured, her eyes wide with sympathy.
Sato remained quiet, trying to calm his surging emotions. Hikari, noticing his distress, quickly rushed over to him, placing a gentle hand on his arm. "Oh God, I'm so sorry for making you relive that," she apologized sincerely, her heart aching for him.
Sato waved off her apology. "Don't worry, I'm fine."
Just then, they heard the distinct sound of a bike outside. Sato's head snapped towards the door. "I know the sound of that bike," he said.
Immediately, he opened the front door to see Kaito and Sora, standing next to Kaito's bike, now parked at the curb. Kaito grinned, a playful glint in his eye. "Hope you lovebirds had a lot of fun!"