Chapter 18 - We are family

Part 5/9

There were groans and giggles coming from the kitchen. 

“Just do what you need to and get out of my way,” Yuki complained. He was surrounded by his family, all of them busy, trying to fit whatever they could wherever there was space. “And don’t mess up where things go!”

“So bossy,” Akari mocked. “What does it matter?”

“I cook, and if you want me to keep cooking, you’ll keep the food where I want it to be.” Yuki huffed. 

“It’s not like I can’t cook,” Akari grumbled. 

Aimi grimaced. “Please, don’t.”

Ren just stood a few feet away, observing their interaction. Jones sat by his feet, tail wagging nonstop. Even though he felt overwhelmed, Ren was also curious about their family dynamics. He had never known such a large one before. For him, it had always just been him, his mom and Jones. Most of the time, just him and Jones. He didn’t know the first thing about living as a family.

When Gaman stood up and stretched his back, his eyes met Ren’s. “Oh, you can sit on one of the couches, Watanabe-kun. We will be done shortly.”

Before Ren could reply or even move, Akari spun around, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Yuki also caught the sly smile she wore. He glared at his sister.

“Whatever it is,” he demanded, though his face was one of someone who was begging for leniency, “don’t!”

Her smile only turned darker from his plea. “You know, Watanabe-san, Yuki probably never told you about the time he first mentioned you.”

“Hm… You can all call me Ren, I don’t care about all the formality,” he said hesitantly. 

Ren wasn’t sure whether he wanted to know whatever Yuki told his family about him, even if Yuki had assured it wasn't anything bad. However, the way Yuki was reacting ever since his siblings got home was too interesting to let it slip by. 

“He didn’t,” he replied to Akari.

“Not fair, that’s my story!” Aimi whined as she also popped up from behind the counter.

“No, it’s not! Is it?” Akari looked confused.

“Yes,” Aimi argued firmly. “The first time he said Ren was when he was sleeping and I was trying to wake him up.” 

Ren was not sure he was going to make it out of the apartment alive. For the millionth time since he’d stepped inside, his heart sped up and his mouth dropped. Was she saying Yuki had been dreaming about him?

“Wait, I didn’t know about that!” Akari’s face lit up. 

Daiki looked between the two, confused. “Is that a bigger deal than Yuki telling Mom about him?” 

Ren snapped his head to Yuki so fast, his neck cracked a bit.

"I did not tell Mom about him!" Yuki yelled. He was ridged, his back turned to Ren. It looked like his whole body was shaking.

"You said his name when we were at the gravestone," Aimi pointed out.

"Or do you know more than one Ren?" Akari asked, raising her eyebrows. 

“But he called him stupid,” Daiki said bluntly. He looked over at his older brother. “Why did you tell Mom Ren was stupid?”

Yuki rounded on his brother, his cheeks a cherry red. “I didn’t tell mom anything, okay? I was talking to myself—”

“Hey, Ren.” Akari bounced on her feet, her wicked grin even larger. “How long have you known Yuki?”

Completely lost, and yet somehow knowing how much all that meant, Ren answered automatically, his questioning eyes never leaving Yuki, “We met at the beginning of April. Kai and Niko asked me to go to a soccer game with them.”

“The timeframe lines up?” Akari asked.

“Timeframe lines up,” Aimi confirmed with a nod.

Before anyone else could speak, Gaman was heading towards Ren and Jones. “What’s this boy's name?” He bent down to allow the dog to sniff the back of his hand. 

Forcing his gaze to focus on the man, Ren grinned politely. “It’s Jones.”

“Hey, Jones,” Gaman said, rubbing the dog’s ears. “You’ve been inside for a long time, huh?” Looking up at Ren, he asked, “Maybe the girls and Daiki can take him outside for a bit?”

Mind still fuzzy, Ren nodded. “Sure.” He turned to the girls. “He’s usually very well-behaved. Just don’t let him run out of the parking lot area so we don’t have any accidents. If you notice he’s trying to go further away, just crouch and call his name. He’ll come at once,” he instructed. “And be aware of people trying to get too close to him. He’s not as friendly with others as he is with you guys.” He smiled. “I’ll be paying attention to the sounds outside, so call out for me if you need anything.”

“And use the leash,” Yuki ordered. He was facing the stove again. The back of his ears looked particularly red. 

It was even more hectic as the three youngest Nakamuras battled with their shoes and jackets. Jones was leashed and willingly led outside. 

Then there were three.

“You need any help, Yuki?” Gaman asked as he put away the last item from the bags. 

His son just shook his head. 

“Well, then,” Gaman turned back to Ren. “Again, I really do appreciate what you did the other night. If what Yuki told me was true, things would have been much worse if you hadn’t been there.”

Ren shook his head solemnly. “Like I said, there’s no need to thank me. I hope I can always be where Yuki needs me. Although I don’t wish for anything like that to happen again.”

Gaman smiled approvingly. “Is there anything I can do to show you how grateful I am?”

His first instinct was to say no. But then an idea came to his mind. Ren grinned mischievously and said, “I’d actually love to see some of Yuki’s baby pictures, if you can show me.”

There was a loud clunk from the kitchen, making them both jump. Yuki had finally turned around and was staring at them, eyes wide and pleading. His cheeks turned the rosy color they always did when he was extremely embarrassed.

With nothing but a smile, Gaman excused himself and walked down the hall to seemingly fulfill Ren’s request.

“I can’t believe you’d ask him that!” Yuki whispered, nostrils flaring. He looked as though he’d be hiding his face with his hands if they weren’t busy cooking. “My dad’s the sentimental type, too!”

“Sounds like I asked just the right person, then,” Ren replied with a smirk. Slowly, he approached the island. Yuki jumped in place and turned back to the oven. “So,” Ren started, unable to hold back a flirtatious tone to his voice. “I’m the man of your dreams, am I?”

Yuki choked on his own spit. “W-what? N-no! It was…” 

Ren raised both eyebrows, leisurely sitting on one of the stools and propping his forearms on the island. Yuki looked over his shoulder, and the sparkle in the dark irises when their eyes met made Ren greedy for more. 

“Your sister just said you were dreaming about me. And calling me Ren,” he teased, trying not to let it show how much that made him nervous as well. “When was that, Chibi?”

Yuki sighed. “After paintball, I guess. When we had made up,” he mumbled, as though he was lost in memory. That meant Yuki already thought of him as Ren before last Friday. The silly thought lit Ren up inside. But not even a second later, Yuki startled him by turning around, slamming his hands on the island counter and yelling, “It’s not what they think! You were just so…” His face scrunched up as he seemed to desperately grasp for words. “Determined!” Yuki pointed a finger at him like the one word explained it all.

The way he said it bugged Ren, though. It sounded like Yuki had been annoyed by him. Which kind of made sense back then. But it didn't make it sting any less. 

“I was determined? You do remember you crashed our outing, demanding to be my partner, right?” he provoked.

Yuki groaned and again avoided looking at Ren’s face. His left hand held his right wrist, his shoulders hutching together. He was physically closing himself off. If his cheeks hadn’t gone rosy again, Ren would have thought he was more upset than embarrassed. 

“Yes, well... There's so much I’ve been through lately, I guess. I don’t know. You’ve been such a major part of my life in the last two months, it was hard not to think about you a lot. Especially with some of the things you said.” Yuki’s eyes flickered back to Ren, a deep sentiment of gratitude sparkling in them.

Ren felt all warm and cozy inside. He shrugged his shoulders up to his ears and swung his feet back and forth. “Things I said? Like what?”

Yuki’s body relaxed, a small smile crossing his lips. “Well,” Yuki muttered, his hands now fiddling with a towel that was on the counter. “Like the whole Mom thing… It was the anniversary of her passing not too long ago. And, umm, I got really upset at one point. My family surrounded me in a hug, and the first thing that came to mind was your snarky voice saying how I don’t have to do things alone. That people care about me.”

Ren smiled so wide, his eyes nearly closed. The thump thump of his heart was softer now, caressing his soul. 

“I'm glad that happened, Chibi. It means you got the message.” He gave a satisfied nod. 

Ren bent his elbow up and rested his chin on his hand. “It seems I've thoroughly invaded your mind, huh? Your voice of reason, the man of your dreams…” He wiggled his eyebrows.

“Yes,” Yuki said with great exaggeration, though he was still clearly blushing. “You are the man that stalks my dreams, day and night.”

“I wonder why it's me you imagine stalking you,” Ren poked, standing up from the stool. 

It scraped along the floor as he rose. Yuki's eyes turned round, darting down to Ren's feet as he stepped forward. With cat-like movements, he walked around the island to the other side of the kitchen. It felt like a magnet was pulling them closer together.

Yuki watched his every move with a quickening breath. When Yuki took a step back, hitting the counter next to the oven, Ren bit his lower lip.

The bottomless eyes closed as a sigh left those tempting lips. “It must be that ridiculously handsome face of yours. It's taunting.”

Ren's stomach fluttered with endless pleasure. He stopped half a meter from Yuki, yearning for something he couldn't quite name. “You think I'm handsome?”

Yuki was quiet for a moment, taking in a long, deep breath. When he opened his eyes, he stared directly into Ren's.

“Honestly?”