#also hes a good cook. keep him close just in case hiyori | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

animegirl431 · 5 years

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Trifiesta June 14th (2019)- Home/ Family

Arms full of shopping bags, Yokozawa looked down at the still energetic fifteen years old girl. A beaming smile stretched across her face as she scanned the mall for her next target. The teens light brown hair had been carefully put in a pony tail using the worn out pink scrunchie that Yokozawa gave her shortly after they first met. When Yokozawa suggested to Hiyori that the scrunchie has fulfilled its role as a hair accessory and should be thrown out, Hiyori determinedly held the scrunchie out to him.

“I’ll take that as a no,” Yokozawa had said taking the scrunchie out of the teen’s hand.

Nodding her head in confirmation, Hiyori had turned around so Yokozawa could fix her hair. Closing her eyes, she enjoyed the feel of the his gentle fingers moving with utmost care to make sure that he didn’t hurt her. While Hiyori typically said all that was on her mind, she held back from telling Yokozawa that she imagined this is what it would be like if he mother was still around.

A lot of what Yokozawa did made her feel as if she had a mother around. Yokozawa had that certain nurturing personality that she associated with mothers. He put in extra effort into helping Hiyori with everything she asked of him which reminded her of how her friends’ mothers acted. In addition, her father had continued to teasingly address the salesman as a mother never failing to elicit a blush from Yokozawa.

She found it secretly adorable how Yokozawa got all flustered. Though Hiyori made sure to defend Yokozawa when her father started going to far. This interaction brought amusement to her as it showed how close a relationship the two men had. Lately, something had changed. Hiyori didn’t know when it started, but watching this common display had left a strange ache in her heart. However, she couldn’t quite place what exactly the cause of it was.

Ignoring the mysterious ache, Hiyori focused back on listening to the multiple apologies and the repeated asking of if she was alright whenever the dark haired man assumed he had been to rough. She smiled at this cute side of the man that people missed out on due to being thrown off by his intimidating mien.

Hiyori made sure to deny being hurt each time. She could her relief in his voice each time he said to make she spoke up if he did or told her okay just making sure. It didn’t take long for him to complete the task as the salesman had plenty of experience.

“All done,” Yokozawa had announced when Hiyori had not moved for five minutes after he finished styling her hair.

“Okay,” Hiyori responded, spinning around to check how it looked in the hand mirror Yokozawa was holding.

“All good?” Yokozawa had asked, prepared to do it all over if she wasn’t satisfied with how her hair turned out.

“Yep it’s great. Thank you, Onii-chan,” Hiyori said throwing her arms around him in a hug.

To his credit, Yokozawa only slightly flinched at the action. He would never fully get used to how affectionate the Kirishimas were. Pulling away, the brown haired teen reached up the run her fingers over the pink scrunchie. This simple hair accessory had been around for a lot of events of her life. More importantly, it had been given to her by someone who irreplaceably important to her.

In someway this scrunchie became a symbol of their friendship and a connection between the two in Hiyori’s eyes. Getting rid of it almost felt like breaking an unspoken promise that they would continue to be a part of each other’s life. It is an extremely childish way to view it, she knew, but when she placed that significance to it there was no way she could toss it out.

“I’m sorry if I upset you,” Yokozawa had apologized sincerely.

“No, it’s okay. You are right. This scrunchie should have been tossed in the trash a long time ago,” Hiyori said dismissing his apology. “It’s probably stupid to keep it at this point, but it’s special to me.”

Ruffling her hair gently, Yokozawa smiled softly as he was able to relate to wanting to hold on to the important things in life. “In that case, I look forward using this scrunchie in the future.”

Spacing out, Yokozawa heard his name being called. Glancing around the mall, he noticed Hiyori standing there concern shining in her brown eyes. He must have been distracted for longer than he thought. The teen stood there examining him worried that she might have missed signs that he needed a break. From previous experiences, she knew Yokozawa would follow her lead even if he got overly exhausted.

“Do you want to go rest for a little?” Hiyori asks, guilty that she had let the thrill of going to the mall with Yokozawa make her ignorant to the state of her companion.

“I’m fine,” Yokozawa responds dismissing her offer. “Where to next?”

Observing Yokozawa for a few seconds, Hiyori decides to believe him. Although she made a note in the back of her mind to pay more attention to him. She wanted to both of them to enjoy the time spent together. Even though she is sure that Yokozawa has grown to hate going to anywhere that Hiyori could buy clothes from. Hiyori liked to look cute, so she could easily spend hours finding all the items required to make coordinated outfits.

Yokozawa is too polite to actually tell her this. It’s one of the things that she both loved about him and caused her to worry. People could easily take advantage of this trait of his. Of course, Hiyori had no intention of this happening as Yokozawa didn’t deserve to have people trample over him and his nurturing personality. She took pride in her self assigned role of being his protector.

Amused at the thought of how flustered Yokozawa would be if he found out about this, Hiyori held back laughter as she replies, “You choose where we go next.”

“Me? This trip is a way to for me to spoil you. I don’t have anywhere...,” Yokozawa said, until he saw the sweet girl’s lips form a pout as her face displayed the tell tale signs of disappointment.

“At least pick one shop to go to. For me,” Hiyori pleaded, while Yokozawa instantly recognized this behavior as being similar to what he would expect from her father.

Yokozawa felt conflicted between being impressed that she had learned an efficient way to get her way and wanting to yell at Kirishima for corrupting their innocent daughter. Silently, Yokozawa prepared a lecture to give his lover for teaching Hiyori to be manipulative. Of course, this little assault tactic wasn’t any less effective when Hiyori did it than when Kirishima did.

Giving in, Yokozawa scanned the area. Also, he searched his brain for anything he might need. Nothing came to mind. There was honestly nowhere he wanted to go. It occurred to him that to do something immature like to close his eyes and randomly point to a store. If not for Hiyori watching him, Yokozawa might have actually performed that action.

Suddenly, an idea come to him. It had been inspired by looking at Hiyori and recalling his conversation while helping put Hiyori’s hair up earlier today. Going over to a map, Yokozawa searched under the section of stores relating to beauty and hair supplies. Sliding his finger down the list, he stopped as one store stood out. Walking back towards Hiyori, Yokozawa bowed respectfully as one might expect a servant of royalty to do.

Offering an arm, Yokozawa requests, “Would you do me the honor of allowing me to guide you to our next destination, princess?”

Giggling, Hiyori composed herself and did her best to imitate the princesses she has seen in movies or read about in books. Placing her hand on his arm, Hiyori replies, “I grant you permission to do so.”

Both of them laugh unable to hold a straight face. Moments like these made hanging out with Yokozawa so fun. She always looked forward to their next adventure. Hiyori wondered when it was that she had started expecting Yokozawa to be there by her side no matter what. And when it was that saying goodbye when chose to go back to his apartment for the night had become so painful.

Yokozawa had fit into their home like the missing puzzle piece required to bring the color and sound into their world they didn’t know they had lost. At this point Hiyori couldn’t imagine not having him in her life. Yet, there was always that thought that someone could catch Yokozawa’s interest. That someone would cause the salesman to fall in love. That someone would steal Yokozawa from them.

Frowning at this, Hiyori couldn’t distinguish what the different unpleasant feelings that bubbled up inside her were. What Hiyori was sure of is that she didn’t want to share Yokozawa with anyone. She rejected the idea of Yokozawa showing his special smile to anyone else, of Yokozawa cooking with anyone else, and most importantly of Yokozawa giving his attention to anyone else.

It was selfish and maybe even cruel to desire that Yokozawa only focus on her father and herself. Yet, Hiyori believed that they understood the salesman better than anyone else. That they could make him happy. That Yokozawa was the only one that would ever fill the hole that would be created

if he left them for somebody else. The three of them were a family. And she would never give that up without a fight.

Shaking her head, Hiyori tightens her grip on Yokozawa’s arm. Yokozawa who had been walking along, stopped worried at the tension in the girl’s face. It confused Yokozawa that her mood had shifted so unexpectedly. The care taker side of him brought up that she might not be feeling well. Yokozawa was well aware of how reluctant she could be to speak up when she assumed it would ruin the good time they were having.

Placing a hand on her forehead, Yokozawa found that she didn’t have the signature warmth that came with running a fever. The teen jolted at his touch and gazed at him. She forced herself to stay near him, even though she was ashamed the thoughts that had crossed her mind.

“Are you okay?” Yokozawa inquires worriedly his eyes meeting hers.

Forcing a smile, Hiyori nods. “I’m great! I have been spending the day with you. How could I not be okay?”

Yokozawa could tell that something was off, but he didn’t press her for further details. He trusted that Hiyori would confess what was bothering her when it was necessary. Returning a smile, Yokozawa continued on to the shop.

Arriving in front of the shop, Hiyori quirked an eyebrow at the beauty shop. Admittedly, this hadn’t even made the list of possible places Yokozawa would choose. At first Hiyori had thought he made a mistake, however the salesman made no move to leave or gave any indication that this shop wasn’t the right place.

“I told you to pick somewhere you wanted to go, not somewhere you think I would want to go,” Hiyori complained sounding annoyed, once again showing the familiar resemblance to her father.

“And I did. I have a special reason for picking this store. You will see,” Yokozawa vaguely explains heading inside.

Intrigued, Hiyori followed Yokozawa as he made his way over to the area that had all the hair products a person would ever need for exploring what style hair they want. Specifically, Yokozawa made his way over to the area that displayed an army of colorful hair ties, bandanas, and hair scrunchies. Her eyes were drawn to row of scrunchies in particular.

“You see something that you recognize?” Yokozawa asked, as the teen took a closer look. “This is the store I got your pink scrunchie from.”

“Really?” Hiyori chuckled, her cheerful nature coming back. “Most people aren’t able to remember where a gift comes from.”

“I probably wouldn’t have if you hadn’t taken such a liking to the scrunchie. However, when you started treating it as a precious item and using it nonstop for years, I figured that it would be important to know where the scrunchie came from, so I could get you a new one when it wore out,” Yokozawa explained, an amused smile on his face that turned a bit sheepish as he spoke further. “It’s late, but I hoped that it would be okay for me to get a new one.”

Yokozawa finished speaking relishing in the beaming, sweet smile that was turned his way. Honestly, he was a bit nervous that Hiyori might get mad at him for doing this. Her reaction said she felt the opposite which was a relief. She searched the countless scrunchies for less than a minute. Looking over her shoulder, she grinned at him.

“You have to be the one to pick one out,” Hiyori ordered, grabbing his arm to usher him forward.

“Huh? Wouldn’t it be better for you to get one that would match one of you outfits or something?” Yokozawa asks caught off guard. He was hyper aware of his lack distinction and knowledge when it came to what was fashionable or “in” trend wise when it came to clothes or accessories.

“No it has to be the one you choose,” Hiyori said, a blush on her face as she continues. “That’s what made this scrunchie so meaningful.”

Tenderly smiling at the endearing girl, Yokozawa felt loved and flattered when he heard the reasoning behind her holding onto the scrunchie. Searching thoroughly along the row of scrunchies, Yokozawa picked up a light blue one, a pink one, a red one with white polka dots, and a black one with white stripes.

“Are you planning to get all of those?” Hiyori asks looking at the small handful of scrunchies Yokozawa had.

“I am. This way you can switch them up and they will last longer,” Yokozawa reasoned and then grinned at her. “Also, I mentioned earlier didn’t I about how I planned to spoil you today.”

“Thank you,” Hiyori replies with bright eyes, enjoying the special treatment.

Yokozawa ruffles her hair. Hiyori blushes and pushes the hand away. She does her best to give him a displeased look at his action with her cheeks puffed out. Yokozawa found this to be cute as they both knew that Hiyori actually liked when he ruffles her hair. In her opinion, it seemed like something you did to show affection to a younger child, so Hiyori was embarrassed to admit that it was comforting to her.

“You two make such a charming father and daughter pair. I hope I can achieve that strong of a relationship with my daughter when she gets older,” a man comments holding a baby in his arms.

A silence ensues as Hiyori doesn’t meet Yokozawa’s eyes or release her normal giggle as is typical when they receive this type of commentary. The reason being that this time the words finally sunk into the brown haired girl’s mind. It had been a slap in the face as things finally fell into place. She finally understood why she had an ache in her heart. The fog that had prevented her from truly putting together what she desired had lifted.

It all made sense. The reason why she had felt an ache when comparing how Yokozawa acted to a mother’s, why she panicked when people mentioned how she should get a new mother, why she disliked Yokozawa leaving to go to his apartment instead of staying the night and why she couldn’t stand the thought of Yokozawa treating someone else the way her father and herself were treated. The answer was so simple, yet it took four years for her to acknowledge this.

Hiyori didn’t want a new mother, she wanted a new father. She wanted Yokozawa to fill the role of being her dad. She wanted her father and Yokozawa be in love with each other. She wanted Yokozawa to step into the spot that had been left vacant after her mother had passed away. She wanted Yokozawa to be truly accepted and acknowledged as their family, as belonging to and with her father and herself.

Now the tricky part was how did she go about telling her father and Yokozawa about this. If she wasn’t careful she could end up destroying the perfectly stable and comfortable relationship they have developed. She wasn’t sure the best way to bring up the situation, but she did know that she was going to bring it up tonight. All Hiyori could do is hope everything worked out.

Blinking, Hiyori realized that Yokozawa had been staring at her. Nervous about what she had planned, Hiyori avoided looking Yokozawa in the eyes. Yokozawa frowned, for the second time that day Hiyori had been acting strange. Wariness made Yokozawa start to question whether it was the best idea to ignore these signs of something being wrong for much longer.

“Hey, I’m feeling tired. Can we go home?” Hiyori inquires in a soft voice.

Surprise flashed in Yokozawa’s eyes as she had been bursting with energy a short bit ago. Frowning, Yokozawa felt his anxiety and worry increase. The teen continued to evade his gaze as she shifted from foot to foot. While Yokozawa was originally going to wait for Hiyori to open up to him when she was ready, this he had definitely changed his mind. Her behavior concerned him and that warranted him questioning her when they got home.

“Okay. I will pay for these and then we can head back,” Yokozawa said, heading to the register.

As soon as he paid for the scrunchies, Yokozawa handed the bag to Hiyori. The teenage girl clutched the bag to her chest before walking ahead of him.

___________________

Entering the apartment, Yokozawa slipped off his shoes as did Hiyori. The pair walked down the hall towards Hiyori’s room. There was silence during the short travel. Both Yokozawa and Hiyori had different ideas on what they planned to have happen when they reached the room. Opening the door, Hiyori moved to the side to let Yokozawa in. The salesman put the bags of clothes and all sorts of jewelry they picked up from the mall on the floor near the closet.

Hiyori sat on the bed unable to freely speak due to the anxiety. The teen had already came to the decision that she should wait until her father got home to get what she needed to say off her chest. For now, she just wanted to be alone to prepare how to approach the important topic of their relationship dynamics.

“Hiyo,” Yokozawa began trying to inquire about what was bothering the teenage girl.

“I had a lot of fun today. Thanks for hanging out with me. I’m feeling worn out after all the shopping we did,” Hiyori interrupted while crumpling the bag containing the hair scrunchies. “Would it be okay if I laid down to rest?”

“Yes. Go ahead and rest up for as long as necessary. Call for me if need anything,” Yokozawa replies, disappointed and concerned at being cut off from talking to her.

“Of course. Talk to you in a few,” Hiyori said as she flopped on her side facing the wall.

Lips twitching, Yokozawa sighed as he closed the door softly behind him. Going to the living room, he pressed the power button on the television. The salesman sank into the couch. He was too worried about the Hiyori’s abnormal behavior to calm down. He racked his brain for anything he might have said or done to upset or offend her, but he couldn’t pin point anything.

Yokozawa really wished Kirishima was here. He was sure his handsome, smooth talking, lover would have been able to easily deal with Hiyori. They were partners in crime and amazing at reading each other. The father-daughter duo could tell when the other was feeling down or distracted by something even when to any outsider it appeared that Kirishima and Hiyori were fine.

Yokozawa worked hard to improve his skills on recognizing and interpreting the masks and little actions that father and daughter used when they were attempting to obscure their true feelings and opinions on subjects. Obviously, he still had a long way to go to reach their level of being able to read the two. So, it is frustrating when something like this happens where he gets shut out because he couldn’t read the signs of what had caused Hiyori to become distanced from him as she had.

Pulling out his phone, Yokozawa noticed that the time was 5 o’clock meaning that Kirishima wouldn’t be home for at least another hour or two. It occurred to Yokozawa that calling Kirishima would help alleviate some of the stress that built over Hiyori and his travel back to the apartment. Also, it might quiet the nagging voice in his head that demanded he be more authoritative with the teenage girl and tell her that they needed to talk.

Refusing to be a burden to his lover, Yokozawa dismissed the tempting idea. It would be bad to distract Kirishima at work over what could be Yokozawa overthinking things. Blankly, Yokozawa stares at the television screen hoping that Kirishima would be done sooner rather than later.

Two hours passed, before his lover returned from work. The light brown haired man drops his work items on the floor. He had been jealous that he got called in to work while Yokozawa and Hiyori got to spend have a fun filled day together. Kirishima figures that tomorrow all three of them could go to the park and have a picnic or go to the aquarium.

Honestly, Kirishima could care less about where they went, he just wanted to be around the two people that his world revolves around. In a jolly mood, Kirishima went to go playfully tell Yokozawa and Hiyori about how they better get some rest tonight because they were going to have a busy day entertaining him starting early in the morning the next day. The editor figured he would find the two out in the living room watching a movie.

He was mildly shocked to only see Yokozawa slumped on the couch. His lover looked tense and exhausted. Not at all the attitude he expected to see. Frowning, Kirishima stepped in front of Yokozawa’s sight. Gray eyes blinked rapidly as Yokozawa sat up straighter.

“When did you...welcome back,” Yokozawa said running a hand thru his hair.

Skipping the greetings, Kirishima went over to his distressed looking partner. “What’s wrong?”

Flinching, Yokozawa gave a bitter smile. “I don’t know. The day started off great. Then, Hiyo grew a bit distant. And when we got back she chose to avoid me by telling me she needed to rest. I have gone over all the details of the day, but I can’t figure out what I did that made her close herself off from me.”

Placing his arm behind Yokozawa, Kirishima rubbed circles in his back to soothe his lover. Yokozawa leaned against Kirishima’s shoulder, allowing himself to calm down and to break up the whirling thoughts in his head. It was a bit disorienting how all it took was Kirishima being near him to make him feel like everything would be okay. Kirishima places a kiss on his forehead giving a few minutes for his lover to destress.

“I’m okay,” Yokozawa breathes out, feeling foolish for being this worked up without having heard any of Hiyori’s side.

Removing his arm from Yokozawa’s back Kirishima takes in the sight of the tint of pink on Yokozawa’s indicating his embarrassment. Smiling, Yokozawa ruffles Yokozawa’s hair, pleased to see Yokozawa’s typically feisty reaction of swatting his hand away. The salesman sits up missing the warmth and smell that surrounded from being that close to his lover.

“How about we have a chat with our precious girl?” Kirishima says lacing his fingers with Yokozawa’s.

Nodding, Yokozawa has more confidence about investigating Hiyori’s strange behavior with Kirishima by his side. He squeezes Kirishima’s hand as he says, “I’m ready.”

Reluctantly, Kirishima unlaced their fingers as yells, “Hiyo, come here!”

Hurrying down the hall, Hiyori half heartedly smiles at the the two men sitting on the couch. “Welcome back.”

“I’m back,” Kirishima says as he motions towards the chair. “Take a seat.”

Plopping down in the chair, Hiyori begins to uneasily twirl a strand of her hair. Folding her hands together to keep them from shaking, Hiyori takes a deep breath. It was ridiculous to be this unsettled when in front of her father and Yokozawa. They were the people she trusted to listen to her, to protect her, and to find solutions to any problems appeared.

It just goes to show how desperately she wanted this conversation to go over well. The logical part of her said that she was overthinking things. To take the leap and get off her chest everything she figured out. Another part of her kept rolling out all the possible ways this could go horribly awry. Squeezing her hands together, Hiyori gathers her courage.

“My angel, I came home assuming to you two out here being adorable as you the two of you are. So, it threw me off when I came home seeing Yokozawa having a mini break down due to panicking that he had upset you in some way. I figured that Yokozawa probably just read to much into things, but you are sitting here looking as stressed as Yokozawa was when he came home,” Kirishima spoke up having decided that they would get to the main issue faster this way.

Guilt crossed Hiyori’s face at hearing about Yokozawa’s state. The last thing she had been trying to do was cause the man to worry unnecessarily. However, when she recalled how she had acted it isn’t hard to see why he would be. Her lips twitched. She dipped her head as she bit her lip.

“Are you upset with Yokozawa? Did he offend you in some way? Do you need to speak to me privately?”

Yokozawa winced when Kirishima said this. While Yokozawa knew that Kirishima doubted that this was the reason behind Hiyori’s mood, it didn’t prevent him from feeling attacked by the implication of those words.Worse, it caused a sharp pain in him That’s he might actually confirm this. Hiyori might actually ask him to leave while they talked. He would though if that’s what the situation called for.

This got no reaction from the unusually quite girl. Kirishima tilted his head at Yokozawa and gave a him a look that said ‘sorry, but can you leave so I can take care of this.’ Nodding, the couch creaked as Yokozawa got up.

Clearing his throat, Yokozawa fought to hide the sadness he felt at having to be dismissed from the conversation. He never imagined that it would happen, but even more surprising is how it felt like a punch in a gut that made catching his breath difficult.

“I’m going to head back home. Call me when...if I can come back,” Yokozawa said his voice rough as there seemed to be a certain finality that would accompany him walking out the door.

His body seemed to weigh thousands of pounds. Taking even one step brought the possibility of shattering the salesman. Kirishima could see his lover slowly breaking. As much as he loved his daughter, he couldn’t do this. He couldn’t let Yokozawa leave like this. Kirishima prepared to reach out when Hiyori suddenly sprang into action.

Head whipping up, Hiyori’s eyes widened as she processed what he said. The only thing that her brain focused in on was that Yokozawa was going to leave. That he said he was going home. It irritated her to hear him use that word to describe his practically empty apartment with that word. She felt as if she had been insulted in the one of the worse possible ways.

Sinking to the floor, Hiyori wrapped her arms around Yokozawa’s legs. She had a strong hold that one wouldn’t have guessed such a delicate looking body would be capable of producing.Effectively, the girl had immobilized Yokozawa’s legs.

“No! You can’t leave! I don’t want you to!” Hiyori yelled causing both of the men to jolt.

Shocked, Yokozawa froze at the teenage girl’s action. Blinking, Yokozawa didn’t dare attempt to move his legs for fear that he would lose balance and end up crushing Hiyori. Glancing at Kirishima, Yokozawa could see the exact same shock along with concern reflected in his expression. The silent question of ‘where did this come from’ passed between the two men. Meanwhile, Hiyori had buried her head against Yokozawa’s leg shielding her face from them.

“Why do you go back there? Why do you have to leave?” A muffled sorrowful voice came from the the girl drawing both men’s attention.

“I don’t have to leave...I-I....,”Yokozawa began, stuttering as he switched gears to adapt to topic brought on following Hiyori’s outburst.

“Then you shouldn’t go. You should just live here. Stay here”

“Hiyo....it’s not a good idea.”

“Why? I don’t understand.”

Conflicted, Yokozawa debates on how best to answer this. All kinds of possible things to say came to mind. Hit occurred to him that Kirishima had been silent so far. When he shifted his eyes over to Kirishima, the man looked at him shaking his head. It made sense, after all Kirishima had wanted an answer to this same question for years. So, Yokozawa couldn’t count on Kirishima to take care of this. It was his responsibility.

“People wouldn’t be suspicious if I moved in,” Yokozawa weakly explained. “They might treat you cruelly if they...”

Faltering, Yokozawa didn’t finish the sentence out loud. He look down as he felt the brown haired girl’s head shift. She met his gaze those big, beautiful brown eyes shimmered due to unshed tears. Yokozawa had to close his eyes for a moment as he despised being the reason for Hiyori’s sadness. What Yokozawa missed in this few seconds was the recognition that lite those brown eyes at his words.

“If they found out you were dating my father,” Hiyori completes his sentence.

Yokozawa stared dumbfounded briefly. His instinct had been to blame Kirishima for telling her even though he had promised to wait until she was sixteen. However, a quick peek at his lover revealed that Kirishima had also been blindsided by this. Kirishima remained composed, however Yokozawa could tell that now the man was rest to step in to do damage control.

“Yeah,” Yokozawa quietly confirmed realizing that no lies would fool Hiyori as she wasn’t asking if they were dating she was stating that she knew.

Releasing her grip on Yokozawa’s legs, Hiyori stood up. Her face was blank. Yokozawa stiffened not sure what to expect. Anger, disappointment or maybe even disgust. His heart was thumping so loud that he wouldn’t be surprised if all of them could hear. The couch creaked as Kirishima moved closer towards the two. It may sound bad, but Yokozawa couldn’t entirely be sure that Kirishima would be on his side if Hiyori began to hate him. To be fair though Kirishima has had Hiyori in his life longer than Yokozawa. And she is his child.

Breathing out in relief, Hiyori glared at them accusingly. “You should have told me. It would have saved us from all the trouble and stress today!”

“What are you talking about?” Yokozawa asked as soon as he could get his mouth working.

“The reason that I had avoided you is because I was afraid that of how you would react when I brought up the fact that you two should date among other things,” Hiyori explained shaking her head. “As it would turn out you two already one or probably ten steps ahead of me.”

“Y-you were going to ask us to date?” Yokozawa stuttered out.

“Yes,” Hiyori said. “I was so worried that you would be against the idea. Most importantly, I was afraid we might lose our close relationship. I didn’t want you to hate me.”

Yokozawa felt as if he was talking to himself. Those were the exact thoughts that kept him from telling Hiyori about their relationship in the first place. Or well at least it was the main one. Yokozawa felt as if the biggest of the weights dragging him down had been lifted. Kirishima had been right as always: Hiyori didn’t have a bigoted bone her body.

It made him ashamed for ever believing this precious girl would ever turn on him. “It was the same for me. I didn’t want you to hate me. The thought terrified me.”

“Never! I would never hate you,” Hiyori firmly stated.

Yokozawa smiled at Hiyori who had a grin of her own. Kirishima watched with his own tender smile. Reaching forward Kirishima went to pat them both in the back, but ended up using to much force.

“Ow.” “Ouch.” Yokozawa and Hiyori groaned as they turned narrowed eyes to Kirishima.

Raising his hands, Kirishima quickly says, “My bad. To be honest though you both deserved that for being idiots.”

Both Yokozawa and Hiyori went to deny that. Instead, they exchanged a glance and ended up chuckling. It had been stupid of them to keep get so worked up over something they both knew in the deepest parts of their heart was never going to be an issue.A peaceful silence occurred as all three of them sat on the couch. Yet, Hiyori hadn’t finished saying all that she had on her mind. Turning towards the two men, their was an excited sparkle in her eyes.

“When are you moving in?” Hiyori questions.

“I can’t,”Yokozawa quietly refused again.

“Eh? How come?” Hiyori badgered bit about to let this go.

“If I move in with you people will get suspicious. It could make life difficult. I don’t want to do that to you two,” Yokozawa answers aware that his resolve to not live with them was slipping away.

“And?” Hiyori asks as if Yokozawa hadn’t replied at all. “Is that all you got?”

Flustered, Yokozawa grasped for something else to say. In his mind this had been all the reason he needed. It had been enough to fend Kirishima off from pushing to much. Yet, Hiyori didn’t appear to be phased at all.

“Go ahead. Let people say what they want. I’m not some delicate flower that is going to wither up just because some people get off on putting other people down. As long as the three of us have each other’s backs we can handle anything,” Hiyori challenged, her hands balled into fists.

“I second this notion,” Kirishima pitches in, approval in his voice and eyes.

When faced with their confidence, Yokozawa has no choice but to be swept along in their pace. Although this time is a bit different. Instead of being dragged along by their pace Yokozawa finds himself wanting to dive in head first. All his insecurities and doubts be damned! There was still a bit of hesitation though that made him remain quiet.

Hiyori grabbed Yokozawa’s hand. “Many people have told or asked my father and me about having a new mother. And it always made me feel uneasy or angry. Some part of me never wanted another person be a part of the life my father and I had.”

Yokozawa had his full attention in the adorable girl. Kirishima also had a rare intensity in the way he watched his daughter and had his complete focus on her. Both of them were curious about where this was going to go. Hiyori squeezes Yokozawa’s hand and smiles so sweetly and lovingly.

“At least until you came around Yokozawa. You were always like a parent to me. And it took me way to long to realize this, but I do want a new parent in my life. Not a mother, but a father, more specifically you as my father as well,” Hiyori said, exhilarated to be able to put all the pieces together at last.

“Are you absolutely sure you are okay with me?” Yokozawa blurted out showing his lack of confidence and insecurities. “Do I deserve to take the place beside your father as his partner and fill the place a mother should be?”

“It has to be you. Only you,” Hiyori confirmed, making Yokozawa’s lips twitch in amusement at words he had been told before by her father.

“You are our family and it’s time for you to come to where you belong. Come home,” Kirishima and Hiyori said in unison with their typical cheery smiles. Both of them held out their hands. Their faces fully expressing the love they had for Yokozawa.

Yokozawa’s heart swelled. If he was being honest, he couldn’t dispel the feeling of beings a stranger here. Even though he practically came over everyday. It had been five years and that feeling had followed him for all that time. Now he was truly family. And now he truly belonged their.

Grabbing their hands, Yokozawa was pulled into a hug. And from the bottom of his heart, truly and sincerely, Yokozawa could say, “I’m home.”

@trifiesta

#trifiesta #yokozawa takafumi #kirishima zen #kirishima x yokozawa #hiyori #fluff #home #family #miscommunication #belonging #day 3

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oneofyatosfollowers · 4 years

Text

One of a Kind- chapter 4

Fanfiction: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13360973/1/One-of-a-Kind

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20191861/chapters/47843311

After their movie night, hiding from the dust storm, Hiyori woke up on the mattress. She was tucked in neatly and completely reeked of sweat. After being throughly disgusted, she noticed a very old cup of instant noodles, luke warm, and a half full water bottle. Along with a dirty note paper on the covers. Her screen translated the neat handwriting. The note read:

"Good morning Hiyori Iki!

I went out to work for the day and will try to be back before sunset. I know you need to eat so I cooked you some good-old-fashioned Earth food! (Hope you don't mind I got the water from your trunk of yummies and had some). I also brought over your pod thingy, in case you were still sleepy from our time last night ;)

See you for dinner!

-Yato"

Hiyori's face burned at the last sentence, causing her to crumple up the note and shove it in her pocket. She'll force him to compact it later. After trying the noodles and gagging, Hiyori made her way out the open door, seeing that he did in fact bring her pod over. She didn't even want to know how he found it, especially after she thought she hid it, but there it hovered. The Eve just sighed, ordering her boots to take off. If Yato was going to go to work, then so would she.

Miles into the city, Yato found himself at the old dump working the giant compactor. The fridge he found the plant in, now being crushed into a much larger cube, mingled with old cars. As he pushed buttons and pulled levers, the air moved again, this time with the soft engines of flight-boots.

"Yato!" Hiyori screeched. Yato kicked the control pad and let the chair spin him around.

"Yes?"

"Yato, I told you to stop taking stuff out of my food supply! It's not for you!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"You leave dirty finger prints all over the container!"

Yato crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. He had gotten better at faking nonchalance.

"And how do you know those are mine?"

"You're the only other person on this planet!"

"Besides you."

"I wear gloves!"

Hiyori wiggled her covered fingers, still perfectly white. They stared at each other again, one cool and collected, the other heaving though a flushed face. Yato stood up and dusted off his pants.

"Well then, I guess we've reached an impasse." He did a double take at the stance Hiyori shifted into. The 'Eve Battle Stance'. It was a sign that he was going to meet pain, usually curtsy of being kicked or bent like a pretzel.

"Wait. Wait, Hiyori. Let's talk about this. I offered to share my earth food but you said-" Yato yelped as a boot came wizzing by his nose. Yato's self defense training had all been self taught. Or by a little something called experience. He evaded her more dangerous techniques, the ones that had him kissing dirt, before he misstepped.

Normally, his miscalculations would have him bruised for a couple hours. But this time her steel toe met his chin, hard, and he heard a crack. Not the crack of bone, most of his skeleton was some sort of metal, but the crack of an electronic. Yato stumbled back clutching under his chin, feeling static crackle along his finger tips. His speaker was busted.

"Ha! I gotcha! Maybe next time you'll know not to- hey are you okay? Oh my stars, I broke your face!" Hiyori came closer and tried to bring Yato to look her without touching him.

"You didn't 'break my face', I'm still just as handsome." Yato's voice came out breathy, air gurgling in his mouth. She had cracked the dust cap and pulled at some skin that surrounded it. His systems tried to alert him of the problem, but the speaker could only crackle in response.

"I'm sorry. I have to go back." Yato shuffled around Hiyori.

"Wait! Let me take you!" Hiyori followed after the Wall-E. He stopped to give her a questioning look, holding his bottom jaw so no dirt would get in his mouth.

"Huh? What are you doing?" Yato asked. He looked down at his feet, where Hiyori had crouched facing away.

"Just get on my back I'll carry you. It will be much faster." Hiyori looked over her shoulder with hard eyes. Yato supposed there was no room for arguing, he meekly mentioned he was rather heavy, but she brushed him off. As they flew through the air at a slower than normal speed, Yato remembered this was the second time he got to wrap his arms around her.

It ended all too soon once Hiyori made a clumsy landing in front of the semi-trailer. Yato got off with a quick thank you before making his way to the shelves. Hiyori followed after him, mumbling something over his system's alerts. His eyes scanned for the extra parts scavenged over the years. Finally the rows of extra pointer-fingers, wires, motherboards, and of course speakers.

He assured the worrying girl he would be fine, but it was important to seal his mouth and skin from the dirt that laced the air. Hiyori kept closer in fascination, watching him click the speaker out of the circular indent. He took the new one and plugged in the wire first, then clicked it into place.

"See! I keep all of my backup stuff here! Pretty much everything I need, and it all just clicks into place!" Yato showed off, letting the shelves roll through once.

"Yato. What is that." Hiyori's voice cut through the air with the same authority as when she first arrived.

"I told you, it's extra parts. Just got to pop this one out, put in the new one, then pop this one in-"

"No. Not that. That on the shelf above."

Yato looked up at the lone object.

"Oh. That's a plant. You want see it?" He didn't wait for a response, wrapping his fingers carefully around the glass bottle, and plucked it off the shelf. He had made a little area for it, equipped with a light and some water bottles he snatched from the food pod. Hiyori's wide glassy eyes didn't leave it's green leafs. Yato thought her sudden aura was strange, but pressed the bottle to her outstretched hands.

"Wha-hey!" Yato was yanked forward by Hiyori when she ripped the plant from his grasp.

"This is!" Hiyori finally gasped in air. Even before her scanner met the object in question, Yato figured what she meant. He felt time stop, his heart beating itself over and over, wondering where all his blood went.

Proving his suspicions, a new sound made itself known. A happy chime sounded from Hiyori's helmet, signaling the object she was looking for has been found. Yato's mouth worked uselessly. He reached a shaking hand out, for what or why, he didn't know. The trash-collector's hand jerked back when the pretty young woman cheered with joy.

"This is it! This is proof! Oh, oh my stars! I did it! I found it! I'll be the first Eve to bring back- oh geez- I can't, I can't even, I don't even know-" her words jumbled together and her eyes became moist. The plant kept getting jostled back and forth as her hands alternated to touch parts of her helmet. Suddenly, the young woman whipped her head to face him.

"I have to get this back to the ship!" This time Hiyori was the one to come excitedly close to Yato, who took a step back. She turned on her toes, loose hair fluttering behind her, casting shadows across Yato's eyes. Hiyori stepped lively down the ramp, clicking the hidden buttons on her hip to unlock the pod. At the foot end, a large circle with a leaf symbol sat.

"Hiyori, wait." Yato stepped down the ramp after her, face desperate. Paused when the symbol glowed green and the circle opened. It was a smaller pod, a rounded drawer that held the bottle- and all it's contents- suspended in air. Hiyori pushed it in, stilling with her palms against he flat surface. Yato made his way behind her.

"Hiyori?"

The Eve cheered again. When she turned to face Yato, her dark eyes shined like stars, some of them slipping down her cheeks when she blinked. He couldn't think about it too long, because she leaped onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck. This wasn't a fight-move. This was happiness. Happiness through human contact. When did it become so foreign?

"I did it! We did it! Yato! I'll be the first Eve to find and bring back a living native of Earth! This is amazing! I'm so happy! My brother, my mother, and dad! They'll be so shocked, and proud, and, and happy." She leaned back and held the Wall-E's face in her hands. His electric-blue eyes wide and flickering, heat trailing after her fingers, she thanked him from the bottom of her heart.

"I really couldn't have done it without you. Really. And I'm sorry if I was mean to you." Hiyori said.

Yato was pulled in for a second hug. He tried to work his mouth and vocal cords again. Does this make them friends now? Would she come back? Would humanity? Her eyes were erasers, what's on his mind disappears when he looks into them, leaving only her. His sensors notified him she was speaking.

"You got it? The signal won't send to the ship until it knows I'm safely asleep inside and locked. So I have to go in there and you can't touch it! You won't be able to get me out, the trip won't be long so I'll be fine. I'll be sleeping but I won't wake up till someone puts in the code and opens it." Hiyori explained. Like she was talking to a child about a dead goldfish. She was trying to placate him. Something old and buried roared from deep in his chest. It dug it's nails into his shoulders and hissed in his ear. With empty eyes, the Wall-E smiled all the same.

"Sure Hiyori, I got it. Don't worry, the ship will pick you and the plant up, safe and sound."

She seemed to glow just as she did when she first stepped off the ship. But instead of it being because of flashing lights and fancy suits, it was an all natural warmth. The Eve nodded and let her arms fall off him. She practically skipped away, taking her warmth with her. With the pod open and waiting, Hiyori Iki turned and gave him one final 'You'll be just fine' nod, before stepping in.

Yato watched from where he was, the curved glass smoothly sliding into place, locking with a light clunk. The air hissed inside as white clouds filled the container. They cleared quickly, reveling a sound asleep Hiyori. He stared at her for a little while longer before he came to a decision. His own decision, one that was what he wanted to do. The cyborg glanced at Hiyori once more time, his solemn expression reflecting back at him.

Hiyori's ship arrived the very next day around noon. Yato was working not too far from the trailer. He had been staring at a poorly-pressed cube for an hour, numb. Like before, the sky trembled and the sun roared. Even though he had prepped himself, over and over, he practically leaped out of his skin. The fire from the exhaust gleamed off of Yato's blue eyes like the sun did against the blue sky in history books. He dropped the trash cube he was holding and whipped around to face Nora. The cockroach faced him too. Her antennas drooped as she let out a low whine.

"I have to go," Yato announced, "I'm sorry."

Without a second thought, the Wall-E turned and ran. He crossed the Earth with clunky speed, jumping over piles and squares of the leftovers of humans. Left behind him, Nora sat perfectly still, watching her only friend run far away.

The silver exterior was completely in view. Even with it's massive size it fell at an alarming rate. Yato gasped in air as his heart kicked into high gear. The ship reached out a giant claw and secured it around the pod. Yato was grateful he left her on the roof to better see her, but he wasn't running nearly as fast as he needed too.

"Hiyori!" Yato called out and reached out his hand. Why didn't he stay closer? He assumed because it hadn't come in the middle of the night- or this morning- he had more time. He had gotten comfortable and strayed farther away. Now, Hiyori was almost in the ship. Yato felt the burning heat on his face, his feet brought him just past the random semi-trailers. The ship began to whirl as the robotic arms did a final scan of the occupant. Once the system observed she, and the plant, were safely inside, it's massive doors slid shut. The pure white clouds that cooled the mechanics filled the small space

The inside was hot at first but quickly and unnaturally cooled down. Sunlight from a round window level with Hiyori's face illuminated the complicated insides. Specks of colored lights from different buttons and panels blinked and flickered before takeoff. Hiyori's pod was locked into the small chamber, almost embedded in the wall. One of many, Eves of all shapes and sizes were lined up horizontally. But she was placed on the very bottom, the end of the vertical row.

The chamber the Wall-E now found himself in rumbled furoisusly. His hands had to slam on the walls to keep steady as they left the atmosphere, crashing through the smog and garbage that surrounded the planet. The temperature then dropped and Yato's internal heater had kicked in, but he barley noticed as he floated there gently. How long has it been since he'd seen the stars?The sky had been covered for so long. Perhaps in books? His father had said he was named after something with the stars.

Space was beautiful. As the ship passed the local sun- bright and untinted- he charged up faster than any Wall-E ever. It felt like they weren't moving at all, drifting past stars and entire galaxies. As Yato gazed through the glass- the blue and white crystals of Satarn's rings swirled by- he thought about how Hiyori saw this every day. All of mankind knew every star out the window like he knew every empty can. If he had gone with them, he knew he would never get bored.

Time didn't matter in the empty vastness the ship flew through. Yato was glued to the window for what could have been three hours or three years. But the rocket had a destination in mind, and so did he. From somewhere inside, Yato heard a rapid beeping. The mother-ship was in sight.

Heaven's Sun sat anchored just up ahead; at the very edge of the remains of a dead star. It seemed much larger than the ports it took off from on Earth, easily capable of encasing every occupant of Tokyo. But no, he didn't need Hiyori to tell him that this ship only held the elite. Yato swalled thickly, the graceful letters of the ship's name looming into view of the window.

He frantically looked around for a hiding spot. The LED lights of the indoor terminal blinding him, as the ship made it's way into the massive interior side port. Yato felt the ship turn and smaller tug-spaceships pushed the carrier inside. He hid as massive holders emerged from the floor and held the Eve transport ship in place. Someone shut off the gravity and Yato fell from his hiding spot.

His groan blended in with the sirens of the outside room. The transport ship's doors opened and light flooded in. Yato squinted as the row of Eves was unlocked, and slid out the ship with ease. Yato squeaked and scrambled to the door, peaking around the corner. He ordered his eyes to scan for any sign of cyborgs or humans. When there were none, he took a couple steps back, then threw his body out of the ship.

Yato's hands caught the edge of a suspended bridge that stood a couple meters away from the door. His feet dangled over the hard floor that was at least three stories below, if his system's calculations were anything to go by. The Wall-E heaved himself onto the bridge just as the Eve pod holder glided to a stop on the other side.

"Hiyori," Yato gasped. His finger tips touched the glass that separated them. The room focused on cleaning the ship behind him, while Yato worked to unlock her. Suddenly, the massive holder lurched to the side. He clung to Hiyori's pod like a starfish as they whizzed towards the back wall. The back of the carrier connected to a thick white line that stretched from the ceiling to the floor, and then dropped the three meters.

Light-up lines seemed to be the theme of the ship. They weaved around the room in precise and simple patterns. Most of them leading from doors to different parts of the ship. Yato jumped off his ride once it slowed down. The pods followed one of the paths to an empty section of the terminal. It halted under a hovering lamp. Within this massive rectangle, one blue light bulb shone over each sleeping Eve like a spot light. Another mechanic claw came to remove each pod from the holder, leaving them hovering under their lights. The holder was then sent careening down the line, out of sight.

Yato stood awkwardly on the end, right of Hiyori. His brown wearalls stood out against the blacks and whites of the room. He twisted his fingers and glanced from Hiyori to different parts of the room. Behind them, off to the left, a door slid open and a floor line lit up, webbing out to in front of each pod. Yato hid as best his could, deciding to crouch behind the hovering pod that Hiyori slept in. The Wall-E began to panic, frantically looking for a better hiding spot, when three cyborgs stepped down the line.

Something stopped him at the sight of the other cyborgs. They were cleaners. Workers that gave up their humanity for the betterment of all. Or had it stripped from them but Hiyori had described a more advanced, safe, human society. So perhaps it wasn't painful anymore. He also noticed none of them had any sort of oxygen ventilation, so Yato pocketed his.

The leader, the smallest of the three, was a blonde with the appearance of being in his early teens. He carried what looked to be one of those long paint rollers, but the actual rolling part was a strange material. Behind him was a brown-haired girl with a scar over her eye, carrying a bottle of polish. Following them was a stocky boy, with black hair and a vacuum cleaner.

The blonde lead them to the end of the line and started cleaning the first pod. He gazed down at his roller and it began spinning. He then made quick work, dragging it up and down the length of the entire pod. His eyes were unfocused as he moved to the next one, looking it up and down. The cleaner's scanner must have told him something, causing him to skip it and move to the next one. The other cleaners didn't do the same, working one after the other.

Once the blonde finished with Hiyori's, having spent the most amount of time on her, he stopped. Yato stood straight with his arms at his side just like in training. He met the kid's utterly bewildered expression with a blank face. The younger's mouth working uselessly as he openly stared from less than a foot away. This close, Yato could see the kid had amber eyes and a round pale face. They still labeled the workers on their uniform, but no longer sewed on the names. Apparently, this type of cleaner was called a 'Mo'.

"Hey Mo? Where'd that bastard run off too?" The girl further down the line called.

The two other cleaners finished with Hiyori's pod then continued their way down the line. Standing with his back to the pod, Yato huffed as the blonde Mo struggled in his grip. The Mo tried to curse at the Wall-E but the older's sweaty palm was clamped on tight. The kid's shoe scuffed the floor and Yato picked him up more, grunting when he was repeatedly kicked in the shins. Once the coast was clear, Yato dropped the kid like a hot potato. These cleaners must not get training, cause the kid fell flat on his rump.

"Ugh! Blegh! What the- ew- what's on your hand?" The boy trailed off as he looked Yato up and down with eyes glossed over. The Wall-E waited patiently for him to be scanned, the cleaner's system most likely to identify him as-

"Stars! You're disgusting!" Without a thought the roller was switched on and spinning along his torso. Yato barked out a laugh and hopped back a step.

"Stop, that tickles!" Yato snickered. The Mo looked far less amused, taking a step after him, further from the line.

"Hold still, Yato." The roller was on his hip before the brat could even sneer out the Wall-E's name. Yato rolled his eyes and stuck out his shoe, his nose playfully in the air. The Mo's tool was jabbed into his rips and grinded up and down. Yato laughed and danced around the kid, using Hiyori's pod as a hiding spot as the roller angrily scrubbed his foot prints off the shiny black floor.

"Now. Stay right there till the next Mo is on duty. I'll get in trouble if the floor has your tacky boot marks." The kid tapped the floor with his roller. His eyes narrowed suspiciously as Yato looked blankly at the clean floor, then back at him. The Wall-E grinned like he was about to steal Christmas.

"What. Why are you looking at me like that? What ever your thinking." His amber eyes followed the slow, deliberate movement of Yato's hand. Yato let his palm hover in front of his face, both off to the side so the kid can watch his tongue drag from the bottom of his hand up to his finger tips. It was too easy. The Mo's eyes followed with great revulsion when Yato moved his hand to the side. He couldn't see Yato's smile widen, before the hand suddenly got bigger. The man's drool and dirt covered palm met the boy's face with an wet slap.

The Wall-E howled in laughter as the Mo used his roller on high speed to scrub his face raw. Yato's hand had totally covered the kid's face from top to bottom. Said kid let out a string of foreign words, but the context made Yato laughed harder, he stored them away for later. The Wall-E's cheeks twindged from the strain, having not used to the muscles in so long.

Yato felt a pole whack his heels and he was suddenly on the ground. When he turned to glare, the clean-faced Mo feigned a look of innocence. The blonde twirled his roller and tapping the end on the ground with a smug smile. Yato smirked as the kid rubbed his nails against his breast pocket. The Wall-E's blue eyes stayed on the pocket as the kid blew air across his fingers. In retaliation, Yato stood and smeared the dirt from his fall around. The kid practically roared, shoving Yato back behind towards the line to clean.

"I don't see your name on your uniform." Yato said. The pole stopped moving.

"Wow. You must be all sorts of genius." The brat continued cleaning.

"What is it?"

"Does it matter?"

"Why would it?" The Wall-E asked. Yato's eyes widened when the short cyborg gave a nasty look from under his brow. Something in Yato's heart squeezed, just under the stitching of his own name. The kid gave him a malicious, deprived smile.

"It was taken away with my humanity, that's how it works for low level workers. When he gave me these robotic parts he erased my memories, including my name." The Mo spat at the floor. The word 'he' echoed in the very essence of Yato's being. It surely couldn't be. What were the chances? But here Yato stood, looking in a mirror that reflected the past. Something else clawed at his thoughts. His sensors-still on the look out for beating hearts- caught three across the room.

The Mo caught on and immediately looked towards his door. Yato quickly followed, and saw two cyborgs in the same black military uniform. They followed behind a man in a white pancho, looking all around bored. They moved quickly down the line, a woman with long brown hair in second, being followed by a light-haired man with a beard. The floor-line lit up again and connect to where the cleaners were standing.

"Wait no! Not again! mff-!" Despite his best efforts, the Mo's pleas were silenced by a sweaty hand over his mouth. He didn't fight as much, even when Yato picked him up and dashed behind the pile of food crates to their right. The three newcomers approached the first pod. The man in the poncho and beads opened the first pod and examined the unconscious Eve. The woman wrote whatever he said on the clip board while the other uniform man handed back and forth medical supplies.

"If they catch you with me, you'll get in major trouble." The end of Yato's sentence tilted up as a question. After his palm vibrated with the kid's growl, the Mo nodded. Yato's hand slipped off the blonde's face. The smaller cleaner gagged and scrubbed his face with a rag. Peaking over the crates, Yato saw the other cyborgs had two more pods before Hiyori.

"Heaven's stars you are beyond discussing, what the hell is even on you-"

"-Do you want one?" Yato hurriedly interrupted. Speaking in a whisper.

"A new face? Yeah cause I'm gonna burn this one."

"A name."

The boy stilled, his mouth finally clamping shut. The Mo swallowed thickly. He didn't say anything. No snide remark or teenage bite. No nasty snarl or disgusted look. The kid was still while Yato kept frantically looking over their protection, then ducking to look at the kid's face. Hiyori was being inspected now. First her vitals and any report of injury.

"I suppose you want to give me one? I'm not a pet you know. I'm a cyborg." The Mo's voice shook when he emphasized his state of being.

"Another Wall-E once told me how important names are. Especially to cyborgs."

The leader was now much closer. He had long grey hair that matched his poncho and tanned skin. His indigo bug-eyes scanned Hiyori lazily, but his lips quirked up. Already the Wall-E hated him. Yato looked him up and down, zooming in his vision. The bottom edge of his poncho having the word 'Go-4' stitched in black. Luckily, he moved down to let the woman fiddle with the pod. Yato looked closely at the white stitching on hers and the bearded man's uniform. Apparently they were 'Secur-T'.

"You can't name me. Only higher ups and humans can name cyborgs that answer to them. Besides you're not my- we're not family. " Yukine grounded out past clenched teeth.

"We could be." Yato rushed out in response.

The woman Secur-T was checking Hiyori's capsule. The Wall-E subconsiously hugged the child closer. He didn't need to look to know what she was checking for.

"Sir," the woman called for the Go-4, "Sir, this Eve returned positive."

The bearded Secur-T came to take a closer look, and confirmed it. The Go-4 gave a shocked expression before rapidly tapping the keypad on his forearm. Yato and the Mo let out a curse when the terminal blared out sirens, the entire area becoming enveloped in green lighting.

"What's happening?" Yato hissed.

"I don't know!" The boy crouched lower, looking around in awe and confusion.

The Go-4 and Secur-Ts moved further down the line, a transport vehicle following them. From the back of the cart, another robot claw unfolded itself, moving towards Hiyori's closed pod. Despite the Wall-E's pounding heart and itch to latch onto Hiyori's container, the young man looked down at the teen still crouched under his arm.

This Mo was small but definitely a force to be reckoned with. His presence was quiet until you noticed him, in which case he was something to behold. Even if their situations were the same- but Yato was probably just projecting- this cleaner wasn't nearly as dark as Yato was. He was just had a small bite. Just a little frosty.

"Hey, if we don't move soon they're going to see us." The kid said with a half-hearted glare. This description sounded similar to something his father had told him. A type of weather he had found in a book, something his father hadn't seen in years. But he would need a family character. Yato could only think of one.

Well, at the very least, this kid has her spunk.

"I'm adopting you." Yato announced, finally moving off the blonde.

"Wha-What? You can't just-!"

"We're family, and you're my kid now." Yato said with one hand on his hip, the other tossling the kid's blonde hair. The three other cyborgs were mounting the floating vehicle that now had Hiyori's pod latched on it's back.

"I have to go after her but I'll come back and find you." Yato stared intently in the Mo's eyes as he made this promise. He finally stood up from their hiding spot and waited a couple seconds as the vehicle lurched down the white line. Then, Yato took off, turning around just to catch the kid's stunned face.

"Your name is Yukine!" Yato ran backwards with a smile and cupped his hands around his mouth to project.

"And don't you forget it!"

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