Gold, Raven, & Lavender: An Erasermic Family Fanfic

Chapter 20: You're Only Young Once

The heroes were on high alert for the next week or so following Chief Tsuragame's phone call, ready to spring into action at the slightest noise or provocation. Thankfully, no one suffered too badly under their actions, save for the odd turtledove or the poor mailman who'd come to deliver Hizashi's online order of toys for Hitoshi. He'd been unlucky enough to be bound and strung from the nearest tree before the Shouta realized he wasn't a threat, only to be let down amongst a slew of bowing and long-winded apologies from his mortified (but still on edge) spouse.

The tension had only increased after the Chief called to say they found one of the escaped convicts. That is to say, they found what remained of him floating along the Sakawa river in a burlap sack. He'd tried to spare them some of the grislier details, but the heroes' imaginations were much more colorful than he would have expected: a body hacked to bits, missing appendages, and gruesome amounts of blood and gore were all featured in the mix. Hizashi had refused to let Hitoshi out of his sight after that particular phone call, even going so far as to camp out in the nursery with the directional speaker strapped around his neck while he slept. Nevertheless, the men were determined to persevere and make Hitoshi's first birthday as cheerful and stress-free as possible. And given the grim circumstances, it was safe to say they could all use a bit of levity.

Hizashi was up bright and early on the morning of July 1st, still dressed in his pajamas while flitting between checking his phone screen and the almost ludicrous number of overturned bowls and spatulas he'd laid out on the kitchen counter. Hanako had sent him a recipe for making pancakes a few days prior and, not wanting to botch it, he'd taken it upon himself to carefully measure out each ingredient before combining them.

"What the hell does 'when the water sings' mean?" He mumbled under his breath, stirring the already soupy pancake mix and glancing over at the frying pan he'd left on the heated stovetop. "Am I supposed to be listenin' for a tune or something?"

"Just pour a tablespoon of water into the pan." Came a deep, rumbling voice from behind him, causing the blonde to yelp in surprise and whirl around to face his would-be attacker, brandishing the batter-laden whisk. Shouta was leaning against the doorway to the kitchen, looking bored and sleep-deprived as ever as he raised a hand in surrender.

"Relax, Zashi. It's only me."

"Sho! Jesus, don't sneak up on me like that! I was about to clean your clock!"

Shouta chuckled and pushed himself off the frame with a yawn, shuffling forward to plant a swift kiss to his husband's cheek.

"I'm sure you were. The whisk and apron make for a very intimidating combination."

Hizashi's cheeks turned a light shade of pink as he glanced down at the apron in question: a frilly white smock embroidered with paw prints that Midnight had purchased as a gag gift a few years back.

"Don't knock the apron." He shot back indignantly, "It was the only one I could find!"

Shouta simply rolled his eyes as he retrieved a small glass from an upper cabinet, filling it partially from the tap before sauntering over to the stovetop. He then tipped the glass so that a small stream of water landed on the center of the pan. It evaporated within seconds, sizzling and popping before dissipating into delicate wisps of steam.

"It's hot enough." He said bluntly, setting down the glass and wiping his hands on the front of his sweatpants.

"I would've figured it out eventually." Hizashi grumbled, earning a quick, barking laugh from his dark-haired husband.

"I'm sure you would have. But if we wanted to have breakfast by Hitoshi's next birthday, it was easier just to show you."

Hizashi gave a short huff and dipped the whisk back into the bowl, only to whip it back out with a flourish, spraying raw batter across the countertop and the front of Shouta's sleep shirt.