Selcouth

Chapter 29

Heya besties;)

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Third Person's POV

Aito woke up pretty early. Well, having difficulty in breathing made him wide awake. By 4 at dawn, he and Keiji were up. His mom looked over him as he took another session of his nebulizer. His class starts at 7, he still have an hour left to prepare. He took a warm bath prepared by no other than Keiji. "Aito-kun?" Keiji called from the bathroom. Aito perked his head up from what he was scribbling. "Ma?" 

"Can you check my room and into my cabinet? I bought a set of bath bombs yesterday. You can pick what you like...!" Keiji told. Aito beamed at the announcement and quickly stood up from mat. He ran barefoot towards Keiji's room, suddenly remembering he shouldn't be running to which made him walk.

He opened the door wide, breathing in Keiji's soft scent. It wafted around the room and it made him relaxed, having to grow up in that smell. The brown cabinet was by the side and Aito did not waste anytime opening it wide. His eyes were kept low hence instantly seeing the box of bath bombs. He giggled, choosing his favorite smell, cookies. He stood up from his crouching position and accidentally saw a hidden picture frame inside the cabinet.

It was his mom, smiling gently with a man he never thought he would see with his mom. The peculiar man with two-toned hair whom he knew was a professional volleyball player. "Bokuto?" He whispered, remembering the man's name.

"Aito-kun? You sure are taking a long time choosing there!" Akaashi playfully scolded by the living room. Aito flinched at the sudden address. "I'm coming ma!" he replied. After bath, he dressed in decent clothes, he sat by the table as he was served with Japanese pancakes. Keiji sat across him who flashed him a loving smile. "Bub, eat up." the adult motioned him to eat.

The child blinked, nevertheless, took a bite from his mother's cooking. Keiji smiled as Aito continued to eat. He took a sip of his black coffee, bringing out a colorful familiar magazine the same one Akio brought to school the other day. Silently, he could see Akaashi studying a page intently.

He didn't want to ponder about it but right now, he just wanted to know. "Mama, I saw a picture of you and a man in your closet." Aito started and Akaashi visibly tensed. "I was just wondering who is he..." The child trailed off.

It was dead silent for a minute. Aito was intently watching Akaashi who remained silent. Though, the adult then looked up, gunmetal blue eyes shone mysteriously, Aito wondered what it meant. With a smile, Akaashi answered, "A past friend."

The atmosphere turned weird in a way and Aito couldn't place a thought how it happened. Akaashi's smile looked soft but his stance was stiff. Aito stood up, place his dirty plate on the sink and changed into his uniform before grabbing his backpack.

"Ma, I'm leaving." He announced. Keiji left his focus from the magazine and gave his son a kiss on his forehead. "Take care okay?" The little boy nodded as a reply. By the corner of his eyes, Aito's conclusion was correct. The magazine Keiji was reading was clearly open and exposed on the table. Bokuto Koutarou displayed right there, aiming to spike the ball.

Once again, Aito found himself by the corner of the street, together with the fellow female kindergartener a few feet away from him. He watched a white car passing by before raising his head and meeting the huge advertisement board attached to a building. Monster Generation? he asked. Different players were displayed but of course, he was only familiar with one and that was no other than the owl-looking boy who Akaashi knows.

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"Sing it with me!" Sugawara gleefully announced, dancing slightly. "A, B, C, D!" He sang before pointing at a timid girl by the back row. "E, F, G..." She sang, fiddling with her fingers. Sugawara beamed a smile, turning to another pupil. "H, I, J, K!" He gleefully replied and Sugawara clapped at his enthusiasm.