Eighteen (Oikawa Tooru Ambm)

Chapter Nine

Ethan's Pov
Akaashi smirked, adjusting his school bag on his shoulder. "I knew you'd understand." I felt some pride in my chest that my son trusted me enough.

"I understand, and I'm incredibly proud of you for standing up for us," I said, offering him a small, reassuring smile as I reached out to ruffle his neat hair. "But I still have to do the responsible dad routine and talk to the administration. We can't let them sweep her behavior under the rug."

The meeting with the principal was a blur of righteous anger and tense negotiations. I made it entirely clear that my fifteen-year-old son would not be penalized for calling out blatant discrimination in a classroom. By the time we walked out of the main office, the principal had promised a full internal review of the history teacher, and Akaashi's record remained completely clean.

"Say less," I muttered as the heavy school doors clicked shut behind us. "Now, let's go pick up the tiny terrors before they completely dismantle the daycare. I promised Tooru we'd meet them at the park across the street."

Akaashi let out a rare, genuine laugh, falling into step beside me. "Daichi said his dad was already losing his mind by noon. Apparently, Ushijima and Hinata tried to race on tricycle track and ended up causing a five-car pileup with the other toddlers."

I chuckled, but my heart gave a familiar, nervous thud at the mention of Tooru. Daichi's advice from earlier kept echoing in my mind. Don't let your past cause your future. It was easy to say, but opening up to someone especially someone I cared about as deeply as Tooru felt like standing on the edge of a cliff.

When we finally rounded the corner to the community park, the sheer scale of our combined families hit me. The daycare staff looked entirely exhausted, standing near the perimeter while a small army of four-year-olds ran absolute circles around the playground.

"Ethan-nii! Look!" Hinata's high-pitched voice pierced through the open air. He was a bright orange blur, sprinting across the grass with Kageyama hot on his heels. Both of them were screaming at the top of their lungs about a shiny pebble Hinata was clutching like an Olympic medal.

"Don't run with rocks, Shouyo!" I yelled out automatically, though my eyes immediately began searching the chaos for a familiar shock of brown hair.

I found him near the sandbox. Oikawa was slumped dramatically over a green park bench, his expensive sunglasses pushed up into his hair, looking entirely defeated by the forces of toddlerhood. Surrounding him was a fortress of absolute madness.

"Tobio, please, if you eat that dirt I am not kissing your forehead later!" Oikawa groaned, waving a helpless hand toward Kageyama, who had paused his chase to inspect a patch of mud.

Right next to the bench, the Miya twins were engaged in a fierce, silent tug-of-war over a plastic yellow bucket. Atsumu was pulling with his teeth bared, while Osamu looked completely expressionless but equally determined.

Before I could step in, Bokuto ran past them at full speed, wearing a cape made of a literal garbage bag, loudly encouraging Tanaka and Nishinoya to climb the monkey bars backwards.

"Looks like you're having a peaceful afternoon, Tooru," I called out, walking up to the bench.

Oikawa's head snapped up. The second his eyes landed on me, the stressed, overwhelmed expression completely melted away. A bright, blinding smile took its place the kind of smile that always made my chest feel incredibly tight.

"Ethan! Oh, thank god. Save me," Oikawa gasped, throwing his hands in the air with his usual theatrical flair. "I am outnumbered. Iwa-chan tried to bite Tendou because Tendou stole his juice box, Kuroo is teaching Lev how to lock people out of the plastic playhouse, and Daichi was late returning from lunch!"

"I'm right here, Dad," Daichi said, calmly walking up from the side path. He carried a half-eaten sandwich and looked completely unfazed by his father's dramatic display. As Daichi passed me, he caught my eye and gave me a subtle, supportive nod, silently reminding me of our conversation on the bench.

"Go handle the sandbox crisis, please, Daichi. Tsukishima is systematically knocking over every single sandcastle Goshiki tries to build, and Semi is starting to cry about it," Oikawa pleaded, melting back into the bench.

Akaashi sighed, dropping his backpack next to the bench. "I'll go make sure the twins don't actually swallow each other." He walked over to Atsumu and Osamu, deftly grabbing the plastic bucket from both of them at the same time. The twins immediately stopped fighting and looked up at Akaashi like he was a giant, terrifying deity.

With the older boys handling the immediate fires, I finally sat down on the bench next to Oikawa. Almost instantly, Sugawara and Kenma abandoned their quiet spot by the swings and toddled over to us. Suga scrambled up onto my left knee, proudly holding up a stray leaf stuck to his shoe. Kenma, carrying a small toy cat, silently climbed onto my right side, burying his face directly into my jacket to block out the noise of the park.

"Hey, buddies," I murmured, wrapping my arms securely around them. I kissed the top of Suga's head and rubbed Kenma's back, a deep wave of protective warmth washing over me. No matter how exhausting it was, these kids were my entire universe.

"They missed you," Oikawa said softly. The theatrical, dramatic persona he usually put on completely vanished, replaced by a quiet, gentle tone he only used when it was just the two of us. He reached over, his long fingers gently patting Kenma's soft hair.

As he did, his knuckles brushed lightly against my arm. The simple touch sent a sharp jolt of electricity straight down my spine.

I turned my head to look at him. Up close, I could see the slight dark circles under his eyes from managing his own small army of adopted boys. He was tired, his hair was a little messy from the wind, and he had a faint streak of chalk on his sleeve. But looking at him, with the afternoon sun hitting his brown eyes, I thought he was the most beautiful person I had ever seen.

The weight of my past suddenly felt incredibly heavy. I looked down at Kenma and Suga, remembering the bruises, the lies, and the terrifying investigation from a year ago. The fear of being judged, of being seen as a father who failed to protect his babies, rose up in my throat.

But don't let it cause your future. Daichi's words cut through the anxiety.

I took a deep, steadying breath, my heart hammering violently against my ribs.

"Tooru," I started, my voice a little lower, a little rougher than usual.

"Hmm?" He turned his head, his brown eyes locking onto mine with total, undivided attention. He sensed the shift in my energy immediately, his posture straightening as he waited for me to speak.

"Are you... free this weekend? Without the kids?" I asked, the words tumbling out before my anxiety could convince me to stay silent. "Akaashi and Daichi mentioned wanting to take the littles to the theater to see that new animated movie on Saturday afternoon. I was thinking... maybe we could get dinner. Just the two of us. A real dinner."

Oikawa blinked, entirely caught off guard. For a solid three seconds, the notoriously talkative Oikawa Tooru was completely speechless. His eyes widened slightly, searching my face as if looking for any sign that I was joking.

Then, a slow, radiant smile spread across his face, softening his entire expression.

"Ethan..." He whispered, leaning in just a fraction closer, his voice laced with a sweet, genuine wonder. "Are you asking me out on a proper date? Like... a romantic one?"

"Yeah," I breathed, the knot in my stomach finally loosening as I looked into his eyes. For the first time in an incredibly long time, the fear didn't swallow me up. "Yeah, Tooru. I am. I want to take you out."