Tapestry

Can You Catch Me Up?

Author's Note: The photo used in the header is not my own. I am unsure who to give credit to, but it is so cute. uwuwuwuw

Please remember italics are flashbacks. <3

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Chapter Seven

You had always known that silence can speak louder than words.

It was proven to you again as you sat on your knees, bowing on the tatami in front of your parents. You begged for a sole syllable to be uttered by them as tears ran down your face in two thick lines, lines that mirrored the ones on the little plastic test you left on the bathroom counter.  The same lines that confirmed that your vomiting was not just sickness and panic, but that you were indeed pregnant at the age of 19.

Your admittance held some of the hardest words you ever spoke in your life.

But their reaction to the news was infinitely harder.

They looked at you like you were a stranger, like a thief had broken into their house, stolen away their precious daughter and left behind...you. Your sobs begged for them to say something, to say that everything was going to be okay and that the world wasn't ending.  You wanted them to say that all of your childhood dreams were not lost and that you were still the young woman they were once so proud of., anything to overshadow the disappointment in their eyes.  Anything would have done. 

That silence was deafening.

You wished it would quiet down that day.

Present Time

The silence was stifling as you sat across from Yuzuru at a small table next to your kitchen. Tapping your fingers on its surface, you both watched your son from a few yards away.

This evening, Yuki had been entirely consumed with his artwork and completely oblivious to the awkward tension of his parents. It was just the three of you right now, Saya and Keiji both running uncharacteristically late.

Since Yuzuru had come to your place a few weeks ago, these meetups happened at least twice a week. Although it meant you were receiving significantly less sleep, you had rearranged your schedule so he could spend evenings with Yuki. You may have also conveniently arranged it so Keiji was available to join, being afraid to be alone with Yuzuru with Yuki as the only buffer. Yuzuru must have felt similarly, Saya a constant fixture by his side as well.

At first Saya and Keiji had been understanding of the tension between you and Yuzuru. It's not like they expected that with the snap of a finger you two would be best friends, forgetting all that you had been through. They knew it would take time for a new relationship to form and wounds to heal. So they had waited, just enjoying being together with everyone again after so long.

However, after three weeks of nervous glances and sparsely shared words between you two, Saya and Keiji were starting to become concerned. It's not that you and Yuzuru didn't talk at all, it's just that you didn't talk to each other. It was painfully obvious that neither of you knew how to act around each other anymore.

A few days ago Keiji had to point it out.

"Are we your guardians?" He had asked, looking at you both. "You two can talk to each other without us, right?"

Your mouth had hung open in shock, sneaking a quick glance at Yuzuru, who looked equally mortified. Neither of you said anything at that time, saved by Saya's interjection, but Keiji's words stuck with you both.  They highlighted the simple fact that you had a child together but were unable to hold a simple conversation.