Our Reality (Doki Doki Literature Club!)

The Sword and the Shields

"Hello?" What else could Hiro say in front of someone looking at her with cold eyes. Not only that, but droplets of blood were splattered across his face and clothes and his neck appeared to have bite marks on it.

And yet, he didn't appear to be someone that was desperate for help. That much was clear when brushing past her as he walked in nearly cost Hiro her balance.

There was a very unsettling air and al Hiro could do was watch the stranger look around her house.

"...Where is she?" the man asked.

"Who?"

"My daughter."

That was when it clicked in her mind. While confused, something about this man seemed familiar. She had only heard about him, but this was the first time she had seen him. This is Natsuki's father.

"She's upstairs with the boy, isn't she?" Kaen's voice was seething with anger and his eyes were devoid of any empathy.

"No. She's at school." Hiro answered, trying to stifle her anxiety.

Somehow, she had to end this conversation and lead Kaen out of her home with as little fuss as possible.

Though the injuries Kaen sported made that task seem even harder than anticipated.

Was the blood even his or was it someone else? For all she knew, it could be the last person she recalled being in his presence.

It was a possibility that made her worries grow.

"...You're his mom?" Kaen asked.

Hiro nodded her head. "I'm Shujinkou's mother."

"And you're okay with him getting my daughter to sneak around behind my back?"

"Sneak around?" The way he worded that made it clear how Natsuki could have referred to him as a "helicopter parent".

"Yeah, and you're allowing it to happen," Kaen approached Hiro with what could only be described as murderous intent. She hasn't seen such anger since her mother displayed something similar after Jomei left.

"I don't think they're sneaking around. They just seem like they're friends that hang out."

"Don't give me that. What friend stays over at a boy's house who knows how many times?"

Sadly, Hiro couldn't truly refute that point. Most people would be uncomfortable with the idea of teenage boys and girls being alone under one roof, especially when one is quite smitten with the other.

"It could happen if there was an emergency," Without thinking any further, Hiro was able to belt out a counterpoint. She was surprised she was able to do that.

"And what about the other ties they've been alone in this house together!?"

"Friends hanging out...?" Hiro's eyes darted across the room, desperately looking for something much less hostile to focus on. "It's not really strange for friends to spend time together, right?"

"Really, did that excuse work for your husband before he left?"

Kaen waited for a response with expecting eyes, but Hiro was too hurt to give one. Calling his retort a low blow would have been an understatement.

But then...

Hiro sensed something new from Kaen. It was easy to overlook behind the frustration, but it was there.

"...I don't think it's fair to compare their friendship to o- my personal issues," Hiro said somberly. "And Shujinkou isn't like his father."

"The kid who surrounds himself with girls isn't bad? Is that what you're seriously trying to tell me?"