The Man Behind the Screen

Floating Fire

MIDORIYA'S POV

"No, twist the right one over the middle. The right piece will become the middle, and then you twist that with the left piece," I explained while Kacchan struggled to braid Himari's hair.

He groaned quietly while letting her hair fall down her back. "Can you just pull up photo instructions? I'll probably be able to understand better from that."

I nodded while slipping my phone out of my pocket. I googled what he needed before showing him my screen. "We can do a normal bun instead, Papa," Himari said, leaning her head back and looking up at him.

"I'll get it," he replied. "Let me try one more time."

"If you say so," she said playfully with a laugh.

Kacchan playfully flicked her head as he studied the photo on my phone. While looking at my phone, his hands moved on their own, forming a pretty decent braid. "Alright, I got it." I put my phone back in my pocket and watched him work. He started by pulling her shiny hair into a tight, high ponytail before ensuring her baby hairs were hair-sprayed down. Next, he braided the ponytail before wrapping it around the hair tie on the top of her head. She hated simple buns, so she always asked for a braided bun.

She was required to have her hair up in a bun for her lessons, and she had to wear certain outfits, so Kacchan and I have had a lot to learn since signing her up for ice skating lessons at the beginning of the new year.

"Alright, go look in the mirror," he said while nudging the top of her back. She stood up quickly and ran for the half bath in the hallway. "While she's doing that, did you get ahold of the playground and arcade place that opened up two weeks ago?"

I shook my head. "Daiki's birthday is still two months away. We've got time. Plus, I don't want to book the entire thing out for the day without knowing the outcome of the custody battle."

"Baby, we're not going to lose him. The judge will not terminate your parental rights. You know that."

"But what if she wins full custody, and I only get visitation every other weekend? I'm not even sure which weekend I would have for his birthday." Just thinking about everything made my anxiety skyrocket. "In three weeks, everything will be said and done. I'll call and reserve it then."

Kacchan tossed his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his chest. "If that makes you feel better, we can wait."

"Thank you," I said with a content sigh as Himari ran back into the living room.

"It looks great, Papa! Thank you!" She said happily while walking over to us on the couch. She had on her purple skating outfit under her tracksuit. I didn't realize getting her started on figure skating would be a lot of money right off the bat, but it was worth every penny. I've never seen her so happy.

"Do you want a light lunch before you go?" Kacchan asked her. She never liked to eat a big meal because she said it made her feel slow, but we hated it when she went there without eating. "Maybe just an apple or something?"

"Can I have toast with jelly? I can make it myself if someone grabs the bread for me." I was about to stand up to get it, but my phone started ringing. I slipped it out of my pocket to see Daiki's mom was calling me.

"You take that and make sure everything is okay. I'll grab her some bread," Kacchan said before standing from the couch.

I hit the green button and brought the phone to my ear. "Hello?"

Her annoyed voice replied. "Daiki and I are at the hospital. I didn't have the time to call you beforehand, but we're waiting on you now."

I shot up from the couch and made my way to the door. "Is he okay? What happened?"