prized possession | shin tsukimi x reader

Prologue

"Dada!" The young girl calls as she bounds up to her father, giggling and swinging her arms in her approach.

He turns slowly, holding a stoic expression.

She's a tiny thing, only coming to about his mid thigh. Was a girl her age supposed to be so small?

"Yes, (Y/N)?" He softens his voice as he reaches out to pet her hair.

She smiles brightly as he slowly ruffles her hair, pulling her favorite doll closer to her chest. "Are my brothers done with… tray-ing?"

She furrows her brows as she tries to think of the word she wants to use, and harder yet to formulate said word. She's smart, but what kid needs to know the word "training" by that age? Besides her, surely her brothers must've.

Her father suppresses a smile as he watches her cute pout. "That is decided by their instructors. They are not on equal ground, as one needs more attention than the other."

She nods as if she understands. She doesn't. All of this was so new. Just a few months ago she was brought into this house out of the blue â€" no one had shown any interest in her when they'd visit the orphanage, so getting adopted was the last thing on her mind when one of the caretakers told her it was time to go.

"Can they take a break, dada? I wanna play dolls!"

Such an innocent question, yet the man finds himself scowling.

"A break? What an utterly foolish thought." The tall male sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.

(Y/N) pays no mind to her father's troubles. Her doll swings to and fro in her grasp, giving the shapely plastic whiplash.

"I'm afraid they cannot." He finally answers, regaining his composure.

A daughter that doesn't need to go through what her brothers are should be an easy feat… at least that's what he thought when he agreed to take little (Y/N) in. Really, she's a good kid. She doesn't scream, she doesn't hit or bite, she doesn't challenge her father any more than any other toddler would… she was just so far out of his realm of expertise.

She needs his attention â€" she needs his help, and her brothers do not.

He squeezes his eyes shut and furrows his brows before speaking once more. "I have… a surprise planned for you and your brothers. Yes, that sounds about right…" The second part of his announcement was meant more for himself, but the little girl absorbs his words and mannerisms nonetheless â€" the little sponge she is.

"A sa-pize?" The girl beams, eyes twinkling with an excitement the man hadn't seen from her yet.

Her imagination fills itself with possibilities of what could lay in wait for the three siblings.

Could it be a puppy? A kitten? Tiramisu… again? Toys they can all play with together? To her, the possibilities were endless; but his surprise was nothing her mind had come up with.

"Yes. Now go play, won't you? I will come get you when it is time to check on those two." He replies flatly.

"Okay, dada!" (Y/N) cheerfully replies. Before exiting, she wraps her arms around his leg as a makeshift hug. Her father doesn't return the gesture, rather he freezes â€" not used to showing affection to his children. The girl then attempts to skip away, which looks more like a gallop than she was hoping for.

Once out of earshot, the man sighs and folds his hands behind his back. Calmly, he walks over to the row of windows on the far wall and peers out. He hopes to catch a glance of the boys training, but he doesn't. He thinks over the girl's attempt to embrace him. It wasn't the first time she's done that, but it always manages to catch him off guard.