**Chapter 3: DNA and Daddy Duty**
Max woke up the next morning to a soft thud on his chest. Bleary-eyed, he opened one eye to see Kota sprawled across him, patting his face with tiny hands. The baby had somehow wriggled out of his makeshift crib and made his way onto Max’s chest, grinning like he had accomplished something monumental.
“Whoa, hey, personal space, buddy,” Max groaned, trying to gently nudge Kota back into his little nest. But Kota just giggled and smacked Max on the cheek again, like this was some sort of new game.
Max sighed, sitting up with the baby still clinging to his shirt. “You know, if you keep waking me up like this, I’m going to start charging rent.”
Kota, as usual, had no response other than another gummy smile.
Max chuckled despite himself. “Yeah, alright, let’s get you some breakfast.” He grabbed the baby and hoisted him onto his hip—an action that was starting to feel less awkward as the hours ticked by. He shuffled into the kitchen, running a hand through his messy hair. He wasn’t sure what time it was, but his internal clock told him it was way too early for coherent thoughts.
After preparing a bottle for Kota, Max plopped the baby into a bouncy chair he’d bought on his panicked supply run the night before. As Kota sucked on the bottle, Max leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. The surrealness of the situation still hadn’t faded. Here he was, playing dad after just one night, and for some reason, it wasn’t as terrifying as he’d expected.
The apartment, however, was already starting to look like a battlefield. Baby wipes littered the floor, bottles were stacked up in the sink, and Max was pretty sure he stepped on a diaper last night. “I should really get a handle on this whole… dad thing,” he muttered, staring at the chaos around him.
Kota cooed in response, and Max glanced over at him. The kid was happy, at least. That was a win, right? Small victories.
After breakfast, Max decided it was time for some father-son bonding. He wasn’t sure what that actually entailed, but he figured just spending time with Kota was a good start. They spent the morning playing with some baby toys—well, Kota played while Max tried to figure out what half the toys even were.
“What is this, some kind of… alien rattle?” Max held up a bright green contraption, turning it in his hand. Kota smacked it out of his grip and squealed in delight. Max blinked. “Alright, I guess you don’t like aliens. Got it.”
They moved on to stacking blocks, though it quickly became apparent that Kota’s preferred method of “playing” was knocking everything over as soon as Max built it.
“Dude, you have to let me finish at least *one* tower,” Max groaned, as Kota knocked over another carefully-constructed block pyramid.
Kota giggled like he had just won the greatest game in the world.
Max sighed, but he couldn’t help but smile. He was starting to realize that parenting wasn’t so much about having everything under control as it was about rolling with the punches—no matter how many blocks you had to rebuild.
But as the day went on, Max couldn’t shake the nagging thought that had been gnawing at him since yesterday. Kota was here, in his life, and Max had to take care of him—but was he really *his*? He wanted to believe Saki’s note, but at the same time, the whole situation felt like one giant mystery.
By lunchtime, Max had already made up his mind.
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That afternoon, Max invited Kenji over to help with *the plan*. Kenji arrived with his usual laid-back attitude, though he nearly dropped his coffee when he saw Kota sitting in his bouncy chair.
“Bro, you weren’t kidding. You actually have a kid now,” Kenji said, his voice full of disbelief.
Max rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I wasn’t just making it up for fun. Look, I need a favor.”
Kenji raised an eyebrow. “Oh no. This sounds sketchy.”
Max ignored him and reached into his back pocket, pulling out a small swab kit he’d ordered online the night before. “I need you to take this to the hospital and, you know… run a little test.”
Kenji’s eyes widened as he realized what Max was holding. “Wait, you’re doing a DNA test? You don’t believe Saki?”
Max shrugged, avoiding Kenji’s gaze. “It’s not that I don’t believe her, it’s just… I need to know for sure, you know? If I’m really Kota’s dad.”
Kenji stared at him for a second, then smirked. “So, what, you want me to sneak your DNA and the baby’s to a hospital and be like, ‘Hey, just checking if my buddy’s the baby daddy’? Sounds totally normal.”
Max shot him a look. “Don’t make this weird. It’s just a quick swab. You work at the hospital, don’t you? Just… slide it into the system, no big deal.”
Kenji laughed. “Yeah, sure, because that’s exactly how it works.” But when Max didn’t respond, Kenji sighed. “Alright, alright, I’ll do it. But I want something in return.”
Max groaned. “Of course you do. What is it?”
Kenji grinned. “You have to babysit *my* plants for a week while I’m out of town.”
Max blinked. “Your plants? Dude, half of them are dead already.”
“Exactly. That’s why they need love. They need you, Max,” Kenji said with mock seriousness, placing a hand over his heart. “Do it for the plants.”
Max rolled his eyes. “Fine, deal. Just take the swab, alright?”
Kenji saluted him. “You got it, boss. Leave the science to me.”
Max handed Kenji the swab kit and glanced over at Kota, who was happily smacking a toy on the floor. “Alright, Kota, let’s hope Uncle Kenji comes through for us.”
Kota gurgled in response, oblivious to the gravity of the situation.
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For the rest of the day, Max tried to distract himself by focusing on his new dad duties. He fed Kota, changed him (successfully this time, with no mess), and even managed to get him to nap in his crib instead of on Max’s chest. It felt like a small win, but Max knew he wouldn’t be able to relax until the DNA test came back.
As evening fell, Kenji finally called.
“Yo, Max. You’re not gonna believe this,” Kenji said, his voice crackling over the phone.
Max’s heart raced. “What? Is it… is it positive? Am I really Kota’s dad?”
There was a long pause on the other end of the line, and Max could practically hear Kenji grinning through the phone.
“Well…” Kenji began, dragging out the word.
“*Kenji*,” Max snapped, gripping the phone tightly.
Kenji took a deep breath. “It’s…”
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*End of Chapter 3.*
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