Book of Oneshots

reiji sakamaki x yui komori | babysitting

❝ BABYSITTING ❞
reiji/yui

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"...What is the meaning of this?"

Sakamaki Reiji stood with his arms crossed, face cross, and feet planted firmly on the ground. He had just come home from a tiring meeting with his associates, and was expecting to head out again for a date which he had promised his girlfriend Yui. But the sight waiting for him at home in the living room was not what he was expecting at all.

Yui was there, of course; that was nothing unusual. Perhaps the only odd thing about that was that she had seated herself on the floor for some reason—but Reiji quickly understood why once his eyes were drawn to the other presence a few feet away from her.

"Bwah!"

"Yes, you are adorable~! ♡"

"Ga-ga!"

"I know! No one in the world is as cute as you!"

Yui's face was glowing with the most radiant beam Reiji had ever seen her wear. He watched in silence as she wiped away a stray dribble from the lips of the toddler in front of her, her delight almost as bright as the child's own. But Reiji was not amused in the slightest. And his last nerve was plucked the second he saw Yui outstretch her arms, inviting the child in for a hug.

"Yui," he hissed, this time much louder than before. Yui's arms gently enclosed around the small girl, but her head spun around at the sound of her lover's voice. A moment's glimmer of surprise melted back into delight as soon as she met his narrowed red eyes.

"Ah, welcome home, Reiji!"

"Welcome home? Do you honestly think that is an appropriate response in this current situation?"

Reiji had made no physical gestures, but Yui knew what he was referring to. And she knew exactly why he was so furious about it, too. For a moment, her smile diminished. The child cooed and blubbered in her arms, and Reiji's eyes narrowed further, and Yui sighed.

"...I'm sorry," she said. This was not just some random kid she had invited into their home—although, Reiji couldn't decide if that would have been better.

"Are you?"

This was Shu's daughter.

"It's just, Shu-san and Yuma-kun needed the help... and I thought, um... we would be better babysitters than Ayato-kun and the others..." Yui stood up and scooped the waddling child into her arms, and then rested her on her hip. She explained that Yuma's own brothers were too busy as well—so she and Reiji really had been their only option.

Reiji took a moment to let out an exasperated sigh.

"...Was this arranged beforehand?" he asked. Had that been the case, then Yui should have known about this before he left for his meeting today—which did not sit well with him at all.

"No, Shu-san showed up on our doorstep about thirty minutes ago..." Yui said. "But I couldn't say no—"

"—Yes, you could have."

Yui wrinkled her brows. "Well, I didn't want to." She crossed her arms over her chest, mentally preparing herself to argue on behalf of this child as best as she could. "I think, whatever issue you have with Shu-san shouldn't be carried over to his daughter. She is your niece."

"And that woman was my mother. That's a ridiculous excuse."'

Yui went silent after that, taken aback by the sudden sting of his words. She lightly bounced Shu's daughter against her hip, more so for her own self-comfort than anything, eyes falling to the floor. The little girl had grabbed one of Yui's curls in one hand, reaching out her other towards Reiji—but nonetheless, he had no ounce of patience present on his face.