Chaos in the Alicein household

Chapter 30

When he was close enough to see the front gates Jeje turned into a snake. He couldn't be caught by the cameras, dealing with the domestics would be troublesome as they probably had instructions from Mikado. He quietly made his way through the garden, unnoticed by everyone in the house. Lily would feel his presence if he hadn't already, but it was convenient for him. He didn't have time to waste searching for the man, because even if they wouldn't  be separated long enough for the distance limitation to be a problem he didn't like being so far away from his eve.

Jeje had thought about giving up and running back to him several times but in the end he decided against it . Even if he hated doing this, it was worth the trouble if it meant his eve would never have to go through something similar again. 'A blessing in disguise', he told himself. He still had another thing to worry about, though. He had made the assumption that Mikado would still be awake but he couldn't be sure. He would personnaly drag him out of bed if he had to, but still. Their conversation would be very different, not that he had expected to be welcomed with opened arms anyways. That was when Lily appeared.

-"Jeje , what are you doing here?!"  He exclaimed, looking somewhat...concerned? Surprised? Maybe both, from Jeje's point of view.

He showed Lily the paper and didn't need to add anything more for him to understand.

-" Oh god, this could have waited don't you think?" The blonde vampire sighed in relief, but he shouldn't have. "Give it to me, okay? I'll take care of-"

"Actually, can you tell me where I can find the old man at this hour?" 

He knew he should probably reconsider, depending on the answer. However, he couldn't back away now. He didn't believe he'd have another occasion to sneak out like he did tonight. Lily was appalled.

- " You-you can't be serious! I was wondering why you'd come alone, I mean Mikuni could have asked you for the paper but it was just too weird. I can't imagine he'd send you here... he's going to be so mad at you, especially if you talk to Mr Mikado in addition! He just doesn't want you to get any more involved with his problems, Jeje! And even if you do manage to have a proper talk with him, you don't know how he will react after that. What will you do if things get worse between them? I don't want to be mean, Jeje, I'm just asking: are you sure about this?"

Of course he was. He had thought about it. 

-" First of all,  Mikuni chose me, so it's also my problem. No, actually, all of Mikuni's problems are mine as well. As for their relation, don't worry. I have no intention to meddle with it. I just... have something I want to clarify." 

Lily hesitated, he had wanted to dissuade him but knowing fully well it was Jeje's protectiveness speaking he couldn't help giving in.

-" You'll find him in his office. He spends the majority of his time here, even more so since you both left . It seems it's hard on him, too. Like, he's actually blaming himself more than you could believe, you know?"

Jeje didn't answer. He knew Mikado loved his children. He also knew this family had went through a lot of hardships. And it was enough. 

-" Just," he told Lily, " please make sure we won't be interrupted."

The latter made the tiniest smile, and Jeje walked away. 

Alicein Mikado sighed for the umpteenth time in days. It was a long and tired one, and he took another sip of his tea as he turned yet another page of his book. Surely, drinking tea wasn't going to help him sleep, but that was the point. He had barely got any rest since Mikuni had left again. The first time, his son was 16 and knew nothing of the outside world except for what he read and learned during class. It was another matter entierly, being forcibly frown into the harsh reality of life, and Mikado had made himself sick thinking about the worst scenarios. But he never told him about it. He had been worrying about Mikuni all the time, but he couldn't put those feelings into words when they finally reunited. Instead he had tried ensuring he wouldn't even dare think about leaving anymore, as if he still had some authority on him. He was so foolish. Like what happened with Misono, he hadn't been able to notice a simple fact: Mikuni had grown. He had been naive to think his eldest son would be the same as before. He knew, how being confronted to reality changed you. And theirs was so different from what most people could ever imagine. That's right, Mikado often thought it would have been best if they never let a servamp enter their lives. It was so easy to blame him. The one Mikuni decided to rely on years ago. A choice Mikado had never understood. The servamp of envy was dangerous, that's what he had always told his wife. How could Mikuni entrust his life to him? How could he not resent him? Because he asked himself such questions, he had failed at being a proper father for him. And only now did he realize that maybe, just maybe, he could have given a chance to 'Jeje'.