Keys, Cigarettes, and Kids Are Always in the Last Place You Look

Hey!

First of all, I'm a non-native English speaker so I'm sorry if there's any mistake!

That being said, this fic was written for the Gintoki's Birthday Bash 2020 collection! It features a beautiful drawing made by the wonderful @whoyoucallingtoshi !!

It was really a funny project to take part in and I hope you will enjoy the fic and art!

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Gintoki had been gawking into the void on his stool for around an hour now. He had sent the kids to do some errands in the closest local shop in the late afternoon, and seeing that they'd been too slow to come back, he had decided to go and grab something to drink downstairs. Otose's bar was pretty packed, but the patrons favoured the booth seats, giving Gintoki full space on the stools of the counters. He didn't care very much, but being alone was pleasant.

He yawned as he stretched his arms, the noise coming from the TV nearby being drowned by the loud discussions of the people behind him. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Otose wiping glasses with a clean tea towel. Like always, a cigarette was hanging between her lips, and as she noticed Gintoki watching her, she tsked as she threw him the towel in the head. 'Don't daydream like that in my bar, you should be looking for jobs to pay me my rent instead of drinking here', she said.

The silver-haired man didn't even try to dodge it, simply snorting as he took the towel away from his face, ready to throw it back. He was stopped by Catherine walking right in front of him on the other side of the counter, snatching the towel from his hands and throwing him a dirty glare. Gintoki banged his fist on the table, feigning annoyance 'Oï, it's my day off, old hag, as far as I know, I'm still allowed to come here and have a drink like anyone else'.

Otose didn't answer, simply shaking her head as she turned towards the TV, grabbing the remote control before changing the channel. Gintoki was about to protest, but he was stopped by the wonderful voice of the talented reporter Ketsuno Ana. 'And as we are nearing the end of the broadcast, let me remind you of the headline of tonight's news, - 'Oï, old hag, turn the volume up'- 'an amanto is rumoured to be roaming around Edo kidnapping children of all ages. We are advising every parent to be careful with their children. In the last information that reached us, the criminal had been last seen in the surroundings of Kabukichou. Please be safe, thank you for having watched the news, and see you tomorrow morning at 8 am for the weather forecast!'.

Gintoki felt Otose's gaze on him immediately. 'Shouldn't the kids be already back from their errands?' she asked, tone oddly neutral. Gintoki's eyes met hers. He got up, and in an instant, he was off.

The streets outside were already dark, moon clear in the sky, the street lights dancing around it in lieu of stars. The first thing he did while stepping outside was checking inside the apartment to see if they hadn't come back here without warning them. But when he opened the door, neither the kids nor Sadaharu were here. It was to be expected, but it didn't stop the pang of worry already in his chest from stirring. His second idea was to retrace the kids steps to the konbini. He saw nothing on his way, so when he entered the shop, he immediately walked up to the checkout. An old man was sitting here, eyeing him lazily. 'Oï old man, have you seen any young girl with orange hair and an older boy with glasses in your shop this evening?', Gintoki asked, straight to the point.