Just Look into It

58. Goodbye

In the time that it took for her father to get back, Ryo had enough time to read his journal and copy the photos taken onto her computer. She saved any files she wanted and set the system notifications for the home to take precedence. 

Dinner was a quiet and awkward thing, little conversation being made as their father was entirely focused on scanning the room inch by inch yet again. Ryo yawned and pulled off her glasses. She lightly rubbed at her face as she gathered her thoughts. 

"You shouldn't stay up so late," her father piped up. "You'll just yawn like that over and over."

She bit back a sarcastic response. "I know, though I don't normally have a choice."

He shook his head slightly. She reached for her glasses and came up empty. A sigh escaped her lips. "Yuu, can I have my glasses?"

He giggled, and she smirked. 

"Yuu," she teasingly warned, standing from her seat. "Hand them over you little rascal."

"No!" he cheered, darting into the living room. She started after him, getting close before a sentence cut their little chase off. 

"Yuu, give your sister her glasses," he piped up, turning his stern gaze on her. "I thought you said you raised him to be obedient, Ryouka."

Ryo practically snarled at her name. She whipped around and glared. "It's a game!"

Her father didn't meet her gaze for very long, merely shaking his head with a quiet huff. 

She was offended. 

Yuu gently tugged at her arm and handed them over. As soon as she took them, he made his way towards his room. 

She was pissed. 

Her thoughts were roaring with a whirlwind of emotions. The words that she had read slammed against her consciousness. Why was he playing house with her? She wondered just how he thought of them. Was she still just a child in his eyes? 

The memory of him pleading her name filled her ears as she forced herself to focus on a project. She hated her name with a burning passion at the moment. She couldn't stand it when he told her good night when she went to her room for the night, feigning exhaustion.

If his journal was truthful, she wasn't sure what she was going to do. 

When the text from Kyouya came in saying goodnight, she was quick to lie and tell him she was heading to sleep as well. She didn't think sleep would be coming any time soon. The whirlwind kept her awake well enough, that by the time it was in the earliest hours of the day, she was a bit surprised by how quickly the time had passed. Maybe it was a terrible idea to pull an all-nighter when she was supposed to be at the school within a few hours. 

Ryo sighed as she saw her father on the camera feed, picking his way around the house with his bag in hand. 

She made sure that it was recording. 

"I just want to know why," she demanded, flicking on the main light. Her father jumped and whipped around to face her. His eyes narrowed. 

"What are you talking about Ryouka?" he had the gall to ask. 

"Don't call me that. I told you I go by Ryo," she hissed, taking a second to calm back down. "I'm not stupid. Besides, my job contract is for security. There are cameras all over this house. If you were smarter, you would have waited until tomorrow when we were at school."

"I don't know-"

She sighed. "I read all about your behavior and interactions in prison. I also read your journal, sorry for invading your privacy. You realize if someone finds that, you could be arrested again?"

He glared and took a step forward. She pulled out her taser.

"If something happens to me, my system will alert all my contacts as well as emergency services. I suggest you stay back," she blandly explained. 

"What do you want me to do now, Ryouka?" he demanded. "Am I gonna stay here with you watching me like a hawk?"

She shook her head. "No. You don't have any custody over Yuu or myself, so you're free to go wherever you want. Leave my things here though, and you can take the bag by the door. It's got your clothes and other things, as well as some cash."

He paused. "Why-"

"I don't want to see you again," she interrupted. "I don't care who you are, Yuu deserves better. Don't expect anything else from me until you can prove that you are more than enough for him. Take what I'm giving you and leave, or I'll report an attempted robbery."

Ryo watched as he did what she asked and left. 

She made quick work of putting things back away and cleaning up the remaining traces of her father. She put Ouran's system back in first priority and did a quick check. She shut the lights off again and sat at the dining room table. 

The first thing she did was send a thank you to those who helped get her father out. She explained that it was wonderful to see him again, and that she was grateful for their work, but that in the end, it had just been too long for him to find a spot in their home. She decided to hold off on sending it. 

The next thing was to write up a report to the chairman. As he was her employer and she was also a student, it was important that he understood what her situation with Yuu was like and any other factors that would affect her work. She decided to add in that she would be taking the day off in order to properly get everything settled. After all, she could still monitor and address issues at home. 

For a moment she contemplated texting Kyouya, but quickly decided against it so that he could get uninterrupted sleep. 

Ryo was surprised when Yuu stumbled out of his room to start getting ready for school. She watched him quietly for a moment, which he noticed. 

"So is he-"

"I'm sorry you couldn't say goodbye."

He nodded, wiping at his nose. Her brother stared into the empty bowl he had grabbed for breakfast for a moment. "It's okay though, cause I still have you."

Ryo bit her lip and nodded. "Of course, you'll always have me here. I've got to take care of a few things, so I'll walk with you to school then head back here."

Yuu gave her a look but nodded. "Alright."

She nodded, turning back to her computer. 

There was work to do.