Tsuna didn't have a lot to complain about his life. He had two loving parents, though it was questionable, a sweet little brother, and a nice cat named Natsu. His school life was average. He had average grades—seriously though, they were pretty much hopeless before until he met Hana, who was a good teacher but a terrifying tutor—and lived in an average Japanese town.

The more pressing issue was his future.

He didn't know what he wanted to do unlike his friends. Haru wanted to be a designer, Kyoko was aiming for the police academy, and Hana had already chosen which law school she wanted to go to. Tsuna wasn't particularly good at anything other than household chores and cooking since he had to take care of Giotto; their parents spent most of their time traveling together rather than staying home. It had been hard on the brothers but they had each other so that made it better.

Second year of high school only made Tsuna more anxious. When Nezu-sensei passed out career surveys in class, Tsuna spent more time twirling his pen in his hand than writing answers. In the end he just circled all the "Undecided" options and wrote "Not sure" at the bottom of the page. After school, Nezu-sensei brought him to the teacher's lounge and berated him for not knowing what he wanted to do with his life, how hopeless his prospects were, blah blah blah. Tsuna just apologized and left without saying much.

"Is this right, Tsuna-nii?"

Blinking, the teen snapped out of his reverie when Takeshi showed him his math workbook. The 6-year-old pointed at a question on the page. Tsuna skimmed it, a simple addition problem, and smiled. He patted Takeshi's hair. "Good job! You got it right. Just one more and you're done."

Takeshi grinned. "Okay!"

Smiling, Tsuna leaned onto his fist and watched Takeshi mull over another problem, his small brows furrowed in concentration. Tsuna started watching over Takeshi a few months after convincing Tsuyoshi to hire him as a waiter. When Takeshi nearly made a mess in the kitchen by trying to ask his dad for help with his homework, Tsuna took the boy in the back room and kept him busy while Tsuyoshi ran his restaurant. Needless to say, Tsuna soon found himself with a different job.

He never complained though. Takeshi was a nice kid and liked Tsuna a lot. He usually didn't cause much trouble as long as Tsuna kept him occupied. Usually tossing a ball in the park and helping Takeshi with his homework were enough until his bedtime. 7 PM sharp, no negotiations. Maybe that was why Takeshi was a bit taller than most kids his age. Tsuyoshi was kind but fairly strict. Without his wife, who had passed away in childbirth, Tsuyoshi often worried that Takeshi might go off the rails in the future, but Tsuna didn't think that way.

"Done!" Takeshi raised his workbook to Tsuna's face. "Is it right? Is it right?"

Tsuna hummed loudly, tapping his chin. "I don't know. Looks a little weird to me."

Takeshi's smile faltered a bit. "Oh, um, well, this was kind of hard so…"

Tsuna grinned, poking Takeshi's cheek. "Just kidding. It's right."

Takeshi blinked. Then he started giggling. "That wasn't fair, Tsuna-nii! You're mean."

Shrugging, Tsuna just ruffled Takeshi's hair. "Takeshi, if you think the answer is right and I'm wrong, just say so, okay? Have a little more confidence in yourself!" He smiled teasingly. "It can even help with your crush too, you know? Girls like boys who's really confident."

Takeshi looked at him in awe. "Really?"

Tsuna nodded. "Yup, really. Let's pack your stuff and go brush your teeth, okay?"

While Takeshi closed his workbook and put his pencils away, Tsuna quickly checked his phone to see a message from Giotto: Tsuna-nii, do you want me to walk ahead?

I just need to put Takeshi to bed. Will be there soon! Wait for me.

Since Tsuna babysat Takeshi on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Giotto would stay at G's house until Tsuna finished; on other days, Tsuna picked Giotto up after school and was usually dragged around by his brother with his friends despite Tsuna's protests. It was endearing but also worrying. His parents didn't care if he went to university or not but society did and Tsuna didn't want to rely on them forever, even if they were well off from his father's job in Namimori Trade Co.

I'll wait for you always, Tsuna-nii~

Tsuna laughed softly just as Takeshi returned from the bathroom, already changed into his blue baseball pajamas. He pocketed his phone and stood up. "Ready?"

Takeshi nodded. "Yup!" He dashed towards his bed and jumped on it, bouncing lightly. Laughing, he pulled up his blue covers and made himself comfortable. "I'm ready, Tsuna-nii. Can I get my goodnight kiss now? Please?"

Tsuna patted down the blankets and leaned over to give Takeshi a quick peck on the forehead. He smiled gently then whispered, "Good night, Takeshi."

Takeshi beamed, his voice quieter. "Night, Tsuna-nii. Thank you for playing with me today."

"Yeah, no problem, buddy. Now go to sleep so we can meet again faster, okay?"

Takeshi nodded. Tsuna waited until the boy quickly drifted off. Quietly, he left the bedroom and closed the door behind him; the soft click broke briefly through the silence. Tsuna then organized the drawings Takeshi made on the table and put them in a pile for Tsuyoshi to look at later when the front door soon opened.

"Hey there," Tsuyoshi whispered. The man was clad in some sweats.

Tsuna slung his backpack over his shoulder. "You're early, Yamamoto-san."

Tsuyoshi chuckled. "Yeah, got Nakamura to take over me for a bit today. Night's been slow anyways. How is he?"

Tsuna smiled. "He just fell asleep." He gestured at the table. "He drew some pictures today. I thought you'd like to see them."

Tsuyoshi's weary eyes softened. "Yeah, thanks. He didn't give you much trouble, did he?"

"No, no troubles at all! Takeshi's a good kid."

Tsuyoshi sighed. "Yeah, yeah he is. I'm always worried, you know? I can't always be there for him and that bothers me." He huffed a small, scornful laugh. "It's hard but I can't complain."

Tsuna rubbed his wrist. He wasn't great with words but he tried and Tsuyoshi had always been generous to him. "I think you're doing fine. Takeshi will grow up to be a good man like you someday." He smiled. "I'm sure of it, so don't worry too much about it, Yamamoto-san."

Tsuyoshi squeezed Tsuna's shoulder. "I hope he becomes more like you. If he turns into anything like me, I can't guarantee he'll be happy."

Tsuna just laughed awkwardly, not sure what to say. "He'll be fine. Well, I have to go pick up my brother. I'll see you on Thursday, Yamamoto-san."

"Yeah, see you then. Drop by Take Sushi with Giotto when you get the chance!"

Tsuna smiled. "I will. Have a good night!"

"Oh, Tsuna, wait!" Tsuyoshi dug around in his pocket before taking out a card. "Someone I know is looking for a babysitter and I thought about you. If you're interested, of course. Just let me know and I'll put in a good word for you. Pay's pretty good, too. I thought you'd like that."

Tsuna blinked as he accepted the white card. A number was written elegantly on the front with the name Alberta Superbi signed on the bottom. Just looking at it made Tsuna feel like dirt. "Um, I'm not sure if I can take this, Yamamoto-san."

Tsuyoshi laughed. "Nonsense! That's why I gave it to you. I think you're more than capable."

"Oh, thank you…"

With that Tsuna left the Yamamoto Household. He pocketed the card, forgot about it moments later, and thought about what to make for dinner that night.

The card came to mind when Tsuna was in math class. Instead of solving the problems from the board, he doodled on the margins of his notebook. He had Takeshi on Tuesdays and Thursdays; sometimes Kyoko would ask him to watch Ryohei whenever she and Haru had to go to cheerleading competitions on the weekends, but he'd usually follow them and mostly make sure Ryohei didn't fall over the bleachers every time Kyoko sailed through the air.

Though he didn't want to be away from home for too long because of Giotto. His brother was smart and capable for a 12-year-old, but there was only so much he could do without Tsuna being there. Once Giotto invited all of his friends over to their house and ended up calling the fire department after the stove almost exploded. Still, to this day, Giotto never told him what happened. Hana called it a brother complex but Tsuna thought it was normal to worry. It'd be a completely different story if his parents were there.

Finally, after school, he called the number and waited, his stomach churning. A low, smooth voice soon spoke from the other line in a different language. Tsuna checked his phone to make sure he didn't screw up the number or something when the person spoke again, this time more irritably. "Ah, um, I'm sorry," Tsuna said quickly. "I think I must've called the wrong number. I'm sorry, ma'am!"

There was a beat of uncomfortable silence. Some students snickered when they walked past him but he ignored them. One of them shoved past his shoulder, making him stumble and almost fall over the railing.

"Are you that Sawada Tsunayoshi?" the woman suddenly said, switching to fluent Japanese. Tsuna almost dropped his phone. What the heck? "Hello? Respond to me, boy! I don't have all day."

"Uh, y—yes! I am!"

The woman clicked her tongue. "You sound flimsy."

"…eh?"

"But since Tsuyoshi recommended you." The woman sighed in frustration. "Where are you?"

"Oh, um, I'm at Namimori High."

Tsuna flinched when the woman screamed something in the foreign language again. He heard tires screech in the background. "Actually, um, I think I made a mistake…"

"What?" the woman said. "You're not there then?"

"No, I am! Just, um, I don't think this…" Tsuna trailed off when an expensive, foreign-looking black car suddenly pulled up at the gates, making other students pause and look on with wide eyes.

"Are you the skinny twig on the steps? Yes, you. I can see you, boy. Get in the car."

Tsuna whimpered. "O—Okay."

He didn't even hang up, too afraid to do anything else but walk. Head low, Tsuna speed-walked towards the car and jumped when the back door popped open. He slipped inside quickly, overwhelmed by the smell of lilac, sage, and lavender. The seats were black leather and there was a divider that separated the driver from the passenger. Licking his lips, Tsuna almost shrank under the woman's gaze in front of him.

Legs and arms crossed, she had long silver hair that reached her waist and sharp light grey eyes that pinned him to the spot. She definitely wasn't Japanese, with her pale skin and angular face. Her white dress exposed her shoulders and her thigh, which made Tsuna look away. The woman clicked her tongue. "You're scrawnier than I thought. And what's with that face? Look at me when I'm talking to you, boy! Don't you have any pride? Is this how you talk to other people? What did your mother teach you?"

Tsuna's mouth suddenly felt dry. "I, um, uh, well—"

The woman grunted. "This job requires the best of the best and you're—Look up, boy!"

Tsuna did what she said, his neck stiff. He gripped his backpack tighter, cursing Tsuyoshi's name to hell and back. What the heck was this situation? Who was this woman? She clicked her tongue again. "Pathetic. How old are you, boy?"

"Six…"—Tsuna cleared his throat—"Sixteen…"

The woman eyed him up and down in clear distaste. "You're too thin. Have you really tamed Tsuyoshi's boy? I doubt it." Tsuna's mind just blanked, lost all function, and jumped over a cliff. A terrifying smile curled on the woman's pink lips, making him flinch. "But he promised me his right arm if you didn't succeed. Alright, boy, tell me, what is the most effective way to discipline a child: tearing off his fingernails one by one or dumping him in electrocuted water?"

Tsuna could only stare at her. "I'm sorry, what?"

A/N Just…let it be, peeps, and enjoy the ride. :'^)

Almost everyone in the KHR cast are kids, except for Tsuna, Haru, Hana, and Kyoko.

Thank you for reading! I hope to see you again in the next chapter.

Have a lovely day~

Little Miss Bunny