What He Left Behind Chapter 15-Kyoto Part 2

"Hey Minato, over here! I found a place for you to sit down!" yelled Junpei as he flopped down on the couch-like object, letting out a huge sigh of relief that he didn't have to carry his heavy bag any longer. His shoulders had been about ready to call for mercy.

His shoulders had just started to hurt and Junpei couldn't have timed that better. Minato didn't hesitate before joining his friend on the seat and letting out his own sigh of relief, relishing as his body sunk slightly into the couch.

"Ah, relief at last…my feet were killing me! I wasn't sure how much longer I could take standing and walking around everywhere." sighed Minato as he let himself relax after being forced to stand or sit up straight for hours. A couch never felt so good before now. Minato let out a sigh of contentment as he shook his loose shoes off of his feet.

He groaned as he tried to reach down to rub his ankles, only to find out his stomach blocked him mid-way. Not that it stopped him from trying. He tried every position that he could before he gave up and laid back down on the couch, grunting in annoyance and the resignment that his feet and ankles would hurt for a good while.

Minato could hear Junpei trying to hold back laughter, prompting Minato to give this response,

"If you don't stop laughing in the next ten seconds, you'll find yourself without your manhood, Iori. So can it." Minato said coldly, glaring at his friend in annoyance. In the past month, the blue-haired leader had developed a much shorter temper than he had before he was pregnant and usually it was Junpei that got yelled at, but no matter what implied threat Minato made, he never carried it out. He even apologized after each outburst.

Minato's POV

"Why is Junpei bring up Shinjiro's death now of all times? Is there something he wants to say to me? I wonder what it is…" I wondered as he had this odd expression on his face. It was a mix between hesitation and uncertainty.

"Uh…you gonna respond sometime soon, right? I know I threatened to cut off your dick, but at the very least, ask what you wanna ask! Stop beating around the bush!" I snapped my fingers in his face to try and get a response out of my friend.

After a moment, he asked rather nervously,

"You remember that pocket watch Hamuko-chan found on the 3rd? The old-looking one?" he asked, almost as if he couldn't get the words out of his mouth.

My eyes widened; how could I forget that watch? I mean, that night in general?

My last night with Shinjiro…

Flashback

10/3 evening

"I swear, you two are the oddest people I've ever known…I'd never thought that either one of you two would be the cuddling type of person. It's so sweet just to look at!" Hamuko giggled at us, resting on the bench close by us. She was fiddling with her headphones that she just taken off and was still on her neck playing music. Music that was both too loud and horrendous to listen to.

Never understood why she even BOUGHT that album in the first place. I think she did it to annoy me…and it's working.

"Oh, can it Hamuko. We can say the same about you, you know. And turn down the music, its way too loud!" said my lover as he hugged me closer to him, resting my head below his own. I sighed and breathed in his smell. He ran his hand through my hair a little.

"You two make the cutest couple. Maybe I should take a picture!" she smiled at as I glared at her while she giggled at us. Does she honestly need to keep saying that sentence over and over again? It's getting really annoying now. Time to hoist her by her own petard.

"Oh shut up Hamuko, I could say the same about you and Ken you know. I've seen you staring at him and I've seen him do the same towards you, so don't think we're the only couple in the dorm." I replied with a smug grin.

She was speechless for a few moments before she started the classic 'I'm-not-in-love-with-him!' cliché line that so many have said before her.

"Heh, the look on your face is priceless, leader. Wish I had my camera." Shinjiro said with a smirk as her face grew red and she started to deny having a crush on Ken.

"…You dick. Not cool. Not. Cool." she grumbled…

A while later back at the dorm, my sister had given Shinjiro a pocket watch that he had forgotten at the police station. He stared at it with a blank look on his face. He seemed to be lost in thought as he fidgeted with the old watch in his hands.

"…Can't believe she found this old thing…" he muttered in a low voice as he ran his fingers through my hair, brushing my bangs out of my face. He moved the watch in his hand as he stared at it in wonder, as if he was recalling a very old memory. I looked in his eyes and asked him where he got that watch. He let out a chuckle and told me that Souji had gotten it for him as a birthday present.

"Souji? You mean that kid you and Akihiko were friends with?" I had heard Souji's name mentioned a few times in conversation before, but I've never met him before. I wonder what he's like? He sounds shy from what little I know of him.

"Yeah, he clung to us like glue the moment he met us three. We never left each other's side until…that day when the orphanage caught on fire. I…haven't seen him since then." he muttered as he put the watch in his pocket, muttering something unintelligible.

"Have you tried finding him?" I asked as he moved his arms around me. "He's got to be in Japan still. I highly doubt he'd have left the country by now." He nodded in agreement, reaching over to the table to grab a drink of water.

"Yeah, I've looked for him for years. Last I heard, he's in foster care until his birth mother can pick him up." he said in a huff of annoyance. "So far from what I know, she hasn't picked him up yet. What the hell's taking her so long to pick up her kid? Lazy woman, I bet she doesn't even care about Souji." he huffed in slight anger.

I smiled and ruffled his messy hair, earning a mock glare from him,

"I see, it's good that you found him after so long. When are you going to see him?" I asked with a smile, looking up at him as I took my own sip of water.

"Soon, I hope. Though from what you've just said, it sounds like his mother isn't the best female role model in the world. I feel sorry for him."

I shook my head in disappointment; foster care was one of the worst things you could subject a kid to; me and my sisters had a rough time dealing with it until our grandfather and grandmother could come get us.

He paused before speaking, acting somewhat sad and quiet suddenly, "I…I'm not sure…what he'll think of me now…" he sighed, pulling me close to him in a tight hug.