How am I supposed to love you?

Why am I too young to die?

How does fever burn inside you?

Must I have a will to fight?

Do these questions have an answer?

Where's the truth that fights the cause?

All my problems form a puzzle

All my pieces have been lost

- Check Please, by Cold

2025

"I can't believe you, TK," Kari hissed, closing the front door behind her. She didn't want to raise her voice, didn't want the kids, old and new, to hear her anger. "You just stood there as Sora said all those terrible things!"

"I see no reason to defend that man," TK growled. He shrugged off his coat, hanging it on the rack rough enough to rip the collar.

"'That man' is your brother!" Kari glanced at the bedroom, now housing four children, all of them upset and confused. "He tried to kill himself, and none of us know why!"

"Of course we know why. He put a gun to his head because he's a disgusting sinner who couldn't control his urges long enough to visit his sick mother." TK stormed to the guest bedroom, long since converted to an office, and slammed the door behind him.

Kari grabbed her hair, swallowing a scream as she pulled. They had spent all day at the hospital, lost and concerned, wondering what had happened to pull all the Children together after years of drifting apart. Amidst the confusion, the terrified waiting, Joe had emerged from surgery with the solemn news.

Matt had attempted to shoot himself.

If that hadn't been horrifying enough, Sora had refused to be calmed. She wasn't upset over her husband's suicide attempt, no, she was angry about why she believed he'd done it. She had raged against all of her friends, screaming into the hallways about what Matt had done.

"He molested my daughter!"

Was it possible? Could Matt have done something so horrible? And as they crowded into the blonde man's room, looked upon his haggard and bandaged face, Sora continued to accuse him. Announcing that he'd hurt his daughter, the woman then accused Matt of doing the same to TK. She claimed that was the reason the brothers hadn't spoken to each other in years and years. But Kari couldn't believe it. TK was her husband, if something like that had happened, she would have known about it. So she'd looked to him, waiting for him to deny Sora's terrible words.

TK, too pious to consider forgiving his sinner of a brother, had remained silent. And Kari had felt another shovel of dirt fall onto the casket that had been their love.

Unable to stay in their own home, the Ishida children had been quickly claimed by Kari. The woman wouldn't let them go into foster care when they had a loving environment to go to. At least, that had been the plan...

Kari tried to take a few deep breaths, calming down from angry snorts, and relaxed her face to a concerned smile. She knocked on her children's door, opening it and peeking in. Her sons, thirteen year old Lucian and twelve year old Kazuki, were still fighting over who would get the bed and who would get the futon, and her two latest charges were sitting on the second bed, looking so desperately lost.

"Hanako, Tsukuyomi," she called sweetly, gently.

The young girl looked up, eyes red from crying, and her brother couldn't even lift his head. They both clung to stuffed creatures, the few belongings they were allowed to take from their crime scene of an apartment still in the bag next to them. Kari felt terrible about having to shove them all in one room, but her husband refused to give up his workspace for anything.

"Y-Yes, Mrs. T-Takaishi?" Tsukuyomi asked, barely a whisper. Lucian and Kazuki quieted their arguing, still unused to cousins they hadn't seen since they were children.

"You can call me 'Aunt' if you want," Kari told them sweetly. "We're all family here, and we take care of each other. Just let me or your uncle know if you need anything, ok?"

"Yes, ma'am," Hanako mumbled, flopping back on the bed. Kari bit her lip at the display of Matt's anger she could still see from her adventure in the Digital World.

"Lucian, Kazuki, be nice," Kari warned and her sons nodded. "It'll be tough for a few days while we get everyone settled, but we'll make it."

The young wife hesitated for a moment, closing the door as she tried to figure out how to stretch her already thin budget. Lucian sighed after his weary mother, wishing deep inside that she wouldn't hide her true self, and looked to his cousins. Eleven year old Hanako could have been Kazuki's twin, both with light blonde hair and sharp blue eyes. Tsukuyomi at eight years could have had bright amber eyes to match his red hair, but now everything about him seemed so dull.

"Hey," Lucian tried lamely. What could he say to them? They had heard their father's gunshot, been torn from their mother's home, police officers had swarmed them for hours, poking and prodding in places they themselves had never explored before, and they'd only just managed to be dumped in a tiny room that had hastily been furnished for more than it could hold. He didn't know either of them, he'd seen Hanako once, and had only heard of Tsukuyomi. "You guys wanna play a game?"

"No," Hanako grumbled into the pillow. "I just wanna sleep."

"Tsukuyomi?" Lucian tried.

The redhead just shook his head, bottom lip trembling. "N-no thank y-you..."

"All right... Good night, I guess." Hopefully the brothers could make their cousins feel more welcome tomorrow.

It took a few days for things to calm down to more or less a routine. The first time Sora had visited, Hanako had ended up screaming and sobbing, and it took Kari hours to convince the woman not to take her children home that instant. From then on, only Tsukuyomi seemed happy to see his mother.

One afternoon, Kari had taken Hanako to the store to buy a curtain and together they rigged up a basic canopy around what used to be Kazuki's bed.

"I lived with my brother for a while when I was little," Kari told her as they clipped shower curtains to the silky black fabric, preparing to thread them onto a duct taped PVC pipe. "So I know that young girls need privacy, especially around rowdy boys."

Hanako was frowning, struggling with one of her rings. The fabric had little nips taken out of it to run the rings through, but it seemed the area where the young girl was looking at hadn't been cut properly.

"Hanako, sweetie?" Kari asked, watching the girl's face redden more and more. "It's ok, just calm down."

The woman reached out to place a hand on Hanako's shoulder just as the girl screamed, flinging the plastic across the room. "Stupid thing!"

"Hanako!" Kari snapped and Hanako flinched. Tears were pouring down her cheeks and she collapsed into her aunt's arms with a sob.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Takaishi," Hanako cried as Kari rubbed her back soothingly. "I... I just can't..."

"It's ok." Kari rocked her niece gently, glad her sons were trying to get Tsukuyomi to open up with video games. She knew boys didn't make things like this any easier. "I'm not mad at you, you know that."

"All I can hear is... th-the gun..."

Kari squeezed Hanako as tight as she could, cursing the man still in the hospital. 'Damnit, Matt, how could there have been no other way?'

There was no way she would tell TK, not that he would believe her anyway, but Kari couldn't see the truth in Sora's accusations. There was no hesitation in Hanako's touch, no fear of strange adults, and more often than not she slept curled close against her brother. And if Sora could see a victim in TK where there was none, how could she see one in this wonderfully open and loving child?

"Your father is ok," Kari reassured. "He's recovering in the hospital right now."

But the child was still crying, crying like she had since the day she'd been taken in. Kari was quickly running out of things to say, but she knew she couldn't just leave Hanako to her own troubled devices.

"Let's get this finished up," Kari whispered into Hanako's spiky blonde hair. "You'll feel a hundred times better when you have a space you can call your own. And once we're done here, how about you and I got to the mall and get you some nice clothes, hm?"

The girl shifted, her sobs just a bit quieter. She'd never had any girl time with her mother, Sora being more interested in protecting her from something only she saw in Matt. The only person who had ever given her things, bought her clothes that hadn't immediately been taken and burned, was their scary neighbor, Mrs. Satoshi.

"Can I keep them?" Hanako asked softly, unsurely.

"Of course," Kari replied with a confused blink. What had happened to the poor child? "They'll be yours, and only yours."

"... Ok." Hanako sat back, wiped her eyes on her sleeve. "I'm sorry I threw the ring, Aunt Takaishi."

"It's fine, sweetie." Kari smiled, gently running her fingers through the girl's hair. "Why don't you go pick it up, and we'll finish this together, ok?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Slowly the canopy came together, set up around the bed, and Hanako was showing the barest hint of a smile. Kari hugged her tight, thinking that when they went shopping, she would let the child choose new sheets to help re-find her personality that had been buried under the echo of a single gunshot.

"Get your coat, Hanako," Kari said as they walked through the tiny living room. Lucian was playing a racing game, while Kazuki and Tsukuyomi chatted on the couch. A fat cat, named Mr. Tinkles by an excited two year old Lucian, was laying on the couch arm, a gray loaf that purred contentedly as the blonde scratched her ears. The young wife's heart broke at her nephew's stutter, and she reached out to caress his shoulder as she passed.

"Where are you going, Mom?" Kazuki asked as Lucian skidded out into the water with a curse. Tsukuyomi shuddered at the phrase, and Lucian apologized.

"Hanako and I are going to go out for a few hours, get some fresh air," Kari said, slipping on her shoes. "I'll be home in time to start dinner."

Hanako appeared, tentatively putting her small hand in her aunt's in the first display of affection she'd initiated. Kari smiled, hefting her purse over her shoulder. Just as she was reaching for the door, the phone began to ring and she paused.

"Kazuki, will you get that?"

"Ok, Mom." The blonde boy smiled at his cousin before hopping off the couch, stepping between Lucian's legs and sending him into a bomb and another cuss that made even the cat give him a dirty look as she hopped to the floor.

Kari straightened Hanako's coat while she waited, her motherly fussing such a foreign concept to the girl. But it was nice, being the target of such warmth and love without the backing of fear and anger.

"Mom," Kazuki called from the kitchen. "It's for you! Someone named Hida?"

Kari frowned, her brows furrowing. "I'll be right back, sweetie," she muttered absently. Carefully, she waded through the packed room, picking her way through legs and toys to the kitchen. Taking the phone from her son, she called into it, "Hello? Cody?"

"Good afternoon, Kari. I haven't interrupted anything, have I?" came the man's usually stoic voice.

"No, not at all. I was just about to step out for a moment. Is everything ok?"

"I have been speaking with Ken, discussing Matt's case. We feel the best course of action to clear this all up, would be to get Hanako and Tsukuyomi counseling. We can set up an appointment with a psychiatrist in a few days, have the kids talk to someone about their daily lives. Something in what they say should give us an insight to what exactly happened in that house."

"I see." Kari glanced out of the kitchen, eying the two newcomers. Counseling was certain to help with more than just evidence, she was certain. "Do you have a date in mind?"

"Not yet, but I'll call and let you know. I won't waste any more of your time."

"Who was that?" Lucian asked, scowling at his score. He tried to stretch, accidentally kicking the cat in the side and almost knocking the DVD shelf over.

"Just a friend: Mr. Hida," Kari responded. She didn't want to bring down Hanako when she was just beginning to pick up. "You still ready, Hanako?"

"Yes, ma'am," the girl chirped, and Kari smiled.

"My mother is going into hospice," TK announced as he came home from another visit to the hospital.

It had been three months. Hanako and Tsukuyomi went to counseling once a week, sometimes together, sometimes in separate sessions. Lucian and Kazuki were even encouraged to attend a few sessions, to voice their say in what was happening in their apartment. Noone would tell Kari the details, but the more she spoke with Ken and Cody, the less worried they seemed.

Matt had been discharged from the hospital, but none of the Children knew where he went. TK refused to call his father's apartment to find him on sheer principle, and Sora didn't care as long as Matt wasn't near his kids.

Hanako was slowly adjusting, the already cat-clawed curtain around her bed being the best help, though more often than not Tsukuyomi ended up crawling in with her to cry through the night. The Takaishi boys did their best to make their cousins feel relaxed, but they couldn't stop the usual sibling arguments that sent Tsukuyomi into terrified wailing and Hanako into screaming fits of rage.

Every Sunday, the group attended the Catholic church several streets away. TK insisted, claiming he'd never missed a Mass since he was seven and he wasn't going to allow his heathen brother's mistakes ruin that record. Along with the usual Bible Studies held after Mass, TK also enrolled Hanako and Tsukuyomi in Confirmation classes along with his sons before Church.

"I don't think Matt wants his kids Confirmed," Kari had warned.

"Matt doesn't care about his children's souls," TK had snapped. "He can burn in Hell for all eternity, but I have a duty as a Christian to help these poor, lost lambs."

Hanako had learned quickly not to question TK about anything, the resulting arguments reminiscent of her mother and father's daily lives, and instead wait to discuss with Lucian after her uncle locked himself in his study. Tsukuyomi absorbed every psalm, every parable, trying to reconcile the Scripture with how his own world had turned out. Kazuki was more willing to help him, drawn to the young boy more than his female cousin.

That night, Kari was in the kitchen, cooking dinner after a long day of Kindergarteners screaming, and the four kids were in the living room, watching a made-for-TV movie about a boat sinking. The cat was meowing around Kari's ankles, hoping to get scraps of what was boiling in the pot. Kazuki looked up at the sound of his father's voice, immediately drawn to the man he admired.

"I thought she was already in the hospital."

"Not 'hospital' – 'hospice'," Lucian corrected with his mother's gentleness. As much as they argued and fought, Lucian could never truly hate his brother for anything. "It's where really sick people go to die."

"I'm sorry, TK," Kari said. "How long do you think...?"

TK took a shuddering breath, holding a hand over his eyes. "About a week. Maybe more, maybe less."

"U-uncle T-T-Takaishi..." Tsukuyomi whimpered. He could still feel his own father's trembling that night, those usually strong arms so weak around his shoulders.

Kari turned the burner low and stepped into the living room. She reached out for her husband, almost touching his shoulder when he stated, "I'm taking the kids to see her tomorrow."

Kari froze. That sick feeling she'd buried long ago upon her first meeting with Nancy hit her, full force. Before, she hadn't been able to place her unease, but the more she spoke with lawyers, and police officers, and family, the more she could see what had driven Matt away.

"No," Kari said, surprising herself with how firmly she spoke. "I don't want them going."

"What are you talking about?" TK growled. "She's my mother!"

Kari swallowed hard. TK still outright refused to believe anything that Matt was saying about the woman. About the molestation charges – both against Nancy and Matt himself.

How could she tell TK that she believed his brother? As a teacher, she was forced to attend three-hour long seminars once a semester about behavioral changes in sexually abused children, and the more she thought about it, the more she could see it in the older brother: the withdrawal, the unnecessary fits of rage, the haunting fear in the back of his eyes. She cursed herself, over and over, for not realizing it sooner, for not saying anything before this explosion of pain.

"TK," she said slowly, carefully. "You always said it yourself, you never wanted your children to see her in a hospital."

"She won't be," TK told her. "Tomorrow we'll be moving her back to her old apartment, give her a chance to see her home again before she... goes." He swallowed hard. "And I'll be damned if she doesn't see her grandchildren at least once in this lifetime."

Kari looked away, unable to hold her crying husband. He refused to see that darkness in his mother, no matter how much it was shoved in his face, no matter who shoved it in his face. "Whatever your decision, I won't be a part of it."

"How could you?" TK spat. "You're my wife, you're supposed to support me."

"And I will support you," Kari told him. A quick glance in the living room revealed all the children were listening. And upset. "But I don't think the best thing for these kids to see a... a dying woman..."

"That 'dying woman' is my mother. All she's ever wanted is to see her grandkids, and she doesn't have much time left." TK looked away. "I can't believe you've fallen so easily into Matt's poison..." He stormed away, ignoring the kids as he fled to the safety of his study. "I'm spending tomorrow helping my mother and her nurses move her back home."

Kari pursed her lips as the door slammed. Lucian, Kazuki, Hanako, Tsukuyomi, even Mr. Tinkles, looked to the haggard woman, who quickly realized she needed to compose herself. If she fell apart, who would keep everything together?

"Come on kids," she said with a smile. "Dinner should be ready, so let's eat."

She waved her hands, shooing the children and burying her screaming true self deep under gentle caring. As the kids grabbed their plates, as they dug into her hard work, she hugged them all. To reassure them. To reassure herself. And that night, after she tucked in emotionally exhausted children, as she crawled tiredly into her bed, all alone until TK had calmed down enough to join her, she could only whisper her desires into the darkness.

"Davis..."

TK was barely home the next couple of days. Still upset with his wife, with his brother, even with his friends who refused to believe what he'd always known, he spent all his time and energy helping his mother get settled. Her apartment was as it had been, though more caked with dust than ever before. He told himself he would stay out of the nurses' way, keep himself busy with cleaning, but every last gasp, every tiny whimper sent him running to her room to see what was wrong.

The nurses were stern, but gentle. They'd seen this behavior often before, though it didn't ever make it less irritating. They tried to usher him to the living room, to the kitchen. They told him to unpack her meager belongings that she'd had in the hospital, tried to busy him with learning specialized recipes that would help her energy recover as best it could while being gentle on her stomach.

But the more they pushed him away, the more he clung. He was quickly finding himself in the mind he used to be when he was five. His mother was injured, he didn't know why except it had something to do with his brother and that seething hatred he'd always carried.

"Don't worry, Mom," he said quietly that first night, holding her hand long past when he should have gone home. "I won't let you be alone. I'll be here for you."

She looked at him, blue eyes fading quickly to colorless gray. "Where... Where is Yamato...?"

"I have to take Hanako and Tsukuyomi to therapy today when I get off work," Kari told TK early one morning. She was still upset, and it was getting harder and harder to keep it buried, to keep herself smiling. She noticed more hair sticking in her brush every morning, and the only thing that calmed her upset stomach was calling Davis on her lunch break, pretending she was only interested in hearing about his son's latest obsessions.

"I thought they went on Sundays," TK said, frowning. Their sessions cut into the end of his Bible Study, but he knew their health was more important than Church. That didn't mean he had to like it, however.

"Dr. Halloway has a specialty case coming in this weekend, apparently," Kari informed. Slowly, their marriage was dissolving into simple statements. Information that was required to be shared. "So it'll be up to you to get Lucian from middle school, and Kazuki from elementary. Don't forget – I know how wrapped up you've been with your mother."

"I know how to take care of my children," TK hissed. "I'll get them."

Kari didn't respond as he awkwardly kissed her on the cheek. He always insisted on the physical contact despite any anger, telling her that simple gestures like that were what kept a family together. It was tough for Kari to keep from mention just what gestures Nancy had made that had torn her family apart. Instead, she grabbed her purse and walked out the door, heading to the elementary without a word.

TK dropped his head, listening to the door fall closed on him. Even the cat was hiding in the kids' room, avoiding him. He didn't want to drive his wife away, he didn't want to make his kids upset, he didn't want to make his niece and nephew feel unwelcome. He only just loved his mother, his father, even buried under his righteousness he still thought he could love his brother if he'd only change his sinful ways.

Sometimes, especially lately, when he looked into Hanako's familiar blue eyes, he could feel a twinge deep inside. He spoke to Sora every so often, the wife bitterly complaining about her missing soon-to-be-ex, and as much as he believed her, sometimes he couldn't help but think. Think, and wonder exactly what had happened to Matt. To turn his brother, who he'd once idolized, into the depraved monster apparently only Sora knew. Everything revolved around his mother, around the divorce. And there were times, when he watched his wife toss and turn in her restless sleep, when he could almost think that maybe...

But no. It was impossible. His mother was a kind woman, who loved with all her heart. She wouldn't hurt a fly, much less do those horrible things that Matt had obviously lied about because of his own bitterness and anger over the divorce.

He used the thought of his brother to drive himself into a rage, to remind him of what he had to do for his family.

Kari had said she wouldn't be part of Nancy's remaining time, but that was fine. He had plenty of time to make peace with his wife. But Nancy had only precious days left. And he would make them count.

Odaiba Elementary wasn't too far away from the middle school, so Lucian and Kazuki tended to meet up halfway, waiting on the benches for their mother to pull up. The older brunette was picking at his uniform, telling Kazuki how much he missed elementary, before he was forced to wear the ugliest shade of green imaginable. Kazuki was just ignoring his brother's complaining like usual, watching a group of boys walking home with an odd twinge in his stomach.

The familiar minivan pulled up, and Lucian jumped in the front seat, sticking his tongue out at his brother who was never fast enough to ride shotgun. It wasn't until he was settled that Lucian actually noticed that his father was the one pulling into traffic instead of Kari.

"What's up, Dad?" Lucian asked. He never understood his brother's respectful fear of the man, and Kazuki had never been able to properly explain it. "Is Mom ok?"

"Your mother is fine," TK said. "Hanako and Tsukuyomi have a special session today, so I'm in charge tonight."

"They're really doing a lot better," Lucian said. "Tsuku's stutter isn't that bad anymore, have you noticed?"

"And Hana's not throwing stuff as much," Kazuki spoke up. "And she apologizes more after she yells."

"I'm glad to hear that," TK said. He really was glad, though there was that bite in his chest. He spent so much time locked away in his study lately, not even writing but just worrying, that he'd barely been able to see the change in his charges. He tried to think of Kari, of what would help her feel better. "Maybe we can all go out together soon."

"Awesome!" Lucian cheered and Kazuki perked up in the back seat. Going out to dinner, even normally, was such a special treat on an already thin budget, and it was always something wonderful to look forward to.

"But there's somewhere I need to go tonight." TK glanced at his sons, turning the opposite direction he usually did to go home. "And I want you two to be with me."

There was a moment's silence, before Lucian said softly, "Is it Grandma?"

TK took a breath, blinking rapidly. He hated when his kids could see his tears, but lately he couldn't stop them. "She's... She's not doing as well as we'd hoped. I wanted Hanako and Tsukuyomi here as well, but I don't think they can make it."

"Next time, Dad," Kazuki said, a small smile crossing his lips. "We can bring them next time."

TK pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stem the flow of tears. He was glad his child was named after the crest seared into his flesh, and he nodded slightly. "Of course. But for now... It's just us."

The apartment complex was grand, a beautiful building that made the kids gape in astonishment. How wonderful it would be to live in such a huge place, for everyone to have their own space. TK quickly ushered them onto the elevator, the lift slowly taking them to the fourth floor.

There was a nurse smoking just outside the door, and he flashed a sad smile at TK as he approached.

"Who are the little ones?" he asked, ash falling to his feet.

"My sons," TK explained. "They're here to visit their grandmother."

"That's fine. Just make sure they're not too rowdy, she's pretty tired today." The nurse reached into his pocket, pulling out a new cigarette and using the last of the old one to light it.

TK waved away the fresh tendril of smoke, the stench reminding him unpleasantly of his brother. "Enjoy your lunch," he grumbled and the nurse pretended not to hear him. There was enough stress in that apartment to let one of the still-living get to him.

The atmosphere of the apartment was heavy, almost choking as TK led his sons inside. The rooms were spotless, even the dishes used to prepare Nancy's lunch were drying on the counter. TK usually managed to find some menial dusting or straightening to do, but today he had a mission. He had to let his mother see that everything would be ok.

Her bedroom door was cracked, but TK still knocked. He poked his head inside, calling softly, "Mom? Are you awake?"

The woman was prone in the bed. The Chemo treatments had made her hair fall out, and what little had grown back was thin and gray. The lines around her eyes and mouth were deep crevasses that cut into her thin flesh, chapped lips quivering and eyelids fluttering of their own accord. Eyes, once so lively and blue, were dulled to milky marbles that had lost all shine. Her limbs were thin, bones pressed against loose skin and giving her an angular, sharp look that was lost under her three blankets. The medicine she used to take had thinned her blood almost to water, and she froze all the time now.

"T... Take... ru...?" she breathed. Slowly, she turned her head, trying to focus on her son. Her dry tongue pressed against her bottom lip, but she quickly forgot that it hung there until she tried to speak again. "C-come... come in."

"Mom, I brought you a surprise," TK said, soothingly, gently. He stepped inside the room, leading in his sons. They swallowed hard, having never seen a person so thin, so translucent. They'd never seen someone so close to death before. "These are my children. This is my oldest, Lucian, and this is Kazuki."

"Lu... cian...?" Nancy breathed the name, the syllables confusing to her. "Kazuk... ki..."

"Go say hello," TK whispered to his kids. They hesitated for just a moment, but Lucian took his brother's hand in his, a gesture he hadn't made since they were five, and lead him close.

"Hi, Grandma," Lucian said. He gave a shaky smile, trying to not let the reality of how close to gone she was sink in. "It's nice to meet you."

"Hello, Grandma," Kazuki said. He tried not to hide in his brother's side as she looked at him.

"You... You're just like..." It was hard for Nancy to talk, simple words leaving her breathless. She reached up a shaking hand, letting it settle on Kazuki's hair. She smelled like baby powder and rose perfume to cover the stink of her own inability to clean and control herself. "You look like... like him..."

TK was frowning. "I'm going to get the nurse – he shouldn't be leaving you alone like this. Lucian, will you get your grandmother some water?"

"Ok, Dad," Lucian said, happy to be given an excuse to escape. He didn't spare a second glance to his brother as he politely fled the room, his father already finding the choice words he would use on that damned nurse.

Kazuki opened his mouth to say something, anything, when he was suddenly left alone in the room. He didn't want to admit he was scared, that her death was something terrifying to him. What he wanted to do was join his brother, take comfort in the protective figure he'd always been.

But Nancy's hand was still in his hair, fingers twining around the golden strands. He swallowed hard, wondering what to say. "How are you feeling, Grandma?"

"Much better." She was smiling, a faint ghost of an image. "I'm glad you finally... came to see me."

Kazuki fidgeted, and the woman's hand, still shaking, dropped to his shoulder. Her brittle nails ran over the flesh of his neck, sending goosebumps up his arms.

"I-It's been so... so long, you know," she whispered, her breath labored. "I'd al-almost given... up hope..."

The boy leaned away as her thumb began rubbing small circles on his shoulder. She was moving again, leaving herself breathless as she caressed his shoulder. He wasn't sure what made him more uncomfortable, the touching or the sudden light that filled Nancy's eyes.

"I've been s-s-so... lonely, you know... Mommy's always so... lonely without her... baby boy around..."

Kazuki whimpered as she ran her hand over his chest, broken nails dragging over the fabric of his shirt. Her arm ached with fatigue and it began to lower wearily, shaking worse than before as she neared his hips, moving inward.

"I knew you'd-d... come back to Mommy... Yamato..."

"I'm back Grandma," Lucian announced suddenly. Kazuki jumped and Nancy withdrew her arm with such speed, even she seemed amazed. The brunette approached, helping his grandmother sit up so she could drink with ease. Whatever spark had been in her was gone now, and she was limp, staring dully at the walls once more.

"You ok?" Lucian asked as he set the glass aside, finally noticing his brother.

Kazuki looked up, something akin to guilt filling him. Whatever his grandmother had been doing, it was obviously something she couldn't help. His discomfort was surely something he'd invented as his father and brother seemed at ease with her. He nodded, but couldn't keep himself from stepping away.

"I think I'll go find Dad," he whispered, trying not to look like he was running from the room.

His father was out on the front step, arguing at a bored looking nurse who was finally finishing his second cigarette. Kazuki wanted to approach, to demand to go home, but he didn't want to upset the man more than he already was. His skin still crawled with disgust, but he ignored it, telling himself to stop being such a baby about an old woman's touch.

So instead, he sat on the unused couch, wrapping his arms around himself to control his shuddering. He bit his lip, turning his gaze to the floor. Until he got his mind sorted out, he wasn't sure he wanted to look at anyone else.

It was then that he saw it. A little thin string, poking out from under the low coffee table. He reached out to grab it, pulling the item up and letting it dangle in front of him. It was a phone strap he remembered his mother saying she'd lost a few years ago. His own four year old grinning face was staring back at him, the picture dulled from constant handling. But the image of his brother, one arm slung over his shoulder, had been scribbled over with marker, dug into with angered scratching.

He heard his father's voice finally calm down, the front door beginning to creak, and Kazuki flung the item back under the table as though it had burned him. He tried to smile at his father, to act as if his insides weren't crawling with horror.

Suddenly, terribly, sinfully, he was very glad his grandmother wasn't going to last much longer.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who's been keeping up with all the Ishida-Takaishi drama in my hedcannon~! Unfortunately, life seems to be getting a little complicated right now, so I'm going to take off from posting for the month of September. It'll give me time to polish up some of the stuff I've been working on, so do not fret! I will be back!

I'll see all of you October 2nd! And thank you again!