An Odd Situation

It was an odd situation, to be sure. Ritsu's mother had decided to pay her son a visit, goaded mostly by memories of how upset An-chan had been about her treatment at the wedding she'd gone to. Clearly, Ritsu needed his manners refreshed, and whether that involved simply a chat or her pounding it into him, she'd get it accomplished.

However, when she knocked on his apartment door, she heard mad shuffling and what was quite decidedly Ritsu's voice saying, "Get off me." She wasn't sure what to think; her mind, unlike many other people's, didn't go straight for the obvious answer in situations like this. Especially with Ritsu; she still saw him as that blushing little boy he'd been in high school, or at least part of high school. Something had happened to change him, and he'd never tell her what.

"…h-hello, Mother," Ritsu greeted. He looked a little worse-for-wear, his cheeks flushed and his hair ruffled. "If I'd known you were coming over I would've been more ready for you."

Any anger that Onodera-mama had when she was heading over dissipated at the sight of her son, looking desperate and sorry at the state he was in. So instead of railing against him at An-chan's behalf, she instead said, "It's alright, Ritsu. I just wanted to come see you. You don't come home nearly enough anymore." And then she glanced past Ritsu, and Ritsu turned to see what she was looking at: Takano was sitting on his couch, clothes and hair completely in-place and at least making it look like he was going over the storyboards Ritsu had received earlier. "Oh, you have a guest?"

Takano glanced up at that, as if just realizing that someone was at the door. Ritsu flushed a little before saying, "Yes, this is the head editor of the magazine I work at now. Takano Masamune."

"It's good to see you again, Onodera-san," Takano said, bowing slightly.

"Again?"

"Ritsu and I went to high school together. My family name was Saga back then." Takano smirked to himself as Ritsu looked speechless. For Onodera-mama's part, however, memories of the star-struck look in Ritsu's eyes when she had stopped by the school to pick him up one day, and Ritsu had said he was walking home with "Saga-sempai," came flooding to her. She had thought it was so cute he had such admiration for his senpai back then, but to her knowledge, they hadn't kept in-touch after Ritsu demanded to study abroad.

Ritsu looked incredibly awkward, and it was all he could do to say, "Um, Mother, Takano-san and I were looking at storyboards so we're kind of busy right now. I'm sorry." And then he seemed to realize something. "Oh, but I can walk you to the station if you want…"

"It's okay, Ritsu," his mother said, smiling. "Your father drove me over today. He's waiting down on the street so we won't get a ticket. There's very little parking around here." Ritsu looked like he was going to protest, but his mother just hugged him. "I'll call you later, okay? We need to spend more time together."

Ritsu nodded, but he seemed to have stopped entirely thinking when he realized his father was down there. Onodera-mama slipped out after placing a kiss on his cheek.

"Smooth, Onodera," Takano said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose and actually looking at the storyboard page he'd had in his hand.

"Like you're one to talk," Ritsu growled, and he pointedly sat on the floor instead of beside Takano on the couch. Not that it really prevented the pounce.