Genbu doesn't remember, but the first time he ever saw Lelouch was before the fifteen-year-old moved in, as he waited to talk to the apartment manager about his parking space.

"Look, kid, I don't know what to tell you. Without an adult with a decent job co-signing this, I can't rent an apartment to you. It's that simple."

"I understand. However, I need somewhere to live. I can give you the first and last month's rent, the security deposit, and my word that further payments will be on time and that I will be an ideal tenant, keep to myself and require very little in the way of attention." Genbu had been a little impressed at the collected way the strange child had spoken. "To that end, what kind of bribe will you require?"

"…whut?"

"You are the manager, not the owner, correct? Therefore, the risk in taking on a risky tenant would mainly rest on another's shoulders. The only risk you would be taking is if I were to renege on this deal and the situation came to the owner's attention."

"Now, just one moment…"

"I am willing to compensate you, personally, for taking that risk. To that end, I need to know how much of a bribe you will need."

There was a long pause, and Genbu realized that maybe he should come back later. But he so rarely had a weekday off, and the manager's office was generally closed evenings and weekends…

"Three hundred bucks."

"Done."

"Welcome to our building, Mr. Lamperouge."

The boy moved in next to him and Suzaku, so he saw him on a semi-regular basis over the next few months – nothing more than passing him in the halls or when picking up his mail. It never occurred to him to wonder how he could afford to live alone, but both drugs and prostitution were possible options, a view enforced by the fact that he'd occasionally be leaving when Genbu got back from shopping at nine or ten at night, dressed in understated but subtly provocative tight black clothes under a deep red jacket. He looked good, in a way that children shouldn't.

It was a concern, in the way that parents could be about children in general, seeing their child's future in an older, unrelated child. But he never looked bruised or abused, and Genbu's concern didn't generally extend past his front door unless there were extreme circumstances. He had his own problems to worry about, and this cool, self-sufficient teen wasn't one of them.

The first time Suzaku met him, Genbu learned his name, and both their fates were sealed.

"Daaaad…"

Genbu had been juggling mail and his briefcase from work and Suzaku's schoolbag and hadn't really been paying attention. "What?"

"Who's that pretty man?"

"Who?"

"There!" Suzaku tugged impatiently on Genbu's sleeve and the mail flew everywhere.

Genbu closed his eyes and counted to ten, the way his wife had taught him, rather than losing his temper and yelling or worse. This gave Suzaku the opportunity to pull away from him and run towards the stranger. "Suzaku!"

To his credit, the boy looked as horrified as Genbu felt as Suzaku rushed up to him, nearly dropping his text books in surprise. "What are–"

"Hi! My name's Suzaku Kururugi, except that it's really Kururugi Suzaku, but that doesn't matter, and I live in apartment 312 with my dad. Who're you?"

"Lelouch Lamperouge…" the boy – Lelouch – was looking at Genbu rather than at Suzaku, his expression both confused and a little scared. "Ah, is that your father?"

Suzaku grinned and grabbed Lelouch's wrist. "Yeah. You should come over for tea or something. Where do you live?"

"The apartment next to you." Lelouch seemed completely lost, overwhelmed by Suzaku's impulsive friendliness. Genbu was surprised as well – it wasn't like this was typical of Suzaku. If anything, after the loss of his mother, Suzaku had become more shy and distant from strangers, even while looking desperately for something from Genbu that he had no idea how to give to his son.

Genbu never figured out what decided it for him – Suzaku's uncharacteristic behaviour, the stress of the day, the everpresent guilt over his failure as a single parent. Perhaps it was something else, something unique to Lelouch. No matter the why, it didn't change what Genbu did next.

"If you have some free time now…"

The immediate suspicion that settled on Lelouch's face for more than a short moment was honestly reassuring to Genbu, an appropriate reaction for a teen to an invitation from a grown man and stranger. He fully expected Lelouch to refuse and, at first, it seemed as though he would.

"Please?" Suzaku sounded almost desperate, but somehow not whiny, his eyes large and fixed on Lelouch. "Please, Lelouch?"

The suspicion Lelouch had built up melted away under a defensive helplessness. "I… suppose…"

"Yay!" Suzaku kept his hold on Lelouch's arm, chattering incessantly as they walked up to the apartment. Lelouch didn't say much apart from accepting the tea with polite thanks, but he did relax, even after Suzaku climbed onto his lap. Genbu watched, perplexed, as Lelouch tried to figure out what to do with a lapful of young boy, eventually resting a hand lightly on Suzaku's head.

His mother used to do that. Genbu stared into his tea as Suzaku sighed happily and leaned against Lelouch's chest.

After Lelouch left, finally promising Suzaku he'd visit again after multiple prompts, Suzaku leaned against the closed door, smiling.

"Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"I really like him."

It was the happiest Genbu could remember seeing him in years.