Alfred was still partially in shock, so it took him a moment to realize that Kiku's mother was talking to him again. "Oh... Uhh, yeah; I- slept great, thanks..." he managed to answer. He glanced over at Kiku, who looked as embarrassed as he felt. Mrs. Honda seemed a bit embarrassed as well, but all things considered, she seemed to be taking the news pretty well. It helped Alfred to relax a little.
"Kiku slept well too!" he added with a laugh. "He's usually awake before me, but I think I wore him out a little yesterday... We spent the whole day at Disneyland, which was so much fun, but so much running, you know?" What was he thinking; of course she probably didn't know... But he felt the need to keep the conversation going, both to be friendly, and to eliminate any awkward silence, so he kept on talking.
"So, how was your flight?" Was it really long? You don't look tired at all, so I doubt it!" Mrs. Honda smiled kindly.
"Hai... Yes, our flight was fine; thank you, Alfred. It was a bit long, but Mr. Honda travels a lot, so we are quite used to getting rest while we can during flights... Speaking of Taro, you can meet him in a few moments; he's just bringing in our stuff from the car." She turned to Kiku. "All right, well, I'll leave you two to get dressed. Why don't you meet us in the kitchen when you're done; I'll make you boys some breakfast. Nice to meet you, Alfred." And with that, she nodded politely and left the room.
At the prospect of breakfast, Alfred immediately climbed out of bed and began to dig through his suitcase for clean clothes. "Your mother's really nice," he said to Kiku with a genuine smile. "So... What's your dad like? Anything I need to know before I meet him?"
When his mother left the room Kiku took a deep breath and practically tripped his way over to his closet. Breakfast in the kitchen...informal...slacks and a button down shirt. Showing Alfred around Tokyo and their impromptu visit to Disneyland had called for jeans and a sweater...But this was breakfast with his parents.
"Hai. Okasan is very sweet to me. I...I admit I did not expect her to be so warm to the idea of us being together. I was hoping to be awake and dressed before they arrived home."
'Being together...Still such a strange concept and yet...so comforting...' He thought.
"What is...Otosan like?" He repeated the question as he looked through his closet full of clothes. "He is...very serious. Very...professional." He said, finally choosing a black shirt and black slacks, quickly stripping off his pajamas and pulling on his clothes for the day.
"Hurry, Aru-kun. Breakfast will done be very soon."
"Professional?" he said uncertainly, noting Kiku's choice of clothes. "Ok..." The pants fit him very nicely, and the shirt looked good too, but all the black seemed a bit conservative; a bit formal. It made him wonder if maybe he should pick out another set of clothes for the day... something a little nicer. Did he have anything nicer?
He knew he MEANT to pack a couple of dressier outfits for any date nights that might come up over break, but he had been packing and watching movies at the same time, so whether he actually packed them was a mystery. He sighed as he went to see what he could come up with... Why hadn't he just let Matthew pack his bags like he usually did? Then there would have definitely been some dress clothes...
At first, it didn't look very hopeful, but after a bit of digging, Alfred finally found a blue button-down. It was slightly wrinkled, due to it fact that it was near the bottom of the suitcase, but, it still looked fine, he thought. He pulled out some of his nicer jeans to go with it, and then he quickly proceeded to get dressed. Finally, he ran a comb through his hair to get rid of the slight bedhead and smooth out all the parts of his hair that were sticking up in various directions... Except for his cowlick. He didn't bother with that; it would never go down...
Once he was done, and he finally decided he looked presentable enough to meet the formal, serious man that was Kiku's father, Alfred put on his signature grin that could usually win just about anybody over. "Ok..." he said, taking Kiku's hand. "Let's do this." And so together, they headed towards the kitchen. He could already smell breakfast coming...
As they reached the kitchen, the scent of cooking food permeated the air. Kiku hoped Alfred wouldn't mind the choice of food for breakfast, but his family ate a lot of fish and rice. Right before they entered the kitchen Kiku paused and squeezed Alfred's hand. He was....terrified. But he wasn't going to let that show. Instead, in a voice that was much more confident than his shaky legs probably looked, he turned to Alfred and spoke.
"Prepare to be amazed. Okasan is an amazing cook. I was told her otosan was a famous chef and taught her a lot of things when she was younger."
As they walked into the kitchen, his mother was standing at the counter making rice balls, and he could smell the fish cooking on the stove.
"Ah, good. There you are. Will you two mind setting the table, onegai?"
"Hai." Kiku bowed, then went to the cupboards and drawers to pulls out the necessary place settings. He handed the plates to Alfred, and grabbed the rest himself.
"We will sit at the kotatsu for breakfast, since it is so cold this morning." He explained, setting things down on the low table. "Okasan, did you turn this on yet?"
"Iie. I have not. Will you do it for me, Kiku-chan?"
"Hai." Kiku answered, the knelt down on the floor and reached under the blanket to flip a switch. "There is a small heater underneath." he explained to Alfred. It helps to keep us warm while we eat."
Alfred stared curiously at the small table as he gently set the plates down. It didn't look like any other table he had seen before; this one was so low to the ground that they would have to sit on the floor to eat at it. And it appeared to have a comforter as a tablecloth... It would have made a really great fort when he was little, if only he had had a table like that back at home.
"Whoa, there's a heater under here to keep your food warm?" he asked. "Why has this not caught on in America yet; that is awesome!" He bent down to touch the table to see if it felt any warmer. It didn't yet, but he figured it would eventually.
After the table was all set, he took a seat on one of the cushions and motioned for his boyfriend to do the same. He attempted to make himself comfortable. In the end, he felt too tall when he was kneeling, so he just sat down on the cushion instead. As he waited for the food to be prepared, he debated on whether he should help out or not. But, as Kiku said, Mrs. Honda was an exceptional cook, and it looked like she was doing just fine on her own. He'd probably just get in the way. (Not to mention that his role in the kitchen at home to sit on the counter and eat taste test cookie dough... probably not too helpful in this situation.)
The food smelled delicious though, and even though it wasn't normally the kind of breakfast he usually had, his mouth was watering by the time everything was ready. Mrs. Honda brought over the food, and then took her place at the table, but not before calling Mr. Honda to come join them.
Under the table, Alfred gave Kiku's hand a reassuring squeeze, as if to say that everything would be all right. Kiku may have appeared to be calm on the outside, but by now, Alfred knew better. Poor Kiku was probably a nervous wreck on the inside... And as soon as Mr. Honda stepped into the room, he saw why. He was a very stern looking man, who didn't seem to know how to smile. Alfred immediately put down the rice ball he was munching on and swallowed nervously. Then he took a deep breath and put on his most welcoming smile. "Good morning, Mr. Honda; it's nice to meet you, Sir..."
Kiku sat cross-legged with the blanket over his lap as he ate a rice ball. As usual, his father was a little late to the table, likely working on his laptop at the kotatsu in his office.
Even though he was sitting, Kiku still bowed when addressing his father. "Ohayo gozaimasu, Otosan."
"Ohayo gozaimasu, Kiku." His father said, sitting down at the head of the kotatsu and pulling the blanket over his lap.
Then he turned to Alfred and addressed him. "Good morning, Alfred. It is nice to meet you, as well." He said, bowing his head only slightly. Alfred's smile seemed to have no affect on him at first as he reached for the basket of rice balls and placed a few on his plate.
"So, I hear you two are quite close...." He started before eating one of his rice balls in one bite.
A polite cough came from across from where Kiku was sitting and he looked up at his mother, his face turning a slight shade of pink. She nodded once, then went back to eating.
Kiku swallowed and looked at Alfred, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze and nodding his head slightly.
"So, I hear you two are quite close..." were Mr. Honda's words right off the bat. And he knew he was up after that.
Well that didn't take long...
He took a deep breath and began, for once, pushing his food to the side. How could he even begin to explain this to Kiku's father, the man he just met? It didn't help that he still hadn't smiled even once yet... But he wasn't going to let that deter him.
"Yes, Mr. Honda, we are very close; Kiku's been my best friend since the beginning of the school year; we do everything together! In fact, we uhh... well we became so close that we actually started..." he trailed off. Honestly, how did he answer this? What if this really shocked Kiku's father, or worse- made him angry? Definitely not a very good first impression. But he had to do this- for Kiku and for himself. But mainly for Kiku- he didn't want Kiku to have to explain their relationship, not when he seemed so nervous and embarrassed right now. So Alfred continued, no tact, as usual,just straightforward honesty.
"We started dating," he finished. "Kiku and I have been dating for a few months now, and he's really wonderful. He's really sweet and caring, and very loyal. I'd trust him with my life." He gave Kiku's hand a gentle squeeze, though this time, above the table, so it was visible. Only then did he attempt to read Mr. Honda's expression to see what he was thinking. And, after staring at him for a moment, he still had no clue what was going on inside that man's head. Hastily, Alfred put their hands back under the table.
"I hope you're... not offended by your son's choice. I mean I know you probably didn't know he was gay, but that shouldn't matter, right?"
Oh god you're doing so bad at this, he thought to himself. You don't even know what he thinks yet! Just shut up and wait for him to say something...
Taro Honda raised an eyebrow at the American sitting at his kotatsu and was very quiet a few moments just studying Alfred before he spoke again.
"Offended by my son's choice?" He looked at his wife who looked like she was trying not to smile behind her glass of orange juice. He then turned to look back at Alfred and Kiku who both looked scared half to death.
"I am not offended." He said quietly, then took a bite of his rice.
Kiku's hands were shaking and he opened his mouth to say something, but his father spoke up first.
"No. I did not know he was interested in boys. But no, I am not offended by any of it. My only request is that he someday has an heir. I expect whomever he decides to be with in the long run will help with that."
"Aisuru, do you not think they are a little young to be thinking about heirs?"
Taro pointed his chopsticks at his wife. "You are never too young to think about the future, Miki." He said as if that settled the matter, then turned back to look at Alfred and his son. "What you said about Kiku..." He started quietly. "How he is sweet, caring, loyal. Those are reason I adopted him. He showed those qualities when he was much younger than he is now, and his mother and I have worked to keep those virtues strong. I am...proud...that you see those things in him."
Kiku sat there at the table completely shocked. Proud? His father was proud? Nani??
"I have business to attend to." Taro said, pushing away from the Kotatsu and standing. "Miki, will you please make me lunch later and bring it to my office? I have a lot of work to do today." He bent and picked up his breakfast so he could take it with him.
"Hai, Taro. I will do that."
"Arigato." He said and left the room, leaving a strange silence in his wake.
Miki smiled. "Kiku-chan, do not look so surprised. He has always been proud of you."
".....Arigato, Okasan." He said quietly, forcing himself to loosen the grip he had on Alfred's hand, certain that he had put his boyfriend's fingers to sleep. He didn't let go however, and continued to eat his breakfast, using his chopsticks with perfected ease.
Alfred watched as Mr. Honda made his rather quick exit from the kitchen. After watching his reaction to the news of them being together, and listening to everything he had to say, Alfred could honestly say that he had no idea what to think of this man. He continued to stare at the spot where Mr Honda had been sitting for a few more minutes, while quietly munching on his breakfast. Then he let out a small sigh of relief.
"Well, that went pretty well... I think," he said finally, after going over the short conversation in his mind. Though he hadn't been exactly warm and affectionate about it, Mr. Honda had given his blessing... maybe not to Kiku dating Alfred, but at least he was ok with him dating boys... And he was proud of Kiku, which seemed like a big deal to Kiku... Mr. Honda must have been the type who didn't give out praise too often...
Yes, it looked as though Kiku's choice wouldn't affect whatever kind of father son relationship they already had right now, and that was a very good thing. But how did Mr. Honda feel about him? Alfred didn't have a clue. He'd have to ask Kiku later what he thought about that...
"Of course he's proud of you, Kiku; how could he not be?" Alfred said, in agreement with Mrs. Honda's words. "But uhh..." he leaned in closer to Kiku and whispered, "Was it just my imagination or did he demand grandchildren before he left?"
"Kiku slept well too!" he added with a laugh. "He's usually awake before me, but I think I wore him out a little yesterday... We spent the whole day at Disneyland, which was so much fun, but so much running, you know?" What was he thinking; of course she probably didn't know... But he felt the need to keep the conversation going, both to be friendly, and to eliminate any awkward silence, so he kept on talking.
"So, how was your flight?" Was it really long? You don't look tired at all, so I doubt it!" Mrs. Honda smiled kindly.
"Hai... Yes, our flight was fine; thank you, Alfred. It was a bit long, but Mr. Honda travels a lot, so we are quite used to getting rest while we can during flights... Speaking of Taro, you can meet him in a few moments; he's just bringing in our stuff from the car." She turned to Kiku. "All right, well, I'll leave you two to get dressed. Why don't you meet us in the kitchen when you're done; I'll make you boys some breakfast. Nice to meet you, Alfred." And with that, she nodded politely and left the room.
At the prospect of breakfast, Alfred immediately climbed out of bed and began to dig through his suitcase for clean clothes. "Your mother's really nice," he said to Kiku with a genuine smile. "So... What's your dad like? Anything I need to know before I meet him?"
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"Hai. Okasan is very sweet to me. I...I admit I did not expect her to be so warm to the idea of us being together. I was hoping to be awake and dressed before they arrived home."
'Being together...Still such a strange concept and yet...so comforting...' He thought.
"What is...Otosan like?" He repeated the question as he looked through his closet full of clothes. "He is...very serious. Very...professional." He said, finally choosing a black shirt and black slacks, quickly stripping off his pajamas and pulling on his clothes for the day.
"Hurry, Aru-kun. Breakfast will done be very soon."
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He knew he MEANT to pack a couple of dressier outfits for any date nights that might come up over break, but he had been packing and watching movies at the same time, so whether he actually packed them was a mystery. He sighed as he went to see what he could come up with... Why hadn't he just let Matthew pack his bags like he usually did? Then there would have definitely been some dress clothes...
At first, it didn't look very hopeful, but after a bit of digging, Alfred finally found a blue button-down. It was slightly wrinkled, due to it fact that it was near the bottom of the suitcase, but, it still looked fine, he thought. He pulled out some of his nicer jeans to go with it, and then he quickly proceeded to get dressed. Finally, he ran a comb through his hair to get rid of the slight bedhead and smooth out all the parts of his hair that were sticking up in various directions... Except for his cowlick. He didn't bother with that; it would never go down...
Once he was done, and he finally decided he looked presentable enough to meet the formal, serious man that was Kiku's father, Alfred put on his signature grin that could usually win just about anybody over. "Ok..." he said, taking Kiku's hand. "Let's do this." And so together, they headed towards the kitchen. He could already smell breakfast coming...
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"Prepare to be amazed. Okasan is an amazing cook. I was told her otosan was a famous chef and taught her a lot of things when she was younger."
As they walked into the kitchen, his mother was standing at the counter making rice balls, and he could smell the fish cooking on the stove.
"Ah, good. There you are. Will you two mind setting the table, onegai?"
"Hai." Kiku bowed, then went to the cupboards and drawers to pulls out the necessary place settings. He handed the plates to Alfred, and grabbed the rest himself.
"We will sit at the kotatsu for breakfast, since it is so cold this morning." He explained, setting things down on the low table. "Okasan, did you turn this on yet?"
"Iie. I have not. Will you do it for me, Kiku-chan?"
"Hai." Kiku answered, the knelt down on the floor and reached under the blanket to flip a switch. "There is a small heater underneath." he explained to Alfred. It helps to keep us warm while we eat."
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"Whoa, there's a heater under here to keep your food warm?" he asked. "Why has this not caught on in America yet; that is awesome!" He bent down to touch the table to see if it felt any warmer. It didn't yet, but he figured it would eventually.
After the table was all set, he took a seat on one of the cushions and motioned for his boyfriend to do the same. He attempted to make himself comfortable. In the end, he felt too tall when he was kneeling, so he just sat down on the cushion instead. As he waited for the food to be prepared, he debated on whether he should help out or not. But, as Kiku said, Mrs. Honda was an exceptional cook, and it looked like she was doing just fine on her own. He'd probably just get in the way. (Not to mention that his role in the kitchen at home to sit on the counter and eat taste test cookie dough... probably not too helpful in this situation.)
The food smelled delicious though, and even though it wasn't normally the kind of breakfast he usually had, his mouth was watering by the time everything was ready. Mrs. Honda brought over the food, and then took her place at the table, but not before calling Mr. Honda to come join them.
Under the table, Alfred gave Kiku's hand a reassuring squeeze, as if to say that everything would be all right. Kiku may have appeared to be calm on the outside, but by now, Alfred knew better. Poor Kiku was probably a nervous wreck on the inside... And as soon as Mr. Honda stepped into the room, he saw why. He was a very stern looking man, who didn't seem to know how to smile. Alfred immediately put down the rice ball he was munching on and swallowed nervously. Then he took a deep breath and put on his most welcoming smile. "Good morning, Mr. Honda; it's nice to meet you, Sir..."
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Even though he was sitting, Kiku still bowed when addressing his father. "Ohayo gozaimasu, Otosan."
"Ohayo gozaimasu, Kiku." His father said, sitting down at the head of the kotatsu and pulling the blanket over his lap.
Then he turned to Alfred and addressed him. "Good morning, Alfred. It is nice to meet you, as well." He said, bowing his head only slightly. Alfred's smile seemed to have no affect on him at first as he reached for the basket of rice balls and placed a few on his plate.
"So, I hear you two are quite close...." He started before eating one of his rice balls in one bite.
A polite cough came from across from where Kiku was sitting and he looked up at his mother, his face turning a slight shade of pink. She nodded once, then went back to eating.
Kiku swallowed and looked at Alfred, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze and nodding his head slightly.
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Well that didn't take long...
He took a deep breath and began, for once, pushing his food to the side. How could he even begin to explain this to Kiku's father, the man he just met? It didn't help that he still hadn't smiled even once yet... But he wasn't going to let that deter him.
"Yes, Mr. Honda, we are very close; Kiku's been my best friend since the beginning of the school year; we do everything together! In fact, we uhh... well we became so close that we actually started..." he trailed off. Honestly, how did he answer this? What if this really shocked Kiku's father, or worse- made him angry? Definitely not a very good first impression. But he had to do this- for Kiku and for himself. But mainly for Kiku- he didn't want Kiku to have to explain their relationship, not when he seemed so nervous and embarrassed right now. So Alfred continued, no tact, as usual,just straightforward honesty.
"We started dating," he finished. "Kiku and I have been dating for a few months now, and he's really wonderful. He's really sweet and caring, and very loyal. I'd trust him with my life." He gave Kiku's hand a gentle squeeze, though this time, above the table, so it was visible. Only then did he attempt to read Mr. Honda's expression to see what he was thinking. And, after staring at him for a moment, he still had no clue what was going on inside that man's head. Hastily, Alfred put their hands back under the table.
"I hope you're... not offended by your son's choice. I mean I know you probably didn't know he was gay, but that shouldn't matter, right?"
Oh god you're doing so bad at this, he thought to himself. You don't even know what he thinks yet! Just shut up and wait for him to say something...
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"Offended by my son's choice?" He looked at his wife who looked like she was trying not to smile behind her glass of orange juice. He then turned to look back at Alfred and Kiku who both looked scared half to death.
"I am not offended." He said quietly, then took a bite of his rice.
Kiku's hands were shaking and he opened his mouth to say something, but his father spoke up first.
"No. I did not know he was interested in boys. But no, I am not offended by any of it. My only request is that he someday has an heir. I expect whomever he decides to be with in the long run will help with that."
"Aisuru, do you not think they are a little young to be thinking about heirs?"
Taro pointed his chopsticks at his wife. "You are never too young to think about the future, Miki." He said as if that settled the matter, then turned back to look at Alfred and his son. "What you said about Kiku..." He started quietly. "How he is sweet, caring, loyal. Those are reason I adopted him. He showed those qualities when he was much younger than he is now, and his mother and I have worked to keep those virtues strong. I am...proud...that you see those things in him."
Kiku sat there at the table completely shocked. Proud? His father was proud? Nani??
"I have business to attend to." Taro said, pushing away from the Kotatsu and standing. "Miki, will you please make me lunch later and bring it to my office? I have a lot of work to do today." He bent and picked up his breakfast so he could take it with him.
"Hai, Taro. I will do that."
"Arigato." He said and left the room, leaving a strange silence in his wake.
Miki smiled. "Kiku-chan, do not look so surprised. He has always been proud of you."
".....Arigato, Okasan." He said quietly, forcing himself to loosen the grip he had on Alfred's hand, certain that he had put his boyfriend's fingers to sleep. He didn't let go however, and continued to eat his breakfast, using his chopsticks with perfected ease.
((Aisuru - Love, Dear))
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"Well, that went pretty well... I think," he said finally, after going over the short conversation in his mind. Though he hadn't been exactly warm and affectionate about it, Mr. Honda had given his blessing... maybe not to Kiku dating Alfred, but at least he was ok with him dating boys... And he was proud of Kiku, which seemed like a big deal to Kiku... Mr. Honda must have been the type who didn't give out praise too often...
Yes, it looked as though Kiku's choice wouldn't affect whatever kind of father son relationship they already had right now, and that was a very good thing. But how did Mr. Honda feel about him? Alfred didn't have a clue. He'd have to ask Kiku later what he thought about that...
"Of course he's proud of you, Kiku; how could he not be?" Alfred said, in agreement with Mrs. Honda's words. "But uhh..." he leaned in closer to Kiku and whispered, "Was it just my imagination or did he demand grandchildren before he left?"
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