FAKE Fic: Learning From The Best
Title: Learning From The Best
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Bikky, Ryo.
Rating: PG
Setting: After Like Like Love.
Summary: Bikky talks about the man who took him in and raised him after his birth father was killed.
Word Count: 930
Written For: Theme Prompt: 140 - Learning Lessons at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
I was only ten when my dad was murdered, gunned down in the street. My mom had died when I was really little, so it had just been me and dad for as long as I could remember, and then suddenly he was gone, and I had nobody.
That felt like it should be the end of my story, but it wasn’t, it was just the beginning, because instead of being sent to an orphanage, or dumped into the foster care system, one of the cops investigating my dad’s death decided I should live with him.
Looking back, I can only laugh at myself. Ten-years-old, and I thought I already knew everything. I was a streetwise brat, good at acting tough and standing up to the kids who tried to bully me for the way I looked, but that was about it. Left to myself, I probably would’ve wound up in juvie, or worse, homeless and addicted to the drugs my dad used to transport.
Yeah, he wasn’t exactly a saint, my dad, but he was my family, I loved him, and losing him hurt worse than anything I’d ever known. I tried to be strong the way he’d taught me, to not let on how much I was hurting inside, but the cop, Ryo, saw right through me. He told me it was okay to cry, that he’d cried all day after his parents were killed, when he’d been almost twice my age.
That was the first lesson I learned from him, that it was okay to let my feelings show, that crying didn’t make me less of a man, it didn’t make me weak. Just the opposite, ‘cause only weak men are so scared of what other people will think that they bottle up their feelings as if they’re ashamed of them. That’s not healthy. I felt a little better after; I still hurt, I was still scared and confused, but I felt less alone because I knew someone cared about me.
Then I moved in with Ryo and everything changed. I went from believing I knew everything to realising I hardly knew anything at all. It was a shock. I mean, I knew I hadn’t been doing all that great in school, my grades were a mess, mostly ‘cause I skipped a lot of classes and didn’t do my homework, but I was so far behind in everything.
Ryo didn’t get mad though, he said he knew I could do better if I tried, that I was a smart kid, and that with his help, I’d prove it to everyone else. He made sure I went to school and did all my homework, he was really strict about that, but he spent hours helping me catch up, teaching me at home, even when he was tired after a long day at work, and he made the learning fun. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for him. My reading and spelling improved, I got better at math, history, geography, science… I kinda sucked at French, probably always will, but along the way I picked up quite a bit of Japanese, mostly swearwords, which I’m NOT gonna repeat in polite company. I got into trouble for that at school, but that’s a whole other story.
I picked up a lot of other stuff just from watching Ryo and helping him around the apartment. Without me even noticing most of the time, he taught me all the things I’d need to know as an adult. How to cook, clean, make beds, and do laundry, how to manage my finances, how to shave... You know, the important stuff. He taught me to mind my manners too.
Above everything else, Ryo taught me the kind of man I wanted to be. Someone like him, patient, kind, caring, honest, but brave and fiercely protective, not just of the people I love but of anyone in need. I never wanted to follow in his footsteps and be a cop though. I’ve seen first-hand how hard that is on him, not just the times he’s gotten injured, but all the sadness for the people he wasn’t able to save, all the stress and the nightmares and the frustration over unsolved cases. Police work isn’t glamorous, it takes a lot of dedication, determination, and self-sacrifice. Not everyone’s cut out for that.
I had my own ambitions anyway, and Ryo helped me understand what I needed to do if I was ever gonna stand any chance of making my dreams a reality. He always told me to dream big, but to keep in mind that dreams don’t always come true, no matter how much you want them to. He said to always have a backup plan, just in case the first one doesn’t work out. Work hard for what you want, always do the best you can, then if you fail, at least you’ll know you did everything you could; there won’t be any regrets.
I learned a lot in school, even more from books and TV, but the most I’ve learned from the man who took a scared and grieving ten-year-old boy into his home when he didn’t have to, and raised him as his own. We’re not related by blood, but that doesn’t change a thing. Ryo Maclean is my dad, and always will be. I could never wish for a better one. Someday I hope to be as good a dad to my own kids as he’s been to me. I love you, dad. I hope I’ll make you proud.
The End
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Bikky, Ryo.
Rating: PG
Setting: After Like Like Love.
Summary: Bikky talks about the man who took him in and raised him after his birth father was killed.
Word Count: 930
Written For: Theme Prompt: 140 - Learning Lessons at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
I was only ten when my dad was murdered, gunned down in the street. My mom had died when I was really little, so it had just been me and dad for as long as I could remember, and then suddenly he was gone, and I had nobody.
That felt like it should be the end of my story, but it wasn’t, it was just the beginning, because instead of being sent to an orphanage, or dumped into the foster care system, one of the cops investigating my dad’s death decided I should live with him.
Looking back, I can only laugh at myself. Ten-years-old, and I thought I already knew everything. I was a streetwise brat, good at acting tough and standing up to the kids who tried to bully me for the way I looked, but that was about it. Left to myself, I probably would’ve wound up in juvie, or worse, homeless and addicted to the drugs my dad used to transport.
Yeah, he wasn’t exactly a saint, my dad, but he was my family, I loved him, and losing him hurt worse than anything I’d ever known. I tried to be strong the way he’d taught me, to not let on how much I was hurting inside, but the cop, Ryo, saw right through me. He told me it was okay to cry, that he’d cried all day after his parents were killed, when he’d been almost twice my age.
That was the first lesson I learned from him, that it was okay to let my feelings show, that crying didn’t make me less of a man, it didn’t make me weak. Just the opposite, ‘cause only weak men are so scared of what other people will think that they bottle up their feelings as if they’re ashamed of them. That’s not healthy. I felt a little better after; I still hurt, I was still scared and confused, but I felt less alone because I knew someone cared about me.
Then I moved in with Ryo and everything changed. I went from believing I knew everything to realising I hardly knew anything at all. It was a shock. I mean, I knew I hadn’t been doing all that great in school, my grades were a mess, mostly ‘cause I skipped a lot of classes and didn’t do my homework, but I was so far behind in everything.
Ryo didn’t get mad though, he said he knew I could do better if I tried, that I was a smart kid, and that with his help, I’d prove it to everyone else. He made sure I went to school and did all my homework, he was really strict about that, but he spent hours helping me catch up, teaching me at home, even when he was tired after a long day at work, and he made the learning fun. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for him. My reading and spelling improved, I got better at math, history, geography, science… I kinda sucked at French, probably always will, but along the way I picked up quite a bit of Japanese, mostly swearwords, which I’m NOT gonna repeat in polite company. I got into trouble for that at school, but that’s a whole other story.
I picked up a lot of other stuff just from watching Ryo and helping him around the apartment. Without me even noticing most of the time, he taught me all the things I’d need to know as an adult. How to cook, clean, make beds, and do laundry, how to manage my finances, how to shave... You know, the important stuff. He taught me to mind my manners too.
Above everything else, Ryo taught me the kind of man I wanted to be. Someone like him, patient, kind, caring, honest, but brave and fiercely protective, not just of the people I love but of anyone in need. I never wanted to follow in his footsteps and be a cop though. I’ve seen first-hand how hard that is on him, not just the times he’s gotten injured, but all the sadness for the people he wasn’t able to save, all the stress and the nightmares and the frustration over unsolved cases. Police work isn’t glamorous, it takes a lot of dedication, determination, and self-sacrifice. Not everyone’s cut out for that.
I had my own ambitions anyway, and Ryo helped me understand what I needed to do if I was ever gonna stand any chance of making my dreams a reality. He always told me to dream big, but to keep in mind that dreams don’t always come true, no matter how much you want them to. He said to always have a backup plan, just in case the first one doesn’t work out. Work hard for what you want, always do the best you can, then if you fail, at least you’ll know you did everything you could; there won’t be any regrets.
I learned a lot in school, even more from books and TV, but the most I’ve learned from the man who took a scared and grieving ten-year-old boy into his home when he didn’t have to, and raised him as his own. We’re not related by blood, but that doesn’t change a thing. Ryo Maclean is my dad, and always will be. I could never wish for a better one. Someday I hope to be as good a dad to my own kids as he’s been to me. I love you, dad. I hope I’ll make you proud.
The End