FAKE Ficlet: Gaining A Son
Title: Gaining A Son
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Bikky.
Rating: G
Setting: Vol. 1, Act 1.
Summary: Ryo had never really considered having children.
Word Count: 500
Written For:
sidonie’s prompt ‘Any, any, they never intended to take in a child, but that doesn't mean they won't do their best to raise [him/her] right,’ at
fic_promptly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh
Ryo had never given much thought to having children. If he’d considered it at all, it had been in the context of maybe, someday, meeting a woman, getting married, and then, well, letting nature take its course. Maybe they’d have kids and maybe they wouldn’t, either way it wasn’t something he needed to think about yet. Being a single man raising someone else’s child had never crossed his mind.
Then on his very first day in his new job, he’d met Bikky and everything had changed.
Victor Goldman, ten years old, mother deceased several years earlier, father recently murdered. Ryo’s heart went out to the small boy, looking so lost and alone, and he wanted more than anything to protect him. He got his wish almost immediately; as the two detectives investigating Dick Goldman’s murder, Ryo and his new partner were made responsible for keeping Bikky safe and getting what information they could from him. Not that the boy knew much.
Taking Bikky home with him that first night hadn’t changed Ryo’s mind; if anything, it had made him even more determined to do what was best for the boy. Bikky hadn’t had the best start in life; he needed a good role model to prevent him from following in his father’s footsteps and turning to a life of crime. That wasn’t something he was likely to find if he went into the system. He’d probably be bounced from one foster family to the next, if he didn’t wind up in a state run home or serving time in Juvie. The kid deserved better than that; it wasn’t his fault that his dad had been a criminal.
Becoming Bikky’s legal guardian turned out to be easier than Ryo had expected. Almost before he knew it, the papers were signed and he and Biks were picking out furniture for the boy’s room. Bikky was scrawny, all knees and elbows, with an insatiable appetite, but that was okay. Ryo enjoyed cooking and it was heartening to see the way his foster son wolfed down good, healthy meals, gradually filling out and growing like a weed. That meant new clothes were a frequent necessity; raising a kid was expensive. Still, Ryo managed to put money aside every month for his son’s future.
Bikky wasn’t the most able student, but under Ryo’s patient tutelage his grades were improving and at least he was no longer skipping classes. He’d tried that early on, but Ryo had put his foot down, telling Bikky how disappointed he was that he’d do such a thing.
“No more skipping class, is that clear?”
“Yes, Ryo. Sorry. I won’t do it again, I promise.”
“Alright then, but you’re still grounded for two weeks. You come straight home after school. Understood?”
Juggling work with raising his son wasn’t going to be easy, but Ryo knew it was the most important thing he’d ever done, and he was determined to be the best parent he could possibly be. Bikky deserved nothing less.
The End