Fic - Raising Akame Chapter 8
Title: Raising Akame
Rating: PG-14
Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies
Genre: AU Romance
Word Count: 2,000+
Summary: Jin was barely two years old and Kazuya was a day old when they first met. From that time on, their mothers knew there exist Akame and they must serve as Akame's guardians through the years.
A/N: From here to the last chapter, Kazuya is twenty-five and Jin is twenty-seven. I can't see Akame beyond that. And I know there are more recent girls linked to Jin but I used Leah because her name starts with the letter L :)
Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7
Raising Akame
Chapter 8 Twenty-five and Twenty-seven Part 1
Akanishi Jin sighed. “Why are you being difficult, oka-asan?”
“I am not being difficult,” Mrs. Akanishi replied, indignant. “It's just I find it difficult to pronounce her name.”
“Oka-san, it's Leah. Le-ah. Why is that difficult?”
“You know I always find it difficult to pronounce that darn letter.” Barely audibly, she added, “Unlike the letter K.”
“What did you say?” Jin asked, failing to hear what his mother said last.
“Nothing.”
Jin sighed again. He propped an elbow on the table and cupped his forehead with his hand. Leah had been his girlfriend for a year and it was only expected for them to get married. He knows his mother had never been fond of his girlfriend. And now that he had announced that he intends to marry the girl, his mother had become even more difficult. She refuse to even use Leah's first name, opting to refer to her as “your girlfriend” (with the subtlest hint of disdain but Jin could tell).
Mrs. Akanishi's heart softened, seeing his son's frustration at her. Jin had been back in Japan for more than a year, deciding to continue teaching in his homeland. Not two months had passed and he got himself a girlfriend. A girl he met when he was still in America. Mrs. Akanishi would not have been against the marriage if she knows Jin would be happy with the girl. She knows he won't be.
He tries hard to convince her that Leah is a nice girl yet Mrs. Akanishi remains cold and aloof. But her son never lost his cool, not once did he accost her whenever she subtly, and sometimes not-so- subtly, shows her disapproval of the girl.
“Why don't you like her, oka-asan?” It's a question Jin had repeatedly asked his mother.
“It's not that I don't like her,” Mrs. Akanishi said. Jin sneered. “Why are you marrying her?”
“Why not? We've been going out for a year. We're good for each other.”
It was Mrs. Akanishi's turn to sneer. “That's why I don't like her.”
Brows knitted, Jin asked, “You don't like her because we're good for each other?”
“Marry a milk. It's good for you, too,” Mrs. Akanishi retorted.
Jin sighed again. Conversations with his mother lately has alway been punctuated with sighs of exasperation. “Don't you want me to get married?”
“I want you to be happy,” the woman said, turning serious.
“I am happy, oka-asan,” Jin insisted.
“I want you to be happier.” The old woman got off her chair, kissed her son on top of his head then walked out of the kitchen.
♥
“Good for each other? What kind of an answer is that?”
“Exactly my point. I told him if that were so he should just marry a milk.”
“Or an apple,” Mrs. Kamenashi said and the two attractive women laughed.
They were having tea at some quaint tea house. When their laughter died down, Mrs. Akanishi turned serious. “This is all your son's fault.”
“What?” Mrs. Kamenashi exclaimed, surprised at her friend's accusation. “Your Jin's the one getting married,” she accused back.
Mrs. Akanishi was miffed. “It was your son who broke up with my Jin.”
“Jin left for LA!” Mrs. Kamenashi retorted.
“But he didn't want to end their relationship. It was Kazuya's I-don't-believe-in-long-distance-relationship crap that broke them apart,” Jin's mother defended.
“Well your son came back five years late.”
“Your son had a girlfriend not two months after Jin left!”
Mrs. Kamenashi's jaw dropped then her eyes narrowed. “Oh, you expected my son - my beautiful son - to wait by the window hoping your Jin would return.”
The other one balked. “My son - my equally beautiful son - would have returned. He did.”
The two women fell silent, fuming.
It was Jin's mother who broke the silence. “Are we fighting?” she asked.
Kazuya's mother took a deep breath. “I think we're desperate.”
“I know. I'm sorry about what I said about Kazuya. You know I love him like he's my own.” Mrs. Akanishi could never forget that day. She could never forget how she broke into a million pieces hearing Kazuya cry through out the drive from the airport. And when, at last, they arrived at the Kamenashi's place, Kazuya had fallen asleep - curled up like a little boy, face streaked with tears. All her previous anger melted. Kazuya had the right to be selfish. He was in love and he was then just a boy after all. “How is he ? Does he have a new girlfriend?”
“No. He just broke up with what's-her-face. And he's too busy with his...” Mrs. Kamenashi trailed off. A smile crept on her face and her eyes twinkled.
Mrs. Akanishi studied the other woman's face. Then, she, too smiled. “Darn,” she muttered. “You're always a step ahead of me.”
♥
Leah had to leave for an appointment. She had waited 15 minutes with Jin but the caterer hasn't showed up. The usually impatient Jin, however, decided to wait some more.
“Oka-asan, I don't think she's coming?” Jin said over the phone, after waiting alone at the café for another 10 minutes. “Leah had to leave. She has another appointment.”
“Oh, good,” came Mrs. Akanishi's reply.
Jin ignored his mother's comment. “Why can't you just give me her number so I can call her directly?”
“Just wait, okay?” And Mrs. Akanishi hung up.
Jin could only stare at his phone then placed it on the table. He had consumed two espressos which were probably why he's agitated. It doesn't help that his mother had been acting suspicious lately. After griping about the wedding since she heard about it, she was all of a sudden enthusiastic about it. Or at least, one aspect of the wedding - the catering. And for the life of him, he could not understand why he couldn't directly call the caterer.
He adjusted his tie for the umpteenth time. He looked at his reflection on the stainless steel napkin holder. He had grown his hair long and he recently had it cut stylishly like one of those idols'. He knows he could give some of those idols a run for their money. Quite a number of his students - both female and male - openly flirted with him. Not to mention the many more who secretly had a crush on him. He is but a man and not on few occasions he was tempted to indulge. Both female and male. It was, thus, a relief when Leah came into his life. In fact, to keep himself from being tempted was initially his motivation for going out with Leah. He hoped that once married, the temptation would all together cease.
He looked at his watch then at the café's door. He wondered how the caterer looks like. He hoped the caterer is an aging motherly type or someone homely with the personality of a wet rag. He doesn't need anymore temptations. Though he wished that, he still felt compelled to fix his tie once more and vainly primped his hair.
♥
His assistant offered to meet the new client. Kazuya considered sending him. He wanted so badly to sleep. Heck, he wanted to quit the business. Kazuya's catering business was new and they had to work hard to make an impression. And work hard they did. They had just finished a job at a children's party. He and his crew had been working for a week for the lavish party of a seven-year-old girl lucky enough to be born to rich and indulging parents. For that event, their preparation was pure hell for a party, ironically, with the theme “angels.”
He wanted to send his assistant but his mother specifically said he should be the one to meet the new clients. He was always excited to meet prospective clients. Next to cooking, dealing with people gets him high. Thus, he chalked it to being drained when he felt ambivalent about meeting the new prospective clients his mother arranged.
Kazuya looked at his reflection on the tinted glass window of a car he passed. He looked okay, he thought. He had no time to wear a suit but he's a caterer anyway and, he thought, the black, v-neck sweater he was wearing over his designer jeans is presentable enough. He had stopped dyeing his hair and it is back to its original dark auburn color. Since he started the business, he had also kept it relatively short, just an inch or so from his ears. He looked at himself one last time and frowned at why he was so concerned at how he looks. He sighed and looked at his watch. He is running late.
♥
Jin decided he couldn't wait any longer. He figured the caterer would not show up. Or even if she did, he would not hire her because her tardiness was enough show of unprofessionalism. He stood up and walked out of the café.
A few feet away, he heard the bell on café's door jingle. He turned to look but a couple walking towards him blocked his line of vision. He barely saw the back of man in black sweater hurriedly entering the café. Jin stopped and considered. Then decided the caterer couldn't be a man and walked away.
♥
Kazuya closed his phone, stuck and shook a pinky finger in his right ear. It hurt from the hysterical ranting voice of his mother. It was one of the rare times his mother was crazy angry at him. His mother sure is concerned about his catering business because why else would she be that upset just because he was late and the prospective clients had left.
He repeatedly apologized and explained to his mother why he couldn't leave the children's party earlier. But his mother wouldn't listen to any of it. He tried to reason that it was just a prospective client and not his fated one. It only made his mother more upset. Before she hung up, Kazuya thought he heard her sniff.
Kazuya shook his head and sighed. He still has quite a number of clients lined up but for some reason, he felt more disappointed than usual that he lost this one. Maybe because they have never done a wedding reception yet.
He looked at the counter and considered if he'd stay for a while and have coffee, as his mother suggested. But he didn't want coffee. He just wanted to go home and sleep.
♥
Jin was already in his car when his phone rang. It was his mother.
“Jin, where are you?” His mother's tone is on the verge of panic.
“Am in my car. I'm going home.”
“You left the café?”
“Yes. I waited long enough.” For some reason, he was unusually more disappointed. As if he had been jilted by a date. Perhaps, because his mother had built up the caterer so much. Jin sighed. It was just one caterer. There are many more. “I guess we'll just hire another.”
“No!” Mrs. Akanishi shouted so loud Jin reflexively moved his phone a foot away from his ear. “Go back there!” he heard his mother say when he replaced the phone back to his ear.
“What? No!” Jin protested.
“Just go back now!”
His mother sure is acting odd. She sounded way too agitated for a simple meeting with a caterer. “I waited long enough for her. Why should I go back?”
“Because I said so.”
He wanted to protest some more but knew better than to disagree whenever his mother uses that reasoning in that tone of voice.
“Do you want to get married Akanishi Jin?” came his mother's threatening voice.
“Huh?”
“Just go back there!”
Jin sighed. “Okay. I'll go,” he said resignedly.
“You go there now, okay?”
Jin smirked. “Jeez, oka-asan, you sound as if I'm marrying the caterer.” He bid her goodbye and hung up.
♥
It was dinnertime and there were less people inside the café. Jin scanned the place and except for the crew, all he saw were a couple who weren't there when he left and the elderly man he saw earlier, still reading the same newspaper. He remembered seeing a guy in black sweater enter the café but he was no longer around. Jin sighed. He took out his phone and turned it off. He didn't want to talk to his mother again that night and be bamboozled into giving the caterer a third chance.
He turned around to leave. Then he stopped. He scrunched his eyes at the reflection on the door of someone coming out of the wash room. His heart thumped. Ever so slowly, Jin turned back around. “Kazuya.”
End of Chapter 8
Chapter 9