Old
~~~ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ•°*
Ayumu was very fond of Yae but to be honest, the woman terrified him.
He couldn't utter a single lie when he was around her and was very careful about his words when he was in her presence.
Which was why Kaori had the idea of bringing Ayumu on over to her!
Ayumu had explained his reasons for his actions, yes, and Kaori completely understood.
To be honest... she would've done the same if anyone threatened to do such a thing to Gramps, y/n or Ayumu.
But there was something he was hiding.
Kaori hated it when her brother didn't completely open up to her. It was like he didn't trust her and that broke her heart.
"Hm? What a surprise." Yae said with a small smile as y/n and Kaori dragged a defeated Ayumu on over, "All three problem children together again. What's the special occasion?"
He wasn't quite defeated... he'd just passed out several times on the way there.
"There is none." Kaori replied then removed the bucket from her brother's head.
Ayumu refused to look at Yae, an almost child-like pout on his face, "You didn't need to do this, Kaori..."
Yae chuckled, amused, "Hello to you too, Ayumu. You've grown a lot since the last time I've seen you. And would you look at that, your baby face is gone."
"Hey! Of course it's gone, it's not like it was gonna stay forever!" Ayumu protested, looking to Yae with pink cheeks.
Yae only chuckled, "Made you look."
"I-" Ayumu was speechless.
"So, what seems to be the problem?" Yae inquired, "From the looks on your faces, it's got something to do with Ayumu and his bad habits."
"When has it never involved his bad habits?" Kaori sighed heavily, "You've probably heard about all of my big brother's awful decisions in the past year. He's given me an explanation, one I can actually understand, but he's still hiding something."
Yae glanced at Ayumu who frowned.
"...do you want me to say something?"
"Well, if I'm going to help the three of you, it'll be helpful for me to also hear the explanation of yours."
Ayumu heaved a sigh, "I hate talking about it. Just remembering it all makes me angry enough to burst a blood vessel."
Ayumu very hurriedly explained the 💩 he'd been told the day he ended several free trials of life and by the time he was finished, y/n was bewildered.
"Please don't tell me I heard that correctly." y/n said, covering her mouth with a hand.
"Wish I could but I'm trying to cut back on a the lying." Ayumu replied with an apologetic expression.
Y/n deadpanned, "You... you're serious."
A nod.
A look of disgust and disbelief found its way onto y/n's face, "How repulsive. I don't understand how anyone could talk about hurting someone for fun like that so casually."
"Exactly." Kaori huffed, "If I was in Ayumu's position, I would've done the same."
"Kaori!" Ayumu protested.
"Don't! If someone threatened to do that stuff to you, Gramps and y/n, I would've reacted the same way!" Kaori said sharply.
"But you-"
"But I what?" Kaori demanded.
Ayumu fell silent.
Kaori almost strangled him. Almost.
'I hate it when he shuts down like this.' She thought miserably, 'He won't tell me anything!'
It was a moment before Yae spoke up, "I think I understand now... in fact, this conversation has helped me recall a little something your brother told me years ago."
Kaori perked up, "Really."
Yae nodded, "Mhm. Ayumu, would you prefer to say it yourself or should I?"
Ayumu made a quiet grumbling noise, clearly debating on whether to say yes or no.
So, Yae began explaining for him.
"Kaori, Ayumu has been caring for you since before you were old enough to talk. You always came first, it never mattered how much he had to suffer for the sake of your wellbeing." Yae told Kaori, "When y/n began living with the two of you, she also became his priority. He was willing to do whatever he needed to in order to protect the two of you."
Kaori glanced at her brother who still refused to look at her, brows furrowed.
"He's been stabbed, kicked, yelled at, beaten. He's fought through hunger and ignored the cold. All just to see the two of you survive. Seeing the two of you happy and healthy is his source of joy." Yae continued with a small smile, "Trust me, I know from all the times he's wandered up here to happily share news of your upcoming birthdays."
"Though I can't speak for Ayumu, I do know that he cares deeply for the both of you. So much so that he's willing to throw away everything just to make sure you can live happily." Yae turned her purple gaze to Ayumu next, "Isn't that right, Ayumu?"
The young man hesitated before speaking quietly, "The first time I wasn't able to protect you was the day we met Gramps. Seeing y/n getting kicked and Kaori crying made me feel so useless. The feeling was horrible and I never wanted to feel that way again."
Y/n grimaced, remembering how she cried for a day after that while complaining about how one of her ribs had been cracked, 'That really hurt...'
"You idiot!" Kaori snapped and Ayumu jumped as his sister stormed over to him.
"Ow! Hey, that hurts, OW!!!" Ayumu protested when his sister grabbed him by the ear, "Kaori!!!"
"You're willing to protect y/n and I but if you're protecting us, who will protect you?" Kaori demanded, "Do you think you're the only one who feels useless whenever their sibling gets hurt? I felt the same way whenever you got your butt kicked!"
Ayumu paused, staring up at his sister who had begun to cry. Kaori had been fighting tears this entire time but they were beginning to flow.
"Everytime those jerks used to beat you up in that damned alleyway! Everytime you used to smile at me and lie about you being alright when you had taken a knife to the gut!" Kaori choked out, "It was the worst feeling in the world! Seeing my brother like that!"
"I agree with Kaori." y/n murmured, "Whenever you were slapped around or yelled at, I wanted defend you but I was always too scared. I felt like crying whenever you'd hide your pain and I really wished I could've done more."
"Kaori... y/n..." Ayumu began, "You don't have to worry about me, really!"
Yae snorted when Kaori bonked her brother on the head with an, "IDIOT!!!"
"Ow!!!!" Ayumu whined, "Kaori!"
"It's only natural that we'll worry about you! Stop feeling like you have to protect us all the time!" Kaori shouted, "We can protect ourselves! Which means we can protect you too! So don't reject our help or try to hide important stuff from us, okay?"
"We'll all protect each other." y/n said with a small smile, "Just don't shut down anymore, alright? Be a bit more honest."
(I really had it as "be a tit" instead of "be a bit", I'm going to cry)
Ayumu rubbed the top of his head with a teary expression, "Got it... I'm sorry Kaori, y/n. I really am... I'll do better. I won't hide stuff from you anymore."
"Hmph! You're a stupid big brother." Kaori grumbled before dragging Ayumu into a hug, "You dumbass."
Ayumu's eyes widened, 'Oh. Where has the time gone? My sweet little sister has grown up so quickly.'
Y/n smiled at the two of them and yelped when Kaori dragged her over.
"Come on! We're gonna suffocate him with love!" Kaori ordered, grinning.
"Wait, WHAT!?" Ayumu and y/n cried.
Yae watched in amusement as Kaori gave the screeching y/n and Ayumu a huge bear hug, depriving them of air.
"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY TO HIDE STUFF FROM ME AGAIN, AYUMU!!!" Kaori shouted.
"OKAY, OKAY, I WON'T DO IT AGAIN!!! YOU'RE SUFFOCATING Y/N TOO-" Ayumu wheezed.
Yae shook her head with a small smile, 'Is this what parenting feels like?'(All hail Yae)
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