The breakfast table was filled with the usual chatter as everyone sipped their coffee and nibbled on toast. Harumi glanced around at the group, her eyes bright with excitement.
"I've decided," she began, smiling, "I'll invite my cousins over for dinner tonight. I thought it'd be nice to have everyone together before King's dinner night."
Michi perked up immediately. "Oh! That sounds great! I haven't seen them in forever. Are they all coming?"
"Yep, all of them," Harumi confirmed, her smile widening. "It'll be a casual thing—nothing too fancy."
Toshiro, always ready with a comment, raised an eyebrow. "Casual? With your cousins? Sounds like chaos."
Ayume gave a small nod, his usual calmness in place. "It should be interesting."
Osamu, ever protective, looked at Harumi. "Are you sure? Some of them can get... loud."
Harumi laughed. "It'll be fun. Just family catching up."
Yuchi, still half-asleep, shrugged with a grin. "I'm just here for the food."
Tetsu nodded. "I'll help if you need anything."
The conversation shifted as everyone finished their breakfast, the idea of the evening's gathering lingering in the air. It wasn't just dinner—it was a chance for connections to be made, and for a little bit of chaos to sneak in.
DINNER TIME
The familiar Fujikawa estate buzzed gently with the soft hum of conversation, the scent of dinner floating from the kitchen. It wasn't new to any of them—this home had seen many such reunions. Yet, every time they walked through the doors, there was a strange warmth that settled around them, like stepping into an old memory.
The door opened with a soft click.
"Kerin! Rina!"
Harumi's voice rang out, joy overflowing as she ran to pull both of them into a tight embrace.
"We're not guests anymore, Haru-chan," Kerin laughed, hugging her back.
"I know," Harumi smiled wide. "But it's still nice to act like you are. You two should visit more often!"
"We were literally here two weeks ago," Rina teased.
"You think I don't miss you in two weeks?"
Behind them, Kei and Yoshi stepped in. Harumi's eyes lit up further.
"Kei! Yoshi!"
Kei gave a calm nod, while Yuchi flashed that perfect, too-casual smile. "You've redecorated a bit," he noted, eyes flicking across the hallway, then settling briefly—knowingly—on Rina.
Rina stiffened. She turned her face ever so slightly, avoiding his gaze with subtle precision. Her tone was too smooth when she spoke.
"Still smells like old money and old wine."
Kerin caught the edge in her voice, but she didn't say anything. Harumi waved everyone inside, where Toshido waited near the living room.
Toshido, arms crossed, nodded to each of them with his usual calm presence. "You all made it."
"Survived the trials," Kei said simply.
"How were they?" Toshido asked.
"Better than expected," Kerin replied.
"Worst week of my life," Rina muttered under her breath.
Toshido chuckled. "Well, it's over now. Let's not talk about stress tonight."
At that moment, Michi came practically bouncing into the room. His face lit up. "Finally! It feels like it's been forever!"
"You saw us last week, Michi," Yoshi reminded him with a laugh.
Michi pouted dramatically. "Still! That was university business. This is friend time!"
"Yeah, yeah," Kei said, lightly patting his head as Michi beamed. "You're loud today."
"I'm always loud."
Kei didn't reply, but his small smile lingered for a little longer than usual.
Michi turned to Yoshi. "You were so mean during the university tour. You and Kei left me behind with those professors!"
"We knew you'd charm them in two minutes," Yoshi teased.
And Michi had. But now he had only one person on his radar.
Kei.
As conversations drifted across the room, Michi's gaze often landed on Kei. Every glance, every passing smile—it wasn't just admiration anymore. Michi loved him. And deeper than Kei could ever understand, Michi loved him in ways that spilled into his every thought.
Kei, for all his intelligence and self-control, was clueless. He felt something—warmth, comfort—but he had no words for it, no label.
As they moved to the dining hall, Yuchi pulled a chair beside Rina. She froze.
"Is this seat taken?" he asked, feigning innocence, but there was mischief in his voice.
"Yes."
He didn't move. "Too bad. I already sat."
Rina narrowed her eyes. "You're being annoying."
Yuchi leaned a little closer. His voice dipped. "That's not what you said that night…"
Rina's fork clattered against her plate.
Kerin's eyes snapped up, but before she could say anything, Rina stood up. "I'm switching seats."
"Touchy," Yuchi said under his breath with a small grin. "Didn't mean to wake the memory."
Rina sat elsewhere, lips tight, avoiding eye contact. But even she knew—she hadn't stopped thinking about that night. About the way Yuchi had whispered her name. About how stupid and spontaneous it had been. She wanted to erase it from her brain, but every time she saw him, the scene replayed like a broken record.
Yuchi knew it too. And he loved watching her squirm.
Meanwhile, Osamu entered the room—late, as usual.
But the moment he laid eyes on Yoshi, the rest of the world melted.
Osamu, always dignified and unreadable, suddenly seemed like a dreamy fool in a suit. He stood there, watching Yoshi laugh, his eyes soft, head tilted slightly—like watching a divine painting come to life.
Harumi leaned over to Toshido and whispered, "He's doing it again."
"I see it."
"He's staring."
"He's smitten."
Yoshi caught Osamu's gaze once. Smiled. Then turned away.
Osamu froze. His chest tightened in that irritatingly fluttery way.
Harumi smirked. "He's going to mess up dinner."
Osamu blinked and quickly looked down at his phone like he was busy.
Toshido shook his head. "He's hopeless."
Just then, soft footsteps echoed from the corridor. The conversation in the hall didn't stop immediately—but something began to shift. As if the air itself was aware that something, or someone, had entered the room.
Ayume Fujikawa appeared at the dining room entrance.
Tall, cold, composed.
He had just come down after freshening up. His expression was unreadable, the sharp line of his jaw tight from exhaustion after the long day. But he carried himself like someone untouchable—as always. The leader of Fujikawa, the law itself wrapped in elegance and fire.
Then his eyes stopped.
Everything in him froze.
Standing just past Michi and Osamu… was Kei.
Ayume's breath caught for a second. He didn't even realize it.
Kei.
He wasn't doing anything. Just adjusting his sleeves quietly, looking around the mansion with vague familiarity, saying something light to Michi who stood next to him. There was nothing dramatic in his entrance.
And yet, Ayume felt as though the world had dropped beneath his feet.
His chest tightened.
His thoughts scattered.
And beside him—Osamu, too, had turned. His eyes widened. For the first time in weeks, something pierced through his usual playful exterior. A ghost behind his gaze.
Michi, who was about to speak, fell silent as well.
Their eyes were all fixed on Kei.
The resemblance… it wasn't just close. It was identical.
The hair. The shape of the face. The eyes that looked straight through the world.
Ayume's knuckles clenched by his side.
It was like seeing someone come back from the dead. Someone none of them could forget. Someone none of them had ever dared speak of for years. Kei didn't just remind them of that person—he was that person, in another form. Another life.
But Ayume didn't say a word.
He couldn't.
Kei finally looked up, his gaze passing over Ayume for the briefest moment—casual, unaware of the storm he had just awakened in three hearts at once.
And just like that, he turned his attention elsewhere, walking slowly toward the table.
Ayume stood still. Completely silent. But inside him, memories had begun screaming.
It was not just a meeting.
It was a collision with the past.
And nothing from that moment on would be the same again.