This Side of Paradise - Tsukishima Kei x OC

Chapter 31: Milestones

Mizuki: You're so cute:ds;; cutie I loveeu

Mizuki: Misss u babyy. Kiss mtee ;)

Mizuki: SDSSJGJDGSKDGKSLQ

Kei raised an eyebrow in confusion - did his wife drunk text him? He decided to call her and she answered after the fourth ring.

"Hello?" She mumbled.

"Morning, princess," Kei smiled softly as he stared at the ceiling, "Fun night last night?"

"Yeah..." Mizuki groaned, "My head is pounding..."

"You sent some funny texts last night." He chuckled.

"Did I?" She sighed, "The last thing I remember was telling my teammates I've never gone topless at a beach before..."

"Oh..." Kei blinked a few times and said, "I mean, you kind of lied to them..."

"What do you mean?" Mizuki asked.

"During our honeymoon in Greece, you were naked at the beach because we were-" Kei was interrupted by her almost instantly.

"Shut up..." She shook her head and groaned in complaint, "That doesn't count..."

Kei chuckled and felt a pang in his heart - he missed her so much. It had been a few weeks since Hana's birthday party and he missed waking up to her soft kisses.

"Is Hana still asleep?" She asked.

"Mhm," He answered sleepily, "We had a pretty rough night last night..."

"Aw no," Mizuki frowned, "You must be tired, baby..."

"I'm alright," Kei reassured her, "I do have to get ready for work soon, though. I do have an online lecture today."

"Ooh..." She exclaimed elatedly, "Send me the recorded video after... I wanna be taught by Professor Tsukishima too."

"I can think of a few things to teach you." He smirked playfully.

"Mmm..." Mizuki giggled, "You can teach me next week when you and Hana drive up here to visit."

"Will do." He chuckled.

"Alright, bye baby..." She murmured affectionately.

"Bye," Kei sighed, "I'll call you later, okay?"

"Yes... Love you." Mizuki smiled.

"Love you too."

After he hung up the call, Kei took a brisk shower and checked up on Hana. She was still asleep so he took this time to clean up around the house and cook breakfast. When he heard her cries through the baby monitor, he jogged up the stairs and picked her up.

"Hi, sweetheart..." He murmured tenderly. Hana stopped crying once she was in his arms.

Kei proceeded to feed Hana oatmeal for breakfast and gave her a warm bath. He also played with her as she splashed around in the tub with yellow rubber duck toys. Afterward, he kept her quiet and occupied the living room by giving her so many different toys to play with as well as snacks to eat. Meanwhile, at exactly 2:30 pm, Kei started his lecture online. He had about 100 students in his Introduction to the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods class.

"Dinosaur evolution after the Triassic period followed changes in vegetation and the location of continents. In the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic periods, the continents were connected as the single landmass called Pangaea, and there was a worldwide dinosaur fauna mostly composed of  carnivores and early sauropodomorph herbivores." Kei stated.

From the corner of his eye, he could see Hana attempt to pull herself up using the sofa. His heart stirred excitedly when he realized that she was trying to stand up and walk. Her tiny legs wobbled but she kept trying.

"Then... Uh..." He continued, trying his best to remain focused.

Hana let out a small grunt of frustration as she clung to the seat of the sofa.

You can do it, sweetheart... Kei thought to himself.

To his surprise, Hana began to walk unsteadily by herself, without anything or anyone helping her! She took exactly six steps, and Kei gasped with shock, causing a few students to ask if he was alright.

"Sorry, everyone!" Kei murmured, his heart frantically beating, "Let's take a quick 10-minute break. I just have to do something quickly."

Kei muted and turned off his video and grabbed his phone. If he didn't record this, Mizuki would end his life.

"Hana..." He called out to her as he pressed the record button, "Come to dada..."

Hana turned her head to the sound of his voice and just when she was about to take a step, she tumbled on the floor.

"Hana!" Kei rushed over to her worriedly.

She didn't seem to be hurt and she didn't cry either. Kei let out a sigh of relief as he helped her up.

"Walk again, sweetheart..." Kei encouraged affectionately, "We need mama to see you..."

Instead, she crawled towards her father and squished his cheeks with her hands.

"You're too cute..." He sighed. Kei was so incredibly proud of Hana.

After class, he called Mizuki and told her what happened. She erupted in tears when he mentioned how Hana took her first steps. She couldn't believe that she missed it. Kei promised to record their daughter walking so that he could send it to her. That comforted Mizuki, at least for a little bit.

Later that afternoon, Hana walked again in the park as she played with her cousins Haru, Koji, and Keomi. Kei nearly missed it because he received a call from his colleague but thankfully, Akiteru was there to record the video, otherwise, Mizuki would've definitely ended his life... again.