After Story: Compassion

Chapter Thirty-Five: Solutions

"I see," Dad said as Kyou handed him a mug of coffee as we sat in the pastor's office. "Things sure are different in America."

"Yeah, the age of consent over there is just different enough," I said. At Kyou's insistence Jeff had returned to bed, so I took on the task of answering Dad's questions; it was really turning into a long day. "But in his case, though...well...he's a widower who trying to honor his dead wife."

"It's 'late wife', Tomoya-san," Dad corrected. "It's more polite."

"Late wife," I amended. "So the way I see it, there are three problems on his side of things: One, the age-of-consent problem...but that should be cleared up in about a month, right?

"Our birthday is September 9th," Ryou confirmed.

"So that'll fix itself. Two, he's...older than she is."

"Well, that's not unusual," Dad said. "I'm seven years older than my wife. Why? How old is Ashton-sensei?"

I tried to find a polite way to answer, but Kyou jumped in. "Thirty-two."

He nearly spit out his coffee. "F-Fifteen years? Couldn't you find someone closer to your age? Or maybe wait until after your teaching studies are complete?"

Kyou's cheeks pinked. "Well the only one I'd be interested in that's my age...is...Tomoyabuthe'salreadytaken."

"Onee-chan!" Ryou squeaked as she grabbed my arm.

"I see," Dad grunted.

"And...well..." Kyou continued, "...he and Jeff are a lot alike...GAH! This is embarrassing!"

"We'll put that on the back burner for now," he relented.

"The third problem is that he's a Christian, and he's not supposed to marry outside his religion," I said, finishing the list.

"Sounds snobbish, if you ask me," Dad scoffed.

"It's not that," I protested. "If he's going to be that close to someone like that, he needs to be sure they're on the same page. His understanding is that God has certain things that all Christians are supposed to be focused on, and if either the husband or the wife isn't a Christian...'unequally yoked'..."

"I think I understand," Dad said. "If the animals aren't pulling in the same direction, then nothing gets done and they can end up frustrating each other."

"Yeah."

"Okay, I retract my statement about them being snobs," he amended; then he looked over at his older daughter. "Are you sure you'd want to be part of that world? His is a western religion, after all."

"Actually, I think it's a Middle-Eastern religion," I said as respectfully as I could. "Other than...Rome, most of the story parts take place in Israel and Egypt, and those aren't considered Western. Am I wrong?"

"I've read the first few parts, up through Deuteronomy," Kyou said. "Israel and Egypt."

"Hm." Dad's face scrunched in thought. "I'll have to consider this at length." He settled back in his chair. "We Fujibayashis have not been particularly religious for several generations, so I don't see there being a problem with you joining one if you wish...as long as you don't disrespect your mother or myself in the process."

"If it helps, the Bible prohibits that," I offered. "It's one of the Ten Commandments, but I've also read that Christians are supposed to put God first so they're supposed to choose him over family if it comes down to it."

"You seem well-versed in the Bible, Tomoya-san," he declared. "Are you planning on becoming a priest yourself? Am I to lose both my daughters to this God?"