Family is Chaos (One Punch Man x OC)

Chapter 16: Falling into Place

You could say life continued on shortly after the birth of little Kenji. The new parents now had to adjust to the new changes of having a tiny little life to look after.
As for the good doc and a particular cyborg, well...
They had some new issues of their own. Over the course of the pregnancy, Genos and Hitomi had been going out together more and more frequently.
Even though they were not an official couple, they had grown very close.
The two seemed to find great joy in each other's company. Now that Kenji was born, Hitomi started to take notice to Genos' behavior, and it wasn't improving.
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On this particular day, Hitomi was waiting at the park for Genos. They were planning on strolling through and have a picnic as the sun set. It was Hitomi's idea, as she always wanted to have a picnic.
Hitomi was wearing a grey sweater, blue jeans and her brown boots. She had a large bag, which held some food contents for their picnic.
She waited for a little while, her thoughts drifting. She and Genos have been having these outings for some time now, but lately, she had been feeling confused. Their feelings, she believed, were clear to one another, but neither of them had tried to make it apparent. It left her to question if she was just reading the signals wrong. Did he like her, or did he just appreciate her company? Was she coming on too strong and making him uncomfortable?
Was it something else?
Hitomi was worried about it, especially after Kenji's birth, Genos had started to act strangely. Plus, an incident that happened the other week had made the issue a bit clearer. Last outing they went on, they found themselves in a stressful situation.
'Demon Cyborg, can you please sign my picture?!'
Genos and Hitomi found themselves bombarded by a group of girls as they made their way out of a restaurant. It was a fan club.
'I will not, I am currently accompanying someone. Please, leave us be,' Genos was always blunt, which Hitomi both liked but occasionally became irritated with. In this case, she was glad he was being blunt because these girls were becoming increasingly persistent.
'Come on, you can spare a minute for your fans, can't you?! What makes this hussy so special?!'
Another girl had started becoming verbally aggressive, directing them towards the blonde doctor. Hitomi was never on the receiving end of such verbal abuse, so this took her by surprise. This quickly spread to the whole group, all vocalizing their displeasure with her presence. Seeing as this was progressively getting worse, Hitomi had started holding onto Genos' arm, suddenly becoming nervous. This action didn't go unnoticed by Genos, or the girls. This, apparently, had set off the first girl that started this, "Beat it, hussy! Let us have a turn!"
This girl had made a grab at Hitomi, just managing to grab her sweater. She yelped as she was nearly yanked forward and this made her let go of Genos, their intention to get her away from Genos so they can have his attention.
Genos was quick to get in between the girls and Hitomi, scowling threateningly, 'Keep your hands off of Dr. Ishikawa! Unless you want to be reported for assault, I advise that you all leave!'
This didn't deter them, all of them yelling in retaliation and coming in closer to the couple. As a result, Genos had grabbed Hitomi, lifting her up bridal style and jumping out of the growing mob of girls.
Genos landed on a building and took a breath of relief before addressing the young woman in his arms.
'Are you alright, Hitomi?' he asked, gazing down at her as she draped her arms around his neck.
'Y-yes, I'm fine. I'm not hurt, just shaken,' Hitomi told him, her voice slightly trembled, a clear indication.
'I apologise for what happened. This had never happened before,' Genos sounded almost remorseful for putting her through that. He gently let her down, but his arm was still around her waist.
'It's not your fault,' Hitomi leaned into him, sighing in relief, 'Thank you for protecting me.'
Genus froze at the sudden closeness of their bodies, but quickly recovered. He put his other arm around her, holding her close. Holding her until she had calmed down.
Remembering that made Hitomi blush in embarrassment. However, she felt this happiness that her and Genos had grown so close. Still, it left her to wonder. Why was he acting so distant when it was clear that he wanted her close?
"Hitomi," the blonde looked and smiled upon seeing Genos walking up to her.
She stood up, placing the bag on the bench and went to hug him. When she did, she immediately noticed how stiff he was as she wrapped her arms around his torso. He barely hugged her back and stepped away as soon as her grip loosened. She looked up at him, perplexed, "Is everything alright?"
"There is something I wish to discuss with you," Genos said suddenly.
~One short discussion later~
"Why?" Hitomi stood there, sounding hurt.
Genos was frowning at her, his tone was cold, "I do not believe it is appropriate to continue this relationship. You are my Master's doctor and it could compromise your professionalism."
Hitomi couldn't believe what she was hearing, she scoffed at this explanation, "But we aren't doing anything wrong. We are just going out, having fun. Nothing is compromised."
"Our friendship could be a distraction to your practices," Genos stated.
"Now, you're just trying make excuses!" Hitomi was getting angry, shouting in outrage, "Why are you acting like this?"
Genos' gaze met the ground, he seemed troubled.
"Does this have to do with what happened last week?" Hitomi frowned, wanting an answer from him.
Genos was somewhat quiet, loss for words, "I--"
There was people suddenly screaming. The small crowds in the park were running away.
There was a monster. It was a man with a spider head for a face and had spider legs protruding from his sides under his arms.
"Heheheeee~! I loved spiders so much, I transformed into one!! I will have my prey whenever I please!"
Genos muttered, not too happy with his luck, "Another insect monster. Stay here."
Before Hitomi can say anything, Genos had charged at this thing. Unfortunately, the monster saw him coming, "You can't kill what you can't see~!" The monster then spat a blob of web at the cyborg. It splattered onto his face, making him halt his pursuit. He grunted as he tried to pull the web off.
The monster laughed wickedly, "You will make a great first catch, hero~!"
Hitomi stood from afar, watching with great fear for Genos' safety. She frantically looked around her to see what she can use as a weapon.
Close by, she noticed a baseball bat by the children's playground. While this thing was distracted, she ran over to it and grabbed it.
"Ohhh~Someone wants to play hero, huh~?"
Hitomi turned and saw a stream of web coming at her. She tumbled out of the way, holding onto the bat tightly as the web landed in a pile beside her.
Genos finally managed to rip the web off, only to see this monster going after Hitomi.
"Hitomi!" Genos ran towards this thing, his first priority was to keep her safe. Upon hearing the cyborg running his way, the monster turned to look at Genos, which was a big mistake.
Hitomi charged at this thing as it turned its head away and swung the bat as hard as she could.
The bat cracked against the monster's head and it crumbled to the ground, dead. Purple blood oozing onto the ground.
Hitomi panted hard, staring hard at the now dead monster, her adrenaline pumping. Genos stood there wide eyed, surprised that Hitomi was able to kill this thing on her own.
Hitomi regained her breath, tossing the bat aside and walking up to him.
"Are you hurt?" Genos asked.
"No," Hitomi answer came out clipped, "Genos, you still need to answer my question. Why are you acting like this?"
"Can we, at least, leave the park?" Genos suggested, implying that discussing such a matter over a corpse was not appropriate.
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Genos and Hitomi walked over to a quiet bridge. Neither had spoken a word, one fuming with anger, the other, quiet as to try to come up with a logical explanation. The sun was setting as the two finally stopped and faced each other.
"Hitomi--"
"Whatever to you say better not be anymore excuses! I'm not accepting that you want us to stop seeing each other just because of my job!" Hitomi shouted at him, "You think I haven't noticed, but you've been acting strange since Kenji was born! Just tell me the truth! Are you afraid of something?! Are you afraid I'll get hurt?! What is it?!"
Genos set his jaw, he looked conflicted to say anything. The wind gusted passed them as the silence almost became too much, "I am not good enough for you."
Hitomi eyes widened and she blinked at him. That was not the answer she was expecting.
"What? What does that mean?" Hitomi questioned, both angry and confused.
"I am a cyborg. And a hero. What kind of life would I be able to provide for you? I am unable to give you children, or any normalcy," Genos explained to her, "I know I said I would accept anything that came my way, but I do not want you to suffer for what I cannot give you. And as a cyborg, I will undoubtedly outlive you."
Hitomi was dumbfounded by what she was hearing. He was ending things because of this?
"So, you actually do like me? And because of this, you're afraid of making me unhappy?" Hitomi asked, and Genos couldn't reply, "Genos, do you even hear yourself? You're smarter than that. And have you forgotten that I'm a clone? Being a clone, children isn't an option for me, even if I wanted to, which I don't. And normalcy? Look at us, nothing is normal in this world! We are surrounded by monsters and heroes on a daily basis. Honestly, I'd be bored if my life was normal."
"But you had expressed wanting a family the day Ms. Saya went into labor. That is an issue as I cannot give you that. I just wish for your happiness. Like my Master and Ms. Saya," Genos told her.
"Being part of a family doesn't necessarily mean having children, Genos. I was never part of any family, and that's what I want. Not children," Hitomi then stepped closer, grasping his metallic hand, "And who says I can't be happy with you?"
His eyes widened a fraction, almost like he had figured out something, "So, you really want to be with me?"
Hitomi couldn't even get mad at his naivete, "Yes, I do. You've shown me more kindness than I've ever received from anyone else. Just because you're a cyborg, it doesn't make you any less human than what you used to be. Regardless, if you outlive me or not, I want our time together to be cherished."
Genos stared agape, he didn't know what to say. Yes, he was afraid, but knowing that someone actually had feelings for him and didn't care about what he was--it almost felt like a dream.
Hitomi moved in to hug him, wrapping her arms around his torso, hoping he'll finally reciprocate.
Genos didn't hesitate, this time, to wrap his arms around her small frame, holding her tightly.
"I am shocked that I did not realize it, sooner," Genos spoke softly, burying his nose into her hair.
Hitomi rested her head against his chest, smiling and eyes closed in content, "I should be saying that. We've been doing these things together, and we didn't even realize how we felt. Maybe it just became too natural for us to realize it."
"I am glad we both said something," Genos' grip tightened sightly, emphasizing his point.
Just then, Hitomi opened her eyes wide, suddenly remembering something, "I left the bag at the park."
Genos pulled away slightly, still embracing her as they stared at one another blankly for a moment in realization.
Suddenly, they both started to snicker at the ridiculousness of it all.
"There goes our picnic, huh?" Hitomi giggled even more.
Genos had stopped snickering and just gazed at her lovingly, a soft smile on his face, "We can always have a hot pot at my home."
Hitomi's giggling ceased and she returned the same smile, "Wanna get the groceries before the stores close?"
And both they went, Hitomi wrapping her arms around his, leaning her head on his shoulder.
Genos just relished in the feeling, smiling as they made the trek to the supermarket, discussing what they wanted to get for the hot pot.
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It was just another day for the heroes.
Well, as normal as it gets for Saitama and Saya. Only, Saya was not home, at the moment, which left father and son the house to themselves.
That is, until King came over to hang.
"Whoa, man. He's so tiny," King gaped at the infant. Kenji was lying on a blanket for tummy time as the larger man sat cross legged in front of him.
It had been nearly two months since Kenji was born and not a lot of friends had been to see the new addition. King was the second one (Bomb being first) to meet him.
"I don't think being nearly nine pounds at birth qualifies as tiny, King," Saitama was fixing Kenji's bottle in the kitchen, which didn't take long, as it wasn't formula.
"Seriously? He weighed that much?" King watched as Kenji kind of bobbed his head, trying to lift it to look at the blonde. Kenji also didn't really take to strangers, but oddly enough, seemed to take an interest in King. Being two months now, his dark brown eyes were now wide open and gazing at everything with great wonder.
Saitama walked back into the living room, bottle in hand and a small rag in the other. King looked over as Saitama came to sit down beside his friend, "That baby formula?"
"No, it's breast milk. Hitomi advised that it would be healthier for him to breast feed," Saitama put the bottle down as he went to pick up his son, "However, since Saya isn't here, I have to try to feed him with the bottle."
"Huh," King just watched as Saitama adjusted Kenji in his right arm, picking up the bottle to try and feed him, "You know, it's weird, seeing you like this, Saitama."
"Hm?" Saitama stopped short of giving the bottle to Kenji and looked up at the man, "What do you mean?"
"I mean, it was so long ago when you talked about how empty you felt inside. Even thinking about doing new things and experiencing stuff sounded like too much trouble for you. So, when Genos told me that you and Saya were having a kid, I thought he was screwing with me," King gave a reassuring smile, "I hope you don't take what I'm saying the wrong way. I just never saw you being a father, you know?"
Saitama glanced away as he mulled over King's words, "Neither did I, honestly. I guess, being with Saya helped open up sides of me that I didn't even know I had. When we found out about Kenji, I was terrified. I was never good at domestic stuff, so adding a baby to equation threw me through a loop. Thinking back on it now, I don't think I'd be where I am now if I didn't keep focusing on moving forward, you know? Kenji's no different: I stepped up and I wasn't going to let my fear of being a dad hold me back from doing the best I can."
King gave him a proud smirk, "Sounds like you're following your advice, and some of mine," he then noticed Kenji trying to reach for the bottle and pointed, "I think Kenji's waiting on you."
Saitama perked and looked down at his son, who looked disgruntled as Saitama just held the bottle out of his reach.
Flustered for holding off on his bottle, Saitama lowered the nipple to his son's lips. Kenji wasted no time and started to drink eagerly.
"So, where did Saya go off to?" King inquired.
Saitama kept his eyes on Kenji, "She said something about visiting Bang's dojo or something. Not sure what for, though."
~
Meanwhile, Saya had made the flight to Bang's dojo. For her, it felt great to be back in action again. She missed flying and fighting monsters. Now that she had the baby and worked all the excess weight off, she felt like herself again.
Decked out in her uniform, she landed in front of Bang's dojo, knocking on the large wooden door. The one to open the door was Charanko, "Oh, Charanko. I didn't realize you were back at the dojo."
"Oh, Saya, it's you!" Charanko was put off that she was there, "Yeah, Master Bang had started taking students again and asked for me to come back. There aren't that many of us, but it's a start."
Saya smiled, "I'm glad that Bang has started back up again. Is he here, by the way? He asked me to stop by to discuss something."
Charanko acknowledged her question with a look of confusion, "Did he say what he wanted to talk to you about?"
"No, but even if I did know, I'm pretty sure it's a private matter," Saya gave a neutral expression at his nosiness, "Would you mind letting me in?"
"Um, sure," Charanko opened the door wider and allowed her inside.
Per dojo tradition, she slipped off her boots and put them by the door when she saw the old man himself, holding file folders in one hand, "Saya, right on time."
Saya walked up to him, "Hello, Bang. I heard about you taking students again."
Bang gave a cheerful smile, "That's right, and I have your sister to thank, for talking me into it."
"So, small talk aside, I know you wanted to speak to me about something?" Saya went straight into business.
Bang suddenly became serious, as well, "Yes. If you would please follow me, we'll discuss this matter more privately."
Saya did just that and followed Bang out to the courtyard where his students would train. It was empty, as the students had already went home.
"So, how is the Rehabilitation Program looking, right now?" Bang turned to her.
Saya rubbed the back of her head, "Not too well, right now. The Hero Association keep sending me files of those who cannot be released back into society. I think they see this program as a joke."
Bang explained, "They are testing you, Saya. However, I believe that in order for the Program to work, you need a true candidate for the Association to take you more seriously. This is precisely why asked you to see me today."
"Did you have someone in mind?" Saya quirked a brow, lowering her hand to her side.
"Yes, but there are a few issues if you decide to move forward with this one," Bang told her as he handed her one of the file folders, "Whereabouts are currently unknown, and technically, the Association had been purposefully withholding this file from you."
"Why were they withholding it?" Saya was about to open it.
"Because he's registered as a monster."
Saya froze when she saw the picture and looked up at him, "Bang, did you take this without their knowledge?"
"I did," he admitted calmly, "It might be because we have a history, or I feel that he was never given a chance to lead his own life in a good direction. The world was cruel to him and if this is the only way for him to find a better path, I want to be sure he gets that chance. Not only am I asking, hero to hero, but as someone who knows how it feels to want to help the ones you care about. Will you do this for me?"
"I understand that, Bang. Now that I have Kenji, I understand that feeling too well," Saya looked back at the file, "It's going to be tricky, convincing the Association. His rap sheet is a mile long, from what I can see."
"There is a spark of goodness in him, Saya," Bang insisted, "He just needs guidance from the right person."
Saya glanced back up at him again, "If I'm to do this, I'm guessing that you want him under your supervision? And if the Hero Association asks where I got the file, I'll tell them I went through them, myself?"
Bang caught the drift of her suggestions, and he knew that she was going to move forward with it and keep this under wraps, "Thank you, Saya," he nodded in gratitude.
Saya gave a small smile, "Don't thank me, yet. This is going to be tough, trying to convince them, but I'll find a way."