Recap: Riko continues spending her first day at Ouran with her newfound friends.
「Riko」
"I nearly forgot how long school was," I groaned, exhausted after all the countless introductions I had to. Sucks beings the new student.
Despite it being my first day of school, the teachers show no mercy. Piles of assignments and homework are just waiting for me to finish when I get home. Ouran Private Academy is no joke when it comes to their academics. I grimaced at the thought, causing Haruhi to chuckle. Now that host club hours had concluded, Haruhi and I were on our way to pick up my things from Tisumi's to take home.
"How long has it been since you've been home?" Haruhi wondered out loud, our arms linked together as we walked beside each other.
"Too long, I tell you. It doesn't look like too much has changed since I was away," I remarked.
"When you were gone, life wasn't as exciting anymore. It isn't complete without you and your silly antics and smile," she chuckled.
Playfully shoving her side, I said in mock offense, "I am not silly!"
Haruhi only laughed in response, me joining her shortly after. I really missed being able to talk so freely and bond with Haruhi like this. Judging by the way her eyes light up, I can tell she felt the same way. When our laughter died down, we continued to walk in a comfortable silence. My mind slowly wandered to my father. Noticing my quietness, Haruhi nudged my side lightly, causing me to look up at her.
"What's on your mind, Ri?" she questioned, giving me her full attention.
I sighed, knowing that I couldn't hide anything from her. "I'm just worried, Haru. About seeing Dad again. I'm not the same little girl that I was when I was younger. What if he'll be disappointed at what he sees? Or if he doesn't want to see me at all?"
We came to a complete stop. I could feel Haruhi's shocked stare burning into by side profile. Ashamed, I looked away. Hearing her sigh deeply, she pulled me into a hug. Resting my head on her shoulder, I felt her run her fingers through my hair in a gentle stroke. I closed my eyes. Whenever Haruhi did this, it would remind me of our mother when she would console us. After Mom passed away, Haruhi took it upon herself to pick up this habit.
"Now this is you being silly. Of course Dad will be happy to see you. No, he'll be overjoyed. Did you know that he talks about you every single day? There's not one moment where he doesn't think of you. You've grown into such an amazing woman. There is no way that he'll be disappointed in you. He'll be so proud to see what his precious daughter has become," Haruhi explained to me, her voice soft and reassuring.
"You really think so?" I mumbled, my voice muffled by her shirt.
"I know so," she agreed.
Pulling away from her embrace, I smiled up at my sister to which she smiled right back. It was times like this where I felt blessed to have her in my life. Resuming our walk, we headed to Tisumi's. Inserting the spare key into the door, we entered the house. Tisumi wasn't home yet, so I left her a little note telling her that Haruhi and I were here. Then, Haruhi and I began getting my things from upstairs. Luckily, I didn't have much. Only a large suitcase, a duffel bag and my violin case.
After acquiring my things, Haruhi led the rest of the way home since my memory was still a bit foggy. Soon we were standing in front of a small apartment complex. Heading up the stairs to the second level, we ended up standing in front of our door. Biting my lip, I tried to get rid of the nervousness bubbling inside me. Haruhi must have noticed because she gave me a comforting squeeze on my shoulder and unlocked the door.
"Welcome home, Riko-chan," Haruhi smiled, allowing me to step inside first.
Slowly, I entered the house. Looking around my surroundings of my old home, a soft smile graced my face. I felt all the memories of my childhood come flooding back into my mind. Turning to look at the walls, childhood pictures of my family hung proudly. A few more steps in, I gazed over at Mom's shrine in the other room.
Before I knew it, my feet had brought me to it before my mind could realize it. Resting down on my knees, I picked up the picture frame of Mom. My finger gently grazed the glass frame, over my mother's long brown hair that was tied back into a ponytail, her bright brown eyes, to the loving smile she always wore. Beautiful as ever.
"I'm finally home, Mom. Sorry it took me so long to get back," I whispered.
Kissing the picture, I let my lips linger for a few seconds before placing the frame back on the shrine. I didn't move from my position on the floor. I simply stayed there and closed my eyes, taking in the fact that I was finally home. Haruhi watched from a short distance away with a small smile, heading to the bedroom to leave me some privacy.
"Haruhi, are you home?" a voice broke the tranquil state that I was in.
There was a loud thud. Snapping my eyes open, my head whipped to the front door. A woman who I wasn't sure I knew was stood at the door. The person had long, wavy maroon hair and wore a violet themed female office worker outfit. Lying on the floor was a shoulder bag which seemed to be the cause of the loud thud from earlier.
Looking closer at the woman's face, I realized that the person seemed awfully familiar. If it weren't for the outfit and the long hair, I would even dare say she looked like my father. Eyes widening at the realization, I looked into the person's eyes once more to see if I was right. They stared right back into mines, seeming to be in a shocked state.
"Daddy?" I whispered, tears beginning to brim in my eyes.
"My little Riko," he whispered.
Before I could even stand from my spot, he had rushed to my side and fell to his knees. Wrapping his arms around me, he pulled me straight into his arms. Clutching onto his shirt, I buried my face in his chest and was more than willing to hold him tightly. Before I knew it, I was sobbing into his chest.
"I missed you so much," I choked out, my voice breaking between each word.
"Shhhh. It's alright. Daddy is here now," he coaxed while stroking my head softly. Feeling something wet hit the top of my head, I knew he was crying too.
Hearing footsteps approach, I felt another pair of arms wrap around us. I didn't need to look up to know that it was Haruhi. She didn't cry nor did she had to say anything. She took it upon herself to be the strong one among us, so she only held us in her safe embrace while rubbing our backs as a silent comfort.
We weren't sure how long we had stayed in that position, but we didn't care. All that mattered was that we were together again. Eventually, we composed ourselves enough to get off of the floor. Moving to the living room area of the apartment, Dad had me explain everything much like I had to do for Haruhi earlier.
"Dad, can I ask you something?" I hesitantly asked.
"Of course, sweetie. What is it?" he replied. The look he had in his eyes already told me that he knew what I was going to ask.
Biting my lip, it took me a minute or two to ask him what I wanted to know. "Please don't think that I'm being rude by asking this, but... When did you begin cross dressing?" I inquired, looking down at my lap in fear he would be upset at me for asking.
Hearing him chuckle, he placed his hand over mine and gave it a light squeeze. I took it as a gesture that he was perfectly fine with the question. He took a moment to think over the question. Not wanting to rush him, I waited patiently.
"You already know how hard it was for us when your mother passed away. I loved your mother as much as I love you and Haruhi," he began.
Smiling gently, I nodded my head. In the few memories I still had of Mom in my head, her and Dad were deeply in love. They never failed to express their love for each other and for Haruhi and I. I looked to Dad again to continue with his story.
"Sending you to the states made it even harder. I felt like I was losing both a daughter and a wife. At the same time, I realized that you and Haruhi had also lost a mother."
"That was when I realized something. I vowed that I would never love another woman. No one could compare to your mother. She was the love of my life and the best mother you could ever have. In order to keep my vow, I've decided to work as Ranka, just as you see me as now. It may serve as a job, but more importantly, it serves as a promise to my family," he concluded.
There was a moment of silence after Dad had finished speaking. Just as Haruhi and I had gone through a lot about losing a mother, I almost forgot that Dad had lost his wife, his love. Seeing that he was willing to become Ranka, I could see just how devoted he was to Mom and us. My love and admiration for my father grew even more than it already had.
For the remainder of the day, I never left my father's side. Or rather, he never left mine. Not that it bothered me. I was always such a Daddy's little girl as a child and I still remained one now. Over dinner, we reminisced over the past and I told them about my life back in America. Catching up over the years we missed, the three of us were set on making brand new memories as a family.
"I'm so happy that you're home, Riko. Our family is together at last," Dad said, his eyes already beginning to tear again.
"Hey, no more tears! I'll start crying again if you do," I jokingly scolded him. He only chuckled, wiping away his tears.
"It feels like things are finally complete again," Haruhi comment.
Exchanging looks with each other, we all shared the same thought. Across the table, Dad reached for my left hand, locking his fingers with mines. Beside me, Haruhi did the same for my right hand. Squeezing them both, I couldn't stop the smile that appeared on my face. Haruhi and Dad glanced at each other for a brief moment before turning to me.
"Welcome home, Riko."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the revamp of YMOAOR, scenes have been deleted from this chapter! Some comments may not make sense because they were from said scenes. Sorry for any confusion!