I tugged on the collar of my school uniform as I approached the Fujibayashi house. I had chosen to wear it mainly because it was the nicest thing I had in my closet, but also it meant that I wouldn't have to change since it was a school day. I looked down at the box in my hand before opening it yet again to make sure that Ryou's birthday gift was still in there; a ring with her birthstone inset. I had found it at the same place where I had purchased her necklace what seemed like a lifetime ago.
I snapped it shut again as I reached out to open the gate, and I noticed my mentor standing outside the front door, dressed in a nice black suit. "Hey, Pastor. Did you just get here, too?"
He shook his head sheepishly as I approached. "No. To tell the truth, I've been out here for the last ten minutes."
"Sorry if I kept you waiting," I said. "We could have met up and-"
"No no, it's not that," he said, sheepish look still in place. "I'm just a little anxious about seeing Fujibayashi-san again."
"Kyou?"
"No, her father. I haven't spoken to him since his visit back when I was sick, so I'm afraid that he might not have a good impression of me. I know I shouldn't be afraid, but..." He shrugged. "I still struggle with fear at times."
I smiled as I thumped his back. "Well, I'm here now, so we can go into the fire together." With that, I knocked on the door.
I heard a lot of thumping from inside before the door opened, revealing two visions of loveliness. The twins wore kimonos that looked almost exactly alike in that they had the same patterns, but with the colors switched; Ryou's was white with blue snowflakes while Kyou's was blue with white snowflakes.
"Hello Tomoya-kun, Ashton-sensei," Ryou said with a bow. "Thank you for accepting our invitation."
I hid a smirk as Kyou said nothing, but gazed up into Jeff's face with an adoring smile.
"Thank you for inviting us," he said as I followed him into the house. "Wow, this is a really nice place."
"Thank you," came a deep voice from farther in, and Fujibayashi Ryu came into view, followed by Rinko. "My wife and I are glad that you could make it."
Without warning, Kyou jumped into Pastor Ashton, who reflexively curled his arms to catch her. "Thank you for the wonderful gift, Daddy!" she crooned as she lay across Jeff's impromptu 'princess carry'. "He's perfect!"
"K-Kyou!" From where I was standing I could see that my mentor's face was red nearly to his hairline. He tried to put her down, but she wouldn't straighten her legs. "P-Please get down!"
"Kyou-chan," Ryu warned while his wife giggled.
With a pout, Kyou allowed herself to be lowered gently to the floor before patting Jeff's arm. "You're really strong, aren't you?"
"N-Not really," he replied, still recovering from the shock. "You're just really light."
"Ooo, Kyou-chan, he's a keeper!" Rinko gushed before looking to me with a warm smile. "It's good to see you again, Tomoya-san."
"Thank you ma'am; it's good to see you again, too," I said with a bow.
"Well, shall we get out of the ladies' way and have a drink?" Ryu offered.
"Do you need any help in the kitchen?" Jeff and I asked, almost in unison, then looked at each other with awkward grins.
The Fujibayashi family burst out laughing, "Thank you for offering, gentlemen," Rinko said, "but we have everything under control."
"Tell you what," Kyou said, leveling her gaze at my mentor, "we'll call you if we need anything. Okay?"
"Okay," he replied, then looked to Ryu. "I'll take you up on your generous offer, then."
***
"So your religion allows drinking?" Ryu asked as we settled into chairs in the study, the older two with wine and me with tea.
"Sure, just not to the point of inebriation," Jeff replied.
"And you have a couple more years before you can join us, isn't that right?" Ryu asked as he gestured to me with his glass.
"Yes, sir; I'll be turning eighteen at the end of next month," I replied.
"Well, I look forward to being able to drink with you, Tomoya-san," he said with a smile.
"Thanks."
He looked to Jeff and opened his mouth as though to say something, then apparently changed his mind. "Well, I guess my older daughter's affection for you is no secret," he mused. "Thank you for being so patient with her."
"Not a problem, sir," Jeff replied with an easy smile. "I'll admit that she was a bit of a handful at first, but she's settled down quite a bit and, honestly, I've...gotten used to her."
Dad chuckled softly. "Well, if she gets to be too much just let me know and I'll have a talk with her."
"Understood, sir."
"Call me 'Ryu', please."
"Thank you, Ryu; call me whatever you want, as long as it's not profane."
Dad chuckled again. "Is that your catch-phrase? I think you said that to me the first time we met."
It was Jeff's turn to chuckle. "Yeah, I guess it is; it's easy to say, and it hopefully puts others at ease."
"Daddy?" We turned as one to see Kyou at the doorway. "Dinner'll be ready in about five minutes."
"Do you need any help taking things to the table?" Jeff offered.
"Absolutely," she replied with a playful smile and a glow to her eyes.
"Kyou..." her father warned.
"Seriously, we could use some help," Kyou said, her smile turning more normal.
Jeff and I looked at each other, smiled, then excused ourselves to help with table setup.
***
"Hey, this looks good!" Jeff exclaimed as we sat down. "I know I helped carry it out, but to see it all on the table at once..."
"Yeah, I hear you," I agreed as I sat down next to him. "You can't go wrong with Fujibayashi cooking."
"T-Tomoya..." Kyou said with a blush as she glanced at Jeff, across from her.
Jeff pointed at the table, then at Kyou. "Did... you make all of this? On your own birthday?"
"I...had my reasons, but yeah, I made some of it," Kyou answered evasively, but I was sure we all knew her 'reasons'.
"Onee-chan..." Ryou giggled from her spot across from me.
"Did you make anything, Ryou?" Jeff followed up.
"I'm...still not a very good cook," she admitted. "I just helped group ingredients together and...I just did what I was told."
"Well, we all have to start somewhere," he said in an encouraging tone. "Just have to focus on the task at hand."
"Shall we get started?" Rinko prompted. "Dinner won't stay warm forever."
"Right! Sorry," Pastor Jeff said, then bowed his head for a moment before quickly snapping it back up. "Oh, sorry! Force of habit."
"Don't worry about it," Ryu said as we waited with our hands pressed together. "Did you want to do your praying thing?"
"It's fine; it's your home, so your rules." Jeff said, waving his hands.
"Daddy?" Kyou looked at her father with a meaningful expression.
"Don't give me that look," Ryu huffed. "Besides, I was thinking the same thing." He looked over to my mentor. "Would you be willing to pray before the meal?"
"Um, sure," Jeff replied, then lowered his head again. "Lord Jesus, thank You for this time when we can celebrate the birth of two very special girls. Thank You for blessing this family with Kyou and Ryou, two wonderful girls that I've had the privilege of getting to know. Please bless them with knowledge and wisdom in the coming year, and show them what You would have them do. Amen."
The rest of us raised our heads...except for the twins, I noticed. "He's done, girls," I told them.
"Kyou? Ryou?" Rinko looked at her daughters with a worried expression. "Is everything okay?"
Almost as one, the twins quickly rose from their seats and hurried out of the room, sniffling and wiping their eyes.
Jeff and I reflexively started to our feet until Ryu's hand stopped us. "I'm sorry. Was it something I said?" Pastor Jeff asked, clearly worried.
Ryu smiled gently as he lowered his hand. "No one other than Rinko and myself have ever said anything so kind about our daughters in their presence."
"That's too bad," Jeff replied. "They really are nice girls and, if you don't mind me saying so, you've done a terrific job raising such thoughtful and compassionate daughters."
"Oh, thank you very much," Rinko said, reaching for her napkin. "Now I may have to leave the table."
Eventually the twins returned and we were able to eat.
"Mmm! This is amazing!" Jeff gushed. "I wish I could make stuff like this!"
"I told you; you can't go wrong with Fujibayashi cooking," I chided.
"I can't argue with that!" he said before swooning over another mouthful, and I looked across the table to see Kyou blushing furiously.
I smirked and turned my attention back to my meal...until I felt something rub against my leg. A quick check under the table revealed nothing, so I just shrugged and went back to my meal.
"WHOA!" I jumped as Jeff suddenly yelped and looked under the table as well.
"What's the matter?" Rinko asked.
"Do you have a dog? Or a cat?" Jeff asked.
Ryu shook his head. "No, just Kyou's pig Botan. Why?"
I glanced around self-consciously before speaking. "I just felt something rub up my pant leg."
"Same here," Jeff said.
"Kyou, where's Botan?" Rinko asked.
"In our room, with the door shut," Kyou replied, but something about her expression...
We went back to eating, but I felt that 'rub' again. "What the-" I looked across the table to see if Ryou had any answers; she was looking down at her plate with the fiercest blush I think I'd ever seen on her.
"There it is again!" Pastor Ashton exclaimed, getting up from his seat. A quick glance at Kyou's face told me exactly what was going on. "All right, knock it off you two," I grumbled. "We're trying to eat."
"What's going on?" Rinko asked, then her face took on a look of disbelief as the girls giggled uncontrollably. "Not at the meal table; shame on you!"
"Sorry, Mom," they answered in unison.
"You were saying something about 'thoughtful and compassionate daughters'?" Ryu quipped to the pastor.
"I'll stand by my statement," he replied with an awkward grin and a twinkle in his eye.
At least the twins behaved themselves for the rest of the meal.