Inori does not seem to be in the mood for explanations so he just grunts.

To be expected, honestly. And he's pretty sure it'll be—ah, yeah, his family's house. Now why, exactly?

To celebrate Suzume's tenth birthday, it seems!

"Sorry to call you on such short notice, Tōkan," says Kuroji after they sing happy birthday, hands pressed together and a slight apologetic bow.

"Oh yeah, no problem. If I'd known about it in advance I would've bought her a present."

    "It's not a problem, I was sure my thickheaded son would forget to tell you."

Inori shoots him a glare but Suzume looks at Tōkan with bright happy eyes. "I'm just glad you came."

...oh, so it wasn't even Inori's idea to bring him here, it was just Suzume enjoying eye candy. That... that actually stings a bit.

He deserves every second of this bullshit.

        "I was against it, though 😀," says Harutsugu cheerfully. "Kokonoe students are so busy, after all."

    "Stop that, Harutsugu," growls Kuroji, shooting him a filthy glare.

        "I'm worried about him! 😊"

"Don't worry, Mr. Yamada, I'm caught up on all my school activities," Tōkan says with a smile. Stupid stupid stupid stupid.

"Hey, you gonna eat that strawberry?" asks Inori, pointing at Tōkan's slice of cake with his fork.

"—you can have the cake, if you want," Tōkan replies on what passes for automatic for him. "I'm not a great fan of sweets."

"Cool."

He pulls the plate over to himself and scarfs it down.

    "Inori-kun, don't be impolite to our guest," sighs Kuroji.

"It's fine, I don't mind."

            "It's because they're in love," says Suzume with her hands behind her back.

Harutsugu makes a strangled kind of noise like a dying cat in a muffled bag but Inori seems entirely ignorant of the conversation happening at this table.

    "Oh, Tōkan-kun," says Kuroji. "I forgot to go pick up our guest bedding from the cleaners. Will you sleep in Inori's room?"

And that gets Inori's attention.

        "WHAT?! 😨" yells Harutsugo. "NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT! 😤"

"...uh, thank you, Mr. Yamada, but I can just walk home?"

    "Tōkan-kun, you need to stop calling me that. It's just Kuroji. And Suzume..."

            "I want to make my special pancakes in the morning," she explains. "I'd like you to try them. Won't you stay overnight?"

    "So, if you're okay with it..."

        "LET'S JUST LAY OUT OUR BEDDING AND SLEEP TOGETHER IN THE LIVING ROOM! 😰"

    "I just said we don't have the extra bedding..."

            "Haru," says Suzume seriously to her dad. "You shouldn't stand between people who love each other!"

        "But... but... 🥺" And he flops down onto the floor.

"Mr. Yamada—"

        "It's Harutsugu, you're part of the family," he says automatically, and then looks completely horrified at having said it.

Ahahahahah part of the family, okay, right, uhhh... "—Harutsugu-san, I am not—I am here as a guest and I would not behave inappropriately."

        "...well... I suppose..."

Inori's bed is a single, though, so the both of them are rather squeezed together.

Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid stu—

"Tōkan-kun..."

Tōkan's heart skips a beat. That's the first time Inori's called him that. "Yes?"

"...downstairs..." He's staring at the ceiling very resolutely. "Suzume said... are you in love with me?"

Another skipped heartbeat. "I, uh. I—don't know. A-are you in love with me?"

"Dunno what that means. They all say it's important. And I guess... if love's the thing Kuroji and Harutsugu have that your parents don't... It does sound nice to have."

Okay now Tōkan's heart has gone from skipping beats to just having ALL of the beats all at the same time, VERY LOUDLY.

"Yeah. It does. And I think it is."

"But what is it?"

"...I don't really... know. I don't, I wasn't even sure I could do that, I haven't ever..."

"So you just... sleep around? Harutsugu says that's something you should only do with someone you love but it's like he has no idea what it means to be an omega. Guess he doesn't, but I thought... all the years with Kuroji would've..."

"...I, yeah. Kinda? I do sleep around."

"'S that what we're doing? We've only fucked twice, but..."