[ open ] welcome, dreamer, to the new dream

[paradisefraught]

 Buzz, buzz. Buzz, buzz.

Akira, holding onto the train pole with one hand, fishes out his phone. It's that one group chat again, huh...he swipes at it, getting the ghost notifications off his screen. Futaba won't let him leave it, even though like, half the messages are just random blank texts...and she was weird about it...it's part of her software testing, right?

The train rumbles. His phone buzzes. The world settles.

Right. The metal is cold against his left palm; he can feel it through the leather. Futaba likes programming. She does this kind of thing all the time. Isshiki-san isn't here to rein her in. She's on a business trip. Futaba misses her.

Buzz, buzz. Bu--


Missing your parents...Akira can't relate. If anything, his dad, Takuto...nah. Akira loves his dad.

Hey, dad. I'm on the train right now. Can you imagine a world where everyone who needed one could always get a seat? That's part of your research, right?

Hazy memories of toddling around an academic conference, youngest there by far, researchers taking an interest in such a young kid, and--

Message not sent. Retry?

Huh? Akira taps the retry button.

Nothing happens.

Maybe...the metro has iffy wi-fi connection sometimes, doesn't it? He just needs to get off the train and...

The room is blue. It's so blue. His lone gloved hand, grasping nothing, falls limp by his side.

This...isn't the train station.

Comments

[takutomaruki]

His words did not make him pause.

In fact, Maruki got the chance to watch Joker walk up to the cognitive barista who offered them a lilted smile and proceeded to be overthrown by the sheer presence of Akira Maruki.

The fact that he did go on and on, made Maruki stall off on his own points of interest and arguments at Akira's understanding- like a teacher willing to pose a question to test him but ultimately he falls short. In fact, he finally decides to step forward and go- "Hookay- I get it. You do know quite a lot about this pscience- maybe I shouldn't have sold your father short."

"It's just-" he is about to pose him a question but instead denies against it. "You know what. Nothing costs money here, I will order some drinks and snacks then." He shook his head. "Go ahead and order because after that- we have things to discuss."

[paradisefraught]

"You said something bad about Dad...?" Akira frowns for a moment, but then perks back up. "Can I have two muffins and a sandwich and a big black coffee?"

[takutomaruki]

Oh, that was perhaps a terrible things to say-

"Don't worry I was just criticizing myself," he answers instead. Not like he was wrong.

"Fair enough. You can get us some seats then, I will get us our food."

[paradisefraught]

Akira happily finds them a table for two and waits for Maruki.

[takutomaruki]

And Maruki, despite the sheer ridiculousness of the situation- delivers the needful. He sets the two muffins, the sandwich and two cups of black coffees on either side of the table.

He squints at his own sandwich and proceeds to pull out a few sauce packets from his pockets. Ketchup. Mayonnaise. Mustard. Garlic Sauce.

Though the doctor doesn't touch his food just yet, instead he leans forward on the table and watches the other Akira like they were starring in some sort of sitcom. "So, Morning-kun. I have some concerns and questions I am afraid that will wear you out but its the only way I will be able to keep my mind at ease."

[paradisefraught]

Morning's eyes light up when Not-Dad comes back with the food! He takes a muffin gratefully. "Iitadakimasu! Please, ask away!" Munchmunchmunch.

[takutomaruki]

Maruki rested his chin on his folded hands, watching as Morning devoured his muffin with an enthusiasm that could only be described as contagious. A small smile tugged at his lips as he leaned back slightly in his chair, his gaze softening. For all the strangeness of the situation, there was something undeniably grounding about this boy’s presence—a peculiar familiarity that tugged at his chest.

“So,” Maruki began, his tone light but with an undertone of curiosity, “Morning-kun, let’s say—hypothetically—that I am your father in another universe. I imagine you’d know certain things about me. Or, well... him.”

[paradisefraught]

Morning tilts his head, eyes wide and curious. "Sure. What kinda things?"

[takutomaruki]

“Oh, I don’t know.” Maruki gestured vaguely. “What’s something... distinctive about your father? Something only his son would know? Can be embarassing too- though I would prefer you keep it down with those parts.”

There's a grin as he places an index finger on his lips.

[paradisefraught]

"Hmmm...one time we were at a conference and they had a dessert bar and he was supposed to present after dinner but he ate himself sick on cake on accident!"

[takutomaruki]

Maruki pauses for a moment, remembering a certain event like that which had happened nearly a decade ago.

His brow twitches as his smile threatens to splinter, going for his cup of coffee. "...are you convinced that was an accident?"

[paradisefraught]

Morning gets a conspiratorial look on his face. "Dad would tell you that if you asked him!"

[takutomaruki]

Maruki begins to take a sip of his coffee, only for him to find the conspirational look aimed directly at him that makes him feel incredibly awkward.

And incredibly seen.

He sets the mug down, awkwardly as he coughs into his hand. "I can't deny or confirm that has happened to me," he says though his tone gives away the needful. "It was an accident. The cake had too much sugar in it!"

[paradisefraught]

Akira grins along. "Uh-huh. Of course it did."

[takutomaruki]

Maruki looks away from that grin, slightly embarassed as he chuckles almost too awkwardly. "Don't look at me like that."

"But, one thing does confuse me a little," his brows furrow. "Did your father...take you to work then? Regularly?"

[paradisefraught]

"Uh...yeah?" Morning cocks his head. "Why wouldn't he? Research grants pay for research, not raising a kid..." he kicks at the floor under the table. "He liked watching me react to his research...even if I stuck a ton of pens in my mouth. Reportedly."

[takutomaruki]

Maruki's lips curled to the side as he finally unfurled his sandwich and stares down at the bread. He gets one of the sauce packets and proceeds to dissect the poor food while adding in his preferred combination of sauces because god forbid these guys actually add enough to even make the food taste like something. Next time, he's making some Japanese breakfast.

He chuckles at the mention of the pens. "Well, knowing your older self from my world- you have always been too curious. Albeit too reckless." As reckless as going to a Palace right before the school entrance. He could only imagine how stressful it must have been to balance his doctorate research while raising a kid.
"...How old were you during that little incident? Like any vague number or..."

[paradisefraught]

Nothing's wrong with Morning's food! It tastes very good. "Hmm...three? Four?"

[takutomaruki]

Three...four.

And if that conference happened when he was like what? In his mid 20s? Fresh out of college and now pursuing his doctorate that would have meant-

If he did the mathematics correctly, Akira would have been born around year 1999 to year 2000; somewhere after he freshly graduated from college or late into his third year. He remembered, dating someone else when he and Rumi had went through a really rough patch so that would mean that Akira could have been a product of one of his other hasty relationships.

"Oh god," his eyes widened. He leaned back into his chair, looking up at the ceiling and resting his arm on his eyes as if he were finally mourning a loss. "I can see the mess now. Though it could still just be someone else but-"

He leaned forward and plucked his glasses from his eyes. "Yeah I never won any arguments against her. That's part of why we broke up," he confesses to no one in particular. Or his son. Not-son.

And he has actualization on him, as if further emphasizing how he knows his other alternate universe self does not know how to take care of children. This is a problem.

[paradisefraught]

It takes Morning a moment to process who exactly not-Dad is referring to, but when he does...

The glove creaks on his right palm. His eyes are suddenly stuck to the floor. "I met her. Once." The leather against his palm is cool. "I got that impression, too."

Real Dad had always spoken of her in such a harsh way, but all of the moms on TV were nice and loving, and he thought they weren't married because of silly grown-up stuff...

...she wasn't. Nice and loving. And they weren't married for a good reason. Not a silly grown-up one.

You called someone else Mom instead.

Who?

Silence.

[takutomaruki]

Okay, something is fishy here.

Maruki narrows his eyes subtly as he goes for his sandwich and takes a bite from it. He doesn't get to linger on its taste for too long, his lips already pressed in a disconcerting way. He contemplated the chances of the face conjuring up in Morning's head.

He sighs, rubbing the back of his hair with his other clean hand. "I have to say- I think I would have preferred taking care of a child with zero experience then living under the same roof as her again. If we are even talking about the same person."

Almost instictively, he leaned forward and spoke with a small comforting smile. "Akira? Hey, she's not here anymore."

"You can rest easy."

[paradisefraught]

A moment passes. Akira's ungloved hand reaches out, as if seeking support, before he shakes himself out of it.

"Thank you. I don't think I would've...liked. Living with her..." he's still so, so grateful Dad took him in. "I was young, so I'm probably remembering her worse than she was..."

Another moment passes, where Morning just takes a breath.

"Have you ever made an apple pie?"

[takutomaruki]

Maruki notices that gesture but he doesn't reach out. Not yet. It felt wrong, too wrong on so many levels that it left him spiralling for answers that seemed out of reach.

Yet they were right before him. His flesh and blood in some other world.

"Pyschologically speaking," he starts- keeping his tone even and gentle, "That isn't unusual. Our memories are deeply tied to our emotions, and they’re not perfect recordings of what happened. They’re like stories we write and rewrite- depending on the circumstances we are forced to face."

He looks down at his food, suddenly not feeling as hungry as he should.

The question however, catches him off guard.

"...I have. Sort of," he squaints as he recalls through his memories. "It turned out horrible when I first attempted it so I never made it again."

"Why do you ask?"

[paradisefraught]

Rewriting our memories, rewriting our reality. Right! Akira nods and laughs a bit. "After...she...left, Dad tried making me an apple pie. To cheer me up. It ended just about as bad as you think."

[takutomaruki]

"...!"

Maruki looks away, a hesitant smile inching on his face. "Did he...now?"

"I won't deny its quality," he huffs into the air. "..still, I am glad that he did what he could to support you."

"It feels weird because I am talking about myself, aren't I?"