Chapter 33: Chapter 28.5 - Comfort
A/N:
Here's a fluff chapter that takes place before the moon turned into a croissant.
As always, thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter!
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It was a chilly Saturday night. Ruby and Aqua had come over for dinner and were immediately enamored by Jin.
"Your dog is so cute!" Ruby squealed, crouching down and patting Jin's head. "Where'd you find him?"
"A friend of mine couldn't take care of him, so they gave him to me," Jason answered, watching as Jin closed his eyes and wagged his tail under Ruby's pats.
Jason was slightly apprehensive about letting her get close at first. Jin wasn't a normal wolf pup, after all. But the pup didn't seem to mind. Through their connection that's been developing ever since he and Jin met, he could feel his surface level emotions. Jin was enjoying the pats immensely.
While meditating this morning, it surprised him when he felt Jin was still absorbing what was left of the Chaos King's powerful energy. It seemed as if he has been doing so passively ever since he had woken up from the small coma. Jason didn't know if it was a positive or a negative, but at least this would mean it wouldn't take 7 years for him to start "world-hopping", as Joe put it. He could sense the energy coursing through his body with greater clarity and could feel his body gradually adapting and growing stronger. No possibility of harnessing it yet, though. Whenever he tried to get control the energy, it felt like he was trying to hold water with holes in his hands.
'It might only take a year or two to finish at this rate.'
Aqua crouched down beside Ruby and started rubbing Jin's chin while noting the lack of a name tag. "Does he have a name?"
"Jin," Jason said.
Jin let out a small yip as if to confirm his answer.
"Well, hello Jin." Ruby raised Jin until they were face-to-face. She gave him a bright smile. "I'm Ruby. It's nice to meet you!"
Jin happily yipped.
She turned Jin around until he faced Aqua. "This is Aqua. My brother."
Jin happily yipped again, and Ruby giggled at his cuteness. Even the normally stoic Aqua couldn't help but smile.
"Where's your mother? Is she at work?" asked Jason. With his senses, it wasn't hard to hear Ai. And if he wanted to, he could home in on Ai's voice specifically, but he didn't want to intrude on her privacy.
"Nope, Mama's at home." Ruby shook her head. "But she's in a call with Saitou-san. I think they were talking about the Tokyo Dome concert. I'm so excited about it! It's going to be awesome!"
"Oh right. It's happening in a few days, isn't it? It's quite a big event."
"The extra publicity from what happened to Ai seemed to have bolstered its sales because the tickets sold out in just 15 minutes," Aqua added.
Jason let out a low whistle. "Damn. Well, you two play with Jin or watch something on the TV. I'll make dinner. Any requests?"
"Ooh!" Ruby raised her hand excitedly. "What about katsu chicken curry rice?"
Aqua shrugged and turned on the TV before switching to an anime called Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. "I don't have a preference. Besides, anything you make tastes good, Jason-san."
"Got it." Jason nodded and headed to the fridge. "By the way, you two can just call me Jay instead of Jason if you want to. It's easier to say."
"Okay, Jay-san!"
"…Okay, Jay-san."
Jason snorted at the big difference in the way they responded.
'I just know those two are gonna annoy the hell out of each other when they grow up.'
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Jason let his mind wander as he prepared ingredients on autopilot, which involved cutting meat and vegetables, mixing spices with herbs, and prepping everything else. It wasn't difficult when you had the experience of a chef. He was just glad his bulky grocery trip was worth it. The ring could conveniently preserve food since time doesn't pass inside it. Again, he really wanted to know how the ring worked.
Ruby's giggles and Jin's yips as they played, and the sound of Aqua's anime served as his background noise.
<Oh? You're approaching me? Instead of running away, you come right to me? Even though your grandfather, Joseph, told you the secret of The World, like an exam student scrambling to finish the problems on an exam until the last moments before the chime?>
<I can't beat the shit out of you without getting closer.>
<Oh ho! Then come as close as you like.>
Jason sweatdropped, perplexed by the sound coming from the TV. 'Should a four year old kid really be watching that?'
Shaking his head, he returned his focus to his cooking.
'I wonder when those drug dealers will pop up again. I haven't been actively looking for them for a while, so they're probably out and about again. They're probably also being more discreet, unlike last time. Shouldn't be too hard to find them, though.'
He tossed the chopped onion into the hot pot with olive oil, adding the carrots and potatoes later, and sauteed them all together. Jason poured half a liter of water and heated it up to a boil before he covered it. It should simmer for about 10 minutes.
'There's the issue of the Chaos King's energy being gone from this world. It may have made people commit horrible acts, but I could at least pinpoint where they were.' Jason frowned.
'Looks like I'm back to monitoring the police scanner and going on patrols. But I seriously doubt there'll be anything similar to the crimes that happened in Gotham. Compared to Gotham, Tokyo's crime rate is incredibly low, but sexual harassment *is* prevalent. Perverts groping women on trains being a prime example. It's such a big issue that trains even have women-only cars.'
Jason sliced four chicken breasts into four pieces, placing them on top of four plates of rice before adding the curry. A tantalizing fragrance filled the air, a harmonious blend of rich spices and savory notes. He set them all on the table along with the utensils.
"Aqua, Ruby. Dinner's ready!" Jason called out.
"Coming!" Ruby responded before getting off the couch where she was hugging Jin. Aqua eagerly followed.
Just as Jason put down the last cup of tea, he heard a set of footsteps coming closer and counted down. '3… 2… 1. She's here.'
The doorbell rang.
"It's Mama!"
"I'll get it," said Jason.
He opened the door with a smile, welcoming Ai. Though he had to look down quite a bit because of their height difference.
Ai apologetically smiled. "Good evening, Jason. Sorry I'm late."
"Don't worry, you made it just in time for dinner. Come on in."
Ai nodded and followed Jason inside after removing her shoes.
"Pardon for the intrusion. Ruby, Aqua, how ha — mmph"
The moment they reached the living room, Ai was smothered by a fluffy object.
Ruby grinned as she held Jin up to Ai's face. "Mama, meet Jin! He's Jay-san's new puppy! Isn't he cute?"
"Pwah!" Ai took a deep breath after freeing herself and finally got a good look. "Oh, Jason got a puppy? He's adorable!"
Jason sighed. "Come on, you three. You guys can play with Jin after we eat."
"Aww." Ai pouted. She looked at Jin with reluctance in her eyes, giving him one last pat on the head before heading to the dining table.
With nothing else to do, Jin laid down on the ground with his head on his front paws and closed his eyes.
"You're not gonna feed him?" Ruby asked with a tilt of her head.
Jason ruffled her hair. "I already fed him before you guys came over. Now, come on. The food's getting cold."
He sat down with Ruby beside him, while Ai and Aqua sat on the opposite side.
"Ruby and Aqua couldn't stop praising your food, so I've been waiting to get a taste!" Ai said, taking in the food's smell. She could feel her mouth immediately watering.
Ruby took a big whiff of the plate in front of her. "It smells so good!"
"Wait until you taste it," Jason said with a confident grin.
Clapping their hands together, they all spoke in unison, "Itadakimasu!"
Ruby and Aqua started eagerly eating spoonfuls of the curry rice.
"It's so good!"
After tucking her hair behind her ear, Ai calmly ate one spoonful. She closed her eyes, savoring the taste. A moan of pleasure escaped her.
"Mm~ It's delicious!"
Seeing them eat so enthusiastically, Jason chuckled. "Slow down. I made more than enough, so if you want seconds, just tell me."
Not even ten minutes later, Ai, Ruby, and Aqua all sat back in their chairs with satisfied faces. In the middle of eating, Aqua and Ruby even started competing with each other. Needless to say, it did not go well for their stomachs.
Meanwhile, Jason felt he could eat ten times more food. His body broke down whatever he consumed far more efficiently and effectively, so even eating a whole roasted pig wouldn't fill his stomach.
Ruby pat her stomach. "I ate so much, my stomach's close to bursting."
Aqua groaned in agreement.
"That wouldn't have happened if you controlled yourself." Jason's eyebrow rose. "Though I'm impressed. You and Aqua even went for thirds."
Ai giggled. "I don't blame them. I would've kept eating as well. Unfortunately, the dome concert is coming up and I need to be in my best physical shape. I've been working out a lot more and eating less than usual, but I can't tell if it's working."
"Don't worry. I can tell it's definitely working." Jason held her eyes and gave her a subtle smile.
Caught off guard, it took Ai a moment to realize what he meant, and she blushed up a storm at the unexpected compliment.
He stood up and piled the plates together. "I'll go wash the dishes."
"Okay…" the siblings groaned in response with their eyes closed, unaware of the exchange that had just happened.
"Ah, I'll help as well," Ai said after coming out of her daze, standing up and helping Jason pile the dishes together.
"Thanks, Ai," said Jason before they walked to the sink, plates in hand.
The sound of running water filled their area. He silently and slowly worked on washing the dishes, with Ai doing the same. Time passed by like this while he debated on telling her about Hikaru. Not everything, though. Just that one of his connections in the police force told him about someone with the same name and description being caught because her stalker confessed the identity of the person who leaked Ai's address.
"Are you okay, Jason?" Ai asked with worry on her face, interrupting his train of thought.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He waved away her concerns before going back to washing the dishes. "But there's something you should know."
"Hm? What is it?"
"It's about your stalker and the person who leaked your address."
He was watching her reaction using his peripheral vision, and the moment he said that, Ai froze.
"I have some connections in the police force, and they said he confessed the description of the one who leaked your address."
Ai's breath hitched.
"It took a while, but they caught the guy. Someone named Hikaru Kamiki. I just thought you should know since he's the father of — Ai?" Jason stopped washing the dishes and called out in worry.
Trembling, Ai cried, but he could tell it wasn't out of fear or worry, but relief.
Still, he should he ask. "Ai, did I upset you? I'm so—"
"N-no." Ai shook her head, sniffling, and tried to wipe the tears that just kept flowing. Her voice shook, and she spoke in whispers, "I'm just relieved. While in the hospital, I thought about how the stalker found me. I… I knew it was Hikaru who gave the stalker our address because I was the one who told him the day before. But I didn't know what to do. Whenever I remembered how close I was to dying and leaving my children behind, I'd break down in fear. What if I told the police, and he did something even worse, like putting Aqua and Ruby in danger? I-I couldn't do that knowing he was still out there somewhere."
'So that's why…' Jason finally understood. He had been curious about if she had connected the dots or not, and whether she would report it to the police. It turned out she had realized who leaked her address, but the fear and trauma induced by her near-death experience prevented her from doing anything. 'I should've tortured that bastard more.'
"It's alright now." Jason turned the faucet off and wiped his hands dry before putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. He wasn't that great with words of comfort.
Suddenly, Ai turned and hugged a surprised Jason, pressing her face into his chest.
Jason hesitated. His hands hovered over her shaking body for a moment before he returned the hug, one hand soothingly rubbing her back.
"Thank you, Jason," Ai whispered.
"Why are you thanking me? I didn't do anything to help."
"Dummy. I'm thanking you for the food."
Jason chuckled.
Ai smiled to herself. She didn't know what he did, but her gut was telling her the only reason Hikaru was caught was because of Jason.
Feeling quite comfortable and secure in his arms, Ai tightened her hug just a bit more.
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