Accidentally become a father-Chapter 92: Way of Life

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"...is she..."

I knew what he meant.

I’d noticed him trying to ask a few times already.

But he hadn’t found the right moment.

"This is Yuna."

That was enough.

I didn’t want to explain it any further than that.

Even if leaving it there would just raise more questions.

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Ren kept staring.

"...your daughter?"

The question finally came out.

What was I supposed to say?

"No"?... If I said that, would Yuna be hurt?

And if I said "yes"? Would Yuna just accept it? Because I wasn’t her real parent.

Suddenly, a voice spoke up.

"I’m Papa’s daughter."

Yuna answered.

Quickly.

Without looking our way.

Her hand was still resting on her book.

Ren fell silent.

His gaze shifted back and forth between me and Yuna.

"...no way."

I took a shallow breath.

"I’m just her guardian."

"...oh..."

The atmosphere shifted a little.

Not exactly tense.

But not relaxed, either.

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Ren turned to Yuna.

"What grade are you in now, Yuna?"

"Fourth grade."

"What are you studying?"

"Doing homework."

Yuna didn’t look up.

Still focused on her book.

Ren gave a small nod.

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I pushed a mug of coffee toward him.

"Here, drink."

"Yeah, thanks."

Ren took the mug.

Poured a little bit into the saucer.

Then took a sip.

...

Then—

Ren spoke up again.

"Itsuki..."

"Hm."

"About what we were talking about earlier..."

I didn’t immediately look at him.

"...isn’t a bright future important?"

I stayed silent.

Ren continued.

"Even if it’s hard at first..."

"...living like a robot..."

He gave a small laugh. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"but later on, when you’re old..."

"...you can live comfortably."

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I picked up my mug.

I took a sip straight from it.

A balanced taste.

I set the mug back down.

"Logically speaking..."

I paused for a second.

"...that’s true."

Ren looked at me.

"But in reality, it isn’t."

Silence.

"Think about it."

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"You work."

"...you earn money."

I stopped.

"Then you get sick."

Ren frowned slightly.

"Because you work too much."

"The money goes to your medical bills."

I stared at my coffee.

"And it’s gone."

A brief silence.

"Or..."

"you get stressed."

"So you go on a vacation."

"One day."

"Two days."

I stopped.

"The vacation ends."

I looked at Ren.

"And the money is gone too."

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Ren stayed silent.

I didn’t wait for a reply.

"To me..."

I picked up my mug again.

"...what matters is stability."

Taking a small sip.

"Just having enough."

I put the mug down.

"As for the future..."

I turned my head slightly toward Yuna.

"...I’ll find another way."

I raised my hand.

Stroked Yuna’s hair.

Gently.

"A more comfortable one."

Ren gave a faint smile.

"Hahaha..."

"Still the same as ever."

"You’ve always been like this."

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My hand returned to the table.

"The point is..."

I added.

"...not to sacrifice too much."

"...to the point of losing control over yourself."

The dryer was still whirring in the background.

Yuna scribbled something down.

Ren stared at the table.

Then let out a quiet sigh.

"...I guess you have a point."

A few seconds passed.

I stood up.

"Ren."

He looked up.

"I’ll make some noodles."

Ren smiled.

"Sounds good."

"Papa..."

Yuna looked up.

"I want noodles too."

I nodded.

"Yeah."

Ren turned back to me.

"Itsuki..."

"Hm."

"Do you have a cigarette?"

"Mine got wet."

I grabbed my pack of cigarettes from the table.

Tossed it to Ren.

He caught it.

"Thanks."

I headed straight into the kitchen.

"Papa, I’ll help."

Yuna followed after me.

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