Nino stared at the change on Aiba's tiny palm waiting to be spent as well as the spare paper money he had on him. They managed to earn enough money from singing all morning. They didn’t earn a lot this time, but it was enough to buy at least a week worth of bread. Luckily enough, a kind old hobo offered them his fire and a tiny shelter enough to fit their thin bodies, giving them enough time to raise some money to fend for their own.

“Stay here while I go and buy us food,” Nino whispered quietly so the others wouldn’t hear them. This time around, he doesn’t want himself and Aiba surrounded by the other hobos begging for their food.

+

He received a few glares and angry scowls as he sped through the crowd. He didn’t care about what the others said or how they gave him the look of disgust. He cared about feeding Aiba and making sure he lives throughout the day. However, with the little money he had, it wasn’t enough to what they needed. All he could afford was a bag of bread.

A long sigh came from his mouth as he stared absent-mindedly at the bag of bread. This might be the last time they’ll ever taste fresh bread.

"It's ok," a woman working behind the counter whispered. "It's on the house."

He looked up in surprise at the elderly woman. She was not like the rest, he could tell, and instead smiled sincerely as she offered the bag of bread. Guilt flowed through him, but the woman kept insisting. He had no choice but to oblige. Smiling back, he gladly accepted the bag of bread and thanked the woman. It was so rare to find nice people these days.

“Take care of yourself and your little brother,” the woman advised as he walked from the stall. “And come by again!”

Nino hummed his song on the way back to Aiba and didn’t care if people assumed he was crazy for skipping and smiling happily. Maybe this might be a sign, that good things will come later. Before entering the area, he hid the bag of bread underneath his shirt. It worked like a charm as he walked past the others; there’ll be a lot more for him, Aiba and the old hobo for the day.

“Where’s Masaki?” Nino asked the old man after he hid the bag of bread in their cardboard home.

The old man grunted as he accepted a half of a bread Nino was offering him. “He left without saying anything. I think he followed a man to the park.”

Nino grumbled angrily since this wasn’t the first time it happened, except this was a first for Aiba to follow a stranger. He told him many times not to leave while he was gone, especially not to talk to strangers.

“Why didn’t you stop him?”

“That man said he knew you,” the old man mumbled. “He said something like meeting an old friend…”

“Someone…” Nino’s eyes widened. Was it his father? Worry replaced his anger as he thought about what his father has schemed. Maybe he was going to take Aiba and use him as a threat to come back home. Had his father been tracking them down? This wasn’t a time for questions and paranoia, Nino berated himself. He had to find Aiba before anything else happened.

The only place he could think of was the park. Sure enough, he finally saw the brown haired boy standing in front of a tall man. Unfortunately, he couldn’t tell if the man was his father or not since the man’s back was facing him.

“Masaki!” He yelled as fear, anger, and worry over flowed through him. If something had happened to Aiba, Nino wouldn’t be able to forgive himself for it.

Once the boy heard him, he turned to face him with a smile on his face. Relief washed through Nino when he saw the boy was fine, however he couldn’t help but worry about the man standing so calmly in front of Aiba.

“Look at what he gave me!” Aiba exclaimed happily as he ran towards him with a brown teddy bear in his hand.

Nino narrowed his eyes. “Did he do or say anything mean to you? And give that toy back, you can’t have that.”

“But…” Aiba pouted. “…That nice man gave it to me. He said I could have it.”

“That doesn’t mean you could still accept it. He’s a stranger, and I’ve told you many times already… Masaki, give it back to the man.”

“No, because it mine now!” Aiba protested just as Nino was about to take the teddy bear away from him. “He said I can have it!” The boy repeated as he ran from him and hid behind the man’s tall legs.

“H-he’s being a meanie,” Aiba sniffled.

“Masaki, I don’t want to be mean but we don’t know that man. Now give it back and come here.”

“Ohno-san, Onii-chan’s being a meanie!”

Ohno-san? Nino’s eyes widened. Is it him? But it’s been so long and… No it wasn’t possible. The Ohno he knew was gone.

“Ah, Aiba-chan I’m sure he’s just being over protective,” the man chuckled. “You don’t have to give the toy back.”

Regardless of who the person was (he was relieved it wasn’t his father), Nino wasn’t going to give in. “Masaki, give–”

The next words were caught in his throat when the man turned around. Nino rubbed his eyes a thousand times until he felt like his eyes could no longer take it. They weren’t lying to him and neither was his mind. “Ohno?” His voice came out as a squeak, not caring at all how he sounded. He wanted to make sure that it was him for sure.

“Excuse me?” The person who looked like Ohno questioned him curiously. “ How do you know me?”

Nino didn’t answer and just stood there staring at him, his mouth wide open. The man even looked like him, and sounded like him: soft, sleepy, and sincere. No, it couldn’t be him, could it?

“I… I thought you were dead…” Nino muttered his eyes unable to leave the man’s face. The longer he stared, he noticed just how much younger the man looked.

The man cocked his head to the side. “Dead?”

“You drowned when you were trying to save me,” Nino explained. “I know it. I saw it with my own eyes.”

“I’m sorry,” the man shook his head. “You must be mistaking me for someone else.”

“No… I know who you are. You’re Ohno Satoshi, you worked as a butler at my house, and you were always…” Beside me, was what he wanted to say but he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

“A butler? No I’m an art student and I haven’t worked for you before. But I do know you, Nino-kun.”

“What?”

“Visit me here,” the man said as he handed him a note. “I’ll be there during the morning and late afternoon.”

He grabbed the note without thinking about trust. The man left soon after, leaving Nino with that familiar smile the Ohno he knew would always give him.

+++

He didn’t know where he was going, but his feet knew exactly where to go. For the past week, he dreamt of that same boy named Nino. In his dreams, he watched the boy grow up as if he’s been with him since the boy was born. Some nights, he would have random dreams of Nino and a little boy who followed the older boy around. It was as if his dreams are telling him a message, to find those boys and save them from something. But why was he having these dreams, and who were those boys? He had tons of questions, but for now his goal was to search for them. The dream he had last night been of the boys residing in an alleyway. Without realizing it, he finally found the place in his dream.

“Is there boy and a younger boy living here?” He asked the first person he saw.

The hobo nodded. “Right over there.” He pointed towards an old man, sitting quietly, his eyes darting around as if searching for suspicious behavior.

He approached the old man and cleared his throat. “Where’s Nino-kun and the little boy?”

“Ah, Aiba-chan is here. He’s waiting for Nino-kun to come back. Aiba-chan,” the man grunted as he reached for something behind him. “Someone’s here to see you.”

“Is it Onii-chan?!” A high-pitched voice came from the box. “Onii— You’re not Onii-chan.” The boy frowned as soon as they met each other’s eyes.

“That’s right, I’m not,” he smiled. “But I know him. Let’s say… I’m an old friend of his.”

“Really? How am I going to believe that? He said he never had friends.”

“Then, how would I know he lives here with you?”

“Oh, well…” the boy’s eyes darted around. “I guess I can believe you…”

“Good,” he grinned and surprised the boy with a teddy bear. “I’m Ohno Satoshi. Will you come with me to the park?”

The boy grinned. “Of course, Ohno-san!”

+

He was finally able to meet the boy in his dreams, except he looked different. The Nino in his dreams always smiled after singing a happy tune, or when he played pretend with him. The Nino he met that day didn’t have that mirth, or that wonderful smile on his face. If only there was a way to get it back, he wondered…

That same night, he dreamt again, except this time it wasn’t about Nino and that little boy. Instead he dreamt of a man, an older man who had his own face.

“It’s time I told you,” the older version of him spoke. “About why you’re having these dreams.”

TBC