Title:Playmates (Part 6)
Pairings:AibaxNino, ShoxAiba, OhnoxAiba, OhnoxJun, JunxNino
Genre/Rating:Fluff, Family, Romance, AU / G
Word Count:1699
Disclaimer:I own nothing but the plot
Summary:Aiba and Ohno decided to make Jun and Kazu playmates, and the men get to see how their children react to each other.

“How are you hanging in there?” came Ohno’s voice through the phone as Aiba tried to change Kazu’s diaper. He’s been at it for more than an hour now, since Ohno called, and he feared that there was never going to be an end to this. Whenever he tried to wipe Kazu’s buttocks and private area from feces, his son kept wriggling around and kicking his hands away.

“I don’t get it,” Aiba mumbled, “he behaved perfectly before till now.”

A booming laughter came from the end of the line, followed by soft babbles in the background. He wondered, hearing Jun’s baby talk, how Ohno put up with his son for a year; he feared that he may not even last a month. “Kazu-chan must be a rebel then!”

Ohno’s teasing words sent anxious waves throughout his body, and he wished that he hadn’t said that. But then again, Kazu was someone else’s son, and he must have gotten it from his biological mother or father. He sighed knowing that Kazu wasn’t his real son. One day, when he tells Kazu that he was adopted, he’ll hate him for sure and start looking for his real parents, and he’ll abandon him, and--

Kazu’s soft cooing brought him back from his train of thoughts. He didn’t even notice when he’d put the diaper on, but he was glad that the nightmare was over. Still, Kazu continued to coo as he stared at his face without a care in the world. He let out a smile as he watched Kazu’s slightly open his mouth, revealing toothless gums as Aiba placed a finger on his cheek. He wondered if his parents adored him in the same way he did to Kazu.

“Hello?”

He’d forgotten about Ohno.

“I’m here,” he announced, afraid that he’d worry his new friend. It’s only been at least three days since he’s met Ohno at the park, and already they’ve gotten so familiar with each other -- aside the fact that they were both single fathers. He’s just glad that he wasn’t alone in this, and that there’s someone else he can ask for help. “How’s Jun-chan?” He asked in return since all they talked about was Kazu.

“He’s… bored,” the man lightly chuckled, but Aiba was able to sense sadness in his voice. “If you don’t mind me asking, Aiba-san, can Kazu and my son be playmates?”

“Sure,” Aiba quickly agreed, “it would be great for Kazu and Jun-chan.”

Ohno sighed in relief. “Thanks.”

“No problem. Oh, then in that case, shall we go to the park today?” Today would be a great start for the two children to get along together, he thought, even if they didn’t know how to talk yet. Perhaps, they can understand each other through their babbling… He’d have to see it for himself later.

After he ended the call, he immediately dressed Kazu up and himself for the park. He heard from the radio that it was going to be hot today, so light clothing was a must. Today, he picked a light blue shirt and a dark blue overall for Kazu, along with a small white hat that he just had to pair with his clothes. Once Kazu was set, he dressed in a light red tank with white stripes running across it, and a khaki shorts. As for shoes, he decided to use sandals that matched along with Kazu’s tiny ones.

“Shall we go?” He asked Kazu although he knew that his son had no idea what he was saying.

Once Kazu was strapped securely in the stroller, he pushed for the door. One of the benefits of living in the first floor was that he didn’t have to carry Kazu and the stroller, and walk that stairs along with the extra weight. But he could use a good exercise, he thought to himself as they passed by a full body mirror near the entrance.

He decided to walk to the park since it was a nice day out. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping an unknown melody, and the summer air felt nice and crisp against his skin. There was never a day he felt this relaxed, or seen the neighborhood for that matter. Every time he went to work, he either hitched a ride with a familiar coworker, took a bus, or drove there himself, but he never walked. This was different, and he liked it that way.

They arrived to the park within ten minutes, the scenery still unchanged by then. He immediately spotted his new friend sat under the tree and over a white blanket, playing with Jun on his lap.

“Hey, Oh-chan!” He decided to call him that way because it felt more comfortable. “Did you wait long?”

“Not really… I think. I must have lost track of time with this little runt messing with me all the time.”

Aiba chuckled, remembering how being cautious of Kazu consumed most of his self-relaxation time. “I know how you feel.”

After he’d picked Kazu up from the stroller and placed it aside the tree trunk, he took a seat besides Ohno and placed Kazu on the blanket where Ohno had placed Jun. They sat without saying anything as they watched the babies in amazement. Jun, with his tiny hands, kept grasping the blanket and was slowly turning his head every time Kazu made lightly cooed and ah-ed. The oldest continued to do so until Kazu went on with his babbling, and tried to move to that sound. Taking it as a sign, Aiba picked Kazu up and sat him on his lap as Ohno did the same.

Jun’s eyes danced with curiosity as he looked at Kazu and babbled something the men couldn’t understand. This was the moment of truth, to see if babies do understand each other, but all that came out of Kazu’s mouth was soft cooing as his eyes lingered on Jun’s face.

“Eh,” he sighed in disappointment, “I thought they would be able to understand each other.”

Ohno laughed loudly when Aiba finished talking, startling both Jun and Kazu. “I thought the same thing, but Jun refuses to mingle with other children.”

“Is that so?” Aiba asked curiously.

“But it seems like he’s taken a liking to Kazu-chan,” Ohno pointed out, “he’s still staring at him.”

Aiba laughed when he saw this. “You’re right! I think they would make very great playmates and friends, don’t you think so Kazu?” He gently and carefully shook his legs up and down as hugged his son lightly to gain his attention, but the attention was never given.

“So, have you told your family yet?” Ohno asked suddenly and the happy smile on Aiba’s face disappeared.

He told Ohno about how he hasn’t told his parents yet, and that it’s already a week since he adopted Kazu. Although the latter encouraged him to tell his parents, Aiba never got the nerves to.

“Not yet,” he mumbled shamefully, “I don’t even know how to tell them. They’re already mad at me for not having a girlfriend since I hit puberty. If I were to tell them that I adopted Kazu and hadn’t even married or discussed this with my parents, they’d probably disown me.”

“I don’t think so,” Ohno hummed, “I think they’d be happy.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Well, firstly, they have another grandson: all the more, the better.” Aiba also told him about his nephew over the phone, and how he doted on him as much as he doted on Kazu. “Also, it was a big step for you, and they would be proud to have such a brave son.”

“You really think so?” Aiba asked, his hopes rising up a little from Ohno’s words.

“I know so.”

“Thanks, Oh-chan. I’m glad that we came here today.”

“Don’t sweat it,” the man grinned, “now let’s see if they can communicate through their eyes.”

“Or telepathically!” Aiba added in, his doubts completely forgotten.

For the rest of the afternoon, they watched the children to see if, and how, they communicated. However, the children began to grow bored of seeing each other as they began looking at something else, such as the people passing by that cooed, ah-ed, and asked the fathers about their son. Well, most of the people that were parents themselves, and they were mostly women. By the end of their meeting, Aiba had a great time getting to know Ohno and Jun more.

Once he and Ohno had said their goodbyes, Aiba decided that today was going to be the day he would tell his parents about Kazu. No more running away, making excuses not to see them, or secretly meeting up with his sister-in-law to play or take care of Kazu with him. He had hopes for Ohno’s words and wished that what the man said was true.

It took an hour drive to arrive at his old home and during that time, Kazu fell asleep. He wanted to watch Kazu sleep since it calmed him, but he couldn’t as he was too focused on paying attention to the road. Soon, he reached the old neighborhood that he used to play so much in as a kid. There were happy memories and some painful ones that came back as he pulled back up into his parent’s driveway. He thought that the only times he’d visit was when his parents wanted to see him, or through the holidays, but not to see them and tell them he adopted a child. Sighing heavily, he got out of his car and took Kazu from the safety seat. He covered Kazu’s ears when he locked the car and was relieved to see that he was still asleep.

Aiba sighed heavily as he hesitantly walked to the front and wanted to run away as soon as he stepped on the welcome mat. But he was here now, and it would have to come out eventually. Taking a deep breath, he pushed the door bell with a shaking finger. He released the nervous air from his lungs when the door opened and he saw his mother’s face go from surprised to deeply shocked. Aiba gulped.

TBC