"Nervous?" Dad asked me but I just shook my head."I'm feeling confident instead" I told him. "I'm your son after all"Dad chuckled. "That's right. You're my son and I'm proud of you"Mum cleared her throat. "You mean he's our son and we're proud of him"I smiled, feeling warm inside. "I'm proud of you guys too"I noticed Mr Igarashi watching us and our eyes met but there was no expression. His face was simply blank. It made me feel uneasy but I shook it off. There's no way I would let him affect me. Not him and not Ryu.The Fuujis received three awards and so did the Takahashis. Yua's parents received two. Haruto's received three and Toshiro's received three too. The Igarashis received five and that had me wondering how many my parents got. I hoped it far surpassed that of the Igarashis.Soon enough, my parents were called out. Mum held hands with me and we walked to the stage together. Looking down at all the people present, my heart began to race. I had no idea the place was so pa
They were pictures of my parents before they owned an empire.I was pretty shocked when I saw the pictures too. I mean, mum who loves to wear designer clothing now, used to wear a cheap shirt then and ordinary worn out denim shorts. Dad was a bit better for he was born from an average family.As I spoke, I noticed that something was wrong. The audience weren't as cheerful as they were before. Many of them were still shocked while some wore disgusted expressions. I was confused. Were the pictures of my parents that frightening? I turned to find my parents faces as white as blank papers. Like they had seen a ghost.Holy shit.My heart began to tremble in fear. If my parents were looking like that then I had totally messed up. I turned to the screen behind me and what I saw made me freeze. My heart pounded violently and my blood ran cold, chilling me to the bone. The mic I was holding fell to floor as I stared at my biggest secret being exposed to the world.Instead of the slideshow, i
"Are you crazy? How many times do I have to tell you that Ryu is the one behind this? He's the one who planned the whole thing!" Toshiro shouted.I shook my head. I didn't believe it. I would never believe it. "That's not true" I argued. "I know Ryu. I believe in our love. I've been with him. I know the kind of person he is. He would never do that to me. There has to be some sort of explanation Toshiro. What you're saying cannot possibly be true""Then who would do it?" Yua asked. "According to you, you have never been with another person ever since you two got together. So who could it be?""You just shut up!" I snapped at her. Who the fuck did she think she is? She had no right to interfere or speak on the matter. I had stopped being friends with her a long time ago. "What are you still doing here? Leave this place! I don't want you in here!"She was taken aback by my sudden outburst but I didn't care. I wanted her gone. "B-But Aito, I'm just trying to help yo-""I don't need your f
"No it's not," he said, walking all the way to my side. He sat beside me and held my hands. "Nothing is ruined Aito. Do not forget who you are. You're Yamamoto Aito. You, your family, you guys are unstoppable. A force to be reckoned with. Do you think that those videos can cause your downfall? Do you think everything is over? Impossible. You guys will find a way to overcome this. This is not the end, Aito. I told you that your mum is already working on it""But the damage has already been done Toshiro," I said, shaking my head. "Even if we manage to take control of the situation, the world has already seen me like that. Do you have any idea what that means? How can I show my face in public? How can I face people in school? Who will give me the respect I had before?""And who will not?" he asked. "Haruto and I are still alive. Who will dare to disrespect you? Who will dare cause you harm? Who will dare talk trash in front of you?""If they don't do it in front of me then they will sur
It was nightime. I was awake, watching and listening to every single word they were saying but they didn't know. My eyes were slightly parted, not enough for them to notice. I wanted to know everything that was going on. I wanted to hear it from my parent's mouths."What did you say to him?" Mum asked Toshiro. She had his collar tightly held in her hands, staring him straight in the eyes. "What did you say to my boy that made him panic again? This is the second attack, Toshiro. I swear to you, if anything happens to my Aito, I will-""You will what?" Dad asked. He was leaning against the wall, his arms folded against his chest. He looked detached. Like he didn't care about anything at all. "What will you do? Your son brought this upon himself"Ouch."Oh so now he's my son? Only mine? Not yours?" she asked, finally releasing a relieved Toshiro to face my father head-on. She walked towards him and pointed a finger at his face. "Let me remind you that he was created from your sperm. He i
"Mum, what's going on? Who is she?" I asked, watching the lady in a black suit carefully. She had short brown hair and steel dark eyes. She looked super strict and had this authoritative aura around her that commanded respect. I wouldn't want to mess with someone like her."This," mum said, gesturing at the woman, "is Mrs Choi. She's our lawyer and she's going to help us get through this situation we're currently in. There's no need to worry. Everything will be taken care of honey"Mrs Choi cleared her throat, gaining my attention. "Aito, I will need your full cooperation on this. Once you agree and do everything I've asked you to do, your life will be completely back to normal. As if that event never took place. You would be free to leave this room and go back to your usual life. There would just be very few changes"The word 'changes' didn't sit well with me. I felt apprehensive. Like something drastic was going to happen in my life. Something I wouldn't want. I turned to look at al
Fuck. Maybe I shouldn't have snapped like that but I just can't take anyone insulting Ryu. I realised that what I said was out of line so I grumbled out a tiny "Sorry dad" and then turned my face away. Dad let out a small sound of acknowledgement and then went back to his position.Mrs Choi cleared her throat. "Aito, if what you said is true, has it occurred to you that Ryu might be the one in the video?"I frowned. "What are you trying to say?""What I mean is, if Ryu is really the only man you've been with,-"He is" I insisted right away. I would never cheat on him. They should not have a single doubt about that.Mrs Choi hesitated a bit but continued. "Then it's very likely that the blurred person in that video is Ryu. He must have recorded your private moments together and used them against you"I ignored the sudden pounding of my heart.What? Was this woman joking with me?"Are you serious?" I asked. "That is completely impossible. Why would Ryu do that? He loves me and he cheris
I scrambled off the bed in a hurry but my foot got caught in the sheets which made me slip and I fell, knocking my elbow against the hard cold tiles."Fuck" I hissed in pain as I picked myself up, rubbing my elbow to ease the sting. I glanced at the figure to find that the person hadn't moved. I started to feel scared. Could I be hallucinating again? Was it really Ryu? For the Ryu I know would not watch me fall and do nothing."Ryu, is that really you?" I asked as I moved closer. The lights were off and there was only a crescent moon out tonight so the room was dark save for the tiny wisps of silvery light coming from the window. It wasn't enough to identify the person but I had a strong hunch that it was Ryu. "If it's you, please say something or let me see you""Tch. Even after all this you still love him so much" I heard the familiar voice say. I felt a twinge of disappointment in my heart. No. How could it be Haruto? The figure stepped out of the shadows and into the small amount
Mr Igarashi was enraged. "What do you think you're doing, Ryuho?". He tried to remove his hand but Ryu just held it tighter."You can't kill him father" he answered and the hope that had been been extinguished in me was ignited once again.Tears of joy ran down my face. Ryu stopped him. Ryu stopped him!Does this mean Ryu couldn't bear to see me dead? Does this mean he had even a sliver of feelings for me? Does this mean we still had a chance?"Ryuho, what are you doing?" Tobio asked as he stepped up. "Let go""Oh you shut up" Kaito snapped, pulling Tobio back. Tobio tried to break free but Yasu grabbed him by the collar and held him in place."Stay here like a good boy" he said, patting Tobio's hair. "Do not interfere between father and son""Let go of me this instant!" Mr Igarashi commanded, trying but failing to free himself. "What the fuck has gotten into you? Don't tell me his little speech has softened you. Or have you developed some kind of feelings for him?"My hope burned br
At my question, Mr Igarashi finally released me then stood straight. He stayed there until he slowed his breathing and schooled his expression. "What do I want from you?" he asked then laughed. He raised a hand then patted my hair. "Ah, I want so many things from you Aito. I want to see you in pain. On one hand, I just want to fucking kill you right now and on the other, I want to torture you till you beg for death. I want you to suffer like my daughter suffered""No! Aito has suffered enough!" Yua wailed. "D-Don't hurt him anymore! I-It wasn't him. It was us. It was Sakura and I that hurt her the most out of jealousy. Aito even tried to protect her. He-""Silence!" Mr Igarashi snapped and she immediately shut her mouth. "You think he's the only one I'm going to punish? I'm coming for you sweetheart. Don't worry" Yua visibly paled as she shrunk back, as if her presence would be hidden from him by doing that."You know, that friend of yours, Sakura, is very lucky" he said, meeting my
To say I was shocked would be an understatement. That sudden information slapped the life out of me. I was frozen still and I couldn't even breath. The entire room was deathly still and felt like air didn't even exist. My ears were muffled by the erratic beating of my own heart. It was so fast and so painful that I wanted to pass out.Mr Igarashi... is... Aera's father?..."So you see," Mr Igarashi continued, like he hadn't just dropped a bomb. I don't know if it was due to my pounding heartbeat that flooded my ears but his voice sounded far away and a bit distorted. "It isn't just Ryuho who wants revenge for what you did to his parents. I also want revenge for what you did to my daughter!""H-How can it be?" Toshiro stuttered. The fear in his voice was evident. "H-How can you be her father?"Mr Igarashi chuckled lowly. "Due to issues you don't need to know, we got divorced and although I loved my daughter immensely, I let my ex-wife get the custody. They both left me and settled do
"Stop using him!" my dad gritted. "We all know that he's not really your son!"Wait what? I looked at Ryu but he was glaring at my parents. I glanced at everyone just to see that only Yua and I were shocked.Tobio, Yasu, Kaito, Toshiro, my mum and dad all seemed normal. Like they knew about it already. Wait, were Yasu and Kaito in on this too? Were they pretending to be on my side?Mr Igarashi looked amused. "Oh really? And how do you know that I'm not his real father?""Because I knew his real father. He looks nothing like you but looks exactly like Mr Gotou!""Then why is he calling me his father? Where is Mr Gotou?""He-" Dad began but stopped abruptly then went silent. He lowered his head and refused to speak."He what, Dad?" I asked. I wanted to know. I was tired of all the secrets. "I want to know everything. What are you all hiding?""Will you tell him or should I?" Mr Igarashi asked.Dad glared at him but still refused to speak. If Mr Igarashi wasn't Ryu's real father, it on
My eyes widened in shock. He'll be mine? Ryu will be mine? Could he really do that? I gazed at him questionably for I couldn't believe it. Still, it didn't stop my heart from fluttering. "A-Are you serious?""Aito!" Toshiro snapped. "Are you fucking serious right now? He's lying to you. Don't fall for it!""I give you my word Aito" Mr Igarashi said. "I never go back on my word""What do you want?" I asked. I could already see the future. To be with Ryu..."Aito!" Dad roared. "Aito stop this!""Aito, listen to your dad" Yua said. "Don't betray us like this""What do you want?" I asked again, pretending like I couldn't hear them.For the first time, Mr Igarashi gave a genuine smile. "All I need is the passcode to their study and I want you to open the laptops inside. I'm sure you know the passcodes too"I nodded. "I know everything"My dad, Toshiro and Yua started to shout, trying to convince me not to agree. Not to listen.But I wanted Ryu. I deeply love Ryu. After everything, how co
Those words were like sharp knives, slashing open my heart. Tears poured down my cheeks like a waterfall. I felt utterly humiliated and worthless. "Ryu...""Don't say my name" he snapped. "You don't deserve to say it""You fucker!" Toshiro shouted, twisting and turning on the floor, trying to untie himself. "What kind of person are you! Leave Aito alone and come fight me. I'll beat the shit out of you! I'll make you pay for this!""Shut up!" Tobio snapped, sending a kick to Toshiro's gut. "Shut the fuck up!"Toshiro coughed, scrunching his face in pain. Still, he didn't give up. "Cowards! You two are fucking cowards!"I felt so disappointed and ashamed of myself. Toshiro had told me so many times. Even Dr Desai too. But I refused to listen to any of them. I defended Ryu fiercely. In my heart, I believed I was loved by him. I believed I was his priority.And now... I chuckled. My pathetic situation was even funny to me now. I started to laugh, drawing their attention but I didn't care.
I was stunned."W-What..."Ryu retracted his hands and took a step back. "When have I ever told you that I love you Aito?" he asked. "Think about it carefully. Have I ever told you those three words?"I raked my brain as hard and as fast as I could, thinking back on all the moments we've shared, all the times we've been together, and I couldn't come up with a single time he said the words 'I love you'. I couldn't remember Ryu telling me that he loves me. Not even once. Instead, I could hear myself repeating them over and over and over again to Ryu.Knowing that not once has he ever said those words to me made me weak. I felt like there was no energy in my body. As if my very life was seeping away.Then what about the intimate moments we shared? The kisses, the hugs, the looks of affection, the possessiveness, how he protected me, the concern he showed me, what were all that? What have we been doing?"I haven't right?" he asked with a smile. But the smile wasn't a smile. It was just a
The picture frame crashed to the ground, emitting a loud crack sound, indicating that the glass had broken. I watched as the cold look in Ryu's eyes changed to that of fear and concern then he rushed into the room. At first I thought he was going to hug me or something but to my great disappointment, Ryu knelt on the wooden floor and gingerly picked up the broken frame. He held it in his hands as if it was some delicate fragile object.His head was bent low so I couldn't see his expression. He remained in that position for a few seconds, staring at the picture behind the shattered glass and at that moment, so many thoughts rushed into my head.Why did Ryu have Aera's picture? What was the connection? What did this all mean?Those questions flew out of my head though for Ryu suddenly raised his head and the way he looked at me made me stumble backwards in shock and fear."R-Ryu..." I whispered, not believing that he could actually stare at me like that.He was glaring at me like I was
I pushed that question to the very back of my mind as I was about to enter Ryu's room but stoped when I saw a stream of light coming from his mum's room. The door was slightly ajar and I began to panic. Does this mean his mum was home??? Fuck! I was so used to never seeing that door open that I didn't even remember that he doesn't live alone. No wonder he left the front door open. How could he lock his mum inside? I held my breath and waited for a while but I didn't hear any sounds. Huh, maybe she was asleep. I quietly walked to the door and peeped through the small space. You can't blame me though. I was very curious for I had never seen his mum before. I visit Ryu a lot but not once did his mother and I ever meet. My eyes swept through the small room and I was confused to find no one there. Oh well. Maybe she was in the bathroom. I was about to leave when my eye caught something strange. There were stuff like papers littered all over the bed. Oh wait, they weren't papers. Maybe p