prompt 14

[aibamods]

 

Title: Shiro the hero

Pairing: Aiba/Nino, background Sakumoto.

Rating: T

Word Count: 3841 words

Summary: Aiba Sachiko and Ninomiya Yurika have a lot in common. They’re the same age, they love animals more than anything, and they have very cute pets. They’re also both raised by single dads, who have no idea that two little girls becoming best friends and one pet that needs grooming will change their lives.

Notes: Written for the prompt “Dads fic (NOT to be confused with ‘Daddy’ fic LOL). Two single dads meet and get together. The dads could be divorced, widowers, an uncle/relative caring for the child of a family member who passed away, etc. Something cute and fluffy about these two dads making a connection and the impact that might have on them and their kids.” I’ve been wanting to write a dads fic for a while, so I felt like this prompt was for me XD How you’ll like it!

Sakurai Sho was really tired. Today had been the busiest since they had opened the shop, one month ago. The “Wan LOVE” was – as the lame pun suggested it a little – specialized in dogs’ and other pets’ beauty care. Sho was mainly in charge of the administrative part, and the trimming and other treatments were made by his boyfriend, Matsumoto Jun, and his best friend since childhood, Aiba Masaki. The two professional caretakers had taken a pet care training together and became fast friends, and that was how Sho – who was majoring in economics – had met the love of his life. The “Wan LOVE” was the result of a project that had started as a joke and became a reality when they were able to find the perfect place, and with a little financial help from their families. The shop was now quite popular, and some days were quite full, like that one. Sho was waiting for Jun to finish tidying up the place with Aiba, dreaming about the warm bath he would take at home, when a woman entered the shop. She was really beautiful, but quite scary because she looked really angry.

“Hello. I’m sorry but we’re already closed tonight.” Sho politely greeted her, even though he knew she wasn’t here as a client and had no pets with her.

“I’m not here for your services. I need to talk to Masaki-san.”

At that moment, the man in question came into the reception room with his colleague and friend.

“Sho-chan, sorry to make you wai… Mika-chan? It’s been a while.”

“Three months, to be exact, Masaki-san. Three months to realize that I was pregnant with your child.”

“But… but I thought you were taking the pill?”

“I was. I don’t know what happened, but I absolutely don’t want this. It’s too late to abort it, and if you don’t want it, I’m going to give it for adoption.”

Aiba had a painful look on his face. He had a lot of short relationship with both men and women, and the one with Mika had lasted a couple of months. They had separated because there was only the physical side between them, and Aiba had never expected to see her again in these circumstances. However, even though it broke his heart to see this woman so violently refuse her unborn child, he respected her choice.

“Thank you for telling me about it. I’m really sorry for making you go through something you’re not ready for, and I will take the whole responsibility of the child once they’re born. I can even help you with the remaining months of pregnancy, if you need anything.”

Mika nodded, giving him an envelope.

“This is the echography. I’m supposed to give birth in the beginning of January, so I’ll see you around that time. If anything goes wrong, I will contact you. Goodbye.”

With that, she left as fast as she had come. Aiba was trying to realize what was happening, when he noticed that his friends were looking at him with shock. Sho was the first one to react.

“Aiba-chan. I think you need a drink.”

-

Aiba Sachiko was born on the 24th of December, making her the best birthday present her dad ever had. Mika still hadn’t changed her mind at that time, refusing to even see her child after she gave birth, and disappearing after she was discharged from the hospital.

The adorable baby was welcomed by her dad’s family with open arms though. She had a very loving father, two protective uncles, and caring grandparents, who didn’t live too far from their son and were always happy to help or babysit their granddaughter.

Sachiko grew up to be a lovely little girl with a smile as bright as her father’s. She was also passionate about animals, coming to Wan LOVE during her free time. She started coming there even more when she started middle school, because it was one street away from the shop.

-

“Sacchan, hello! How was school today?”

“Hello Sho-chan! It was good, and I have almost no homework. Are there a lot of clients today?”

The 12-year-old went behind Sho’s counter where she had her own desk and chair. She continued discussing with Sho, before going into the animal care area to say hi to her dad and Jun and coming back to the reception area to do her homework. She was almost done when she heard a familiar voice greeting her uncle. She got up and ran to the counter.

“Yurika? And that must me Shiro!”

Yurika was one of the new friends she had made after entering middle school. They had bonded over their common love for animals, and Sachiko had told her friend about her father’s shop when the latter had shown her pictures of her adorable shiba inu Shiro, who was really big and had pure white fur. Yurika had promised she would come when her dog needed grooming, and the fact that she held her promise made Sachiko really happy.

“Yes! And he needs some good trimming. I told daddy about this place, and he took a break from his shop to bring us here.”

Sachiko knew that her friend’s father had a gaming and electronics shop, and that he also played the guitar really well – according to his daughter. The man looked at her and smiled.

“Yuri talks a lot about you at home. You should come over some time.” He then talked to Sho “I’ve actually called to take an appointment yesterday. I’m Ninomiya.”

Sho looked at his computer and nodded.

“Ninomiya Kazunari-san. Please wait a moment.”

He went to the other part of the shop, coming back with Aiba.

“Hello Ninomiya-san, Yurika-chan. My name is Aiba Masaki, and I’ll be taking care of Shiro today!”

“Nice to finally meet you, Aiba-san. It seems that our daughters really get along with each other.”

They looked at the two girls, who were petting Shiro and talking enthusiastically.

“I’m glad Sacchi has found a good friend. She usually gets along more with animals than human beings!”

“Same for Yuri. Honestly, it’s kind of nice to hear her talk about someone else than Shiro at home. Anyway, I really have to go now, but it would be nice to hang out with the kids one of these days!”

They exchanged business cards before Ninomiya payed and left. The two girls went with Aiba to the grooming area, and Sachiko was very excited to share her knowledge about all the tools and the things that were used to make the pets feel good. She ended up going with her friend to the park after the dog was all trimmed and cleaned.

Jun and Sho were at the reception area when Aiba came there after he tidied up the trimming room.

“I think Sacchi’s already ready to take over the shop. She was giving such a detailed explanation to Yurika-chan when I was taking care of Shiro.”

“Our Sacchan’s growing up so fast.” Sho sighed.

“And she’s more and more like her dad! Her enthusiasm with animals reminds me of how you were when we were in training together.”

Aiba smiled, thinking of how far they had come since that time. He was actually really happy to share a passion with his daughter, who took care of their own pets – a dog and a cat – at home and gave them a lot of love.

When he came back home in the evening, Aiba was greeted by the tender sight of his daughter playing with Daikichi and Kaya. The former was a black-furred toy poodle, and the latter was a marbled gray cat. They had both been rescued from bad living conditions by an association for animal protection, and both father and daughter had had an instant connection with them when they had decided to adopt pets. Sachiko greeted her father, and they had dinner together.

Around the same time, Ninomiya was closing up his shop before going to the second floor of the same building, where he lived with Yurika, who was full of energy that evening.

“…. and then he carried Shiro to the bath, and he used a really cool technique to wash his head. And Shiro was so well-behaved, not splashing us or anything. Such a good boy. And now he’s all beautiful and trimmed. Aiba-san is so cool. Sachiko is learning stuff from him, and she wants to work in the shop when she grows up. I think I want to do the same thing. Or become a veterinarian. And take care of sick animals. But Aiba-san also takes care of animals. And animals like him. Shiro warmed up to him so fast!”

She has a new hero, Ninomiya thought, smiling. Well, Aiba-san seems to be a very warm person.

Yurika was indeed fascinated by people who had a good feeling with animals, and she continued mentioning the Aibas a lot in the following weeks, sometimes bringing Sachiko over or going with her to the park with their pets.

-

When Aiba entered the Ninomi-ya – he smiled at the pun – there seemed to be no one there.

“Welcome to the… Aiba-san. How are you?”

Ninomiya got up to greet him, putting down a portable game console on the counter – he had probably been playing before he had entered.

“I’m good and you?”

“I’m ok. Not a lot of people coming to the shop today.”

“It’s the same for me. We don’t have a lot of appointments today, so I took an early lunch break. I actually need a new charging cable for my phone, cause the one I have is in a bad condition. I though I might find what I’m searching for in your shop.”

Ninomiya smiled and nodded, asking him what kind of phone he had, and bringing a new cable to him. While paying, Aiba’s stomach growled loudly.

“I was about to close the shop to go for lunch in a place close to here. They have really good food, and the owner is a close friend of mine. If you don’t have anything ready for lunch, do you want to come with me?” Ninomiya offered.

“I’d love to!” Aiba agreed, thinking that he could eat his bento in the evening.

The Ohnomaru was a little local shop that wasn’t very noticeable, but it seemed to be quite full. Ninomiya led them to the counter, and they hadn’t even sat down when a tan man with a soft smile greeted them. He was cooking behind the square-shaped counter, together with a woman.

“Hello Nino!”

“Oh-chan! I’m bringing a friend today, and he’s hungry, so if you could make us something as fast as possible it would be good. By the way” He turned towards Aiba “this is Ohno Satoshi. He’s the owner of the shop, together with his wife Tomoko. Oh-chan, this is Aiba Masaki. He’s Satsuki’s father.”

“Oh! The dog trimmer! Yuri talks a lot about you when she comes over. I think my whole family knows you.”

Aiba felt himself blush.

“Oh-chan has three kids. I’m having a hard time with one going through puberty, so I really don’t know how he handles two daughters and a son.”

“Well, Tomoko was the one who does most of the job with the girls and girl things. Mitsuru is giving me a hard time though. He’s a very rebellious thirteen-year-old!”

“Tomoko-chan is great. She helps me with Yuri sometimes. I can’t handle the girl things all the time.”

So Ninomiya-san’s like me? Aiba thought.

“I understand. My parents help me with Sacchi. My friends too, but they’re guys, so it’s sometimes hard.”

“And Sachiko’s mum… if I’m not being indiscreet?”

“We weren’t together anymore when she told me she was pregnant. She didn’t want a child at that time. Gave me Sacchi right after giving birth to her and disappeared ever since. You’re a single dad too, right?”

“My case is a little more complicated. I’m actually Yuri’s godfather. Her parents were really close friends of mine, like siblings, since we grew up in the same orphanage. They both passed away in a car crash, and their little 6-month-old miraculously survived without any injuries. Yuri sees me as her dad, but she knows she has another father and a mother in the sky, like she always likes to say it.”

Aiba was on the verge of crying, especially since he noticed how emotional the other man was. He wanted to add something comforting, but their food was served at that time. Aiba found it so delicious that he kept complementing the Ohno couple about it.

“We should come back with the girls sometime. Yuri loves it here, and I’m sure Sachiko will also like it.”

“That’s a great idea Ninomiya-san!”

“Please call me Nino!”

From then on, Nino and Aiba started hanging out quite frequently with their daughters, and even without them sometimes. Nino joined Masaki, Jun and Sho when they went for meals or drinks together, and they often went to the Ohnomaru for that. They discovered that the owners were not only good at preparing food, but that they also baked great cakes when they brought one to their table on June 17th. It was really well decorated – Satoshi did art as a hobby – and “Happy birthday Nino” was written on it.

“Why didn’t you tell us it was your birthday?” Sho asked.

“Me getting old isn’t really an occasion to celebrate. Oh-chan bakes me a cake every year, though.”

Even though he had said that it wasn’t important to celebrate, Nino looked happy when everyone sang a birthday song and when he blew his candles.

“I don’t think you’re old, Nino!”

“I’m 35, Aiba.”

“Oh! Like me! I’ll be 36 this year though.”

“When’s your birthday?”

“December 24. Sacchi has the same birthday. Isn’t it cool?”

They continued talking about birthdays, and Ohno promised to make a cake for Jun’s in August.

-

Summer vacation then came, together with a heatwave.

“It’s so hot! I don’t even know how they can still play outside!”

The two fathers were relaxing in the cooled down Ninomiya house, escaping from the heat, while their daughters were in the small garden behind the shop with the pets.

“Does it mean we’re getting old, Aiba-shi?”

Aiba laughed, sitting beside his friend on the couch.

“I was thinking of doing something to make the heat more bearable. I’ll be taking a week off from the shop soon to go to my parents’ in Chiba. They have a restaurant on the seaside. I was wondering if you guys could join us, with Shiro, of course.”

Nino looked surprised and he seemed to hesitate.

“I… I wouldn’t want to bother your parents!”

“Oh! Don’t worry about that! They love having our friends over. My brother will also be here with his family. We have a big house, and there are also more pets!”

“I guess I can close the shop for that period, then.”

“Yay!” Aiba hugged Nino briefly, not noticing the other man’s rosy cheeks when they had separated. “I’m really looking forward to that. And I’m sure the girls will be so happy!”

When Aiba announced it to the girls, they started bouncing enthusiastically around the room. They then went to Yurika’s room, talking about everything they would be able to do together and enjoy the sea.

“And then she told me about the time they went with the Ohno family, and how her dad was seasick the whole time because Satoshi-san hadn’t told him most of the activities would be on a boat! They have a family boat now, and sometimes Yurika goes with them for a few days, but her dad stays here.”

Aiba was smiling while his daughter told him some things she had discussed with her friend. They were on their way back home, and he was glad he had invited Ninomiya. He really got along with the man, and he was often teased by Sho and Jun about his growing crush for him.

Nino was all that Aiba wanted and liked in a partner. He was cute, funny, and he was a softie, even though he didn’t like to show it – unless it was related to his daughter. He was also a great dad, and he got along with everyone around Aiba, including his pets.

They ended up going with Aiba’s car in the morning, with the girls and the pets in the back and their fathers in the front. The Aiba family house was an old and beautiful building on the seaside, with a restaurant on the first floor. They were welcomed by Masaki’s brother Hiro, since their parents were busy in the kitchen. Sachiko took her friend to make her visit the place, and the men went up to put their bags in their rooms – the girls would be in the same room with Sachiko’s cousin, and their fathers would share Masaki and Hiro’s childhood room.

“You’ve been a big baseball fan for a long time, haven’t you?” Nino smiled at the baseball stars posters.

“My brother was obsessed. He was actually hesitating between his current job and professional baseball player. He chose animals in the end!”

“But Nino is also a baseball fan, right, Nino?”

Nino nodded. They unpacked and then went to greet Masaki’s parents, who had prepared them a delicious-looking meal. They welcomed Nino and Yurika very warmly, joining them for a short time before going back to taking care of the restaurant – lunchtime was the busiest of the whole day.

In the afternoon, the kids went to the beach with their parents and the pets. The Ninomiyas got to meet Hiro’s wife Kana and their twins Kenta and Koki, who were two years younger than the girls.

Almost everyone went to play in the water, but Nino stayed with Kana on shore. He was distracted by Masaki and how fit his body was – he wasn’t ready for those abs!!! – to the point that he didn’t even notice that Kana was talking to him until he heard her giggle.

“You like Masa-san, don’t you?” She asked him with a knowing look.

Nino blushed. He knew he had been a little too obvious in his ogling.

“I don’t think he would be interested in the fact that his daughter’s best friend’s dad is completely gay and crushing on him.”

“You might be wrong on that. I know Masa-san doesn’t care about gender when it comes to choosing a partner. And I’ve seen the way he looks at you too.”

At that moment, Nino’s eyes naturally drifted to Masaki again. As if he felt that he was being observed, the man looked in his direction and smiled at him widely.

“You should tell him how you feel.” Kana added, before getting up and going towards the group.

The children were tired of playing so much on the beach, so it wasn’t hard at all to get them to sleep in the evening. The adults stayed together, sharing a beer after the restaurant was closed. The Aiba parents were the first to retire, and Kana followed them a short time after, dragging a confused Hiro with her.

“You have such a nice family, Aiba.”

“You should call me Masaki or Masa. Most of us are Aibas here.” He laughed. “But you know, you can consider them as your family too. They all seem to like you a lot.”

“You’re too nice.” Nino took a big gulp of beer. “Masaki. Sachiko is lucky to have you. She has a great father, loving grandparents, an uncle, cousins.”

“Yurika has a great dad too, Nino. And I think the Ohno family is the closest thing you have to relatives. Sachiko considers Jun and Sho like uncles too, you know. It doesn’t have to be blood relations. You have good friends, and you have me.”

They stayed silent for some time, before tidying up a little and going upstairs.

“I don’t know if I want to have you as a friend.” Nino said in a barely audible voice after entering their room.

“If you mean what I think you mean, then I don’t think I want you as a friend either.”

They didn’t know which one of them made the first move, but they were suddenly kissing. Nino’s hands went around Aiba’s neck, one of them caressing his hair and the other on the back of his head, deepening the kiss. Masaki was circling Nino’s hips, but his hands ended up travelling to his ass and then under his thighs, holding him up and carrying him to his bed.

-

The rest of the week passed by really fast, and if the others seemed to notice a change in the relationship between Masaki and Nino, they didn’t mention it – Kaya just discreetly winked at Nino and gave him thumbs up. Both men decided to not talk about it with their daughters at first, giving whatever they had some time to develop and be more defined.

But the girls were way more perceptive then what they had thought, because as soon as the Aibas brought the Ninomiyas back home, Sachiko asked her father if him and Nino were going to get married.

“Eh? What makes you think that, Sacchi?”

“You’re like Sho-chan and Jun-chan. They’re married.”

Sho and Jun had gotten their partnership certificate when it had gotten legalized in their city a couple of years ago, organizing a wedding ceremony for their families and closest friends.

“Yeah, but Sho-chan and Jun-chan have been together for a long time.”

“So how long will you need to get married then?”

“I don’t know, Sacchi. It’s complicated.”

“Why? You love each other. Yurika and I think you look good together.”

“You taked about it with Yurika-chan?”

Sachiko nodded.

When he checked his phone, Masaki noticed a message from Nino, telling him about a similar conversation he had with his daughter. They were both amazed by how those little girls made things so simple, and how perceptive they were.

In fact, Sachiko and Yurika not only accepted their relationship, but they also pushed them a little towards each other, accelerating things between them by encouraging them to go on “romantic dates”. A little before they started high-school, their fathers finally decided to officially live together – they were sleeping over at each other’s places all the time – and the Aibas moved in with the Ninomiyas.

The girls were the ones who helped Masaki out when he eventually decided to propose to Nino a year after that, giving him the idea of using Shiro. The totally unsuspecting Nino completely abandoned his game when he took the small box that was in his dog’s mouth and discovered a ring in it, jumping into Masaki’s arms before the latter could even kneel completely. Sachiko was filming, and Yurika called Shiro, giving him a big hug and treats. After all, he was the reason why they got closer and their father were able to meet!