#Ryousuke is supposed to be like 7 here but you really can't tell

[windfighter]

Schools and bees

Or: I had no idea how to title this story

Hello Frontier-tag, did you miss me? :P

I dunno, I've been rotating Takuya and Kouji as parents in my head a bit lately and I got this idea but then it didn't want to work out exactly as I wanted it (not that my stories ever do anyway) but I'm still kind of happy with it

Kouji sounds like a headdoctor and that's because he is and Ryousuke is a little too mature for his age probably, but whatever *head in hands* Anyway, enjoy :3

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Kouji was putting dishes away. Takuya had left, taken Kitty to school and was probably going to take his time coming back home. Bumblebee was in the living room, playing a game on the television. Kouji wasn’t sure which one, but he could hear shooting. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Put the last of the dishes away before heading to the living room.

Kouji’s eyes fell onto the television. Some kind of fighting-game, Takuya’s favorites. Bumblebee was sitting on the floor infront of the television, still in his pyjamas. Kouji sat down on the couch.

”Hey”, he said.

Bumblebee’s shoulders got tense. Kouji could understand it.

”It’s the third day in a row you stay home from school”, he continued.

”You told us it’s fine”, Bumblebee answered.

Short, voice tense. As if he expected Kouji to be angry. Kouji wasn’t.

”It is”, Kouji said. ”And I understand if you don’t trust me enough to say what’s wrong.”

Being a parent was still new to him. Weird. He and Takuya still argued about how to handle it. It was hard for the kids too, he could tell. Bumblebee had three families prior to ending up in their care. He didn’t talk much about it, didn't remember the first two at all, but Kouji could tell it hadn’t been great. Still, Bumblebee was adapting well to their family and Kouji just hoped nothing would happen, that Bumblebee would be able to stay with them.

Missing too much of school, however, could make the social workers take him away from them. Kouji didn’t want to stress Bumblebee out with it though. Bumblebee finished the fight, stared at the character selection for the next one.

”It’s the other kids”, he whispered.

Kouji just barely heard it. He didn’t move from the couch, just put his arm against the armrest.

”They say you and dad can’t be my parents.”

”Hmm…”

Kouji wasn’t sure what to answer, or if he even should. Bumblebee made a choice, then paused the game.

”That… that dad’s only using me to get into their parents.”

Kouji almost snorted. Takuya didn’t need anything or anyone for that.

”Papa… why didn’t mom love me?”

Oh… Kouji’s heart broke a little and he got up from the couch, sat down on the floor next to Bumblebee.

”I think she did”, Kouji said.

”But she gave me away!”

”Yeah…”

Kouji didn’t know the story. They had just been told that there had been previous families, that Bumblebee was a hard child to care for and that they had been searching for a fosterhome where he would be the only child. The only reason they let Takuya and Kouji take him despite Kitty was because Kouji’s profession. And that everyone else had pulled out when they explained all the trouble Bumblebee had given previous families.

”I’m sorry”, Kouji said. ”We aren’t allowed to know anything about your mother. I wouldn’t even know how to begin searching for her if you wanted to meet her.”

”It’s not that”, Bumblebee said.

But Kouji could tell it was. That he was desperate to meet his mother, ask her why, maybe even yell at her for leaving him.

”If it ever is that”, Kouji just said, ”once you get old enough so they let you have access to that information, we’ll do everything we can to help you find her. And your dad, if you want to.”

”You and dad are my dads.”

Kouji still felt weird being called ’dad’. Kitty just called him by his name.

”I’m glad”, he said. ”Just letting you know we’ll be here for you if you want to find your biological family.”

Bumblebee started the game again. More shooting. Kouji tried not to flinch at it, put a hand against his chest.

”Maybe we can go to the park when Takuya comes home”, he said.

To distract himself more than Bumblebee, if he was honest. Bumblebee didn’t answer and Kouji watched as the match was fought out and lost. Not every battle is a winning one.

”...why do you think she loved me?” Bumblebee asked.

Once again quietly, barely audible. Kouji leaned back, looked at the ceiling. How could he formulate himself?

”A lot of the kids who end up in foster care do so because the government take them from their families. Because their parents are starving them or hitting them or in other ways posing a danger to the kids”, he started. ”Some because both their parents died and they have no other relative who could care for them.”

Bumblebee knew all of this already. They had held long conversations with both him and Kitty about foster homes and adoption and the reality of it all. Takuya had wanted younger kids at first, to raise as their own, keep anything about the adoption quiet until the child was at least a teenager. Kouji had refused. A baby would have been too much for him, and there was always a line with people wanting babies. They could help better if they accepted an older kid.

Kouji shook his head. He didn’t need to get lost down memory lane right now.

”But she left you there”, Kouji continued. ”I’m not a mindreader, so I can’t tell her intentions, or why, I can only speculate based on experience and people I’ve met. And giving up your own kid to someone else is the most heartbreaking thing for most people, often only done out of desperation, a knowledge that they can’t care for the child at all, no matter how hard they try.”

Kouji grabbed the other controller, joined the game. He had never enjoyed fighting games, got enough fighting from the real world, but it was a good bonding experience.

”I think she loved you, and she wanted you to live and grow, because otherwise she’d have left you unattended in a corner, or out in the woods.”

He choose a character that didn’t use guns, and noticed Bumblebee do the same. They started the fight in silence, played in silence. The sounds of the game echoed throughout the apartment. Kouji lost, but he hadn’t expected anything else.

”You and dad are so weird”, Bumblebee said.

Kouji snorted. Yeah, they were. He put a hand on Bumblebee’s shoulder and Bumblebee leaned against him.

”They say no one can love me, since mom didn’t”, Bumblebee whispered.

”They’re wrong”, Kouji said and wrapped his arm around Bumblebee, ”but you probably won’t be able to convince them about that.”

He sighed. Kids could be cruel, and adults were often more hindrance than help.

”Do you want us to do anything?” he asked. ”Talk to the teachers or the principal? Look for another school?”

”Can’t I just stay home with you and dad?”

”You know what we think about that. It’s fine that you need to stay at home sometimes, but school is important.”

”I know…”

Bumblebee shuffled through the characters. Kouji gave him a sideways hug.

”I want you to spend some time today thinking about it”, he said. ”What we can do to make school better for you. We’ll talk it over later tonight, or tomorrow. Okay?”

The door opened, Takuya was back home. Bumblebee nodded, decided on a character.

”Tadaima!” Takuya called into the apartment. ”How’s my favorite guys?”

”Welcome home”, Kouji answered. ”Can you give me a hand?”

Takuya entered the livingroom, laughed when he saw Kouji on the floor.

”Sometimes you’re like 80 years old, man.”

”I know, dear. Help please.”

”Yeah, yeah, I’m coming.”

He stepped up to them, held a hand out for Kouji. Kouji grabbed it, let go of Bumblebee, and Takuya pulled him to his feet before ruffling Bumblebee’s hair.

”And how’s my little man doing? Enjoying the game?”

”Papa told me to figure out my life”, Bumblebee said.

Kouji snorted.

”I did not tell you that. Just how you want everything with the other kids to work out.”

Kouji pressed the heel of his hand into his tigh and Takuya glanced at him. It wasn’t painful, just annoying, and Kouji shook his head.

”I’m fine. We talked about going to the park or something as well. Whatever Bumblebee wants to.”

”I want to go to the football museum!”

”Football museum it is”, Takuya agreed. ”They open at ten so we have time for a couple rounds in the game first.”

Takuya sat down on the floor, grabbed the controller Kouji had left there. Kouji patted Bumblebee’s shoulder again.

”I’m not going to tell you it’ll get better”, he said, because he couldn’t promise that, ”but we’ll do anything we can to try. We care about you a lot.”

”Papa’s been emotionally stunted since he was a kid”, Takuya joked. ”What he means is that we love you and we want you to be happy no matter what.”

Kouji’s cheeks got hot. Bumblebee didn’t answer, just waited for Takuya to choose a character. Kouji ruffled Takuya’s hair.

”If you need help up later I will laugh”, he said.

”Me too”, Takuya agreed and laughed. ”Probably Ryousuke as well. We’ll have a laughing party.”

He leaned back, looked at Kouji.

”You’ll be okay if we play this game?”

”I’ll be fine”, Kouji said. ”But I am going to hide in the study and do some work. Racoon sent me a mail yesterday that I need to answer.”

”Tell him I love his name”, Takuya said with another laugh. ”He should come over for dinner sometime.”

”Daaaad”, Bumblebee interrupted. ”Choose someone already!”

”Alright, alright. Anyone of these play football?”

Kouji started leaving, heard Takuya choose someone, turn around.

”We leave in an hour”, he said.

”Just knock on the door”, Kouji said, ”I’ll be ready.”

”Hai, have fun working.”

”Have fun gaming.”

He left, entered the study and closed the door behind himself. Sank down in the chair, leaned back and closed his eyes, focused on taking deep breaths. He couldn’t hear the game in there, they had made sure to soundproof the room and either way the television hadn’t been that loud. He opened the laptop, started it. He’d answer Racoon’s mail and then look up school’s in their area, just so he knew some of their options if Bumblebee wanted to find a new one.

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Racoon's name is actually Richard Allan Coon. He studies Racoons. Yes, I did that on purpose because it was fun. Kouji also thought it was hilarious