Accidentally become a father

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"Sis, is breakfast ready?!"

Mika’s voice called out from the living room.

"Yuna said we’re having beef!"

Misaki turned to me.

"Itsuki-san?"

Her gaze carried a silent question.

I gave a slight nod.

"Yeah... it’s ready."

"Let’s all eat."

_

The kitchen grew busy once more.

But this time, not with cooking—

but with plating the results.

Plate after plate was picked up.

The pan was moved aside.

The aroma of meat filled the air.

Warm.

Rich.

Tempting.

Misaki moved first.

Carrying two plates at once.

Her steps were steady.

As if she were used to it.

I followed behind.

Also carrying two.

But my steps were more cautious.

Unwilling to drop a thing.

_

We reached the dining room.

The previously empty table.

Now—

began to fill up.

One by one, the dishes were set down.

Grilled beef.

Beef soup.

And a few other dishes she had decided on earlier.

Not long after—

the patter of small footsteps approached.

Yuna.

Mika.

And Hana.

They came in.

Sitting down in their respective seats right away.

Their eyes fixed on the table.

"Whoa..." Mika murmured.

"There’s so much..."

Misaki stood beside me.

She reached behind my back.

Untying the apron I was still wearing.

Her movements were swift.

"You won’t be needing this."

She took off her own apron as well.

We sat down.

Me.

And Misaki beside me.

Yuna across from us.

Mika and Hana next to her.

Everyone was here.

_

"Make sure to thank Itsuki-san," Misaki said.

"He’s the one who brought all this beef."

Mika immediately bowed his head a little.

"Thank you, Mister."

Hana chimed in.

"Thank you, Mister."

Her voice was much softer.

Yuna looked at Misaki.

"Thank you for cooking, Miss Misaki."

Misaki gave a small smile.

I nodded.

"Alright, let’s eat."

_

They dug in first.

The clinking of spoons and knives echoed.

Pieces of meat were scooped up.

The first bite.

Their reactions were immediate.

"...Delicious," Mika mumbled.

Hana didn’t say much.

But her expression shifted.

Softer.

More gentle.

Yuna—

she ate as usual.

Calm.

As if she already knew how it would taste.

I picked up a piece.

And placed it in my mouth.

...

I paused.

For just a bit longer than usual.

The taste—

it was different.

Deeper.

More... complete.

Savory.

Sweet.

Perfectly balanced.

I swallowed slowly.

"Misaki."

She turned to me.

"Looks like I’ll be seeking you out a lot more often."

"Why?"

I raised my fork slightly.

"You know why... the taste."

She smiled.

"Oh... so you like it."

Then—

she picked up a different piece.

"In that case, try this one."

She cut it into a smaller piece.

And then—

brought it toward my mouth.

I froze.

A little hesitant.

"...Seriously?"

She didn’t answer.

She simply waited.

I finally opened my mouth.

She fed me the piece.

The flavor was different.

"Hmm..."

I gave a small nod.

"Not bad."

Across from us—

Mika leaned in to whisper to Yuna.

"Hey... why is my sister acting so close to your dad?"

"They only just met, right?"

"I don’t know either..." Yuna whispered back.

"Maybe they already knew each other."

I heard them.

But I didn’t say anything.

"How about this one?"

Misaki was already offering another piece.

I accepted it.

"Mmm... not bad."

"This one?"

"Not bad."

"And this one?"

"Not bad."

She stopped.

Staring at me.

Her expression shifted slightly.

"Why is that your only answer?"

Her tone carried a hint of annoyance.

Yuna suddenly chimed in.

"That’s normal, Miss Misaki."

Everyone turned to Yuna.

"Papa only has two ratings."

"’Not bad’ and ’tastes bad’."

...

"Oh..." Misaki turned back to me.

"Is that true, Itsuki?"

"More or less."

Yuna slipped off her chair.

She approached Misaki.

And whispered softly into her ear.

"Try reading Papa’s expression..."

"It’s a lot more honest."

Misaki gave a small nod.

Then she patted Yuna’s head.

"Thank you, Yuna."

I watched the two of them.

"...What did she whisper?"

"It’s a secret."

She offered a faint smile.

Then—

"Try this one again."

She offered me another piece.

I opened my mouth.

She fed me.

Warm.

Close.

And for some reason—

for just a moment—

everything felt... peaceful.

_

Time drifted by.

Small talk.

Light laughter.

The plates gradually emptied.

Finally—

we finished our meal.

Yuna, Mika, and Hana went back to the living room.

The sound of the anime resumed.

_

Misaki and I returned to the kitchen.

To wash the dishes.

The water ran.

Our hands moved.

Without exchanging many words.

It was quieter now.

Much more relaxed.

Once we were done—

I walked to the living room.

And sat on the sofa.

The TV played in front of me.

Though I wasn’t really watching it.

A moment later—

footsteps approached.

Misaki walked in.

Carrying two mugs.

"Itsuki-san, here."

"Ah... thank you."

She placed them on the table.

Sliding one in front of me.

One for me.

And one for herself.

Then she sat down next to me.

Not too close.

Not too far away.

We took a sip.

Warm coffee.

Its aroma was rich and dark.

The taste was bitter, yet slightly sweet.

"You like coffee too?" I asked.

"I do."

Her answer was simple.

The TV continued to play.

The sounds of the anime filled the background.

I pulled out a cigarette.

And lit it.

The smoke rose slowly.

Dissipating into the air.

"I’ve packed the leftovers for you to take home," she said.

I turned to her.

"All of it?"

"Yeah."

I shook my head.

"I’ll just take a quarter of it."

She frowned.

"That’s so little."

"Not really."

I stared straight ahead.

"It’s just me and Yuna at home."

She fell silent.

"Well, you could share it with your neighbors," she suggested.

"Yeah... I could."

I nodded slowly.

"But I’d rather you keep it."

She turned to me.

Meeting my eyes.

"You can have it with your family later."

She didn’t answer right away.

.

.

.

"Alright."

Her voice was softer.

"Thank you."

I gave a faint shake of my head.

"No need."

I took another sip of my coffee.

"I should be the one thanking you."

I glanced toward the kitchen.

"If you weren’t the one... who cooked it."

"That beef probably would’ve ended up as one of my and Yuna’s kitchen experiments."

She let out a small laugh.

"Haha... fair enough."

She nodded.

"I’ll accept your thanks."

__

The next day.

Morning.

Sunlight streamed through the window.

Not too bright.

But warm enough.

I sat in front of the TV.

Yuna stood beside me.

Both hands on her hips.

"Breakfast, done."

"Dishes, done."

She took a short breath.

"Time to play the PlayStation."

I glanced at her.

"What about your summer vacation homework?"

She stared straight at me.

Dead serious.

"Come on, Papa..."

"The homework can wait."

She pointed at the TV.

"Playing the PS cannot."

"It has to be now."

"Alright, alright..."

I pressed the power button on the PS.

Then the TV.

The TV turned on.

The PlayStation logo appeared on the screen.

I grabbed two controllers.

Handed one to Yuna.

"What do you want to play?"

"I want to race bicycles,"

Yuna said, her eyes fixed on the screen.

"Oh... that one."

I selected the game.

The game loaded.

The main menu appeared.

Selected Multiplayer.

The screen changed.

Character selection.

Vehicle selection.

"Papa..."

I didn’t turn my head.

"What?"

"Why are you using a sheep, Papa?"

I glanced at the screen.

My character was standing—

on top of a sheep.

Meanwhile, Yuna’s character was just riding a bicycle.

"I like sheep."

Yuna looked at me.

"I want to use a sheep, too."

I held out my hand.

"Give me the controller."

She handed it over.

I started pressing the D-pad.

Right.

Right.

Right.

A few times.

Finally—

it appeared.

A sheep.

"Here."

I handed the controller back.

"Yay!"

She smiled, satisfied.

I changed my own vehicle.

A deer.

Yuna immediately glanced over.

"...I want that one too."

"Don’t be a copycat."

"Okay, okay..."

_

The race began.

First map.

A forest.

Lots of trees.

A dirt path.

A small river.

"Wow..." Yuna muttered.

"The map is so pretty."

"It is."

The screen counted down.

3...

2...

1...

"Go."

Yuna immediately mashed the buttons.

Fast.

Repeatedly.

Her sheep dashed forward.

Pretty fast.

She pulled ahead.

"Haha!"

"I passed you, Papa!"

I wasn’t doing anything.

I had set my controller down.

I picked up my coffee mug.

Took a sip.

Calmly.

"Look, Papa!"

"I’m in first place now!"

"Yeah, yeah..."

I set down the coffee.

And picked up my controller again.

"Huh?" Yuna glanced over.

"You’re in last place, Papa?"

"Come on, take it seriously!"

"Alright..."

I leaned forward slightly.

Focused.

My hands started moving.

Fast.

Up.

Down, down.

Up, up.

Down, down.

Cheat activated.

Small text appeared on the screen.

"What was that, Papa?"

"God Mode."

I pressed again.

X.

X.

X.

I held the button down.

My deer—

leaped.

It ran incredibly fast.

Unnaturally so.

Its stamina didn’t decrease.

"Huh??"

Yuna immediately turned her head.

"Papa, you’re cheating!"

"Cheating?"

"Indeed."

My deer barreled through the course.

Leaping over rocks.

Rivers.

Crashing into everything.

Dying—

respawning.

Instantly running again.

Without pause.

Without slowing down.

Yuna’s expression changed.

Serious.

She mashed her buttons even faster.

But—

her sheep began to slow down.

Its steps grew heavy.

Sometimes it just stopped.

Sometimes it veered off into the grass.

"Papa..."

"It’s glitching."

"No..."

I kept my eyes on the screen.

"That’s just how it is."

"But my sheep..."

"Why can’t I control it?"

"Is my sheep tired of running?"

Yuna stopped pressing the buttons.

Stared at the screen.

Her sheep had stopped in the grass.

Eating.

"Come on, sheep..."

"Eat a lot..."

"So you can run fast again."

I smiled faintly.

"Wait for me, Yuna..."

"Papa will be there soon."

My deer started overtaking the others.

One.

Two.

Three.

My rank climbed.

"Sheep, that’s enough resting."

"Now it’s time to run again."

Yuna started pressing X again.

Yuna’s sheep began to move.

Xxxxxx.

Pressing it rapidly.

Her sheep ran fast.

Jumping over the river.

Jumping over the tracks.

Crashing into a tree.

Dead.

Respawn.

Walking slowly.

Then sprinting fast again.

"Huh?" Yuna pointed at the screen.

"Why do you have a bottle, Papa?"

In its hand—

my character was holding a water bottle.

"Is that not allowed?"

"I guess..."

"...but what’s it for?"

Yuna asked without looking away from the screen.

I looked ahead.

One racer.

Pretty close.

"Watch this."

I pressed the Circle button.

Click.

The bottle was thrown.

Hitting them right in the head.

The racer fell over.

"Papa, you’re mean!"

"It’s a game, Yuna."

"But still!"

I kept pushing forward.

Catching up to the rest.

Wham.

Wham.

Wham.

One by one, they fell.

My rank climbed again.

Now—

I was in second place.

"Almost there..." I muttered.

.

.

.

Visible on the screen.

Yuna’s character was right in front of mine.

"Yuna..."

I glanced at her.

"I’m right behind you..."

"Huh?!"

Yuna instantly panicked.

Pressing her buttons even faster.

I simply held down the X button.

My deer slowly caught up.

Right beside her.

Running neck and neck.

A sheep and a deer.

"Hello, Yuna."

She turned her head.

Her eyes widened.

"Papa...?"

"Don’t..."

"Don’t throw it!"

My character raised the bottle.

"Relax."

I pressed the button.

Click.

The bottle flew.

Past Yuna.

Hitting the NPC up ahead.

"That was close..." I muttered.

"Papa!! But that almost hit me."

"It was still just an ’almost’."

The finish line was in sight.

Yuna was still in first place.

I was in second.

Just a little more until the finish.

—

Ding-dong.

The doorbell rang.

I glanced at the door.

"Yuna."

"Hold on!"

"I’m about to win!"

"Yuna..."

My voice was flat.

"It might be your friend."

She hesitated.

"Really...?"

"Go check."

She stared at the screen.

Then at the door.

Let out a small sigh.

"Fine..."

She set her controller down.

Stood up quickly.

And ran to the door.

I waited.

One second.

Two seconds.

...

My hand moved.

Pressing a button.

Click.

Wham.

Yuna’s character fell over.

My deer immediately overtook her.

The finish line—

crossed.

First place.

Yuna.

Second place.

I leaned back.

Picked up my coffee again.

Took a sip.

"Haa..."

Peaceful...

—

I won.

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