Chapter Text
“Have you noticed she seems fond of light blue?” Shu asked, watching carefully as the baby swatted at the toys dangling above her head. “Or perhaps she just likes that whale… I could always sew her another new outfit that incorporates nautical elements…” He mumbled, with Mika giggling as he sat next to him on the couch. The living room was much less tidy than usual, but the scattered baby toys gave away the reason for the chaos. Even amongst the mess, they still kept an air of cleanliness and order. That part came more so from Shu.
“You're always thinkin’ of makin’ new clothes for her, but haven't ya already made her plenty?” Mika teased, with Shu glancing at him with a small glare, more of an annoyed pout. He was already holding his phone, about to type the idea out for a new outfit. He wanted to refuse, but his drafts were already filled with several other ideas for baby clothes, including various seasonal outfits and themed designs.
“And haven't you made her enough plushies? She'll barely fit in her crib if you keep it up.” He rebutted, with Mika just chuckling again and looking back at her as she cooed and batted the whale again. The small bell attached made a soft chiming noise that she seemed to like. Perhaps the sound was what had her so fascinated. Admittedly, Mika wished she paid more attention to the plushies, but he could always sew one together that had some sort of noisemaker inside if she liked it...
“That's true, but I want her to be as comfortable and happy as possible here. I know we aren't her birth parents, and after what happened to ‘em… I just don't want her to be sad…” Mika's expression fell slightly, mood dropping from the shift in topic. Shu leaned against him, nudging him gently. There wasn't an easy way to address the dark topic, but right now Mika needed reassurance. They hadn't even had much time to discuss it amongst themselves with the sudden adoption.
“Thankfully, I'm sure she has no memory of what happened, and someday when she's old enough, we can certainly discuss her birth parents if that's something she wishes to learn more about.” Shu assured, carefully reaching over and rubbing Mika’s arm. “But what we did is a good thing. I'm thankful Narukami brought us this little angel.” The genuine warmth and truth in Shu's words made Mika look up and over at him, smiling. He wasn't sure if he'd heard him use that term for her yet, but he quite liked it. Shu raised Mika's hand up to his lips to kiss the back of it before letting it rest back in his lap.
“Angel, huh? She's really growin’ on you, isn't she?” Shu just smiled back, almost knowingly, hand moving to rest over Mika’s, gingerly holding the back of it. He didn't look at his face, now distracted by his husband's hand. Even after being married for a few years, it still felt almost surreal to see the ring on his finger.
“I would sure hope so. She's been here for a month now.” He replied snarkily, playfully. Mika looked back over at her, noticing she had stopped playing and was crawling around within her small playpen. The fenced-in area was filled with soft fabrics and plenty of toys, helping to keep the space more organized. It had been a rather thoughtful gift from Arashi that they'd immediately put to use. The idea of filling it with soft things came from Mika initially for comfort, and then was reinforced by Shu for safety.
“And I hope she stays with us for a long time.” Mika added, eyes sparkling in a way that Shu found himself almost speechless at when he glanced back up. He could tell Mika really did love her, and was committed to raising her as his daughter. It was inspiring, making him desire to do the same. Whatever doubt might have been lingering in his heart was dimished.
“Me too.” He nodded, joining Mika in looking at her as he touched over the wedding ring on Mika's finger lightly. This was his family.
Their
family, and they would raise her together.