Spirited Away: The Wait [ORIGINAL]

Fluffy Times

A/N: The title of the chapter wasn't named because it’s a fluffy chapter. You’ll know what I mean after reading it hehe :3

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     Haku arrived at the Ogino residence the next morning at an early 8am, only to learn that Chihiro was still sound asleep.

     “I’m so sorry about that, Haku,” Yuko apologized, “You came so early just to see her… I should have told you that she usually doesn’t wake up till 9:30. How about you take a seat first while I go wake her up?”

     He made a sound of protest. “No need; let her rest. She must be feeling tired. I will wait for her to wake up.”

     Yuko smiled at his graciousness. Her daughter had chosen a fine young man; now she could worry less about her. She chuckled, imagining Akio’s frown if he saw his baby’s first boyfriend. He had a knack for interrogating nearly every single boy who tried to get within a 10-meter radius of his precious girl. “No boy is allowed to lay a finger on my baby,” he used to say while hugging his daughter tightly, as if afraid one day she’d be snatched away from him, and he’d never be able to find her again.

     Well, they all knew this day was going to come, and Yuko knew this young man would take good care of her daughter. She could tell from the way he looked at her with such adoration, the same way Akio used to look at her and her at him. Yuko smiled to herself. I hope you’re feeling happy for the two of them, Akio. He’s a good man, and I can tell, because he reminds me so much of you.

     The woman made her way into the kitchen to pour herself a hot, steaming mug of coffee. “Haku, dear? Would you like some coffee?” she called behind her back.

     He replied courteously, “Yes please, thank you very much.”

     Ever the formal one, she shook her head. She had told him a number of times to be less formal around her, but it seemed he would need some time to get used to being less guarded around strangers. Perhaps that was his only shortcoming. Yuko mentally shuddered at the thought of him meeting her husband for the man-to-man talk that he had always wanted to have regarding their daughter. She couldn’t imagine Haku being any stiffer than he was at the moment.

     He just needed some time to get used to her, she decided, and set the two cups of coffee on the dining table. “Do you need any sugar or cream?”

     “No thank you, I prefer drinking it as it is,” said Haku as he took a sip.

     “I never thought I’d meet someone other than Akio who likes their coffee this way, as well,” Yuko remarked as her smile grew wider.

     Haku hummed in response, looking as if he was deliberating something. “Is there anything else you need? Feel free to ask me for anything,” she said.

     Yuko had expected him to ask for something like, “May I have some brown sugar after all?” or “The weather seems fine today,” but instead he asked something she hadn’t been expecting him to. “If you don’t mind me asking,” Haku inquired, setting his cup down, “what was Mr. Ogino like?”

     Yuko peered at him over the lip of her cup with big eyes, wondering where his sudden curiosity had sprung out. She set it down with a sigh. Memories came creeping back to her, and the familiar sense of nostalgia turned her smile into a thin, wry line.

     Seeing this, Haku panicked slightly. “Pardon me for asking such a rude question; please pretend I never asked.”

     “No, no, it’s perfectly fine,” she shook her head, “I just… got a little sentimental for a moment there… Akio was a good father and husband. He doted on both Chihiro and I very much, and he really was like the guardian angel in our family. He could tell when we were worried or feeling down, and always knew the right thing to do to cheer us up.”