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“…Good morning, Tokie. Tokie? Toko?”
Hiro yawned as his brow furrowed while he looked around the bedroom for his wife. All he could find however was some disheveled sheets on her side of the bed.
“Huh? Where’d she go? Maybe…Kawako got hungry and Tokie decided to take her to the living room to feed her?”
Hiro glanced past the bed and sure enough, Kawako’s crib was completely empty.
“Alright, guess that answers that. Well, guess I should get dressed and go join them, for serious.”
With that, Hiro swung his legs over the side of the mattress and stood up before he walked over to his bureau and sifted through his clothes.
XXX
“The end.” Toko finished as she closed the book before she looked down at her giggling daughter. Toko sighed and held Kawako at eye level as she told the baby girl “You get your smiles from your father. I just hope you take things more seriously than he did.”
“Hey, don’t be mean, Tokie!” Hiro called as he approached from behind.
Toko sighed and muttered “…I thought you were asleep.”
“I was…then I woke up, and you guys weren’t in bed, so I decided to check up on you.”
“I see…I was just reading to Kawako before Mother’s Day.” Toko explained before she looked up at Hiro’s sheepish grin. “…You forgot, didn’t you?”
“Um…” Hiro scratched at his hair nervously and stammered “S…sorry…?”
Toko sighed and lamented “I guess it’s to be expected…this is the first Mother’s Day that we can actually celebrate properly…I just wish you remembered was all…”
“S…sorry…how about I make it up to you by making breakfast for the best mom in the world? Other than mine, of course.”
Y…your mom’s not exactly a model parent…not that I have any room to talk…
Toko reflected on the horrible relationship she had with her own mothers, never feeling like she had a true mother during her childhood due to how neither of her moms wanted her.
Yeah, Hiroko might be as carefree and almost as idiotic as her son, but at least she knows how to be a mom… Toko admitted to herself, softly smiling as she recalled how warm she had felt once she and Hiroko started to bond after she and Hiro started dating.
The two of them turned towards the door as a gentle ring echoes in their ears.
“I’ll get it.” Hiro volunteered as he ran up to the door, leaving Toko alone to continue to hold her infant daughter.
“Yeah, your dad can be a forgetful idiot sometimes…but I wouldn’t have him any other way. Just don’t tell him I said that; it’ll go to his head.”
Kawako merely giggled as they waited for Hiro to return.
XXX
“Mom!” Hiro grinned as he embraced Hiroko warmly and asked “What’re you doing here?”
Hiroko smiled and asked “What, a mother can’t help her in-law celebrate her first Mother’s Day? Besides, how am I supposed to bond with my granddaughter if I never see her?”
“That’s real kind of you Mom. I’m sure Tokie and Kawako will be happy to see you.” Hiro frowned as he spotted a small white stick protruding from Hiroko’s mouth before he asked “Uh, Mom…please tell me that’s not a cigarette. You know Toko doesn’t want any tobacco fumes around the baby.”
Hiroko sighed and removed it as she explained “No, son. It’s just a lollipop, see?” She showed him a pink lollipop that matched her hair as she explained “I’m…trying to kick the habit. I wanna be sure I stick around long enough to see my grandbaby grow up.”
Hiro smiled and nodded as he replied “I’m proud of you, Mom. Alright, what do you say we go inside? I’ll go and make breakfast for all of us.”
“Look at you, offering to cook breakfast for the women in your life.” Hiroko teased before she agreed “Alright, lead the way, son.”
XXX
“Hi…Hiroko?” Toko exclaimed as her mother-in-law came in with her son. “And I told you, n…no cigarettes in my h…house!”
Hiroko sighed and removed the lollipop before she explained “It’s just a lollipop, Toko. And I told you, call me Mom.”
Toko bit her lip and apologized “S…sorry…”
Hiroko smiled and told her “It’s alright, dear. Anyways, I figured I’d come visit my daughter-in-law on her first Mother’s Day.”
As Kawako giggled, Toko smiled and replied “At least you remembered; your son here completely forgot.”
As Hiro smiled guiltily, Hiroko smiled in amusement and commented “Ah, he did, did he? I’m not exactly surprised; he tended to forget every year.”
“Wow, you forgot Mother’s Day even when it was your own mother celebrating? No wonder you got he…held back for so long!”
As the two women and Kawako giggled, Hiro pouted and protested “Hey, don’t be mean! The date changes every year; how am I supposed to keep track?”
…Alright, fair point, I suppose… Toko admitted before she looked at her husband and reminded him “Didn’t you say you were gonna make br…breakfast?”
“Ah, right. Sorry, Tokie. Alright, I’ll call you in when I’m done.”
With that, Hiro ran into the kitchen, leaving his wife and daughter alone with his mother. Hiroko walked over to the soft that her daughter-in-law was sitting on and sat down. She leaned over and smiled at the giggling Kawako.
“She’s really bubbly, isn’t she?”
Toko smiled and agreed “Y…yeah. She gets that trait from her father.”
Hiroko smiled proudly and noted “Yeah, though it seems she mostly takes after her mom” as the young grandmother looked into her granddaughter’s dark purple eyes.
Toko ran her fingers through Kawako’s equally purple hair and agreed “Yeah…I used to think that I looked u…ugly…but after having Kawako and seeing her take so much after me so far…I think that…maybe I did look cu…cute after all.”
Hiroko nodded approvingly and wrapped her arm around Toko before she told the young mother “I don’t know who told you that you looked ugly, but you really are easy on the eyes, dear. Have a little bit more confidence in yourself, okay? Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”
“M…Mom…” Toko stammered before she leaned into Hiroko’s maternal embrace. As her mother-in-law wrapped her other arm around Toko, she looked down at her adorable daughter and lamented Maybe Mo…Mom’s right. If I can give birth to her, and she takes mostly after me…then maybe I should have more confidence in myself.
XXX
“Itadakimasu.” They all chanted before they dug into their food, Toko more leisurely as she juggled eating the food on her plate and breastfeeding her daughter.
“Wow, son, I had no idea you could be such a good cook.” Hiroko complimented.
Toko nodded and commented as she put down her chopsticks “Surprisingly, he’s a pretty competent cook. He was surprisingly decent when we started dating, but after we had dinner at the Naegis, he seemed really intent on matching Makoto’s cooking talents.”
“Well, it seems to have paid off.” Hiroko praised, which caused her son to beam proudly.
“Glad you all love it!” Hiro exclaimed before he laughed jovially.
Hiroko turned to her daughter-in-law and asked “So, Toko, how’ve things been with the baby?”
“It’s been a surprisingly smooth transition. I mean, the crying and whatnot keeps me awake a lot of the time, but I already pulled off all-nighters when I wrote novels, so I’m used to it. Besides, when I’m calming her down, I’m also thinking of new ideas for bedtime stories to read to her.”
“Sounds like you’ve made efficient use of your time.” Hiroko commented.
Hiro nodded and confirmed “Yeah, she really keeps the household organized. I help out with chores and whatnot, but Toko really keeps this household running.”
Toko smiled proudly and agreed “I have to be. We’d be homeless if I let him do the finances.”
Hiro hung his head in embarrassment, unable to refute her remark as Toko continued to eat her breakfast. Hiroko noticed as Toko shot Hiro a reassuring smile before Hiro nodded and smiled softly. Hiroko felt her heart fill with warmth as she watched the unspoken love between the unlikely couple.
Hiro…I’m glad you found someone to love you and bear you a child. And Toko…thank you for showing my son the love he deserves. You deserve this Mother’s Day.
XXX
“Thanks for stopping by, Mom!” Hiro told Hiroko as she stood at the doorway.
As Toko merely nodded while she held the now sleeping Kawako in her arms, Hiroko replied “Thanks for letting me stay and play with my granddaughter for a little bit. And Toko, Happy Mother’s Day.”
Toko nodded and stammered “Y…You too, M…Mom…”
Hiroko smiled before she briefly hugged her children and kissed their cheeks. As both Hiro and Toko blushed in embarrassment, Hiroko leaned down to kiss Kawako’s cheek.
“Goodbye you three. I’ll see you again soon.”
Hiroko bowed slightly before she turned around and closed the door behind her as she walked out.
“Well, that was a fun Mother’s Day, huh?” Hiro prodded as he gently elbowed his wife’s side.
Toko sighed and admitted “…Yes, it was…”
As Toko yawned, Hiro gently eased Kawako into his arms and insisted “Toko, you should really take a nap, for serious.” As Toko opened her mouth to object, Hiro interjected “I can take care of Kawako. You deserve a good sleep; it’s Mother’s Day.”
Toko yawned in defeat and acquiesced “…Okay…” She briefly got on her toes to peck her husband on the lips before she kissed her daughter’s cheek and cooed “Mama’s gonna go take a nap, okay? Be good for Dada until I wake up. Mama loves you, my little river child.”
With that, Toko drowsily walked down the hall towards their bedroom. Once she had vanished from view, Hiro walked over to the living room sofa and plopped down on it as he cradled his daughter in his arms. Hiro kept a watchful eye on her petite, sleeping form and smiled lovingly as her mother took full advantage of his Mother’s Day present for her.