Chapter Text
“Okay, so, what are we doing this week, Hinata-kun?”
“Hmm…” Hajime hummed as he pondered what therapy to do with Mokubo. “Well, he knows how to point at cars, so why don’t we teach him how to play with them properly.”
“You mean like, race them on a track?”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea, though perhaps we should start small and just race them in a straight lane across the floor.” Hajime suggested “We could probably use a couple of books to use as the start and finish lines.”
“That sounds like fun!” Komaru exclaimed as she forced her nephew into Hajime’s arms again. “I’ll go get the cars and a couple of books and meet you in the living room.”
Once more, Komaru ran off without another word, leaving Hajime to sigh in amusement at the young woman’s enthusiasm.
“Well, let’s get going, Mokubo.” Hajime muttered before he walked to the living room to wait for Komaru.
XXX
“Alright I’m back with the cars and books!” Komaru exclaimed as she walked into the room, carrying a box in her left arm and two books in the other.
“Good, now why don’t you put those down before you fall. You look like you’re gonna trip.” Hajime cautioned.
“Nonsense, I’m totally fine! Look, ah!”
Hajime bounced onto his feet as he rushed to catch her. The former Ultimate sighed in relief as he managed to catch her before she fell on her face.
“I told you to be careful, didn’t I?” Hajime asked as Komaru blushed in embarrassment.
“Yeah…you did. Thanks for the catch.” Komaru smiled bashfully as she commented “Guess my brother’s not the only klutz in the family.”
The two of them laughed as Hajime helped her to stand upright before he finally let her go. He took the box from her arm into his own.
“Let’s put the stuff down on the floor so we can begin the therapy, alright?”
“Yeah, that sounds good.” Komaru agreed as she got on her knees and put the books down while Hajime did the same thing with the box of toy cars. “Okay, so what do we do first?”
“Well, first let’s find two toy cars to get out of the box.” Hajime suggested “Let’s get ones of different colors if possible.”
Komaru nodded and they fished through the box before she pulled one out and held it over her head with a triumphant grin.
“I’ve got a red one!”
Hajime shook his head in amusement at her enthusiasm before he pulled one out and replied “I’ve got a blue one.”
“Awesome! So what do we do now?”
“Well, first let’s get Mokubo’s attention. Hopefully with our recent progress he should point towards the cars.”
“Okay, leave it to me!” Komaru turned to her nephew and called “Hey Moku, look!”
The toddler turned his head until he was looking in her direction and his gaze almost instantaneously focused on the two toy cars.
“Car.” He uttered as he pointed to Komaru’s red car.
Hajime nodded and replied “That’s right Mokubo, Aunt Komaru and I have cars. Do you want to play cars with us?”
Mokubo crawled over to Komaru and Hajime as the young man fished through the box before he pulled out a small green car.
“Here you go, Mokubo.” Hajime offered as the boy grabbed it and started inspecting it with his hands.
“Hey Moku, you wanna see a fun way to play with cars?” Komaru asked, grinning victoriously as her nephew looked at them with a curious expression.
“Watch us and do what we do, Mokubo.” Hajime instructed as he and Komaru put their cars down next to each other, gripping them with their thumbs and pointer fingers. “Alright, for now we’re just going to move them back and forth and make motor sounds, okay?”
Komaru nodded and asked “Like this?” She turned her head to look at her nephew again before she smiled and repeated “Vroom vroom! Vroom vroom!” as she moved her car back and forth on the floor.
Hajime nodded and repeated the activity, making vroom noises of his own as he moved his own car. To their delight, Mokubo put the car down in front of him and began to wheel it back and forth in front of him.
“He’s doing it, Hinata-kun!” Komaru cheered gleefully before she frowned. “Wait, but why isn’t he making vroom noises?”
“Well, he might not know how to make that particular sound yet, but we can work on that with speech therapy later on. For now though, let’s keep doing what we’re doing for now.”
“Okay. Vroom, vroom! Vroom, vroom!”
With that, the two impromptu therapists kept moving their cars back and forth on the floor and making vroom noises as Mokubo mimicked their movements, moving his car back and forth in a rhythmic motion.
XXX
“I had no idea you had a game this old.” Hajime commented as he accelerated Luigi down Donut Plains 1.
Komaru smiled nostalgically as she turned Peach around the corner before she commented “Yeah, my brother and I played old video games all the time as kids. Thankfully our collections weren’t too damaged during the Tragedy, so we were able to collect them once we repaired our old house.”
“That’s a relief…heads up.” Hajime warned as he fired a green shell at Peach.
“Hey, no fair!” Komaru pouted as Peach spun out of control, allowing Luigi to blaze past her and cross the finish line.
Hajime smirked as he retorted “Hey, it’s totally fair! I just used the game’s mechanics to my advantage.”
“Not when you’re an Ultimate Gamer!” Komaru pointed out, then frowned as Hajime’s eyes started to droop in melancholy nostalgia. “What is it? Did I…say something wrong?”
Hajime sighed and put down his controller before he uttered “Chiaki.” At Komaru’s curious glance, he elaborated “Chiaki Nanami. She was the Ultimate Gamer of Class 77, and my first real crush.”
“Oh…I’m sorry, Hinata-kun.” Komaru apologized with remorse in her eyes. “I didn’t mean to bring up any unpleasant memories.”
Hajime shook his head and assured her with a sad smile “It’s okay, really. I don’t mind talking about her.”
“O…okay, if you really don’t mind.” Komaru hesitantly nodded before Hajime took a deep breath and recalled his first love.
“We met at this fountain on the school grounds when I was a Reserve Course student. We ended up bonding over a shared love of video games, and we played there all the time.” Hajime smiled wryly as he remarked “Though I never was able to beat her.”
“But you had fun, right?” Komaru prodded with a smile.
“Yeah…I did…” Hajime admitted. “But it wasn’t enough to help with my…inferiority complex. I’m sure your brother told you about how the Reserve Course was segregated from the main course.”
Komaru nodded, vaguely recalling one of his phone calls back home when he expressed his frustrations with the segregation present in the school he looked up to.
“Well, after the Steering Committee’s experiment, I didn’t see Chiaki again until the Tragedy. Junko executed her in front of all our eyes, which brainwashed the 77th Class into despair. And I…I watched her die.”
Komaru’s eyes widened in shock as a single tear trickled down Hajime’s cheek.
“As she lay dying, she asked me…to play one more game with her. Even on death’s door, she just wanted to play one more game with me…I could have saved her and I just chose to watch.”
“Hinata-kun…”
Hajime wiped his eyes and continued “When we were in the Neo World Program, when we were all about to succumb to despair, her spirit came to me, and gave me the strength to fight for the future that we wanted. I…I owe her more than I could ever repay.”
“Hinata-kun…” Komaru placed her hand on Hajime’s shoulder and smiled at him, causing him to turn his head to look at her. “I know I’m not Nanami-san, but I’m willing to play games with you, if you want.”
“Naegi-chan…” Hajime uttered as a touched blush painted his cheeks rose.
“Hey, if we’re gonna be game buddies, then we should be on a first name basis!”
Hajime chuckled and agreed “Alright…Komaru.”
“Alright then, Hajime.” Komaru’s eyes narrowed with a fiery determination as she challenged “Now, let’s move on to Ghost Valley. Prepare yourself, ‘cause I’m gonna beat you this time, Ultimate talent or no!”
Hajime laughed as he picked up his controller and watched as Lakitu counted down.
XXX
“Alright, let’s set up the books to create a simple racetrack.”
“Leave it to me, Hajime!” Komaru exclaimed before she set up the books while her nephew kept playing with his toy car. “Alright, all set!”
“Perfect, now get your car and we’ll set things up.” Hajime directed before they picked up their respective toy cars and placed them up at the first book.
“Hey, Moku!” Komaru called before her nephew looked up from his car. “Hajime and I are gonna race our cars!”
The boy looked at them curiously while the two adults gently moved their cars back and forth in preparation.
“On your mark, get set, GO!” Komaru announced before they let go of their cars, which caused them to speed down the floor until Komaru’s reached the second book. “YES! I win!” She cheered, which caused Hajime to sweatdrop before he shook his head in amusement.
“Hey Mokubo, you wanna race with us?” Hajime asked.
Mokubo took his car and crawled over to them, making the two adults smile in satisfaction as he aligned hi scar perfectly with the first book. They then walked over to the other book and retrieved their cars before they walked back and placed their cars next to Mokubo’s.
“On your mark.” Komaru began as they moved their toy cars back and forth. “Get set…GO!”
The three of them let their cars loose and watched them speed down the makeshift racetrack.
“YES! I WON AGAIN!” Komaru cheered as her car crossed the finish line first, followed by Hajimes, and Mokubo’s bringing up the rear.
There’s not really a need to get so excited. We’re just racing toy cars with a three-year-old. Hajime deadpanned as he watched Komaru grin with glee at her double victory. Still, it’s nice that she can be so enthusiastic with this therapy. Perhaps it’ll help her nephew to develop the skills he needs more quickly.
He glanced at the lavender-haired boy, who merely stared at his aunt.
“Alright, what do you say we bring our cars back to the starting line and go again?” Hajime suggested.
“You’re on! Just don’t cry if I beat you again!” Komaru agreed as she walked over to pick up the cars.
Hajime laughed in amusement as he watched her pick up the cars and walk back over to hand them their cars. They then lined up their vehicles at the starting line and moved them back and forth before Komaru began the countdown again.
“On you mark, get set, GO!”
XXX
“Vroom vroom!” Kiki, Mokubo, Koto, and Kiri uttered as they released their cars, letting them fly off towards the finish line.
Kyoko beamed proudly at her children before she turned to Komaru and Hajime and thanked “Mokubo’s made so much progress this week! I think this is the first time he’s played with either of the twins!”
“Yeah, we really owe you…hey Hogo, don’t eat the cars!” Makoto exclaimed as he hurried to stop the puppy from eating his children’s toys.
Kyoko giggled at her family’s antics before she announced “Alright everyone, it’s time for Aunt Komaru and Hajime to go, so say your goodbyes.”
“Goodbye Aunt Komaru, Hinata-san!”
“Bye!” They waved back at the four children as Kiki waved and Mokubo pointed at the duo.
They then turned around and left the manor, yet another week of progress made in Mokubo’s development.