It was safe to say that throughout the years he knew Kaname, Naoki very rarely saw Kaname so stunned as he was at the moment. Naoki was also at a loss. At first, he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him because that person standing in front of them was the exact replica of how Kaname looked in high school. But how could that be? Kaname was right there in front of him, so the one over there couldn't be Kaname too, right? Naoki looked at the two back and forth, too stumped by the resemblance.
"...Kei?"
When Naoki heard that name from Kaname's mouth, he took another good look at the teenager. The teenager indeed looked just like Kaname in his high school days, but now Naoki could see some differences, especially the nose and the ears, also the boy's chin was thinner than Kaname's. Naoki vaguely remembered that he'd have heard that name before. He turned to look at Kaname again.
The teenage version of Kaname bowed. "Tou-san."
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHH???"
The two in front of him turned to Naoki, startled by his exclaim. Naoki quickly put a hand over his mouth. He didn't mean to, but he couldn't help himself. 'Tou-san'? What? Wait. No. Naoki did recognize that name. This boy was Kaname's son, Hosugi Kei!
"I'm sorry," Naoki quickly said apologetically. "I didn't mean to…" Naoki cleared his throat.
Kaname looked like he came back to his senses. He touched Naoki's arm while turning to the boy again. "This is Kikugawa Naoki. Naoki-kun, I've told you about my son, right? This is Kei."
Kei nodded politely at Naoki. His eyes looked on with curiosity, especially at the hand his father placed on Naoki's arm. Naoki suddenly felt a little awkward. Kaname did tell him about his son, after all, they had been together for a long time, and there was nothing Kaname hid from Naoki. So, yes, Naoki knew the full story about Kei. Kaname also never avoided talking about Kei, including sharing some things he learned about Kei after talking with his son through emails or messages.
Still, it didn't mean he wouldn't be surprised to meet the boy so suddenly like this. He looked at Kaname, who, for some reason, also looked equally, if not more, surprised as himself.
Father and son were standing in front of each other, not saying anything.
Naoki touched Kaname's upper arm. "Kaname-san."
Kaname cleared his throat. He patted Naoki's hand on his arm. He nodded, then turned to his son with a faint smile on his lips. "I never thought you'd come this soon."
Kei nodded, looking a bit guilty. "I'm sorry. I know I said that I'd write again when there's already a fixed date, but–"
"Don't get me wrong. Of course, I don't mind you coming here," Kaname quickly intervened.
Kei looked taken aback. He then shook his head. "No, it is my fault. Anyway, Maya-san said you wouldn't mind, so I…"
"You still call your mother that?" Kaname furrowed his brows. He remembered he had advised Kei not to do that years ago when he found out about it on one of their video calls.
Kei scratched the tip of his nose, slightly embarrassed. "Yes. Maya-san still doesn't want me to call her 'mom'. She said it made her look old."
Naoki raised an eyebrow. He had never met this Maya, but she sounded quite one of a kind. On the other hand, Kaname shook his head helplessly. "Trust her to act like this."
Kei nodded, and there was silence again. Taking a deep breath and putting on a smile, Naoki took a step forward. "Kei-kun, right? Have you eaten? There are only these snacks since everyone is going out to the festival, but I can make you something if you'd like."
Kei shook his head, declining politely. "I already ate some of the snack," he said, motioning to the table of refreshments. "They're very delicious, and it's more than enough. Thank you so much."
"Are you sure? You came all the way here, after all. Boys should eat a lot," Naoki said, still trying. "I'm sure Kaname-san also wants to eat something even though he already ate quite a lot at the festival earlier," he added while glancing teasingly at Kaname.
Kaname let out a low chuckle. "I definitely won't say no." He then turned to his son. "In this house, we don't go to bed hungry."
Kei blinked, then once again bowed his head politely. "I'm sorry to trouble you."
Naoki waved his hand dismissively. "No trouble at all. Let's go in, then. Are those your bag and suitcase? Kaname-san, come help."
Kaname immediately reached to take the suitcase and a backpack placed near the door. Meanwhile, Naoki had opened the connecting door and was pulling Kei to get inside. There were a lot of things he wanted to ask Kaname, but it wasn't the right time. He had nothing to do with this, anyway, and sooner or later, Kaname would tell him.
Speaking of which, did Kaname really not know that his son was coming?
****