Adulting Adventures at the Aquarium

The Same Day - Saturday - 11 AM

Miyuki's sleeping pills are the first topic of discussion when Furuya wakes up in the morning. The catcher looks like he hasn't slept a wink, evident bags under his eyes, and he's positioned as if he's just been sitting in bed the entire night.

Which he has.

Miyuki yawns, proving Furuya's hypothesis to be true. Granting the pitcher permission to organize his belongings, he's aware that his insomnia is no secret. It wasn't an everyday occurrence, but occasionally his dread of having nightmares about his childhood would keep his head from hitting a pillow.

But to stop Furuya from worrying, he promises to take his pills so he can, hopefully, get some shut-eye tonight.

"If you're too tired, we don't have to start our day out until later," Furuya says, swinging his legs over the bed, "I don't want to drag you around if you're not physically—"

"Oh, please," Miyuki scoffs, "How weak do you think I am? I've experienced a plethora of sleepless nights; I'm a veteran at this. Like I promised, I'm all yours. Where are we off to?"

--

An hour train ride later, the pair arrives at the Salmon Hometown Chitose Aquarium.

It's a small aquarium with dark lighting—Miyuki's never visited one so Furuya clarifies that this was the norm for all of them—that illuminates the blue water through the glass tanks vibrantly.

They stand before a school of gray and yellow fish, swimming with intrinsic coordination and grace.

"They're kinda cool," Miyuki comments as he reads the species description, "I wonder what it's like to be a fish."

"Why's that?" Furuya asks.

"Their lives just consist of being fed, moseying about in beautiful water, and they're beautiful…caught fish, to be specific. Wild ones probably have it tough."

"I agree."

After visiting the various salmon tanks, as it would be ironic not to since it was the eponymous fish of the aquarium, their next stop is a turtle tank. Next to it is a digital display of the species history and cute little animations directed at children.

Speaking of children, as soon as Furuya places his hand on the glass, an aging turtle drifts towards him and bumps its head against his stomach through the barrier. It backs up then bumps its head again as if it were communicating a message.

Miyuki's in awe, "You're kidding. Do you think it senses that you're…pregnant?"

"Their ability to do that wasn't included in the video," Furuya glances back at the display and he's right, "What are the odds? Do you really think they can sense that?"

"Beats me. I just threw that idea out there."

The turtle swims away and returns a minute later with a mini version of itself under its fin. It bumps into the glass again.

"Unless that's a psychic man in an oversized turtle suit," Miyuki jests, "it surely knows you're pregnant. I bet scientists are quaking in their boots right now. How will they ever be able to explain this phenomenon?"

His joke goes through one ear and out the other as Furuya is entranced by the turtle family, waving and cooing at them. He looks like an inquisitive child in his natural habitat, and Miyuki begins wondering if they came here for his pleasure instead.

"Mommy…" a voice squeaks out.

Furuya feels a tug on his pant leg and he looks down to see a little boy, red-faced and teary-eyed. Harnessing his budding motherly instinct, he kneels and rubs the kid's back.

"What's wrong?" he asks calmly, "Are you lost?"

"M-M-My mommy s-said she was g-going to the b-b-bathroom, but she st-st-still isn't here and I can't f-find her!"

The boy breaks into hysterics and Furuya's motherly instinct instantly vanishes. It's not yet fully-fledged and his eyes are screaming at Miyuki for help.

'Don't look at me!' Miyuki says with his facial expressions, 'I don't know what to do!'

'You're the oldest,' Furuya retorts, blinking excessively, 'I don't have any experience.'

'Me neither! What does age have to do with this?'

'Useless, as always.'

'Hey!'

The boy's weeping is drawing unwanted attention from others around them, so they bring him to a secluded area and sit him down on a bench.

Copious amounts of rubbing soothing circles, wiping tears, and reassuring leads to them getting some information on him. His name is Naoto and he's seven years old. His favorite superhero is Ultraman and he dislikes onions. His mom has short black hair and was wearing a red dress with white polka dots.

Miyuki memorizes these details and walks to the front desk so the staff can release an announcement over the speakers. Meanwhile, Furuya sits next to Naoto. The crying has stopped, but now he needs to make conversation to keep him occupied.

"What's your favorite sea animal?" he inquires. Quite fitting for the environment they're in.

"Horses," Naoto mutters.

"…horses aren't sea animals. Unless you're talking about seahorses, the ones with the curled tails."

"I read a book once. It said boy seahorses can have babies. That's why they're my favorite."

'The second coincidence of the day. This place is cursed.' "Is that so? I didn't know that."

"I wish I could be a seahorse."

"Why?"

"So I can be like my mommy and have babies!"

Furuya breathes a deep sigh and tries explaining how that was physically unfeasible, despite him being a living testament to it, but Naoto's eyes are shimmering with imaginative desire.

A TV on the wall opposite them turns on and it's a live feed from another section of the aquarium:

"Come join us right now for a chance to feed salmon! From 12 to 3! Bring your children for a fun, lively experience!"

Naoto jumps to his feet and points at the screen, "I wanna go! Please, can we go? Pleaseeeee?"

It would be wiser to remain here and wait until his mother was found, but Furuya's enthusiasm to acquire some parenting practice overrides all reason.

He shoots Miyuki a text and treads off with Naoto, hand in hand.

--

Furuya crouches next to Naoto, observing as an employee places fish food onto the tips of his fingers. The kid scoots to the edge of the fish tank that's built into the floor and leans over. A salmon shimmies to the surface and nibbles before shimmying away.

"That tickles!" Naoto giggles, "You should do it, too! It's fun!"

Furuya peers around, mostly mothers and fathers with their children in the crowd. He sticks out like a sore thumb, clearly the odd one out. It doesn't disturb him, though, as he needs to fulfill his pseudo-parental duties.

He nods and the employee places the food onto his hand, leading him closer to the edge.

Suddenly, a mass of salmon swarm over to him and nibble greedily until their meal is done.

"They're keen on you," the employee laughs, "I've never seen them act like that before. They completely trust you."

'Let me guess, motherly instinct?' Furuya wonders, exhausted, 'This can't be some coincidence.'

They continue feeding the salmon for a few minutes until Miyuki appears behind them. He says that Naoto's mother is waiting at the front desk, so they wave goodbye to the fish and head over there.

"Mommy!" Naoto whines, running.

A woman with short black hair wearing a red polka-dotted dress turns at the sound of his voice. Her eyes water as she meets him halfway and scoops him up in her arms.

"I'm so sorry," she cries, planting a kiss on her son's temple, "I'm so sorry! You must've been so worried, huh? It's okay, mommy's here now. I'm here, it's gonna be okay."

Miyuki averts his gaze. Envy.

The mother bows and thanks the teenagers profusely. She went to use the bathroom, but someone had fainted in the stall next to hers and hit their head on the toilet seat, so she volunteered to stay there until the paramedics arrived. Otherwise, she would have never left her child unattended.

"I know this might seem strange," she says, scratching her cheek, "but is it alright if I take a picture of you two with Naoto? I have a thing for capturing memories, and it would be remiss of me to forget how you guys cared for my son while I was away. O-Only if it's okay, though!"

For the sake of pseudo-family-portrait-posing practice, there's no need for convincing. The turtle tank from earlier is their backdrop, and Furuya and Miyuki squat on both sides of Naoto, hands on his shoulders. The aging turtle and its offspring seemingly pose for the photo as well.

"Get ready," the older woman says, opening her camera app. She turns on the flash and bends down slightly, "Three, two, one, smile!"

CLICK!

She sends the photo to their phones and thanks them again before holding Naoto's hand and walking away.

"See ya, Ruru, Kazu!" Naoto shouts, waving happily at them, "Thank you!"

Once they're out of earshot, Miyuki squints at Furuya, "Kazu?"

"He asked for our names while we were fish feeding," the pitcher explains, "so I gave him easier versions of them. Cute, right?"

"Eh, I guess."

"Admit it."

"…"

"…"

"…it's pretty freaking cute."

They share a laugh and hit up the cafe and gift shop, ending their adventure at the Salmon Hometown Chitose Aquarium.

--

Omake/Extra #1

"You've been eyeballing that sushi for a while," Miyuki remarks.

They're at the aquarium's cafe, pop music playing over the speakers. It's bright and remotely spacious with peach-colored tables and chairs. They're sitting right in the middle with the food they ordered.

"This sushi is making me apprehensive," Furuya says.

He's holding a piece between his chopsticks, twisting and scrutinizing it from all angles. He's struggling to put it in his mouth.

"It's not expired, is it?" the catcher asks.

"We're at an aquarium, right? What if it's not fish or crab, but…"

Miyuki stops chewing, "But?"

Furuya's eyes widen, "Penguin meat!"

"Um, no."

"Polar bear!"

"Furuya, no!"

--

Omake/Extra #2

'Kasumi-san tasked me with creating a new special recipe. Or rather, I volunteered,' Miyuki thinks, 'Something original…perhaps something spicy?'

He and Furuya are riding bikes, blurring past trees flourishing with their vibrant leaves and schoolchildren cheerfully walking home with their parents. The breeze wafting from the lake adjacent to them is a crisp, yet refreshing hit to their lungs.

"I'm tired," Furuya pants, "My legs feel like lead."

"We've only been riding for ten minutes."

"I'm not arguing with you."

Miyuki rolls his eyes, "Alright. Last one to the bike rack has to pay for food!"

He cackles as he speeds ahead of Furuya, leaving him behind. Karma working her magic, he instantly loses control of his bike, swerves, and catapults headfirst into a grassy patch.

"Whoa!" he shouts.

Adrenaline fueling his legs, Furuya hops off his bike and races towards him. He leaps across the grass until he reaches where Miyuki is laying on his back, arms and legs sprawled out.

"Are you okay?" he asks, concerned, "Are you hurt?"

"…cunt."

"Excuse me?"

Miyuki taps his temple with his index finger, a figurative light bulb going off in his head, "Picunte bread! Picante is Spanish for spicy, so I'll make a spicy bread, and name it Pi"cunt"e, for shock value! If I pitch this idea to Kasumi, she'll love it. I really am a genius!"

Furuya gives him a blank stare, uninterested and confused, "I think you hit your head, senpai…"