chapter 28

Chapter 28 – 5 Years Old

It's been a couple of months since we got the news of Ai's pregnancy, so she was already well on her way toward the second trimester.

Although I've never tested its effect on pregnancy, I've been using some healing magic on the growing baby bump every night before bed, hoping to stop any complications.

As for my currently-born children, Ruby and Aqua are now five and... not much has really changed.

We decided to announce Ai's pregnancy during their birthday, giving a big surprise to the two kids as well as Ichigo and Miyako who were visiting.

Aqua took it in stride, although he did seem a little worried about something.

Maybe he's wondering if Ai will neglect him with the new baby?

But he never seemed like the type to want much parental attention...

Well, I guess I'll talk to him about it if it becomes a big issue.

And Ruby, well, she was all smiles, wanting to be the 'best big sister' around.

Ai and I thought it was cute, so we've been bringing our idol-in-training along any time we've gotten stuff for the baby and the nursery, much to her delight.

As for Ai... well... the worry she showed me about not having any purpose seems to have dissipated with the upcoming responsibility as she's well and truly transformed into 'mom mode'.

As great as that is, she'll still need to get some hobbies.

Hopefully, once her fame dies down she can start doing things in public, perhaps even gaining a few friends through Ruby and Aqua's schooling.

As for the band, now named Nimbus, the other three guys decided to do their own music projects on the side, seemingly inspired by the release of our second album and their desire to do live performances.

So that was good.

The money was also flowing in from royalties.

While Nimbus was fairly popular in Japan after the first album, it's really taken off in North America thanks to Strawberry Production's ever-increasing internet presence with the new release.

That was also good.

What was not so good, however, was the current argument going on inside my head.

"What's up, Cassius?" Aqua says from my side.

"Nothing, just thinking..." I respond.

"About what?"

"Whether I should deliver your sibling or not."

That seems to quiet him down as Aqua rests his hand on his chin in contemplation.

"Indeed, your healing magic would be a boon for any delivery complications, but you can't exactly show it off to the public..." He mutters under his breath.

"And while I'm a good healer, I'm no midwife. So yep, that's the crux of the problem." I finish.

The room falls into silence once again as I go over my options.

At least, until Aqua speaks up.

"Why don't you just learn how to deliver a baby?" He says.

Of course, there was that.

It's not like I haven't thought of it, and I've even researched it a little bit.

But the problem was...

"I don't know where to start with that. Most midwives and doctors need four years of schooling at least, and while I'm smart, I'm not that smart."

Delivering a baby was actually quite simple.

After all, people have been doing it since the start of humanity and you hear about pregnant women giving birth in weird places every day.

But in those easy births, there are hardly ever any complications, as the ones that do have complications usually end in tragedy, either for the mother, the child, or both.

And I don't want any tragedy for my soon-to-be wife and child.

For example, what if the opening is too tight for the baby's head?

While healing magic is great, it can't heal an already crushed skull, and it does nothing for suffocation from the umbilical cord or stuff like that.

So... what to do?

Maybe I could stay in the delivery room and use my magic only in case of an emergency?

There's no doubt that Ai and my child are more important to me than my secret, but if the wrong people learn of it, then our way of life would be screwed.

After all, no matter the era or amount of personal freedoms, I know just how fucked up a government can be in order to get what they want.

A man like me, who could destroy a country in a day and heal any wound, they'd do anything to get me under their control.

And if not, then they'd just kill me and everyone I love after perceiving me as a threat.

"I... I'll help you." Aqua then says.

Turning my head in surprise, I see him looking at me with a resolute expression.

"I'll help you learn what you need to know, Cassius. After all, I don't want any bad things to happen either. Now that I have a family..."

Raising my eyebrow in confusion, my face breaks out into a smile as I gently pat his head.

"Thanks, bud. I'll be counting on you."

Silly me, I shouldn't be letting my concern spread to the kids.

"Hmph! I actually will!" He says with a pout.

"Haha, sure you will!" I respond.

Always trying to act mature... while not the same type as Ruby, Aqua also has his own cuteness.

"You wanna watch some cartoons?" I ask Aqua.

"Not really." He responds dully.

"Oh, ok..."

So... what to do now?

----- Aqua POV -----

I was now five years old, slowly climbing up the ladders of youth.

I was also steadily making my way toward puberty, to which I was both excited and at the same time, anxious.

Excited at the prospect of getting one step closer to adulthood and anxious to go through that hormonal hell once again.

But that was for the future.

For the present, there was something much more concerning.

I was going to have a father.

While it could be said that Cassius has been my father for the past year, now it would be official.

I... didn't know how to feel about that.

Ruby was quite obviously ecstatic at the news... although I have a feeling that's more due to seeing Ai in a wedding dress.

But she had already openly accepted Cassius into her life, and while I had accepted him to some extent, I still had my reservations.

How could I not?

I had never met my father as Gorou, and in my second life, my father tried to kill my mother and idol... so I didn't exactly have the best experience with fathers.

But I was fine with it.

He makes Ai and Ruby happy, brings in a good amount of money, and is likely the strongest form of protection in the world, so I had no complaints.

But I could already see it.

Ai's insistence on calling her 'Mama', which only increased as Cassius came into my life, would soon turn to her begging that I call Cassius 'Father' or something similar.

I was not looking forward to that.

Anyway, putting that aside...

I'd also be getting a new sibling soon.

That brings up a lot of questions, the largest one being: would they be reincarnated like Ruby and I?

Well, it'll be pretty obvious if they are, because if not, Ai is in for a very rude awakening as to what actual childcare is like.

Though Cassius being here will help her out, unlike with us.

Either way, that leads to yet another question.

If they are reincarnated, is it due to some special trait of Ai's?

And if not, was Hikaru the reason for my reincarnation?

Or perhaps it was an extremely rare, mystical occurrence that would never happen again.

Ideally, I would want my new sibling to be a normal baby, and give Ai the chance to truly be a mother.

...Even though she'll have a much harder time than with Ruby and I.

Haa... big questions like these aren't meant for my toddler brain, so I'll put aside those thoughts for now.

Now, onto what Cassius was worried about...

Childbirth.

Honestly, I'm surprised Ai did so well with having us.

Being twins, being her first birth, her body not being completely matured, and her naturally narrow hips... honestly, I thought she would need a C-section.

But she powered through.

But relying on blind determination and grit like that was setting a course for tragedy, so I was very happy that Cassius was taking the future birth seriously.

With my past as a gynecologist, I knew exactly what he needed to know for birthing procedures, so I should make due on my promise and organize some notes for him.

Opening up the baby blue laptop Cassius had gotten me for my birthday, I opened the search engine to begin collecting all the relevant information.

...I won't get flagged for inappropriate content with this, will I?

It is educational after all.

...Though it was very weird that I was doing this, and I think Cassius was just placating me when he accepted my aid like one would a child.

But I was a weird kid anyway, so this would be par for the course.

Going through the various websites, I eventually crinkle my brow in annoyance.

Weird.

My plan for this life was to once again enter medical school, but this time with the goal as a surgeon just as my dream had been before.

So going through these medical procedures should bring me at least some amount of joy or excitement.

So why do I feel so... unfulfilled?

This kind of stuff was my goal, right?

Yet I still couldn't help but feel that something was missing.

'You were really special in that movie we did, after all. I want to see you on the screen again, and maybe we could do another movie together.'

Why was I remembering that now?

I had thought about returning to acting a few times, but that motivation had died down in the months after Ai's retirement.

Even then, the motivation was born out of Ai's wishes rather than mine.

But... did I really want to be an actor?

Not for Ai, but for myself?

That movie, which seems to hold so much importance to Ai, was just a one-off thing I did to give Ai a chance to further her career. Nothing more, nothing less.

Walking over to my desk, I open one of the drawers before pulling out the slip of paper holding Director Gotanda's number.

Maybe...

No, I'll do something about this later.

For now, I have some information to gather.

----- Ai POV -----

Could a woman ever feel so happy?

I had thought this when my babies were born, again when I told them I loved them, and once more when I had been proposed to.

And yet again, I was thinking the same thing.

But it was a bit different this time.

See, before I had felt immensely happy in a certain moment... and I suppose I had felt the same after finding out I was pregnant... but for the past two months, the afterglow of happiness has been constant.

Every morning, even if I had some nausea, felt amazing.

Every time I made lunch or dinner, I couldn't keep the genuine smile off my face.

And, without fail, every time I received an ounce of affection, my world would brighten up a little bit more.

Love... such a scary thing.

"And you're going to get a lot of it..." I whisper while caressing my stomach.

A loving older brother and sister, a father who will always be there for you, and a mother who loves you so so much.

Now, we just need to get you a name, don't we?

"Huh? Did you say something?" Cassius asks.

"Oh, nothing. Just mumbling." I reply.

"Okay. Well, we're almost there. Let's hope this guy isn't a fan or is at least professional about it."

As for where we were going, it was to the hospital for an ultrasound, and where we would learn the gender of our new child.

"It'll be fine. The last one went well." I say.

Yes, the doctor back when Ruby and Aqua were born was nice, even if he was a fan.

What was his name again?

Gogo? Goruu?

Anyway, he never kept his promise in the end, but I don't blame him for it.

He probably just fell asleep.

Though I wish I could have said goodbye before we left...

"We're here. Do you want me to carry you in?" Cassius asks with a smirk.

I feel my face flush in embarrassment, remembering the times he's carried me around the house, which has rapidly increased in frequency since my pregnancy.

"N-Not in public, stupid."

He then pays the taxi driver before stepping out and taking my hand, our fingers interlacing, my lips curling into a grin in response.

Even after having sex an uncountable amount of times and trying every position we could, the simple, innocent act of holding hands still makes my heartbeat quicken in elation.

You've turned me into a maiden, Cassius~

Stepping into the hospital lobby, I make sure my beanie and sunglasses are on while Cassius talks to the receptionist.

While my popularity is still quite strong, it's slowly cooled down into more of a passing thought or legend, articles showing my past performances rather than wondering what I was up to.

So I was slowly getting closer to being able to reveal myself to the public.

But for now, I still had to keep myself hidden.

Soon enough, I went through the vaguely familiar procedures, this time with Cassius at my side rather than President Ichigo, and it seemed that my doctor didn't know who I was this time.

"So, Mr. Doctor. What's the gender?" Cassius asks.

"Uh... one moment." The doctor says with a concerned expression.

Was there something wrong?

"Congratulations, Ms. Hoshino. You have a healthy baby girl in your stomach."

A girl...

I was having another baby girl!

"It's just that..." The doctor continues.

"What. What is it?" Cassius asks with a worried expression.

"Well, see for yourself."

The doctor then turned the screen toward us, revealing a familiar picture of a blurry grey figure that looked more like a bean than a baby.

Specifically... two of them.

"Rather than a baby girl, it would be more proper to say baby girls. Congratulations once again, Ms. Hoshino, you have-"

"-Twins." I say breathlessly.

I... still got it, huh?

Turning my head, I see Cassius' face showing a range of emotions.

Surprise, worry, confusion...

He then takes a deep breath before meeting my eyes.

His eyes sharp and resolute, yet radiating that love and kindness I've fallen for over and over again.

"Seems we have some work ahead of us, huh?" He says while gently stroking my hair.

I calm the blush on my cheeks while leaning into his touch.

"Mmm. But we can do it. I've already had practice, after all." I say softly.

"Yeah... but you're surprisingly fertile, huh? We could probably start a country together." He jokes.

Ah, my blush was back again.

--- Nimbus - Cherry Popper ---

1. Dear God - Avenged Sevenfold

2. All I Want - Toad the Wet Sprocket

3. As Long As It Matters - Gin Blossoms

4. Counting Blue Cars - Dishwalla

5. Brian Wilson - Barenaked Ladies

6. Dance Inside - All-American Rejects

7. Santeria - Sublime

8. Yellow - Coldplay

9. Glycerine - Bush