Summer break had finally arrived for the university students, and the institution Horitake attended was no exception.
After a journey spanning several hours, Horitake, now free from his studies, finally returned home.
The question, however, was which "home" he was returning to.
His parents had divorced during his first year of high school. Since then, every holiday return was a bit awkward. Should he go to his mother's side first, or his father's?
Based on the travel distance, Horitake chose to head to his mother's place first.
He knocked on the door, and it swung open.
Horitake's mother had known exactly when her son was due for his break. The moment she saw him standing there, her face lit up with joy. She practically pulled him inside.
A semester lasted half a year; it had been that long since Horitake had seen his mother. Seeing her now, he felt a genuine warmth in his heart.
The first thing Horitake said upon entering was, "I'm back, Mom. What's for lunch?"
Hearing that predictable question, his mother laughed. She rolled up her sleeves with the practiced air of a capable housewife and replied with a hint of pride, "A feast, of course! Just wait a little longer, son, it'll be ready soon. Why don't you go talk to your father for a bit?"
"My dad?" Horitake stared at her, dumbfounded. "Why would my dad be here? Didn't you two stop speaking to each other after the divorce? What does this have to do with him?"
His mother simply smiled and pointed toward the living room.
Horitake turned his head. To his utter shock, he saw his old man sitting there, leisurely reading a newspaper.
Horitake felt as though his brain couldn't quite process the data. "Dad?! What are you doing here? Why are you at Mom's house?"
His father lowered the newspaper and looked at his son. He let out a huff of mock annoyance. "Hmph. You brat, why can't I be here?"
Scratching his head, Horitake felt his confusion deepening. "No… I mean… you shouldn't be here, right? Didn't you and Mom divorce ages ago?"
Thwack!
A spatula collided playfully with the back of Horitake's head. His mother stood nearby, scolding him with a grin. "Silly boy, can't we get remarried?"
"What?!" Horitake was floored. "You two got remarried? How did I not know about this? When did it happen? Why would you even remarry?"
His father stood up, his expression turning stern as he approached his son. He rolled the newspaper into a makeshift club, looking ready to give Horitake another swat. "Listen to you, you little brat. What kind of question is 'why'? Your mother and I rekindled our feelings. Plus, we did it for your sake. Isn't it a good thing that we're back together?"
His mother stood beside his father, spatula in hand, watching him like a hawk. "Exactly. Is us being back together a bad thing?"
On one side was his father with the rolled-up newspaper; on the other was his mother with the iron spatula. As the saying goes, a great man knows when to yield. Faced with the very real threat of a "tag-team thrashing," Horitake wisely chose to follow his survival instincts.
He raised both hands in surrender. "It's a good thing! A great thing! Fantastic news!"
"That's more like it, brat," his father grunted, finally satisfied.
The parents, pleased with his response, called off the assault. His mother went back to the kitchen to finish the meal, leaving Horitake to chat with his father.
The conversation between father and son was fairly standard. Since he was back from university, his father asked mostly about his life there—his grades, his daily routine, his social life.
Horitake answered fluently, sharing whatever came to mind. The atmosphere was actually quite relaxed and pleasant.
However, Horitake couldn't suppress the nagging curiosity in his heart. Several times, he bit back the urge to ask how this had happened. How did they just suddenly remarry without a single word of notice?
His father, sensing his restlessness, let out a hearty laugh. "Alright, I know what you want to ask. Don't be so impatient. We'll explain everything when we sit down to eat. Honestly, for such a happy occasion, you're being awfully suspicious. I don't know what's gotten into you."
Horitake took the scolding with his head bowed, accepting it quietly.
Before long, his mother had laid out a magnificent spread. The family of three sat around the table, the picture of domestic harmony.
Horitake looked at the dazzling array of dishes on the table and allowed a strange, unreadable smile to touch his lips. Then, he looked up at his parents.
As the head of the household, his father officially signaled the start of the meal.
Once his father picked up his chopsticks, Horitake followed suit and began to enjoy the food. He had to admit, the first home-cooked feast after a long semester felt truly wonderful.
At the table, they finally began to discuss the remarriage.
According to his parents, this wasn't a whim or an impulsive decision. They had considered it for a long time, weighing every detail before deciding to reunite.
On one hand, their feelings for each other had truly returned. On the other, they wanted to provide a complete home for Horitake. They had kept it quiet specifically to give him a surprise.
Listening to these explanations, Horitake continued to move his rice around his bowl, seemingly calm. Suddenly, he asked, "So, do Grandpa and Grandma know about the remarriage? What about my maternal grandparents?"
His mother answered with a smile, "Of course they know. They were very supportive of the idea."
"So I was the only one kept in the dark," Horitake remarked. "Mom, Dad, you really had me going."
"Hahaha! What does it matter? We just wanted to see the look on our son's face!"
"So? Son, is the surprise good enough for you?"
Horitake nodded like a chick pecking at grain while he ate. "It is. It's a very big surprise. But…"
"But what?"
Looking at his father and mother, Horitake finally asked the question that concerned him most. "It's fine that you two got remarried, but what about the other two sides?"
His parents asked in unison, "What other two sides?"
Horitake first looked at his mother, his face devoid of expression. "What about 'Uncle'?"
Then he turned his gaze to his father, his voice equally flat. "And what about 'Auntie' and my little sister?"
The issue Horitake raised was an unavoidable one.
Since his parents had divorced, nearly a year had passed during which they had both married other people.
His mother had been the first to wed, starting a new family with another man. His father followed shortly after, marrying another woman and forming his own household.
Because Horitake was older, even though they had started new families, he hadn't changed how he addressed them. He didn't call his mother's new husband "Dad," nor did he call his father's new wife "Mom." He simply referred to them as "Uncle" and "Auntie."
His mother hadn't had any children with her second husband.
However, after his father remarried that "Auntie," they had a child together—Horitake's younger half-sister.
And so, Horitake's question hung in the air: It was all well and good for the two of them to remarry, but what had happened to the lives and families they had built in the meantime?
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