Surrogate Girl Dad Suguru
Summary: Suguru brings home Nanako and Mimiko after finding them locked in a cage at a secluded village.
You were in the middle of wrapping up your end of day tasks when Suguru called you. Your hands were occupied with a stack of papers you were to deliver to teachers, so you let the call ring through.
Before you could set the papers down, your phone rang again. He never calls twice in a row like that unless something's wrong…
You press the stack against your chest and fumble your free hand to swipe your phone to answer the call, “Hello?” you say with an edge of worry.
“Hey, are you done at the school?” His tone is that even cadence it’s always set to.
“I need you to pick me up, I’ll send you my location. Please don’t ask questions when you get here, I’ll explain later, okay?”
“Okay…” You’re getting a little worried again, wondering what condition you’re about to find him in.
“Make sure the backseat is clear too, we’ll need some extra room.” His words soften as he continues to speak.
“Will do. I’ll leave here in a few.” You’re trying to conceal the confusion that’s wracking your brain right now.
“Thanks, I love you.” And he hangs up before you can say it back.
You take a moment in your office to ponder what could be going on. You look at the location pin and he’s on some bridge in the outskirts of the city. He was out on a mission, today was his last day, but he usually reports back to the school before coming home. So, why is he in the middle of no where in need of a ride?
You immediately think to text Satoru who was already at home: [Have you talked to Sugu?]
Satoru replies seconds later: [Yeah, he just texted me asking me to make sure the guest room is cleared out.]
Now you’re really confused, is he bringing someone with him? Is that why you need extra room in the back seat?
You reply: [He just called me asking for a ride and told me to make sure there was room in the backseat.]
Satoru: [Weird. Guess you’ll find out when you get there.]
You scurry around your office and table whatever activity you were in the middle of doing, all now forgotten - you’ll get to it tomorrow.
You’re tense with anticipation the entire drive to his undisclosed location; unsure of what you’re about to come up on. What is so bad he didn’t want to tell you over the phone? Satoru was the overreactor, not you. So, why did he feel the need to be so discreet? Maybe because he knew you’d tell Satoru and he wanted to tell him first?
As you approach the bridge, your head light illuminates Suguru’s dark figure. He sticks out with that tall and towering body, then your eyes drop several feet. There are two small figures clinging to either side of him. You break to prepare for your stop and throw on your hazards. Two young girls frame your husband, trembling at his side, each of them have a hand gripped around a singular finger of his. Their teeny hands just big enough to grasp one of his fingers.
One girl has strawberry blonde hair and the other dark brown, both in bobs that go just past their chins. Their heads are both craned down toward the ground, concealing their faces.
Suguru’s eyes find yours through the windshield and you furrow your brows at him in confusion. His head jerks in his direction, beckoning you out of the car.
You closely examine the young girls as you approach; both in tattered clothes that are practically falling off of them, the girl with dark hair clings a teddy bear to her chest. Their shoes are barely shoes, gaping holes exposing their toes and pulling apart at the soles.
When they hear your footsteps approaching, they both twist into Suguru, burying their faces into the side of his hips.
He squats down between them and speaks to them in a hushed voice, hands resting on their backs, “Girls… this is my wife. You can say hi.” He looks up at you with sorrowful eyes, a tinge of discoloration outlines them and they’re glossy - full of an array of emotions.
The girl with strawberry blonde hair squeaks out a clipped, “Hi,” briefly looking at you before turning back into Suguru’s side. The dark haired girl doesn’t move, her face stays buried in his side.
“This is Mimiko,” he pats the dark haired girl on the head, “and this is Nanako,” patting the strawberry blonde girl next. “C’mon girls, let’s get in the car.” He stands up and they promptly follow him, still clinging to his side like he’s their lifeline. He ushers the girls into the back seat, clicking their seat belts into place, he whispers something to them before closing the door.
When he turns to face you, back to the car, the subdued mask he had been wearing slips. Now those eyes are flickering with rage, his brows pushed in together, and his cheeks gradually turning pink.
He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, collecting his thoughts, “I was dispatched to a village where I exorcised a cursed spirit. Then I found them. They’re orphans and after their parents died, the villagers locked them in a cage. They’re sorcerers, just manifesting their cursed technique and the village was afraid of them. They blamed the girls for all the evil happenings…” His voice starts to break like he’s swallowing shards of glass. “It took everything in me to not murder the people who so proudly declared that they had caged ‘two demons’, they were asking if I could exorcise them next…” He glances over his shoulder at the girls and then back to you, “I couldn’t leave them there. The only rational thing I could think to do was take them and they let me. So, here we are…” He relaxes against the side of the car, shoulders sagging and eyes fluttering shut.
“I understand that, but what’s your plan? We’re in no position to take in two kids…” You knew your husband had a big heart, but this… this was a lot to take in. Was he really expecting you all to become sudo surrogate parents in a day?
“I want to keep them with us for the weekend while I talk to the Higher Ups, see if they can take them in.”
“The high school only takes teenagers… there’s no way they’ll accept two little kids.” While the idea sounds nice, you know it’s a long shot.
“Yeah, well that’s why I’m gonna take Satoru to talk to them. They can figure something out. They’ll go there one day anyways.”
“Why couldn’t you tell me this on the phone?” You’re not sure where else to take this monumental conversation.
“I didn’t want them to hear anymore about all of this… Knew you’d be full of questions and I didn’t want to repeat their trauma in front of them.”
Your heart aches at your sweet husband’s empathy. He’s always so thoughtful of others - of course he would react this way when he sees children in distress. It’s not the most optimal situation, but it’s what you’ve been dealt.
You huff out a breath accepting the circumstances for what they are, “Alright, let’s get home.”
The girls are mostly silent the whole drive home. Only responding to Suguru with few words at a time before clinging to each other again. You look at them periodically in the rear view mirror and your heart breaks every time. These girls have gone through hell if when one adult shows them kindness they’re immediately attached to them. And when they meet an adult they don’t know, they’re petrified.
Even though they don’t talk much, Suguru continues his one sided conversation with them; talking to them about whatever comes to his mind:
“I believe we have some ice cream mochi, it’s all yours once we get home.”
“You’ll get to meet my husband, Satoru. You’ll like him, he’s one of the strongest sorcerers, just like me.”
“You’re safe now. I’ll make sure it stays that way.”
“Those things you see that no one else does, that’s a gift. It makes you special. I’ll teach you about it.”
You chime in intermittently, adding to Suguru’s soothing statements; ensuring their safety and comfort. You haven’t spent much time around children this young, so you’re not completely sure how to talk to them. You opt to follow Suguru’s lead since being this warm and subdued is a second nature for him.
The girl's incessant trembling eventually subsides when you’re close to home. Their heads are pressed together, their tiny bodies slouched inward and finally free of tension. A weight lifts off your shoulders at the realization that they are at ease. You already don’t know how to handle two normal kids, let alone two kids who are petrified and shaking with fear.
By the time you make it home, the girls are fading in and out of sleep. They’re trying to fight to stay awake, but their heads keep nodding down before jolting back up. When Suguru opens the car door, Nanako lets out a squeaky yawn, her small body shivering from the aftershock of the yawn. Mimiko whines softly and smashes the teddy bear against her face. They are in no hurry to move anytime soon. Suguru huffs a laugh as he leans into the car and scoops them both up, one over each shoulder. The fold over his shoulders and nestle into him, like they’re perfectly content falling asleep right here on his shoulders.
You hurry infront of Suguru to open the front door for him. When you enter, Satoru appears from the kitchen with wide eyes and a shocked look on his face. You place a finger to your lips, shushing him, and shooing him out of the way.
As Suguru walks in, you hear him take an audible sniff and he mouths to you, “They need a bath.” You don’t doubt it, so you immediately go to your bathroom and start running a bath while Suguru lays the sleepy girls down on your bed.
You stay in the bedroom with the girls while Suguru steps out to explain the entire ordeal to Satoru. You hear an astonished, “What?!” come from Satoru and then a forceful “Hush!” from Suguru. Then continued murmurs and whispers from outside the door.
You chuckle to yourself as you wait for the bath to fill while keeping an eye on the girls. When the tub is full, you squat down at the side of the bed and tap them awake with a feather light touch. Mimiko jolts straight up from her relaxed position and her pupils are dilated, frantically looking around the room. “Shhh… it’s okay. I got a bath ready for you girls, cmon.” Mimiko wakes her sister and they follow you into the bathroom. You expected them to refuse the bath or to be afraid of you. They are surprisingly subdued once the sleep fades from their eyes.
When you hand them both a wash rag, they hold it in their small hands and stare absent mindedly at it.
Nanako squishes it into a tight ball while Mimiko watches it float atop the water. It becomes devastatingly clear these girls have no idea how to use these items.
Once you help the girls get clean, your stomach jumps when you realize how dark the water has become. The same question rings out in your head: what did these girls go through? When was the last time they were cared for? When was the last time they were shown kindness and care?
Due to your lack of child sized clothing, you have to settle for your tshirts that fits them like a night gown.
By the time they are clean and dressed, they’re about to fall asleep standing up. You escort them back to your bed and tuck them in. They look like baby dolls against the massive sprawl of your king sized bed.
Nanako mutters, barely audible, “Where’s Geto?”
“I’ll go get him.” You step out of the room to find Suguru and Satoru sitting on the couch. Suguru is sitting in a relaxed position, back against the back of the couch, hair already down, and legs sprawled out on the ottoman. While Satoru looks like he’s about to fall off the couch, hunched forward with his elbows resting on his knees.
“Sugu, they’re asking for you.” You say just loud enough for him to hear you.
When he makes his way toward you, he pulls you in tight and kisses the top of your head, “Thank you. Now go calm your husband down, he’s freaking out.” He releases you and steps into the bedroom.
You plop down on the couch next to Satoru who looks uneasy to say the least. “So…?”
“So, like are we parents now? What the fuck is happening?” A sense of urgency lacing his words.
“He did, but there’s no way the Higher Ups are gonna take in two little kids at a school full of teenagers. And I’m not getting stuck babysitting them either.” He scoffs while burying his face in his hands.
“Satoru, it’s a temporary thing. He had to get those girls out of there.” You lean closer to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “They were literally treating them like animals. Do you know how much soap I just had to use on them? God knows the last time they slept in a warm, safe place. Please, just go along with it and we’ll figure something out.”
“Sorry, I just-” his leg starts bouncing with anxiety, “It was just a lot. He should’ve told us ahead of time.”
“Yeah, he could’ve dropped the news in a better way, but he was doing what he thought was best.” You begin rubbing soothing circles across his broad back muscles. You pause for a beat, “I just realized I gave up my bed when I could’ve put them in the guest room,” chuckling to yourself at the realization. Not like it’s a big deal, you slept most nights with your husband anyways. The guest bedroom was bland and neglected when it came to decorations. They’d probably feel more at home in your room.
Satoru finally settles down, his head laid in your lap as you talk about the drive home and the condition the girls were in. As you explain the brief encounter you had with them, Satoru gradually softens. Understanding the severity of the situation and his heart opening up just like yours did.
You realize it’s been a while since Suguru went into the room and you haven’t heard any noise in a while. You shimmy out from underneath Satoru and crack your door open just an inch.
The girls are fast asleep, side by side in the middle of the bed. Their arms wrapped across each other and the teddy bear squished between them. And Suguru is asleep on the floor with a thin blanket serving as his cushion between himself and the hardwood floor.
It can’t be comfortable, but he was so exhausted, it didn’t really matter where he fell asleep. You wondered if the girls asked him to stay or if he felt the need to stay. Regardless, all three were knocked out and looked at peace for the first time today.
You closed the bedroom softly and creeped by over to Satoru, “Just you and me tonight. Suguru has already passed out on the floor in there.”
Satoru pops up from the couch, “Seriously?”
“Yes, now c’mon. I’m tired.” You motion him toward their bedroom.
As you get ready for bed, you can’t help but wonder what the future is going to hold. Is this going to be a temporary thing? Will the school accept the girls? Or will you all have to rearrange your lives around these children with no where else to go?
You selfishly hope that the girls won’t become your permanent responsibilities. Your lives are not fit to have children in the mix. It’ll work out though. Someone will figure something out for these poor girls. And if that something is you all then you’ll make it work somehow - right?
Anon requested something like this a while back. Think I’ll make a quick part 2 to round off this little side story.
