***
Ken, Daichi and Chris left the hotel shortly after dropping of their things. The sun was shining in the sky, the late summer breeze showing signs of cooling down for Autumn.
This was the first time they'd left the hotel like this since arriving in America. Granted they had a full schedule and it was only the 3rd day.
Chris hailed a taxi and the three got in. Both Ken and Daichi were like country bumpkins as they took in the sights of the city through the windows.
Around 5 minutes later, they arrived at their destination. It was a fancy looking restaurant just off the busy road. Judging by how many people were inside, it seemed to be a popular establishment.
"Table for 3?" The waiter asked.
"No, we have a reservation under Chris." His father replied.
"Excellent, someone is already here waiting for you." He said, leading the trio into the restaurant.
As they turned the corner, they saw Yuki patiently waiting at one of the round tables. The moment she looked up, her eyes lit up like fireworks.
"I missed you guys!" She said, hugging each one of them individually.
Despite being in the country for 2 days now, she hadn't been able to interact with the three of them, feeling a little left out. It was clear that she wasn't expecting this situation when Chris said that they would be going as a family.
But she was not a greedy person. She didn't want to interfere with the Japanese National Team duties that they had.
"You guys were so good today, both of you." She stated, looking at her boys with pride.
"Ahem…" Chris seemed to be feeling left out as he grabbed his wife's hand and tried to get her attention.
"Yes yes dear, you too." She replied with a chuckle.
Both Ken and Daichi let out a laugh. A lot had happened since they left Japan, yet there was still a long way to go before they were finished.
Since they'd now won 2 of their games in Group A, they were sitting on top of the leader board. Of course there were still 2 games that needed to be played today, Canada vs South Korea and Chinese Taipei vs Dominican Republic.
But it could be said that they had started off their World Cup campaign wonderfully.
The family chatted for a while before looking at the menu. Chris read out the options to Yuki while Ken did the same for Daichi.
It turned out that this was one of the best Italian restaurants in California, and judging by the costs, they certainly charged as if they were the best.
Yet Chris didn't flinch as he told them to order whatever they wanted.
Eventually, they ordered a spread of dishes ranging from pizza to carbonara.
While they waited for the food, Yuki got straight down to business.
"So, have you been making sure to message Ai while you've been away?" Her face was stern, leaving no room for Ken to make up any excuses.
"Yes mom… The time difference makes it a little tough, but I've messaged her every day since we got here." He said truthfully, not wanting to face his mother's wrath.
Daichi couldn't help but grin, seeing his brother under interrogation. Yet he seemed to have forgotten that Ken also had his achilles heel.
"Mom, ask Daichi if he's been messaging Miho." Ken said with a goading smile.
Yuki perked up at this information before she turned her attention to Daichi.
Yet Daichi merely chuckled, as if he was the perfect child. "I message her every night, we even hang out every day since she's with the team."
"Very good Daichi, I just hope that you're treating her right." Yuki said, sounding pleased.
Daichi sent a smug expression to Ken as if he'd easily escaped the interrogation. However, his face changed when he saw that Ken was still wearing his goading smile.
'W-What does he have up his sleeve?' He thought, feeling a little panicked.
Ken let out an audible sigh, gaining the attention of everyone at the table.
"I just find it a little weird that she doesn't really know anything about you. She only realized that you played for Osaka today, even though you've been talking so much. What do you guys even talk about?" Ken acted out his part perfectly, seemingly showing his deep concern for his brother.
Yet when their eyes met, Daichi could feel that it was all intentional.
'That bastard!'
"That's wonderful of you to be looking out for your brother Ken." Yuki said, reaching out and grabbing his hand on the table.
Yet in the next moment her eyes darted to Daichi. Judging by her expression, he knew that there was no way of getting out of this painful conversation.
He could almost hear Ken's inaudible laughter from beside him, taunting him in front of their parents.
However, all he could do was suck it up and speak about the truth.
"We've been doing a lot of chatting about our plans for the future. Rather than talking about the people who we are now, we've been speaking of our dreams and aspirations."
Daichi felt his face redden a little, but he didn't hear any laughter or anything from those present at the table. He looked around, feeling a little embarrassed, but all he saw was Chris and Yuki smiling back at him.
Ken himself was flabbergasted. Just what kind of 16 year old kid was this mature?
He had thought that maybe their messages were of a dirty nature, yet Mr. Goody two-shoes over here was talking about his dreams for the future instead.
Ken suddenly felt a little bad for throwing his brother under the bus like that, but it was just so they could experience the same level of discomfort together as a family.
He placed his hand on Daichi's shoulder and smiled. Daichi turned and looked at him, reciprocating the smile.
The two brothers felt closer than ever, despite being away from each other for over half a year while they attended different schools. Yet that meant nothing in this moment.
"Did you tell Mom and Dad how many kids you decided to have with Miho yet?"
"AH"
Daichi's face twisted as he heard the exclamations from his mother who had just stood up in shock. It wasn't only him, Chris began to cough, trying to control his reaction.
"Hahahaha!"
Ken let out a peel of laughter, feeling a sense of happiness in that moment.