"What time did you say Grandpa is coming?" Ken asked.
"He should be here in a few minutes, stop asking." Chris responded, feeling a little exasperated.
Ken, Daichi, Yuki and Chris were all sitting at a table in the same restaurant they visited the other day. It had been an hour or so since the game had finished and all 3 boys seemed to be hungry and exhausted.
Ken especially seemed rather antsy in that moment. This was because his father had been acting weird ever since seeing his Grandfather, almost as if he was upset with him.
Yuki also seemed to be somber, seemingly in on the situation.
He suddenly knew what it felt like for his family when he would keep his secrets from them.
As Ken tapped his foot under the table, a tall figure appeared from around the corner, being ushered over by a waiter. His serious expression lit up upon seeing his family, bringing a smile to his face.
"Sorry we're late." Mark said, coming closer for a hug, starting with Ken.
Once Ken moved in to hug him back, he blinked a few times, as if he couldn't believe his eyes. Standing behind his Grandfather was a handsome teenage boy with olive skin, someone he was very familiar with.
"S-Santiago?" Ken uttered in shock, his face full of confusion.
The guy waited patiently by the side as Mark completed his greetings around the table. He moved back towards Santiago and placed his hands on both the teen's shoulders before taking a deep breath.
"You guys have met before, but I'll make the formal introductions now. This is Santiago… My son." Mark said, his face turned up in a smile.
"EH!?"
Both Ken and Chris shouted out in shock, both of their gazes turning to each other, as if questioning what they heard was real.
Poor Daichi and Yuki who couldn't understand English, looked towards them with confusion.
"What did he say?" Daichi nudged Ken and asked him to translate.
Only after a few moments did Ken snap out of his stupor, quickly repeating his Grandfathers words back in Japanese for both his mother and brother.
"EH!?"
This time, the two of them were the ones to go into shock. Never in their lives would they have expected such a revelation, especially from a man of Mark's age who was in his mid to late 60's.
Santiago didn't seem bothered by their reaction, even thinking that it was a little funny. He pulled out the seat for his father before sitting down next to Ken, his eyes shining as he looked at him.
"Apparently I'm your Uncle, but I would prefer if you would call me brother." Santiago said, feeling a little embarrassed.
Of course Ken was too stunned to respond with any coherent words, so he just nodded slowly. Even though the kid was older than him in this life by a year, it didn't mean that he could so casually call him Uncle all of a sudden.
"D-Dad, would you care to explain this?" Chris asked, taking the news of his newfound brother not so well.
Mark smiled, seemingly enjoying the look of confusion on everyone's face.
"Well, there's not too much to the story. Santiago was living in a foster home when I met him a few years back, though he seemed to be struggling."
"He happened to be passing by when I was coaching a little league team at a local field. He would often watch as the kids would have fun together." Mark said, turning his attention to the boy and placing his hand on the teen's shoulder.
"It took around a few weeks before he would join in, but the moment he held a glove I knew he was destined to play baseball."
Both Ken and Chris nodded, they knew how good Santiago was, especially after just playing against him earlier today. Yet that didn't quite answer the question.
As if understanding that he still needed more explanation, Mark continued.
"After a month, he stopped turning up altogether. For the first few days I wasn't too concerned, but after 2 weeks I knew something was wrong."
"I searched the town up and down, looking for someone who might know where he was living. It took almost a week until I found him by chance, packing his bags into a car on the street."
Ken's eyes widened as he turned his gaze to Santiago. He could already guess what the next part of the story was, causing his heart to ache.
Mark let out a small sigh, "His foster family was shipping him off, not wanting to deal with him any longer. I saw a young kid who had closed his heart once more being sent off to another home."
Chris felt a bitter taste in his mouth as he heard the story. He hadn't objected once, just letting his father explain softly.
"Hehe, it took a little convincing, but I managed to adopt the kid and have been training him ever since."
COUGH COUGH COUGH
After saying these words, Mark broke out into a coughing fit. He clutched the side of his body with his left hand and tried to cover his mouth with the other.
The sound was morbid, causing everyone at the table to panic, yet none more so than Santiago.
"Dad! Are you okay?"
Only after a few moments did Mark finally calm down. He looked down at his hand and saw blood, yet he didn't seem surprised.
"My medicine please Santiago." He muttered before sneakily grabbing a napkin from the table and wiping away the blood on his hand.
Santiago fished in his bag and pulled out a pill bottle, passing it to Mark who then popped one in his mouth. A worried expression crept onto everyone's faces as they saw the man in pain.
"What was that about?" Ken asked, his expression serious.
Mark waved his hand dismissively, "Let's not talk about such subjects. Today is a time for celebration."