Ken sat in his room later that night, his mind still reeling from the bomb his father had dropped over dinner. While he had spoken of moving to the US for college, it still felt so far away.
"It's happening too fast." He muttered, lifting his hand up and staring at it for a while.
He hadn't seen his mother and father this happy for quite some time, which likely meant they had already made up their minds. Ken didn't blame his father for his decision, especially since Tetsuhiro had made it almost impossible to find work in Japan for him.
'Even beyond the grave that bastard is still screwing with our lives…' Ken gripped his fist tightly, feeling a flash of anger.
But then he sighed deeply, feeling a bit lost.
"I should probably tell Ai the news…"
A few minutes later he put his phone down after sending a message, letting out another sigh.
BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ
Not even a few seconds later, his phone began to vibrate, causing him to flinch. Though he wasn't surprised when he saw Ai's name pop up on the screen.
"H—Hey." Ken answered the phone meekly.
"…"
"Don't you 'Hey' me… Don't you think you should have called instead of sent a message for news like this." Ai said, her annoyance evident.
"Sorry. I'm still a bit overwhelmed by the news, but I still wanted to let you know right away." Ken explained, his tone soft.
There was a few moments of silence on the other end before she answered, "You're right, sorry I was a little harsh." Ai admitted, her attitude changing.
The two then began to chat for a while as Ken filled her in on the details. Since Ai was involved in the Tetsuhiro incident, she knew everything that happened, so he didn't need to hide anything.
The problem was, even if she knew the reasons, it didn't make the information any easier to hear. On one hand, Ai wanted Ken to succeed no matter what, but on the other hand, she already missed him like crazy.
Sure they were in a long distance relationship right now, but it was only around an hour trip by train. If he were to move all the way to America, when would they be able to see each other again?
"Have you made your decision?" Ai asked, trying not to sound anxious.
Ken shook his head, "No. I only just found out tonight." He replied, feeling a little depressed.
"Where would you live if you stayed here?"
"I don't know… An apartment close to the school I assume."
Silence stretched out between them filled with various emotions.
"What do you think I should do?" Ken asked, but instantly he knew he was being selfish.
"Don't worry, you don't have to answer that." He quickly said, not wanting to put her in such a position.
"It's fine. I think it goes without saying that I want you to stay in Japan. But at the same time, I want you to chase your dreams. I want you to be that same person who worked so hard without complaining… The person I fell for." She stated, feeling a little embarrassed.
Ken's eyes widened briefly before a small smile reached his lips.
He still remembered her watching him back when Ai was a manager for Yokohama. Back when he still had his reservations about dating her, Ken would catch her staring for a little too long.
Just the thought made him happy for some reason.
But it quickly turned to sadness, as he imagined being so far away from her. Forgetting baseball for a moment, would he really be able to leave the country while Ai was still here?
He didn't know.
"Argh, I don't know what to do…" Ken stated, scratching his head in irritation.
"Just listen to your heart." Ai said softly.
"Hah! If I were to listen to my heart, I'd be on a train right now on my way to see you." Ken quipped a little cheekily.
"PFFT. Hahahaha" Ai's giggle rang out through the phone, infectious and cute as ever.
"Well I meant what I said…" Ai whispered, causing a shock to run through Ken's body.
"…"
He looked at the clock briefly, making some mental calculations in his mind.
"Gotta go, bye!"
BEEP BEEP BEEP
"Huh?" Ai looked at her phone with puzzlement for a moment before her cheeks puffed up in annoyance.
But a few minutes later, she received a message which made her heart swell.
Meanwhile, back in Yokohama, Ken ran down the stairs, the contents of his bag half hanging out.
"I'm off to Ai's place!" He shouted, blitzing out the door as if he was late for work.
Both Chris and Yuki looked at each other with confusion for a brief moment before their eyes widened in understanding. Without a word, Chris wrapped his arm around his wife and pulled her close.
"Our boy's are growing so fast." Chris said, letting out a small sigh.
"Mmm. Maybe we'll be grandparents soon." Yuki replied.
"KEURGH" Chris began to choke on his saliva, coughing loudly in response to the statement.
"Dad are you okay?" Daichi's voice rang out from the top of the stairs, concern in his tone.
Chris who was still violently coughing, turned to his son and gave a thumbs up.
"Oh, I'm gonna go see Miho tonight. I won't be back until tomorrow." Daichi added, heading back into his room.
"Ooo, two grandbabies." Yuki said under her breath, sounding excited.
Having just gotten his fit under control, Chris was once again sent coughing fit.
"Alright, I'm off mom and dad." Daichi said, waving as he went past.
"Oh Kenny just left too, if you hurry you might be able to catch up to him." Yuki said, waving to him.
"Oh cool, thanks."
With that, Daichi left the house and began jogging towards the train station. He managed to make it in time, seeing Ken waiting on the platform for the next train to Tokyo.