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It was around midnight when Ken woke up, eyes adjusting to the darkness and dim blue light of the TV by his door.
Before he could sit up he heard his step father talking in the living room.
"So how long have you been touching my daughter?"
Ken froze in place, what the fuck? He thought. He slowly sat up and grabbed his phone, opening it to check his notifications.
Ken sat on the edge of his bed, trying to overhear everything in the living room. Faint crying, the angry huff his mother always did.
what was going on?
Ken tried to force himself to just get back to bed. But he couldn't. He grabbed Daisukes blanket and wrapped it around himself as he mimicked being sleeping and walked out of his room, being as quiet as possible. Ken looked at his parents, talking quietly in the kitchen by the arch to the living room. He grabbed his cup from the island and took a sip. "What're you talking about?" He asked in a sleepy tone.
"Sleeping arrangements. Since it involves everyone." Ken's mother said. This made Ken feel nervous. "Why?" His mother gave him the 'not now' look.
Ken internally sighed. He then looked past his parents to the living room, seeing Akemi on the couch crying. "What happened" Ken asked, knowing he wouldn't be told. "We'll tell you later". Ken set down the cup and murmured an "okay," and walked back to his room.
He didn't really remember how long it was before he left his room again, unable to sleep. Blanket still wrapped around him as he walked to the living room. On the first couch was his father and Akemi, who was still crying. On the other couch to the side of the first, was Sam and his mother. Sam looked quietly angry.
"So what happened?" Ken asked, looking from the crying Akemi to the quiet Sam.
"Is anyone going to fucking explain?" Ken asked again.
"How many biological men do we have in the house?" Ken almost scowled at her. "And how many hormonal teenage girls do we have in the house?"
"Oh."
"Yeah. So you're going to be sharing a room with Akemi to make sure they don't do anything more."
Ken was holding in anger. "Just kick him out. It's simple."
"Simple? That's my son and I'm not going to throw him out in the summer, he has no place to go."
"It shouldn't matter. He's the predator, why should you care where or what he does." Ken leaned against the wall.
"Oh okay, so if you want to be an unempathetic bitch, then I'll kick you out at 18. See how you like it."
"Mom, just because I said I don't care where a pedophile goes doesn't mean I don't have empathy." Ken was trying not to look upset.
"You want me to ruin his life." Mom said as she stood up with that petty anger in her eyes.
Ken wanted to roll his eyes.
Sam began to speak, "Okay then, ///////. Be like that" Ken wanted to beat Sam's face in for calling him his birth name. So respect just goes out the window as soon as he's upset, Wonderful.
Ken turned away and said "I'm going back to bed."
In his room, Ken couldn't sleep. He opened his phone and began texting Daisuke.
'something happened. my sisters upset and my brothers not being kicked out. im upset and scared. he couldn't just stop with me, could he? I'm really upset. Mom wants me to share a room with Akemi until he moves out. I told her I didn't want to, and that she should turn him in or kick him out. She said I don't have empathy. I'm upset. I love you, I'm sorry for the late night message.'
Ken tried to sleep, he honestly tried. But his anxiety didn't allow him. A mind that refused to quietly refused to let him sleep. He got up and stepped into the bathroom, about to text Daisuke again. Probably an 'i love you' or something. When he heard his mother start yelling in the living room, followed by Akemis crying.
He began an audio note and held his breath, holding the phone close to the closed door.
He got at least a minute of their yelling. Ken didn't realize he needed to cry until he sent the audio and texted
'they're yelling at her. I don't know if you can hear her but moms saying it's also Akemis fault. I feel suffocated. I love you.'
Ken cried quietly in the bathroom for at least three minutes. Listening to his mother yell at Akemi to get up. Akemi was crying louder now. "Just kill me, just kill me!" Akemi wailed as her voice faded into the back bedroom. (Their parents.)