After two months, Aomine Masaki returns from K City. After freshening up and eating lunch at his mother's place, he leaves the house and walks to his neighbour's place, curious about Takiyama Rie.
Does she still like beef soup?
Imagine his surprise when he sees that the house is replaced by a three-storey shrine. People are going in and out of the shrine, making wishes to the surreal rain god, and tying wishes on the cherry tree near the gate.
"How…?" Aomine Masaki frowns at the shrine's gate. Where did she go? Did she donate her place to some religious organization and leave this place? Why did she not tell him once?
Then again, they aren't exactly friends.
"Isn't this Aomine?"
He blinks his eyes when he hears the familiar voice. A woman with a huge belly is walking toward him. In her left hand, there's a big packet of french fries. A teen girl and two boys are walking behind her, on her sides, with a cold look in their eyes.
"You look like my friend, Takayama Ari," Aomine Masaki tells the woman with a frown.
It's not something that he should say to the woman he has just met. It's only been two months since he's been gone from this place. Surely, his friend can't get nine months pregnant in two months? It's impossible!
"Oi, Aomine, it's me." The woman's cheeks are chubby, a little red. Her eyes are dark and narrow, down-turned; her skin is smooth, glowing and a little tanned. "How could you not recognize me?"
"You…?" His voice is several pitches higher as his eyes become rounder and bigger. "But why do you have humans inside your belly?"
"It sort of turned out like this." Ari shrugs. "I have twins in there."
"What?" Aomine Masaki holds his head in disbelief. "How? When? Who?"
"It's been a long time, but I didn't know that I was pregnant." Ari lies through her teeth with a calm look in her eyes. "When you met me, I was already seven months pregnant."
"B-B-But--" He glances at her belly that is swollen like a balloon. "Who? Are you married?"
"No." She answers him nonchalantly, "Their father is somewhere very very very very far away."
Does she mean that the guy died? Aomine Masaki feels a rush of emotions in his chest. This woman is alone -- completely alone after her parents got divorced and grandparents died. She is even pregnant and the man is already dead. "You should have called me. When is the due date?"
"I heard that it was today." Ari puts her hand in the packet, grabbing a few french friends and stuffing it in her mouth. She's gluttonous these days. Her children are safe, but they aren't getting enough nutrients. So, they aren't ready to come out yet. "The doctor told me that it might happen within a few days."
"Someday?" His face cracks. "What kind of doctor is that? You look like you are ready to give birth right now."
"I may look like this." She runs her hand on her belly and sighs. "But my daughters aren't ready."
They need more dark elements. Where can she get them? Universal magic is not helping them. The artefact is not enough.
"Argh!" Aomine Masaki grabs his hair, worried. "You shouldn't be wandering on the streets anyway."
"I need to take a walk." Ari tells him, "If I stay at home, I will get crazy."
"Why is there a shrine then?" He glances at the house. "I thought that you were going to rent it."
"I rented it to the god." Ari lets out a pronounced sigh, "What I mean is… the shrine is rented. We live on the second floor."
"Of all the people in the world, why would you rent it to a priest?" Aomine Masaki feels a headache coming.
"It turned out like that." She gives him a vague reply. "Say Aomine, how's your life in K City? Your mother was praying for your promotion and grandchildren."
"I got promoted." Aomine Masaki announces awkwardly, "I am going on a business trip after next week."
"Where are you going?" Ari asks him curiously.
"NZ Country," He tells her, raising his chin high proudly, "I am the ambassador for SevenNineteen Brand. If you need discounts --"
"They don't sell food." She lets out a sigh again. "What will I do with discounts on cosmetic items? Friends like you are useless."
"Ari!" Aomine Masaki yells at her. "You are still a woman."
"Food is more important." She shows him the middle finger. "At the moment, I will sell you for food."
"Mother." Ai steps closer to her and bends down his knees to reach her eye level. "Let's go to the restaurant. You were craving chicken earlier."
When he hears the 'word', Aomine Masaki scowls at the boy. "Why are you calling her that?"
"What else would he call me?" Ari scowls at Aomine Masaki. "He's my son."
"..." Aomine Masaki looks at the boy and then, he looks at her. "Ari, say something that is logical."
"They are my adopted children." She rubs Ai's hair. "Aomine, I am leaving now. You should pay your respect to the neighbourhood god and make sure to leave a large offering."
After saying her piece, she walks away from him with three teenagers on her tail.
"Wait… are those…" Aomine scratches his head. "They aren't the dead guy's children, are they? Then, how old was that man?"
Seeing that the kids are teenagers, the man must be middle-aged or something. How did Ari fall for such an old guy? What is the story? Shaking his head, he runs after Ari, intending to join her for the evening snacks.
***
After a week, Aomine Masaki, dressed in a formal black suit, is in a conference room, presenting the SevenNinteen's products to the potential business partners.
"This is the collection for the spring season." He smiles warmly at his audience as he taps on the keyboard. "We are launching a new lipstick line, targeting the young women in their twenties. Spring season is famous among youngsters for the confession of love and hope. Girls are --"
He frowns when he sees people looking at the projection on the screen and laughing. Someone raises his hand, pointing at the screen, and laughs, "The colour of the ketchup would be famous among the youngsters… indeed."
Ketchup?
Aomine Masaki turns around to look at the screen. To his horror, the pictures of him with Ari and her adopted teen children are on the screen. The ketchup was smeared on her mouth as he's glaring at the camera. How did this happen? He looks at the laptop screen and realizes that he accidentally added those pictures in the slide last night when he was making the presentation.
"I am sorry for this." Aomine Masaki laughs nervously. "Let me show you the collection."
Among the audience, a pair of cold dark eyes narrow on the screen. Though he can't recognize the woman with chubby cheeks, Cina and Rilyah are recognized immediately.
If he can find the gods of Iravan, he can find the Renasir.