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"Sorry about the mess."

As soon as you and Tooru entered back in the living room, he immediately started to scoop every toy off he could scavenge in his arms to make room for you on the couch. Once a path was clear, your head shook at his apology.

"I don't mind," you said gently and assisted him to pick up the plastic truck from the fuzzy rug. "You should be mad at Iwaizumi for not cleaning up."

He chuckled at your joke and smiled down at you once retrieving the toy truck from your hand. "It's okay. I know I shouldn't be buying him this many toys anyways."

You agreed while staring at the rest of the dolls and puzzles games laid out across the floor. It looks like toy heaven to a kid's eye if they ever walk into this place. At the same time, the toys brought character to the penthouse like it's apparent that the child who lives here is happy and spoiled rotten.

You helped Tooru to collect the rest of Tetsu's toys and placed them in a toy box nearby the electric fireplace at the corner. Once tidied up, the athlete dropped his weight on the cream colored U-sofa in front of the flatscreen TV that's built on his wall.

"What a long night," he whined quietly as he blew out air, head leaning back at the edge of the couch.

You peered back at him in worry. "You should probably get some rest."

His expression says it but you can tell he's trying to fight off the exhaustion oozing on his body. He hummed to retort. "I would hate to call the night short."

You huffed a breath at his stubbornness but then stared at a picture that caught your attention on a bookshelf nearby. It was a photograph of Tooru holding Tetsu on his back - both in a midst of laughter and grinning faces. A volleyball was in between Tetsu's hands as he crowned it on top of his dad's head, nothing but smiles. The picture itself looked so serene, you can almost hear the gleeful laughs from the two boys through the glass frame.

A series of photographs framed in brown wood welcomed you as more shots of just Tooru and Tetsu together. Some are single shots, but some are with a few more men and one of them are with Hajime the most. You can also speculate the people you've met today, especially in one when Tooru participated in the recent Olympics with his golden medal hanging from his neck. Tetsu was even there in his dad's arms with the medal in his mouth.

Even photos of Tooru when he was younger gravitated your interest in his white and turquoise uniform. He even looked pretty back then, which was no surprise.

You were so enthralled that you didn't notice Tooru's presence neared yours, approaching from the side to look at the pictures with you.

"Oh, sorry. Was I-?"

"Not at all. You're free to look," he smiled, taking amusement from your intrigued expression and then wavered his soothing eyes back onto the bookshelf. His long finger traced a couple of books until he hooked a certain bind in the middle of the stack, revealing a white hardcover. "I want to show you this."

Before you can comprehend what the book was, your shoulders jumped when you felt the roughness of his calloused hand curled gently against yours as he guided you to the couch. He waited until you sat comfortably before Tooru took the seat next to you. With attentive eyes, you watched his hands open the book in between you two, laying it on top of his and your thigh.

It was a photo album.

The photos you were itching to see on his social media page, ones with Tetsu mostly, are all there.

"This is him when he was two months old," Tooru pointed. A picture of a red faced Tetsu in an infant form wrapped in blankets and a huge sock swallowing his head.

You never thought of saying this to anyone's child, but the fact that it's Tetsu in the picture, he is the most adorable baby boy you've ever seen. He looked almost bald despite his thin fringe peeking underneath his white beanie but you can imagine how similar he looks to Tooru as a baby.

He also introduced you to many pictures after, flipping through the page to see countless of photos in plastic films. Ones when he was slightly younger with Tetsu when celebrating his first birthday to the day he walked on his two feet, a lot of cherished moments that Tooru hold close to his heart that you wished you could've been there to see it for yourself.

A tinge of neglect soared within you while gazing at the memories that belong to him.

"He looks so cute here," you beamed with astonishing eyes, flashing onto a certain photo of Tetsu's face smothered in butternut squash purée.

"You like that one?" He raised his brows, leaning in closer to take a good look at it. Without your knowledge, you were too busy to notice that he placed an arm over the head of the couch behind you. "You can keep it if you like."

"Is that okay?" now you were ashamed to even express your fondness, but the assurance in Tooru's eyes made you feel less guilty.

He nodded while fishing for the photo in the sleeve. "Sure, I have plenty of him eating anyways."

As he was sliding the thin card out of the plastic, you noticed another photo card slipping off a page and landed by your feet. You obliged to retrieve it and hunched over your legs to swipe the picture up but the person in it captured your eyes.

It wasn't Tetsu or Tooru in the picture, but it was a woman.

Her long black hair cascaded down her back like a night gown and wispy bangs framed her clear forehead over her deep grey eyes. The lipstick she wore in the picture was deep red, it was almost the first thing you brought your attention to by how bright it was against her white, fair skin. Just like Tooru and Tetsu, she looked absolutely beautiful.

"Um, who-," when you lifted your gaze at the man next to you, his expression wasn't the same. His smile faltered at the image of the woman in your hand. Instead, his lips pressed together nervously. "Is this who I think it is?"

He took it from you and pushed it deep in a random page inside the book. "Yeah, but she's not important."

"Yet, you keep a photo of her," you didn't want to push his buttons too far, noticing how uneasy he looked so you corrected yourself. "Sorry. You don't have to tell me anything."

"No, I plan to. I want to," Tooru responded quickly as his tone grew a bit lighter. Before he continued, his pair of eyes fell down at his lap and muttered. "The only reason I keep it is because, in case Tetsu ever wonders what his mom looks like. It's not for me to keep but for him."

"I see." You finished lastly, realizing that the air between you two gotten tighter and you weren't sure if he wanted to deepen the conversation.

But since you're on the topic, you might as well take the opportunity to ask.

"What happened with her if you don't mind me asking?" Curiosity brightened on your face and Tooru sense your sincere interest in them.

He answered without hesitance, closing the book and kept it at his lap. "She decided to leave us the day she gave birth to him."

Regardless of how flat he sounded, you can still feel the despair in them. With frozen eyes, you were deeply engrossed in the silence before Tooru stated lowly.

"I was twenty-two when it happened."

So, he began.

"Of course, I was shocked when she told me she was pregnant. She's been taking birth control at the time, but I think what happened was she accidentally skipped a day," he said casually with a voice so low, he was getting lost in his own thoughts. "We weren't anything special, really. I wouldn't consider her my girlfriend or someone close to me. We were just messing around. I was young and dumb, so I take part of the mistake."

Mistake? Is that what he always thought?

You stayed quiet, beckoning for the nervous male to keep going.

"She wasn't onboard in being a mother. Her plan was to abort him at two months but I wanted to keep him. I thought it would be good for us to have a child and I offer to take care of everything. I know it is unfair to ask since she's the one carrying him but I remember that day when she told me she was pregnant, my world suddenly became... just about him."

Then you rose your gaze at him when you heard his light voice began to crack, growing deeper the more he spoke. Now, Tooru wasn't looking at you but at the empty space in front him.

"So I changed, I wanted to change because I would never want him to be like me. At least, not the person I used to be," he gave out a breath lowly. "So she told me after she gives birth, we'll go on our separate ways."

You were speechless, hell, you were more than just speechless. It was like you fell into a different dimension to hear his cruel past, a past you would never expect. All along, you thought he had a simple marriage, raised a kid, and then filed a divorce.

But that's not the case. This was beyond your assumptions of him. Not only did you acknowledge him, but you respect him even more as a man for raising Tetsu all four years. How difficult that is for a single parent to carry a heavy responsibility, a young single parent at that.

"Tetsu's not a mistake." By your correction, Tooru wondered his eyes back to you. You continued, "He's a blessing."

Confusion was quickly washed and replaced with acknowledgement, soon to understand your advice as he nodded.

"I honestly can't imagine a world without him if that really happened to him," you stated sadly; mind jumbled in pieces by envisioning his existence being completely gone.

But you couldn't. Without him, you wouldn't have met Tooru.

"Neither can I," he uttered. "Like I said, I really mean it when I said she's not important. Ever since that day, I never saw her again."

Nodding at his promising words, you affirmed, "I believe you."

Then Tooru threw his eyes at you and you swallowed at the strong stare he gave, bowling over at the intensity in them that made you shiver in anticipation.

"Listen, [Name]," he started with helpless sigh, a long one.

Just like he commanded, you listened.

"I like you."

Huh?

"Because I like you, I invited you over so you have a clear understanding about me and my son," Tooru announced. "I know we just met and this is probably a lot to know from me, but I'd rather let you know about our background now than later."

Then his hand caressed against yours over your lap, entwining his fingers in every space between your knuckles. There was a hindrance, resisting himself to say more as he said this in so lowly with a crestfallen expression.

"But if you don't want to keep seeing me, I understand that too."

There's just no time and space for you to think of the proper words to say. Tooru's confession wasn't a surprise yet you were not expecting to hear it soon.

The lump in your throat made it hard to breathe, but it didn't stop you from saying your truth.

"Oikawa fucking Tooru," you hitched and his eyes flickered straight to yours by the harsh tone. With eyebrows curving and lips quivering, you never thought joy could hurt this much. "Of course, I want to keep seeing you, idiot."

Despite the insult, the man beside you was only admiring your expression that is filled with need as if your eyes are only meant for him to look at.

"I do," you continued to say, "I really do."

"I hear you," he finally replied - voice becoming hoarse.

With your hand still in his, Tooru inched his head forward slowly with eyes hooding. The moon light poured through the patio door reflecting the beautiful chocolate color of his hair and eyes, he looked so bright. His pupils sparkled majestically before he closed them when his nose slightly brushed against yours.

You simply waited for the second to roll by, waiting for his lips to touch yours but he moved. Instead of your lips, Tooru pecked at the corner of your mouth.

Did he miss? He couldn't.

He had easy access to kiss you properly but he chose to not to do it. You wanted to scream at him for being such a gentleman - no, a tease. Perhaps, he wanted to wait.

But you certainly don't want to wait, not during a sweet moment, not now. The same Tooru who treats you so well was being far too nice to you for his own good. He deserves to be kissed for being a gentleman, for enduring all the hard work to raise Tetsu properly, and for being just him.

And just like that, you granted him that well-deserved kiss.

With your hands holding his head, you pushed your lips to his warm ones. An inhale of breath seethed with submission into your allurement as a groan left from his throat. Once you parted, he dove for another kiss but this time a longer one, now holding your head in between his large hands. Yours trailed down from his neck to the shirt of his collar when Tooru started to shift in his seat. Legs moving slightly to discard the photo album onto the floor as it dropped from the couch with a thud.

His hands fell to your waist, holding you close to his body while you snaked your arms around his neck to deepen the kiss. His teeth almost grazed over your bottom lip as he moved his head to kiss a different side of your mouth.

Just when your mind was getting lost, Tooru pulled away from your grip quickly. "Shit- Sorry, I..."

"What's wrong?" a pant escaped from you while trying to look at his solemn face.

"It's just..."

But he was once again entranced into your stare, which made it harder for him to control himself. With a warm blush creeping to his cheeks, Tooru let go of your waist to palm his face with two hands, both his elbows propped over his thighs. He kept groaning as if he did something atrocious.

"I told myself to go slow with you," he admitted, sounding so defeated.

"Oh," was all you said. That explains why he intently missed your lips. He was hesitant about kissing you. "I'm sorry."

He chuckled and finally gave a side glance, "Are you?"

"Not really," you laughed as well, seeing that he caught you red-handed. Suddenly, the air became lighter.

"So she's a vixen," he bemused the idea and you rolled your eyes. "Bear with me. I do need to take things slow."

"Slow?" You questioned with a brow up. Everything he said and did in the past, they didn't match his words.

"It's been so long since I've been with somebody," he paused. "And, it's just... I have Tetsu. I want to put him first, and I don't want to get carried away. This is the first time I've let someone in to his life so I can only expect dating would be different for us."

"I don't want to pressure you into anything you're not ready for, or make you feel obligated to do things because you're with me. I just want things to happen naturally as they should happen. And so far, it's been so natural with you," then he turned to you with a placid smile but staggered back into a frown. "But when it comes to Tetsu, I need to be more mindful."

You only wondered for a second before wrapping your arms around his bicep, making the brunette flinch in his seat. The thought of him putting so much thought about you and Tetsu only flattered you even more as a small smile stretched on your lips and your chin rested over his shoulder.

"We'll take it slow," you assured with your thumbs rubbing against his muscle. Just when you two met eye contact again, you felt the ease in his brown optics. "You're a great dad, you know."

With your gaze piercing through him, Tooru let out a pout. "You're so unfair, [Name]."

Lifting your head off his shoulder, your face wrinkled in bewilderment.

"If I was my old self, I wouldn't hesitate to kiss you down on this couch and carry you to my room and make you scream all night. You're lucky that Tetsu is here to stop me!" Tooru blurted mindlessly.

Then your mouth gaped at his shameless confession. "Are you trying to tease me?"

"You're the one who's being a tease, darling. The way you're looking at me right now, your hands touching me, your eyes..." His face turned away bashfully, refusing to explain himself since his pride is shrinking underneath your stare.

You let out a small laugh at him, although his sweet words are piercing through your heart like Cupid's arrows. You wanted more.

"We should get some sleep," Tooru informed, stopping himself from being drowned in to your presence - to your disappointment. "You can take the bed, I'll sleep here."

He wasn't kidding when he said he wanted to take it slow, because he's refusing to give you a goodnight kiss after you washed up and changed out of your night attire to his old sleepwear. Baggy, but comfortable.

This was going to be more painful than you thought.

"Goodnight," the man in his gray sweatshirt and lounge shorts bid you a warming smile at the doorframe of his bedroom.

You nodded, quietly whispering back to him due to Tetsu's room a few feet from you two are. "Goodnight."

"Dont forget your alien," he said while handing you the old plush doll into your hands.

The soft material instantly warmed your palm and brought an uplifting smile on your lips by Tetsu's reminder earlier. A kiss was planted at your cheek before Tooru turned his body around, eyes still glued to your mesmerized form.

"Sweet dreams, darling."

And for the rest of the night, being drenched in Tooru's blankets and pillows that smelled like him, you hope to dream about the two Oikawas. Eyes heavy, your hands clutched onto the alien doll against your chest and eased yourself into a deep slumber.

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Posted: 04-22-21

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A/N: Thank you everyone for reading the first arc of Daddy Material! This part of the story mainly focuses on the relationship between the reader and Oikawa just to get some romance, sparks, chemistry, whatever you want to call it. I'm going to take some time to map out the rest of the story, which the reader will be more involved in Tetsu's life; the Parenting arc. I'm also going to clean up past chapters as well since I wrote this story blindly lol perhaps adding character detail and what they look like for further chapters.