A Father's Happy Ending

//Actual final post for the site. I wasn't happy with the ending I gave Asuka and her family before, so I wanted to give it another shot. If I don't end up being dissatisfied with this one I'll probably go back to to being dead after this. "Hey. Sock. Is my mane still good?" Mateo questions his wife on the state of his hair for about the fifth time since he'd styled it an hour ago. Asuka rolls her eyes, but her coy grin betrays her feigned annoyance. "Yes Matty. It looks great." Mateo pops a grin of his own. This was a running game he played with Asuka. Ask her a question, get a clear answer, and see how many times he could ask her that very same question in a day before she told him to shut up. After Asuka's response, the door in front of the couple opens, and they are greeted by a familiar face. "What's up nerd?" Asuka casually greets her brother in law the same way she has since they started their band. Mateo simply nods. "Good to see you Juno." To this, Juno responds with his own nod. "Yeah, same here Mateo. Been a while since we've gotten to see each other." His attention then turns towards Asuka as he turns to let the two inside. "You know, the usual. Work, work prep, and the weekly dates with your sister." At this, Asuka barely stifles a chuckle. "C'mon. You don't have to put it that way. You guys have been married for 20 years." (Naruto music because it's just a mood for Kisho: https://youtube.com/watch?v=NpcQcNIuATk&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE ) At 72 years old, Kisho Yakushi was now the oldest member of his family. Back in Neighpan, he might have been called the 'head' of his family, but here, he was just the oldest. Even though he was the oldest, he barely looked a day over 50. His wife, Betty was both jealous of his seemingly immortal appearance, and utterly convinced she was the luckiest mare in the world. Apparently she'd thought he would have shrank, and shriveled 10 years ago due to how much work he'd done in his life. The joke was on her though. Kisho still looked like a model for a stallion's hair care brand, and she was now the one that looked like a grandma. It didn't matter to him anyway. Kisho loved Betty no matter how old, or wrinkly she got. Even after 50 years, he never once had any thoughts otherwise. "Hey everyone! Sorry we're a little late! Mateo couldn't decide what coat he wanted to wear for our 2 minute walk." Kisho's ears perk up as his eldest daughter's voice comes from his foyer. He would get up to greet her, and his son in law, but he knows they're already heading to the dining room, where he's currently seated. He can get his hugs when they enter the room. "Hey! I've seen his collection. I don't blame him for taking his time!" Juno chuckles as he leads Asuka, and Mateo into the dining room. Upon seeing the two, Kisho opens his arms/forelegs wide, with a gigantic smile. "Asuka! Mateo! Come here and give your Otōsan a hug!" Even with their hands/hooves full, the two know not to decline a polite command from Kisho. If the man wants a hug, you give him a hug. Kisho makes sure to make his hug as tight as he can, and the two respond with much less forceful squeezes of their own. After the hug separates, the two go to head to the kitchen. Kisho begins to push himself up out of his chair to follow them. "Let me help!" To this, Asuka turns around and smiles at him. "It's okay dad. You can sit back down. We're making dinner tonight." Curses! Kicked out of his own kitchen! Well, it would be 6 against one, as Kisho knows his wife, and Granddaughter would also insist he let his children cook for the night. With a playful 'humph', Kisho plops back down into his seat, and accepts his defeat. As the daughters and their husbands work diligently in the kitchen to prepare dinner, Kisho, Betty, and their granddaughter Ami sit around the dining table, making conversation. "So, Ami. How are your classes going?" Kisho questions. "They're pretty rough Ojīchan, but thankfully, my study group has been really helpful this semester." For a moment, Kisho thinks back to his own grandfather. Had he heard something like this from Kisho, he probably would have been fairly harsh in his comments. Kisho had decided the day he met Asuka's son, Cyan that he wouldn't be like his own grandfather. He was going to be loving, and supportive of his grandchildren. He wanted to push them towards the right path with love, and kindness, rather than judgemental words, and cold stares. "That's good Ami! I know medical school can be tough, but I know you'll become a great nurse one day." As Kisho, Betty, and Ami converse, the 4 in the kitchen appear to be having a conversation of their own. Mateo is currently trying to guess what kind of job Hiari had before she was placed on her pension, and Asuka keeps telling him to stop. Juno keeps trying to get Mateo to stop messing with his soba, but it sounds more playful than aggravated. Almost 3 quarters of the way through the cooking, the doorbell rings. Kisho stands up to go answer the door, only for Mateo to exit the kitchen with an "I got it!" Curses! Foiled again! Kisho hears the door open, followed by Mateo speaking in a somewhat shocked tone. "Woah! If it isn't the champ himself!" At this, Kisho leans as far out of his seat as he can to look into the foyer. It's then that Kisho sees Mateo ruffling the hair of his son, Cyan. The sight causes tears to start welling up in Kisho's eyes. It had been quite a while since Kisho had seen his grandson. In fact, the last time he'd seen his grandson at a family gathering had to have been at least a year ago. It was completely understandable though. Cyan did important work as a Firefighter, and he needed to be available around the clock. When Cyan is finally able to break the noogie hold of his father, he enters the dining room, and immediately wraps himself in the arms of his grandfather, and grandmother. Kish hears an excited squeal from the other side of the dining room as Ami hurries over to the three, and attack hugs her cousin from behind. This is shortly followed by the entire family huddling around Cyan in one big hug ball, with everyone expressing their surprise, and joy at seeing Cyan. Cyan simply accepts that he will be trapped in a sea of hugs for the foreseeable future, and makes sure to give his mother a kiss on the cheek while he's at it. After dinner has been set out, and everyone is seated, the meal begins. As the family eats, and converses, Mateo turns to Cyan to pose a question. "So, how'd you manage to get a night off big guy?" At this question, the table goes silent, as everyone waits for the answer. "Well, I mentioned the family dinner at the station a few days ago, and I guess the chief heard me. Yesterday, he told me he was going to let me have the night off so I could go to the dinner. Then, this morning he decided to extend it to tomorrow as well, so I could spend a day with you guys." This is met with excitement from the whole family as various family members begin rattling off ideas for things for the family to do together. As the rest of the family excitedly makes plans for tomorrow, Kisho looks on with a warm smile. It's been so long since he'd seen his whole family together like this. He'd missed it so much. Without warning, the floodgates are opened, and tears begin to pour down Kisho's cheeks. He tries his best to wipe them away, and hide them, but there's no fooling the eyes at this table. "What's wrong dad? Are you okay?" Hiari questions from the other side of the table. "Yes. I'm fine Hiari. I'm just overjoyed to finally get to have dinner with everyone again." To this, the rest of the table agrees, and another group hug is initiated. Kisho cherished his family with every fiber of his being, and knowing they were all living happy lives of their own gave him peace of mind. Though he dreads the day that he will leave them to go see his parents again, he will be happy knowing that he did his best to make sure his family lives happy lives. But for now, dinner is the focus. He can't let everyone's delicious food go to waste!