Sunday, 27 July 2001.
The Renkonan family was already inside their car, heading toward the amusement park. Zaboru was driving carefully, Ayumi sat beside him, while Zenshin and Arumi sat in the back. Zenshin looked calm as usual, focused on his ZGBA while playing Pokemon, his small fingers pressing the buttons with serious concentration. Meanwhile, Arumi was far more excited, pressing her little hands against the window as she watched the scenery and fast cars passing by.
"Waah… Papa car fast…" Arumi mumbled with wide eyes.
Zaboru chuckled while keeping his eyes on the road. "Not too fast, Arumi. Papa is driving safely."
Ayumi smiled warmly. "That's right. Your father might act reckless sometimes, but when he drives with family, he's very careful."
Zaboru laughed. "Of course. My precious cargo is here."
Ayumi looked satisfied with that answer, while Arumi only tilted her head because she did not fully understand what "cargo" meant. Zenshin, however, heard everything clearly. His eyes were still on his ZGBA, but his small mouth curved into a faint smug smile.
The car atmosphere was peaceful.
Too peaceful.
And because Zenshin was Zaboru's son, peaceful moments were sometimes merely opportunities for chaos.
After defeating a trainer in Pokemon, Zenshin slowly lowered his ZGBA and looked toward the front seats. He saw his father and mother talking casually, looking comfortable, close, and happy. Normally, that should have been enough for a child to feel safe.
But Zenshin was not a normal child.
He was bored.
And when Zenshin was bored, he became dangerous.
He blinked innocently, then asked in the softest voice possible, "Dad… is Mom your first love?"
The car became silent.
Ayumi immediately flinched.
Zaboru's fingers tightened slightly on the steering wheel.
Even Arumi turned away from the window and looked around with confusion because the atmosphere had suddenly changed, though she did not understand why.
Zaboru glanced at Zenshin through the rearview mirror. His son's face looked perfectly innocent, but Zaboru could see the truth in his eyes.
That little demon was smiling.
Zaboru chuckled awkwardly. "Heh… why are you asking that, Zen-chan?"
Zenshin tilted his head and smiled like a harmless child. "Hmm? I'm just curious."
That was absolutely not true.
Ayumi slowly turned her eyes toward Zaboru.
Her smile was still there.
But it was not warm anymore.
It was a calm smile.
A very calm smile.
The kind of smile that made Zaboru's survival instincts start shouting.
Even after being married to Zaboru for years, Ayumi suddenly realized something shocking. She had never actually asked whether she was his first love. She knew Zaboru loved her. She knew he loved her deeply. He had shown it countless times through words, actions, protection, affection, and the way he looked at her.
But still.
She had never asked.
And now that Zenshin had opened that cursed door, Ayumi could not stop herself from wanting to know.
Because for Ayumi, Zaboru was her first real love.
Before him, she had only known the suffocating world of Yakuza family arrangements, political engagements, obligations, and men chosen by other people. She never cared about any of them. Her heart had never moved for them. Her first true love, her first real choice, her first man she genuinely wanted to stand beside, was Zaboru.
So naturally, a dangerous thought appeared in her mind.
What about him?
Ayumi looked forward again, pretending to be calm.
But her voice became just a little sharper.
"Zabo… I'm curious too."
Zaboru felt cold sweat forming.
Arumi looked at Ayumi, then at Zaboru, then at Zenshin.
"Papa… Mama scary?" she whispered.
Zenshin slowly raised one finger to his lips and whispered back, "Shh. This is important."
Arumi became even more confused. "Important?"
Zenshin nodded with a smug expression. "Very."
Zaboru sighed inwardly.
While driving carefully, his mind drifted for a moment.
In his previous life, his first love had happened when he was around sixteen. She had been a beautiful girl from a wealthy family. Graceful, popular, charming, and somehow very kind to him in a casual way. Because of that kindness, young Zaboru had fallen for her badly, even though he already knew she was far out of his league.
He had tried to get closer to her.
He had tried to talk to her more.
He had tried to show his feelings in his awkward teenage way.
And the result?
She ignored him.
Not cruelly.
Not dramatically.
Not like a villainess in a romance story.
She simply did not see him that way.
That was almost worse.
He tried once more, and she ignored him again. But after that, she still acted normally around him, smiling casually, speaking politely, treating him as if nothing had happened. To her, it was not a serious heartbreak. It was just a small thing. A confession rejected, a boy's feeling passed over, nothing worth changing her behavior for.
And strangely, something similar had happened in this world too, before Zaboru's reincarnated soul fully awakened after that incident.
This body had also admired the same kind of girl.
The same name.
The same kind of unreachable beauty.
But to Zaboru now, it felt distant.
Almost like someone else's memory.
He thought quietly, It's not that I forgot. It's just not that important anymore.
Because compared to Ayumi, compared to the life they had built, compared to their children, their family, their history, their pain, their laughter, and the warmth he had now, that old feeling was nothing more than a small scar from youth.
Still, he had to answer.
And he had to answer carefully.
Zaboru smiled awkwardly and said, "Well… before meeting your mom, I never really had a girlfriend. So basically, your mom is my first and last real love."
Ayumi's expression softened slightly.
Zaboru should have stopped there.
He did not maybe his brain fried?.
"But… I did want to love someone before meeting your mom. Hahaha. Back in high school."
The car became colder.
Zenshin's eyes sparkled.
Ayumi slowly turned her head toward him.
"Hee…?" she said softly. "Who was she?"
Zaboru immediately realized he had stepped on a landmine, but unfortunately, his mouth had already walked too far into the battlefield.
He coughed. "You know our senpai from Hibana High… Izumi Ichigo?"
Ayumi's smile disappeared.
"That girl?"
Zaboru laughed weakly. "Yeah…"
Ayumi crossed her arms. "The extremely rich and beautiful girl?"
"Technically, yes."
Ayumi narrowed her eyes. "Whoa… Zaboru Renkonan. You had very high taste, hmm?"
Zaboru started sweating. "Ayumi, listen. I'm just telling you because Zen-chan asked. It's not like I'm still in love with her or anything. Honestly, it was more like a teenage thing."
Zenshin slowly lowered his ZGBA completely.
This was better than Pokemon.
Zaboru continued, not realizing that every additional sentence was digging his grave deeper. "It was interesting, actually. She literally ignored me twice, but she still acted casually around me after that. She didn't even seem to think breaking my heart was a big thing. For her, it was just normal. Hahaha."
Ayumi's eyes widened.
Zenshin grinned.
Arumi looked increasingly worried.
"Mama face scary…" Arumi whispered.
Zenshin nodded sagely. "Papa made a mistake."
Arumi blinked. "Papa bad?"
Zenshin smiled. "Not bad. Just stupid."
Zaboru heard that and glanced at the mirror. "Zen-chan."
Zenshin immediately raised his ZGBA again and pretended to play. "Hmm? I didn't say anything."
Ayumi's voice became flatter. "So… you confessed to her?"
Zaboru swallowed. "Well…"
"Twice?"
"Ayumi, don't focus on that part, okay? It was in the past."
Ayumi smiled again.
It was worse than when she was not smiling.
"Oh, I see. Twice."
Zaboru quickly said, "Ayumi, I love you. You know that."
Ayumi looked out the window. "Of course. I know."
Zaboru felt his soul leave his body even Zaborn inside his Emulator mind is afraid! Because he still remember Izumi! But he don't really care anymore and from Ayumi That "I know" did not sound like forgiveness.
It sounded like a judge accepting evidence before sentencing.
Zenshin, sitting in the back, tried very hard not to laugh. His small shoulders trembled slightly. He had not expected the question to become this powerful. He only wanted to tease his father a little, but somehow he had discovered a forbidden family button.
Arumi noticed Zenshin shaking and asked, "Nii-nii cold?"
Zenshin whispered, "No. I'm happy."
"Why happy?"
"Because Papa is losing."
Arumi looked at Zaboru with sad confusion. "Papa losing?"
Zenshin nodded. "Very badly." Zenshin actually pissed even when he reincarnated or back when in his previous life not once.. He beat Zaboru in fighting game and so he kind of Salty about it.
Ayumi then said in a calm, flat voice, "It's okay, Zabo. You just decided to tell me this now. After years of marriage. After children. After twins in my belly."
Zaboru winced. "Ayumi…"
"And I'm not angry."
Zaboru immediately knew she was angry.
Ayumi continued, still looking out the window. "I'm only thinking."
Zaboru immediately knew thinking was worse.
He sighed.
"Fine, Ayumi. You win."
Ayumi slowly looked at him again. "Win?"
Zaboru nodded with the expression of a man accepting defeat. "After the amusement park, let's go somewhere else too. Wherever you want. Shopping, dinner, dessert, anything. And next week, I promise we'll have a proper date. Just the two of us. No work, no meeting, no ZAGE emergency unless the world literally ends."
Ayumi's eyes lit up instantly.
"Deal!"
Zaboru stared at her.
The cold atmosphere disappeared from her face in less than one second.
She smiled brightly.
"Hehehe."
Zaboru blinked.
Then he sighed deeply.
"You acted…"
Ayumi placed one hand on her cheek innocently. "Acted? Me?"
Zaboru groaned. "You definitely acted."
Ayumi smiled even more. "I was genuinely jealous too, you know."
"That makes it worse."
Zenshin clicked his tongue quietly in admiration. "Mama is strong…"
Arumi tilted her head. "Mama strong?"
Zenshin nodded. "Papa never had a chance."
Arumi looked at Ayumi with respect she did not fully understand. "Mama win?"
Ayumi glanced back at her daughter and smiled. "Yes, Arumi. Mama won."
Arumi clapped her tiny hands. "Mama win!"
Zaboru sighed again, while Ayumi laughed happily.
Still, even though she had partly acted, Ayumi really had felt jealous for a moment. Not because she doubted Zaboru's love. She knew his heart belonged to her. But hearing that there had once been another girl, someone beautiful and rich from their school days, someone Zaboru had once chased even clumsily, made her heart feel strange.
Maybe it was childish.
Maybe it was possessive.
But Ayumi did not care.
Zaboru was her husband.
Her first love.
Her last love.
The father of her children.
The man who had changed her world.
So yes.
She wanted to be special to him in every possible category.
Even the embarrassing high-school ones.
Zaboru glanced at her, then smiled softly despite his defeat.
"Ayumi."
"Hm?"
"You are my first real love. That's not a trick answer."
Ayumi looked at him.
Zaboru continued, "Whatever happened before you was just a kid chasing something he didn't understand. With you, I understood. That's the difference."
Ayumi's expression softened for real this time.
For a moment, she said nothing.
Then she smiled warmly. "Good answer, Zabo."
Zaboru chuckled. "I survived?"
Ayumi hummed. "For now."
Zenshin looked disappointed. "Tch."
Zaboru looked at him through the mirror. "Zen-chan, don't click your tongue after causing trouble."
Zenshin smiled smugly. "I was only curious."
"You are never only curious."
Zenshin returned to his ZGBA with a satisfied expression. "Maybe."
Arumi, still lost in the conversation, looked at everyone and finally asked, "Papa love Mama?"
Zaboru smiled. "Very much."
Arumi then asked, "Mama love Papa?"
Ayumi smiled. "Very, very much."
Arumi thought for a moment, then raised both hands happily. "Then okay!"
Everyone laughed.
Eventually, they arrived at the amusement park that had just opened in town. The entrance was colorful, lively, and crowded with families, couples, and children. Zenshin looked interested despite pretending to be calm. Arumi became instantly excited again, almost forgetting the entire romantic war that had happened inside the car.
But little did Zaboru know, this amusement park was owned by the Ichigo Group.
To be continue.
AN : Do you like these family chapters? Because this kind of chapters is my favorite…. But don't worry we will back to games soon guys hehehe
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