As soon as the car pulled up in his old drive, Shinji felt his stomach knot and butterflies erupt. It felt both like coming home and like stepping into the lion’s den, neither feeling appreciated since home was with Kippei and Rien, not here anymore. But then the door flew open and Sada was rushing [...]

Shinji didn’t sleep the night before Rien had to leave. He was stressed and grumpy when Rien and Kippei finally stirred in the morning, well before dawn and he slid out of bed and went to shower, needing to scrub at the sleepy feeling of his skin, rubbing it so hard he was red and [...]