"So... 'The Cozy Dogen,' huh?" I asked, taking in the bar Kurusu had brought us to.

The name suited it—it was a small, cozy-looking place wedged between the residential and business districts. I was sure I'd passed by it multiple times, yet the building itself seemed almost unassuming, quickly slipping from my memory.

"Yeah, I've been here with my parents once before they went to Scotland for work," Kurusu said fondly, no doubt bringing back fond memories. "The owner is an old friend of my parents, too."

"You know, I just realized I know almost nothing about your parents," I said as we stepped inside. "It's like you never talk about them."

Kurusu laughed nervously. "I suppose I don't do I? There's not any reason for it; it just never came up-"

"What the hell, Fuck a Duck, is that Kimi-kun?!" bellowed a loud voice from the bar.

"...Huh?" I gasped, turning my head towards the source of the voice, a large man with an impressive beer belly and an even bigger black beard that extended down to his chest. A wide beam lit up his rugged face, and his bald head glistened in the dim lights as he approached us from behind the bar.

"Oh, Sasaki-san!" Kurusu chirped, waving his hand, "How have you been?"

"Don't you 'Sasaki-san' me, you Bozo!" the giant man scolded him, pulling him into a headlock, "That's not how you talk to your godfather!"

"Ow ow ow ow," Kurusu hissed, though I could tell he wasn't being hurt. "Sorry, old man!"

"Hmph," Sasaki grunted, releasing him and stepping back. The entire time he had that same wide grin plastered on his face. "What happened to all those promises ya made about visiting', huh? Ever since yer folks left town, I hardly ever see ya!"

"Well... things have been getting a little hectic at home lately," Kurusu replied abashedly, rubbing the back of his neck before remembering something. "Oh, by the way, this is Akihiro Bando, a friend of mine."

"Yo," Kurusu's apparent godfather greeted me, offering his hand, "Seiji Sasaki. So yer a buddy of Kimi-kun's, eh?"

"Hi," I greeted back, shaking his hand and forcing down my wince at his grip, "And yeah, you could say that. We're both coworkers, too."

"Oh? Ya, work at the small manga place, too?"

"So that's what it is. And no, I'm actually his assistant for the Cultural Exchange Program." I explained.

Sasaki quirked a bushy eyebrow and turned towards Kurusu. "Yer part of that whole business now?" he asked.

"Yeah, someone made a mistake at the beginning, but here I am," Kurusu replied. "We've got six of them living with me now, not counting Bando."

"Holy shit, six?! How the hell did that happen?!" Sasaki exclaimed incredulously.

"It's a long story," Kurusu said with a shrug. "They needed a place to stay, so here we are."

Sasaki sighed and shook his head. "Yer family and its odd habits," he muttered. "Well, I'm sure ya got plenty of stories fer me later. Ya, boys want somethin' to drink?"
He plodded back behind the bar and began to clean a few cups.

Kurusu and I took a seat at the bar, and I took in my surroundings. The bar was pretty dead tonight, but it was a Wednesday, so no surprise there. The atmosphere was surprisingly cozy, like an old tavern with hardwood floors and walls.

"Yeah, could I have a gin and tonic?" I asked Sasaki.

"Yer a gin guy, eh? Any kind ya fancy?" he replied, raising an eyebrow.

I shrugged. "I'm fine with whatever."

"Got it. Kimi-kun?" Sasaki nodded and then turned to Kurusu.

"Um, do you have the Kraken? I'll have that with some coke, please," Kurusu requested.

"Comin' right up," Sasaki nodded and went to get the drinks together.

Kurusu must've noticed me cringing at the mention of the Kraken because he looked at me curiously. "What's wrong?"

"The Kraken and I... have a bit of a past," I grumbled, "I can't stand that stuff anymore."

Kurusu chuckled. "You make it sound like you two had a wild breakup!"

"That's disturbingly close to the truth," I admitted, "But let's just say I had a very unpleasant experience with that stuff on my twenty-first birthday. So, Sasaki-san's your godfather? Are you guys related?"

"Nope, but he's an old friend of my dad's from middle school," Kurusu answered, "He was the best man at my parent's wedding, too. I guess he might as well be family."

"Aw, yer gonna make an old man cry over here," Sasaki mock-whined from the other end of the bar as he prepared our drinks. "I've known Kimi-kun since he was suckin' on Mama Kurusu's teat!"

Kurusu was trying to be good-natured about it, but I could see the strain that that mental image was having on him, so I decided to change the topic.

"Say, tell me about what kurusu was like as a kid," I asked Sasaki, a mischievous glint in my eye. I'm sure I still reserved the right to hear plenty of embarrassing childhood stories.

A wicked gleam appeared in Sasaki's eyes as he brought us our drinks, setting them in front of us. "Ohoho, Kimi-kun as a little 'un? He was adorable. The most earnest little worker bee I ever saw, and tougher than goddamn steel! Always drove us nuts how ya could land on yer fuckin' dome piece from two stories and walk away from it!"

"I just sorta accepted it after a while," Kurusu replied, bringing his Kraken (blech) glass closer. "Guess I was just born lucky."

"Fuckin' freak of nature is what it was," Sasaki snorted, knocking on wood all the same, "Ya also had a way with the ladies, didn't ya, Kimi-kun? Even when ya were fresh into preschool, ya knew just what to say to get the girls all blushing!"

"I was just being nice," Kurusu said with a smile, "It's not like I was trying to woo them or anything,"

I muttered under my breath, "Fucking harem protag musk..."

Kurusu turned to me with a questioning look. "What was that?"

"Oh, nothing," I said quickly, trying to change the subject. "Anyway, here's to...uh, something worth toasting to."

"How about our family, both old and new?" kurusu suggested

Sasaki chided, "Oi, I saw ya lookin' at me when ya said 'old'!"

I laughed and clinked my glass against his, "I'll drink to that. Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

We all took our first drinks of the night, and I was pleasantly surprised by the smoothness of the drink. Ah, alcohol, how I missed thee. It was time you and I got reacquainted.

"Ah," I sighed as we set our drinks down. "Damn, that was good. Oh yeah, here," I slid the green Cultural Exchange card over to Sasaki. "Could you just open up a tab on that for us?"

"Ya got it," he replied, taking the card and walking to the register.

Kurusu frowned. "Bando, are you sure we should use those funds on drinking? That seems...irresponsible."

"Hey, I'm filing this under emotional health expenses," I shot back. "You and I have done a lot for the Exchange already; the least they can do is pay for a few of our drinks."

"Hm," Kurusu grunted, taking another sip, "I don't know..."

"Look, man," I said, reassuring him on the shoulder, "You spend so much time caring for the girls - it's only fair that you indulge yourself a little. Don't worry; if it's too much, I can always use my own money."

He mulled it over briefly before eventually admitting, "Well...maybe for just this drink. After that, though, we should be responsible."

"Of course," I nodded, "We'll be responsible. But it doesn't hurt to treat yourself once in a while!"

"So you two are taking care of six monsters, right?" Sasaki cut in, leaning on the counter with one arm. "Wait, what's the politically correct term they throw around these days? Laminals?"

"Liminals," I confirmed, "And yeah. There's Miia, a lamia; Papi, a harpy; Cerea, a centaur," I paused to take a breath, "Suu, a slime; Mero, a mermaid, and Rachnerea, an arachne."

"Fuckin' hell," Sasaki murmured, giving Kurusu a baffled look, "Your parents know you got them all at their place?"

"Uh, about that...." Kurusu chuckled nervously.

I couldn't believe it. "Are you serious right now?" I asked, bewildered. Sasaki was too busy palming his face. "It's their house, and you never told them about anything happening there?! It was even heavily remodeled!"

"How much of a remodel are we talking about?" Sasaki inquired.

"It's about twice as big now," Kurusu answered, idly twirling a finger around the rim of his glass. "And we have an indoor pool, too, though that's mostly for Mero."

Sasaki gave him a long, dull stare before finally groaning and shaking his head. "You're one strange guy, Kimi-kun. I've known that for 22 years, but the shit you pull still surprises me."

Kurusu shrugged. "As long as I can provide a home for those girls, I don't see any problem."

"Wait a minute...all six of them are girls?! Are you trying to build your own harem or something?!"

I almost choked on my gin and tonic. Have you ever tried choking on gin? Not fun.

After I recovered, I licked at the gin that had dripped onto the lower end of my mouth while Sasaki continued grilling an unflappable Kurusu. As I did, I noticed the slight tingle already creeping into my fingertips. Ah, my tolerance had dropped due to not drinking for a while.

Well, at least this night looked like it wouldn't be boring.

To be continued!