Hinako looked at the ceiling for a moment while she ran her tongue over the front of her teeth. Making a 'tsk' sound, she looked back down at her brother with a loving smile. She played with a lock of his hair for a moment, "I think mom would murder anyone who had sex with you." She paused to push his hair back into place, "Then I would murder anyone who hired you."

 

Toshi nodded slowly, "Ah."

 

Hinako gently patted Toshi on the shoulder, "Dad would just kill himself."

 

Toshi kept nodding slowly, "I see."

 

Hinako kept smiling, "In fact, if any female on the planet so much as touches you in a sexual fashion before they marry you, I'll cut out their ovaries."

 

Toshi never stopped nodding, "Understood."

 

Hinako cradled Toshi's face in her hands, "Don't. Okay? I've heard how they get guys for those soaplands. It's almost always men who were sexually active as boys. They just rope them in and get them hooked on drugs and psychological torture and they use and abuse those-" She suddenly covered her mouth, "Oh my god..."

 

Toshi blinked and looked confused, "What?"

 

Hinako swallowed, "You might not remember that you were... you know... but it's said that if you get a boy at puberty sexually active he..." She suddenly grabbed Toshi in a crushing hug again, "No no no no no NO."

 

Toshi let out another muffled, "Buh?"

 

Hinako just held tighter, "Promise me you won't do anything stupid. Okay? just... just because you were... you know... is no reason to throw your life away and become a whore!" She started to grind her teeth, "If I ever catch the bitch who did this to you I'm-"

 

Toshi pushed her away and looked his sister straight in the eye, "-going to CALL THE POLICE and NOT ruin your life." He looked stern and serious, "RIGHT?"

 

Hinako was  surprised by her brother's reaction and was about to argue with him, but managed to calm herself down, "Right."

 

Toshi gently pinched his sister's chin, "Look. I just don't understand anything and I'm trying to relearn from scratch. I didn't get raped into being a whore. I just want to know how things work."

 

Hinako winced at the word 'rape', then just nodded in agreement.

 

Toshi looked annoyed as he said a single word just to judge his sister's reaction, "Rape."

 

His sister visibly recoiled, "Stop saying that."

 

Toshi tilted his head to the side, "Why? I didn't do anything wrong. Are you ashamed of me?"

 

She shook his head, "Oh no! I just... It's..." Her voice just sort of trailed off.

 

Toshi didn't seem convinced, "Say it."

 

She flinched, "Say what?"

 

He nodded, "Say, my brother was raped."

 

Hinako looked visibly sick and covered her mouth. He looked at her with one raised eyebrow, "It happened. It is real. It is a thing. I mean, how would you feel if you got raped and I couldn't even say it out loud? What would you think?"

 

She burst out laughing for a few seconds then got herself under control, "This isn't a joking matter, Toshi."

 

Toshi pulled away from his sister with a look of disgust, "What?"

 

Hinako rolled her eyes, "Women can't get raped. Well, by men at any rate."

 

Toshi just gaped at her, "I'd physically throw you onto that bed and go through the motions to prove my point, but the very idea of touching my sister in such a manner makes me want to vomit." He then flexed his left arm to show off a muscle, "But I very well COULD rape you."

 

Hinako stopped smiling and recoiled as well, "UGH! I..." She paused then looked thoughtful, "Well, I guess... incest... and if a woman was under the age of thirteen... I could see that being rape. You have a point."

 

Toshi jumped up, "MY SISTER HAVING SEX UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN IS QUESTIONABLE! WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS THIRTEEN SHIT???"

 

Hanako took several steps back and held up her hands, "Whoa! I'm-I'ma ah... sorry! Look-"

 

Toshi started to stomp around, "NO! NO! THAT IS WRONG! WRONG! NO! LITTLE GIRLS HAVING SEX AT THIRTEEN? WHAT THE FUCK? WHAT THE FUCK???"

 

The sound of approaching feet came from the hallway and the first to arrive was Hirofumi, Toshi's father. Right behind him was Asuka who asked, "What's going on?"

 

Hinako looked back at her parents while backing away from Toshi, her hands up in a defensive position towards Toshi, "I don't know! I was answering his questions about relationships and when I mentioned the age of consent for girls was thirteen he-"

 

Toshi kept waving his arms around as he seemed to be at a breaking point, "NO! NO! That is WRONG!" He started to grab the sides of his head and winced in pain, "THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE! GOD ALMIGHTY WHAT SORT OF FUCKED UP CRAZY BACKASSWARD WORLD DID YOU DROP ME IN???"

 

Hirofumi, face distraught, rushed over to his son to try and hug him, "My boy! Calm D-"

 

Toshi made a fist and popped his father right in the nose.

 

Hirofumi staggered back, trying to hold back the fresh trickle of blood running down his face. Toshi started screaming, "DON'T TOUCH ME! DON'T FUCKIN' TOUCH ME! WHAT THE FUCK???" He was shaking all over as he backed away into a corner. He started to stagger as he hyperventilated.

 

Asuka gritted her teeth and rushed in. She grabbed Toshi by the shoulders and shook him, "Get ahold of yourself!" Before slapping him across the face.

 

Everyone froze.

 

Holding his face where he was slapped, Toshi quietly asked, "Do I have the right to claim to be your son?"

 

All color drained from Asuka's face as the question echoed in her head. She suddenly grabbed him and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug, "Yes. In the name of all that is holy, you are my SON." She pressed his face against her chest, "I held you here and fed you with my body! You are my son. No matter what happens, you are my son. I..."

 

She seemed to be struggling to say the words, but finally let them out with a sob, "I love you, Toshi. No matter what you are my son and I love you." She started to cry while obviously trying not to, "My boy... my beautiful boy..."

 

Hinako and Hirofumi looked confused. The exchange was too surreal. Asuka, who never showed any feelings, was openly stating she was capable of love as well as crying. Toshi, who had for years said he hated his mother for being a tool of the matriarchy, was crying into her shoulder about wanting to be her son.

 

Hinako muttered out of the side of her mouth, "Dad? Did I wake up in opposite world?"

 

Hirofumi didn't answer. He looked hurt, but not because of his bleeding nose. He seemed hurt because his son refused to let him help. Hinako was not oblivious to this and stepped over to comfort her father. She put an arm around him and gave him a squeeze and a whisper, "Hey. He needs time, that's all." Hirofumi looked at his daughter and forced a smile, but when he turned back to his son it vanished.

 

As he watched his son being comforted by his wife, all he could feel was a growing sense of fear that something was terribly wrong and that he was powerless to stop it.