Nanami furrowed her eyebrows at the single response (Y/n) had given her. That was not the reaction she was expecting from her. Sure, she didn't want her to freak out or anything, but a more reasonable reaction would be even more appreciated.

Before the older woman could open her mouth and voice her concern, (Y/n) beat her to it with an outstretched hand.

"May I see it?"

The girl's voice was leveled out, devoid of any stutter or hesitation. All the shock and paleness from earlier on had already washed away to be replaced with an aloofness that further sent Nanami into the depths of concern for her adopted child. Was she faking it? Was she numbing the pain? Or was she actually not concerned about the news at all? Yes, it had been a while since she even talked about them or bothered to look for them but had she really gotten over them? Accepted the reality that she was probably never going to meet them? Or rather, already accepted that they were dead and wanted to see it for herself?

Deep into her racing thoughts, Nanami hadn't noticed her hand stretching out to (Y/n) and handing her the letter, until she felt something being swiped away from her hand. Snapping out of her reverie, she focused back onto the girl who was now reading the paper. Her (e/c) eyes swept across the letter with a mildly deep focus, eyebrows slightly furrowed and the occasional nodding of her head here and there. When she was done, she let out a low hum before folding up the paper neatly.

Bothered deeply by her reaction and action, Nanami opened her mouth to say something but the female beat her yet again to the punch.

"Death by a chemical explosion?" she whistled softly. "Harsh don't you think?" Seeming to notice her aunt's troubled expression, (Y/n) let on a small chuckle and a shrug. "I mean, I would know because I've been at the receiving end of Katsuki's explosions. And let me tell you, it ain't pretty."

"Wha-" Nanami slightly shook her head, briefly blinking in the process as she tried to digest what was happening before her. Deciding to take a moment to gather her thoughts, she pinched the bridge of her nose, closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath. Her mind now clear, she opened her eyes and dropped her hand to her hip. She then sent the girl a pointed look, which was reciprocated with a "what?" look.

"Your parents just died," the woman said with a scolding tone.

"And?" (Y/n) lifted her shoulder in a half shrug.

An angry frown creased Nanami's forehead as her eyes narrowed into pinpricks. That was also not the response she was expecting. In front of her, there she was. (Y/n). Not a care showing on her face as she stared back at her aunt in defiance. Nanami felt her blood begin to boil. She rarely got angry with (Y/n) but her constant inconsideration and aloofness for the past nearly five minutes were getting to her last nerve.

"And? That's what you have to say?" Nanami asked in a low tone before it rose together with her temper. "And?! (Y/n)...your parents just died! The people who gave you life-the people who brought you...into this world just died and all you can say is and?!" she gesticulated wildly at the girl's whole form. "What is wrong with you?!"

(Y/n) slightly took a step back, taken aback by her aunt's sudden hostility towards her. Eyes wide open and temper similarly flaring, her expression twisted to that one of anger as her hands tightened into fists, unconsciously crushing the letter in between.

"Why are you getting so worked up about this?!" she shot back with equal venom. "You never even knew them!"

Nanami took a step forward. "And so what if I didn't know them?! But you did!" she pointed at (Y/n). "Weren't you searching for them a while back?! Are you telling me that you stopped caring for them?! Are you trying to tell me that you stopped wishing that you'd have parents like other children?! That you'd finally have that family you've always wanted?! Did you stop loving them?!"

"Stop yelling at me!!" (Y/n) threw her hands in the air defensively but Nanami did not back down.

"Did you stop, (First Name) (Last Name)?! Tell me!"

"..."

"Tell me!!"

"I didn't!!"

Stunned to silence by the girl's admission, Nanami finally backed off to allow the panting girl time to continue talking.

Vexed with her aunt for making her admit to that, (Y/n) gritted her teeth before continuing. "I didn't stop loving them. I never stopped. Even though I stopped searching, I never stopped wishing. B-but what do you expect me to do now? To dwell on this?" she raised the hand holding the crumpled paper to Nanami's level. "This is what you want me to dwell on for the rest of my life now? This?!" she tossed the paper to the floor before clutching her chest that rose and fell with rapid breaths. The words felt bitter in her mouth, but she spoke them with finesse. So much so that if Nanami didn't know her well, she wouldn't know how much they burned her tongue. "I admit that I was trying to act like nothing was wrong earlier. To numb myself to the pain. It's painful, yeah but what else can I do? I have to move on from this. The earlier the better. I have my whole life ahead of me. Heck," she released a strained laugh. "I even have a new boyfriend now and you want me to stop everything and start grieving about people who haven't been there for me for a single moment in my life?" she shook her head. "I can't just do that."

"But honey..." Nanami's expression went soft, her hands going up to hover over (Y/n)'s arms but not touching. Her voice was soft in contrast to before, almost like a whisper. "They deserve to be mourned by their child. You..." she gave the girl a sympathetic once over. "You need to grieve, honey....for both of them. You can't hold it all in-"

"Yes I can," (Y/n)'s voice cracked at the end, something she cursed herself for inside. Letting out a small frustrated sigh, she shrank from her aunt before she could touch her and sent the woman a rebellious glare. "Yes, I can so stop-stop making me want to cry. I don't want to cry..."

Like a cruel mocking to her words, tears had begun prickling the girl's eyes but she quickly tried to blink them away before Nanami saw them. Too bad she did. So to save face, (Y/n) added in a small, pained voice which still had a conviction behind them, "I'm not going to cry." She sniffled. "I'm not..."

"Oh, sweetie..." Nanami went to gather the girl into a hug but the (h/c)-haired girl jerked back a second sooner.

"Don't touch me!"

Nanami was shocked by the girl's sudden outburst and slowly retracted her hands back. Feeling a bit guilty on seeing Nanami's hurt expression, (Y/n)'s face morphed into a pained as she turned her face away from the woman.

"I'm begging you...Please."

Nanami let out a defeated sigh and nodded. The girl hadn't seen her nod but she took the silence as acceptance. (Y/n) wrapped her arms around herself and chewed on her bottom lip. She was bravely trying to fight the tears and for a moment, it had seemed like they were about to win but she quickly swiped at her eyes before the tears could fall. The painful lump in her throat seemed to be undying and she could feel a headache start to form.

And to think she was having the most wonderful night not too long ago.

True she was shocked on receiving the news, true her heart felt a sudden pain on hearing that her parents, true she felt anguish over the fact that she was now an orphan in literal form, true she wanted to pretend like nothing happened in the hopes that she'd forget but what wasn't true was that she was going to let herself believe that it was the end of the world and start mourning for the parents who were never there for her. Not even a letter was sent by them all that time they were alive. They didn't even bother visiting her. Not even once.

What if in reality they never even wanted her in the first place and yet she had spent nearly her whole life looking for them? Would she really waste her time grieving for people like that?

(Y/n) loathed herself for thinking such morbid thoughts but it was the only way to console herself and move on.

She never knew them. She never had any memories of them or of the little time they spent together.

So what did Nanami expect her to cry about? A letter and what ifs? About wishes and what could've been?

No.

There wasn't a difference in the situation now and before then. They weren't in her life now nor were they there in her life then.

Maybe their deaths could be counted as a difference but it still didn't change anything in her life. She was still never going to see them. And to think she even dared to think that they were coming for her.

How wrong she was.

They were destined to ever be apart. Their fates were long severed, never to entwine again. That was how it was and would be for the rest of her life.

Besides, it's not like she was alone. She was raised in an orphanage for a few years but was adopted by a loving woman who hasn't yet told her her exact age but doesn't seem to age a month, went to a good school and got some good friends, made some memories that she'd never forget and even got to meet the love of her life. And if she were being honest, there's not a thing she'd rather change. She was happy with her life.

It still hurt to know that her parents were forever gone but she wouldn't allow that setback to be the pinnacle of her life.

No. She wouldn't. She'd never.

She already had everything's she ever wanted. It was selfish of her to ask for more. And now, she realized that.

"Aunt..." (Y/n) began, slowly unwrapping her arms from around her as she looked back up at the aforementioned. Nanami raised her eyebrows in question before her eyes widened slightly at the small but tight smile the girl sent her. With determination and newfound resolution coursing through her veins, the girl allowed her smile to widen. "I'm not going to cry. So don't expect anything to change."

"A-Are you sure?" Nanami carefully asked. "You're still young, a teenager. Your emotions are still not-" she stopped herself upon realizing that (Y/n) had made up her mind and there was no changing it. She released a sigh before tilting her head. "...Why?"

"Because..." the (h/c)-haired female shrugged. "What's the point of all this? I don't wanna spend all this time crying when I can continue living out my life. They wouldn't want me to cry, right? I mean, death isn't the end of the world. People die all the time. Besides, it's not like I knew them or anything. It kinda hurts and...I..." she paused to clear her throat. "I mean, it's something I can live with. Which is..." she briefly nodded. "Which is good. Yeah..."

"Is...that all?"

"No...not really," (Y/n) drifted off when she realized that her vision had gone blurry with tears flooding up in her eyes. Her throat was tightening up. She didn't know why she was feeling like that all of a sudden but all she knew was that at that moment she could feel everything. Joy, pain, anger, fear, frustration, gratefulness, relief and other emotions all bundled up into one fucked up ball of feelings that decided to fuck with her. She couldn't even stop the hiccup that escaped her throat.

I'm not going to cry...

"I-It's also because..." a sniffle followed closely by a short intake of breath. She briefly looked down at the floor and started chewing on her trembling lower lip. Please don't cry...I said I wouldn't cry... She turned her eyes up to the ceiling to try and stop the tears but it was too late. They had already made their way down her reddened cheeks. She looked back at Nanami, who had a hand over her chest and a moved expression on her face. Biting her quivering lip while still sniffling, the girl gathered enough strength to finish her words. She was already starting to have trouble taking in air and controlling her breathing but she wouldn't allow that minor inconvenience to stop her.

"It's...it's because I have everything...I've ever wanted...r-right here...."

Immediately after she finished up her sentence, (Y/n) broke down. A flood of tears gushed down her ashen cheeks as her body wracked with gut-wrenching sobs that tore through her chest and left her for gulping for air. Not long after, she felt a pair of arms wrapping themselves around her body and bringing her into a tight but comforting hug. (Y/n) let herself cry into Nanami's shirt, desperately clinging to her as she released all the pent-up emotions from within. Nanami never once let her go, as she continuously rubbed soothing circles on her back while whispering words of comfort to her. The sound of wailing and hiccupping sobs echoed through the quiet house and it wouldn't be a surprise if the neighbors happened to hear the ordeal.

They stayed in that position for a good ten minutes until (Y/n) calmed down. The kitchen was silent, save for (Y/n)'s constant sniffling and hiccups. Nanami hadn't ceased to rub the girl's back and was also rocking her side to side in place to calm her down, something (Y/n) found soothing and was grateful for.

Gradually recovering from her crying as she peered sightlessly at the kitchen wall with red, puffy eyes, only one incessant thought remained in her mind.

Thank you, mom...

***