“Something you want to ask me?”

Maru looked down at his drink for a second. When was the last time he talked with his dad like this? It was probably the night after introducing the love of his life. That day, he remembered hearing his father say,

[Finally, I get to have a drink with you.]

Father and son. They lived for over twenty years as family, but their relationship was still strangely awkward. Saying ‘dad’ each time made Maru feel embarrassed for some reason at the time. Only after getting a daughter himself did Maru start regretting such things. He regretted not having talked to his dad more. The man must’ve felt sad over the coldness of his own son. And now… Maru watched as his father took a swig accompanied by a happy expression on his face.

“What was your dream, dad?”

“Dream? Me?”

“Yes.”

“...You really did change a bit after becoming a high schooler, didn’t you. And here I thought your mother was exaggerating.”

Dad smiled.

“My dream, huh. I wanted to be a boxer when I was your age. I was pretty good back in high school, actually.”

“You wanted to go pro.”

“Pretty much.”

Maru knew that his dad had gone to amateur competitions several times, but not the fact that his father wanted to go pro. Come to think of it, he never...