“Daddy!” Miki stomps up to Ui the second she and Masanori arrive home from school.
“How was school?” Hairu hugs Masanori.
“Daddy smokes!” Miki screeches. “We learned about smoking. It is BAD and it will KILL YOU. YOUR LUNGS ARE ASH!”
She begins crying. “Daddy has ASH LUNGS! He’s like Cinderella, only inside!”
Masanori screams. “No, Daddy’s stronger than that!”
“Daddy will die!” Miki sobs.
Hairu blinks slowly as Ui gives her a desperate glare. Help me.
Ui cringes. This on-again, off-again habit of his has finally bit him in the ass. “Miki, Miki, Daddy’s not leaving you.”
“You won’t have a choice,” she hisses.
“Your Mom will donate some of her ghoul stem cells,” he teases.
“Hey!” Hairu sticks out her tongue. She’s secretly pleased Miki is all upset. Maybe Ui will finally kick his habit for good this time. “Not if you don’t stop, I won’t.”
“I’ll stop. For you, Miki. And you, Masanori.” Ui pulls his daughter closer to him. “I never want to lose you.”
“And Mommy?” Masanori asks.
Hairu grins. I raised me a good kid. It’s oddly touching. Maybe because she and Ui didn’t have many good models in their lives.
“Of course.” Ui holds out a hand to draw Hairu to his side. “Now…come help me throw out my cigarettes.”
He’s scared as hell, but for his family, he can do anything.






























