Time After Time 🌹 Daniel LaRusso [1]

Chapter 29: Están Enamorados!

Rosalía sits on a bench as she waits for Daniel to pick her up from campus. She attended her 10 AM class so she can tell her mom she went to school today but doesn't feel like going to the rest of her classes. So she called her boyfriend from a payphone, asking him to come to get her. The sound of a car horn makes her gaze up, seeing the said boy in his yellow car. She hurries to the passenger side and hops in. "Hey, you ready?" she asks her boyfriend. "More than ready... but are you sure you want to come? I can go by myself, you don't have to miss your class-" the boy says before getting cut off. "Daniel," Rosalía interjects in a singsong voice. "I already told you on the phone that I want to go with you. This isn't just important to you, it's important to me too... and it was my idea in the first place. Plus, I feel like I'd just be wasting my time with these classes I have no interest in."

Daniel quietly sighs and nods his head. He knows exactly how she feels about having no interest in her classes. He didn't even show up for a single class today. He finally smiles warmly at her and replies, "Yeah, alright. Let's go make Mr. Miyagi's dream come true." With that last sentence, he drives off to the real estate agency.

The couple takes a few hours with the real estate agent, going over everything, seeing different locations, and discussing prices. They eventually find the perfect location and decide to put down a deposit for it. They exit the real estate agency with gigantic smiles on their faces. "Oh, man, this is great, Rosalía. This is great! Mr. Miyagi's dream is finally in motion," Daniel excitedly chats as they walk to the car. "I know! You think he'll like it?" the girl asks. She knows deep down that Mr. Miyagi is a humble man and wouldn't dislike the property but that little anxious voice in her head never goes quiet.

"I think he will. Especially once we fix it up and bring in all the bonsai," the boy responds. "Yeah, you're right. Let's go tell him!" Rosalía says, opening the car door and hopping in. "Yes!" Daniel enthusiastically agrees as he hurries to the driver's side and climbs in before taking off.

———(🌹)———

They pull up to Miyagi's house and scurry inside, looking for the man. "Mr. Miyagi, I'm home," Daniel announces as they stride through the house. "And I'm here too," Rosalía chimes in as they stand in the back door and spot the man grilling. "Oh, Daniel-san, Rosalía-san, just in time," Mr. Miyagi answers. "Hey, how was fishing?" the boy asks as they walk toward the man. "We find out pretty soon," he responds as he walks past them with a plate of fish. "So, how first day at college?"

Uh oh, I'm in trouble, the girl thinks. She and Daniel exchange a look as they follow Mr. Miyagi inside. "College?" Daniel questions. "Um... very educational, as expected," Rosalía pipes up. "Uh, college... college is, uh... well, you know college, Mr. Miyagi. It's... it's a place that um, I didn't go to today," Daniel continues. Mr. Miyagi glances at him in surprise. "What?" he questions before switching his stern gaze to Rosalía. "Hey, I went today," she states. The man gives her a pointed look, knowing there's more to the story. "To one class, but that's one more than him!" she claims, pointing at her boyfriend. Daniel furrows his eyebrows and glances at her. "Dude..." he whispers, to which she only shrugs.

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head, focusing back on Mr. Miyagi. He smiles like a kid on Christmas and utters, "Mr. Miyagi... may all your dreams come true." He holds out a small black case to the man, who stares back at the two in confusion. Rosalía just sits beside Daniel, beaming at Miyagi. He gives them a suspicious smile and takes the case. "What this?" he asks. "Open it and you'll see," the girl answers. She and Daniel watch the man in anticipation as he takes his glasses from his shirt pocket and unfolds them to put them on.

"Alright, alright, I'll tell you. It's, um, it's my college diploma," Daniel claims. The girl slightly shakes her head at his dumb joke. "What?" Mr. Miyagi questions, making the two teens laugh. "I'm only joking," the boy clarifies. "Ah, Daniel-san, you have sense humor," Miyagi utters as he opens the case. "Eh, he's not that funny," the girl counters, making the man chuckle and Daniel shove her. Mr. Miyagi examines the paper in the case and reads, "lease." The couple gleams at him. "For your new bonsai store!" they declare at the same time. "Congratulations!" Rosalía adds.