Sakura knocked on the door, and saw Naoto open it. "Hi, Sakura." "Hello Naoto. Where's Hayase?" "She's still getting ready." The blonde woman nodded. "Auntie Sakura!", exclaimed a little girl, running towards the woman. "Hello, Mikako!" Sakura picked up the little girl and hugged her. "I'm just curious, Naoto. Why ask me to do this?"
Naoto laughed awkwardly. "Try to imagine Maki or Yoshi babysitting our four year old daughter." Sakura thought on this, and winced. "Fair point."
The sounds of footsteps on the stairs rung in Naoto's ears as he turned around. At the foot of the stairs was Hayase, dressed in a long black skirt that stretched to under her shins, and a res sweater ti go with the mix. Her husband stared at her with a dropped jaw. "You're staring", said Sakura. Naoto shook his head. "Wow. Even a pervert in front of our daughter. You're so disgusting, Naoto." The two women chuckled, while Mikako looked at her father confused. "Daddy, what's a pervert?" "We'll tell you when you're older", said Hayase, kissing her daughter on the forehead.
"Bye, Sweetie. Be a good girl for Auntie Sakura, okay?", said Naoto. Mikako nodded with a big grin. "She'll be fine. Now go have fun you lovebirds", said Sakura.
Naoto and Hayase took each other's hands and walked out the door together.
. . .
"Damn, it's cold out there", said Hayase, rubbing her hands together as she and Naoto entered the restaurant. The latter chuckled. "I'm sure once we get a nice cup of coffee, you can warm yourself up." "Oh, definitely", said Hayase as she speed walked toward one of the tables. Her husband followed her, and they took a seat near the window.
"I don't even need to look at the menu to know what I want", said Hayase. "And that is?", asked Naoto. "Something warm. Like coffee." The spectacled man shrugged. "I guess we can go for some coffee."
A waitress came by and took the couple's orders. "I guess you're pretty excited for this weather, Naoto", said Hayase with a mischievous grin. "You can just snuggle up to me, grabbing on all my delicate parts."
"Do you always have to make me sound like such a pervert?", asked Naoto. His wife shrugged. "Just showing how comfortable I am around you." "So saying I'm a pervert..." "Means I love you just the way you are", answered Hayase, smiling lovingly at her lover.
Naoto couldn't help but smile at this as well. The waitress from earlier returned with their cups of coffee, placing it down on the table. As she did so, Hayase quickly looked on her phone. "Excuse me, is it okay if I get a bran muffin?" The waitress nodded. "Of course." Naoto looked at his wife with confusion after the waitress left. "What was that about?" Hayase grinned and tapped her finger on his nose. "You'll just have to wait and find out." Naoto smiled and took Hayase's hand in his. "I take it it's a surprise then?" The dark skinned woman smiled, one that wasn't cocky or cheeky, but a genuine happy smile. "A big one, yes."
Now Naoto was excited. In all his years of being married to her, Hayase has always succeeded in surprising him. The waitress had returned with Hayase's muffin, which looked delicious to her. "Can I get something for you, sir?", asked the waitress. "I'll share with him, so it's fine", Hayase spoke. Naoto nodded. The waitress bowed and walked off.
Hayase scooped off a piece of the muffin and made it hover in front of Naoto's face. "Say ah." The young man chuckled and opened his mouth, taking in the muffin. "Tastes good." "Thanks for letting me know", said Hayase, who took a massive bite from the muffin.
Naoto couldn't help but chuckle again. The way his wife ate the muffin reminded him of how Mikako would eat a cupcake. He took a sip of his coffee. "Don't tell me, the coffee is good too", said Hayase. Her husband looked at her. "We've been here countless times before, Honey. Is it really necessary to ask me that?" Hayase shrugged, and took a sip from her coffee. After doing so, she let out a long sigh of satisfaction. "Now that's the stuff."
Naoto had decided to bring up the topic of the surprise his wife had mentioned earlier. "I'm curious. When will I find out about this surprise you spoke about?" Hayase shrugged. "Depends." "On?" "Whether I feel like being a tease or not." Naoto shook his head and smiled. "I guess you've got me there." Hayase smirked. "How about this: I'll tell you what the surprise is after this date, deal?" Naoto nodded. "Deal." Hayase smiled at him. "In the meantime, say ah", she said, scooping another piece of muffin." Her husband opened his mouth, feeling the taste of the pastry on his tongue.
. . .
The date had come to an end, and Naoto and Hayase walked out the restaurant together. The latter shivered from the cold air.
Her lover took her hand, and they walked together in the direction of their home. "Well, I suppose a promise is a promise", said Hayase. "Excuse me?" "The surprise. Don't you remember?" "Oh yeah. That."
Naoto stopped walking and held both his lover's hands. "So, what is this big surprise you've spoken about?" Hayase looked down to ground bashfully, a red hue on her cheeks.
"Let's just say... Mikako might become a big sister pretty soon."
Naoto was looked at his wife with a surprised look, before it evolved into a look of shock. "W-wait, you're..." Hayase nodded. The spectacled man picked her up and spun her around. "We're having another baby! We're having another baby!"
Once she was placed back on the ground, Hayase cupped her husband's face. "Yes. Yes we are." They both leaned in and shared a loving kiss.
