Connected Hearts

Chapter 11

"Mei...Mei...hey Mei..." A small whisper spoke. The woman groaned softly as she moved around and opened her eyes
"Mhh...hm? K-kiana?" Mei asked
"Morning Mei!" Kiana said getting on top of her
"A-ah! K-kiana" Mei said and Kiana giggled as she rested on top of her chest
"Mmmh...soft" Kiana said, nuzzling against her chest. Mei smiled softly and stroked her hair softly
"Kiana let me get up" Mei said
"Can we stay in bed?" Kiana asked looking at Mei with a soft expression
"What? Don't you want to eat?" Mei asked
"Mmm I have what I need to eat right here~" Kiana said, sliding her hand down Mei's stomach. Mei blushed deeply and Kiana leaned in kissing her neck
"U-uhm Kiana..." Mei said as her voice got shaky. Kiana got closer to her ear kissing it softly before whispering...
"Mei...come back to me..."

"Mm!" The young woman woke up feeling hot while her heart was beating rapidly. She trembled a bit and looked around realizing where she was
"Hey Mei. You okay?" Her grandfather asked
"U-uhm yeah. Sorry I guess I didn't get enough sleep" Mei said
"No no. Don't apologize. I understand" Her grandfather said and went to pull an envelope
"Hm? What's that?" Mei asked
"I think this is the best time to give this to you" Her grandfather said, handing the envelope to Mei. Mei looked at the envelope before ripping it open and her eyes widened seeing her father's name
"...father?" Mei asked
"It seems he found someone who he wants to marry" Her grandfather said
"What? He...remarried?" Mei asked looking at him
"Yeah I was surprised too when I heard the news. Guess he finally decided to settle down since he said he'll be living in Japan. Oh and he said he'd like to invite you to a family dinner. Apparently his wife has a daughter the same age as you and he wants you to meet them" Her grandfather said
"...I understand" Mei said and tensed up as her grandfather started coughing
"Grandfather!" Mei said
"I-I'm fine. I'm fine. Ahem...now that you're awake. Let's discuss your future partner. I'll be organizing a couple of blind dates for you. Hopefully one of those men will be good enough for you to become your future fiance. You still have to focus on your last year of college so it's fine if you don't put too much thought on your future partner. As long as they're a hard worker and will help you handle the Academy then it should be fine" Her grandfather said
"Do you have their files?" Mei asked
"Yes. If you'd like to take a look at each then go ahead" Her grandfather said, picking up a brief case where he pulled out the files. Mei grabbed the files and looked through them seeing the images of the men her grandfather set her up with
"I made sure they look at least decent for you. All of them are from great families and I'm sure they'll make great chairmans for the Academy. I'll let you decide who will fit the best role. If they do anything inappropriate please come to me. I'll give them a piece of my mind" Her grandfather said
"Okay" Mei said
...I'll have to marry one of them...
After hours flying back to Japan, the jet started landing on the platform and Mei noticed someone standing outside of the car. She was confused at first since she couldn't recognize the person who was waiting for her
Who...is...wait...could it be?
"Uhm...grandfather...is that a guest?" Mei asked
"Hm? Oh no that's not a guest" Her grandfather said
"Then who is waiting for us?" Mei asked
"She's waiting for you" Her grandfather said
"Huh?" Mei asked slightly confused
"I'd like you to have fun for a bit and spend some quality time with some of your friends. There are times where you need to take a break" Her grandfather said. The jet came to a stop and the doors opened. Mei stood up from her seat and went to the entrance where she got a closer look at the woman
"Meimei!" A woman called out. Mei couldn't help but smile a bit realizing who it was
"H-himeko? Is that you?" Mei asked getting off of the jet
"Mei!" Himeko said running up to her and hugged her
"H-hey Himeko. You look...different" Mei said
"Hm? I do?" Himeko asked pulling away
"It's just I always saw you with your hair up and your hair is longer now. You look great" Mei said
"Awww thanks. You look really beautiful too and you've gotten quite tall as well" Himeko said
"What are you doing here?" Mei asked
"What? Aren't you happy to see me?" Himeko asked
"Ah i-it's not that. I'm just surprised...but I'm glad I get to see you again" Mei said
"We have a lot of catching up to do" Himeko said
"Good afternoon, Momokino-san" The old man said
"Hello Mr. Aihara. It's great to see you again" Himeko said
"Uhm Himeko how is-"
"Ah wait..." Another woman said from the car as a dog barked. Pucchi barked happily as he ran towards the woman and started jumping
"Woof!" Pucchi barked and whined
"Hey Pucchi" Mei said, kneeling down and got startled by Pucchi, who jumped into her arms. Pucchi wagged his tail rapidly as he nuzzled against her
"He really missed you a lot" Himeko said
"Sorry about that, Momokino-san" A green haired woman said
"It's okay Shiraho-san" Himeko said
"Hm?" Mei asked getting up holding Pucchi
"Oh right. Mei meet Shiraho Suzuran" Himeko said
"Pleased to meet you, Suzuran-san" Mei said holding her hand out
"You too, Aihara-san" Shiraho said
"I'll let you catch up with your friends, Mei. If anything happens or if you need anything please call me. Don't worry about your things. I'll send them to your place" Her grandfather said
"Sure" Mei said and felt a tug on her arm as Himeko grabbed her arm
"I think it's best if we took you home so you can rest well" Himeko said
"Wait...where am I staying?" Mei asked
"Remember that we used to say that we would live together? Well you'll be staying with me. No worries, you'll have your own room. I just thought it would be nice to live together but if you want you can get a place of your own" Himeko said
"No. It's fine. It's just like you said we've got a lot of catching up to do" Mei said
"Let's go then" Himeko said as she smiled and took Mei to the car
"Take care of her, Himeko" Her grandfather said
"She's in good hands, sir" Himeko said. Mei got inside the car with Pucchi in her arms since he didn't seem to want to leave
"Uhm did I interrupt your plans or-"
"Oh not at all. You're fine" Shiraho said
"Yeah you're good. Anyways Mei, would you mind telling us your experience in America?" Himeko asked
"But wouldn't you get bored with my stories?" Mei asked
"Not at all. I'm curious about the things you did there. I don't think you were just studying the entire time" Himeko said
"Mmm alright" Mei said