Business Relationship

Chapter 16 - Future

Mai unlocked the door to her apartment and stepped inside. "I'm home!"

Though, she didn't need to announce it. From the moment she put the key in the lock, she could hear many footsteps rushing to the door.

"Welcome home!" Minato called, tackling Mai into a hug.

Minato wore comfortable clothes, a sweater and leggings. The baby fat had faded from her face, leaving her with an elegant appearance as long as she didn't move or speak. Her personality hadn't changed much, still an energetic and loving girl.

A small dog quickly followed her, lingering around their feet. It had long black and white fur, a Japanese Chin.

They decided on that breed for a few reasons. It was small, so it could thrive in an apartment, and it liked being in people's laps, which was convenient for Minato while drawing and Mai while relaxing after work. People also referred to the breed as being cat-like, which appealed to Minato, who was more of a cat person. It was a good middle-ground between Mai and Minato's desires.

Mai laughed and crouched down, rubbing Minato and the dog's heads. "Okay, puppies. Calm down. Let me take my shoes off first at least."

Mai wore the usual business worker's outfit, a dark coat over a white blouse with a skirt and pantyhose covering her legs. She resembled her mother more the older she got and kept her hair long and unbound as she always had.

Minato pulled Mai's coat off as she stepped away. "What would you like first? Dinner? A bath? Or maybe... me?"

"Are you going to ask that every time I get home from work?" Mai asked, sitting down on the bench to remove her shoes. The dog impatiently crawled into her lap.

Minato hung up the coat. "I don't think there's a better way to ask..."

"Silly. Dinner first, as usual."

"Okay! Any requests?"

"Up to you this time."

"Understood!"

Sometimes Mai had urges, but more often than not she left it up to Minato. After a long day at work, Mai didn't want to make another decision. Plus, Minato knew what ingredients they had around and how fresh everything was, so her deciding was generally the better option.

Mai carried the dog into the living room and sat down on the couch while Minato went into the kitchen. She relaxed and watched television.

Two episodes later, Minato set the table and announced, "Dinner's ready!"

Mai set the dog down onto the floor and got up. Minato filled the food bowl and joined Mai at the table.

"Have you been doing well, all alone while I'm at work?" Mai asked.

"Yeah, it's not that much worse than when you were in college," Minato replied. "And, the location's nice! There's a lot of places to walk to for a change of scenery."

Minato opted not to attend college, instead taking online lessons to improve her art, a much cheaper option. Beyond that, she went to a few cooking classes to give Mai more delicious food.

Mai nodded. "There's enough entertainment for you?"

Minato laughed. "I'm a human, not a pet! You don't gotta provide enrichment for me, I can find it myself. I have commissions to work on, videos to watch, books to read. And you don't need to study anymore, so we have every night to ourselves now. I'm fine."

Mai smiled. "That's all true. I just worry about you."

"I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself! What about you? How's work life?"