"Haruka! I'm home!"
Michiru was not happy. She had gone shopping for some art supplies, with the assumption that Haruka would pick her up after she was done. Yet instead Haruka had called her and said that something really important had come up and that Michiru would have to take the bus. Michiru hated travelling in buses. This time in the bus there had been a crying baby, some drunken man who was loudly explaining to someone about how he lost his job and a man who kept trying to flirt with Michiru. To make it even worse, Michiru had two plastic bags filled with paints and brushes and a large canvas roll to carry with her. Michiru was very interested in hearing Haruka's excuse for not picking her up. During the long and frustrating bus ride she had had plenty of time to come up with a proper way to get back at Haruka. A night or two on the sofa and finally cleaning the garage should do.
Michiru stepped into the living room and set the art supplies to lean against the wall. Haruka emerged from the kitchen and helped Michiru out of her coat.
"I'm so sorry I couldn't pick you up," she said. Michiru glanced at Haruka's clothes.
"Why are you wearing a suit?" she asked. It wasn't even the horrible mustard suit Haruka usually liked to wear, but a properly tailored suit that actually looked good.
"Well, I have a surprise for you. Setsuna and Hotaru are out of the house for tonight, so we can have a romantic dinner together. That's the reason I couldn't pick you up," Haruka explained as she guided Michiru to the porch. Haruka had set up candles everywhere. Michiru could only stare at the scene in awe. The candles lit up their beautiful back yard, the table was filled with all of Michiru's favorite foods and the setting sun and purple sky finished the view. Michiru knew she couldn't stay mad at Haruka after this.
"Wow. It's… beautiful," she breathed and walked over to the table.
"I'm glad you like it. I just thought that the weather was so good that we should eat outside," Haruka explained. Michiru kissed her cheek and sat down.
Michiru enjoyed romantic dinners at home. Whenever they were in a restaurant, there were too many people around. Usually they started getting mean looks from the other people by dessert, when they started getting too flirty and physical with each other. Plus, at home their bed was closer so they didn't have to stop the car on the way home and hope nobody caught them.
"Thank you for this lovely dinner, Haruka," Michiru smiled as she finished the dessert. Haruka got up and walked around the table to stand next to Michiru.
"I'm glad you liked it. There was actually a reason for this", she explained. Michiru could see that Haruka was suddenly very nervous.
"I thought about doing this in the summer, but I couldn't wait, so I thought that spring is warm enough. I mean, I've been planning this for months so I wanted everything to be perfect," Haruka said and took Michiru's hands into hers.
"I even wrote down what I wanted to say, but I think it's useless. We don't need long speeches to understand each other. You and I, we just always seem to get each other. I know we're meant to be together, or at least that's what I like to think. I love going to places and introducing you as my girlfriend. It makes me feel proud. Well, you make me feel proud." Michiru couldn't help but smile at Haruka's words. She was about to reply, but Haruka continued.
"But lately, I've been thinking. I've been thinking about you and me, and I've been thinking about the amazing family we have. And… well… I don't want you to be my girlfriend anymore."
Michiru could only stare at Haruka. Those were not the words she had expected. What was the point of saying all those beautiful words if Haruka was going to end her speech like that? Before Michiru could even open her mouth, Haruka had gotten down onto one knee, still holding Michiru's hands in hers.
"I want you to be my wife instead. Marry me, Michiru," Haruka said. Michiru kept staring at her. Then, tears appeared in Michiru's eyes, even though she felt like smiling. She slid down from her chair and wrapped her arms around Haruka, who seemed to be very confused.
"So… uh, is that a yes?" Haruka asked, wrapping her own arms around Michiru's waist.
"Oh, sorry. Yes. Of course," Michiru laughed and wiped away her tears.
"Thank you," Haruka whispered and held onto Michiru even tighter, "But why are you crying? Aren't you happy?" Haruka wasn't used to Michiru's crying, so she wasn't sure how she was supposed to react.
"I am happy. I've dreamed about this day for so long. This is all so perfect. But you could have picked some better words, I was very confused when you said you didn't want me as your girlfriend," Michiru laughed. She pulled away to look at Haruka's face, but kept her arms wrapped around Haruka's neck.
"Sorry about that. And I'm sorry that we can't actually get married yet. But I promise that as soon as it becomes legal, we'll have a perfect wedding. I don't care if that means we have to wait until Crystal Tokyo. And, umm… sorry that I don't have a ring to give you. I just couldn't find anything that was perfect enough for you. I thought we could go shopping for rings together. I mean, if you want to have a ring," Haruka suggested, cupping Michiru's cheek. She leaned in for a kiss, and for some reason this kiss felt different. It was their first kiss as an engaged couple.
"Stop apologizing. Everything's perfect. I don't mind waiting. And I'd love to go shopping for rings together," Michiru said as they pulled away. Haruka smiled and kissed her again.
"So. Do you want to go practice for our wedding night?" Haruka suggested.
"Only if you carry me," Michiru replied. They blew out the candles and took the dishes to the kitchen. Then, Haruka picked Michiru up and started carrying her towards their bedroom.
They barely even made it to the bedroom. They ended up making love on the floor, even though the bed was right next to them. Well, this was only practice for the wedding night so it didn't matter. When they finally finished, Haruka used the last of her energy to pick Michiru up and gently putting her down on the bed before joining her under the soft blanket.
"I can't believe we're engaged," Michiru murmured against Haruka's chest.
"Yeah. I can't wait to tell everyone. Though Setsuna knows already. I had to tell her so that I could get her and Hotaru out of the house," Haruka said, stroking Michiru's hair.
"Hmph. I would've wanted to tell her," Michiru pouted, her lower lip sticking out. Haruka knew she wasn't actually mad.
"You can tell everyone else if you want to," Haruka promised. For a moment they just lay in silence, listening to each other's steady breathing.
"Haruka?"
"Mmh?"
"How would you feel about our small family getting a little bigger?" Michiru asked. Haruka sat up and looked down at Michiru.
"What… what do you mean?"
"What if we had another child? I don't mean right now, of course, but sometime in the next few years. Obviously we need to ask Setsuna, too, but I don't think she-"
Haruka leaned down and kissed Michiru before she could finish her sentence.
"Are you kidding me? Of course I want to have another child! I love Hotaru, and I think it would be great if she had someone to play with," Haruka said, pulling away from the kiss. She was grinning, and Michiru couldn't help smiling too.
"So you're willing to have another child then? Even if it means waking up in the middle of the night to feed a hungry baby?" Michiru asked.
"Of course. I love our family, and I think that having one more person in it would make it even better, even if that person keeps crying through the nights. Besides, I love it when you do… mom-things."
"Mom-things?"
"Yeah. Whenever Hotaru hurts herself, I just start panicking, but you always comfort her and take care of her. And you always explain things to her so calmly, even when she asks ridiculous or awkward questions. I love it when I come home late and you're already sleeping in our bed with Hotaru. The two of you look so cute together. So, you know, mom-things."
Haruka wrapped her arms around Michiru and closed her eyes.
"I love you, Haruka," Michiru whispered with a smile on her face.
"I love you too, Michiru."
The two of them drifted into sleep, dreaming about their future together.