A/N: Thanks to all of you who had reviewed the previous chapter and added this story to your favorite and story alert list. You really made my day. :)

Disclaimer: I'll be more than happy to be "Mihona Fujii II", hehe. –runs away from the real Fujii-sensei-

Episode 11: Surprises in Spring – Blooming! The Mole's Future Parents?

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"I'd like to introduce you to my parents."

For the umpteenth time, the dark-haired girl heaved a big sigh and simpered, flying to her own world as she imaginatively minded how her beloved boyfriend said those eight words. She was practically facing a biology book but in her fantasy, she saw Rei.

Aya raised her wrist and gazed at her blue bracelet. She was not the type of girls who loved boasting on her success but she could not gainsay the fact that she was authentically proud of herself. She was intensely proud to have something that matched what Rei had.

"Aya, are you still studying?"

Aya gasped, becoming startled when her father's voice was heard all of a sudden. "Y-Yes, I am." She replied awkwardly.

Mr. Hoshino opened the door and entered his daughter's room. "Aren't you tired? I can give you some dispensations during this spring break."

The lass shook her head, cracking a tiny smile. "I'm all right, Father. Despite the holidays, I have to study hard every time for finals, don't I?"

Seeing Aya's look, Mr. Hoshino curved his lips into a smirk and asked his daughter again, "You seem so happy lately, Aya. Did something happen?"

"It's nothing." said Aya with a soft chuckle, growing a hint of curiosity in Mr. Hoshino's mind. However, he refused to ask Aya about it because unknown to her, he could tell what could possibly cause that radiant look of hers.

"Well, glad to hear that. But don't let yourself omit your grades because your boyfriend always asked you to go for a date, okay?" Mr. Hoshino sarcastically warned his daughter, making her speechless. After that, he made an exit and shut the door.

As her father left, Aya's face automatically became as red as an overripe apple. It was new news for her. Since when did her father find out that she was in a relationship?

At least he did not say something like prohibiting her to keep on dating Rei.

"Is she nice?"

"Hn."

"And…is she intelligent?"

"Hn."

"Rei, can't you give me the right answers? What's that 'hn' supposed to mean?"

The Ice Prince shrugged as he threw his sight to the left side, averting his eyes from his mother. He would rather stare at the view of streets as the car continued to run than rambling about his girlfriend like an idiot. "We're about to see her, Mother. You'll find out what she looks like yourself."

Mrs. Otohata narrowed her eyebrows and turned to her husband. "Pa, did you hear that? He can't even say a word about his girlfriend! Our son isn't like a manly man!"

Keeping on driving, Mr. Otohata gave a brief reply which successfully discouraged his wife instead, "Good men always talk less."

Mrs. Otohata sighed in frustration as she mentally thought, These two are a lot like one another.

Meanwhile, Aya was patiently waiting for her boyfriend who had told her that he would pick her up in front of the gate of her house. Her hair was pigtailed and she also wore a bonnet. Indeed she looked like a country woman but she intentionally dressed like that since Rei said that they would go for a picnic.

She could barely imagine how the situation would be once she met Rei's parents. She just hoped that they would accept her kindly.

Not long afterwards, the Otohatas' car finally reached the destination. As the car stopped before Aya, she blinked frantically at the car. Fortunately, she could recognize the guy who was sitting quietly in the car and notice that Rei and his parents were there.

As one of the car windows slowly opened, a beautiful middle-aged woman's face showed up. "Good morning." Mrs. Otohata amiably greeted Aya. Then she shot Rei a glare and her son instantaneously came out of the car and approached Aya, opening the car door for her.

"Thank you, Otohata-kun." Aya sheepishly thanked him as she entered the car and sat down. Rei also came in and took a seat next to her afterwards. Making sure that all passengers were ready, Mr. Otohata began running the car again.

"I'm Rei's mother," Mrs. Otohata smiled sweetly at Aya, putting her hand out. Aya shyly smiled back and then, they shook hands. "I'm Aya Hoshino. It's a pleasure to meet you, Auntie...um, I mean, Mrs. Otohata."

Rei's mother let out a giggle. "You don't have to be so formal, sweetie. And don't call me 'Mrs. Otohata'. You can call me 'Mother' if you like."

Hearing that, Rei threateningly reprimanded his mother, "Hey, Mother…"

"I mean it, Rei," Mrs. Otohata glowered at her heartless son. "Just ignore him, Aya-chan. Mother has got a lot of things to discuss with you."

Aya could not help but blush furiously at this. She never expected that she would have been treated like a daughter-in-law this soon. She skeptically faced Rei and he shrugged as if to say, "Go ahead"

"W-Well…what do you want to talk about, Mrs. Oto—I-I mean, M-M-Moth…" Aya stammered in nervousness.

Seeing that, Mrs. Otohata bubbled with laughter, much to Aya's surprise. "You're extremely cute, Aya-chan. I think there's no daughter who acts that nervous towards her mom like that."

Aya's face turned redder. Ugh, what's the matter with you, you cowardly mole? Be brave, will you? Aya mentally scolded herself, strengthening her heart. She should be calm. What if Rei's parents could not accept awkward girls like her?

"I-I'm sorry. I'm just too excited to see Otohata-kun's parents that I just couldn't help…feeling nervous." Aya remarked. She had to muster up her courage. "But I…I'm generally timid."

Mrs. Hoshino became speechless for a moment. Then she smiled again and said, "If that's Aya-chan that Rei really likes, it's fine. I've always respected people who dare to acknowledge their debility like you, Aya-chan."

"R-Really?" Aya gaped in disbelief. "Um...thank you."

The dark-haired girl turned her face to Rei again and he smirked at her, thumbing up. She nodded and gave him a smile as a signal to say, "I did it!"

They arrived at their final destination; a park which was surrounded by a lot of cherry blossom trees. They were not the only one who wanted to enjoy the loveliness of spring under the cherry blossom tree—they found many people around there. Luckily, they were able to get an empty space under one of the cherry blossom trees.

"It's been a year since the last time we did hanami together, right, Pa?" Mrs. Otohata spoke to her husband, taking the foods and drinks out of the basket.

Mr. Otohata nodded in agreement as he took a seat. Seeing this, Aya slightly realized that Rei's father had been so quiet. Was it because he was not in a good mood or he was fundamentally stoic as his son?

"You see, Aya-chan…" Mrs. Otohata started, "As a mother, I've never expected that Rei is actually able to find a girlfriend. You know, he'd been so cold, reclusive and nonchalant since he was young. I was dead worried about his future that time."

Being gibed, Rei formed a grim and sullenly glowered at his mother but of course, she disregarded him. Mrs. Otohata continued, "I have never seen Rei showed any interest in girls before, really. But starting from two years ago, Rei started to hang out more often and I had a feeling that he didn't go for his part-time job only. Yet, I never asked him about it."

Aya listened to every single word that Mrs. Otohata said. It was not everyday she could hear something about Rei which she had not known yet. "Rei was still sixteen years old that time. But this year, my husband and I agreed to ask Rei to introduce his girlfriend to us. After all, he's now eighteen and he's been an adult."

Mrs. Otohata's eyes softened as she gently whispered to Aya, "I'm glad that you're here for Rei. Thank you very much, Aya-chan."

Aya flushed as she feverishly responded, "N-Not at all, I didn't do anything. On the contrary, I was the one who had received much happiness from Otohata-kun all this time. He's the one who always makes me happy."

"Rei makes a girl happy?" Mr. Otohata ultimately joined the conversation. "Are you sure?"

Rei popped a vein, getting irritated that his parents could not stop underestimating him. "Father…"

"Yes! Without him, I would have remained a coward who couldn't speak out her mind. Otohata-kun had given me some useful advices," Aya enthusiastically explained, much to the Otohatas' amazement. "Otohata-kun has opened my eyes. I feel like the luckiest girl in the whole world every time he's there with me."

Realizing that everyone; even Rei was silenced by her words, Aya sweat-dropped and lowered her head in bashfulness. "I-I'm dreadfully sorry…did I say too much?"

Much to Aya's utter surprise, Mrs. Otohata clapped her hands, cheering delightfully. "Cool! That was magnificently impressive, Aya-chan! No doubt, I'm sure that you'll be a good wife for Rei!"

"Wife?" Aya and Rei said in unison.

Mr. Hoshino added, "Precisely."

"Err, I-I think it's too early for us to talk about something like that, Mrs. Otohata. And—"

"I'd better go," Rei icily stated as he got up, interrupting his girlfriend.

"Where are you going, Rei?" asked Mrs. Otohata.

The Ice Prince coolly replied before leaving, "Getting some fresh air."

As Rei walked away, Aya watched him in disquietude. She quickly turned her face to Rei's parents again and asked, "Otohata-kun doesn't look well…could it be that he gets angry?"

"Impossible. He just can't stand on this kind of conversation, that's all," Mrs. Otohata clarified with a chuckle. "He'll be back, I promise. More importantly, aren't you two hungry? The onigiri and its friends are waiting to eat." She jokingly said.

Mr. Otohata took a sandwich and glutted it. Looking at Aya who kept quiet, Mrs. Otohata asked, "What's wrong, Aya-chan? Don't tell me that you've had breakfast at home."

Aya shook her head and rose from her seat. "I-I'll look for Otohata-kun." She declared as she hurriedly left.

"Ma," called Mr. Otohata, still masticating the sandwich. "Do you think that Rei is moping around?"

Mrs. Otohata formed a smirk at this. "No worries, Pa. I believe that Aya-chan can handle it."

Rei gazed blankly upon a cherry blossom tree which did not have anyone sitting under it. He heaved a long sigh and threw his sight to his right wrist which had a green bracelet around it—a birthday present from Aya. He sighed again.

Suddenly, the Ice Prince heard someone panting behind him. As he turned around, he blinked confusedly at that person, "Aya?"

"Thank goodness…" Aya muttered, breathing hard. "I finally found you, Otohata-kun. You've gone rather far from our place."

Aya walked toward her boyfriend and faced him. "I don't know if my suspicion is right or not, but…are you feeling uncomfortable?"

"..." Rei was silenced for a while. Then he shrugged and answered, "If I'm not, I wouldn't have gone here to get some fresh air, would I?"

Aya looked concerned. "I-I understand, Otohata-kun. I'm not comfortable either when your mother was talking about good wife or something like that, but…"

"It's not like that," Rei cut her off. "I was kind of annoyed that they continuously disparaged me. I'm not a perfect guy but being underestimated by my parents is just irritating."

Aya enlarged her eyes. That was the very first time Rei told her about his vexation toward others. Right now she felt sorry for him but at the same time, she was also excited that Rei had unburdened his mind--to her. She felt so special. Who would ever think that even the Ice Prince could be glum sometimes?

"Your parents didn't mean to insult you, Otohata-kun," Aya murmured, "They do love you. I think it's just their way to express their happiness."

Rei reacted, "I know. It's just that I never thought that they had that kind of opinions about me all this time. I don't care about what people say about me. But if it's my parents, I…tch, shit."

As another surprise befell her, she gaped in awe. To be honest, Rei was completely different from usual. Aya had just realized that no matter how cold Rei was, he was still a human who has got some feelings too, despite being pronounced as "Ice Man" by Ran.

And somehow, she felt like she was the first person who had ever seen this weak side of his and she became even happier at this.

"I don't know what your parents are actually thinking about you, but…" Aya took a pause and radiantly told him, "…if it were me, I won't care about how Otohata-kun looked like in the past. I will accept you…just the way you are."

Rei's eyes widened. Was this girl really Aya? Was she the timid and innocent Aya who used to act awkwardly in front of him? He could hardly believe it. And in the end, he let out a deep sigh again and said with a smirk, "I guess it's time for me to be the one who receives some advices, huh?"

Aya's face reddened. "D-Did I look cocky?"

Rei walked closer to Aya and pinched her cheeks lightly, causing a moan from her. "If you can keep that mature side of yours, perhaps I won't be worried once we get married in the future."

The Ice Prince started pacing, not noticing that his girlfriend was currently in a stocked-still position that she could not possibly move an inch to follow him.

M-Mature side? Worried? G-Get married? In the future? Aya repeatedly said those words in her mind. Her face was completely scarlet now.

A few minutes later, Rei arrived at his parents' place. They were still enjoying the supplies. "Rei, you're finally back! Where's Aya-chan?" asked Mrs. Otohata.

Rei looked around in confusion. "I thought she was behind me. I met her earlier."

In less than three seconds, the said girl appeared. She speedily ran toward Rei and his parents. "Sorry, I'm late."

"Never mind. Sit down, will you?" Mrs. Otohata ordered the young couple as she tapped the ground. "You two must have been starving."

Aya and Rei looked at each other, smiling and taking their respective seat. As Rei was about to get his lunchbox, he cocked a brow and questioned, "Mother, where are the chopsticks?"

"Goodness! I think I'd left them in our car." Mrs. Otohata replied, patting her forehead.

"I'll take them," Aya stated, getting up.

Mr. Otohata threw the keys of his car to Aya. "Do you know how to unlock it?"

Aya nodded in reply and swiftly headed for the car. Mrs. Otohata smiled at her future daughter-in-law and then, she cast a glance at her son, making him astonished. "What?"

"Nothing," Mrs. Otohata uttered as she caressed Rei's hair recklessly. "I'm so proud that my son has already grown up and chosen the sweetest girl I've ever met."

Rei twitched in annoyance, feeling like he was being treated like a child. But as a matter of fact, he collusively agreed with his mother's opinion about his girlfriend. And all he could do was smirk to reply to his mother.

NEXT ------

A/N: Thanks for reading and sorry for all errors I've made. Don't forget to send me your reviews, okay? :)

Next on Super Innocent Gal: Now that Otohata-kun goes to his hometown for a week, I have to spend this spring break without him. I'm kind of upset though, but at least I still have my best friends, Ran and Miyu. But why do my parents not allow me to go hang out and demand me to stay at home during this spring break? Father, I thought you meant it when you said that you'll give me some dispensations! If only Otohata-kun were here… Episode 12: A Kishy Vacation – Waiting in Vain! Being Encaged?