"Haru, glad you could make it!"
"I wouldn't have missed it, Coach," the swimmer replied politely. He then looked down at the slightly nervous woman beside him. "This is Kiyoko, my girlfriend."
"A pleasure to meet you," Kiyoko greeted with a smile, extending her hand.
The coach shook her hand and replied, "I'm glad to meet you as well. It's been nearly six months since Haru joined the team ; it's about time we meet."
"Has it been six months already? Time certainly flies!" Kiyoko laughed lightly. "I'd have loved to meet the team sooner, but work has kept me busy."
"Ah, yes, you have quite the interesting job from what Haru has said. Please, let's join the others and continue this conversation."
The couple nodded their agreement and followed the older man to a large table in the back of the restaurant. This was the second dinner the team had hosted since Haru joined, but Kiyoko had been unable to attend the first one because of an event her organization was hosting. Looking around at the restaurant's décor and the way the other swimmers and their guests were dressed, Kiyoko was glad she and Haru had chosen formal attire.
They arrived at the table and introductions were made. Some of the other swimmers were accompanied by their significant others as well. Everyone seemed friendly, and the table was enveloped by casual conversation even as food began to arrive.
"So, Kiyoko, do you ever get tired of eating mackerel?" asked Gorou, one of the other swimmers.
The dark haired woman chuckled and said, "No, I don't eat it half as often as Haru does. It makes grocery shopping easier, though. I just buy it every week and he cooks it and I cook what I want."
"I don't blame you; that would be a crazy amount of mackerel if you ate it whenever he did," Gorou teased good-naturedly. "It's a bonus that he cooks for himself!"
"We both cook," Kiyoko clarified. "It all depends on our schedules."
"Oh, right, you have quite the job from what Haru has said."
Kiyoko waved the sentiment off and said, "It's just a job I'm passionate about, same as you all."
"What is it you do?" inquired Maru, Gorou's girlfriend.
"I work at a re-entry facility helping prison inmates make the transition back into society."
"Oh my gosh!"Maru gasped. "That sounds dangerous! Haru, don't you worry for her?"
"Not really," Haru answered honestly. "The majority of her clients were non-violent offenders and the few that were have done their time and have been deemed not dangerous. And anyways, she is a capable woman who can handle herself and she loves what she does."
"Honestly, I think I worry about him more than he worries for me," Kiyoko smiled. "He's supportive of me, and I worry some day he'll come home injured."
The rest of the dinner carried on with more friendly banter, conversation and a lot of delicious food. The large group left at the same time, exchanging goodbyes outside the restaurant as people went their separate ways.
"Great to see you as always, Haru," said his Coach. "It's always fun to see the team outside of the water or meetings. And it was a genuine pleasure to finally get to meet you, Kiyoko. I hope we will be seeing more of you."
"I don't plan on parting ways with this one any time soon," Kiyoko smiled, placing a hand in the crook of Haru's elbow. Teasingly, she added, "Though if he is continually late for dinner…"
The coach laughed and promised, "We'll fall into a better routine in time."
"I'll hold you to that," the brunette grinned. "Regardless, it was a pleasure meeting the team, and I hope to see you all again soon."
"Thanks for organizing everything, Coach," Haru added. "See you Monday."
"Monday," his coach confirmed with a nod.
The couple finished their goodbyes before walking down the street toward their shared apartment. They had lucked out and the coach had selected a venue within walking distance of their home, which meant they didn't have to use the metro in their nice clothes. Haru's eyes passed over his girlfriend appreciatively as they walked. She wore a black dress with a somewhat low V-neck that came in at the waist before trailing over her hips and ending in an asymmetric hem. The gold buckles on her black ankle boots clinked pleasantly as she walked.
Haru took her hand and pulled her down the street they were passing. Kiyoko looked up at him and asked, "Where are we going?"
"To see the new fountain they put in the park."
"At eleven o'clock at night?"
"Yeah, it should have lit up after the sun set."
"Okay," she agreed easily.
They walked on in comfortable silence, their hands swinging between them. Eventually, they reached the center of the park, where a large fountain was spouting water skyward. It was illuminated by soft white lights which refracted off the light colored stone of the fountain. A few coins from wish-makers were scattered along the bottom of the fountain. Haru smiled, enjoying the sound of the water splashing from the top of the fountain and into the base below.
Cerulean eyes watched Kiyoko walk slowly toward the fountain before perching atop the basin wall. The swimmer followed suit, sitting beside her. She dipped her fingers in the water, swirling patterns into the surface.
"Thanks for coming with me tonight."
"No problem, Haru. I really wanted to get to know your team. What's important to you is important to me."
After a moment, the black haired male mentioned, "You look great, by the way."
"Thanks!" she replied cheerfully. "I'm glad we went more formal; we would've stuck out for sure."
Haru hummed his agreement. He listened to the bubbling and splashing of the fountain and fought the urge to submerge his hands in the basin. He took a deep breath and directed his gaze at the sky.
"Are you okay?" Kiyoko asked suddenly.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?" he asked, not meeting her gaze.
"I don't know… You've been particularly quiet tonight," she answered with a slight frown.
Haru shook his head. "I'm fine."
"Okay," she allowed, turned her grey eyes to the water flowing from the fountain. It was a beautiful structure, and she found herself lost watching the way the moonlight glinted off the water.
"Kiyoko?" Haru's heart skipped when she turned her attention to him. "You said you don't plan on parting ways any time soon; could you see us ever parting ways?"
She tilted her head slightly in confusion and said, "No, I can't really see anything that could convince me to part ways."
"So… in fifty years, we could still be together?" He watched her expression of confusion deepen but she nodded nonetheless. "Then we should make it official."
"What do you mean?"
"Will you marry me?"
Storm grey eyes blinked a few times before her lips parted in a beaming grin. "Of course, Haru!"
She wrapped him up in a tight hug which he returned. They sat there for a long moment before Haru pulled away. He reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and extracted a ring. Kiyoko offered him her left hand and he slipped it on her finger, relieved when it fit. He watched her examine the white gold band which was braided elegantly around the sides, giving way to a simple setting which held a pillow cut solitaire diamond. It was simple and beautiful.
"It's gorgeous, Haru," she said with another smile.
"I'm glad," he replied earnestly. He hesitated a moment before asking, "I know I haven't been explicit about it but… you do know I love you, right?"
Kiyoko's heart swelled at finally hearing those words. "I know, Haru. I love you, too. I'm happy to hear you say it, but the most important thing you've taught me is that there are many ways to say we love each other."
A/N: Thank you so much for sticking with me to the end. I'd especially like to thank Coka Cookie Cola and Riko-san for being so supportive and for their wonderful reviews. I would love to know what you all think of this ending and of the story as a whole. Thank you all again; I've had a lot of fun with this one!