Chapter 26: More the Merrier
"She's here!" Misaki announced, sliding off the couch.
Takumi followed behind as Misaki threw the door open.
"Mom!" Misaki said, hugging Minako.
"Oh my, Misaki," Minako said, gently squeezing her. "Hello Takumi. How have you been, dear?" she asked.
"I've been good," Takumi said. "Yourself?"
"Just perfect... Let me take a look at you," Minako sighed, placing a soft palm on Misaki's cheek. "Has pregnancy been hard?" she asked. "You look so thin? Have you been eating enough?"
Takumi took Minako's suitcases and Misaki ushered her mom inside.
"The house looks beautiful as ever..." Minako said, hanging up her jacket.
"I'll take your suitcases up to the guest room," Takumi offered.
"Oh, that's fine," Minako said. "I can carry it my-"
"You're our guest," Takumi said.
"None of that," Minako said, smiling. "Don't try and alienate me. We're all family. I carried Misaki for 9 whole months in me... And now she's going to have her own..." Minako's voice was a little choked up.
"Mom..." Misaki complained. "It's really not a big deal-"
"Of course it's a big deal!" Minako said. "Oh, that reminds me..."
Minako unzipped one of her suitcases and pulled out lots of plastic bags.
"I bought some prenatal vitamins," Minako said, pulling out the bottles and setting them down on the counter.
"Mom!" Misaki exclaimed. "You didn't have to do that. I could have gone out and bought some myself. You really didn't need to buy anything-"
"Oh hush," Minako said. "How would you know which ones are good?"
Misaki listened as her mom explained all the vitamins to her.
"I understand," Misaki said, nodding.
"You just look so thin..." Minako sighed. "Takumi, what has she been eating?"
"Uhh...breakfast is usually plain pancakes and fruit... " Takumi paused. "Usually, Misaki just eats what she feels like eating..." he stated.
"Cravings?" Minako asked. "I loved chocolate when I had you. Chocolate anything and I'd eat it."
"Mine are just weird," Misaki admitted. "One day I had breaded chicken covered in peanut butter..."
"It's happens darling," Minako said.
Misaki and Minako sat down at the kitchen table.
"How about some tea?" Misaki suggested.
"Tea would be lovely,"
Misaki threw some tea bags in her pretty teapot and poured hot water from the coffee maker in. Takumi came back downstairs and poked around the kitchen.
"Are you hungry?" Takumi asked.
"Oh, I'll cut up some apples," Minako said, getting up.
Misaki and Takumi brought the plates of apples to the living room where Minako joined them.
"Bunny apples," Misaki said, smiling.
She nibbled on a slice and leaned back into the couch.
"So what has the doctor said?" Minako asked.
"Everything's looking good," Misaki assured her mom. "I'm perfectly healthy."
"Have you told Suzana?" Minako asked.
Misaki nodded. Suzana congratulated her and that was about it. Her sister wasn't one to get all excited over anything.
"Did she ask you anything?" Minako asked.
"Not in particular," Misaki replied.
"Oh, well, she did want to come see you," Minako explained. "But she didn't want to be a bother."
"Oh no," Misaki said. "She's my sister. Why would having her over be a bother?"
Takumi cleared his throat. "Well, you do need rest," he reminded her. "This guest entertaining will wear you out."
"No, it won't," Misaki said. "I'll call Suzana right now. That way she can see Mom too... Is that okay, Takumi?" Misaki asked.
Takumi sighed. "Sure," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.
"How long are you staying?" Misaki asked.
"Just the weekend," Minako said. "I'm sure you and Takumi are very busy."
Misaki nodded and dialed Suzana's number.
"Hello?"
"Hi Suzana!" Misaki greeted.
"Hello Oneechan," Suzana responded.
"So," Misaki said, leaning back into the couch. "Mom is visiting for the weekend. I was wondering if you and Hinata could maybe come over for a couple days too."
"Oh," Suzana said.
Misaki heard papers flipping.
"We actually don't have anything planned..." Suzana observed. "Hinata!" she called.
"What?" came a muffled voice.
"Want to go visit Misaki?" Suzana asked. "Mom's there too. We could take an evening train and by there by night."
"Isn't this sudden?" Hinata asked.
"I'll take that as a yes," Suzana put the phone back to her ear. "We'll arrive at Tokyo by late evening," Suzana promised. "Take care."
"Okay, awesome," Misaki said. "See you soon then."
Takumi sighed and patted Misaki's knee. "You're just a little social butterfly, aren't you?" he teased.
Misaki pursed her lips. "It's just my sister," she said.
"How about I cook tonight?" Minako suggested as Misaki and her walked into the kitchen.
"Mom," Misaki said. "You must be exhausted from traveling today. You should rest."
Minako smiled. "I just packed a suitcase and took a train. It wasn't tiring at all."
"But-"
"It's okay, Misaki," Minako said, gently. "Go have some private time with Takumi," she added, shooing Misaki out of the kitchen.
Misaki found Takumi in his office.
"Hey," she said, sitting on arm of his chair.
"Hey," he said, taking her hand.
"You're not mad, are you?" Misaki asked.
"If you kiss me, I won't be,"
"Takumi, be serious," Misaki complained.
"I'm not mad," Takumi said, pulling Misaki onto his lap. "You just don't know your limits sometimes."
"It's just one weekend," Misaki reminded him.
She gently pushed his hair back. Takumi smiled and held her closer to him.
"You've been rather affectionate lately," he said, smiling.
Misaki blushed. "Have I?"
"Mhm," Takumi murmured, kissing her temple. "There's a lot more physical contact."
"Sor-"
"No, I like it," Takumi said, winking. "It's nice to see you come out of your shell."
"Whatever," Misaki said, resting her head against his neck. "I just feel better when you're near," she admitted.
Takumi smiled and stroked her hair. Mood swings were bad but some changes he enjoyed. Usually he was always the one who kissed her, held her hand but now Misaki was acting like a typical high school girl with her first boyfriend. When he was actually her first boyfriend, she didn't really flirt, however, now it was a different story.
Suzana and Hinata arrived 9:00 at night. There were exchanges of hugs and greetings.
"Oh," Suzana sighed, gently touching the small swell on Misaki's stomach.
"Yeah..." Misaki said, smiling. "Three months now."
Suzana nodded and smiled back. Takumi set up the second guest room for Suzana and Hinata. Minako had the guest room on the far side of the house so Suzana and Hinata were literally next door to Misaki and Takumi.
"This is probably going to be the nursery," Misaki said, watching Suzana hang up her clothes.
"It would make sense. This room is the closest to the master bedroom," Suzana agreed. "What are you going to do with the bed here then?"
Misaki thought about it. Upstairs there was the master bedroom with a connecting bathroom, this guest room, the far side guest room, hall bathroom, Takumi's office, and Misaki's study.
"Maybe we'll add a bed to the movie room," Misaki said with a shrug. "I have no idea..."
Suzana nodded. "When are you starting the nursery?"
"Probably in a month," Misaki replied. "Takumi wants to do it himself and he is obviously not going to let me help so he's clearing his schedule next month to be at home more. We also want to know the gender first."
Suzana nodded. "I see. Gikei is a sweet man."
"Over protective," Misaki corrected. "He makes me carry in the bread when we get groceries," she told Suzana. "He'll carry in all five bags and I'm carrying a loaf of bread..."
Suzana giggled. "Oh Gikei..." she said, shaking her head.
"Are you hungry?" Misaki asked.
Suzana shook her head. "We ate on the train station. Oh, I brought you these," Suzana said, pulling out a huge stack of magazines.
Misaki flipped through the pages of home decorating and expectant mothers. "Thanks Suzana," she said. "These are actually really helpful."
"I thought maybe we could look through them together with Mom," Suzana suggested.
Misaki nodded. "That would be nice," she agreed.
The rest of the night consisted of the women sitting around the coffee table pouring through the magazines. Takumi came by once to drop off some snacks.
"Hey Takumi," Misaki said. "Which do you like better?" she asked, holding up two pictures of different nurseries. One had a light green theme and the other was a baby blue one.
"Both are nice," Takumi said, setting down the tray of food.
"Oh Oneechan," Suzana said, laying another magazine down. "Look at that one!"
"Don't stay up too late," Takumi said, kissing Misaki on the forehead.
"Okay," Misaki replied, smiling.
Misaki was never really into home decorating but the magazines proved to be more addicting than she thought. They finally called it a day and Misaki went to bed. Takumi was already asleep so Misaki quietly crawled into bed and pulled the blanket up over herself.
"Tora?"
"Hm?" Tora asked, looking up from his paperwork.
Ruri walked over. "I.. uhh, I…"
"What?" Tora asked.
Ruri bit her lower lip. "I…um."
Tora smirked. "Cat got your tongue?" he asked. "What's the matter, babe?"
"I don't know how to phrase this," Ruri said, sitting on the edge of his desk.
"Just say it," Tora said. "Its unlike you to be at a loss of words," he added.
"I have this weird feeling," Ruri said. "But I'm not sure."
"Okay…?"
Ruri let out a defeated sigh. "I don't know…"
Tora was confused now. "What are you talking about?" Tora asked.
"Can you run to the store for me?" Ruri asked.
"Where's Gretta?" Tora asked.
"I want you to do it," Ruri said, giving a Tora a wide eyed look.
"Um… okay," Tora said. "What do you want me to get?" he asked.
Ruri tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "Could you go buy me a...pregnancy test," she said in a quiet voice.
Tora dropped his pen. "What?"
"I'm not sure but…"
"Yeah, sure," Tora said, getting up. "I'll go buy one right now." he said, grabbing his wallet. "Sit here and don't move," Tora added, rushing out of the room.
Tora came back with a plastic bag full of tests. "I didn't know which one to get so I got them all," he said, dumping it out on the desk.
Ruri picked one up and walked into the bathroom. Tora sat next to her as they waited.
"I'm kind of scared," Ruri admitted.
"Isn't this what you wanted?" Tora asked.
"Yeah, but I'm still worried," Ruri told. "Stupid isn't it?"
Tora smiled. "No," he said. "I'll be with you," he promised.
Both of them stared at the stick as the timer went off.
"Pick it up," Tora said, nudging Ruri.
Ruri could feel her hands shaking as she picked up the stick. "I'm pregnant…" she breathed, in shock.
Tora took it from her and jerked up.
"Ow," he said, hitting his side on the desk. He tried to turn around but kicked the chair by accident.
"Ow," he said again, rubbing his foot.
He backed up and knocked over a stack of books.
"Oh shoot," he said, looking at the mess he made.
Ruri burst out laughing because Tora looked so funny, running into everything and knocking it over. He went to go right the stack of books but just ended up knocking over the stack of papers on his desk.
"I love you," Ruri said, throwing her arms around Tora.
Tora hugged her tightly. "I don't even know what to say," Tora said, smoothing her hair. "I love you so much. I can't even form words."
Ruri laughed and Tora laughed too. Ruri laughed so hard that tears were forming in her eyes. Tora kissed her cheeks and placed his hands on her stomach. He just looked at Ruri and shook his head. He was utterly speechless.
"This is where you rush to get me a Doctor's appointment," Ruri whispered, winking.
"Yeah," Tora said, bewildered. "Yeah…"
Ruri had never seen Tora in shock before and it was pretty funny sight. He ran into the door before stumbling back and then actually opening it.
Misaki got an urgent call from Ruri.
"Hello?" Sakura and her said at the same time.
"Hey," Ruri said. "I got some good news."
Sakura gasped. "Are you…?"
"YES!" Ruri exclaimed. "I'm finally going to be a mom!"
"Congrats!" Misaki said, laughing. "Its about time," she joked.
"I know right," Ruri sighed. "I just got back from the Doctor's. I'm actually an entire month in. I can't believed I stopped checking…"
"Well, everything going to be fine now," Sakura sighed.
"How about a celebration?" Ruri said. "Dinner at my house?"
"Suzana and my mom are over," Misaki told her.
"That's okay!" Ruri said. "Bring them too! I'm so happy I just want to hang out with you guys."
"Okay," Misaki said. "I'll see you soon then!"
"Bye!"
"Takumi!" Misaki called. "Guess what?!"
"What?" Takumi asked, looking up from his tablet.
"Ruri and Tora are expecting!"
"Really?" Takumi said, surprised. "About time," he added. "Considering how hard they were trying," he added, winking.
Misaki nodded. "Ruri wants us to come over for dinner," she told him. "Suzana, you have to come too."
"Is it at their house?" Suzana asked.
Misaki nodded. "Mom!" she called. "Want to have dinner at the Igarashi's?"
Minako walked into the living room. "You go ahead," she said. "I won't meddle with you young people's celebration."
Misaki frowned. "I can't leave you here by yourself. You did come all the way to Tokyo to visit…"
Minako smiled. "It'll be a few hours," she reassured Misaki.
"But you'll be all alone…" Misaki argued.
Minako smiled. "I could use a nap," she told Misaki. "This will be the perfect time to rest up."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive."
Misaki changed into a pair of leggings and a mint green sweater dress. Takumi wore a casual white t shirt with a royal blue jacket over it.
They got to Ruri's place which was filled with an exciting buzz.
"Hi!" Ruri said, hugging Misaki and then Suzana.
Takumi clapped Tora on the back. "About time, Igarashi," he teased.
"Yeah yeah," Tora said.
Sakura and Kuuga arrived shortly after.
"Ruri!" Sakura sang, hugging Ruri. "Congrats!"
"Thanks," Ruri said, laughing.
Misaki was rather surprised how much she enjoyed swapping stories with her friends. Takumi, Hinata, Tora and Kuuga went downstairs to play pool but her and the girls sat around just talking in the living room.
"Have you felt any symptoms yet?" Misaki asked Ruri.
"Not really," Ruri said. "I did feel the sore back and I knew something was up."
Sakura sighed. "You better get Tora to give you a back rub," she teased. "Kuuga usually gives me one before bed and its so relaxing."
Ruri clapped her hands together. "Let's go shopping tomorrow! Misaki and Suzana can bring their mom and we can look at everything at Tree Designs."
"Where's that?" Suzana asked.
"Its a huge department store," Sakura explained. "It has EVERYTHING!"
Suzana laughed. "Sounds great. I need new curtains anyways."
"So promise?" Ruri asked.
"Promise!"