Sora woke up to the pleasant smell of food that filled the room, replacing the smell of trees in the mountain area in Japan. She slowly opened her eyes and scanned the place with attention, taking some time to realize where she was. A smile appeared in her lips, which quickly went away when she rolled over on the bed and saw the empty side of it. She blinked a few times and smiled again. The young woman got up and went to get ready. Her plan was going to start now.
Yamato went to the bedroom after cutting some fruits to put on the tray and surprise his beloved one, but he was afraid to drop everything because it was too heavy. That's why he took the tray first and then admired her while she slept peacefully. He felt very happy and lucky for having her in his life. Sora was everything he looked for, without knowing he was looking for. She was sweet, understanding, tough and romantic, but not in a exaggerated way. But what he admired the most about her was that she inspired him to be a better person and always pushed him to follow his dreams. She had an essential role on his decision of becoming an astronaut.
He walked into the bedroom distracted and put the bowls on the tray. When he turned around to wake her up, he found the bed empty. Over it there was a folded note. He grabbed and opened it.
Have you felt the grass below your feet today?
He couldn't help but smile while he realized what was happening. He wanted to surprise her and she had the same idea. It was so typical of her to turn things that were about her to someone else. He put the note in the back pocket of his shorts and opened the door that led to the yard behind the house.
The sun was already shining bright and Yamato had to adjust to the sudden change of luminosity. When he did, he looked around but there was no signal of her.
"Sora!" He covered his mouth with his hands to amplify the sound of his voice, but he knew she wouldn't answer even if she was near. "Of course, she wants me to find her. So I should step barefoot on the grass."
He took off his flip-flops and gave a few steps forward. At first, the grass itched his feet, but right after he felt the dew water still on it, making his feet wet. The blonde kept walking and appreciating the sensation until something on the floor caught his attention.
It was another note. Yamato bent down and grabbed it, quickly opening it for a clue.
Did you see how clear the water here is?
He gave a soft laugh, still not believing Sora had planned all of this in secret. This was getting interesting. He folded the note and put it in the same pocket as the first one and continued his walk.
Halfway through to the lake near the house, there was a small plantation of mini red roses near a cherry tree. Yamato made a quick stop and grabbed one of the roses. Her favorite flower. He also grabbed a small cherry blossom from one of the branches that hung to the ground because of its height.
When he finally saw her, he hid his hands behind him. She had her back to him, watching the landscape and he contemplated her silhouette. She was wearing the flowery baby blue dress he gave her on her last birthday. He was terrible with giving clothes as presents, especially for her, but her large smile and sparkling eyes showed him he has got it absolutely right.
"For someone good at solving riddles, you took quite some time." She said without turning.
"In my defense, I wasn't ready for this." He answered. "How did you know I was here?"
"I felt it. Besides, your perfume is unmistakable." Sora looked down and felt her face blushing lightly.
Even though they've been together for almost 8 years, she still felt embarrassed at some situations.
"I'm glad it's unmistakable for you."
There was a tone of malice in his voice, which made Sora blush a little more. She took a deep breath and squeezed the little box in her hands. Yamato gave a few more steps and decreased the distance between them.
"Aren't you gonna ask me what all of this is for?"
"I was hoping you'd tell me."
She breathed deeply and finally gathered the courage to turn around. Her hands still held the little box tightly. The blonde felt his heart race the moment their eyes met. Even after so many years, he still felt the same way he did when he realized he was in love with her.
"We came a long way to get here, didn't we?"
He finally understood the reason of all this mystery.
"Sora."
"Let me finish." She raised her hand and he became quiet. "How many people can say they found the love of their lives in the childhood? I guess a few, and I was lucky enough to be one of them."
Tears appeared in the corner of her eyes.
"We had our ups and downs moments and have been through a lot together, especially recently." She paused so she wouldn't cry.
He knew exactly what she was talking about. While he was dealing with the loss with Taichi's help, she went through it all alone. It was only weeks later that she could talk about it and he felt guilty for not helping her overcome it, even if she said it was fine. The pain will take some time to pass, but since then they have helped each other daily to get over this.
"But I always believed in us, Yamato. I always believed in our love, in what we felt for each other. I hope you do too."
He gave a shy smile and looked down. Sora knew it was his way to say yes.
"I thought a lot before making this decision and in my head it was inevitable." She finally revealed the little box in her hands. "Yamato, will you marry me?"
He was standing casually, still with his hands behind him and a neutral expression in his face.
"This is the moment you say if you will or won't."
He then totally decreased the distance between them, which ended with her nervousness of a negative answer, but made her heart race. His blue eyes looked at her carefully with the same neutral expression. Sora was so hypnotized by them that she didn't even see him putting a lock of her hair behind her ear to put the cherry blossom he had gotten moments ago.
"What's this?"
"A flower?"
Sora rolled her eyes, laughing. "This I know. But where did it come from?"
The neutral expression in Yamato's face dissolved into a smile. "You're so good with surprises and didn't pay attention to little details. They were with me all the time, I had my hands behind my back."
"Oh." It was all she managed to say.
The blonde stepped back a little and lifted her chin so he could observe her with the flower hung on her hair. His expression softened and his pupils dilated briefly when he took his time on her lips.
"Yamato? I'm waiting for an answer."
He came out of the trance upon hearing her voice. "Oh, right." He lifted his hand with the rose. "For you."
She looked at the flower with a confused expression for some seconds. "She's beautiful."
"Just like you."
The woman felt her face blush again.
"You look so beautiful when you feel embarrassed." He put his hand on her cheek, opposed to the side with the cherry blossom. The other one hugged her from behind, bringing her closer to him and pressing their bodies together. "Yes, I will marry you."
Sora felt all her muscles relax and didn't even realize she had been holding her breath until that moment. She put her arms around his neck while tilted her head to the side. Yamato put his other arm on his fiancé's neck and closed the last distance between them. She kissed him back right away and felt her legs lose their balance, literally falling over the blonde. He tried to hold her but couldn't, and they both fell to the floor.
"My God, I'm so sorry!" She quickly stood up, embarrassed at what just happened.
"My kiss makes you lose your balance, huh?" He said with a bragging tone. "It has this effect."
"For your information, I was only touched because we got engaged and because of the surprise. So, no, it wasn't because your kiss." She said in a cool tone.
"If you need to believe this." He fired back in the same tone as hers.
Both of them laughed at the whole situation for some minutes.
"I'm glad we're alone here."
"They wouldn't leave us alone if they had seen this."
The expression on his face became serious. "I'll never understand how you can turn things that were supposed to be about you to someone else."
"I had a clue you'd do something. Renting a house in the Japanese mountains for the weekend? There was something wrong, since you're not exactly a fan of cold weather."
Yamato looked down and gave an awkward laugh. "You know me so well."
"It would be strange if I didn't, being together for almost tem years now. It surprises me that you didn't realize I was planning something too."
"I guess part of me did, but didn't want to believe until this morning." He lifted his face. "So, you saw everything that happened before you got up."
"Yeah. I saw you taking the tray. I think it was a very cute and romantic gesture."
A smile appeared in his face and his eyes sparkled with happiness. Sora smiled upon seeing his expression.
"I love how your gestures are simple, but full of meanings."
"That's because you didn't wait to see what else I had done for you."
Sora was going to ask what it was, but she remembered something and started looking around her. "The box with the rings!"
It wasn't too far from them, so she crawled to the object and quickly sat back beside Yamato. She opened the box and they looked at the rings with wonder.
"Aren't they beautiful?"
"They look familiar to me."
"Really?" Sora swallowed hard.
Yamato grabbed the box and took one of the rings out, examining carefully. "Hmmm. Did you have our crests written on them?"
"Yes, but reversed." She sighed with relief when he changed the subject. "I'm going to use the one with your crest and you, mine."
"Very clever." He grabbed her hand and put on the ring. "That way we'll always be with each other."
"We already are. Forever." It was her turn to put it on his finger.
"Forever." He caressed her cheek and she closed her eyes at the soft touch of his hand. "I'm curious to know how you managed to get the rings I had bought to propose to you."
"Takeru helped me." She lied on the grass and looked at the cloudless sky.
"Of course. He sneaked into my bedroom without me knowing and took them.
"It was exactly like this."
He lied beside her and they both contemplated the landscape above them. The blonde grabbed her hand and brought it to his chest.
"I have to admit your proposal was much better than mine."
"Really? What have you planned?"
"We were going to have dinner at a restaurant and I was going to propose. The same cliché most normal couples do."
"I think we are anything but a normal couple."
"You're right."
"You didn't feel upset that I proposed, did you?"
"Of course not." He leaned on his elbow and stared at her; their hands still intertwined.
"I still want to know what else you did."
"I wrote a song about us."
"A song?" She tried to stand up, but he pulled her back. "Yamato, this is great! It's been quite a while you haven't written! I wanna listen."
"We'll have time for that later. Now I just want to stay here and enjoy this landscape."
"I like this idea." She looked up. "Have you done this before?"
"Once with Takeru, when we were kids. But it was in our yard. It's my first time in the nature. What about you?"
"I used to go to the park near my building at the end of the day and watch the sunset." She turned her face and looked at him. "I love you, Yamato."
"I love you too, Sora." He leaned over her, aiming for her lips and kissed her passionate and deeply. Under the blue sky.