"Look, Hiro-san! The cars look like ants!" Nowaki exclaimed as he leaned over in his seat and practically pressed his face to the window beside him. Hiroki, meanwhile, rolled his eyes as he munched absentmindedly on a breadstick that had come on a fancy platter of finger foods from around the world Nowaki had ordered as an appetizer.

"You're such a kid," Hiroki said, pursing his lips. Nowaki turned to him, a goofy grin on his face.

"You have to admit that it's cool, Hiro-san. I'm so glad I reserved a table close to the window- this is amazing!" Nowaki said.

"Brat," Hiroki muttered, raising his glass to take a sip of his drink. Nowaki's eyelids lowered with mischief.

"Says the one who's drinking grape juice," Nowaki countered, raising an eyebrow as he put his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his knuckles. Hiroki choked, his shoulders hunching.

"Shut up!" Hiroki sputtered, coughing slightly. "You're the one who told me I couldn't have any wine!"

Nowaki smirked, reaching across the table and placing his hand palm-up in the center. He skillfully placed it behind the centerpiece of the table, hiding his hand from the other patrons of the restaurant. Hiroki blushed, but timidly set his glass down and reached out to brush his fingers against Nowaki's palm. Nowaki's hand clamped around Hiroki's, squeezing.

"You look very handsome tonight, Hiro-san," Nowaki murmured. Hiroki's cheeks burned as his eyes trailed down Nowaki's black suit and blue tie. Although Hiroki was accustomed to seeing his lover in dark clothing, he had to admit that Nowaki looked especially gorgeous… no, sexy, that night. Hiroki gulped nervously and looked down.

"Y-You too. You look gr-great," Hiroki stammered, glancing up at Nowaki through his thick lashes.

"This was a great idea, Hiro-san. I'm really glad we went out tonight," Nowaki said softly, rubbing his thumb against Hiroki's knuckles. "Do you like your present?"

Hiroki sighed, pursing his lips.

"I wish you had given us more time to discuss your purchase. We need to be saving up money for baby supplies, remember?" Hiroki said, his voice lowering as he glanced around to make sure no one was listening. Nowaki nodded in understanding.

"I'm sorry, Hiro-san. I really am. It's just that I saw you staring at it with such a beautiful expression on your face… and then I saw it, and I immediately imagined our little baby with the bracelet around its tiny wrist… I'm sorry, Hiro-san. I know we need to be saving money, but I seriously couldn't help it."

Hiroki sighed and released Nowaki's hand for a moment to reach into his grey jacket pocket, retrieving the diamond baby bracelet. He absentmindedly rolled it in his hands, then slid it onto two of his fingers.

"…Look, only two of my fingers can fit in it," Hiroki breathed, returning his hand to Nowaki's and allowing his lover to squeeze his fingers. "It's so small."

"Mmm," Nowaki hummed, thumbing the band on Hiroki's fingers. "You like it, then?"

"Baby bracelets are important too, right? We can put it on our baby after it's born, and then when we go to the nursery, we don't have to worry about it getting swapped with another baby," Hiroki whispered, the blush in his cheeks heating.

"Oh Hiro-san," Nowaki sighed. Hiroki glanced up, spotting a tiny patch of color rise in Nowaki's cheeks.

"So, to answer your question: yes. I love it. Thank you, Nowaki," Hiroki said with a small smile.

"Oh, no," Nowaki suddenly groaned, putting his head in his free hand. Hiroki's eyebrows furrowed.

"What is it?" Hiroki asked.

"Nothing. I just really want to kiss you right now," Nowaki said. "But I know you're hungry, so I won't force you to leave just yet."

Hiroki flushed scarlet, withdrawing his hand from Nowaki's to return the baby bracelet to his pocket.

"Y-You're an i-idiot," Hiroki stuttered, folding his hands in his lap and clenching his jaw.

"I know," Nowaki said, looking up and over his hand to gaze at Hiroki with glimmering cobalt eyes.

"We can kiss when we get home," Hiroki said shyly, averting his eyes as he wrung his hands. "And… yeah."

Nowaki perked up, grinning idiotically as he reached for the appetizer platter and grabbed a crostini, spreading some tomato spread onto its crunchy surface. He happily nibbled on the baked bread, swaying slightly in his seat.

"Today is a good day," Nowaki announced.

"You are such a little kid!" Hiroki exclaimed. His small smile contradicted his words, however, as he took another sip of his grape juice. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, and Nowaki grabbed his menu and flipped it open.

"Look, Hiro-san. They have a separate page for each of the different food cultures. There's an Italian section, a German section… Chinese, Mexican, Arabian, hmm… oh, there's even an American menu! I'm tempted to get a cheeseburger- that's the only thing about studying abroad that I miss! Oh jeez, look at this bratwurst in the German section, though! It looks delicious!"

Hiroki watched Nowaki excitedly look through the menu, his russet eyes darkening with love. He loved seeing Nowaki so happy and relaxed. Hiroki opened his own menu and looked through it. His hungry gaze landed on an Italian fettuccine dish.

"Oh, Hiro-san?" Nowaki suddenly asked. Hiroki looked up from his menu. "Avoid anything with fish, okay?"

Hiroki blinked.

"Why?"

"Some fish contain high levels of mercury, which may be dangerous for the baby," Nowaki said with a little smile. "Not all fish do, but better safe than sorry, right?"

"Y-Yeah," Hiroki said after a slight pause. He stared as Nowaki peacefully looked back down at his menu.

When did he research this?

Hiroki felt warmth fill his heart and make it throb against the base of his throat. Just as Miyagi had promised, Nowaki was giving his all to take care of his little lover. Hiroki clutched his menu with white knuckles.

"Nowaki?" Hiroki whispered.

"Yes, Hiro-san?" Nowaki answered, looking up from his menu with the same gentle expression on his face.

"Thank you… thanks for taking care of me. I d-don't know where I'd b-be without you," Hiroki mumbled, his reddening face nearly bursting into flames. He blushed harder as Nowaki's eyes widened and his lips parted. His menu tipped forward out of his hands, flopping to the table.

"Hiro-san… I-I…" Nowaki began. He was interrupted, though, as a waitress came to the table.

"Are you two ready to order?" she asked, holding a circular serving tray in front of her stomach.

"J-Just a couple more minutes," Nowaki said absentmindedly, barely registering the fact that the waitress was there. The waitress, sensing the tense atmosphere between the two patrons, hesitantly walked away with a strange look on her face. Nowaki continued to stare, his pupils dilating as if he was in deep thought.

"Wh-What?" Hiroki asked, scowling slightly in embarrassment.

"Nothing," Nowaki said. "But I think I just made my decision."

Hiroki tilted his head in confusion.

"Huh?"

"We should probably choose what we want; that waitress is glaring at us," Nowaki said with a grin, skillfully changing the subject. Hiroki glanced over at the glowering waitress and suppressed a giggle as he buried his face in the menu.

"That was really good," Hiroki purred, rubbing his full belly in content. Nowaki smiled lovingly at his bloated lover over his napkin as he wiped his mouth clean.

Hiroki had originally wanted to get a salad, as he had still felt self-conscious about Nowaki's unintentionally unsettling comment about his food-occupied thoughts. However, he had been coaxed by Nowaki into getting a rather fatty Italian pasta dish with bowtie noodles and fresh, authentic alfredo sauce.

Nowaki, on the other hand, had succumbed to the temptation of getting an American meal and had settled on an American sampler platter, complete with mini cheeseburgers, mini corndogs, and french-fries. He had begged Hiroki to try a piece of everything, and after a lot of initial protest, Hiroki had found himself with more food than he believed he could consume.

He had managed to eat it all though, much to his embarrassment and Nowaki's delight.

"I wish I hadn't eaten that much," Hiroki said, furrowing his brows and reaching up to prod his face, frowning slightly as his fingers sank into the soft flesh of his cheeks.

"It's okay, Hiro-san. You're feeding two people, after all. It's only normal that you're eating more than usual," Nowaki chuckled. Hiroki felt another pang, and he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.

"Yeah," Hiroki said, plastering a smile on his face. Luckily, Nowaki didn't see it as he grabbed a small triangular menu stand and flipped through it.

"Do you want anything for dessert, Hiro-san? They have chocolate lava cake," Nowaki offered. Hiroki shifted uncomfortably in his seat, feeling disgusted with himself as his mouth watered.

"Um… no thanks, I'm really full," Hiroki said, laughing nervously. "Besides, I don't like sweets."

Nowaki looked up at him, smirking.

"Hiro-san, apparently you like chocolate lava cake, because your eyes are telling me that you would like some," he said knowingly. Hiroki blushed in humiliation, wringing his hands. Before he could protest, Nowaki was waving their waitress down, ordering his little lover a serving of chocolate lava cake.

When it came, Hiroki couldn't help but taste a tiny spoonful. He nearly moaned with the intensity of chocolate and melted warmth in his mouth, but he bit his spoon to suppress it. Hiroki pouted as he put another spoonful of cake into his mouth, unable to stop himself. He felt like he was sweating profusely under Nowaki's adoring gaze.

"Do you like it?" Nowaki asked sweetly, resting his chin in his palm as he propped his elbow up on the table.

"…Yes," Hiroki answered, his voice tiny as he hunched his shoulders in embarrassment. Soon, the chocolate lava cake had also disappeared down into Hiroki's stomach, and he felt his self-esteem plummet like a rock as he slumped in his seat. Nowaki didn't seem to notice, mistaking Hiroki's behavior as his usual shyness.

"You gobbled that up pretty fast," Nowaki commented happily. Hiroki laughed awkwardly.

"Haha, yeah…" Hiroki trailed off, averting his eyes. Hesitantly, he flicked his russet gaze to Nowaki.

"Are you sleepy at all?" Nowaki asked. Hiroki looked up fully at him. Nowaki's gentle eyes stared back at his little lover; the eyes of a doting lover.

And, perhaps, the eyes of a doting father.

Hiroki let his mind wander a little, imagining the future. A faceless baby appeared in his mind, and he pictured Nowaki sitting in a rocking chair, staring down at his child in wonder and pure joy as he rocked back and forth… back and forth… back and-

"Hiro-san? Are you listening?" Nowaki asked, breaking Hiroki from his trance. He jumped slightly, blinking rapidly to clear the mist that had glazed over his eyes in his thoughts.

"Oh, sorry, I was just thinking about something," Hiroki muttered. Nowaki's concerned frown faded, and it was replaced by a gentle, knowing smile.

"Were you thinking about the baby?" Nowaki murmured. Hiroki blushed as Nowaki hit the bull's-eye. Nowaki's smile widened.

"I was just…" Hiroki trailed off. "I guess I was j-just thinking about… you know… well, what I'm trying to say is… um… I th-think that you'll b-be a p-perfect f-father."

Hiroki was shaking violently by the end of his sentence, clutching the sides of his chair for support. Nowaki gaped at him for a brief moment before abruptly standing up and snatching up his coat from the back of his chair. Hiroki jumped, taken aback by Nowaki's sudden movement. Nowaki came around the table and grabbed Hiroki's wrist, tugging him to his feet and once again hardly giving him time to grab his own coat.

"Nowaki?" Hiroki asked in surprise as he was led towards the front of the restaurant. There, Nowaki hastily paid before dragging Hiroki into the elevator. The doors shut, and Hiroki looked up questioningly at his rather flustered-looking lover. "Nowaki, is something wrong?"

"No," Nowaki answered shortly, leaning over to press a button on the elevator wall. Hiroki blinked in confusion as the elevator started traveling upwards instead of down. A moment later, the elevator stopped and the door opened, revealing the dark roof of the tall building. Hiroki flinched against the chilled wind.

"Nowaki, why are we up here?" Hiroki asked.

"Put your coat on, Hiro-san," Nowaki said. Hiroki obediently slipped into his coat, buttoning it up. The second his hands were free, Nowaki gently took one and slowly pulled Hiroki to the edge of the building, where the only thing that separated them and the open air above traffic was a knee-high ledge. Hiroki glanced at Nowaki in bewilderment, his face illuminated by the streetlights below. Nowaki stared out into space, his eyebrows slightly furrowed in thought. After a long silence, Nowaki finally turned to Hiroki, taking his other hand so their joined hands hung between them.

"Hiro-san, I've been doing a lot of thinking recently," Nowaki began in a low voice. Hiroki stared up at his lover, his lips slightly parted. A timely gust of wind ruffled his and Nowaki's hair. "I've been thinking about our relationship, our baby… and well… I think that maybe… uh…"

Nowaki released one of Hiroki's hands for a moment to scratch his head awkwardly. He took Hiroki's hand once more. Nowaki sighed, shutting his eyes briefly.

"Well, what I'm trying to say is that I love you more than you could ever imagine, and that I'd like to give our baby a unified family. So… Hiro-san…"

Hiroki's eyes widened as Nowaki took a step back and shifted slightly.

However, both Hiroki and Nowaki froze as the elevator door across the rooftop slid open, revealing a panting figure. Nowaki and Hiroki let their arms drop, taking a step away from each other.

"Kamijou-kun? Kamijou Hiroki? Is that you?" called the voice. Hiroki's brows furrowed in confusion. He glanced at Nowaki, who was staring hard at the ground, his lips pinched together.

"Um… yeah, that's me. Who's there?" Hiroki replied. The figure ran out of the elevator and towards him. Hiroki saw Nowaki tense up out of the corner of his eye. The figure, an old, short and stout man, stopped in front of Hiroki. When he looked up, Hiroki gasped. "Kanagawa-sensei?"

"Kamijou-kun! It's really you!" Kanagawa exclaimed, laughing as he grasped Hiroki by the shoulders. "It's been so long! Look, I know we haven't seen each other since you were in high school, but I have an offer for you that you simply can't resist!"