"Look at those flowers!" Kotoko points to a bush, blooming with bright purple flowers. She waves Irie over, and he bends over, leaning down to smell them. She feels her heart beat faster. He's going to pick one and give it to me, she thinks, glancing around. He's going to pick a flower for me! Irie-kun's so romantic!
Irie straightens, turns to her. "They're nice," he says, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Kotoko smiles, nods. "Y —Yes, I bet they are!" She replies, laughing a little.
She stares at him, waiting.
Irie smiles back at her, taking in her fidgeting form, her blushing face. His smile widens. "Do you remember what they're called in English?"
Kotoko freezes. "E —English?"
"Yes," Irie says, plucking one off of the bush. He twirls the stem in his finger, easily, and her eyes follow the spinning purple blur. "I recall it being in your English Dictionary," he says, bringing the small flower to his nose. "The one you were reading last night."
"Ah, yes, that one! Yes, I remember!" Kotoko says, a little too fast. Irie waits, leaning down to pick another one.
"Go on then," he says, still smiling.
He's got two flowers in his hand! Kotoko's mind spins as she tries to remember the word. What was it? Her thoughts are disturbed by Irie's too-big smile. He's making fun of me! She thinks, panicking.
"Did it start with a B?" She asks hopefully, glancing at Irie. His smile fades, and though it's only for a fraction of a second, Kotoko still feels her mood sink into the dirt and bury itself. Her shoulders sag.
"Not quite," Irie answers, slowly. "It starts with a V," he says, and Kotoko commits his pronunciation to memory.
V…
"Violence!" Kotoko exclaims, in English, rushing to Irie. "Those flowers are called violence!"
His eyebrows raise as she hugs him, blabbering on about his romantic gestures, and how she just knew he had a romantic side to him! Irie sighs, still holding the flowers in his hand.
"Your English is terrible," he says, and he can feel her deflate in his arms. Irie sighs. "But there's some small improvements," he admits, and to his dismay, her squealing starts up again.
"Thank you, Irie-kun!" Kotoko says, her bright eyes smiling up at him. He smooths back her hair, smiling softly at her. The sun makes her hair shine, and he'd bet the vivid color of the violets in his hand would make her look even prettier…
He puts the flower in her hair, careful and gentle. She's quiet now, glancing up at him in awe. He was right, the addition of the color makes her look like a doll; delicate, bright, pretty.
"You look beautiful," Irie tells her, just because he wants to, and she hugs him again, tighter. She tells him that she loves him, and he kisses her forehead. The sun warming his face, the gentle wind on his skin, his wife in his arms…Irie is happy. Content.
Somehow, she's got the second flower out of his palm, and she's now fiddling and fumbling with his shirt. "What now," Irie asks, his voice saturated with annoyance, but Kotoko just smiles up at him, effectively clearing any negativity from his mind.
"I'm trying to attach it to your shirt," she says, giggling. "Then we'll be the same!"
He lets her try, and fail, for a couple minutes before he leans down to her ear and whispers that she'll need an actual pin to attach the violet to the breast of his shirt. She squeals, embarrassingly loud for a couple moments before he shushes her with a kiss.
"Let's stop by the corner store and buy a pin," Irie says lightly, in between kisses. "You'll pin it on me then."
Irie is perturbed the following week, extra aware of all the eyes on him, even more aware of all the whispers concerning him. He storms to the hall of where the practicing nurses train, and almost breaks the sliding door in his frustration.
A few students had ran from him when they saw him entering the hospital earlier, and even the experienced doctors and physicians had all rushed away from him. Even the office ladies cowered when he walked by them.
He didn't have to ask around to know that somehow, Kotoko was involved. He'd had prior experience from high school.
Still, the deja vu made him nauseous. He searched around for Kotoko, frowning when she finally noticed him, waving over and running to him.
He ignores Motoki's alarmed glance and Keita's angry expression as he leads Kotoko out the room, grabbing her by the arm.
"I —Irie-kun? What's wrong?" Kotoko asks as she's pulled along, a worried expression on her face, clear as day. He glares at her, letting go of her arm just to fold his own. She stares back, confused.
"What have you been telling your friends?" Irie demands, unable to hide the anger out of his tone even if he wanted to. He feels his head throb and his jaw feels almost out of place; another migraine for tonight it seems.
"What do you mean? I haven't told them any — oh! You mean all about our date?" Kotoko says, bats her eyes up at him, and his frown deepens.
"Tell me everything you told them," Irie says, glowering at her. "And I mean everything!"
"Well, I told them that we got all dressed up," Kotoko starts, and he already knows that she's exaggerating. He sighs, and she pointedly ignores him. "And then we went to the park, and then you picked out flowers for me and then you were soooo romantic! Everyone was so jealous!"
"That's it?"
"…They were also curious as to what flowers you gave me — because Marina and Motto wanted to know what they symbolized," she admits, and Irie watches her warily, his arms still folded.
"And?"
"I told them you gave me violence," Kotoko giggles, pleased with herself. "You should have seen the look on their faces! They were all so surprised!"
"What?!"
