A/n: The prompt for this month was Pocky day, which didn't really do much for me, so I decided to base the chapter on stargazing instead. But the word pocky does appear in the fic, so I consider this sticking to the prompt lol. In a way this picks up directly after Chapter 13 where Yamato returns from his space mission.

Sorry this is one of the shorter chapters, was writing for another event throughout this month.

Thank you to all those who reviewed the previous chapters, I hope you enjoy this one too!

15. Fall in Love Again

- x -

"Will you stop that?"

Mimi pulled back her hand with a pout on her face and Yamato just shook his head in exasperation as he continued to lay out the snacks they'd packed around their picnic mat. The guard at the park entrance had eyed their basket suspiciously, considering it was almost past 9 PM and not exactly an ideal time to hold a picnic in a park. Yamato had lifted the compact refractor telescope they'd packed to explain that they were here for stargazing, and were not lunatics who went picnicking at night, much to Mimi's disappointment because she enjoyed when people looked at them like they were two weird peas in a pod.

Tonight's excursion had been planned by Yamato, he had scouted the perfect spot earlier in the week so once they entered the park, all she had to do was follow his lead and then while away some time as he set up the telescope, and then the picnic. It was their first proper date together since his return from the space mission two months ago and Mimi was quite sure it was the first time the two had gotten some time to themselves without their kids interrupting or their family and friends showing up unannounced to spend time with Yamato. And that's why her husband had insisted that he take care of everything, although the idea had seemed appealing in principle, sitting idle while Yamato prepped around her was a little boring so naturally, her hands itched to cause trouble.

Luckily for her, Yamato had chosen this morning to finally get a haircut and rid himself of the questionable length his silky, golden hair had grown to while he was up in space. But now that he had gone back to his usual choppy bangs on the front, and neatly trimmed on the back look, Mimi had not been able to get used to it and had spent the whole day absentmindedly running her hand across the nape of his neck, hoping to catch hold of hair that was no longer there.

"I kinda miss it now."

"Miss what?" Yamato asked her as he handed her a box of pocky, assuming that having something to snack on might keep her distracted enough to let him finish setting up in peace.

"Your beautiful, silky long hair." Mimi sighed dreamily as she opened the box and popped one of the green tea flavoured stick in her mouth.

"I thought you wanted me to cut them." Yamato inspected the telescope for the final time before settling down next to her, a frown covering his face at her words.

"I did, but now I want them back," she said, sticking her tongue out, "Can't a girl have the best of both worlds?"

"It is physically impossible for me to keep these two hairstyles at once, so no a girl cannot." He rolled his eyes at her.

"So what are we on the lookout for tonight?" Mimi asked, linking one arm with his and offering him a pocky stick with the other. Yamato leaned in and took a bite out of it before picking up his tablet and swiping on it a few times.

"Uh, Saturn is supposed to be in clear view tonight," he replied, putting down the tablet and turning to pass a small smile in her direction, "and your favourite, Cassiopeia."

Mimi let out a chuckle, the way her husband had pretended to check the forecast before answering was adorable, as if it wasn't obvious to her that the reason he had picked tonight was because they'd managed to look at the constellations and planets she liked.

"Let's get started then."

It wasn't the first time the two had gone out stargazing together, but it sure brought with it the same rush of excitement and giddiness.

Yamato rested his chin on her shoulder as he stood behind her and helped her adjust the eyepiece of the telescope to her liking as if he hadn't been the one to teach her how to do so many years ago, making her heart flutter wistfully just like it had back then. Or when he whispered the explanations behind the constellations they gazed at in her ear as if she hadn't heard him talk about it a million times already, the sound of his smooth voice enveloping her into a daze unlike any other. And when they huddled together on the picnic mat, laying down on their backs directly under the blanket of the starry night sky, talking about everything that came into their minds, from Yamato's funny stories about day-to-day life at the spaceship to Mimi's recounting of all the important incidents he'd missed while away, it felt like they had been transported back to those initial dates where they had talked each other's ears off in an attempt to get to know each other better. While they had kept in touch regularly while Yamato was on his mission, Mimi only realised now, how much of daily life the two had glossed over during those conversations because they'd just been so glad to see each other's faces or hear each other's voices.

Now finally, when it was just the two of them, they could unburden their hearts without hesitation, talk about the good and the bad times they had faced alone, without having to stay wary about their kids listening, or having to put up a brave front for their family and friends. The two had always practised a deep sense of trust and honesty in their relationship, but tonight made Mimi realise how there was still so much left to discover when it came to Yamato, and how neither of them had tired of the other just yet.

But as the night went on, she noticed that her husband became gradually anxious, constantly checking the time or coaxing her to finish the sandwiches he had packed as quickly as possible.

"What's the rush?" Mimi asked, frowning at the sight of him shoving half a sandwich in his mouth at once, something that was very unlike Yamato.

"Isn't it getting late? What about the kids?" He responded, raising his eyebrows in surprise over her laidback behaviour.

"Oh, they'll be fine," Mimi waved a free hand as she laughed. "They'd trade us for Takeru any day."

"That's...concerning and relieving to hear at the same time," Yamato muttered to himself as he allowed himself to relax again. He leaned back on his palms so Mimi took this opportunity to quickly rest her head in his lap before he could get fidgety about something else and cut short their precious time away from the rest of the world.

"I guess I still have a lot to learn."

She raised her eyes to find him staring at the sky above with a solemn look on his face, and as much as Mimi wanted to console him by telling him that that was not the case, she knew that Yamato would much prefer to hear the truth instead.

"Isn't it exciting though?"

"It's daunting, that's what it is," he said, letting his gaze drop down towards her, "I was used to so many things and now they're not the same and it's just...a lot to take in."

"You're not going to adjust to everything overnight Yama, that's ambitious even for you." Mimi raised a hand and stroked his cheek gently, satisfied when his lips curved into a small smile. When he cupped her hand into his own, she too smiled softly back at him, "I think that we're very lucky, you and I."

"How so?"

"Most couples our age begin to fall out of love at this point in their lives, but us? We get to fall in love again instead."

Finally, that hint of a smile turned into a grin that covered his whole face, reaching his blue eyes that glittered like the ocean under the pale moonlight. He fully clasped his hand around hers and brought it towards his lips to plant a light kiss on it, making her body shudder with delight.

"One thing that hasn't changed is you managing to put a positive spin on the most depressing thought." He smirked.

"Now that's one personality trait I'm taking to the grave." Mimi winked up at him, eliciting a loud laugh that was like music to her ears.

These past few months his behaviour had almost felt like a robot's, like he was trying very hard to read the atmosphere around him and react accordingly, rather than letting the emotion flow freely from within himself. Tonight was the first time she had seen him look genuinely excited or anxious, voice out what he was thinking about deep down, and finally laugh like himself. She felt her eyes water at the sight of true happiness on Yamato's face and attempted to blink back the tears. Mimi knew he'd never let her hear the end of it if she cried right now, but the knot of relief that had tied itself tightly around her chest was begging her to not hold anything back because at last, she had her husband back.

"That's good to hear," Yamato said as he leaned down to plant a kiss on her forehead, giving her the chance to shut her eyes so a lone tear could fall freely down the side of her cheek. He then grinned against her forehead and whispered, "Because I'm going to be relying on it until the very end."

"I love you too, Yamato."

- x-

A/n: Next month is the last chapter for this fic, can't believe we've already reached that point T.T I have a pretty cute idea for it, it might be a considerably time skip though with Fuyumi being around 15-16 in that one. And everyone might end up making an appearance, that means maybe a lil bit of Taiora too X.X

I hope the idea works out as I've planned it, thank you so much for reading and reviews are always appreciated.