As soon as Fuuka woke up, yesterday's events began to surface again. She wasn't sure how to feel. As she combed her hair, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. She stared particularly intently at her eyebrows. Generally hairier than most other girls, part of her was always a bit insecure over them. A couple years back, when she was at the electronic store with Yotsuba and her father, she asked him whether she should trim them or not. He told her no and that they're cute that way.

Fuuka didn't want to think too much about it at the time, but she couldn't help but blush when he told her. She found herself blushing again at the thought.

Why? Why was this happening? She thought. She spent only two years living next to them and then another year living away from them. Only occasionally texting Yotsuba in college. Why suddenly, did she go so far as to kiss him within only a few days of being back? After being away from them for so long?

...After being away from him for so long.

Fuuka looked down towards the sink. What the hell am I going to do? She thought.

She spent the rest of the day doing things with her family. She, her parents, Ena and Asagi all went out for brunch. She pretended nothing had happened the other day, and as far as she was concerned, nobody else was the wiser.

Eventually, they returned home. As Fuuka got out of the car, she saw Yotsuba and her dad approach them.

"Hi! You're back! Is it alright if I come over to play?" Yotsuba asked.

Koiwai grabbed Yotsuba's shoulder. "Yotsuba, no, they're clearly busy today. Wait until tomorrow."

"Awww, but Dad..."

Mrs. Ayase waved her hand. "No! No! It's fine! We just got back from brunch, and we have the rest of the day off."

"Can I, Dad?"

"Hmmm. Well, alright. If she says it's okay."

"Yay!" She made her way towards the Ayase house.

"I'll go and watch her." said Ena.

"Thank you."

As her family made their way inside, Fuuka trailed slowly behind them and then stopped as soon as they were far away enough. She turned back to Koiwai and made her way towards him.

"...Hi."

"...Hey."

The two stood there for a while. Unable to figure out what to say. Koiwai scratched at the back of his head while Fuuka wringed her hands.

"About yesterday, Fuuka... I'm really sorry."

"Uh..." Fuuka wasn't sure how to respond. She was so confused by everything that was going on. Part of her wanted to forget everything that happened and pretend that everything was still the same.

So... that's just what she'll do.

"It's okay. Let's just... pretend that didn't happen."

"...Okay." Koiwai slowly nodded.

"...Yeah..."

A moment of silence passed. "Well, I'm going to go play with Yotsuba. See you soon!"

"Yup."

As Fuuka went back inside, she felt a pit in her stomach begin to form. Something didn't feel right. She found herself shrugging. Ah well, I'll get over it. She thought.

...

Fuuka spent the rest of day playing with Yotsuba. Eventually, Yotsuba went home and Fuuka had some time to herself.

She still couldn't get over what had happened the past few days. Even after resolving the situation with Koiwai, she found herself glancing out her window to see if he was working. Sure enough, he was.

She flopped onto her bed and just stared at the ceiling for a very long time. Watching as the light that flooded into her room became dimmer and dimmer as the sun set.

"Hey... You alright?"

"Huh?"

Fuuka looked over and saw her little sister Ena in the doorway.

"Oh, hey Ena, what's up?"

"I just came to check on you. You looked kind of... distracted all day. Is everything okay?"

Fuuka smiled. "Of course! Just thinking deeply about what I want to do is all."

"...I see."

"Mmmhmm!" Fuuka's smile became wider. She really hoped that Ena couldn't notice anything else was wrong.

Ena glanced to the side a bit. She looked a little unsure. "Well, okay. I'll let you know when dinner's ready."

"Thank you!"

Fuuka went back to staring up at the ceiling. Time began to fly by...

...

A few more days have passed. Everyone was well into summer. Fuuka decided to take a bike ride around town in order to clear her head. She took in how quiet and peaceful everything was. The only sounds that could be heard were the cicadas buzzing and the leaves on the trees being rustled by the wind.

Life felt a lot less complicated when she was here. All the stresses and responsibilities placed on her as a college student felt so far away. She wished this summer would never end.

She stopped at a bench that was completely shaded from the hot sun by a large tree. She parked her bike right next to it and just sat down. Closing her eyes and losing herself to the calm atmosphere.

"Oh... Hi, Fuuka."

She opened her eyes and found her peace broken. It was Koiwai again.

"Uh... Hi."

He too was riding his bike. And he was carrying groceries.

"Lunch for Yotsuba?"

"Yeah. We're having curry today."

"That's her favorite food, isn't it?" Fuuka smiled.

"That's right! You know her so well!" He said as he smirked.

Fuuka smirked back. "Well after two years of being around you guys, I would be ashamed of myself if I didn't!"

The two laughed for a bit. And then silence. More uncomfortable silence.

"I should get going..." He said as he was about to ride off.

"No."

Koiwai looked at her confused.

Fuuka placed her hand on top of the empty spot on the bench. "Sit here for a few minutes. It's hot out, you don't want to collapse from exhaustion. Who will feed Yotsuba then?"

Koiwai gave her a weird look. "This is a strange tactic you're trying to pull on me."

Fuuka gave a mischievous looking smile. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Fuuka. I'm serious."

"Just a few minutes..."

Koiwai sighed. He got off his bike and sat down next to Fuuka.

The two stared out into the horizon for a while and just talked about whatever came to mind.

"So... how's Jumbo doing? Haven't seen him in a while."

"His dad retired and now he's running the flower shop full time. We don't get to spend as much time together anymore."

"Oh... I see. I'm sorry."

Koiwai shook his head. "It's fine. This sort of thing happens eventually. As you get older, things change, and you have to give up some things in order to maintain your life."

Fuuka nodded. "I get how that feels."

"Do you now?" Koiwai looked at her with a half grin. "As young and pretty as you are, with all the possibilities right in front of you?"

"Shut up. Can you even remember when you were my age?"

"I'm not that old!"

"Whatever you say, Old Man!"

The two laughed for a bit. Then silence once more. The two stared out in front of them as they sat on the bench.

Fuuka looked back and forth at Koiwai. She found herself fidgeting a bit figuring out what to say. Eventually, she spoke.

"...I'll be honest. I hate college." Fuuka finally spoke.

"Hmm?"

"I'm only going because I feel like I'm supposed to go. Truth is, all I want is to find love and just make do with what I have in order to sustain it."

"You always were a hopeless romantic." Koiwai smirked.

Fuuka sighed. "No denying that. I'd figure I'd have a serious boyfriend by now, but nobody around my age seems to interest me much anymore. They're all either too immature or caught up in what they're doing."

"...You thought about raising a family of your own?"

"Yeah... I always did love my family. As irritating as they can be a lot of time. And well, as much as a handful Yotsuba can be, I... don't mind having a kid like her someday. In fact, as soon as I got home, the first thing I did was go to her. Because I figured out of everyone, she missed me the most."

"...So you were there for her and not me?"

"Yes! I was!" Fuuka couldn't help but blush. "...Well... Okay. I think I went there for you as well..."

Koiwai smiled. He then looked up at the sky.

"I used to be a bit concerned that Yotsuba didn't have a mother in her life. I mean, she had her grandma, but she wasn't going to be around forever. So, I felt grateful when I found that I was living next door to a bunch of loving and nurturing women."

Fuuka smiled.

He began to lean back. "But... I still worry about her. She and I are truly blessed to have all the people in our life like we do now, but I still feel that something is missing. I really want the best for her."

Fuuka found herself moving her hand towards Koiwai's. "I...I think I wouldn't... m-mind helping out a bit more there."

Koiwai's face turned serious. "That's the thing though. I don't want to take advantage of you. You're still young and have a lot to do in life. And I know your family will not approve of this sort of thing."

"I'm nineteen and about to become twenty. I'm an adult now and can make my own decisions."

"Yeah well, I'm midway in my thirties. That's a pretty significant age gap."

"We'll take things slow then! We don't have to jump right into things! I... I..."

Fuuka found herself crying a bit. "I... I guess I've had pretty strong feelings for you for a very long time now. Ever since you two became such a big part of our lives, I've always enjoyed being around you. I loved how dedicated you are to your daughter, I love how mature you can be sometimes, and I even love how irresponsible you can be about the littlest things!"

Koiwai tilted his head. "Irresponsible?"

"You always have your pants off! Even when you're in your office where I can see you from my bedroom!"

"Why are you looking at me from your bedroom?!"

"Because I love you!"

It was at that moment, the two of them realized they were both being loud. Some passersby stared at the two as they walked by. They settled back down and took a moment to calm themselves.

"You love me? You sure this isn't just like that one time you had your heart broken?"

Fuuka looked confused. "How do you know that?"

"Yotsuba told me."

Fuuka sighed. "She never could keep a secret."

"Tell me about it."

Koiwai's eyebrows raised as if he made a realization. "Speaking of, how do you think Yotsuba would feel about this?"

"You're the one worrying about her not having a mom." Fuuka grinned.

"Yeah, I did say that. But that's a pretty big commitment. One you shouldn't take lightly."

"I've always been watching out for her when you weren't able to. Right from the beginning in fact when you left her all alone!"

"You mean the time you got stuck in the bathroom window and I had to pull you out?"

"That was because the lock was broken!" Fuuka fumed. "...Anyway, I also helped you guys pick out a backpack for her, I looked out for her safety and wellbeing when no one else was, I scolded her when she was being rude, and I even have experience caring for Ena when she was a baby!"

Fuuka inched closer to Koiwai. "And besides all that, I absolutely love her! I... just can't imagine my life without her around. I found myself missing her every day when I left. ...As well as you."

They both sat in silence for a while. Koiwai was clearly thinking deeply about what he was going to put himself through.

He let out a deep breath. "Alright, but we take things slow first. I would like it if you got a bit older first before we get serious. Maybe you'll change your mind by then."

"I don't intend to."

"...Well, I'll hold you to that."

Fuuka gulped and nodded. "...Okay."

The two held hands for a bit. Before Koiwai finally left to go home.

Fuuka sat absolutely still. Staring into space, she thought really hard about what she just put herself into. She knew deep down this probably wasn't going to go well with her family. For now, she'll have to keep this whole thing a secret. And yet at the same time, she couldn't help but feel happy deep down. This is what she truly wanted all along she told herself. And nothing was going to change that.

...

Later, Fuuka was relaxing in her room, she was reading from a book and occasionally glancing out her window to see if Koiwai's in his office. As soon as she saw him, she waved at him. He waved back. Upon closer inspection, he was wearing pants. A big smile formed on her face. She had no idea what was going to happen in the future, but for the moment, she felt happy. And that was all that mattered.

"Hey, Fuuka."

Fuuka turned and saw her little sister at the door. She found herself tensing up. Did she see her waving at him?

"Oh! Hi Ena! What's up?"

"I... wanna ask you something."

"Sure."

Ena sat on a chair across from her.

"So, the other day, I was playing with Yotsuba and she was talking about how you spent all day with her helping her with her summer project."

Fuuka was silent.

"And after that, she mentioned you watched a movie with her and her dad. But then after she came back from the bathroom, you were suddenly gone..."

Fuuka continued to remain silent.

"But... That happened on the same day you said you were hanging out with friends."

Fuuka knew she was caught in a lie. She always underestimated how smart Ena was.

"And... I noticed you were gone a lot and... on the day you came home, I saw you go in and out of Yotsuba's house. I heard you lie to Mom and today, I've seen you come home not long after Yotsuba's dad came back."

"What are you saying Ena?" Fuuka tried to remain composed.

Ena shifted around in her seat. Clearly a little nervous. "Well... I don't know what I'm trying to say. I just wanna ask... What's going on?"

"Nothing's going on." Fuuka said plainly.

"Then...Why..." Ena was about to ask before she got interrupted.

"I lied because I figured you guys would get the wrong idea. Nothing's wrong, I just found myself caught up with what they were doing and let myself get sidetracked."

"...Okay..." Ena said, slightly confused.

"Was there anything else you wanted to ask your big sis?" Fuuka asked as she smiled.

Ena shook her head. "...No. That's it... Good night."

"Night!"

As soon as Ena left the room, Fuuka let out a huge sigh. Safe for now. She told herself that once things are settled, she'll tell everyone the truth. There was no reason for anyone to be alarmed right now.

Fuuka began to get ready for bed. She still had the rest of the summer to figure things out.

...

The next several days felt like bliss to Fuuka. She found herself spending a lot more time with Yotsuba and her dad.

She and Koiwai would secretly establish places to meet up so whenever he went out with Yotsuba, it would seem like that Fuuka "just happened to be there" and the three would spend the rest of the day doing fun stuff.

With Yotsuba around, the two could spend time with each other, but have her around as a reminder not to take things too quickly. After all, she had no idea what was going on and this sort of thing needed to be slowly and naturally introduced to her.

The three did all kinds of things. They went shopping, they went to the park, they had ice cream, and they even went out to buy more stuffed animals for Yotsuba.

Whenever Yotsuba wasn't looking, the two would hold hands for a brief moment and some days, when no one else was around and they were feeling particularly brave, they shared a kiss.

One day, they were out at the mall. The three were out simply walking around talking about various things while browsing all the stores.

Yotsuba, smiling as always tugged on Fuuka's sleeve. "...So what kind of stuff do they have you do at college, Fuuka?"

"Hmm. Well, we all have to communicate with each other on a special website and turn in our homework through there."

"Huh? You don't turn it in in person?"

"No, in college we're supposed to do things in a more modern way. You know how you send someone a letter through e-mail, right?"

"...Yeah..." Yotsuba slowly nodded.

"Well, it's like that. A lot of people in the real world don't have time to handcraft a letter and make their way to deliver it. It's faster and easier to send it through e-mail. And it's even easier when you just have a small, dedicated site for those you work with."

Yotsuba scratched her head. "I... guess?"

Fuuka laughed. "You'll understand when you're older."

Yotsuba looked past Fuuka. "Hey... Where's Dad?"

Fuuka looked around. Koiwai suddenly disappeared.

"Uh... I have no idea. Maybe he went to the bathroom?"

Fuuka looked all around her. But she couldn't see where he went. Especially with how crowded the mall was right now.

"Seems like your dad got lost in the mall."

"Ahahaha! Good thing he's an adult!"

"Yeah... An adult..."

Fuuka felt her phone vibrate. She looked and saw that she had a text from Koiwai.

Gonna leave her in your hands for now. Want you to get used to being in charge of her when I'm not around. Will be back at the entrance in an hour.

That bastard... She could have at least told me earlier. She thought.

"Who was it? Was it from Dad?"

"Uh... yeah. He said he forgot something important but we'll see him again in an hour."

"Oh. Okay!"

Fuuka placed her hands on her hips. "So! Where do you wanna go now?"

"I want some ice cream!" Yotsuba was smiling very wide.

"B-but... We had ice cream yesterday."

"Crepes then?" Yotsuba's eyes shined brightly at the idea of having crepes.

"Well... Sure." She wasn't sure if she should be buying sweets for her two days in a row. But, at this point, how could she say no?

The two bought some crepes. Yotsuba had a strawberry one, while Fuuka had vanilla.

"So, how is it?"

"Delicious!" Yotsuba was scarfing hers down.

"Hang on! Hang on!"

"Huh?"

Fuuka smiled. "Eat it more slowly. That way it lasts longer, and you'll enjoy it more."

"Ooooh! That's right! Dad told me that before, but I forgotten all about it!" Yotsuba then slowly resumed eating her crepe. Very slowly.

"Um... You don't need to go that slow..." Fuuka whispered.

As the two ate, Fuuka stared at Yotsuba. It's a strange feeling, potentially becoming her mother. She's so used to being called Fuuka by Yotsuba that it was hard to imagine ever being called "Mom". Thinking about it, she felt it was probably fine if she was just called Fuuka. For some reason, it felt right.

It was jumping ahead on her part, but the thought of what a family life would be like seemed nice to her. She would get up, make Yotsuba's lunch, send her off and depending on how things go, she herself might have to get a job. Although if Koiwai was making enough money, she wouldn't mind being a stay-at-home mom either. Especially since she'll be spending all day with him.

All day... She blushed at the thought.

"Fuuka? What's wrong? Are you embarrassed about something?"

She snapped out of her fantasies and came back to reality. "Uh no. Just... Uh... Thinking about stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" Yotsuba tilted her head. A little bit of crepe fell off the corner of her mouth.

"Uh..." Fuuka was trying to think up the best kind of white lie that she can think of.

"Like... What kinds of stuff I should buy you for... your birthday!"

"Ooh! I can't wait to see what you'll get me!"

Yotsuba's smile disappeared. "Oh... Um... You don't have to get me anything if you don't want to, though."

Fuuka tilted her head. "But I DO want to! What are you talking about?"

"Just trying to be polite. Dad told me not everyone can afford to get each other gifts."

Fuuka smiled. "Aww, you're so thoughtful!" She poked her forehead slightly. "But don't worry, I can definitely afford to get you a gift!"

"Thank you so much!" Yotsuba's smiled as she continued eating her crepe.

Now... She wondered what kind of gift she should get Yotsuba. It was still a couple weeks away, so she still had some time but...

Wait...

She must go back to college in just a few weeks. She had completely forgot about that. How was she going to explain to her family that she doesn't plan on going anymore?

On top of that, what would happen if this whole thing didn't work out and she's left in debt? Or worse, her family ended up paying her debt with nothing to show for it? Fear started to grip her from the inside. She realized she just went down a very precarious path. She wasn't sure what she should do...

"Hey, Fuuka! When we're done here, let's check out the fountain!"

Fuuka was brought back to reality. "Huh? Oh.. Sure! We'll go check it out!"

The two finished their crepes, and they spent the rest of the day together. Fuuka spent a lot of time wondering about what to do about her college situation. She found herself getting lost in thought so many times that she had to snap herself out of her trance to remind herself not to lose track of Yotsuba.

Eventually, they met up with Yotsuba's dad.

"Hey Yotsuba, did you have fun with Fuuka?"

"Yeah! Lots of fun! We had crepes, we played at the fountain, we looked at all the stores and..."

Yotsuba suddenly stopped talking.

"Yotsuba?" Fuuka looked at Yotsuba, confused as to why she interrupted herself.

"I have to go to the bathroom."

Koiwai and Fuuka both sighed. She was always so blunt.

"We'll wait out here." Koiwai said.

Yotsuba rushed into the women's restroom. Giving Koiwai and Fuuka time to be alone.

"I wish you would have warned me. I wasn't sure what to do at first!"

"Just wanted to test you is all." Koiwai smiled.

Fuuka motioned herself towards Koiwai. "... Well... Did I pass?"

"I'd say you did." The two laughed.

"Fuuka? What are you doing with Mr. Koiwai?"

A familiar voice caused Fuuka's skin to crawl. She turned around and saw her sister Asagi. Somehow, she got the drop on her. She quickly came up with a lie in order to hopefully ward her off. "Oh! I just happened to spot him as I was hanging out here at the mall, so I went over to say hi!"

Koiwai looked at Fuuka. "Fuuka... What are you...?"

"All done!" Yotsuba ran out of the bathroom. Shaking her wet hands.

"Oh! Hi Asagi! Didn't know you'd be here!"

Shit. Fuuka thought.

Asagi crouched down. "Hi, Yotsuba! Great to see you! What have you been up to today?"

"Me, Fuuka and Dad were spending all day at the mall! Fuuka and I got crepes, played at the fountain, got some stuffed animals..."

"Really? Fuuka, I thought you said you just met them here." Asagi gave Fuuka a sharp gaze while maintaining her smile.

"Uh... I... Uh..."

Asagi stared at the three for a while. Koiwai scratched the back of his head, Fuuka wringed her hands and Yotsuba looked at them all confused.

"...What's going on?"

"It's nothing, Yotsuba! You don't need to worry about a thing!" Asagi smiled as she bent back down and rubbed her head.

"Uh... Okay."

"Have fun you, guys!" Asagi turned around and left.

Fuuka felt a massive hole open up in her stomach. Knowing Asagi, she knew the jig was up.

"Fuuka... I..." Koiwai tried to say something, only to be interrupted by Yotsuba.

"What are we going to do next?"

"Well... I guess we're heading home." Her dad shrugged.

"Aww, okay..."

As the three made it to the car, Koiwai stopped Fuuka. "Go ahead and buckle up Yotsuba, I just need to talk to Fuuka about something."

"Oh. Okay." Yotsuba climbed in and closed the door behind her.

Koiwai turned over to Fuuka so that Yotsuba couldn't see what he would say.

"Have you been lying to them this entire time?"

"You said we should take it slow!"

"I did... But lying to your family about this sort of thing makes the situation look worse than it does."

"What? You wanted me to tell them right away?"

"No. I just want you to not lie to them like that."

"I...Well... Uh..."

Koiwai sighed. "Well... Might as well drop you off home. Either way, they know now."

"...Yeah."

The two got into the car and made their way home. Fuuka felt the hole in her stomach grow wider.