"Hey..." Tsubaki's voice was accompanied by her hands gently nudging Mutsumi's body. "Wake up. They're waiting for us." She added; her shoves getting stronger as Mutsumi grumbled and got up from the bed. The two stared at each other for a moment, both irate by the other's behavior.
"You didn't have to push so hard, you know..." Mutsumi whined, yawning and walking around their room to get a change of clothes from their luggage. She looked at her phone as the light from the midday sun streamed in through the window of their room, smiling at the date and time displayed on her clock before rummaging around the compartments of the bag. "Hey, Tsuba, do you mind if we spend some time alone, just the two of us?" She asked, turning around to see her companion looking out the window at the crowd below.
"Eh? Just us? Aren't we here for your sister's honeymoon?" She questioned, walking over as Mutsumi hid something in her pocket. "I mean, sure I guess. But why?"
"I think we should give them some time alone. After all, the six of us shouldn't have come in the first place." Mutsumi sighed, taking her clothes to the bathroom and getting ready for the day ahead. "Is there anything you want to do? Because I just want to take a stroll on the beach today." Smiling wide as she put on her shirt, Mutsumi stuffed her hands into the pocket of her shorts as she put on a sunhat she borrowed from her sisters. Tsubaki said nothing, instead just nodding as the two of them left the room to walk on the crowded beach together.
"You seem calm today." Tsubaki said as their sandals left tracks on the damp sand. "You've been nervous ever since we got here; I was starting to get worried."
"Aw, sorry." Mutsumi teased, shuffling slightly closer to her to rest her head on Tsubaki's shoulder. "Maybe I should act nervous more often." She joked as the two of them caught a whiff of the salty sea breeze. It was a quiet stroll, with only smiles or fleeting thoughts filling their time for the next hour. "Oh yeah. You packed that dress, right? We're having dinner somewhere special, or so Fuutarou-san said." The sixth sister asked, turning her head Tsubaki's way as she smiled in excitement. The two continued walking, the conversation reignited by their back and forth about the restaurant that they would be eating at come sundown.
"It's been so nice here. I don't want to leave." Tsubaki said as they ended their stroll in front of a small souvenir shop, the wind blowing her hair back as she untied her side ponytail. Mutsumi took off her hat, placing it on her head.
"Do you want to move here?" Mutsumi asked, looking out at the sparkling sea. "I mean, I know we planned to move back to Japan, but this place wouldn't be so bad." She smiled before her cheek got pinched by Tsubaki.
"That's something else. What about you, what do you think about this place?"
"Me? Well, I've been looking around the area. It's really beautiful, but it's not for me." Mutsumi rubbed her cheek, the soreness stinging her even as she pressed her palm against it. "I want to make as many memories here as possible." She said, pulling out her phone and unlocking it. She quickly opened up the camera app, taking a selfie of herself and Tsubaki with the ocean serving as their backdrop.
"How many pictures did you take?" Tsubaki asked as they arrived back in their hotel room. Mutsumi just tossed her phone toward her, the pillow on the bed softening the impact as she opened up her laptop to check on something. With full access to Mutsumi's phone, the former broadcasting club member browsed her gallery of photos with a reminiscent smile. "Wait, who are they?" She asked, showing a photo of Mutsumi and a few other people inside of a bookstore.
"I had to do part-time work while I was alone. They're just a few coworkers I had." Mutsumi answered, combing her hair with her hand as the two looked at some more photos. The next one of interest was one of a costume party they had after Nino and Miku opened up their restaurant; Mutsumi was dressed as a pilot. "Anyway, I'll get back to what I was doing." She said, standing up and walking back to her laptop. The screen displayed a video game, and she had just entered the arena of a boss. "Uh oh..." She mumbled as her healer died in one hit.
"Hey, want to play some volleyball on the beach? Ichika just sent me a text." Tsubaki asked, watching as Mutsumi started to lean forward. Her gaze was intense, watching every movement of the boss as her fingers moved across the keyboard of the laptop to react to it. It took a minute before Tsubaki got her answer, accompanied by the low and slow music of the game's defeat screen.
"Okay." Mutsumi sighed, rubbing her fingers as she closed the laptop with a frown on her face. The two of them got up again, heading down to the beach in search of the other redheads. They found the others playing by the sea, with Yotsuba and Fuutarou watching from the shade of a parasol. "Hey, guys." She waved to her sisters, looking at Fuutarou before giving him a wink. Fuutarou nodded, whispering something into Yotsuba's ear as the two of them walked away to spend some time by themselves. The game they played was short, the team of Ichika, Miku, and Itsuki won by one point in the end. After that, the six of them walked around to do some shopping for some snacks.
"Hey, what have you two been doing?" Nino asked, the six of them eating some shaved ice to pass the time. She looked toward Mutsumi as the sixth sister's eyes were glued to her phone. "Where did you take that?" Her comment brought everyone's attention toward Mutsumi's screen; it currently showed Mutsumi in an old soldier's uniform with a green backdrop. Ichika chuckled, leaning over to place her hand on the sixth sister's shoulder.
"Thanks again for being my stunt double, Mutsumi-chan." She teased, swiping on Mutsumi's phone as they all looked back on a certain photo she had. "Wow, you have so many photos from our third year." She added, smirking slightly once she noticed that Tsubaki was in more of them than she was.
"I don't know what you mean." Mutsumi caught sight of Ichika's face, trying to hide her embarrassment. "I mean, being in that class was a lot of fun. I miss everyone." She mumbled, stuffing her face with another spoonful of flavored ice.
"I do too, but you tend to think about the past a lot more often than I do!" Tsubaki added to the teasing. "I can't even count the number of times you suddenly blurted out that you remembered something from high school while we're at home." She said, jokingly shaking her head as Mutsumi's cheeks started to go flush with blood.
"It's always been a bad habit of hers, hasn't it?" Miku smiled, looking around the place. The six of them walking around filled much of their afternoon, though they did stop to listen to a street performer who let graciously let Mutsumi borrow their acoustic guitar. Tsubaki started giggling, making the other redheads curious.
"It's nothing..." She said dismissively as she watched Mutsumi strum while singing in a soft voice. "It's just, she did something similar one Valentine's day. She's singing the song she wrote." She hummed happily along to the music, swaying with each chord as Mutsumi continued to sing.
"Valentine's day, you say?" Itsuki asked, looking at Tsubaki more intently. "Can you elaborate?" The fifth sister asked as Mutsumi finished her song, returning the guitar while tipping the performer.
"Well, I was coming home from work late that day, having talked to some actors I was working with after a shoot. When I got to the apartment, she was nowhere to be seen." Tsubaki said as Mutsumi walked over, curiously listening to the conversation. "Then, as I was putting my things down to relax, I heard a knock on the door." She added, turning to Mutsumi and smiling. "She had gone out and borrowed a guitar from someone, returning with a rose in her mouth and a box of chocolates in her hand." Mutsumi hid her face, playfully hitting Tsubaki in the shoulder as her sisters started to tease her.
"How romantic. That was smooth." Nino said jokingly before Mutsumi dug her fingers into the second sister's gut to shut her up.
"Ehhh! why did you tell them that!?" Mutsumi looked away, stomping around before Ichika placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.
"What happened after that?" Itsuki asked, returning her gaze toward Tsubaki.
"She played that song, then we shared the chocolate and played video games; some kind of assassination game. Then we ate dinner and went to bed." Tsubaki said, somewhat saving Mutsumi from more teasing by walking away to distract the others. They went back to the hotel, Tsubaki and Mutsumi waving goodbye from across the hallway as they shut their door.
"We should probably get ready for dinner soon." Tsubaki smiled, pulling out the dress that she packed as well as some nice heels to wear with it. Mutsumi agreed, pulling out a suit and tie for herself. "Hey, Sumi, I know that I shouldn't be talking about this, but when we get back, I have a job I'd like your input on." She lowered her head as she pulled a pair of gloves out of the bag and walked over to the mirror. She tied her hair up into a bun instead of her usual ponytail, having Mutsumi help her out. "So, fall is coming soon, so we've been shooting a few scenes for some horror films recently."
"Yeah? What's so troubling about that?" Mutsumi asked, getting a pair of glasses from her bag as she folded up a handkerchief to put in her pocket. "Want me to make you some ghosts or some smoke effects?"
"No, well yes, but that's not what I wanted to talk about." Tsubaki sighed, getting out some makeup and pulling a chair closer to the mirror. "I was wondering if you'd help me with some acting. I'm only going to be an extra, and only in one scene, but being on the other side of the camera is kind of unnerving." She said, laughing away her embarrassment as Mutsmi wrapped her arms around her torso.
"Jeez, you'll be fine. But, sure. I'm not Ichika-nee, but I can teach you how to keep cool." She smiled, kissing the back of Tsubaki's head as the two of them finished up their preparations, heading down to the lobby just as they received a text from Fuutarou telling them to go to a specific spot. It was a secluded spot, just a bit out of the city they were staying at, a single table with lit candles and plates of food covered by cloches, all under the full moon and stars. Flowers surrounded the table, with a vase filled with roses resting in the center of it. Mutsumi smirked, but Tsubaki just looked around with a worried expression.
"Where are they?" She asked, walking up to the table and finding a note written in Fuutarou and Yotsuba's handwriting. It was short, telling her to enjoy the night along with a small message from the two of them. "Turn around?"
"It's just us here." Mutsumi walked up, scratching the back of her head while glancing off to the side. "Tsubaki." She smiled as she lowered herself down to one knee, pulling out a box from her pocket. "Will you marry me?"
Meanwhile, Fuutarou and Yotsuba were resting in their hotel room after their dinner on the beach at sundown. The two were silent, laying next to each other on the bed while saying nothing; the only noise coming from the TV they switched on to keep the silence away. "You didn't have to agree to it..." Fuutarou said, looking at his wife. "It's our honeymoon, shouldn't this be about us?" He said though that didn't stop a smile from forming on his face.
"What's the harm?" Yotsuba replied. "I mean, they're by themselves, and we're by ourselves. Isn't this what a vacation should be, enjoying it to the fullest." She smiled, wrapping her arms around him. "Plus, we didn't even have to do anything. She did all this by herself."
"Sextuplets are such a pain..." Fuuutarou mumbled to himself, switching off the TV for the night. It was their last day there, and everyone would be flying back to Japan early in the morning. They landed and split off. Fuutarou and Yotsuba returned to their apartment in Tokyo, while the others spent the day moving their things into their apartment; Ichika, Mutsumi, and Tsubaki would be leaving in a few days, but they decided to stay for a while longer.
"It's been a while since we all got together like this." Mutsumi said, walking up to a group of people inside of a familiar cake shop. "When's the kid coming, Maeda?" She asked, resting her arm on the back of her seat as her eyes drifted toward the swollen stomach of her friend.
"A few months..." Maeda replied, smiling wide as she ate her slice of cake gleefully. "What about you, Takebayashi, when are you and Sanada finally going to seal the deal?" She said, leaning as far forward as she could.
"Me? Well, the two of us have been busy with work. But we have started talking about it. Anyway, enough of this, how was the trip?" Takebayashi asked as the manager of the store walked up to them, placing a slice of cake down for Mutsumi as she gave him a smile in return. "And where's Tsubaki?"
"Oh, well..." Mutsumi lowered her head as the chime of the bell reached everyone's ears. The sixth sister played with her hair, which was tied into a side ponytail, as footfalls approached the table.
"It's strange to see that bakery across the street all boarded up like that..." Tsubaki said, taking a seat beside Mutsumi, her hair tied into a long fishtail braid. "But I guess that the manager there is working here now, so..."
"So... what happened?" Takebayashi and Maeda both looked at her as Mutsumi continued to wilt away in her seat due to the atmosphere in the room. "Did the two of them do anything? Wait, what's that on your hand?" Takebayashi pointed toward Tsubaki's ring finger as another plate of cake arrived, carried by the former manager of Komugi-ya.
"Congratulations."
A/N: This is it. I've been thinking of what I could do here while I was writing my story, and I finally got to do it. Since the volume extras this time also included the bonus outfits, I tried to fit as many into this as possible in as natural of a way as possible. I think the only one I didn't put in was the reference ones that referenced other magazine manga (wanted to do either rental girlfriend or monogatari, but didn't really find a nice way of describing an outfit without derailing the plot of the chapter).