Hello. This is COC again. Thanks for reading until here.

This chapter will contain slightly more emotional material, as well as more profound metaphors and everything. I hope you don't get confused. Please, if you see anything too confusing or annoying, reply to me about it and I'll repost this chapter. I don't really know if it came out as I wanted it to be.

This chapter features an expanded version of a scene in episode 16 of the After Story. Spoilers for the series ahead, so be warned! I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 3: Snowcap

Tomoya and Nagisa had gone out for a walk. Being in her eighth month of pregnancy, almost entering the ninth, the doctor had recommended regular exercise, so she and Tomoya had decided to go and take a look around the new hospital where she would be giving birth to Ushio. Due to her weak health and body, Nagisa wasn't suitable for exercise such as jogging or swimming, so they had decided that walking would probably be the best thing to do at the moment. It didn't help a lot keeping in shape, but it was quite enjoyable, and they could do it together.

Winter had just started, and the weather was very, very cold, but not a single snowflake had fallen. In fact, the sky was clear and there was no wind at all. Everything was just like a pretty spring day, except for the bare trees and the cold air. Everyone went around with large and fluffy coats that protected them from the freezing temperatures. Only the animals seemed to continue with their ordinary lives, singing and chirping just like any other day.

Since neither of them had a driving license, and they could not afford to buy a car, Tomoya and Nagisa had taken the train. The city center was quite crowded, with many people going around for last minute shopping and enjoying the calm atmosphere which, just like every other year, floated in the environment before Christmas.

They had walked around for some time, and admired the new installations and the Tonari Town Hospital. While walking, they had merrily talked to Ushio about how comfortable it would be when she was born. It was almost as if she was really there, listening to them.

Then, Tomoya bought a warm coffee can, which he and Nagisa shared. The brown beverage was bitter, and almost burnt their tongues, but it warmed up their bodies, and they were content with that. Nagisa's cheeks had turned bright red.

They were now waiting for the train which would take them back to their neighborhood. They had walked around for a long time already, and Nagisa was getting fatigued. Although he had noticed her tiredness, he also knew that she wasn't saying anything because she wanted him to enjoy himself as well. He had then declared that he felt like going back home so that she wouldn't feel useless.

As the train was taking a lot of time, Tomoya was thinking about getting a taxi when he heard his wife's voice from behind.

"Christmas is coming soon."

He turned around, and saw Nagisa sitting on the bank of the station. On that particular day, she was very cute with her winter clothes on. She wore a large pink coat, which she had bought extra-large so her tummy would fit inside. She also wore a very long dark pink scarf, which she had turned around her neck a number of times to avoid dragging it along the floor. Her outfit was complimented with a pair of striped gloves and a large, bizarre pink and white hat with a red flower on her left temple. She looked slightly plumpier than usual, her pregnancy state giving her a little more body volume. However, her tummy wasn't as big as they had expected.

"And it's your birthday at the same time, right?" He tried to sound casual, not letting her notice the fact that he had been thinking about it for a very long time, and had almost bought her present. "What do you want this year?"

"The Big Dango Family!"

Tomoya had seen a dango just like the ones they had at home in a store two days before. He had asked the owner to keep it for him, knowing that Nagisa would probably ask for one of those. However, not wanting his wife to notice this, he told her in an almost lecturing manner:

"We can't really have many more of those now. Besides, we don't have anywhere else to put them."

Nagisa put on a troubled face. She seemed to be having a dilemma with herself. Then, in a soft, child-like voice, she innocently asked.

"Is it difficult?"

Tomoya truly didn't want to spoil the surprise. It pained him to see Nagisa with such an expression on her face, but he knew that the smile she would put on when she opened her gift and saw a fluffy dango staring right back at her would be worth it.

"It's impossible, to begin with."

"Really...?"

They both fell silent. Nagisa patted her tummy. Ushio must have been moving around. Sometimes, Tomoya wished that he could feel what Nagisa felt every day. It wasn't like he wanted to be pregnant, but he just wondered how it would be to know that you were carrying a life within you. He even tried to imagine how it would be to be inside of Nagisa's tummy. He couldn't remember how it was for him, but he was curious as to what a baby felt within his mother's body. But he knew his curiosity was never going to become satisfied, so he decided to let that stupid desire vanish.

He was so immersed in his own thoughts that Nagisa had to call him a couple of times before he realized.

"Tomoya-kun!" She finally exclaimed, almost seemingly angry.

Nagisa's pregnancy hadn't been very complicated, apart from some morning sickness and the usual fevers she had, but all the cravings and mood swings he had always heard about had made no appearance in the Okazaki household. He wished that his wife wasn't getting the swings in her last month of pregnancy! Maybe it was in her genes to be like Akio. Tomoya had noticed many times how different his wife was from her father. If it wasn't because he knew how much Sanae loved Akio, she would've thought that Nagisa wasn't Akio's biological daughter.

"Yes?" he answered, in an almost scared voice. Seeing his wife angry made him feel only a bit intimidated. Even though she was cute when mad, she had a somehow terrifying expression. He had only seen her infuriated a couple of times, and he didn't want to witness any more anger displays. Just like Akio. Well, Akio was worse. At least he was sure Nagisa would forgive him. He never knew with the head of the Furukawa family.

However, he had just been letting his imagination run wild again. His wife had her usual calm and happy expression on. She didn't look angry at all.

"Is it really that much of a bother to have dangos at home?"

"Well... we don't have any place to put them. Think about Ushio. Where will the baby sleep?"

Nagisa seemed to be deep in thought. Suddenly, as if she had been touched by God, she raised her eyes and flashed a huge grin at Tomoya.

"We could create a dango bed for Ushio! I'm sure he or she would like it. Don't you think so? Our baby would sleep on a huuuuuuuuuuge bed made of dango dolls! Just like one more member of the Big Dango Family!"

'Please, don't bless me with a son or daughter who is as obsessed with dangos as my wife is.' Tomoya pleaded silently. Then, in a soft voice, trying to reason with the dango lover, he said,

"No thanks. Ushio would be scared if so many pairs of eyes stared at him or her during the night. It would be just like a scary movie."

"Well... that might be right. But dangos are so cute, and it's impossible to be afraid of a dango! They are so chubby..."

She put on a cheery face and started singing the dango tune.

"Dango, dango, dango, dango…"

Her singing voice was cute, but Tomoya had heard her singing that song so many times it was almost like a routine, like watching the opening of a daily TV programme while never actually watching the programme itself. He didn't even understand why she liked those… round things with eyes so much! To him, they were annoying.

"Nagisa, please be reasonable. There's no way I'm having my child sleep on dangos, by God's sake! If he or she likes dangos, we'll give him a dango to sleep with."

'Plus, I don't want Ushio to develop a dango trauma either.' Tomoya thought.

"Yes, that makes more sense." admitted Nagisa.

Silence placed itself in the space between the couple. Nagisa patted her tummy and caressed it lovingly once again. Tomoya watched that display of affection towards the baby. He could notice how much Nagisa already loved Ushio. A tiny bit of jealousy hit him. And as if noticing this, Nagisa raised her head and looked at him.

"Tomoya-kun, I love you."

The man was thrown back by her sudden confession. It wasn't like he didn't expect her to love him but... it was so sudden that he was a bit confused at first. He and Nagisa didn't express their feelings very often, because they shared such a deep bond that words weren't necessary most of the time. Their relationship wasn't very physical either: they seldom kissed each other or displayed any kind of affection rather than holding hands. Nagisa was quite shy, so he felt content knowing that she loved him. However, after staying silent for a bit, he said.

"What's come to you now?"

"I don't know. I just felt like telling you. I'm your wife, so I don't need a good reason to tell you that."

That was right. He decided to do the same thing with her. After all, he hadn't responded yet. And he didn't want her to feel hurt thinking that he didn't return her feelings, even though both of them knew how much the other person loved them.

"I love you too, Nagisa."

She suddenly laughed at something Tomoya didn't understand. But she explained.

"I would've never thought that my childhood friend would end up being my husband."

"Well, I didn't expect you to be my wife so... we're on equal terms."

"It's funny how things turn out, right?"

Then, Tomoya thought of something he had never asked her before.

"Nagisa... who do you think loved the other one first?"

"I don't know. When did you realize you loved me?"

"I think it was the day of the tennis match. When you were hurt, and I hit the other guy's hand when he went to help you, I realized I didn't want other boys to touch you. I guess it was around that time when I truly started loving you."

Tomoya's thoughts were also focused on the basketball match they had played against the basket team. He remembered how Nagisa had cheered him on and gave him the strength to throw the ball into the hoop, and therefore win. That had somehow also made him realize how strong his feelings towards the girl were. Nagisa smiled sheepishly.

"Then I win, Tomoya-kun. I loved you ever since I saw you helping Kotomi out. I realized how generous you were, and how much you truly cared about other people. That was my catalyst."

"Damn! I lost this time."

After thinking about the matter, he asked.

"Nagisa... why do you think it took me so long to realize it?"

"I don't know, Tomoya-kun. Maybe you were worried about other things, and didn't pay attention to it. It happens sometimes. Your feelings took time to become known, but you loved me, and I loved you, and here's the proof."

She pointed to her tummy, and proceeded to caress it once again, with a soft look on her face. Tomoya, suddenly saddened by the thought that he had been ignoring Nagisa's feelings for such a long time before they went out, asked her.

"How long do we have to wait for our feelings to reach other people's hearts, Nagisa?"

She didn't seem confused at all by his awkward question. Just as if she had been expecting it, she stopped patting her stomach, leaned forward, looked at her husband straight in the eyes and answered very clearly.

"Don't worry too much about it, Tomoya-kun. Just like snow takes 2000 seconds to get to the ground ever since it leaves its home in the clouds, feelings need time to form, crystallize well and reach other people's hearts."

"But... during that time, Nagisa, we hurt people. During those 2000 seconds, we unintentionally hurt people by not understanding them. By not taking their own feelings into account. Did I hurt you once, Nagisa?"

"No, Tomoya-kun. You never did."

"I don't want anyone to feel hurt because of me, Nagisa. I want everyone to be happy."

"That's impossible. For every decision we take, we make people happy, but also cause sadness within other people's hearts."

Suddenly, without any apparent reason, many faces popped into his head. Kyou, Tomoyo, Yukine, Kotomi, Ryou, Mei, Yusuke... even Sunohara's stupid grin appeared within his mind. How many people had he hurt taking decisions he thought were correct? The two last faces were his father's, much to his dismay, and... Nagisa's. And, without knowing why, he felt hurt by the thought that he could even make her heart twitch in pain.

"I promise you, Nagisa, that for as long as I live, I'll try to protect our happiness. I'll feel with you. I'll understand your emotions. That way, I'll never be able of hurting you. Because, if humans understand each other, and share their pain, their hopes, their fears, their love... we can never hurt each other."

"If that is your decision, you'll have to live for 2000 seconds every time you feel something, letting your emotions create themselves and silently float and fall into mine. Just like mine will take that time to reach yours. From now on, we will have to live every single minute of our lives for 2000 seconds if we want to truly understand each other."

At first, the man didn't understand. He had never been very good at math, so the apparent problem threw him back at first. But, as he reflected on what Nagisa had just said, he realized that she was comparing their feelings to snow. Feelings took time to create, to take shape and finally be confessed. No two feelings were the same, and they eventually melted and changed into something different. Just like humans, just like snowflakes.

Feelings took time to get to other people, because not even the person who bears them might be aware of it. However, as soon as one knew what his heart felt, they let their feelings fall, softly, into the other person's soul. And those feelings would slowly accumulate in the other person's heart, creating a snowcap which would configure that person's soul. A snowcap which would hold all the bonds that that person shared, a snowcap where people would remain through time.

So, from then on, he would have to make each of his minutes one thousand nine hundred and forty seconds longer to let his emotions reach her heart, and slowly pile up, adding to her pure and unstained snowcap.

"Nagisa, I don't care if I have to live at 2000 seconds per minute from now on to be with you... I think I can cope with that."

Reviews are greatly appreciated! Please, I really, really want to know your opinions, whether they are good or bad. Criticism makes writers improve.

COC