Like the dark clouds that were being cleared up from the sky after rains; and like the sun that showed its face again upon noticing the blue was just too plain without its warm yellow tints, and so another day started afresh.
The weather was cooler today with some brushes of warm wind that rustled the leaves on the trees. In less than two months, it would be autumn and with the passing Tanabata festival, there would only be two weeks left for Ai's last summer holiday.
The day was started peacefully in the Kudo Residence, with Chiharu as the early riser of the household, then followed by Ai as always. Shinichi also somehow woke up earlier than he usually did this morning. He could, therefore, slowly enjoy his time doing his morning routines and preparing for work.
Or so he thought.
"Good morning, Shin-chan!"
An overwhelming expression of surprise was transparently shown on his face when Shinichi entered the kitchen and was greeted by his mom with her overly joyous voice. He was stupefied, seeing Yukiko on the kitchen counter together with his wife.
Both of them were wearing aprons while the ex-actress' hair was tied up in a ponytail. By the look of it, they were preparing for everyone's breakfast and his lunch box. Meanwhile, Chiharu was sitting on her usual baby chair by the dinning table, focusing on her own food.
What a harmonious mother-daughter-in-laws they were. However, it wasn't the main point here.
"What are you doing here in Japan, mom?" He rolled his eyes, sensing something ludicrous was behind his mom's sudden return to her homeland.
Without waiting for her reply, Shinichi walked to sit beside Chiharu. He patted the little girl's head as he greeted her good morning. He smiled when she giggled in return, before he took a sip of his morning coffee.
"Can't I come visit my son and daughter-in-law?" She pouted while placing two plates of waffles with bacon and eggs on the table. "I miss my granddaughter too."
He laughed dryly. As if he would believe that.
"You guys are quarreling again, aren't you?" He asked; his hands began to move for his breakfast. "What did dad do this time?"
Twenty eight– almost nine– years of marriage didn't really guarantee a couple from not getting into a quarrel, huh?
Yukiko was quiet for a second before she sat helplessly dramatic on the chair across her son. Her (fake) tear rolled down her cheeks as she held out a handkerchief that she got out of nowhere in one hand to wipe the falling jewels.
"Did you hear that, Chii-chan?" She turned her head to the little girl and began to whine. "Your dad really is clueless about women's heart, just like your grandpa."
Shinichi stopped his hands from digging into his food only to feel the corner of his mouth twitching in annoyance. He was certain that a vein almost popped up on his head if it wasn't for Ai joining them at the table with another plate of waffles.
She stifled a laugh as she sat beside Yukiko. Then she took a glance at him.
"As dense as ever, huh?" She smirked teasingly.
Damn, he was outnumbered it seemed.
With the final straw being pulled by his wife, he heard some of his nerves snapping inside his head. His body quavered in a suppressed irritation; he frustratedly tried really hard to keep his veins under control.
"I know, right." Yukiko agreed to her daughter-in-law, still with her (fake) teary eyes. "Lucky we have you here, Ai-chan. What would my son be if he were to be left alone for his whole life?"
Shortly after Yukiko said so, Chiharu laughed wholeheartedly. Maybe the little girl found this whole ordeal funny due to everyone's different expressions on their faces. While Ai only threw a meaningful smile at that.
Not you too, Chii. Shinichi said to himself. At once, he had forgotten any of his annoyance and started to cry inwardly for his defeat.
But all in all, the breakfast this morning was so much livelier with Yukiko's arrival.
"Actually, I have another reason for my sudden homecoming this time." She told Shinichi in between the spare minutes after breakfast and before he went for work. She somehow made sure that Ai busied herself out with the dirty dishes before she spoke up about it.
"And that is?" He asked, hoping that it better not be another nonsense coming from his mom.
"Some of my old high school friends invited me to a reunion trip, departing this late afternoon." She said excitedly. "It will be a three-days and two-nights short trip to the beach. And I'm thinking of bringing Chii-chan along with me."
Shinichi almost spitted his coffee at his mom's whim.
"What?!" He raised his voice a bit in shock, which earned Ai's attention from the kitchen sink.
Yukiko hurriedly stood up, her upper body crossed the table to cover her son's mouth with one hand. Then she threw a grin to Ai while waving her other hand at her, signaling her to ignore Shinichi's impulsive shout.
The strawberry blonde cluelessly stopped prying into the situation further and turned herself back to the dishes. It was in their blood anyway for the mother-son duo to act like that.
"Shhh!" Yukiko returned to her son– putting her index finger in front of her lips in a gesture– after she made sure once again that Ai wouldn't hear anything from her spot.
"Eri and Kogoro-kun will come to the trip too, so isn't it alright to bring Chii-chan to the trip as well?" She explained. "Anyway, you should say your thanks to me for this."
She ended her sentence with a teasing wink as she sat back to her chair, releasing her hand from Shinichi's mouth.
"Haa?" Shinichi rolled his eyes at her again, questions were all over his face. What nonsense did she talk about this time?
Yukiko sighed in frustration. Did she really give birth to a son who was as dense as a wall like this?
"Geez, listen. If I bring Chii-chan along it means you and Ai-chan will have your couple time for two nights." She got closer to Shinichi and elaborated her idea in almost a whisper. Her eyes would dart to the strawberry blonde's direction once in every second. "And you can spend those two nights to celebrate her birthday."
Shinichi blushed at the mention of having their time alone for two nights in a row, but he was dumbfounded when Yukiko said something about someone's birthday. She, in return, took her son's changing expressions as a hint that he forgot tomorrow's special occasion.
"Don't tell me you forget that tomorrow is Ai-chan's birthday, Shin-chan." She groaned.
Uh-oh.
He indeed forgot about that.
"She will be eighteen this year. You better make it really really special." Yukiko condemned her son's foul memory. "She's turning into an adult once again after all."
"This is Japan, you know. She has to wait two more years for her legal age." He defended himself although he knew that the age of eighteen marked the turning point of everything in her life.
Because she was eighteen when her sister died;
she was eighteen when she made a run from them;
she was eighteen when she consumed the poison she created and turned into a child forever;
which meant she never lived her life past the age of eighteen in her previous life.
It was as if her time was frozen and about to begin ticking again when tomorrow came.
Ignoring whatever Yukiko's retorts that she threw at him, he took a glance at his wife who was now walking toward Chiharu to help the little girl out from the baby chair.
His heart somehow felt heavy.
How did she feel about her birthday this year?
Did she feel scared perhaps? She never knew what her life this time would offer eventually.
Right?
"What is it?" She asked the detective. A hint of annoyance was heard in her voice. She could feel his intense gaze on her for awhile now.
Shinichi was startled by his wife's voice, awoke from his little thought. He blushed when he realized he had been looking at her too intensely.
"N-Nothing." He managed to reply, although he stumbled along the way.
His mom smirked in amusement. She was no longer throwing any retorts at him, instead she was enjoying the young couple's interaction secretly from aside.
"You'll be late if you stare at me any longer than this, Shinichi." The strawberry blonde remarked with a tint on her cheeks.
"Ack!" He only realized the time now and hurriedly stood up from his seat. "I'll get going then."
But before he moved a step, he turned to his mom.
"Well, about Chii, I'll go with whatever Ai says." He said.
Yukiko nodded, her smile was still there while Ai was a bit confused by his last statement. She could just ask the older woman later though.
Shinichi wanted to give Ai a parting peck like he always did in the morning. However, Yukiko's boring anticipating stare and her teasing smile made him think twice before doing so. He was certain she would make a fuss over this later if he still went on with kissing his wife. Therefore, he only patted Chiharu's head before he left.
Yukiko laughed once her son had completely out from the house and heard him slam the door of his car close. He really was too self-conscious even if it was only his own mom watching. How cute he was.
She turned to Ai afterward, a very big grin was plastered on her lips.
"Alright! Let's have a girls' day out, Ai-chan!" She excitedly said.
She had all the time until late at noon before she went for her reunion trip, so she better made these hours worth spent with her daughter-in-law and granddaughter. She needed to do some shopping anyway, and while at it, she would also ask about taking Chiharu with her.
Ai could only crack a smile in respond to Yukiko's sudden whim. Not that she disliked going for a shopping spree with her, but she was only astonished at the older woman's overly exuberant mood. She bet this afternoon would definitely be long.
.
.
.
"Shopping really is best done together with a daughter!" Yukiko exclaimed jovially as she put down two handfuls of shopping bags on the coffee table in the living room.
After hours of shopping spree in the mall and a lunch, they were finally back to the house.
Ai chuckled as she followed her, also putting down her things– that were less than one-fourth from what her mother-in-law had– on the sofa, while Chiharu couldn't wait until later to get her little hands on the bags.
It was undeniably fun to have a shopping day with someone like Yukiko.
They apparently had the same taste in fashion and both of them agreed on the idea that price tags were the least thing they needed to check. The only difference was Yukiko showed her over-enthusiasm too clearly on her face, while Ai stayed on the cool side.
Perhaps, having only boys in the family made her dream so long about going on a shopping date with her future daughter-in-law. And today was finally the day.
With the addition of the adorable Chiharu in the group, it was unavoidable for them to gather many people's attentions.
Almost all the employees and the other patrons on the counters they visited asked about them out of curiosity. Every time it happened, Yukiko would answer that the three of them were sisters, and they would reply back with such believing looks. Their expressions made the older woman giggled even more; she just felt so young whenever she said that.
Aside from that, their girls' day out went surprisingly so well.
"Uwa! Thank you for helping me, Chii-chan!" Yukiko hugged the little girl who squealed happily in reply.
For a seventeen-months-old Chiharu, whose brain development had gotten used to observational learning, watching Yukiko opening a suitcase and putting in some clothes gave her so much hints. So she tried to imitate her by putting in some of the newly-bought clothes inside the young grandma's opened suitcase too.
"Baa-chann, clothes in!" She told her grandma.
Instantly, Yukiko's heart melted like a block of butter that was left on the hot summer air.
"How can you be so cute, Chii-chan~?" She couldn't stop herself from not showing her fondness for the little girl as she planted so many kisses all over the little girl's face. Chiharu giggled so loudly in return.
Shortly after the little distraction, Yukiko began to rummage through all the other stuffs again, one by one– Chiharu was helping too, of course. She needed to pack everything up before her departure for the trip.
Seeing the little girl was preoccupied with the shopping bags together with the ex-actress, Ai excused herself for the nursery room.
"I'll go upstairs to prepare for Chiharu's stuffs, then." She said to her mother-in-law, and went on her way after she heard an okay for her reply.
Once she was in Chiharu's room, Ai left the door open for some air while she took her time arranging the small clothes in a small traveling bag. There wasn't many things to bring though, since it was only a three-day trip.
Unlike Shinichi, she didn't really show her surprised face when Yukiko told her that she was going to bring the little girl to her reunion– only some blinks of Ai's blue eyes before she nodded, giving permission to her mother-in-law.
She said nothing much about this since Chiharu's maternal grandparents would be there as well. At least it gave her assurance that the little girl would be taken care of, appropriately.
However, it was inexorable of her to stop the insecure feeling she got. As the clock was ticking and its hands were moving forward nearing the departing time, her stomach churned into a knot that was getting tighter– like this instant.
This, after all, would be her first time being away from her daughter, and surely two nights were too much for her.
She sighed.
Would Chiharu be okay when the night came? She had gotten used to fall asleep in her arms with some lullaby and gentle strokes on her back, so would she make it without her there?
A sudden knock on the door suddenly broke her worrying thoughts. It was Yukiko together with Chiharu; the first seemed to hold something like a small black box in her hand.
"There is something I'd like to give to you before I go, Ai-chan." She said, grinning as she passed the box to Ai.
The strawberry blonde was bemused in return, but she took the gift. There wasn't any ribbon or any congratulatory card on it, it was just a plain black box that would open with only a flip.
Noticing her mesmerizing gaze on the box, Yukiko told her to open it.
"Why don't you open it now?"
Ai looked up to the older woman, then returned her eyes to the box after she got a nod from the giver. One of her hands moved to open its upper lid while the other held its body in her palm.
It turned out to be a woman wrist watch with a white gold chain band that clasp at the end, and ten small diamonds on the marker– the hallmark was on the twelve while the date wheel replaced the three. Only with one look and Ai knew the watch was manufactured by a famous expensive brand.
But what was the occasion?
She looked up to the older woman once again with questioning eyes; Yukiko only smiled back at her.
"I know it's too early but I won't be here tomorrow, so I have to give it to you now." She said. "Happy 18th birthday, Ai-chan. This is a birthday gift from me and Yusaku."
Ai widened her eyes, completely stunned. Was her birthday tomorrow?
The room was filled with silence for a few seconds as she pulled her memory out in search for what date exactly today was.
"Don't tell me you don't like the present?" Yukiko pouted, feeling a bit disappointed. While she was expecting her daughter-in-law to squeal when receiving the gift, she looked dumbfounded instead.
"Ah, n-no! I didn't mean it that way." Ai blushed.
Maybe she was too busy with her post-marriage life that she forgot the days were moving so fast and in the blink of an eye, her birthday came up once again.
Because, how could she forget when her eighteenth birthday held a whole lot of significance for her?
And if she could be honest with life, she was eventually petrified.
In the end, she was going to break the seemed-to-be everlasting cycle after reliving through her childhood once more on her eighteenth birthday this year. It marked the beginning of everything for her– for Ai– and the wheels to her frozen timepiece would finally continue their round for the second, final time.
Was that why Yukiko give her a watch as her birthday gift?
You'll always have us on your side, Ai-chan. It said.
Ai pressed her lips into a thin line, although she smiled too softly a second later.
"I like it a lot." She said, observing the watch. "Thank you."
Yukiko smiled back at her. Even with such little words, she knew that Ai understood the message transpired in the gift she and her husband got for her. And she hoped she wouldn't be too daunted by what the future held for her this time.
.
.
.
"We are going now, Ai-chan." Yukiko cheerfully bid her goodbye to her daughter-in-law. She was holding Chiharu with one hand while the other held her suitcase that had the little girl's bag on top.
"Have a safe trip." The strawberry blonde replied, then she squatted down to say something to Chiharu. "Have fun, Chii. Don't go anywhere too far from obaa-chan, okay?"
The little girl nodded even though she looked like she was going to cry. Watching her like so, Ai couldn't hold her heart from sinking deeper into her stomach.
"It's okay, Chii-chan. We can call your daddy and mommy whenever you miss them." Yukiko bent down a bit and winked at the little girl. "Now, remember the ice cream that we're going to eat at the beach."
Chiharu was hesitating at first, but after awhile her mood seemed to return back to normal. With a hug and some kisses to her mom for the last time, Chiharu waved her goodbye and went with Yukiko, smiling.
Ai sighed once again.
She was still worrying over her adoptive daughter, but looking at how she coped up with their goodbyes, she too, tried to hush away her negative feelings.
The house instantly turned extremely quiet without the little girl here, which reminded her of the evening when she and Shinichi were left alone for the first time after their marriage. It was also the first time they exchanged their first names.
She smiled at the memory, then her eyes darted to the wall clock.
Right. She said to herself in an assuring manner.
Unlike her previous eighteen-years-old self, Ai had everything she had ever dreamt this time. Her adoptive parents, her in-laws, her friends, Chiharu, and also him. There shouldn't have been anything that was unsettling once her time began to move once again, should there?
I better organize the stuffs I left on the sofa. She told herself, walking deeper into the house.
She was confused though when she went into the living room to find a small shopping bag with a ribbon on, sitting near her stuffs on the sofa– it looked unfamiliar. She was sure it didn't belong to her, yet she found her name on its tag.
She opened to check its content and was stumped when she took out a pair of slinky dark purple lingerie with a lot of laces, as well as a fluffy cat ears headband from the bag. A card that was originally inside accidentally flew and landed on her lap, which she cluelessly took and read it. She blushed madly a split second later upon reading the hand-written message.
This is another gift for you, personally from me. I think you're going to need this tonight with Shinichi. It said.
There wasn't a name written after the message, but she knew instantly that this was from Yukiko.
Who else would write such a teasing remark if it wasn't her?
And also, what the hell with this provoking thing? It wasn't like she would ever wear such a thing and seduce her husband, was she?
Ai hurriedly shoved the stuffs back into the bag and began to really sort her other stuffs. Even so, her flustered burning face still lingered so well and she couldn't help but imagine how he would react if she wore such things for real.
Well, on a second thought, perhaps it would be nice if she could torture him with this.
The cat ears weren't too bad after all.
.
.
.
Don't forget you still owe me your thanks. Enjoy your nights. – Mom.
Shinichi rolled his eyes as he read a text from Yukiko. She was informing him that Chiharu was joining the trip with her, but her end note was kind of annoying (although she was actually right).
So, it will only be the two of us tonight and tomorrow, huh? He concluded inwardly.
His face lightened up at the thought as his lips formed a wide grin. He was going to buy her a gift after he had done his work. He was excited to be the first person to say the words on her special day.
But before that, what things should he do with her tonight, eh?
Author's note: Nope. I'm not gonna change the rating to an M though, sorry (haha). Anyway, just for your information, although I uploaded this chapter on September but it was still mid-August in this fic's timeline. So, Ai's birthday that was!
Do not forget to give your comments and reviews. Happy reading!
Disclaimer: All characters of Detective Conan are belong to Aoyama Gosho. I don't own any single of them.