There Is Undisturbed Peace Among the Local Moving Companies

Hikaru nodded, and only the sound of plates smashing on the floor made him realize what had actually happened. The dishes fell from the shocked Matsuo's hands, who looked from one to the other. His friend, however, still looked as if he had detached himself from reality, while Hortensja smiled faintly. The girl herself was not sure why the question escaped her mind. She suspected that she had kept up the momentum and, led by her earlier thoughts and the warmth of feelings spreading in her heart, she decided that you only live once.

"You can't be serious, can you?" Matsuo glared at both of them until he focused his gaze on Hortensja for a moment longer, assuming that the whole mess was her fault. "And after..." The girl gave him a telling and warning look, while Hikaru was clearly interested in what he had to say. His father saved him by pressing a broom into his hand, and as he left, he patted him on the shoulder.

"Maybe I'll see those grandchildren before I die. Don't fall too far behind," the old man muttered.

The lovers helped clean up after the unfortunate fall of the food and then decided to run away. The old man didn't quite understand what was going on, but from his son's reaction, he guessed that it was about something serious. Besides, it didn't escape his notice that the young couple were holding hands, so he decided that everything was going in the right direction. He only felt sorry for the wasted food that had the misfortune of ending up on the floor, and he tried so hard to make them like it.

Hortensja and Hikaru left the restaurant under Matsuo's deadly gaze, so they felt a bit guilty about the situation. Although how many times can you hear a story about a couple meeting on vacation, spending little time together, and then deciding to move in together, and the relationship they managed to create was really successful, requiring a lot of work, but still successful. The Pole decided to treat it that way, hoping for a similar ending for themselves.

“Horteni, did you really mean it?” asked the young Japanese, unsure of what to do. He had no doubt that he wanted to move in with her, but the speed of these changes didn't scare him so much as worry him. He hadn't had time to digest the transition from being single to taken yet.

“I don't know why I said it, but yes. Of course, not right away. I have no bad intentions. I'm sorry. That must have really sounded bad.” She realized that she could have made a terrible mistake.

“I agreed, so don't worry. Let's talk about it later.” Hikaru decided it would be best to postpone it. “Just tell me why if we didn't give each other clear signs that…”

“That we liked each other?” Hortensja smiled and took his hand as if it were the most natural thing in the world to do during a walk, to which the man only blushed. “You didn't show it, but it was obvious. And all I do is impose.” She wanted to let go, but Hikaru wouldn't let her.

“It's not that. I'm just not used to it. I'm an adult, but I have no experience in relationships.” He looked at the sky. “The stars are beautiful today, and I don't think we've had a chance to go for a long walk yet.”

Hortensja looked at the sky and agreed with her companion. She couldn't remember when she had the opportunity to look at them calmly. She took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the frosty night air.

“Mom, Dad, I hope you like him,” she whispered in Polish towards the sky. “If I'm going to find my happiness here, then please watch over me.”

Hikaru didn't ask what she had just said, as he felt that this wasn't meant for him, so he simply squeezed the girl's hand tighter. She thanked him for it with a smile, and for a while they walked in silence, ignoring the mostly slightly unfriendly looks of other people. What mattered to these two was that they could finally go on something like a date and were happy, although the events of the beginning of the day didn't suggest it.

“Oh, I've been wondering about this for a while now. Why do some people call you Nishikawa?”

“That's my last name,” Hikaru explained. “We use first names when we're close to someone, and at first I couldn't get used to you calling me that.”

“I didn't want to be rude.” Hortensja was worried. “But since we're a couple, is it okay?”

“You were not rude at all! It was a nice feeling, I wouldn't even want to change it. What about your last name?”

“Kwiatkowska. Hortensja Kwiatkowska. Sometimes they laughed about it, because both my first and last names are related to flowers. I'll show you.” She took out her phone and searched for something in it. “My mother really liked this one, and that's why she gave me this name. Still, I don't know why people thought it was funny.”

“I like it. Using your first name wasn't easy for me at first, either.”

“Really?” she laughed. “If you called me by my last name, I'd feel like a teacher or boss was about to scold me.” She shuddered at the thought.

Hikaru laughed, and the conversation continued on the subject of politeness. The Polish girl explained that usually adding “Mr.” or “Mrs.” to the name was sufficient, and in some situations, academic or professional titles were used. The Japanese man was surprised when she told him that despite the significant age difference, the team often switched to names and directness pretty naturally. In return, the girl received a mini lecture on the subject of polite titles that had intrigued her since her arrival. Although her curiosity had been satisfied, she also realized how easily she could offend someone, even if someone treated her more leniently because she was a foreigner.

“Hikaru-kun? Is that what I should call you?” she asked, hoping that she had chosen the right title.

“You can, but you don't have to, Horteni-chan.”

The girl looked at him with glassy eyes, once again feeling how much emotion could be expressed in simple words. This time she felt herself blush and tried to hide it by burying her face in Hikaru's shoulder, who considered it his small victory.

“I didn't think you could react like that. Horteni-chan.”

“Shut up,” the girl mumbled. “Now I feel like a teenager in love.”

“Horteni-chan, maybe you could come over to my place this weekend and see if you really want to live with me. What do you think?”