A Tender Smack

“Are you sure this is alright, Mamoru?” Mahiru asked as she watched him carefully fold her clothes and place them into their suitcases.

After her so-called date with Kousei, she’d returned to the hotel with Mamoru, whereas Kousei had gone home alone.

“I’m confident this is the best course of action, Madam Mahiru. If marriage is out of the question for him at this moment, this appears to be the best solution for everyone involved.”

When Kousei had once again turned down her proposal at the café, Mamoru came up with a different suggestion. Instead of marrying each other straight away, Mahiru could go live with Kousei for a while first. This way, she could get used to the culture in the West and a life together with Kousei before jumping into a legally recognised relationship.

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“Is this really going to work? Won’t her father find out?” Kousei asked after hearing Mamoru’s idea. This seemed a bit too simple to work out.

“I must admit it’s a risky strategy. Of course Madam Mahiru’s father is going to realise she’s not living with them anymore. But he won’t know where she’s hiding, at least not right away. If I tell him she ran away when we returned to the East, he probably won’t suspect she is actually located in the West.”

Mamoru took a sip from his dark coffee, his eyes closed. Kousei couldn’t figure out if Mahiru’s butler actually believed this plan would work. He looked over to Mahiru, their hands still clasped together for some reason.

“What do you think, Mahiru? Is this really an option?”

Mahiru thought long and hard, bringing her hand to her chin. Kousei immediately felt the warmth in his hand dissipating.

“I agree with Mamoru that it’s very risky. But it’s also our best shot. If my father does eventually find me, he would impose a severe punishment on me. But I don’t think my life would change much in the long run. So I’m ready to do this.”

Her eyes shone with quiet determination. After all the doubts, they had finally come up with a plan that would put her out of this life she despised. The chances of success were slim, but they were still there.

“Allow me to clarify something, Madam Mahiru. It’s not ‘if’ your father will find you, but ‘when.’ I might be able to delay him for a while, but he will definitely arrive at the right conclusion sooner or later. All I can do is give you two more time.”

Kousei understood what this meant, and nodded comprehendingly. Even if Mahiru stayed at his place for a while, this wouldn’t set her free from her family’s chains. It was just a temporary solution, giving them the opportunity to think of something better. But if worse came to worst, they would still have to fall back on their last resort – marriage.

“Is this okay for you, Kousei? Are you willing to go through this with me?” Mahiru asked, her expression dead serious.

It was the first time she had really asked Kousei for his opinion. Up until now, she had always imposed her judgement on him, but it seemed she wanted to take this particular decision together with him.

Kousei gulped, fathoming the consequences of his choice. No matter what he would say now, this decision would affect everyone involved, possibly for the rest of their lives. Even his own family might eventually get dragged into this situation because of him. He was obviously aware how selfish it was to do this to them. But he also knew that he wanted to keep seeing Mahiru.

“Under one condition,” Kousei spoke up. He could hear Mahiru gasping in anticipation. “If this whole plan fails and Mahiru is taken away from me at some point… Please make sure to leave my family out of this. I am the one deciding to let you live with us, so I should be the only one facing the consequences. Do you think this is possible?”

Looking back and forth between Mamoru and Mahiru, he could see the evident difference in their expressions. Mamoru’s face remained reasonably neutral while drinking his coffee, whereas Mahiru looked like she was just about to burst from all the different emotions welling up inside her.

Mamoru slowly put his cup down, then gave his opinion on the matter.

“I can not give you any guarantees, I’m afraid. But I promise you that I will do my best to keep your family safe. For the time being, it’s probably best if you refrain from telling them about Madam Mahiru’s real identity. I’m afraid you will have to come up with some sort of lie.”

Kousei had already expected this much. The more people knew who Mahiru really was, the easier the rumours could spread. It was better to keep her identity a secret until she could trust Kousei’s family.

“Okay, I’ll make something up.”

Mahiru felt her breath catch in her throat. Her body stiffened significantly and her chest tightened so much that it began to hurt. She couldn’t believe what she had just heard. Was she really going to live in the West?

“S-so you accept, Kousei?” she asked, flabbergasted.

Kousei nodded calmly and replied, “I do. I want to stay by your side for a little longer, so you can stay at our place for the time being.”

All her muscles relaxed in an instant, but at the same time, she could still feel her heart throbbing against her chest.

I have finally done it, Grandpa.

She stared into the void for a while, at a loss for words. After some time, she finally faced Kousei and brought a gentle smile to her face.

“Thank you, Kousei. You can’t even imagine how much this means to me. I’ll make sure to spoil you every single day as a reward,” she said, shyly winking at Kousei.

In response to that, his face started to burn. He didn’t know what she exactly meant with ‘spoiling’ him, but Mahiru had set him ablaze with a single gesture.

For the remaining duration of their encounter, they discussed the other details of their plan with Mamoru. Mahiru would go back to the hotel with him to pack up her stuff, and Kousei would talk to his parents in the meantime. He didn’t know what he should tell them yet, but he was sure to come up with something on the way home.

After they were done, Mamoru called up a waiter to pay for their drinks and then stood up in a single moment.

“Let’s go, Madam Mahiru. We have a lot to prepare.”

Kousei followed them outside. Just as he had predicted, it was now raining, so he pulled out his umbrella and put it up above his head. Of course, Mamoru was as prepared as one could get, offering Mahiru an umbrella of her own.

But instead of opening it, she approached Kousei and snuggled up to him, seeking shelter under his umbrella. This happened so quickly that he didn’t even have time to protest, his breath catching for a moment as her warmth lingered beside him.

“H-huh? Uh…” he stammered.

“I told you I would spoil you, right? Then let me start right here.”

They were so close that Kousei could feel the warmth of her breath brushing against his cheeks. Mahiru took control of his umbrella, grazing his fingers in the process, and tilted it just enough to shield them from any curious glares.