Making It Work

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February arrived with the weight of entrance exams and the lightness of certainty.
Three weeks had passed since Airi and Ren created their plan. Three weeks of scheduled video calls, honest conversations, and learning how to communicate like partners instead of just lovers.
It wasn't always easy. But it was working.
"Quiz me again," Ren said during their Sunday afternoon call, textbook open on his lap.
Airi looked at her screen, where Ren sat at his desk, hair messy from running his hands through it. Even through a phone screen, he made her heart race.
"Okay. Explain the process of mitosis."
Ren launched into an explanation, occasionally glancing at his notes. When he finished, he looked at her hopefully. "Did I get it?"
"Mostly. You mixed up metaphase and anaphase."
"Damn. Okay, explain it to me again?"
They spent an hour like that—studying together but apart. It was different from their in-person sessions, but it worked. They'd learned to make it work.
"Break time," Airi declared, setting down her notes. "How are you feeling about the exams?"
"Terrified. You?"
"Same. But ready." She smiled. "We've prepared for this."
"We have." He looked at her through the screen with such tenderness it made her chest ache. "I miss you. I know I saw you Friday, but I still miss you."
"I miss you too. Two more days until Friday."
"I'm counting." He leaned closer to the camera. "Tell me about your week. The real version, not the 'everything's fine' version."
This was part of their honesty policy—checking in not just about what happened, but how they felt about it.
"Okay. Real version." Airi took a breath. "I'm stressed about the exams. My mom keeps asking if I'm studying enough, which makes me defensive even though she's just worried. I had a moment on Wednesday where I wondered if Tokyo was the right choice, but then I remembered why I want their psychology program and felt better. Oh, and I made a new friend in my English class—Saki. She's funny and reminds me a bit of Miki."
"How do you feel about all of that?"
"Stressed but managing. Annoyed with my mom but understanding. Confident about Tokyo. Happy about the new friend." She paused. "Your turn."
"Okay. Real version: I'm also stressed about exams. I had a nightmare that I failed and couldn't become a vet. The shelter was really busy this week and Kuro—you remember Kuro?—she actually let me touch her. Like, actually pet her head." His smile was radiant. "I almost cried. And I..." He hesitated.
"And?"
"And a girl in my chemistry class asked me to study together. Just the two of us. And I said no because I studied with our group instead, but I felt guilty for even considering it."
Airi's stomach tightened—that old familiar jealousy. But she pushed it down, remembering their agreement. Trust. Communication.
"Thank you for telling me," she said carefully.
"I didn't want to hide it. That's worse than being honest."
"I appreciate that. And I trust you." She meant it. "But I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel a little jealous."
"You want to know something?"
"What?"
"When you mentioned making a new friend—Saki—I felt jealous too. Even though it's stupid because you're allowed to have friends."
"It's not stupid. It's human." Airi smiled slightly. "This is good, right? Acknowledging the feelings instead of pretending they don't exist?"
"It is good. Hard, but good." He ran his hand through his hair. "I love you, Airi. Only you. That girl could be a supermodel and I wouldn't care. You're it for me."
"You're it for me too. Saki could be the coolest person on earth and she still wouldn't be you."
"Good. We're on the same page."
"Always."
---
## 📝 Entrance Exams
The entrance exams came like a storm—three days of intense testing that determined their entire futures.
Airi sat in the examination hall, surrounded by hundreds of other students, all competing for limited spots at their dream schools. The questions were challenging but fair. She worked through them methodically, drawing on months of preparation.
When it was finally over, she walked out into the cold February air feeling drained but accomplished.
Her phone buzzed.
**Ren**: *how was it?*
**Airi**: *Hard but manageable. You?*
**Ren**: *same. i think i did okay*
**Ren**: *want to meet at our spot?*
**Airi**: *Yes. Give me 20 minutes.*
The rooftop was empty and cold, but Ren was already there, leaning against the fence. When he saw her, he opened his arms and she walked straight into them.
"We did it," he murmured into her hair. "We actually did it."
"We don't know the results yet."
"Doesn't matter. We did our best. That's all we can control."
They stood there holding each other, both processing the enormity of what had just happened. The exams were over. The applications were submitted. Now they could only wait.
"I'm scared," Airi admitted.
"Of the results?"
"Of everything. Of what comes next." She pulled back to look at him. "In three months, we graduate. And then..."
"And then we start our real lives. Together but apart." He cupped her face gently. "We've been preparing for this. We have our plan."
"What if the plan isn't enough?"
"Then we'll make a new plan. And if that doesn't work, we'll make another one." He pressed his forehead to hers. "We don't quit, remember? That's not what we do."
"That's not what we do," she echoed.
"Want to know what I think?"
"Always."
"I think we're going to make it. Not because it's easy or because we're lucky, but because we're willing to do the work. Because we love each other enough to fight for this." He smiled. "And because we're both too stubborn to fail."
Airi laughed through her tears. "Tanaka said the same thing."
"See? Even Tanaka believes in us. And he doesn't believe in anything."
"He believes in you. In us."
"Then we better not disappoint him."
---
## 💌 The Letters
That evening, Ren texted something unexpected.
**Ren**: *i have an idea*
**Airi**: *Should I be worried?*
**Ren**: *no. well maybe. but its romantic*
**Ren**: *lets write letters to each other. to read on our first day at university*
**Airi**: *Letters?*
**Ren**: *yeah. like, everything we want to say before we start this new chapter*
**Ren**: *well give them to each other at graduation. but not read them until were alone in our new dorm rooms*
**Airi**: *That's actually really sweet.*
**Ren**: *i have my moments*
**Ren**: *so youll do it?*
**Airi**: *Yes. I'll write you a letter.*
**Ren**: *good. no rules. just write whatever you want me to know*
That night, Airi sat at her desk with blank paper and a pen, thinking about what to say. What did she want Ren to know when he was alone in Kyoto, nervous and excited and starting a new life?
She started writing:
*Dear Ren,*
*If you're reading this, it means we made it. We got into our schools. We're starting our dreams.*
*I'm so proud of you. Proud of the boy who became a man who refuses to give up on broken things. Proud of your passion, your kindness, your absolute certainty that love is worth fighting for.*
*I'm also terrified. By the time you read this, we'll be four hours apart. Different cities, different schools, different daily lives. Part of me is scared that distance will make us strangers.*
*But then I remember: we chose this. Both our dreams and each other. We refused to compromise either one because we believe we're strong enough to have both.*
*So here's what I want you to know on your first day:*
*You're going to be amazing. You're going to save so many animals, help so many creatures that everyone else gave up on. That's who you are—the person who sees worth in the broken things.*
*You're going to meet new people. Some of them will be brilliant. Some will be kind. Some will be attractive. And you might feel guilty for noticing. Don't. Being in a relationship doesn't make you blind. It just means you choose to come home to me, even when other options exist.*
*You're going to have hard days. Days when you're exhausted and lonely and missing me so much it hurts. On those days, remember: I'm having them too. We're in this together, even when we're apart.*
*You're going to doubt us. Probably more than once. You'll wonder if we're crazy for trying this, if love is really enough. When that happens, read this letter again. Remember why we chose this path.*
*We chose it because we refuse to live small lives. We refuse to sacrifice our dreams or our love. We chose difficulty because we're brave enough to face it.*
*I love you, Ren Kurosawa. On your first day, on your hardest day, on every day between. I love you when you're confident and when you're scared. I love you here and I'll love you from Tokyo.*
*Four hours is just geography. We're so much more than geography.*
*Forever yours,**Airi*
She sealed the letter in an envelope, writing only "Don't open until your first day" on the outside.
Tomorrow, she'd give it to him. And he'd give her his. And they'd carry each other's words into their new lives.
---
## 🎓 Results Day
Three weeks later, the results came.
Airi checked her email with trembling hands, Ren on video call beside her, checking his simultaneously.
"On three?" he said.
"On three. One... two... three."
They both clicked.
Silence.
Then Ren's shout of joy: "I got in! I got into Kyoto!"
"I got in too!" Airi was crying and laughing at once. "Tokyo University! I actually got in!"
"We did it! We actually did it!"
They celebrated through the screen, both crying, both laughing, both overwhelmed with relief and joy and terror.
"We're really doing this," Airi said when they'd calmed down.
"We really are."
"You're going to Kyoto."
"You're going to Tokyo."
"We're going to be four hours apart."
"We're going to make it work."
They said it with certainty now. Not hope, but certainty. Because they had a plan. They had love. They had each other.
"I'm so proud of you," Ren said. "You're going to change so many lives, Airi."
"I'm proud of you too. You're going to save so many animals."
"We're going to do it together. Just... from different places."
"Together from different places," Airi agreed. "I like the sound of that."
---
## 🌸 Celebration
That weekend, their whole friend group gathered to celebrate. Miki had gotten into her design school. Yuki into business. Takeshi into engineering. Even Tanaka had gotten into his first-choice university.
They met at their favorite restaurant, laughing and talking over each other, giddy with relief and excitement.
"To the future!" Takeshi declared, raising his glass.
"To surviving entrance exams!" Miki added.
"To us!" Yuki shouted.
They all drank, then Tanaka spoke up. "Actually, I have a toast."
Everyone quieted, surprised. Tanaka rarely spoke at gatherings.
"To Airi and Ren. For showing us what it looks like to fight for something. For refusing to choose between dreams and love. For being stubborn idiots who somehow make it work." He raised his glass higher. "You two better make it. Because if you don't, the rest of us have no chance."
"We'll make it," Ren said firmly, taking Airi's hand.
"We will," Airi confirmed.
Everyone cheered and drank, and for a moment, surrounded by friends who believed in them, the future felt less scary and more like an adventure waiting to begin.
Later, when it was just the two of them walking home, Ren stopped under a streetlight.
"I have something for you," he said, pulling out an envelope. "Your letter. For your first day."
"I have yours too." She pulled out her own envelope.
They exchanged them, holding each other's words like precious things.
"Don't read it yet," Ren said.
"I know. First day."
"First day." He pulled her close. "Three months until graduation. Three months until everything changes."
"Are you ready?"
"No. Yes. I don't know." He laughed. "But I'm doing it anyway. With you."
"With me," she agreed.
They kissed under the streetlight, two teenagers about to become adults, about to step into a future they'd fought hard to build together.
It would be difficult. It would hurt sometimes. But it would be worth it.
Because they had each other.
And that was enough.
---
## 📔 Journal Entry
*Dear Future Me,*
*We got in. Both of us. Our dream schools.*
*Tokyo University for psychology. Kyoto University for veterinary medicine.*
*Different cities. Different lives. Same love.*
*Everyone celebrated tonight. Everyone believes in us. Even Tanaka, who doesn't believe in anything.*
*But here's the thing: it doesn't matter if everyone else believes. What matters is that WE believe.*
*And we do. We believe in our plan. In our communication. In our love.*
*Three months until graduation. Three months until the real test begins.*
*But we're ready. We've done the work. We've had the hard conversations. We've built something strong enough to withstand distance.*
*Or at least, we've built something worth trying for.*
*And that's all anyone can do, right? Try. Fight. Choose each other, over and over.*
*I'm carrying his letter to Tokyo. He's carrying mine to Kyoto.*
*And on our first days, alone in our new rooms, we'll read them.*
*We'll remember why we chose this. Why we're fighting.*
*Because some things are worth fighting for.*
*And Ren Kurosawa is absolutely worth fighting for.*
*Love,**Present Airi (scared but certain)*
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