A Duo

Aria sat waiting for the results of her exams, with Ren by her side. She had taken some painkillers, and the pain had subsided a bit, but now they both could see just how swollen her hand was.

"How are you holding up?" Ren asked, concerned.

"Ren, I appreciate the concern, but asking me that every five minutes won't solve anything."

He knew that, yet his worry persisted.

"I'm sorry…"

"What are you apologizing for?" Aria questioned, wanting to know if he had the right reasons or if he was still mistaken.

"I didn't defend you from Alex... and you had to defend me again! I'm a failure…"

She extended her left hand to him, looking at him earnestly.

"Ren, that's not how things work. Your job isn't to defend me. We're a team, aren't we? You were there for me when I was crying about my mom and you gave me that cookie a long time ago."

"But I also forgot about you! And that's why I owe you, and you're always on my side, supporting me. I'm not good enough for you."

"But Ren, I never even wanted you to get into that fight. You decided on your own that it was the best thing to do. We have to make those decisions together, and if I say you don't have to do anything, you don't have to do anything, got it? You don't need to make up for anything; we're equals in this relationship."

Ren hadn't thought about things in that way, but he understood what she was saying, and he felt even more embarrassed for having done so much wrong.

"I'm new to this whole relationship thing…"

"By the way, what exactly is our relationship?" Aria asked confrontationally, remembering his earlier comment about them dating.

"I didn't mean to offend, but we weren't officially dating yet. I wanted to…" 'Declare' was the word he wanted to use, but it sounded wrong.

"So, what are we going to do now?" she asked, waiting for some initiative from Ren.

Taking a deep breath, everything he had planned for that special moment was shattered. He had to improvise.

"Aria… I love being with you. You make me feel so good and at ease. When we hold hands... when you play the piano for me... every moment with you is pure happiness. And you support me with my things too. I never could have gotten this far with my manga without you..."

The last words were the hardest of all, but Aria was smiling so much with every word Ren said that it gave him the strength to continue.

"I love you, Aria, and I want to be in a relationship with you."

He didn't even have time to ask if she wanted to be in a relationship with him. Aria grabbed him with her good hand and kissed him.

In that moment, nothing else existed. There was no hand pain, no romantic nerves, no piano competition, and no problematic parents. There were only the two of them.

"I want nothing more than to be with you," Aria said when the kiss ended.

The two of them had goofy smiles for each other, the relationship finally established. A sense of tranquility washed over them as they enjoyed their time together, until a doctor entered the room.

"Good news, Aria. You haven't broken anything; it's just a dislocation. I'll prescribe you some medication and stabilize your wrist a bit."

Seeing the doctor's calm demeanor reassured them, especially Ren.

"That's great; you'll still be able to participate in the piano competition," Ren said, relieved that she wouldn't have to face further arguments with her mother.

"What? No way," the doctor responded. "You need at least two weeks of rest for that hand, no strenuous activities, including playing the piano."

As the doctor left the room, Ren turned worriedly to Aria. The competition was less than a week away, and she wouldn't be able to participate.

Aria began to cry, a reaction Ren anticipated. He squeezed her left hand to console her.

But amidst her tears, Aria was smiling, as if she was crying out of happiness.

"I can't participate. I can't participate!" she repeated, brimming with joy.

"Are you alright, Aria?" Ren asked, concerned for his girlfriend.

She pulled him closer, practically bursting with happiness.

"Ren, I won't be competing! There's nothing to be done, right? So, I don't have to practice anymore or worry about the competition."

"But Aria... what about your mom?" Ren asked, recalling how strict Hanna was.

"Her problem, Ren. What's she going to do? Heal my hand? I don't think so."

Ren didn't completely understand, but Aria seemed lighter than ever. This was the freedom she wanted.

"My problem?" a voice echoed from the doorway.

The two kids turned as Hanna entered the room, wearing an expression of displeasure that Ren had never seen before. He tensed up and lowered his head, but Aria continued to smile, seemingly unfazed by her mother's presence.

"Yes, mother. Looks like I can't participate; there's just no way. What now?"

Ren had never seen her so confrontational and wondered if she was like that due to some medication they gave her.

"First, you escape your punishment by going to the festival against my will. How can you act this way? It's a tragedy, Aria. This time you actually had a chance to win. And what about your dream?"

Then Ren realized that she hadn't convinced her mother to attend the festival, but rather she had run, making things worse.

"I never have a chance to win because I hate these competitions, Mom. This isn't my dream. My dream is to go to the moon, or something like that. The competition is your dream, Mom, and there's no way I can make it come true for you."

Ren was increasingly impressed by the way his girlfriend spoke.

"You're in big trouble, Aria. I'll have plenty of time to think about your punishment."

"I hurt my hand, and you're going to punish me? That's something you would do."

Aria had never felt this way. Defying her mother had seemed impossible before, but now she felt like she had nothing left to lose. She then turned to Ren and spoke in a quieter tone.

"You should head home now; it's getting late."

"But…" Ren began to protest, but his girlfriend cut him off.

"It's okay; we'll talk later. Just go home."

Ren accepted Aria's request, bid her farewell with a smile, and even gave a slight nod to Hanna before leaving for his home.

It had been one of the most intense days of Ren's life. Many things had transpired, but as he left Aria with a smile, all he could think was that he was finally dating Aria, and it felt like a dream turning into reality.