"It's not a matter of wanting or not wanting. You really are drunk right now..."
Amaha Byakuya stopped mid-sentence.
He had been about to say they should think this over calmly afterward.
But then he thought about his relationship with Akira Mado...
Even if Akira Mado was being impulsive because of the alcohol, they were already in a committed relationship. He shouldn't be saying things like this.
Even having only heard the first half of his sentence, Akira Mado already looked somewhat dejected.
This wasn't about whether she was being stubborn about being drunk or not. It was that Amaha Byakuya seemed resistant to doing that kind of thing with her. This made her feel...
"..."
Akira Mado fell silent, quietly getting up to return to her side of the bed.
At that moment, sensing the change in Akira Mado's expression, Amaha Byakuya immediately embraced her.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said something so stupid just now."
Amaha Byakuya held Akira, speaking softly.
Akira Mado's furrowed brow immediately relaxed, and she smiled. "What's there to apologize for? I was being a bit impulsive too. But I'm very clear-headed right now, you know..."
"Very clear-headedly not wanting to let Eto-san get there first. That's why I did all this tonight."
Akira Mado revealed her true feelings to Byakuya. "I should be the one apologizing—doing all these sudden things without any explanation, catching you off guard."
"So that's what this is about..."
Amaha Byakuya finally understood why Akira Mado had been acting so unusually tonight.
The usual Akira Mado would never take the initiative to suggest going out drinking...
"So... shall we?"
At that moment, Akira Mado asked directly.
As long as Byakuya showed even a hint of resistance or hesitation, she wouldn't push him.
But this time, Amaha Byakuya's attitude had completely changed. Without any hesitation, he said, "Let's."
...
The entire night, Amaha Byakuya and Akira Mado didn't settle down.
As it happened, both Kureo Mado and Kasuka Mado had rather keen senses.
In the middle of the night, they were awakened from their sleep by the sounds coming from Byakuya and Akira's room.
"Is that Byakuya and Akira? Are they..."
Kureo Mado didn't immediately catch on.
"They're making a baby, aren't they? Young people, after all~"
Kasuka Mado smiled as she remarked.
Kureo Mado had a sudden realization. "I see. They have reached that age, after all."
"Kureo... you must have been lonely all these years. Shall we do it too?"
Kasuka Mado was even more direct than the tipsy Akira, bringing up the topic without any warning.
"No, no. I'm already old. I don't have the energy of young people. I can't handle staying up in the middle of the night like this..."
Kureo Mado said with a wry smile.
Besides, his desires in that area had indeed been fading with time.
Now that his wife had returned to his side, he was already deeply satisfied. He had no other wants or needs, and he wouldn't feel lonely anymore.
"That's true. You've become so haggard—you really need to take better care of yourself."
Kasuka Mado's voice was full of concern. "Starting tomorrow, let me do the cooking. I need to make sure you get proper nutrition. Otherwise, at only forty, you already look like you're sixty."
Before falling back asleep, she had already decided what ingredients to buy at the supermarket tomorrow.
Not just Kureo Mado—Byakuya and Akira, who had been "battling" late into the night, needed to replenish their energy too.
Kasuka Mado had a feeling she would become a grandmother before long, even though she wasn't even thirty yet. What a strange sensation...