Chapter 64: Wanting a Romantic Date
Ai spent the entire afternoon out shopping, returning home with arms full of bags stuffed with all sorts of unexpected items.
Aqua stood by the pile of loot like a dutiful security guard, inspecting the items one by one. He picked up a sleek, white box and checked the brand name on the label: XINI.
"Xini's latest high-fidelity headphones... huh, wired, wireless, in-ear, over-ear—there's quite a variety here. And the recording mic that was just released," Aqua muttered, cataloging each item. "This can't be year-end company perks from Hikaru's studio, can it?"
Ruby squatted by the coffee table, curiously poking another package. "Do big companies really give out perks this good?"
Aqua kept digging through the pile. He picked up a premium-looking, heavy-duty box, his expression turning a bit weird. "The latest graphics card."
"And a complete set of gaming peripherals."
"Are these for you, Aqua?" Ruby blinked. "You can't even use stuff like this yet, right?"
Aqua then glanced toward the dining table, where a thick book was resting. Printed across the cover in bold characters were the words The Complete Guide to Chinese Cuisine (32nd Edition), featuring a mouth-watering photo of spicy, poached sliced pork.
Even though he couldn't read the characters, it was easy enough to tell from the cover art that it was a cookbook.
Aqua's gaze turned serious. *This has to be for that guy, Hikaru.*
"Then this part has to be ours, right?" Ruby got on her tiptoes, pointing at the kitchen counter.
Sitting there were a few premium bento boxes from the convenience store.
"Yep, you got it," Ai said, popping out from the kitchen. "I was a little busy today, so is it okay if we just have bento tonight?"
She pressed her hands together, offering a playful apology to her kids.
"Of course it is," Aqua replied.
Throughout dinner, Ai was completely checked out. She mechanically picked at her food, her mind entirely consumed by whether Hikaru would actually like any of the gifts she bought.
Watching her space out, Aqua and Ruby huddled closer to whisper to each other.
"Mama seems like she has a lot on her mind today. She's been super secretive since this morning and brought home a mountain of stuff," Aqua lowered his voice. "She isn't exactly a shopaholic, so this is definitely weird."
"Maybe she's getting Christmas gifts ready for someone she knows?" Ruby tilted her head. "There should be something for us in there too, right?"
Aqua nodded instinctively, but his brow immediately furrowed as he realized something was off—none of the items in that pile were meant for kids.
Suddenly, Ai set her chopsticks down, turning to her children for help. "Aqua, Ruby, if you guys were going to an amusement park, which one would you like best?"
Ruby answered without a second thought, "Anywhere is fine, as long as I'm with Mama!"
Aqua, on the other hand, began to break things down logically. "The most popular amusement parks around Tokyo are Tokyo Disneyland, DisneySea, and Fuji-Q Highland. Disneyland is better for families, but it's going to be packed during Christmas. DisneySea has more thrilling rides, but the experience drops if the weather is freezing. If you're going for Christmas, Disneyland is the safer bet. Though at this point, you'd have to pay extra to score VIP tickets from scalpers."
Finding her son incredibly reliable, Ai pressed further, "Does it have a Ferris wheel?"
Aqua tried to brainstorm, but ultimately just shrugged. "I don't know."
Ruby looked up at Ai with wide, expectant eyes. "Is Mama taking us to the amusement park?"
"Huh?!" Ai's eyes went wide with panic.
She stammered, unable to find her words as a faint blush crept onto her cheeks.
Ruby kept pushing, "Is it on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?"
Ai waved her hands with a nervous laugh. "Mama has some other things to take care of, so I'm really sorry, but I can't take you guys along this time."
"Forgive me, just this once, okay?"
Aqua and Ruby swapped a look. Something was definitely fishy.
Christmas, not taking them out, having other plans, an amusement park, and all those gifts... Oh no.
An alarm bell blared in Aqua's head as a very specific possibility clicked into place—she was going out on a date with that guy, Hikaru!
"I'm actually planning to go on a date with Hikaru," Ai explained, happening to speak at that exact moment.
Ruby immediately wrapped her arms around her mother's sleeve, pouting. "Aww~ can't we come along on the date too? We're a family, after all!"
Ai started stammering again. "Not this time. It's for something really important..."
*There's no reason a regular date needs to be this secretive,* Aqua thought.
He locked into deep thought, utilizing his brilliant deductive reasoning. "Is it an anniversary or something?"
"Eh?" Ai burst out laughing. "Hikaru and I don't have anything like that."
She added brightly, "The truth is, I want to confess to him!"
"!!" Ruby's eyes went completely wide.
"??" Aqua's mouth fell wide open.
"Is Mama going to leave us?" Ruby asked, a trace of anxiety bleeding into her voice.
Aqua's focus went in a slightly different direction. "Why isn't *he* the one confessing to you?"
Truth be told, Aqua had long since sensed that Ai and Hikaru's relationship would eventually head down this road. The way they interacted was already practically identical to a couple; becoming official was just a natural progression.
"If it's that guy, I guess it's fine," Aqua sighed. "I believe he'll make her happy."
Even if there were still a few question marks surrounding Hikaru's background, the time they had spent together wasn't a lie. It was a tangible, real connection. His genuine care for Ai was completely transparent; anyone with eyes could see it.
Swept up by the emotional shift in the room, Ruby thought back to all the help and kindness Hikaru had shown her over the past months. Suddenly, she felt this might actually be the best possible outcome.
She stopped pouting and let out a little sigh. "Mama is all grown up now. Come to think of it, he's probably the only one good enough for her anyway."
Ai gave Ruby a playful flick on the forehead. "Look who's talking like the adult here."
Later that night, Ai tossed and turned in bed. Finally, she pulled out her phone and carefully opened her chat with Hikaru.
She drafted the message several times, typing and deleting, before finally hitting send on a simple sentence:
"Are you free tomorrow night?"
Hikaru replied instantly: "Yeah, I am. Is something up, Ai?"
The corners of Ai's mouth curled up. Hiding under her blanket, she typed back: "Let's go on a date! I already booked tickets to the amusement park."
Hikaru: "Just the two of us?"
"Mm-hmm," she whispered softly into the darkness of her blanket.
A date for just the two of them.
The next morning, Ai woke up incredibly early. It wasn't so much an early wake-up as it was a total lack of sleep due to pure, unadulterated excitement.
She stood in front of her massive wardrobe, completely paralyzed by indecision. *Which one looks best? It shouldn't be too flashy either...*
The twins were right there, offering their best fashion consultation.
"It's pretty freezing outside, so this down jacket should do the trick," Aqua suggested from a purely practical standpoint.
"That's way too bulky! You'll lose all your girlish charm!" Ruby objected fiercely.
"Staying warm should be the top priority!" Aqua argued back, standing his ground.
"Fashion over freezing!" Ruby countered, giving no ground.
As the two kids bickered back and forth, Ai found herself siding more with Ruby's philosophy.
For an occasion this momentous, she absolutely had to look pretty. Dealing with a little cold was totally worth it!
Ultimately, Ai picked out a cute short skirt paired with a fleece-lined, deep blue blazer. She figured it was a look plenty of girls wore, so it wouldn't stand out on the streets. As long as she tucked her hair securely into a hat, nobody would be able to recognize her.
Aqua let out a sigh. "You can't just go bare-legged out there. You'll ruin your joints. At least wear thermal leggings."
So, Ai pulled on a pair of thick, fleece-lined black leggings. Her legs were long and perfectly straight; even with the thick thermal layer underneath, they didn't look bulky at all, instead beautifully tracing her slender silhouette.
It was time to go.
Ai took a deep breath, pushed open the front door, and stepped out onto the street—acting as an ordinary girl, rushing off toward a long-awaited date.
Heading straight into the warm winter sun.
She could feel her heart hammering violently inside her chest.
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