Interulde 1
"Hey, what do you think would have happened if we hadn't gone to that group date?"
It was just before the two of them were about to leave the house on their day off. Ritsuka suddenly asked this question to Rouji.
As he looked for the body bag he was going to wear, Rouji replied casually, "Hmm."
"Well, we're still both single, aren't we?"
"What? What are you saying? Are you trying to say I'm not popular!?"
"I'm not saying that... but, hmm, I’ve never really thought about it deeply."
It had been about six years since that group date, and Ritsuka had changed her surname from Yanagi to Saigawa. Whenever they went out, they always wore matching rings on their fingers. They had become a married couple.
"There are times when I think about what if in life, but there are definitely what ifs I don’t want to think about."
"Are you saying that the 'what if' of you and me not going to that group date?"
"I don't really like that word 'group date' being brought up... Oh, what I mean is, I don't want to think about the 'what if' of us never meeting again. I don’t even want to think about it."
"Same here. Heehee... I'm so glad I teased you that time, Rou-kun♡"
"Yeah. You were pretty great throwing ice at me right away at that group date."
"Told you~?"
"That was sarcasm."
If even the slightest thing had been different, Rouji and Ritsuka's future could have changed. They both thought that the reunion they had back then wasn't all that great. Ritsuka was awkward, and Rouji was hot-headed and proud. Looking back, Rouji thought they were still kids back then.
"By the way, you dyed your hair back then, didn’t you, Rou-kun?"
"Yeah. I think I kept it dyed until my job hunting really started."
"Was it because you wanted to be popular?"
"……………Yeah."
"Hmm. But to be honest, it didn’t really suit you. I prefer your black hair now. It suits you better."
"That’s a bittersweet way to say it..."
If he were to be honest, even with dyed hair, Rouji hadn’t been popular. But he said it still meant something.
"It’s because I dyed my hair that I was able to meet you again, so it was worth it."
"That was because you went to the group date, not because of your hair, though."
"So please stop pointing that out...!! I'm a surprisingly romantic person, you know...!!"
Seeing Rouji's reaction, Ritsuka burst into laughter. She wanted to believe that their reunion had been as fate would have it. However, for Rouji, the fact that it was because of a group date felt too mundane and distasteful.
Of course, Ritsuka was fully aware of this. She was teasing him with that knowledge.
"But really, I never thought we'd end up like this when we met again. I could’ve seen us as friends, maybe, but actually getting married? Fate is really something!"
"To be honest, I think the same. Back then, I didn’t like you at all, Ritsuka."
"Geez... Well, I thought you were worse than any insect back then!"
"Isn't that a bit much...?"
"But now I like you more than any insect♡"
"If you find an insect that likes you more than I do, let me know. I’ll make sure to exterminate it."
Ritsuka didn’t even particularly like insects. However, as they playfully teased each other, Rouji reflected on how this side of Ritsuka was completely absent when they first met.
There was cause, there was coincidence, there was a process—and now, there was the present. If all of that could be summed up as fate, then for both Rouji and Ritsuka, fate was something to love and be thankful for.
It was almost time for them to leave, but Rouji suddenly wrapped his arm around Ritsuka’s waist.
"Ritsuka."
"Eh...?"
He pulled her close and whispered her name in her ear, and the slight warmth from their bodies rose a little.
There was still a little time left. Rouji pulled back slightly and met Ritsuka’s gaze.
"I love you."
"U-uh, you’ve been a little bolder lately... I-I feel the same, but..."
"Because—"
[Funnnnnnyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!! Male and female humans are getting so riled up in the middle of the day, nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!! Ah, ah, B. More (former Orix)!!]
Shwooo... Nyankichi, their beloved cat, looked up at them, and right then and there, had an accident.
"You—Nyankichi! Did you do that on purpose again!?"
"Ah, I’ll have to get something to clean it up."
[I didn’t mean to, nya... I did it...!]
"See? It was intentional after all! And why the heck do you know about Morel!?"
"What’s the matter, Rou-kun? A baseball player?"
Nyankichi could somehow only talk with Rouji. Just because he could talk didn’t mean he’d listen to anything.
On the other hand, Ritsuka had no idea what was going on, and though confused, she was holding a cleaning pad.
The slightly heated mood had completely been ruined. Well, they were leaving soon anyway, and it could be said that it was a pointless kind of arousal even if it had gotten more intense. Rouji sighed and began helping clean up the mess.
The day had just begun. There was still much to do ahead.
So, while he replayed the day’s schedule in his mind, Rouji flicked Nyankichi’s nose with his finger, then, in the chaos, gave Ritsuka’s rear a casual pat. He ended up receiving a painful retaliation from both his beloved wife and his beloved cat.
