"Wh... What?"
"When can you marry Miss Shinobu?!"
Nezuko and Tanjirou shouted excitedly, their faces alight with enthusiasm.
"Mhm," Yoizumi nodded. The ring had already been given, but when exactly they could get married —that was something Yoizumi hadn't figured out yet.
Yoizumi-nii and Miss Shinobu... Nezuko cupped her face in her hands, looking wistful. Next time she saw Miss Shinobu, shouldn't she call her Sister-in-Law?
"I finally waited for this day!"
Tanjirou sniffled emotionally, wiping the tears from the corner of his eyes, his face showing relief and his voice brimming with joy.
Mom, Yoizumi-nii is getting married.
She is a very good person.
Be happy for Yoizumi-nii!
But... how exactly do you get married?
Tanjirou crossed his arms, tilted his head, and thought seriously with his wide, expressive eyes. Yoizumi, likewise, lowered his head slightly in contemplation.
Snapping back to reality, Nezuko looked helplessly at her two idiot brothers. It seemed her future sisters-in-law would have a very hard time... Nezuko stood up, walked to her brothers' sides, and, adopting the demeanor of the Kamado family's eldest daughter, tapped both of their heads with her fists.
"Huh? Nezuko?" Tanjirou raised a hand to cover his head, utterly confused.
Yoizumi stared blankly at his sister.
"Listen up! What Yoizumi-nii needs to do right now is propose to Miss Shinobu!"
"Only once Miss Shinobu accepts can you start thinking about when to get married!"
"Asking about marriage so suddenly will only confuse a girl!"
"Do you understand?"
Proposal... But didn't giving the ring count as a proposal?
A trace of confusion flashed in Yoizumi's sapphire eyes. Clearly, even after turning back into a human, his personality remained exactly as it was before, without the slightest change.
Hmm... it seems Shinobu really didn't accept... Should he take the ring back and find a better time to give it to her?
Yoizumi quickly abandoned that idea... his intuition told him that bad things were likely to happen if he did.
Regarding how to propose, Yoizumi specifically wrote letters asking two people for their advice.
One was Iguro Obanai.
The other was Kagaya Ubuyashiki.
[Iguro Obanai:]
[Why should I tell you, of all people?]
[Go think about this kind of thing properly yourself!]
[If you haven't even prepared the courage to give Kochou happiness, don't even think about this!]
[Figure it out yourself!]
"..." Yoizumi stared at the letter in his hand. He had thought about it very clearly... the problem was... how exactly should he propose?
Yoizumi then opened Kagaya's reply.
[Kagaya Ubuyashiki:]
[Good day.]
[I saw the letter Yoizumi sent.]
[I am very happy that Yoizumi has this intention.]
[Yoizumi, you don't need to be troubled. You only need to follow your own heart.]
[I believe that if it is you, Yoizumi.]
[No matter what, Shinobu will be happy about it.]
[Do your best. Amane and I sincerely wish you well.]
Putting down the letter, Yoizumi rested his head in his hand and stared blankly out the window.
Neither of them gave him a clear answer... Following his heart, huh... Yoizumi gently placed his hand over his chest, carefully feeling every beat of his heart.
His heart... hmm... he wanted to see Shinobu... On the second day of being home, Yoizumi began to miss his lover.
"Hey, Nezuko?" Tanjirou and Nezuko peeked around the door, sticking their heads in to look at their brother inside the room.
"Is it really okay for Yoizumi-nii to try and figure this out himself?"
Nezuko stared at her brother's absent-minded back and nodded definitively.
Although her brother was a bit slow... a bit frustrating... and a bit dense... Nezuko believed Yoizumi-nii could do it!
... "Welcome back!"
A few young girls who had been attending school returned to the Butterfly Mansion for the holiday. Yoizumi and the others, who had just arrived at the Butterfly Mansion, received a warm welcome from them.
"Ko Kiyoshi, Sumi, Naho!" Nezuko happily greeted them.
"Mister Yoizumi, you're finally awake!" The three wide-eyed girls were overjoyed. Having returned for the break and heard the news, they were all eagerly anticipating seeing Yoizumi.
"Mhm."
He patted each of their heads. Over a year had passed, and they had grown quite a bit taller.
"I'm going to find Shinobu first," Yoizumi said before leaving their sight.
Walking down the long corridor, Yoizumi stopped at a doorway. Hearing Shinobu's voice coming from inside, Yoizumi quietly watched Shinobu diligently diagnosing a woman, choosing not to interrupt.
"You must not eat spicy or cold-natured foods recently."
"Take your medicine on time, and you will recover soon."
"Thank you... Thank you, Miss Kochou." The patient's grateful voice faded as she left. Yoizumi slowly walked up to Shinobu, who was bent over writing a medical chart, and spoke softly.
"Shinobu."
Hearing that familiar voice, Shinobu looked up and met his handsome, smiling blue eyes, a flash of joy immediately crossing her own.
"You're back, Yoizumi."
"You worked hard, Shinobu. Are there any more patients today?" Yoizumi asked, sitting down next to her.
Shinobu looked at Yoizumi, whom she hadn't seen in three days, and could easily tell he had something on his mind.
"There is," a gentle voice floated into Yoizumi's ears. He watched Shinobu put on her stethoscope again and place it against his chest.
"This patient seems to have a sickness of the heart..."
Yoizumi stared blankly at Shinobu, not understanding why she was doing this.
"Tell the doctor, and the doctor will cure you."
"If you hide anything, the doctor won't forgive you."
"And no lying~"
"..." Yoizumi's eyes widened slightly. He lowered his gaze to the stethoscope Shinobu had pressed against his chest, and the ring on her left hand.
Then, he slowly took Shinobu's left hand and pressed it closer to his heart. Now Shinobu could hear his entire heartbeat... Since yesterday, Yoizumi had been thinking constantly: Following his heart... what exactly should he do?
But... now Yoizumi seemed to understand a little.
He never lied to Shinobu... and now Shinobu was telling him not to hide anything.
So he could only follow his heart... "Shinobu."
"Hmm?" Shinobu responded softly, carefully listening to Yoizumi's heartbeat. She clearly sensed that... Yoizumi's heart rate had sped up... "Will you marry me?"
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