The morning after the last proposal, the house woke up quieter than usual.
Not subdued — just settled, the particular calm that follows a long stretch of significant events finally reaching their conclusion. Nine rings now sat on nine hands around the breakfast table, and somehow, despite the enormity of what that represented, breakfast itself proceeded almost normally — Hana negotiating for an extra portion of rice, Saki reading something at the table with her usual focused attention, the easy chaos of a full house simply being a full house.
Kaito found himself, partway through the morning, wanting a moment of stillness before the next chapter of their lives — the weddings, the logistics, the inevitable whirlwind Saki's folder promised — properly began.
He found Nana in the garden, checking on something near the herb beds, and Saki nearby in her usual covered-area workspace, the notebook open but, for once, not being actively written in.
"Can I sit with you both," he said.
