They walked for quite a distance before they reached the residential area where Kouichi and Grandma Nagao lived. It was a small one room apartment with a living, dining and kitchen area. It was a bit cramped when the three of them sat down together in the living room. Kouichi was taking a nap on the bed."I"m sorry, this place is quite small." Grandma Nagao said apologetically to the couple. By seeing the way they dressed up, she knew they were not commoners like her and Kouichi.
"There"s nothing to feel sorry about." Tsubaki smiled in earnest. "I like the way you decorate this place. This place feels cozy."
She looked around the place. She felt nostalgic. Before she had properly set up her bakery, she lived in this type of apartment before moving into a bigger one room apartment.
Grandma Nagao had decorated this apartment unit with small and intricate origamis. Tsubaki presumed they crafted by the old lady. In one corner, there was a set of table and chair for children. A white board was hanging on the wall before the table. Colourful drawings of a child were pinned on the board.
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"Regarding Hinata..."
Tsubaki froze for a moment. She calmed her heart before meeting the old lady"s eyes.
When Grandma Nagao showed her a photo of Kouichi"s mother, she was thoroughly terrified. At first, she thought she was just resemble her a bit but after she looked at the photo, it was as if she was looking at her own photo. Even Ren was shocked when he took the photo from her hand. But he was wise to hide his shock from her. If not, Tsubaki would feel terrible. He held her hand and rubbed it gently, trying to soothe her.
"Hinata was an orphan," Grandma Nagao started telling the story, her mind wandered to the past. Kouichi stirred a bit in his sleep. He turned around and hugged his pillow. "My son, Yuuto met Hinata at high school. They dated for three years before immediately got married once they graduated. Not long after that, Kouichi blessed our lives."
Ren could sense the tension in Tsubaki"s complex expression. He held her hand firmly, acting as moral support. She squeezed his hand in response. She was so grateful with his presence by her side. There was so many questions popped up inside her mind.
"Kouichi"s mother, Hinata..." Tsubaki trailed off. She took a deep breath, her heart was beating fast. "She was an orphan?"
Grandma Nagao nodded. "n.o.body knew her parents. She was left outside the orphanage door since she was a baby. She lived her entire childhood and youth in the orphanage. No one came for her."
"There"s no clues about her origins?"
Tsubaki wasn"t dumb. If both of them just had a slight similarities, she could just let it be but their face was too similar. Even from the way they smiled, they looked like a single person. Even blood siblings won"t identically look like each other. Except if...
They were twins.
"There was none. But, there was a note from her mother." Grandma Nagao tried to recall what she had heard before. It was years ago so her old, failing memory made it quite hard for her to remember. "Hinata"s birth mother... asked for her daughter to be raised up in dignified manner. She didn"t sign her name. She just wrote her a message and Hinata"s name."
Tsubaki knitted up her eyebrows. Something felt wrong. If the deceased Hinata was indeed her twins, did it mean her late mother left her own child outside an orphanage? She didn"t think so. If not, how could she be here? Her mother raised her and Satsuki. Even though they lived in poverty, her mother would always tried her best to provide for them.
But...
"Tsubaki?"
Tsubaki was startled. She didn"t realise she was squinting her eyes till she saw her husband"s face in close proximity. His face was filled with worries. His large hand was gripping on her right shoulder. She dazed, feeling lost.
"What?" She asked in a quiet voice.
Ren sighed in relief. When he saw she was in a trance, hel felt bad. More over when her face gradually turned paler.
"Your face turn pale. Are you okay?"
Tsubaki absentmindedly touched her face. She looked at Ren then at Grandma Nagao. The old woman held a gla.s.s of water to her. She didn"t even notice when did Grandma Nagao poured her drinks.
"Drink this, you"d feel better." Grandma Nagao handed the gla.s.s to Ren when Tsubaki didn"t move.
"Thanks."
Ren lifted the gla.s.s to Tsubaki"s lips. She didn"t reject the offer. She silently took a sip, trying to moist her dry throat. Ren put down the gla.s.s after she drank a mouthful of water.
"I think I know what you"re thinking, Tsubaki. But, Hinata didn"t have any clues about her parents. I"m sorry if I startled you." Grandma Nagao said regretfully. She didn"t expect her story would make the young lady reacted that way.
"No, you don"t have to feel sorry, madam." Tsubaki quickly regained her senses. She stood up and went to sit beside Grandma Nagao. "Instead, I"m the one who should be sorry because I asked you to recall about something unpleasant."
"Tsubaki..."
Tsubaki curled up her lips. She held the old lady"s hands. The wrinkled hands had worked hard in her entire life. She knew Grandma Nagao was a dignified woman.
"If I could ask something, could I come and visit you and Kou often? Ever since I met him, even once, I felt like I want to watch over him. I don"t know why but I feel that way. And, if Miss Hinata did relate to me, I want to find out about it."
Grandma Nagao watched the clear eyes of the young lady in front of her. Her eyes were bright. It was like stars were twinkling inside them. Whenever she smiled, her almond eyes would beautifully shaped like a crescent moon. It was a pleasant sight to behold.
"Alright, you can come here." Grandma Nagao agreed. "And Kou-chan would feel happy too. I could see that he"s quite attracted to you."
Tsubaki smiled sweetly. She hugged the old lady"s fragile body. She didn"t feel repulsed being close to her. It reminded her of her own mother.
"Thank you."
Ren watched the scene. He was glad.
Kouichi was still asleep when they took their leave. They didn"t want to overstay their welcome. After bidding goodbye, they left the apartment complex.
"Are you okay, love?" Ren put his hand around her waist. Even though Tsubaki"s mood had improved, he was still worried.
"I"m okay." Tsubaki answered. "I was just thinking if... Miss Hinata has a relationship with me."
"Don"t think about it. I"ll look into it."
"You would?"
Ren nodded. "I feel like this isn"t a coincidence too. I know what you"re worrying about. Just leave this to me. I"ll ask Akashi to investigate it."
Tsubaki stopped walking. She looked up. Her husband was standing against the sun. It was like a ring of halo was emanating from his tall body. Since he was so tall, shadow fall on her face. Curling up her lips, Tsubaki said, "It"s such a great thing when my husband is so capable."
Ren smirked. His expression looked devilishly handsome when he smirked. He pulled her to the nearest alley in between the buildings and pushed her against the wall. He looked down on her dainty wife.
"Your husband is a really capable man, my wife."
Before Tsubaki could react, he pressed his thin lips over her plump ones. His minty scent invaded her senses. In a trance, she raised one arm and hugged his neck while the other rest on his shoulder blades.
When the couple was lost in their pa.s.sion, a pet.i.te figure dressed in light blue was standing outside the apartment complex. Her gaze fell on the Nagaos" unit. Her expression was indescribable.