Episode 109: “Won’t You Take a Picture With Me?”
“Hey Kanata, are you seriously bringing this?”
Peering over at my suitcase, spread open mid-packing in the corner of the living room, Yui-san seemed to notice Orca-kun, squashed flat inside a compression bag, and poked at him with her index finger, sounding unhappy about it.
“Yui-san, I’ve told you before, don’t call him ‘this.’ I want him to get to see a beautiful ocean too, while we’re at it.”
I can more or less guess why Yui-san’s unhappy about it.
Among all my stuffed animals, she knows Orca-kun is my particular favorite, and that I have a habit of sleeping with him hugged tight — so she’s always trying to keep him at a distance from me.
Because of that, our bedroom now operates under a standing “No Orca-kun Allowed” decree, and if I ever try to sneak him in, Yui-san tosses him straight back out into the living room, like she’s driving off some intruder who’s wandered into her territory.
So I’m sure this time, too, she’s just jealous that I’m planning to bring him along.
Getting jealous of a stuffed animal — Yui-san can be pretty cute sometimes, honestly.
“…The trip there is fine, but you won’t be able to compress him again on the way back, you know? Stuffed animals take up so much space, won’t your suitcase run out of room for souvenirs?”
“That’s fine, I’ll just put it in your suitcase, Yui-san.”
I said it firmly, and Yui-san laughed, looking exasperated.
Into the suitcase went flattened Orca-kun, several changes of summer clothes, sunglasses, plus a swimsuit, marine shoes, and — mustn’t forget — a rash guard.
I splurged on the most expensive sunscreen I could find. I think that covers everything.
Looking at the packing alone, it looks like a trip in the height of summer.
Which makes sense. Because starting tomorrow, we’re not headed anywhere within Japan.
*
We leave Japan tomorrow.
Tonight we’re staying at a hotel near Narita Airport. Tomorrow morning we’ll catch the first flight out, with a layover in Sri Lanka.
And the destination for this trip is a beautiful resort island floating in the Indian Ocean, ringed by emerald-green sea — the Maldives.
The Maldives is an island nation built heavily around tourism. A popular resort destination for vacations and honeymoons, a tropical country made up of countless beautiful islands.
There’s a dry season and a rainy season, but as luck would have it, our long-delayed vacation ended up landing right as the best season is about to begin.
Each resort occupies an entire private island, so we should be able to spend relaxed, uncrowded time there.
I’m sure everyone’s seen photos at least once of those overwater villas lining the shallow turquoise sea.
There’s no direct flight from Japan, so a layover is unavoidable either way, but thanks to Yui-san’s arrangements, we’ll be flying first class for the very first time in my life.
For someone who’s always flown economy, this is bound to be a dream of a trip.
I can’t wait to see it with my own eyes. White sand beaches, and a coral reef sea where fish of every color swim freely.
Looking up at the night sky from an island in the middle of the ocean — how beautiful must the stars look from there?
I never imagined Yui-san would actually remember that promise, the one we made just once, that one Christmas back in our student days.
That future, once so vague and distant, was actually about to become real.
Things I’d only ever dreamed of were coming true, one by one.
“Hey, Yui-san. I hope we get to see a whale shark. If we’re lucky, maybe dolphins too. I’m so excited.”
“Yeah. I hope we do too.”
As soon as our leave dates were confirmed, we went straight to a travel agency.
Poring over brochures together, listing out everything we wanted to do — it was fun, almost like planning a honeymoon.
We learned there was an activity where you could go see whale sharks, and since I desperately wanted to swim alongside one, we settled on a luxury hotel in South Ari Atoll, one of the few atolls where whale sharks live year-round.
I closed up my favorite big suitcase and locked it. I’ve never packed with this much excitement before. Cinching the strap around the suitcase made the whole trip feel that much more real.
Packing complete. I stood up to set the suitcase by the entryway ahead of time.
We were planning to leave for the hotel near Narita this afternoon.
“Ka~nata.”
“What is it?”
“Look this way.”
I turned when she called me, and she wrapped me up in a full, enveloping hug. As I caught her weight against me, Yui-san nuzzled her cheek into my hair, tightening her arms even further.
“Ahh, I can’t wait. To see you in a swimsuit, Kanata. It’s going to be so cute, I just know it.”
Her lips pressed against my cheek tickled, and I closed my eyes.
The thing she’s looking forward to isn’t the ocean or the starry sky, but my swimsuit — it was almost enough to make me laugh.
Last week, we’d gone swimsuit shopping together, folding it into a date.
I had no idea what would suit me, so after agonizing over it forever, I ended up letting Yui-san pick for me — and the whole time, she’d been beaming, clearly delighted, which made it pretty obvious she was really looking forward to seeing me wear it.
But somehow, I can’t shake the feeling there’s an ulterior motive involved. I hope I’m just imagining it.
“…Yui-san, are you thinking something indecent, by any chance? That’s not allowed. It’s a resort, sure, but it’s not exactly a country known for being tolerant of same-sex couples.”
“We’ll be alone in the room the whole time though, so we’re free to do whatever we want, right? No one would ever know.”
I didn’t even need to ask what she was thinking — her smile made it obvious enough.
“Free to do whatever… what exactly are you planning? Ugh, are you seriously planning to spend the whole trip doing nothing but that?”
“Huh, you don’t want to?”
“…I never said I didn’t want to. It’s just, you haven’t been holding back much lately, Yui-san. You used to be so much gentler.”
“You like it gentler? If you ask me nicely, I’ll do anything you want. Just tell me how you want it, whatever you’re hoping for.”
“That’s not what I meant by that!”
It’s not like I was complaining about the content of it, specifically. My cheeks went hot. I know Yui-san’s fully aware of that and just teasing me anyway, but still…
*
Right after we started living together, I found out firsthand just how shocking Yui-san’s stamina really is.
With a face as beautiful as hers, Yui-san looks like she’d have hardly any sex drive at all — but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
I remembered Ritsu-san once harshly calling her a “barbarian consumed entirely by lust.”
Yui-san is never a barbarian, not really… but on the “consumed entirely by lust” part, I might just have to agree. It’s not entirely off the mark.
Once every problem tying us down had finally been resolved, and we got to properly start our life together as a couple — that part was wonderful.
But maybe it was the sheer relief of it all. Once the restraints came off, Yui-san, unleashed, was honestly something else entirely.
There wasn’t even time to relax after a bath before I’d be dragged straight into bed, and I’d come to only to find it was already morning — night after night after night, and there were more than a few times I nearly fell asleep at my desk from exhaustion.
Getting rid of the bed in my old room came back to bite me — with nowhere left to barricade myself in, I was basically a mouse caught in a sack.
Yui-san had told me to get rid of my bed, and I’d gone along with it without thinking twice — but knowing her, I can’t help but wonder now if she’d already known I’d try to run, and preemptively cut off my escape route.
In the end, I lasted all of about a week before I broke and lodged a full, serious protest with Yui-san: “This is affecting my work.”
Yui-san looked genuinely crestfallen at being scolded, but since we’re going to keep living together going forward, she needs to actually listen to what I want too.
Honestly, being wanted that much makes me really happy, deep down — but that’s still a secret from Yui-san.
A sweet, happy life, with a different flavor than our student days.
On days we clock out on time, we head home together, standing side by side in the kitchen to cook.
After dinner, we curl up close together on the sofa, talking about our day, or watching a movie.
Stealing kisses in unplanned moments, expressing love naturally, woven into the fabric of everyday life, falling asleep every night wrapped in each other’s arms.
If this isn’t what happiness means, I honestly don’t know what would be.
Treasuring this happy everyday life, taking trips together every now and then like this — I want to keep stacking up memories, one after another.
And this time especially, using our extended leave for a trip to a resort that feels genuinely special. My chest feels so full, I might not sleep a wink tonight.
That evening, hauling our large suitcases, we boarded the Narita Express from Tokyo Station, heading toward the hotel where we’d stay the night before our flight.
I’ve always used Haneda Airport whenever I go back to visit family, so Narita isn’t a place I know well.
*
Once we sat down side by side on the train, I lifted the shared armrest between us and quietly laced my fingers through hers.
Maybe it’s because we spend so much of our everyday life pressed close together like this — I feel restless if we’re not touching somewhere, even a little.
Yui-san squeezed my laced fingers back, smiling happily.
“Oh, that reminds me — didn’t Ritsu have a souvenir request this time? Usually she always contacts you instead of me for this kind of thing, doesn’t she.”
“Actually, she didn’t ask for anything this time. Just said, ‘never mind the souvenir, just tell me all about it once you’re back.’”
When I told Ritsu-san and Yuuri that Yui-san and I were finally able to live together again, they celebrated for us with their whole hearts.
I’m truly grateful to the two of them, for having supported our relationship ever since our school days, all the way through.
“Still, since we’ve got the chance, let’s pick up some tea for Ritsu-san and Yuuri at the airport in Sri Lanka.”
“Don’t you want to get them something from the Maldives instead?”
“I mean, there’s barely anywhere to actually buy souvenirs there, is there.”
Since we’ll be staying at an all-inclusive resort the whole time, and there’s basically nowhere to shop at all, I figure the airport is really our only real chance to buy anything.
“True, it’s not exactly the kind of place with souvenir shops.”
“But that just means we’ll get to really relax instead. I’m so looking forward to it. Being able to take this trip at all is thanks to you, Yui-san. Really, thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome. Seeing you happy makes me happy too, Kanata.”
Yui-san looked into my eyes, smiling happily. I felt her hand tighten around mine, just slightly.
“…Kanata.”
“What is it?”
Yui-san brought her lips close to my ear. Wondering what she was about to say, I leaned in to listen, and—
“I love you.”
She said it, quietly, and I felt my cheeks flush with surprise.
“Come on, what are you saying, right here in public…!”
Seeing me flustered, Yui-san laughed, teasing.
“You don’t have to be that embarrassed about it. You’re really so cute, Kanata.”
This is something I only learned after dating Yui-san — having a partner this expressive with their affection really does raise your everyday happiness by an entirely different order of magnitude.
Yui-san’s always been like this, ever since our school days.
She tells me she loves me straight out, in words. But it’s not just that. Her eyes carry the love too, conveying it with her whole body, every time.
At first, I had no idea whether her words were sincere or not. I even doubted whether she said the same things to everyone.
But now I know. There was never a single lie in anything she ever said to me.
“I’m so happy I get to be with you all day starting today, Kanata. Lately I can never see your face during work hours, and it’s been seriously killing my motivation.”
“Careful saying that, or your dad might scold you, you know?”
“That’s entirely Dad’s fault anyway. He’s the one who took you away from me. Isn’t that awful? Making his own daughter’s girlfriend his personal secretary.”
Yui-san said it with a deep sigh.
“I’m happy about it, though. Thinking that someday I’ll get to be useful to you, Yui-san, makes me work that much harder. And President Ichinose is kind, too.”
“I’m definitely kinder than Dad is, though…”
Yui-san narrowed her eyes at me, looking unhappy about it.
That’s true, honestly, but thinking back on it now, I do think Yui-san spoiled me way too much.
“Now, now, Yui-san, don’t sulk so much. Thanks to this, we got to take leave together, didn’t we. President Ichinose sent us off happily too.”
“I guess that’s true, but…”
If we’d stayed president and secretary, we probably wouldn’t have been able to line up our long leave together like this and take a trip.
Thinking about it that way, working in separate departments feels meaningful too.
I laughed at Yui-san, still pouting a little, and reached for the camera hanging from my neck to shift the mood.
“Oh, right, Yui-san. More importantly — won’t you take a picture with me?”
“A picture? Here?”
“Yeah. Even the travel time itself is a memory.”
I said it, resting my head against Yui-san’s shoulder.
Stretching my arm out, turning the lens toward us, I pressed the shutter, and a satisfying click rang out.
I want to keep taking as many photos as I can, so that someday we can look back on them together and talk about the memories.
Right now, in this moment, I let myself fully savor the happiness of having Yui-san right here beside me.
The train carried us onward, racing ahead.
This trip is sure to become a memory neither of us will ever forget, for the rest of our lives.