In the afternoon.
As soon as Shizuka stepped into the nap room of the Sakura class, her eyes immediately landed on the two small figures lying side by side on the bed. The soft afternoon light filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the room.
"What's this, Tsuna?" When Shizuka Miyamura approached, she saw Tsuna sitting on the bed in a daze and Shouko sleeping soundly.
"…Shouko was too excited at noon. She was always thinking about when school would end, and when she fell asleep, there were only ten minutes left."
Tsuna was a little speechless. At noon, he had been urging Shouko to go to bed early so that she could go home after waking up. But after about five minutes, she asked, "How long will it take before school ends, Tsuna?" Later, Shouko couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep. Tsuna didn't sleep at all in the afternoon.
"Wake up, Shouko, we're going home." Tsuna gently shook Shouko, who was sleeping soundly.
"Hmm..." Shouko murmured softly in response, but she didn't open her eyes at all.
"Let Shouko sleep for a while. I'll just hold her in my arms and get in the car. Let's go, Tsuna."
"Okay." Shizuka stopped Tsuna from moving, bent down, and picked up the sleeping Shouko. Tsuna followed Shizuka to the door, said goodbye to Teacher Ageo, and left.
************
Shouko raised her hand and rubbed her eyes. She sat up dazedly and looked around. She realized she wasn't in kindergarten and that Tsuna wasn't nearby. She instantly snapped out of her daze, but after seeing some familiar objects, she guessed she was in Tsuna's room and started to feel sleepy again.
She lifted the small blanket covering her body and got off the bed. Not seeing her slippers, she could only walk downstairs barefoot.
"Are you awake so soon?" Shizuka, who was sitting on the tatami in the living room, saw Shouko standing barefoot at the entrance.
The people and the dog in the living room were drawn by Shizuka's words. They all looked at her, saw that she was looking toward the entrance of the living room, and then shifted their gaze in that direction.
"Mom, it's almost dark." Tsuna immediately noticed that Shouko wasn't wearing slippers. He stood up and quietly complained as he walked to the shoe cabinet at the entrance to get her slippers.
When Tsuna returned to the living room with a pair of slippers, he saw Shouko being held in Shizuka's arms. Daisuke was sitting on the sofa, using the remote control to tune in to the interview that Shizuka had recorded at noon. Yuzuru was lying on the tatami, resting her head on Hachiko's belly as she watched the TV. She couldn't wait to see her sister appear on screen.
Why wasn't Yaeko among them? Because she was working part-time.
Tsuna placed the slippers at Shouko's feet, then sat down next to Shizuka.
"Good morning, viewers! I'm Rin Nohara from Futaba TV. Today, we'll be visiting Futaba Kindergarten once again to interview the children from the senior class."
The cheerful voice of the female reporter from that morning came from the TV. Everyone in the living room turned their eyes to the screen, and even Hachiko looked at the woman speaking on TV with a surprisingly focused expression.
**********
"I want to marry Tsuna and be his bride! I want to give him lots of cute babies."
A firm voice came from the TV. Shouko didn't think it was a big deal, but Tsuna's face flushed red when he heard it again.
"My Tsuna is so lucky," Daisuke, who was sitting on the sofa, chuckled as he teased Tsuna, who was sitting on the tatami in front of him. Tsuna didn't know how to respond.
"What is a bride?" Yuzuru, who had already shifted her position to hug Hachiko, asked everyone curiously.
Shizuka paused the TV, and the screen froze on Tsuna's shy face. She turned her head and patiently explained to Yuzuru what a bride was.
Yuzuru nodded as if she understood, then asked, "What about having a baby?"
Shizuka didn't answer Yuzuru's question directly. Instead, she smiled and lowered her head to ask Shouko and Tsuna beside her, "Do Shouko and Tsuna know how to make a cute baby?"
The two shook their heads quickly. Tsuna knew, but he was embarrassed to say it out loud.
"As long as a boy and a girl kiss each other mouth to mouth, there will be a baby." After Shizuka finished speaking, she covered her mouth and smiled softly.
"That's it?" Yuzuru sounded a little doubtful. Tsuna glanced at his mother, who was clearly telling a white lie to the child, and was about to correct her. But Shizuka interrupted him, saying:
"That's right. How could Auntie lie to the cute Yuzuru?"
Daisuke sat on the sofa, quietly listening to their conversation without interrupting. When Shizuka pressed pause on the interview video, he lowered his head and started replying to messages sent by the agency staff.
After hearing Shizuka explain how babies are born, Shouko, still in Shizuka's arms, lowered her head and dared not look around. Her face flushed deeply.
She remembered that yesterday afternoon, while Tsuna was asleep, she had secretly kissed his face but accidentally kissed the corner of his mouth.
She didn't believe what Aunt Miyamura said, but after lunch today, her stomach started to feel a little bloated and uncomfortable. She usually ate the same amount of food, but only this afternoon did her stomach feel strange. It must be that the baby in her stomach didn't like the broccoli and was protesting. The more she thought about it, the more absurd the idea seemed.
"What's wrong, Shouko? Is your stomach bothering you?" Tsuna asked, noticing Shouko stroking her stomach while still in Shizuka's arms.
"Ah!? I… I'm fine…" Shouko was startled at first, then stammered nervously. She felt embarrassed to tell Tsuna that she had accidentally kissed the corner of his mouth yesterday and got pregnant.
"What's wrong? Is your stomach uncomfortable?" Shizuka overheard Tsuna and quickly asked Shouko, gently pulling her from her arms and lifting her clothes to check for any redness or swelling.
Seeing Shizuka examining her stomach, Shouko shyly replied, "Auntie… my stomach is fine."
"Are you hungry? I see you keep touching your stomach," Tsuna said, thinking of another possibility.
"Yeah!" Shouko quickly nodded to show she was hungry.
"Wait a little longer. Dinner will be here soon. If you eat snacks now, you might not be able to eat later," Daisuke, who was sitting on the sofa, looked up and said to the three of them.
"Eat some oranges first," Tsuna added, feeling his father's advice made sense. He stood up, walked to the coffee table, picked up two oranges, and handed one to Shouko.
After seeing that Shouko was fine, the others continued watching the unfinished interview. At the back, Grandma Ito came to call the two children home for dinner. Yuzuru reluctantly told Hachiko she would come to play with him tomorrow.
"Woof woof." Hachiko wagged his tail and barked twice, indicating he understood.
Tsuna escorted the two to the entrance and watched them change their shoes. Yuzuru and Grandma Ito, who were waiting by the door, left first.
"Shouko, do you have anything to say?" Tsuna asked as he noticed Shouko lingering at the door, looking back every few steps, seeming hesitant to speak.
Looking into Tsuna's worried eyes, Shouko hesitated for a moment. Then, as if she had made up her mind, she walked up to Tsuna, standing at the entrance, leaned close to his ear, and shyly whispered,
"Tsuna... I'm pregnant with your baby..."
"!!!?"