When she woke up and saw that face beside her, dark hair falling over his features and his calm breathing, Sayuri felt at peace and more in love than ever. It felt like she was living inside a dream.
"Good morning," Jun murmured.
"Oh, did I wake you up?"
He stretched and, with one arm, pulled her closer.
"You know, love, I've been thinking about getting my own place."
"Your own place?"
"A quiet little place for us."
"But what about your grandma?"
Jun laughed.
"She'll be happy I'm moving out and, most importantly, becoming more responsible. She's always saying, 'Boy, get your life together,' haha."
Sayuri couldn't help laughing too, agreeing with him.
The two stayed lying there, talking and laughing as if, in that moment, only the two of them existed—until a knock at the door brought them back to reality.
"Jun? Come on, man, wake up!"
Sayuri panicked and immediately covered Jun's mouth before he could answer.
"Shhhh!!"
Knock Knock Knock
"Seriously, Jun? I don't wanna get stuck in traffic."
Hearing that, Jun suddenly remembered they were supposed to head back to the city and quickly looked around.
"Damn! I forgot to pack my bags..."
Sayuri looked at him and teased:
"This boy..."
Outside the room, Yume called out to Kenji.
"Kenji, have you seen Sayuri? She wasn't in her room, and her bed's already made."
Kenji's expression changed, and Yume instantly realized it too.
"OMG!!"
"Okay, okay, I'm outta here. This just got way too awkward," Kenji said as he headed downstairs.
Yume looked around, unsure what to do, but she had no choice. She needed to wake them up, or they'd hit traffic on the way back.
"So, lovebirds... are we getting up?" She cleared her throat. "You have thirty minutes."
Sayuri looked at Jun, and the two burst into laughter.
"I think we got caught," Jun said, laughing.
"Jun, stop! Oh my God, this is so embarrassing... what do we do now?"
"What do we do? Well, we should probably get ready unless we want to spend over two hours trapped in a car with two very angry people."
"Then we better hurry..."
"Man, what's taking so long? Yume, did you wake them up?"
"Yes, Kenji... now help me out here."
Kenji looked at Yume's luggage and, without thinking much, asked:
"Wait... three suitcases now? How?"
"Shopping, obviously. Totally normal."
"Normal?" he laughed. "There's nothing normal about you, Yume."
"Good morning, and you're already arguing?" Jun said while standing in the doorway.
Yume turned around and looked at Jun and Sayuri holding hands.
"What a morning..."
Kenji smirked and grabbed Sayuri's suitcase, placing it in the trunk. As soon as Jun came over with his own bag, Kenji couldn't help himself:
"Big Jun... finally growing up..."
Jun's face instantly turned bright red, and he had no idea how to react. He quickly got into the car and put on his sunglasses, trying to hide his embarrassment.
The drive back home was strangely quiet and uncomfortable. The atmosphere inside the car felt unbearably heavy.
Yume, clearly bothered by it, finally broke the silence.
"Guys, enough with the weird vibe already. Everyone knows you slept together, so get over it."
"Oh my God, Yume!!" Sayuri complained, completely red-faced.
Kenji immediately started laughing.
Jun simply smirked softly and looked out the window.
"Now that's better," Yume said proudly. "Kenji, put some music on, and let's stop for breakfast."
Finally, after hours on the road, they arrived at Kenji's house. While unloading the luggage, Yume mentioned she would stay a little longer since her father would come by that night, and she'd leave with him afterward.
"Alright then," Sayuri said. "I'm heading home. I'm exhausted."
"I'll drive Sayuri home, then I'll head back too."
Kenji handed Jun the car keys so he could take Sayuri home.
"I'll pick it up later."
They said goodbye and got into the car.
"Man, I'm dead tired," Kenji stretched. "Come on, Yume, let's go inside."
Inside the car, Sayuri seemed worried, and Jun noticed immediately.
"Everything okay? You look nervous."
Sayuri took a deep breath and asked Jun to stop at the corner near her house.
"But why?"
"I still haven't told my parents about us, and I'd rather wait until I graduate..."
Jun stared ahead silently for a moment. He realized their relationship still had to stay hidden, and it felt like he still wasn't officially part of her life. Sayuri noticed and gently took his hand.
"Are you okay, Jun?"
"Of course... I think it's better this way for now too..."
"Thank you for being so understanding, Jun."
When they reached the corner, he unloaded her suitcase and said goodbye.
"Get some rest, okay? I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yes. We still have a few weeks before classes start again, and I want to spend as much time with you as possible."
"Me too, love."
The two shared a long, tight embrace before parting, and Jun stayed there watching her from afar until she safely walked inside.
"I'm home, Mom," Sayuri said as she entered the house.
"How was your vacation?" her mother asked.
"Peaceful. I rested a lot. The place was beautiful."
Her father, as always sitting on the couch reading the newspaper, asked:
"And who exactly was there?"
"Some college friends, Dad."
"College friends..." he repeated.
Her mother walked closer and noticed the injury on Sayuri's hand.
"You got hurt?"
Sayuri had completely forgotten about that detail and quickly had to make something up.
"We went hiking, and I ended up falling." She picked up her suitcase. "But I'm going upstairs now, Mom. I'm tired."
"Alright, I'll call you when dinner's ready."
Her father turned the page of the newspaper.
"You should rest and start making up for lost time too..."
Sayuri took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She didn't argue with him because she didn't want a fight ruining the happiness she was feeling.
"I will, Dad..."
Sayuri entered her room, dropped her suitcase in the corner, and collapsed onto the bed, exhausted.
"Wow... who knew traveling like that could be so tiring."
Her phone vibrated.
"Miss you." — Jun
She smiled and shook her head.
"This boy..."
Then she quickly typed another message.
"Miss you too..."
She rested her head against the pillow and closed her eyes. Suddenly, her phone vibrated again.
"Look out the window."
When she looked outside, her heart nearly stopped.
Jun was standing on the sidewalk, looking up at her window.
"Jun??"
She quietly walked downstairs without anyone noticing and slipped outside.
"What are you doing?" Sayuri asked.
Jun wrapped his arms around her and answered:
"You said you missed me."
She smiled.
"You're crazy..."
"Crazy about you..."
She looked at him and noticed he was only wearing shorts and a t-shirt.
"Oh my God, Jun, go home already. You're gonna get sick..."
"I won't..."
"Yes, you will," she said while pushing him toward the gate.
"Fine..." he grumbled with an adorable expression.
She ran back inside laughing at the situation, but the moment she stepped in, she froze.
Her father was standing there.
"What were you doing outside this late?"
"Oh, I... went looking for an earring..."
"An earring?" he asked suspiciously.
"Yes... I think I lost it on the way home, so I went to check..."
"And did you find it?"
"No... I didn't, Dad..."
"I'll look for it tomorrow, Sayuri. Now come eat," her mother called out.
Sayuri knew that if she wasn't careful, her father would eventually discover Jun, and she feared exactly how he would react.