The weather cleared up during the week and the forecast looked good, so Sora went ahead and took his bike, despite needing to add a layer for warmth. He picked Mizuki up from school on Friday, as had become his normal habit.

It was cold enough that she got quite chilled on the way home, even though she was wearing long pants. Sora caught her as she slipped during her dismount. He locked the bike, and then scooped her up as soon as he could.

When she felt his warmth, Mizuki began shivering as Sora carried her up the stairs, and he asked worriedly, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she assured him. "I just got colder than I realized."

"Want me to warm you up before we get dressed for our night out?" he asked suggestively.

She kissed him intently before agreeing, "That would be nice."

--

Mizuki put on a different dress than she'd worn last time, and Sora looked her up and down before asking, "Do we need to go out?"

She laughed and insisted, "You can wait a couple of hours! This is only the second time we've been able to dress up, and I really want to go out with you."

"Okay," he agreed, "as long as you realize that I'll spend the whole evening imagining what I'm going to do to you later." She blushed and he kissed her again.

"I need to go put up my hair," she complained after a couple of minutes.

He released her reluctantly. The dress revealed all of her curves, and erased the childishness that her height normally imposed.

--

They took a taxi to the restaurant. It was a warm cozy place that specialized in various kinds of european pastas. No one really seemed to give them a second glance, and Mizuki loved it.

After they finished eating, Mizuki asked, "Should we walk in the park for a while before we call our taxi back?"

Despite his joking comments about rushing home afterward, Sora replied agreeably, "If you like?"

"I'd like to spend a little more time out while we're dressed up like this," she admitted.

"Let's go walk then," he agreed as he helped her into her sweater, and then bent to kiss her. A few people glanced at them, but no one stared.

--

They walked around the large pond in the center of the city park.

Mizuki stopped and climbed onto the first rung of the surrounding fencing and told Sora, "Too bad it's not still summer and they don't have the fountains going."

Sora had to repress his grin and a comment about well dressed monkeys, as he asked, "They run fountains here all summer?" It looked like an ordinary pond, not the kind that usually ran that kind of display.

She nodded, looked back at him, and told him suddenly, "You look so hot in that coat Sora."

"I'm not hot, it's pretty chilly out here," he assured her. "Are you warm enough?" he asked as he scooted up against her back.

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She tilted her head back far enough to roll her eyes at him, and blushed as she informed him, "I'm fine. I meant you look really sexy Sora."

He grinned and explained, "Takumi advised me to buy this coat the year we got our degrees. I don't wear it often though, it's too dressy."

"Why did you change your mind Sora?" Mizuki asked abruptly.

"What?" Sora replied with confusion.

"About dating me," she clarified.

He slid his arms around her hips and pressed closer, before taking a deep breath and admitting, "Takumi again. He asked me if I was trying to replace alcohol with women. I told him it didn't matter if it wasn't you, and how young you are. He told me he thought you were good for me."

"Thank you friend Takumi" Mizuki breathed like a quiet prayer.

Sora traced his fingers over her hips, and confessed, "I held out for another couple of weeks, stopped sleeping around, and realized I didn't even care if I was bad for you anymore. I wanted to be with you so badly." He bent to kiss her ear before adding very quietly, "I really want to do you like this Mizuki."

"Everyone can see us!" she objected immediately.

He wrapped the edges of his coat around her and protested in a whisper, "Only from directly across the pond, and it's dark?"

She hesitated, but finally agreed hesitantly, "Okay."

He tucked up against her, slid his hand under her skirt, and quietly slid her underwear down. A little while later, she moaned and clapped her hand over her mouth.

He laughed against her ear and then a small child ran up, and bounced off the fence a couple of meters away from them.

They both froze.

The child's mother caught up and led the child away down the path, after scolding for a little bit about not running in the park while it was dark.

After a moment Sora admitted breathlessly, "Mizuki, I think I was wrong about people not being able to see us if I'm the one moving. Can you move?"

After a long moment she pushed up against the fence and he gasped as she let herself back down. He braced an arm on either side of her, until she stopped moving after he came.

"You haven't finished," he complained.

"I'm way too embarrassed," she admitted miserably.

"I'm sorry Mizuki," he apologized quickly. "I won't ever ask you to try this again."

She stumbled when he stepped away from her, as she tried to step down from the fence. He caught her, and she asked miserably, "Can you carry me Sora?"

"Sure," he agreed with surprise. "But normally you hate being carried in public?"

"I'm too embarrassed to move," Mizuki explained unhappily.

Sora scooped her into his arms abruptly, and said anxiously, "I'm really sorry Mizuki."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, and let her tears begin to drip.

He stood there holding her, as he asked worriedly, "What can I do Mizuki?"

"Do you love me Sora?" Mizuki asked miserably.

"What?!" Sora exclaimed questioningly. "Of course I love you!"

A passerby smirked at them.

Sora glanced around quickly, and carried her over to a bench so he could coax her off of him enough to see her face. "Why would you doubt that?" he demanded.

Mizuki scrubbed at her face as she adjusted her position until she was kneeling on his lap. "Really love me? Like you really will marry me someday and it's not just something I've been assuming?"

"I really love you and I definitely plan to marry you in a few years," he replied firmly.

She sagged against him with relief. "Then this is okay."

"Why is there even any question about it?" he asked plaintively.

She laughed a little and informed him, "I tell you I love you all the time, but you've never actually said it to me."

He stared at her with disbelief.

She looked up at him and assured him, "I was pretty sure, but," she hesitated, "I really needed to hear you actually say it Sora."

"I'm sure I've told you I love you," he insisted after a moment.

Mizuki shook her head, and said firmly, "No. You tell me you want me, that you adore me, that you need me, but you've never said you love me before."

Sora hugged her against him and repeated, "I love you Mizuki. I'll try to make sure I tell you so on a regular basis."

She pushed away from him and insisted firmly, "I don't want you to start telling me all the time, like it's a habit. I just want you to tell me once in a while."

"I will," he promised fervently.