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Yuki knows that his mother is trying. In her own way she's trying, she really is. But she's a lot more like Ayame than Yuki will ever tell her to her face, because they both have a very clear picture of how the world should be and a tendency not to hear anything that contradicts said image.
Yuki talks to his mother a bit more often these days, now that he's away at university, and he's pretty sure he's used the words Machi and my girlfriend in the same sentence plenty of times.
And so maybe he panics just a bit when his mother casually drops in at the end of a phone call, And if you're having such a difficult time finding someone, Yuki, I'd be more than happy to arrange a suitable omiai for you. Really, you only have to ask.
Okay, maybe Machi's right, maybe he panics a lot.
–
The whole business is kind of misleading, because Yuki isn't exactly asking for his mother's approval. He and Machi are together whether his mother likes it or not, and that's not something he's going to change.
But Yuki's trying really hard on his end too to ease their strained relationship. And he thinks it'd go a long way towards smoothing things over if he at least gives the illusion that he sought his mother's consent before getting engaged. He'll let her save face and pride by choosing a suitable fiancee for him…
...provided she chooses the fiancee he's already picked. She didn't get that formality with Ayame and as far as Yuki can tell from her ranting, she seems to find it a public embarrassment. Which is, for her, the same as a personal slight.
(Things are going to get really sticky if she doesn't approve of Machi, though. But his mother's been trying to respect his decisions lately, hasn't she? Even if she's given him an earful about how they're bad ones? At least she hasn't been trying to pretend his decisions don't exist??)
So Yuki arranges for a formal dinner, at a high-class restaurant that's sure to please the most prickly of parentals, or at least to shame them into politely congratulating their children in public. Arrange is a bit of a misleading word too. All told it takes about a month of listening to his mother alternately tell him either he's selfish for asking her if she can schedule a new date or that she has to cancel last-minute because they're very busy people, Yuki, don't be such a child.
(The restaurant staff recognize Yuki's phone number on sight now. This was not one of his life goals.)
In the end Yuki's father can't make it anyway, not that Yuki finds this out until his mother steps out of the car alone. But Machi's family is already seated and one parent is better than none. It's fine.
He'd like to go throw up in the very swanky bathrooms but it's fine.
–
The salads haven't even arrived by the time that both sets of parents have subtly negotiated that Machi will of course take Yuki's name and marry into the Souma family.
–
The thing Yuki forgets in his blinding panic is this: his mother is a tremendous snob. She enjoys money and social status and climbing ladders of prestige. The Kuragi family are quite well to-do, building a reputation with a successful business, and are more than happy to have the doors opened to them that the Souma family name unlocks.
It is a match made in heaven.
Neither Yuki nor Machi are used to this much parental approval. The future in-laws are so in love that they don't even notice the two stealthily texting under the tablecloth, wondering what they've done wrong and if they're making a terrible and horrible mistake here.
Oh, they intend to go on making that mistake anyway. At least for now they have wine glasses to drown their bemusement in.
–
Yuki's mother corners him at the car.
"You should have told me!" she scolds, squeezing his arm. She lets go to adjust her coat and doesn't look at him.
"Still," she admits, "I couldn't have arranged a more perfect match for you myself. I had no idea you were considering the Kuragi family's daughter." There it is again, the rebuking tone, but she's still pleased enough over the whole business that there's no real bite in it.
"Who did go-between to set up this match for you, anyway?" she asks. A horrific thought flits across his mother's face for a moment. "...It wasn't your brother, was it."
It's been a long evening; Yuki isn't even going to begin to correct her about the matchmaking thing. "Ayame? No! He hasn't been involved in this at all!"
Except to ask, repeatedly, for the past few months, whether Yuki is planning a Shinto ceremony or a modern white wedding and perhaps Machi would like to look through this stack of dress pictures and pick out her favorites so that he and Mine might know where to begin?
"It was...a school friend," Yuki says, because his mother is still waiting.
She nods and gets into the car. Although before she shuts the door entirely she says, "Well, I'm...glad you're happy."
About three minutes later, after his mother has been driven away, Machi comes over to tell Yuki to get up off the pavement because Kakeru's going to be really annoying if he gets run over and also her parents are still watching.