Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

*beep beep*

Sumire wakes up and turns off the alarm clock, she stretches, gets out of bed, and gets ready for school just like any other day. After getting dressed, she grabs her phone and checks the date. February 14th 2018, Wednesday. She sighs to herself, her mood instantly dipping.

She heads downstairs, eats a quick breakfast, and goes to school. As she makes her way there, she sees a lot of couples. The sight makes her heart ache again, just as it had for the past year, ever since last January...

After she realized she was in love with her senpai, she just couldn't get herself to tell him. Even after she told him she'd be honest with her feelings… what a hypocrite she turned out to be.

Now here she was, wondering if she'd ever get the opportunity to finally tell him… she'd probably just screw it all up again, just like everything else she does.

Besides, even if she somehow got herself to tell him, he probably has a girlfriend by now, even with a past record there's bound to be someone who sees how amazing he truly is, right?

She shakes her head of the thoughts as she arrives at school and heads in. She opens her shoe locker and a bunch of love letters fall out, she puts them in her bag but pays them no more mind. She gets them every once in a while, usually around romantic holidays like this one, they’re not a big surprise anymore. Sumire used to find them flattering… but after getting to know him… they're just a painful reminder of what'll never be.

She lets out a depressed sigh and heads to class. The day just keeps dragging on, she can barely even focus on class as her mind keeps wandering, she strains herself to focus as a headache starts forming. She barely manages to keep her focus all the way until lunchtime. As she enters the hallway, she sees couples meet up, and girls giving their boyfriends chocolates, the pain in her heart grows as she heads up to the rooftop.

Sumire breathes in the not-fresh air of the city and sits on a chair before taking out her bento and eating lunch. As she eats she can’t help but fantasize about being with Ren, even if she knows it’s far-fetched. It would be so much better than this… being able to give him romantic chocolate… going on dates with him… practicing gymnastics with him like they used to… the feeling of his warm lips on hers-

She shuts down that train of thought as her face rapidly heats up. Still, it would be nice… She finishes her food and stares at the empty container, mentally preparing for the remaining classes of the day.

After school, she heads back home. Nobody’s there when she gets back, there’s a note on the refrigerator from her parents saying they’re going on a valentine's date. She can’t blame them, they barely get any time together as it is, some company would be nice though. She heads to her room, throws away all the letters, sets her bag on the floor and promptly faceplants onto her bed. Today has made her more exhausted than any practice she’s ever had.

Now truly alone, she begins to cry, she just feels so alone. All of the other Thieves have moved on with life, Niijima and Okumura are off at college, Takamaki went overseas, Sakamoto moved out of Tokyo for physical therapy, Sakura goes to a different school, Kitagawa does too, and Ren is in his hometown with Morgana. She feels a little guilty that she didn’t try to keep up with them either, she even left the team group chat a couple of months back, having a similar feeling on Christmas Eve.

Sumire hasn't felt this lost since Kasumi… she shakes those thoughts out of her head before they can properly form as the pain in her chest grows exponentially. Sure, she's been doing a lot better in gymnastics and she has a clear path in life… if she hits another slump though… Dark thoughts enter her mind again, she doesn't have it in her to stop them.

Sumire rolls onto her back, feeling wet tears streak down her face. She closes her eyes, hoping to sleep the rest of this painful day away before forgetting about it forever.

*buzz buzz*

Sumire opens her eyes, it's nearly dark out. She grabs her phone, it’s only been about an hour and there's a message on it.

Futaba: Come to Leblanc

Confused, Sumire types out a response.

Sumire: Why?

Futaba: Just trust me

Sumire: Fine…

It's not like she has anything better to do. She dresses in casual winter clothes and heads out. On her way, she internally debates what Sakura could want; they hadn’t spoken much outside of the rare occasions the thieves get together or whenever Ren gets an opportunity to visit Tokyo. Once she arrives at Leblanc she stands outside for a few moments to look at the sign, she hadn’t been there since the day Ren got out of jail.

Sumire heads inside and looks around, taking in the familiar cafe that now just makes her feel empty inside. It didn’t look too different from when she had last been there, save for the lack of a certain frizzy-haired barista. She soon realizes that Futaba isn’t there either, but didn’t she ask Sumire to come? Why wouldn’t she be here?

Boss, who’s wiping a cup near the sink, turns around and sees her. He smirks and puts the cup away, then appears to be getting ready to leave? Sumire feels extremely confused.

Boss finishes and heads towards the door. “Hoo boy.” he says under his breath, Sumire’s even more confused now, wondering what’s going on. Boss leaves and the bell rings again.

Before she has any more time to think about it, the stairs creak as someone descends them. She turns to see who it is, and then gasps.

“Senpai!” Sumire suppresses the urge to run up and hug him. “What are you doing here?” She has to ask, knowing he should have school tomorrow.

Ren smirks as he looks at her, causing her heart rate to increase, “Preparing to move back in once school ends, I've been doing that the last few months whenever I have free time.” he explains.

“Don't you still have school tomorrow though?” Sumire asks, still stunned that he's here.

“I managed to get a couple days to finish up here after discussing it with the principal and my homeroom teacher… decided to use it to do something important.” Ren answers.

Sumire wonders what he means, “Hm? What is it?” she asks.

Ren's smirk disappears and is replaced by a slightly sad look, Sumire hadn't seen such a look on his face since just before they fought Maruki, the urge to give Ren a hug increases. They sit down across from each other at one of the tables.

“Are you… alright?” Ren asks her.

“Huh?” She responds, faking a blank look as her stomach plummets, knowing what this is likely about.

“It just feels like you've been… distancing yourself from everyone. You even left the team group chat…” Ren tells her, clear concern present in his voice.

Sumire feels a bit guilty and looks down as she responds, “I guess…” she struggles to find the right words. “I just… didn't feel like I… like I belonged…” She continues.

Sumire looks back up at Ren again and, after a brief moment to collect her thoughts, begins talking again. “I was never a Phantom Thief… not really… I didn't even know anyone besides you in the group all that well… I just… didn't belong with the rest of you…”

Ren places a hand on hers, her heart rate goes up again. “Don't say that,” He tells her softly, “even if you don't know them that well right now, I'm sure everyone would love to talk to you again.” his voice is soothing and she can feel the blood rushing to her cheeks.

'Caring for others just like always… Just another reason I ended up falling for you…' Sumire thinks to herself, trying to keep her blush from becoming noticeable. She’s not sure whether she succeeds, only that Ren doesn’t tease her about it.

“I… I know, Ren-senpai… it’s just…” Sumire tries to come up with some alternative but reasonable explanation to what’s really going on, but comes up blank. She doesn’t want him to worry about her too much, even if she knows it would be better to just tell him the truth.

“Sumire…” Ren starts, before staying quiet for a bit, seeming to choose his words extremely carefully. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it, Senpai?” Sumire asks.

Ren takes a few more seconds to gather his thoughts before suddenly dropping a bombshell, “I'm in love with you, Sumire.” he says.

…

Sumire doesn’t say anything, her mind completely goes blank. If her blush wasn’t apparent before, she’s sure it's now visible from several kilometers away. After the initial shock ends, her mind becomes a sporadic mess. ‘He loves me? What? Why didn’t he say anything before? What do I do? Don’t mess this up! Don’t mess this up!’

“Sumire?” Ren’s sudden comment saves her from her own head.

Self-conscious of how much she’s blushing, she tries to force herself to stop smiling so much, she fails miserably and decides to focus her efforts instead on answering Ren. “U-Uhm… I-I lo… I… lo…” She just can’t get the words out. This is her only chance! Why can’t she just get herself to say it!

Ren laughs, the sound is music to Sumire’s ears and also makes her even more aware of how ridiculous she must look at the moment. “How about this?” He says, getting out of his seat and sitting next to Sumire.

Sumire watches him as he does this, somehow getting more red now that she's right next to him. He starts leaning in and she doesn't register anything else as his lips fall on hers, her heart feels like it's about to burst out of her chest and her mind goes blank as she's swept away by bliss.

The kiss ends all too soon, but Sumire manages to find her voice again as they each pull away. "Senpai… I love you too..."

It's Ren's turn to blush, though it's barely noticeable, Sumire finds herself wanting to see this side of him more.

“Ummm… Senpai, why did you take so long to tell me?” She asks curiously.

Ren smirks, “I could ask you the same.” he says sarcastically, but before Sumire can take back the question, he continues in a more serious tone. “I wanted to tell you for a while… but I also wanted to be able to be there for you after I did.”

“I’ve been… worried about you recently…” His voice becomes somber as he speaks, “I was going to wait until school ended and I could move back up here, but…” he stops, Sumire can tell whatever he’s going to say next must be weighing heavily on him. “I was scared that if I didn’t tell you now… I… I would never get to tell you.”

Sumire knew what he meant, and frowned, remembering her mental state the last few months. “I-I…” She feels tears come to her eyes as she forces herself to speak. “I was scared too… t-that if I couldn’t live up to Kasumi’s reputation, that I wouldn’t have anything… anything left…”

Sumire suddenly feels a loving warmth envelop her, she soon realizes that Ren had pulled her into an embrace and rubs her back. She hugs him back and lets his warmth comfort her as she sobs into his chest, crying for the second time that day. No more words are exchanged between the two as they’re overcome with the feeling of being loved, it’s a strange feeling to Sumire, but it isn’t bad. It’s different from her parents or sister, and she can’t think of any words to describe it. All she knows is that this is the happiest she’s felt in a long time.

Once the last of her tears are shed, she feels Ren beginning to pull away, she tightens her grip on him in response. She’s not about to let this moment end so quickly.

“Sumire?” Ren asks.

“Can we just stay like this just a little longer?” She asks nervously.

This causes Ren to chuckle as he holds Sumire close and resumes rubbing her back. Sumire buries her head in his chest once more as a smile blooms on her face.

“You’re adorable, you know that?” Ren tells her, causing her to giggle in slight embarrassment.

After that, neither of them say anything else. The rollercoaster of emotions Sumire’s had throughout the day finally catch up with her. Her eyelids start to feel heavy, but rather than fight to stay awake, she allows herself to fall asleep in Ren’s loving embrace, finally feeling content after many months of pain and discomfort.

"I love you, Ren." She manages to tell him before her consciousness is claimed by dreams. For the first time in a while, she feels like everything will turn out just fine.

Chapter Text

Ren smiles as he looks upon his new girlfriend’s relaxed sleeping form. He’s really glad he finally got to tell her how he feels, and seeing the weight of what must have burdened her for the last year being lifted was just… Perfect…

Ren checks the time, Sumire should have a good hour before she really needs to start heading home, so he lets her continue relaxing in his arms for the time being. He has to admit, it feels a little strange to be this close to her, he’s hugged his other friends, sure, but it never felt quite like this.

It’s not a bad feeling by any means, if anything he really enjoys it, it’s definitely something he’d like to do with her again once they get another chance. They won’t have enough time tomorrow afternoon, as she has school and he’ll be leaving before she gets out, but maybe once he moves back?

Just one more month…

Sumire suddenly shifts a bit and tightens her grip around him, her head now resting against his neck. Ren’s honestly… not really sure what to do at this point, completely unfamiliar with this particular kind of affection… So he simply continues rubbing her back.

While considering what he should do, Ren passes a glance at her vibrant red hair. It looks soft and beautiful, despite everything she clearly still takes good care of herself.

Ren dares to touch her hair and feel its softness, causing Sumire to shift a little again in his grip. With a little hesitation, he begins running his hand through it, personally enjoying the way it all perfectly parts, allowing his fingers to pass through. No knots present.

As he continues stroking her hair, he hears Sumire let out another relaxed sigh in her sleep, causing his smile to widen. Unfortunately, their peace is soon interrupted…

Sumire’s phone goes off, he expects her to wake up but she doesn’t, so he opts to answer it in her place, not really wanting to wake her up.

Most likely it’s her coach or her father, both of whom he’s met before and could easily explain what happened to.

Ren carefully fishes the phone out of her pocket and takes a look at her contact, it simply says: ‘Dad’, so it must be Shinichi.

He answers the call and holds it to his ear as Sumire continues lightly snoring against his neck.

“Sumire? Are you coming home soon?” Shinichi’s voice speaks from the other end.

Ren takes a deep breath before answering the question. “Sorry, Yoshizawa-san, she fell asleep at one of the tables at Leblanc. She must’ve been really tired today.”

He decides to leave out exactly how she fell asleep.

“Amamiya-kun!?” Shinichi replies in clear surprise before taking in what Ren had said. “I see… Well it’s getting late so can you try to wake her up? She needs to come home soon.”

“Will do, Yoshizawa-san.” Ren affirms to him as he continues stroking Sumire’s hair.

“Thank you, Amamiya-kun.” Shinichi responds in what sounds like relief. “Though if I may ask, why are you here in Tokyo? I thought Sumire told me you went back to your hometown?”

“Ah, I’ve been preparing to move back since I’m just about to graduate.” Ren answers. “Sojiro’s been helping me out so after the school year ends I’ll be back up here.”

“That’s great! Sumire’s really been missing you, you know.” Shinichi tells him before sobering his tone. “Her mother and I have been really worried about her recently… ”

“Yeah… My friends and I noticed that too…” Ren matches the tone before lightening up a bit. “But we talked before she fell asleep and I think she’ll be alright now.”

“My wife and I can only hope so…” Shinichi sounds cautiously relieved. “Well, I’ll let you go now, just make sure she comes home soon okay?”

“Got it.” Ren affirms again.

“Thank you again. Goodbye, Amamiya-kun.”

“Goodbye, Yoshizawa-san.”

The call then ends and Ren slips the phone back into Sumire’s pocket. He enjoys the feeling of stroking her hair for just a bit before looking at her content face.

Guess it’s time to wake her up now…

Now… How exactly is he going to do that?

Ren shakes her gently to no avail, only getting a slight grumble out of the young girl.

Ren sighs fondly before his next attempt. He then pokes her in the side… Which, as expected, doesn’t help at all. Maybe he should be more rough…?

…For some reason he really doesn’t want to do that.

In an attempt to escape the inevitable, he pokes her cheek, more of the same. He whispers in her ear but she still doesn’t wake up.

Ren sighs as he decides he needs to approach this differently. He manages to get Sumire to stop clinging to him and picks her up, noting that she’s surprisingly light. He sets her back down in the seat once he’s out of the table and debates what to do.

With a sigh and no more options, he shakes her gently, going ever so slightly faster until finally her eyes squint and she stretches out her arms.

“Five more minutes…” Sumire mutters, half-asleep, covering her eyes.

“Sumire, you really need to wake up…” Ren barely stops a laugh at her adorable behavior.

His voice seems to get her up as she suddenly sits up straight. “Senpai!?”

Ren can’t contain it anymore and lets out a genuine laugh as Sumire looks around and gets her bearings.

“So… That wasn’t a dream? Y-You really…” Sumire blushes red as she finishes her thought. “L-Love me?” She barely whispers out.

Ren gives her his best loving smile. “Yeah, I really do. You’re cute when you sleep, by the way.” He adds, causing Sumire to cover her face again, this time in utter embarrassment.

“Nnnnnnnngh…” Is Sumire’s only response.

Ren shakes his head with a smile before remembering why he woke her up in the first place. “Oh right, your dad called. He said you should get home soon.”

That seemed to snap Sumire out of her flustered state, though Ren has to admit he already slightly misses it, he’d forgotten how cute she was when she got embarrassed. Sumire stands up from her seat and takes out her phone to check the time.

“Oh shoot!” Sumire exclaims when she sees the time. “I really should get going! Uhm…” She then looks at Ren and bows. “Thanks for… Everything, Se- Uhm… Ren…”

Ren gives her a gentle smile and a nod, as she turns around to leave though…

“Hey wait up!” Ren exclaims, causing Sumire to turn back to him, he walks up to her and holds out his hand. “What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t walk my lady home?”

Sumire sputters and turns red again before slowly bringing her hand to his and wrapping her fingers around it. Ren smiles at the soft, gentle feeling of his lover’s hand in his own.

“A-Are you sure, Ren…?” Sumire asks shyly. “I’ll be fine on my own… I-If you’re busy…”

“Are you crazy?” Ren chuckles as he squeezes her hand. “You’re my girlfriend now, and we don’t have much time to be together so… Of course I want to spend as much time with you as possible.”

Sumire blushes more but nervously nods. “I-If you’re sure…”

“Sure I’m sure…” Ren gently affirms to her.

Sumire overcomes her nervousness just enough to give Ren a bright smile, an image he’ll treasure forever. The two leave the store together and Ren locks the door with the key Sojiro had given him what feels like forever ago. Before he’d even met Sumire… Well, really met her, anyway…

“Ren…?” Sumire’s nervousness seems to be overcome with worry as Ren turns to face her. “Are you okay?”

Ren gives her a reassuring nod. “Yeah, I’m just… Thinking about how much time has passed since I last lived here.”

The young gymnast moves to stand beside Ren as she also gazes at the door of the cozy café.

“A lot happened while you were living here…” Sumire speaks up, clearly reminiscing those days as well.

Ren smiles again, memories both good and bad were made in this place after all… And soon he’ll be living here again, then he’ll be able to spend even more time with Sumire.

“Well… Let’s get going.” Ren turns away from Leblanc, still holding Sumire’s hand in his.

As they head to the station, Ren notices Sumire simply staring at their interlocked hands, in what appears to be nervous disbelief. Being so late in the night, there aren’t as many people coming and going with the stations, meaning Ren and Sumire easily find a seat next to each other.

Ren releases Sumire’s hand as they take their seats, which appears to snap Sumire out of her trance. Ren just chuckles once more at her continual adorable behavior.

“Is it really that hard to believe?” He can’t help but ask, genuinely wondering what’s going on in her head.

Sumire looks up at him and blushes again. “...Yeah…” She mutters. “I-I just… Never really thought you’d feel the same way… I-I’m not still sleeping, am I? Th-This is real, right!?”

Ren gives her another smile, wraps an arm around her, and pulls her close to him, causing her to stiffen. “It’s all real…” He assures her. “I love you, Sumire.”

Her blush intensifies but she relaxes in his grasp a bit. “I-I love you too… Ren…”

In a surprising act, she then rests her head on his shoulder, though she still feels a bit tense. After a few minutes, however, she manages to relax and they enjoy the rest of the ride to Shibuya station in silent bliss. It was definitely the right call to confess, Ren thinks.

Ren sees a faint smile on Sumire’s face, the depressed state she’d been in before is all but gone. Of course, he’s certain it’ll be back eventually, but he’s determined to be there for her from now on… And maybe one day…

Maybe one day he’ll be able to see Sumire overcome it for good.

As he’s thinking this, they finally reach Shibuya, and he offers his hand to Sumire once more. She’s quicker to take it this time, though she’s still a bit nervous, and they leave the train. They then make their way to the line to Kichijoji and repeat the process from before, being lucky enough to find seats once more.

Ren could definitely get used to this, the feeling of Sumire being so close to him, the feeling of her head resting gently on his shoulder. The feeling generates more anticipation and excitement for the day he moves back, the day he graduates.

Ren closes his eyes and leans back against his seat, trying to get as much out of this as he can. Unfortunately, it ends far too quickly as only ten minutes later they reach Kichijoji and have to get up again.

They walk hand in hand towards the residential district where Sumire lives and upon reaching her house, Ren feels her stop behind him. Curiously, he turns around to see another intense red blush on his lover’s face.

“Sumire?” Ren asks.

She releases his hand and taps her fingers together nervously before giving him a weak, nervous smile. “U-Uhm… R-Ren…?”

“Yeah?”

Sumire pauses for a bit, clearly trying to gather her nerves and ask whatever it is she wants to ask.

“C-Can we u-uhm…” The rest of her statement comes out as a stuttery whisper that Ren can’t understand.

“Sorry, can you say that again? I couldn’t hear you.” Ren tells her honestly.

Sumire sighs, looks around the empty street, then back at Ren. “U-Uhm… C-Can we…” She becomes too quiet to hear once again. “...Again?”

One look at Ren’s face seems to tell Sumire she was still too quiet. Her blush only intensifies as she manages to audibly repeat the question. “C-Can we… Uhm… kiss… again…?”

It’s Ren’s turn to blush as he realizes what she was asking. Their first one was instinctual, and it felt… Nice… But forcing himself to do so again wasn’t something he’d previously considered. Still, it would be a nice send off to their night together.

Ren smiles gently as he closes the distance between them, Sumire’s blush somehow deepening even more as she looks at him in anticipation. He’s close enough to feel her breath on his face now, and he can feel his heart rate speed up considerably as he sees Sumire prepare herself for the kiss.

Once again, he closes his eyes and sets his lips on hers. Upon reaching his destination, the nerves dissipate and he wraps his arms around her, pulling her even closer as she does the same. Along with his nerves, all the worries of the world go too as he focuses only on the girl in front of him.

Eventually, they have to pull away from each other for a lack of breath, but he notices a huge smile on Sumire’s face as he looks at her once more. The slight strain of the muscles in his face informs him he’s doing the same.

“I love you, Ren…” She says before looking down with furrowed brows.

“Sumire?” Ren asks in concern.

“U-Uhm…” Sumire nervously responds. “C-Can I still call you ‘Senpai’? Even though we’re d-dating?”

Ren laughs again. “Of course you can, Sumire. Call me whatever you want.”

Sumire’s smile brightens and in yet another surprising move, she wraps him in a tight hug. Ren simply chuckles and returns the hug, once again allowing himself to enjoy the close presence of Sumire.

Eventually, and reluctantly, Sumire pulls away and Ren resumes walking her to the door. Upon reaching the door, Sumire shyly opens it but looks back at Ren with an uncertain expression on her face.

Ren gives her yet another reassuring smile, which she returns as she heads inside. Just as Ren’s about to walk away and head home though, he hears the door open again. He turns around to see Sumire’s father walking outside to greet him.

“Ah Amamiya-kun, thank you for making sure our daughter got home safe.” Shinichi bows in gratitude before straightening himself up again. “...There was something I wanted to ask though…”

Ren tilts his head curiously, could it be about him dating Sumire? While he would rather have Sumire be the one to tell Shinichi, if he’s about to ask right now then Ren has no intention of keeping it from him.

Thankfully, that wasn’t the question Shinichi was going to ask, sparing Ren the awkwardness that may have ensued. “So I know you have a place to live with your old guardian… But will you have work once you come back too?”

Ren honestly hadn’t considered it, he was planning on looking for work once he’d moved back, there were some jobs he could easily get back but they wouldn’t all pay the best. He could always go back to that bar in Shinjuku or, if he really needed something better paying, become Yoshida’s secretary again in a more official sense this time.

There was also Iwai’s airsoft shop but Iwai has wanted to close that business for some time and simply never found the opportunity to do so. Not only would Ren feel bad for being paid to work there, but it also wouldn’t be the sort of long term position he’s hoping for at the moment.

“Not immediately, but I planned on looking for a job.” Ren answers with a shake of his head.

Shinichi looks at him with what appears to be sympathy, which simply confuses Ren. Looking for work isn’t anything new, especially not for graduates.

“Well…” Shinichi seems hesitant to continue his statement. “After you went back to your hometown last year… Sumire told us everything about your… Situation… Including the reason you went to Tokyo in the first place.”

Ren doubts Sumire would have brought up the Phantom Thieves with her parents, she’d promised Ren that she wouldn’t say a word about it to anyone after all. His record however… That’s a different story, and he can see Sumire eventually bringing it up with her parents.

“She insisted the record was falsified,” Shinichi continues, confirming Ren’s assumption. “And I have no reason to doubt her, but potential employers won’t be so understanding…”

“Where are you going with this?” Ren can’t help but ask.

“A job- or well, a potential job.” Shinichi answers. “Sumire told us you were quite the talented cook, and the cafeteria in the studio I work at has been looking for kitchen help for quite some time now.”

Ren’s eyes widen, Shinichi is offering him help with getting a job? Just like that?

“Are you sure…?” Ren hesitantly asks.

Shinichi simply gives him a smile. “Of course I am! What kind of father would I be if I left my daughter’s best friend without a job? Once you graduate and move back in with your former guardian, just let me or Sumire know and I can get you an interview with the cafeteria’s management.”

Ren doesn’t know what to say, so he simply says what feels right. “Thank you… Yoshizawa-san.”

Shinichi nods. “Well I shouldn’t keep you, I assume you still have work to do?” Ren nods and Shinichi walks back to the door. “Goodnight then, Amamiya-kun.”

He shuts the door behind him and Ren heads back to the station.

Ren frowns as he sits down in the train though, already missing Sumire’s touch.

The Next Day…

“Got everything ready, Ren?” Sojiro asks as Ren walks down the stairs from the attic.

“Yep!” Ren stretches. “I’ll bring the rest of my stuff with me once I graduate, thanks for hosting again.”

“This again?” Sojiro chuckles. “It’s no problem, especially since Futaba’s mood always improves when you’re in town.”

“Even so, it’s not like I have a surplus of places to stay… So really, thank you.” Ren reiterates, trying to show Sojiro just how grateful he is.

“I guess you do have a point there, you’re welcome.” Sojiro replies with a shake of his head. He then looks at the time. “Well, you should probably get going, don’t want to miss your train after all.”

Ren frowns as he looks at the time, he would’ve liked to spend more time in the café, but Sojiro’s right. He should get going.

“Well… See you in a month then, Boss.” Ren says as he grabs his bag.

“Yeah…” Sojiro doesn’t seem pleased about Ren having to leave either. “By the way, how did things go with Yoshizawa-chan? Did you tell her?”

Oh right, he’d forgotten to tell Sojiro. “Yeah,” He nods. “We’re dating now.”

Sojiro smirks. “That fast, huh? You treat her well, got it?”

“Oh don’t you worry,” Ren returns the smirk. “I may not get back until after White Day, but I plan to give her the best birthday date she can imagine.”

“Is that so?” Sojiro looks almost proud of Ren. “Well, you’ll have to give me the details when it happens. For now though…” He gestures to the door.

“Right, see you.” Ren says his farewells once more as he walks towards the door.

Ren leaves the café and takes a glance up at the clear skies. The air of the city isn’t his favorite, he definitely prefers the cleaner air of his hometown in the country… But with this air comes a sense of familiarity, a feeling of nostalgia to what was both the worst and best thing to happen to him in his life.

Well, no point in delaying any longer. Ren walks to the station and takes the train, once again remembering when he took it with Sumire just a day ago. He sighs to himself, is this really going to be a recurring thing?

At least Morgana isn’t here to tease him about it, as he had left the cat in his hometown.

He makes it to Shibuya and transfers lines to the closest station to the bullet train, at which point he simply walks the rest of the way. He pulls out his phone to check the time.

He has around thirty minutes before the bullet train leaves and it’s about a fifteen minute walk to the station from where he is. He double checks to make sure he still has his ticket and continues walking to the station.

Ren arrives at the station with plenty of time to spare and walks towards the train. As he’s heading towards the train though…

“Senpai, wait up!” A familiar voice calls out from behind him.

He turns around to see Sumire sprinting towards him in her Shujin uniform with something in her hands.

Ren’s eyes widen in surprise at seeing Sumire there but as she stops in front of him, the thing she’s holding surprises him more.

It’s a teddy bear holding a heart-shaped box of chocolates. Sumire stops to catch her breath before holding it out to him.

“U-Uhm, please take this, Senpai!” She offers with a bow.

Ren snaps out of his stunned state before smiling and grabbing it. “Thanks, Sumi.”

Suddenly, Sumire blushes as she straightens back up. “‘S-Sumi’...?”

Ren chuckles. “Well I figured if you were going to keep calling me ‘Senpai’ I might as well have my own nickname for you.”

His explanation doesn’t seem to satisfy Sumire at all though. “...’Sumi’?” She repeats.

Her reaction to the name causes Ren to laugh a little more.

“Still…” He’s curious about one thing… “Why are you here…?”

“O-Oh!” Sumire blushes harder. “U-Uhm… I had practice before school so I decided to… To get you some chocolates before I went.” She then bows low. “I-I’m really sorry they aren’t handmade b-but I didn’t have time to! I h-hope you can u-understand…”

Ren rolls his eyes at her polite demeanor and pulls her into a close hug once more. “I’m touched, Sumi. I don’t care whether they’re handmade or not, the fact you thought to do so is enough.”

Sumire relaxes in his grasp once more as she returns the hug, resting her head against his neck.

“I-I’m happy you like it, Senpai…” Sumire beams before suddenly pulling away. “O-Oh! You need to catch the train, I shouldn’t keep you! I’m so sorry, Senpai!”

“It’s still a good ten minutes before the train leaves,” Ren shakes his head. “A short hug isn’t going to make me miss it.”

“Oh… If that’s the case then can we…?” She mumbles out the rest of her question with a huge blush as she stares at the ground.

Remembering yesterday, Ren smirks as he tilts her chin up and brings her warm, soft lips to his. He feels Sumire relax once more as she leans into the kiss herself.

Ren pulls away soon after and lovingly stares into Sumire’s eyes as she looks back into his.

“I love you, Sumi…”

“I love you too, Senpai…”

Ren’s smile widens before he realizes where they are. “Well, thank you for coming, really. I’ll be sure to enjoy the chocolates.”

Sumire smiles as well. “N-No problem… Senpai… Have a safe trip home, okay?”

“I will… You do well in school, okay?” Ren replies.

“Mhm…” Sumire plays with her bangs. “Well… See you.”

“Yeah…” Is Ren’s only reply as he finally heads to the train and Sumire heads away.

Ren gets in, finds a good seat, and looks out the window, catching a glimpse of Sumire leaving the station. He smiles to himself as he puts the bear and the chocolates in his bag.

Ren leans back against the seat as the train starts moving and shuts his eyes. Everything is going perfectly, it almost feels odd to Ren, after everything he’s been through.

Now he has a girlfriend, a place to live after school, a potential well paying job. He really has a good future to look forward to after graduation.

Ren can’t wait to see where his future takes him, and from the bottom of his heart he hopes Sumire’s there too.

On that thought, Ren allows to sway of the train and the sound of the tracks lull him to sleep.

Chapter Text

Ren takes his time walking through the Underground Mall out in Shibuya searching for gifts for each of the former Phantom Thieves, his friends. It’s difficult for them all to meet up at once these days, but they managed to find time for everyone tomorrow, on Christmas Eve, which is when they’ll be exchanging gifts. Well, most of them, anyway, Ren and Sumire still have plans to exchange their gifts for each other on Christmas day.

Ren smiles to himself at the thought of that day, the day he’ll be going on his first Christmas date with Sumire, his loving girlfriend. The girl he’s been so happy to see progress over the last year since they started going out. She’s really grown, and Ren can’t be happier to see it.

Ren shakes the thought out of his head though, he should focus on getting gifts. He’s gotten one for everyone so far, except for Sumire.

He’d saved getting hers for last since he wanted it to be extra special. He still regrets the present he’d gotten her last Christmas…

It was a pair of the gag glasses like the ones they’d found in the shop in Kichijoji once, she’d been down at the time and he was hoping it’d make her laugh. What happened instead was…

“O-Oh… Thanks…” Sumire says as she holds up the gag glasses, a frown set on her face as she puts them in her bag.

“Don’t you want to try them on?” Ren asks, confused. She thought they were hilarious last time…

Sumire shakes her head. “No, I’m fine…” She says, though there is no smile on her face, nor any indication of joy.

Ren exchanges an awkward glance with the other thieves within Leblanc, nobody seems to know how to approach the situation. Ren silently clears his throat and decides to continue talking about the gift.

“Well I hope you like them anyway,” He gives his best smile. “I got some glasses with your prescription and made them myself, it was surprisingly easy to find a fake nose and mustache…” He explains.

Sumire suddenly freezes and looks up at him. “...You made them, Senpai?”

Ren smiles, hoping for a change of pace. “Yep! …So you like them, right?”

Sumire looks down at the floor and frowns. “I see…” She grabs her bag and stands up from her seat.

“I think I’ll be going now…” Sumire bows to everyone. “...Thanks for inviting me…”

Sumire then turns around and leaves without another word. She hadn’t even opened up the other gifts the thieves had given to her… Instead simply leaving them behind.

It happens so suddenly that nobody could really react, Ren turns around to see his other friends at a loss for words as well.

Of course… After they’d started dating, Sumire had told Ren what she felt that day…

Sumire leans against a wall by the train station as she wipes the slowly forming tears from her eyes. Why is she crying? She should be happy, Ren, her Senpai, put in so much effort just to make her happy…

…But that’s exactly the problem isn’t it? Ren always does his best to make everyone around him happy… But she does nothing…

Sumire pulls the present she’d planned on giving to Ren out of her bag. Within the hand-wrapped box was a nice scarf, she hadn’t known what else to get him but now she wishes she’d given it more thought. This was supposed to be for the boy she loved after all…

Yet she bought him a simple scarf, and he went out of his way to work on something he knew she’d like…

Sumire doesn’t… belong… with them… Does she?

The train arrives and Sumire steps on the platform, her bad feelings remaining with her all the way home. Her parents aren’t home when she arrives, off to a Christmas date of their own, and she’s glad for it.

She just wants to be alone right now…

*buzz buzz*

Sumire pulls her phone out of her pocket and checks the texts. It’s from the group chat… The one intended for the Phantom Thieves…

Ann: Sumire! You left pretty early, are you okay?

Haru: Should we send our gifts to your house?

Sumire doesn’t really want to respond… but if they’re asking…

Ren: She probably needs some time alone right now, we can ask later

Sumire internally thanks Ren whilst also wincing as he yet again, like the amazing Senpai he is, helped her out…

Ann: Ohhh right, well let us know when you’re ready Sumire!

Sumire shuts off her phone and goes to lie in her bed, not bothering to change out of her casual clothes. She stares at the ceiling as various self-deprecating thoughts fly through her head.

Why is she always the one being helped?

Why can’t she return the favor, especially in Ren’s case?

Why can’t she just tell Ren how she feels?

…Why do the thieves go so far just to include her in all their activities?

Do they feel obligated to do so? …Are they just pitying her?

Sumire turns on her phone again, there’s one way to guarantee they won’t go out of their way just to include her anymore… She opens the group chat and goes to the options menu, her finger hovers over the leave button… Does she really want to do this? To lose one of her only ways to socialize? The only way to talk with Ren?

Sumire presses the button and the group chat leaves her IM list. There, it’s done.

Almost instantly she gets a worried text from Ren, then another from Futaba who had likely done some hacking as she’d never added any of them as a contact except for Ren. Sumire ignores the texts, even shuts down her phone again in hopes that’d keep Futaba from spying on her.

Sumire would come to regret the decision to leave after New Years when the feelings had finally faded away… But she was never sure how to approach the subject again.

At least, not until Ren confessed to her last Valentine’s day. Once he’d moved back into Tokyo they had a conversation about it and Sumire finally joined the group again. It always hurts to remember how she felt that day… So Ren wants to make this Christmas extra special, just for her.

With that thought, he continues looking around, a special Christmas needs a special gift after all. Despite her initial reaction, he was pretty proud of the gag glasses and she even told him later how much she appreciated the thought. Of course, Ren isn’t going to put in quite that much effort this time, it was rather difficult getting her specific prescription even with Shinichi’s help.

He’s hoping for simple but meaningful this year, less spectacle and more stuff that’s special to her specifically, that’s why she and him were going to make dinner for her family on Christmas. Ren wants his gift to follow that trend too.

So that begs the question: What would Sumire love to get? What would be special to the girl Ren calls his girlfriend?

The question is easy to answer, yet oh so difficult at the same time. On the one hand, Sumire likes everything from flowers to cooking supplies to new outfits, on the other, none of those would be particularly special to her outside of the person who gave them to her.

He’s looked through what he swears to be every store in central street and the underground mall. He would have gone to Kichijoji… but he’s worried he’ll just end up bumping into Sumire and she’ll see whatever he gets her or vice versa. He imagines she’s just as worried about what to get him for a present, probably searching through each and every store to get him something.

Ren then has a thought of Sumire rushing through every store up there looking for the perfect gift for him. Ren chuckles at the thought.

Ren then immediately stops chuckling and is filled with dread upon realizing he is no closer to getting out of his own situation.

As he’s walking he passes by the jewelry shop in the Underground Mall, he’d previously ruled it out just due to how expensive it was… But perhaps it’s the perfect place to get something special for Sumire.

He enters and looks around and he sees what he thinks would be the perfect gift, a ring with a heart-shaped jewel attached to the top. Ren slightly winces at the price tag but decides Sumire’s worth it, he knows Sumire isn’t so vain as to want something super expensive, but at the same time he knows she’d love it.

With that thought in mind, he buys the ring. The perfect gift for a lovely Christmas date with his lover.

He pockets the small container and heads to Leblanc, opting to spend the rest of the day finalizing his plans for their Christmas date.

Sumire was not faring much better in the department of gifts. This wouldn’t be the first time she’d bought something for Ren… But it was definitely the most difficult time. Much like Ren, she wants this to be something special. Something Ren would love to receive.

Honestly, a part of her still can’t believe they’re dating, it’s been over nine months yet a part of her just can’t seem to really understand it. Not in a bad way, she loves him more than anything besides her own family, but after holding those feelings in for over a year… she’s still just having a hard time getting used to it.

Sumire hopes she can get over herself soon… It would be bad if she was still a stuttery blushy mess if they get married one day.

Just the thought of potentially marrying Ren causes Sumire’s face to turn red. Of course, perhaps her worries are unfounded, as she’s definitely been a lot more comfortable around Ren as of late compared to when they first started dating…

She shakes the thought away and gets back to her own work of finding a suitable gift for Ren. Sumire honestly has no idea what to get her boyfriend. He enjoys cooking but since he still lives at Leblanc it’s not like he has anywhere to put a ton of cooking equipment… Hmmm… Maybe he could do with a new gym outfit? Sumire still practices gymnastics with him when she can, so maybe he’d like that?

That doesn’t feel like it’d be particularly special to him though… If anything it feels like it’d be more for Sumire than for him…

As she’s walking around the different stores in Kichijoji, she passes by the same glasses shop she’d gone to with Ren all that time ago and has a thought.

Ren’s glasses are fake, she remembers him telling her that on one of their dates. She’s not quite sure why he still wears them but… It does give her an idea.

Sumire steps into the shop and heads to a specific aisle, hoping what she’s looking for is still there. She finds exactly what she’s looking for and quickly grabs them.

A pair of gag glasses, she may not have gone through as much effort as Ren to obtain them, but she feels it’d be a nice way to pay Ren back for it. The lenses have no prescription so they won’t bug Ren at all, thankfully, and she’s sure Ren’ll love them.

Sumire pays for the gag glasses and puts them in her bag, a small smile on her face out of both excitement and remembrance of the day they’d first found them in the store. Actualized or not, that day still holds a special place in her heart, it was one of the first times she’d made a real decision by herself, after all.

Plus, it was funny seeing Ren wear the gag glasses.

With the gift in hand, Sumire heads home to wrap it and the gifts she’d chosen for their other friends. She got done sooner than she expected, perhaps when she’s done she can visit Ren?

Ren arrives back at Leblanc with his gift for Sumire in his pocket. He honestly cannot wait to see Sumire’s reaction when he gives it to her, but that’ll have to wait. He still needs to figure out the rest of his plans of where to take her for their Christmas date.

As he enters, Sojiro greets him from behind the counter.

“Welcome back, kid.” Sojiro gives him a smirk. “Got everything prepared for tomorrow?”

Ren nods and smiles. “Just about. I just need to wrap my gifts and finish up planning my date with Sumire.”

Sojiro nods back. “Gotcha, I wish you luck with both.”

“Thanks.” Ren replies.

Ren then heads up to his room, being greeted by the lazy sorta-cat on his bed.

“Welcome back, Ren! Got any luck?” Morgana asks as he stands up.

Ren goes to sit next to him before answering. “Yep, I got gifts for everyone, and the perfect one for Sumi.” He says with a smile, holding his bag up to show the gifts he’d bought. “Yours is in here too, of course.”

“Oooh!” Morgana says in anticipation. “Is it sushi?”

Ren just stares in confusion. “...No.”

“Oh.” Morgana disinterestedly replies before stretching a bit and hopping up to the window sill. “Well I’ll give you some privacy to wrap all the gifts, see you later.”

He then hops out the window and Ren gets to work wrapping the gifts. Morgana was probably half-joking about the sushi, there’s no way Ren would be able to get him any without it being super obvious. If he didn’t put it in the fridge it’d just spoil, after all.

Instead he got Morgana a scarf like the one he used to wear in the Metaverse, the one that turned into his collar everytime they left. It’s simple enough to wrap and Ren quickly moves on to the next gift.

Ann’s managed to get over her obsession with sweets since they’d last spoken, she took her modeling career seriously and only eats them on extremely special occasions. Due to this, Ren decided she’d probably prefer something else, as such he ended up getting her some fancy red hair clips with fake roses attached. A simple gift, but it was the one thing that generally didn’t change from each issue of her appearances in magazines.

Her hair always stays twintailed, so Ren figures maybe helping her try some new hairstyles could be a nice change of pace.

Next was Yusuke. Yusuke was admittedly a little difficult to figure out, he always has art supplies so buying him that wouldn’t benefit Yusuke in the slightest, he’s terrible with money so Ren didn’t want to risk just giving him that either. He settled on getting Yusuke a gift card to the convenience store instead, this way he’ll have a way to pay for necessities without dipping into his art funds.

Makoto might be micromanaging Yusuke’s financial situation… But Ren still wants to give Yusuke at least a little freedom over what he buys.

For Ryuji, Ren decided to return a favor. He got Ryuji a custom Phantom Thieves brand ramen bowl, half because he knew Ryuji would use it, and half because he thought it would be a hilarious thing to get for his fellow phantom thief and ramen connoisseur.

With Makoto he looked into buchimaru products… but he was unable to find any new or used in good enough condition. The ones on sale were just as beat up as the pencil case Makoto owns…

Ren eventually gave up on trying to find one and instead bought her a set of colored pens for note taking since she’s still in college. They weren’t the most expensive thing in the world but he felt Makoto would appreciate them.

For Haru he bought some seeds for plants that should be able to grow in a small garden, but that she had not yet worked with. Ren felt it would provide a nice challenge for Haru that aligned with her love of gardening.

Ren’s certain Futaba already knows what he got her so he decided not to go with something super surprising and just got her a pair of high quality headphones she’d been looking at one time they went to Akihabara. Supposedly the sound quality of them was far better than the pair Futaba usually used.

And finally, he got the ring with the heart-shaped jewel for Sumire, his loving girlfriend. Easily the most expensive gift, but also the most worthwhile.

Ren quickly wrapped the final gift but instead of setting it aside with the others, he simply put it in his coat pocket. It was small enough to hide in there, and he’d know where it was when time came to give it to her.

Ren stretches as he finishes and sets the gifts on his workbench, he then feels his phone buzz in his pocket.

He pulls it out to see Sumire’s name pop up, he smiles and answers.

“Hello, Senpai!” Sumire’s voice speaks from the other end.

“Hey, Sumi.” Ren greets back, happy to talk to her. “What’s up?”

“I just finished gift wrapping so I was wondering if I could come over?” She requests.

Ren feels the smile on his face widen as he hears this. “I just finished myself, I’d be happy to have you.”

“Thanks, Senpai! I’ll be there in a bit!” Sumire replies excitedly.

“See you soon.” Ren says before ending the call.

Just as he ends the call, Morgana hops back through the window.

“So Yoshizawa is coming over?” He asks, to which Ren nods. “Well I’ll leave you two alone once she gets here.”

“Being a gentleman again?” Ren asks with a smirk.

“You know it!” Morgana cheerily replies. “I’ll probably just run around Yongen while she’s here.”

“Don’t want to hang out with Futaba? She always likes your company, you know.” Ren teases.

Morgana glares at Ren in response. “Absolutely not! She’s always pulling on my cheeks!” Morgana hisses. “I’d stay here since you and Yoshizawa are generally gentle with me, but you two usually like to be alone so I’d rather just explore Yongen.”

“You can stay here if you’d like, you know. We’ll have Christmas to be alone together anyway.” Ren assures him. Morgana isn’t wrong but he doesn’t have to leave just because of a simple preference.

“Nah, I’ll let you two be.” Morgana shakes his head. “I’ll be back later so you can enjoy yourselves.”

Morgana hops back out the window, Ren sighs but decides that since Sumire is coming over they could at least plan out what to do together. With that thought in mind he decides to set up the table in front of the couch that they used to use whenever all his friends came over. For Phantom Thieves business or otherwise.

It takes a while to move the thing around with just him but he manages to get it in place without creating too much noise. Sojiro has customers, after all.

Once he’s finally done, Ren hears the bell downstairs jingle, marking the entry of someone. He would ignore it and brush it off as a customer if not for what he hears next.

“Hello, Sakura-san!” An excited feminine voice of significant importance to Ren speaks from downstairs.

“Welcome, the kid’s waiting for you upstairs.” Ren hears Sojiro reply.

After that he hears light footsteps come up the stairs until he finally sees his lovely girlfriend reach the top. Upon seeing Ren, Sumire runs right up to him and greets him with an embrace and a kiss.

Ren returns the kiss and wraps his arms around Sumire in return. This had become a common greeting between the two as they’d gotten more comfortable with the relationship and became more intimate with one another.  Somehow though, no matter how many times they greet each other like this, it always fills Ren with joy and causes his heart to skip a beat.

Eventually, they pull away from each other and Sumire stares up at Ren’s eyes with a loving smile on her face.

“Hello, Senpai!” She greets with a nose nuzzle as they continue holding each other.

“Hey, Sumi.” Ren replies, returning the smile with one of his own. He then guides her to the couch where they sit down next to each other. “So, did you want to talk about something?” He asks just in case.

“Oh, uhm… Not really?” Sumire sheepishly replies with a light blush on her face. “Honestly I… I just wanted to see you…”

Ren chuckles and gives her a pat on the head which then turns into running his hand through her hair. “Good enough for me! Do you want to plan our date on Christmas with me while you’re here then?”

Sumire looks up at him for a second, then nods. “I’d love to!”

Ren gives her another headpat, then gets up, grabs his laptop, and sets it on the table before sitting back down next to Sumire. As the day progresses, Sumire snuggles up to Ren as they talk about where to go and check prices online.

Eventually, Sumire has to go home, Ren walks her back and kisses her goodbye.

The Day After…

Ryuji’s laughs fill the room as he unwraps Ren’s present for him.

“Duuuuude! This is the coolest shit ever!” Ryuji praises Ren’s gift. “I ain’t ever havin’ ramen without this bowl!”

The party is in full swing, all the Phantom Thieves plus Sumire have been gathered up in Leblanc with Sojiro catering. Ren decided to pay Sojiro in advance despite the older man’s protest, it just didn’t sit right with Ren to have Sojiro host again and not get paid for it.

Ren and Sumire are sitting next to each other at the counter while the rest of the team are taking up the tables. Ren and Sumire probably would have been closer together but both found it a bit awkward in front of so many people, friends or not. Not that it's a big deal, Sumire would be staying over that night, of course, so the two had plenty of time to be together that day anyway.

“Oh, these are neat!” Ann goes next, having just opened Ren’s gift to her. “I always thought of trying new stuff with my hair! The agency prefers me to keep this style though…” She gestures to her twintails.

Ren nods in understanding. “Yeah, I noticed you seemed to always have the same hairstyle in your magazines. I was hoping you’d find some use for these.”

“Of course!” Ann exclaims in excitement. “I can’t wait to try these out!”

Ren smiles and nods, happy Ann liked his gift. Ren then turns towards Makoto, who has just opened his gift for her as well.

“Oh, thanks Ren!” Makoto says with genuine gratitude. “I needed some new pens!”

“I’m glad, I hope they serve you well.” Ren tells her.

He then turns to Morgana, who’s admiring the yellow scarf he’d gotten.

“Do you like it?” Ren asks with a smirk.

Morgana gives him a smile, or at least as close to a smile as the sorta-cat can manage. “It’s great! Thanks, Ren!”

Ren nods and turns to Yusuke, who’s giving a rather strange look to the gift card Ren had given him.

Concerned, Ren speaks up. “Is something wrong, Yusuke?”

Yusuke turns to him and frowns. “It isn’t anything major but…” He holds up the gift card. “I believe I’ve heard before that money is the sort of thing you give someone when you don’t know what they like. I could have prepared a list for you if you were having such trouble finding a gift for me…”

Ren shakes his head. “In some circumstances, that may be true, but not this one.” Yusuke gives Ren a confused look and he continues. “I gave you that so you could buy necessities, I’ve looked through that store and there aren’t really any art supplies there, so you can focus on buying food with that card instead.”

Yusuke’s eyes widen in understanding. “Oh I see! In that case you have my thanks, Ren.”

Ren rubs the back of his neck. “It was nothing, Yusuke.”

“Seeds…?” Ren hears Haru speak up.

Ren nods to her. “Yeah, they’re for some plants you haven’t grown yet, they should all work with a small garden.”

Haru gives Ren a bright smile. “Oh, thank you!”

“Oh come on, another one!?” Sojiro speaks up from behind the counter.

Upon looking, Ren bursts out into laughter along with everyone else. Every single one of the Phantom Thieves had bought Sojiro ugly Christmas sweaters as a joke. They’d of course planned it beforehand, but it was still funny the see the result.

Sojiro sighs and eventually just laughs along.

Ren shakes his head then turns to Futaba, who didn’t pay much attention to the party after receiving the headphones, outside of having a good laugh at Sojiro of course, and is instead just listening to music. Ren chuckles to himself and turns back to Sumire.

He wraps an arm around her. “Seems everyone liked their gifts this year.” Ren says.

Sumire returns the smile and nods at him. “Mhm! I’m really glad, I wasn’t sure what exactly to get for all of them…”

They’d exchanged plenty of gifts this year, everyone liked Ren’s and everyone also liked Sumire’s.

“This just makes me more excited to see what you got for me, Sumi.” Ren tells her with a smirk.

Sumire smirks back. “Well you’ll just have to wait till tomorrow!”

Ren chuckles and rubs Sumire’s back. He would have kissed her, but neither of them are really comfortable with sharing that level of affection in front of others.

Later…

With the party over, Ren and Sumire stay to help Sojiro clean up. Ren mops the floor, Sumire does the dishes, and Sojiro cleans the counter and tables. With the three of them working, they make quick work of the café, and Sojiro heads home. Morgana was, of course, already at Sojiro’s house, opting to leave Sumire and Ren alone for the night like the “gentleman” he was.

Finally alone, Sumire turns to Ren and walks up to him.

She embraces him from behind, clearly happy to be away from prying eyes. Ren, of course, smiles at the feeling of the warm embrace of his girlfriend, he loosens her grip on him and turns around to return it. They share a loving kiss, being much bolder due to the lack of anybody else around.

Well, Futaba’s bugs are probably still on this floor of Leblanc, but Ren isn’t about to ruin the moment by telling Sumire that.

They pull away from each other and Ren stares into Sumire’s beautiful red eyes. He lifts an arm up towards her shoulder and pulls her closer towards his chest. Sumire doesn’t resist his touch, willingly leaning into him and resting her head against his shoulder as they continue their embrace.

“Uhm, Senpai?” Sumire speaks up.

“Hm?” Ren responds, still enjoying the feeling of having her so close to him.

“This is nice, but…” Sumire pauses for a bit. “Shouldn’t we be heading to bed?”

“You’re the one who started it… You have a good point though…” Ren admits with a small chuckle. “I’ll lock up, you have your change of clothes right?”

“Mhm!” Sumire nods and they share another kiss. They pull away from each other and she begins heading towards the stairs. “I’ll be right back.”

Ren nods and heads to lock up, the sign was already flipped to closed due to their party earlier so all he had to do was lock the door. A few minutes after he was done, Sumire came down the stairs in her blue flower-patterned pajamas, and her glasses taken off. This isn’t the first time he’s seen them, but he finds them cute, just like the girl wearing them.

Of course, with her glasses being off she probably couldn’t quite see the dorky smile that formed on his face upon viewing his adorable girlfriend.

“Your turn, Senpai!” She happily tells him, which confirms Ren's assumption.

Ren nods and straightens out his face to a much gentler smile as he passes by her, he heads up the stairs and changes into his regular loungewear. Sweatpants and a simple black long-sleeved shirt, he sees Sumire’s glasses at his workbench and he chuckles as he takes off his own and sets them next to hers.

With that, he heads to the stairway and calls down.

“Sumi! You can come up now!” Ren calls out to her.

Ren sits on his bed as Sumire’s light footsteps come up the stairs. Upon reaching the top she looks over at him and smiles before gracefully making her way over to him. Upon reaching him she sits down next to him and looks into his eyes.

“Shall we?” Sumire asks and Ren nods.

Ren lies down on the bed, Sumire lying down next to him, and he pulls the cover over them. Sumire snuggles up to him and rests her head on his chest, he then wraps his arm around her and holds her close.

No words are needed for this moment, they’re well used to this by now, simply basking in each other’s familiar presence. The winter chills are usually a bother, but Ren’s glad they’re here at this moment. He’d tried to cuddle with Sumire back in the summer and it was… Not the greatest experience.

With his gratitude in mind, Ren starts stroking Sumire’s hair with the hand wrapped around her. She sighs in bliss, causing the smile on Ren’s face to grow once more.

As he continues stroking her hair, Ren feels his mind start to slip into unconsciousness. With Sumire by his side, Ren allows a restful sleep to take him.

The Next Day…

Ren slowly wakes up to the feeling of loving warm lips on his own. As he slowly opens his eyes and they adjust to the light of the morning, he sees the beautiful sight of Sumire right in front of him, kissing him. Ren returns the kiss with just as much love as he feels Sumire give him.

As they continue kissing, Ren brings an arm to her back and resumes stroking her hair as she lays on top of him. Eventually, the two have to pull away and Sumire nuzzles her nose against his once more.

“Merry Christmas, Senpai…” Sumire tells him with a smile as she ruffles his hair.

“Merry Christmas, Sumi.” Ren replies with the same affection in his tone, stroking her hair in return.

They exchange a few more pecks before Ren sits up and Sumire scoots off of him. Sumire then gets off the bed and heads over to the workbench where her glasses are, once she puts them back on she turns back towards Ren, looking beautiful as ever.

“I think I heard Sakura-san preparing some curry earlier,” She tells him. “Would you like to have some with me this morning?”

“I’d love to.” Ren nods and gives her a gentle smile, which brightens her own.

“Great!” Sumire excitedly says as she brings her hands together. “The store doesn’t open today, right?” She asks to which Ren nods. “Good.”

Ren gets out of bed, puts his own fake pair of glasses on, and heads downstairs with Sumire. Sure enough, Sojiro’s prepared two plates of curry, surprising for a breakfast but Ren’s used to it by now. Honestly, it’s kind of Ren’s fault for not getting an apartment yet, which he should really do soon.

He opted to pay rent to Sojiro despite the man offering to house him for free, but Ren still feels it’ll be better to get his own place. Especially if he wants Sumire to live with him someday.

“Good morning and Merry Christmas, lovebirds.” Sojiro greets from behind the counter. He then gestures to the plates of curry. “Enjoy.”

“Thanks!” Ren and Sumire reply in unison.

The two sit down on the stools and dig into their curry, finishing it in record time. Ren was caught off guard back when he first ate with Sumire and saw how much she could eat, but after a while of practicing with her, even if it wasn’t as intensive as her scheduled practices, he came to understand. These days he’s even able to keep up with her sometimes when eating, though he thanks the Big Bang Burger challenges for that one.

Once they finish, Ren grabs his and Sumire’s plates and utensils and brings them to the sink where he begins to wash them. Sojiro takes off his apron and heads to the door upon seeing them finish.

“Well, Futaba wants me to watch some Christmas movies with her so I’ll be going now.” He says. “Lock up the store when you leave, okay?”

Ren nods. “Yeah, we’ll be out soon.”

Sojiro gives him a smile and nods, then leaves the café.

It takes everything Ren has not to smirk at that comment. Sumire, however, did not succeed and let out a small giggle. Sojiro leaves the store and Ren finishes washing the dishes, he then turns to Sumire.

“Well, want to change and get started?” He asks and Sumire nods.

They’d planned lunch at the Wilton Buffet, though Ren’s sure they can figure out something else to do before then, and in the evening they’d go on the ferris wheel to exchange gifts. Then after that Ren would have dinner with Sumire’s family and stay over at her house.

Sumire heads upstairs and begins changing while Ren simply waits for her to finish. Once she’s done he does the same, once finished he heads back down the stairs and sits down in one of the booths with Sumire.

“So,” Ren starts. “Anything you want to do before we go to the buffet?” He asks.

Sumire puts a finger to her chin in thought, Ren smiles brighter as he admires her thinking face. Somehow, every little thing she does just seems so cute to Ren.

“Hmmm… Well…” Sumire continues thinking. “How about we walk around Yongen-Jaya, Senpai? Oh! We could go to the batting cages!” She suddenly exclaims in excitement.

Ren pats her head and chuckles a little. “Great idea, Sumi. Want to go?”

Sumire smiles brightly at him and nods, she grabs her bag, takes Ren’s hand, and they leave the store, Ren making sure to lock it beforehand. They then head to the batting cages, Ren pays the small fee, and they enter.

“So, what do you want to do, Sumi?” Ren asks.

Sumire picks up a bat. “I want you to watch me hit the ball again!” She exclaims excitedly.

Ren rolls his eyes at her continually adorable behavior. “Again?” He can’t help but ask.

Sumire nods. “Mhm! I was just thinking… It wasn’t really me last time, was it? S-So… Can you watch me hit it this time?”

Ren gives her a genuine loving smile and a nod. “Sure, let’s see what you got.”

The two spend the next few hours messing around at the batting cages. Sumire managed to hit a few of the balls and had some of the cutest reactions to it, Ren ended up taking a few pictures just to save the moment.

After finishing up at the batting cages, Ren and Sumire begin heading towards the Wilton Hotel in Shibuya. As they’re going, Sumire turns to Ren with an apprehensive look on her face.

“...Are you sure about this, Senpai?” She asks not for the first time since they’d planned this out. “I mean… The buffet there is supposed to be super expensive…”

Ren pats her head. “I’m sure, for two people it’ll only be sixteen thousand yen.”

Sumire’s eyes widen a bit. “Th-That’s still so much though!”

“Eh, not really.” Ren assures her honestly. “If we went there often, sure, but just for a Christmas date? This is the least I could do for you.”

This logic, of course, isn’t going to hold up once he shows her what he got her as a present.

“Senpai…” Sumire blushes a little. “Fine…”

Ren gives her yet another loving smile as he pats her head again, the two then continue their way to the buffet. Upon arriving, Ren pays for an hour for each of them and they head up to the buffet floor. The two then separate to fill their plates with food before meeting up again at the same table he ate with Ryuji, Ann, and Morgana at the first time.

Ren sighs fondly at the memory, that was when they’d officially formed the Phantom Thieves.

“Senpai?” Sumire asks, slight concern etched onto her face.

“Nothing, this place just brings back memories.” Ren tells her.

Sumire tilts her head before her eyes suddenly widen. “Oh, isn’t this where…?” She trails off, probably not wanting to finish the statement around so many other people. Ren nods in response and she smiles. “Is that why you wanted to come here, Senpai?”

“Well, it was the reason I thought of it.” Ren admits before leaning slightly closer to her. “But I also wanted to take my amazing girlfriend somewhere nice.”

Sumire’s smile brightens before she realizes something. “Oh wait, this is timed, isn’t it!? We should get eating!”

Ren chuckles as Sumire begins stuffing her face with food, he shakes his head as he does the same.

They finish their food not soon after and Ren turns back to Sumire. “Wanna get more?”

Sumire shakes her head. “I mean, I’d love to but… I don’t exactly have this meal planned out so I probably shouldn’t eat much more…”

Ren nods, noting that next time it would probably be better to make a reservation at a restaurant, like the one Sojiro recommended he take Sumire to on her last birthday. Of course, that could wait until later, for now they have about thirty minutes left.

“Speaking of…” Ren decides to make conversation instead. “You said your practices were going well, right?”

At that Sumire’s eyes light up, causing Ren’s heart to skip a beat. “Yes, I’ve been doing really well recently! Coach even said I’ve been progressing as fast as Kasumi used to!”

“That’s wonderful!” Ren tells her genuinely. After all, this means her dream, the thing she’s been working towards since she was little, is all that much more likely to come true.

“Mhm!” Sumire replies enthusiastically. She then nervously brushes her pinky across her bangs. “...It’s only because of you I was ever able to get this far…”

Ren shakes his head. “That’s not true, you figured out everything on your own.” He tells her honestly, which is true as far as he’s concerned. Ren may have been there to reassure her on several occasions, but she discovered the problem and dealt with it pretty much on her own.

Sumire, of course, shakes her head. “I wouldn’t have ever made it this far without you and everyone else though…” She stares down at the floor, Ren can see tears forming in her eyes. “Without you… I can’t help but worry about… Wh-What could have happened to me… A-About what I may have done to… To myself…”

Ren scoots closer to her and holds her in his arms. “Shhh… It’s okay, Sumi… That will never happen.”

Sumire leans against him, resting her head on his shoulder. “I know… But still… Thank you, Senpai…”

The two stay together like that for a little, once Sumire relaxes more, Ren finally lets go. He gives her a gentle look as he pulls away.

“Well, since we’re not eating anymore, want to go?” He asks to which Sumire nods her head.

Ren smiles as he takes her hand and leaves the buffet, he already paid so they could simply leave the building together. It’s still light out, unfortunately, so it’s probably not a good idea to go to the ferris wheel just yet. Ren thinks for a bit before turning to Sumire.

“Hey, Sumi?” Ren speaks up, causing Sumire to look up at him. “Wanna go to Inokashira?”

Sumire tilts her head in confusion. “Inokashira… But weren’t we going to go to the ferris wheel?”

Ren nods before explaining. “Yeah, but wouldn’t it be better to go there when the sun’s about to go down?”

“Oh, I see!” Sumire’s eyes light up with realization. “In that case, I’d love to, Senpai!”

Ren squeezes her hand affectionately and they head to the train station. Unfortunately, unlike Valentine’s day, the trains are mostly full which means Ren and Sumire can’t sit next to each other. They may be used to the crowded trains by now, but getting squeezed together in them isn’t exactly what either of them would consider “fun”.

Don’t get him wrong, Ren does enjoy close physical contact with Sumire… But generally said contact doesn’t include several strangers.

It’s a harsh battle, but Ren and Sumire somehow survive and finally make their way towards the park. The first thing the two do is head towards the nearest bench to rest from the fatigue that is riding a packed train.

With a slight chill in the wind, Sumire shivers and scoots up to Ren, who wraps an arm around her. Now enveloped by each other’s warmth, the two silently enjoy the scenery around them. There’s nothing but silence around them and the sound of snow covered trees swaying in the wind, it’s very relaxing, especially with Sumire by Ren’s side.

“This is nice…” Ren softly speaks up, just enough for Sumire to hear him.

“Mhm…” She snuggles closer to him and nods her head.

“So…” Ren turns over to Sumire, almost chuckling when he sees how red it is. Though it doesn’t appear to be a blush, just the wind biting at her face. “Wanna walk around?”

Sumire nods her head once more and they get off the bench together, Ren offers his hand to Sumire once more, which she happily takes, and they set off on the trail. It’s a bit chilly, and maybe an unusual time of the year to be somewhere like this, but personally, Ren doesn’t mind and nor does Sumire appear to.

Besides, there’s a lot less people here as a result, and especially after experiencing the subway, it’s honestly a welcome change. The lack of noise besides that of the river and the wind, mixed with being close to Sumire as usual, makes for a very calming experience.

There are times where Ren likes doing something exciting with Sumire, or simply making her laugh, but at times like this? The comforting quiet and presence of a lover is just as enticing.

Hours feel like minutes as they continue walking together, until eventually the daylight dims as the sun nears its setting point.

“I think it’s time, Sumi.” Ren speaks up for the first time since they started walking.

Sumire smiles at him. “Yeah, let’s go, Senpai!”

Ren chuckles a bit at his girlfriend’s enthusiasm as they head back towards the station. By the time they reach the ferris wheel, the sun is on the horizon, bathing the evening sky in orange and deep blue. The two eventually get onto the ferris wheel and admire the sunset as they’re taken up to the top.

“It’s been so long since we did this,” Ren reminisces.

“Yeah,” Sumire nods. “Last time was when you went to Shujin, right?”

Ren nods in return. “Yeah,” He then scratches the back of his head sheepishly. “I still feel a little bad for not hanging out with you more often…”

Sumire shakes her head. “Don’t be, Senpai… You were really busy at the time, and besides…” She scoots up to him and once again rests her head on his shoulder as they continue staring at the sky. “You’ve been a wonderful boyfriend, you’re everything I dreamed you’d be…”

“Thanks, Sumi.” Ren kisses the top of her head. “You’re amazing yourself. I love you so much, Sumire…”

Sumire turns to look at him, a bright smile and a pink blush adorning her face. “I love you too, Senpai!”

Ren smiles just as brightly as he tilts her chin up for a kiss.

This kiss has officially become one of Sumire’s favorites that she’s ever shared with her boyfriend. Right there along with her first kiss with him and the one they shared when he finally returned to Tokyo. She’d always secretly fantasized about a moment like this, being able to kiss Ren on the ferris wheel this high up in the sky, unfortunately they’d never really gone on a date like this until now.

Eventually, the kiss has to end, but Sumire continues smiling brightly as Ren does the same.

“I suppose it’s time for us to exchange gifts then?” Sumire asks and Ren nods.

They both exchange their hand-wrapped gifts with each other, Sumire giving Ren a box that contains the gag glasses, and her receiving a much smaller wrapped box that she’s not sure what could be inside yet. Sumire and Ren turn away from each other to open up their individual gifts.

Sumire carefully unwraps the paper to reveal… A jewelry box? A smile crosses Sumire’s face at the fact that Ren was willing to get her something so obviously expensive, along with a little guilt that she didn’t do the same for him.

Sumire shakes off the feeling and opens the box, her smile disappearing and her eyes going wide and her jaw gaping in the process.

It’s a ring with a red carved jewel in the shape of a heart. Where did Ren even get something like this!? …A-And how expensive was it!?

An extremely heavy blush fills her face as her neural functions cease to work.

“Like it?”

Sumire suddenly spins around to face Ren and accidentally tosses the box in the process. Ren, being the amazing boyfriend he is, catches the box and sets it back in her hands before she even processes that it wasn’t there anymore.

“I-I-I-” Is all Sumire can manage.

Sumire then notices that Ren is now wearing the gag glasses she got him which is absolutely not helping with the current situation in the slightest!

Stuttering, blushing, and completely not prepared for any of this! Sumire manages to get the one question on her mind out.

“H-How m-much did you sp-spend on this!?” Sumire shouts a little louder than intended, causing Ren to jump a bit.

Ren scratches the back of his neck sheepishly. “Oh… Uhm, eighty-eight thousand yen?” He tells her.

“Eighty-eigh…?” Sumire manages before she finds herself once again unable to talk.

Ren spent… Eighty-eight thousand yen on her!? Sumire feels her face grow even hotter at that prospect. Forget the cost of just their lunch, Ren spent that much!?

Ohhhhh… Sumire’s starting to feel lightheaded, she leans towards Ren as she waits for the dizziness to go away. Ren, of course, wraps her in a hug and allows her to lie against him for a bit.

After a few minutes, Sumire finally manages to calm down and sits back up, deciding to slip the ring on her finger while she’s at it. She still isn’t sure what to say, so she just goes with what feels natural.

She pecks Ren on the cheek. “Thank you, Senpai…”

Ren gives her a smile, a smile which makes her giggle when she realizes he’s still wearing the gag glasses.

“Now it’s your turn,” Sumire manages to shake off the last dregs of her embarrassment. “Do you like them?”

Ren chuckles and pulls said gag glasses off his face to look at them. “I love them, thank you so much, Sumi.”

Sumire gives him a loving smile and then turns back towards the window, causing Ren to do the same. Now that Ren’s eyes aren’t on her, she decides to execute the one surprise she had in store for him.

Sumire silently brings her hand to her purse, puts the ring box in it, and searches through it for what she’s looking for. She finds a particular case and pulls it out, she then somehow manages to open it without Ren noticing, the part she was most nervous about.

After it’s open she pauses to make sure Ren didn’t move, thankfully, he didn’t.

With that done, Sumire quickly takes off her glasses and replaces them with the ones that were in the case. She then, trying not to laugh, turns to Ren.

“It’s… reeeeally pretty, huh S-Senpai?” Sumire barely manages without bursting out in laughter.

“Huh? What’s wrong Su-” Ren turns to her and just stares for a few seconds in dead silence.

He then bursts out into laughter, causing the laughter Sumire was holding in to be released as well. Ren’s laughter is music to Sumire’s ears, the exact reaction she wanted out of him, she’s glad everything went well.

As their laughter begins to die down, Ren wraps an arm around Sumire and pulls her close as the two look out the window to the evening sky. The sun’s finally set, leaving the whole sky dark, yet no less beautiful for them to look at. Ren runs his hand through her hair as the two sit together.

“Sumi…” Ren starts, sounding like he has something important to say, so Sumire listens attentively. “I just want to say, this is the best Christmas I’ve ever had… I love you so much, Sumi…”

Sumire’s pink blush returns but she continues smiling, genuinely happy to be with him. “I feel the same, Senpai… I love you just as much…”

The ferris wheel begins descending, it’ll be time for the two to get off soon. Sumire leans her head against Ren’s shoulder as he continues stroking her hair. Everything is just so… perfect…

Sumire sighs in bliss, never wanting this feeling to end… Unfortunately, it has to.

They eventually reach the bottom of the ferris wheel once more and both step off. Ren then turns to Sumire.

“I suppose it’s dinnertime then?” He asks with a smirk.

Sumire nods and, hand in hand, they head back to Sumire’s place. Dinner is easily the least interesting part of the day for her, it’s not that it was bad, but it was mostly her mother and father grilling the two of them about details on their date. Sumire loves her parents but she really wishes they’d let up on the questioning.

It isn’t even like they disapprove of Ren, quite the opposite in fact, they’re constantly trying to support her in her relationship with her boyfriend. Sumire feels she understands though, they do this when big gymnastics events they can’t watch happen as well, they most likely just want the best life for Sumire, especially after…

Sumire sighs sadly.

“Something wrong?” Ren asks in concern from beside her as they both lay in her bed.

Sumire shakes her head. “It’s nothing… I was just thinking of my parents and of… Kasumi…”

Ren nods in understanding and rubs her back comfortingly, Sumire snuggles closer to him in response. This is always what Ren does when she’s sad or down in some way, and somehow, it always makes her feel better.

“Thank you, Senpai…” Sumire says. “I love you…”

“I love you too, Sumi…” Ren replies and Sumire feels her eyes begin to grow heavy.

Sumire feels Ren press a kiss to the top of her head and a few seconds later, sleep takes her away.

Chapter Text

Sumire straightens out her dress as she nervously waits for her boyfriend, Ren, to arrive at the station. She can still hardly believe they’re dating now.

Sumire, the anxious, shy, teen gymnast is now dating her incredible Senpai!

Her heart’s pounding and her face is turning red just thinking about it. She wants to give him a surprise when he arrives, thus the dress, but a part of her also wants to shrink away and run. What if he doesn’t like it?

Thankfully, before her doubts can overtake her, the bullet train arrives at the station. Sumire walks over to it as the doors open up, waiting for her beloved Ren to step out. In her nervousness, she frantically looks around the different exits of the train as she looks for him, but she can’t seem to find him anywhere.

Suddenly, arms tightly wrap around her from behind. At first she panics, until she realizes how familiar they feel.

“Konnichiwa, Sumi!” Her boyfriend’s deep voice speaks from behind her.

“Eep!” Sumire squeals as her previously light red blush goes full tomato.

She hears Ren chuckle from behind her as he loosens his grip enough for her to turn to see him. His confident smirk and loving eyes come into view as she looks up to see him, her blush intensifying, but she hugs him back.

“I missed you, Senpai…” Sumire sincerely tells him as she rests her head against his chest.

She feels Ren rest his chin atop her head as he replies. “I missed you too, Sumi…”

Sumire smiles at that, even though she already knows it. Just feeling his arms wrapped around her is so nice after a month where they couldn’t see each other in person. She wishes they could stay like this forever… but they should probably leave the station.

Thankfully, Ren has the same idea as he releases her and grabs her hand.

“Well, we should probably get going to Leblanc.” He reminds her and she nods.

“Y-Yeah…”

Ren gives her a gentle smile as he starts walking towards the station exit. As they go though, Ren comments on something she’d honestly forgotten about.

“You look beautiful, by the way.” Ren tells her, gesturing to her dress.

Sumire’s face turns red again but she tries to smile as she looks at it again.

“I-I just wanted to surprise you…” Sumire stutters out.

“It was a good surprise.” Ren assures her with a gentle pat atop her head. “I still remember when you first got that dress.”

Sumire smiles as she remembers that day… before blushing intensely and covering her face with her free hand. That was, after all, the day Ren had initially “confessed” to her, even if she had not realized it yet.

“What’s wrong, Sumi?” Ren asks, she can hear the smirk from his voice.

“Nnnh…” Is Sumire’s only response.

Ren releases her hand and wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her closer, chuckling as he does so. He must have realized what she was thinking, which makes her even more embarrassed.

Sumire eventually releases her hand from her face as they continue walking together, and Ren pecks the top of her head. Sumire lets out another whine and wants to melt into a puddle at that point, but she decides to try and change the subject to avoid further teasing.

She then realizes something strange: Where’s Morgana? He’d gone with Ren to his hometown, but now that Ren is moving back… shouldn’t Morgana be with him?

“Uhm… Senpai?” Sumire asks.

“Yeah?” Ren replies, still smiling.

“Where’s Morgana-senpai?”

Before Ren can answer, a familiar face bursts out of his brown bag.

“I’m right here!” Morgana smirks, or at least as close to a smirk as a cat can have. “I was just being a gentleman while you two lovebirds caught up.”

“Oh!” Sumire gasps in surprise. “Uhm… Thanks Morgana-senpai…”

She pats his head gently, which he seems to respond well to.

“He’s quite the wingman…” Ren admits as he gives Morgana a pat himself. “You know, I believe he also orchestrated getting you to come to Leblanc after the uh… Report…”

Sumire tilts her head before remembering what he’s referring to. Ren was stuck in his bed for a few days back then… So he couldn’t really tell her himself…

She still remembers how awful it was to see him like that, his bruised and beaten body, his unfocused vision… That fear in his eyes…

She decided back then she never wanted to see him like that again. Unfortunately, she’d had to see it one other time: The time she fought him…

Sumire feels tears begin to form in her eyes at the reminder and Ren pulls her closer to him.

“S-Sorry for bringing it up…” Ren apologizes, but Sumire shakes her head.

“Don’t be… I’m just glad you’re still alive…” Sumire responds to his touch by wrapping her arms around him once more.

Ren stops walking and tugs Sumire out of the way of any other pedestrians before returning the hug.

“I’m here Sumi… I’m sorry for scaring you before.” He assures her, rubbing her back as he does.

Sumire doesn’t respond, instead tightening her grip on him. The words flashed again in her mind as she did.

“The leader of the Phantom Thieves has committed suicide, the police are investigating his death as we speak-”

The time where she was uncertain of if he was alive or not, even before she discovered her love for him, was awful… But everything’s fine now. Ren’s here.

He’s here for her.

The feeling, the reminder of her past despair, slowly fades away as her mind drifts back to reality. Ren’s comforting grip tightens around her as they continue holding each other.

“Do you want to sit down somewhere for a bit?” Ren asks, but Sumire shakes her head.

“N-No… I’m okay…” Sumire assures him as she moves her hand to wipe away her tears. “We should get going…”

“If you’re sure…” Ren tells her, sounding unconvinced.

Sumire offers him a gentle smile, trying to pour all of her gratitude for him into it, to let him know that she’s okay. Thankfully, it seems to get through to Ren, who returns it.

They release each other and go back to holding hands as they board the train. Thankfully, just like on Valentine’s Day, there are some seats available. Sumire and Ren take a couple of seats next to each other as they ride on the train to Yongen-Jaya. It’s not a long ride, but Sumire still rests her head against Ren’s shoulder.

It’s a feeling that, embarrassingly enough, Sumire has… missed. She loves being this close to Ren, even though the only time she’s done it before was on Valentine’s Day. It just feels so right.

So comfy… So nice…

Sumire’s eyes droop and she closes them just for a moment.

“Sumire? We’re here.”

“Hm?” Sumire opens her eyes.

They were already at Yongen-Jaya station. Sumire blushes intensely as she realizes she’d actually fallen asleep on Ren’s shoulder.

“O-Oh! S-Sorry!” Sumire panics as she quickly stands up.

Ren chuckles as he leads her out of the train and onto the platform.

“It’s fine.” Ren assures her with a peck to her cheek that just makes her blush even worse. “Let’s get to Leblanc.”

“R-Right…” Sumire mumbles, looking down at the floor in embarrassment.

Hand in hand once again, the couple makes their way to Leblanc. Surprisingly, Sakura doesn’t seem to be there when they arrive. Clearly unsurprised by this, Ren takes out his key and unlocks the door, leading Sumire inside.

“I’m finally back…” Ren sighs, clearly enjoying the atmosphere of Leblanc.

“Where’s Sakura-san?” Sumire asks.

“Oh right,” Ren turns to Sumire. “He said he wouldn’t be here today, not sure why.”

Sakura isn’t here? That’s strange… but he probably has his reasons, Sumire decides.

“Well, not much to do here at the moment.” Ren says as he casts a glance around the dark main level. “Wanna head upstairs to my room?”

“Y-Your room!?” Sumire stutters.

“What’s the big deal?” Ren smirks as he squeezes her hand. “You’ve been there before.”

Sumire shyly looks away. “O-Only when we were gathering for mementos or the palace…”

“Still counts!” Ren insists, wrapping his arm around her and pulling her close. “What say we head up?”

“O-Okay…”

With that, the two lovers head up the stairs and to Ren’s room, Ren having his arm wrapped around her the whole way. As they reach the top of the stairs though… Sumire’s worst nightmare comes into play.

“SURPRISE!”

Ren and Sumire jump at the sudden shouts, only for the rest of the Phantom Thieves to greet them, lounging around Ren’s room. Though clearly they weren’t expecting Sumire, since they all gave her a look of confusion.

“Yoshizawa-san? What are you doing- Ohhhh…” Takamaki suddenly gives Ren a smirk. “I knew you two were dating!”

“‘Knew’?” Ren and Sumire both say at the same time.

Takamaki isn’t done though, she even squees at their response. “You two are so perfect for each other! Of course I knew!”

Sumire and Ren blush slightly, but Ren speaks up once more.

“Wait a minute- You guys were trying to surprise me and you didn’t invite Sumi?”

All of the thieves look away shamefully, even Takamaki’s enthusiasm dies down after that.

“Well…” Okumura starts. “It’s not that we didn’t want to but…”

“None of us really knew you two were dating?” Niijima adds. “And Yoshizawa-san’s still not in the group chat…”

“Even so, Futaba could’ve easily contacted her…” Ren says, shooting a glare at the orange-haired girl.

Unlike the rest of the Phantom Thieves though, she doesn’t look at all ashamed.

“And interrupt your little meeting session?” Sakura giggles. “Mwehehe! Yoshizawa-san even dressed up for you! I couldn’t keep her from doing that!”

“Ohhhh~?” Takamaki notices it as well. “Wanted to surprise your boyfriend, Yoshizawa-san?”

Sumire covers her face as it turns red once again. Deciding that isn’t enough though, she also breaks Ren’s grip on her and hides behind him. The following laughs from Sakura and ‘awww’s from Takamaki make her face burn even more.

Ren sighs in clear exasperation. “Well… Since we brought it up, we should probably add Sumire back to the group chat.”

Thankful for the change of topic, but also a bit unsure, Sumire looks up at everyone and stops hiding behind Ren.

“Are you sure…?” Sumire asks, reminded of the reason she left in the first place. “I mean… I wasn’t really ever a Phantom Thief…”

“Eh, so what?” Sakamoto assures her. “As much as I enjoyed bein’ a Phantom Thief, none of us really are anymore, y’know?”

“Yeah,” Morgana agrees from Ren’s bag before jumping out and looking at Sumire. “We had some good heists, but that life’s behind us now. There’s really no reason to exclude yourself from us.”

Sumire gives Ren an unsure look, though she isn’t sure what she was expecting when he flashes her a confident smile.

“Okay… If you’re all sure.” Sumire plays with her bangs a bit.

Ren’s smile widens and he takes out his phone, inviting her back to the group chat. Once that’s done, Sakamoto gives his own bright smile as he excitedly stands up from his seat.

“Alright, now that that’s out of the way… Let’s get this party started!”

Sumire has a surprisingly good time with the rest of the Phantom Thieves once she and Ren sit down on his bed. They all have a discussion about their lives and what Sumire missed out on, catching her up to where they are right now from when they last spoke. Last Christmas…

Takamaki’s visiting temporarily during a small break from the college she’s attending overseas. She’d apparently really wanted to attend this surprise party for Ren when he moved back in.

Sakamoto is a similar case, although he isn’t staying in a hotel and has to take a train back to the dorm he’s staying in. He’d finally managed to get a scholarship from a track team.

Kitagawa is still living in the area and his latest pieces have been receiving a lot of attention. He’s currently searching for colleges to attend and has been working with the Kosei staff to find one that suits him best.

Sakura, while not attending Shujin with Sumire, has still been diligently attending highschool. Sumire can’t exactly blame Boss for not wanting her to attend Shujin though. Sakura is one year below Sumire despite being older than her, but hasn’t been having any other trouble besides that.

Okumura and Niijima are still in college and share a dorm room, but not much has changed since Sumire last spoke with them.

…And of course Ren, her beloved Senpai, is still thinking through exactly what he wants to do now that he’s back in Tokyo. He seemed to have some news but ended up keeping it to himself, Sumire found herself wondering what it could be.

After catching up, Sakura suddenly goes downstairs without explanation.

“Futaba?” Ren asks.

She waves her hand at him from the stairway. “Hang on a minute! I’m grabbing something really quick.”

Sumire and Ren exchange a glance between each other and the other thieves before Sakura comes back up the stairs with a huge pot that she sets on the table.

Sakura looks around at everyone’s shocked expressions with a smug grin on her face.

“Dad made a huge pot of curry for everyone!” She announces.

Everyone cheers with the exception of Sumire, who looks down nervously at her dress. She seriously hopes she doesn’t spill any sauce on it.

Sakura goes back downstairs and comes up again with some plates and utensils, setting them beside the curry pot. Ren, noticing Sumire’s discomfort, grabs her hand and gives her a gentle smile.

He guides her to the couch where the table is and they sit down. Takamaki and Sakamoto, who were sitting there previously, go to sit down on some other chairs that had been set up instead.

From this position, Sumire can eat at the table which will make it easier for her not to spill. Ren grabs a plate for himself and one for Sumire and they both begin digging in. Ordinarily, Sumire would have eaten this very quickly, but she tries to slow down just to make sure none of the sauce ends up on her dress.

They finish not soon after and Sakamoto, who’s still eating, pauses to exclaim his joy.

“Aw man!” Sakamoto exclaims. “This is the best surprise party ever!”

“Mhm!” Takamaki agrees happily as she continues eating.

Sumire can’t help but smile in slight amusement at their overexaggerated responses. Soon after, Ren wraps an arm around her and tugs her slightly. Accepting his request, Sumire rests her body against Ren’s, her head on his shoulder.

The rest of the party went smoothly, though her position was not unnoticed by Takamaki. It led to some teasing, Sumire’s face going red once more, but ultimately she didn’t stop resting her head on Ren’s shoulder. After over a month of being unable to see him in person, she didn’t want to stop just because of the teasing.

Eventually though, it became time for everyone to go. Sakamoto had to leave early so he could get on the right train, Takamaki left soon after, Niijima and Okumura following after that. Kitagawa and Sakura could have stayed longer, but opted to leave with the others.

This left only Morgana, Ren, and Sumire.

“I should probably get going soon too…” Sumire laments, not really wanting to leave.

Ren frowns as he looks at her before taking her hand gently.

“I could walk you home again, if you’d like.” Ren offers with a gentle smile.

“O-Oh!” Sumire shyly looks away. “Y-You don’t have to if you don’t want to…”

Ren smiles and tugs her close once more. “It’s alright, of course I want to. I mean, it’s either that or get yelled at by Mona to ‘go to sleep’.”

“I heard that!” The cat in question yells from Ren’s bed.

Ren chuckles a bit before turning back to Sumire. “Come on, Sumi.” He nudges her shoulder. “I love you, why wouldn’t I want to walk you home?”

Sumire blushes even harder but concedes. “I-I suppose… Uhm… Th-Thank you, Senpai…”

Ren smiles wider and pecks her cheek, he then grabs Sumire’s hand and stands up, guiding her to stand up as well.

“Wanna get going?” He asks, to which Sumire nods. Ren then turns to Morgana who’s still laying on the bed. “I’ll be gone for about half an hour, think you can hold down the fort?”

Morgana proudly puffs his feline-chest out. “Who do you think I am? My skills will be enough to stop any potential burglars!”

“...And what if they’re gentleman burglars?”

“Then we’ll have a nice discussion over coffee about how Zorro’s obviously the best depiction of a gentleman thief!”

Ren chuckles at his furry companion. “Well, I should be getting Sumi home now, good luck.”

“Will do!”

Ren turns back to Sumire. “Shall we?”

Sumire nods and she squeezes his hand. The two leave the café after that, heading onto the station to Shibuya. Like before, Sumire rests her head on his shoulder, wanting to get as much out of this as she can before they have to part ways for the night.

Silently, they stay close together on the train, stealing occasional glances at each other as they go. Eventually they transfer trains and the process starts over once again.

Though, all good things must come to an end, and they eventually arrive in Kichijoji. Sumire holds Ren’s hand more tightly as they arrive at her house.

“Well, here we are.” Ren says, sounding almost disappointed himself. “See you tomorrow?”

Sumire tries to say “Yes”, but she’s compelled to do something else instead.

She hugs him.

“Woah!” Ren shouts, clearly surprised.

After the surprise wears off though, he hugs her back.

“What’s going on, Sumi?” Ren asks, worry present in his tone.

“I… don’t wanna…” Sumire mumbles.

“What was that?” Ren asks, genuine confusion in his tone this time.

“I don’t wanna let you go!”

Sumire feels Ren flinch before relaxing and rubbing her back.

“I understand…” Ren tells her in a soothing voice. “I don’t want to let you go either…”

Sumire nods her head as she buries it further into his chest. Ren rubs her back for a while longer before gently pushing her away.

“...But I’m not moving away this time,” Ren cups her cheek and she looks up into his beautiful silver eyes. “I’m living here, in Tokyo, only two train stops away from you…”

Sumire nods her head once more but finds herself entranced by his gaze. Eventually, he starts leaning his head down, and Sumire tilts her head further up.

They share another kiss, the first one they’ve had since he left the day after Valentine’s Day. Sumire had longed to feel his lips on hers once more, and now they’re connected yet again.

As they continue kissing, Sumire wraps her arms around Ren once more, and he does the same. Eventually though, another problem comes up.

The two have to separate due to the inability to breathe.

It’s not so bad though, it gives her an excuse to bury her face into his chest again, which is equally as nice. Feeling him rest his chin on her head is the cherry on top to the best night she’s had since Valentine’s Day. She feels so close to Ren like this… Even if they haven’t been dating for very long.

Eventually the time comes to go, though, and they separate from each other once more. Sumire suddenly misses the feeling of Ren’s warmth, the feeling of being held close.

“See you tomorrow, Sumi. I love you.” Ren tells her and Sumire smiles.

“I love you too, Senpai… See you then!” Sumire can’t help herself as she pecks his cheek once more.

Afterwards, Ren departs and Sumire heads inside.

“Sumire? Is that you?” Her father’s voice calls from another room.

“Yes!” Sumire responds.

“Welcome home, how’d meeting with Ren again go?”

Sumire walks into the room her father and mother are in with a huge smile on her face.

“It was perfect…”

The next day…

*ping ping* *ping ping*

Sumire lifts her head from her pillow and looks at the phone on her nightstand. She rubs the sleep out of her eyes as she grabs her phone and answers the call, not even checking the contact.

“Hello…?” Sumire tiredly says.

“Hey Sumi! Sorry if I woke you…” The voice on the other end instantly wakes her up.

“Oh, Senpai!” Sumire realizes it’s none other than her beloved Ren. “Don’t worry about it, I probably should have been up by now anyway!”

Ren chuckles. “I wouldn’t blame you for sleeping in a bit today, you know.”

“Today…?” Sumire asks. “Uhm… What do you mean, Senpai?”

“Did you not realize?” Ren asks. “Today’s March 25th… Your birthday.”

“Oh!” Sumire blushes a bit. “I completely forgot…”

Ren chuckles again. “Anyway, now that you’re up, want to go somewhere to celebrate? You’re 17 now!”

“Uhm…” Sumire thinks for a bit. “Let me check my schedule real quick, I might have practice today.”

“Alright.”

Sumire hangs up and checks her schedule on her phone and… She has morning practice today, thankfully she didn’t wake up as late as she thought and still has plenty of time to get there.

She calls Ren back and he picks up almost immediately.

“So…?” Ren asks.

“I have practice in about an hour…” Sumire laments. “Maybe we could go on a d-date… after?”

She still isn’t used to that word…

“Sure.” Ren agrees. “Maybe I can take you to dinner?”

Sumire fights her blush as she responds. “S-Sure… Uhm… See you then, Senpai!”

“See you, Sumi. Call me after you’re done with practice?”

“Y-Yeah… Bye!” Sumire ends the call and tries to calm herself.

She takes a deep breath and begins getting ready for the day. The next school year hasn’t started yet so gymnastics is really the only thing she has going on today. She hasn’t celebrated her birthday since Kasumi…

It just never felt right, and her parents thankfully understood that.

…But today, maybe she can learn to enjoy it again?

That evening…

Sumire stops to catch her breath after a particularly intense practice routine. Time had honestly flown by when practice started up until now. She can feel herself improving though, and it honestly makes her happy, like she’s making Kasumi proud.

Sumire takes a drink of water as she’s approached by her coach.

“Good job today, Sumire! You seemed rather motivated.” Hiraguchi applauds her. “Anything to cause that?”

Sumire nods, but opts not to bring up Ren as it would be too embarrassing. “It’s my birthday today, so I guess I was just a little more motivated because of that?”

Hiraguchi frowns, however. “Your birthday…?” She then smirks. “Is there any particular reason for that?”

Sumire then immediately blushes as Ren jumps to her mind, but she tries to play it off.

“O-Oh it’s just uhhh… I’m 17 now and… yeah.”

Very smooth, Sumire. Very smooth.

“Uh huh.” Hiraguchi definitely doesn’t believe her. “Is it a boy? Maybe a certain frizzy-haired senior of yours?”

“Oh wow, would you look at the time!” Sumire checks the invisible watch on her wrist. “I need to get going now!”

Hiraguchi laughs as Sumire starts speed-walking to the changing room.

“Good luck on your date!”

Sumire’s face has never been redder.

Later…

Once Sumire finishes changing and leaves the gym, she heads home and to her bedroom where she finally calls Ren. Not even one ring passes before he picks up.

“Hello, how is my lovely Sumi this evening~?” Ren teases.

“Stooop iiiiiit…” Sumire whines as she blushes once more. “I already got enough from my coach today…”

“Oh? Did you tell her about the date?”

“No, but she figured it out anyway…”

“She is rather sharp,” Ren replies before pausing for a bit. “You never answered my question though~”

Sumire sighs. “I’m doing well, Senpai…” She shyly tells him. “I uh… I’m excited to see where you want to take me!”

Ren chuckles from the other end. “I think I have the perfect place in mind, meet at Leblanc in thirty minutes?”

“Oh! I haven’t showered yet…”  Sumire admits, she never really enjoyed using the gym showers. “Maybe an hour?”

“That works, see you then. I love you, Sumi.”

“L-Love you too…”

The call ends and Sumire lets out another sigh, she sets her phone on her desk as she picks out some nice clothes to put on after her shower.

One shower and a clean Sumire later, she puts on the clothes she’d picked out: A white sweater and orange skirt. She would’ve worn the dress again but since they’re going to be eating, she doesn’t want a repeat of yesterday.

Once that’s done, the reality of the situation finally catches up to her:

She’s going on a date with Ren! On her birthday!

Sumire fidgets with her hands as she’s not sure whether to be nervous, or excited, or both. Her nervousness, however, takes over when she sees the time.

She only has twenty minutes to get there.

Sumire grabs her bag that contains her train pass and purse then quickly heads out of the house, saying her quick goodbyes to her mother and father. They already knew what’s going on, thankfully, so she didn’t get held up trying to stutter her way through an explanation.

Sumire rushes to the station and rides to Shibuya, then transfers to Yongen-Jaya. She arrives at Leblanc with only a couple of minutes to spare, and sees Ren waiting for her right outside. Sumire swallows her nervousness as she approaches him.

“H-Hey, Senpai…” Sumire greets, brushing her bangs to the side with her pinky.

Ren responds by smiling, walking up to her, and giving her a quick peck on the cheek, causing her to blush once more.

“Hey, Sumi.” Ren tells her with a smile before looking her up and down. “You look beautiful.”

Sumire smiles back through her blush. She’s been blushing a lot lately now that she thinks about it.

“Thank you, Senpai….” Sumire swallows once more. “Uhm… Shall we?”

Ren grabs hold of her hand and gives it a small squeeze.

“We shall.”

With that, the couple walks down the block to the train station. Ren pays for his ticket while Sumire uses her pass to get to Shibuya. Once there, Ren guides Sumire through Central Street but doesn’t stop at any of the places there.

“Uhm… Where are we going, Senpai?” Sumire can’t help but ask.

“You’ll see.” Ren responds simply, turning back to give her a smile as he pulls her along.

Eventually they arrive at a massive building and Sumire turns to Ren with a surprised expression on her face.

“We-We’re eating here!?” Sumire gasps.

The whole building just screams “expensive”. Does Ren really intend to take her here!?

“It’s your birthday, Sumi!” Ren laughs. “What did you expect?”

“I-I don’t know… Leblanc, maybe that diner in Shibuya?” Sumire tells him honestly. “N-Not this!”

Ren laughs again. “Come on, our reservation starts soon!” He starts pulling her along into the building.

“W-Wait a second!” Sumire cries out but Ren ignores her.

Sumire nervously looks around as Ren guides her to the front counter, asks for their reservation, and they’re then guided to a much higher floor where they find their table. Sumire nervously sits down across from Ren, she feels extremely out of place here.

It’s not that she’s never been anywhere expensive before; her parents often take her somewhere nice after a successful competition to celebrate… But she’s never been to a place quite like this, especially on a date with her Senpai!

“Are you okay, Sumi?” Ren’s concerned voice pulls Sumire out of her thoughts.

Sumire nods. “Y-Yeah just… Really nervous.” She tells him honestly.

Ren reaches over the table to squeeze her hand. “Don’t be, let’s just enjoy ourselves, okay?”

“I-I’ll try!” Sumire nods confidently to him.

Ren chuckles as he looks at the menu handed to him, Sumire quickly does the same.

Eventually a waiter approaches their table and they place their orders, Sumire hopes what she ordered isn’t too expensive…

While they’re waiting, Sumire tries to relax a little, following Ren’s advice. She just can’t seem to do it though, she’s very squirmish in her seat and can’t really sit still for a prolonged period of time.

Thankfully, Ren comes to her rescue.

After a bit of fidgeting around, she feels Ren grab her hand from beneath the table. She looks up at him and he smiles gently at her. Suddenly, she’s not so uncomfortable. As long as Ren holds her hand, she feels fine.

With that thought in mind, Sumire wraps her hand around his as well and squeezes it. Ren’s smile widens and the waiter finally comes back with their food.

Sumire didn’t order much, at least, she hopes she didn’t. The large meals she typically eats might be fine for her, but she quickly realized that other people don’t have any need for the extra calories. Even Ren, who she knows has a fairly intense workout routine, at least for someone not competing in a sport, doesn’t eat that much.

In any case, she and Ren dig into their food. It doesn’t take long for the couple to clear their plates, and when they do Ren once again grabs her hand. This time though, he rubs his thumb over the back of her hand, comforting her even more.

Sumire truly is lucky to have Ren.

She hears an announcer saying something but she’s too enamored by Ren to notice. His soft smile and confident gaze is something Sumire can’t ever get enough of, no matter how many times she witnesses it, it’s always the same. Sumire can’t help but smile as wide as possible whenever she’s with Ren.

Suddenly, the red curtains behind the couple rise, giving them a wonderful view of the city. She gasps at the sight, full of awe at the light and wonderful view.

“Hey Sumi, I have one more thing for you.”

Sumire turns back to her wonderful boyfriend to see… a bouquet of roses and violets! Still gasping, Sumire slowly takes them from Ren’s hands and smells them. They smell wonderful.

Sumire doesn’t know what to say, so she just says what sounds right.

“This is… This is wonderful, Senpai!” Sumire gives him a grateful smile. “Thank you so much! I love you!”

Sumire surprises herself with her words, she never expected she’d be able to actually say that without stuttering. Taking a look at Ren, it’s clear he wasn’t expecting it either. Ren’s staring wide-eyed at her with a light pink blush of his own, this fills Sumire with confidence to continue.

“This is the best birthday I’ve ever had…” Sumire holds the bouquet with one hand and brings the other to grab Ren’s. “Thank you, Senpai…” She repeats more gently.

Ren finally snaps out of it as he squeezes her hand in return and smiles brightly at her.

“You’re welcome, Sumi.” Ren tells her. “I love you too.”

Sumire releases Ren’s hand, stands up, moves her chair close to Ren’s, and then sits down again. She then rests her head against Ren’s shoulder, angled to be able to look through the windows at the beautiful view of the city once more. Sumire holds the bouquet to her chest with both hands and she feels Ren wrap his arms around her.

She smiles to herself, this is truly the best birthday she has ever had.

Later…

…But alas, once again their time together has to come to an end.

Sumire frowns sadly at the sight of her house, having just been walked there by Ren. This is the part she hoped would never come, the part where they would once again have to part ways.

“Sumi?” Ren asks from beside her, causing her to look over. “Are you okay?”

Sumire shakes her head and, attempting to dip back into the confidence she’d felt before, explains exactly why to him.

“I don’t want to leave you yet…” Sumire admits.

“There’s always tomorrow.” Ren offers her a gentle smile.

Sumire shakes her head. “I wouldn’t be able to see you until the evening again… Practice, remember?”

“Well how do you suggest we continue the night then?” Ren asks honestly, no hint of teasing in his voice. “I didn’t really have anything planned after the dinner and it’s kinda late so…”

“You could stay over…” Sumire offers without even thinking.

Ren freezes and gives her another wide-eyed look. “A-Are you sure?”

Sumire, realizing what she just said, quickly blushes and looks away, her confidence finally faltering.

“I-I mean… you don’t have to if you don’t want to!” Sumire wants to facepalm now. “W-Wait that’s not what I meant!”

“I don’t mind.”

Sumire looks up at Ren, blushing even more, giving him a wide-eyed look of her own.

“H-Huh?”

Ren gives her a confident smile once more. “If you really want to, I don’t mind. It’s your birthday, after all.”

Sumire covers her face with both hands while she tries to calm herself.

After a bit, she looks back up at him. “A-Are you sure?”

Ren nods. “Of course, I can’t think of a better way to spend my evening.”

“Th-Then… I’ll ask my parents.”

“Good plan, I don’t really have night clothes on me so I should probably get back to Leblanc.” Ren informs her. “Just text me their answer.”

“O-Okay…”

With that, Ren gives her a quick peck on the cheek and begins walking away. Sumire, after taking a few deep breaths, finally enters the house.

Once inside, she gets a jar and fills it with water, then sets the flowers inside. After that, she heads to the living room where her parents are.

“M-Mom, Dad?” Sumire asks.

“Good evening, Sumire.” Her father greets. “Enjoy your date?”

Sumire blushes again but nods.

“Y-Yeah but… I was wondering something…” Sumire takes another deep breath. “Is… Is it okay if Ren-senpai stays over for the night?”

Suddenly, both her parents sit up straight.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” Her mother says. “You are a competitive gymnast I’m sure you wouldn’t want anything to get-”

“MOM!” Sumire yells with a fully red face. “N-No… W-We wouldn’t do anything like that!”

Surprisingly, her father comes to her aid. “Now, hun, I’m sure Sumire is well aware of the consequences of any actions she makes. Besides, I’ve met this Ren boy before, I highly doubt he’d risk Sumire’s career with something like that.”

Sumire’s father then looks towards her again. “If you’re certain you want him here tonight, then that’s fine. It’s your birthday, after all.”

Sumire, still blushing, offers a quick “Thank you.” before heading straight to her room and texting Ren. Not before screaming her embarrassment into a pillow, of course.

Later…

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here.” Ren reminisces as he looks around her bedroom. “Not much has changed, huh?”

He’d arrived not too long ago and both had since changed into sleepwear.

Sumire shakes her head. “No… It’s pretty much the same as back then.”

“Well…” Ren casts another glance around the room. “Where should I sleep?”

Sumire, too embarrassed to say it out loud, simply points at the bed.

“...Where would you sleep then?” Ren asks, uncertain.

“Uhm… Th-The bed… too…” Sumire manages. “It-It’s pretty big so… We could have separate sides…”

Sumire prepares herself to be teased… Only for Ren to nod his head and go to lie down in the bed.

Upon seeing her confusion, Ren smirks.

“Care to join me?” He asks completely straight-faced, somehow making this even more embarrassing than if he had just teased her.

Trying to play it off (even though she knows Ren knows she’s embarrassed), Sumire turns off the light and joins Ren in the bed, lying as far from him as possible.

They end up lying on opposing sides of the bed, Sumire closer to the door. Her nervousness goes through the roof as she’s never slept in the same bed as Ren before…

She had fallen asleep in his arms that one time but… that memory is too embarrassing anyway.

Still… It was nice to be that close to him.

Sumire makes a small movement forward in the bed, Ren doesn’t react. She makes another, and another. Ren never reacts. Eventually, she’s right up beside him, and he gives her a smile.

“Separate sides, eh?” He teases.

Sumire scoots back a bit in embarrassment, but Ren wraps an arm around her and pulls her close.

“I didn’t say you could leave.” Ren teases her more.

“Nnnnnh…” Sumire whines in embarrassment as suddenly she’s right up to Ren’s chest.

Her heart’s beating so fast, she’ll be surprised if she can ever fall asleep.

Eventually though, after a while of being held like that, Sumire finally manages to relax. Though once her mind stops being distracted by the embarrassment of the situation, she finally decides to ask something that’s been on her mind for a while.

“Hey… Senpai?” Sumire asks.

“Yeah, Sumi?” Ren replies.

“Uhm… What are your plans now that you’re here?” Sumire asks. “Are you going to college or…?”

“Oh yeah, interesting story about that.” Ren sits up, Sumire sitting up next to him. “I was planning on applying to a university in the area back when I was still preparing to move back to Leblanc… But then your dad gave me an offer.”

“Dad did?” Sumire asks, this is her first time hearing of this.

Ren nods. “Yeah, he wanted me to work at the Good Morning Japan studio he works at, as a cafeteria worker. We’ve been working out the details over email ever since, I should be starting soon.”

“So you’re not going to college?” Sumire asks, after all it seemed like the perfect way to fund it.

Ren shakes his head. “Not anymore, it’s a full time job, you see… I do have some other plans though…”

Sumire tilts her head, confused.

“Well it’ll take a while, but…” Ren grabs both of Sumire’s hands. “When I’ve saved up enough, and when you’re done with gymnastics… I want to start a café together. Like Leblanc.”

“A café?” Sumire asks. “W-With me…?”

Ren nods and squeezes both her hands. “I love you, Sumi… So, if you’re willing, we could try to start one ourselves.”

Sumire doesn’t know what to say… Ren seems so enthusiastic about the idea, a route Sumire hadn’t even considered. A café, with Ren, her Senpai. For some reason, Sumire finds the idea very appealing.

“I-I’d love to run a café with you, Senpai…” Sumire nods with a smile.

Ren smiles back. “I can’t wait, Sumi…”

Ren starts leaning in, so Sumire does the same. The couple share yet another kiss. After a while, it ends and Sumire and Ren lie back down on the bed, still smiling at each other.

A café… Sumire closes her eyes with a bright smile on her face. She’s truly excited for her future with Ren.

Chapter Text

“We have a daily special for two customers!” Ren calls out from the front of the café.

“Got it, Senpai!” Sumire calls out as she focuses on stirring a pot of curry.

Sumire hums to herself happily as she continues working in the kitchen. She and Ren finally achieved their dreams! Sumire can’t help but keep looking at the ring on her finger with giddiness. She and Ren are now married and they own a café that they get to run together everyday!

She still remembers the day he proposed… She was the happiest girl in the world. She’s still the happiest girl in the world.

Everything is perfect… She can hardly believe it. It feels like she’s dreaming…

Sumire continues to hum happily as she prepares two servings of the daily special, a heavenly aroma filling the kitchen. Once the two plates are done she carries one in each of her arms and heads towards Ren, eyes closed in bliss as she walks the memorized route to the counter.

“Here’s the order, Senpai!” Sumire happily presents the plates to her husband.

“Great job, Sumi!” Ren pecks her on the cheek as he takes the plates from her. He then looks around the nigh empty café. “These seem to be the last couple of customers for the day…” He then looks over at Sumire once more. “We should do something after they leave.”

Sumire smiles and nods as Ren leans in for another kiss, which she happily accepts. Once the kiss ends Ren walks off to give the plates to the customers and Sumire sits by the counter, her work for the day finished.

Sumire sighs dreamily as she rests her head on the counter, her work for the day pretty much finished.

Life for her has never been better…

Once again she looks at the ring on her finger. She smiles giddily to herself, but her pure joy is ended with a bitter thought.

She wishes Kasumi could’ve come to her wedding… And been able to see this wonderful café she now runs with her loving husband.

Sumire feels a hand rub her back slightly. Assuming it’s Ren, any remaining tension in her body immediately leaves as she sighs in bliss.

Then the hand pinches her.

“Hey! Stop it, Sen-” Sumire opens her eyes, the sight silencing her immediately.

She’s no longer in the warm café, no longer in the presence of her lover. Instead she’s…

She’s in Odaiba… And it’s raining… And she’s in her gym clothes… And…

And Kasumi is walking ahead of her.

“Today was brutal, huh? You feeling okay?” Kasumi turns around to ask.

No.

“Sumire?”

No.

“Sumire, did you hear me?”

No. No. No. No.

“Sumire, what’s wrong?”

“No!” Sumire says.

“Su-Sumire!?” Kasumi seems concerned now. “What’s going on!”

“No no no no no no no!” Sumire clutches her head.

Not again. Not again. Not again!

“Sumire, are you alright??? You’re scaring me…”

Sumire feels her legs starting to move on their own. She knows what comes next.

Try as she might, she can’t stop herself from running. From sprinting.

“Wait, Sumire!”

She can hear Kasumi chasing her.

“The light’s red!”

Sumire feels tears form in her eyes as she continues running. She enters the street and as expected.

Kasumi pushes her out of the way.

The last thing Sumire sees is the horror in Kasumi’s eyes that’s been burned into her memory. The last thing she hears is the screech of tires and a loud thump.

Sumire’s eyes close, and she refuses to open them, afraid of what she might see.

“Sumi?”

Sumire feels hot tears running down her face as she begins sobbing.

“Sumire!”

She hears someone calling out to her, but she can’t bring herself to care. Kasumi is gone forever and it’s all her fault!

All worthless Sumire’s fault!

How can she wake up and pretend everything’s fine day after day. Her sister is dead and it’s all her fault!

“Sumire!”

She feels someone begin to shake her.

“No!” Sumire exclaims, bringing her hands to her face as she continues sobbing into them.

“Sumire… Please….”

Sumire shakes her head repeatedly as she continues whispering out “No.” over and over again. After a while, she feels a soothing hand run through her hair and down her back. It’s a familiar feeling, a comforting feeling.

Sumire’s heart rate and breathing begins slowing down, but her sobs don’t cease.

She’s not in the middle of a traffic heavy street. She didn’t just watch her sister die.

No, Sumire’s in her dark bedroom, and the hands on her back are her beloved Ren’s. Despite having woken up from the nightmare she was having… She still can’t stop crying. Sumire lets Ren’s arm guide her into his chest and she continues to sob into it.

“Shhh… It’s okay, Sumi… I’m here for you.” Ren assures her in the most soothing voice she’s ever heard.

Minutes pass mostly in silence as Ren continues comforting her, the only noises being her muffled sobs into his shirt. Eventually, Sumire’s sobs stop, but she doesn’t let go of Ren, allowing him to continue comforting her.

Eventually though, Ren speaks up.

“Bad dream?” Ren asks, to which Sumire nods. After a pause, he follows up with another question. “Was it about… Kasumi?”

Sumire nods again.

She hears Ren sigh, not in annoyance, but in sadness. His grip on her tightens.

Silence falls between them once more. Minutes later, it’s broken by Sumire.

“I-I’m sorry you have to see me like this…” Sumire apologizes. “Especially r-right after my b-birthday…”

“Sumire…” Ren replies as he returns to comfortingly stroking her back. “It’s okay…”

…

“Do you want to talk about it?” Ren asks.

Sumire nods her head and the two sit up in her bed.

“I-I…” Sumire struggles to start.

It’s hard to talk about… Even with her Senpai.

Fortunately, her boyfriend understands that and holds her hand, comfortingly rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. Sumire sighs to herself, enjoying his touch, before taking a deep breath.

“W-Well…” Sumire thinks for a bit. “F-First the dream was really good… It was me and you running a café but then… Then I was back in that moment… The moment where Kasumi…” She blinks a few times as tears begin forming in her eyes again. “Y-You remember the v-video that M-Maruki showed us… Right?”

Ren nods his head and looks… distant. Sumire knows why, of course.

Ren never had forgiven Maruki, after all.

“W-Well… I…” Sumire clears her throat. “I was back there again… And I saw Kasumi get hit… Again.”

Sumire feels tears run down her face and once again finds herself wrapped in a tight hug by her beloved.

“I’m so sorry, Sumire…” Ren says. “Do you need me to do anything…?”

“Uh-Uhm…” Sumire blushes a bit. “S-Sorry if this is selfish but… Can we stay like this?”

“Of course…”

Sumire lays back down in the bed, once again wrapped in Ren’s tight grip, hearing the beat of his heart in her ear.

“Thank you… Senpai…”

Sumire reaches up to his head and pulls him in for a kiss that gets her heart racing again, just for a different reason than before. Once the kiss ends she settles her head back onto his chest and enjoys his comforting strokes of her hair and back.

It’s still… hard… to think about Kasumi and what happened… But as she drifts back to sleep, she can only think one thing:

She is so lucky to have Ren to help her through this.