Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Sunny days like this always made Chiyo think about the day she first met Nozaki. Walking down the same familiar street, watching students in uniform run to reach school before the gates closed.... It was like going back in time. Hard to believe it had already been five years since she graduated from high school.

Funny to think how little had changed in all that time.

Chiyo shifted the bag of drinks (plus extra ink and brushes) to her other hand and rang the doorbell to let him know she’d be coming inside.

"Good afternoon, Nozaki-kun!"

As she expected, Nozaki was hunched over his desk — no doubt frantically working on today’s deadline. He didn't look up at her, but made a soft noise of acknowledgement. After so many years, Chiyo was long used to the way it made her heart skip a beat.

She put the drinks in the fridge - surprisingly empty; she'd have to remind him to go to the grocery store before she left - and knelt at her little table. Two years ago, when she was officially hired as Nozaki's assistant, it had almost been replaced by a desk. Ken had made an off-hand comment about it, and it had taken all of Chiyo's persuasive skills to keep Nozaki from rushing out and getting one that very instant. She loved this table. It was the perfect size for collaborating on pages, and on the nights when the other helpers weren't around, when it was just her and Nozaki, the young artist would leave his desk and join her on the floor. Glancing up, she could catch his expression of intense concentration (one of her favorite Nozaki faces), and if she was really lucky, sometimes their hands would brush.

"Will Mikorin be stopping by?" Chiyo asked. She already knew Hori was busy tonight with dress rehearsal.

"Nn."

The rush of excitement Chiyo felt when he confirmed they would be alone was as predictable and comforting as sliding into bed at night. She used to think it would go away eventually, either because she got used to being around him, or because she found someone else. Seven years of friendship and two relationships later, Chiyo realized that it never would. She was happier spending time with Nozaki like this than she’d been on dates with other people.

Though she couldn't help feeling disappointed when he didn't join her at the table... and a little concerned as well. He didn't always get up the moment she walked into the apartment, but he never ignored her like this. And he was just staring at the sheets of paper on his desk, something perturbed in his expression.

She would never be able to concentrate on beta like this.

"Are you stuck?" she asked. He did sometimes get very cranky when writer's block hit.

She sighed with relief when he answered: "In a manner of speaking."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Talking about stories with him, helping him work out the kinks, was one of her favorite parts of working with Nozaki.

"Perhaps." He reached into his pocket and knelt on the floor... on one knee.

"Will you marry me?"

Chiyo stared at him. In the seven years they'd been friends, he had asked her any number of unexpected questions, but this was — without a doubt — the most shocking of all. So shocking that it took a good thirty seconds for her to process it enough to scream.

"SUZUKI AND MAMIKO ARE GOING TO GET MARRIED?!?"

Of course the fact that he just proposed to her wasn't surprising. He often practiced upcoming scenes with her, frequently without warning. No, it was the change in Suzuki and Mamiko's relationship that nearly knocked Chiyo back on the floor. Major changes like that just didn't happen in the story. For goodness sake, they spent five (real world) years in high school!

He nodded. "I think it's time."

She couldn't believe it. Chiyo had been a sophomore in college before Nozaki decided graduation wouldn't destroy the delicate heart of his story. He didn't want to lose its innocence, the excitement and possibility and wonder that characterized high school romance.

"Is this the end?" Her voice trembled. She couldn't imagine Let's Fall In Love! being over; it was such a defining part of her life.

Nozaki sat back in his chair with a thoughtful sigh. "Ken-san suggested I expand my creative horizons and start a new series."

She could imagine what Ken actually said: Series like this don't run for almost a decade. Start another project before people get sick of you. She wondered if sales had started declining or if the editor's patience had simply run out.

"I want to make the ending exciting," Nozaki continued. "I almost considered breaking them up --"

"NO! NEVER! THAT'S A TERRIBLE IDEA!"

Nozaki nodded. "Ken-san's words exactly. He suggested that they get married. I agree that that would be an appropriate ending."

"Well of course," Chiyo said. "When someone's your soulmate, why wouldn't you marry them?" As sad as she was about the end of this huge portion of her life, she was delighted that her favorite characters would finally get their happy ending. "But Nozaki-kun, you can't have Suzuki propose like that!"

Nozaki looked puzzled. "I thought that way it would be a surprise."

It was a surprise all right. "But it's not a romantic surprise," Chiyo said. "If he proposes like that, it sounds like he doesn't really care. He needs to take her somewhere special."

Nozaki scribbled furiously in his notebook. "I see..." He looked up. "Like where?"

Chiyo tapped her chin as she thought. "A nice restaurant, maybe? That's where both my university friends went.”

Nozaki stood, and Chiyo scrambled to her feet after him. "Have you had dinner, Sakura?"

An actual dinner date with Nozaki-kun! ...kind of.

They couldn't get into Kozue on such short notice — Nozaki's credentials as a relatively-popular manga artist notwithstanding — but on the way back to his apartment, they passed a cute little Italian restaurant with a romantic atmosphere, and Chiyo immediately dragged him inside. "This is the kind of place people make proposals in," she told him.

"I see." The tables were all tiny, the largest seating only four, and most sat only two. The room was kept dim, with candles on each table being the main source of light. The effect was lovely and intimate, but, Chiyo reflected, absolutely terrible for taking reference pictures with her mediocre cellphone camera.

After they'd given the waiter their orders, they pulled out their sketchbooks simultaneously. Chiyo giggled.

"I was going to sketch some backgrounds for Hori-kun," she said (it had taken her a few years to drop the habitual "senpai"). "I really should invest in a good camera, shouldn't I?"

"I think your drawings are just as good as a photograph," Nozaki said, making her blush. "Besides, it's good practice!"

"Maybe you should try doing it too," Chiyo said.

Nozaki clicked his mechanical pencil with determination — and immediately began sketching the couple to their left. Chiyo sighed, but she couldn't help smiling. It was cute, the things Nozaki avoided doing while still being very serious about his craft.

They didn't say anything else to each other until the waiter brought over their dinners, forcing them to put their sketchbooks away.

"Uwaaah, this looks delicious!" Chiyo clapped her hands together. "Don't you think?" She had ordered a shrimp caprese, and the smell was making her mouth water.

"Hnn." Nozaki regarded his pasta with less enthusiasm. "I don't really care for European food, actually."

Chiyo immediately lost enthusiasm for her meal. "I'm sorry. I just dragged us in here without asking —"

"It's fine," he told her quickly. "This place has a good atmosphere. It's just the sort of place Suzuki would take Mamiko."

Chiyo smiled, but she couldn't help offering one last apology. "Sorry..."

They poked silently at their meals, until Nozaki finally asked: "How were your friends proposed to?"

Chiyo perked up. "Oh you'll love this, it was so romantic!" she gushed. "Hikari-chan's boyfriend had the chef bake the ring into her favorite chocolate cake. She found it as they ate dessert."

"Sounds like a choking hazard," Nozaki said, frowning.

"Only if you take huge bites," though as Chiyo said it, she had to agree choking was a valid concern. "Most people would find it with their forks first."

"What if she didn't get the slice with the ring in it?" he asked.

"The chef marked it with a strawberry." That, at least, was a good response.

Nozaki set his notebook next to his plate and tapped it thoughtfully. "There could be some drama if they get the wrong cake..." Still, he didn't seem entirely convinced. "What about your other friend?"

"That one was really simple," Chiyo said. "Can I have the ring box?" Nozaki handed it over, and she coughed, getting ready to deepen her voice. "Mamiko-chan —" Opening the ring box and holding it out to him "— will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

"Oh Suzuki-kun!" A few people nearby giggled at Nozaki's falsetto, and Chiyo blushed self-consciously, but Nozaki was — as always — completely oblivious.

"Too josei," he said, shaking his head. "It doesn't have the right heart-throbbing passion. They're in college, but it still needs to have the feel of a high school love story. Check, please," he added to the waiter.

"Hmm..." Chiyo thought for a moment. "In that case, maybe he should take her to the place where they first met."

"A ski slope in the Alps?"

Chiyo had forgotten that little side story, which revealed that Mamiko and Suzuki had met before the first chapter of the manga, though neither remembered it.

"Not there!" she told him.

It was late enough in the evening that even the most dedicated teachers had gone home. Nozaki and Chiyo looked around cautiously anyway to make sure no one was watching. It wouldn't look good, two grown adults sneaking into their old high school.

She didn't even need to ask him to lift her over the gate.

Chiyo once again had that strange sensation like she was going back in time — back to that first meeting, when his touch took her breath away and time seemed to stop.

"Do you remember the day we met?" she asked him as he landed.

"Aa," he said, straightening his clothes. "I had stayed up all night to meet a deadline. I almost didn't come to school -"

"But you wanted the flower with the entrance ribbon," Chiyo finished, giggling at the memory. Nozaki smiled a little himself.

"When I saw you, I thought -" Chiyo prepared herself for the inevitable disappointment. "- 'I ought to give Mamiko a ribbon.'"

So that's where the ribbon came from! Chiyo had never imagined she was also part of Mamiko's design. The knowledge made her blush, which she covered by looking around the courtyard.

"So many memories here...." she said.

"Aa," Nozaki agreed.

Hit with sudden inspiration, Chiyo turned to him and pulled out the ring box. "Mamiko-chan, will you help me make another?" She considered dropping to one knee, but he was so much taller than her that it seemed unnecessary.

Nozaki gave her a wide-eyed look of surprise. He was always really good at getting into character for Mamiko.

"Yes." Though he forgot to do the falsetto this time.

Chiyo tried to put the ring on his finger, but it was too small, so Nozaki put it on hers instead. Even knowing that this was all role-play for the sake of the manga, she felt like her heart was going to burst out of her chest.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"It's perfect," he told her. They smiled at each other, then Nozaki helped her back over the gate and they returned to his apartment to work on the storyboards.

She forgot to take off the ring.

Chapter Text

Chiyo forgot about the ring entirely until Mikoshiba screeched: "SA-SA-SAKURA!!! YOUR HAND!!!"

Everyone in the restaurant turned to look at them. Chiyo cringed, but no one else in their little group seemed to care. Seo grabbed Chiyo's hand and held it up for inspection.

"Daaaaaaaaaaamn," she said. "That's a nice ring. Way too cheap for my taste, but it's super you."

"You didn't tell me you were seeing someone!" Kashima pouted. Mikoshiba looked ready to cry about it himself; he always took it so personally when he wasn't the first to know about something. I should have taken it off before our weekly lunch, but it was too late. Now Chiyo just had to nip this in the bud.

"I'm not!" she told them, and gestured for everyone to lower their voices. "This was from Nozaki-kun."

"EEEEEEEEEEEH?!?!" In retrospect, she really should have phrased that better. She waved apologetically at the patrons who had turned, this time to glare at them.

"Just as reference!" she said hurriedly. "Suzuki and Mamiko are getting married."

"Oh. Well that's weird," Seo said, as Mikoshiba and Wakamatsu wailed: "EEEEEEEEEEEH?!?!?!??!?!" Poor Kashima just looked confused.

Chiyo nearly buried her head in her hands as she watched the other customers complain to the waitstaff. We're going to be kicked out before we can eat, aren't we?

"A-are you serious?!?" Wakamatsu asked, talking over the manager who came over to ask them to be quiet.

"How could he DO THIS to me!!!" Mikoshiba sobbed, ignoring the manager's attempt to offer him a handkerchief.

"Excuse me, we're having a private conversation here, thank you." Seo grabbed the handkerchief and shooed the flustered manager away.

"I don't see what the big deal is," Kashima admitted. Mikoshiba and Wakamatsu glared at her like they couldn't believe how heartless she was. "I mean, isn't a wedding a happy thing?"

"Well, yeah, but..." Mikoshiba floundered. Fortunately, Kashima wasn't listening.

"At least it means he's still talking to her! Not like Hori-chan-senpai..." She started sniffling, and Seo handed her the pilfered handkerchief.

"Did you steal his girlfriend again?" she asked with her usual tact.

"I DIDNT MEAN TO!" Kashima wailed. "I DIDN'T KNOW SHE WAS BISEXUAL!"

Do you really need to say it that loud? At this point, Chiyo wasn't even embarrassed — just vaguely annoyed at the histrionics. They were supposed to be grown-up now! They should know better than to behave like this in public.

"Guys, why don't we go get lunch somewhere else?" She smiled apologetically at the manager as she hustled them out the door. Kashima sniffled about how she didn't think the other woman was taking her princess talk seriously and now she'd never be invited to Hori's wedding. It didn't help when Seo asked: "Isn't this like the third time this has happened? Are you sure you're not doing it deliberately?"

"ARE YOU ACCUSING ME OF TRYING TO RUIN SENPAI'S HAPPINESS?!" Kashima cried.

"Maa, maa —" Chiyo took Kashima's arm. "Let's all just have a nice lunch, all right?"

Kashima's mood remained surprisingly low, even once Chiyo got Yuzuki to leave her alone about Hori. When the meal was over and they all separated, she decided to walk the princely girl to her station.

"Chiyo-chan's so lucky," Kashima said, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. Chiyo glanced over, an unspoken invitation for her to elaborate. "You're really good at doing art. That's why you're Nozaki-kun's assistant."

Was this about Hori somehow? "You're a great actress, Kashima-kun!" she said.

But Kashima didn't seem reassured. She sighed and stuck her hand in her pockets. "No, I'm not. I was fine in high school, especially since senpai always cast me as the prince, but I'm not good enough to make a career out of it." She kicked a stone on the curb. "I don't think I want to, either."

Chiyo couldn't believe what she was hearing. And yet, looking back on it, she could. Kashima had looks and charisma, but she never seemed to care about theater the way Hori did, preferring to goof off with the girls in her orbit instead.

"So what do you want to do?" Chiyo asked.

Kashima shrugged. "I don't really know. Model, maybe? Or I could be a host!"

That ... really shouldn't be a career goal, Chiyo thought, but held her tongue.

"But senpai's worked so hard to get me into his theater company," Kashima continued. "I don't want him to hate me."

"He's not going to hate you because you don't want to be an actress," Chiyo said.

"He already hates me because of his girlfriend!" Kashima protested.

Which is fair, though Chiyo knew better than to say that. "Do you think staying at a job you don't like is going to change that?"

"...I guess not," Kashima admitted.

Chiyo linked her arm through the taller girl's. "We've all been friends for a very long time. That's not going to change."

Walking in the opposite direction, Wakamatsu found himself thinking once again about the end of Lets Fall in Love.

"What's wrong, Waka?" Seo asked. "You constipated or something?"

Why would you think I was-- "No!" he snapped. Why are you walking home with me, anyway? But he didn't bother asking that question out loud ... Her answer was guaranteed to make no sense. "I'm just sad about Nozaki-senpai's manga ending."

"You're really attached to that dumb thing, aren't you?" It wasn't actually a question. "Don't tell me you want to draw girly comics too. You know the pay is shit, right? I can't support both of us."

"Of course not!" Like she would have to support him anyway. He didn't know where some of the crazy things she said came from. Clearly this was a conversation that was better off dropped, but he continued anyway because he didn't want Seo to have the wrong idea. "It's just ... this is the end of a big part of my life, you know? I never would have gotten to know Nozaki or Sakura or Mikoshiba or Hori if it weren't for Let's Fall in Love. When I think of it being over, I feel ... lonely."

Seo picked at her teeth. "It's not like that's the only manga he's ever going to draw. He'll probably want you to help on whatever he works on next. Even if he doesn't, s'not like you're not going to know them anymore."

"I guess..." Much to his surprise, the more he thought about it like that, the better he felt. Who knew she could actually be comforting sometimes?

"Things would be pretty boring if they stayed the same forever," Seo continued, and Wakamatsu had to admit she had a point. "Oh, hey, there's a FamilyMart. I need to pick something up."

Do you have to grab my hand? It was a token protest he didn't bother expressing. Seo had been randomly holding his hand for years. He never figured out why she only did it to him and not to anyone else, but at this point he was pretty used to it. Sometimes he'd forget she wasn't his girlfriend and he'd even lace their fingers together — talk about embarrassing!

"Do you need to pick up a toothbrush?" he asked as they headed down the healthcare aisle. He kept meaning to return the one she accidentally left at his place, yet she came over so often to use it that he always forgot.

"Nope," she said. "Aha! I came for this!" She held up a box of Sagami condoms — The thinnest in the world! the box bragged. "Tonight's the night, Waka."

Wakamatsu yelped and yanked her hand down so the box was out of sight. "Wh-wh-what are you talking about?!?"

Seo grinned and moved closer, brushing her lips against his ear in an unsettling way. "Tonight we're having s-e-x."

"WHAAAAAAAAT?!?" Wakamatsu stumbled backwards, nearly knocking over one of the displays. Seo looked as surprised as he felt.

"We've been dating for what, seven years now?" she said. "I'm a traditional girl, so I was waiting for you to pop the question, but clearly you're afraid of commitment and I don't really want to wait any longer, so..." She waggled the box of condoms, and he frantically knocked them out of her hand.

"What do you mean we've been dating?!" he hissed. NOBODY TOLD ME WE WERE DATING!!!

"What do you think we've been doing for the past seven years?" Seo asked.

"N-not dating!" Wakamatsu stammered.

Seo looked at him like he was an idiot. "We've made out, like, thirty times."

"I thought you were practicing CPR!"

"With my tongue?"

"I'VE NEVER NEEDED CPR BEFORE!" Wakamatsu cried.

"Well, uh, spoiler alert: it doesn't involve tongue." She picked up the condoms and crossed her arms. Her voice seemed ... genuinely annoyed. As mean and tactless and crass as she often was, Wakamatsu realized he'd never actually heard her be upset before. Not like this. "So what, were you thinking like 'Yay CPR practice time!' or 'Ugh, I can't believe she wants to practice CPR again'?"

He wasn't sure he wanted to answer that ... it wasn't the kind of thing he had ever really thought about. "I, uh, thought you were really good at it?"

She stared at him, like he was some kind of weird-looking bug. He squirmed. It wasn't a lie, really — actually, it was more true than he really wanted to admit. What kind of person got excited about being a CPR practice dummy?

Then slowly, terribly, she smiled.

"Good enough for me, I guess," she said, and grabbed his hand again. "C'mon. Tonight we're practicing some naked CPR."

Chapter Text

Mikoshiba had a problem. Well, actually, Mikoshiba had a lot of problems, first and foremost being the release of LoveLove High School Dream had been delayed for another six months, and not far behind that being Nozaki completely failed to tell him that he was ending Let's Fall in Love.

At least one of those problems he could do something about. He stormed into Nozaki's apartment and slammed his hand on the desk (after checking to make sure he wouldn't be ruining any new pages).

"Why didn't you tell me about the engagement?!?!" he snapped.

"Didn't I?"

"No, you didn't!" Though Mikoshiba did wrack his brain, trying to remember if maybe he actually had.

"Sorry." Nozaki leaned back in his chair and stretched. "To be perfectly honest, it doesn't quite feel real yet. I'm trying to find the perfect way to wrap everything up."

Mikoshiba threw himself to the floor. "You're not going to end with the proposal?"

Nozaki shook his head. "I thought about it, but I want to have a proper ending for all my characters, not just Suzuki and Mamiko."

"How about the wedding?" Mikoshiba asked. "That's the perfect place to bring everybody together."

Nozaki glanced down, looking ... a little shy? Unfortunately, Mikoshiba didn't notice, because he had started to giggle. It was a devious, yet still somehow cute & girlish, sound.

"What?" Nozaki asked.

"If you're going to have a wedding," Mikoshiba said, "then you need to have a bachelor party!"

"A bachelor party?" Nozaki asked.

"Yeah! It's a party for the groom to celebrate his last night of freedom before the wedding!" Mikoshiba gushed. "It's a big thing in America."

Really Mikoshiba just wanted an excuse to plan a party where he could feel cool and manly — which meant a party that Kashima couldn't attend.

"I suppose that could be exciting," Nozaki said, rubbing his chin. "I'll start drawing the storyboards--"

"Don't you need to have one for reference?" Mikoshiba asked quickly, before his dreams of a super manly party could crumble into dust. "That's why you proposed to Sakura, isn't it?" It was hard to tell, but Mikoshiba thought that maybe Nozaki was blushing? Except then he sneezed, so maybe he was just sick. He pushed on. "I'll plan everything! You won't have to worry about a thing."

It certainly seemed like Nozaki was seriously considering it. "Does the bride usually plan the bachelor party?" he asked.

"No way!" Mikoshiba said. What kind of ridiculous question is that? "Bachelor parties are for men. MEEEEEN. No girls allowed. They get their own party, I think."

"I see." Nozaki scribbled this in his notes. "Then thank you."

Of course, this then presented Mikoshiba with a different problem, which eventually led him to the theater where Kashima and Hori worked.

"Mamikoshiba!" Hori no longer stumbled over his name ... he had just given up on pronouncing it correctly altogether. "What brings you here?"

"Is Kashima around?" Mikoshiba regretted asking when a dark look crossed Hori's face.

"A few of the understudies dragged her out for parfaits," he said, crossing his arms. "That girl is completely useless. What did you need her for?"

Mikoshiba threw himself into a seat and sighed. "I need some advice. I'm trying to plan Suzuki's bachelor party ... hey!" He perked up as an idea occurred to him. "You're a guy, Hori!"

"At least somebody remembers," Hori grumbled.

Mikoshiba continued like he hadn't spoken. "Have you been to a bachelor party?"

"Eh?"

"A bachelor party," Mikoshiba repeated. "For a guy who's about to get married. It's a big thing in America."

"None of my friends have gotten married," Hori said. "And I don't know anyone from America. Why is Suzuki having a bachelor party?"

"Didn't you hear?" Mikoshiba was delighted to discover that he wasn't the LAST person to find out. "Nozaki's having Mamiko and Suzuki get married."

"Woooooow." Hori leaned back. "Hard to believe after all these years. So what, this bachelor party's going to bring back some characters? That'd be nice."

Mikoshiba nodded eagerly. Yes, that was exactly the reason, nothing else. "I promised Nozaki that I'd plan a party he could use as reference," he said. "But I don't really know what to do."

"You got the idea from some American films, right?" Hori asked. "What did they do in those?"

"Uh..." Mikoshiba thought. "Drank a lot, tied their ties around their heads, and hired strippers." When he put it like that, a bachelor party didn't sound like a good idea at all.

"Are you crazy?" Hori slammed his fist on the arm of Mikoshiba's chair, making him jump. "Suzuki wouldn't hire a stripper! He would never betray yo-oooomiko like that!"

Mikoshiba took a moment to calm his racing heart before he said: "I think you mean Mamiko." Hori was seriously bad with names.

"The point being," Hori said sternly, without any sign of embarrassment. "Those activities are completely unacceptable! If you want to have a bachelor party, you'll have to figure out something else to do."

Mikoshiba agreed, but sulked anyway because he didn't like being scolded.

"You guys have parties when you finish a play, don't you?" he asked. "What do you do for those?"

"Let's see...." Hori said. "We take down the set, get snacks from the convenience store, and then hang out at someone's house & swap stories about what happened backstage."

"That doesn't sound very exciting."

Hori shrugged. "By that point, we all just want to relax."

Who knew actors were so boring? Mikoshiba thought with blithe hypocrisy. He had counted on them being exciting! "That's nice, but it doesn't help me," he moaned.

"What if you set it somewhere exciting?" Hori suggested. "Mountain resorts are always fun to draw."

A smile slowly blossomed across Mikoshiba's face. "Hori, you're a genius!"

"Ah, Wakamatsu, I see you were invited as well."

"Nozaki-senpai!" I guess i don't have to worry about it being a surprise party... The two young men fell into step as they walked towards Mikoshiba's apartment building. Never particularly comfortable with silence, unless he was working, Wakamatsu latched onto the first conversational topic he could think of. "Do you know who else is invited?"

Nozaki shook his head. "Only that no girls are allowed. This is supposed to be a 'sacred ground for the male spirit, an opportunity for men to truly be men!'"

"I wonder if he invited Kashima..." Wakamatsu wondered quietly. She was, after all, probably the manliest person any of them knew... except for — "You don't think he invited Seo, do you?!"

"Never!!!" Nozaki's eyes grew hard as ice, while his aura seemed to be on fire.

Wakamatsu took comfort in that absolute conviction. He wasn't ready to see Seo again. Just thinking about her made him feel sick. Not in an unpleasant way, just a hot-faced-tingly-body-kinda-dizzy way.

He was glad when Nozaki changed the subject.

"What's that you're carrying?" Nozaki asked.

"This?" Wakamatsu held up the box, which was wrapped in a delicate pink furoshiki with a cherry blossom pattern. "I wasn't sure what the etiquette for a bachelor party is, so I brought a host gift and a wedding envelope."

Nozaki stopped and pulled out his notebook. "How much did you put in?"

"Eh?" Wakamatsu hemmed, not really comfortable with the question, but not wanting to call Nozaki rude either. "Eh... 20,000 yen, I think?"

Nozaki nodded as he wrote this down. "How close would you say we are?"

"I couldn't possibly—!!" He and Nozaki were friends, of course, but Wakamatsu would never dare to presume ... what if he said they were closer than Nozaki thought they were? Or not as close? He wasn't even sure which would be worse, but either way, he didn't want to hurt the older boy's feelings.

"An estimate will do," Nozaki said, trying to be helpful.

Can't you estimate yourself? "Eh ... I consider you a very important person to me?" Wakamatsu had to concentrate to make sure he didn't accidentally crush the gift in his hands, which was absolutely why he couldn't look Nozaki in the eye. "You've been so kind and supportive of me all these years..."

"Good, good," Nozaki murmured as he scribbled. Wakamatsu jumped when he snapped his notebook shut. "Thank you, Wakamatsu. That was very helpful."

After a moment, he added: "I've never been to a wedding before, so I'm not sure what the customs are for wedding gifts."

"Ah, that makes sense!" Wakamatsu felt much better about the whole exchange. Of course Nozaki would ask for reference. How silly of him not to realize that.

They finally reached Mikoshiba's apartment, and their host opened the door before Nozaki could even ring the bell. "It took you long enough!" Mikoshiba scolded.

"Sorry," Nozaki told him. "I had some research to do."

"Come on in, come on in. Oh, but first close your eyes!"

Wakamatsu and Nozaki obeyed, and stumbled into the apartment, the door closing behind them with a ominous clang. Mikoshiba all but knocked them over in his effort to get ahead. "Sorry, sorry — okay, you can open your eyes.

"TAA-DAAAAAAA!"

His room looked like the backstage of their high school theater. Propped up against the walls were set backdrops depicting snowy mountains and ... an onsen? Hori sat on a sleeping bag in the middle of the room, compulsively tweaking a papier-mâché campfire.

"This looks amazing!!!" Wakamatsu gushed. Nobody noticed the twitch in Nozaki's lips as Mikoshiba squirmed in delight at the praise.

"We didn't have the time or money to arrange for something really exotic..." Mikoshiba said.

"For something like this, the setting really is just a backdrop, anyway," Hori added.

"Hnn," Nozaki agreed, and settled down on another sleeping bag. "This is good. Well done, Mikoshiba." Their host all but purred with pleasure. "So. What do we do now?"

"Now we eat snacks and talk!" Mikoshiba said, putting a large bowl of treats in the center of the circle. Hori meticulously edged it away from the fake campfire.

"Oh, oh, I brought snacks too!" Wakamatsu said and handed Mikoshiba the box, before holding the envelop out to Nozaki. "I guess I should give this to you too."

Nozaki waved it off. "Please keep it. This is all just reference material."

"Are you sure?" Wakamatsu asked. "I mean, you did give Sakura-senpai a ring."

"For reference," Nozaki repeated.

"Then why did she keep the ring?" Mikoshiba asked. "If you just needed the proposal for reference, there's no reason for her to still be wearing the ring."

"... I need engagement reference too," Nozaki said.

Hori gave Nozaki a flat look. "That's pretty cruel to Sakura, don't you think?"

While privately Wakamatsu agreed with Hori, he felt obligated to jump to Nozaki's defense, considering their earlier conversation about friendship.

"I'm sure Sakura-senpai understands!" he said. "And don't you think you're being cruel to Kashima? She's really hurt that you won't talk to her!"

"Then maybe she should try not flirting with my girlfriends," Hori snapped.

Nozaki, wholly unperturbed by the argument started on his behalf, opened up a bag of chips and began munching. "I'm not sure that's something she can turn off," he said.

Hori groaned and buried his face in his hands. "I know, I know. I just wish being friends with her didn't mean spending the rest of my life alone."

"Why don't you try dating her?" Nozaki asked.

Wakamatsu and Mikoshiba both gasped. Such a bold question!

But Hori just snorted. "I don't think she'd have time to pencil me into her schedule. She already goes out with at least three girls a day. Call me selfish, but I'd rather date a girl who could commit to me."

The boys all nodded, acknowledging this as a fair point.

"By the way, why isn't Mayu here?" Hori asked. "He's Nozaki's brother, after all."

Mikoshiba turned a deep red and dove for his phone. Nozaki leaned over and whispered: "He still forgets Mayu is a guy."

"How long have they been dating?!?"

"SHUT UP!" Mikoshiba shouted. "It's not like this is a real engagement! I bet you haven't even told him about it yet."

“Why would he, if it’s just for reference?” Hori asked. “You only tell your family about a girl when you get serious. There’s no point getting their hopes up.” It seemed to Wakamatsu that he gave Nozaki an extremely sharp look as he said that.

Wakamatsu glanced at Nozaki to see if the barb hit, but the older boy was inscrutable as always.

Chapter Text

What kind of cake would best match the flowers? I should ask Mikorin. Oh, and I should make sure Nozaki-kun doesn't pick a sailor outfit for the bridesmaids dresses...

"AAAAAAAAH!" Chiyo screamed as someone abruptly whacked her on the head. She rubbed it and glared balefully up at the offender. "Yuzuki!"

"Oh good," Seo said, tossing herself into the seat next to Chiyo. "I thought you might have head trauma or something."

I do now, thanks. "Shouldn't you be at work right now?" Chiyo asked. The park where she had settled down to get some sunlight while she read was on the other side of town from where Seo worked.

"They're going on some company "co-worker bonding" excursion, so Manager gave me the day off." Seo held her thumbs up and winked. "Lucky!"

"Very lucky..." Chiyo smiled. It had taken her a few years to appreciate what Nozaki meant when he called Seo "oblivious", but — unlike him — she thought it was one of her friend's charming qualities. She was always interesting to be around.

"So what's all this?" Seo pulled an unwrapped lollipop out of her pocket and stuck it in her mouth. "More research?"

Chiyo tugged on her pigtail. "Kind of..." It was all for Let's Fall In Love in the end, but the magazines and cutouts surrounding her right now were definitely more in line with her personal fantasies than the manga's aesthetic.

"Whaddya mean?" Seo sucked loudly on her lollipop, then pulled it out with a plop and gestured to Chiyo's hand. "You're still wearing that cheapo ring. Don't tell me you guys are seriously gonna tie the knot."

In high school, a question like that would have sent Chiyo into a flailing mess of dreams and embarrassment. Now that she was older — she managed to keep her flailing mostly on the inside.

"O-of course not!" she stammered. "It's not actually an engagement ring. It's ... just a present."

"Hooooooooooo?" Seo crunched loudly on her lollipop.

"I'm serious!" Chiyo protested. "... don't look at me like that!"

"I'm just trying to figure out if you're lying or if you're being an idiot," Seo said.

"Yuzuki!"

Seo tossed the remains of her lollipop into the nearby trashcan with eerie accuracy. "What else do you call someone who lets the guy she loves fake-propose to her and keeps wearing the ring?" she asked.

When put it like that, Chiyo had to admit Seo had a point. Even though her head knew that it was just reference for the manga, her heart kept getting its hopes up. She was constantly dreaming about a married life with Nozaki, almost as though she was in high school again, before she had realized he would never love her that way.

She wailed and slammed her head on the table — once again, just like in high school. "Yuzuki, what do I do?!"

"How should I know?" Seo asked. "I've never understood your weird relationship."

Chiyo couldn't bring herself to sit up again, but she moved so her chin was resting on the table instead and glared balefully at her friend. "You're one to talk about weird relationships, " she muttered under her breath.

If Seo heard, she pretended otherwise.

It wasn't like Chiyo was avoiding the topic with Nozaki. She tried LOTS of times to talk to him about the wedding. Like when he asked her if they should have a traditional or a Western ceremony. And when they went to look at dresses. And when they went to try cakes.

But every time, he'd ask something, or say something, or hold something up, and suddenly she was modeling different dresses for his sketchbook, or taking reference photographs of elaborate cake designs.

Sakura Chiyo, you love him more than anything else in the world. So why can't you talk to him?

"Sakura."

"YES!!!" Chiyo yelped, nearly knocking over a bottle of ink. She was staying late at his apartment to help him meet yet another deadline.

And he was evidently still thinking about the final chapter, as evidenced by the notebook he held up. "Which font do you prefer for the wedding invitations?"

He had written the words "YOU'RE INVITED" in a handful of different styles, ranging from extremely stylized kanji to cutesy English with a heart for the apostrophe and flowers for the vowels.

She should tell him to get back to work on inking, but — "They're all so lovely!" Of course, while flattering, that wasn't exactly a helpful answer, so she took the notebook for a closer examination. If they were really getting married, she would probably say the English - Wouldn't a bow on the t be adorable?! - but she didn't think Suzuki would go for something as informal as that.

"By the way," Nozaki said as she mulled over the options, "when do you think we should tell our parents?"

She looked up at him. "About what?"

"The wedding."

"You haven't told them about Suzuki and Mamiko yet?"

Nozaki suddenly looked shy and uncertain. It was unusual for the usually unexpressive young man. Chiyo wondered if maybe he got distracted by an idea for a panel.

"For our wedding," he said.

For our wedding.

For our wedding.

FOR OUR WEDDING.

"EEEEEEEEEHHHH??!!?!?!?" The notebook fell from Chiyo's lifeless fingers, sending the still-unsealed bottle toppling over and covering the table and her dress in ink.

"Sakura, the ink -" When it became clear Chiyo wouldn't be responsive any time soon, he got up and fetched towels and a surface cleaner. The table was scrubbed clean, the art supplies neatly put away, a change of clothes put in front of her (the sailor dress from high school, of course), and teriyaki chicken was sizzling on the stove by the time Chiyo emerged from her fog of shock.

"What do you mean, for our wedding?" she asked, approximating calm as best as she could. "Isn't this just for reference?"

"Is that what you want?" he asked.

I want you to be in love with me. "That's what you said it was for," she said.

"True."

Chiyo waited for him to add something, but he was focused entirely on the chicken. So she forced herself to speak.

"Do you want to get married? For real?" Her throat was so tight, she could hardly get the words out. She wished he would look at her, while feeling like she'd die if he did.

Her heart stopped when he finally spoke again. "I never considered marriage for myself." The words came slowly, in a shy, measured pace. "Nor did I consider dating, except for research. I've never felt that heart-pounding passion for anyone."

She already knew this; it wasn't a ground-breaking revelation ... just a heart-breaking one.

"Then why tell our parents?" she asked. "If this is only for research..."

For awhile, the only sound was the sizzle of meat. Then, with a click, Nozaki turned off the stove and plated the chicken.

"It isn't only for research," he said. "I may not feel that heart-pounding passion for anyone, but I don't feel nothing. Over the past few weeks I've realized that I can't picture my life without you in it. If I had to choose between you and following Ken-san to another department..." He stopped, clearly struggling with emotion. "I would beg you on my hands and knees to let me follow him. Ken-san is important to me. But you are irreplaceable. I want people to know that."

He glanced at her and asked: "Are you angry with me?" That was when Chiyo realized she was crying.

"I'm happy," she hastened to reassure him. "I'm so happy to finally know your real feelings. I think..." She struggled to catch her breath enough to speak. "There's nobody else like you in the whole world."

Nozaki stared thoughtfully at the plate of chicken. "I don't think that's true," he said. "That's another reason I want to end the series. I want to try and write a different kind of love story, for people like me."

Chiyo's heart jumped and twirled. This was her favorite Nozaki — not only devoted to his work, which he always was, but passionate about it. This was the reason he managed to touch so many hearts all across the country.

"Though I suppose we don't really have to get married for that," he continued.

"NO!" Chiyo yelped. "No, I want to marry you. Because ..." Her face turned as red as her ribbon, and she suddenly couldn't look him in the eye. "Because ... I'm your biggest fan."

SERIOUSLY, AGAIN?!?!??! she wailed to herself.

"Are you sure?" Nozaki asked. "I don't want you to feel like you're missing something."

Chiyo thought about her other boyfriends, the ones she cuddled and kissed. "That other stuff is nice," she said, "but it's not necessary for me." Somehow, despite her acute embarrassment, she managed to look up at him and smile. "I love you. That's what matters to me."

They shared a smile, and Chiyo felt a contentment much like pure happiness.

"Hold that pose," Nozaki said. "I need to sketch this."

Chapter Text

The wedding went about as well as could be expected. Their entire graduating class attended, as did Nozaki's editorial department. Much to Nozaki's disappointment, Ken refused to walk him down the aisle, or even to officiate the ceremony. He had to settle for forcing his editor into a front row seat, right next to his parents.

Mikorin and Mayu sat next to each other at the main table as all the guests filed in for the reception. Both had their phones out.

6Mikoshiba9: Why do I have to give the toast?!

MayuMayu: You volunteered.

6Mikoshiba9: Well, yes, but ... You should be the one!

MayuMayu: It's too much effort.

6Mikoshiba9: You're his family!!!

MayuMayu: You could be too.

Mikorin nearly fell out of his chair. "Wh-what's that supposed to mean?!?!?" he asked, grabbing a glass of water — though he wasn't sure if he was going to dump it on Mayu or on himself.

Mayu opened his mouth as if to speak ... then closed it and typed instead.

MayuMayu: Same-sex marriage is legal in America now. The government would recognize it if we got married there.

Mikorin let out a high-pitched squeal and dumped the glass of water on his phone. After a moment, he realized what he had done.

"Rice." Mayu pointed to the kitchen, and Mikorin took off running.

"What an idiot," Seo said, watching as Mikorin nearly fell as he ran to the kitchen. She punctuated this statement by biting loudly into a carrot. Wakamatsu flinched at the sound.

"Senpai..." Could you avoid biting so hard on foods that look like ... Aaah, I couldn't!

Seo leaned over and poked him in the chest. "Yu-zu-ki. How many times do I have to tell you that? It sounds weird when you scream —"

Wakamatsu yelped and dove to cover her mouth. "Yuzuki!" he said, desperately trying to shut her up.

To his surprise, it worked. She didn't say anything else; she just stared at him with wide eyes and cheeks that were blushing becomingly. Was she ... embarrassed? Finally he had something he could use against her! Grinning, not letting go of her mouth, he leaned closer and whispered her name in her ear. She's really cute when she's embarrassed.

It was the last thing he would think for the next half-hour.

On the other side of the reception hall, Kashima stood amidst a throng of adoring women — a fairly typical day in her life. Fortunately, Chiyo had the foresight to hire an all-male wait staff for the reception, so only the guests were distracted.

"Hori-senpai!" Kashima called his name out of habit when she saw him at the refreshment table. She didn't expect him to answer, of course — he still hadn't forgiven her.

... or maybe he had! She lit up as he waved in acknowledgement. I'm finally forgiven! For how long, she didn't know, since she hadn't talked to him yet about her desire to quit, but at this moment she didn't care. She pushed her way through the protesting mob to reach him.

"Isn't this wonderful, senpai?" she asked.

Hori nodded. "I'm happy for them," he said. "They really suit each other."

"I am too." Kashima smiled at Chiyo and Nozaki, who had stopped one of the attendants and were sketching his uniform. "Ah, but that's not what I meant! You finally had the chance to live your dream!"

She instantly knew she'd said the wrong thing.

"How many times do I have to tell you — It's not my dream to wear a dress!!!!"

The resulting smack was enough to distract Chiyo and Nozaki from their obsessive sketching, and the waiter took the opportunity to sneak back to work.

"It looks like Kashima and Hori are getting along again," Nozaki said.

"In a manner of speaking..." Chiyo agreed cautiously. "But doesn't Hori look wonderful in that dress?"

Nozaki nodded. "His form is quite well suited for it. Mikorin's too. But I'm afraid mine..."

"I think you look wonderful in your wedding dress!"

Because Nozaki wanted to really get into Mamiko's head for the wedding scene, they had decided to have a gender-swapped wedding, with Chiyo in a handsome tuxedo (from a wedding Nozaki attended when he was 12), and Nozaki in an elaborate princess-style bridal gown. The skirt was fluffy and large, giving the illusion of a girlish waistline. Nothing could be done about his broad shoulders, so it was sleeveless, but a long veil kept it modest. It did indeed look ridiculous on him, but Chiyo wasn't lying ... just a little biased.

Nozaki smiled in unspoken thanks, and Chiyo turned her attention back to the rest of the room.

"Are you happy with the way it's ending?" Chiyo asked softly.

He nodded. "Yes," he said. "This is the perfect ensemble ending." He looked so happy, so pleased with everything — it was beautiful.

"Hold that pose," she told him, and pulled out her sketchbook.