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When asked, they both say they’re the owners of the art gallery that Minako runs and Rei advertises and talks to the clients for but in actuality it’s in Minako’s name and Rei just kind of… assimilated when they started dating.
Minako, Rei thinks half fondly, is terrible at selling things.
She’s incredibly distractible, often forgetting the reason she started talking to someone in the first place, and most of the time Minako ends up chatting the day away without ever scheduling an artist or getting money from a buyer. It makes her more popular than Rei—who tends to be far more direct—but much, much less profitable.
It reminds Rei a little of running the shrine with her grandfather, only Minako is at least good at getting the paperwork done, and her openings are always planned to perfection.
Tonight they’re doing an opening for Michiru—which is more like Michiru is doing them a favor than anything else, she could show her art in much more well-known galleries if she wanted to—and everyone is here, dressed to impress and chatting over the champagne that Minako spent a day dithering over whether to buy or not.
Even Odango-chan managed to ditch most of her bodyguards, although her aide is trailing behind her with a clipboard and a frantic expression. Rei manages to cover her snort with a hand. How someone like that could end up being a candidate for prime minister within the next decade, Rei has no idea.
Minako swings into place at Rei’s elbow—a beautiful, miniature, blonde typhoon contained in smooth skin and an orange dress with a back so low that it might as well not even exist—sending Rei a brilliant smile when she links her arm in Rei’s elbow.
Opening nights are where Minako really shines at this, so long as Rei is there to make sure she doesn’t give things away for free. Rei gives Minako a slight, but incredibly fond and proud, smile back.
“Turnout will be good, if the internet RSVPs are anything to go by,” Minako says, already looking around for their regulars.
“I’ve been getting calls non-stop since we announced Michiru’s exhibit. Hopefully Odango-chan over there doesn’t scare away our new customers,” Rei whispers into Minako’s ear, and she can’t resist tucking a long, blonde strand back behind Minako’s ear, making her giggle.
“She said she was sorry,” Minako says, flashing Rei a playful little smirk that reminds her why she fell for Minako in the first place, “and she paid for the sculpture that got smashed even. When will you let it go?”
“Never,” Rei says piously. “Usagi will be on her deathbed and I’ll be laid up next to her reminding her about it.”
Minako’s bright laugh peals through the gallery, like a bell in a western church, somehow both loud and delicate-sounding. People start and stare, but all that Minako does is buss Rei’s cheek with a hasty kiss and dash over to where a well-known critic is talking to Michiru.
Rei drifts over to where Ami and Makoto are lingering by a stunningly lonely-feeling painting of the ruins of the Moon Kingdom. Ami nods to Rei in greeting.
“Michiru isn’t dealing well with Hotaru going off to college, I think,” Makoto whispers, staring at the painting. Rei presses her grimace into the rim of her glass.
“It’s still gorgeous,” she replies after a moment. “We should just be happy the calamity hasn’t happened yet and we can still do all these things.” In the future, they won’t have this, and Rei hates thinking about that. It’s one of the only things she agrees with Usagi on a regular basis about: that they should do whatever they can to prevent the calamity for as long as possible.
“Mmm, I certainly enjoyed going to university,” Ami says. “I’m glad Hotaru is able to go as well, since that’s what she wants.” She tilts her head at the painting. “Mako-chan, don’t you think this would look good in the living room?”
“I think that six hours of sleep after an overnight shift at the emergency room wasn’t enough,” Makoto replies with a twist to her mouth that tells Rei that if Michiru wasn’t in the room, Makoto would be calling the thing ugly.
Rei lets them drift off, and she stays, sipping her champagne and thinking about Crystal Tokyo.
The future stretches out before them all, interminable and unfathomable, and Rei feels more reluctant than ever to let the passage of time proceed into it.
She slowly turns the glass with her fingertips. They’ve all gone so domestic, her younger self would be appalled.
“Rei!” Minako squeals behind her, just before she’s wrapping warm arms around Rei’s middle. “You should be proud of me, I made a sale without forgetting to get a payment method.”
One of her hands drops to cover Minako’s, and Rei winds their fingers together absently. “I’m always proud of you,” Rei admits. She’s maybe more shaken by the painting than she thought.
Minako gives her a quizzical look, before steering Rei away, chattering happily. Rei relaxes into the easy, familiar nature of it.
At least Minako will be there in that future too.
It makes it feel a little brighter.