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They still lived separately, and neither had broached the topic of cohabitation. It had become Shuichi's daily routine to pick Jodie up in the morning and drive her home at night. She would kiss him goodbye, get out of his car, and enter her apartment building—all under the watchful eye of Shuichi, who would wait willingly until the lights on her apartment turned on before speeding off in his Mustang, heading to his home.
They both agreed that work came first but made sure that their private lives weren't left behind. After a long and tiring day at work, spending the night together, either at her place or his, sufficed most of the time. On their rest days, Shuichi would occasionally take her out for a walk in the park or a long drive on the roads of New York. For the time being, it was enough for both of them to know that they had each other and enjoyed every moment they shared together, especially in private.
Sometimes, Jodie would invite Shuichi to spend the evening at her apartment, where they would cook and eat together. After that, she would send him to the door, kiss him and finally bid him goodbye. But if it was the night before their rest day, they would drink bourbon and sherry to their hearts' desire. The rest of the night would be full of teasing, touching here and there, and eventually, they would fall asleep, only to wake up the next morning naked and tightly embraced.
Shuichi had thought about moving into Jodie's apartment. It was bigger than his, and she had been living there for a long time. Additionally, he knew how Jodie cherished her place because they had spent a lot of lovely times there way back then. It may have been abandoned for a while, kept dark and deserted, but it was now collecting sweet memories again. Her apartment was their love nest—a silent witness to the great love that had once been lost but, in the end, found its way home.
The idea of living with Jodie excited him; the two of them living under the same roof, him preparing breakfast for her, her washing their clothes, and endless scenarios picturing a happy couple. He was looking forward to a future with Jodie and knew that she was, too, with him. And the first step to that was to give her what she deserved.
Shuichi had just completed his task of assisting teams of agents in arresting a group of criminals.
After making sure that the captured suspects were loaded into one of the vehicles and tightly secured, he decided to head back to headquarters with his colleagues.
He threw the cigarette butt on the ground, stuffed the case containing his beloved rifle in the backseat of his car, and sat behind the steering wheel.
His phone vibrated, indicating a new message. He took the device out of his jacket pocket, swiped the screen, and tapped the contact name "Mom".
Mary had just sent him a photo of his two siblings decorating a large Christmas tree at their family home in England. His brother, Shukichi, and his wife, Yumi, who had just gotten married a week ago, were staying in England for their honeymoon.
Then his mom sent another photo. Looking at the photo of onesies, hats, mittens, and booties, he raised an eyebrow.
Could it be? he thought to himself. He was not entirely sure if it was what he thought it was, but still, a warm and cordial smile formed on his lips.
He was about to reply and ask about the photo of baby stuff when his mom sent a message. It was a short story about how Masumi excitedly dragged her to the infant section of a department store they went shopping in and chose those items herself. When Mary turned to her husband and said, "Look at how excited your daughter is," she was surprised to see Tsutomu holding a beige baby hat and showing it to her. "Isn't this a good find, dear? I find the tiny details cute, plus the color is gender-neutral," he said. In the end, the Akai matriarch just shook her head in amazement, while the father-daughter duo went on to fill their shopping basket.
However, during their family dinner that night, the newlyweds told them that they had decided not to extend their family of two just yet. Masumi, who had been over the moon, expecting to be an aunt in less than a year was saddened to hear this. Mary scolded her for being childish but admitted that she, too, had expected to welcome her first grandchild.
Shuichi leaned back, closed his eyes, and smiled as he recalled what his mother had told him a year ago when he drove them to the airport in Japan.
"I'm over fifty years old now. Hurry up and give me grandchildren already!"
When Shuichi introduced Jodie to his family for the very first time and told them who precisely she was in his life, Mary only nodded nonchalantly before shaking hands with her, much differently from how the rest of the Akai family took the news that the eldest of the Akai siblings actually had a woman in his life. Tsutomu was nothing but enthusiastic to welcome Jodie as the newest addition to their family, next to Yumi. Shukichi and Masumi were a picture of proud siblings.
But that night, after dinner, Mary went to Jodie and pressed a bottle of wine into her hands. The latter was left speechless when the former explicitly told her how glad she was that she and Shuichi had found their way back to each other again. Before Jodie could react, Mary had told her that Shuichi was her son and it was only natural that a mother knew about the life of her child.
"And don't you ever let Jodie go again, you wretch! She's going to be the mother of your future children and no one else."
His smile grew even wider at his mother's last words to him before she flew back to England with Tsutomu and Masumi. If she wanted to, she could be intimidating yet adorable at the same time. That was the unknown sweet side of his mother that Shuichi loved.
The thought of Jodie bearing a child, half of her and half of him, brought warmth to his heart. He would love to take care of her, the way she took care of him. He would love to hold a tiny human being in his arms with Jodie by his side, and swear to be their protector against all harm.
Shuichi had never thought that he would dream of becoming a family man in the future, as he had only been focused on his job. Even when he began a romantic relationship with Jodie, the thought of settling down never interested him. All he knew was that he loved her, and he was happy that they were together.
Then the mission of taking down the Black Organization came into the picture, and he had been assigned the task of infiltrating it. Though he kept saying that the mission came first, it had been hard to say goodbye to Jodie. She had pretended to be strong, but he knew her well enough to understand that the thought of her boyfriend having to get close to a woman to make his way into the organization had already broken her heart. And what hurt her even more was the fact that there was no guarantee that he would come back to her, alive and well. Shuichi hadn't just risked his relationship with Jodie but also his life.
Even after all those years, he could still clearly remember how sad her face had looked the day they had to part. He had hoped that it would be the last time he would see her like that. Unfortunately, though, it was just the beginning of her suffering. Jodie had been in the deepest depths of agony; the only man she loved sacrificed her for his mission, left her for another woman, made her believe he was dead, and pretended to disregard her feelings all those times. Hurting her hadn't been easy for him, but he had to do what had to be done. In the end, the sacrifices were all worth it. It took years, but they had succeeded in the mission and everything went back to how it was before.
Shuichi dialed her number, and it didn't take long for Jodie to answer.
"Hey, Shu, what's up? Is there something?" she asked immediately. There was a hint of worry in her voice.
"No," he replied. "Do you have some chicken and vegetables at your house?"
"Chicken and vegetables? Seriously, Shu? You called just to ask about the contents of my fridge?" she asked, amused.
Though it was faint, Jodie could hear how Shuichi chuckled for a moment. "I'm heading back to the office now, with the others and the captured criminals, of course."
"Well, I had expected that. Congratulations on yet another successful operation."
"Rather, where are you? You don't sound like you're at the office."
"Yeah. I've got a new lead on the Pentagram case, and now I'm on my way to interview a witness."
"Do you need me to accompany you? I can leave the turnover of the suspects to the others."
"No, it's okay. I'll be fine on my own. I'll just fill you in on the latest developments with the case when I get back to the office."
"Fine with me. If anything happens, just call."
"Sure. I will."
Shuichi remained silent for a while, and for the next few seconds, Jodie could only hear a rattling sound. "Jodie, I would like to come over to your apartment and cook dinner for you tonight. So, can I find chicken and vegetables in your fridge?"
"Yes, as well as other ingredients you need to make a delicious curry," Jodie answered, deducing what he was planning to cook. He had learned to cook other dishes as well, but chicken curry had been his specialty. "I'm excited now, and I can't wait for the evening to come."
"Me, too. Well, then, see you later. Take care."
"I will. See you."
Shuichi ended the call. He looked at the content of a small black velvet box he was holding in his hand and smiled for the umpteenth time that day.