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The Fourth of July: an annual holiday created to celebrate freedom.
It was a loud night as Yizhuo and Aeri walked hand in hand through the city park. Hundreds of people surrounded them, chatting about anything and everything while children laughed, music drifted through the air, and the smell of barbecue lingered in the warm summer breeze.
Yizhuo licked her ice cream cone, the soft serve helping cool her off. Aeri glanced over at her. How could she not? Her girlfriend looked adorable, a streak of vanilla ice cream clinging to her upper lip that her tongue missed.
Yizhuo must’ve sensed her staring because she looked over.
“What?”
Aeri smiled softly. “Nothing.”
She reached up, swiping the bit of ice cream away with her thumb before bringing it to her own lips and licking it off.
Yizhuo’s face twisted in exaggerated disgust. She shoved Aeri’s shoulder, but despite her best attempt to look offended, she couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped when Aeri puckered her lips dramatically and leaned in with an obnoxious kissing face.
“Whaaat?” Aeri grinned, winking. “We’ve done worse things together.”
Yizhuo let out a quiet eugh, pushing her girlfriend away. But every time Yizhuo tried pushing her away, Aeri simply came right back, only making Yizhuo laugh harder.
As their laughter settled, they continued walking without any real destination in mind.
After a moment, Yizhuo held up her ice cream, silently offering Aeri a bite. To her complete surprise, Aeri opened her mouth and took the entire rest of the cone in one bite, accidentally catching Yizhuo’s fingers between her teeth.
“Ugh!” Yizhuo groaned, immediately wiping her hand on Aeri’s shirt.
Aeri only giggled through a mouthful of ice cream.
Her laughter was cut short by a deafening boom overhead.
Both girls turned their heads just in time to catch the first fireworks exploding across the night sky, colorful sparks cascading through the darkness before fading away.
“It’s starting,” Yizhuo said excitedly, grabbing Aeri’s hand and pulling her toward the open grassy field.
After weaving through the crowd, they found an empty patch of grass and sat down beside one another, their shoulders brushing and their legs pressed lightly together.
Today had been a pretty great day.
They’d bought balloon animals, though they had sadly popped almost immediately after Yizhuo decided setting them on the grass was a brilliant idea. The blades had burst them within seconds. They’d squeezed into a bouncy house, and sure, people probably saw them and called them childish or immature, but neither of them cared. They’d also wandered through the park, eaten ice cream, and talked about whatever happened to cross their minds.
It was fun… spending time with Yizhuo.
Aeri found it to be one of the greatest pleasures in her life. Yizhuo always found a way to make her laugh. To make her smile. Aeri was simply… happier around her.
Yizhuo suddenly gasped, lightly smacking Aeri’s arm.
“Look at that one!” she exclaimed. “It’s so pretty!”
Aeri looked up, watching as a brilliant blue firework bloomed across the sky before raining shimmering sparks over the crowd.
It was pretty, sure. But Aeri found something much prettier to look at.
Her attention drifted back to Yizhuo.
The fireworks illuminated her face in shifting shades of blue, pink, and gold, bathing her in soft light that somehow made her look even more breathtaking. It never ceased to amaze Aeri how beautiful her girlfriend was.It was almost unfair. Somehow, she only seemed to get prettier every single day.
Aeri couldn’t pull her eyes away.
Yizhuo glanced over, feeling Aeri gently slide their hands together until their fingers intertwined. She smiled before another firework cracked overhead, pulling her attention back to the sky.
“It’s beautiful,” Yizhuo whispered, staring upward in awe.
A soft, genuine smile spread across Aeri’s face. She watched Yizhuo for just a second longer before finally looking back at the fireworks.
“Yeah,” she murmured quietly. “She is.”
Aeri ignored the confused glance the younger woman gave her, instead focusing on the warm hand woven through her own and the colorful display unfolding above them.
Yeah.
Today was great.