3 MARRIAGE?!

"Mother?" Ame asked back, "What do you mean by that Mrs. Sasaki?"

"Oh? Did your parents not tell you?" Mrs. Sasaki asked back.

"Hem, sweetie, did you forget what we talked about at last night's dinner?" Her mother asked.

"You're going to get married. To Haru." Her dad reminded.

"What?!" She was shocked, but then realized how rude she sounded.

"I--Pardon my reaction, but I wasn't at all informed about this arrangement." She spoke as she was flustered by the sudden announcement. This was no joking matter, it was marriage! Of course she is shocked.

"I'm sorry for bringing up the matter to you so suddenly, I thought you were already made aware." Mrs. Sasaki said.

"No, I'm sorry for my reaction, and it was my fault for not being aware." She smiled as she pulled herself together.

"It seems that you already get along with my son. That's good then. It'll be so much easier for the two of you to adjust to a married life." Mrs. Sasaki exclaimed happily.

Ame smiled out of politeness, but the thought of marrying someone who she doesn't love...

...Was not what she wanted.

But what can she do? She should be fillial to her parents and do what they say. She'd already disobeyed them before, but look what she got out of it. A broken heart.

'Maybe this is for the best.' She thought.

"I'm glad you agree. The wedding will be next month. And, you are to live with Haru even before the wedding." Mrs. Sasaki said.

'What? But, it's all so sudden!!' Ame thought, trying to keep her composure, yet she did not say a word about this.

"Don't worry, you can move in with him when you are ready." Mrs. Sasaki comforted. Her parents smiled.

"Ame, why don't you show Haru around while we have a chat with Mrs. Sasaki." Her mother insisted.

"That's a great idea, go with her Haru." Mrs. Sasaki added as she pushed Haru to Ame's direction.

'Alright! Now they're just setting us up!!' Ame fumed at the thought, but didn't let it show.

"Come on Haru!" Ame called as she stood up and waited for him to follow. Haru stood up from his seat and led Ame away, holding her hand. She flushed red but didn't show it. Was he serious?

...

They went to the garden, strolling hand in hand. "What is this all about?"

"What do you mean?" He asked back.

"I mean this!" Ame held up their hands and shyly turned away. Her face was probably as red as a tomato by now, how could she let anyone see?

"What's the problem with that, we're going to get married anyway right?" He said as he swung his arms holding hers. She didn't let go.

"Did you know? Since the first time we met?" She asked as she looked down, but kept on walking.

"Yes. Well, sort of." He said as he looked at her. He noticed her ears were red, he smiled like a fool. "I knew I was going to marry Ms. Ame of the Tsubaki household, but I didn't know it was you... The girl who cried the rain."

Ame lifted her face up and looked at him... She reached out for his cheeks, she leaned closer to him...

"Why didn't you tell me then?!?" She yelled as she pinched his cheeks.

"Ow! Ow! No need to be so aggresive!!" He pulled away from her pinch "Should I have told you then?" He said as he rubbed his swollen face. "And there I thought you were leaning in for a kiss. How mean!" He complained.

"Eh?! Why should I?" Ame said as she crossed her arms and turned her back on him.

"Hey, where are you going?" Haru asked as he followed Ame who walked off.

...

"Why would want to I kiss him? Ughhh!" Ame walked away, still hiding her flushed face. She was sitting on a bench under a tree by the fountain when she heard Haru calling her name.

"Oh crap!" She ran off looking for a place to hide.

"Ame? Where the heck did you go?" He called as he was looking for her by the fountain. "I swear I heard somebody here." He kept looking around.

Ame laughed to herself watching him from above, she was hiding atop a tree beside the fountain hiding a question popped up in her head...

'Why am I hiding from him?!!' She thought. 'Stupid Ame! You'll look like a fool once he finds you!' She told herself, 'Wait, why would I even care about what he thinks of me?!'

'Good chance!' As soon as she saw Haru walking off, probably to look for her somewhere else, she immediately started climbing down...

"There you are!" Flustered, she lost grip of the branch she was holding on to.

"Ahhhhh!" She closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the impact.

'Eh, why didn't I fall yet?' She thought, 'I feel like I'm floating, am I dead already?!' She slowly opened her eyes.

"You're awake!" Haru said as he knelt down. She sat up holding her head, "What happened?" They were still at the bench by the fountain.

"Don't scare me like that!" Haru said as he hugged her tightly. "You fainted a bit from the scare. I caught you just in time." He said worriedly.

"It was you who scared me." She laughed as she patted his head.

"I know, I'm sorry. But you're the one who climbed up the tree in the first place. Why'd you even do that?" He asked, not letting go of her.

"Just because..." She said as she hugged him back.

"Don't ever do that anymore. Got it?" He said as his face flushed red.

"Got it. Let's head back inside." She said as she let go of him.

"Wait. Just a bit longer." He said, still not letting go. Now Ame's the one who's smiling like a fool. He hugged her for a few minutes before finally letting go, he kissed her forehead, stood up and lent her a hand. They went back inside, hand in hand once again.