100. With Aki, in Japan (2)

“H-Husband…?! Aki-chan, you mean you’re married…?”

“……Heh.”

Akiga clasped my arm tighter, a meaningful smile playing on her lips.

That smile, almost bewitching, widened the miko’s eyes to the size of lanterns, and I, caught in the middle, could only swallow dryly, unable to move.

“R-really? Aki-chan, you’re really married…?!”

“…Ahem.”

Aki cleared her throat, then discreetly tapped my forearm.

No words were spoken, but it was a signal—a signal for me to answer in her stead. Understanding dawned, and I moistened my parched lips. I agonized over how to respond.

To say we were married would be a lie, but to say we weren’t… Aki would be angry, wouldn’t she?

Deep down, she seemed eager for me to propose.

“…”

There’s no helping it. I’ll aim for something in between.

Having decided, I opened my mouth.

“No, we’re not married yet… but, well, we plan to be, soon.”

“Ah…! O-oh, is that so…?”

The miko muttered, glancing at Aki as if seeking confirmation.

Aki, knowing she was being watched, avoided her gaze, humming with a hint of satisfaction as she pretended to look away.

“…Hee hee.”

“Ah, so… is that why you’re at our shrine together…?”

“Huh?”

“Mmm, I see. I see, that explains it… Hmmm. Hmmm…”

“…”

Why is she looking me up and down like that…?

The miko’s intrigued gaze, raking over me, made me self-conscious. I offered a sheepish smile and tapped Aki’s hand.

I’d answered as instructed; it was her turn to deal with this.

Thankfully, she seemed to understand, stepping forward slightly.

“Mia-chan, are you a proper miko now?”

“Eh? Ah, yes! I’ve been a proper miko since this year. But I’m not *completely* a proper miko yet… um, I guess you could say I’m like… a semi-proper miko?”

“Semi-proper…?”

If she’s proper, she’s proper; if she’s semi, she’s semi. What’s this semi-proper business? Is it like a third-year intern… or something?

“Ah, Mia-chan, you’re not married yet, are you?”

“Mmm, no, I’m not. Or rather, it’s not that I’m *not*, but that I *can’t*. I don’t have anyone to marry…”

“Oh, is that so? Mia-chan, don’t you worry. You’re terribly cute, Mia-chan, so you’ll meet a good man soon…!”

“…Are you teasing me now? Right?”

“Aki, can only married women be shrine maidens?”

Listening to their conversation, curiosity suddenly bloomed.

I lowered my voice as much as possible and asked, and Aki nodded openly, saying,

“Not all shrines are like that. This shrine enshrines a god of fertility and pregnancy, so the shrine maiden who serves the god must be married and have a baby to be recognized as a proper shrine maiden…. or so Mia-chan told me a long time ago. Right, Mia-chan?”

“…Yeah, you idiot!”

The shrine maiden strides closer.

Wearing a long skirt that reached her ankles, the shrine maiden came right up to Aki and playfully pinched Aki’s soft cheeks.

“Where, where did you meet such a boyfriend? Korea? Can I get a boyfriend like that if I go to Korea, Aki-chan…?!”

“Ow, Mia-chan. That hurts…!”

“Eii, eii…! I knew something was up, your face is all shiny…! Only Aki-chan goes to Korea and meets a good man, and me, me…! I’m twenty years old and haven’t even had one boyfriend…!”

“Ow, augh…. Mia-chan’s cute, so you can make a boyfriend even in Japan…?”

“No way. Japan’s doomed! All that’s here are either bespectacled herbivore men, or swaggering, tanned blonde thugs…!”

“…….”

Their speaking style is so similar. If their appearances were similar too, people would believe they were sisters. Is it because they’ve been friends since they were little?

It was strangely fascinating, and Aki, being teased by the shrine maiden, was also cute, so I couldn’t help but stare at them. But the shrine maiden misunderstood my gaze as a warning, and cleared her throat, letting go of Aki slightly.

“…Oh. Come to think of it, Aki’s husband doesn’t know much about our shrine, does he?”

“Ah, no….”

Now even Aki’s friend is calling me Aki’s husband.

Before even getting married, being called “husband” by someone other than Aki was a strange feeling, but… first, I answered.

“Is that right? It’s my first time coming to this shrine.”

“Oh, it’s okay. It’s natural that you don’t know since it’s your first time. If it’s alright with Aki’s husband…. would you like me to explain our shrine to you?”

“Yes. Please do.”

“Understood! I’ll explain it to you. First of all, our shrine enshrines a local god who presides over pregnancy and fertility, and also abundance. Here, abundance doesn’t mean material abundance, but spiritual abundance, that is, the love between family and spouses. Also, pregnancy means, literally, a couple having a baby….”

“Uh…. a baby?”

“Yes. A baby. Crying, ‘Waa, waa~’.”

“…Ah. Please continue.”

“A baby…. where was I? Ah, right. A baby. Yes. It means a couple having a baby. And fertility is when a couple who already has a baby has more babies. So, to sum it up, if you make a wish to our god, the god will bless you, your family will become prosperous, the relationship between husband and wife will become stronger, and you will be able to have many cute babies, as many as you desire…!”

“Aha….”

Right then. This shrine… it was a shrine where this deity bestowed children upon couples who desired them, wasn’t it…

A realization dawned, understanding why only pairs of men and women seemed to visit this particular shrine. My gaze, of its own accord, drifted to Aki at my side.

Aki, who had brought me to a shrine dedicated to pregnancy, fertility, and abundance, met my gaze with a smile, seemingly oblivious to my inner turmoil.

“……”

“……”

Looking at Aki, this thought occurred to me.

That miko, Aki’s friend, must naturally assume we’d come to this shrine to pray for a child of our own, right?

…If I were the miko, I’d probably think the same. An old friend shows up with a young man she calls her ‘darling,’ and that ‘darling’ mentions they’re getting married soon. It’s the obvious conclusion.

My mind a bit muddled, I parted my lips slightly.

“Oh, but, this is another thing, but! Aki-ne darling is so handsome, and Aki-chan is so cute, so the baby between you two will be absolutely precious. If it’s a girl, she’ll take after Aki-chan and be super, suuuper cute, and if it’s a boy, he’ll look like Aki-ne darling, like, a Korean idol… or something!”

“……Thank you.”

“Ah, yes! You’re welcome, too. So… Aki-chan, ganbatte…!”

“Eh-heh, ganbatte…!”

“……”

I had no clue what I was thanking for, nor what I was supposed to be cheering on.

Whether I was clueless or not, Aki, facing the miko, cutely yelled encouragement along with her and lightly tugged at my arm. It seemed she wanted to leave soon.

“Then Mia-chan, we’ll go offer our prayers first. As for the rest, um… shall we continue the conversation later? Are you free for lunch or dinner?”

“Ah, not today. It’s January 1st, so we’re receiving visitors until late at night. To talk comfortably, it’ll have to be after the holidays, um… at least three days from now?”

“Eeeh, really? We’re leaving in three days…!”

“Is that so? Then I guess we have no choice… it seems this time we’ll only be able to offer prayers and leave…?”

“Not even for a little bit? Just an hour, no, even just thirty minutes…?”

“Umm, that’s…”

“…Akiya.”

I understood she missed her friend after a long time, but staying any longer would be a bother. To appease Aki, I gently embraced her shoulder, and Aki, sensing my intentions, bit her lower lip.

“Okay. But Mia-chan, promise you’ll let me know when you’re free, okay? I’ll be in Japan until three days from now, so send me a message on LINE anytime, promise…!”

“Yeah, promise…”

Making promises with their mouths, hooking pinkies and sealing them with a stamp—Aki and the miko.

Watching the two women’s cute promise, I lightly tapped Aki’s waist, signaling it was time to go.

“Thank you very much, miko-san. We’ll go offer our prayers now.”

“Mia-chan, we’re leaving…!”

“Mmh, take care now, Aki-chan!”

Having parted ways with the shrine maiden who waved so diligently, we made our way along the stone path towards the shrine’s main hall.

Or rather, not directly to the main hall, but to a well-house along the way. Aki called this place the ‘Temizuya,’ and the reason for stopping by the well was to purify our hands and rinse our mouths with water before entering the main hall.

Aki and I cleansed our hands with the water and rinsed the insides of our mouths. Replacing the ladle in its proper spot, we walked slowly towards the main hall, keeping to the edge of the path.

Being a shrine easily accessible near the city, there were quite a few people. Besides Aki and I, there were dozens of other visitors already here. Strangely, most of them were couples – definitely not siblings, but rather married couples, or couples who had been together for quite some time.

“……”

Not all of these people would be praying for a child, surely.

But, maybe, the majority of them were praying to be blessed with a child soon…?

“Darling, it’s our turn…!”

If a child were to come between Aki and me, what nationality would that child have to take on…? Lost in such pointless thoughts, I snapped out of my daze when it was quickly our turn.

Regaining my senses, I followed Aki, bowing lightly, and placed a thousand yen inside the wooden offering box. I thought about putting in more, but as a student, my wallet wasn’t exactly overflowing.

“Aki, how much did you put in?”

“Ten thousand yen.”

“……That much?”

“Yes, I felt like we had to offer at least this much for our wish to be granted.”

“Just what kind of wish are you making…”

“Hehe, curious?”

“……What do we do next?”

“Next… you grab this cord, and shake it gently to make the bell ring.”

“Like this?”

*Ting-*

The bell chimed with a clear sound.

Aki followed suit, ringing the bell after me, then gave me a look as if to say, “Watch and copy,” before pressing her hands together in front of her chest.

Ah, so this is when we make our wish.

Understanding through her gestures, I did the same as Aki.

I placed my hands together in front of my chest, clapped twice lightly, and then, with my eyes closed, quietly made my wish in my heart.

“……”

“……Okay, all done.”

Aki opened her eyes.

“Made a wish, my love?”

“Yeah, I made one.”

Well, I half-heartedly made one.

Only offered up a thousand yen. Don’t know if the gods will grant it with so little…

“What did you wish for?”

“Just, uh…”

‘Please, let me keep getting along well with Aki…’ That’s what I wished. But to say it in front of her felt a bit awkward.

So I just mumbled something vague and started to move away. Then Aki came to my side, looped her arm through mine with a pretty smile, as if to say, *tell me*.

“Ah, did you wish for something… strange?”

“…What? What strange wish would I make?”

“Hehe, not true?”

“Of course not. What do you take me for?”

“But, then why can’t you tell me what it was?”

“……”

Because I’m embarrassed.

“……What about you, Aki.”

“Hm… me?”

“Yeah, what wish did *you* make?”

“…Curious?”

Aki looked at me with meaningful eyes.

I’d only asked to change the subject, but the reaction I was getting was awfully strange.

‘What is this…?’

She was looking at me with raised eyes, so it was a little unsettling… but more than that, I was curious.

What wish could she have made that she was being so hesitant about?

“Yeah, I’m curious.”

“……Come here.”

Aki gently took hold of my earlobe.

And tugged it lightly, as if to say, come closer, so I bent down a little to meet her eye level.

“I…”

“Yeah, you?”

“I prayed… ‘Please let me have a beautiful child…’ I prayed like that.”

“…What did you say?”

“I said, ‘Please let me have a beautiful child…’ I prayed, I tell you.”

“……”

Without realizing it, my gaze darted away.

“……”

“……”

Her eyes are earnest.

“……”

“……”

“…Really?”

“No, just kidding, darling♡”

“……”

“……”

“…………Hey!”

“Hehe…!”

It wasn’t a joke, I was truly taken aback. Aki must have noticed, because she snickered and gently tapped my shoulder.

“Why? Were you worried that I would pray for a baby without telling my husband?”

“No, it’s not exactly that, but…”

“Not exactly? It’s written all over your face~?”

“……”

Was it that obvious?

“Heheh…. Ah, how cute…”

“…Cute, my foot.”

“Don’t worry, darling. No matter what, I wouldn’t decide on something so major all by myself…”

As we made way for the next customers, Aki smoothly linked her arm through mine.

“I’ll have a baby when my darling says it’s time.”

“……”

Which is to say, in other words, Aki is fine with it anytime…?

Half suspecting, half questioning, I glanced at her. Aki didn’t seem to notice my gaze, and instead placed a hand on her lower abdomen, stroking it meaningfully.

“Say, did you know something, my dear husband?”

“……What is it?”

“They say, having a baby when you’re even just a year younger is better for both the baby and the mother.”

“……”

“You understand…?”

“……I’ll think about it.”