Hidden Secrets

Chapter 74

Yaten sat there, frozen, as Minako entered the room. His heart suddenly pounded in his chest as he watched her hammering against the door, yelling at her friend through the locked door. Each blow felt like a dull pulse echoing in his own heart. The reality of her presence was hard for him to grasp. He couldn't help but stare at her, as if seeing her for the first time, even though he knew it wasn't so. She was alive, real, and now just a few meters away from him. This realization penetrated him to the core.

It was as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his chest, one he had been carrying since her reported death. Relief washed over him like a warm wave. Despite the volume, her words only reached his ears muffledly; he couldn't believe she was actually standing before him. How many times had he imagined experiencing this moment, and now it was here. She was here.

His entire body reacted with a suffocating stiffness to her mere presence. He carefully observed her new appearance. She had cut her hair, now shoulder-length and dyed in a warm brown tone. Her figure seemed noticeably rounder from behind than he was accustomed to, but she was pregnant, he reminded himself. Then his eyes lingered on her midsection: a baby bump, unmistakably visible. Minako was really pregnant. Yaten needed a moment to process this information.

Minako was still motionless at the door. She dared not turn around, her fear of finally facing Yaten too great. Her breath caught, and her heart beat faster and faster. She was more than certain he was somewhere in the room behind her, and there was clearly no escaping a conversation now. Mentally, she cursed Rei for her actions, then heard footsteps approaching and her body tensed.

Slowly and deliberately, Yaten rose and walked towards her. Keeping some distance, he stopped, while her lovely scent wafted towards him. This scent, which he had once enjoyed so much, suddenly stirred something in him. Hesitantly, he raised his hand. He briefly wrestled with himself over whether to touch her or not, but then decided to do so. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder, and he felt her shiver slightly under his touch. So he gave her a moment to get used to his hand. Then he turned her around with gentle insistence. Minako showed no resistance; she followed his lead until she stood fully facing him.

The time seemed to stand still for both of them as their eyes met. They just looked at each other, words failing them. Only when Minako's eyes began to fill with delicate tears could Yaten finally regain control of his thoughts and his body. This feeling that now possessed him was new to him. His throat felt dry and constricted, and he doubted he could muster a reasonable tone.

"Hi," Minako whispered softly, attempting a hesitant smile to ease the tension.

That one small word, her voice in his ear, seemed to trigger an avalanche of suppressed anger in Yaten, which had been waiting deep inside him to be released. His hand shot past her head, directly towards the door behind her, and he already had her enclosed in his arms. His green eyes sparkled at her, agitated.

"Hi? Is that all you can say?! Hi?! Minako, what the hell happened? We were friends, no, we were more than friends. Damn it, you were the love of my life until you left me, and even after that, we could always tell each other everything. And then? First, you avoided me for ages, practically barricaded yourself, then you faked your death and ran off to America to marry Chiba, and now all you can come up with is Hi?!" he exclaimed angrily.

Minako closed her eyes before he finished. She knew he was right, but she wasn't ready to explain herself yet. His warm breath brushed against her skin, he was only inches away, and the feeling of his proximity triggered a growing nervousness in her, while his words were sharp as a knife.

Suddenly, she felt his hand on her cheek, and for a moment, there was absolute silence between them. The touch of his hand felt both familiar and unfamiliar, like an echo of times past, and she leaned her head into it.