Ren had finished packing their luggage the time Tsubaki got up the next morning. She groggily rubbed her eyes as she was trying to push back her sleepiness. Ren lifted up his eyes from the luggage, a faint smile appeared on his face when he saw her dazed look. He stood up from the floor and took a stride to her side. He sat beside her.
"It's already 8, sweetheart," Ren put one arm around her shoulders, Tsubaki slunk down while she rested on his chest. He smiled helplessly seeing her sleepy state. He gently rubbed her head as he added in a low voice, "Our flight would due in the afternoon. Get up and have breakfast first."
"I'm sleepy..." Tsubaki whined, her voice was muffled under his shirt. "Give me 5 more minutes, hubby?"
A soft laugh came out Ren's mouth. He patiently patted her head. Since he had understood why did his wife become so sleepy these days, he could finally be rest assured instead of panicking over her health as he did before.
"Alright, let's sleep for 20 more minutes, okay?" Ren compromised after calculating the time they needed to take before going to the airport. "After that, you have to wake up, sweetheart. Is that okay?"
"Okay..." Tsubaki sleepily mumbled her reply. Her slender fingers grasped on his shirt, her head rested on the crook of his neck. "Thank you, darling..."
Ren supported her body and head carefully as he brought Tsubaki to lie back on the bed. Tsubaki purred in contentment once she felt the comfiness of the mattress. Ren rubbed her back, trying to ease her aching limbs. Within a short time, he heard steady breathing came from her.
In his limited knowledge about pregnancy, Ren at least knew it would consume lots of energy from the mother as the pregnancy went along. His wife was only four weeks pregnant and she had already been tired like this. How would she be like once her belly grew bigger?
Ren felt uneasy as he thought of the pains that would follow her.
He was really in a dire need to find a teacher that could teach him about a new mother's pregnancy.
Once 20 minutes passed, with a heavy heart Ren woke Tsubaki up. She was still in a daze but at least she could open her eyes properly. Ren stifled a laugh, he helped her to tie her long hair into a loose bun.
"Sweetheart, wake up," Ren got off the bed. He bent down and picked her in his arms. "You need to take a bath first and then eat your breakfast. Don't let our little bean go hungry, okay?"
"Oh... okay..." Tsubaki nodded. She just let him carried her to the washroom.
In the washroom, Ren placed her on the countertop before he dampened a towel with warm water. He proceeded to wash her face. Tsubaki who had just awoken properly took the towel from him. She smiled sheepishly as she said, "I could do it myself. You can go and do your work, darling."
Ren nodded, he helped her to go down the countertop. Both of his hands were securely placed on the sides of her waist as she lowered down her feet to the marble floor.
"Wear the slippers, okay? I'm afraid you'd slip." Ren placed a pair of rubber slippers in front of her feet.
"Okay," Tsubaki smiled. She quickly wore the white rubber slippers. "You haven't eaten yet, right, darling? I'll take a quick shower and then we could eat together."
"Alright," Ren agreed. "I've asked the kitchen to prepare chicken soup for you. You've eaten too many sweets last night, sweetheart. Have something that'd ease your stomach, okay?"
"Okay~" Tsubaki replied in a sing-song voice.
Once Ren left the washroom, Tsubaki entered the shower area. She tossed her nightgown in the laundry bag before she let the water fell on her. A sense of tranquillity seeped into her heart when she thought back of what happened yesterday.
She wasn't one to force him to do any grand confession of love but it didn't mean she wasn't touched when he did so.
The surprise had really made her heart fluttered nonstop.
Her hands went down, she gently placed her palms over her tummy. A soft smile bloomed on her face.
After she had finished getting ready, Tsubaki found her husband was focusing on his laptop at the coffee table. Their breakfast had been laid on the small dining table at a corner of the suite, beside a large windowpane overlooking the beach. Warm steam rose from the food followed by their delicious smell.
"Darling," Tsubaki stepped to his side.
Ren lifted up his gaze from the screen to her soft smile, the cold in his face cracked once he saw her. He immediately stood up, leaving his laptop on the table.
"Let's eat. We should go to the airport after this," Ren held her hand, both of them walked to the dining table.
"Okay~"
True to his words, today's breakfast was prepared with extra care by the hotel chefs. There was not a single one of oily or high in salt dish. Tsubaki ate breakfast happily as she was truly starving. Ren watched her eating with a fond smile.
They left the hotel room with their luggage handled by the bell boy. The lobby was a bit crowded with new patrons who had just recently arrived. Ren and Tsubaki sat at one of the couches provided in the lobby. Hibiki and Matsuzaki would arrive soon to pick them up.
As Ren was reading the e-mails in his Inbox, a call came through his personal phone. He fished out the phone from his jacket pocket. Akashi's name was displayed on the screen.
"Sweetheart, could you wait here first?" Ren raised his phone with a guilty smile. "I need to take a call."
"Alright," Tsubaki nodded. She understood it was a private call so she didn't ask for details. "Take your time, darling."
Ren smiled. He patted her head once before he left the lobby, heading to one of the private waiting rooms catered to guests in need. Tsubaki cast a glance at his disappearing figure.
One of the bodyguards stood near her, hiding behind the pillar.
Tsubaki looked at her phone. If possible, she wanted to meet Kanako today. Maybe she could invite her to the bakery? Their unfinished conversation the other day brought a sense of uneasiness in her heart.
Camellia of the Spring: I'd be at the bakery later today. Do you want a free cake? (♡˙︶˙♡)
This time, she didn't have to wait for long before Kanako's reply came.
Sweet Scent of the Dew: Make it three please~ I'll be there at 4, is that okay? ≧∇≦
Camellia of the Spring: I'm still at the beach town, my flight is in the afternoon. I think I'd have already arrived by then.
Sweet Scent of the Dew: Aye, aye Madam! Gotta go! Have a meeting (╥_╥)
Tsubaki stifled a laugh. It seemed like Kanako was in a good mood.
After chatting with Kanako, Tsubaki placed her phone back inside her handbag. She reached out for a magazine from the magazine holder stood beside the couch. She had just flipped the magazine open when a pair of shiny leather shoes came into her view. Weight of a stare came from opposite her made her lifted up her face, looking back at the face of an older man standing tall before her.
Her eyes widened slightly as a flicker of recognition flashed in her eyes.
"Miss Hanada Tsubaki?" The man's gruff voice sounded in the area, his deep-set eyes were looking at her mildly.
Tsubaki slowly nodded her head. She lowered her hands holding the magazine down to her lap.
"Yes... And you are?"
The corners of the man's lips curved up faintly. He gestured at the empty couch opposite Tsubaki. "May I sit here?"
Before Tsubaki could answer, the man had already sat down. She stared blankly at the man dressed in an expensive suit.
Inside the private room, Ren was sitting on the lone couch while answering Akashi's call.
"I'm sorry, bro but I think I need to call you about this," Akashi's voice sounded so deprived of sleep at the end of the line.
"Why?" His deep voice echoed in the room.
Akashi sighed heavily. He decrypted one of the folders on his computer. "First, I've found that the village head got a huge sum of money in the week before you got captured by Sagara's men. It's kind of hard to trace since he got the money in cash. The source said after he got the money, he utilized it to develop the village."
"He did something good using the dirty money," Ren concluded.
"Yes. Maybe this old man thought he was a Robin Hood. Well, even though we still couldn't be sure how did he get involved with that old fox, I know you've been certain of the fact that he has a hand in your capturing."
"It's too much to be a coincidence," Ren let out a heavy breath. "He's a coward, that's my faint impression of him."
"For these few years, he has been diligently developing the village," Akashi added after a moment of silence. "But, I've a trace of him bribing one of the town hall's officer regarding the new projects in the village. When I dived deeper, the officer has a link with Mr. Sagara."
"You know that I suspect Sagara has been used by the mastermind, right?" Ren tried to reminded Akashi of the possibility. He tilted his head up, staring at the intricate carvings on the ceiling above him. "Forget about the village head for now. How about the list of missing people from the man's side?"
"About that..." Akashi paused for a minute, his eyes scanned the information he jotted down on his note book. "I've found five men and three women that have been missing either due to change of jobs or private reasons."
"Do you have their details?" Ren narrowed his eyes, they were turmoil hidden in the depths of the dark pools.
"Barely," replied Akashi in honesty. "But, come and see me once you're back. I need to personally show you something."
"Alright." Ren closed his eyes, he felt a headache was threatening to disturb his focus.
"One more thing," Akashi shut down his computer. He sounded serious as he added, "There's a trace of someone investigating your wife. I think it's him."
"What?" Ren opened his eyes, his gaze darkened dangerously. The temperature inside the room dropped down once he parted his thin lips to speak, "It seems like he has taken some interest now."
"Perhaps..." Akashi yawned. He slowly stood up from his swivel chair, heading to his messy bed. "He might not be dangerous but be careful, okay. We don't know what he would do."
"Okay."
Once Akashi hung up, Ren lowered down his phone from his ear. His eyes were staring far off the distance. The grip around the phone tightened.