[Your relationship with Asano Nao deepened.]
[You learned more about Asano Nao, realizing she is a shy person. Despite knowing every inch of her body, she still blushes like an untouched maiden.]
[You also recognized Asano Nao's fear of society and strangers.]
[She never orders takeout. Groceries and daily necessities are delivered by courier, left on the doorstep. Only when the courier leaves, and the night is deep, does she retrieve them. She strives to minimize the number of deliveries, buying a large amount at once to stock up.]
[One night, you told Asano Nao about your summer vacation experience and your agreement with your parents. Under her supervision, you studied for two hours each day.]
[In the second semester, your grades were in the lower-middle of your class, and your parents were reassured.]
[After graduation, you entered an ordinary university.]
[Without Asano Nao's supervision and lacking a reason to study, you soon dropped out of university and moved in with the Asano family. Mrs. Tanaka's suspicion was correct; Asano Nao had a substantial amount of savings, enough for you to live comfortably for a lifetime if used sparingly.]
[At the age of 22, you and Asano Nao submitted a marriage application and became husband and wife. There was no wedding, just an ordinary family dinner. Attendees included your parents and sister, and Asano Nao's grandmother.]
[It was supposed to be a joyful day, but there wasn't much cheerful atmosphere. Your parents didn't like Asano Nao, disliking her as a NEET. They vaguely sensed that your declining grades in high school and dropping out of university were because of Asano Nao, increasing their disapproval of her.]
[Before the wedding, they repeatedly asked you to return to Ino Prefecture and marry an ordinary woman. You firmly refused.]
[Your sister also didn't like this sister-in-law. She had no personal issue with Asano Nao but resented her for leading her brother astray.]
[At the dinner table, your father, mother, and sister forced smiles. Their expressions were stiff, their acting full of flaws, visible to everyone present.]
[Asano Nao's grandmother was at a loss. She liked you very much but also felt her granddaughter was dragging you down. She used her thin hands to make various gestures, trying hard to liven up the atmosphere, and spoke in a hoarse voice, searching her mind for old rural anecdotes, laughing dryly.]
[You used your eloquence to take over the conversation at the table. With your witty remarks, the laughter gradually became genuine. You exaggerated, using all sorts of techniques, extracting sunny and cheerful moments from your daily life with your wife, Asano Nao, sharing them with everyone.]
[Your sister relaxed first, laughing, followed by your mother, and finally, even your father smiled. He downed a glass of sake, and at your signal, Asano Nao picked up the bottle to pour him more. He hesitated briefly but then smiled at her.]
[The atmosphere gradually warmed, laughter echoing in the living room. Asano Nao gathered the courage to talk to your parents and sister. Her expression was still tense, and her voice soft, but it was a significant improvement from before. Your parents and sister's voices and expressions softened when speaking to her.]
[Grandmother Asano, seeing the warming atmosphere, beamed. She raised her glass to compete with your father in drinking.]
[After three glasses, she collapsed, her body convulsing.]
[The living room was chaotic. Your father immediately squatted down to check on her, and you dialed for an ambulance.]
[The ambulance took Grandmother Asano away. You, your father, mother, and sister stepped out, ready to follow her to the hospital.]
[Asano Nao didn't step out. She stopped at the door, trembling as she looked at the crowd gathered by the ambulance.]
[You held her by the waist, pressed her head to your shoulder, and told her to close her eyes and just follow you.]
[Asano Nao took a step, but it was too late. You both noticed the disappointment flashing across your family's faces, and the newfound closeness vanished.]
[Grandmother Asano was fine, just fainting from excitement and alcohol. At the hospital bedside, the doctor gave some simple instructions before leaving.]
[Your father, mother, and sister bid you farewell; they were returning to Ino Prefecture. Asano Nao greeted them, and only your mother responded.]
[You went downstairs to pay the bill. When you returned, Grandmother Asano was awake, sitting hunched at the bedside, looking at you with guilty eyes. Asano Nao wasn't by the bed; you found her crying in the bathroom and embraced her.]
[Grandmother needed to stay in the hospital for observation for a day. You and Asano Nao returned home. Asano Nao apologized to you, and you comforted her.]
A memory scene appeared.
The bedroom was dark, with faint light filtering through the gap in the curtains. There was no moon tonight; it was the light from the street lamps.
On the double bed, Minami Yuuki held Asano Nao's shoulders. Asano Nao's face was buried in his chest, and he felt two cold lines on his shoulder - his wife was crying.
"I'm sorry," Asano Nao sobbed softly.
"It's not your fault," Minami Yuuki patted her back, comforting her.
"It's all my fault."
"It's not your fault."
"It is my fault. You arranged everything so well. If I had been able to step outside, Dad wouldn't have disliked me..."
"Don't worry about them. Marriage is about the two of us. Our life ahead is just for the two of us."
Minami Yuuki lifted Asano Nao's face. No, it should be Minami Nao's face. They were married now, and Nao had taken on his surname, Minami.
Nao didn't respond. She brushed Yuuki's hand aside and lay down on the pillow beside him.
"Sleep," Yuuki patted her back. "Tomorrow we'll pick Grandma up, and you need to comfort her, so she doesn't worry."
In the darkness, there was no response for a long time.
Neither of them could sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, Nao's voice suddenly broke the silence.
"You shouldn't have married me."
"Regretting it already? Too late!" Yuuki replied playfully.
Nao sat up, her hands on either side of Yuuki, her face hidden in her dark hair in the darkness.
She said, "You shouldn't have gotten involved with me."
Yuuki reached out to touch her face, but she sharply turned her head away, her hair brushing against his hand.
"You did well in high school. If not for me, you would have gotten into a top university, joined a big company, and then... had an excellent wife."
She stared into Yuuki's eyes, her hair framing him in a small, confessional space, hearing her confession.
"You are an excellent wife. Excellent enough that I can't resist every night. My health is clearly getting worse." Yuuki hugged her waist. "Besides, I was only good in the countryside. I was quite average after coming to Misaki."
"That's not what I mean. I mean... excellence in spirit. At least someone who wouldn't be afraid to go out because of a crowd! Or someone who wouldn't avoid hosting a wedding because of too many guests!" Nao's voice was almost a shout.
She bowed her head, her cold hair spreading over Yuuki's face, with tears flowing down the strands, crossing his lips.
Yuuki realized his newlywed wife was serious.
Facing such a serious Nao, comfort and pretense were futile. She had been thinking for a long time, for hours, days, months, or even years.
Her confession was already mature, already complete, unbreakable, unassailable.
Only more impactful facts could overthrow the foundation of her beliefs.
Yuuki had just such a fact.
"Maybe it's me who should apologize." He lifted the hair off his face, looking at his wife's face hidden in the strands.
The light filtering through the curtains was dim. He could only see the outline of Nao's face, but he knew from the still sobbing that his wife was looking at him in surprise.
"Do you remember the first time we met? Do you think I was genuinely there to borrow manga and games from you?" Yuuki spoke slowly.