A Love I Shouldn't Feel

"So..." Hanako leaned slightly forward, folding her hands around her teacup. "Since your father is a bit... traditional, any plan on how your wedding ceremony will be held?"

Kyouko, still a little flustered from the earlier teasing, nodded gently. "Haruki said he wants a Shinto ceremony."

"Oh..." Hanako’s eyes softened, her smile tinged with sentiment. "The way your father always hoped. I still remember... when I married him—it was a bright morning, crisp air, shrine bells ringing in the distance. Everything smelled of incense and new beginnings."

Keiko rested her cheek on her palm, her voice dreamy. "That sounds beautiful..."

Hitomi nodded. "I always thought Shinto ceremonies have a calm, sacred feel... like everything is being blessed."

Hanako looked at Kyouko. "You’ll look lovely in white. That traditional shiromuku would suit you so well, with that graceful way you carry yourself."

Kyouko lowered her gaze slightly, smiling modestly. "Haruki said the same. He wants to see me in it."

"Well," Hanako said, taking a sip of her tea, "your father will be proud. Especially now that things are finally being done the way he always wanted—with the right man by your side this time."

Kyouko blinked and looked up. "Mother..."

Hanako didn’t elaborate. She simply smiled, that quiet kind of motherly approval that didn’t need words.

"Make it beautiful," she added softly. "Not because others will see it, but because it’ll be the memory you carry with you. Just like mine."

"Mm... I will, Mother," Kyouko replied gently.