"I love you," the man said, lying on his side, gazing affectionately at the woman beside him.

"I love you too," she replied without hesitation, resting her head against his arm.

Just as the mood peaked and the two were about to share a passionate kiss, the woman suddenly raised her hand to cover her mouth. Her expression turned conflicted.

"But… I'm already married."

The man didn't flinch. His eyes remained gentle as he reached out to caress her cheek, his affection unwavering.

"It's okay," he said softly.

Her heart ached at his tenderness. She turned away, sat up, and covered her face with both hands. Her voice came out muffled.

"But… I also have a child."

The man sat up too and wrapped his arms around her from behind without hesitation. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he murmured gently,

"It's okay. I don't mind."

The woman's expression instantly changed. She twisted out of his embrace and stared at him in disbelief.

"Then… why do you love me so much?"

"Because… because…" the man faltered, glancing at her teary eyes. After a brief pause, he finally blurted out—

"Because I'm married too!"

The woman froze in shock.

"And I have a kid as well," he added, turning his head away, unable to meet her eyes.

"No! I don't believe you! You said you've only loved me since we were kids!" she shouted, grabbing his collar as if trying to shake the truth out of him.

The man closed his eyes and gave a slow nod.

As she let go, heartbroken and on the verge of tears, a knock came from the door.

Both of them turned toward it in alarm.

But before they could even respond, the door opened from the outside as if the knock had just been a courtesy.

"You two done? Didn't you say we're going out for dinner to celebrate your son getting first place in the singing competition tomorrow?"

Akira stood at the bedroom door, looking completely unimpressed.

Watching his overly dramatic mother, he thought to himself, Dad is probably being held hostage again.

"Yeah, yeah—cut the act already, Auntie." Shouko peeked her head in after Akira, both hands covering her eyes as if afraid of seeing something indecent.

Miyamura Shizuka waved at them with a sigh. "Alright, alright. Wait in the living room while we change."

What a shame—just when the acting had reached its climax.

Any embarrassment over being caught mid-roleplay in front of her son and future daughter-in-law? None whatsoever.

"Okay," Akira replied, leading Shouko—who still hadn't uncovered her eyes—out of the room and gently closing the door behind them.

"Sis, quick! Smile!" came Nishimiya Yuzuru's voice, followed by the sound of a camera shutter.

Neither of them paid much attention to Yuzuru's impromptu photo session. They went straight to the coffee table and sat down.

"No good. Akira's too ugly, he ruined the whole photo," Yuzuru muttered while scrolling through her camera roll.

Before Akira could defend himself, Shouko jumped to his rescue. She handed him the half-peeled orange in her hands, stood up from the tatami, and walked over to Yuzuru.

Pulling gently on her little sister's cheek, she scolded, "Yuzuru, be polite. You can't say that about Akira."

"Shouko, shouldn't you be praising me for being handsome right now?" Akira chimed in with a grin. He didn't take Yuzuru's words too seriously—after all, she was still just a brat who liked teasing him.

Besides, he knew he wasn't exactly a pretty boy. Blame the Miyamura genes. His mom was definitely a lookist—there was no other explanation for falling in love with a nerd like his dad.

"Nope," Shouko replied bluntly, letting go of Yuzuru's cheek and walking back toward Akira. She casually snatched the peeled orange from his hand and plopped down beside him.

"Hey—!" Akira was about to protest when a voice called from the hallway:

"Let's go. Yaeko's still working overtime. Shouko, did you ask Grandma if she's coming?" Miyamura Shizuka stood at the living room entrance, already dressed and ready.

Shouko shook her head slowly.

Shizuka didn't press further.

"We should head out. I already made a reservation," said Miyamura Daiki as he joined her at the entrance, adjusting the collar of his shirt. "It's almost time."

With that, the group began to change into their outdoor shoes.

Inside the car, Yuzuru turned to Uncle Miyamura with a puzzled look.

"Uncle, how come you don't have to work overtime?"

Daiki chuckled without turning around. "You'll understand when you're older, Yuzuru."

"Oh…" Yuzuru wasn't satisfied with that vague answer, so she mentally noted to ask her mom later.

Later that evening, in Akira's room, the two of them sat at his desk.

Shouko was helping him with his homework when she suddenly remembered something.

"Akira… I'm getting nervous about singing tomorrow in front of so many people. What should I do?"

Akira, seated across from her and wearing glasses to protect his eyesight, glanced up from his high school exam prep book.

"Just imagine the whole audience is made of potatoes."

Shouko blinked. "Potatoes…?"

Her imagination spiraled. She pictured herself standing on stage, looking down at rows of potatoes with arms and legs, mouths open and eyes wide, dressed in all sorts of clothes.

Some were even shouting encouragement from the audience.

She shivered.

Snapping herself out of it, she turned to pat Akira's arm—but froze again, captivated by his side profile.

He looked so different with his glasses on. Auntie Shizuka had bought them a few weeks ago, saying they would help prevent myopia from too much reading. Shouko didn't know if that was true.

But since Akira believed it, it probably was. He was smart, after all.

And, well… Akira with glasses looked really cool. Handsome, even.

No, not even. He was just handsome. Period.

What made her heart flutter more was that he only wore them in front of her. Even Auntie Shizuka had only seen him wear them once, the day they were bought. That didn't count!

Hehe…

I wonder how many girls he'll make fall for him when he grows up…

Her mind wandered further, recalling some of her mom's teasing remarks, and then thinking about Akira's slightly narcissistic attitude.

He was always with her—he rarely spoke to anyone besides her, Yuzuru, and their other close friends.

And yet… other girls still seemed to like him.

Even those four girls from sixth grade—Little Red, Little Blue, Little Yellow, and Little Green—had hinted to her that they liked Akira too.

A/N: LITTLE POWER RANGERS!!!

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POWER STONE!!!

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