Kanae simply rested her chin on her hand and watched him, as though she could never get enough of every detail of his face.
No matter how much time passed, this face, so familiar it was etched into her soul, was always such a pleasure to look at...
After they finished eating, Tetsu no Sosuke yawned and seemed ready to keep talking, but Kanae pulled him back into their room. Shinobu Kocho naturally could not follow them any farther. She stood at the door in a daze for two or three seconds, then smiled and returned to her own room.
Inside, Tetsu no Sosuke lay beside Kanae and gathered her into his arms. "Honey, let me tell you..."
He had so much to say, but now that he had gotten this far, it felt as though he had said most of it. There was still plenty more, but for the moment, he could not remember what.
In the end, Kanae spoke first. "The baby kicked me."
Tetsu no Sosuke shot upright. "Really? He dared to kick you? Just wait until he comes out. I'll teach him a lesson!"
"...What baby doesn't kick while they're in their mother's belly?" Kanae did not know whether to laugh or cry. "If you dare teach him a lesson, I'll teach you one."
"Oh, so that's normal..." Only then did Tetsu no Sosuke catch on. "Right, right, right. That's called fetal movement."
He lay back down and took a moment to process it, then suddenly shot upright again. "Wait, you can feel the baby moving already?"
Kanae's cheeks were flushed. "You keep jumping at everything. Can't you calm down a little?"
"That's hard..." Tetsu no Sosuke rubbed his face. After a while, he gave a goofy smile. "This is wonderful... Let me tell you..."
Kanae