The weather was nice, so Tetsu no Sosuke took Kanae out for a walk. She couldn't walk too strenuously, but she couldn't let her body go stiff from inactivity either. Otherwise, all sorts of complications could arise during childbirth.
Tetsu no Sosuke held her hand, with Kiyo Terauchi walking beside them.
He glanced at Kanae's belly and smiled softly.
It gave him a strange feeling he couldn't put into words.
"What is it?" Kanae gently stroked her belly and gave him a look.
Tetsu no Sosuke shook his head. A light breeze blew past, pleasant against his skin.
He took off his Haori and draped it over Kanae's shoulders. "The breeze feels nice, but you could catch a chill. We still have to be careful."
Kanae nodded, then sighed. "My hands and feet have felt hot lately. It's really uncomfortable. I suppose that's the warmth he's giving me?"
"It'll get better once he's born." Tetsu no Sosuke looked at his wife's belly. "Always making trouble in your mother's belly. Just wait until you come out. I'll show you."
"Don't scare him," Kanae said at once. "He's so little. He doesn't understand a thing... Oh, he moved again."
"Is he telling me he knows he was wrong?"
"...Looking on the bright side really is your greatest strength."
As they joked, even Kiyo Terauchi couldn't help giggling.
They found a suitable place for Kanae to sit. Tetsu no Sosuke sat beside her, staring absently at the clouds on the horizon.
Kanae gently tucked his hair behind his ear. She didn't ask why he was staring into space; she understood. Nor did she change the subject to stop him from thinking about those heavy matters, especially now. While he still could think about them, while he still wanted to, he should think them