19.1 — Scene: A Morning Call Between Two Households
While Minato and Chiharu walked to school hand-in-hand, unaware of the brewing parental chatter...
Back home, the Tachibana household was experiencing emotional whiplash.
Aki was pacing the living room with her phone in hand.
Ryo sat at the kitchen table, looking like he'd just witnessed a romantic drama in 4K.
> "Should we tell them?" Ryo asked cautiously.
> "Absolutely. This is not the kind of thing you keep secret between couples' parents. Not when they kissed like they've been married for five years."
And with that, Aki called Sayaka Aizawa.
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19.2 — Aizawa Household, Living Room
Sayaka was sipping tea peacefully when her phone buzzed.
> "Tachibana-san?"
She answered, cheerful. "Good morning, Aki-san. What's up?"
> "...Have you heard anything about your daughter and our son recently?"
Sayaka blinked. "Other than Chiharu whispering something about a second kiss last night before locking herself in her room? No."
> "WELL." Aki's voice dropped into a dramatic hush. "They kissed again this morning. In front of our house. Twice."
> "Twice?!" Sayaka almost choked on her tea.
> "First a soft one. Then a deep one. She asked for both. With words. Out loud."
There was a moment of silence.
Sayaka: "...She requested them?"
Aki: "Exactly like ordering off a menu. 'One morning kiss, one meeting kiss, please.' And he delivered."
Sayaka blinked.
> "I—I raised her to be emotionally composed."
Aki: "Well, she's composed alright. Confidently composed. She didn't flinch when asking. Just pulled my son down like she's done it a hundred times."
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19.3 — Dad-to-Dad: Hiroshi and Ryo
Meanwhile, in the Aizawa household, Hiroshi walked in, towel around his neck from morning training.
> "Who's on the phone?"
Sayaka held it out. "It's Ryo. They're in shock. Apparently, our daughter stole two kisses in the morning before walking to school."
Hiroshi blinked. "Two?"
Sayaka nodded slowly. "One sweet, one deep. Like a daily routine."
She handed him the phone. Hiroshi raised it to his ear.
> "Ryo?"
> "Bro… our kids kissed like a slow-burn anime finale."
> "...They kissed twice? In front of you?!"
> "Yup. No hesitation. Full passion. It was a romantic sneak attack and I wasn't ready."
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19.4 — Parent Reactions
Aizawa Household
Sayaka paced. "Should we say something to Chiharu?"
Hiroshi chuckled. "If she had the guts to ask for two kisses and walk off holding hands, do you think she'd care?"
Sayaka: "...You're right."
Then, after a pause—
Sayaka: "Should we start planning for the engagement dinner now or after the third kiss?"
Hiroshi: "I vote after the fifth. Let's give them room to escalate."
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Tachibana Household
Ryo put down the phone and looked at Aki. "So… what do we do now?"
Aki sighed dramatically. "We wait. We smile. We support. And we pretend our hearts didn't explode watching them become a married couple at seventeen."
Ryo nodded slowly.
> "They grow up fast."
Aki: "Too fast. We blinked, and now we have a daughter-in-law who demands custom kisses."