Author Notes

I won't spoil anything or hold you back from the story!

May you enjoy~ *O*

"Umi-chan~ You've got to sit more towards the centre, or it'll seem like you love Honoka-chan more than you love me."

The ash-brunette sitting on the opposite bench of the café table beside her best friend, Honoka, pointed out teasingly.

Umi shook her head lightly at the proposition of her liking either of her girlfriend more than the other before she scooted more to the centre of the bench she had to herself.

"You won't have to make a fuss if one of you sat beside me instead." Umi commented as she gave a quick nod to the waitress who passed them menus.

"We want to sit together today!" Honoka and Kotori both spoke up at the same time, turned to look at each other while sharing a knowing smile before facing their blue haired partner again.

Umi raised both eyebrows at the in sync display. "What are you two up to..? Honoka."

Umi glared sternly at the gingerhead who blanched.

"Ehh~ Umi-chan! Why would you think it's my idea?" The girl with the beautiful sky blue eyes which now reflected a tiny bit of upset protested.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Umi crossed her arms on the table.

Honoka chuckled unabashedly. "Yeah, it's my idea~"

Kotori giggled at the sight of her airheaded and carefree girlfriend laughing while her more disciplined girlfriend attempted for a stern look but could only stare down the former with a loving gaze.

"Don't worry, Umi-chan. When has Honoka-chan ever disappointed us with her crazy ideas?"

The bluenette gave the designer a thoughtful look with a lopsided smile. "Never."

Kotori grinned satisfactorily and nodded. "Exactly!"

The waitress from before returned, and pulled out her memo pad and pen. "Would you like to take your order now?"

Umi looked down at the menu in front of her to perhaps peruse the menu she already has memorized thanks to the number of times the three of them frequented this café, but Honoka piped up then.

"We'll have a slice of chestnut matcha roll cake, two slices of cheesecake, two slices of strawberry shortcake, and for the drinks; we'll have a green tea, apple tea and orange juice."

The waitress nodded at each order before repeating it once. "Will that be all?"

"Yup!" Honoka chimed with her signature smile; Kotori squeezed the friendly gingerhead's thighs which was easily accessible thanks to the short skirt she was wearing when she noticed the waitress blush and stared a second too long at her girlfriend.

Honoka looked over to her girlfriend with the soft, delicate hands on her bare skin, giving a questioning tilt of her head.

Kotori shook her head to brush her petty jealousy off. "Thank you for ordering for us, Honoka-chan. You know us so well!"

"Ehehe~ It's nothing... I just noticed what Kotori-chan and Umi-chan usually would order when we come here, so..." Honoka rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, though she took pride from the praise.

"I'm honestly surprised actually. That there'll be day where Honoka orders for us, without a single mistake." Umi gave the gingerhead a cheeky smile, while her girlfriend pouted for a moment.

"Of course there'll be such a day! In fact, there's only more to come, Umi-chan! Cos' I know Umi-chan and Kotori-chan like the back of my bread!"

Honoka declared with a fist to her chest as affirmation.

"You mean 'like the back of your hand'." Umi corrected.

"Nah, like bread. I know bread better."

Honoka grinned widely at the mentioning of her favourite food. The bluenette wanted to correct that line of thought but was duly distracted by the ash-brunette's giggling.

"Honoka-chan knows of bread so well~"

The grinning girl nodded enthusiastically. "Mm-hm~ And Kotori-chan knows me best!"

"With Umi-chan." Kotori added.

"With Umi-chan~" Honoka beamed.

"Oh, just quiet down Honoka..." The bluenette who now sported a tint of pink on her cheeks said in a hushed voice; clearly embarrassed.

Her two girlfriends gazed softly and smiled gently at her, while a time of silence passed, their order arrived, though only a soft thank you was uttered by Kotori who was closer to the outside of the bench.

"Umi-chan..." Honoka broke the mutual silence by whispering her girlfriend's name, reaching over to touch the bluenette's right hand that was resting on the table.

Honoka grinned when Umi didn't flinch away; there was a time when just holding the easily flustered girl's hand resulted in said girl flying across the room or street stuttering with a red face.

"W-What is it, Honoka?" The stuttering still stayed sometimes.

Kotori reached over next, her finger doing the same as her cheerful girlfriend, brushing the left hand of the flustered bluenette.

"K-Kotori?"

The ash-brunette gave an ambiguous smile to the archer who looked over wide eyed.

"Umi-chan, have you ever thought about our hands?" Honoka had the lyricist's attention with a question, though Umi's heart might argue that just the ginger's voice is enough, regardless of what she utters.

"Our hands?" Umi searched the gingerhead's face for any signs of a joke.

"Yup, our fingers..." Honoka continued to speak in an addictive and alluringly low tone that made both of her girlfriends' skin tingle and hearts flutter.

Umi felt the room grew hotter from all the attention she was receiving as she quickly diverted her focus to their fingers.

"I...guess not. What about them?"

"Honoka-chan thinks that they each have a meaning...And we know they do, but..." Kotori glanced over to the gingerhead for a cue, which her girlfriend gave with a simple nod.

"This is our special meanings of our fingers with Umi-chan." Kotori stroked her finger across Umi's, causing the girl to shudder.

"Kotori!" Umi shot the ash-brunette a very affected look, with the message to not do that so suddenly.

Kotori was unapologetic.

The leader of the three spoke again, in a more peppy voice now. "Umi-chan, you see this finger?"

Umi looked over. "The pointer finger?"

Honoka nodded and wiggled her pointer finger playfully.

"You're the only one, with Kotori-chan, that I'll want to poke just to tease you~"

"And I for Honoka-chan and Umi-chan~" Kotori piped in, her own pointer finger pointed upwards, wiggling excitedly.

Umi didn't know how to respond to that. Honoka and Kotori begun poking their blushing girlfriend's hands, and arms, and they both stretched over to poke the bluenette's stomach, but their fingers were swiftly caught by the archer's hands.

Umi cleared her throat. "I-I'm not letting you two get any more sh-shameless in public!"

The playful two of the trio immediately put up pleading looks to sway their girlfriend's resolve, but Umi just shut her eyes shut. Honoka and Kotori chuckled and pulled back in their seat, the bluenette released a sigh of relief; any longer and her resolve might have caved, and she wouldn't want to cause a scene in the café.

Kotori took both of Umi's hands and placed them on the table, letting her right hand linger to Umi's left, and Honoka joined in with her left hand close to Umi's right.

"Umi-chan~" Kotori cooed, excitement dancing on her lips.

Umi relented. "There's four more to go, right? Go ahead..."

Kotori smiled widely, glad that Umi caught on, and have given them the green light.

"Our centre finger..." Honoka introduced the next finger they were going to talk of.

"It's the longest...and we like it when it connects with yours." Kotori continued; the gingerhead's and her own middle finger nudged forward to prod Umi's on each hand.

"Well...I guess I like it too..." Umi fought the urge to pull her hands away, this little touches was making her very self-conscious.

"It's almost like there's a magnetic effect~" Kotori giggled as Honoka repeatedly moved her hand back and forth on the table; the longest finger separating one centimetre before it touched Umi's again.

"Sometimes we wonder if there's our love stored at the tip, so ours will get pulled together naturally. See?"

Kotori did the same as Honoka, while Umi lasted; a good five seconds before she brought her hands to her face, a futile attempt to hide her crimson red face.

"St-Stop it. You two...that is so embarrassing! And shameless!"

"Ehh~ but we're not done, Umi-chan~" Honoka whined playfully.

"Just three more, Umi-chan. You can do it~" Kotori cheered.

"I promise it's not shameless?" Honoka offered a hand for Umi to put hers in.

The bluenette lowered her hands from her face slowly, revealing a scowl. "You're always shameless."

"Ehh~?" Honoka complained, though she was hardly affected; Umi is her girlfriend despite not liking "shameless" things, so if Umi says she's shameless, so be it.

Umi looked over cautiously at her more docile girlfriend. Kotori wore an entertained grin with her hand outstretched too.

"Kotori too."

Kotori giggles as Umi placed her hands on her girlfriends'.

"Our pinky finger." Kotori nudged Umi's pinky making the girl grunt her disapproval of more small touches that keeps her mind and heart racing.

"We promise you, Umi-chan." Honoka spoke in a strong and definite tone, but her fingers only pressed softly over Umi's pinky; the contrast got Umi glowing more than she already is.

"To love you always." Kotori continued, echoing Honoka's seriousness.

"To be beside you through thick and thin."

Umi stared into Honoka's endless blue and lost the will to stop their little declaration of love for her.

"Illness and health." Kotori had a gentle smile when Umi looked back at the ash-brunette.

"Happy times and sad times." Honoka made sure to emphasise 'happy' as that was what she wants to give both her girlfriends.

"And to be around to tease you~"

"So we get to see you blush like that." Honoka ended with a soft, reassuring squeeze of Umi's hand.

The bluenette felt faint, her heart was pounding so hard she couldn't gather her thoughts well enough to bring forth a response; be it a word or an action.

Honoka couldn't conceal a light chuckle that bubbled out of her, as she watched how she and Kotori managed to make Umi a blushing mess, incapable of words.

"The ring finger." Honoka trailed her thumb slowly over Umi's ring finger, Kotori mimicking the action.

"You don't even have to ask." Kotori exchanged smiles with Honoka.

"We want to put a ring on it." Honoka pressed lightly where a ring would be on Umi's finger.

"Because you're ours." Kotori wrapped up.

Umi sniffled; she couldn't help but get emotional and teary. Why are her girlfriends so romantic?

"I-Is this supposed to be a proposal?" Umi asked between sniffles.

Honoka and Kotori breathed deeply through their noses to compose themselves; not wanting to break down crying too.

"The thumb.." Kotori continued instead of answering Umi's question.

Honoka lifted her left hand over to her girlfriend whose eyes were glistening with incoming tears. "We want to be the only one to caress your cheeks or wipe your tears away when you cry."

Honoka did exactly what she said, moving her thumb gently over the curve of the bluenette's cheek and to her eyes to take a tear that escaped.

"The one by your side." Kotori too had her hand to Umi's cheek, cupping the bluenette's cheek without moving.

"...It can..." Some words tumble out of Umi as she shook from all the emotions running through her at the moment.

Kotori and Honoka waited with bated breath.

"..only be you two...beside me..like this." Umi took each of her girlfriends' cheek with her hands as she gazed between the two.

Honoka broke into a huge, huge smile, while Kotori's grin went from ear to ear.

The gingerhead felt the ash-brunette's hand tangle with hers, and they spoke the next line together.

"Umi-chan, will you marry us?"

Tears were free falling from Umi's amber eyes by now, as she nod her head to answer, not trusting her capability to speak.

Honoka and Kotori each leaned in to plant a kiss on Umi's wet cheeks.

"You've got to say it, Umi-chan~" Kotori demanded, and blinked her own tears away.

"I..." Umi tried shaking her head, requesting to be spared from having to say anything.

"Say it, Umi-chan~" Honoka helped wipe the remaining tears away from her girlfriend's eyes.

"Y-Yes..!" Umi half shouted, while Honoka and Kotori tightened their intertwined hands at the answer. "I-I do!"

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This was a café date Umi, Honoka and Kotori will never forget. As it was the day the three of them promised to be together forever once more, as adults – a wedding proposal.

Author Notes

*O* I hope everyone enjoyed this little (?) KotoHonoUmi story ~ :'3 Truth be told, I planned a date for them, and Honoka and Kotori somehow changed it into a proposal. -chuckles- They just love Umi so much! X'D

Leave a comment if you like~ :'D

P.S. Happy Birthday, Major Mike! I was told yesterday that your birthday is today! So I got to writing this KotoHonoUmi story! *O* Hope you liked it~ :'3