A/N: Here are a couple of embellishments to the story that might have disrupted the plot flow if inserted when they happened. (Also because: "Inquiring minds want to know".)

Appendix 1: Kotoko's birthday

Kotoko tilted her head to the side as his mouth moved to her neck. "You know, Yuuki, I'm not that hungry at the moment."

Her back hit the bed in a matter of seconds. "I was hoping you would say that!"

Temporarily breathless, she glared at him, dimple still showing in her cheek. "Really, not at all romantic. Where's the poetry, the wooing…"

Yuuki raised his mouth from her neck as his hands still struggled with her zipper. "What do you think the past few months—and hours—were about?"

"Gotcha!" She flipped him onto his back and straddled him. She leaned down and cupped his face and kissed his mouth gently. "I love you, Yuuki. More than I ever thought I could love...anybody. But," she knocked their foreheads together lightly, "I didn't think you were so clumsy that you couldn't handle a single zipper." She twisted her arms behind her back and lowered it herself.

When that position arched her spine, Yuuki immediately took possession of what was right in front of him, easing the fabric off her shoulders as it loosened.

After a quick gasp, she giggled. "So all those ecchi stories were right. Men do go straight for them!"

He raised his head and kissed her nose. "Sorry for being normal, darling!"

Kotoko lay down beside him. "Sorry for not having so much up there." She sighed as she viewed her assets. "I drank lots of milk but they never grew." Yuuki snorted and she used his distraction to begin unbuttoning his shirt.

"Don't worry," he assured her, laughing, "I won't be like others and complain."

Her fingers stilled. "Others?" Her eyes grew wide. "There haven't been any others. You're the one who knows what he's doing."

"I do?" he asked then shrugged the shirt off. "Well, I guess we'll muddle through somehow."

A few hours later they sat cross-legged in bed, feeding each other bites of cake. "Oops, I missed your mouth again!' Yuuki said, licking frosting off her cheek.

Kotoko laughed at the sensation. "This has been the best birthday ever! What—?!" Yuuki had suddenly hopped off the bed and was patting down his abandoned jacket. He fished out a rectangular package.

"I knew I forgot something!" he declared, holding it up. "Happy birthday, Kotoko!"

She accepted it with her usual childish excitement. "This had better not be a joke gift like you used to give me," she warned him. Her jaw dropped when she finally opened the hinged box. "Oh! Yuuki!"

He removed the necklace from the case and attached it around her neck. "Sapphires for your birth month, heart because of my love." Their lips met softly and he lay down on the bed, pulling her with him. "Thank goodness for that earthquake," he whispered.

"What earthquake?" she asked absently, holding the pendant above her with an admiring smile.

Grinning at her memory lapse, he rolled over on top of her. "You didn't feel the earth move? Then I guess I'll have to try again!"

Appendix 2: Phone call between brothers

"Onii-chan," Yuuki began.

"Yuuki! Why are you calling at this hour?" Although it was early afternoon in New York City, Naoki knew well that it was dark in Tokyo.

"I just wanted to bring you up to speed on the news here." Lying on his childhood bed, Yuuki added another pillow to prop himself up.

"So, what's Mom's latest hobby?" His brother laughed. Mrs. Irie had run the gamut from pottery to basket weaving, plus a brief flirtation with glass-blowing until the temperature of the workshop exacerbated her change-of-life hot flashes.

"Ah, how about wedding planning?" As good a way as any to introduce the topic, he thought. "Kotoko and I are getting married."

Yuuki almost thought they had been cut off until Naoki replied softly, "Kotoko?" Then, "Aihara?"

"That's the only one I know,"he replied.

"So...when did this come about?"

"There are two different answers to that—hers and mine. Let me just say that I finally convinced her this year."

"This year? Yuuki, you only graduated high school in March!"

So he was going to be that way! Yuuki sighed. None of the parents had made that objection. "Is there a particular rule that forbids emotion until the age of majority?" he asked snidely.

"No, but…"

"Onii-chan," he interrupted, "I understand that you chose to close yourself off to love six years ago, but don't deny others the right to enjoy the emotion."

Naoki took a deep breath. "I've not closed myself off to love. I have a deep attachment to Sahoko, and my children are my very life."

"I'm sorry," Yuuki said after a pause. "You and I...there has been a distance between us the last few years, and I'm not talking about physical. I was not aware…"

"No, my apologies," his brother answered. "Over time I've learned that there are different types of love in this world. None are to be disparaged. But as for you, are you sure…?"

"Yes, Onii-chan, I am. And so is she. It hasn't been easy for her, but she has persevered and triumphed in life. I am honored that she was willing to accept me."

"If those are your feelings, then my family will be delighted to share in your joy. When is it?"

Yuuki chuckled. "Well, that is still undecided. I just proposed tonight, and Mom is already investigating locales and musicians."

"Sounds like her." Naoki also laughed.

"So don't be too surprised to hear from her soon."

"I will try to control my delight until that time," his brother answered drily. After hanging up, he stared blindly at the abstract painting on the opposite wall of his office. Echoes of happy laughter and a pair of dancing eyes were brought to the forefront of his mind, the memories as clear as if they were not almost a decade old. He only indulged himself for a moment before shaking his head and calling for his assistant. The past, after all, could not be relived.