章 3: Chapter 3: Mei's Apology

Yuzu walked in through the door just past 6, like she had told Mei she would earlier. She was greeted with the delicious smell of several of her favourite foods, she could distinguish them before she had even managed to take her shoes off.

"I'm home babe!" Yuzu shouted into the apartment, only to be met with a brief response from her partner.

"Welcome home." Yuzu could still hear the cluttering of utensils and smiled to herself as she walked through the hallway into their open kitchen and dining room, revealing Mei standing with her back to her, facing the stove. Yuzu smiled as she continued her rout into the house, she stood behind Mei and wrapped her arms around her waist, being careful not to knock her arms. Yuzu gave her a quick tight squeeze before letting herself rest against the black-haired girl. Giving her a quick kiss on the back of her shoulder.

"What's all this for, I didn't forget anything important, did I?" Yuzu knew she hadn't forgotten anything, any anniversary or birthday Yuzu always made plans for the two of them, but she was curious as to why Mei had made such a big effort tonight.

"Just because" was the only answer Mei gave before she lifted her head in the direction of Yuzu.

"You should go and take a shower and get changed into something more comfortable, dinner will be ready in about 15 minutes." Mei smiled at Yuzu as she sighed at the thought of not being able to just sit down. Mei was left with a kiss before the blonde retreated away and into the hall, moments later Mei heard the sound of running water.

Mei was just finishing setting the table when Yuzu came back trough wearing a pink tank top and 3/4 black cottons, she smiled happily at the room. The small wooden table now had a white cloth laid over it, the top covered in the arrangements of food she had smelt earlier. The lights had been turned down, the brightest source of light was from the candles that Mei had lit and placed along the shelves, giving off a sweet aroma. The final touch was a single rose that Mei held in her hand as she waited by the table for Yuzu.

Yuzu giggled at the sight, Mei had never been very good at romance, and yet there she was, standing with a rose in a candlelit room having prepared all her favourite dishes. Yuzu was starting to think maybe she had forgotten something, she wracked her brain as fast as possible trying to see if anything came to mind. Nothing did.

"Don't worry Yuzu, you didn't forget anything. I just thought it would be nice to make a romantic dinner for the woman I love." Mei gave her a genuine smile as she gestured for Yuzu to come closer and pulled out her seat. When Yuzu was comfortable Mei graciously bent down and gave Yuzu the rose, to which Mei received a light chuckle and a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks, Mei it's beautiful. But you know you really didn't have to do all this, I would have been happy if you had just ordered take out." Yuzu didn't mean to sound ungrateful but she was being honest, she didn't need Mei to go to such efforts at her dispense, as much as she may have enjoyed it.

"Why would I do that? You deserve the best and although I can't guarantee it will taste as good as yours, I wanted to try to make you happy. You have no idea how much you mean to me Yuzu, I love you so, so much. You are always there for me when I need you, you don't second guess me because you trust me 100%. After how I acted towards you last night: jumping to conclusions without listening because I was jealous...it's not something I'm proud of, and I'm so sorry for not trusting you...I just wanted to show you how much I love you and how much you really mean to me." Mei looked into Yuzu's eye the entire time, and she was certain she could see trickles of water threatening to pool over at any given moment.

"You don't have to apologize for anything, if the positions were reversed, I think I would have reacted much worse." Yuzu managed to say through the lump in her throat. She smiled at Mei so brightly she didn't think she would be able to stop.

"All right then how about we eat this before it goes cold, then snuggle up for a movie?" Mei said gesturing to the mass of food that was definitely too much for the two of them. Yuzu nodded and they both began to devour the food. The apartment was filled with happy chatter while the two ate, enjoying the others company. It was now a little after 8 as the two were happily lost in conversation, soon after they both cleared everything up and retired to the lounge.

Yuzu soon found herself sat beneath several layers of blankets and surrounded by pillows as she watched Mei choose a movie. Mei had planned to make this night focus solely on Yuzu, the movie she had rented was a rom-com that she was certain the blonde would enjoy. She knew that she herself probably wouldn't like it, but it didn't bother her, she was happy just to sit with Yuzu. The movie started and Mei slipped under the blankets and sat beside Yuzu, intertwining their fingers beneath the blankets.

Yuzu any other day would have been happy just to sit with Mei on the couch, however, today she really wanted to snuggle up. She sat up straight and pushed Mei down onto her back, Mei was confused but she didn't argue with the girl, just waited to see where she was going with it. Yuzu quickly took all the blankets off Mei and draped them over herself.

"Really Yuzu?" Mei questioned as she propped herself up on her elbows, looking at the blonde with amusement.

"Just lie back down, I'm not that mean" Yuzu winked as she waited for Mei to do as she was told, before letting herself flop down onto Meis' chest. Mei let out -oomph- followed by a slight wheeze, as she was winded by the blonde sudden action.

Yuzu wriggled her arms around Meis' waist and tucked her head under the younger girl's chin. The blankets drooped over them both and Yuzu smiled into Mei's shoulder as she turned her head so she could still watch the movie. She felt Mei move slightly beneath her to get comfy before wrapping her in a warm embrace.

"You could have just asked you know, no need to wind me like that," Mei said half-heartedly as she kissed the top of Yuzu's head, and hugged her tighter. Mei got a giggle from Yuzu as she felt her nuzzle into her more. Mei felt like she would be forever content to just sit here with Yuzu in her arms. They sat through the movie, while Mei continued to show Yuzu affection, constantly kissing her head, stroking her hair, and never once breaking their embrace.

Yuzu enjoyed the attention Mei was giving her, it was quite rare for Mei to show her this much affection at once, she felt like it was because Mei still felt guilty. If Yuzu was honest with herself, she probably felt worse about the events of last night than Mei did. She should have realized that having so much physical contact with anyone else would have annoyed Mei, to Yuzu a hug or a dance didn't mean much, but it did to Mei.

Yuzu didn't think Mei didn't trust her last night, she just thought that she was mad that someone else was touching her. Did Yuzu touching other people really make Mei feel so insecure? Yuzu contemplated questioning the girl beneath her, who was still stroking her hair.

"Hey Mei," Yuzu asked quietly, she didn't want to ruin the atmosphere but at the same time, she wanted to clear everything up. She got a 'Mmhh' in response, prompting her to continue. She paused trying to figure out the best way to word it, without accusing her of anything.

"Earlier at dinner, you said that you were sorry for not trusting me...Do you always think that I won't be faithful when we go out to gathering or parties? You know I'd never do anything like that right?" Yuzu asked she could hear her own voice wavering, her chest felt tight, her heartbeat rapid, she had asked the question but she was scared for the answer. Just how did Mei see Yuzu.

Meis' hand stilled for the first time in hours and Yuzu felt her breath catch in her throat. Mei didn't answer, Mei didn't know how to answer, how was she supposed to tell the only woman she loved that she didn't like her socializing or having fun with other people because she was too insecure about herself. She felt the weight on her lighten, she looked up to see that Yuzu was now resting on her elbows over Mei, looking straight into her eyes.

"Mei?" Yuzu asked again, as her hair fell down, forming a curtain around the two girls. With still no answer from Mei, Yuzu started to lift herself up, however, Mei grabbed Yuzu by the neck stilling her movements.

"It's not every time... but it sometimes gets to me if your particularly... friendly with someone else" Mei finally said after what felt like a deafeningly long silence. She looked away from the blonde but didn't move her hands as she continued.

"I'm sorry, I don't know why I get like this, just seeing you so close, like that with certain people just gives me the feeling that you are having a better time with them than me. And I know that you would never betray me Yuzu, it's moments like this that remind me of that, but when I'm in the same room as you grinding against someone else I just can't help but feel...jealous, insecure... I don't know...I'm s-sorry" Mei's breath hitched in her final sentences and she felt wet lines roll down her cheeks.

She quickly tried to detangle her arms from Yuzu's neck in order to wipe her tears, but Yuzu got to them first, she stroked Mei's cheek while wiping away her tears with her thumbs, in attempts to calm her now sobbing girlfriend. Yuzu brought her face down to Meis capturing her trembling lips in her own, kissing her softly, she felt Mei's body relax slightly before she broke the kiss and pulled back just enough so that their lips still brushed one another's.

"Mei, you should have told me this before, I'm sorry I didn't know it was hurting you this much. You have absolutely no reason to feel insecure about yourself, you are beautiful... Smart... Funny... Hard working... Resilient... Incredibly sexy... And most importantly you are the one and only person I want to love in this lifetime." Every time Yuzu mentioned one Meis attributes she placed a gentle kiss on Meis' face.

"I won't ever leave you, and from now on when I dance with other people, I'll make sure to keep a respectful distance. Okay? How does that sound?" Yuzu placed one final sweet kiss on Meis' lips, the tingling sensation lingered on their lips as they looked into each other's eyes. Yuzu waited for Meis reply which came as just a rapid nod before she pulled her back down onto her chest hiding her face in the blondes curls.

"Sorry I ruined the mood you worked so hard to make, tonight was amazing, I really appreciated it" Yuzu apologized as she lay in her girlfriends' strong embrace.

"I'm glad you did, I feel better now," Mei laughed as she pulled Yuzu up to kiss her once again. The two lay entangled in each other's arms for the remainder of the night, neither of them wanting to break the warmth they had made.