How Long is Forever [COMPLETED]

Strawberry Crepes (Bonus Chapter)

Here it is!! I promised to write this ages ago, and I finally found the time to do it. Not that easy with a five-month-old baby boy xD But here it finally is: the strawberry crepe date. I hope this can bring you some joy while we count down the days until season 2 will be there ♥

♦

"I didn't think you'd be here."

"Why not?"

"You didn't answer me for hours."

Instead of searching eye contact, you closely examine the crunching snow under your feet and how more and more tiny flakes become one with the already white carpet covering the floor. Chishiya walks next to you, hands tugged into the pockets of his winter coat, and you can hear a huff coming from his direction.

"I was at work. Don't expect me to keep my hands on my phone all day long."

You feel how your face reddens, but at least you can put the blame on the cold wind. "Yeah... I know. It was just... I saw you'd read the message and..."

Chishiya pauses, which you only notice after a couple more steps. As you turn around and finally face him, he watches you with a raised brow and a more than mocking grin. "Do you really think I'd give you my number just to ignore you afterwards?"

With a shrug, you start to walk again and hear Chishiya's footsteps in the snow as he follows. "You'd be surprised."

In fact, you're more than glad that Chishiya agreed to visit the teahouse once more. It's the third time now since you bumped into him in the hospital, only that today, you had suggested meeting already at his work place to walk down the street together.

You had been surprised when he had finally answered to your message, and shortly after, you were headed towards the hospital. This man is still a mystery to you. He is reserved and calm, rarely gives away anything about him and doesn't seem too interested in other, and yet the feeling of connection hasn't vanished the slightest.

Even now as you walk next to him, it feels like you have done this a thousand times already. As if he is an old childhood friend that you have almost forgotten about, but now that you're next to him, the familiarity returns. Which is weird, because you're sure that you have never met him anywhere before. That is something Chishiya agrees to, although you're sure he feels it too.

Carefully walking through the snow, you watch him out of the corner of your eye. He has dyed his hair since the last time you've met; the dark hairline is almost invisible now. The cold has turned his otherwise light cheeks into a soft red and the breath comes out in white clouds, but there is no motion in his face otherwise.

For a brief moment, his eyes flicker towards you and then back to the street, unfazed by the attention you give him. It is weird – you both have rarely anything in common. Chishiya, who is about to earn his PhD and showing barely any interests in the things you like and do, continues to agree meeting you. Maybe it's not only the love for cheesecakes that you have in common.

The colorful storefront is already in sight, and you grin at the thought of the many cake variants, too many for just a handful of visits. You'd have to come here at least a dozen times to try yourself through all the options, and maybe Chishiya will agree to accompany you a couple of times more?

"I hope they still have their homemade mango cheesecake today. It looked pretty nice the last- oh."

You stop right in front of the door, Chishiya doing the same next to you. The teahouse is dark, and a plain white piece of paper is attached to the door. "Temporarily closed... but they were still open yesterday!"

The grin drops immediately, and you already mourn the missed chance of trying out the mango cheesecake. You hope that it will reopen soon enough, and not stay closed forever despite saying "temporarily". It wouldn't be the first store to do so.