(Short Short) Not Enough Romance - Amano Writing Club

Six years of dating.

Our relationship had become as calm as the air itself, and because of that, it had somewhat stagnated.

Amidst days where the word "marriage" would float up and then vanish, I invited her on a trip, hoping to break through the wall known as a rut.

Inside the Shinkansen, which glided along the tracks.

Even though we were sitting side by side, our conversation had ceased, and time was simply passing by.

While gazing at the greenery flowing past the window, I squeezed out the best words I could muster.

"The scenery is beautiful, isn't it?"

At those words, she slowly turned to look at me with a solemn expression. Then, she whispered in a voice so faint it was almost gone.

"There's not enough romance"

When I reflexively asked, "What?", she continued as if pouring out all the emotions she had been bottling up.

"That's right. We've fallen into such a rut, there's not enough romance!"

I panicked.

I listed several suggestions for sightseeing spots, desperate to bring back her smile.

However, she only sighed powerlessly.

That was when it happened.

A newlywed couple, looking like a picture of happiness, walked past us laughing.

Her gaze followed them as if drawn by a magnet.

"So that's it."

After we arrived at our destination, I told her to "wait here for a moment" and dashed into a nearby accessory shop.

A short while later, I ran back to where she was waiting aimlessly on the street corner, and without hesitation, I knelt down right there.

"Please marry me."

As I opened the ring box I held out, large tears overflowed from her eyes.

I felt as though six years of time were condensed into that short reply of "Yes."

For two strangers to spend their lives together means they will likely run into many walls from here on out.

However, as long as we don't fear falling into a rut and never forget the effort to care for and compromise with each other, we can overcome any wall.

Seeing her tears, I keenly realized that "romance" is not something that is given, but something that two people nurture together.

Fin.

*This novel is fiction.
The things and people that appear do not exist.

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