In Those Deep, Starry Eyes, I See Cherry Petals Depressed but breathing

Chapter 22: And Finally, Good News

It wasn't long after their confessions that they began to visit each other more frequently. Every couple days turned into every other day, and every other day melted away into every day.

It became commonplace for Miko to prepare dinners for both of them. Suisei had taken the liberty to start taking longer shifts, so she'd often only arrive at the shrine after Miko had closed for the day. Miko had bestowed upon the comet "Executive Privilege" in the form of a spare key to the temple that served as her abode, so often Suisei would simply stroll in when she got there.

They'd greet each other with a hug and shortly after sit down for dinner. Their conversation would consist of what happened in their day-to-day life, particularly the gripes about rude customers or lazy coworkers on Suisei's end. Miko would talk about the people that she helped throughout the day, or what sort of "chores" she did when she didn't have any clients.

The conversation would then pivot to what Suisei was doing about her idol dreams. The answers were usually things that were necessary yet unexpected. Suisei had apparently long since been getting vocal coaching lessons, and she sometimes attended dance lessons. Sometimes she talked about web courses for content creation that she was taking. Each time she’d talk about something new she was doing, Miko would stare at her with wide eyes filled with childlike wonder.

Shortly after their conversation wound down and they finished their meals, Suisei would help Miko clean up as thanks for the meal. Several times the comet had poked fun at the shrine maiden for needing to get a dish washer and dryer, to which Miko would roll her eyes with a bright smile on her face. Her response would always be the same: “Maybe you should pay for one and I’ll pay for the other. You might be living here in the future, after all~” Seeing that her rebuttal would make Suisei blush was always worth the initial teasing along with whatever embarrassing recoil she'd take in return.

Then Suisei would be walked out to the torii gate by Miko and she'd leave for the night. To Miko it wasn't much, but the fact that Suisei would turn around at least three times before walking out of sight showed how much it meant to the comet.

That's not to say that they never spent more than just that short time together. Suisei got lucky some weekends and was able to spend the day at the shrine. While Miko manned the clients, Suisei would busy herself with a list of upkeep the shrine needed. From cleaning the inside of the temple to sweeping the last of the fall leaves to even helping Miko by preparing some meals for the coming days. Once Miko's shift would finish, she'd claim Miko's attention all to herself and they'd either watch a movie or get way too competitive playing games.

Thus, their lives continued slowly, monotonously, yet with a passion that burned deep within both of them. The flame swelled on occasion, and there were times where Miko thought she’d be able to push herself past her mentally-imposed barriers. Each time she got so close to stepping over the threshold, the icy sting of the thorns would wrap around her. Each time she would almost break down, torn apart from not being able to take things further despite being an adult.

Suisei would console her, stroking her hair and hushing her with quiet words next to her ear. “Don’t worry about a thing, Mikochi. I’m not going anywhere. I’m happier than I’ve ever been, so why would I ever think about changing that?”

And so, their routine continued on for a little while like that. Just being near each other was enough to satisfy them for the time being, even if they both craved a bit more from each other from time to time. Miko had made significant progress, though, having given Suisei the option to not only sleep in the same house, but in the same bed on more than one occasion.