Chapter 12: The First Anniversary

Their apartment was small—a typical Tokyo living space that seemed to expand and contract with their emotions. On the morning of their first anniversary, it felt different. Warmer. More alive.

Haruka woke first, watching Sakura sleep. So much had changed in just one year. The girl who had once sat alone on the art school steps was now the woman beside her—complex, beautiful, wholly herself.

She prepared breakfast carefully. Rolled omelets. Perfectly brewed green tea. Strawberries arranged like a small, edible artwork. Their life together was like this—each moment crafted with intention, with love.

Sakura woke to the smell of cooking, a soft smile already forming on her lips.

"Happy anniversary," Haruka said, placing the breakfast tray between them.

Their celebration was quiet. Intimate. Unlike the grand gestures some couples might plan. They exchanged small gifts—Haruka a beautifully bound photo album documenting their year together, Sakura a hand-drawn sketch of their first meeting, the moment that had changed everything.

"Remember when we first met?" Sakura asked, tracing the lines of the sketch.

Haruka laughed. "You were so reserved. Sitting alone on those school steps."

They spent the day reminiscing. Looking through photographs. Reviewing Sakura's sketches. Talking about their art, their dreams, the small moments that had defined their first year together.

In the evening, they cooked dinner together. A dance of movement in their small kitchen. Chopping vegetables. Stirring sauces. Stealing kisses between tasks.

"I never thought I could be this happy," Sakura whispered as they sat down to eat.

Tokyo hummed outside their window—a constant, vibrant backdrop to their quiet celebration. The city that had brought them together continued its endless rhythm.

As night fell, they held each other. Not with the passionate intensity of new love, but with something deeper. A understanding. A commitment.

"To us," Haruka said, kissing Sakura softly.

"To us," Sakura responded.

Their first year complete. Their future stretching out before them—full of promise, of possibility.