“So, Yena, how far have you gone with my daughter?”

Both Yuri and Yena choke on air and blush furiously with the blunt question.

Of all the scenarios Yuri had imagined in her head, this was not one of them.

Yuri whined and sputtered, burying her face in her hands. She could feel how heated her cheeks were. This was a nightmare.

“Um--no, I haven’t--we haven’t--yet--” Yena is equally embarrassed, tripping all over her words. She had never been asked such a question, nor was she prepared for it.

“Yet, huh?” Yuri’s father replies mischievously while he taps his chin in thought.

“No! No, I mean, maybe I--if Yuri were to--” Yena’s voice is rapidly rising in octaves and her hands are blurs as she waves them around furiously.

“Stop terrorizing the kids!” Yuri’s mom calls from the kitchen.

“Now hurry up and help me with these ingredients!”

He sighs dramatically and snaps his fingers. Too bad, his questions would have to continue another time. Although, now, they had plenty of time.

“Dang, we were just getting to the good part. Don’t do anything fishy while I’m gone!” He calls behind him as he makes his way towards the kitchen.

The two sit there in silence before Yena lets out a loud whine and falls into Yuri’s lap. Yuri laughs with bright red cheeks as she pushes the hair from Yena’s warm face.

“That was not what I expected,” Yena pouts cutely, bringing her hands up to cup her cheeks.

“Well, I guess it could have been worse,” Yuri muses as she plays with Yena’s hair.

“Don’t say that; he’ll hear you,” Yena hisses playfully.

She chuckles again and pokes Yena’s forehead.

Although they had frequently visited Yuri’s parents over the last few months, it really was something else having them here now. Their sentence had been reduced due to good behavior and other considerations, and Yuri had cried so hard it took half an hour before she was able to coherently pass on the news to both her brother and Yena. After they had been released, the three had gone to pick them up along with Yena’s dad. To say it was a tearful, emotional reunion would be an amazing understatement. Everything seemed so surreal, yet reality was actually this wonderful.

They had gone to Yena’s parent’s place, and the adults were now cooking something special together. It was a little weird, seeing both of their parents laugh and cook together like old friends. It was a welcome strangeness, though.

Well, Yuri’s father sitting them both down on the couch to pester them about their relationship was something that was a little less welcome, but she supposes she wouldn’t trade any of this time together for anything.

“Do this correctly! Why are you an idiot? Stop being an idiot!”

The pair laughs as they hear shouts coming from the kitchen accompanied by playful banter. Hopefully their dinner was okay.

Oh well, can’t have it all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yuri feels a hand envelop hers and tug her gently.

“Come with me?” Yena asks shyly with a little grin, tilting her head towards the door.

Yuri returns the smile with a questioning look, but she follows the insistent tug. As she follows Yena out the door, she catches her dad throwing her a sly wink as he picks up the dirty plates. She rolls her eyes and pretends that she doesn’t feel her face heat up.

They stroll alongside each other, hand in hand, faces burrowed into their jackets.

“Where are we going?” Yuri asks after a few minutes, swinging their intertwined hands.

Yena shrugs.

“I don’t know, I just wanted to go for a walk. It doesn’t matter where I am, anyways, as long as I’m with you,” she finishes cheesily with a wink.

“Ew, greasy,” Yuri grimaces but smiles anyways.

At this point, they’re beside the river. The night is overhead, but the city lights illuminate the darkness. With the streetlamps shining overhead, they can make out each other’s happy smiles and crinkled eyes. The river is quietly flowing, the city’s reflection peeking on the surface.

Yuri waddles up to the railing, closing her eyes and breathing in the crisp air with her arm spread outward.

Yena, unable to help herself from doing so, wraps her arms around Yuri’s waist from behind, pulling her in close and breathing in Yuri’s scent mixed in with the frigid air. She smiles gently into Yuri’s hair, humming in content. They stay like that for what seems like an eternity, yet still somehow doesn’t seem long enough. It’s true, what Yena said: it didn’t matter the time or place; if Yuri was there, that was all she needed.

Yuri turns around in Yena’s embrace and faces her, looking up at Yena’s loving smile and soft gaze.

“Hey,” she says, tiptoeing slightly to whisper against Yena’s ear, “wanna hear a secret?”

Yena raises her eyebrows in amusement but decides to humor the girl.

“I would be honored.”

Yuri beckons her closer with an eager hand. Yena pulls Yuri in closer and brings her ear towards Yuri’s lips.

“I love you.”

Yena is silent for a moment before she chuckles softly and burrows her face into Yuri’s neck.

“Okay, wanna hear my secret?” Yena mumbles as she tucks a strand of hair behind Yuri’s ear, pulling back slightly to look Yuri in the eyes.

“Okay,” she whispers back shyly.

“I love you too.”

At that moment, looking into that warm gaze, that happy smile, those bright eyes, Yena decides that she can’t take it anymore and captures Yuri’s lips with her own. Everything felt so natural, so right. Those special words--when they were finally spoken aloud, it brought a shiver to both of them. They knew it all this time, truly. But saying it then, sharing this moment together, just the two of them, their hearts beating as one--it was truly, truly something.

They both knew this love was real, and it was worth it. It was worth every single wrong decision, every single misstep, every single tear. This was how things were supposed to be. They didn’t expect this to be their happy ending, right now at this very moment, but they did know that this was the start of a happy beginning.

Both Yuri and Yena were robbed of multiple things throughout their lives, but if that’s what needed to happen for them to be able to hold each other like this, then so be it.

This was home, and it was all they needed.

I’m really, really home.