Tiffany woke up early that morning for some reason and decided to take a shower and went back to bed. It was 5 am but a part of her was concerned about Yuri being out so late. This is what Yuri did for the last 3 years of her life to help pay the bills at her parents’ farm but the strain that the workload put on Yuri still concerned Tiffany. She thought that she could fix Yuri breakfast before she came back when she heard the door upstairs open. Sitting up on the bed, her eyes were fixated on the stairs until she saw a worn out Yuri approach her.

“I’m home,” said Yuri exhaustedly.

“Welcome back,” Tiffany said as she scooted over on the bed.

Yuri instantly plopped down on the bed and turned to her side. “Hold me a bit,” she asked.

Tiffany complied and spooned herself on Yuri and held her close around the waist with one arm. “Rough night huh,” she asked.

“Yeah,” Yuri said through a yawn. “But because I got there in time I was able to make up for the loss. We ended up above our quota. I’m so sorry I had to leave you here alone.”

“Shhh, enough with that,” said Tiffany as she hushed Yuri. Her hand moved up and began to gently the side of Yuri’s head.

“Mmmm,” purred Yuri. “I like when people pet my hair. It always calms me down.”

“Then relax for me and rest for a while. I’ll be here when you wake up,” whispered Tiffany as she continued to Yuri’s hair. With a smile, Yuri drifted off to sleep as Tiffany continued to watch over her.

After Yuri woke up, the rest of the day was pretty uneventful. The two spent the afternoon snuggled up to each other watching movies and tv episodes. It was almost like they’d known each other all their lives and that spending hours upon hours doing nothing with each other was completely normal. It was good that the two conserved their energy because Yuri had plans for them that night.

“We…we’re going back to that spooky forest…at night,” asked Tiffany with a lot of hesitation.

“Yes but it won’t be that bad. Trust me Fany,” said Yuri as she reached out and the side of Tiffany’s head. This had the calming effect that she wanted. “I have a few other surprises before we go back in there but I promise you it’ll be worth every moment of it.

Tiffany looked at Yuri and gave her an eyesmile, leaning her head into Yuri’s hand. “I trust you Yuri,” she said.

Once the sun began to set the two took Yuri’s truck back out to the farm and they both said their greetings to the family. Yuri grabbed a couple of pillows and blankets from inside and led them both back to the truck. She opened up the bed of the truck and placed the blanket down on top so they wouldn’t get too dirty. She propped the pillows on the truck cab and helped Tiffany up. They both took off their shoes and sat next to each other watching the night sky turn from oranges and pinks to purples and finally deep blues.  

“The stars are really pretty out in the country side. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many of them before in my entire life,” said Tiffany as she took in the wonders of the universe above her.

“It’s beautiful yes but I think there is something more beautiful than the stars in the sky,” Yuri said looking at Tiffany.

Tiffany turned to Yuri with a confused look and asked, “What could that be?”

Yuri smirked and looked at her watch. “It’s almost time. The international Space Station is about to fly over us,” she said dodging the subject.

“Really? I wonder if the people up there are looking down on Earth and watching us back,” Tiffany said as she looked around in the sky.

“It could be possible,” Yuri stated casually as she shifted over and draped an arm around Tiffany’s back. She pulled Tiffany a little closer and started to gently rub her arm. “Look over to the left side. It should be coming by any minute now.”

Feeling Yuri’s breath on her left ear, Tiffany lightly gulped but turned to that direction. The action made her even closer to Yuri. When she felt herself getting nervous an object in the sky appeared in her line of vision. “Oh wow! Is that it,” she asked excitedly.

“Yeah,” Yuri said quickly as they both watched it shoot across the sky and then it was out of sight. “Did you like it?”

Tiffany nodded and rested her head on Yuri’s shoulder as she looked up into the sky. “I absolutely loved it. Thank you for showing me,” she said with a smile.

“You’re welcome,” Yuri said as she pulled Tiffany closer and rested her arm on the shorter woman’s shoulder. She was slightly taken aback when Tiffany grabbed ahold of her dangling hand. It was a cute gesture and Yuri leaned her head on Tiffany’s in return.

They stayed like that for some time looking at occasional shooting stars and Yuri pointing out various constellations. Three smaller satellites flew overhead while they watched which was an added bonus to their stargazing.  When the two had enough they put their shoes back on and Yuri gave Tiffany a hand off the truck bed.

Not letting go of Tiffany’s hand Yuri asked, “Ready to take a stroll through the forest?”

“As long as you are by my side I’ll be okay,” Tiffany answered smiling.

Yuri led the way down to the familiar path with Tiffany in tow. When they entered the area the sounds of insects filled the air. Luckily for Tiffany she couldn’t see them otherwise she would have freaked out. When they arrived at the stream the sounds of the frogs croaking were vibrant, as if they were singing their own soothing melody with the insects. As promised, Yuri took the second pathway that led away from the scarecrow and to an open area where the trees parted their canopies revealing the night sky.

“I can’t believe that I can see this much in the dark just by starlight,” Tiffany said as she looked up at the sky.

Yuri moved behind Tiffany and gave her a back hug as she looked up into the night sky as well. “Just imagine how it would look when the moon is out. It’s a really beautiful sight especially by the pond. I found myself coming here when I was a bit younger to just get away from it all,” Yuri spoke gently as she lightly rocked the two of them from side to side.

“I’d like to see that one day,” whispered Tiffany as she placed her hand over Yuri’s.

Yuri leaned down to Tiffany’s ear and sung, “I swear, by the moon and the stars in the sky...”

Tiffany laughed and playfully smacked Yuri’s arm. “Silly, I really like that song,” she said smiling.

“I do too,” Yuri said as she picked Tiffany up a bit and started to swing her around in circles.

That night the forest was filled not only with the croaks and chirps of insects but also with their laughter. 

A/N: The next chapter will be the final chapter of this fic. I wonder how you all will like it. In case you were wondering what Yuri sang to Tiffany in the forest it is All-4-One's hit song "I Swear." It was very popular for weddings back in my day. You can listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25rL-ooWICU