The blankets that Ryu had supplied her with were warm and soft from years of use, but Chun Li found sleep a near impossibility. How long had she been lying here futilely attempting sleep? Her eyes blinked in darkness as she readjusted her head on the firm pillow that rested on the the tatami floor. The two had gone to sleep the previous night in silence. Despite having thought of Ryu constantly since seeing him last, Chun Li had no real idea of what she would say when she say him again.

The sound of falling rain was more pronounced in total silence. She shuffled around in the dark before sliding the shoji door that separated her room from the elements outside. She walked out onto the modest, elevated deck and stood under the cabin's awning feeling the faint spray of residual rain water misting her. She held out her hand and felt the full force of the droplets for a few seconds before closing her eyes.

At the next instant, she heard the adjacent shoji door slide open and upon reopening her eyes was greeted by the sight of Ryu. The alertness in his eyes and how little time it had taken for him to join her outside suggested that he too had been unable to properly sleep.

They stood together with steadily gazing at one another under the moonlight while the downpour continued. At once, Chun Li spoke. "I didn't leave two years ago because I didn't love you."

Before Ryu could react, she continued, "I had caused you so much pain many times before. I was unkind to you at the tournament and when we met again. I was so bitter after you saved my life. And after I had the audacity to fall for you, I forgot you for nine months. Not only that, you found me with someone else!" She blinked away the tear that was forming in her eye. "You've been so patient and so kind. I didn't deserve you. I felt so, so guilty."

"And why are you here now?" He asked.

Chun Li paused. The residual misting of the rain had made small clumps of her hair stick to her face. Even in that state, she was lovely. She drew a breath, "I'm here now because even after convincing myself for two years that I wasn't worthy of you, I couldn't forget you." The sound of breaking thunder in the distance seemed fittingly appropriate in the moment as Chun Li gazed into Ryu's eyes with intensity. "I've spent every waking moment of the last two years burying myself in work. For my own satisfaction, yes, but partly so I could at least try to forget you."

Another long pause. "I've no idea what I hoped to achieve in coming here. Maybe so that I could be the one to come to you, for once. Maybe so that I could be the one to tell you that after all this time, I still...I still love you. Maybe that was selfish of me."

The seconds that followed felt like years to Chun Li. A strong gust of wind blew more rain water onto the both of them while the storm raged further. She couldn't bear it anymore. "Please say something!"

At once, Ryu took her into his arms, holding her close, "I love you too."

The tears couldn't be contained anymore. She could feel their warm stream on her cold cheeks. Holding the side of her face in once of his hands, Ryu leaned forward and met his lips with hers. She kissed him back before pulling away for a second. "I'm so, so sorry Ryu."

They kissed again, this time with more intensity. And again, and again, and again. "There hasn't been a day where I didn't think of you." Ryu said before they melted into yet another kiss. They continued to kiss while they clumsily stumbled back inside to seek refuge from the rain melting into the night.

Chun Li awoke slowly the next morning feeling the muscularity of Ryu's chest on her bare back. She knew at once that yesterday hadn't been a dream and turned over under the covers. "Good morning," she whispered.

Ryu too slowly began to wake up. "Morning." His eyes opened and the visage of Chun Li came into focus. She shifted her body a bit so that her head was perched on his chest while he shifted his arms to hold her in place. After two years apart, skin-to-skin contact was almost electrifying.

"So what now?" Ryu asked, letting out a relaxed sly.

Chun Li smiled slyly. "I hadn't really thought of that either."

Epilogue

"Class dismissed!" A booming male voice announced.

A chorus of children's voices rang out in reply, "Thank you Ryu-sifu!" as they scattered outside.

"Ah, silence!" Ryu joked.

Chun Li smiled from across the room as she cleaned the martial arts studio following the last class of the day. "You know, I really wish I could help out more..."

"Don't even joke about that right now!"

"Joke about what?" A familiar voice asked from the door.

"Ken!" Ryu exclaimed, rushing to greet him.

"How are you, man?" Ken asked, giving his friend a quick hug. "Thought I'd give you my congratulations in person!"

"That's so thoughtful of you, Ken." Chun Li replied.

Ken smiled. "Eliza and I are in town for the next couple weeks to celebrate the news! Let's do dinner tonight?"

"We've got plans tonight but maybe tomorrow?" Ryu replied.

"You got it. And now I'll get out of your hair and into my wife's. Later lovebirds!"

"Bye Ken!" The pair replied.

They continued cleaning up the rest of the studio, cleaning the floors, organizing the kendo shinai, and wiping the mirrors clean until their studio was spotless.

"Are you ready?" Ryu asked. Chun Li nodded in response.

The two navigated through busy streets until they came across a familiar cemetery. Upon entering, Chun Li wove her way over to a plaque that read her father's name before placing a dozen red roses on them. Ryu put a reassuring arm on her shoulder.

Chun Li smiled at him as she knelt down onto the ground. "Father, it's Ryu and me again. We have some incredible news..."

Ryu knelt on the ground next to her. Chun Li reached over and lovingly clasped his hand before continuing to her father. "You're going to be a grandfather."

Fin.

Thank you all for reading. This story has been an on and off (mostly off) project of mine now for about a decade. I started writing this when I was in high school. Since then, life has caught up to me as it so often seems to as we get older, but I was always so touched and surprised to see people continuing to leave feedback on the occasions where I'd check out of curiosity. For this reason, I made up my mind to finish up what I had started so long ago remembering what it was like to be a reader who so desperately wanted to know what was coming next and how authors would finish their stories. Your support over the years has been truly touching. I'm honestly a little embarrassed now to read some of my older works, but I was motivated all the same to give those who are still listening some closure. Thank you.