One reason I’m drawn to AUs where Haruka and Michiru meet/get together older is I love the thought of Haruka realizing she’s gonna make it, on her own merit and hard work. Like, when she finally lands a steady job and gets her first paycheck and sees the world open up, and she takes Mina to dinner somewhere that’s not McDonnalds because she can treat her friends now and still make rent and maybe even have some leftover, and it’s all her doing and she can let herself feel a little proud because she did it, she really did it