COTE: Kiyotaka Random Stories

Cave Elite: Chapter 2

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After waking up next to Kushida on our small cave floor bed, I head out to the river to have a bath before beginning my work. It's early summer, which means I can take it easy for a few days before having to go find food for the both of us. I fish along the banks for an hour or two, not catching much. Kushida usually does all the catching when she's here, but... I can manage on my own. I return home to find Kushida cleaning our only iron pot, which we use for cooking.

"Kiyo! You back! Fish?" she says, smiling as she points at my nearly empty hands.

"Yep."

I toss the fish onto the board. She easily catches it and puts it inside the pot, then hands me a sharp rock.

"Chop," she commands in that ruthless yet cute tone of hers.

I take the rock and begin slicing the fish while she does the same to a couple more. We store them in the pot to be cooked when we get hungry later.
After a tiring, but fulfilling day of work, Kushida and I decide to spend some quality time with one another before bed. We lie on the floor of our cave home as we look up at the night sky through the hole in the ceiling open to the sky, talking about... anything really.

"Kushida..." I mumble. "Are you pregnant?"

I noticed that her stomach has been developing a little more over time. Doesn't seem like much, but it's definitely there. I saw how big is it a few days ago while we washed ourselves in the river. Of course, she might just be eating a lot, though I doubt it. She eats about as much as you would expect for a girl her age, which is hardly anything.

"How you know?" she asks quietly, as if expecting me to get angry.

"I saw your stomach when we bathed in the river."

In response, she rubs her belly and smiles a bit. I can't quite tell in the darkness of our cave home, but I think she's blushing.

"Yes... Yes, I pregnant..."
"With my child."
"Yes... With our child..."
"Named?"

"If boy, Kintoki. If girl, Kimiko."
The names are after the stone dolls that we played with since we were. Why not? They sound good enough to me. I lean over, kissing Kushida on the forehead. In return, she grabs my head and forces me down to her level for a kiss on the lips. It's exciting, but we really should get some rest soon.

I gently move my head towards her stomach and caress it a few times. I don't think it can hear me, but I still want it to know that its parents love it. The three of us will have a good life here in the valley. I know it.

I lean back and rest my head against the cave wall. It's time for sleep now. Both of us fall asleep soon after, dreaming of the future to come.

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