Short Stories

Sunsets and Self-care

He saw her standing outside on their balcony, leaning against the railing. He smiled to himself as he walked towards her. She was watching the sunset, a common occurrence if the weather calls for it.  

"Ky?" He called out to her with a soft, teasing lilt to his voice. She jumped a little when she heard him call her name. 

 "Hey..." She trailed off, unsure of her next words. Her chocolate irises held the reflection of the sun, making them more of an oak brown rather than a spruce or black coffee colour. 

 He was behind her now, his chin on her shoulder and his arms loosely around her waist. She laughed a bit whenever his hair would brush against her cheek. 

"Need something?" The brunette boy hummed in response. He had been working in his office all day and had barely seen his girlfriend other than early on that morning. 

"Nope. Just wanted to see you." Kyani huffed in amusement at her boyfriend's antics. 

"Was work that boring or something?"

"Do I even need to answer that? Of course it was, Ky!" The girl snorted in response to her boyfriend's complaining, simply happy to listen to him. 

 After a minute or two, she realized he stopped talking. 

 "What? Something wrong?" 

 "Nah, just admiring you."

 Kyani huffed out a brief laugh at that before she paused in thought. 

 "Are you sure your day was okay?" She raised her brows at her 5'10 boyfriend, genuinely worried for him. She knew work had been rough on him lately, especially with his lack of motivation and knack for procrastinating projects. Said boy sighed heavily— she could feel his breath on her bare shoulder. 

"Well..." He trailed off, unsure of how to phrase his feelings in that exact moment. 

 "... Is there anything I can do to help, then?"

Her partner whined slightly. "I'm just exhausted..."

Kyani snorted affectionately and roused the younger's hair. "Want me to run you a bath then?" 

 "Mm, that sounds nice." 

 A few moments later, Kyani has ran her boyfriend a bath and he's now in the tub, leaning against the lip of it. There's bubbles in the water along with essential oils (peppermint and lavender). Kyani's body is propped up against the outside of the tub and she's sitting with her legs underneath her. 

 "Kyyy—" Her brunette boyfriend whined. Before he could complain any further, she shushed him. 

"Shhhh. I know, I know. I'm gonna wash your hair for you, mkay?" 

 "Mm, okay..." The taller leaned back against the lip a bit more. 

"Can I kiss you, Ky?" The girl was a bit taken aback, but she nodded regardless. 

"You don't have to ask every time, y'know." 

"Too bad. You said it yourself, consent is hot." 

 Kyani giggled before pecking her boyfriend's lips. 

"Good enough for you?" She teased, knowing full well he honestly didn't care how long it lasted.

 He glared at her playfully. "Oh c'monnnn! That was short Ky!" He pouted at the older, who in turn smirked before running her boyfriend's hair under the water. 

 "Oh hush. You'll get plenty of kisses and cuddles afterwards." 

 "Is that a promise?" 

"... It's a promise." 

 After Kyani finished washing her boyfriend's hair, she tossed him a towel. "Dry off, dumbass." 

 She walked off to their shared bedroom before he could respond. 

Once she got there, she opened her boyfriend's drawer, found the comfiest pair of pajamas he owned and tossed them on the bed. After doing all that, she walked over to her set of drawers and picked out her own pajamas to wear. 

 Her 5'10, brunette and awkward boyfriend appeared in the doorway, his white towel wrapped tightly around his waist. 

 "Your PJ's are on the bed." His girlfriend spoke from the master bathroom. 

 "I see that— thanks Ky!" 

 Said girl leaned against the bathroom's doorframe with a small smile. "Yeah, no problem."