Asuna's P.O.V.
I sat in the bathtub, soaking up to my nose in bubbles. The kids were at my mother's for the day and she was taking them to the zoo and to the park. Kazuto was at work like he normally was on a Friday morning, so I had the whole day to myself. I had initially planned on using it to catch up on housework, but I decided to use it to pamper myself a little for a while.
My phone was playing music in the corner of the tub, wrapped in a plastic bag. At the moment, Forest, by Twenty One Pilots was playing. I sang along with every word, which I knew by heart. The song came out when I was around 10 years old, but it was an all-time favorite of mine.
"Down in the forest,
we'll sing a chorus!
One that everybody knows.
Hands held higher,
We'll be on fire,
Singing songs that nobody wrote.", I sang.
~~
After my very relaxing bubble bath, I decided to get up and go grocery shopping. We hadn't been in a few weeks and the fridge was starting to empty. I put myself together, pulling my hair up into the regular half updo and then putting on some basic makeup. I grabbed my purse, put on my shoes, took my phone off the charger, then left.
While at the grocery store, I replenished some of my makeup, bought food for the next two weeks, and stocked up on diapers, formula, and baby wipes. When I checked out, I paid with my debit card and then the cashier, a short, stalky man with a greasy ponytail, helped me load the groceries into the car. He noticed the car seats.
"How old are your kids?", he asked as he put my fruit and eggs on the top of the load.
"They're about 10 months old.", I said, closing the trunk.
"So, you have twins?", he asked.
"Yeah. A boy and a girl.", I said.
"I see. Well, have a nice day.", he said with a smile as he pushed the shopping cart back up to the store.
I smiled back and waved as I walked around the car and got into the driver's side. I started the car and pulled out, then headed back home. I turned on the radio as I drove. One of the songs that I found annoying, but knew all the words to, came on and I couldn't help but listen to it all the way through. It was kind of like Let It Go, completely annoying, yet you never want to change it when it comes on because it's so catchy.
Back at the house, I unloaded the groceries, then made some lunch. I made Chaliopin steak with broccoli as a side dish. As soon as I sat down, Kazuto walked in the door, so I got back up and made him a bowl before he walked into the dining room.
"Hey, Asuna.", Kazuto said the way he always did when he was having a bad day.
"OOOkay, come here, eat, and tell me all about it. You've got that tone that you get when you're having a bad day.", I said.
Kazuto just chuckled a little bit, then sat down at the table. I set his bowl down in front of him and handed him his chopsticks. When I had Kazuto settled, I sat back down and picked up my own chopsticks.
"Well, the thing that started it all was when I got to work and I overheard one of the people that works for me talking about me and how I only got this job because I'm the C.E.O.'s son in law and that there are other people who have worked hard and deserve the job far more than me. At first, I just brushed it off, but then I started thinking. They're right. The only thing I really did to get this job was marry you. I don't deserve this job. I don't even deserve you.", he said, looking down at his hands, which sat in loose fists on the table.
I sighed.
"Kazuto. Are they really that deserving if they go around behind other peoples' backs and discredit them? My dad's first rule is that if you don't have anything nice to say, and you choose not to keep your mouth shut, the only job you deserve is fast food. You are an honorable man. I've never heard you say a single bad thing about anybody. You choose to see the good in everybody. Even now, you don't blame those people for talking about you behind your back, you give them credit for being right, which they're not. You may not think you deserve the job, but that's because you don't look at all of yourself. Yes, you have your flaws, but you are so much more than you give yourself credit for. Don't you dare think for a second that you don't deserve this job because you have struggled far more than half of these men. Not all of them were subject to a death video game for two years, none of them had to deal with my mother as a mother in law, and not a whole lot, I'll bet, had twins right off the bat in the first year of their marriage when they hadn't even been to college.", I said, taking my husband's hand and holding it tightly in mine.
"It all sounds great when you put it that way, but the thing is, I couldn't have made it through any of that without your help and you suffered more with your mom, then there was the fact that I didn't have to carry twins for nine months. That was all you. I was along for the ride, sure, but I didn't do nearly as much as you did.", Kazuto shrugged.
"That might be, but I couldn't have done any of it if I hadn't had you to comfort me, protect me, and provide for me. Without you, I wouldn't be here I wouldn't be happy. I'd probably still be a slave to my mother and her attempts to set me up with another guy. You did much more than you think you did just by being there. You've suffered through plenty, as well. Now, don't let what others say about you get you down. If I'd done that, I never would have made it through SAO. I couldn't have even made it through jr. High.", I said.
"I guess. Anyway, how was your day?", Kazuo asked.
"Pretty good. I took a long, relaxing bubble bath, then got dressed and went grocery shopping. Once I got home, I put the food away, then made lunch. So, up until now, it's been great.", I said.
"Good. Oh, I meant to ask. Do you want me to pick up the twins on the way home, or is your mom going to bring them? I don't want to take them away from her since she doesn't get to see them very often.", Kazuto said.
"Actually, they're coming for dinner. I think I told you that this morning, but I might not have since I was a bit distracted with putting together the diaper bag for my mom to take.", I said.
"I think you did mention that, but I might have forgotten that. What are we having for dinner?", he asked.
"I don't know, but I'm thinking seafood.", I said.
"OK. Hey, alright, so your mom said something about what she wanted the twins to call her, but I forgot what it was, or I didn't hear it properly.", Kazuto said.
"Oh! Yeah, she wants them to call her GeeGee.", I laughed, almost choking on my rice.
"She wants... them to call her... GeeGee...", Kazuto clarified.
"Yup. She said that she doesn't want to be called Grandma because it makes her feel old.", I said, still laughing.
"Ok, then.", Kazuto said.
"Anyway, when do you have to go back to work?", I asked.
"Well, actually, I have a long lunch. I don't have anything to do until later this afternoon, around 3:00.", he said.
"Awesome. So, what do you want to do until then? Any ideas?", I asked.
"One.", he said, giving me that look.
I smirked.
"Meet me in the bedroom.", I said.
~~~~~~~~~~
I think we all know what happens next, so a time skip brought to you by... I don't know... My mom? She just came in and told me to clean my room, so yeah. A time skip brought to you by my mom.
~~~~~~~~~~
I watched as Kazuto got up, picked his clothes up off the floor, then went into the bathroom to shower. It was 2:30 in the afternoon and I had most of the day to myself. I didn't have to do anything until around 5:00, so I could sit in bed and watch T.V. for all anybody cared. That was exactly what I planned to do.
Once I'd gotten my clothes back on, I picked up the remote and turned the TV on as I climbed up into bed. As I flipped through the choices on Netflix, I found an old movie called the Princess Bride. It looked good, so I started watching it. Almost as soon as I started it, Kazuto walked out of the bathroom in his suit. He sat down on the end of the bed and began putting his shoes back on. His hair was damp and flat against his head.
"What is this?", Kazuto asked.
"The Princess Bride.", I said, fixing my eyes back on the screen and concentrating on what was happening.
"Well, I'll be back in a little while. I've gotta go back to work. I'll call you when I get off and start heading home.", Kazuto said, standing up and walking over to me.
Kazuto leaned down and kissed me, then ran a hand through his hair to loosen it up as he straightened up and walked out.
~~
After the movie had finished, I looked up at the clock. It was almost 4:30, so I decided to go ahead and get started on supper. I had decided to make shrimp lomein, an old favorite of my dad's.
I got up and walked into the kitchen, turning off the tv before I left the bedroom. When I got into the kitchen, I pulled out the cutting board, a knife, and some vegetables. Once I'd cut them up, I put them in a pan with some soy sauce and shrimp. I put some noodles in a pot of water and set them to boil, then I sat down by the fish bowl and looked into the glassy water.
I had cleaned the tank out the day before, so it was clear and I could see the fish in it clearly. I picked up the little can of fish food and sprinkled a little bit into the bowl. It floated on top of the water until the fish swam up and swallowed them whole. I giggled and watched them as they swam serenely through the water, magnified by the shape of the bowl.
Every once in a while, I would look up and check the food on the stove, and a couple of times I got up to stir the noodles, but otherwise, I sat and watched the fish, thinking and letting my mind process everything. I just sat and watched the two silvery fish as they drifted through the water without a care in the world.
The sound of a boiling pot brought me back to reality. I looked over at the stove to find that the noodles had begun to boil over. I got up and ran over to the stove, quickly stirring the pot and scooping a noodle out to test it. I took a bite out of the long noodle I had picked out. It was chewy and cooked all the way through.
I slurped up the rest of the noodle, then took the pot off the burner and turned off the stove. The veggies and shrimp had cooked up nicely, so I took them off the burner as well, then went to get out the strainer.
I set the noodle strainer in the sink, then picked up the noodle pot and poured the contents into the strainer. Next, I poured the noodles back into the pot and set it on the stove. I picked up the shrimp and veggies then poured them into the noodles and stirred them around. Once I finished, I added a little bit of pepper and used a fork to taste it all. Everything had turned out well, now I just had to make a side dish.
I decided on fried rice because what doesn't that go with? After quickly cooking up the rice, it was almost 5:30. Mom should be here with the kids any minute and I could see Kazuto's car pulling up in the driveway. I watched as it stopped and turned off, then Kazuto got out of it and began walking up the sidewalk with his briefcase and jacket.
I walked into the foyer to meet him. Just as I got there, the door opened and Kazuto stepped in. He set down his briefcase, setting his jacket down on top of it, then walked immediately over to me and pulled me into a kiss. I gasped in surprise but soon relaxed into it. When we broke out of it, I smiled.
"Welcome home. What has you so excited?", I said.
"Just happy to come home to my beautiful wife. Why do I need any other reason to be excited?", Kazuto chuckled.
I laughed and laid my head on his shoulder. Kazuto wrapped his strong arms around me and enveloped me in a hug. I loved his hugs. They were so safe and secure. I felt like nothing could harm me or touch me when Kazuto hugged me.
"I have an idea. Tonight, since the twins sleep through the night, what do you say you and I pay our favorite video game a little visit?", Kazuto asked.
I considered this for a moment, then smiled and nodded. I hadn't had a chance to play Alfheim since right before I got pregnant.
"I would love that. We can finish that underwater thing that we found. We never got back to that", I said.
"Yeah, plus there are some other small dungeons that we can beat for the prize money." Kazuto added.
I smiled and then kissed him one more time. We stayed that way until the doorbell rang and interrupted the moment. I let go of Kazuto and walked over to the door, grasping the knob and pulling it open.
My parents stood on the doorstep with the twins in their arms. Finley and Miles both started laughing and squirming the minute they saw Kazuto and I. We laughed as my parents each handed us the babies. I ended up with Finley and Miles was with Kazuto.
"Thought you might want these back.", my dad joked.
"Oh, I missed these two! I had a good day, but I couldn't wait to have my babies back.", I said, hugging Finley.
Finley's head was laid on my chest and her hands were underneath her like she was going to sleep. She didn't even move.
"Wow, you tired them out, huh?", I asked.
"Yeah, we did a lot today. We went to the zoo, the park, and played at home. They probably are tired.", Mom said.
"Quick question. What on Earth is a GeeGee?", Kazuto chuckled.
"It's the alternative to granny, grandma, nana, or any other name that would make me feel old.", Mom said with a straight face.
We all laughed and Dad patted Mom on the back as he ushered her inside and shut the door behind them.
"Well, I made shrimp lomein and fried rice, so come on in and sit down in the dining room. I don't know about you all, but I'm starved.", I said.
"Me too, let's eat.", Kazuto said, leading the way into the dining room.
I smiled as I walked behind him. I couldn't help feeling a complete contentedness wash over me as I sat down to eat with my family.
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Whew! I am so sorry for the delay! I have been working my butt off with marching band and trying to help my band director put a show together! School has been in session for almost 4 weeks, here in my hometown, at least, and we still don't have a show. Please forgive me for the wait that I put you through. I will try harder to get the chapters out on time.
Thank you all for your supportive comments and positivity! I loves you all!
-Scarlet