a/n: there was no condom, you guys :^)
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Happiness was the first thing Valui felt when her brain woke up. Hitoshi's chest rising and falling with his breathing, gently lifting her head with it, was the second thing.
I love you.
It was the only thing that she could think of; the only thing that was important enough for her to think of. She shifted, trying to get closer to him despite it probably being impossible. Her movement made Hitoshi's arms tighten around her; he let out a soft noise, his nose nuzzling her hair.
"You up?" His question was whispered, like he was afraid of waking her prematurely.
"Uh-huh," Valui managed to mumble back, sleep threatening to take her again. "Barely."
Her answer got a small, amused chuckle out of him. "You can keep sleeping if you want." A kiss was pressed to the top of her head, fingers aimlessly tracing lines on her back before his arms slowly unwrapped themselves from her. "I'm gonna get up, alright?"
Valui forced a small nod out, scooting backward as Hitoshi climbed off the bed; his absence left an immedate cold feeling over her that made her curl up tightly under the covers. Having to move woke her up more — an eye opened partly, sleep-blurred vision locking on to Hitoshi's figure. He had just finished pulling on the pajama pants he had worn last night, now crouching down to pick up the shirt he wore as well. Valui watched his eyebrows knit together, gaze shifting from the floor to her face.
"I, uh...can't find the shirt I gave you." A sheepish expression crossed his face as he stood back up, first tossing her underwear onto the bed next to her and then holding the shirt in his hand to her. "Do you want this one instead?"
Valui smiled to herself, her mouth hidden behind the blanket she had curled herself in. "Yeah," she answered, her voice soft and full of happiness. She uncovered one of her arms, reaching out to take the shirt Hitoshi offered to her.
He smiled lightly at her, then turned around to cross the length of the room to go to the closet. Valui managed to dress herself without having to move very much; she shifted and laid her head on the pillow, watching the spot where Hitoshi stood. She watched the muscles in his back move as he searched through the hanging clothes; as he ran a hand through his hair to fix it; as he found a shirt and pulled it on.
Hitoshi left the closet, swinging the door shut and going back to where Valui was still laying on the bed. He smiled again down at her, running a hand through her bangs; though he blinked a little when his fingers left her hair — her hairpins where in between them. "Oh— Sorry. Uh... Here." He leaned down and, with more hesitation than Valui thought necessary, slipped the pins back into her bangs, pinning them back and out of her face.
Valui smiled and sat up, the blanket falling into her lap and the top of the shirt sliding down her shoulder. The action made a small wave of pain shoot up her body; it wasn't very painful, but the surprise of it made a grimace flash across her face. Hitoshi's expression changed almost immediately — his light, happy look melted into one of concern.
"Are you okay? You're not hurt or anything, are you?" He had stepped closer to the bed, looking ready to catch her were she to fall — had her wince been so bad that he thought she was in serious pain? "I didn't hurt you, did I?"
The question brought the memory of the previous night to her mind, which then brought a shade of red to her face. She smiled, though, shaking her head lightly. "No, I'm just a little sore is all."
Hitoshi let out a breath, then smiled lightly again. "Okay, good." He finished his sentence by kissing her forehead, his lips lingering there for longer than they normally did. "I love you, Valui."
Him saying he loved her wasn't something new, while it did always make her heart soar every time he did. The suddeness of this one took her aback, though. "W-what're you saying that for?"
Hitoshi smiled against her forehead, pulling back and leaning his on hers instead. His eyes gazed into hers, the look in them soft and affectionate. "I just wanted to say it. So you don't forget it."
Valui stuck her tongue out as she smiled, a small giggle escaping her. "As if I ever could, you dummy." Her voice was teasing, her eyes lit up with happiness, as she moved to wrap her arms around his neck.
He rolled his eyes just as teasingly as she had spoken, hugging her around her waist and pulling her closer to him. "Good answer." Something of a small smirk flickered across his face as he leaned down to kiss her; eyes growing half lidded and staring into hers until they noticed something off to the side.
Valui watched Hitoshi's eyes grow wide and his face turn red. He moved back from her, leaving her feeling exceptionally confused — it was reflected on her face, which Hitoshi seemed to notice. "I-I...left a...b-bite mark on your...neck..."
Heat rapidly rose to Valui's face.
She reached up to touch the spot Hitoshi had been looking at, the burning in her face starting to spread to her ears and neck. "O-oh."
"I-it doesn't hurt, does it?" Worry mixed in with the embarrassment in his voice. "God, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have— Shouldn't have done...that...in the first place, god, I—"
Valui frowned and got to her knees on the bed so she was as near to eye level with Hitoshi as she could get. "Hitoshi, stop it." Her tone and expression made him stop, his frantic apologies dying down. Valui's face softened after that; a small smile rose to her lips. "You act like it was some kind of bad thing. I l-liked it, s-so you don't have to apologize."
Hitoshi's face grew as red as hers did.
"A-and it doesn't hurt."
Her final assurance prompted him to hug her tightly, his face pressing into her hair. "Okay, good," he mumbled as Valui returned the hug. She heard him sigh, his arms tightening around her. "You're perfect, you know that?"
Valui was sure her heart stopped for a split second. She let out a small, shy laugh, shaking her head against his chest. "Come on, no I'm not."
"But you are." He said it so seriously — so without a hint of a joke in his voice — that it made her freeze. When Valui didn't respond, Hitoshi kissed the top of her head, smiling as he did so. "I mean it."
It was the first time Valui had ever heard something like that — it didn't help that she still wasn't that used to compliments, despite Hitoshi nearly showering her with them. She pressed her face more into his chest. "Y-you're perfect too," she mumbled out, feeling embarrassed to confess something that had been a constant thought in her mind since their first meeting.
She heard Hitoshi laugh softly, but he didn't answer to what she said. Instead, he lifted his head up and looked down at her. "Hey, are you hungry? My parents wouldn't mind fixing you something to eat."
Valui tilted her head back to look up at him, her head nodding at his offer. "Yeah, I am."
Hitoshi nodded back, then leaned over and scooped her up into his arms. Valui squeaked in surprise, flinging her arms around his neck. Deja vu washed over her; hadn't this happened before? She narrowed her eyes up at him as he carried her out of his room, though she wasn't really that mad, if at all.
"H-hey! Why are you carrying me this time?"
"Because I don't trust that it wouldn't hurt you to walk."
While the answer he had given the other time held a teasing tone to it, this one didn't. It made sense, Valui supposed — any pain she felt this time would be a direct result of him, regardless of if she really blamed him or not. Any protests she had died on her tongue. A small look of guilt had flickered across his face when he said that.
You're really that worried...?
Valui frowned lightly, mentally sighing and resigning herself to dropping it...for the most part. She curled herself into his chest. "Hitoshi, I promise I'm fine."
He stopped at the top of the stairs upon hearing her voice, looking down to her. His eyes met hers, purple irises flickering across her blue ones. Eventually, Hitoshi seemed to accept her words as truth and gently set her down on her feet. "Fine, but you better tell me if it—"
Valui grabbed his hand and started pulling him down the stairs — she did hurt, just a little; enough to where she noticed it but not enough to where it was unbearable. "I will," she assured, smiling over her shoulder to him.
Upon reaching the foot of the stairs, Hitoshi started leading — but not before wrapping his arm around Valui's shoulders. He took her through a small hallway and into the kitchen where his parents were in the middle of eating breakfast. They both looked up once the two entered the room.
His father was the first to speak up. "You're looking more tired than usual, Hitoshi." There was a teasing tone to his voice, one that Valui and Hitoshi both picked up on.
"I just stayed up late, is all."
"Oh, we know you did."
He smirked; Valui immediately saw the resemblance between him and Hitoshi. His mother smiled coyly from her seat across the table. Valui felt her face turn red, but looking up at Hitoshi, she was sure his was redder.
"Y-yeah, okay." He was trying to play it off; to make it a joke, but his voice noticeably broke. "C-can you fix us something to eat?"
His mother let out a teasing sigh. "You're not going to cook for your girlfriend, Hitoshi~? She won't want to marry you if you plan on making her do everything~"
Valui could tell she wasn't serious — it was obvious, at least to her — but it seemed to strike some kind of chord within Hitoshi. His fingers pressed into her shoulder; she felt the muscles in his arm tense up. She looked up at him, but didn't get to see his expression as he soon replaced it with a soft smile down at her.
"What would you like, darling?"
Valui distantly noticed his parents getting up and putting their dishes in the sink before leaving them alone in the kitchen. "Um... Pancakes, I guess."
Hitoshi nodded and kissed her forehead, leaving her side to go to the cabinet and then the stove. Valui watched him get ready and then begin cooking for a moment from where she stood in one of the open doorways of the kitchen. She didn't really know what to do; she didn't want Hitoshi or one of his parents cooking for her — she was capable on her own, and she had already imposed on them enough and the last thing she wanted to be was a burden. But she couldn't bring herself to speak up, not even as the sound of pancake batter hit the hot pan; she couldn't bring herself to think anything else.
I would marry you regardless.
The thought sent Valui's stomach flopping over and her feet moving forward. She reached Hitoshi and wrapped her arms around him from behind, pressing her forehead against his back. "You don't have to cook for me," she mumbled, eyes shutting contentedly as she synced her breathing with his.
"But I want to." His answer came out so quickly and easily that she had begun to think he had decided on this originally — as if his mother's teasing comment hadn't made a difference in his mind. And maybe it hadn't — maybe he really had already planned to cook for her from the beginning.
Regardless of the reason, it wasn't like Valui could stop him now.
After a while, Valui let go of him and went over to the table, picking a seat that was against a wall and sitting in it. As she waited, she tapped her fingers lightly on the edge of the table, making up a small beat as time stretched on. Her fingers slowed to a stop when a plate was set in front of her, pancakes stacked three high, already cut up, and already covered in syrup in front of her.
Curiosity got the best of her as she looked up and Hitoshi set a fork down next to the plate. "Why did you cook for me?"
Hitoshi tilted his head slightly, then smiled and kissed her head — he was doing that a lot, but Valui didn't mind at all. "Because I like taking care of you."
"O-oh."
Valui's face turned red; she began busying herself with eating, trying to pretend heat wasn't steadily rising to her cheeks. She had barely made a dent in her food when a hand on her head made her eyes glance up.
"Say, would you wanna go on that date today?"
She blinked in surprise — that was sudden, though they had planned one weeks ago but all of that happened — then nodded with a smile after the question had registered in her mind. "Yeah!"
Hitoshi smiled back, ruffling her hair softly. "Alright, then finishing eating and get dressed so we can go."
"O-okay!"