To Build A Home
The wedding was still two weeks away, but Mamoru decided it was about time Usagi officially moved into his apartment. It just made logical sense. They planned to fly to Hawaii for their week-long honeymoon straight after the reception, and he knew they – well, he, mostly – would be able to relax much easier knowing that when they returned home, it wouldn't be to a messy apartment filled with boxes to unpack. Usagi spent more time at his place than she did her parents' house anyways; she practically lived there already.
Usagi had no objections to the idea. She had been ready to move in the day after her high school graduation, but Mamoru insisted they wait, not wanting her parents to get the wrong idea about his intentions toward their daughter.
Unfortunately, none of Usagi's friends were available to help on moving day, having made previous plans. Motoki offered his assistance, but Mamoru had declined, aware that he was expecting a call from his hard-to-reach long-distance girlfriend that day. Besides, he didn't anticipate Usagi packing up too much from her old bedroom. She had already snuck most of her wardrobe over to his place for the nights when she slept over, so other than her beloved manga collection (he'd emptied a bookcase in preparation) and a few other treasured possessions, there shouldn't have been much more to move…
Or so he thought until he saw the moving van pull up in front of his apartment building.
"Uh, did you forget to tell me that your parents and Shingo-kun were moving in with us, too?" Mamoru asked after Usagi hopped out of the driver's seat with Luna in tow and greeted him with a peck on the cheek.
She laughed, setting her guardian cat on the ground. "Don't be silly, Mamo-chan! I didn't bring over that much stuff," she said as she unlocked the back door, revealing stacks and stacks of cardboard boxes, all labeled in Usagi's messy hiragana.
He wondered if it was too late to accept Motoki's offer.
"Seriously, it's not as much as it looks," Usagi said, grunting as she grabbed one of the boxes labeled "Manga".
Mamoru immediately sprang into action, taking the hefty box away from her before she dropped it on her foot. The last thing he wanted was for Usagi to have to hobble down the aisle with a pair of crutches. "I'll take care of the heavy boxes," he said. "You can carry some of the lighter ones."
"Okay!"
Never had he been more grateful that his building was equipped with an elevator. As it was, Mamoru soon lost count of how many trips he made from the moving van up to his fifth floor apartment. Noticing after about the seventh trip up that Usagi was getting tired, he told her he would take care of the rest of the boxes while she got a head-start on unpacking, an offer she was all too eager to take advantage of.
Once he lugged the final box up to the apartment, Mamoru allowed himself a break, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the bottom of his T-shirt. He headed to the kitchen for a glass of water to cool himself off, frowning when he swung open the cabinet door and saw it filled to the brim with an assortment of different glasses, tumblers, and mugs he didn't recognize.
"What the – How many cups does one girl need?" he muttered to himself as he pushed some of the glasses aside to find one of his clear ones. He refused to drink out of a plastic cup decorated in Pokemon.
It was a matter of principal.
After filling his glass with water, Mamoru took a sip and surveyed the open-concept living area. Usagi was nowhere to be found, but signs of her were already everywhere, from the frilly cushions on his dining chairs and the sequined throw pillows on his leather couch to various knick-knacks cluttering his coffee table and the peninsula separating the kitchen from the living room.
It should have been a heartwarming sight – in theory. After all, Mamoru had been looking forward to Usagi moving in with him for as long as she had, possibly even more. As a natural-born introvert, he never really minded living on his own, but it always made him smile to see Usagi's hot pink toothbrush next to his on the bathroom vanity and her fuzzy cat slippers lined up in front of the door – small signs that he was no longer alone in the world.
But this – this! – was on a whole different level than slippers and toothbrushes.
Everything clashed with his carefully curated modern contemporary aesthetic…and he hated it.
"Usako!" he shouted, slamming his glass on the granite countertop so hard that water spilled over the lip.
"I'm in here," she called out in a sing-song voice.
Mamoru followed her voice to his bedroom, his left eye twitching when he saw the changes Usagi had made in the room he considered his sanctuary. It was even worse than the living area! In as calm of a voice as he could manage under the circumstances, he asked, "What are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?" she replied, fluffing a throw pillow in the shape of a donut. "I'm making the bed."
"The bed was already made up." Just how he liked it, with hospital corners, a plain green cotton blanket, and the bare minimum of pillows – one for him, one for her.
"I know, but doesn't it look prettier this way?"
Frankly, it looked like a unicorn had vomited rainbows all over it, though Mamoru wisely kept that opinion to himself. How did anybody sleep with so many pillows? Not to mention the pile of stuffed animals Usagi had begun arranging on the bed.
"Take if off and put it back the way it was," he ordered, crossing his arms over his chest.
"But why? You always said my bed looked so cute."
"Yeah, your bed. But this is my bed, and I don't want it to look cute."
"Your bed?" She set down an ugly-cute hippo plush and arched an eyebrow. "Isn't it our bed now?"
He rubbed at his temple. "Yes, of course, but… You know what I mean." Mamoru pointed an accusing finger at a very familiar blanket – one that was too small to properly fit the queen-sized bed. "I am not having sex on a bed covered in bunnies and crescent moons!"
"That's never stopped you before. We did it all the time –"
"You're missing the point, Usako! We're adults now. Isn't it about time you outgrew all this cutesy crap?"
He regretted it as soon as the words left his mouth.
"Oh, I see. I can move into your oh-so-sophisticated apartment, just not my 'cutesy crap'." She grabbed an empty cardboard box from off the floor and started throwing her plush toys in it with a force that made Mamoru very glad she wasn't pummeling them at him. "If that's how you really feel, then maybe we shouldn't move in together at all!"
"Usako, don't be ridiculous. We're getting married in less than fourteen days," he reminded her, following her back to the living room where she continued to fill the box with her stuff. "Look, I'm sorry. You know I didn't mean it like that."
"How did you mean it, then?" Usagi asked, whirling around so fast that one of her pigtails slapped him on the arm.
Mamoru rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh…I just meant…well…"
Honestly, he had meant it...a little. Perhaps 'cutesy crap' was not the best choice of words in hindsight, and okay, telling her she needed to grow up was definitely out of line… He liked that Usagi was young at heart. If she started acting elegant and mature all the time, she wouldn't be Usagi anymore. And it wasn't as if he hated all her belongings, but there was just so many of them. All colorful and cheerful…and so not his style…
"Yeah, I thought so." Usagi dropped the half-filled box on the floor and scooped up Luna, who had been sleeping on the couch. "Come on, Luna. We're taking a break!"
Mamoru grimaced as the door slammed shut behind her.
Still upset twenty minutes later, Usagi bit into one of the two crepes she had bought from a food truck – why pick between strawberry and chocolate when she could have one of each? – and ignored the disapproving stares of passers-by as she roamed the streets of Juuban. She had no real destination in mind, only knowing that Mamoru Chiba was the last person on Earth she wanted to see at the moment.
"Weren't you supposed to be on a diet?" Luna asked, following after her. "I thought you wanted to lose a few pounds before the wedding."
"Don't care." Usagi took a huge bite from the other crepe, gooey chocolate filling her mouth. Normally, sweets managed to cheer her up, but neither of her crepes tasted as good as they usually did... "It's not like the wedding's going to happen anyway," she mumbled.
"You aren't seriously thinking about calling it off? You and Mamoru-san had a minor argument; it's not the end of the world."
It was more than just a "minor argument" in Usagi's view. For years, she had dreamed of finally being able to build a happy, beautiful home with Mamoru, yet… "How can we get married when it's obvious that he doesn't even want to live with me?"
"Usagi-chan, you know that isn't true. Mamoru-san loves you."
"Yeah, he just hates all my 'cutesy crap'!"
The reminder of what he said got her all riled up again. How dare he treat her like she was some immature child! As if his boring stuff was so much better than hers… Sure, her old bedspread was perhaps a little too small for their bed, but at least it had personality, which was more than she could say about that dreary green blanket of his that reminded her of that jacket Mamoru refused to throw away even after he had to patch the holes in the elbows.
"Well, to be fair, you are a little too old to still be sleeping with plush toys," Luna said.
Usagi whirled around, glaring down at her traitorous guardian cat. "Not you, too," she whined. "You're supposed to be on my side, Luna!"
"I'm not taking sides. I'm only trying to give you some advice."
With a huff, she pivoted back around and resumed her walk, chomping off another chunk of her strawberry crepe. "Maybe you're right, though," Usagi said after a while, willing to concede at least on that matter. "Married women sleep with their husbands, not stuffed animals."
"Exactly."
"But it's going to be my apartment, too. Shouldn't I get some say in how it is decorated?" She frowned. "His style is just so modern and sterile…and, well, blah. It's more like a museum than a home."
"He is a bit of a minimalist…"
At least Luna agreed with her on that point. "Right? He lives like a monk!"
"You two just need to learn how to compromise."
"And how do you propose we do that?"
"Well, for a start, maybe you can get rid of some stuff? Not everything, of course," she clarified upon Usagi's indignant glare, "but do you really need so many throw pillows?"
"Need?" Usagi sighed, her shoulders slumping. "No, I suppose I don't need that many…"
To be honest, even she thought having so many pillows on the bed was kind of a pain, especially when all she wanted to do was take an afternoon nap but she had to toss them on the floor first in order to get comfortable. But they were just so pretty! Whenever she spotted one she liked, it was impossible to resist buying it.
"Perhaps you can pick one or two favorites to keep," Luna said. "Mamoru-san shouldn't object to that, right?"
"It's worth a shot, I guess…"
She had to do something. Despite what she said earlier, Usagi most definitely did not want to call off the wedding. She loved Mamoru and wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of her life with him, the life they were denied so many years ago. She just needed to figure out how to live with him without either of them getting on the other's last nerve.
They were passing by her favorite department store when sudden inspiration struck. "Oh, I know!" Usagi quickly inhaled the rest of her crepes, tossing the empty wrappers in the trash before heading toward the store's entrance.
It wouldn't be the answer to all their problems, but maybe it could be a start…
"Usagi-chan, were you even listening to me?" Luna asked, hopping on a bench beside the entrance as Usagi opened the door. Since cats were not allowed in the store, she would be forced to stay outside. "I thought the whole idea was to declutter, not buy more things you don't need."
"Trust me, Mamo-chan will be happy with this purchase," Usagi said with a wink. "Wait for me here. I'll be back in a few!"
Back at the apartment, Mamoru fluffed the last pillow and set it on the bed, satisfied with how everything looked. True, it wasn't how he would have chosen to decorate his bedroom on his own, but Usagi was right. It was their room now, so it should reflect both their styles. He only hoped that she liked what he had done and would forgive him for being such a jerk earlier.
He was putting the final touches in place when he heard someone enter the apartment.
"Mamo-chan, I'm home!" Usagi's cheerful voice called out, and his heart warmed, thinking how wonderful it was to hear her say that. She was home…with him. "Where are you?"
"In the bedroom, but, wait, don't come in yet!"
He grabbed one of his ties from his tie rack and headed back to the living room, where Usagi was taking off her shoes at the door, switching into her fuzzy cat slippers. She clutched a large shopping bag from a well-known department store in one of her hands.
"Oh, Mamo-chan, I'm sor—"
Mamoru covered her mouth with his, kissing her before she could finish her apology.
"Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"
"I have a surprise for you."
"A surprise?
He moved behind Usagi and placed the tie over her eyes, knotting it loosely from the back.
"Is it a kinky surprise?" she asked. "'Cause I could be into that…"
Mamoru cocked an eyebrow. He would have to file that little piece of information away for later use. "Just come with me," he said, taking her by the hand and leading her to their bedroom, careful to kick away anything she might trip over along the way. Usagi was klutzy enough when she had the use of both her eyes.
"What is it? What is it?"
"Just a minute…" After positioning her so that she would have the best view, Mamoru loosened the knot and pulled off the tie. "Surprise!"
Looking around in shock, Usagi dropped the shopping bag she had been carrying and brought her hands to her mouth. "Oh, Mamo-chan…"
While she was gone, he had redecorated the bedroom, trying his best to combine his style with hers. Gone was the bunny-and-moon print bedspread, replaced with a blue-and-white striped blanket that was if not cute, then at least visually more interesting than his plain green one, and he had gotten rid of most of the throw pillows, keeping only a couple that he thought best complimented the blanket's colors. Usagi's favorite stuffed rabbit and a Tuxedo Kamen plush also made the cut, sitting up against the pillows. On top of the dresser, he had displayed some of her personal photos – exchanging the more garish picture frames to neutral wood ones – and her rooster-shaped alarm clock (that somehow still worked after years of taking her abuse) sat on the nightstand next to her side of the bed, ready to annoy her for days to come.
Wrapping his arms around Usagi's shoulders, Mamoru kissed the top of her head. "I'm so sorry I made you feel unwelcome," he said into her hair, tightening his embrace. "Of course I want to live with you, more than anything. I think I was just feeling…overwhelmed. It's been a long time since I lived with someone, after all. I'm not used to sharing a home with anyone."
"Oh, Mamo-chan, I'm sorry, too." She turned around, brushing his bangs out of his eyes. "I should have asked your opinion before I started making so many changes. I want this to feel like our home, not just yours or mine. We should both be comfortable here."
"So, you'll still marry me?"
Usagi smiled, rising on her tiptoes and wrapping her arms around his neck. "Of course I will. I can't wait," she said, drawing him down for a long, lingering kiss.
"By the way, I put the rest of your things in the guest room," he informed her when they finally pulled apart. "Feel free to decorate that room however you want."
Her eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Just promise you won't touch my office. I like it just the way it is. We'll figure out how to decorate the rest of the apartment together."
"Deal! Oh, I almost forgot." She held up the bag she had brought home with her. "I have a surprise for you, too."
"For me?" He took the bag and sat down on the edge of the mattress, wondering why Usagi was giving him a gift. It wasn't his birthday or their anniversary. An early wedding present? "What is it?"
"Open it!"
"Okay, okay…" Chuckling, Mamoru reached into the shopping bag and pulled out what was inside.
"Look!" Before he even had a chance to see what it was, Usagi snatched it from his hands and unfolded the new comforter, holding it up in front of her. "It's reversible. See, on one side, pretty roses" – she flipped it over – "and on the other side, it's solid red!"
"In other words, the perfect blanket," Mamoru said, impressed by her clever solution. He didn't even mind the rose print, finding it far more preferable to bunnies.
From now on, the only bunny he wanted on his – their – bed was Usagi. (Well, and the plush, because she really did love that silly thing.)
"So, you like it?"
"I love it, Usako. Thank you."
Taking the blanket, Mamoru tossed it on the floor, then placed his hands on her hips, pulling Usagi in between his spread legs to kiss her once again. As much as he wanted to finish unpacking the rest of her things before they went to sleep, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to take a short break…
Usagi seemed to have the same idea, moaning into his mouth as he started tugging down her jeans. "Mmm… Where is that blindfold again?"
Mamoru held up the tie which he had set down beside him on the bed, and Usagi grinned.
The rest of the boxes could wait until tomorrow.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Written for Tina Century as part of the UsaMamo Fanwork Exchange 2k19. I hope you like it!
DISCLAIMER: Sailor Moon is the property of Naoko Takeuchi.