The sound of water dragged me out of my half asleep state, and then I noticed that our curtains had changed from maroon to violet. My right arm draped lazily onto the side, which made me realise that it was empty.

'Where did Nagi go?'

I looked to the side, surprised and disappointed that I did not meet my eyes with the usual view of my lovely wife's peaceful and enchanting sleeping face. But my ears traced the sound of water to the bathroom. Nagi had probably woken up earlier to bring Kuri to school and then came back to take a morning shower. I smirked as a mischievous and, I supposed, dirty idea popped up in my mind and I found myself sneakily crawling out of bed to the bathroom.

Knocking on the door, I softly called, "Nagi?"

"Kyoya?" Nagi's sweet voice could be heard from the other side and I grinned cheekily, "Can I join you?"

"J-Join me?" she stammered and I could picture her blushing face, "B-But I'm still bathing…"

"That's the point," my hand was already gripping onto the knob, "I want to bathe with you".

"EH?! B-B-B-But I-I-I-I-I—"

"Come on, it's not like you've never seen my whole nude body before."

"D-Don't be a hentai, Kyoya!"

"Nagi~ You said you will let me do anything if I let the herbivores stay for dinner yesterday, but I was too tired and forgot. So let me bathe with you now."

"Agh… All right, all right," her footsteps neared the door and she unlocked it for me to enter. She hurriedly ran back to sit on a small stool before I could see her naked front, facing her bare back toward me. Undressing myself, I sat on another stool behind her and leant my chin gently on her wet shoulder, making her flinch.

"Would you like me to wash your back?" I asked, my warm breath tickling her neck.

She smiled shyly, "Okay, thank you…"

I began to pour water from small pails onto her back and rub it gently with a soap-filled sponge bath. Her pearl white skin glittered deliciously under the ceiling light, especially with her hair brushed to the front. I suppressed the desire to devour her right here and then. Instead I just planted a light kiss onto her back.

Nagi turned to look at me when she felt my lips on her skin and I wrapped my arms around her torso, pulling her as close to me as possible. I loved her pleasant scent, her slender body, her smooth hair, her elegant eyes, her delicate touch, her alluring warmth, her heartwarming smile, her irresistible beauty, her everything.

To me, she would always be beautiful and priceless.

I would never let her go.

Nagi leant back against my chest and giggled, "You know what, Kyoya?"

"Hm?" I nuzzled my face to her neck and trailed it with light kisses.

"I remember I had this conversation with a few female employees at your workplace," she closed her eyes as if to enjoy our intimate moment to the fullest, "We were talking about how our husbands treat us".

"I have to admit, I do envy you a little, Mrs Hibari," Moriko Yuki had randomly commented to Nagi when she coincidentally walked pass her.

"Eh? Why is that so, Moriko-san?" Nagi tilted her head inquisitively.

"Hibari-san always seems to treat you so gently and lovingly. He always kisses you whenever you come. I'm kinda envious because my husband isn't that intimate with me."

Nagi could only nod her head and smile as more women gathered around her. They apparently did not have much chance to converse with her, so being curious and, in my opinion, too nosy, they decided to take advantage of her seldom interaction with them to know more about her.

"But…why did you marry Hibari-san, Mrs Hibari? Isn't he scary and cold? There are many other men out there that you can choose," Kyuyoshi Akane inquired.

"Was it because he is very handsome or capable?" Daesuki Nia added, and then gave Nagi a sly smile, "Or was it because of his wealth, at least…before the war?"

Nagi beamed and shook her head amusingly, "The answer is simple. I married Kyoya because I love him".

The women 'awww'ed teasingly at her reply which made her blush deeply. Then Moriko Yuki sighed with a hint of disappointment in her voice, "My husband used to always say 'I love you' to me, but as the years fly by, he lets go of that phrase and argues with me over trivial matters more often. Sometimes he even neglects our children and I to go to bars or nightclubs. Now I realise that people can change over time, which is such a sad thing".

The listening women's hearts went out to her in sympathy. Daesuki Nia followed suit and shared her own story about her husband, or rather, ex-husband, "That night when I came home from work, my world shattered. I caught my shameless husband and a ****ing woman that I didn't even know making love on the living room couch. I immediately took the TV remote control and slapped my husband's forehead with it. I didn't care if it hurt him. I just couldn't believe that my husband dared to cheat on me!"

Daesuki Nia tried her best to fight back her angry tears and forced a weak smile at Kyuyoshi Akane who patted her shoulder in an attempt to console her. Nagi bit her lip gloomily.

"Well, since everyone's talking about their husbands, I may as well share with you gals too," Kyuyoshi Akane cleared her throat and began her narration, "My husband is very strange. If he's happy, he may bring me out for a candlelit dinner or give our children extra pocket money. But if he's in a bad mood, he may just throw a chair at us or shout vulgarities or even threaten to divorce me if I don't stop quarrelling with him. Sometimes I really wonder why the hell I married him, of all people. This shows that men can be so complicated. Let me tell you, if ever my husband kisses me before leaving for work, he's CRAZY!"

All the women laughed heartily. The men were probably sneezing by then. They stared expectantly at Nagi, a silent request for her to share with them her own experience.

"Er… Um… K-Kyoya usually doesn't express his love for me publicly or by telling me straightforwardly. He does it through his actions. Marriage is meaningless unless you do it out of earnest love. Our daughter is the proof of that. To me, Kyoya will always be my perfect man. He works hard to be a great husband and father. He tries his best to give us everything, to the point that I feel that I may be a burden to him. He even told me not to work so that I won't feel stressed out".

Moriko Yuki grinned in obvious envy, "Hibari-san sure is a nice man…"

Daesuki Nia inquired almost disbelievingly, "Wait, you mean the two of you never fought before? You got to be kidding me!"

"Eh? Oh no… We aren't that perfect. We did, but as far as I can remember, it was only once," Nagi chuckled as she recalled the incident, "We quarreled about what brand my new cellphone should be."

The women's jaws dropped hilariously.

"Kyoya was arguing that he thought the brands that I was considering weren't trustworthy but my beliefs clashed with his, so we ended up spending an entire day exploring phone shops and analyzing their reliability and usefulness. In the end, I won, but Kyoya said if I encounter any technical problems later I can't blame him."

Kyuyoshi Akane held back her laughter, "I wouldn't even call that a fight".

Moriko Yuki shrugged, "What can we do? We're already married. Divorce won't be a favourable option so we just have to live with them until the end, huh?"

"Yeah!"

"That time… I realised what a lucky woman I am," Nagi's expression gleamed with mirth and gratitude. "I don't get into many arguments with you, I don't get cheated by you, I'm never neglected but always cared for, you won't be unreasonably aggressive to Kuri or I, and most importantly…" she turned and kissed my lips that were about to touch her cheek, "Our torch of love is still glowing bright and strong, even after so many years of knowing each other".

She whipped around and hugged me affectionately, not minding the fact that I could get a nice view of her chest, "That's why I vowed to be the best wife you can ever ask for".

I smiled and hugged her back, kissing her bare shoulder, "You're already the best, Nagi".

"I love you, Kyoya. Thank you…for everything…"

I smirked and tightened the embrace. Nagi finally knew how to shorten her sentence whenever she started it with 'thank you'. She finally knew how to summarise her "thank you for being by my side…thank you for caring about me…thank you for your unconditional love…thank you for granting my greatest wish to be a mother…thank you for being Kyoya" blah blah blah blah blah…..with a short yet impactful "thank you for everything".

I chuckled to myself. Nagi really was the best.

"….. And so, the flying man snatched the dynamite from the pirate and tossed it into a barrel. Then, everything went KABOOM!" Tetsu was narrating a fictional story in a dramatic manner to Kuri, who bounced excitedly on the couch as she could not peel her eyes and ears from her storyteller. Meanwhile, Nagi was massaging my sore shoulders as I tried not to doze off and worked diligently on my paperwork.

"Kusakabe-san seems to be able to get along well with kids," Nagi remarked, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Hn, that's why he's suitable to be Kuri's entertainer, or maybe even her babysitter," I said, watching my secretary and daughter chatting jubilantly in their imaginary world.

I guessed today would just be a normal Monday, huh?

"By the way, Kyo-san," Tetsu suddenly addressed me, "Some employees sent letters of excuse from work for a couple of days as they are occupied with martial arts training".

"Martial arts training? What is that for?" I raised an eyebrow. How dare those herbivores skip work! And who knew how long their 'couple of days' could last?

"They said they want to train for the battle trials," Tetsu replied before he resumed to telling Kuri another interesting story.

The battle trials…. Oh, right, I was invited, but did those Ingotish idiots think I cared?

"Are they going to be all right?" Nagi inquired worriedly, "Shouldn't you stop them, Kyoya?"

I sighed, "It's their decision to fight. What can I say?"

"But…they may never come back…."

I knew what her point was. They were just walking into the lions' den and had very low chances of finding a turning back. I could not guarantee that their martial arts training would be sufficient. Being unprepared, they might just die there.

"You should at least check on how they are doing, Kyoya," Nagi urged.

I sighed again. Those herbivores were so troublesome.

"Tetsu," I said, "Report to Sawada Tsunayoshi about those absent herbivores. Call on them or something to check whether they are still alive or not".

"Hai, Kyo-san!" Tetsu bowed obediently and then promised Kuri he would return soon as he left my office.

"Otosan! Okasan!" Kuri said euphorically as she ran to the front of my desk, "I have flowers!"

"Flowers?" I repeated, eying at a bunch of baby breaths and daffodils that appeared in Kuri's hand out of nowhere.

Kuri nodded, "I want to give them to Roll!"

My eyes widened upon hearing the name of my seven-months-old hedgehog. I had not heard that familiar name for months, and now that it was mentioned, nostalgic memories penetrated my mind. I was even unaware that I had been frowning for long minutes of tense silence until Nagi placed her hand on my shoulder, looking at me with concerned eyes. Kuri was also cringing as she clutched onto the flowers uncertainly, probably scared that I would scold her for bringing up the topic of Roll.

I forced my lips to curve up a little and patted Kuri's hair, assuring her that I was not mad at her. I caressed the flowers with my fingers, and said to her, "Okay, we'll visit Roll later. Or wait, how about now? I'll just tell Sawada Tsunayoshi that I want to take a break and bring you and your mum for a walk".

"Ah, let me do it, Otosan! I'll help you tell Uncle Tsuna!" Kuri kindly offered and rushed out of my office.

Roll's carcass was buried beneath the earth of the plain field located near our house. We wanted his soul to stay as close to us as possible. Even Hibird accompanied us to visit his grave. I had specially carved a small gravestone with his name, birthdate, date of death and a quote describing him, 'A playmate, a friend, and a family'.

Kuri knelt down in front of the gravestone and surrounded it with the gorgeous flowers, the flowers that Roll had developed fondness for. She clasped her dainty hands together and murmured some prayers. Nagi and I did the same, although we remained standing.

Hibird perched himself on the top of the gravestone and began chirping sorrowfully, yet hoping that his song could be delivered to his playmate's soul and dance in his mind.

I stepped forward and sat beside Kuri, touching the stone and stroking the carved letters of Roll's name. My movements had become weaker and I felt so vulnerable and regretful, just like during the time when I had discovered my pet's death.

After we were allowed to leave the bomb shelter, I immediately dashed back to our collapsed house, trying to retrieve something important to me, to my family. Although the possibility of him being alive was quite negligible, I still wanted to believe, to believe that I would not lose him.

When I reached the house, I ransacked through all the debris and ignored the bleeding cuts on my hands. Then I found him, buried under planks and bricks. His cage was smashed, killing him with it. I sucked in deep breaths of air before picking up the broken cage and gently taking Roll out of it.

He was dead, without question.

I felt guilty, lugubrious, outraged, and remorseful that I had failed as his master, his protector, his partner.

I could not save him. I could not protect him.

That time, I permitted myself to shed tears.

"Why couldn't I grab hold of him back then?" I mused to myself morosely, "I could grab hold of Nagi, I could grab hold of Kuri, I could make sure that Hibird followed us, I could make sure that we managed to get out of the house, so….why? Why couldn't I save him?"

I could not care less if I sounded so pathetic. I just could not believe that I had to let go of Roll like that. He was my one and only hedgehog! How could I not have…..?

I sighed. I was tired, tired of thinking and blaming myself for this.

In fact, the ones to be blamed should be the Ingotishs. It was because of them that Roll had died. This just made my wish to crush the Ingotishs even stronger and fiercer.

I suddenly had the urge to storm into the Army House and demand for the Ingotishs to fight me until I was satisfied. But no! I must control my temper. I must remember that I might upset Nagi and Kuri if I acted on impulse. I begged to differ from the other foolish herbivores who did not think twice before they offered themselves to the grim reaper.

"Kyoya…." Nagi approached me and handed me a sharp-edged stone, "Can you carve something onto Roll's gravestone for me?"

I blinked then nodded, taking the stone from her, "So, what do you want me to write?"

"Write 'we will always remember you'."

I was stunned for a few seconds. I quickly shook my head and began writing on the gravestone.

'We will always remember you'.

Examining the words, I could not help but smile.

Nagi was right. Roll might be physically gone forever, but he would still continue to live within our hearts, as long as we remembered him.

Kuri then requested me to write the cute sound that Roll always made.

'Kupii!~'

Reminiscence of these memories of Roll just caused me to smile wider.

"Ahahaha… Okay! Oh, say hi to Hiro-kun for me, thanks! Yeah… Hahaha! Well, good night, Yuni-chan! Bye!" Nagi returned the receiver to the telephone set.

"You've been calling your best friend a lot recently," I said out of the blue, flipping through the newspapers, glowering at a sub-heading 'Serial Rapist in Action Again'.

Nagi grinned and shrugged, "I love talking to Yuni-chan. And I don't know why but I just feel the need to call on her".

"Are you worried that Hinata Yuni and her son may get hurt since there is no man in the house to protect them?" I queried.

Nagi took a seat beside me on the couch, blushing slightly when I snaked my arm around her shoulders, "I don't know…. But I do know that Yuni-chan can take care of herself and Hiro-kun, so I doubt that is the reason I keep calling her. I think it's just my habit of constantly checking on her well-being".

Nagi had always been very caring and considerate to others, but sometimes I reminded myself that I needed to teach her to care for herself too. She was just so selfless, and it hurt me to know that she was always ready to make sacrifices for others. It hurt me to know that she was always ready to die for the sake of her loved ones.

When I looked at her face, I could vaguely catch signs that she was bothered by something. I tossed the newspapers aside and pulled her into a warm hug, patting her back tenderly. I hoped that this could be a way to comfort her about whatever she was disturbed about.

Nagi pressed her neck gently against mine and wrapped her arms around my waist, "Is something the matter, Kyoya?"

'I should be the one asking you that,' I thought but replied nonchalantly, "It's nothing. I just want to hug you".

We stayed that way until Kuri entered the living room with Mia in her arms, crawling onto my lap. We encircled our arms around each other in a bear hug, or more specifically….

Our family hug.

Once in a while, we would cuddle together like that as a symbol of our eternal love.

My family really was the best.