Bliss
Perfect, they say.
The two were perfect in any way possible.
They were happy, successful and young. Their life could not be any better.
Kaori scrambled to get paperwork done and see patients at the hospital while studying for her boards.
Kyouya travelled across the world, working for the company and meeting business magnates.
Their marriage was nowhere near perfect.
But their lives were better than they had ever imagined. They worked passionately at their jobs; they had a home and someone to lean on when things got difficult. However, while they were considered "married", the two were far from settling down.
Except for the rare days when they were able to spend time together.
He would wake up sometimes, just a tad bit earlier than she would. He would feel her soft hair tickle the nape of his neck, and her soft breath on his chest. He would feel the sun trickle through their curtains, knowing that it was well after noon. That was alright. It was another blissful Sunday afternoon.
Kyouya couldn't see very far, but that was never an issue when she was so close. He never liked it when she rolled away from him as she woke up. Rubbing her tired eyes, his wife would give a small smile.
"Morning."
It was 2 PM. But that didn't matter, it was morning for them. He'd kiss her forehead. Never a word. He did not like speaking.
She didn't mind.
Sometimes they would lie in bed. Their eyes would be closed as they waited for their bodies to adjust to becoming fully awake.
Kaori would slowly get out of bed first, pulling the curtains to the sides to reveal their beautiful view of the city. Then she would brush her teeth and wash her face before making breakfast. Or maybe it was lunch. They didn't care. It was just food. They were never the type to like labels.
Kyouya would follow soon after, trudging along the hardwood floor. He would walk to the kitchen and watch his wife place food in front of him, like she always had. Even if she complained about it.
"Aren't you going to help?" Kaori asked, with an irritated tone.
He grunted.
She rolled her eyes. Kaori never understood why she bothered asking. Kyouya never helped around the kitchen. Not even the dishes. He just watched, and treated the place like he was king. The Shadow King, of course.
Their meal was eaten in silence. More than half their day had been wasted through sleep. They couldn't care less. Sleep was pure heaven for the two of them.
He had his laptop out. She did too. He worked on the couch, comfortably sprawled across the whole piece of furniture. While she worked on the floor, with her laptop on the coffee table. Kyouya always liked being in clear view of his wife. She was the greatest and the loveliest distraction.
He watched as she scrolled through pages and pages of some medical journal, while their whole coffee table was covered in highlighters and a giant study guide. The girl was only halfway through.
He never expressed how much he loved looking at her. He didn't know if she would ever know. Silently, he would observe her small habits. Kyouya never felt more honoured to know that he was the only one to see her this way. In her large Cambridge hoodie, and sweatpants, along with her hair in a ponytail and glasses that framed her face perfectly while she studied.
Quite strange. Of all things, he liked seeing his wife in sweatpants. Likewise, Kaori liked Kyouya the moment he woke up. She liked seeing his messy hair, and his unshaven face. The smallest, and the littlest things made her heart flutter.
They had their arguments too, of course. He still never picked up his socks off the floor.
"I'm serious, I'm going to dump all these socks on your face one day if you don't pick them off the floor," she threatened.
"Right, because socks are quite the weapon," Kyouya mocked.
"Shut up and pick up your socks."
"Don't we have people to do that?"
"For the last time, we do not. I'm the one doing the laundry, you prick."
Kyouya stared at his wife. Why was he the prick? What was it about the socks that bothered her so much, he never understood. It was annoying, she claimed.
Nevertheless, socks on the floor or not, the two loved each other for their small ways.
Marriage did not change them. But something intangible had. The two would never be able to describe what had changed.
The mere status of husband or wife.
Two words, that meant so much. Commitment, respect, understanding, love.
He's my husband, she would say.
Or, she's my wife.
They were each other's.
And while that was true, Kaori still had a hard time admitting that an Ootori was her husband. Yet, Kyouya never minded. Because his wife had said it in other ways.
Kyouya reached from his laptop to give her hair a little tug, taking the hair tie out of her hair to let it flow down her shoulders.
"Yes?" Kaori turned around to see her husband, without glasses and his messy raven hair. She could not help but to smile.
"Let's take a break."
Kaori nodded, liking the idea. The two had been working for five hours straight. Always the workaholics, but it was different. Working together made everything different.
Kyouya placed his laptop on top of her study guide, closing the lid. He welcomed Kaori onto the couch where she comfortably took her seat beside him. She still smelled like the tropics because of her shampoo. And he still smelled… like him. The type of pleasant odour you could only recognize if you spent enough time with someone.
"Hey," she whispered.
"Yes?"
"Can we go somewhere?" Kaori asked.
"Where ever you'd like, my dear."
"Alaska."
"What?" Kyouya said, not expecting such an answer.
"Or we can stay here," Kaori laughed. She was only gauging for a reaction. "But Alaska, one day."
That sounded better. Kyouya nodded. She placed her arms around his neck, kissing his jaw. As if to say, I've missed you.
He kissed her deeply on her lips. I love you.
A/N: Why did this suddenly get posted... it was a mixture of an hour worth of procrastination and the lack of motivation to do my psych and English homework. I can't guarantee I'll post these little shorts often, though I hope you're all not tired of Kaori/Kyouya. I had a hard time trying to piece together their relationship, but in the end I just wrote in such a way where I imagined a perfect Sunday afternoon for me (yes, I have no life... or a significant other to sit around and be lazy with haha). Too much info there.
Anyway, hope you're all having a lovely day. :) Thoughts would be appreciated, and I'm still overwhelmed by the amount of support I've had with this story (even if it had ended months ago). Thank you all for being amazing!