Day 25 (July 31st). Kalin/Kiryu

Former Dark Signer, leader of Team Satisfaction/The Enforcers, and a brooding man looking for some satisfaction. Today's prompt is all about Kalin Kessler/Kyosuke Kiryu.

Rain/Kalin – his birthday. fluff uwu

so continues my tradition of posting about my characters' birthdays on my birthday! I am Old AF ^^

dedicated to my partner, RepentMF

Silence & Asterisms

Today started out like any other day. I woke up first with her stirring beside me, the sheets cocooning her from all the tossing and turning she did in her sleep. The base of my skull touched the headboard. God. All hell would break loose the moment she awoke. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the silence while it lasted.

BEEPBEEPBEEP

Well, shit.

She rolled over and slapped the alarm clock. A sluggish arm pushed her up. Her half-lidded, blue eyes met mine. The smile that spread across her face was both lazy and joyful. She threw herself at me and planted a soft kiss onto my criminal mark.

Warm breath tickled my ear. "Happy birthday, partner."

Goddammit. I promised myself I wouldn't smile, I wouldn't, and I'd already broken that for a quirk. Five minutes into the day and I was already losing. I muttered, "Thanks."

She rolled out of bed, stretched, and started down the hall. "If you want to visit the greenhouse, I can bring you breakfast."

Great. Just great. That must've been where it'd all come crashing down. I said, "Sure."

The scraping against the wood floor must've been her turning to stare me down. I kept my eyes on my hands in my lap. She twisted her foot into the ground. "Um, I didn't forget, y'know. I have something planned, is what I mean…"

"What?"

"For your birthday!" The instant I met her eyes, she beamed. "I thought you were sad because I hadn't given you anything yet."

"No, it's-" I shook my head. "I'll go wait. Okay?"

She smiled and nodded. I stuffed my hands into the pockets of my sweatpants and meandered outside. Nico and West rushed past me. Nico sang, "Breakfast time, breakfast time!"

"Where're you goin'?" West asked.

I scanned them. No birthday wishes? No failed attempts to disguise smiles for some over-the-top surprise? Huh. They really didn't know. That meant- she didn't tell them?

I shook a thumb towards the newer building to the right of our house. Sunshine slanted through the glass walls. The door squeaked on the hinges. I grimaced. That'd need fixing. The mist in the air told me the sprinklers recently turned off, so the timer was working right. I dropped my ass into the bench strategically placed in the middle of the greenery.

Ferns arched over my head. Palms sprouted in the corners. Looking up through the leaves gave the sense that I was in the forest rather than the middle of a desert. I dropped my face into my open palms. Ugh. This was the most calming spot in the world, usually. Reminded me that life could sprout anywhere; reminded me what I came to Crash Town for in the first place then what Satisfaction Town became to me.

The best life I swore I'd never have.

I shouldn't be such a hardass about today. So what if they made a big deal about it. If it made them happy-

"Your birthday shouldn't be about them."

She appeared in a chair across from me; the splayed leaves of a palm hid most of her black suit. Her white hair was tied into a ponytail, and she wore a pair of glasses – which still struck me as odd considering she only had one eye.

Rahlin stared. I returned the favor. She said, "It's as if you're trying not to enjoy your birthday."

"Yeah, well, forgive me if I still have trouble believing me existing is somethin' to be celebrated."

Her head snapped straight ahead so fast her hair whipped the plants. "I don't forgive you. Happy birthday, Kalin."

I rolled my eyes. "Fuck off!"

That got her laughing. She sang, "Happy birthday to you-"

"Shut the hell up! I'll throw something at you!"

"That'll work so well on a ghost."

I shot to my feet. The door squealed. Rain sashayed instead carrying a tray and shut the door with her hip. Her pink ballet dress flowed around her. I blinked. Wasn't really able to look anywhere else. Rahlin had disappeared, anyway.

Thrusting the tray into my hands, she said, "Hii!"

"Hi," I breathed.

We locked eyes. She broke away to watch her bare toes and curled a lock of hair around her finger. "Umm. You should eat. We need to leave as soon as possible!"

"Leave?"

"For your present! It's reeeal special."

The wink she fired at me sent my mind a thousand places and none of them pure.

"Oh, God." Rahlin's wide eye met mine from past a bough. She finished, "I'll… leave."

I straightened. Covered my blush with my hand. Shit- she, she could read my mind, and all that, about her sister-

"What's wrong?" Rain asked.

She couldn't hear or see Rahlin, so she had no idea. Me, though. "For my birthday, I wanna die."

She groaned. "Don't be so dramatic! What's wrong?"

My mouth was a firm line. No, nope, couldn't go anywhere anymore. Looking down gave me a look at the breakfast she'd made me. When we first started living together, she made these big, extravagant meals. Made me feel terrible since I never finished 'em. I couldn't. She knew it, too, but she said she was used to cooking for a lot of people.

So. She toned it down. Just for me, she'd made a lil' crème brûlée with orange slices surrounding the ramekin like rays of a sun. It wasn't much. I still wouldn't be able to finish it, though. Hadn't gotten any better on the whole "eating" end.

"Thank you," I said, and I meant it. She grinned. "Hey. Did you- do West and Nico know?"

"Um. I didn't tell them. You, er, you seemed like you really didn't want them to know, so I left it up to you if you wanted to tell. I mean, I figured you didn't want a big party or surprise or anything because you're you. Sorry if you were expecting something different."

"Huh."

The musky heat in the greenhouse was really nice and comfortable all of a sudden. The dripping of water off leaves became a lulling symphony rather than a countdown to doom.

Damn, okay, maybe I was a little dramatic. I smiled and scratched at my temple. "You know me well."

"So hurry up!" she said. "We have to leave soon!"

I sat down and stabbed into the food. The brûlée jiggled. I made it through it. Ate four of the nine orange slices, too. Usually I only finished three.

Today was looking up.

The cropped pants, tank top, and baseball cap made her look like a real hiker. I, on the other hand, looked lanky in my not-exactly-fitting shorts and tee shirt. She wore this, this massive pack on her back – taller than her, I swear – and hauled it like a champ. I said time and time again I'd help her out but she refused to share the load.

Rain pointed skyward and stated, "We're going to the top."

I craned my neck. This motherfucking mountain went up forever. Well, okay, it wasn't as tall as the mountain back at Satisfaction Town, but goddamn. People were meant to climb this?

Her hands captured mine in their warm hold. Her smile was reassuring. "We don't have to, or we can stop whenever you need, or we can go home. It's your birthday! I know you'll love the view from the top more than anything, which is why I brought you."

The top would break the clouds if any passed. The night sky on a fall day – the stars would be incredible.

"I'll have to stop a lot," I said.

"That's fine." My hand still in hers, she stepped back towards the first trail. I moved with her. "We have all day. And night."

"Shit, how much you got in there?"

Her smile told legacies. She led the way, as was the norm nowadays. She'd balance on the edge of the path sometimes with her arms out. Groups passing us had to go wayyy out of the way, for fear of getting accidentally smacked by her, I'm sure.

The other sidetrack was frequent stops for flower pictures. She got a phone a few months ago. Took ages just to help her up the learning curve. She never made calls. Just sent me pics of whatever caught her interest in the greenhouse that day or "I love you" texts.

So. I'd be seeing these flowers again, I was sure.

A comforting thought.

We continued up the trail. She said, "Y'know, West says I use my phone wrong."

"Wrong how?"

"He never explains." She zoomed in the photo she took earlier. "He says he'll show me, takes it, and plays games for houuurs. I think it's nice, though, being able to carry around a camera so easily."

"Mhmmm." I'd keep some choice words tucked into the back of my mind for West. It's a tomorrow problem; not today. "I guess I could tell them about my birthday. Tomorrow."

She giggled. "They'll be mad!"

"Yep. The problem with letting the info of the day go? You can't take that back. They mark their calendars and shit. It becomes a whole big deal to everyone but me."

"Oh well!" Her walk escalated into a skip. "Guess we'll have to run away together every year!"

I crossed my arms behind my head. "Sounds perfect."

Thousands of evergreens dotted the reaching landscape miles below. The rolling blue hills at the horizon were below our altitude. Breathing became a chore goddamned quick. Rain said, "Um, this part's kinda difficult."

The trail ended at the rocky face of a cliff. I murmured, "There's no way around, is there."

She pointed toward silver glimmering at the top. "You can use a rope or climb freehand! Since it's not straight up – more of an incline than a wall – it's pretty forgiving, I think. What do you want to do?"

I pressed my hand against the sweaty hair sticking to my forehead. Breathing's such a fucking chore. Why'd I think I could make it? Bet we weren't even halfway there and black was spotting my vision already. It'd be nice, seeing the stars, but I'd never reach-

"Um, hey." She had that reassure smile and held out a small Tupperware bowl packed to the brim with green grapes. "Let's stop for a bit, and you can decide if you wanna keep going. Besides, if you'd like, I could go first and help you up. All you have to do is not look down."

My focus immediately moved to the tiny trees in the distance. I slapped my hand to the back of my neck and focused on my sneakers instead. "Shit. I'm the worst at instructions."

She doubled over laughing. "Too true! It's okay. Looking out isn't as bad as down while you're climbing. And I mean climbing climbing, not that weird stumbly thing you do when you're going uphill."

I pelted her with a grape. She squealed then laughed. I smiled with her then popped one into my mouth. A perfect mixture of sweet and tart exploded over my taste buds. "Thanks, partner."

She reached up for a high-five. I took a minute. It made her nervous, after a bit, but in reality I was thanking my lucky stars for her. I slapped her palm and started for the cliff.

The speed at which she scaled the rocks made me wonder if she descended from mountain lions or some shit. Seriously. She must've been pulling my leg and had been to this place before. One of those City trips must've been a lie.

I called, "Go any faster and I won't be able to see you."

"Someone's jealouuus," she sang from the top.

Sure, technically, it was jealousy. It didn't feel that way, though. More like admiration. She knotted the rope at the top stake and let it down for me. I gave it a couple tough tugs then set to dragging myself up one step at a time, one hand in front of the other. The scratchy rope dug into my palms. I took a few steps to find a good foothold each time. Yeesh. I must've looked like a total jobber with how wobbly my arms and legs were.

"Almost there," she promised from above, and her extended hand almost reached me. One last step. My muscles burned and lungs ached. I took it. I took the step, and I made it, and she clasped my arms to help me up.

"Wow!" she said. I was a collapsed mess on the ground trying to catch my breath. She untied and rolled up the rope. "You're a total natural! Didn't even look down!"

It was a simple compliment and, well, I was a simple man 'cause damn did it make me feel better. She shared her water with me, and I told her it was my turn to carry the pack. The small squabble that followed ended in a victory on my end. Sharing the load was just a part of partnership, after all.

No more cliffs, she promised, only trails to the top. Encounters with other groups became sparser and sparser. Same with the greenery; after an hour, it was all rock no plants. The thinner air at higher altitudes labored our breathing. By the time of sunset, we barely spoke.

To the right of the upward trail was the western horizon, and the dipping sun threw pastel pink and orange onto slivers of clouds crawling towards the horizon. A passing wind rose goosebumps on my forearms. We stopped to take out jackets and kept on. The soft lavender above suggested night's swift approach.

The struggle of the ascension brought the silence I longed when the day began. I hated it. My birthday was a recurring spiral of: Why the fuck should I celebrate? Why am I even still here? And other classics.

Then her shoulder would brush mine. Her weary expression shifted to a grin at the sight of me, and my thoughts left me alone seeing her. Her fingers weaved through mine. She held tight and blazed the trail.

The sun sank. Silver moonlight led the way. Slow as I was, she matched my pace. She watched the stars wink into existence one-by-one; I watched the starlight swirl in her ring.

I wanted to spill the thought I had earlier about the admiration I held for her, for all she's capable of, but it's so much more, too. It's the way she finds joy in the simplest things and shares it with everyone around her. It's the way she's infinitely patient and never even thinks about giving up.

But. I dunno. Saying it out loud, from me, would tumble out as cheesy or insincere. Either that or I'd freeze up and not finish the thought. Showing her how grateful I was? I could manage that. The words part… ehhh.

Rain squeezed my hand. "We made it."

I exhaled, and my eyes widened. Stone monuments littered the summit. A few tents were set up here and there. Frost coated spots on the flat ground. The lack of artificial lights and clouds allowed for a view of the entirety of the galaxy's waltz; the ensemble of prominent constellations and planets took center stage.

Our pair of sleeping bags lay close to a monument and far from the other groups. We saved the tent for later and savored the stars. She pointed out every visible constellation, and after Gemini, she gasped. "Your present!"

She shot up and rifled through the slab of a backpack we'd hauled. She produced an oblong box tucked into the bottommost compartment. "Rahlin and I worked on it together! It got really technical, but she handled it beautifully, I think."

The cardboard pressed into my hands. I wondered what they'd put their heads together for. Rain said, "Hurry up and open up!"

I laughed. "Okay, okay, yeesh!"

Flipping open the lid revealed a shiny duel disk. The middle dome, the card dealer, was crimson as the last of sunset. The area surrounding it had a matte black finish detailed with connected stars. I activated the disk so the card zones extended. They lit blood-red with black accents.

Fabric rustled beneath the disk. A plain old red shirt lay at the bottom of the box. The hand-stitched tee practically matched my favorite from back in the Team Satisfaction days. Except, well, this one'd actually fit now.

"You were right," she said. "It totally is your color."

A corner of my mouth quirked up. My forearm itched. I slammed the disk over it. "This- it's incredible. Thank you both so much."

Yeah, it just ended up sounding lame and insincere again. Fuck. I said, "It's, like, the best gift I've ever gotten and-"

She interrupted with a kiss. After seconds slower than the rest of the world's, she pulled away and said, "It's okay. I can tell you love it."

Thank God.

Noticing my relief, she grinned ear to ear. "Happy birthday!"

I gazed into the scarlet. "This isn't fair."

She fell into panic. "Why? What's wrong? Did I do s-"

"Today was supposed to suck and you ruined it."

Her jaw dropped. Mouth wriggled. She smacked my arm, and I broke into a laughing fit. She ranted on how-dare-I-this and how-dare-I-that. I kept laughing. She did, too – eventually.

She flopped back down and pointed to the sky. "Y'know, constellations aren't all that matter. There are smaller clusters of stars, too. They're called asterisms. All together, they make up the light we can see – and all we can't!"

"All that light," I murmured, "and all of it matters."

"Mhmm!"

I rolled on top of her and planted my forearms next to her ears. She let out a light gasp that lifted her chest to touch mine, and blush dusted her cheeks. I started speaking before fully thinking out what I was saying: "What if I told you I love you down to every last asterism?"

My smile instantly dropped. Oh, what the fuck. That was a dumb and corny line to-

Silver reflected off the tears brimming in her eyes. She hiccuped into saying, "Th-that's the sweetest thing I've ever heard!"

She threw her arms around my neck and pulled me close so I lay flat on top of her. Well, shit. I was smoother than I thought. I held my partner as she sobbed into my shirt. Holding her was awkward since I hadn't taken off the new disk.

The crimson orb seemed to watch me like a gleaming eye.

Every last asterism…

I looked to the galaxy beyond Ursa Major.

"You know not how your actions affect those around you."

My forearm had begun to itch again. I was sure that those words were a lie at the time.

"What you've done has touched lives for the better."

The passing days got me to ease into 'em more and more. Maybe it was… okay to celebrate. Maybe it was alright not to let the guilt eat me up for a day.

I removed the duel disk and placed it beside us. Rain cuddled up to me. I said, "Hey, partner. Thanks. For everything."

I felt her smile. I held her beneath the starlight in silence, and for once, that quiet didn't send me spiraling; the silence and asterisms on the summit inspired tender peace.