Mission: The Elegant Manner of Brushing Away an Eyelash
Yor expertly dodged Loid, doing a full body turn to avoid bumping into him as they weaved through the kitchen together, preparing Anya's breakfast.
It was a Thursday, so the family looked forward to the weekend. Yor's targets had become more numerous as of late, Shopkeeper had insisted she dealt with the assassination of multiple politicians for the past month and a half.
She hadn't really understood it, after all, she knew that some other GARDEN members hadn't had their hands full with targets to deal with, so why Shopkeeper decided to call in Thorn Princess for them baffled her.
Not that she had disobeyed orders, it had just been a thought she had entertained.
Moving her left shoulder so Loid could reach for a mug from the cupboard, Yor leaned upwards on her tiptoes to grab a plate.
It was when she turned around, with Loid still towering over her to reach for Anya's favorite mug, which had somehow gotten pushed a little farther into the back of the cupboard for Loid to comfortably reach, that Yor noticed something amiss.
It wasn't often that her husband had something out of place on him, the only time she could remember that being the case was whenever Loid went out for a run with Bond and returned with disheveled hair from the wind.
Now, the offense on her husband's person was too great to ignore and too important to await inaction.
Yor's eyes zeroed in on the culprit, an eyelash laying ever so innocently on Loid's cheek, near the corner of his right eye.
With instinct guiding her actions, having done it ever so often for Yuri when they were little, Yor slowly reached her hand up to gingerly touch Loid's face.
The man froze at the touch, shoulders visibly pulling taut, eyes snapping down to stare at Yor. She was too focused on the eyelash to register Loid's reaction or the implications of the situation, just how tender and intimate it was. How close they were to each other.
Loid jumped when Yor slowly dragged her finger across his skin, towards the offending eyelash.
Her touch was feather light, almost ticklish, yet her eyes shone with purpose.
Loid swallowed thickly, the lump in his throat staying lodged at one point and not budging. He didn't even have any saliva anymore to force it down, his mouth felt like the driest desert in the world.
Was this another one of the symptoms of his mysteriously developing disease?
Extensive, late-night searches had come up with not much solid information to truly consider as evidence, though Twilight surmised he must have a heart condition judging by the often-irregular pattern his heart would jump to.
It did not occur to him to carefully analyze the exact situations these mysterious heart palpitations occurred in, nor to document his bodily reactions to said situations aside from the concerning heart palpitations.
The doctor at WISE had sent Twilight home with a prescription, a piece of paper with the doctor's scribbly handwriting which read; "Increased exposure to endorphins, spend more time with your family."
Twilight deduced the writings were in code, the "family" obviously stood for Yor and Anya, but what could the doctor mean with endorphins? Was it a biochemical weapon? It couldn't be the happiness-inducing hormones produced in the brain? No, Twilight was certain there was a coded message he wasn't seeing. On further inquiries at the doctor's office, the man very literally slammed the door in Twilight's face with a "CLOSED" sign messily glued to the door.
Twilight snapped out of his musings when he felt his cheek tingling not unpleasantly at Yor's touch.
The pad of her finger traced the edge of his right eye, the organ twitched in response, and Yor softened her touch to the feather-light one from before. Loid sucked in a breath, his hand gripping Anya's mug tightly in his hand. His other hand gripped the kitchen counter behind Yor for dear life.
"Y-Yor?" finally, he gasped out breathlessly. A mere whisper of his confusion at the whole situation.
Yor stuck her tongue out in thought, Loid's eyes unwittingly hyper focused on the pink appendage.
Had Yor's lips always looked so pink?
"Blow!"
Loid bluescreened. "W-what?" had he heard right?
Yor smiled, her finger in front of Loid's face. "Blow on it, Loid." When she held her finger farther away, Loid was finally able to recognize the reason for today's heart palpitations.
An eyelash.
"…What…" Loid said dumbly, blinking owlishly at his own eyelash on Yor's finger.
She laughed. "I used to do this to Yuri all the time, when someone has an eyelash on their cheek, you carefully place it on your finger and wait for the person to blow it away. It's said to bring good luck!"
Good luck? Loid needed all spiritual help he could get for his waning health.
His heart jumping to his throat, Loid gently blew on Yor's finger, causing his eyelash to begin its journey down to the floor in rapid twirls.
"Today's your lucky day, Loid!" Yor cheered, beaming up at him with a smile able to power a large city.
Loid mused it was better for other people not to see Yor's smiles so often, least they try to use them for evil.
He cleared his parched throat, finally lowering his arm holding Anya's mug and freeing Yor from the unintentional position he caged her in with his body.
"I- yes, thank you Yor." He quickly downed a glass of water, shakily calling for Anya to come and eat breakfast before school.
Meanwhile, Yor went about finishing a bento box for Anya to snack on in school, an assortment of cut fruits and a small chocolate bar as a treat. Oblivious to Loid's inner turmoil and increasing panic.
"My eyelashes are falling, is this another sign of the illness? Will my hair fall out as well? Could this illness be cancer that's affecting the heart? I need to visit a doctor tomorrow."
"Loid."
"Yes, Yor?"
He didn't know why, but the spot on his cheek Yor had touched earlier began to tingle and feel hot. "I hoped you wished for something nice when you blew the eyelash away."
They had met by chance at the traffic lights, Yor emerging from the market and Loid walking off a different route he had taken after a mission.
"Oh!" Yor exclaimed, smiling from ear to ear. "What a surprise to see you here, Loid."
The blond offered a smile. "You went shopping after work, Yor? Do you need any help with the bags?" the grocery bags in Yor's hands looked heavy, but Yor only shook her head.
"It's alright, I can manage. I remembered we didn't have any meat or vegetables at home, so I went to buy some."
Loid nodded, glancing at the traffic lights to confirm they were still on red.
The setting sun cast a faint orange glow on the city, even Yor's hair reflected a subtle red sheen against her black hair.
Loid's eyes traveled down, skimming over her eyes only to stop at her cheeks.
"Excuse me, Yor." without much ado, Loid stepped close, startling Yor enough to freeze on the spot.
"Huh?" she blinked, Loid leaning down closer toward her face.
Her eyes gazed at his, a striking blue color, looking so intensely at her that Yor felt hot underneath her clothes, despite the cool November air.
She squeaked when Loid's hand tenderly cradled her face, his fingers grazing her cheek like the stroke of a painter's brush on canvas.
"Lo-Lo-Loi-!" her lips stammered, quivering as her heart was everywhere except her ribcage, pooling in her stomach before jumping back up to her throat.
"You have a little something there…" his soft whisper did inexplainable things to her heart.
Yor closed her eyes when she felt Loid's finger brush her cheek again. She couldn't remember when someone had touched her so tenderly before, as if she were made from glass.
"Now then," opening her eyes tentatively at Loid's voice, Yor spotted what he had removed from her cheek earlier. "Blow."
Time seemed to stand still, the people are them bustling with life but the moment between them locked in a plane of nothingness.
Her heart gradually stopped beating erratically, returning to its former steady beat.
Yor broke the silence with her laughter, brushing her hair behind her ear to blow her eyelash away from Loid's finger. He chuckled at the action, smiling at her. "Did you make a wish?"
Yor's blush colored her cheeks rosy, the setting sun adding to the vibrant color filling her face, almost as if she glowed. "I did, I hope it comes true."
Loid's smile softened, the traffic lights ahead of them turning green. "I hope so too."
As the couple crossed the street, Yor remembered the events of this morning and asked, "Did your wish come true Loid?"
He glanced back at her, the same smile from before adorning his face and a mysterious twinkle filled his eyes. "It did, Yor."
"I'm glad." Yor giggled, not noticing the faint blush dusting Loid's own cheeks at his quiet admission.
Perhaps his illness could be cured, Twilight couldn't explain it, but at the sight of Yor's smile, his heart seemed to settle and his chest felt…
lighter.
Thanks for reading!