April 10th, 201X

Pat! Pat! Pat!

"Mmm…"

Pat! Pat! Pat!

"Cut it out, Miku."

Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat!

Nemuri cracked open her eyelids, ready to make known her displeasure to her suddenly mischievous cheek-tapping boyfriend, when she suddenly realized that he was notably smaller than usual.

Notably feline as well.

"Sushi?"

The cat meowed. Nemuri took it as a confirmation.

She rose from her comfort, grabbing her glasses from her nightstand and taking a look at the clock as she did so.

6:59 A.M.

She took a look at the cat occupying half of her bed and then back at the clock.

Well, that's odd.

Mikumo was never up so early on a Sunday. It was the one day of the week that the both of them agreed to sleep in.

Of course, that was if nothing urgent had come up. But when that happened, they usually woke one another to say they had to go.

So where's he gotten off to?

She got her answer the moment she stepped out of her bedroom.

In the living room, hunched over on the couch with a lollipop stick dangling between his lips, there he was.

He was fully dressed in a faded band t-shirt and washed out jeans, but she could tell he hadn't gone out yet.

He didn't seem to notice her yet either, if his glossy eyes indicated anything.

As a matter of fact, he didn't even seem to notice her until she rounded the couch and sat right next to him.

He whipped around to face her, as if he'd been snatched harshly from the little world he'd made for himself in the wee hours of the morning.

"Hey, uh, mornin'."

He was obviously surprised, and even more obviously trying to play it off, but she wasn't going to rib him for it.

"Mornin'. You're up early."

"Oh uh, shit. Sorry, did I wake you?."

"No, you can thank Sushi for that. You were quiet as a church mouse."

"Ah, I see. My bad, I shoulda fed him."

She leaned over and laid his head on her shoulder, "Nah, it's fine. I can see you were a bit occupied."

"Mm."

She looked up at his face and could see that he was somewhere far away again.

He didn't like her to see it, he was usually embarrassed when she would look over during a meal to see that he was somewhere other than present in the moment with her, no matter how much she assured him that she didn't mind.

She understood of course.

She'd been a hero for over a decade, and seen that same thousand yard stare from a number of her colleagues of the years.

Considering his former line of work, it was to be expected.

He didn't really want to talk about it then, so she decided that she'd at least be there when he did.

He was silent for another minute before he said, still staring forward, "I was thinking about visiting mom today."

That was all he said, that was all she needed.

She pulled his face down to face hers, giving him a peck on the lips before saying, "Give me ten minutes to get ready."

8:15 A.M

And that's how they found themselves kneeled in front of Yuna Amano's grave, both deathly silent as they paid respects.

Nemuri didn't know Amano-san all that well, having only met her several times during Grade School and Junior High, but the woman was kind from what she could remember of those interactions.

She looked over at Mikumo, his eyes still clenched tightly shut as he kept his hands pressed together.

I'm sure he has a lot to say.

If there was one thing she was sure of, it's that Mikumo loved his mom more than anything.

A few more moments of silence before Mikumo opened his eyes and stood up as he offered her a hand.

She took it and used it to help herself up, dusting off her jeans as she stood tall once more.

She intertwined her fingers with his, giving his hand a squeeze, before they began to take their leave.

"Thanks for coming with me."

"Anytime. I figured today would be a good day for me to visit too."

"Yeah, well, I've been meaning to make it out here for months. I kept pushing it back though..."

She knew he wasn't finished, he just needed a moment to collect his thoughts.

"I kept saying 'I need to focus on the shop' and 'today's just not the right day' and all this other bullshit. Truth be told, I think I was just scared of seeing her. Scared of her seeing me the way that I am. That wherever she was, she wasn't going to see her son. Or that she would, but she'd be disappointed. I guess that's what kept me on the couch this morning too."

"Mm. Well, you wanna know what I think?"

"What's that?"

"I think that she'd be concerned, you were in a bad place for a while, Miku. But after that, she'd be so proud of you. Proud that you pulled yourself out of it. That you're helping other people. That you're getting better every day. That is what I think."

She pulled his hand up to her lips, giving his knuckles a quick kiss.

He reciprocated, before saying, "I see, but I think you missed something, Nemuri."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." He grinned cheekily, "I think she'd be most proud that I found a girl like you to deal with me."

She bumped his arm with her shoulder, "Charmer."

He bumped back, "Charming."

And with spirits lifted, heads held high, they made their way out of the cemetery, simply warmed by the other's company.

Been a while since this has been updated. Let's change that.