.
.
Whenever Sakurai got anxious, he'd reach a hand and clutch his chest.
Morioka first noticed it when he came home just before midnight, about to go to bed when his supervisor called him to yell at him on the phone.
"My apologies. I can still make the 12:26 train," Sakurai said. He tugged at the shirt above his chest. "I'll be back at the office right away."
There was a pause on the phone, and Sakurai's voice lowered. "My apologies. I'll work on it in the morning, then," and he hung up the phone.
"What's wrong?" Morioka asked. Sakurai forced a smile.
"It's just work. It's nothing to worry about."
Morioka gently pried his hand from his chest, then kissed the spot he had been clutching a moment ago. "I'm here if you want to talk," she said, quietly. Sakurai's facade crumbled.
"One of our clients is unhappy with me."
He sat down beside her heavily.
Apparently it was rooted in miscommunication: the client was convinced they were billed for hours worked on a cancelled project, when really most of the fees were going to another, on-going one. Sakurai tried to do damage control and talked to the client in person, but it devolved into a one-sided shouting match, the client getting red in the face and demanding to speak with his supervisor.
"I offered to go back in, but they said it's too late, and they're handling it."
He was clenching his hand again, which Morioka quietly took into her lap. He smiled as she brushed her thumb across his knuckles.
Whenever he was worried, he would withdraw into himself; he didn't want to burden her, and Morioka soon was able to pinpoint when something was bothering him. She knew there were times he appreciated the quiet, but there were other times too when he seemed almost too afraid to talk to her. "Sorry," he'd say sheepishly. "I know the last thing you need is to deal with my gloomy personality."
She plucked a piece of lint from his shirt, then let her fingertips linger over the spot on his chest he had been clutching. "Better gloomy than a ball of neuroses like me."
Sakurai laughed, startled. Morioka smiled and pressed her lips to his chest. She was the perfect height to his sternum, which she kissed before turning her head to rest her cheek.
"I like it when you kiss me there," he said, shyly.
She smiled and kissed his shirt again, affectionately.