Love for Hiei Part 13

I smiled as Shizuru and I got closer to Koenma's. She had contacted me through a communicator telling me that she was released early from rehab and wanted to surprise Kazuma. She looked at me with a smirk on her face.
"My little brother has no idea at all that I'm coming?"
"None at all. Kazuma did see me on the communicator, but I told him I was talking with my brother."
"You mentioned to me that he was on a vacation."
"He is, Shizuru. He surprised Mai with a 10-day cruise to Hawaii."
"Never pictured Hiei as the romantic type."
I had to agree with that. I never pictured my brother as being the romantic, surprising type at all, either. I can tell his relationship with Mai truly has changed him for the better. When we got home, Shizuru smirked as she saw Kazuma dancing excitedly over beating Yusuke in a videogame.
"He'll never change. Even when he gets gray hair, he'll still go crazy over winning a videogame."
"Kazuma always manages to find something to get excited about. Just wait until he sees you're home early, Shizuru."
I told her to quietly follow behind me as I entered the living room. I had Shizuru cover Kazuma's eyes, and he jumped slightly.I giggled and whispered in his ear.
"Guess who?"
"Uh,Y ukina?"
"Not even close, baby brother."
In the blink of an eye, Kazuma turned around, eyes widened at seeing his sister before him. Yusuke smiled as he looked at Shizuru.
"Long time, no see. What are you doing here?"
Shizuru smirked and nodded to me.
"I contacted Yukina through her communicator to say I'm being released early from rehab and that I wanted her help in surprising Kuwabara. We've had this planned for a few weeks now."
I smiled as Kazuma approached me.
"When you saw me shut off my communicator, Kazuma, I actually was talking to your sister, but didn't want to spoil the surprise and said I was talking to Hiei."
"You...you two planned this whole thing?"
"We did. I overheard you talking to the other guys about Shizuru being in rehab. I contacted her on the communicator and let her know to contact me when she was coming home so that we could surprise you."
With small tears in his eyes, Kazuma embraced me tightly. I could tell that he was pleased to see his sister out of rehab early, but even more surprised to know I helped bring her home.
"Thanks, Yukina. It really means a lot that you'd go through all of this trouble for me."
"I did it because I cared about you, Kazuma. I wanted you to be happy."
As Kazuma and Shizuru reconnected, Kurama approached me with a smile on his face.
"I don't recall ever seeing him that excited. Seeing Shizuru home again really did the trick. Well done, Yukina."
"Like I said, I just wanted him to be happy."
"Speaking of happiness, I wonder how Hiei and Mai are doing on their vacation? Do you think they're enjoying themselves?"
"I know they are. Last time I talked to my brother, he said their ship was heading for the island of Oahu."
Kurama smiled as he handed me a cup of hot tea.
"Mai really has brought out the best in your brother. I don't think I ever saw him that protective with anyone besides you."
"I can tell they'll be together for a long time, Kurama. I really can."

Hiei's POV:
Mai and I had everything we needed for our shore excursion here in Oahu. We had swimsuits, towels, and an extra shirt to wear over out swimsuits. On the minivan trip to the water park, we were given a narrated tour of the region and many of the island's highlights. Mai looked around excitedly as we got closer to the water park.
"I can't wait to swim with the dolphins, Hiei. This was the part of the trip I've been waiting for."
"Hn. I admit I've been curious about this, too."
"Can't you at least look like you're enjoying the trip?"
"I have been. The destinations didn't matter to me. I just cared about the fact that you're sharing this with me."
I smirked as a small blush appeared on her face. After the minivan stopped, one of the park's staff members escorted us through some back doors that led to where the dolphin pools were. She smiled as she looked at the group.
"Welcome, folks. You'll be able to swim with the dolphins shortly. Before you do, you must change into your swimsuits and put another shirt on top of it. Also, don't put on any sunscreen as it can irritate the dolphins' skin. Please use the changing stalls in the restrooms to put on your swimsuits and meet me back out here so I can escort you to the dolphin pools."
I tried peeking into Mai's bag to look at her swimsuit, but she narrowed her eyes and adjusted the bag so I couldn't see inside. I narrowed my eyes back at her, annoyed.
"Why can't I see inside?"
"You'll see the swimsuit when it's on me, Hiei, and not a moment sooner."
I rolled my eyes as she entered the girls' restroom. I quickly changed into my black swim trunks and put my belongings into a locker outside of the restrooms. Moments later, Mai came out in her new swimsuit, and my eyes slightly widened at the sight. It was a black one-piece swimsuit that hugged her figure perfectly. On the front part was a red rose that was right above her stomach. I smirked as I put an arm around her, liking what I saw. She smiled back at me and we both put on our extra shirts.
"Like what you saw, Hiei?"
"Hn, it was okay."
She playfully stuck her tongue out at me and I smirked at her attitude. Once everyone was outdoors, the employee smiled and began leading the way to the dolphin pools.
"Okay, folks. Here we are at the dolphin pools. You'll have 30 minutes to swim and play with the dolphins. I'll let you all know over the loudspeaker when the excursion is over. Have a good time."

Mai's POV:
Hiei and I, along with another couple, entered one of the pools, where two dolphins swam up to us eagerly. The trainer that was there, Michael, smiled as the four of us.
"Hello, folks. Let me introduce you to the dolphins before you begin interacting with them. The dolphin with the small scar on its tail is named Bella, and the dolphin beside her is her mate, Luca. Bella is the most playful of our dolphins, so you four were fortunate enough to have entered their pool. I'll be sitting in the water on these stairs in case you all need anything. Go ahead and enjoy yourselves."
I began swimming around, coaxing the dolphins to approach. Luca eagerly swam beside me and showed his fin to me, as if telling me to grab onto it. I grabbed hold of it and he began clicking excitedly as he swam around the pool. Seemingly impressed, Michael smiled at Luca's behavior.
"Impressive. Luca doesn't usually approach strangers that quickly. He's usually standoffish, not getting too close to anyone or straying too far from Bella."
Hiei smirked as he looked at me.
"Mai has always been very approachable. My guess is that Luca can sense she was not afraid or nervous, and he fed off of that."
Luca stopped swimming around, so I took that as a hint to let go. He playfully nudged his head against my arm, and I stroked the top of his head gently.
"Thanks for the ride, Luca."
Not nervous anymore, Luca swam up to the other couple, who were waiting their turn to play with him since they were finished playing with Bella. Bella swam up to Hiei, who raised an eyebrow at her as she nudged his hand. I smiled and took Hiei's hand, placing it on top of Bella's head.
"She wants you to pet her, Hiei."
"Hn. Why?"
"You heard Michael. She's the most playful of the dolphins here. Just be calm and enjoy yourself."
He looked down at Bella, who had exposed her belly to him. Michael smiled and nodded to Hiei.
"When Bella does that, she wants you to rub her belly. She's always liked that. Go ahead."
Hiei smirked as he gently stroked Bella's belly. She clicked excitedly, and I smiled.
"See, Hiei?"
"I guess you're right. I am enjoying this."
"Attention, guests! The dolphin portion of your shore excursion is now over! Please change back into your clothes as soon as you get pictures with the dolphins you played with. The trainer at your pool will give you a camera so you can take pictures. Once you are finished, a security guard will escort you to the minivan that brought you here from your ship so you can make the trip back to the docks. Thank you for choosing Princess Cruise Line for your shore excursion experience!"
After getting pictures of Luca and Bella and getting changed into our clothes, we boarded the minivan for the trip back to our ship. I leaned against Hiei's shoulder, content with how our shore excursion went.
"I'm glad you reserved this excursion, Hiei. I had a great time."
I smiled as I felt his lips gently brush against my forehead.
"I did, too."
"I don't know about you, Hiei, but I'm getting hungry. How about we shower up when we get back to our cabin and get dressed for dinner?"
"Sounds good to me, I guess. Sabatini's?"
"Sure."
That's a wrap for part 13. Shizuru, with help from Yukina, surprised Kuwabara with an early homecoming, having successfully completed her rehab. Meanwhile, Mai and Hiei arrive at their shore excursion in Oahu and enjoy swimming with the dolphins. Part 14 will feature Mai and Hiei arriving back at the ship and having dinner in the Golden Princess' Italian restaurant, Sabatini's. Also in part 14, Yusuke has a surprise announcement to make. Stay tuned to see what happens