It was the middle of the night, and Kai was roused from his sleep by what sounded like the whimpering of a frightened puppy.
He looked over to see that Kiku was not on the futon mattress – which is where she was before he fell asleep. Instead, she was suspended upside down from her aerial hoop, and as she jostled around, the hoop also moved. That's when he realised that the pained sounds were coming from her. He got out of bed and walked over; his room dimly lit by the glow of her external circuits. She had tucked her t-shirt into her pyjama shorts to prevent gravity from exposing her body, and her crossed arms seemed to hold her tighter with each unconscious flinch.
He carefully knelt down and readied himself to catch her, anticipating that waking her up might cause her to fall.
"Hey, Kiku." He whispered.
She remained asleep and distressed.
"Kiku, you're having a bad dream."
Nope, still asleep.
Realising that his voice wasn't enough, Kai tapped her shoulder, and she suddenly awoke with a startled yelp, then fell into his waiting arms. Kiku quickly looked around, expecting to see the images of her nightmare continuing, only to find that she was no longer in said nightmare. She was, however, being held in the warm, muscular arms of Kai.
"Oh, hey Kai, are you alright?"
"I was gonna ask you that," He mentioned. "it looked like you were in pain."
"It's a recurring nightmare," Kiku sighed. "been having it for a while; nothing to worry about though."
"It sounds like it is something to worry about; recurring nightmares are supposed to be a sign of stress or something, aren't they?" Kai responded.
"Still, I was hoping they wouldn't happen here," She frowned. "I thought because I felt safe that I'd catch a break from it."
"Why were you on the hoop anyway?" He asked. "Last I saw you were on the futon."
"I couldn't sleep, so I thought it might help," She explained. "guess not..."
"Hmm..." He paused for a moment.
Kai silently lifted her up and carried her. Kiku had been awoken from nightmares before – her sisters often broke the unpleasant dreams she had – but this was by far the most delightful way she'd ever woken up. Just as she was enjoying it, he deftly set her down, placing her in his bed.
"Maybe you'll sleep better here." He smiled.
"No, it's okay, I'm good on the futon," She insisted. "I don't wanna be a bother."
"It's no trouble, honestly, I can sleep anywhere," He nodded. "and I mean that literally; I fell asleep at dinner once."
Kiku giggled as she imagined him dozing off in the middle of a meal and getting food all over his face.
"Just try for tonight," He asserted. "if you get a decent sleep we'll trade for the rest of your stay, yeah?"
He didn't wait for her to agree, he just encouraged her to get under the covers and pulled the blanket up to her shoulders.
"Thank you." She mumbled.
"Anytime, Flower," He said, getting settled between the futon and the duvet. "g'night."
"Goodnight." She purred.
Kiku curled into a ball, and quietly nuzzled into his pillows like a cat. The scent of sandalwood and hair products was utterly wonderful, but it was so captivating that she found it difficult to lay still. Kai, on the other hand, had already gone back to sleep. She rolled around a bit more, trying to use up all her excited energy, before eventually stretching out and waiting for the solace of her new position to send her drifting off.
But it didn't.
Although the bed was comfortable and warm, and she was wrapped in the alluring scent of the fire ninja, she still couldn't relax enough to rest. He had offered his sleeping place to her, and he was right about being able to sleep anywhere – if his light snoring was anything to go by – but she still felt bad for accepting it. She should have resisted more, or at least not been such a pushover when he went to tuck her in.
Kiku wondered why she was unable to get to sleep at all, given that she slept just fine last night. Well, that first day was hardly a piece of cake; Zane was mad at her, then Pixal was mad at her, and she must have wanted to start over so badly that her system shut off pretty quickly. Tonight, she was so happy about her first training session, and Zane and Pixal opened up to her; things were looking up!
But she also felt bad about being so hard on Lloyd. Admitting you like someone is difficult; when that person is your friend and your teammate it must be even harder. Throw in the fact that Lloyd and Kai were both men, and the situation seemed messy and awkward to say the least.
Then there was the immense embarrassment of walking in on Kai while he was completely nude. Her face started burning, as she recalled how her fight or flight response stalled for a second – he probably thought she was staring, but it was a delayed reaction. Kiku had never considered the human form to be all that interesting before, and yet, in that moment where she saw his entire body uncovered, she felt a peculiar twinge building inside her. It was thrilling to see the defined ridges of his musculature, the various collagen lines of scarring, the steam rising from his damp skin…
"Eeep!" She shrieked aloud, trying to break the bad thoughts that threatened to flood her mind.
Kai immediately responded to her sudden cry. He sat up and looked over at Kiku.
"Are you okay?" He asked as he approached her. "Did you have another nightmare?"
"No, I have not gotten back to sleep yet," Kiku shook her head as she tried to think of a reason for her abrupt noise. "I think I miss my sisters too much."
"It's normal to be homesick," Kai declared. "is there anything I can do?"
"Not really," She sighed. "me, Miru and Hanasu always pushed our beds together at night – there was something really soothing about having them so close."
Kai paused.
He wanted to make a suggestion, but he was worried how Kiku might react to it. He didn't want to make her uneasy, nor did he want to push her away by being overly familiar with her. At the same time, he knew that she would be training tomorrow, and would need to get some rest.
"So, that's why you can't sleep?" He attempted to clarify. "Because you're used to having someone near you?"
"It's silly, I know," She muttered sheepishly. "especially since I was fine last night – I guess my mind is only just catching up to the fact that my body isn't in its usual place."
"Do you trust me?" He hinted.
"Of course, I do!" She swiftly replied.
"Well, would it help if I was near you?" He baited, nervously rubbing his forearm. "You know… physically?"
Kiku took a few seconds to clock onto what he was saying, and in the dark of the night-time, it did not go unnoticed when her circuits suddenly glowed brighter. Was he really asking if she wanted him in bed with her? How was she so entranced by this idea yet didn't think of it herself?
"Of course, you don't have to if you're not okay with it," He backpedalled a bit. "I want to help if I can, but I don't wanna impose on your personal space."
"That's very noble considering I imposed on your personal space earlier…" She giggled. "but… if you really don't mind then… yes, I would like you to be near me."
Kiku shuffled over so Kai could lay down next to her on the bed. Her mind was racing, her heart was going faster than it ever had before, and if not for the calming effect of his body heat, she could've exploded from sheer proximity. He smiled reassuringly at her. Once again, he placed the blanket over her shoulders, then laid down outside it, creating a fabric barrier between them so she didn't think he was being forward.
"If you change your mind, just let me know, okay?" He said quietly.
"Even now, when I'm being so problematic, you're still looking after me." She yawned.
"It's not a problem," He asserted. "you have training tomorrow, and you need the rest."
"What must you think of me?" She began. "I've only been here for two days and I'm already in your bed."
"You should've been in my bed from the start," He chuckled, blushing at the innuendo. "after you defended me in front of Nya, it was the least I could've done."
"I would've refused, out of not wanting to be a nuisance," She stated. "the only reason I'm in the bed now is because you wouldn't let me refuse."
"I'm trying to be a good host, you're trying to be a good guest, and we obviously have different ideas of what it means," He snickered. "we should just throw out the formalities and be ourselves."
"Sounds good to me," She chirped. "so, what are you doing tomorrow?"
"I'm gonna be training with you," He replied. "Sensei said that you did really well when I was there, so he's asked me to help again."
"Does this mean you're gonna miss out on your usual practice?"
"Yes and no," He clarified. "teaching others is part of my own advanced training, and you're a good student so you're actually helping me as much as I'm helping you."
"This is nice," She noted, toying with the edge of the blanket. "just me and you, talking about stuff."
"Yeah, it is," He paused. "I've never gotten close to anyone this fast, it's a little weird if I'm being honest."
"...I promise I'm not a succubus..." She joked.
Kai couldn't help but laugh. He meant it in terms of his own nature, not implying that she was affecting him psychologically, but it was good that she felt assured enough to joke about it that way. Suddenly, Kiku raised the blanket up and held her arms open.
"Another hug?" She bashfully requested.
"Sure, if you like." He grinned.
He shuffled closer and put his arms around her torso. As he reached up and stroked her hair, a melodious sigh left her lips and she snuggled into him. He was startled by it at first, but he was also kind of flattered. Kiku was a droid, and droids were not known to have emotions – most of them, at least – but she had been quite flirty with him from the moment he offered to put her up in his room. Kai also didn't expect Kiku's body to feel this soft to the touch – when they hugged earlier, he thought it was her clothing that was soft. Now, in a t-shirt and shorts, he could feel a supple outer layer on her body; presumably, it was the same gel coating that Pixal had.
Maybe he was feeling lonely, maybe he was projecting, but he couldn't ignore the sense that holding Kiku felt right somehow.
Kiku gave a kittenish yawn, and her circuits reduced to their usual level of residual glow. She couldn't help but wonder if this is what heaven felt like. To be held in the arms of someone you admire; for them to care so much about something as simple as getting a decent sleep. Kai was pretty self-aware for someone Pixal had described as sometimes being a bit airheaded. He acknowledged that their closeness was absurdly sudden, but he didn't seem all that bothered about quashing it either.
Kiku glanced at his peaceful expression, as he had swiftly fallen asleep yet again, and noticed a swelling sensation in her artificial heart.
There was something enormously comforting about having his arms wrapped around her, holding her body to his. She was tempted – extremely tempted – to put her hand under his shirt and touch his bare skin directly, but she ultimately decided against it; he wouldn't do it to her, so she wouldn't do it to him. Instead, she leaned her head against his chest and purred to the rhythm of his heartbeat.
A low growl rumbled from his throat, and he unconsciously held her tighter. Kiku smiled as she felt herself lulling to sleep.
It was 10:30am, and Cole was trying to sneak into the temple unnoticed.
Everyone should be out training… He thought to himself. No one will know I stayed out all night, they'll think I got back so late that I slept in and-
"What a peculiar time for you to return home from your date."
Cole nearly jumped out of his skin, as he turned to see Pixal sitting in the living room, specifically using the chair that faced the front door.
"Thank goodness, it's just you Pix," He sighed in relief. "wait, why are you here?"
"I live here," She giggled. "surely you did not forget?"
"No, I mean, why aren't you training with Sensei?" He asked, before he realised what a stupid question that was. "Never mind, I just remembered you're keeping your distance from Kiku."
"Actually, Kiku and I have made up, but Kai is assisting with her training, so I am surplus at this point in time."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Cole said dryly, rolling his eyes.
"Yes, they are becoming rather clingy with one another," Pixal agreed. "it is concerning on a number of levels."
"It's weird, is what it is," He added. "if you and Kiku hadn't made up I'd be slapping him round the head and telling him to knock it off."
"I doubt either of them is doing it on purpose, but I appreciate your concern on my behalf," She smiled. "but enough about me, how did your date go? It must have been good, I assume, given that you've never been away all night before."
Cole blushed.
"Yeah, it was pretty fantastic," He chuckled sheepishly. "we went for something to eat and then we went to a bar that Jasper's friend works at."
"Friend?"
"Phoenix – he's a student, but he works on the side." He clarified.
"Is this the same friend you saw at the dog café?"
"Yeah, that's the one; nice dude, he got us a private booth which was good because it got really loud in there after a couple hours," He nodded. "but it was pretty late when we left the bar, so I stayed over at Jasper's place."
"Somehow I doubt you stayed up all night talking…" She teased as Cole's blush intensified.
"I won't bore you with the details," He stammered. "but if you could keep this a secret, I'd appreciate it."
"Cole," She spoke sternly. "you know I cannot do that; Zane and I promised not to keep secrets from each other."
"I'm not asking you to keep a secret from Zane, I'm asking you to keep a secret from the other ninja." He responded almost pleadingly.
"In that case, it shall go no further than the three of us," She winked at him. "now hurry along and get changed, before someone returns."
"Thanks, Pix, you're a diamond." He winked back and dashed up the stairs.
Pixal giggled to herself. Cole looked tough and intimidating, but he was the biggest cinnamon roll on the team. He had the eyes of a puppy; big, round, and soulful, and his appetite for Zane's desserts was unmatched and unending. Cole and Zane seemed to have a closer bond than even Kai and Lloyd, and she was glad that she did not cause any disruption to their friendship.
It was more than she could say for Kiku, who appeared to be driving a wedge in Kai and Lloyd's friendship without even trying. She had noticed, within hours, the impact that Kiku's arrival was having on the bond between them.
Pixal knew all about Kai and Lloyd's physical interaction in the hotel last year, based on several biometric readings she retrieved at the restaurant the next day, and she noted that their relationship had been peculiar – but platonic – ever since. Lloyd didn't seem fazed by Kai's continued interest in women, possibly because they were physically far away enough for him to dismiss them as rivals.
Suddenly, there was a rival for Kai's attention right here in the temple, and Lloyd was noticeably aggravated by it.
"It makes me sick!" Lloyd growled as he stormed in.
Speak of the devil…