Morg: Heyo!
Ikuto: It's about time you came back!
Amu: Ah man! I thought for sure you were just going to leave this one unfinished.
Morg: No, no. You know me. I finish all my stories.
Ikuto: Yeah.
Amu: We know.
~Spark of Life~
Ikuto paused in the doorway of his living room for a moment. Part of him just couldn't believe that Amu was there. She was sitting on his couch, having stolen one of the books from his library, and looked completely at ease. If their positions were reversed, if she had come to him starving and on the verge of madness, he wasn't so sure that he would have helped her.
Whether she could feel his gaze or just happened to look up, Amu met his eyes from across the room. The corner of her lips ticked up in a welcoming smile that made Ikuto feel warm in a way that he wasn't sure he ever had before. Rather than say anything, he crossed the room and dropped down onto the couch next to her. She huffed a bit as he crawled onto her legs and let his head fall into her lap. She had to lift the book so she wouldn't hit him with it.
"Hello to you, too," Amu said with a laugh. "What's gotten into you?"
Ikuto made a noise in the back of his throat as he settled down more comfortably on top of her.
"Ikuto?"
Lazily, Ikuto let his eyes fall shut. He waited for a moment to see if she was going to push him away. He would have never considered doing something as mundane as snuggling with his previous spark. Instead of asking him to move or getting up, Amu rested her hand on his head. She dug her fingers into his hair and scratched at his scalp.
Ikuto went boneless as she carded her fingers through his hair. Her other hand that still held the book rested down on the top of his back as she went back to her reading since he hadn't responded. He hadn't felt the need to explain since he was already getting exactly what he'd wanted.
Slowly, Ikuto drifted off to sleep. He sighed softly as he let their combined warmth drag him under.
Sometime later, he woke to find that Amu had dropped the book on the floor off the side of the couch and had snuggled down with him a bit further to take her own nap. One of her hands still rested in his hair while the other was thrown up onto the armrest of the couch behind her head.
Ikuto turned his head far enough to rest his chin on her stomach. He watched her sleep for a moment in contentment. His head moved in time with her breaths. Ikuto found, as he lay there with her, that there was nowhere else in the world he'd rather be. And no one he'd rather be with.
Smiling, mostly because he knew he was lucky to have this time with Amu, Ikuto dropped his head so that he could press his face into her stomach.
The movement must have been too much since she made a few noises in her throat before he caught sight of her eyes fluttering open.
"What?" Amu asked breathlessly as she lifted her head a bit before she let it fall back down onto the armrest. "Ikuto?"
"Yeah?"
Amu hummed and let her eyes fall closed again as she began to scratch gently at his head again. "Good nap?"
"The best I've ever had," Ikuto said with as much sincerity as he could muster. "Comfy spot."
Amu snorted but didn't open her eyes or stop scratching her nails gently against his scalp. "Good."
Ikuto made an agreeing noise in the back of his throat as he slowly let his eyes drift closed again. He was ready to allow them to both fall back asleep when his cell phone began buzzing in his pocket. Groaning, he shifted ever so slightly in an attempt to get to it without having to get up.
Amu giggled as he pressed his face down against her stomach in an effort to gain some leverage.
His efforts caused him to roll off of her, which he didn't like, but he did manage to get his phone out of his pocket. He almost didn't answer it when he saw that it was his sister calling.
"Well," Amu said as she watched him grumble at his phone. "Who is it?"
"Utau," Ikuto muttered.
Amu blinked at him for a moment before she gently hit his shoulder. "Answer it."
"I don't want to," Ikuto said with a bit of a pout as he snuggled back up against her. "She just wants to make plans for the festival and I'd much rather go back to what we were doing."
"Ikuto," Amu said in exasperation while fighting back a smile. "Answer the phone. We can snuggle while you talk to your sister."
Ikuto looked down at the still buzzing phone in his hand. Utau was the type of person to let it ring until it stopped. She would also call back if he didn't answer. "And after?"
"Yes," Amu laughed. "Of course."
Ikuto braced himself before he swiped his finger across the screen to answer the call. He quickly hit the button to put it on speakerphone before he dropped it onto Amu's stomach next to where he was lying. "Hello?"
"Finally," Utau said with a huff. "I thought you were just ignoring me."
"I would never," Ikuto said as seriously as he could.
Amu covered her mouth as she tried to hold back her giggles.
Ikuto shot Amu a look. Her laughter was making everything shake. "What do you need, Utau?"
"How come I just found out that Rima and Yaya met your new spark but I haven't? Aren't I your favorite sister?"
"You're my only sister," Ikuto muttered. He frowned as he propped his head up on his hand. He couldn't concentrate what with the way Amu's stomach was still shaking due to her laughter. "They showed up uninvited. And you're busy."
"I would take time off to come and meet her," Utau said in that tone of voice she used when she thought he was being particularly dense. "Is she there with you now?"
Ikuto glanced up at Amu to find her already smiling at him. "She is," he confirmed.
"And?"Utau asked. "Is she staying there long term now? Rima said she thought she was only staying for the weekend since her younger sister was along."
"Fuck's sake," Ikuto moaned as he covered his face with his other hand. He shot a glare at Amu through his fingers when she started laughing at him again. "Amu stayed over for the weekend with her younger sister, yes. Then we took her sister back into the city since she's staying with their grandmother while Amu's parents are gone. Amu is staying here with me now, yes. Mostly because we're enjoying being together and exploring the countryside but also so I can keep her safe from Tadase."
Utau was silent for a moment. Almost as if she was waiting for him to continue. "Right," she said after another moment of silence. "And?"
"And what?" Ikuto asked as he tipped his head back and rolled his eyes at the ceiling.
"Does she like it there? Does she like spending so much time with you? Are you having a good time with her? Do you think this bond is going to last or are you both just hanging in there so you don't go crazy and start murdering people?"
"I might murder one person," Ikuto said under his breath as he shot another glare at Amu. "We're fine, Utau. We're having a good time. Amu's good. I'm good. We're all good. What do you want?"
"Ikuto," Utau whined. "You have to tell me something! I have to know more than Rima! I'm your sister."
Unable to help herself any longer, Amu gasped for air. She struggled a little to keep her laughter out of her voice as she nudged Ikuto with her hand. "Hello, Utau."
Utau gasped. "Amu?"
"That's me," Amu said before she cleared her throat. "I can tell you honestly that I'm very much enjoying my time with Ikuto. He's being a bit grumpy because you interrupted our lazy afternoon. Don't mind him."
"I never do," Utau replied. "Are you guys planning to go to the festival?"
"You know that we are," Ikuto interrupted. "We practically have to."
Amu ran her fingers through his hair again as if to soothe him. "We might have to go to put on a show for the council and to rub it in Tadase's face that he can't do anything to me or about me, but we're still going to have a good time."
"So you say," Ikuto said with a sigh.
"I do say," Amu answered with a grin. "And I'm looking forward to going. You haven't taken me on a proper date yet, so this is your chance."
Utau made a noise through the phone. "What? I can't believe this! Amu, are you sure you want to be with him? What sort of beast starts courting a new spark and doesn't take them out on a date? What is wrong with you, Ikuto?"
Ikuto groaned as he closed his eyes. "Technically, we've been out together a few times but I will agree that those weren't proper dates. However, the circumstances hindering us from going on dates are pretty dire so I don't feel bad about that at all."
"That's fair," Amu conceded with a smile. "We did get to dress up when we went to register. I suppose that could be our first date."
"And I went to your mother's birthday party and we had the picnic with Ami," Ikuto pointed out.
Amu smiled as she nodded at him. "All very good dates."
"Are you two done?"
Ikuto scoffed as he frowned at his phone. "Why are you still on the line?"
"I want to make plans with you, Ikuto," Utau reminded him. "Kukai and I will be at the festival, too."
"Cool," Ikuto said in the most bored tone he could muster. "I can't wait."
Amu slapped her hand to her mouth to muffle her giggles. She had to close her eyes so she couldn't see him before she was able to get herself back under control. "We'll be there the morning of the festival. Ikuto said we could get ready at the house you guys have there. Then we'll walk down the street when it's time for everything to begin."
"At least one of you has the sense to make and share plans," Utau said in a way that Ikuto just knew was for him. "Kukai and I will be there sometime after lunch. We're also planning to get ready there before heading down. We could all go together if you want to."
"That sounds nice," Amu replied before Ikuto could even open his mouth. "I'm looking forward to meeting you."
"Me, too," Utau promised. "I'd love to keep chatting but I have to run. We're doing rehearsals. I'll talk to you guys later."
"Bye," Ikuto sighed.
"It was nice talking to you," Amu added before he hung up the call.
Ikuto groaned again before he dropped forward so that he was once again lying on top of Amu. "We should have just ignored her."
Amu laughed as she smacked the back of his shoulder. "Shut it, that was a lovely phone call. I'm looking forward to meeting your sister."
"Yeah," Ikuto said with a sigh as he looked back up at Amu. "I'm glad. I think you'll get along great."
"Then what's with the frown?" Amu asked as she gently pressed the tip of her finger into his cheek.
Ikuto moved his head and snapped at Amu's finger. She laughed as she pulled her hand away. "It's not Utau. It's the festival. I hate that we have to go just to make an appearance. I hate that I have to show you to the council so they don't worry about me. I hate that Tadase has put me into this position in the first place."
Amu was quiet for a moment before she tipped his chin up with her fingers. "I don't hate it."
"What?"
"I don't hate that we're in this position. I might not like how we came together but I don't hate that we're here. And frankly," Amu said as she grinned at him. "I'm looking forward to rubbing my presence in Tadase's face."
"Amu," Ikuto said weakly.
"Your friends are going to be there and I'll get to meet your sister. Not all of it will be good but it won't be all that bad, either. I'm excited to go with you."
Ikuto smiled softly before he managed to get up onto his hands. He dragged himself up the couch so he could press a kiss against her lips. "I'm excited to take you. I'm excited that I get to spend time with you at all."
Amu smiled as she lifted her chin to kiss him again. "Good. I like spending time with you, too."
"Then let's spend all our time together," Ikuto said in a way that he knew she'd think he was joking. He wouldn't mind at all if he spent the rest of his life always with her.
Grinning, Amu wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him down onto her. "Every moment we can," Amu promised him.
Ikuto tried to think of a smart rejoinder but ended up deciding to seal their promise with a kiss.
And then another.
.
Morg: There we go.
Ikuto: Well then.
Amu: I hate that this was actually cute.
Morg: You're welcome.
