songerein | I think that it's best if we both stay

Entry tags:

I think that it's best if we both stay

Who: Bunta Marui & Leia Rolando
Which: Log; closed
Where: Woods near residential.
What: December events: gumdrop, arguments, and competitive snowball fights.
Warnings: None, but will update if necessary!

[At some point she slipped into this quiet acceptance of their situation. What was supposed to be a few days of Marui crashing at her place until he found a house has somehow ended up with them now living together for an entire month. And she doesn't feel particularly inclined to upend the status quo. Though that doesn't make the situation any easier on her emotions. She is, sadly, used to pining for someone and keeping her true feelings to herself. It's a complicated situation, one that might cost her a great deal were she to ever find the courage to confess, and those thoughts are enough to keep her mouth shut.

If she had an inkling he felt anyway special towards her, she's somehow dismissed it with some excuse, or assumed she's reading too much into it. Marui is... sweet. And he's always surprising her with little gifts and sweets, only some of which she's asked for and most of which she's only briefly mentioned and he somehow took it upon himself to get for her. But she also does the same for him, as well as using other means to gauge his interest. Like wearing cute PJs around the house, with one in particular being a little revealing. But all that she's gotten from him were a few cracks and cheeky comments which have only proven her suspicions. That his actions could be reactions to both her gestures and him staying with her- like tokens of appreciation.

Admittedly, it's hard to decipher his actions when her own mind is a fierce storm of emotions. Were she to confess to him, she will be forfeiting any feelings she could potentially have for Jude. Which is something that still worries her, as if accepting that Jude's role in her life is more familial and platonic somehow diminishes his importance to her. She just never expected to fall for anyone else. More troubling is whether or not Marui would accept the complicated role that Jude plays in her life, if not then she would lose Marui entirely, and she's left with one-sided feelings that she'd have to eventually bury and move on from.

She jokes that she's trained herself long and hard in the art of unrequited love to be able to handle this, but the thought saddens her a little. Still, it's not enough to keep her down. If anything she's appeared entirely like her normal self around everyone. Marui's a fun roommate, even if he's occasionally obnoxious, and she enjoys his company. And that's all she can really ask for. More than anything, she doesn't want to lose that by forcing something that may not even be there.

Obvious complications aside, everything else is just fine.

All of it seems habitual now, no matter how they spend their day and what isn't said, they continue their now very domesticated lifestyle. The house is still somewhat bare, and with all the new shops opening up, and the seasonal chill in the air, it felt like an opportune time to go looking for some crystal powered appliances, clothes, and whatever else they could find for the house while enjoying the wintry scene outside. It's also the type of weather one could curl up together with someone. Even as they walk along the streets of the market she has fought the urge more than once to reach for his hand. Thankfully he's none the wiser else she'd probably never hear the end of his teasing.

It doesn't take long to pick up any last minute items they might have missed, cute decorations and the like, before they soon start heading back home with their modest haul. Between what they have now and dreamotion, there's almost a sense of convenience and normalcy returning to her life and for the first time since she arrived she's starting to actually feel a sense of belonging. Like this is a second home.

Is it okay to feel this way?

Suddenly she feels some icy water slip into her boot and she stops, wincing at the discomfort the sharp chill brings, and halting the bit of small talk they had going.]

Hold up a sec, I have to fix my shoe.

[Setting everything down, she kneels and notices her shoelace is completely untied, so she takes a moment to tie it and make sure it's secure, not really paying too much attention to her surroundings. When she's finished, she straightens up and looks around... noticing a certain someone is gone.]

Hm? Marui?

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[A blush quickly spreads across her cheeks.]

Are you making fun of me?

[The most menacing of pouts.

Which is to say, not very menacing at all.]

[ Nope still grinning like this is the most entertaining thing in the world. ]

How would I be making fun of you?

You keep smiling and laughing at me, and I haven't even done anything.

I can't be laughing at you if you haven't done anything.

... Wanna get decked again?

[She could give him a second swollen cheek to make his face symmetrical.]

Well. I'd rather keep sitting here and enjoying your company. Isn't that okay?

I guess that's okay.

[She teases him, pretending to sound put out, but now that she's mentioned it... she can't stop looking at his swollen cheek.

Taking another sip of hot chocolate, she continues eyeing that side of his face.]

... Does it still hurt?

[ He can trace her gaze easily enough and take a guess what she must be referring to. His smile remains easy and relaxed. ]

Nothing to worry about. I'm more resilient than you think.

Yeah, I know. But... here.

[Carefully, she places her mug down onto the small coffee table and scoots closer to him. Whether it hurts him or not doesn't matter, she had been meaning to do this specifically because she hadn't truly intended to punch him as hard as she did. Or at all.

Sitting directly in front of him, she raises her hand till it's about a couple of inches away from his cheek and uses her healing arte. There's a faint green glow that surrounds his cheek being emitted from her hand, and within seconds he will feel a reduction in pain, and the swelling will go down.]

[ She doesn't need to, but it's sweet all the same. It's still a bit incredible she has this power to heal by mere touch (almost-touch?). How handy would that be at the tennis court! Or in general. Being an active, playful teenager and a risk taker to boot, Marui has seen his fair share of scrapes, cuts, bruises, and more.

As the swelling recedes, he lifts his hand and fingers the spot her fist connected, then gives her an easy grin. ]

All better. Thanks.

[ Whether or not it's 100% healed, it's the truth. It wasn't really bothering him before and it's definitely not now. ]

S-Still... I'm really sorry about that.

[That he provoked her isn't the point. She should've kept her cool better than that. Luckily, it's nothing her healing artes can't handle- things like minor wounds, cuts, scrapes, bruises, swelling can all be easily remedied with healing artes.]

You've got this backwards! Punching is meant to make the other person sorry.

[ It's cute that she's still upset about it. Maybe it's easier for him, having never been upset about it in the first place. ]

Well, it doesn't help that you're kind of a punch-able guy.

[She'll concede to that much at least.]

Is that so?

Yeah. But... you're also really kind. Guess I lucked out.

[ With a smile, he takes one more sip from his mug and sets it on the coffee table next to Leia's.

It'd be pretty easy to follow that up with one of his typical boasts, but he's not feeling it. His mood is elsewhere. Like on how close she is, the softness to her words, and the swell in his chest as the moment falls to a comfortable, intimate silence between them.

He covers her hand with his own, taking it into a loose hold. ]

C'mere... I have a secret for you.

[She blushes.

It's... still so strange. The only person she's ever thought about in this way has been Jude- imagining how they'd act as a couple. And even then that was a struggle to visualize without it feeling odd or embarrassing. Yet Marui seems to take to this effortlessly. For her, she simply thought that if she didn't end up with Jude, then she'd end up with no one at all. So it's almost like she's not quite sure how to act. What if she overdoes it? What if she's too mushy, or romantic? On the other hand, what if he views her hesitations and uncertainty as not wanting to be with him? It's hard to gauge how she should act.

Maybe all she has to do is get used to this side of him first, and the rest will simply fall in line. Heck, maybe all she needs to do is sleep on this and reboot her system, in a manner of speaking.

For now, she stares back at him, curiously. A similar sensation rising in her chest and a flood of emotions threatening to drown her. Her features soften. She wonders, only briefly, that she's close enough to hear whatever he has to say, but for some reason her body seems to shift closer all on its own, beckoned by his invitation. No words, however, see fit to leave her. No teasing remark, no smart reply, and no confirmation. Just the sound of her heartbeat.]

[ The air of quiet and uncertainty that seems to overtake Leia is deeply attractive. Not that she isn't cute when her confidence and spunk is on full display, but for this moment? Her demeanor feels perfect: romantic, a little shy, incredibly endearing.

Marui lifts his other hand to her face, thumb along her jaw and fingertips just resting at the back of her neck. He leans in a little himself, until their foreheads are resting against one another. His voice drops to barely over a whisper, and it should be easy to meet her eyes, but it's only flickers of eye contact that accent his words. ]

People ask out who they think they deserve...

[ She teased him about the massive size of his ego just earlier that day. He trusts the implicit message to reach her without trouble.

With that message delivered, he seeks her eyes out one last time, then closes his eyes and the distance between them as he tests a small kiss. ]

[The message is received loud and clear, and the words alone are enough to make her heart skip a few beats. But even more intense is how close he gets- which she doesn't so much as see as she feels, her own eyes instinctively closing as the small gap between them disappears entirely. All she feels is the warm flicker of his breath on her lips before there is contact. A soft, tentative press against her mouth, as if asking for permission to become more. And there's just a second of hesitation, the realization of what is happening solely responsible for that delay. Her breath hitches in her throat, and after a moment she isn't even sure she is breathing. All she can hear is the hurried beating of her heart thrumming in her ears. She accepts the invitation without a verbal reply, instead her hand shakily raises to his chest, grabbing hold of the neck of his shirt, ask if to both accept and keep him from taking her hesitation as rejection, before she presses her soft lips against his with a little more force.

This is her first kiss, and it almost doesn't feel real. The way he practically steals her breath away, leaving her vulnerable and trembling, but wanting more.]

[ It's a little surprising (but not unwelcome) for her hand to take hold of his shirt collar like that. To be acting so otherwise demure right now, it's a pretty aggressive move. Maybe a sign not to get too accustomed to Shy & Quiet Leia? How exciting.

It comes with a step up in her participation, too. Her lips are warm, and they carry a lingering hint of hot chocolate. He smiles into the kiss as his hand slides a bit further behind her neck, feeling heat radiating from her nape and the softness of her hair as it threads between his fingers.

His kiss stays light and chaste, a proverbial toe in the water, but he laces his fingers with hers, and he holds that hand just a little tighter as the press of her mouth becomes firmer. ]

[She responds by gently returning the squeeze of his hand with her own, her other hand moving from the collar of his shirt to rest on the side of his neck. Trusting that she got the point across that she wants this too. Her kiss remains firm, but gentle all the same. Seeking nothing more than the warmth that is provided between them. But a first kiss doesn't exactly come with a set of instructions for how long one should last, or how far one should go, so she maintains that chaste kiss for only a moment longer.

Her fingers ghost along his jaw before she has to break away, her lungs suddenly aching for air and her not even realizing she'd been holding her breath the entire time. Or perhaps he stole it from her. The dizzying rush to her head is more than she anticipates, and as she reluctantly releases his lips, she barely puts space between them, resting her forehead against his, the room suddenly spinning.

Her heart flutters, taking in this sweet feeling. Something she'd always wanted to feel. And nothing she imagined ever made it come close to what she just experienced. Yet, for a journalist, she's rendered speechless on how to describe it other than incredible.]

[ It's a nice first kiss for them. Not too short and not too long, affectionate and romantic and just... nice. As a transition.

He falls into a breathy giggle as they sit there with their foreheads touching. There's nothing funny; he just feels good. Happy. Deliriously so. Because that sure did just happen. His thumb idly caresses her hand for a few moments in silence, just appreciating the feeling of their foreheads touching. ]

You know, there's only one thing missing from this scene...

[Everything about this experience, from the warmth to the physical contact, is just nice. She feels overwhelmed, yet makes no movement to break contact, indulging in the brief silence before he's chuckling, causing her to break out into a smile.]

What's that?

Cake, of course.

[ Has Leia forgotten he was hungry? He sure hasn't! ]

Let's celebrate.

[She'll blame the kiss for making her forget. Everything she had been thinking about and fretting over really just flew right out the window. She feels robbed of her senses, still dizzy from the kiss. And she smiles at the reminder, her hand shifting slightly so she can gently take hold of his.

She's been wanting to hold his hand all day. Actually, it's been a little longer than that. What has been long... is wanting to feel like this with someone. Wanting to feel complete. And it feels like Marui does complete her. He's accepting and understanding, he matches her intensity and energy. It's a little surprising how this is the same guy she met fishing for gummy fish in a lake three months ago. She hadn't expected to see much of him after that.]

Then how about I make that chocolate pudding cake you like?

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volleygenius - 2021-12-27 02:45 (UTC) - Expand

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