Chapter Text
when the curtains were no longer able to block out the sun beyond, rui is slightly awake. there was a moment where he found himself struggling to orient himself to the room. It had been all too easy to forget he was in a bedroom different from his garage, under warm linens, and not in the comfort of his creations. a warmth he never would quite be able to replicate radiated from beside him, something he had an even harder time orienting himself to.
vaguely, he discovers through occasional blinks, he knows that he’s not in his own bed. the mattress he laid on is slightly softer, for one, but the sheets and blankets also smell of a different detergent. it’s well into the morning of the weekend, in his opinion too early to be awake. it doesn’t entail that he’ll stay awake at least, but for now, he has to put up with the early morning grogginess despite his best wishes.
there’s a different sort of smell in the room that smells a little bit of citrus that catches him off guard, most likely from the fancy shampoo rui knows a certain someone likes to use. it’s a familiar scent by now, and he supposes he shouldn’t be surprised he recognises it so easily. he drew a deep breath in, taking in the soft, citrusy scent, the depth of the warmth that grew in his belly new.
pressed again his back is tsukasa, his cheek pressed deeply into the side of his shoulder. now blanketed by morning light, his hair is growing longer again, bangs falling across his forehead in a way that makes rui itch to reach out and push them back in order to see the star’s face more clearly.
with great caution, rui had adjusted tsukasa’s posture to sleep more comfortably, staring into the soft edges of his resting smile and felt a wave of warmth surge through him, like how a sudden spark of an electric current running through him would.
in the dim morning darkness of tsukasa’s bedroom, curtains drawn and door closed, rui feels that same something from the night before settle over him in a wave that is slowly beginning to grow familiar. perhaps if it were any other time or in any other place with someone else, perhaps he might have been unsettled or uncomfortable, but as it stands now, he’s more than willing to go back to sleep.
it’s hard to believe the extravagant future star of their troupe could look so at ease. even for someone as acquainted with him as rui, he has to blink twice before reality sets in and a fond smile forms across his face.
tsukasa’s breathing is the only noise in the room, steady exhales and inhales that warm the air between them. rui’s heart doesn’t have the courtesy to change tempo. it simply continues to thud away like it usually did around the star, as though the awareness that it now belongs to another makes it go into overdrive.
next to him, he begins to shift slightly, his body stirring with early signs of wakefulness. a morning person, unlike him, as though full of energy from the moment he woke up, no matter the day. he woke up at the same time in the morning without fail, almost immediately getting out of bed for his ridiculously long morning routine.
it was a rarity for rui to even be awake before him, and not wake up to tsukasa already changed, with the sounds of him preparing breakfast in the kitchen downstairs.
tsukasa’s eyes open slowly, sleep still clinging heavily to his lashes. when he finally manages to keep them open for more than a moment or two, he just stares at rui blearily for a moment before recognition begins to sink in. still in a daze, tsukasa lays rui’s arm out, placing his head gently on it as one would do a pillow, then nuzzles up to his chest, who adjusts his neck almost instinctively at his actions.
rui gave him a smile as he resigned to his fate as tsukasa brought his legs up, curling up into a comfortable position. if anything, he underestimated the power of tsukasa in regards to melting one's resolve to stay awake. he was rarely this affectionate, and when he'd chosen to be as such, he’d just feel bad about moving away.
“go to back sleep, rui, it’s early..” his hand gave the director’s shoulder a few gentle pats along with each syllable, who responded with a soft gasp that came out endearing rather than surprised as he'd probably intended.
it was uncharacteristic for the entire relationship, but it was such a welcome surprise. it slowed things down for the two of them, some mornings when the rest of the world had just become a little too fast.
he doesn’t say anything in response, though, just sighs softly, before tsukasa’s leg hooks onto his like a bolster, tucking himself more firmly into rui’s space. without thinking, like he had been the previous night, rui lifts his arm to better accommodate him. tsukasa fits snugly into the curve of his shoulder.
tsukasa’s breath is steady against rui’s chest, and without checking, rui knows that he’s fallen back asleep again, with the furrow of his brow and the small curve of his lips as though deep in thought. like clockwork, his heart works its way into beating foolishly away once more as realisation chimes like a bell in his chest — he likes this.
right now, it’s still early, and the bed is warm and comfortable, made more so by who the star he is sharing it with. he will need to pull himself away and go back to his own life later on, but for now, perhaps waking up early wasn’t as bad as he’d made it out to be.