Chapter Text
Nene yawned, stretching her arms. She was now sitting in her beanbag chair, one that Rui had told her not to sit in because of her pregnancy, but why should she listen? He wasn’t the pregnant one. She was currently playing a new game that dropped recently, it was a cozy farming game. Nene didn’t know what changed, but she’s really liked cozy games recently rather than her usual shooter games.
Rui was in the shower, per usual. She still didn’t know why he showered at night instead of the morning.. eh, he was weird anyways. But in a way she liked, she loved his weirdness.. speaking of that, he’d gotten diagnosed with autism recently. Like she’d suspected, that explained how “weird” he was his whole childhood, and even now. She adored that man..
Speaking of Rui, he then opened the door to their room, and smiled once he saw Nene. He was fully dressed, his hair still damp, and he just looked.. very cuddly. Wait, what? That’s something she never thought she’d think. He did look rather soft right now though..
“Nene? What have I said about sitting in that chair? It’s gonna hurt your back.” Rui scolded softly, walking into their room and squatting down next to where she sat in the beanbag, trying to look stern but failing as his eyes softened when he saw her pout.
“The bed was uncomfy..” She looked over at him, and Rui’s eyes softened. She reached over to grab his hand, which he happily accepted.
“It’s almost bedtime, hun. You sleepy?” Rui asked her with a smile, using his free hand to rub her growing belly. “I love you so much.. it’s so surreal we’ve grown to this together.” Rui spoke softly, resting his chin on her shoulder.
“A little, yeah. But I took a nap earlier.” She looked at him over her shoulder, and seeing Rui so deeply in love with her was.. unreal. She never thought she was deserving of this kind of love, but the very man she’d known from the start of her life gave her that hope of a loving relationship, and now granted her that opportunity of having such a loving and doting partner. “I.. I love you too.” Nene spoke softly, resting her hand over where his was on her stomach. When she looked closer at him, he noticed he was biting his bottom lip rather harshly, concern immediately took over her mind. “Rui? Whats wrong?” Nene asked, bringing her free hand over to cup his face and make him look at her properly, and that’s when she saw the tears in his eyes. Before she could speak, he spoke first, tears finally spilling over onto his cheeks.
“I-I just.. love you so much.. I can’t believe this- t-this is happening..” He cried softly, nuzzling his face against her palm, pressing his lips into a thin line to stop himself from making any unnecessary noises.
The very few times she’s seen Rui cry, she did not expect it to be over the happiness of being with her. It was.. adorable.
“Hey, hey.. don’t cry.. it.. it’s alright,” Nene tried soothing him, but to no avail as her horrible soothing skills striked again.
“I never thought I was- e-ever deserving of anything like this.. you.. you made it happen, because you love me..!” His soft cries got louder, not being able to hold back the adoration he had for the girl next to him. It seems like her and Rui were on the same page of not thinking they were deserving of any sort of love, and it broke Nenes heart that Rui felt like this.
There was unresolved tension between them for what felt like years, years of them being just friends, performing together, staying over at each others houses, and even sharing clothes (mostly on Nene’s part because Rui was too tall), something stayed unsaid between the two of them, until Nene got fed up one day and simply asked Rui out. That was the one of few times she’s seen him cry, when he figured out she was genuine instead of it being a prank, as he’d gotten asked out before as a prank and after that, stopped being hopeful. But getting together was probably the best thing either of them had done. They were both insanely happy together, just because Nene was sick of waiting for a relationship Rui would never ask for.
✧─── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧
Rui woke up the next morning to find himself alone in bed. He rubbed his eyes with his fist, blinking slowly as he looked around for the girl he always looked forward to waking up next to.
“Nene..?” Rui called out softly, sitting up in bed. He scanned the room, no sign of Nene. He let his legs fall over the edge of the bed and plant his feet on the floor. He stood up slowly, and rose to a stretch with his arms behind his head. After he stretched, he began searching for Nene.
She wasn’t in the living room or kitchen, not even the guest room (which Rui would soon turn into a nursery), and the last place to check was the bathroom, because like she’d go into his workshop, which was actually the garage. He walked over to the door and listened for a couple moments, hearing no movement. He carefully opened the door, and saw Nene sitting next to the toilet, white as a ghost.
“Nene?- love, what’s wrong??” He rushed over to her, kneeling next to her and immediately taking her hands in his.
“Just morning sickness.. I’m fine..”
“No, you’re not fine. C’mere,” Rui pulled her into his lap, making sure not to cause too much motion and let her get settled. “How much did you throw up..?” He asked softly, petting her hair which was tied back into a ponytail.
“Twice..” Nene spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. She looked almost.. guilty? Why in the world did she feel guilty?? If anything, Rui should feel guilty because he wasn’t awake!
“Oh, sweetheart.. *please* wake me up next time. I’ll be happy to help you..” He spoke softly, rubbing her back as Nene looked down at her hands, fidgeting with her fingers. Her nails were painted a soft pastel purple, one that reminded her of Rui. He had asked her why she’d gotten that color specifically, and she’d just said it was because she liked it. Well that wasn’t too far from wrong, but she mainly got purple because it reminded her of him.
“But you looked so..” So *what*, Nene?? She couldn’t think of the word.. she wanted to say ‘cute’, but that was too feminine.. ‘peaceful’? No! Too sweet! “You were being quiet for once.” She retorted, not thinking much about it before she spoke.
“Ah, I’m hurt, my love. So utterly pained..” He put on a fake pout, watching Nene glare up at him. Well, more of a half glare, full of affection. He then spoke again, a bit firmer this time. “But seriously, please wake me if you feel sick. I’ll help you, it’s the least I can do if you’re carrying my child.”
Nene’s heart. Absolutely. Melted.
“I.. I guess so..” She spoke softly, looking back down at her hands.
“You wanna go lay back down? You look exhausted.. and ghostly pale. You still feel nauseous? Hot? Sweaty? Are you having hot flashes again? I can get you water,” Rui spoke so fast Nene could barely catch onto his words, and he suddenly clamped her hand over his mouth.
“Shh, please! I’m okay, really. Just a bit nauseous. I’d like to lay back down..” She sighed, watching his wide, golden eyes stare into her amethyst colored ones.
“Ah, okay. Will do,” He giggled as she removed her hand from his mouth and stood up with Nene in his arms, carrying her princess style, still trying not to rattle her too much. “Tell me if it’s too much, I can put you down.” Rui waited for her to nod, and he nodded back and began walking back to their shared room.
✧─── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧
Rui and Nene were laid down in their shared bed, well more like Nene was laying down and Rui was sitting up with her head in his lap, rambling about some.. what was he saying again? She got so lost in the sound of his voice and completely forgot what he was talking about. She loved when he smiled when he spoke, she noticed you can quite literally hear him smiling while he speaks. Hopefully that makes sense..? It did in her head. She looked up at him for the first time in a while, and noticing he was gesturing with his hand and looking somewhere across the room. She tried to tune into the conversation, but what sparked her attention is when he said ‘Tsukasa’. Now why was he bringing up that loudmouth..?
“So, Tsukasa-kun and I were testing out a new gadget I’d made right?” He smiled, still gesturing with his hand, specifically his right one, because he was petting her hair with the other. “He got so mad when it sprayed confetti in his face!” Rui giggled, the quiet one he would usually do around others. She loved his genuine laugh, and rarely ever heard it, even when it was just them two.
Rui stopped speaking when he felt a pair of eyes on him, and looked down to see Nene gazing up at him, her expression soft and gentle. He tilted his head.
“Nene?” He looked down at her curiously, leaning closer to her face. He was so curious, even at his age. It was adorable..
“Hm?” She hummed, looking up at him. She didn’t hold eye contact for long, and soon looked away. His eyes had a very intense look sometimes that freaked her out.
“You were staring?”
“I was not.”
“But I saw you.”
“I don’t stare.” Nene spoke, watching as Rui just looked at her with that same intensity in his eyes. “And I don’t appreciate how intensely you’re looking at me.”
“Ah, sorry. It’s a habit,” Rui giggled softly, although a more nervous laugh than anything. “You’re just.. so gorgeous.” His voice was soft, almost too soft. She loved these warm moments with him, even if she wouldn’t admit it.
“Yeah yeah, enough with the compliments.” Nene rolled her eyes, but nuzzled her face against his stomach. It was.. softer than she remembered. Not that she had much wiggle room herself, but hers was a baby! Had he gotten a bit pudgier lately? Not that she minded, but it reminded her of when he was younger, he was the chubbiest child, he had the squishiest face..
“What gender would you like the baby to be?” Nene asked, looking up at the man above her who just smiled down at her.
“I don’t mind, as long as they’re healthy.” Rui brushed her bangs out of the way with his hand, and gently combed his fingers through her soft hair once more. “But realistically? Probably a girl. I wouldn’t mind a boy, it’s all a surprise anyways.” He glanced around while speaking, the morning sun catching his eye as it filtered through the sheer curtains, bathing their bedroom in a soft glow of energizing sunlight. He watched the tiny dust particles filter through the air as the fan in the room blew them around. Rui loved mornings like this.. quiet and just.. domestic? Yeah, that was the word.
“I’ve seen “tricks” online on how to get the baby to be a certain gender.. it’s all stupid.” Nene sighed, looking up to the fairy lights stretched along their ceiling. She’d asked Rui to put those in when they first moved here, and as one does, he listened. She was convinced he’d do anything to make her happy, and she couldn’t be more satisfied with her relationship.
“What gender would you prefer, my love?” Rui asked, watching Nene carefully sit up, wincing softly. “Hey, what’re you doing?” He put his hand on her lower back, supporting her as she sat up properly and leaned against him, letting out a soft breath.
“Just- getting more comfortable..” She let out a soft grunt as she shifted her position, which Rui stabilized her.
“Whats wrong, love? How do you wanna sit?” He gently cupped her cheek in his hand, and looked at her worriedly. He didn’t want Nene to get too overwhelmed this early in the morning, that was just a recipe for a bad day.
“I don’t.. I don’t know..” She was getting a bit agitated, not at Rui, but.. for a reason she couldn’t entirely place. “I don’t know what I wanna do.. I wanna sit and lay down at the same time- but I’m also really hot.. but my feet are cold.. my head hurts, and so do my hips..” Her words came out faster and more jumbled than she’d thought, and as she was expecting an exasperated look from Rui, (which he’d never given her, so what exactly was she expecting..?) she only got a soft, worried look from him.
“Okay honey.. here. Let’s sort this out, okay? Just bear with me.” He smiled at her, and adjusted her pillow and having her sit half against the bed frame but still stretched out on the bed. He moved the comforter down so it covered her hips and below. He then got up off the bed, and brought the fan closer to their bed but put it on the lowest setting, the soft whirring of it making the silence less deafening. “I’ll be right back, okay?” He waited for her to nod back at him before he left the room to hastily retrieve a heating pad, one they kept for Nene’s cramps. When he entered the room again, seeing Nene in the same position made his heart melt. She was so utterly gorgeous, he still never knew how he deserved this.. he walked over to her, turning the heating pad on and put it over her hips.
“What can I do for your headache, my love?” He sat down in front of her, gently taking her smaller hand into his bigger one, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb.
“Um.. I haven’t eaten yet.. I want food but I’m also still kinda nauseous.”
“Do you think you could be dehydrated?”
“Maybe..? I always forget to drink water.”
Rui noted that. *Frequently bring her water*. But not too frequently, as she might not like getting up to use the bathroom more often.. he’d read that as the baby grows in her stomach, it pushes on all her organs (which sounds painful as it is), and pushes on her bladder as well, making her need to use it more often. Rui didn’t feel like having a moody, pregnant girlfriend. He much preferred her when she was happy.
“I’ll go get you some, just stay put for me, sweetheart.” He smiled as he stood up, and went to the kitchen to grab her some water. He grabbed two bottles out of the fridge, one for her and one for himself, and walked back to their room.
After she drank a good amount of water, he set her bottle aside and started to rub her stomach.
“No more pain, my baby needs to be happy.” Rui smiled up at Nene, who just giggled softly at his antics. He then remembered his question from earlier, which had gone unanswered. “Love, you didn’t answer me earlier, what gender would you prefer for the baby?” He asked curiously yet again.
“Gender? Uh.. I kinda want a girl as well, but I don’t really care. It’s just a gender,” She looked off to the side, watching how the fan caught in the window curtains and made them sway, almost beautifully.
“I’m so ready to take care of our child, you know? It makes me so happy thinking about it.. having a little mix of you and me running around.” Rui giggled, resting his head against her stomach once he laid down.
“You’re such a sap, I can’t stand you..” She sighed, but yet again, no malice laced it.