Work Text:
When Richard got home to the house in Kandy that day, it was much quieter than he’d been expecting. There was no clattering of pots in the kitchen, no pitter-patter of paws on the floor.
There was, however, a tiny breathless whine. Two of them, he realized after cocking his head to the side to try and find the source of the sound.
He slowly climbed up the stairs, bypassing the guest rooms on the second floor once he realized the soft whining was coming from a floor above, beyond the door to the bedroom that should have been closed to prevent their two curious pups from turning it into their playground.
The erratic sounds were coming from Richard’s bedroom - their bedroom, he reminded himself. It was a more recent change, one that was difficult to get used to when they were so often traveling now.
The first thing he noticed on the other side of the door was a pile of laundry sitting at the corner of the rather large bed. One of the drawers off to the side was still open. Both were fairly uncharacteristic gestures for either of them; Seigi was always particular about laundry, but he’d gotten even more so once Richard finally relented and allowed him to wash both of their clothes.
Once his eyes traveled to the center of the bed, though, it wasn’t hard to guess why things had been left out so haphazardly.
Jirou and Saburou stared at him the moment he entered the room, tails flicking back and forth in an uneven rhythm as they tried desperately to keep their excitement in check. Normally, Richard noted, they would have quickly bounded to him upon returning, but both dogs seemed very content with their current predicament.
Jirou sat with his back flush to Seigi’s right side, his head resting in the space just under his shoulder. Saburou, still being much smaller, instead opted to lie on top of Seigi, his entire body bobbing up and down in a barely perceptible but steady rhythm along with Seigi’s breathing.
Richard couldn’t blame the dogs for keeping their positions, and any initial sadness he’d felt at not being greeted by their tail wags at the door quickly dissipated. He was well aware how comfortable being in Seigi’s arms could be, after all.
Seigi’s left hand was on top of Saburou.
The setting sun glinted off the dainty line of silver adorning his ring finger.
Richard approached Seigi’s left side, his eyes never leaving the simple ring even as he sat on the bed and gave little welcome pets to the two dogs. The ring had fine, elegant engraving upon closer inspection, but that was as fancy as either of them wanted. They worked with jewelry themselves, after all, and it wouldn’t do to have any of their personal items outshine those that they were trying to sell.
It was a very simple, very basic ring. On the surface, anyway.
Richard was only able to pull his eyes away from Seigi’s ring to look at his own and take it off. He would do this periodically on the admittedly few occasions they had to be apart, gazing at the tiny line of stones that sat flush to the inside of the ring. Three beautiful sapphires sat there, one pink flanked by two white. Seigi’s, of course, was the inverse.
It was their tiny little secret, a part of their relationship that they chose to keep to themselves even when they decided to announce to the world that they belonged together.
Just as Richard put the ring back on his finger with a quiet laugh, Seigi stirred with a small grunt.
“Richard…?”
“Apologies. Did I wake you?”
“I think so… But that’s probably for the best. Besides, I can’t think of a better alarm clock than your laugh. It’s like… Like an angel ringing a bell in my ear.”
Seigi smiled then, still so sluggish from the impromptu nap as he brought his left hand up to wipe at his eyes. When he put his hand back down on his stomach next to Saburou, though, Richard caught the slight jolt in his movements - the way he hesitated for just long enough to look at the ring on his own hand, his emotions laid bare as his eyes shone with a light more vibrant than anything the sun could hope to summon.
Richard laughed again, overcome by both the sheer ease with which Seigi put his words to use as well as the unabashed display of casual affection.
He shifted a bit down toward the bottom end of the bed, and with a swift movement lied down next to Seigi.
“What about dinner?”
The question was more a confirmation than any kind of challenge, as Seigi easily let Richard slide his arm under his pillow.
“As much as I do enjoy your cooking, I enjoy this far more.”
I missed you. I love you, his hand seemed to say as it alighted on Seigi’s, their rings making a satisfying little sound as they connected.
Seigi’s fingers grip at Richard’s from below, curling in and somehow bringing Richard’s hand even closer with a gentle squeeze.
As if drawn in by that gesture, Richard leaned up just enough to drop a chaste kiss on Seigi’s lips, and Seigi lifted his head as much as he could in return.
Past a certain point, though, and they were greeted with sad whining. They pulled apart to look down toward Jirou and Saburou, who stared up at them in unison with sad little eyes.
Richard settled himself back at Seigi’s side with an amused laugh, snuggling his head in the space just above Seigi’s shoulder.
“Guess it’s family snuggle time,” Seigi commented as he shifted his weight back down, laughter escaping his lips while he scratched at each of the dogs in turn.
Then, just as Richard felt himself being lulled to sleep by Seigi’s warmth, Seigi lifted both of their hands to his mouth for one final kiss on Richard’s ring finger.
I love you, too. Sweet dreams.