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As it always seemed to do on Sunday morning, Inej’s 4 AM alarm never sounded.
Instead, she woke with the sun, hours later than when she normally would, the delicate rays dancing along the wall beside the bed and bathing the lower part of her body in golden light. On Sundays, the drapes were pulled just so, obscuring her face from the sun. The faded seafoam-colored comforter rustled softly as she slipped from beneath it. That and the bed frames, however, were not the only things to weakly protest her decision to get up.
“‘Nej,” Kaz mumbled, his face still buried in one of her many pillows.
“Quiet,” she chided gently, pointing a finger at the half-open door, the handle of which she was currently holding. Kaz looked up a little, rolled his eyes, then laid back down. Inej stifled a laugh as she padded out of her room and into the kitchen.
The old wood flooring was cool beneath her feet and woke her up just a little bit more. She pulled out two mugs and two bags of Kaz’s favorite tea and placed them side by side on the counter. She moved to the sink, grabbed the pale yellow kettle as she went, and filled it up. She lit the stove and placed the kettle over the flame.
While she waited for the water to come to a boil, she pulled the living room curtains open, then tugged the window itself ajar, as well. A pleasant breeze swept inward from the harbor and toyed with her hair. Inej basked in it, taking a deep breath, and smiled.
The kettle grew increasingly angry, and she hurried to pull it away from the stove before it could start singing too loudly. The last thing she wanted was for someone to wake up-
“Inej?” a cautious voice coming from the hallway asked.
“Nina?” Inej returned. She heard the girl sigh with relief.
“I thought you were a robber or something,” Nina said, stepping fully into view.
“It’s Sunday morning. Who robs people on a Sunday morning?”
“Kaz?” Inej snorted. “Speak of the devil,” Nina started mischievously. Inej glanced over to where her bedroom door was still very much open, then back at the mugs in front of her. She poured the hot water into both, careful not to splash herself. “Who’s that other cup for?”
“We had a late night, and have been rewarded with headaches,” she explained shortly.
“Late night like wink-wink , or late night like stab-stab ?”
“When, Nina, dear, has it ever been wink-wink ?”
Nina sighed. “Lame.” Inej huffed out a laugh. “Alright, I’m going back to bed because it is way too early, ” she laughed, retreating to her and Matthias’s room.
Inej shook her head lightly, a smile on her lips, as she poured honey into the two cups.
She felt good today.
It wasn’t surprising that she felt good, of course--she was happier as of late, calmer, safer, but it still felt odd. For so long she lived with one foot poised towards a door, her heart left somewhere she couldn’t recall.
Now, she felt content with her little life in Ketterdam. Well, not that little. She was well known for her work both in uncovering and unraveling the city's main human trafficking rings and for her partnership with none other than the infamous Kaz Brekker.
She made her way back into her room, shutting the door gently behind her with her foot.
“Kaz,” she greeted.
“Inej,” he returned softly, sitting up. He smiled. “You brought…?”
“Tea.” She set the cups on her bedside table and then perched herself on the edge of the mattress beside Kaz. “Your favorite.”
“And your favorite, I hope.” He reached up to brush a strand of her hair that had fallen loose from her bun behind her ear.
“I wouldn’t buy a kind of tea I didn’t like,” she said, mock seriousness lacing her voice. In reality, she bought quite a few flavors she didn’t fancy, either because one of her friends liked the taste or because it was a remedy for some illness or other. In particular, she didn’t adore ginger tea, but it was her holy grail when she was on her period.
“Right,” he agreed, taking one cup from the table and bringing it to his lips, “of course.”
She smiled, leaning back until she was draped over his legs, which were still tucked comfortably under the blanket. She loved mornings like these with Kaz. The stress of the week melted off, the day slipping by lazily and allowing them what felt like all the time in the world to bask in each other's presence.
“How is your morning going, beautiful Inej?” he asked, reaching over to twirl one of her dark locks around his finger.
“Well. You’re here.”
“I’m here.” He just looked at her. She couldn’t explain it--thousands of words in the English language and she could not possibly string together any of them to describe the intensity of his gaze.
“Is your tea good?”
“When is it never?”
“Whenever I make you turmeric tea you do not seem to enjoy it much.”
He snorted, rolling his eyes. “That’s because it’s awful.”
“I do think that’s a bit dramatic.”
“Well, I am a bit dramatic, Inej.”
“What a shock,” she teased, sitting up and moving to her side of the bed, Kaz’s gaze following her lithe body. She leaned against the pillows, not taking her eyes from his.
“Darling Inej,” he murmured, reaching over to her and cupping her cheek in his hand. “Can I tell you a secret?”
She scooted closer, nodding.
“You,” he pulled her close, brushing his lips against the apple of her cheek. “Are bewitching.”
“Am I?”
“Indeed.” He ran his thumb along her jawline. “May I tell you one more secret.”
She raised a brow.
“Just one more.”
“Go on,” she grinned.
“You are so, so lovely.”
She felt her cheeks warm, though she felt comfort in the fact that she knew he would not be able tp see red in her face. “I am?”
“I hope you’d never doubt it.” He pressed his forehead against hers. “Oh, darling, you know I’m a liar, I must tell you one more secret.”
“What is it?”
“I love you.”
“You do?” she asked, smiling so wide her cheeks were hurting.
“Eternally, dearest. Forevermore.”
She swept her hand along the nape of his neck, her chest full to the brim. “Oh, I love you too, Kaz.”