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It’s not uncommon for Kaede to come home and find Kirumi cleaning, but today was a little bit different. She had entered the small home to hear music playing, and the footsteps of someone following along and dancing with it. Kaede has no qualms against this obviously, but she was pleasantly surprised as she drops her keys, shoes and coat at the door and turns the hallway, finding Kirumi sweeping and humming, dancing with the broom in the kitchen. The pianist pauses, then smiles lovingly and leans on the doorframe, watching her quietly. It seemed to be a soft melody Kaede definitely knew on the piano, but it also wasn’t one that disturbed her either. She hums along, counting each bar in her head for a moment before deciding to intervene with her girlfriend’s dance rehearsal.
“Having fun, there?”
Kirumi yelps in surprise, her rhythm broken and her melody dropped. She blinks randomly then relaxes when her eyes land on Kaede. Clearly she’d been expecting an intruder. She smiles, shyly and less confident as she nods in greeting.
“When did you get home? I did not hear the door open.”
“Oh, you know, sometime during your soiree.” Kaede giggles, “So, was that your favourite song or something?”
Kirumi chuckles, bashful and shy but loving all the same. She nods, and puts her broom to the side before bringing Kaede into a slow waltz, “I suppose it is. I always listen to it as I clean and it helps me develop a rhythm. It’s also very calming.” She explains, “I can turn it off immediately if you’d prefer-”
“No! No-” Kaede says, squeezing her hand accidentally. Kirumi looks on in confusion as Kaede reaches for the volume button and turns the music up as it restarts. Kaede briefly thinks of making a whole playlist for Kirumi but that can wait. The blonde smiles, “No, um- I think.. we could dance?” She suggests, lightly blushing. Kirumi lets out a chuckle, and that alone is music to the pianist’s ears.
“Dance? Oh, but I am not very good at dancing.” Kirumi says softly, raising a hand to rest on Kaede’s shoulder. Kaede smiles and shrugs.
“We’re not on a talent show, just having fun.” She assures, and leads Kirumi in a clumsy waltz. Sure, it ends with Kirumi standing on her foot about three or four times, but Kaede’s more happy her girlfriend’s not so hyper focused on keeping everything clean. She smiles up at her and turns the radio off.
“Hm?”
“Why don’t we eat dinner and just hang out for the evening? I think we’ve earned it after our hectic weeks.” She says softly. Kirumi raises a hand to protest, to say she has more work, but Kaede is quick to capture her lips in a kiss and sit her down at the table. Kirumi hums lovingly, and decides to relax this evening. Thanks to Kaede she’s been able to say no to being used so much. It’s nice.
-
Kirumi wakes up in the middle of the night to an empty bed. Which is weird, because Kaede had been with her since she had gotten home that night. There’s no light in the hallway, meaning that she’[s not in the bathroom, so maybe she’s grabbing a midnight snack. Kirumi didn’t do it personally; she had the belief it erased the progress of rushing her teeth. But there’s no clanging of drawers. If she wasn’t so tired, she would’ve gotten up to go check on her, but it was about two in the morning and she’s about to doze off again when she hears it.
The piano. Soft and soothing, floating through the house from the downstairs music room as it plays the song they had been dancing to that evening. Kirumi’s favourite… Was Kaede trying to learn it? Honestly it was nearly putting the olivette back to sleep, but then she realised that there was no more warmth on Kaede’s side of the bed and she knows Kaede has a meetup with Maki and Miu in the morning so she needs her rest. She yawns, slowly pushing herself into a sitting position as she turns to the bedside lamp. She pulls her slippers on and stands up, releasing one more yawn before beginning to make her way downstairs. She comes to a stop just outside of Kaede’s practising room, the room she’d vacuumed a good fifteen hours ago. With a gentle knock she sticks her head in, watching kaede’s hands dance along the keys like they always had in the past. Kaede looks up and plays a sharp chord, startled by Kirumi’s appearance.
“Hey- what are you doing up at this time?”
Kirumi smiles, “I should be asking you that.” She says, amused, “Are you trying to play my song?”
“Love how you’re referring to it now, but, yes. I couldn’t sleep, so I thought..” She looks up, “Did I wake you?”
“Not really, you were about to put me back to sleep.” Kirumi replies, “But then I realised I need your warmth to truly settle so.. come back to bed?”
Kaede giggles, “You drive a hard bargain, but I suppose I can put my practise aside for now.” She smiles, then gently puts the lid down on the piano and walks over.
Together they head back up to bed, holding hands all the while. Kaede pushes open the door and leads Kirumi back to the bed before gently laying down next to her. She pulls her close, whispers a ‘goodnight’ and begins to hum the same tune. She watches the maid slowly doze to sleep in her arms and smiles. The pianist chuckles and gently snaps a picture of her before turning the lamp off, and snuggling right beside her. She slowly settles and then drops off asleep soon after. If in the morning they wake up tangled in each other, that’s their business. Anyway, at least Kirumi finally is getting some needed rest. That’s all that really mattered to Kaede. Plus now she knew what put the maid to sleep, which is doubly handy.