Work Text:
"I'm home", Kazuki calls out as he steps into the apartment, a sleeping Miri cradled carefully against his chest.
She had a long day full of running and laughing at the annual fair the elementary school held. Hell, Kazuki had a long day too considering how he planned, organized, and baked fifteen different pastries for the damn thing.
Really the whole month had been long but he expected as much, what with being head of the Parent Teacher Association and all. But he was happy. Happy to be busy and more than willing to be present for any and all of Miri´s school events. He had more time now.
They had more time.
And thank God for Rei, Kazuki thinks to himself as he gently lays Miri on the couch, pulling a blanket over her. He sinks down onto the couch beside her and closes his eyes, happy to finally rest his back after running around all day.
If it wasn't for Rei's help this past month, Kazuki is sure he would have pulled his hair out or worse; gotten premature gray hair. Kazuki liked to plan but between the chaos of event preparation, taking care of Miri, and the usual household chores, it was a lot to take on by himself. He was thankful he didn't have to.
Despite his initial eagerness and the overwhelming satisfaction of another successful day, Kazuki is glad the day was finally over. He had woken up before the sun rose to finish some last minute baking and his phone had been ringing nonstop since 7:00 am with last minute preparation questions from the moms.
If it wasn't for Rei's help with getting Miri up and dressed, preparing her breakfast and entertaining her with a few rounds of Morio Kart while Kazuki rushed around the house in a frenzy, he's sure he would have been late.
Kazuki barely had time to brush his teeth and put on clean clothes let alone clean up the monstrous mess he had made in the kitchen. Kazuki was a "clean as you go" type of guy but this morning proved to be quite the exception. Ah, that's right.
"Fuck," Kazuki groans under his breath. "The kitchen."
Somehow upon his arrival back home, he completely missed the kitchen. This doesn't make a lot of sense considering the kitchen is only a few meters away from where he now sits but exhaustion will do that to you. He decides to keep his eyes closed a few moments longer.
Visions of the catastrophe he had left behind had been plaguing him all morning but they were soon replaced with the chaos that was decorations, tables and chairs, children and parents alike milling around like ants through the school grounds.
He opens his eyes slowly, bracing himself for disaster but when he finally stands up and faces the kitchen, he's convinced he's hallucinating. How he hadn't noticed before is beyond him.
There is no mess in the kitchen.
In fact, the kitchen, and the living room too he now realizes, whipping his head around so fast he feels dizzy, were arguably cleaner than they had been all month (Hey, between this shit, a kid, and Rei having recently started his physical therapy, some things unfortunately had to be deprioritised. Sue him).
He turns back around to the kitchen (slowly this time) and notices that not only is it spotless, but the dining table is set for three, a bouquet of roses in the middle, and a single white envelope placed on his side of the table. His name is scrawled on the front of the envelope in handwriting that is unmistakably Rei's.
Kazuki has never been so confused in his life. Was this an early sign of dementia? He needs to sit down.
And as he is about to do just that, Rei walks in the front door with a box of pizza under his left arm.
"Oh, you got here before me", Rei says, toeing his shoes off at the door.
"Uh," was all Kazuki managed to respond. He gestures vaguely around the apartment.
"What happened here?"
Rei places the pizza on the dining table and shrugs nonchalantly but there's a hint of mirth in his eyes that Kazuki doesn't quite understand.
"I cleaned", Rei says casually. And while Rei has been helping out significantly more in the past couple of years, he can't help the look of disbelief that crosses his face.
"You," Kazuki starts and then stops. "How did you....When did you," he glances quickly at Rei´s right arm, newly freed from its splint, and back up to Rei who is now standing over Miri with a soft look in his eyes.
"You had physical therapy today," Kazuki tries again.
It was still early in his sessions. 90 minutes a day, three times a week. Usually Kazuki drove Rei to and from therapy, more at his own insistence than Rei's but Kazuki had reluctantly agreed to let Rei manage his appointments for the month. Just for this month, Kazuki had insisted.
It was the reason Rei couldn't join them at the fair today.
"I did," Rei says, looking at Kazuki from the side of the couch with that same amusement twinkling in his eyes. "I had some time."
Kazuki narrows his eyes at him, knowing that couldn't possibly be true let alone physically possible at this stage in Rei's recovery but he doesn't push the point.
Don't look a gift horse in the mouth as they say.
"That still doesn't explain the flowers or the card or the pizza,” Kazuki points out. He places a hand on his hip. “I thought we agreed to save pizza for the weekends. I could have cooked us something."
Ah, apparently he will look that gift horse in the mouth after all.
The amusement in Rei's eyes doesn't lessen. If anything, it grows brighter and Kazuki is getting a little frustrated at feeling like a joke is being played on him, at the thought of Rei exhausting himself over Kazuki's mess.
"Do you know what today is?," Rei asks carefully. And Kazuki really doesn't understand what he's getting at. Of course he knows what day it is.
"It's Wednesday. Physical therapy day, school fair day, trash day," Kazuki replies matter-of-factly.
His eyes have been glued to his calendar since the start of the school year, keeping close tabs on Miri´s school events and extracurriculars and Rei's physical therapy and doctor appointments.
At this point he probably didn't need that stupid calendar anymore; each event, day and time, so vividly burned into the front of his mind. He could recite the contents of it backwards with his eyes closed.
Of course he knows what fucking day it is, what kind of question —
"It's our anniversary."
And holy shit, maybe Kazuki needed his calendar more than he thought. Anniversary? Of all the things, how could Kazuki forget something as significant as their first anniversary? He feels dizzy again. Had he been standing this whole time?
Rei must notice the internal reprimand Kazuki is giving himself because he walks over to Kazuki and gingerly guides him over to the dinner table. Rei pulls out a chair for him to sit down.
"Rei, I am so sorry. I—," Kazuki tries to explain but stops at the feeling of a feather light kiss at the top of his head. Kazuki had been spluttering all evening, but that got him to finally shut up. That seemed to be Rei's intention if the smug look on his face was anything to go by.
"You had a busy day. I wanted to do something for you," Rei says, taking Kazuki's hand in his own as he sits across from him at the table. Rei was generally soft spoken but he always seemed to lower his voice in moments like this, barely a whisper. His eyes focus intently on their clasped hands above the table.
"You deserve nice things, Kazuki."
Kazuki is really at a loss of words now. He does not think he deserves nice things. To this day he could hardly believe he had any of the nice things he did: a roof over his head, a family that loved him.
Most days it was hard to believe he was even alive, let alone that he deserved to be. He felt especially undeserving of his life and nice things after forgetting one of the most important days of his life. And he wants to argue that point but the sound of Miri's voice made the words die on his tongue.
"Pizza!" She squeals, running excitedly up to the box that sits at the opposite end of where Kazuki and Rei sit at the table. Their hands still clasped together.
"Lets wash our hands first Miri," Rei says as he begins to stand, taking his hand away from Kazuki's. Kazuki frowns slightly at the loss.
Miri giggles as she runs into the bathroom to wash her hands.
"I got your favorite," Rei offers as he goes to join Miri in the bathroom. "But only on half because pineapple on pizza is gross."
And Kazuki laughs so hard that he starts crying. Of course it's those words that make Kazuki burst into tears.
Maybe for today, just for today, he can believe he is worthy of nice things.