Work Text:
When Nilou gets home, Kaveh meets her at the doorstep.
Watching the smile that blossoms on her lips as soon as she sees him is his favorite part of the day. Well, maybe right after feeling her arms on his neck when she pulls him into a warm embrace. His hands wrap around her waist naturally — they belong here, serve to hold her close and feel the softness of her skin under his fingertips. She smiles, as she always does, but this smile is meant only for Kaveh. And he gladly claims the ownership with a kiss.
Nilou tiptoes to meet him halfway; a thing he always found unnecessary adorable, one of the many such details that build the flawless portrait of his wife. “Welcome back.”
“I'm home.” She answers with a smile, tossing her shoes aside to the wall and stepping inside the house. The words fly out of her mouth naturally, but Kaveh is yet to get used to their sound. Home. The one they built together.
Her fingers wrap around his wrist, pulling him closer. Kaveh complies with curiosity that soon is satisfied with another kiss, this time landing right on his cheek. “I'm tired. Can we skip everything and just go to bed today?”
“Oh? Sure, of course. But if you need anything else, I will provide you with it. Even a massage.” Kaveh traces her face with his fingers, noticing the tiredness settled deep in her eyes, a sight he witnessed a few times before. Nilou rarely works herself to such a state, but he knows all about fatigue and sleepless nights, feeling the desperate need to do anything she could possibly ask for.
“No, it's fine,” But as usual, she doesn't. “There's nothing more in the world right now i want more than a good sleep.”
“Even me?” Kaveh smiles, leading her through the doors of their bedroom. “Okay. But be ready for tomorrow, because I will make sure you rest well for its entirety.”
She giggles, slipping out her usual attire to replace it with the soft fabric of a nightgown. “I thought these two things is a package deal? You know a good sleep is impossible without using you as a pillow.”
“So I do make a great one?” Kaveh smiles, preparing the bed for her arrival. He makes sure to adjust the pillows on her side, ignoring the ones on his. ”Well, if it makes you happy... I will be glad to serve as your pillow for the rest of my life.”
He's interrupted by a pair of hands wrapping around his waist, ripping him out of the thought. Nilou presses her forehead against his back, sending a laugh that burns against the delicate skin. “Don't be so dramatic. I just wanted to say that you're great at giving cuddles. Like a... Big cat. Very soft and fluffy. But with less fur, I suppose...”
Kaveh gently tosses her on the bedsheets, her melodic giggle ringing in his ears. Nilou reaches her hands out so he could interlace their fingers. Kaveh rolls on the bed next to her, immediately pulling her closer and peppering kisses all over her face that prompts even more laughter to leave her lips. The lips that he targets next, drinking in the soft sensation as they touch his. This kiss is more quiet, it shuts down Nilou's soft laughter that soon switches to the sound of her breath. The one Kaveh suddenly hears so close he can mistake it for his own. All the air in the room disappears, leaving their little love bubble the only thing inside.
The feeling so right it could last forever if not the need in oxygen. They slowly pull away, catching their breath, eyes never leaving each other for a moment.
He scoops her up in his arms, burying his head in the crook of her neck. Nilou lets out a soft gasp, but her legs quickly wrap around his. And his heart is too heavy for his chest with all the love that threatens to spill out with a careless movement.
“I love you, Nilou.” He whispers, leaning away just enough for her to see his eyes and read the sincerity of this message written on his bare heart. She understands. Her eyes soften, and she slowly nods as her hand flies up to his cheek.
“I love you too,” She smiles, her fingertips dance on his face in pleasant warmth. “I'm happy with you, Kaveh.”
He sniffles wetly, tears threatening to leave his tightly clenched eyes. “Thank you.”
“For what?” She sounds so surprised, as if she genuinely doesn't understand why. Kaveh chuckles, shaking his head in a light motion.
“For being here.”
Her eyelids flutter with a sense of great surprise until a little smile graces her lips again. “No problem.”
Kaveh meets her halfway, again.
Sharing the last kiss of the night, Nilou smiles at him before giving into a yawn. Kaveh watches her tiredness finally take over as she rolls down the pillows. She giggles again, sound muffled by his shirt as she buries her face into his chest. He can feel the soft breaths slowly steadying, becoming deeper and calmer as Nilou finally falls asleep. Kaveh watches how peace takes over her features, lines on her face growing more gentle when her body relaxes right next to his. He pulls the blanket over them, protecting her dreams for the rest of the night.
And as joins her in dreams, the last thoughts that occupy his mind dissolve with every doubt
left in his heart.
And I know that my heart may be rotten, but I still feel it pounding. You make me feel clean again. As if nothing bad ever happened to me, to you, to us. To anyone.
There's no place for me in the world except the one where we can be alone together, legs tangled in bedsheets while the morning sun plays in your hair. You know I will love you for eternity; all the lifetimes fate will throw at us, every universe will connected us with invisible strings so I can find my way into your arms again. Because it's the only place I can call home.