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The lack of sunlight streaming through the curtains suggested it was still too early to be awake, and especially too early to justify climbing out of bed and away from the warmth.
Aqua was never one to say he was a morning person. He was an early riser and always had been, an unfortunate habit that’d been inherited from a lifetime ago.
But even as Gorou, early wakeup calls were not something he naturally gravitated towards, but rather learned to adapt to over time as needed. He’d been called in for countless early morning shifts even if not technically in the job description, but Miyazaki only had so many on-call staff, and it’s not like he had much else to do outside of work.
Those early mornings were always followed with the strongest tasting coffee offered in the hospital vending machines. Even then it still wasn’t enough, but at least it served to be a good use of the spare change in his pockets.
These days early mornings came not out of obligation, but rather from the nightmares that often roused Aqua from his sleep early. It was easier to formulate expectations around an early schedule rather than be greeted by the disappointment of yet another night’s sleep disturbed, so he became an early riser, much to his dismay of being called an old man.
Aqua had always busied himself with something to keep his mind from going to any dark place it could, mostly on the days where sleep didn’t easily find him. In his mind there was always something that could be done, never allowing himself to fully relax. But that was fine, really, keeping busy was the preferable outcome over having a panic attack.
He was no stranger to early morning workouts, a habit that became especially useful when he had to substitute as Pieyon during the week lead-up up to JIF, as well as during Tokyo Blade with the stamina he needed for his scenes. He didn’t work out to become particularly muscular, just enough to stay lean, which was enough to bring satisfaction. Being born with Ai’s genes made it easy to stay so attractive, or so he thought, not that much effort had to be put in to begin with to keep up his appearance.
He’d busy himself with making breakfast on the mornings he was up first at home, oftentimes joining Miyako in cooking. She seemed to be the only one who could match his sleep schedule at times— Ruby slept like a rock, always had since they were kids, and he couldn’t fault her for that, not when he knew of the sleepless nights she’d experienced as Sarina in the hospital.
And it wasn’t like cooking was a huge burden or anything to him, he wouldn’t admit it, but it felt nice to be needed sometimes. And if he could do anything to take some of the burden from his surrogate mother, he would. That woman nearly worked herself to the bone, but still managed to keep going despite it. He was glad to call her his mother.
He only wished that his biological mother had been here to see him grow up. He knew Ai would get along well with Kana, and would most definitely approve of their relationship. But there was no point in focusing on hypotheticals for a world that couldn’t exist, and at least Ai had met Kana at some point, even if it were when they were still so little. And even if it wasn’t in the way he’d preferred to introduce her now. Still, he had a feeling she was watching over both of them these days.
Aqua had the urge to get out of bed, to do something to busy himself, but seeing the girl beside him under the sheets was enough to cause his whole body to still. It was an adjustment, for sure, he still wasn’t used to waking up to someone beside him.
They’d stayed out together far too late the previous night doing Karaoke, and he really didn’t know how she managed to talk him into it in the first place. He couldn’t sing, but she’d somehow managed to convince him to watch her just for the sake of it, and inevitably ended up giving into her whims. Were he in his right mind he would’ve declined the invitation under any other circumstance, but when Kana gave him that wide-eyed puppy stare.. He couldn’t say no to her like the lovestruck idiot he was.
One thing led to another, and Aqua ended up calling an Uber for the two of them due to the late hour. It was safer than walking, and it wasn’t like he didn’t have the money to cover it, despite Kana’s insistence that nobody cared about a “washed up child actress” like her, to quote her words. But she’d already been in a scandal semi-recently, and unfortunately Aqua didn’t have any other deep dark secrets to save her ass again were she to fall into another one.
He was unsure why, but he ended up stepping out of the vehicle with her, when realistically he should’ve just sent her on her way so he could head home as well. But really, upon seeing him begin to follow her it didn’t take much insistence other than ‘why not spend the night?’, and he wouldn’t admit it was barely a question, and that he was easily convinced if it was her.
It was the first time he’d been inside of her apartment. Aside from the one time he visited to finally return the umbrella she’d accidentally loaned to him (there were still not enough words to apologize for that night, but it had come and gone), but even then that instance didn’t count, since he wasn’t invited inside. Which was fine, there was no need to for such a simple task.
The apartment was.. Well, empty, for lack of a better word. It was clear Kana didn’t have a need for such a huge space just for herself, and it showed in her decorative skills. Her bedroom seemed to be better decorated and well cared for, and really, since she lived alone she didn’t exactly need the extra space.
They hadn’t done anything aside from passing out together, but that was fine, Aqua thought, there was no rush for things neither of them were ready for.
With nothing else to do, he took a moment to observe her sleeping form. Her hair was splayed out on the pillow and over her shoulder, sticking up in a way that ensured it was a view for his eyes only, she would never leave the house looking so unkempt. Not that he looked any better given their current situation, Aqua was sure. But she slept so peacefully at that moment, her breathing soft and even, not a thing seeming to bother her in her dreams.
An entirely different person without her sharp tongue to accompany her, that was for sure.
But that sharp tongue was part of the reason Aqua fell for her in the first place. Someone who could match his banter, make him feel his age, maybe even keep him in line when needed, but he’d never admit that out loud to anyone. Maybe that was what love did to a person, he mused.
He knew of her frustration with him at times, being unable to see inside his head. Really, he understood it though, sometimes he was sick of being inside of his own head, knowing how he operated first hand. Unlike her, how she seemed to wear her heart on her sleeve no matter what.
Opposites attract, Aqua mused to himself while reaching out to brush away a stray hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear so delicately, like she were so fragile she’d shatter from any firmer touch. She wouldn’t, not that easily, he’d make sure of it. Not that she needed him to, she wasn’t one to go crawling to a man when things were tough, but the least he could do was offer support even if she didn’t take it.
Kana had fallen asleep in his hoodie, and that’s right— complaints had been voiced about being cold last night as they’d been waiting for their Uber to arrive, and he so graciously offered up the closest thing to a jacket he had on hand at the time. Once they’d returned to her place she’d fallen asleep with it on, not even having the chance to contemplate changing. Aqua wasn’t any better of course, he was right behind her in terms of falling asleep fast. And he wasn’t in any rush to get his clothing back, not anytime soon if it kept her happy.
Aqua’s mind started wandering to what they could do that morning. He’d let her sleep in, of course, she deserved the rest. But what could they do for breakfast? He was aware of her bad habit of doordashing meals, so the assumption that there would be no produce in the apartment was a likely conclusion to come to. They could always grab breakfast somewhere, a western style breakfast sounded ideal at that moment.
His train of thought was once again interrupted by her shifting beside him. It was as if she knew he was going on some tangent in his brain, even if she were asleep herself. Like some sort of secret sixth sense.
Aqua wondered what kind of reaction she’d have upon realizing he was still there when she woke up, what kind of cute expression her face could make (but really, if he were being honest every one of her expressions was adorable). He could see it now, she’d probably get embarrassed, her cheeks turning the same shade as her hair, and she was almost guaranteed to try pushing him away, but he wouldn’t budge. No, he wouldn’t leave her, not if he had any say in it.
Kana shifted again, her eyelashes fluttering as she came to. A soft groan was voiced, either disturbed by the incoming sunlight or his soft touches, or both. But once she came to a little more, she gave him the smallest smile through her sleep-ridden gaze, her expression soft in a way that could only be meant for him, and that got his heart racing.
He was never a morning person, but if it were for her, he’d gladly become one.