Work Text:
MITSUKI LEANED AGAINST THE DOORFRAME OF THEIR KITCHEN. His tall figure relaxed as he crossed his arms against his bare chest, mindful of his healed scars. His hair fell loosely down his back, long strands brushing against him. His black sweatpants sagged just low enough to reveal the waistband of his boxers.
“And what do we have here?”
He chuckled dryly, a cigarette between his lips; its smoke curling in the humid air. His eyes gleamed with mirth at the sight before him. Aya was laying on the floor, sprawled like a starfish, with her hair in a messy halo above her head. She was dressed in her favourite sundress. Her stomach rose up and down with her head lolled to the side.
Her eyes, which still had Mitsuki weak in the knees whenever he stared into them, were closed. She was trying to play it off that she was taking a nap, but Mitsuki knew better. He knew that she was wide awake. The scrunch of her nose when the smell of nicotine from his cigarette filled her nostrils, followed by the twitch of her eyes, and the soft laugh she tried to stifle gave her away.
“Nothing,” Aya said coyly. She lazily turned her head slightly to face him. “Just taking a nap, you know?”
“On the floor?” He challenged teasingly.
Mitsuki made his way to the kitchen table with his arms unfolded; one hand was in his sweatpant’s pocket, and the other holding the cigarette as he stubbed it out on the rusted ashtray. He pulled out a chair, the bottom of the legs scraping onto the floor, and he sat down. He slouched back in the chair, legs spread apart, and propped an elbow onto the table. He lowered his head to stare into her eyes, smirking.
“Why not? There’s no water for a cold shower, no electricity, we don’t live near a beach, we don’t have a pool. It’s not like we don’t have anything better to do,” Aya listed off, shrugging her shoulders, her eyes drawn to the ceiling.
“Is that so?”
Mitsuki mused playfully, arching an eyebrow with a tilt of his head and leaned further into his hand. He couldn’t blame Aya, she wasn’t wrong after all. The sun’s heat had seeped through every room in the apartment since dawn, making the walls radiate warmth back at them.
The water supply had randomly shut down at 10 am; at least they managed to shower before that. Then, the electricity shut off an hour or two later, leaving them to entertain themselves with their barely charged phones until boredom struck at them. By now, The kitchen reeked of stale smoke, sweat mixed with perfume and cologne, and something humid that clung to their skin. It was thick and almost suffocating.
The faint hum of cicadas outside seemed to mock the silence of the powerless apartment. If Mitsuki had a choice, he’d prefer the cicadas over the irritating buzzing of mosquitoes flying over his head when he’s trying to fall asleep at night. Moreover, flying over his head while he was still awake at ungodly hours in the morning while Aya was fast asleep right next to him.
“So laying on the floor was the next best thing?”
He shuffled on the chair, trying to keep his damp back from sticking to the surface; his eyes never leaving hers.
“Pretty much, yeah. You should try it sometime.” Aya jerked her head to the empty space next to the empty space next to her, ending her suggestion with a wink.
“Oh, yeah? I’ll try it out now then.”
Mitsuki pushed himself off the chair and walked over to the empty space between Aya and the refrigerator. He settled down, feeling the cold floor through the fabric of his sweatpants. He laid down on his back and hissed between his teeth for a split second. He let out a content sigh right after. His hair spread out above him and he mirrored Aya’s pose. However, his spread limbs were more controlled and restrained than hers; but he was still relaxing.
“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Aya teased.
She turned her head to face him, eyes filled with adoration as they roamed over his profile; taking in his closed eyes, short eyelashes, the mole under his right eye, his many earrings, and his sharp jawline. He truly was the most handsome person she had ever met in her life.
“It does,” he muttered. He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. “But not quite.”
“How so?”
Aya furrowed her eyebrows, confused, with a smile. The way he spoke made her curious and almost frustrated that he was not agreeing with her; as she playfully believed that he should be. On the other hand, Mitsuki turned his head and faced her with a quickness. A familiar yet mischievous and expected glint entered his eyes, followed by a coy smile. Seeing that, Aya rolled her eyes and tried to suppress the laugh that threatened to escape her but it was pointless; he always knew how to get her in some way.
“Tch, you could’ve just told me.”
She reached over and lightly slapped him on his stomach, which caused him to laugh.
“And you should know by now that I can’t nap without you. You’re my favourite part of napping, Aya,” he retorted.
She shifted closer to him, closing the gap between them, until she nestled comfortably underneath his arm. She laid her head on his shoulder and threw his arm over his torso as she draped her leg over his waist.
Mitsuki sighed softly and circled his arm around Aya’s shoulders, pulling her closer. His fingers traced shapes on her arm. The warmth of his touch, mixed with the coldness of his rings, grounded her. Meanwhile, Mitsuki shifted his free arm to the back of his head and his palm rested on the nape of his neck, and Aya felt herself melt as he rubbed her arm and her breath evened out.
He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, his lips lingered there for a moment. His eyes fluttered shut afterwards as well. His stomach rose and fell with deep breaths, letting himself fall asleep alongside Aya.
The floor beneath the two of them was cold, yet with Aya tucked by into his side, nothing else mattered; least of all the summer heat.