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It's nearing noon and Fubuki is making lunch.
It's a routine they'd settled into. The fox being much more of a morning person than Korone, whose streams stretch into the wee hours more often than not. Fubuki rummages through the fridge and the cupboards. She's pulling out multiple ingredients, including chicken breasts and eggs. She had settled for an oyakodon today. The fox hears a door open through the apartment, informing her that her dog is awake. She's beginning her culinary work when a yawn breaks out from behind her. Fubuki turns around to see a bedhead of brown hair peeking into the kitchen, floppy ears topping it. The sight never fails to make her smile.
"G'mornin'.." the brunette greets, her voice groggy with sleep.
"Good morning, Korone," Fubuki chuckles. "Hope you're up for some oyakodon today!"
"Y'could feed me grass 'n I'd eat it too," the dog jokes, rubbing at her eyes.
Fubuki hums, cracking eggs and dropping the insides in a mixing bowl. She grins, "Okay! That's tomorrow's plan then."
She earns a snort out of the half-asleep girl, who takes off for the bathroom with a muttered be right back. By the time she got back, Fubuki was halfway through her recipe. The fox was waiting for the sauce and the chicken to merge properly before adding the beaten eggs in the pan. She peers over her shoulder when she hears footsteps approaching. Korone appears with a refreshened look, smiling warmly at the fox as she steps into the kitchen to sit at the table. Her hair was arranged in its customary twin braids, which were sitting over her collarbones.
They share a look, sweet and knowing, a silent message passing between the both of them. Fubuki looks away first, her tail flicking nervously. She hears Korone giggle and it makes her roll her eyes. She decides to focus on the state of the meal instead of the loud beating of her heart. There was something about the way Korone would look at her, with these sparkling alluring brown eyes of hers, that always made Fubuki's heart race. No matter how many times she'd experienced it. It always makes her a little too warm for comfort. For that very reason, the fox preferred to avoid maintained eye contact as much as possible.
Fubuki adds part of the eggs in the pan and mixes it slowly. As she covers the preparation with a lid, she mindlessly turns around. Korone was scrolling on her phone. However, she was quick to notice the fox pivot. She looks up from her screen and shoots a grin at the cook. Fubuki makes a distressed noise and spins back around. She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. And Korone, upon seeing her reaction, barks a laugh that made the fox even more embarrassed.
"You're so adorable, Fubu-chan!" Despite having her back to Korone, Fubuki could hear her smile. The dog adds, unhelpfully, "I'm going to die from cuteness overload!"
"..And I'm going to die from embarrassment here," she declares to the room.
"Man, I wonder why," Korone says sarcastically.
Fubuki glowers at her with as much indignation as she can gather. Though she wouldn't say it was effective when the dog burst out laughing.
"No way! I'm the problem?" the latter asks with feign surprise.
"Very much the root of my issues, yes."
Korone is resting her head on crossed arms over the table, directing puppy eyes at her. "Am I a cute problem at least?"
The fox sighs fondly, "Unfortunately so."
"And yours to deal with?"
"..And mine to deal with," Fubuki agrees.
Korone makes a content noise, her tail wagging so hard that it was audibly smacking the chair repeatedly. The kitchen fills with comfortable quiet again. Fubuki pours the remains of beaten eggs into the pan, adjusts the chicken pieces, and covers it one more time. While she waits, she begins filling two donburi bowls with warm rice from the cooker she started an hour ago. She puts more grains in Korone's bowl because she knows the dog eats more than her.
The silence stretches. Only disturbed by the concealed noises of boiling and crackling on the stove.
Fubuki feels like she was being watched the whole time she moved around the cuisine.
...
It's no impression: Korone is actually drilling holes in the back of her head right now. She can feel the intensity of her gaze there. Her tail sways swiftly, conscious of the staring. Fubuki considers taking a glimpse but she decides against it. Her heart might jump out of her chest if she does. She could feel the tip of her ears growing hotter the longer this dragged on. As well as heat creeping up her nape. Once the mixture was ready, she turned off the stove and split the portions into their bowls. The fox goes to place the pan in the sink, making water run to cool it off, and leaving it here to wash later. A pair of eyes kept following her all the time. She sets a pair of chopsticks onto each bowl before carrying them over to the dining table. She breathes and clears her throat. It does little to calm her pounding heart.
"What's with the staring, Ko'one?" She asks directly, looking up.
Doing that was a mistake. For her heart, mostly. Korone was watching her with soft eyes. They would radiate warmth if they could. Elbow propped up and chin resting in her hand, she was gazing at the fox and scrutinizing her like an art piece. A smile was tugging at her lips. Fubuki wasn't expecting that kind of expression. Which, for the record, bypassed all her defenses. Her ears slightly dropped to the sides. Her tail lashed out bashfully behind her. She couldn't even hide her growing blush because both her hands were occupied. She stares at the table as she sets the bowls down, sitting across the dog. That seemed to snap the latter out of her trance. Her floppy ears perking up atop her head.
"Oh! You noticed?" she asks innocently, taking a bite of her food with a rushed let's dig in!
Fubuki caught the playful glint in her eyes. She raises an eyebrow at her, "You'd notice it too if I was staring at you that intensely."
"Hey! I was admiring the view," Korone states solemnly.
"The oyakodon?"
A pause.
"That too. The important part is who was making it!" she clarifies. "Can't I look at my stunning girlfriend anymore?"
Fubuki sputters, nearly chocking on her food. Her partner laughs, bright and loud. She feels warm. Annoyingly warm. Her heart was doing somersaults. And she couldn't blame it, nor the culprit.
"This is really good, Fubu-chan!" Korone beams. She's swallowing her meal down as if she hadn't eaten in three days.
"C'mon, we both know Mio is a better cook."
Korone stops her breakneck consumption and ponders, "Mhm.. Well, Miosha doesn't make me lunch everyday so I wouldn't know." She smirks, "I do know about a certain fox's cooking skills, though."
"Oh yeah, Polpol, right?" she jests.
She isn't expecting Korone to reach across the table to take her free hand in hers. Fubuki instinctively looks up to meet her eyes. They hold deep intent. There's an unmovable determination to them that hushes the fox in a flash.
"I mean it, Fubu-chan." Korone says. "Thank you for concocting tasty meals every time."
She mirrors the dog's smile, her own tail giving happy wags behind her. She sets her chopsticks down and brings Korone's hand closer to her. She leans forward to give it a kiss. She watches the brunette's cheeks taint pink at the motion, her eyes widening a little.
"Anything for my lovely girlfriend," the fox returns.
The comment makes Korone giggity. Fubuki knows how she gets when kisses are involved. She also knows this means the dog is going to pepper her with kisses after lunch.. Which made her extremely embarrassed, much to Korone's entertainment. In the meantime, lunch is shared around homemade cooking, with warm looks and chuckles, jokes and banter.