synergetic | Sunrise

Harsh light across his eyes forces Yukimura to open them, and he makes to get up and close the curtains, but a tightness holding fast across his chest makes that unviable for now. For just the tiniest second, the way his body won't bend to his will scares him with cold familiarity, but it's easy to set aside once he actually sees what's going on.

There's a red mop clinging to him, and all of its limbs are, too. For a minute, the coziness weighs on his eyelids, but the ever bubbling-under panic about Himawari gives him the strength to reach the baby monitor on the bedside table.

And it shows such a vision of a serene sleeping angel that Yukimura really can't fight the warmth of the surprise snuggle. It is not what he expected to follow last night's... well, that was warm, too, in the same way that the boy was a 'good' tennis player. The technical truthfulness didn't fully express the understatement.

But this was... extra. Unforeseen. Yukimura was used to things getting hot and heavy between friends-- even when nothing came of it, looks passed, thoughts were had. It was the softness that was different. The way the heat cooled but didn't die. His occasional rendezvous with Atobe gave them a fonder tolerance for each other, but Marui was giving him every impression right now of never letting go.

And it wasn't wholly unwelcome to him. This wasn't a bad way to wake up. Even if last night had just been a hard collapse after a long day, this... would have made it worth it. This little enclosure where Yukimura felt oddly cherished. Where admiration wasn't distant and impersonal, but real and present. Where he could feel it and let it kindle something reciprocal in him.

The baby monitor was on, the children could wake them if they needed to. Yukimura just wanted to enjoy this as long as it lasted.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's a rare day the thing that wakes him isn't named Yukiko, Keita, or Himawari. That alone makes it a special morning when his eyes eventually open to the sun's brightening rays streaming through the window.

That's to say nothing of where he finds himself back in the realm of consciousness: tucked in a warm bed, wrapped around a warm body, breathing in a familiar smell and lulled by the calm rhythm of another's breathing. Comfy.

He shifts with a soft moan, just enough to fix the achy spots on his neck and hip, and the tingle in his arm warning of poor circulation. Now super comfy.

He sleepily checks to see if Yukimura is awake yet-- and on seeing his eyes open, smiles softly.

"Morning..."

Yukimura lifts his eyebrows. He has no sympathy for the lack of circulation Marui is suffering from-- nobody told him to surgically attach himself to Yukimura like limpet.

But it's done with a smile. "Are you sure that's what time it is?" he says teasingly. "Maybe you've trapped me here until dinnertime."

"There's no way I'd sleep through breakfast and lunch!" Bunta banters back, keeping his voice hushed lest they disturb the almost suspiciously quiet other residents.

If Yukimura was looking for shame, he'd have to keep looking.

"Even after... all... that...?" He draws the words out a little. Maybe he's fishing for something. A compliment or an assurance. Yukimura isn't sure yet.

He's at a loss for what happens now. Fiery nights of passion tend to lead him to interesting places, but this is different because they're both simply... home.

Bunta turns his face into Yukimura's shoulder to muffle his giggle.

"You have a point. I certainly slept well. But it'd be nice to stay here a while longer."

He can admit that because he knows Yukimura isn't serious about wanting to get up, not so long as Himawari continues to snooze peacefully in the other room.

Ever so slightly, the bedroom door opens, though no one appears to be in the doorway from Bunta's vantage point on the bed. That in and of itself is a dead giveaway.

"Keita. Good morning," he greets, both to alert Yukimura and to acknowledge their company.

"Morning," he calls back, quieter and more subdued than usual.

The floor shuffles, and without any further explanation, Keita lifts the covers at the side of the bed and helps himself to crawling in, climbing halfway over his father's waist before hesitating, as though not immediately sure how to proceed from here.

"Yukimura-san, did you dream bad too?" He asks from under the covers.

"Yes," he said somberly, if only to keep things simple. Yukimura was glad to have followed Bunta's lead in putting something back on, when all he'd wanted to do at the time was close his eyes and savor the afterglow.

"Do you want to tell us what you dreamed about or do you want to forget about it?"

Keita is only half paying attention to the conversation, having gotten distracted almost immediately after 'Yes' back to thinking about the problem that prompted his question in the first place.

He doesn't actually know he can't fit in between them. He hasn't tried yet. They're both where he wants to be.

In a move that could have come straight from his father, he simply makes a go for it, and starts squirming his way down between them.

"I want a hug sandwich."

Yukimura can't help a sudden, gentle laugh, and rolls onto his side to try and make some room.

"Uh-huh. Do you think you go in the middle? Or do you want to be the bread part?"

This actually makes Keita stop for a second, because he'd absolutely just assumed he should be the middle part of the sandwich. But then he remembers Yukimura's answer to his question.

The crawling continues, now over Yukimura to his other side, where Keita settles and hugs around his middle. His arms don't reach very far.

"Yukimura-san can be the middle. Because he dreamed bad too."

There's only one obvious response to that, right? He rolls over again to face Keita and hugs him, too. Because he can reach all the way around.

And Marui's gotten enough of his attention for right now. And that feeling of being cherished is still glowing inside him, after Keita's very thoughtful response to a little joke he'd hardly thought twice about.

It's a proud moment for Bunta. Keita is learning to think more about the feelings and needs of other people.

"That's very kind of you, Keita. Well done. I'll help, too. Let's hug alllll the bad dreams out of him!"

"You have to help or it won't be a hug sandwich." Keita the blanket-covered mound points out. But he does his part and tries to squeeze those bad dreams loose. Thankfully he isn't very strong, and Bunta doesn't need to be told it's important for Yukimura to breathe.

Sunrise

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject