phoenix ✦ k.takami (hawks)

Forty Two

His arms are strong enough to hold every fear, every beautiful broken piece of me. This man doesn't just make me feel complete, he completes me.
~ S. Marie

Track 43; Downtime by JAWNZA

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"Baaaaaaabeeeee." A voice whined from across the house.

You were sitting in the sunroom with the cats, enjoying the warm light as it dappled Yoshio's dark grey fur and illuminated Momo in a soft glow. It was about noon and you were watching the two play, humming calmly until Keigo cried for you.

"I'm in the cat jungle." You called back, refusing to stand up and go to wherever in the house he was. There was a few moments of silence before he did it again.

"Baaaaabbbeeeee." This one was prolonged and drawn out more than the previous and you rolled your eyes.

"You have legs and wings, Keigo. Use either pair to come to me, I'm busy." You snickered at the last part as you lounged in the chaise, pulling the book closest to you on the bookshelf off of it's resting place and opening it when he flew into the room.

"You're too busy reading an upside down book to give me attention?" He pouted from the floor which he threw himself on after he realized that you were faking it.

"Yes, yes I am." You teased, flipping the page and refusing to turn it right side up. You wanted to see how needy he would get, and boy you weren't disappointed.

He started fake crying which tricked Yoshio into thinking that he was actually sad and the large cat ran over to him with a few chirps. He used an arm to push the cat away; he didn't want attention from the cat he wanted it from you. Yoshio failed to listen and instead yowled loudly, moving his body over Hawks face to silent his cries.

You laughed at the image, watching in amusement as the winged hero retorted profusely to the cats affection, his voice muffled by Yoshio's long fur. He used both of his hands to pick up the large cat, Yoshio meowing in protest as he was removed from his resting spot and Keigo sat up.

You flipped to the next page when a few feathers tickled at the back of your neck. You pressed your lips together to avoid giggling, instead acting totally entranced by the upside down book in your hands.

It didn't stop there, as Keigo found ways to annoy you with the cats instead. Yoshio's eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas morning when the pro-Hero pulled the laser pointer from off the shelf behind your head. The red dot had both cats at attention, and they scrambled wildly to catch it as he moved it around the room, up the cat tree, further along the cat perches lining the top half of the walls. His last plan of attack was setting the dot on your exposed thigh.

You weren't paying well enough attention to see Yoshio go into attack mode atop of the bookshelf. He crouched down and wiggles his haunches, preparing to leap to catch the red dot. The next thing you knew was that twenty pounds of Maine Coone had come falling from the ceiling and onto your lap.

You shrieked at the sudden weight and claws in your thigh when he scrambled to chase the red dot around the room again. Momo was still sitting on top of the bookcase, looking unsure of how to come down since she'd watched your reaction after Yoshio landed on you like a bag of bricks. Deciding against his aggressive departure, she made her way back down to the floor the way she went up.

As she matured, she was sleeking out with her tortishell coat. Her fur was much shorter than Yoshio's, but she was still silky soft from the nutritional diet you had her on. She was a little smaller than the average domestic shorthair due to her neglect when she was born, but thankfully she was healthy and strong. She was attached to you much like Yoshio was, having seen his relationship with you. She absolutely adored Keigo though, and would rather sleep in his lap instead of yours when Yoshio was taking up all the room.

You slammed the book in your hands shut and put it back on the shelf after rubbing your sore thighs. "Alright, you overgrown chicken. Now you're gonna get it."

He mocked your silly threat, putting his hand up and opening and closing his fingers as he did so. He continued taunting Yoshio with the laser, unsuspecting of your approach from behind him.

With a war cry you jumped on his back, ignoring the fact that all of his feathers separated from the base of his wings when you made impact. He stumbled slightly under your weight since he wasn't prepared for your attack, and you laughed as he had to grab the wall to keep himself from falling down.

Vermillion feathers separated you from his toned figure, lifting you into the air to give him enough time to turn around and tackle you himself with a laugh. When you landed on the floor he began tickling you mercilessly.

Tears were at the corners of your eyes as you begged him to stop, not being able to contain your giggles and gasps from his relentless assault on your sides. Eventually you tapped his shoulder with an open palm twice.

"Alright, alright, I forfeit."

Thankfully he stopped, and sat up on your waist. "You shouldn't have attacked knowing that you'd never win."

"I kicked your ass getting my license." You teased him with that reminder, panting to regain your breath.

"But that wasn't hand-to-hand combat, was it?" He replied cheekily, wiggling his fingers in your face.

"You got me there." You replied, a soft smile on your face.

He looked down at you, a look of adoration in his eyes that sent butterflies banging around in your stomach. It had been how many months now? You'd expected the honeymoon phase to pass especially with the trauma you'd experienced, but it seemed like it was never going to end. Not that you were complaining, of course.

If you could stay here forever, living life to the fullest with the man of your dreams, you could die happy. When you were home with him—cats included—nothing outside your sanctuary bothered you. You never stressed about the business your bar was getting, now that you had reopened and booming with pro-heros as patrons. You never worried about what you would come across when you were out on patrol.

And no matter how exhausted you were when you went to bed, you woke up feeling like you'd been filled with a newfound energy that you didn't know existed.

"I love you, stardust." He murmured gently, dragging you back in from your train of thought with a kiss.

"I love you too." You replied almost breathlessly. You'd regained your breath after his tickle torture, but his kiss stole all the air from your lungs like it did every single time.

He laid his head on your chest, just holding you. You ran your fingers through his hair, enjoying the soft moment you had with him while your time balanced precariously on a thin line. He was the reinforcement to that line, a net to catch you for if you ever fell. You knew that he'd be there until the end of time.

You couldn't wait to grow old with him.

"Hey." You spoke up, and his brown eyes met yours as he lifted his head slightly.

"You wanna get married?"

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words; 1282

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