To Free a Soul

Chapter Sixteen

Christmas eve. Usually, I just slept through it all, forgetting about the holiday. I used to hate Chrustmas, but then a certain bird man just walked on into my life and brought back all that childish excitement that I never got to have as a kid. Without him, I was certain my life would just continue down the same old, miserable path that I had been walking. I came to Japan for a fresh start and there he was, my beacon of hope. My fresh start.

I was awake before Hawks once again. I was seeing this quickly becoming a pattern between us. That man needed his sleep far more then I did, and boy oh boy could he sleep. I kissed his forhead and slipped out of bed, immediately throwing on a jumper so I wouldn't freeze. I hissed at the cold floors as I padded out to the kitchen, cursing the fact that I couldn't wear socks to bed and then the fact that I forgot to put them on before leaving the bedroom.

I pottered around the kitchen, using what we had in the house to make up a half decent breakfast. I made Hawks a coffee and myself a (drink), and slid it across to him as he came padding out from the bedroom and plopped himself down on a stool at the kitchen island. I laughed and leaned over to ruffle his hair before returning to the stove.

"Well, good morning to you too," I hummed with a laugh, finishing what I was cooking

"You weren't there when I woke up," Hawks whined "I got worried. I thought... I thought you'd been hurt again."

"I'm okay, bird brain, I was just making breakfast," I explained as I began plating up said food "Speaking of, you hungry?"

"Always," Hawks chuckled

Hawks had dug into the food before I even had the chance to slide onto a stool and sit beside him. I rolled my eyes with a laugh and leaned across to kiss his cheek before beginning to eat my own breakfast. I was aware of how painfully domestic this seemed but I didn't care, and I don't think he did either. It was nice. Christmas eve or not it was nice.

After breakfast Hawks said he had to rush off to pick up a last few things. That was fine by me. It gave me the time alone to head back into my appartment and wrap gifts. I couldn't have him seeing what they were, now, that would ruin the surprise.

And so happily, I unlocked my appartment door. I had to step around the mess, and had quite a bit to clean up still if I wanted the space to wrap gifts. There was a thin layer of dust over everything, and I sneezed as dust flew up with every step I took. But any slight uncomfort I might feel in the moment was worth it for him. He was all I thought about, everything on my mind. I had never, ever felt like this for anyone before. It was all so new and fulfilling. It filled me with warmth and gave me hope.

I did a little cleaning, borderline disgusted at the state of the appartment, before I sat on the floor with some music. I had to set the vibe for a bit before I began wrapping gifts. I got maybe halfway through the pile, making sure all of them were methodically wrapped up neatly with a bow in red and gold, before I took a break. The paper was a crimson red, the corners all neatly tucked in and taped down, before a pretty gold ribbon was wrapped around and tied into a fancy, curly bow. The simple rhythm of wrapping let my mind calm down. I didn't need to think because it was a mindless activity. I just let the music flow through me, bopping along as I wrapped. Once I took my break I lied down on the floor, trying not to fall asleep.

I was dozing off when my phone pinged with a message. Hawks had messaged me. I ran my hands through my hair as I read it. He had been called into work and didn't know when he'd be back. I just told him that it was okay and that I loved him, asking him to stay safe. With that I laid back down on the floor, surrounded by wrapping and gifts, and let myself doze off on the cool floorboards.

I woke up to the sound of glass smashing. I sat up hurriedly, in a bit of a panic, only to find three men dressed in black. One of them was the red haired man with scales from the other day. He smirked at me as his two companions climbed in through my now smashed balcony door. I stood up and made a dash for the front door as the red haired guy just laughed, showing off his sharp teeth. His hair was tied up now and if it weren't for the circumstances I almost would have called him pretty, with his fine features. I couldn't let this happen again. Not again. But then again, I also couldn't use my quirk or fight back.