The Hero and the Damsel

Sensitive Topics

            The days passed and my bruises began to fade. In those days I spent time at home resting and researching local flower shops that were looking to hire. I was tired of being a useless lump in Toshinori's home. Now that I was finally out of the hospital for a good while, my lungs were doing quite a bit better, and my treatments were going down in frequency, I thought it might not be such a bad idea to go back into the working world. Make myself feel useful. However, the conversation with Toshinori on the subject was going to be a challenge. Knowing him, he'd probably concede to my desire for work. Maybe...

I sat on the couch in the living room, the news playing in the background as I scrolled through stores on my phone. I hadn't applied to any just yet, I wanted to though. Talking with Toshinori came first however. If I just did it without warning, as I desired to do, he'd panic and worry and cause an idiotic fuss over the matter. As much I was would like to handle this on my own, I was now in a pretty committed relationship, which meant that I needed to talk out my decisions with him.

I gave a sigh as I lowered the phone and stared at the T.V. screen. Toshinori had saved the people, once again. That bombastic, annoying laugh of his greeting my ears on as I muted the T.V. Ugh...so annoying. I hate that laugh. It's so fake, I don't know how others didn't see it as fake. That's when I heard it again. The T.V. was muted, how could –

"Ayano! Sweetheart! I'm home!" Toshinori was home, and that zealous laugh came with him.

I groaned as I set my phone on my boney chest and tugged my All Might beanie down over my ears. "Do you have to yell Babe? I'm right here."

Toshinori blushed at me and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "S-Sorry...I-I-I thought you might be in the bedroom s-sleeping."

Releasing the beanie from my yanking grip, I sat up a bit on the couch and smirked at him. "Babe, if I was sleeping, you'd have woken me up and pissed me off."

He walked over to me, moving the beanie out of the way as he kissed my bald forehead gingerly. After he looked me over with a worried expression gracing his features. "How...H-How are you feeling...?"

A tender subject with my boney, fatigued frame. I was like a skeleton and it worried him. "Fine, I ate a sandwich for lunch and rested. Bruises are practically gone now, not much pain anymore." Those gleaming blue orbs looked down in sadness. With a shake of my head, I placed my hand on his cheek. "Toshi...Babe, stop worrying. I'm fine."

A sigh left those lips as I shifted myself up a bit to capture the sigh leaving with a gentle kiss. His face flushed bright red as I did as such. He jolted and stepped back nervously and with embarrassment. "A-Ayano..."

I gave a grin and snuggled back down into the couch. "What? I can't have sex with you, and now I can't kiss you? Next you're going to tell me that you won't hug me anymore either." Without meaning to my voice tapered a bit. I realized that what I said was more against myself than against him. I was making playful banter, but I was also bashing against my hideous, boney appearance.

Toshinori didn't hesitate to move around the couch and lift me with strong, brawny arms as though I was a princess before capturing my lips in his. Afterwards, he became a stuttering mess of embarrassment. "N-N-Nonsense...y-you just...s-surprised me, t-that's all."

His arms were warm and comforting, certainly better than blankets I had wrapped around me. With my sickly skinny body I seemed to always feel so cold, but Toshinori gave off such heat that no matter what I felt warm, especially sleeping next to him. The warmth enveloped me, causing me to consume myself in it and completely miss what he had just sad. I didn't come to until I heard, "Sweetest? You all right...?"