Mr. Kamitani didn't argue back this time.
Instead, a heavy, mischievous smile slowly tugged at the corners of his lips—a low, quiet little "Heh" huffing out of his nose as his smirk widened into something wicked and entirely too confident.
'Can't help it then...' he thought lazily, his dark eyes flashing with a sudden, heavy amusement. 'You completely asked for this, Yuna.'
He slowly pushed his tall, exhausted body forward, pulling himself out of the deep stretch. His large hand reached out, wrapping firmly around her wrist with a lazy, effortless tug that instantly pulled her forward right into his lap's space.
Yuna gasped, her balance completely breaking as she stumbled into him.
'What the—?!'
Before the chaotic thought could even fully form in her mind or allow her to snap at him, Ayato let his heavy, exhausted head drop forward, letting his chin rest firmly and heavily right against the center of her chest, using her body as his absolute support.
The chaotic fluttering in her chest went into total overdrive as she felt the solid weight of his jaw resting heavily right against her body.
His warm, slow breaths seeped directly through the thin fabric of her cotton pajamas, pressing so close and heating her skin so intensely that her entire upper body felt utterly paralyzed.
'Oh my god... he's too close!!!!' her thoughts raced in a silent, breathless panic, her heart hammering so loudly she was terrified he would hear it against his cheek.
'He's completely leaning all his weight on me... Is he actually asleep, or is he just doing this to tease me?!'
Mrs. Kamitani froze.
For a brief, horrifying moment, her entire mind went completely blank.
A wave of intense, suffocating heat rushed straight to her face, spreading from the tips of her ears all the way down her neck as her heart began pounding wildly against her ribs. She stared down at the top of his dark, messy hair in complete disbelief.
'This man...!!'
'This absolutely impossible man.'
'How on earth is he capable of causing so much chaotic trouble while looking half-dead from sheer exhaustion?!'
"A-Ayato..." she whispered weakly, trying her absolute best to summon a stern, authoritative voice.
The attempt failed immediately.
Her voice came out far softer and more breathless than she ever intended, completely lacking any real bite.
No response.
He remained completely still against her, his heavy breathing steady and rhythmic through her pajamas. Mrs. Kamitani narrowed her eyes suspiciously, trying to peer through the dark strands of his hair.
'Wait.'
Her gaze flickered toward the hand still loosely holding her wrist.
'If he's asleep... then why hasn't he let go?'
Her gaze flickered downward toward his large, warm hand, which was still loosely but securely wrapped around her slender wrist. The effortless grip hadn't loosened even a single millimeter.
"...You're not fooling anyone," she muttered under her breath, though she wasn't entirely sure whether she was trying to convince him or herself at this point.
Still no response.
The room remained quiet.
For one dangerous second, she allowed her tense shoulders to drop, relaxing into his heavy weight.
'Maybe I am overthinking it.'
She swallowed.
Maybe he really was asleep.
Maybe—
Slowly, lazily, he tilted his face upward without moving his chin away from her skin, his dark eyes burning as he looked up at her through his thick eyelashes.
"Is that so?" he murmured, his deep voice rumbling directly against her chest. "Then why don't you do your job and help this delirious old man to bed, Counselor? Unless... you're too afraid to touch me."
Mrs. Kamitani suddenly became entirely quiet.
The frantic fluttering, the racing thoughts, the blushing embarrassment—it all completely faded from her face in a single second.
Her posture went totally rigid, and she stopped moving, staring down at him with a flat, completely unreadable expression.
Ayato's playful smirk faltered slightly. Sensing the sudden, freezing shift in her energy, his dark eyes softened with concern. He leaned back, his voice dropping into a low, quiet murmur.
"Honey...?"
SMACK!!!
The very next second, Mrs. Kamitani's free hand came flying forward, smacking him squarely across the forehead with a loud Thud!
"Pervert! Absolute pervert!" she screamed, her face instantly changing into a violent, fiery explosion of crimson as she violently shoved his forehead away from her body.
Her eyes darted wildly around the quiet room, looking here and there in absolute, panicked instinct as she waved her hands around. "What on earth is wrong with you?! Get off! Get away from me!"
She threw her hands over her hot cheeks, making a step backward and loudly cursing themselves out loud for the whole room to hear.
"Why on earth are Forty-year-old adults doing romance out of nowhere in the middle of the night?! Is everyone in this house losing their minds?!"
Volleys of embarrassed mumbling spilled from her lips as she aggressively rubbed her burning ears.
Instead of being offended by the Smack, Mr. Kamitani's lips slowly curled upward.
Watching his wife completely lose her composure and throw a chaotic tantrum was the most beautiful, entertaining sight in the world. He stared at her flushed face, completely adoring her cuteness in his mind.
"Hey," Ayato chuckled softly, a gorgeous, handsome smile spreading across his face as he effortlessly closed the distance between them again, stepping right into her personal space. "Why are you getting so flustered like that, Hm?"
His voice was a lazy, smooth tone as he leaned down slightly to catch her dodging gaze.
"Such things are completely normal between married people, you know. Besides... it's not like this is the first time we've ever done something like this."
"Kyaaa! Stop talking!" Yuna screamed, throwing her hands in the air. "Something has seriously happened to your brain! You are behaving way too strangely tonight! Way too wild!"
Ayato let out a rich, deep laugh, his shoulders shaking with genuine amusement. "Yuna, relax a little..." he teased softly, shaking his head. "You're acting as if you're someone else's Wife with how panicked you are."
At those words, the chaotic energy in Yuna's posture suddenly evaporated.
She abruptly freed her wrist out of his grip, her frantic blushing fading into a heavy, defensive anger.
"Fine. It's completely fine if you don't actually want to sleep in the end." she said, her voice dropping into a sharp, cold edge. "But you didn't have to go that far just to try and lighten my mood."
She paused, looking back at him sadly, her eyes filled with a sudden, quiet vulnerability that cut straight through his lingering laughter.
"Besides... I am not that type of woman, Ayato..." she whispered softly, her shoulders sinking.
"I am not the type of woman who will just forget everything and pretend nothing is wrong just because of some good talks and unusual behavior."
Turning her back to him, she started slowly walking away toward the door, her shadow looking small and lonely in the dim room.
But then, suddenly—
Without a single sound, Mr. Kamitani closed the gap from behind.
GYUUU—!!!
Before Yuna could even take another step, Ayato's massive, heavy arms came wrapping securely around her waist from behind, completely locking her body flush against his chest in a tight, inescapable embrace.
Mrs. Kamitani gasped, her body locking up in total shock as a tiny, helpless yelp escaped her throat.
"W-Woah—?!"
Her face instantly flushed a dark, chaotic red all over again, her hands flying up to clutch at his forearms as she tried to pull away from the crushing warmth of the stealth attack.
'W-What is he doing?!' her mind exploded in stunned disbelief.
'Has he completely lost his mind?! He screams at me earlier... and now he thinks he can just grab me from behind whenever he wants?! This is so completely unfair!'
"L-Let go... let go of your grip this instant!" she stammered, twisting slightly in his hold.
"No!" Ayato denied immediately, his voice completely stripping away all previous playfulness.
Instead of releasing her, he tightened his arms around her waist, dropping his heavy face forward until his forehead and cheek rested sadly against her shoulder, burying himself into her familiar warmth
"I'm not letting go..." he murmured against her skin, his deep voice carrying a heavy, exhausting ache. "You're talking as though one bad night erased every other day we've shared together... as though I need a reason to want to be close to my own wife."
Hearing the raw, vulnerable sadness in his voice, Mrs. Kamitani stopped resisting entirely.
Her hands slowly relaxed against his arms, and she let out a long, heavy sigh that seemed to carry all the weight of the world.
'Don't hold me like this...' her thoughts faded into a helpless, aching whisper as the last remnants of her anger began to dissolve. 'If you hold me like this... I'm going to forgive you before you've even apologized.'
"What is even the point of all this, Ayato?" she asked softly, staring blankly ahead as his steady breaths warmed her shoulder.
"You really hurt me earlier..." she whispered after a long, heavy silence, her voice trembling slightly against the quiet of the room. "And now... now you're holding me like you're terrified to let me go."
She closed her eyes, the sheer confusion of his actions weighing heavily on her chest.
"Tell me... what am I supposed to do with this?"
----
🌸 AUTHOR'S NOTE 🌙
Ehehe... 🤭
Poor Ayato.
He started this chapter thinking he was going to tease his wife...
...and somehow ended up emotionally defending himself in the world's strongest hug. 😂💙
Sometimes, saying "I'm sorry" isn't as easy as it sounds.
Especially when the person you hurt means everything to you.
And sometimes...
the hardest thing isn't forgiving.
It's figuring out how to forgive.
I really loved writing this chapter because it reminded me that relationships aren't built only on happy moments.
They're built on awkward conversations...
stubborn people...
embarrassing misunderstandings...
and the quiet decision to stay beside each other anyway. 🌙
Thank you so much for reading! 🥹💙
As always, I'd love to know your favorite moment from this chapter! Was it Yuna's dramatic panic? Ayato's teasing? Or... that final hug? 👀✨
Until next time...
Take care of yourselves, and don't forget to get some sleep! 🌸
(ノ｀⌒´)ノ
-----
✦ 🔮 A GLIMPSE INTO THE NEXT CHAPTER 🔮 ✦
"What awaits beyond this page...?" 🌙
(灬･◡･灬)♡
"Where did all that confident talk go? Why are you quiet now?"
"I was trying so hard to protect our son... that I forgot to protect my wife."
('～`;)
----
🗝️ HIDDEN BETWEEN THE PAGES 🌙
Fun fact:
The forehead smack dealt approximately...
0 points of physical damage.
However...
it increased Ayato's affection by 300%.
Mission failed successfully. 😂💙
(＾3＾)
----
🌙 The stars may fade, and memories may sleep...
But the Spiral continues to turn.
Until we meet again beneath the same forgotten sky.
(⸝⸝•▽•⸝⸝)
— SakuraShinomiya