Maki paused with her hand on the bathroom door. She shot him a highly skeptical, warning glare over her shoulder. "Don't you dare wash the dishes. Knowing you right now, you'll accidentally crush the ceramic and slice your hands open."
Ren raised both hands surrender. "Noted. I will leave the dishes exactly where they are. I'll just sit on the couch and try not to break the cushions."
Maki snorted. The fierce tension that had possessed her all evening finally gave way to a soft, incredibly fond smile. She shook her head and stepped into the bathroom.
The door clicked shut, and a moment later, the steady sound of the shower turning on echoed through the quiet apartment.
The water shut off a few minutes later, the sudden silence heavy in the apartment.
Ren was sitting on the low green sofa, staring blankly at the dark television screen, his mind still spinning with point allocations and milestone farming, when the bathroom door finally clicked open.
A thick cloud of warm, fragrant steam rolled out into the hallway. Maki stepped out into the dim light.
She had a single white towel wrapped securely around her torso, the terry cloth stark against her flushed skin.
Her dark green hair was completely soaked, plastered to the nape of her neck and dripping small beads of water down her bare, athletic shoulders.
Ren felt his breath hitch, his train of thought about Jujutsu High and System Points instantly evaporating.
It didn't matter how many times he looked at her. Between her flawless build, the faint training bruises dusting her skin, and the fierce, uncompromising way she carried herself, she was ridiculously, heart-stoppingly gorgeous.
Maki caught him staring. She paused in the hallway, tilting her head as a slow, confident smirk touched the corners of her lips.
"See something you like?" she teased, her voice slightly raspy from the hot steam.
"Always," Ren replied without a second of hesitation, his dark eyes tracking a single drop of water as it traced a path down her collarbone.
Maki rolled her eyes, but the faint, betraying blush that crept up her neck completely ruined her tough exterior.
She walked past the living room and headed straight for his bedroom, dropping her towel onto his desk chair with a casual, devastating ease that showed exactly how comfortable she had gotten in his space.
Ren leaned his head back against the sofa cushions, listening to the soft rustle of fabric.
When she walked back into the living room a minute later, Ren couldn't help the soft groan that escaped his throat.
She had pulled on a pair of incredibly short, worn-out black shorts from her duffel bag. But for her top, she had completely bypassed her own clothes and raided his dresser again. She was wearing another one of his plain white t-shirts.
The shirt was massive on her, the wide collar hanging dangerously loose over one shoulder—a deliberate, agonizing callback to the photo she had sent him on the street earlier that night.
And just like in the photo, the thin, soft cotton draped over her chest in a way that made it instantly, abundantly clear she hadn't bothered to put a bra on underneath.
She walked over to the sofa, towel-drying the ends of her hair, completely unapologetic about the absolute weapon she was being.
"You know," Ren murmured, his eyes dropping to the hem of the oversized shirt as she stood in front of him. "If you're going to keep stealing my wardrobe, I'm going to have to start charging you rent."
"Deal with it," Maki fired back, tossing the damp hair towel squarely at his face.
Ren caught it effortlessly with one hand. Before she could step away, he reached out, wrapping his fingers gently around her waist, and pulled her forward. Maki let out a soft yelp of surprise as she tumbled forward, landing straddled perfectly across his lap.
Her hands instinctively came up to rest flat against his chest to catch her balance. She looked down at him, her amber eyes wide for a fraction of a second before melting into that warm, heavy look reserved entirely for him.
"You're awfully confident for a guy who was terrified of bending spoons ten minutes ago," Maki whispered, leaning down so her face was only inches from his.
"I'm a fast learner," Ren smiled, his hands sliding up the smooth, bare skin of her thighs to rest on her hips. The heat radiating off her from the shower was intoxicating. "Besides... I think I need my expert sorcerer girlfriend to teach me a little bit more about my new physical stamina."
Ren's hands gripped her waist a little tighter, but instead of pulling her down into a kiss, he suddenly shifted his weight.
Without warning, Ren stood straight up from the low sofa. Thanks to the terrifying efficiency of his newly acquired Heavenly Restriction, the movement was entirely effortless. He scooped Maki up into a flawless princess carry, supporting her back and the back of her knees before she could even register the shift in gravity.
"Hey!" Maki yelped, her hands instinctively grabbing his shoulders to steady herself. Her face flared a brilliant crimson. "Put me down! What do you think you're doing?"
"Taking you to bed," Ren replied smoothly, a soft, teasing smile on his lips as he carried her down the short hallway. She felt entirely weightless in his arms; he didn't even break a sweat. "But not for training. You said it yourself, boss—tomorrow is going to be a very long day, and dealing with your idiot teacher sounds exhausting. We need some sleep."
Maki opened her mouth to argue, fully prepared to call him a coward for dodging her challenge, but the words died in her throat as he stepped into the bedroom.
He gently laid her down on the mattress, his movements surprisingly tender for a guy who had just accidentally twisted solid steel.
Before Maki could sit up or offer another teasing remark, Ren climbed onto the bed right behind her.
He shifted his weight, pulling her back against his chest so they were securely tangled together, his arms wrapping warmly around her waist. He buried his face in the damp, fragrant strands of her dark green hair, letting out a long, deeply contented sigh.
Almost instantly, his breathing slowed. The sheer mental exhaustion of grinding System points in dark alleyways, fabricating a perfect cover story, and securing his ticket into the epicenter of the Jujutsu world finally caught up with him.
He closed his eyes, the tension melting entirely from his frame as he fell completely silent.
Maki lay there for a moment, her pulse still hammering against her ribs, fully expecting him to make another move. But as the quiet seconds ticked by, she felt the steady, rhythmic rise and fall of his chest against her back.
He was actually asleep.
A soft, incredibly fond smile broke through her tough exterior.
Moving carefully so she wouldn't wake him, Maki reached down to the foot of the mattress. She grabbed the edge of the thick duvet and silently pulled it up, draping it warmly over both of their shoulders to ward off the chill of the damp night air.
She shifted slightly, turning just enough to lean fully into the solid warmth of his chest. She rested her cheek against his collarbone, listening to the steady, grounding thud of his heartbeat.