His eyes met hers, unguarded and honest in a way that his words rarely managed.
The expression he gave back to her was weakly amused but ultimately lost in thought—lopsided, tired, and not nearly convincing enough to hide the weight still dragging behind his gaze.
He didn’t say anything right away, letting her study him as he slowly shifted, easing himself further back on the mattress with a quiet exhale. His eyes briefly flicked downward—catching the more relaxed, simplified way she’d tied her yukata, the absence of the obi, the little moments of comfort she had allowed herself.
And then she leaned forward.
He went still.
A flicker of panic passed through him—reflexive, anxious. The kind of uncertainty that came with not knowing how to interpret someone else’s nearness. His fingers twitched as if preparing for flight.
But she wasn’t reaching for him.
His glasses.
She was taking his glasses off.
He blinked—eyes rounding a little, caught off guard by how careful her fingers were, how gently she folded the arms and leaned past him just slightly to set them on the nightstand. He followed her motion with his eyes, expression softening with the realization.
"...Oh." A pause. Then, the faintest of chuckles. "A noble rescue."
He tilted his head slightly, eyes following her face now with something lighter than before. "You just saved them from an early death by getting smushed to the mattress. Again. You may not know this, but I... tend to forget they’re there until it’s too late."
His smile deepened, lazy but warm.
"My hero," he added, mock dramatic.
Without the frames, his face looked subtly different—softer, more exposed. The faint tiredness around his eyes, the small slope of his brows, the way the alcohol had left just a faint pink across his cheeks. Ichinose, blurry or not, would see more of him than most ever did.
He let his body finally rest, easing onto his back and sinking into the pillow like it had been calling him this whole time. The bed sighed beneath his weight.
For a few seconds, he just lay there in silence, breathing in the calm.
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branchandroot
♪♫♩
Date: 2025-05-15 12:28 am (UTC)The expression he gave back to her was weakly amused but ultimately lost in thought—lopsided, tired, and not nearly convincing enough to hide the weight still dragging behind his gaze.
He didn’t say anything right away, letting her study him as he slowly shifted, easing himself further back on the mattress with a quiet exhale. His eyes briefly flicked downward—catching the more relaxed, simplified way she’d tied her yukata, the absence of the obi, the little moments of comfort she had allowed herself.
And then she leaned forward.
He went still.
A flicker of panic passed through him—reflexive, anxious. The kind of uncertainty that came with not knowing how to interpret someone else’s nearness. His fingers twitched as if preparing for flight.
But she wasn’t reaching for him.
His glasses.
She was taking his glasses off.
He blinked—eyes rounding a little, caught off guard by how careful her fingers were, how gently she folded the arms and leaned past him just slightly to set them on the nightstand. He followed her motion with his eyes, expression softening with the realization.
"...Oh." A pause. Then, the faintest of chuckles. "A noble rescue."
He tilted his head slightly, eyes following her face now with something lighter than before. "You just saved them from an early death by getting smushed to the mattress. Again. You may not know this, but I... tend to forget they’re there until it’s too late."
His smile deepened, lazy but warm.
"My hero," he added, mock dramatic.
Without the frames, his face looked subtly different—softer, more exposed. The faint tiredness around his eyes, the small slope of his brows, the way the alcohol had left just a faint pink across his cheeks. Ichinose, blurry or not, would see more of him than most ever did.
He let his body finally rest, easing onto his back and sinking into the pillow like it had been calling him this whole time. The bed sighed beneath his weight.
For a few seconds, he just lay there in silence, breathing in the calm.