[fieldbox="Koshi and Kaito, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]The moment May hugged him, Kaito seemed to loose some of his sharp edges. After a long hesitation, his hands settled over May's back, and he pulled her close for a moment, before stepping away from her. "I'm fine," he uttered, then moved forward again to get past her - past May, in more ways than one. It had been his silly, final rebellion. Now he knew that May would never have eyes for him, and he should have been start enough to see that from the very beginning.
"They stopped me... They haven't decided what to do with me yet. I think they'll just give me more chores... And more training." Kaito sighed, reaching up to rub his face with the palm of his hand. He turned to Koshi, standing and staring awkwardly, before finally starting with - "I'm..." He stopped, brows furrowing together. No, Kaito glowered at himself, he would not apologize to Koshi. There was nothing to apologize for. Quickly, he left the kitchen to go down the hall, escaping into his room again.
Koshi turned to May, the confusion clear in his gaze. "Well... At least he's safe." Quickly, he turned to continue preparing breakfast.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] May observed the male as he passed her and stopped again. She hoped that was the case because she didn't want either of them to end up in a cell, especially not Koshi. Her gaze never left the male's and he surprised her when he suddenly spoke up to her husband. For a second, she actually believed that he was going to apologize, but instead, he retreated to his room.
Following her husband back to the kitchen to finish preparing their meal, she moved closed to the male and wrapped an arm around his upper arm. "Should we really let this go like that? Koshi, he just burned the garden down. Shouldn't we make sure if he's truly okay?" She questioned as she starred up at her husband.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]For a moment, Koshi's hands stilled against the cutting board. He put the knife down, and rested the bleeding tomato against the false wood.
"I..." He uttered, then stopped, eyes widening with the realization. "I'm afraid of him." He didn't want to see Kaito, he didn't want to talk to the other male, he didn't even want to live in the same house anymore. Koshi leaned down to May, and pressed a kiss against the top of her head as she clutched onto his arm. It was natural, they had fought each other so many times before... He had been hurt by Kaito so many times, and it was all so terribly demeaning, and silly... He hated it, he hated Kaito. The clone should be left alone, Koshi thought, to understand the gravity of his actions.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] May's brows knitted together while her lips pulled down slightly. "Afraid of him?" She questioned as her grip tightened slightly around his arm. However, before she could say anything further, she stopped herself and thought about it. All Kaito had ever done to Koshi was show him aggressiveness. He seemed to always want to fight her husband.
Her expression softened when the male laid a gentle kiss along her forehead. Moving to stand behind him, she wrapped her arms around him and laid a kiss on his shoulder. "You shouldn't be afraid of him...Kaito shouldn't be like that." Breathing out a sigh, she let go of her husband and picked up the plate with their sandwiches. "Well, let's just enjoy our last day together, okay? Now come on, let's eat." She turned on her heel and headed over to the couch in the living room.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]The moment May mentioned that it was their last day, Koshi visibly stiffened.
A dark fear took a hold of him, capturing him in an embrace of cold, bone-white rooms and terrible memories that the Andera figured he would forget. What were they going to do to him...? Whatever he did... Did he really deserve such a harsh punishment? Yes... Koshi told himself, absolutely. His silly little tantrum was dangerous, and he knew that moving in the direction of the generators would cause the Resistance to act violently towards him. It was all his fault. He crammed it back into his chest, and shut the lid - let it bottle up there.
He followed May to the couch, and sat down besides her, utterly silent. He ate just as silently, occasionally remarking on something utterly unimportant, and desperately trying to avoid the subject of their last day. After he finished, Koshi waited for May to also finish before reaching out and taking her dish. He got up to go to the sink, where he stood silently and scrubbed the dishes clean.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] Koshi's change in behavior didn't go unnoticed to May, but refrained from saying anything, in hopes that it was just a momentary thing. However, when he got up and took the plate, she knew that something was still wrong and she had a hunch on what it was. She rose to her feet and slowly made her way over to him. "Sweetheart...I know that you're worried about tomorrow...but you have to be strong." May reached up and placed a hand on his shoulder.
She felt completely useless, since she knew that she couldn't completely ease his worry and fear of what they would do to him. Why had he agreed to such terms with them? Maybe things could have been different.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]Koshi stopped putting the dishes on the drying rack when he felt May's hand settle onto his shoulder, and he turned around to face her. With hands that were still somewhat wet, he reached up to take her hand off his burdened joint. He held it against his chest, over his heart... And stood silently for a moment, taking in May's warmth, letting it spread over the chill that had taken a path up his spine.
After that moment passed, he looked up at her and smiled. He would be strong. He would be strong no matter what, and he'd do it for May. It had to be easy to be happy... May made it look so simple. "I'm not worried, Love." He lied, and took a step back, reaching out to pull May towards him b her dainty hands. "Come on, let's go take that bath. Maybe I could get things ready, and you could relax for a bit," the smile in his voice revealed just how excited he was by the idea.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] The brunette stared up at her love, watching him as they stood silent for a moment, until a smile broke out on his lips. May wasn't entirely convince, if not at all. She didn't want to avoid talking about this because it was eventually going to happen, but she also didn't want to ruin their last day together. So with a bit of reluctance she nodded and managed to give him a smile. "Alright. Let's go."
Walking in step with him, they made their way upstairs and towards the bathroom.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]Koshi let go of May, and parted from her with a small smooch, and a bit of a bashful smile. He could tell that she was worried about him, but his understanding stopped there in favor of shortsightedness. May was always better at reading him, than he was at reading her... His thoughts were so loud, it was impossible for him to tell what was going on around him sometimes. "Hey, everything will be alright, right? I promised to be strong, so... I'll be strong." He decided not to think about how that was what he was trying, and failing, to be from the very beginning.
The male disappeared into the bathroom, and moved to the tub. Carefully, he activated the tap, and sent a hot spray of water from the drain, into the freshly-cleaned vessel. The stopper activated, automatically plugging the drain as Koshi made his selection. He stood back to stare at the rushing water, and wondered what else he could do to make it all the more special... Ah, the lights. Turning, Koshi struggled to find the dial on the wall - it wasn't illuminated, like the setting on the tub were. The apartment was optimized for humans, yes, but not for humans pretending to be on Earth... And not for humans suffering from sight impairment. After a moment of feeling up the smooth expanse of plaster-like material, Koshi finally found the dial, and dimmed the lights.
What else could he do...? Ah, make bubbles from the liquid soap. He leaned over the edge of the tub, and stirred in a small amount of the oddly-scented shower gel, frowning as he wondered how the Resistance made the stuff. Come to think of it, there were a lot of human goods there... Perhaps the soap, much like other things, was recycled from technologies that the Andera used. Perhaps this was like the liquid coolant used to clean and preserve their bodies beneath their armor? He mentally shrugged, and dismissed the thought. Bubbles quickly rose up the side of the tub, and Koshi stepped back once again to wonder what else he should do.
Pee. Yeah. That sounded like a good idea. He turned to shut the door, and left it unlocked. May and him were married now... He let go of the notion of privacy, in favor of remaining close to her in case she needed him.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] Her husband departed with a quick smooch and headed off to prepare the bath. May only watched him for a moment before breathing out an inaudible sigh, that useless feeling crawling up her spine as she made her way to their bedroom. Shutting the door behind her, May removed her clothes and wrapped one of the towels around her body before heading over towards the bathroom. The door was closed and she bit her lip. Should she just go in like that? They were married now, she shouldn't have to worry over this. So, she gave a brief knock before turning the door knob and pulled the door open.
Her eyes widened when she saw her husband peeing and a faint blush settled on her cheeks. This just made their relationship seem far more intimate. "I'm ready." She stated with a small smile before removing the towel from around her body and began to fold it. Once she was done, she set it on the sink counter.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]"Oh... S-s-soory..." Oh good - and that was what came of Koshi trying to be brave. He freaked out when May appeared, turning bright pink and quickly looking away as his momentary panic almost caused him to miss. They were married, he had to remind himself. He had been all over May's body, and she had seen everything of his - and even when they were little, on two separate occasions they had bathed in the same room, as six-year-olds. Mainly because Koshi wouldn't stop crying when they tried to separate him from May to take a bath.
He almost chuckled out loud, remembering it.
He reached out to flush, and turned to wash his hands at the sink before stopping mid-way through taking off his shirt to gawk at May. His eyes fell down the back of her body, along the curve of her spine, to pointed shoulder blades, and over her waist to the gentle flair of her hips - there was nothing desperate in his eyes. There was only love- the person before him, the being, housed May, and perhaps also housed their child. A smiled tugged the corners of his lips upwards, he couldn't help it. Koshi undressed faster than he had ever undressed in his life, and stepped forward to embrace May from behind, running his fingers over the side of her warm body. He sighed, chest rising, flush against her back.
"May?" Koshi asked, a small feeling of dread pooling down in his stomach as he realized that he hadn't seen her smile in a long, long time.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] While Koshi finished his business, the brunette watched the tub slowly fill up with water. She should be happy, she should be carefree and ready to spend some time with her husband...yet it currently seemed impossible to her. May was scared. She feared that the Andera would return a completely broken man. A man that she wouldn't be able to find in the deep depths of the water. He would be far too deep - at the bottom of the ocean - yet, she knew, that she would still dive in and swim all the way to the bottom. Even if it would cost her her life, she would do it, but she didn't want him to end up that way. She wanted this mess to stop.
Familiar arms wrapped around her middle and she instinctively leaned back, her back completely flushed against his chest. "Yes, Love?" May questioned as she tilted her head to look up at him. "Is something wrong?" She questioned while her hand moved up to cup his cheek in a loving manner.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]The moment his gaze met May's as she looked up at him, Koshi's expression brightened even further. He watched her, adoration in his grey gaze as it mingled with her green. He tilted his head into her hand, and heard the tap automatically stop, signaling that the tub was full.
"You seem sad...Is um..." Something the matter?, quickly morphed in his head as his lack of confidence caught up to him. His smile dramatically fell. "Did I do something wrong?" He asked, voice overflowing with worry. He could tell that something was wrong, but he simply couldn't read anyone well enough to find the roots and reasons for their expressions. His fingers absentmindedly continued moving over her skin, but stopped as his uncertainty left a thought in his head - maybe he was being too clingy, maybe she wasn't happy, because he was constantly by her side. Yet again, he was left doubting, and doubting, and doubting himself.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] "No. You did nothing wrong." May murmured and gave the male a reassuring smile before leaning up to give his jaw a gentle kiss. "I'm just...worried." The brunette admitted before turning around in his embrace and wrapped her arms around him while resting her cheek against his bare chest. "I don't like this. I don't like that you accepted their terms. They've already done so much damage to us..." Taking in a deep breath, she shook her head and looked up at him. "I'm sorry, let's just enjoy our bath. We can talk about this later."
May pulled away from Koshi and held onto his hand as he pulled him closer to the tub. "Would you like to get in first?" She questioned given that he was much taller.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]Of course, he should have known. Koshi's arms stayed loosely draped around May as she turned towards him, and rested her head against his chest. She had smiled~ it delighted him to see it.
His breathing quickened as he felt her chest brush against his bare skin, and he had to resist the impulse to look. It was funny - Koshi desperatly begged himself, 'Don't get a boner...' Because yikes, that would be hella awkward during romantic bath time.
The nagging thought of tomorrow, perpetuated by May, killed that possibility completely. He had agreed to the terms out of desperation to see May. He hmhad sold himself for just one, single visit. It was silly, but... The lonelines, the lack of any comfort, and the constant nagging sorrow in his mind had worn him down nearly to the point of insanity.
Koshi stepped towards the edge of the tub, and thought for a moment. "Ladies first." He tightened his grip on May's hand just a bit, and lifted it to pull her closer towards the tub. While it made more sense for him to go first, Koshi figured that once they got settled, it wouldn't really matter. Once again, the Andera-made tub was oddly big.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] May lightly smiled when he motioned for her to go first, so she lifted her foot and stepped into the bath. Her leg was immediately engulfed by the warmth of the water and she felt herself begin to relax and all that worry slowly eased to the back of her mind. It was just them two and their love. Nothing else was needed and nothing else mattered. Soon, her other leg followed and she turned to her husband, pulling his hand a bit. "Step in, Love." May murmured while her gaze traveled lovingly down from his face to his chest, to his hips...
"You know...these tubs are much better than the ones back with the Council." She stated as she looked away from his body and looked down at said object. They were much wider and deeper.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]Koshi stepped forward to stand by the tub as May ushered him towards her. The way her green gaze was moving down the front of his body... In the dimness of the room, with his impaired vision, he could barely see it - but he most certainly could feel it.
He lifted a leg to step into the water, and now in the same pool as May, he smiled again. This was togetherness. He shifted his weigh forward as his other foot joined the party, and intentionally shifted far enough to press May against the wall. Koshi quickly pressed a hand against her back, letting it cushion her contact with the tiles - surely they were cold, and he didn't want her skin to feel the sudden drop of temperature. Pressed close to her, and in the dark, he leaned forwards and pressed his lips against her's, close enough to let their thighs touch, and their hips... Koshi pulled away after a long while, and parted with a soft kiss against May's forehead.
"... Yeah, they are. Heh, and I thought those tubs were big... Especially when I was little. I used to pretend that I was a monster in a lake, and I would splash Shia until she had no choice but to take me back out again... In the lab, they would only... Hose me down." He shuddered, remembering the force of the spray against his tiny body.[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] Koshi's leg backed May into the wall, however his hand kept her back from making contact with the cool tile. His lips connected with hers and the brunette gladly returned the kiss, warmth spreading throughout her being at the sensation of his hips against hers.
When they pulled away, a small gentle smile graced her lips when he mentioned his antics back when they were younger, then moved onto something dark..."They hosed you down?" May questioned, her tone full of complete disbelief. "How could they do that to a child - to you?" May shook her head and brought him close into a tight hug. "They truly are bad..." She murmured before she placed a kiss on his shoulder blade.
[/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="Koshi, lightcyan, dashed, 10"]Koshi shook his head, and sighed. They weren't monsters... He had been simply fulfilling a purpose.
"... If they had killed me afterwards, you would have never known. I would have been a small, insignificant rodent. A meaningless life - there one moment, and gone in the next. My name would have had no meaning to you... You would have continued living, unaware of my lonely, meaningless death."
He took a moment to breathe after speaking, shivering despite the temperature of the water around his legs. God, if things had gone differently... "You have no idea how happy I am that I was used to replace Kaito."
And with that thought, he was defeated. Koshi slipped down into the water, gently sitting at the bottom of the tub, sifting through his thoughts. "I'm ruining our bath again, aren't I?" He asked, glancing up at her... Ah, he just wanted to hold May, and be held in turn. He wanted it more than he wanted anything else, even peace.
Koshi reached up to skim his hands up her legs, gentle palms moving slowly along May's soft skin... He leaned forward to press his lips against her knees - so brave, the joints that kept her moving forward. [/fieldbox]
[fieldbox="May, green, dashed, 10"] May frowned at his words, finding them completely wrong, yet she did agree with him on the Andera replacing Kaito with Koshi. It was...She hated the fact that the Andera had used Koshi as some sort of experiment, maybe they could have done things differently.
"No, you're not." May shook her head and watched as he lowered himself into the water before leaning forward to place a kiss on her knees. The brunette lowered her hands to run through his hair before she lowered herself into the water. "Your life isn't meaningless, it holds so much value to me..." May stated as she moved forward, closer to him and ran her finger down from his temple to his cheek and soon on his bottom lip, where she began to soothingly run her finger back and forth along his lip. "They shouldn't have...don't ever think that you don't mean anything, ever again, okay? It's time that you start viewing yourself in a better light." She gave the male a warm smile.
[/fieldbox]
