[Well, that is just fine. He doesn't mind being picked up, nor does he mind the help getting ready. He probably ends up in something like this with his hair in a low ponytail. Just to keep it contained.
The picnic is cute, he thinks. It's been a long time since he did something like this.]
I've always just been a little too light. That's really something that never changed.
[ She herself is in somethingsimple, her own scarf and jacket removed because it's warm enough up here. Thanks candles and tiny space heater.
At his words, she just chuckles and takes a sip of her peach drink, her ears flicking as she leans her head against his shoulder. Sometimes looking after others is a bit of a task! ]
Suppose that just makes you easier to cuddle.
[ She sighs with a smile, her tail sliding around behind him as she watches the sky. ]
You like being on your own a lot, don't you? You should impose a little more, Jakurai. You're going to make people think you don't like having them around!
[ A light tease, but also important! Jakurai is such an amazing person, she doesn't want him to miss out on things! ]
I am often on my own. Being with groups is easy, of course. I used to hang around Amemura-kun, Samatoki-kun, and Ichiro-kun as a group. After we split... it was quite some time before I brought myself to have another group around.
[He lets her lean, also leaning back.]
I was very solitary in the time I was an assassin. Being alone for a long time is a hard habit to break.
[ She remembers most of the names from the party— and Ichiro lives in one of the buildings she keeps her storage in now. Kogami has brought up Samatoki too, so at least she knows these names.
At his words, she reaches over to slide her hand over his wrist and to slide her fingers into his own hand. ]
You always sound like you miss them, you know. Whenever you bring them up. And that Hifumi lad is one of yours too, isn't he?
[ She saw him around but he reminded her too much of her brother in law and she didn't get the chance to approach him. Giving Jakurai's hand a squeeze, she lifts his arm between them. ]
Sometimes it's like you're afraid of upsetting them all. So you keep to yourself. This is just an assumption... but I read a lot, alright?
[ She lifts her head and smiles up at him, taking in the sight of his face— the way his eyes look, the gentleness that belies his feelings behind it all. ]
Amemura-kun and I are...better than we usually are. We had a long talk in my apartment after I apparently tried to drink myself to death at the christmas party.
So yes, in a sense. I think I do miss what the four of us had two years ago. We were very close.
[There is a fond smile at the mention of Hifumi.]
Hifumi-kun is one of my current members. Doppo-kun isn't here. But the two of them mean a lot to me, as much as The Dirty Dawg did.
[He brings her hand up to kiss it.]
I ama simple and easy to please sort of person, I like to think. So getting to spend time on things I love...like working, or reading a good book, or even just taking a day to do things for myself-- even if that is rare. Those sorts of things are the things that make me the happiest.
[He really is an old man, in some respect.]
It is mind boggling to me that I will be spending my thirty-sixth birthday here.
[ There's the slightest fluster at the kiss, but she listens patiently. Jakurai listens to them all the time— he helps others, he makes them feel better about themselves. And she knows for sure that kindness wouldn't to go unrewarded. Even the assistant nurses that work at the clinic always have a good thing to say about him.
Then again, they're the reason Jyuto, Kogami, Josuke and Jakurai make up most of the business' Prismagram and why they get so many patients... for the smallest things.
She chuckles, thinking of her now ex-husband... she had to drag him out quite like this, and he too was at an age that after all the excitement in his life and work, he'd want to come back to calmer things at home... it's what created their distance and she doesn't want to see a repeat of that with someone else she has feelings for. ]
I'm glad you made up. Though it was funny seeing you get drunk. I'm never going to forget it. You practically sucked off that banana I fed you.
[ She grins cheekily but does lean in to kiss his cheek when she speaks, wiggling her ears at him. ]
Ah, your nameday is coming up— maybe your friends will want to do something with you. I would! You'll have to join in too or I'll pout. I don't look very pretty when I pout you know.
[ And she'll do it just to show him, even if she looks like a puffed up kitty instead! ]
[Thankfully for Megumi, Jakurai would never be that much of a shut in. Not enough to put distance between them. He has found himself in a nice spot with Megumi and it is something that he would prefer not to give up. He had enough troubles with keeping any sort of relationship in the past. It was something that he was trying to improve.]
No one told me I did anything embarrassing. Especially not something so lewd, and inappropriate.
[He might not be a stranger to sucking dick, but like, did he have to eat a banana like he was sucking dick in public? Terrible.]
I don't really tend to draw attention to it. Hifumi-kun and perhaps Amemura-kun are the only ones who know the exact date. I thought about maybe...taking the day off?
[ She smiles playfully, gesturing to her device which she's carrying like a phone and has set out on the picnic blanket for now. At least she knows Jakurai isn't the kind to try and snatch it from her— and he ought to know by now she wouldn't spread anything like that.
Her ears lift when he talks about taking the day off though— will he really?! Her eyes brighten as she moves her arms around his body instead and squeezes him in a hug, a light laugh escaping her. ]
My face will be even cuter if you take a day off to celebrate your nameday! I could just look it up on your employee sign up sheet but where's the fun in that?
[ She does have a good memory but she actually never bothered reading the forms when they'd talked everything out. It was just a formality! She tucks her head in against his shoulder, fitting herself under his arm as she nuzzles him, soft purrs emanating from her form and vibrating— ]
What sort of sweets do you like, anyroad? We know what you like eating, but if you're going to have some fun, I want to do something for you too! I'm sure so will plenty of others!
[ She looks up with a fond gaze, feeling a bit warmed by the fact that this man has allowed her in, and she wants to cherish that. ]
Ah, I'm so excited already... and we've got to take lots of pictures too. I want to have one of us on my desk as well.
[ Because... well. Maybe she should also try and acknowledge that certain feelings have been realized. She lowers her gaze, her ears drooping a bit as she adds in a quieter voice— ]
...I haven't gotten to do this for a partner in a long time, so... I hope you won't leave anyone out. Just tell me when it's too much. My girls always tell me I get overwhelming when I get excited.
[ It's toned down now but... there are shades of her joy when it does occur and she brings a hand up to stroke back Jakurai's long hair behind his ear. ]
All I want is for you to be open with whatever you need. We're already far from home... I'd rather our relationships here don't end up hurting us either, aye? Especially you— haa, look what you've done. Now I'm being sappy with you!
[ She usually doesn't get so intimate but— isn't it important to be honest especially with someone she cares for the way she does for Jakurai? She just hopes he feels the same as well... ]
[Konoha asks, but... well, she supposes there is something to acting besides being tall and handsome.]
I'd really appreciate it if I was ever in trouble... We jinba go to human doctors sometimes, and horse doctors other times... depending on where we hurt, I guess. But here there's no horse doctors, are there?
[Er, "veterinarians". Stirring the pot, she starts to separate the meat from the vegetables, testing their firmness.]
Legs are really important for us... But I guess even a human doctor probably knows that, right? You have to be really smart.
[Oh now that is even more embarrassing, now that he knows there is visual evidence of him making an absolute fool of himself. He can't help be look away, and perhaps blush a little at the thought.
And then his attention is back on her, ah, that reaction was a really good one.]
I thought I would take some time to myself that day. Even if the patients are incredibly important as well.
[And he certainly couldn't resist it when she started purring, it's a charm point.]
My birthday is January 9th, very early in the year. I'm not very heavy into sweets, but something small wouldn't be bad. Something like a normal vanilla or chocolate cake? Nothing too fancy. There is nothing stopping us right now from taking a picture for your desk either, Megumi.
And please, don't fret about being overwhelming. You certainly are not. I have become rather fond of what you and I share.
[ She's definitely been holding back a little with those she's accepted as her "partners" so to speak, perhaps more on her end than theirs. They've all been wonderful, even patient. She knows it's time for her to start giving back.
As she reluctantly peels herself back, she looks him over— this kind, beautiful man who she always feels like she's imposing on, welcoming her like this, and sighs with a smile. ]
Me too. That's why I want to celebrate you.
[ January 9th. She can work that out, and she lowers her head a bit— she never usually shows it or tries to play it off with bravado, but. ]
I'm no good at cooking or baking. Anything more complicated than steaming or boiling and I'll end up destroying it. And I want— I want to give you something to show that I'm serious here, too. I know your other partners may want the same, but this is from me.
[ Mostly because relationships here are so ephemeral that she wants to hold onto the ones that do mean something. Even when they all have many others that share in that. ]
It might be store bought or commissioned, and I won't know if it's as good as what someone would make with love, but I'll still bring you a cake. Those are important, right? So I can't fail there.
[ For someone like her, admitting she's weak at anything she can't improve on, even for something like this, is a big deal. But she gives him a smile as she holds his hands in hers. ]
So let me do at least that. Because I—
[ Her ears flatten to the sides of her head, suddenly feeling like her words are about to suffocate her. ]
...—don't want to pretend my feelings for you are the same feelings of love I have for my other friends. You and Kogami, maybe even Josuke a bit, are...
[ Precious. Valuable. The fact that she's telling him that there are few she feels like this for, and as it stands, they're above the rest for her... is big deal, especially after she's lost her husband to distance. ]
[It's all stuff that's just natural to her, but she's gotten used to having to explain it, enough that she can do so cheerily, stirring the pot a bit more until...
Oop, oop, almost ready... she's reaching for the bowls... !!]
[Body tensing for a moment he lets out a long sigh before hugging him tighter, spreading his legs. The stretch and burn are a lot but he was drunk enjoy that the pleasure was overriding that.]
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