Lovebomb
A fragile but hopeful peace spread across the Casa de Hayakawa. Denji and Reze put their past behind them, Aki was still at significant risk of developing a stress ulcer seeing Reze around the house but did appreciate how there was finally someone in the house who helped with the housework. And of course, Reze and Power got on like a house on fire, thankfully the house never actually ended up on fire, partially thanks to Reze reigning in Power every once in a while.
For the time being Reze was laying low, Makima seemed to not care about tracking her down anymore, but she wasn’t taking any chances. So when everyone else went out for work, Reze was left in the house on her own. She mostly spent the day playing with Meowy; she tried to train her, but the thing was almost as unresponsive to orders as her owner. So she resigned to being splayed across the couch with Meowy sat purring on her chest. “Meowy, do you ever feel unfulfilled?” Reze asked, the boredom of being sat around wreaking havoc on her “never stop moving” mantra that was drilled into her. Meowy, obviously, just meowed. “Well I know that, but like, being sat around like this makes me feel antsy. Do you know what I mean?” Reze said, pretending Meowy had actually responded to her question. Meowy once again made an insightful and philosophical interjection, quoting the Jungian teaching of “Meow.” as she brushed her forehead against Reze’s chin. The brief exhale through Reze’s nose resembling a laugh stirred the hairs on the snoozing feline’s head. “Yeah, I really am talking to a cat. How far I’ve fallen.” She said, kissing Meowy on the head before staring back at the TV, finally watching that show Power had been bugging her about with the detectives and the magicians. Maybe that would explain why she insisted on keeping that weird hat she was wearing when they met?
Reze wasn’t expecting to hear the door open, so she was already on edge. Then when she saw the same angelic figure that had speared her to death in that alleyway, she reached for the pin on her choker. “What are you doing in Aki’s apartment?” Said Angel, a fear creeping through his usually nonchalant tone.
“What are you doing in my apartment?” Reze replied, inching her hand closer to her neck as she rose from the couch.
“Usage: Two years.” Angel said, cold and emotionless like a disparaged actor reading a memorised line. A dagger formed out of his halo as he took it in his hand.
“You really wanna play this game, prettyboy?” Reze reached for her knife, she’d been keeping it holstered in her belt in case Makima sent someone else to kill her, and it looked like she just had.
“Not really, I was just trying to get an ice cream from the freezer.” Angel shrugged, not wanting to instigate a fight, but not wanting to let down his guard either.
“You really think I’m gonna trust that? Last time we met you killed me with a spear.” Reze scowled as she tried to shoo away Meowy with her hand, not wanting to risk her getting hurt in the ensuing fight.
“Just following orders, nothing personal.” Responded angel with a wry smirk. Palpable tension hanging thick in the air like desert dust. Meowy walked between the two of them like an ambling tumbleweed as she went to go and take a nap somewhere slightly less loud. With a metal jingling like spurs on boots and a loud crack, the door opened, de-escalating the tension of their pseudo-duel as Aki walked in, grabbing Angel’s face with his gloved hand, unaware that Reze was still home.
“How many times do I have to tell you to quit breaking into my apartment to steal ice cream?” Aki said with a rehearsed calmness, as if he knew it would be a struggle to stay mad.
Angel put on a coy smile, as if Aki’s appearance made him forget the situation he was in. “It’s not breaking in if you give me a key, dumbass.” He responded, unconsciously nestling against Aki’s strong hand.
“But you’re still stealing from me.” Aki walked forward, pressing his chest against Angel’s. No matter how much Angel wanted it, the touch always made him shiver. Years of avoiding it made him terrified.
“Well stop buying the kind I like then. It makes it seem like you want me to come in here just so you can scold me.” The angel responded with a sarcastic laugh.
“And what gives you that idea?” Teased Aki, moving his lips to within a hair’s breadth of Angel’s jawline. Angel flushed bright red as he felt the hot breath on his neck.
“The fact that you put on gloves just to do this. You’re not as subtle as you think you are.” Despite Angel’s flippant attitude, Aki could see him squirming and hear his breath catch in his throat.
“Don’t make me get the saran wrap.” Laughed Aki, his voice deep and sultry as he pushed Angel’s body against the fridge. Angel lolled his head back against the kitchen appliance, about to say something teasing and cutting and sardonic, only to accidentally catch Reze’s eye. Only then did he realise Reze had been standing there the whole time.
“Umm… Aki…” Stammered Angel, his blush redder than his hair as he began to stammer.
“What’s the matter? Did you think I was gonna just let you get away with being a little brat?” Aki crooned, not noticing Reze’s increasingly awkward shuffling as she watched the two men press against each other.
“Aki…” Angel spluttered, the other man’s demeanour flustering him even further as he failed to alert Aki to the fact his roommate was watching the whole event.
Reze realised she had to do something, despite the fact that she honestly felt like just walking as quietly as she could into another room and letting them get on with it. So with a deep breath, she cleared her throat to alert Hayakawa to her presence.
“Oh… Reze.” Aki said sharply as he untangled himself from Angel. “I didn’t realise you were home.” He said, only realising how stupid that was to say once the words had already left his mouth.
“I can leave if you want? Give the two of you some space.” Reze shifted on her feet, despite being trained to be torture resistant, she’d never felt this uncomfortable before.
“No. The moment has passed, and we should be on patrol anyway.” Aki said while brushing off his uniform. “Angel, why didn’t you tell me she was in here?” He asked. Angel, for his part, looked like he was yearning for death. He was unable to speak or even look either of the two other people in the eye.
“Well, I’m gonna get started on some laundry.” Reze said in the most stilted and unnatural tone she had ever spoken. Walking quickly and purposefully into her room. She couldn’t help but listen however, and she heard the freezer open and then shut. At least Angel got his ice cream.
Reze did most of hers and Power’s laundry before everyone got off work for the day. She was just finishing folding away the last of it when the door opened and she heard Power’s distinctively heavy footfalls as she approached. Power seized Reze around the waist from behind in a constricting hug, planting a kiss on the surprised woman’s cheek. “I’m back from my daily toiling! Did you miss me?” She said giddily.
“I always do.” Reze said, turning to face Power and kissing her on the forehead.
“I have splendid news! Aki decided to take on some overtime tonight, and Denji has to fill out a bunch of paperwork because he punched a devil through an office building. So we have the apartment to ourselves for a few hours!” Power beamed, holding up a plastic bag with a video rental store logo on it. “I have procured us a night’s worth of entertainment! And some of that human movie snack you all like!”.
“A movie night? That sounds great! What movies did you get?” Reze returned Power’s enthusiasm as she peeked into the bag.
“I have no idea! I simply asked for the best ones, and the girl at the counter with blue hair told me her favourites! ‘Twas a stroke of genius!” Hand firmly on hip, Power recounted her expert method of choosing movies. This made Reze tilt her head, not quite connecting the dots on this Olympic gold medal level leap of logic. Anticipating the oncoming questioning of her nobel prize deserving intellect, Power intercepted. “You may wonder how that is relevant, but my logic is undeniable. The two of you have similar hair, and thus similar tastes! Therefore it is pertinent to make the incredible assumption that you would both enjoy similar movies.”.
“Power… my hair is purple, are you colourblind?” Reze said, trying to stifle her laughter with a concerned tone.
“Well… uh… blue is close? The only other workers looked too boring. They would have given me terrible romance movies! And I hate romance movies, they make me feel bad.” Responded Power, her beautiful palace of deduction falling apart around her.
“I mean, I don’t really like romance movies either. But why do they make you feel bad?” Asked Reze.
“Well I watched a lot of them to try and find out how to date you properly. And they all sucked! They were full of average looking human men, and all the women looked prettier than I did. Which should be impossible! And it made me think I wasn’t pretty enough for you and…” Power began to rattle off all the reasons she hated human romance movies. Reze placed a finger over her lips, not allowing her to even finish the thought.
“Stop. Don’t you dare think like that. Don’t you dare think that you’re not enough for me.” Reze kissed Power’s forehead, desperate to stop Power from ever thinking she was inadequate. She knew the feeling well, it was awful. She wouldn’t wish it on anyone, let alone her own girlfriend. Power simply fell silent and put her head on Reze’s shoulder.
“But of course. Those movies are for stupid humans. And human men at that. Of course, human women are superior, because they’re the closest thing to me!” Despite her best attempts to keep up her usual mask of bravado and narcissism, it was obvious Power still let the feelings get to her.
With a huff, Reze swept Power off of her feet, carrying her bridal style towards the couch. “Nope. No moping! We’re gonna have a cute date night, and you are gonna be adorable and happy or I will smother you with cuddles until you do!” Commanded Reze.
The yellow starry pattern in Power’s red eyes glinted with tears. “Thank you…” She said, nestling against Reze’s shoulder.
“Thank you…?” Reze said, expecting a verbal adornment.
Power responded by kissing her lover on the cheek “My princess.”.
Reze took the popcorn into the kitchen to microwave it, and left to change into something more comfortable seeing as they may fall asleep on the couch together. Power changed into her red radio station top and some basketball shorts she stole from Denji and began to set up the movie in the VCR. Only to realise from the cover that she had failed to look at that this was a movie about ghosts. Obviously, Power wasn’t scared of ghosts, she survived a throttling from the ghost devil after all. But she would be lying if she said she didn’t find ghosts (and the idea of ghosts and thinking about ghosts and shows/movies containing ghosts) kinda hard to watch for some reason that definitely wasn’t fear related at all. She let out a cartoony gulp as the logos began to play, knowing she’d accidentally consigned herself to a torturous hour and thirty eight minutes according to the runtime on the box. She thought that maybe she could save herself, take out the movie and change it for a second one before Reze even noticed. But Reze had just walked back into the room, wearing her favourite nightgown that Power had stolen for her, and the horned fiend realised her fate was sealed.
As Power shuddered over having to withstand over an hour of something that terrified her to the core, Reze sat the bowl of popcorn on the table and sat next to her on the couch. “Ooh, this movie looks spooky! I might have to hold onto you if it gets too scary.” Reze laughed as she watched the film begin, only slightly distracted by the way the film’s piercing white colours reflected on Power’s eyes. On the other side of the couch, Power was trying to be as nonchalant as possible, but the looming threat of an incoming ghost buzzed around her head like a persistent wasp. Then on the screen, something fell off of a table, and Reze began to laugh. “Oh my god, Power did you see that? They didn’t even edit out the wire!” Chortled Reze as she laughed at the cheesy effects of the movie. Seeing the beautiful woman beside her laugh and call out how fake the movie was almost settled Power’s nerves, until she heard something fall down behind her.
At the incredibly slight noise Power yelped and ducked under a pillow. Involuntary shivering wracking her thin body. Reflexively, Reze’s head darted over “Power? Power what’s wrong?!” She leaned over, trying to find her girlfriend’s face behind the pillow to try and glean what was troubling her from her expression.
“The ghost! It left the movie and it’s here to get us!” Came the muffled voice of the blood fiend beneath the cushions.
“Power, there’s no ghost. Meowy just knocked something off the counter.” Reassured Reze as she stroked Power’s hair.
“Oh… Uh… Well.” Power stammered, raising herself up from the cushion stronghold she had built.
“Are you scared of ghosts?” She wanted to take her girlfriend’s fears seriously, but this was undeniably hilarious, and it came across in Reze’s teasing tone.
“No I’m not! They just make me feel bad, and shake uncontrollably, and…” Power denied, as she was so wont to do.
“Oh my god, you are scared of ghosts! That’s so cute!” Teased Reze, beginning to take Power by the arm as she moved closer to her girlfriend’s increasingly flustered face.
“‘Tis not! Fear of the waifs and strays of the land of the dead is perfectly reasonable!” Retorted Power, her affected Victorian noble voice not assisting her stance.
“The big strong blood fiend is actually a little scaredy cat.” Continued Reze, planting a kiss on Power’s cheek. “My little scaredy cat.”.
“I’m not scared! I would never admit to such a thing! Unhand me!” She complained. Ignoring her drama queen antics, Reze pulled power into her lap.
“Since you’re such a little scaredy cat, I’ll hold you nice and tight to protect you from all the scary ghosts.” Reze’s teasing didn’t become any more bearable for Power, but the physical contact was nice. She gave in to the other woman’s touch, accepting the gentle embrace.
“Maybe I’m a little scared… Promise to hold me through the scary bits?” Power admitted, which took a lot of strength.
Planting a kiss on Power’s scalp, between her protruding horns, Reze promised “Now and forever. Now do you wanna keep watching? I know I was teasing you but we can watch something else if you want.”.
“No! I will not be defeated by a stupid human movie! You will simply squeeze me tighter whenever the ghosts show up.” Pouted Power as she moved from Reze’s lap to rest at her side, her arms wrapped around Reze’s waist.
“I love you.” Power mumbled as she pressed against Reze’s body.
“I love you too.” Reze responded, playing with Power’s hair as they watched the rest of their tacky movie.
All those years in the weapons program, Reze daydreamed of a lavish life. Saved by someone from those horrible trials, brought up in luxury never before dreamed of for a poor girl like her. And taking stock of the scene before her, she had achieved it. Clad in the finest of silks, never having to go hungry, never needing to hunt or kill again, and the loving presence of her doting girlfriend by her side. And feeling Power nestle tightly against her side as a terrible cgi ghost drifted into frame, she realised that this was all she’d ever imagined. All she’d dreamt of. And she held Power tighter, laughing at the awful effects, with a single unexplained tear rolling down her cheek.