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The kisses Yuuta gave her always started out slow before picking up in a rhythm that left her breathless and panting, forcing Maki to push his face away in order to catch her breath.
Except that Yuuta didn’t want that.
When she pushed, he leaned in further, desperately searching for her mouth. They almost wrestled with each other for dominance until she had enough and asked him why he was acting that way. His eyes met hers while using his hands to cup her cheek in order to hold her still.
“Because I want to devour you Maki-san.”
It was the hunger in his eyes that made her unable to utter another word, and Yuuta took the opportunity to continue. All Maki could do was cling to his jacket and drown in his affection, remembering to breathe through her nose. Between kisses, she heard her own name spoken breathlessly, almost slurred, as if Yuuta was drunk.
“Maki,” he whispered against her mouth, finally dropping the honorifics. “You taste good.”
It makes her face burn and her heart pound wildly in her chest, unable to find a right answer as they keep kissing.
There were many things that made Maki realize that Yuuta would keep his promise to devour her. Like the moment when he lifted her up in the air by the waist and carefully propped her against the wall of the girl’s changing rooms to eat her out. Her legs were over his shoulders, and her underwear and training shorts dangled from her foot after he hurriedly pulled them down as soon as they were out of sight from the others. After making sure his grip on her was firm and that she wouldn’t fall, Yuuta buried his face between her legs without taking his eyes off her. His nose rubbed against her folds and Maki felt a deep blush creep up her face as she remembered that they had just finished training and she had been sweating.
“Yuuta, stop,” Maki tried to push him away in distress when she heard him inhale. She knew what he wanted to do, confirmed it when the tip of his tongue brushed against her core. "Stop, I’m sweaty."
“I don't care,” he replied almost desperately, pushing against her palm to get closer. “Open them.”
She didn't and Yuuta did it for her.
It was the intensity of his gaze that almost made Maki look away because it was too much. It was too much love directed at her, too much worship, and a moan escaped her lips when Yuuta began to lick.
“You taste good,” he said between licks, groping her ass so he could bring her closer, ignoring the way she fidgeted In his hold.
Maki stifled a moan as Yuuta's tongue touched her clit, sliding the wet tip around the erect bud before sucking, making her grip his hair as she rocked her hips against his mouth when she lost herself in the pleasure.
“Yuuta, wait...” she begged softly as moans slipped past her words.
But the more she begged, the more Yuuta licked, burying his face between her thighs. It was thanks to his grip around them that Maki didn’t fall as she was unable to grab anything to support herself other than his hair. Yuuta’s finger dug into skin and muscle as she began to squirm, fighting to hold her still as the orgasm hit her with such intensity that she couldn’t quell her voice and strength. Panting hoarsely as the numbness coursed through her body, Maki relaxed against the wall while Yuuta slowly lapped the slick that dripped between her legs. When she caught her breath, Maki opened her hand and saw strands of dark hair that she had ripped out in her euphoria. But Yuuta didn’t seem to care about that. He looked up, his mouth a dripping mess.
“Did I do a good job?” He whispered, his breath tickling between her thighs.
The only thing Maki could do was nod slowly, her hand massaging his scalp as a way to apologize for what she had done. Yuuta leaned in to the touch blissfully like it was the best feeling in the world, his gray eyes fluttering with love.
It was that look.
It was that look, that adoration in his eyes that made Maki’s heart beat uncomfortably in her chest. It made her cheeks burn, her insides twist with a feeling she had never felt before and thought she would never experience in her life.
Until him.
Yuuta was the first person she fully trusted. He was someone she could open up freely, earning a beaming smile in return for her darkest thoughts; thoughts that other people would disdain since she went against the authority of her clan. He had heard her deepest darkest thoughts, something that not even her own twin sister had earned the privilege of hearing.
No.
It had been Yuuta and sometimes the curse that slid its claw through her hair, leaving small cuts on the skin as they lay together in the same bed, away from the scrutinizing eyes of their teacher and classmates. Sometimes they would just sleep together, enjoying each other’s breath in the silence as their fingers barely brushed. And other times it was like this, with Maki’s back against his chest and with Yuuta’s mouth on her breast, his tongue lapping the nipple to draw lovely sounds of her.
“You like them.” Maki noticed, panting, feeling her cheeks burn when he nodded against the soft curve of the breast he was sucking on.
He had one arm locked around her waist to hold her still while his other hand kneaded the softness of her breast, his fingers playing with the nipple in circular motions. Maki bit back a moan and tried to move when she felt her right leg starting to feel numb. However, Yuuta kept her there by gripping her waist firmly.
“Not yet,” he begged.
He was humping her body, the head of his cock rubbing between her thighs and soppy folds. He looked so focused that Maki let him continue, forgetting her own discomfort until he finished with a ragged breath, spilling on the sheets with a shudder. Maki saw the mess, her crotch throbbing as Yuuta nuzzled against her chest panting, exhausted. She was finally able to move, the pins and needles in her leg forgotten when she saw the calm that washed over Yuuta’s face.
He looked so peaceful.
So happy.
His fingers move and twist inside of her, making her shudder as he had done minutes ago. His name comes out stammered and quick, and Maki’s unable to stop her toes from curling into the sheets as his thumb gently rubs her clit, teasing the nub with fast flicks. Yuuta’s gray eyes followed her every move as if wanting to drink the sight of the orgasm coursing through her body, leaving her limp on the bed next to him. Maki closed her eyes to enjoy the slow movements of his fingers inside her, her walls contracting around him and keeping him from pulling away until they relaxed again. He wanted to devour her whole, Maki remembers as Yuuta kissed her deeply, slowly and gently, never letting her go as they fell asleep.
“Maki.”
Maki.
Her name had never sounded so loved.
It was no secret that those were Yuuta’s feelings towards her. He didn’t bother covering them up, and it’s confirmed by the jealous whispers in her ears with sharp claws gripping her shoulders strongly, but not painfully. However, the curse’s own feelings towards her seemed to be mixed since Rika also ran those same claws up and down her back when Yuuta’s head rested on her lap after a mission.
Affection.
Love.
Maki didn't know how to react to those unfamiliar emotions. She had been raised with hits and insults, not caresses and praise. It was strange. It was new. It was something that made her heart pound in her chest whenever Yuuta smiled at her showing all his teeth as they walked together side by side.
He loved her.
And Maki didn’t know what to do with the beating heart that he willingly put in her hands with that kind smile of his. She could-should-drop it, watch it shatter on the ground into millions of pieces and make Yuuta go away. She should do it because loving someone would only get in the way of achieving the goals she had set her mind on when she was younger and her own mother wished she had never been born.
“Maki,” Yuuta mumbled to her. “You’re so warm.”
She shouldn’t cherish it.
“I love you,” he whispered quietly, his cheeks red. “I love you Maki”
Except that she does.
Maki holds Yuuta’s heart close and allows its warmth to spread, to parasite her body and nest in her soul so it could grow as big as his. She wanted to be able to return even a part of it, but the more she tried, the more Yuuta made it seem like his love was a bottomless emotion. He not only loved her, but also the curse that always loomed behind him. However, Maki felt no jealousy for having to share his affection.
Deep down, Maki felt that she didn’t deserve Yuuta.
She didn’t deserve someone with such a bright smile and endless support for her own goals. It was easy to keep calm on the outside and channel those thoughts into fighting and frowning, but they were there, whispering in the cruel voice of faceless Zenin as Yuuta kissed her hands after a long sparring session.
‘You don’t deserve him.’
She didn’t understand why Yuuta had chosen her, why her when he could have anyone else.
“Because it’s you, Maki,” Yuuta muttered, caressing the side of her face with a smile along with a claw imitating his gesture. “You saved my life.”
“I didn’t,” she muttered in the darkness of the room, listening to the shuffling of the sheets when Yuuta pulled her closer to hug her.
“You did,” he whispered happily, his face resting on the place where her heart was beating. “I owe you my life.” When his nose nuzzles her cheek in circular motions, Maki already knew what he was going to say. “I love you.”
She couldn’t return them, choosing to run her hand up and down his back, her fingers brushing the back of his neck. She bumped Rika’s bony fingers that crudely imitated her gesture, a threatening hiss whispered in her ear followed by those same bony fingers brushing her back as if she was a cat. That gesture was a pathetic way of justifying her inability to say those words.
Maki felt them. She lived them by his side every day, and at night those words intensified when they explored each other’s bodies. Sometimes she was unable to breathe under his touch-caring and soft, always making sure she was comfortable with what they were doing. It wasn’t fair that Yuuta left her numb and trembling in bed using his mouth and fingers, wrapped like candy when they slept surrounded by warm sheets and soft whispers of ‘I love you’. It had taken him some time to accept that he could rest his full weight on top of her body, and it didn’t bother her in the least. Maki actually liked the feeling of his weight on top of hers.
‘I love you too.’
She can’t say them; she could only feel guilty as she watched Yuuta drift to sleep with his head resting on her chest, arms around her waist. Maki grips the sheets that form their cocoon.
What if she hurt him?
What if she wasn’t good enough for him?
He deserved someone else; someone that could actually tell him those words without feeling like their mouth was full of hot glue. That intrusive thought-you’re not good enough for him, you’ll never be good enough-is what made her pull her hand away when Yuuta tried to lace their fingers together after a training session. The hurtful expression that crosses his face makes her feel terrible; and to top it off, she is unable to ease his anxiety, pulling away even further with an irritated growl. Yuuta doesn’t push for an answer to her sudden bad mood, and that night they don’t sleep together for the first time in months. Her already small bed feels empty and cold and Maki can’t lie to herself that she’s fine.
She’s not.
And the last person she thought would reach out to help her through that maze of her own complicated feelings appears at her bedside.
”Maki,” croaked a distorted voice.
Rika could carry on entire conversations with Yuuta if they were left alone, away from everyone else. Sometimes her emotions got the best of her, causing her to excitedly screech his name as she wrapped him in a suffocating hug. The curse had no reason to speak in Maki’s direction other than threaten to tear her apart for the crime of being close to Yuuta. So showering Maki with the honor of her presence along with an outstretched hand looming threateningly over her body was highly unusual.
In reflex, Maki dodged to the side since it appeared that Rika was ready to crush her on the ground mercilessly like a bug. Her eyes searched for her weapon automatically before she was grabbed around the waist like a started cat trying to run away for a human. Maki didn’t panic at first, but when the curse rubbed her back like a child in the middle of a crying meltdown, she felt awkward and embarrassed. An uncomfortable silence settles around them, filled only with the sound of nails running against cloth, the heavy breathing of Rika and Maki’s silent struggle to get away.
“You don't know how to love because you were never loved.”
Even if there was no cruelty in her words, Maki felt as if a dagger had gone through her heart.
“That’s not true,” she managed to say, gripping the curse’s bony finger as hard as she could.
Mai had loved her.
Had.
“Yuuta loves you.”
Her hold had become suffocating and Maki realized how strong the curse was. No matter how much she struggled, Rika didn’t let go. She could easily crush her at that moment, but didn’t. She wasn’t taking advantage of her strength or height-not like Naoya had-and instead, chose to do what Yuuta did to show his affection.
She hugged her.
What Maki thought was suffocating, was a lovingly and careful hug like she was something delicate. The monstrous head rubbing against her body was to also show affection, as was the deep purr that came from Rika. It wasn’t meant to make her feel uncomfortable, it was meant to make her feel better.
The curse’s head bumped against her forehead.
“Make him sad again, and I’ll kill you.” And she disappeared, leaving her alone in her room.
The next day Yuuta’s jaw nearly dropped to the ground when Maki wrapped her little finger around his. His excitement almost made her think he looked like a dog, tail wagging happily after she finally took the initiative to show affection between them. If Maki thought about it, Yuuta also liked it when she told him he had done a good job, cheeks flushing and eyes sparkling for those words of validation. So yes, she could now clearly picture him with a tail and ears as they stood side by side waiting for Ijichi to bring the car to go to the mission.
‘I love you.’
She still couldn’t say it, choosing to run her fingers down his cheek, rubbing her thumb in the center of the flesh and watch Yuuta lean into the touch, into her arm, into her body as they fell together in his bed.
“Maki,” he whispered, his hands running down her stomach, between her legs and brushing over her clothed core, his finger grazing above her clit. “Can we-“
“Yes,” Maki muttered breathlessly, moving her hips to his touch. “Yes, we can.”
She wanted to go further. Yuuta took a moment to register the answer before devouring her mouth, barely letting her breath as he tried to remove her and his clothes. Maki kissed his neck once his shirt was off, nuzzling against his chest and enjoying the warmth he emitted along with the tingle of their bare skins touching. When he took off his last clothes, Maki stared. She had seen him naked before; she had pumped his cock as he moved his finger inside her, but when she saw it, erect and pulsing, with precum leaking from the tip, Maki found it bigger than before.
Yuuta began to take off her skirt, unzipping it. “You too, Maki.”
It was almost a plea, one that made her heart race once they were both naked for the first time after she dropped her underwear to the floor. There had always been clothes between them, touching over them when they weren’t able to resist the urge of feeling each other. Maki felt like she was on fire the moment Yuuta began kissing her again, his hand on the back of her neck to keep her from moving. He was finally devouring her whole, and Maki allowed him to. She drowned in Yuuta-his touch, his voice, his love-and could barely breathe when his cock finally slid inside of her. The clan expected her to return to the house untouched so that they could send her to another sorcerer family in a marriage that could cement their power over other clan’s. That purity they expected her to keep safe was now lost in the blood staining the sheets of Yuuta’s bed.
“Maki,” he muttered, stroking her cheek. “Are you okay?”
She nodded slowly, biting her lip to stifle the uncomfortable feeling between her legs, frowning slightly when he began to move.
Yuuta stopped.
“You’re not okay,”
“I am.”
“Maki-“
“I’m okay,” she breathed out. “It doesn’t hurt.”
But Yuuta didn’t take that for an answer, looking at her worriedly like a scared dog. She could almost see the ears drop, so Maki ran her hand through his dark locks, almost as if she was petting him.
“You’re doing a good job, Yuuta.”
It’s almost like a switch flipped. Maki felt him shudder before moving his hips in an experimental thrust. It was still uncomfortable, but Maki wrapped her legs around his waist, coaxing him to keep going.
“You feel good,” she muttered.
He started to feel good. The more he moved, the more their sexes rubbed together, the heat between her legs started to become pleasurable and Maki moaned, clinging to Yuuta's back.
“Faster,” she demanded against his chest. "Faster, Yuuta-"
His next thrust takes her breath away because Yuuta slammed his hips so hard against hers that she saw stars. Drool trickled from the corner of her mouth when Yuuta lowered a hand and began rubbing her clit in circles in rhythm with the thrusts-one, two-and Maki came undone with a gasp, the orgasm hitting her so hard her legs jerked, tensing around Yuuta, and pulling his body closer if possible. Her nails dug into his shoulder blades, leaving clear scratch marks. She felt him shuddering at the light sting and moved, causing Maki to gasp and sigh at the feeling, overwhelmed by the feeling as she was too sensitive.
“Maki,” she heard him say, riding his own orgasm as he continued his thrusts. “I love you." He kissed her, and Maki clung to him. "I love you so much."
This time her lips mouthed a word before falling back to the sheets, spasms running through her body again as it relaxed. Yuuta emitted a choked gasp, burying his face on the crook of her neck, also enjoying shivers of his own orgasm.
‘Too.’
Maki loved him too.
She loved it when he devoured her.
He was always gentle, never rough, even if Maki could take it. Yuuta always treated her like she was something precious made of glass in his hands. She had to take control in order to experience what she wanted-that roughness, that numbness she wanted-, and Yuuta didn't seem to mind that. He entwined their hands together as he watched her ride him with all her might, saliva dripping from her mouth each time he got deeper inside her. Each wet slap echoed in her room, her slick making a mess around the union of their sexes.
Yuuta swallowed.
“Maki, you’re beautiful.” He moved his hips and Maki moaned at the change in angle, throwing her head back. “You’re so beautiful and you’re mine.”
Mine.
His.
A shudder ran through her entire body at those words and Maki gasped, her movements becoming uncoordinated as the orgasm hit her, staining her skin a deep crimson with the shudders that ran down her body. Her walls contracted around Yuuta’s cock but he was still hard, not having reached his orgasm yet. Maki still wanted more, but her legs refused to go on, her back bending forward as she relaxed completely.
"May l?" Yuuta asked timidly.
She had barely nodded when he had already shifted their positions and had her leg hooked over his shoulder, positioning himself against her entrance. Yuuta paused, allowed her to gasp for air as she clung to the sheets, and rubbed the tip of his cock against her clit and soppy folds. Maki almost tore the fabric with the force she used to grip them, her moan caught in her throat as he continued to tease her.
“Yuuta-”
“You look delectable like that, Maki.” His gaze was full of lust and hunger. “All red just for me.”
Sometimes Maki couldn’t phantom that he was the same anxious mess that trained with her in the mornings, the one she could still easily beat in a training match and sparring. He smiled before slamming inside, ripping the air out of her lungs as he began thrusting, tears threatening to spill from of her eyes because she was too sensitive, too much, too much, too much Yuuta-
With a gasp, Maki stiffens and writhes on the bed, the orgasm tensing her back like a violin string. She felt Yuuta's warmth pour inside her and Maki could see the bliss on Yuuta's face watching her come undone like this, for him, by him.
“Maki, you’re so beautiful." He touched the side of her face and this time Maki leaned into his palm, nuzzling it. "I want to eat you."
He already had, but Maki knew that it would never be enough for him; Yuuta would never satisfy his hunger for her, and Maki could only hold out her arms indicating that she accepted it. She would take anything he would give her, mouthing the words she couldn't say but felt.
‘I love you Yuuta.’
“Devour me.” Is what she says.
And Yuuta does it until they can’t tell their bodies apart in the bed.
*...*
Maki woke up to the feeling of someone holding her hand gently through the pain of her body and Yuuta's voice reached her ears.
“Maki," he whispered, squeezing her hand. "Maki."
Yuuta.
Yuuta had returned and sounded so worried. So sad.
“Don't talk,” he warned her, his hand caressing her bandaged face. “I’m healing you.”
Shoko must have already done so given that she was still alive after being burned alive. She, Nanami, and old Naobito were burned by that special grade curse that none of them saw coming. But Yuuta didn't give her any more information about what had happened in Shibuya, instead focusing on giving her as much reverse curse energy as he could.
“Yuuta,” she muttered, throat dry and scratchy. "Mai-"
"She's alive," he interrupted, his finger gently brushing her lips. "Speak no more please. Rest."
She doesn't want to, but ends up doing it. Yuuta was back in Japan. Yuuta had returned so that meant the situation had turned to the worst possible situation. Maki felt the tip of a claw touch the bandaged parts of her face and she’s able to catch the bony finger before it disappeared.
“Rika.”
There was no answer, and she didn’t expect one. What she got was the blunt part of her claw touching her cheek before the curse disappeared.
“I’m here Maki,” Yuuta kissed her hand. “I’ll take care of everything.”
“Yuuta.”
‘You don’t have to do it alone.’
However, Yuuta isn’t by her side the next time she wakes up, instead being special grade Tsukumo Yuki. She removes the bandages from one side of her face with a grin and congratulates her on being alive. And for the first time she looks at herself in the mirror. Her first thought is that it could be worse. At least she’s alive, unlike many. At least, and this is what makes her heart pound in her chest at the sight of Yuuta at the end of the hallway, she was able to see him again.
“Maki!” Yuuta beamed seeing her standing up.
He had come back after killing the curses around the hideout and the ones the higher-ups ordered him to deal with since he was the strongest sorcerer after Gojo. He was the prodigy of this era. Yuuta marched directly towards her, wrapping her body in an embrace. Maki breathed in the scent she had missed for a year. The warmth, his softness, even Rika’s claws running over her scalp. He nuzzled her cheek, a smile on his face. He didn’t seem to mind the marred skin, kissing her cheek softly.
“I missed you,” he whispered, nuzzling her neck. “I missed you so much.”
Maki slid her arms around his waist, focusing on his touch. She too had missed him. When her hands go up, she realizes that Yuuta had gained muscle, his back was wider than before, and he had become slimmer.
Yuuta had changed.
“Can I kiss you?”
But he still asked for her permission like always. Maki nodded slowly, her lips locked with his as soon as she finished moving her head. Yuuta nuzzles her neck and Maki finds herself melting in a warmth different from the fire that had burned her skin. A thumb ran through the bandaged side of her face.
“You’re beautiful.”
No, she wasn’t. She had barely escaped death, that fire marked her for life. She was different.
“The scars-“
Her words stop when Yuuta gives her a quick kiss on the lips, startling her for a moment. He smiled sweetly.
“No matter what, you’re Maki.” He hugged her, his smile turning bright. “You’re my Maki.”
His Maki.
Before, she would have scoffed at such gallant affirmation and bump his head with her staff. Instead, Maki grabbed Yuuta’s head, holding it close as her lips grazed his.
“Fuck me.”
Yuuta's eyes-black and emotionless when he wasn't near her-turned the beautiful gray Maki knew, the sparkle returning to them.
"Okay." Was the only thing he said before taking them to her room.
In the beginning, Yuuta started like he always did. Gentle and slow, careful not to hurt her. He didn't make a face when he touched the new skin of her scars, too focused on kissing her mouth and neck, his hands teasing her nipples by pinching them over the fabric of her black shirt. Maki took his hand and guided it down against her core, and Yuuta rubbed it over her underwear.
It wasn’t enough.
“Harder,” Maki whispered in his ear. "Give it to me, Yuuta."
She wanted more, more of him, she wanted everything. Yuuta complied.
"Good boy," Maki gasped as she felt his tongue moving inside. "Good boy Yuuta."
Her hand clutched at his hair with a groan when Yuuta sucked loudly, drool dripping from his mouth.
“Maki," she heard him say, crawling over her body and hoisting her up in the air like she weighed nothing. "I'm going to fuck you now."
It was a new position, one where Yuuta had her firmly held by her raising legs behind her shoulders, leaving her pussy right on top of his cock. He was in control, kissing her neck before letting her fall in a swift movement, and the delicious sting of the sudden penetration made Maki moan loudly, and melted in Yuuta, who started to move.
This is what she wanted, what she had wanted along.
Her feet dangled in the air, her hands clung to his arms and Yuuta thrusted faster, harder, the sound of skin slapping against skin filling the room along with her begging for him to keep going like that, more, more.
She wanted him to be rougher.
“Faster.”
Tears clouded her vision, and the sudden creak and falling sensation broke her concentration for a second before Yuuta resumed his thrusts with a small apology. Maki blinked and realized what happened.
He had broken the supports of the bed.
A chuckle escaped her lips, soon substituted with a gasp when he began to rub her clit, perhaps trying to divert her attention back to the pleasure as he slammed inside, deeper than before, making her roll her eyes at the back of her head. Yuuta nibbled her ear and it felt so good, so good, and she’s cumming, she’s cumming and spilling on the sheet with a gush-
Maki took deep breaths, drool dripping from the corner of her mouth at the most delicious pleasure she had ever felt.
She had squirted.
In her mind, Maki was sure she was telling Yuuta to keep going, to keep going even if she could barely speak coherently. There was a mist on her mind, making her feel numb and confused. So she clung to the only thing she knew was real and that was Yuuta’s arms and lips that devoured her mouth.
“More.” Maki demanded. “More.”
He was the only one she would give herself like this. Yuuta nuzzles her cheek and complies with her request, his mouth nibbling and sucking on her breast as his fingers play inside her, lubricated with their mess. Seeing him like this reminds her of the anxious mess he used to be, now grown into an exceptional sorcerer.
“Yuuta,” Maki brushes his hair from his forehead and tousles it into his old hairstyle. She stops and mouths the words.
‘I love you.’
He closes his eyes and nuzzles again her chest before curling his fingers, just above her bumpy spot. Maki’s legs stiffen and she relaxes, panting and cursing as the orgasm ripped through her body. She embraces Yuuta, and closes her eyes to enjoy what she had missed for a year. His scent. His kindness. His touch. His curse. His love. Everything that made him. Maki must have fallen asleep at some point given that Yuuta was suddenly dressed and kissing her forehead saying goodbye.
“I’ll be back soon, I promise.” There was a pause and when the blush spread through his cheeks, it’s like seeing the old Yuuta, the anxious mess that would hide nervously behind her. “You shouldn’t stand up yet, I was pretty rough with you last night.”
Maki can help but to smirk.
“Indeed. You broke the bed.”
Yuuta stifled a gasp, covering his mouth as the blush deepened. "It wasn’t my intention."
“I know."
"I'll fix it when I get back."
"For you to break it again?"
This time Yuuta frowned, embarrassed, but if he really was upset by her words he wouldn’t kiss her so lovingly.
“I’ll be back soon. I promise.” He covered her with the duvet and, contrary to his words, sat at the edge of the bed. “I’ll stay here until you fall asleep again.”
There was no need for that, and yet, Maki allows herself to enjoy his company, his hands holding hers, the feeling of claws and bony fingers running down her back and scalp, slowly drifting her to numbness. She blinks and opens her mouth.
“I love you.”
She hears him gasp quietly before falling asleep.