doku | 　

[Boxer looks towards his bedroom when he hears Nariko call out for him. He washes his hands and dries them off to go tend to her, but as soon as he reaches the door he catches sight of her falling.

Jeez, she's really in bad shape, huh?]

Nariko!

[He wheels over to her and his tentacles gently lift her up from the floor and seated in his lap.]

Are you okay?

[She's on her ass by the time he gets there, and she's halfway towards pulling herself up onto the bed, too. Of course Boxer derails that, and she's not gonna complain because going by tentacle is way easier than trying to use her legs right now.]

Thank you. [Leaning back a bit she smiles at him.] I'm okay, cramps just came back, [In full force.] and I feel like my head's in a tilt a whirl.

[Miiight be a tad anemic.] Weren't we having sex?

[She'd said some bad line about doing crime and then Boxer's voice and...] Did I fall asleep?!

Yeah, you went out cold on me. I was worried.

[Don't mind him he's just giving her a bunch of affectionate rubbing in hopes that it'll ease the tiredness in her body. He's working on a very iron-rich dinner so they won't have to worry about it for long.]

[Anything that occurs near her lower back is a godsend, and she shows her appreciation with a groan - though it's warped by his answer.]

Holy shit. [Who the hell falls asleep in the middle of banging?! Especially when it's that good???] I'm so sorry!

[Oh god this is embarrassing.] It's not - Not you! I always get really tired and sort of frazzled during this time of the month!

[She's gonna go on and on until he stops her because wow this was awful.]

No, no, no--stop, Nariko.

[He gives her a little chuckle.]

It's okay. It's not your fault. I'm making you a big dinner to bring your energy back, okay?

[She stares in a manner that's almost owlish.]

So you're definitely not mad?

[Because she still feels kind of awful.]

What? No! [Lord, Nariko!] Why would you think that I'd be mad?

[He wonders more and more about her past the more these little things come up.]

I fell asleep while we were having sex, Boxer. You weren't even finished.

[Or at least she doesn't remember him coming, and there's nothing down south except for the tampon, so ...]

So? We'll have sex again at some point. Your safety and health is more important than my orgasm.

[If he really dissects her expression he can probably see his words not making sense in real time.]

... Oh.

[She leans back against his chest.] Boxer, you're a really great guy.

[But also try to avoid wondering too much, maybe.]

It's common decency. Maybe not the making dinner part, because that takes some skill.

[Not that he's bragging. Boxer never brags.

(He's totally bragging.)

One of the timers goes off in the kitchen.]

Speaking of which...

[Time to wheel both of them out there!]

That absolutely takes skill.

[This is like .... wingman bragging or something. His cooking is good enough for bragging and she should know it and feel inspired to brag!

But while he wheels Nariko settles against him a bit more.]

Thank you for everything. I don't think anyone's tucked me into bed that lovingly since I was a little kid.

[And he's also very clearly washed her, too. That someone would go to such lengths to take care of her feels amazing.]

[Wingman bragging to win over...uh...herself?]

Gonna be honest...I didn't mean to tuck you in like that. I was just going to lay you down and throw the comforter over you, but I lost control of myself..

[Because that's the thing a monster does when he loses control. He tucks in cute women. But right now, he has some sweet bean paste to attend to! And also steaming some spinach. Then he'll work on stuffing and folding some of those dumplings and arranging them to fry them up.]

[Exactly!!]

I think that's a great way to lose control. I mean, obviously I can roll up in my blankets but it's not the same as when someone else does it.

[She has no idea how he loses control over that, but she doesn't feel a need to question it. That sweet bean paste? Yeah, she finds a little corner of that to swipe onto her finger and eat. Pre-cooking taste testing is vital!]

[It's not like he has some kind of monster instinct that took over. It's much cuter than that: he lost control of himself because she was so damn cute that he couldn't help but wrap her up nice and tightly and protectively!!

...okay maybe there was a little monster factor in there.

He chuckles when she samples the paste.]

You like it? It's supposed to be a filling but I like it as a side.

[He would really have to sit her down and explain that because when she thinks about his instincts it's like ... To eat or hunt or sleep ... Nothing that wouldn't stray too far from human instincts. That has a lot to do with her perspective, but why would any living thing have an instinct to bundle another thing up tightly?

As for whether she likes it or not: He gets an approving food moan, at first.]

I could eat a bowl of it. [But it'll probably be even better as a filling.] How was I lucky enough to meet such a talented, sweet guy?

[Who takes care of her like she's ... Valuable or something.]

[Valuable! Pah. The gall to even suggest it!

But to answer her question, he doesn't actually know, but if he thinks about it for a while he'll realize that he was projecting the comfort he gets from being in tight spaces onto her. Plus, humans swaddle their babies for that reason, right? ...Right?]

Because you were one of the few brave souls that dared to encroach on a dangerous monster's territory. [Now he's peppering the side of her face with kisses.] Well-marked territory at that.

[Maybe so they don't, like, roll over and die or something??? Yes, there was probably a reason but she would have to google it for the smart explanation.]

High risk, high gain? [She barely gets the words out before she's half-descending into a fit of giggles.] You know I was almost really concerned that I was going to get eaten there.

[Wait for it, Boxer.] Instead I was devoured, and I haven't regretted it since.

[Devoured, she says! Boxer nibbles gently on the outer shell of her ear.]

Om nom nom.

[You asked for it, missy!]

Oh no!!

[She can barely make it through that without dissolving into a fit of giggles.]

Someone save me! Or maybe don't, ever!

[You can see how one might accuse her of sending mixed signals.]

There's no saving you now.

[He places a few kisses in her hairline before wheeling over to the dinner table.]

Make yourself a seat. Dinner's almost done.

Good.

[Because she doesn't want a life that doesn't include Boxer. She sneaks in a little peck to his cheek before transferring herself from his comfy lap to the table. There's still a series of little pinpricks that edge along her lower stomach but there's delicious food along the way - she can withstand nearly anything for that.]

Do you have to go to work later? [She's thinking of his evening go around the bay.]

Yeah.

[He's taking out two plates and starting to portion out what's already done, like the veggies and the bean paste. He glances up at the clock for a second.]

Maybe sometime in the next three hours. Before it gets too dark.

[It's already kind of dark, given the downpour...so he doesn't sound entirely committed to the time frame.]

Okay. [No, she doesn't sound at all mournful about him leaving, even if it's only for an hour or so.]

Will you tuck me in on the couch before you go, though?

[Please wrap up the fully grown woman again, Boxer.]

You'll be alright. [He throws her an endearing smile over his shoulder.] I have to keep our city safe, you know.

[And the timer for the dumplings goes off. He goes to stop the timer and fish out the dumplings to put on her plate, then puts it in front of her.]

But I can make sure that you feel safe before I leave. What do you want to drink?

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