♦⊱ Chapter 34 - Love ⊰♦

This chapter is dedicated to RabbiQuest! Happy reading!

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Ruka pov:

I woke up to a weight over my body. I opened my eyes with a tired sigh to stare at the ceiling in a daze for a few moments. The room was dimly lit by the sunlight that came in through the translucent windows – it was clearly time to wake up but the weight on me the fatigue I was feeling didn't allow me to.

I looked down at Kichiro sama as he laid asleep with his head just above my bare chest. Memories of last night filled my mind causing a dark blush to rise on my cheeks but I smiled as I caressed Kichiro sama's head gently, lovingly. He was asleep rather deeply, something I hadn't seen him do even once in all the time I had been with him, and he didn't stir under my gentle gestures in the slightest. He must have been really tired because of all the work and sleepless nights and the extra workout he had last night.

I gentle moved some strands of his hair off his face, adoring how serene he looked. I blushed yet again though, recalling how blissful it had been being with Kichiro sama last night. Teaching him what it meant for a man and woman to become one was flustering and it had only been more so because I had been rather embarrassing.

I had called out to him countless times as he embraced me, as I looked into his deep eyes as he hovered over me. I remember them holding curiosity besides a sort of intense possessiveness as he observed every one of my reactions to his caresses. I had clung to him tightly, completely lost in our moment of passion. Kichiro sama was mildly hesitant the whole time and slow – as such, being with him didn't hurt as much as I had thought it would. He was instinctively gentle too and his every gesture had me shuddering and calling out his name over and over again.

I had always known that he was toned, well-built underneath the layers of clothes he wore and it had only been proved when I saw his physique yesterday. His chest and torso were broad and mildly buff, his arms were strong, but his hold was so tender. Seeing his strong and sculpted body glistening in sweat was too much for me – he was so beautiful and I couldn't get enough of him...which is why, all I could do was cling to him desperately as tears fell from my eyes from all the overwhelming emotions and feelings.

I remembered him caressing my head every now and then, gently wiping off the tears of pain and pleasure that fell from my eyes. He was just so...loving.

My smile widened as he sighed once in his sleep, interrupting my thoughts. He shivered slightly as well as a cool breeze came in through the window. I tugged at the blanket to cover him till the neck and continued to caress his head gently, running my fingers through his hair every now and then. I could feel his strong heartbeat against my chest and it was contenting. It made me sleepy and tempted me to rest my sore body more – despite how gentle Kichiro sama had been, it was my first time and quite strenuous.

I yawned and closed my eyes to sleep – I'm sure there were no worries about getting a little extra shut eye. Kichiro sama, being the punctual emperor he always was, wasn't awake yet so it meant that we still had some time before we could get ready for the day. Sighing in content, I drifted off into light slumber.

When I woke, I was alone in the bed and slightly tangled in the blanket. I sat up slowly, wincing as my body ached, and looked around the room while holding the blanket up to cover my bare front-side. A small pout surfaced onto my lips – I'm sure Kichiro sama had gone off to work again. And here I thought I could laze around with him a bit after our special night...

With a shake of my head, I pushed those thoughts away and decided to get ready for the day. Wrapping the blanket around myself sort of securely, I scooted to the edge of the bed. A light shiver went down my spine when my feet met the cool floor and I stood up with a wince. I felt a little unbalanced, my legs seeming weak. Taking another deep inhale, I stepped towards the bathroom. I had barely taken a few steps, however, before my legs gave out under me and I sunk to the floor in a heap.

"Okay, I wasn't expecting to be this drained of energy," I mumbled to myself. If my legs were this sore, how was I going to walk to the bathroom, let along climb into the bathtub??

I tensed, sucking in a sharp breath and blushed as I looked to the door when it opened. Kichiro sama stepped inside – the sight of him made me blush harder, now the redness surely reaching till my ears. Kichiro sama shut the door and walked to me, eyeing me curiously.

"Why are you sitting on the floor?" he asked making me avert my eyes in fluster.

"U-Um, w-well, the thing is, um, m-my legs are a little w-weak because of y-yesterday," I squeaked out, wishing that I could hide my flaming face somehow.

I heard Kichiro sama's footsteps as he approached me. My eyes went wide and I squealed as I was lifted into his arms. I held the blanket around my frame tighter and curled up slightly as he took me to the bathroom. He placed me in the tub, which had numerous rose petals floating on the water. His eyes were so tender as he watched me and I smiled through my blush, closing my eyes as he leaned down to meet my lips in a chaste kiss. Pulling away, he left the bathroom following which I got ready for the day.

The warmth of the bath really eased my sore muscles. Kyo chan was in the room by the time I was done and got me ready before we headed to the dining hall because I was hungry. It was close to noon so I decided to have a light snack before lunch. After I had calmed the grumbling of my stomach, I sat down in the tea garden to have tea. Kyo chan remained by my side and she cleared her throat to make me look at her.

"So, Ruka sama, how was it?" she asked.

My cheeks flamed at her question. "Kyo chan, you're not supposed to ask about that!"

"Oh, please, Ruka sama! It's big news! I'm just so curious!" she squealed.

I looked at my tea, my heart racing a mile a minute. I was sure she wasn't going to stop pestering me until I told her. Well, she was my best friend here even though I had never told her or anyone else that I considered her that way so it was alright for me to tell her my experience. It was flustering but I smiled, feeling warmed as I recalled how beautiful it was being with Kichiro sama.

Kichiro sama pov:

"So, Ruka sama, how was it?" I stopped at the end of the corridor at the voice of Ruka's personal maid. I spotted Ruka having tea in the tea garden while her maid was looking at her with a wide smile.

Ruka's face turned red before she said, "Kyo chan, you're not supposed to ask about that!"

I narrowed my eyes wondering what they were talking about and why Ruka looked so...flustered by it. It was the same expression Ruka had had last night when she had said that she would help me with the incompleteness I had been feeling. Kissing had not been enough anymore but I had not known what to do to ease the uneasiness until Ruka had been so close to me last night. The feelings I had experienced were strange yet satisfying, filling the void in me so much that I was almost sure my heart would burst out of my ribs. I had also become even more possessive of her because she had told me that what we had experienced was something that she would do only with me because she belonged to me.

She had cried almost the entire time but I could tell it wasn't because she was afraid of me or disliked the time we were together. The only word she spoke in the mists of breathless, incoherent sounds was my name. It had made a strong tightness rise in my chest, making me so overwhelmed. Whenever I caressed her face or her bare skin, she shivered then held onto to me tightly. I couldn't take my eyes off her the entire time, just overflowing with content with how she was caged to only my view.

Exhausted from the week long work and the closeness with Ruka, I had fallen into deep sleep. I couldn't remember a time in my life that I had slept so deeply and felt so rested, so fresh when I awoke. Perhaps, it was because I felt at ease. I was at ease because Ruka was with me and there was nothing that could ever take her away from me.

When I had woken in the morning, I was in Ruka's embrace. Her arms were wrapped around my head and shoulder, holding me close to her bare chest, while she was curled up on her side. She was sleeping peacefully and looked as beautiful as always. I had left her to sleep, to rest as long as she wanted to while I met with my ministers for an update on governance in the provinces and progress in the provinces I had just won over.

It was close to noon when I had returned to the room only to find Ruka sitting on the floor, unclothed. She had confessed that she was sore and unable to walk because of yesterday. On that note, I had recalled that she had said that the first time would be painful. I had carried her to the bathroom in my arms, giving her a chaste kiss before I resumed my duties after picking up some important documents from my desk. The kiss somehow felt a lot more warm than usual and had left me truly content.

"Oh, please, Ruka sama! It's big news! I'm just so curious!" the maid spoke, interrupting my train of thought. My frown deepened – I didn't like that she was making Ruka feel uncomfortable, forcing her to speak of something she didn't wish to speak about. However, Ruka looked at the tea in her hands and smiled, looking so happy.

"It was warm," she said, her voice soft.

"Warm? Didn't it hurt?"

I clenched my fists, finally understanding what the maid was asking Ruka about. She was speaking as if it was something not unexpected, something the people would know about...but I had never once heard of or experienced something like this before. Why did she want to know though? It was not her place to ask about mine and Ruka's personal matters! She needed to be taught her place!

"It hurt a little, but it was also so blissful. I loved being in Kichiro sama's arms and I loved just how gentle he was. I'm so glad that every bit of me belongs solely to him now," she answered, placing her hands over her chest and closing her eyes with her smile in place.

Her words were honest and the expression on her face made me wish to kiss her again, to have her hold me in her embrace again.

"You really love him, don't you, Ruka sama?" the maid asked, sounding rather excited about it.

"I do, Kyo chan, so much. Oh, I love him so much that I don't know what to do. I could just drown in love with him," Ruka said with a sigh and leaned back in her chair. She looked a little dazed.

"I'm glad that you're so happy, Ruka sama," the maid said with a soft laugh, "and I'm glad that His Majesty is happy too. Would you like some more tea?"

"I'd like that, Kyo chan, thank you," answered Ruka.

They settled into unimportant conversations and I left to my study. I took a seat behind my desk and stared at the documents in front of me though didn't read them. My mind was replaying what I had heard from Ruka, her honest confession of what she felt after last night.

I'm so glad that every bit of me belongs solely to him now.

Those words made my chest swell. Yes, she was mine, she was mine alone and I was never going to let her go.

Ruka pov:

"I see you're back early today," I said to Kichiro sama when I entered our room. He was already done with his shower and dressed in his night robes as he stood looking out of the window, his arms crossed over his broad chest.

He met my eyes and I smiled. When I sat down on the bed, Kichiro sama joined me. We met in the middle of the bed and embraced. I closed my eyes when he leaned down to kiss me gently, caressing my lips with his along with occasional nibbles. When we parted, he let me go only to tug gently on my obi, undoing it. My eyes went slightly wide and a blush rose to my cheeks as I met his eyes in surprise and fluster.

A week had gone by after the night we had spent together but Kichiro sama had not said anything about it even once. He hadn't stopped kissing me or having me sit in his lap during meals or hold me while we slept but I had assumed that he wasn't very comfortable with what had happened between us then. I didn't want to force him to be like how normal couples would be if he wasn't comfortable with it. But now...

"Kichiro sama?" I asked in a small voice.

His eyes darted over my partly exposed form making my blush when he met my eyes again. "I asked Kijima about what we experienced, what you showed me when I was no longer satisfied with merely kissing you."

I was so sure that steam was coming out of my ears now. He had asked Kijima san about intimacy?!

"He said that it's very common between a man and his wife," he added.

I chewed on my bottom lip while leaning my forehead against his bare chest. He wasn't the least bit embarrassed, perhaps because he thought it was alright to ask other people about this – it was flustering but his innocence was adorable. I laughed softly before looking up at him with a smile. I let him undo my kimono-dress and tilted my head up to share a kiss with him as he shrugged off the top half of his robes too.

When we parted, I cupped his face and said, "Kichiro sama, now that you know what it means for us to be together at night, please don't ask or tell anyone else about this, okay? Others will be embarrassed if they hear about our private lives."

He narrowed his eyes slightly but nodded. Goodness, the confusion in his eyes was just so cute and I couldn't help but laugh softly as I adored him. He placed a hand on the back of my head and gently lowered me onto the pillow. I blushed again as he hovered over me, looking so deeply into my eyes.

As he lowered himself to kiss me, I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around his neck and shoulders. He had caged me to himself with one arm while the other was supporting him so he didn't squish me under his weight. I had worried unnecessarily about this matter – Kichiro sama was just unsure and unaware but there was no need to worry about that now.

Although, I think it was going to be awkward for me when I ran into Kijima san after tonight.