They had lazed in the hot water for a little bit, but they were both tired and Kippei nudged Shinji out of the hot tub finally, leaving their clothes where they had dropped them and wrapping a towel around him, drying him off a bit and then carrying him inside, not wanting to let go of him even long enough to get inside and get into bed, sliding into the smooth satin sheets that had been Shinji’s Christmas present and cradling him close, luxuriating in the lingering feeling of connectedness, tangled naked together beneath the sheets.

“I love you,” Kippei whispered again as they lay silent in the dark, contentedly enjoying the closeness and comfort. “I’ll never let you go, Shinji. I never will.”

Shinji shivered, shifting closer until he was pressed tightly against the length of Kippei’s body, kissing his skin wherever he could reach it and trying to hold on to the connection for as long as possible. Kippei drove him half mad with need, but in a good way.

“Love you too. Love you so much. My Kippei, you’re mine and I’m your Shinji, mine and yours and I love you, I really do. Please don’t let go, I just want to stay with you forever. I want to…please never let go of me.”

“I promise,” Kippei assured him. “Forever, just like this.” He smiled in the darkness as he stroked Shinji’s back, caressing up and down his spine, soothing and relaxing, for himself as well as Shinji.

“You’re perfect,” he murmured, half to himself, “you feel just right, here with me, love the way you fit against me. Don’t you feel like…” He paused, trying to think of a way to say it that didn’t sound ridiculous.

“Like I’m a part of you.” Like he only existed when he was with Kippei, as if nothing else mattered and he couldn’t even remember to breathe when they weren’t together. He smiled and licked at the corner of Kippei’s mouth in the dark, feeling the upturn of Kippei’s own lips. “My soul.” He found Kippei’s hand in the dark and rubbed his thumb over his wedding rings, as thrilled as ever that Kippei had married him, and Rien.

Kippei breathed a soft laugh, feeling warmed by the reminder, though it hadn’t been exactly what he’d been thinking. “That, yes,” he agreed. “But… kind of like somebody made you for me,” he admitted. “Or us for each other – all of us, even Rien, you know? But you and me especially, we just fit so perfect that it seems like someone had to have made you that way.” He paused, wryly amused at himself. It sounded ridiculous anyway; oh well.

“Anyway, I like to think so,” he admitted ruefully.

Shinji laughed at that, leaning up on one elbow so he could look down at Kippei, amused. He loved the idea; that someone had made him just for Kippei, just so they could always be together. Better, it was what Kippei thought too.

“You sound like Rien,” he pointed out softly. “I mean, the way he just decides that god or whoever did whatever he thinks just because…that weird ass religion of his.” He chuckled softly, relaxing back in against Kippei again. “I was definitely made for you.”

Shinji laughed at that, leaning up on one elbow so he could look down at Kippei, amused. He loved the idea; that someone had made him just for Kippei, just so they could always be together. Better, it was what Kippei thought too.

“You sound like Rien,” he pointed out softly. “I mean, the way he just decides that god or whoever did whatever he thinks just because…that weird ass religion of his.” He chuckled softly, relaxing back in against Kippei again. “I was definitely made for you.”

Kippei chuckled at the mention of Rien’s odd personal religion, one that Rien had told him about at one point, but at the time he hadn’t been much interested in hearing about the details.

“Rien would probably have a better explanation,” he noted, rather amused. “You should ask him sometime, he has all kinds of theories and crap to go with it.”

“That’s because he’s weird,” Shinji pointed out, still chuckling. “You do like the weird ones.” Not that he was complaining at all. It meant Kippei liked him and Rien was adorably cute. He relaxed in against Kippei’s side, stroking his hair back off his face with lazy movements.

“It’s getting pretty long.”

“My hair?” Kippei blinked at him, taking a moment to catch up with the fact that Shinji was not talking about his own hair, which Kippei was always distracted by before he thought about anything else.

He reached up now to touch it it, winding a strand around his finger and smiling faintly, just loving the way it felt. But Shinji was asking about his.

“Do you like it, or should I get it cut?”

“No! I like it, don’t cut it!” Kippei had never had long hair, but Shinji definitely liked it now that he knew what it looked like. It also meant Kippei wasn’t a tennis star anymore, and was living at home with them now instead, happy and content. At least, Shinji hoped so.

“Are you happy? I mean…without tennis and stuff. Are you happy?”

Kippei grinned at him. “Don’t I look happy?” he asked, amused. “Course I am, baby. Have been, for a long time now. You woke up, I quit tennis, we got married, things have never been better. Now we’re going back to school, give us something to do, and we’ve got Yuni to take care of. Couldn’t be happier,” he assured Shinji gently, touching his cheek.

“Aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I just…I guess I just worry sometimes. That maybe you’ll regret it one day. Try and live vicariously through Yuni or something,” he joked, finding that the most ludicrous idea ever. “Actually…we should probably make sure Rien doesn’t teach her all sorts of weird stuff.” Because that was very likely!

“Nah, let him teach her,” Kippei countered, chuckling. “The more weird stuff she knows, the better she’ll fit in with us, don’t you think?” He shook his head, amused at the collective weirdness of their small family.

Shinji had to laugh at that, nodding his head in agreement because that was definitely true. Besides, it would be good if she at least knew how to defend herself.

He sighed softly, wriggling further down under the blankets to get warmer.

“She named her bunny after me.”

Kippei blinked at that, then smiled. “Her bunny? The big one that you gave her?” He hadn’t heard that the bunny had a name, but that made sense. Shinji was her favourite, unquestionably the one she felt most safe and most comfortable with.

“That’s good,” he decided, pulling Shinji closer and stroking his hair, smoothing it down his back and lingering on the smooth skin beneath. “Mmm, you’re so gorgeous,” he murmured, getting slightly distracted from the conversation by Shinji’s sexy self.

As amused as ever by the immediate distraction, and recalling that Rien had once said Kippei would probably cum just playing with his hair, Shinji hid his smile against Kippei’s throat and just enjoyed the feeling of fingers gently stroking through the mass and across his lower back. He’d never thought much about his hair, though he’d always had it long. Now it was just out of control but he didn’t mind it. It was as much a part of him now as all the other weirdnesses of his life.

“Love you. That feels nice.”

“Mmhmm,” Kippei agreed, the sound full of satisfaction and pleasure as he continued running his fingers through Shinji’s hair, stroking his back, feeling himself grow hard again but not feeling the need to do anything about it, just enjoying the heat washing through him, slowly building as his fingers moved.

“I love you too,” he murmured, his voice low and husky, fervent and almost reverent.

Toasty warm and close enough to Kippei that he felt unthreatened, Shinji slowly let himself doze off to sleep, content with the knowledge that Kippei was safe and sound and Rien would be home that much sooner once he woke up.

Kippei let him doze, and drifted off himself before long, fingers buried warm in Shinji’s hair. It felt good, lying all tangled together wrapped up in each other, and he smiled involuntarily every time he woke up a little to shift and move.

At one point he moved with more purpose, hands stroking caressingly, teasing and arousing, trailing kisses in their wake. He was all for round two if he could coax Shinji into it – with Shinji on top of course.

It didn’t take much effort to wake Shinji, not when it was Kippei touching him into the waking world, drawing him closer and stroking his skin into a fire. He gasped and kissed back heatedly, rolling them over to straddle Kippei’s hips, loving the feel of him under him and watching in fascination, taking in all the small details that told him how aroused Kippei was. The inhale and exhale of heavy breath, the hazey gaze, the coloured flesh, the straining muscle. It amazed him every time that he could have such an effect on anyone, let alone Kippei.

“You’re so sexy.”

Kippei chuckled softly, sweeping his hands up Shinji’s strong, slender back and luxuriating in the feeling.

“Ahh, you’re the sexy one,” he breathed, arching up against Shinji’s weight with a breathless, dazzling grin. “God, you feel so good,” he groaned. “I want you, Shinji, I want you so much…”

Always, always had, always would, no matter what he was never going to not want Shinji desperately, in every possible way. This was a part of it he’d once feared to never get back, yet here they were, and the joy and relief of it was blinding.

“You have me,” Shinji assured him softly, stroking with fascinated hands and exploring the body he’d once known so well. It wasn’t the same, but it was similar and he loved it even more now, knowing that it could support whatever weight he threw on it. This was the body that loved him, no matter what happened and he knew he would never get enough of it, which was just as it should be.

“You’re going to be mine forever,” he whispered knowingly, smile raw and open as it rarely was.

“Yes,” Kippei hissed, pulling him down for a fervent kiss. “Yours, all yours, please, Shinji, please, I want to be closer.” They were about as close as it was possible to get already, but it still didn’t feel like enough. “Want you inside me,” he murmured, reaching up to touch Shinji’s face, because they’d always switched to some extent, and tonight didn’t feel complete without it.

Oh hell yes. Shinji just nodded and reached immediately for the bottle of lube Rien always kept on the bedside table, feeling a shiver of anticipation as the lid clicked open but then the cool gel was coming out, soothing and soft and he spread it over both  of them before even trying to press a finger into Kippei’s unresisting body.

“Tell me if it hurts, I don’t want to hurt you…”

“You won’t,” Kippei insisted, “come on, please…” He tossed his head back and forth, nearly overwhelmed by the feeling of it, now after so long.

“God, you are so amazing,” he noted fervently, meaning every word.

Needing no further encouragement, Shinji pulled his fingers free and pressed in, gasping at the tight heat and keeping his gaze fixed on Kippei’s face, watching for any sign of pain and relaxing only when he was fully in and Kippei just looked content with the world. Then Shinji really smiled and rocked his hips tentatively, grinning as Kippei sucked at the air and hissed softly.

“Is it good?”

“Oh god,” Kippei groaned, “oh god you feel so good, oh Shinji,” he breathed, hardly able breathe with the wonder of it.  It seemed like it had been so long, such a long time since they had done this, just the two of them just like this.

“I love you so much,” he whispered. “Oh god,  so much.”

“I know you do,” Shinji assured him, leaning in to kiss him, deep and long and hungry for more. “Love you too, beautiful.” But he couldn’t hold back any longer, pulling back and driving in hard, long strokes that sent shivers of pleasure through his groin and up his spine, lingering in his gut and begging for more.

He’d thought this lost; that somehow alien Shinji would take it from him as he’d taken everything else, but here it was, the same as it always had been with just the two of them but they still had Rien. He didn’t have to give up anything, and he could still have the things he’d had before. The relief made tears sting his eyes and his smile was shakey but genuine as he slowly drove them both toward the edge.

“Come for me. Just for me, Ki.”

“Yours,” Kippei promised him, groaning with the overwhelming pleasure of it. “All yours, Shinji, all yours, just for you,” he swore, and then he was coming, just like Shinji had asked him to, unable to resist the incredible sexiness that was Shinji.

“Love you more than anything in the world,” he murmured as he tried to catch his breath. So, so much. Shinji was amazing.

Shinji barely heard the words, lost in his own blissed out world, collapsing on Kippei as he came hard and the world washed out while he tried to remember to breathe. Then he just smiled, snuggling in against Kippei, amused by the sweaty mess of them both, but content enough to stay where he was for a few minutes.

“Mine. My Kippei, for all time. Mine.” For the first time in a long time, he sounded like he was talking simple fact.

Kippei was grinning, loving the surety in his tone, feeling that Shinji really believed it for the first time in ages, feeling relieved and comforted and reassured by it, the simple peace in the fact that Shinji knew Kippei was just as much his as he was Kippei’s, which was completely and entirely.”Never, never, never let you go,” he noted softly, stroking Shinji’s hair and breathing deep of the scent of sweat and sex and Shinji, a curious mixture that he’d been missing for a long, long time now.

“Love you,” Shinji agreed, yawning faintly but wrinkling his nose in distaste, sighing finally as he sat up and looked down at the mess he had made, wryly amused. “Love you but I want a shower…we’re all sticky. Come with me? We could soak in the bath some more…” And maybe he was slightly addicted to baths now.

“But it’s the middle of the night,” Kippei protested. “Can’t we just… clean off and go back to bed?” he wondered, hauling himself up and going into the bathroom to find a wet cloth to wipe the stickiness off with. That should be good enough, surely, even for a clean freak like Shinji.

Laughing softly, Shinjui graciously accepted the cloth and cleaned them both, tossing it back inside the bathroom and snuggling up against Kippei again, sighing in relief to be clean and warm and entirely sated.

“I feel so good…Haven’t felt this good in ages.”

Kippei nodded in agreement, sighing contentedly and snuggling Shinji close in his arms, delightfully naked and skin to skin, feeling indeed as Shinji had said, better than he’d felt in a very long time.

“You are the most gorgeous, incredible, sexy thing,” he murmured huskily, trailing a hand down Shinji’s back and kissing the top of his head. “Love you so much.”

Shinji didn’t even want to argue, just chuckled softly and let Kippei think whatever he wanted to, too happy where he was to think about anything bad…or anything at all for that matter.

“Love you too,” he mumbled huskily. “For always.”