He walked in the door, his feet practically dragging behind him. It was late, but he knew she'd be up. She was always up.

Honestly he felt bad. He hated being busy all day and coming home so late, but there really wasn't anything he could do about it. It was his job - his life. It was his choice, and he knew she respected that. But he still couldn't help but feel guilty. Now, with promotions left and right, there was simply no free time for them to spend together. He sighed and kicked off his shoes in the doorway. He needed a vacation... soon.

She was sitting on the couch, immersed in whatever book she had picked up from the library that day. It was a routine of hers to always stop by and get another book (or movie) on her way home from work. He smiled. It was one of those quirks he loved. He didn't want to disturb her, so he dropped his stuff in the bedroom and made his way to the kitchen for a drink.

He frowned. Pots and pans still littered the sink, some of them half-heartedly washed. He glanced back in her direction and sighed. Another thing he hated was getting onto her case about nitpicky stuff like dishes, but he couldn't help it. He wanted a clean house, but she didn't seem to put in the effort. 

It hadn't always been that way. Actually, it used to be the other way around. She always had to bother him about things like dishes and making his side of the bed, so much so it had become routine for him. Now she was the one who neglected to do things. It was like something had clicked inside her, and she stopped caring. He was convinced something had happened, but she wasn't telling him. Frankly, it bothered him. Okay, it bothered the hell out of him. What had happened to not keeping any secrets between them? They had promised to tell each other everything, haddn't they?

She heard his sigh from the kitchen and immediately curled deeper in the couch, it it was possible. She didn't know why, but she was scared. He sounded tired and upset. She frantically thought back onto anything that she may have forgotten... the dishes! She felt like slapping herself. The one thing she had sworn she would remember to do that day and she went ahead and forgot. Which means she'd have to listen to him nag. Again.

She couldn't help but wonder when things had gotten to be this way. There had been a time when she wasn't so absent minded. She had actually been the person in charge of nagging for a time. But somehow, they had switched roles. Life had gotten to her, and sometimes she only felt like the shell of the person she once was. She missed the old times.

His shuffling footsteps carried down the hallway and drew closer. She knew what was coming next; they would argue, she would get tired, he would get silent, and they would separate. She should have brought extra blankets into the living room.

"Jagi, can we talk?" He sounded so hesitant at first, but that's how it always was.

"Mmhm." Reluctantly, she put the book down and stood up from the sofa, joining him at the entrance to the living room. They maintained a safe distance from each other. Both of them seemed to have already resigned to what was coming. "What's going on?"

"Did something happen?" He looked genuinely concerned, and it threw her off guard. She was expecting something like "why didn't you do the dishes?" or maybe "Jagi did you really forget again?" But not this.

"What do you mean?"

"You just haven't been yourself. You haven't really been here. It's like you're in a daze. You didn't finish the dishes, and you forgot to move the box in the middle of our bedroom. I tripped over it looking for the light." He was getting exhasperated. The hurt expression on her face was only making it worse.

"I'm sorry." Her response was weak, tired. She didn't want to do this, but she was getting frustrated.

"Since when have you been so absent minded? This isn't like you at all, Jagi. You keep forgetting to do things, and it's just not like you."

That's it.

"What about you, Hoya? This isn't like you either. All you do is nag, nag, nag, nag! It's frustrating. I feel like I'm inferior to you. Like I can't do anything right. Do you know what that's like? To feel like you're useless to the one person you care about most?" Her eyes were burning, but her body language was telling him she wanted to stop. More accurately, she wanted to crawl in a corner and not come out until things went back to normal. Funny wish, right?

"Me? What about you? I feel like I constantly have to check up on you - make sure you're doing alright. There's something going on with you, and you're not telling me what it is. Didn't we promise to not keep secrets? I think this counts as a secret!"

The house had grown eerily quiet with his words. He didn't mean to blow up at her. Guilt was creeping into his stomach, and he felt sick. He wanted to stop too.

"Let's not do this." There. That was it. She was giving up. The white flag had been raised, so he backed down. Tentatively, he reached forward and awkwardly hugged her.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you."

She just nodded.

"You should get ready for bed, Hoya. You must be tired."

He nodded too and yawned. With one last awkward hug, he shuffled into the bedroom. She sighed and sank into the couch, resting her head in her hands. Fighting with him, even for just a minute, was exhausting. She shivered. Her hand automatically reached for the blanket at the edge of the sofa and she wrapped it around her. She was just so tired...

He came out of the bedroom to find her fast asleep on the couch. His mouth twitched up in a brief smie, but it was quickly replaced with a frown. Did he really exhaust her that much? Her sides were rising and falling in shallow breaths. Quietly, he approached her, careful not to wake her up. He didn't know why - she was a pretty heavy sleeper.

Hoya knelt down in front of the couch. This close, he could see the dark circles under her eyes and how pale she actually was. Since when had she been losing sleep? Maybe that's why she was always so tired. Then another guilty thought hit him; he was probably the reason for her insomnia.

He suddenly felt like he needed to make up for it. The decision was made that night - no more nagging, no more arguing. He wanted things to go back to normal just as much as she did.

She mumbled something and shifted in her position on the couch. He smiled. Forget the bed; he didn't want to risk waking her up by moving her that far. He grabbed the other blanket from the opposite end of the couch and went back to her side. Gently, he lifted her up (only slightly) and moved to the other side of the sofa. He laid down so she was resting with her head on his chest. The warmth from his body radiated through her. She snuggled closer to him and sighed happily. How long had it been since they had actually cuddled? Too long, he thought.

"I love you. From now on, I promise, things will be different. I don't know how long it will take, and I know you can't hear me. But just know that I love you, and that's all that matters." He whispered the words into her hair and gently rubbed her back.

Hoya craned his neck to plant a kiss on her nose and watched her sleep with a slight smile on his face before he started drifting off himself. His eyes were just fluttering closed when she reached up ever so slightly and kissed him. He instantly kissed her back, and she sighed into it. He was too happy to even feel embarrassment for saying those things when he thought she was fully asleep. God only knows how long that kissed lasted, but when they pulled away, he brushed his lips against her forehead and cheek, pulling her as close as possible. She curled back up into his chest, and he wrapped both the blankets around them carelessly.

"Hoya?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you too."