this is for you _yoojii_ you're the best love uwu

I laid in the soft grass, staring up into the stars above me. Cool night air brushed against my skin and lips, giving the scene an almost surreal setting. I guess I did feel a little surreal... Here I was, lying down in the backyard of Obanai's estate, the Snake Hashira, now a married man. And I was his happily wedded wife.

My silk pajamas hugged my frame, but did little to keep me warm, the breeze passing right through the fabric. It was an ungodly hour of the night, but sleep refused to take me. Instead, I felt wide awake. My eyes refused to close as I stared into the night sky, counting every single star that I possibly could. I even counted the teeny tiny stars that barely were able to sparkle; after all, they were still stars too.

Who knows how long I had been laying there, my hair fanned out around my face and my limbs sprawled out across the grass. All I knew was that I never safe to sleep until he was there with me.

"What are you doing out here? You're going to catch a cold," A handsome face popped into my view, making me lose track of what star I was on. Still, there was no way I could be upset; after all, who would rather look at the stars when you had the moon? "Iguro~" I mumbled dreamily, reaching up to touch his pale face. He held my hand, pressing it against his cheek; he felt so warm.

His heterochromia eyes burned into mine, making my heart pound wildly. "Hello, Y/n," I knew that by the way he was speaking, there was a smile under those bandages. It was a little quirk of his that I had learned to hear. The tone was a little brighter, a little softer; it sounded like a smile. I liked it when he said my name like that. "Can I ask why you're out here?"

I closed my eyes, taking in a deep breath of night air; night air always smelled different than day air. It was a little sharper, the kind that made you feel clean. "I was counting the stars," I finally answered, opening my eyes to find that he was still sitting next to me and looking at my face. He raised an eyebrow, using his free hand to brush a stray piece of hair out of my face. "You were counting the stars?"

"Mmm, yup," I could feel myself getting a little sleepy now. I felt safe with Iguro next to me, with his warm hand in mine.

Iguro let out a dry laugh and glanced up at the sky for himself. "You do realize how pointless that is, right?" I giggled a little in response, mindless counting them again.

"One, two, three, four, five-"

"A lot of things are pointless," I interrupted my own counting with this realization. My husband looked back at me with kind eyes, a rare expression that only I got to see. "Really? Like what? Humor me, Y/n,"

"Like it's pointless for me to wish that you were home when you're out on missions," I started, a little too embarrassed to meet his eyes so I continued to stare at the velvety sky. "And it's pointless for me to miss you when I know you can't return until you're finished with your work. And I know it's pointless for me to count the stars because I know that I can't fall asleep until you come home." Finally I looked back at him with a soft smile. "I guess even if they're pointless, it doesn't mean that they don't matter, right?"

"Y/n, that last sentence was contradictory," Iguro added, but it wasn't in a snarky tone at all. Instead, it was in that smile tone. It was almost teasing; I wanted to see his smile for real. "But," Iguro stopped me before I could ask him to take off his bandages. "I don't think that any of those things are pointless at all. Because whenever I think of you or miss you or can't sleep when you're gone," His hand touched my jaw, directing my face to look into his eyes. "I find those emotions to be rather important."

His free hand climbed under his mask, pulling the bandages loose. There it was; that beautiful smile framed by his scar. He thought that it was disgusting, but I always told him that it was just another thing that I loved about him. To me, it showed his fortitude. Maybe that's why I always liked it when he took the bandages off.

His words made my heart flutter; I cherished every compliment he gave me because honeyed words from him were still a rare occurrence. I gazed into those big eyes of his, thinking how much prettier they were than any star in the night sky. "I'm glad you're home," I whispered, a little scared to say it any louder because part of me thought that this was all a dream. That Iguro really wasn't home and I was going to wake up any second now, lying by myself in the grass.

"I'm glad I'm home too," Iguro agreed softly, letting his hand slip down to hold my chin. He leaned in slowly and I closed my eyes. Soon soft, warm lips touched mine. I always found it impressive that his lips were never chapped. They tasted like mint too.

The kiss was gentle, like he knew better than to be rough or else I might break. He slowly released the kiss, keeping his lips close to mine. "I'm sorry I can't be here for you more often," Our lips brushed together as he spoke, sending little thrills down my spine. "Don't apologize," My hands were in his silky black hair, playing with the strands; when did they get there? "I don't care if you can't be here all the time. I'd still pick even only a minute with you over a year with anyone else,"

I didn't have my eyes open, but I could feel his muscles tense a little. As my eyes were about to flutter open, a hand flew over them, something wet dripping onto my neck and chest. "Thank you, Y/n." Iguro put his forehead against mine and I heard the smile in his voice, even as tears dripped onto my cheeks. "Thank you,"

"Of course, Iguro. I love you," I whispered back, hoping that he could hear the smile in my voice too. "I love you too, Y/n. I love you so much," Iguro's low voice hitched a little, but the tone didn't change. I think that he heard my smile.