Good Morning

Seventeenth Morning (Endless Pt 3)

A/N: I guess spoilers for the Quest for the Lost Powers book.

***

Nya peels her eyes open slowly, waking to bright sunshine pouring through the window of the island resort hotel room. Darting up quickly, she glances over at Jay, who is sprawled out beside her, fast asleep.

She yawns loudly and stretches her arms overhead. She is sore all over, exhaustion weighing heavy upon her bones.

Jay stirs in bed, mumbling incoherently as he rolls towards her, his arms stretching out, subconsciously reaching for her body.

Nya giggles sleepily as she places her hand on his bare chest, feeling his heartbeat thumping steadily underneath her palm. She smiles to herself as she traces the outline of his abs with her finger tips. 

His sleeping face frowns as he comes up empty handed searching for his yang.

Instead of moving away, Nya lays back down and allows herself to be enveloped in his muscular arms as he embraces her in a crushing bear hug.

"Oof," she groans loudly before wriggling out of his hold and rolling over onto her stomach, burying her face back in the pillow.

She doesn't have to wait long until she feels a pair of arms wrap themselves tightly around her waist, pulling her against his chest. His hand finds hers where they lay under the covers and entwine their fingers together.

It takes everything inside of Nya not to sigh contentedly at this small gesture of affection from the man she loves more than anything else in this world. It has been an incredibly trying few weeks since returning home from the ocean, after the Crystal King, aka Overlord, war's end, but things are beginning to look up again.

They've both made some mistakes during their separation, and there is no denying how much they need each other right now. But despite all that, it never ceases to amaze her just what a romantic soul Jay truly is beneath those goofy exterior walls.

They've barely talked about the future, or even really discussed if they will ever retire from the ninja life, but they know that whatever happens between them will happen eventually. There is nothing either of them can do to stop it. So instead, they simply enjoy every moment spent together, because the only way forward is placing one foot in front of the other, even if sometimes you have to take two steps backwards in order to get three ahead.

There is no doubt that Jay is happy with Nya, which means she should be able to relax a little bit more. And maybe that is part of why she's woken up in such a good mood today.

But Nya can't help herself. Her mind keeps wandering off topic, and she wonders idly if it might actually be possible for the two of them to move away from the city. To find somewhere far enough from the hustle and bustle of civilization that they wouldn't need to worry about any assassins sneaking up behind them, and where they could share the duties of running a household together as husband and wife. Maybe it's silly, but the idea of having a place of their own always seemed to appeal to her, especially now that she has the freedom to choose.

She supposes after everything that has happened, she deserves a few years off to enjoy some domestic bliss.

Her thoughts are interrupted by the sound of Jay grunting slightly as he shifts positions.

Nya peers down at his sleeping form. His eyes are still creased shut with a slightly troubled expression on his face. It's been a whole year of him missing her. He looks older, a degree more mature, his jaw more defined, and his entire body bigger than before. Yet, what hurts the most is that she's noticed some of his hyperactive playfulness is gone. Even though he just got his powers back (thank FSM, she was getting tired of his moping), his heart is jaded, still recovering from the pain of losing her for a year.