Monday Morning

Alhaitham blinks his eyes open to bright light creeping in through the windows, slowly illuminating the living room. He yawns, fluffy ears twitching as he glances away from the walls back down to the other man still asleep on top of him.

Kaveh has his cheek pressed into Alhaitham's bare chest, lips slightly parted, and his arm is thrown over Alhaitham's side, his hand still grasping on as if afraid to let go. Every few seconds one of his ears will twitch or his tail will shift, slapping against the cushions of the divan or knocking against the coffee table or even slapping against their legs.

Alhaitham can't help but let out a soft chuckle as it moves again, and he shifts his own tail to intertwine with Kaveh's, rendering it still. The tiger makes a soft noise in his sleep, then follows suit by looping his tail around Alhaitham's once as he nuzzles his face against his skin.

Outside, the birds chirp softly and Alhaitham sighs contentedly, letting his eyes flutter back shut. He sets his hand down on the open skin of Kaveh's back and runs his fingers over the nubs of his spine, savoring the quiet noises of contentment the blond makes. A perfect Monday morning.

His heart drops, sitting up suddenly and staring down at Kaveh who groans at the sudden movement. Monday morning. "Kaveh," he whispers, shaking him lightly by the shoulder. "Get up. I need to get ready for work."

Kaveh stirs slightly, blinking open tired red eyes. He tilts his head up to stare at Alhaitham, a small mrrp sound resonating in his throat.

Alhaitham dips down to press a kiss to his forehead, responding with a soft purr. "I have to go," he murmurs, hoping Kaveh is awake enough for the words to make sense to him.

"Don't go," Kaveh whispers back. He tightens his grip around Alhaitham's side, purring back softly.

Alhaitham sighs regretfully this time. "You know I have to," he replies.

"But you don't want to," Kaveh retorts. He stretches his arms out in front of him, then sits up to let Alhaitham go anyway.

"Have to," Alhaitham repeats. He slips off the couch carefully, his tail sadly separating from Kaveh's, and it pains his heart, but it must be done. He leans down to kiss Kaveh's forehead, giving into the morning sweetness one last time before making his way to the shower.

Kaveh whines and, as Alhaitham slips into the bathroom, he can hear him sitting up from the divan by the way it creaks under his weight. Briefly, he wonders if getting up for the day—parting from Kaveh—is always this bittersweet.

Alhaitham pushes the thought from his mind as he turns on the light switch, then adjusts the faucet to the correct temperature for a shower. He sticks his hand under it, waiting for it to warm up, though his ears perk toward the door at the sound of footsteps outside.

They pass, and it makes Alhaitham's heart throb more than he would like.

After a few more seconds of allowing the water to adjust, he undresses and steps into the shower, letting out a soft sigh at the spray of warm water. It's refreshing first thing in the morning and he lets himself soak for just a moment before reaching for the shampoo.

He doesn't quite make it that far, instead freezing in place when the shower curtain is pulled back and a pair of arms wrap around his front, pulling them close.

Alhaitham stays still, just staring down at Kaveh until the blond lifts his head up at him, a smile on his face and tail swishing back and forth happily behind him. "You don't mind if I join you, do you?"

"Of course not," Alhaitham replies, though he places one hand on Kaveh's shoulder to press him back. He leans forward to properly grab the shampoo, pours a decent amount into his hand, then rubs it into his hair while Kaveh watches.

His ears twitch once, twice, then Kaveh leans forward to rest his head against Alhaitham's shoulder, his tail wrapping around his boyfriend's leg. "Can you wash mine too?"

Alhaitham sighs, a bit defeated. "You know I have to go soon," he says, though he once again reaches for the shampoo bottle and repeats the steps all over with Kaveh's hair. "You have more time to spend here than I do," he continues, massaging his fingers into Kaveh's scalp until the shampoo creates foamy bubbles.

"Mm," Kaveh hums back. His eyes flutter shut and his ears flick at Alhaitham's fingers when he rubs by them, careful not to let soap inside. "What do you want for dinner? I don't have any meetings today, just blueprints to sketch, so I can go out to the market and buy ingredients."

"Whatever you want is fine," Alhaitham replies. He steps under the water, tilting his head back to let it wash the shampoo from his hair, then pulls the shower head off the wall to rinse Kaveh's. When that's finished, he puts it back and moves on to the conditioner, spilling more out of the bottle into his hand before repeating the process all over again.

"Alright," Kaveh tilts his head into Alhaitham's touch, a small purr resonating from his throat at the intimacy. "Maybe I'll get chicken. Do you feel more like having butter chicken or Tandoori roast? Or maybe we could do seafood. I kind of want fish rolls..."

"I'll enjoy whatever you make," Alhaitham says, giving the top of Kaveh's head a kiss before he rubs the conditioner into his hair. "Go with what you feel like."

Kaveh huffs at that, the tip of his tail slapping against Alhaitham's leg, though it doesn't unwrap itself. He stays quiet as Alhaitham rinses his hair off again, then does the same with his own, but when Alhaitham turns around after placing the shower head back on the holder, he's staring at him again. His ears twitch, flinging water droplets onto the walls. "I feel like staying with you," he murmurs.

Alhaitham sighs. He presses another kiss to Kaveh's forehead, smiling to himself when he purrs back. "If you come up to the Akademiya at noon, we can have lunch together," he offers. "Maybe you'll have figured out dinner by then."

"Maybe," Kaveh repeats. He raises a hand up to Alhaitham's face, cups his cheek, and kisses him softly before pulling back. "I'll go to the market after that, then."

Alhaitham hums in response, taking a careful step back. Kaveh unwraps his tail from his leg, a frown settling over his features as he steps out of the shower and onto the bathmat, leaving Kaveh alone inside.

He grabs a towel from the shelf, wraps it around his waist, and stares back longingly toward the shower. "I love you,"

"I love you too," Kaveh replies immediately.

Alhaitham hopes he's smiling now.

With that done, he dries off, exits the bathroom, and heads to his own room to change into clean clothes, then back into the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair. His tail swishes back and forth behind him happily as he hears Kaveh humming to himself, still in the shower, and he utters a quiet, "I'll see you later."

Alhaitham leaves once again, making his way to the front door to pick up his silver key from the dish. Stuck on it, Kaveh's lion keychain smiles up at him almost as if begging him to take it and he can only imagine the anger and annoyance that would be on his boyfriend's face if he were to carry it all the way to the Akademiya with him. It would be a way to ensure their lunch together, after all.

Instead, he carefully untangles it from his key and leaves it in the dish.