Their honeymoon was ending.
Four days of beach, food, chaos, sunflowers (he refused to think about that), water fights, and Nana being adorable.
Now they were packing.
Well, Zayne was packing systematically.
Nana was stuffing things randomly into her suitcase while holding a bag of acorns and hazelnuts.
"Why—" Zayne started, then stopped. *Don't ask. You know why. It's for the squirrels. It's always for the squirrels.*
"For Mr. Fluffytail!" Nana announced, catching his look. "And his friends! They need new food! International nuts! They'll be SO excited!"
*She bought nuts. For squirrels. As souvenirs. This is normal for her.*
"Of course," he said, continuing to pack. "The squirrels will appreciate international cuisine."
"Right?!" She beamed, completely missing his dry tone.
She was also unusually quiet. Subdued.
*Something's wrong.*
"Hamster? You okay?"
"Yeah..." She folded a dress slowly. "Just... we had a honeymoon. But we didn't really... you know. Do the thing."
*The thing. She's sad about not doing the thing.*
Zayne stopped packing and walked over to her, pulling her into a gentle hug.
"We got close," he said softly. "We learned about each other. We spent time together. That's what honeymoons are really about."
"But everyone says honeymoon is for... you know. The intimate night thing."
"Not every couple does that on their honeymoon," he explained, stroking her hair. "Some do. Some don't. Some just enjoy being together—kissing, hugging, talking. That's equally valid."
"Really?"
"Really. There's no rulebook. No timeline. We do things when WE'RE ready. Both of us. Not because of expectations."
She looked up at him with those big eyes. "You're very patient with me."
*Patient. If only she knew how much effort that patience takes. How much suffering.*
"You're worth the patience," he said simply.
She smiled—soft and genuine—and hugged him tighter.
"Thank you for the best honeymoon ever. Even without the thing."
*Even without the thing. She's grateful. She's happy. That's all that matters.*
"You're welcome, hamster. Anytime."
"Can we come back? With the squirrels?"
*She wants to bring squirrels on vacation. Of course she does.*
"We'll see," he said, which meant absolutely not but he was too soft to say it directly.
.
.
.
.
.
🌻🌻🌻
The flight home was uneventful.
Mostly.
Nana had dozed off almost immediately, head resting on Zayne's shoulder, using him as a pillow.
*She's comfortable. That's good. She trusts me. That's—*
"Mmm... Mr. Fluffytail..." she mumbled in her sleep. "I brought... hazelnuts... don't fight... share with others..."
*She's sleep-talking about squirrels. About nut-sharing diplomacy among rodents.*
Zayne found himself smiling despite everything.
*This woman. This absolute chaos woman who talks to squirrels and names anatomy and fights crabs.*
*She's mine.*
*Somehow, miraculously, she's mine.*
"Miss you... so much..." she continued, still asleep. "New food... you'll like... international nuts... fancy nuts..."
*Fancy nuts. She's describing food quality to imaginary squirrels in her sleep.*
He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, trying very hard not to laugh.
*I love her. So much. Even the squirrel parts. Especially the squirrel parts.*
"Zayne's sunflower..." she mumbled next.
*NO. NOT THE SUNFLOWER. NOT EVEN IN SLEEP. WHY.*
"—so big... like sunflower in garden... tall sunflower..."
*She's sleep-talking about anatomy. My anatomy. Comparing it to garden vegetation. IN PUBLIC. ON AN AIRPLANE.*
Zayne glanced around nervously.
Thank god everyone nearby was asleep or wearing headphones.
*Crisis averted. Barely.*
"Love you..." Nana mumbled, nuzzling closer. "Love husband... love sunflower... love squirrels..."
*She just ranked her loves. Me, sunflower, and squirrels. In that order. I'm not sure how to feel about being categorized with anatomy and rodents.*
But she said she loves me.
Sleep-talking, unconscious, completely unguarded—she said it.
*She loves me.*
*I knew. But hearing it—even in sleep—*
*My heart rate just increased 34 BPM.*
He held her closer, letting her sleep, listening to her mumble about nuts and sunflowers and squirrels.
*This is my life. And it's perfect.*
They emerged from baggage claim to find a welcoming committee.
Mina and Jisu, holding a "WELCOME HOME LOVEBIRDS!" banner.
And worse—much worse—
Sylus, Xavier, Caleb, and Rafayel.
His cousins.
All four of them.
Grinning.
*Oh no.*
*Oh no no no no no.*
That grin.
He knew that grin.
That was the "we're going to embarrass you mercilessly" grin.
"THERE THEY ARE!" Mina shrieked. "THE NEWLYWEDS!"
"Looking very well-rested!" Jisu added with a significant wink.
*Or not rested at all, their tones implied. Stop implying. Stop.*
Nana immediately brightened. "MINA! JISU!" She ran over to hug them.
Zayne stayed back, eyeing his cousins warily.
*They're going to say something. I know they're going to say something. Please don't say anything. Please—*
"SO!" Xavier said loudly, that bold, shameless grin on his face. "Did you do it?"
*THERE IT IS. THE QUESTION. THE INEVITABLE QUESTION.*
"DO WHAT?!" Nana called over, still hugging her friends.
"YOU KNOW!" Xavier made a gesture that was definitely inappropriate for a public airport. "THE THING! THE HONEYMOON THING!"
Sylus was laughing so hard he was nearly crying.
Caleb and Rafayel wolf-whistled.
Actual wolf whistles.
In the airport.
Where people were staring.
*I'm going to freeze them. All of them. Solid ice. Permanent installation in the airport. Tourist attraction.*
"Xavier," Zayne said coldly, ice practically forming in the air around him, "shut up."
"Oh come ON!" Sylus managed between laughs. "You went on a HONEYMOON! With your WIFE! And you expect us not to ask?!"
"Yes. That's exactly what I expect. Basic decency."
"Decency is BORING!" Rafayel joined in. "We want DETAILS!"
"You're getting NO details. Ever. About anything."
"Did you at least kiss her?" Caleb asked, slightly more tactful but still grinning. "Please tell me you kissed her."
*Of course I kissed her. Extensively. Thoroughly. Until she became a self-proclaimed master. But that's NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS.*
"That's private," Zayne said firmly.
"PRIVATE means YES!" Sylus interpreted. "You DID kiss her! Progress! Our robot cousin shows emotion!"
*Robot cousin. I'm a robot cousin now. This is my reputation.*
Meanwhile, Mina and Jisu had cornered Nana.
"SO?!" Mina was asking, barely containing her excitement. "How was it?! Did you DO IT?! Tell us EVERYTHING!"
"Did he treat you well?" Jisu added. "Was he gentle? Romantic? SPICY?"
Nana's face turned bright red.
"He was—we didn't—I mean we tried but—it's PRIVATE!" She looked desperately toward Zayne. "ZAYNE! HELP! They're asking private things!"
*My wife is being interrogated by her friends while my cousins interrogate me. This is a coordinated attack. They planned this.*
Zayne immediately moved toward Nana, putting himself between her and her overly-curious friends.
"We're leaving," he announced firmly. "Now. Before this gets worse."
"WORSE?!" Sylus called out. "We barely started! I have SO many questions!"
"You're getting ZERO answers. Goodbye."
He grabbed Nana's hand and their luggage, steering them toward the exit.
"AT LEAST tell us if you're HAPPY!" Caleb shouted after them.
"VERY HAPPY! NOW GOODBYE!" Nana shouted back.
"Did he show you his—" Xavier started.
*NO. NOT FINISHING THAT SENTENCE. ABSOLUTELY NOT.*
Zayne shot his cousin a look that could freeze hell itself.
Xavier wisely shut up.
But was still grinning.
*They're all grinning. This is why I avoid family gatherings. This exact reason.*
"Call me later!" Mina yelled. "I want ALL the details! ESPECIALLY the spicy ones!"
"GOODBYE MINA!" Zayne said firmly, practically dragging Nana toward the taxi stand.
Behind them, he could hear his cousins laughing.
And Sylus shouting: "USE PROTECTION! BE RESPONSIBLE! COMMUNICATE!"
*I'm freezing him. Tomorrow. First thing. Solid ice block.*
Finally. Blessed silence.
Just them. In the taxi. Away from shameless cousins and overly-curious friends.
"They're so embarrassing," Nana said, but she was smiling.
"They're terrible," Zayne agreed. "All of them. The worst."
"But they care about us!"
*They care about GOSSIP. About embarrassing us. About—*
"I suppose," he admitted reluctantly.
Nana leaned against him, still smiling. "Mina's going to call me tonight. She'll ask SO many questions."
*Of course she will. The interrogation will continue.*
"You don't have to answer anything you're not comfortable with," he said.
"I know. But I might tell her some things. Like how you're a good kisser. And patient. And—" she lowered her voice, "—about sunflower."
*NO. NOT SUNFLOWER. SHE CANNOT TELL MINA ABOUT SUNFLOWER.*
"Please don't tell Mina about—about that," he said desperately.
"Why not? It's interesting! Educational!"
"Because if you tell Mina, she'll tell everyone. And then my cousins will know. And I'll never hear the end of it. Ever. For the rest of my life."
"Ohhh." She considered this. "Okay. Sunflower stays secret. Between us."
*Thank god. Small mercies.*
"But I can tell her you're a french kiss master, right?"
*Master. She's going to tell Mina I'm a master. This is still embarrassing but better than sunflower.*
"...fine. You can say that."
"YAY!" She snuggled closer. "I'm going to brag SO MUCH about my handsome, patient, masterful husband."
*Brag. She's going to brag. About me. That's... that's actually kind of...*
*Don't say cute. Don't think cute.*
...cute.
"Just don't mention any anatomy names," he said firmly.
"No anatomy names. Promise!"
*Good. Crisis managed. Dignity somewhat intact. Mostly.*
The taxi drove through the city, taking them home.
Back to normal life.
Back to routines.
Back to reality.
But nothing felt normal anymore.
Because Nana was leaning against him, talking about bragging to her friends about him.
Because she'd mumbled "love you" in her sleep.
Because she'd claimed parts of him as "hers."
Because she'd become a kissing master in three days.
Because everything had changed.
*We went on honeymoon. We came back different. Closer. More comfortable. More... us.*
*And I—*
*I love her.*
*Completely. Utterly. Catastrophically.*
*Even when she talks to squirrels.*
*Even when she names things.*
*Even when her friends ask inappropriatequestions.*
*Especially then.*
*This is my life now.*
*And I wouldn't change it.*
*Well, maybe I'd change the shameless cousins.*
*And the airport interrogation.*
*And the sunflower thing.*
*But everything else?*
*Perfect.*
ZAYNE'S INTERNAL MONOLOGUE - 7:45 PM (HOME)
Medical log - Day Twenty - Post-Honeymoon:
Honeymoon concluded. Survived. Barely. But survived.
Summary of events:
- Wife sad about not doing "the thing"*
- Explained that not all couples do
- She understood (thankfully)
- She bought nuts for squirrels (of course)
- She sleep-talked about squirrels and anatomy (embarrassing)
- She said "love you" in sleep (SIGNIFICANT)
- Cousins ambushed us at airport (terrible)
- Xavier asked if we "did it" (INAPPROPRIATE)
- Sylus laughed (FROZEN TOMORROW)
- Friends interrogated wife (COORDINATED ATTACK)
- Escaped to taxi (BARELY)
- Wife wants to brag about me (cute)
- Sunflower stays secret (THANK GOD)
Current status: Home. Safe. Wife happy. Cousins alive (for now).
Realizations from honeymoon:
1. She's comfortable with me now. Completely. Trust established.
2. She's a fast learner. TOO fast. Three days to master. Concerning.
3. She talks to squirrels in her sleep. And about anatomy. This is normal forher.
4. She claimed ownership of things. "MY sunflower." Possessive. Adorable.
5. She loves me. Said it in sleep. Unconscious truth. No filter.
6. I love her. Knew this. But it's deeper now. Stronger. All-consuming.
7. My cousins are terrible. All of them. Freezing is justified.
8. Her friends are equally terrible. Coordinated interrogation tactics.
9. We didn't consummate. But that's okay. She understands. We're close anyway.
10. Eventually is still approaching. But patient. No rush. When ready.
She said she'll brag about me.
About being a "french kiss master."
About being "patient and handsome."
She's proud of me.
Proud to be married to me.
That's... that's everything.
Even without "the thing."
Even with shameless cousins.
Even with squirrels and sunflowers and airport interrogations.
She's mine.
And I'm hers.
Completely.
Prescription for resuming normal life:
- Return to work (surgery schedule)
- Maintain honeymoon closeness (important)
- Freeze Sylus (justified)
- Maybe freeze Xavier too (also justified)
- Continue patience (ongoing)
- Love her constantly (always)
- Never mention sunflower again (NEVER)
We're home.
Different than when we left.
Better.
Closer.
More us.
And I—
I'm happy.
Catastrophically happy.
With my squirrel-talking, anatomy-naming, master-kissing, sunflower-claiming wife.
This is my life.
And I love it.
All of it.
Even the embarrassing parts.
Especially the embarrassing parts.
Welcome home.
To us.
.
.
.
.
.
🌻🌻🌻
To be continued.