Five A.M.
The sound of alarm coming from the digital cock beside the bed rang softly inside the dimly lit bedroom. The alarm was not set to be loud but it was consistent enough to wake the figure sleeping on the bed and move his hand to turn it off. A pair of almond-shaped eyes blinked sleepily before glancing toward the blurry display on the alarm clock. When his vision became clearer, the person sighed. His slightly raised head was once again laid down on the pillow and he shifted to lie on his back. He closed his eyes once again, taking some time before finally opening them again.
Naoki turned to the person next to him, still sleeping soundly. Kaname would never wake up no matter how loud or how long the alarm rang, and Naoki always let him be. If situation needed him to, Kaname would naturally wake up by himself. Naoki was always amazed about this particular habit of his partner, it was almost like Kaname had a built-in alarm inside his head.
He stretched and, trying not to make too many sound, he got out of bed and dragged himself to the bathroom. He flicked the light on and flinched from the sudden brightness. He blinked again to let his eyes adapted to the brightness and automatically did his morning routine. Not fifteen minutes later, he was already refreshed and changed his clothes.
The wind blew softly past him as he opened the door to go outside. He shivered, quickly closed the door behind him to prevent the cold from entering the room. He pulled the zipper of his jacket all the way up to his chin and hastily walked toward the main building at the front. Their living quarter was separated from the main building, connected by a wisteria-roofed corridor. The main building in front was a two-story building and functioned as a bed-and-breakfast inn with a total of six bedrooms.
Naoki made a stop to pick up some firewood from the pile near the back door. Looking at the rather low pile, he reminded himself to ask Kaname to get more later. He entered through the back door–which was never locked in case of emergency with the guests– and turned on the lights. He brought the firewoods toward a circular wood stove between the living room and the dining room. He cleaned up the ashes from last night and put in several woods before igniting it. He stoked the fire until it burned steadily, and only then he went to the kitchen. He take off his jacket and hung it near the fridge, getting ready for the day.
The first ting he did was turning on the coffee maker. He made enough for him and Kaname first, then he would make another batch for the guests later on. While waiting for the coffee to be brewed, he took out a notebook and a pen from the drawer, then he checked the pantry. He noted down everything they needed to restock as well as taking out some things that already expired or needed to be cooked immediately.
After taking out the trash, the coffee was ready and Naoki poured a cup for himself. Coffee cup in hand, he walked around the living and dining room. His hand lightly touched the surface of the table cloth, the curtains, as well as the piano cover. He just changed them the other day so he didn't need to change them again. He frowned when he saw a spot of stain on the arm of one of the chairs. He tried to rub it off with his thumb to no avail. He sighed. Sipping on his coffee, he took out the fabric cleaner from the storage under the stair to get rid of it.
He smiled as the stain was finally removed, then he continued checking the other rooms. He rearranged the magazines and books back onto the shelves under the television. Putting remote controls and everything else neatly back to their designated storage. Board games were nearly packed and stacked near the magazines. He plumped the cushions and throw pillows so they would be more comfortable to lean on.
Next, he took out the laundry basket from under the stairs. They offered a laundry service for their guests for free as long as the amount was no more than 3 pieces of clothing. He brought the basket to the laundry room and threw everything into the washing machine. After that, he took out the vacuum.
By six o'clock, when Naoki was in the middle of preparing breakfast, the back door was pulled open from outside. Kaname's tall figure, already refreshed even though there's some strands of hair still jutting out of place, walked in. Naoki smiled at him.
"Good morning," he said, taking out Kaname's favorite mug and poured him a coffee.
Kaname walked over and took the mug from Naoki. He leaned closer to drop a kiss over Naoki's temple while mumbling his morning greeting. Naoki raised a hand to tug gently on Kaname's unruly hair. "It's cold, isn't it," Naoki said conversationally.
Kaname nodded, sipping his coffee. "Has the newspaper arrived?"
Naoki peered at the clock. "I think so. I thought I heard his bicycle ring."
Kaname hummed. He took another sip of his coffee before walking out of the house, his coffee mug in hand.
Naoki smiled and returned to his task on hand. They had three guests at the moment so Naoki prepared enough breakfast for all of them. He took a look at his note on the fridge. There would be two other guests checking in before lunch, so he needed to ask them if they wanted to join them for lunch or not.
Cooking was not only a hobby for Naoki. He used to dream to be a famous chef but one thing lead to another, he had to bury that dream. He lamented about this to Kaname and Kaname cheekily threw in the idea of running a bed-and-breakfast with him so Naoki could use his passion in a way. As a result, their bed-and-breakfast also offered lunch and dinner. Naoki also prepared a number of fresh drinks and snacks inside the fridge. Everyone could help themselves to them.
Kaname returned not five minutes later, newspapers clamped under his arm. One hand holding his coffee mug and his other hand holding a small crate with six bottles of fresh milk. Kaname put those things aside while Naoki started the breakfast. His hands skillfully mixed the eggs with cream, sprinkling salt and pepper, and toasting the bread. Another batch of coffee was already brewing for the guests.
He laughed when Kaname pointed to a pack of bacon seemingly forgotten on the counter. "I want a bacon sandwich," said Kaname, a bit demanding.
"Hai, hai." Naoki nodded. He put a pan on the stove and started frying the bacon. "By the way, we need more firewood."
Kaname has already seated himself in front of the kitchen island. He hummed while sipping his coffee, eyes trained on the morning newspaper in front of him. Naoki sighed, shaking his head. There was no use asking Kaname to do more work before he got his breakfast and finished his coffee.
Once the bacon was ready, Naoki spread some mayonnaise on the toast. He then stacked the toast with the bacon, lettuce, cheese, and slices of tomato. Kaname didn't like egg so Naoki didn't put some in. He cut the sandwich in two then served it to Kaname. "Here you go."
Kaname folded the newspaper and put it aside. "Itadakimasu," he said before picking one half of sandwich and started eating. Not long after, he put the empty plate and mug into the sink and came over toward Naoki who was busy making omelette. He hugged him by the waist and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "Gochisousama," Kaname whispered.
Naoki flinched, half-surprised and half-tickled. He turned half way to wipe some crumbs from the corner of Kaname's mouth with his thumb. Then, he rose on his toes to kiss Kaname on the lips. "May you have good day, Kaname-san," he whispered.
Kaname returned the kiss, then flicked the tip of Naoki's nose with his knuckle. "You too, Naoki-kun," he replied before walking out to carry out his own tasks.
Naoki got back to his cooking. He smiled widely when two of their guests walked down the stairs. "Good morning. It's a bit cold, isn't it. Were you able to sleep well?"
*****