Sweet Melody | Kazuhira Miller x Reader
I suppose this is a follow up on the first one: [ Care ] You guys can take it or leave it really.
Summary: He sings to her a song, one of his own, one inspired by the growing feeling in his chest.
Words count: 3605
Sweet Melody
A quiet hum, which was the soft sound of the barely audible tune being played was the first thing the (h/c) haired young woman woke to that morning.
Feigning sleep, she curiously peeked through one of her (e/c) eyes, trailing it towards the source of the melodic purrs, finding herself gazing at a familiar guest.
On her search, she could only find the golden blonde haired Mother Base XO, Kazuhira Miller.
- And she probably should have known that it couldn't have been anyone else but him there so close to her, merely just enjoying his time.
He was there, casually sitting on what had become his usual seat placed right by her bedside, just inches away from her person. Currently, his head was inclined back, continuing on with the soft, unfamiliar tune, unaware of his little spectator.
There was a faint smile over him, the corners of his mouth lifted up by just a fraction as his index finger lightly tapped the chair’s arm with rhythmic movements, the action causing little to no sound.
The full image of his serene expression was lightly obscured as she could only see his side profile, and that was with a bit of struggle in itself.
She wanted to see more: to be able to admire him even more than she was already able to, but was too afraid to move more than just her curious eye, afraid that if he knew she was awake, he’d stop.
She wanted to hear more of it, so with very slow and cautious movements, she turned her head towards him rather than the ceiling, both her eyes falling onto the man’s scruffy, yet handsome face.
‘He looks so beautiful,’ She mused, the sight of him always being perfect in her eyes.
They were glued to him like bees on sweet, golden honey, taking all of him in.
And as she observed him more, she noticed him begin to move his naturally peachy pale colored lips, but rather than hear his voice ring out, soft breaths fell from between those two lovely lips.
Naturally, she assumed that the hushed sounds were the words to his little melody, and she wondered just what little song occupied his mind, and why the little thing had decided to be what he used to pass his time.
She then began to smile, a soft, closed one forming as she saw his head slightly swaying, moving from left to right with very steady movements,
‘And I thought it couldn't get any better,’ She told herself, feeling her face bloom with warmth, every other centimeter of her body following in suit as her blood was pumped with something delightfully sweet and warm.
“- What song is that?” she asked him suddenly, her voice somewhat croaky and weak, having just woken up.
She would have loved to bask in more of his sight as he enjoyed himself, but she also wanted to speak to him, share her time with him rather than just stare at him in her own silence, no matter how appealing that was on its own.
Stopping as he heard the woman’s voice, Kazuhira looked down at her with surprise, the smile he had during his performance growing gently as he watched her move comfortably, her entire body moving to lay belly down, her hands hugging the pillow beneath her head.
He found it hard not to form a smile around her, even moreso when she threw one of her own at him.
She was just happy that she was no longer strapped to anything, or in need of any heavy assistance which meant it’d only be a matter of time before she was released.
“I didn’t wake you up, did I?” he asked her somewhat sheepishly, his eyebrows creeping up with concern.
“- I don’t mind,” she told him, happy to have him there regardless of what situation, or time for that matter.
In just one more day she’d complete a full month of recovery, the time having flown by with him there, almost every moment of the healing process spent with the man.
Despite her unbothered response, he released a disappointed sigh, his shoulders dropping, “So I did,” he said with a short breath, shaking his head.
“I just said I didn't mind,” she assured him, her hand closest to him reaching out to touch his own which lay on the edge of the bed.
“Anyways...You’re here early,” She pointed out, moving on and hoping he didn’t sulk more, “Don’t tell me you missed me that much?” she joked with a small, teasing giggle.
Usually, she was up an hour before he would come in for his routine visit, but this time she’d woken up to him already being there.
Which was a treat, but rather strange.
“ I won’t sit here and lie to you, I did miss you, but I actually came in a little late. I felt bad about it at first, but then I walk in and find you snoring away,” He teased back.
Meanwhile, she took in the information with wide eyes, thoroughly embarrassed. She rolled back into her earlier position, her hands covering her face as she lay on her back, “Oh no... Please tell me you’re lying,” she said with a small voice.
“Oh alright,” he started, “ By a little late, I mean around an hour or so, maybe close to two,” he revealed to her.
“ I got caught up with some business I had to take care of first. My day starts pretty early after all,” he added, and as he explained that she gave a strong heave, still stuck on the part about her snoring.
“ - Am I really loud?” she asked with uncertainty after a two-minute silence.
“...If it makes you feel any better, I’m far worse. I’ve been told I sound like a barley working chainsaw,” he told her with a breathy chuckle, “I imagine you’d count as a smaller chainsaw, still as shitty though,” He added, making her whine.
“I’m so sorry,” She said in a small, uneased voice that was spoken through her two hands as they covered her face.
He shook his head, then taking his hand and letting his chin lay on it as his elbow sat on the armrest, “ ( f/n). Relax,” he said with present amusement, “ I’m just teasing you, You barely make any noise,” he told her.
“ Anyways, I hope you don’t mind me being here,” he continued on with a serious note, knowing it was strange to simply sit there while she slept.
He didn’t want to seem like some creep...
“ I still wanted to have some time to share with you, but I wasn't sure about waking you up.” He explained, having been troubled by the idea of waking her.
“I’ve been debating this whole time,” he told her.
What if she wasn’t feeling well?
What if she had suddenly gotten sick?
Sitting up she gave him a small smile, nodding, understanding his reasoning.
She yawned, a hand going up to cover over her mouth as it opened up wide, her face scrunching up as small tears bubbled at her eyes.
“Did you have trouble sleeping last night?” he asked her worriedly, his hand reaching out to slide beneath her right eye first, then left to wipe the small collection of tears there.
Touching her…
Being touched by her…
It was like breathing air. It was an unconscious action he wouldn't be able to live without after experiencing it. It had begun to be a very often occurrence, one he’d lost mind to after the first few, feeling it be second nature now.
And she didn’t seem bothered because, she had felt the same way.
Shaking her head she smiled, “ I’m just a little restless.” She told him.
“Being in bed all day and stuck here…All I do is sleep.” she told him, a blue blow of her lips being released as she hung her head slightly, “ So when the time comes for me to actually go to bed, I kind of struggle,” she told him.
The only trips she’d have were restroom breaks, which really want anything exciting. She was fine now, and she had been for the entirety of this week, the pain of before having gradually lifted off.
“Well, I'll just have to make sure to ask someone about that, alright?” he told her. “ I'm certain a bit of fresh air would do you good, Some sunlight… the light breeze…” He trailed off.
“You know,” he then added, “ We can walk around together,” he offered her. And with a single nod she agreed, “I’d love that Kaz,” she told him, suddenly sitting up straight, a look of great realization falling upon her,
“Hey!” she said with a slight pout forming, “The song... you never answered me on that,” she pointed out, and he slowly responded, “Oh well... yeah,” he spoke with notable hesitance.
“Where’s it from?” she asked him, “ It sounds pretty,” she admitted to him, making him immediately perk up.
“Really?” he said more to himself, “Well, if you must know...It’s actually something I wrote,” he told her, surprising her.
“Yo...You write music....like, songs?” she told him with intrigue.
“ I used to play too... but you know…” he trailed off, motioning to the cut-off limb with his chin, offering her a halfhearted smile. “That’s not happening any time soon....or ever again for that matter,” he said with a dry chuckle.
“I see, “ she voiced,“ I won’t lie, I would have loved to listen to you play. “ she told him, “...And joy one of your songs,” she added, all the while a lovely, little smile was drawn over her, truly having meant it.
It would have been interesting to her because she wouldn't have guessed he had played an instrument, much less had it in him to write music.
Those were things he didn’t mention.
In fact... she’d only just come to realize that the majority of the time, he was learning about her, and not the other way around. The only things he revealed about himself were scattered pieces lying in little memories he told her of, much of which was only happy times and good things.
When he did slip up and talk about something sensitive, he quickly steered it away, and admittedly, it did frustrate her.
Because she wasn't sure of his reasoning.
She wondered if perhaps he only wanted to make her smile, something he was always successful in achieving regardless of what he did.
‘ Maybe he’s just being nice,’ She told herself.
That possibility was sweet, and also likely because he really was sweet, just like a warm glob of honey.
‘Kaz... warm and kind...’
Those two words were ones she used to describe Kazuhira Miller of all people, and it was something she would have never assumed based upon their first meeting,
‘Back when he wanted me dead,’ She thought to herself with a shake to her head,
‘Is it insane to still feel that way about him?’ She wondered, questioning the likeness she had for him which hadn’t ceased in any way, and had in fact, only grown more.
They started off on the wrong foot,but even then she’d always felt something for him.
Then, even while having spent so much time with him, gradually falling deeper into those romantic sentiments, she realized that she barely knew anything about the man, atleast in regards to who he truly was.
What truly held him back? she wondered.
Was it fear?
Did he still not feel right to trust her with such things? Or was he just being protective...Just being considerate with her?
She had been almost certain he also had feelings for her, but she didn’t want to be too confident in that belief, because what if perhaps he was just being nice?
“Well…” He trailed off, “ I could sing you one of them,” He told her, sounding hesitant to make the offer, and unknown to her, his eyes trailed off from her for a moment, a bubbly, little feeling rising in the pit of his stomach as he waited for her reply.
He looked off elsewhere, first to the flooring, then off to the bed’s metal framing, and eventually coming full circle, his focus drawn back to her (e/c) colored drops.
With rounded eyes she lifted up her eyebrows high with surprise, ”Would you actually be willing to?” she asked him, looking at him with eager anticipation.
He could see a twinkle of excitement glimmering in her eyes as they looked on to him and chuckling, he nodded, “ If you’re willing to sit through it,” he told her.
Both her hands then pressed together over her chest as she repeatedly nodded , because it was an offer she just couldn't pass up.
”I have to warn you though, it’s not in English,” He told her, “It’s actually in Japanese,” he explained, making her grow more intrigued.
“- Yes please,” She encouraged him.
She’d heard him speak it before, loving the way the language rolled of his tongue. The only downside was that she couldn't understand him, but at the very least he’d been sweet enough to offer to teach her, something she was over the moon with, “Alright, Just for you,” he told her, clearing his throat with a forced cough.
And as she listened to him sing, her expression melted, along with her entire body following in suit.
But not with good settling, no.
‘Oh no...’
Rather than the sweet sound she had expected to hear, she was met with a sound that made her feel squirmy and uneasy, like the scraping of nails on chalkboard.
‘ My gosh...He’s...awful…’ she thought to herself, her hand reaching up to obscure her mouth where a small, amused twitch of her lips began to surface.
‘Really bad…’ she continued on, unable to shoo away the amusement she felt.
And she knew it wasn’t right to laugh, but she couldn't help it,
‘I think he might actually be tone-deaf....’ She mused on, watching his expression as he continued to perform. He was blissfully unaware of just how unpleasant he actually sounded, and it made it all the more entertaining.
In his mind, he wasn't even close to half bad, and only continued to grow on with more confidence as he was sure he was wooing her.
“So...what did you think?” he asked her as his smile grew, staring at her with expectancy, and she was sure that beneath the dark tinted lenses his eyes were glowing, practically sparkling.
He looked adorable...
‘So cute....’
“I like how it sounded,” she told him immediately after seeing his innocent hope.
And of course, she had spoken far before she could debate more on the matter and ultimately had downright lied to him.
Because, in all truth, he sounded like a dying cat.
Idealistically, she would have wanted to have been honest, but she couldn't bear the idea of tackling him down,
‘No... not with that sweet face,’
“I’m relieved you like it so much,” he said chuckling, feeling his face grow warm.
He had also hidden something from her, a little secret he had until then, “You know… I actually wrote that one a while ago,” He told her, and paying attention, she smiled, “ Yeah?” she asked him.
“ Yeah... about...about you,” he confessed to her, watching as her (e/c) colored eyes opened up more with surprise.
“ I know you might not understand it…” He started, “ And I suppose that was the intention because, I thought it’d be easier to show it to you that way, “ he revealed to her.
He had felt it easier to speak in his native language, a tongue he was certain she wasn’t fluent in. He’d tested the waters, deciding that if she liked it enough he’d be willing to reveal the muse to his art...
That being her.
“I-It's about me…?” she said airily, the admittance striking her fiercely, practically sucker-punching her and leaving her winded.
‘He wrote it about me,’ She thought to herself, her own face feeling warmth spread not just over her cheeks, but all over her face, a blossoming color spreading right up to the tips of her ears, giving away her delighted sentiment, and noticing the blush, he felt his courage fueled even more.
He felt it only right to continue, ‘ now or never right?’ He asked himself.
“I haven’t given it a name yet,” he revealed to her, “ So I was going to just name it after you as well…It’s kind of silly really,” he murmured towards the end.
“How many times has that already been done?” he added with notable mirth.
Sure he was trying to flatter her with the song’s title, but there was also the reality that there was no name more beautiful or fitting as hers. Nothing more could define what was practically a love poem, all in all, his confession.
Perhaps in the past, he had been quite the dog.
He’d be smoother when it came to women, practically a sneaky bastard when it came to them, but with her, he couldn’t use the same tricks. Not only did it not feel right, but admittedly, his handicap had dropped his confidence down a good amount of levels.
“It’s just that all this time we’ve spent together,” he started, “ It’s been everything to me, meaning more than you might think,“ He admitted, “ In fact, if I could, I wouldn't ever say goodbye, “ he continued on.
‘I feel like an idiot,’ He inwardly thought. ‘I sound a little too cheesy too, especially that last bit...’
“Oh Kaz…” she started, “It’s not silly at all,” she told him, truly flattered.
Heck, flattered wasn’t even a good word to describe the feeling she felt. Her heart was jumping up and down with joy that she, herself wanted to break out in exited somersaults.
“Please sing it for me again,” she told him with a hasty breath.
She couldn't understand it, but just knowing what it meant, knowing why he even made it...
As she heard the song a second time, she gazed at him, taking notice of the passionate way he carried out each verse, knowing that the energy behind his voice was stronger this time around.
She felt her heart blow up into tiny chunks by simply watching him.
Her eyes were completely glued to him, besotted with the lovely curves of his mouth, the edges on each side of it lifted up as he lightly swayed his body from side to side, investing his entire self into the rhythm.
His gloved hand then slipped over the powder green sheets, his digits creeping over hers, sliding up until his hand covered hers, fully encasing it, but not yet taking a secure hold of it,
"There's actually a final line to it…," he mentioned, his eyes skimming down to gaze at her pretty lips, watching as they parted, her tongue running over the bottom portion mindlessly, enticing him.
"What would that be?" She asked him, batting her eyes at him, her palms beginning to moisten with the anxiousness she felt, and with desperation, she lightly moved her hand to press more onto the sheet to try and lean it up..
‘Why is my heart racing so much?’ She asked herself. ‘ It’s not like we’ve never touched... it’s not like he’s never looked at me before either...
So why do I feel so... so excited?’ She wondered.
“ That would be… Aishiteru…” He said softly, his focus glued to her, his hand laying over hers, finally taking hold of it.
“ It’s the final line; something I've been meaning to say to you this whole time,” he added.
“W...What does that mean Kaz?” She asked him bashfully.
It was just a word, something she couldn’t understand, and yet she was feeling fidgety, squirmy with little delight at the way he said it.
‘ He can’t really mean…’
“ (f/n),” he started, his voice falling low.
Her breath was being held in as he leaned closer to her, his lips teasingly tickling hers with a light brush, “ Do you really want to know?” He murmured, sharing the same air she was.
It was a teasing question to ask, it being borderline cruel, because of course she wanted to know.
Airily, she answered back, “ Kaz, tell me. Please,” she urged him, her skin riddled with little goosebumps as his hand slid up her arm, gently gliding over its length before touching her jawline.
“ It means...I love you,” he revealed her, slowly melting his lips over hers, a contact that lasted for only a half a minute before he drew back, though hesitantly doing so, because he didn’t want it to end.
Still dazed as an aftermath of their kiss, (f/n) responded slowly, presently drunk on his gentle touch, her eyes peeking up at him through dark lashes and twinkling with a new light.
“I do too Kazuhira, I love you too,” she said with sincerity.
She drew towards him again, being the first to move and reach out to him, the second kiss lasting longer, both her hands on either side of his face to back up her words of proclamation.
What drew her towards him was fate, leading her heart to the right path to meet with his, together, healing one another.
- And he felt much more than a meager feeling of simplistic adoration for her, because it was so much more that.
There weren't any excuses to make, the care he had for her was evident, and now so was his love.
(灬♥ω♥灬)
63 notes
·
View notes
Interesting Papers for Week 2, 2020
Switch costs in inhibitory control and voluntary behaviour: A computational study of the antisaccade task. Aponte, E. A., Stephan, K. E., & Heinzle, J. (2019). European Journal of Neuroscience, 50(7), 3205–3220.
Multi-input Synapses, but Not LTP-Strengthened Synapses, Correlate with Hippocampal Memory Storage in Aged Mice. Aziz, W., Kraev, I., Mizuno, K., Kirby, A., Fang, T., Rupawala, H., … Giese, K. P. (2019). Current Biology, 29(21), 3600-3610.e4.
Visual fixation patterns during economic choice reflect covert valuation processes that emerge with learning. Cavanagh, S. E., Malalasekera, W. M. N., Miranda, B., Hunt, L. T., & Kennerley, S. W. (2019). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(45), 22795–22801.
Adaptive Regulation of Motor Variability. Dhawale, A. K., Miyamoto, Y. R., Smith, M. A., & Ölveczky, B. P. (2019). Current Biology, 29(21), 3551-3562.e7.
Maladaptive striatal plasticity and abnormal reward‐learning in cervical dystonia. Gilbertson, T., Humphries, M., & Steele, J. D. (2019). European Journal of Neuroscience, 50(7), 3191–3204.
Oscillatory recurrent gated neural integrator circuits (ORGaNICs), a unifying theoretical framework for neural dynamics. Heeger, D. J., & Mackey, W. E. (2019). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(45), 22783–22794.
Functional clustering of dendritic activity during decision-making. Kerlin, A., Boaz, M., Flickinger, D., MacLennan, B. J., Dean, M. B., Davis, C., … Svoboda, K. (2019). eLife, 8, e46966.
Virtual signals of head rotation induce gravity‐dependent inferences of linear acceleration. Khosravi‐Hashemi, N., Forbes, P. A., Dakin, C. J., & Blouin, J. (2019). Journal of Physiology, 597(21), 5231–5246.
Simple framework for constructing functional spiking recurrent neural networks. Kim, R., Li, Y., & Sejnowski, T. J. (2019). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(45), 22811–22820.
Dynamics and computation in mixed networks containing neurons that accelerate towards spiking. Manz, P., Goedeke, S., & Memmesheimer, R.-M. (2019). Physical Review E, 100(4), 042404.
Dopaminergic medication reduces striatal sensitivity to negative outcomes in Parkinson’s disease. McCoy, B., Jahfari, S., Engels, G., Knapen, T., & Theeuwes, J. (2019). Brain, 142(11), 3605–3620.
A statistical framework to assess cross-frequency coupling while accounting for confounding analysis effects. Nadalin, J. K., Martinet, L.-E., Blackwood, E. B., Lo, M.-C., Widge, A. S., Cash, S. S., … Kramer, M. A. (2019). eLife, 8, e44287.
Hippocampal-Prefrontal Theta Transmission Regulates Avoidance Behavior. Padilla-Coreano, N., Canetta, S., Mikofsky, R. M., Alway, E., Passecker, J., Myroshnychenko, M. V., … Gordon, J. A. (2019). Neuron, 104(3), 601-610.e4.
Exact firing rate model reveals the differential effects of chemical versus electrical synapses in spiking networks. Pietras, B., Devalle, F., Roxin, A., Daffertshofer, A., & Montbrió, E. (2019). Physical Review E, 100(4), 042412.
The transition from feature to object: Storage unit in visual working memory depends on task difficulty. Qian, J., Zhang, K., Liu, S., & Lei, Q. (2019). Memory & Cognition, 47(8), 1498–1514.
The relevance of alpha phase in human perception. Ruzzoli, M., Torralba, M., Morís Fernández, L., & Soto-Faraco, S. (2019). Cortex, 120, 249–268.
β‐adrenergic modulation of discrimination learning and memory in the auditory cortex. Schicknick, H., Henschke, J. U., Budinger, E., Ohl, F. W., Gundelfinger, E. D., & Tischmeyer, W. (2019). European Journal of Neuroscience, 50(7), 3141–3163.
Reorganization of spatial configurations in visual working memory. Timm, J. D., & Papenmeier, F. (2019). Memory & Cognition, 47(8), 1469–1480.
Abstract goal representation in visual search by neurons in the human pre-supplementary motor area. Wang, S., Mamelak, A. N., Adolphs, R., & Rutishauser, U. (2019). Brain, 142(11), 3530–3549.
Modulation of the pupillary response by the content of visual working memory. Zokaei, N., Board, A. G., Manohar, S. G., & Nobre, A. C. (2019). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(45), 22802–22810.
6 notes
·
View notes