the simplicity of being happy with you (KNY, GenTan)
He knows he shouldn’t be doing this.
He knows that far too well, after they had a long, long talk with Tanjirou about how difficult it is to have a single cat, and they have three of them.
He knows all of that, he knows they both shouldn’t have many pets, he knows just three are more than enough, but he couldn’t say no to them, he was physically unable to say no to them and their cute faces.
On his way home, Genya heard a strange noise coming from a cardboard box abandoned on the street. At first he didn’t mind it, thinking it wasn’t anything important or interesting for him, but the moment he heard not one, but near four different tones of meow, he had to stop and check on all of them.
Four. Four of the most precious kittens he had ever seen. They were hungry and thin, all of them, it took Genya a lot of his inner strength to not cry right there.
On one of the sides of the box there was a message written, it barely visible due to the damage of the box, but it was just a short explanation on why the owner couldn’t keep the cats with them. Swallowing all his sadness at the image of this poor group of starving kittens, he’s here now, walking uncomfortably with a big, dirty box and planning what kind of excuse he was going to say to Tanjirou after he came from work. Because it has to be enough convincing to not kick all five of them out of the apartment.
Maybe, he thought, he could keep the kittens for now, and then set them up for adoption once they’re healthy, it will be a short time, enough for them to take proper care of the cats, verify if they’re all okay and feed them properly, then gift them to their closest friends or send them to the animal shelter, Tanjirou is very weak when it comes to take care of those who need it, too... Though this is far, far beyond his limits, he knows.
However, he must understand he couldn’t leave them alone, abandon all of them and their cute faces and small paws and- oh my god, he’s crying again.
Sniffing once again at the image of the small babies, he whispered, “I’m sure he’ll keep you guys, but you need to be quiet, okay?”
In response, one of them stumbled its way over all its siblings to try and get closer to him.
Genya had to stop immediately and bite his fist in an attempt to not start sobbing at the cuteness.
They’re all just like Tanjirou, and it makes his heart twist in ways he didn’t know it could.
Actually, the three cats they have at home went through the same path: Genya found them on his way home and their cuteness, loyal resemblance to Tanjirou’s round and pretty face, were enough to have them living with him for a year already. At first, Tanjirou was really happy, but the third cat wasn’t well received, he remembers that very well.
Because even though Tanjirou Kamado is the most pure and caring soul, he has his own limits too.
“Genya, we already have two cats, and that’s enough. See,” he pointed aggressively “look at the sofa! And this beast eats twice his weight! How can we keep the three of them?”
“She was starving, and it was raining, you insensitive asshole.”
“Oh my god,” he sighed loud and long, visibly stressed, “this is the last one, Genya. Promise me that.”
Now he has to think of a different excuse, though. Something so big it can break a pinky promise.
How Tanjirou will react is a mystery for him. He rarely is angry, if even, it’s only at bitter news of a lot of injustice going on outside. His patience created by being the older brother is really, really high, so he can’t really know when he is going too far, nor if bringing four more cats, ending with a total of seven cats for at least a month in their shared apartment is a good idea to figure that out.
“It will be fine,” he tried to convince himself, failing on every step he makes, the anxiety growing bigger and bigger the moment he was already at the entrance of their place, even if Tanjirou is still at work, an hour until he’s back.
Struggling a lot with the box and the keys, he finally opened the door, pushing it open with his back and trying to not hit the kittens or shake their small improvised home on his way inside. It was exhausting, even for someone like him, who considers himself a very athletic person.
Once he was two steps inside, he closed the door with his leg and turned to face directly to the person he wanted to see the least this precise moment.
He arrived earlier. One. Fucking. Hour. Earlier.
“Hi babe,” he smiled awkwardly.
“What do you have there?”
“Uh,”
A loud, high pitched noise came from the box, revealing the identity of one of the four kittens inside. They both stared at each other in silence, Tanjirou’s face didn’t even flinch, like he was actually expecting for this scenario to happen one day.
“...Drugs?”
***
It took him approximately two hours and forty three minutes of begging –and a promise to do the chores for a month– for Tanjirou to agree on keeping the kittens in their humble apartment.
Tanjirou’s anger didn’t last a single minute, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to act all stubborn on the matter. However, long, long years living with him were enough for Genya to understand what were his weak points and how they are all enough to make Tanjirou agree with his ideas most of the time. Some of these weak points were related on praising him, make some promises then and there, a lot of negotiation on the chores and also use his hidden card that comes in handy on these situations.
“You signed up for this.”
“Oh my GOD.”
Because yes, he did. And he knew very well where he was heading to, who he was dating. Maybe he expected a terrible thing like a gang leader or a feral beast, but still, he signed up for this . Genya asked a lot of times if he was sure, if he actually wanted to live with him, to start a life together far away from their families, and he answered with a determined yes every single time, so he can’t back up now, it’s too late.
Not like he doesn’t fear Tanjirou getting tired of him and leave suddenly, but he doesn’t seem to regret things so far.
While Tanjirou was cleaning the cats with a wet towel, Genya fidgeting on his side after being scolded, he stared at him for longer than intended and, God, how lucky he is to have Tanjirou in his life.
On his most solitary nights, he never thought he was going to be in this place, living that promise he made to himself to take care of all the abandoned animals in the world –though in this case only cats have been admitted– with the person he loves deeply. Hell, even not that long ago he would deny the option of dating Tanjirou at all.
Far, far away from his own league, Tanjirou was the most beloved person in every place he was, charming like a prince, beautiful like a statue, smile wide and pretty, his laugh and his voice like the most delightful piece of music, his long eyelashes protecting those irresistible garnet eyes burning hot like fire. They were so, so warm they could melt ice in seconds, and did, actually, burn down the thick walls Genya set around his wounded heart, afraid of being hurt again.
Since he first met him in middle school, he had accepted he would, in no way, be the lucky man who happened to win his heart.
But yeah, things didn’t go exactly like that, huh? He’s here now, they’ve been dating since he was sixteen and now, ten years later, they’re still tightly together as the first day. Not even his wildest teen dreams would see him dating someone like him, let alone this long and still looking forward for more years together. Genya was so, so lucky, not winning the lottery would make him as happy as he is right now.
“Tanjirou,” he tugged his shirt.
“Hm?”
“I love you.”
Tanjirou stared back at him, one cat in his right hand and the other holding the wet towel, now stained with some dark spots.
“You won’t use that one to make me forgive you. I’m still angry, you know.”
“No, I’m serious. I really love you.”
After carefully leaving the now clean kitten back on the box, Tanjirou let out a small chuckle. “Remember when you couldn’t even say that without ending all blushed, red like a tomato?”
Sigh.
“Yes,” Genya crawled from his side, leaning more and more, breaking Tanjirou’s concept of space, “I do.”
“Look at you now,” he said, raising his arms to greet Genya’s shoulders and gently pulling him closer and closer grabbing him by the back of his neck, “you don’t even stutter a bit, it makes me a bit upset.”
“How so?”
“It was funny to tease you like this.”
The closer they were getting, the lower their voices would be, soft whispers barely audible in the room now, both bodies still sitting on the floor, foreheads pressed as they stared fiercely into the other’s eyes, none of them wanting to break contact or lose this competitive game on who gives up first.
As usual, the first one to break down is Genya. “Just kiss me already,” he mumbled, as he finally leaned closer enough to connect their lips in an intense kiss.
Scolded like a small kid the second he entered their home, he was deprived from all the physical contact he craves all day at work – hugs, cuddles or bathing Tanjirou in small pecks all around his face or just casually hold hands as they watch tv or are working on their stuff from their laptops. Those are the days Genya grew addicted to, and seems his boyfriend knows that very well, making him wait like a puppy for his favorite treat and mess around him whenever he arrives from work with his social battery in a perfectly round zero.
That’s the only thing he looks up to every day, to be honest.
Spending time with Tanjirou has become sacred lately, their shifts have been colliding a lot to the point they only can see each other at night, where they’re both already too tired to do anything together, just order a greasy take out and pass out on their bed, wake up first thing in the morning, share a rushed breakfast together and repeat.
He loves Tanjirou so much, he craves his warm touch and his soft voice, he misses him when he’s alone –yes, even if they’re in different rooms–, not even the distraction of a full time job can take away how much he needs him.
Genya sees him everywhere, on all the beautiful things in this world; on the sunny days, on the beautiful view of the sky or someone’s laugh, on the flowers blossoming with the next season starting and on all the colors around him.
There are so many things he sees in Tanjirou, it became difficult to not have him in mind all day. He doesn’t care, though. He really loves this feeling, even if it hurts a bit when they are separated, dealing with this chaotic world on their own.
Just as sacred their time together is getting, whenever there’s just a bit extra of time they can spend for themselves, they make sure they enjoy it on its fullest. It’s cheesy, he knows, how whipped he is for Tanjirou Kamado. How it became impossible for him to not voice how much he loves him in very random moments: during dinner, breakfast or lunch, when they brush their teeth every morning or when they’re watching a movie. Those are for him small moments where he needs to make sure Tanjirou remembers he absolutely, entirely, completely owns Genya’s heart, and he has never and will never feel something this big and this strong for anything else.
Grossly interrupted by the chorus of cats begging for food, Tanjirou patted Genya’s shoulder to break their kiss, much to their disappointment.
But before they get back to their night routine, Genya grabbed his boyfriend’s face and gently kissed his forehead, staying there for a solid second just to follow it by a kiss on the tip of his nose. Content with that, he pushed Tanjirou’s face away with his hand and stood up while the other was struggling to get up from the floor after being shoved away.
“You’re mean!”
“I needed some balance in my life,” he excused himself, kneeling down few steps away to take the small kittens out of the box one by one, allowing them to explore their new home.
“Hmph,” Tanjirou crossed his arms, then his face light up with a bit of malice. “Genya- hey , hey Genya.”
“What.”
“I love you too.”
“...”
Ah, yes, that’s the moment. Where just a simple composition of words that create a sentence generates the biggest shockwave in Genya’s body.
The confirmation, the reminder that yes, it’s mutual. Yes, it has never and will never be one-sided. That yes, he won. He won to life, he won to the memories from his younger days, he defeated all his fears and is now facing the best moment in his entire life, sharing his life with the best person he has ever met, the most sweet, wonderful, talented, and certainly most beautiful human being to ever exist. The only person outside his family he cares for, the only reason he’s here right now.
A reminder, a gentle, quick, short reminder that yes, fuck yes, Tanjirou loves him, he loves him. And they now have seven little beasts as their kids –for a month, he knows–.
Covering his face with the back of his hand, he nodded in response, the red dust in his face growing darker as he heard Tanjirou’s laugh from distance after standing up and rushing to the kitchen.
Years may have happened, many of them. Years where they learned more about each other, their deepest secrets, their untold wishes and their biggest fears. Where they witnessed each other’s glories and had to fight with them through difficult days. Years where they confronted the worst together and enjoyed the good times to its fullest, days where they had to swallow their pride and learn how to say sorry or you’re right , and days where they just gave up on their arguments and gave each other the cold shoulder, even if it lasted for less than an hour.
All of that, they went through all of that and are ready for even more, but Genya will never get used to this. Those feelings from their first years as a couple still there, this so-called honeymoon phase still wandering between them, every I love you feeling like the first one, making his heart rate blowing up to the sky and even further.
As he opened the can of cat food and prepared everything so the kittens wouldn’t struggle much to eat it, he heard the new members of the family run closer to the source of the –apparently, because he despises it– delicious smell.
Watching them eat their food earnestly, he rubbed their tiny heads with his finger.
“See? I told you everything was going to be okay, you didn’t trust me, dummy.” Standing up again and rolling up his sleeves to prepare himself mentally and physically to do the dishes, he continued. “Now we’ll have to get him let you guys live here forever.”
