Chapter - 39
The drive home was unusually quiet.
Not awkward.
Just... suspiciously quiet.
Nani noticed it within five minutes.
Sky usually had something to say-some dry remark, some teasing comment, or a complaint about Nani stealing his clothes.
Tonight?
Nothing.
He simply drove with one hand on the wheel, the other resting near the gearshift.
Nani glanced at him.
Then again.
Then again.
Finally-
"Sky."
"Hm?"
"Why are you being weird?"
"I'm not."
"You've been staring at the road like it personally offended you."
Sky's mouth twitched.
"I'm thinking."
"That's dangerous."
Sky laughed under his breath.
"Very funny."
---
Later that night, they were in their bedroom.
Nani changed into comfortable clothes and climbed onto the bed.
Sky stood by the window, still lost in thought.
Nani watched him.
"You're doing it again."
Sky turned.
"Doing what?"
"That thing."
"What thing?"
"Looking like you're planning something."
Sky walked toward the bed.
"I am."
Nani immediately sat up.
"What?"
Sky sat beside him.
Nani studied his face.
"You're scaring me."
"I'm not going to do anything."
"That's exactly what suspicious people say."
Sky laughed.
Then his expression softened.
He reached over and gently fixed Nani's messy hair.
Nani blinked.
"...Okay."
Sky brushed his thumb along Nani's cheek.
Nani's ears slowly turned pink.
"Why are you being so romantic?"
"Can't I be?"
"You can."
A pause.
"But you're being extra."
Sky smiled.
"Maybe I realized something today."
Nani tilted his head.
"What?"
Sky looked at him for a moment.
"When I saw you with those kids..."
Nani waited.
Sky's voice became quieter.
"You looked happy."
Nani smiled.
"They were adorable."
"I know."
Sky looked down at their hands.
"I kept thinking about it afterward."
Nani's expression softened.
"About what?"
"About having a family someday."
Nani froze.
Sky immediately noticed.
"Too much?"
Nani shook his head.
"No."
He looked down, suddenly shy.
"I just didn't expect you to say that."
Sky gently squeezed his hand.
"I don't mean tomorrow."
Nani laughed.
"Good, because you nearly gave me a heart attack."
Sky smiled.
"I mean someday."
He leaned closer, resting his forehead against Nani's.
"A life that's ours."
Nani's cheeks warmed.
"You've really been thinking about this."
"Yeah."
"What changed?"
Sky smiled.
"You."
Nani stared at him.
"That's such a cheesy answer."
"It's true."
Nani tried to hide his smile.
"Still cheesy."
Sky gently pulled him into a hug.
Nani relaxed against him.
After a moment, Nani whispered,
"You'd be a scary dad."
Sky raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"You'd interrogate our kid's friends."
"I would."
"You'd probably scare their teachers."
"Depends."
"You'd threaten anyone who makes them cry."
Sky paused.
"Absolutely."
Nani laughed.
"See?"
Sky looked down at him.
"But I'd learn."
Nani's laughter softened.
"Learn what?"
"How to be better."
That silenced Nani.
Sky wasn't joking anymore.
"I didn't grow up knowing how to do any of this," he admitted. "So if I ever have a family... I want them to know they're loved."
Nani's eyes softened.
He wrapped his arms around Sky.
"You'd be okay."
Sky held him tighter.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
A small smile appeared on Sky's face.
Then he kissed Nani's forehead.
Nani immediately pulled back.
"Wait."
"Hm?"
"You're doing it again."
"Doing what?"
"The romantic thing."
Sky smiled.
"I can't help it."
Nani narrowed his eyes.
"You're plotting."
"Maybe."
"What?"
Sky leaned closer, voice low but playful.
"Making you fall for me a little harder."
Nani's face went bright red.
"Sky!"
Sky laughed.
"There it is."
"What?"
"That face."
"What face?"
"The one I like."
Nani grabbed a pillow and smacked him.
"Shut up!"
Sky caught the pillow.
"Never."
Nani tried taking it back.
Sky pulled him closer instead.
And within seconds, the serious conversation had dissolved into laughter, tangled blankets, and Nani complaining that Sky was becoming way too good at making him blush.
Neither of them noticed the quiet smile Sky wore afterward.
For once, the future didn't frighten him.
It actually looked good.
.....
The next morning, Nani woke up with a strange feeling.
Something was different.
He opened his eyes.
Sky was already awake.
And staring at him.
Nani blinked.
"...Why are you looking at me like that?"
Sky didn't answer.
He simply reached over and tucked Nani's hair away from his face.
"Good morning."
Nani narrowed his eyes.
"You're doing the weird romantic thing again."
Sky smiled.
"Maybe."
Nani sat up.
"Okay. What did you do?"
"Nothing."
"That's suspicious."
Sky got out of bed.
"Get dressed."
"Why?"
"We're going somewhere."
"Where?"
"Secret."
Nani's eyes widened.
"Sky."
"Hm?"
"You know I hate surprises."
"I know."
"Then why are you smiling?"
"Because you're going to like this one."
---
Two hours later, Nani found himself standing outside a massive old building.
He looked up.
"...What is this?"
Sky stood beside him.
"A house."
"I can see that."
"It's ours."
Nani turned slowly.
"What?"
Sky handed him a set of keys.
Nani stared at them.
"Sky..."
"I bought it."
"Why?"
Sky shrugged.
"Because you said yesterday that you liked the idea of having somewhere peaceful."
Nani looked at the enormous garden behind the house.
There was a pool.
A greenhouse.
A huge lawn.
And, tucked behind the main house, a ridiculous little pink-painted room.
Nani's mouth fell open.
"Is that..."
Sky nodded.
"Your room."
Nani ran toward it.
"NO WAY!"
Sky laughed.
Inside was everything Nani loved.
Pink walls.
Soft lighting.
Bookshelves.
A huge bed.
A little vanity.
And an entire corner filled with plushies.
Nani turned around.
"You did all this?"
Sky leaned against the doorway.
"Yeah."
Nani stared at him.
"You remembered everything."
"Of course."
Nani walked toward him.
For once, he had no sarcastic comeback.
He simply hugged Sky.
Hard.
Sky's arms wrapped around him.
"You like it?"
Nani nodded against his chest.
"I love it."
Sky smiled.
"Good."
Then Nani pulled away.
"Wait."
"What?"
"There's one thing missing."
Sky frowned.
"What?"
Nani pointed toward the garden.
"A swing."
Sky stared at him.
"A swing?"
"Yes."
"You're twenty-something."
"And?"
Sky sighed.
"Fine."
Nani grinned.
"You're the best."
---
That afternoon, Sky was standing in the garden giving instructions to several workers.
"Move it three meters left."
"Yes, Boss."
"Make sure the frame can handle his weight."
Nani gasped.
"My weight?!"
Sky glanced over.
"You're dramatic."
"I'm offended."
Dew, watching from a chair, laughed.
"You've been personally attacked."
Nani pointed at Sky.
"See?"
Sky walked over.
"Fine."
He lowered his voice.
"I meant the swing needs to survive because you'll probably sit on it for six hours."
Nani's expression softened.
"...Oh."
Sky smirked.
"Thought so."
Nani punched his arm.
"Don't scare me like that."
Sky caught his hand.
"Never."
---
That evening, Nani sat on the unfinished swing, legs swinging slowly.
Sky stood behind him, pushing gently.
Nani smiled.
"Sky?"
"Hm?"
"Why did you really buy this place?"
Sky was quiet.
Then-
"Because I wanted somewhere that didn't feel like my empire."
Nani looked back.
Sky continued pushing the swing.
"No guards outside every door. No meetings. No weapons. No people waiting for orders."
He paused.
"Just us."
Nani's smile faded into something softer.
"You've really changed."
Sky shook his head.
"Not really."
He looked at Nani.
"I just finally found something worth protecting for the right reasons."
Nani's heart squeezed.
He reached back and caught Sky's hand.
"Then protect this."
Sky intertwined their fingers.
"I will."
A beat.
Nani smiled mischievously.
"Even if I turn the whole house pink?"
Sky stared at him.
"...Absolutely not."
"Too late."
"Nani."
"I've already decided."
Sky sighed.
"You're going to bankrupt me."
Nani laughed.
"You own half the city."
"Exactly."
"And yet you're scared of pink paint."
"I'm scared of you."
Nani grinned.
"Good."
Sky leaned down and whispered near his ear,
"You should be."
Nani's smile disappeared.
His ears turned red.
"...You're doing the flirting thing again."
Sky smiled.
"Works every time."
Nani kicked his foot lightly.
"Shut up."
Sky laughed.
And as the sun disappeared behind the trees, the mansion's newest room waited inside-
pink, ridiculous, and completely Nani.
For the first time, Sky wasn't building another empire.
He was building a home.