Fox Life

Grandparents were really enamored with Mila, so they begged to have her stay with them for a while more. After some consideration, Kyro and Iris agreed to it. They weren't that averse to having some space to themselves for a bit. Since Mila showed up, they had spent only moments without her around them.

They left early in the morning when Kyro needed to leave for work. He brought Iris home on the way, and she promised to be ready by the evening to go out.

As always, he didn't say a word about where he was taking her, but Iris was starting to get used to it. There was yet to be a time when he was forthcoming with his plans.

At that thought, she raised her hand with the ring. It shone brilliantly with the sun's light, promising her a bright future. But could she believe it? The idea was crazy, but she couldn't deny that she wanted it more than anything else.

Lucy meowed, and Iris went to the kitchen to see that he was looking at his food bowl with distaste. "What's wrong?" she asked, crouching down. The bowl was full of dry food which he enjoyed, so she had no idea why the big cat was calling for her.

He complained again, and Iris picked him up. "What is it?" She stroked his head, then scratched his ear while leaning against the counter. As much as she loved the black devil, he was one heavy monster.

Lucy examined her face, his head a bit sideways, then raised himself to lick her chin. His barbed tongue gave her a weird sensation, and she giggled while pulling him away. "You old man, what are you doing? Be careful Kyro doesn't find out you tried to kiss me!"

While laughing to herself, Iris brought Lucy to the living room and sat on the sofa. The cat looked at her with some dissatisfaction, but it wasn't long before he bent his back and straightened his tail to make it easier for her to pet him. "You just wanted attention and not food, didn't you? Silly old man, you could've just asked. Who could resist your fluffy charm?"

At her voice, Lucy turned to her with his good eye. It was dark blue and seemed to shine with inner light. His whiskers twitched along with his ears, giving him a very grumpy look.

"Don't worry, we'll all love you no matter how childish you get," Iris promised and played with him for a long while.

When it was an hour before Kyro would return home, she started getting prepared. First was a shower, then finding a suitable dress. He'd said that it wasn't anywhere fancy, so Iris chose a black and white dress she'd worn only once before. It had been their first time spending time together, and she thought of it as a good luck charm.

After a moment's consideration, she put most of her hair up with only the ends hanging loose around the back of her head. It wasn't too fancy, but for someone who hadn't done it before, it took forever to accomplish. By the time she finished, it was almost time to leave the house.

On her way out, she said goodbye to Lucy and ran out with a jacket in hand. She put it on in the elevator and looked at the mirror to make sure she looked okay. A few strands of hair had come loose, but she could pretend it was a style choice since she'd gone for a messy bun anyway.

Besides that, she certainly looked like a girl expecting a rendezvous with her lover. Her appearance was clearly fashioned to look good for someone, and her eyes were shining while a light blush was on her cheeks from all the running around.

Iris smiled back at the girl in the mirror and rushed out to look for Kyro. He was standing by his car, waiting for her, and she dashed straight into his arms.

"What happened?" he asked, slightly puzzled by her sudden show of affection.

She hugged him, then pulled back with a grin. "Nothing. I missed you."

"I see…" He stretched out the vowels, giving the impression of not getting it at all. But there was a smile on his face.

When she pulled back, he gave her a once over, and his smile widened. "You're beautiful," he said in a soft voice, his eyes on her face. His hand rose to touch her just below her collarbone, at where the necklace hung. "Maybe we shouldn't go anywhere. You look so much more prepared than I."

Iris swatted his hand away and danced a couple steps back with flaming cheeks. "I didn't spend so much time preparing just for you to cancel! Let's go!"

"Fine…" he agreed and opened the car door for her.

Once they sat down and she asked again where they were going, all she heard was the same old 'You'll see'. It played with her nerves, but she soon found a way to distract herself.

From her position as a passenger, she could watch Kyro as much as she wanted, and he couldn't retaliate. Not unless he wanted to risk both their lives.

He still hadn't gone to a hairstylist, so Iris decided that it was something he was going to keep. The hair wasn't long per women standards, but already the length of over half a finger. They were mussed from someone brushing them back repeatedly, and Iris wondered why had Kyro done that. Did something happen at work, or was he actually worried regarding something about their date today?

While she pondered that, she saw him watching her from the corner of his eye. With a glance to the front, she saw that it was a red light, and she grinned at him before continuing what she was doing without any shame.

He was not only her boyfriend now but her fiance, so she had the right!

With eyes on the road, he seemed like the picture of concentration. 'Wait, isn't that…' Iris chuckled. He was actually blushing! The great Kyro was actually blushing!

"What is it?" he demanded a moment later.

Iris shook her head, refusing to answer. It was her little victory.

In a while, they arrived and Iris stepped out. Kyro had unbuttoned his suit jacket so he wouldn't look as formal, and they walked down a street. There were many other people passing by and no one paid them any attention.

Before Iris could ask where they were going, her eyes caught sight of a familiar building. "You don't mean?" she asked, bursting out laughing.

"Why not? I thought it was fitting."

It was too much not to laugh. A bit in the distance was a small house with a burgundy door. The place wasn't large, but all of the house's walls and windows were covered in blooming flowers. They were different from the ones in summer, but there was no way Iris could mistake them for anything else than the attraction of 'Sunflower Garden'. The board with the name was also still hanging where she'd seen it before.

"I don't believe it." Iris laughed. She had never thought that she'd come here again. Especially not that Kyro would bring her. "I thought you hated it."

Kyro looked to the side, avoiding her gaze. "What gave you that idea?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe the way you glared at everyone and everything? That could've been it. Or maybe that you sat as stiff as a board and I had to embarrass myself talking weird stuff just to distract you? I don't know… so many options."

While speaking, Iris didn't forget to poke at Kyro's side. He turned around to glare at her, and she was delighted to see that the blush was back on his cheeks.

"Fine, we can go somewhere else if you don't want," he said in a growl and was about to turn to leave, but Iris grabbed him by the arm.