"My phone?" Maki blinked, her amber eyes reflecting pure confusion at the sudden, completely derailed subject.
She crossed her arms defensively, a faint pink returning to her cheeks as she remembered how their conversation had ended last night.
"I threw it on my bed after I sent that voice note, and it died overnight. It's plugged into the wall in my dorm. Why?"
Ren let out a silent, massive internal breath of relief. She hasn't seen it yet.
"No reason," Ren said smoothly, his trademark teasing smirk sliding right back into place as his hands settled comfortably on her hips. "Just making sure I have your full, undivided attention."
Maki scoffed, rolling her eyes, but she didn't step back. "You're lucky Satoru isn't here, or I'd let him throw you in a room with a Grade 2 just to wipe that smug look off your face."
"Actually," Ren murmured, letting his tone drop into something a bit more serious. He ran his thumbs lightly over the fabric of her track jacket.
"That brings up something else I need to tell you. About this whole... Heavenly Restriction transfer thing."
Maki's expression instantly sobered. "What? Is something wrong? Does it hurt?"
"No, no, nothing like that," Ren reassured her quickly, keeping his voice grounded. "It's just... yesterday, when Nanami was fighting those things on the roof. One of them lunged at me. And Maki, I didn't even have to think. My body just... moved." He looked down at his hands, playing the bewildered civilian perfectly.
"I knew exactly how to pivot, where to shift my gravity, how to pin it. It's like I suddenly have years of martial arts beaten into my brain. I think... I think I got your fighting instincts, too."
Maki stared at him, her lips parted slightly in shock before she let out a long, heavy sigh, bringing a hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose.
"Of course," she muttered, shaking her head. "If my raw physical specs managed to transfer over through a biological binding vow... I guess it makes a twisted sort of sense that the muscle memory permanently etched into those muscles came with it." She looked up at him, a mix of exasperation and genuine relief in her eyes.
"Well, at least I don't have to teach you how to throw a punch from scratch. That saves me a few weeks of miserable training."
"See? I'm already making your life easier," Ren chuckled, his chest vibrating against hers.
He didn't give her a chance to fire back a sarcastic retort. Shifting his weight against the solid wooden wall, Ren slid his hands from her hips to the small of her back, pulling her flush against his chest. Maki let out a soft, surprised breath, her hands instinctively coming up to rest flat against his collarbone.
The air in the dim, weapon-lined room suddenly felt incredibly heavy. The faint scent of polishing oil and cold steel faded beneath the warm, familiar scent of her shampoo.
Ren tilted his head down, his dark eyes locking onto hers. "I missed you," he murmured, the teasing edge completely gone.
Maki's breath hitched. The last of her rigid, combat-ready tension completely melted away. "It hasn't even been two days, idiot," she whispered, her voice incredibly soft.
"Still too long."
Ren closed the remaining distance, pressing his lips firmly against hers. Maki let out a quiet, yielding sigh, her fingers curling tightly into the fabric of his black t-shirt as she kissed him back.
The kiss started slow, a gentle reunion, but the heat of their previous nights together flared up instantly. Ren parted her lips, his tongue sliding smoothly against hers in a deep, familiar rhythm that made her head spin.
Maki melted against him, her powerful frame pressing heavily into his as the kiss deepened. Her hands slid up his chest, tangling into the dark hair at the nape of his neck.
In the quiet isolation of the armory, surrounded by lethal cursed tools, they completely lost themselves in the intoxicating gravity between them.
When they finally broke apart to drag in a desperate breath, a thin, glistening string of saliva connected their lips for a split second.
Maki's chest heaved, her amber eyes hazy and thoroughly darkened. She didn't step back. Instead, she let her forehead drop heavily against his shoulder, burying her face in the crook of his neck to hide her brilliant crimson flush.
She took a few deep, steadying breaths, letting the frantic hammering of her heart slow against his ribs.
Ren smiled, wrapping his arms securely around her and resting his cheek against the top of her green hair.
After a long, comfortable minute, Maki finally cleared her throat. She pushed herself up slightly, though she kept her arms loosely wrapped around his waist. The fierce, tactical sorcerer was slowly rebooting.
"Right," Maki mumbled, avoiding his gaze as she looked over his shoulder at the sprawling racks of bladed weapons, staffs, and heavy blunt instruments. She forced her voice back into its usual, business-like cadence.
"Satoru said you needed a weapon. Since you apparently have my muscle memory now... what kind of weapon are you actually looking for?"
"Actually," Ren murmured, a slow, entirely unapologetic smirk spreading across his face. He let his hands rest loosely on her hips, his thumbs drawing lazy circles against her track jacket. "Satoru didn't say anything like that."
Maki blinked, her amber eyes narrowing slightly as her tactical brain tried to catch up. "What? Then why did you tell me..."
"I just made it up," Ren confessed smoothly, his chest vibrating with a suppressed chuckle. "I needed a solid excuse to get you away from Panda and Toge without them following us. I just wanted to spend some time alone with my little babygirl. Can't a guy even do that?"
For a split second, there was absolute, ringing silence in the armory.
Then, the sheer, devastating audacity of the nickname registered. A brilliant, violent shade of crimson instantly consumed her face, sweeping down her neck and painting the very tips of her ears. The phrase 'little babygirl' hit her fiercely independent, tomboyish pride like a localized cursed energy blast.
"My... my what?!" Maki sputtered, her voice cracking an entire octave. She shoved her hands flat against his chest, pushing herself out of his arms as she glared at him with a mix of absolute horror and crippling embarrassment.
Ren threw his head back and genuinely laughed.
"I just wanted to see you without an audience," Ren teased seamlessly, a fond smile softening his features. "Besides, the blush looks great on you."
"You are a menace," Maki groaned, squeezing her eyes shut and aggressively dropping her burning forehead back against his chest to hide her face. "You're worse than Satoru. I can't believe I was actually worried about you."
"I appreciate the concern," Ren smiled, wrapping his arms securely around her flustered form and resting his chin on top of her head. "But honestly, I'm perfectly fine. Just seeing you is all the equipment I needed today."