He settled his weight over her, knees bracketing her legs, hands gripping her waist. Maki didn't fight the shift. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down, picking up the kiss exactly where they'd left off.
Then he pressed his hips into hers.
Through the thick, torn fabric of their uniforms, she felt it—a very distinct, hard heat against her stomach.
Her eyes snapped open. The warm haze shattered.
She planted both hands flat against his chest and shoved.
Their lips broke apart. Ren blinked down at her, dazed and breathless, hands still resting on her waist.
Maki's face was a violent shade of red that had nothing to do with anger. She turned her head away, jaw tight, chest still heaving.
"This is not the place or the time, idiot," she hissed.
Ren didn't pull back. He let his weight drop just a fraction and buried his face in the crook of her neck, pressing a slow, deliberate kiss over her collarbone.
"Ren," she warned, her voice thin.
"I know," he mumbled, breath hot against her skin. He didn't push further—just rested his forehead against her shoulder, his breathing ragged. "I'm just so tired, Maki. I just wanted a few minutes with you."
Maki didn't shove him away. She let her hands slip from his chest and wrapped her arms loosely around his back. The ruined station pressed its silence down on them, but for a few seconds, she let him rest.
She turned her head and pressed a soft, lingering kiss to his ash-streaked cheek.
"I know," she whispered.
The sharp bite had left her voice entirely. It came out gentle—a soothing tone she'd never used with anyone else, almost like she was calming a stubborn child. Her hand moved through his hair, fingers working apart the dust-coated strands.
"But you know this isn't the time for it," she murmured, thumb brushing the back of his neck.
"We can have all the time we want once this is over. Alright?"
Ren slowly lifted his head. The exhaustion was still heavy in his eyes, but a familiar opportunistic spark flickered to life.
"So..." he mumbled, looking right at her. "You'll let me do anything?"
Maki stared at him. The sheer audacity of negotiating terms in the middle of a warzone was genuinely staggering. She closed her eyes, breathed slowly, and exhaled.
"Okay," she said. "I'll let you do anything."
A tired smirk stretched across his face. "Cool. Then I need a few promises before I get up."
Maki's eyebrow twitched. "Excuse me?"
"First." He held up a bruised finger. "Promise you won't yell at me for being ridiculously clingy when we get back."
She ground her teeth, cheeks heating. "Fine."
"Second." Another finger, his smirk edging wider. "Promise you won't hit me, sweep my legs, or threaten me with a polearm for at least a week."
Her fists curled against his back. "Ren. You are really pushing your luck."
"And third," he continued, completely ignoring her as he leaned in just slightly, "promise you won't complain when I take over your bed for the next month. My dorm mattress is wrecking my back, and you owe me."
Maki stared up at him, face flushed, caught squarely between fond exasperation and the urge to strangle him.
"You are absolutely unbelievable," she sighed. But she didn't push him off. "Fine. No yelling, no hitting, and you can have the bed."
She moved her hands to his chest and pushed him back.
"Now," she said, her tone sharpening. "Are you going to get up and act like a normal person, or do I need to break my second promise right now?"
Ren let out a long, exaggerated sigh and finally rolled off her, pushing himself to his feet. He stretched his arms overhead, bruised joints popping in the quiet ruin of the station. He looked down at her as she rose, swiped a streak of ash from his cheek, and that irrepressible smirk settled back into place.
"Okay, mommy," he said, entirely too casual.
Maki was on her feet in an instant, face turning the color of a warning siren. She closed the distance and cracked her hand against the back of his head.
"Ow!" Ren jolted forward, rubbing his scalp. "Hey! You literally just promised no hitting!"
"That promise starts when we get back to the dorms!" she snapped.
She snatched Playful Cloud from the rubble, chains rattling as she lifted it, and drove one of the solid blood-red sections into his chest, walking him back a step. Her eyes narrowed into humiliated, lethal slits.
"Act normal, right now," she hissed. "And if you ever call me that in front of anyone else, I will personally feed you to a Disaster Curse. Do you understand me?"
Ren rubbed the back of his head, failing completely to hide his grin. Entirely worth it.
"Loud and clear, Boss," he chuckled, nudging the weapon aside to bump his shoulder against hers.
They turned from the smoking platform and started the long climb to the surface.
The trek was slow. Glass and twisted rebar crunched under their boots. With every step, the air grew thicker, baking the sweat onto their skin. Above the ruined stairwell, the black veil hung over Shibuya, choking out the night sky.
Maki kicked a chunk of concrete aside. Her fingers tightened around the iron shaft of her weapon.