Stewing The Heart

 'PLOP! PLOP! PLOP!'

 Sira peeled the wet fabric from her body and tossed each of her garments on the floor by the sink.

 Her skin was cold to the touch, despite having been in the heated car for forty minutes.

 She sifted through her bag and pulled out her pajamas and carefully pulled them on.

 'There's just something about wearing PJs and comfy clothes when it's storming out~' she thought as she grabbed one of the white plush towels from off the counter.

 'Oh wow, this is so soft~'

 She held the towel up and squished it in between her fingers before she gently began to grab and dry the ends of her hair.

 After her hair was no longer dripping, she wrapped the towel around her shoulders and headed downstairs.

 'Mmmm~ What is that~'

 A rich, fragrant scent wafted into her nostrils as she descended the stairs.

 Red and Orange hues bounced off the walls of the kitchen, the flames from the candles illuminating the large space.

 Standing in front of the stove, was Azul stirring a pot.

 "What are you making? It smells really good!" Sira walked over next to him, looking into the black pot.

 Inside was a creamy colored liquid with chunks of meat and vegetables visible as he stirred it with a wooden spoon.

 "I'm making stew." He glanced at her, but due to the low light, his expression was unreadable.

 "Mmm~ Sounds perfect for the weather. Is there anything I can do to help?"

 Azul placed the spoon on the counter and grabbed her hand, leading her over to the small breakfast table in the corner.

 "You can sit here and hold still."

 Placing his hands on her shoulders, he pushed her down into one of the seats before grabbing the towel and rubbing it against her head.

 "Hey! Hey! My hair!"

 "Yes, your hair. I'm drying it. I don't want you staying wet and ending up with a cold."

 "Yeah but, you're going to make it all messy!"

 Azul stopped and lifted up the towel. He then proceeded to lean over and look her in the eyes.

 "Does it matter? Where are you going to go that your messy hair will be an inconvenience? The only person that will be seeing you is your husband. Isn't it normal for a husband to see his wife in a natural, messy state?"

 Before she could protest, he began rubbing her hair again.

 "Are you saying my natural state is a messy one?"

 Despite the fact that Sira couldn't see him, he shrugged his shoulders.

 "I doubt you'll give me the pleasure of seeing your true natural state."

 He didn't know why, but he found himself hoping that one day that would change.

 After some time, he pulled the towel off her head and cupped her cheeks, looking her over.

 "What are you….doing?" Sira asked, thankful for the poor lighting so he wouldn't be able to see the blush that was creeping across her face.

 "I'm fixing my mistake."

 Sira's eyes widened, and her heart began to race as he leaned closer.

 'What mistake is he talking about? There's nothing coming to mind that he could be referring to. What's he doing?!'

 Her mind and her heart were both racing as his face intruded into her personal space.

 She leaned back a bit, but he only grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back.

 "Don't move." he said firmly.

 She stared into his eyes, never noticing how attractive their shape was before.

 Her body tensed as he hand made contact with….her head?

 Sira looked upward towards his hand, watching with a puzzled look on her face as he began to tuck her hair behind her ears and smooth out her bangs.

 "What are you doing?" She asked a second time.

 "I'm fixing my mistake." He repeated.

 "What mistake is that?"

 Azul leaned back and looked at her with raised eyebrows, his hands holding the sides of her head, "Didn't you say I was ruining your hair? I'm smoothing it out."

 Sira let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

 "Oh…I see…"

 "Why do you sound disappointed?" Azul asked with a chuckle as he stood up and returned to the stove.

 "D-Do I? I didn't mean to."

 "Well, Mrs. Grant, I hope the meal I've cooked for you won't disappoint you."

 He placed a bowl of the steaming liquid in front of her along with a bread roll on the side.

 "You made rolls too?!" She exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand in surprise.

 "No, I just bought them premade. I'm willing to take the credit though."

 They stared at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter.

 "Okay, how about I give you a half credit since you bought them?" Sira asked as she held up a spoonful of the stew.

 "Alright, I'll take it. It's more than I thought you'd give me."

 He sat down across from her with his bowl, although he didn't touch his spoon or bread, his eyes instead, bore into her.

 "You're not going to eat?" She blew on the spoon as she stared at him with a curious look.

 "I want to see how my wife likes it first."

 She stopped blowing and leaned back a bit, eyeing him suspiciously, "Or is it poisoned and you're using me as the poison tester…"

 Azul shrugged, "You won't know until you try it."

 With a smile and scrunch of her nose, she blew on it lightly once more before putting the spoonful in her mouth.

 Azul found himself leaning in, waiting with bated breath to hear her verdict.

 "MMMM! Wow! It's so good! Wow! Azul you're such an amazing cook! Where did you learn to cook like this?!"

 She quickly tore off a piece of bread and dipped it into the stew, giving it a moment to soak up the contents before blowing on it and popping it into her mouth.

 Azul chuckled and lowered his head, lifting a spoonful to his mouth before blowing gently.

 "It's instant."

 Sira immediately put her spoon and bread down and tilted her head, staring at him with a straight face, "It's instant?"

 Azul nodded and pointed towards the can on the counter, "Thank you though, I worked really hard to heat it up."

 'HWAP!'

 "Ow!" Azul rubbed his arm after Sira leaned over and playfully smacked him.

 "Tsk. I gave you such a good compliment…."

 Azul looked at her with an offended expression, "Hey. Do you think just anyone can heat it up as well as I can? It's the perfect temperature and it all heated evenly!"

 Sira facepalmed and shook her head while laughing, "Yeah that's what the directions are for."

 "I'll have you know I heated this up with love."

 That word seemed to hang heavily in the air.

 Sira blushed, "L-Love….?"

 Azul cleared his throat, "It's an expression. You know, 'it's made with love.'"

 "Oh right…."

 Suddenly, their playful banter puttered into an awkward silence, with only the sounds of their spoons clanking against their bowls and them slurping drifting through the kitchen space.

 When they finished, Azul cleared the bowls and took them to the sink.

 "I can do the dishes! You made it for us, so you shouldn't have to do them."

 Azul smiled at her, taking advantage of the opportunity to wash away the awkwardness.

 "Why don't we do them together?"