CHAPTER 439: MORNING EMBARRASSMENT

Coco slowly stirred from her slumber, her mind foggy and disoriented as she woke up in her familiar surroundings.

She blinked her eyes, momentarily confused as she tried to collect herself and it took her a moment for the familiarity of her room to register in her mind, the soft sheets and comforting surroundings slowly coming into focus.

A wave of realization washed over her as she recognized her own room, and the confusion began to dissipate.

With her brain slowly shook off the fog of sleep, Coco’s frown deepened because what happened last night? Wasn’t she talking about something with the mediators?

She blinked her eyes a few times, a sense of confusion settling over her.

She couldn’t recall how she ended up in her own bed.

The last thing she remembered was.. What? Her memories were hazy, fragments of the previous night swirling in her mind like an unclear dream.

Without thinking, Coco’s hand reached out to seek comfort of her feline companion, her fingers involuntarily searching for the familiar presence of Konoha and hoping that Konoha’s soft fur along with her purring body would calm her down.

However, instead of the soft fur she expected to feel, her hand landed on something warm... And long.. Under a soft fabric.

Startled, Coco’s confusion deepened as her sleepy mind tried to make sense of what she was touching.

She squeezed once, twice, then thrice.

Then, with her fourth squeeze, a startled and muffled groan reached her ears.

Coco raised an eyebrow, her sleepy confusion giving way to a mixture of surprise as she realized what her hand may had come into contact with.

She quickly turned her head to get a better look at what she was unintentionally touching to check if her hunch was correct, her eyes widened slightly in a mix of shock and disbelief.

It really wasn’t Konoha she had found, but rather Zaque!

To add to her astonishment, her hand was gently squeezing something decidedly more intimate than she had expected, leaving her flustered and utterly bewildered.

Coco’s jaw dropped because without meaning to, her hand had made its way to a rather sensitive part of Zaque’s body.

The realization hit her like a wave, jolting her fully awake.

She pulled her hand back quickly, her eyes widening as her fingers tingled with the unintentional touch.

A wave of heat rose to her cheeks, her embarrassment growing as she looked up at a sleeping Zaque, the awkward situation creating an awkward silence in the room.

As if on cue, Zaque stirred from his sleep, his sleepy eyes opening slowly as he woke up.

Zaque’s vision focused on Coco as soon as they became clear, who was sitting up in bed next to him, and he immediately became alert, sensing something was amiss.

His eyes widened when he noticed the red flush on her face causing his concern to deepen.

He sat up quickly, the sheets falling away from his body down to his lap as he moved closer to her, worry etched on his face.

Zaque’s concern grew deeper as Coco instinctively flinched and covered her face once he did so, her actions adding more questions in his mind— Zaque scooted closer, reaching out to gently grasp her wrist and gently pull her hand away from her face.

His voice was tinged with anxiety as he asked. "What’s wrong, Coco? Are you hurt? Did you have a nightmare?"

His eyes searched her face, his fingers gently gripping her wrist, offering a comforting and reassuring touch, but his warmth is a little too much for Coco at the moment.

Coco grew even more flustered, her gaze automatically drawn downwards towards Zaque’s lap.

The memory of what she had unintentionally touched moments ago flooded back to her mind, causing a fresh wave of heat to rise to her cheeks.

She was suddenly hyper-aware of how close they are and that she’s a woman with Zaque being a man.. Sleeping on the same bed..

This sudden awakening made her eyes unable to meet his gaze as her face continued to burn with embarrassment, the warmth in her cheeks continued to spread, her thoughts a jumbled mess.

Zaque’s eyebrows furrowed in both confusion and concern as he saw Coco’s continued state of embarrassment and redness.

Sensing her discomfort, he gently released his grip on her wrists and moved off her bed, his tone tender as he spoke.

"Stay here, okay?" Zaque told her softly. "I’ll go get you some water."

He offered a small, reassuring smile before heading towards the door, intending to give her a moment to compose herself while he fetched the said cool drink.

Zaque quickly left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

The soft click of the door echoed through the quiet room, leaving Coco momentarily alone with her tangled thoughts, but still, her face felt warm.

The moment of peace allowed Coco to have a breath of fresh air, her blush slowly subsiding as she took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart— the memory of the unexpected touch still tingled in her mind and on her fingertips, a reminder of the awkward moment.

Coco let out a long sigh, her hand coming up to drag down her face in an expression of both frustration and mortification.

The memory of her hand landing in such an intimate position on Zaque’s body replayed in her mind in a loop, each recollection deepening her embarrassment and making her want to hurl herself across the room.

She groaned softly, feeling heat creeping back to her cheeks as she replayed the scene in her head.

"Meow."

Fortunately, Coco’s thoughts were abruptly interrupted as a soft, familiar sound reached her ears— the gentle mewl came from nearby so she turned her head towards the sound.

She found Konoha, perched on the bed next to her pillow.

The sight of Konoha, yawning and stretching lazily, instantly brought a frown to Coco’s face.

After Zaque brought Coco some water, he excused himself and told her that he needs to get ready for work.

Coco took this chance to get herself ready as well.

With her going through the motions of her usual morning routine, Lala and Konoha found themselves stirring from their slumbers after hearing a few thumps here and there.

Soon, the three of them emerged from Coco’s bedroom with refreshed looks, ready to tackle whatever the day had stored for them.

Coco descended the stairs with Lala perching herself on top of Coco’s head and Konoha trotting beside her as they made their way towards the kitchen, the three of them having different goals in their mind.

Coco wanted to get her packed lunch and not eat breakfast because she don’t think she’ll be able to face Zaque after what happened.

Lala wanted to get her small jar of cookies and have it stored on Coco’s inventory so she can eat later.

Konoha only wants to go with Coco before she have to go leave for work so she’s following her master around all morning until she walks out of the front door.

Once Coco walked through the kitchen door, she froze when she was greeted by the sight of Zaque wiping a cream off from the corner of his lips, his tongue darting out to lick off remnants of it.

Coco’s eyes followed the small muscle swipe across his lips.

"Coco!"

Coco flinched when she heard someone call her name white loudly, successfully snapping her out of her daze and making her aware of how warm her face feel.

She blinked and turned to the one who called her.

"Good morning!" Heiren smiled softly and walked towards her, his hands shooting out to touch her wrist, grabbing her as gently as he could. "I’ve made your favorite drink!"

Coco nodded her head slowly and she found herself looking at Heiren’s lips.

Why does everyone’s lips look shiny for her eyes today?

She wanted to ask herself, but she went against it and let Heiren drag her to the dining table.

Her heart hammered inside her chest when she saw Zaque flash her a smile, placing a couple of sandwiches inside of a paper bag before placing the said paper bag beside the lunch bag Heiren bought for her.

"Good morning, wife." Alhai greeted Coco and placed her plate in front of her.

"We will be leaving with you today." Quizen hummed, putting Coco’s mug beside her plate which was steaming and making it obvious that the chocolatey drink is hot.

"Thank you." Coco mumbled, averting her gaze from the mediators.

Everyone seemed to be shining for some reason and she knows that they’re beautiful in their own way, but they’re extra beautiful today.

Their attractiveness would be the death of her so she’s trying to not meet anyone in the eyes.

Nowz she’s the type of person who would prolong eye contact to anyone she talks to so seeing her avert her gaze was a little weird for the four mediators.

Coco ate her meal in silence and quite stiffly, rushing through her food like she was on deadline.

Unfortunately, Quizen and Alhai are quick eaters if they want to be so by the time Coco finished her meal, they were also done with theirs.

Fuck my life.. Coco cussed in her mind and stood tensely outside of the house, her heart pounding against her chest like she did something wrong and was about to get caught by a police officer.

What’s wrong with me today?