heavenlydecree | (no subject)

(no subject)

[If there was one thing Takatora was sure he should have learned by now, it would be how to keep his life in perfect running order. He had been the head of Yggdrasill's Research and Development branch from the moment he'd left high school and even before that, his father had kept him on a tight and strict schedule, never a second unaccounted for or left out of place. Unfortunately, with all of Takatora's scheduling and trying to squeeze an extra hour into every day, he still felt as though he never had time for anything, let alone everything. Even his weekends left little time for himself, though Takatora was also painfully aware of his obsession with triple-checking everything under his command and bringing such weight onto himself. He couldn't allow for errors.

His morning routine started a bit later on the weekends, if only because Takatora knew he had to catch up on sleep at some point to make up for running himself ragged. Getting sick was something he couldn't risk. The usual morning routine went by quickly: dragging himself out of bed (he'd never become a morning person, as much as he wanted to), showering, getting dressed, checking for any news or alerts while he had been sleeping. Thankfully, nothing important had happened during the night. Takatora always lived with the fear of something awful happening while he was asleep that he would be unprepared for, but every morning brought the same temporary relief. For now.

Takatora headed out of his room after an hour or so, still checking his phone as he made his way down the hall and towards the stairs. Ryouma already wanted to talk to him about something, which was mildly surprising as Ryouma rarely (never) got out of bed so early, which meant he'd been up all night again. Stepping past one of the maids, Takatora spoke a return greeting to her as he continued on, paying more attention to typing out messages than his surroundings.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Eehh...

[Great, now he's super worried.]

... why don't you like him? Did he do something to you? ... did he hurt you?

N-no.

[Not really, at least. Creeped him out, but... well.]

He's just... manipulative. And sneaky. He's just not good news all around.

[Kouta doesn't really trust that no, but he goes with it.]

... is he mean to your brother?

... I don't know. He knows him. They were roommates in university. So he might just be that way around me, but I doubt it.

[He pulls away a bit to rub at his face again. Why does it still feel sensitive? It shouldn't. It's just his mind reacting badly...]

Edited 2014-09-25 06:15 (UTC)

Well, if he's a bad friend, then your brother shouldn't talk to him...

[The rubbing of Micchy's face gets his attention.]

... what's wrong?

I can't exactly stop him -

[... Oh. Should he be honest about that?]

... He startled me yesterday, and got too close. He doesn't have much of a sense of personal space.

[He can hear his heart beating loud enough that it feels like Kouta would be able to hear it, too. He looks down, wrapping his arms around himself.]

It's nothing, I guess. It's not your problem. Don't worry about it.

[Wait, no. No, no, no. Go back. That's concerning. Kouta's voice is definitely serious.]

No, tell me. What did he do?

[And of course, he doesn't like how closed off Micchy is getting, so he gently tries to coax the other back into his arms.]

[He curls up a little against Kouta, bringing his knees into his chest. Just thinking about it makes him feel vulnerable and terrified, even if nothing really happened.]

He pushed me against a wall and got in close. He... he also got to a spot where I'm... more sensitive.

[Please interpret this correctly, Kouta.]

He didn't really touch me aside from that. It's not anything he could really get in any sort of trouble for. I didn't tell my brother, because I don't want him to think that I run to him for everything.

[He still feels terrible and dirty for letting someone like that get too close.]

I guess I'm kind of repressed.

[He knows the birds and the bees talk, but anything involved... he doesn't really think about. He has other things on his mind. He's never really... tried to take matters into his own hands, so to speak.]

[Kouta just pulls Micchy as close as he can and comfortingly rubs the other's back as he listens to him speak. The urge to track this guy back down and knock some sense into him or at least yell at him a bit is far too tempting. Kouta's not sure he'll be able to fight that urge down if he runs into him again.]

I'm really sorry that happened to you...

[Kouta squeezes him again, his heart sinking a bit. Micchy really was like a little brother to him.]

If he did something like that... I understand not wanting to tell your brother, but if it might stop him from getting close to you again...

I can deal with it. My brother has enough to deal with on his own. Not to mention the fact that it would be my word against his friend's, and I admitted that I had been lying about where I was going after school for a while, so I don't know that he trusts me much right now.

... I probably wouldn't, in his position.

[Kouta makes a frustrated noise at that.]

How are you going to deal with it?

... I don't know. I did fight back, but he's stronger than me. I'll just have to be careful.

[He hates being powerless. He can't be transformed all the time, but he just feels like he can be in control that way. But he's not the fastest, or the strongest. He just has to know how to fight back. He doesn't want to fight, but, he'll protect himself.]

Kouta...

[He presses himself against his friend's chest, a tickle running down his spine. It feels good to be with someone like this.]

You shouldn't have to worry about guys like that! I can kick his ass for you. Or at least yell at him, or something. But that might make it worse.

[He hugs Micchy again, rubbing the other's back.]

You can... stay here, if you feel safer here...

... I can't. I have school, I have other responsibilities... it would kill my brother if I just ran away like that, too. I can't do that to him.

But thank you, Kouta.

[Kouta understands, but that doesn't mean he likes it.]

... okay. But I'm here if you ever need a place to stay.

I know. And I appreciate it.

[He relaxes a little bit more, eyes closing.]

You're really good at backrubs. How'd you learn how to do that?

-- eh?

[Kouta actually blushes at that, removing his hands from Micchy's back in embarrassment.]

Aah... Yuuya did it a lot when we first met. I guess I just picked up on it.

[He opens his eyes and looks up at Kouta.]

It's nice. I've had massages before, but it's... different when it's a friend doing it.

I could really try sometime if you want. I'm not sure I'd be any good at it. I'm really out of practice and Yuuya was usually the one doing all the work...

[Kouta pouts a bit at the mention of his friend. It really bothered him that he hadn't been around anymore. To just leave everyone like that...]

It's okay. I just... like I said, I'm not used to people being touchy. I don't mind when you do it.

[His brain is busy being overactive, though. He shoves those thoughts to the side and tries to ignore them.]

I don't mind when most people are touchy. You guys are okay.

[Kouta turns a bit and lays down on the bed, careful to avoid the bags.]

... oh. We should probably eat, huh?

That's usually a good idea.

[He shifts and picks through the snack. Let's see... gummy candies? Huh.]

[Kouta reluctantly sits back up, digging through the bags and starting to sort things. Candy in one stack, cake and sweets in another, drinks, warm food... When he gets to the warm food, he takes a closed paper envelope and rips the top off, starting to offer it to Micchy and then pausing.]

Aah... no meat, right...

[He takes a small cardboard container, opening it and folding the lid back while wrestling with a ketchup packet.]

Do you like fried potatoes?

Yeah. Potatoes are fine. Thanks.

[Oh. He smiles at Kouta, and takes the package. Use both hands, Kouta.]

[Nope, he's using his mouth to tear the edge off of the packet and carefully tucks the ketchup packet into the bent-back lid of the cardboard container.]

See? Isn't this cool? There's a place that holds your ketchup for you.

[He seems excited to be sharing these sorts of minor marvels with his friend, picking up his chicken from his lap and taking a bite of it.]