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

[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.]

[It actually is pretty cool, and he can't help but grin a little bit as he starts eating. It's greasy and a little gross, but it's still kind of fun.]

[Kouta takes a few bites of his chicken before setting it back down, grabbing up a soda and setting it in his lap to wrestle with getting it open before handing it over to Micchy.]

This one's grape. If you don't like it, I'll drink it.

[He can't help but give a little snort of amusement and holds his hand out to take it.]

Thanks, Kouta.

[Hey, he has to be childish sometimes! He grins widely at his friend and then goes back to opening his own drink (orange, of course) and takes a long sip.]

Is there anything else you wanna talk about?

I don't know. How have been things going with you outside of the team?

[Not talking about school or... company stuff... he can handle himself in a conversation fine, he just hasn't had many people he can talk to about just random things.]

There's... not really anything outside of the team for me anymore, I guess.

[He has to think about that, but... really, he hadn't done anything else.]

[... Huh. He kind of assumed that they all had other things like he did.]

Oh. ... I guess it does take up a lot of time, huh.

I'm pretty boring, I guess. It's not like I can hold down another job right now when we need to be on call so much. The only friends I have are you guys...

It's not your fault. I don't think you're boring.

[Kouta puffs his cheeks again, then takes another long sip of his drink. It's still quiet and awkward in the room, but he knows there's nothing he can talk about, and he knows there's nothing Micchy wants to talk about, so...

Kouta simply sits there in silence for a bit, tilting his head against the wall and wondering how long he'll be able to stay awake or if he should find some other way to keep Micchy entertained other than struggling for a topic of conversation.]

[The silence while he eats doesn't really bother him. He's used to it, but he gets the feeling that Kouta isn't happy about it. He'd talk about movies, or games, or something, but he has the feeling that he'd betray just how much he's... well. Not the same class as Kouta. Not that it's a bad thing, but... he's never wanted to make the others feel weird about it. And now with what he knows and what Kouta knows about Yggdrasill but doesn't know about the forest, he feels even worse about anyone knowing.]

[After a few more minutes, Kouta leans to the side and rests his head on Micchy's shoulder.]

You sure you're okay?

I'll be okay. Don't worry so much, Kouta.

[He wipes his hands off and leans against Kouta's head, smiling a little bit.]

I'm tougher than I look. Some creepy guy isn't going to keep me from doing things.

Yeah, but... creepy guys. You should be careful and I worry about you.

[He gives Micchy a careful headbutt.]

You're like my own little brother.