Chapter Text
"What a nice atmosphere," Eichi commented, as they entered the cafe. It was lively, couples and groups seated all around the room and chatting energetically or snapping pictures. While it was mostly girls filling up the cafe, there were quite a few pockets of boys sitting together and eating too. A result of the hard work of Nagumo, HiMERU, and Sazanami, Eichi was certain.
While it was busy, the chill outside and the time of day probably driving more people inside, there were still a few tables open. Eichi looked around, considering their options.
"Tenshouin-senpai. Should we sit over there?" Eichi followed the arc of Otogari' finger to a tucked away corner of the cafe. Hm. It wasn't a bad choice - it'd be a bit quieter than the rest of the cafe. Though, had Otogari caught on to how the lights and sounds had begun to make Eichi's head pound? He hoped not - he'd prefer to not have his irritating weakness get in the way of such a nice day.
"Shall I order for the two of us while you secure us a seat, then? Or do you need to spend some time looking at the menu?" Eichi was already pulling out his wallet.
"No, Narukami recommended the marshmallow stew to me. She said she created it herself." There was a sense of awe in Otogari's voice that Eichi couldn't help but relate to. Given how hopelessly lacking he was in creativity, the sheer concentration of talent in it contained in Knights always served to impress him.
"I'm surprised you're not ordering the tofu okra hamburger steak. Wasn't that dish promoted quite heavily by several of your shuffle unit members? I'd expected it to be a perfect fit for you." It'd been designed with that in mind, after all.
Otogari shook his head. "No, meat is important. Tenshouin-senpai, you should also get meat," he commented seriously.
"Is that so?" Eichi hummed noncommitally. In truth, he had no intention of following that well-meaning advice. Right now, he doubted he'd be able to stomach a meat-based dish at all. "Then let me order for the two of us. Unless you'd like something else, Otogari-kun? Of course, it's my treat. ♪"
"It's alright. I'll pay for myself, Tenshouin-senpai."
"Take it as thanks for allowing me to accompany you here, then." Really, it wasn't as if this amount of money was particularly consequential to Eichi. Well, Otogari might be able to claim the same, given his ostentatious status in his home country, but there was a difference between just being a son of a powerful family and being person who ran his family's entire conglomerate.
"But it was a favor to me. If so, I should pay." Otogari continued to stubbornly insist.
Eichi sighed. "Allow me to pay for now, then, to simplify things, and I'll have you return your share later." Of course, he had no intention of actually asking for the money in return, but it was the easiest way of resolving the situation for now.
"Alright. Then I will—ah..." Eichi turned to follow Otogari's gaze. In the course of their discussion, the original booth had been filled. Several of the other seats had become occupied, too. There was only one booth left open now, right next to the window.
"We might as well sit there, I suppose." Eichi remarked. Otogari simply nodded in response, and headed towards the seats. Meanwhile, Eichi walked towards the register. There were just three people in line in front of him, so it'd likely be a short wait.
Of the pair of girls in front of him, however, one of them seemed to be excitedly sneaking glances at him in between whispering to her friend. While he couldn't overhear the contents of her conversation, it was obvious enough - both from her general demeanor, and the fine keychain peeking out of her pocket.
Eichi sighed internally, keeping up a placid smile on the outside. While he ordinarily wouldn't have any problem interacting with fans, his current fatigue made that an unappealing prospect. He could only hope that they'd keep their interest to just glances and whispers...
"Um, excuse me–" One of the girls turned towards him with a nervous smile, the other elbowing her friend encouragingly. He supposed he'd jinxed himself.
"Yes?" He painted on his idol smile.
Luckily, the line moved quickly, and he was able to resolve the situation with just a photograph and a few practiced words. They headed off to their own seats with bright grins, leaving him to place the order and return to where Otogari was sitting.
"It seems the food will be out shortly," he informed Otogari.
"Tenshouin-senpai, you handled that well." Otogari looked at him with what seemed to be respect. It took a moment for Eichi to place what Otogari meant by those words, but once he did, he brushed it off.
"It's not something particularly difficult." Really, encountering fans was something he could even enjoy on occasion, though it could become a nuisance at times as well.
"No. I'm still not good at talking with fans, since I'm not good with words in general. I wouldn't have done as well." Otogari's praise seemed sincere. Well, Eichi was aware that Rei and Kaoru tended to handle the bulk of the 'fanservice' type activities for Undead. But still...
"Your appeal to your fans lies in your own uniqueness, so I doubt they'd have any issue with how you generally speak. If anything, they'd likely prefer it." Perhaps handling fans was a necessary skill for idols, but Eichi didn't think Otogari lacked it, from what he'd seen in clips of Undead's fan events.
"That might be true," Otogari responded, but he seemed troubled regardless. Well, Eichi supposed it would be difficult to change that sort of opinion easily, and there wasn't any issue with attempting to refine one's skills. But Otogari likely underestimated his own capabilities as an idol. Perhaps because he tended to take the spotlight less often, compared to the more fiery personalities of his unitmates.
"The lights are nice outside, I think. You should look as well, Tenshouin-senpai." At first, Eichi confused it as a clumsy attempt of changing the subject, but then he caught a glance of Otogari's face. His mouth was slightly parted, and his eyes sparkled with the reflection of the glittering lights decorating the streets. Eichi hadn't paid much attention to the lights on the way here, but it was Otogari's expression that caused him to glance outside once again, seeking out whatever he'd seen.
"Yes, they're more beautiful than I expected." He considered adding more, but in that moment, their food arrived on their table. Eichi accepted it with a thanks, but Otogari's eyes remained fixed outside for a moment longer, before he turned back towards the table.
They ate their meals with a side of light conversation, Eichi mostly leading the flow of questions and Otogari answering in turn. The food itself was delicious, more than he'd expected, the light texture of the tofu and the okra blending well with the not overly heavy sauce. Perhaps he'd have to return to sample some of the other dishes, maybe with the rest of fine. After all, Tori had raved about it enough after his own visit.
They finished eating at about the same time, though while Otogari's plate was almost entirely clean, Eichi's had close to half remaining. He simply hadn't had the appetite to finish the entire thing.
He'd considered discarding it, but Otogari had taken the initiative to request a box for him before he could even protest, with the simple statement that it wouldn't be respectful to discard food that'd been prepared so carefully for them. It wasn't as if it wasn't a truthful statement, so Eichi'd accepted the food. Perhaps Wataru would like to taste the dish, or it could be a convenient breakfast for him.
"Shall we go?" Eichi smiled lightly at Otogari, who was currently holding the box for him. It'd been a fun conversation and dinner, more than he'd expected. And luckily, his health had held itself in check enough that he'd been able to enjoy it fully, even though he was certain that if he'd still been forced to wear an Eichi gauge, it would've begun beeping insistently before their dinner could've even completed. It didn't matter–he had enjoyed himself, and he would return back and rest. His tenuous state of health would hold itself together for a bit longer.
Otogari led the way through the door, and Eichi followed close behind, but the moment the door swung open fully, the icy chill of the wind hit him. It'd still been manageable earlier, but as it'd grown later, even the sun had withdrawn its rays, and the streetlights did nothing to provide warmth. Eichi's coat was painfully inadequate against both the cold and his own poor circulation, and he could feel his teeth chatter.
Worse yet, his built-up weakness had decided to rebel in protest at this treatment. His legs struggled to complete even the basic motion of walking, with his fatigue weighing them down and the cold locking them into place, but he forced them forwards anyway. He hoped desperately that Adonis wouldn't glance behind him, at least, and pick out the proof of his weakness on his face.
After all, Adonis was the type to talk often about that, wasn't he? Protecting the weak...perhaps that was a noble goal, but Eichi hated the idea of it being associated with him. He was only fond of scheming with that sort of thing if it were fake - with his real limitations, he'd prefer to bury them away so deeply they couldn't be found.
And he wasn't used to being like this, not recently. He'd been growing healthier, what with how his unitmates had put limitations on his habits of overworking, and he'd come to take action to protect his own health. But of course he couldn't grow better. He'd never be fully healthy. Whenever he pushed himself too hard or even just the climate disagreed with him, his own weak body would rise up to remind him that it'd remain a shackle on him forever. It was so frustrating.
Eichi stumbled forwards, stubbornly, eyes fixed on Otogari's back. The moment a bench appeared though, his resolve was no longer enough to sustain his movement forwards. He all but collapsed onto it, panting, hands in a white knuckled grip on the sides of the bench.
"Tenshouin-senpai? Are you alright?" And there Otogari was, looking down at him with concern. He'd noticed quickly that Eichi had stopped following behind him, it seemed.
"I'm perfectly fine. I just need a moment to rest." That was within the range of his ordinary limitations, surely - even though it grated on him sometimes, everyone in Sports Survivors was mindful that his body was weaker than the rest of them. It wasn't necessary to emphasize how much weaker.
Otogari frowned. "It doesn't look that you're alright. You've been breathing hard since a while back, and your footsteps sounded strange. Should I call someone?"
"No, that's not necessary. As I've said, I'm fine." His words were slightly more venomous than he'd intended, but Otogari didn't seem to register it at all.
"Then allow me to carry you. That way, you'll exert yourself less." Otogari bent down a bit, as if preparing his back to carry Eichi.
"I said it's not necessary. I'm not as weak as you seem to think I am." His voice was cold, but it was mostly to prevent any unsavory emotions from leaking in, worst of all defensiveness - after all, it wasn't as if the accusation was truly false. He was weak, hopelessly so, more than all the rest of the idols. No matter how much he detested it, it was a fact.
"I don't believe you're weak."
What? "What?"
"I don't believe you're weak," Otogari repeated, as firmly as the first time. "If I had to place you physically, you'd be in a weak class, but my instinct says otherwise. It tells me that you're strong, and somewhat dangerous."
Eichi blinked, somewhat disbelieving. Him, strong? That was ludicrous enough to be laughable. Still, Otogari looked entirely serious.
"I am not entirely strong," Otogari continued. "Compared to my sisters, I am weaker. It's not wrong to require some assistance."
...What an easy thing to say, and yet so much harder to believe, wasn't it? Suddenly, Eichi felt that he understood Otogari's expression in the cafe, when he'd said the other idol's communication skills were enough. As if a few words could somehow change the course of such deep insecurities.
"If you don't want to be carried, then..." Otogari looked like he was thinking deeply. "I can support you in walking. And I can share my scarf and jacket with you. That way, you won't be cold."
...Really. There was no need to do all of that. And the sight of two idols sharing a coat and scarf would be a strange spectacle, if anyone paid them much attention. Not that many people were out right now, on a night as cold as this.
Eichi sighed. "There's no need to be overly considerate of me, Adonis-kun. But I suppose that much is fine."
When Adonis offered him a hand up from the bench, Eichi took it.