Chapter Text
It was 8:12pm, and Leblanc Cafe was already closing up for the night. Usually, the cafe wasn't as active late at night, except for this night. In the cafe, a young man with black hair and glasses was slaving over a curry pot, his brow dripping with sweat as he was finishing up a meal. Akira Kurusu, was setting up the cafe for a late night date with his girlfriend, Haru Okumura. With the clanking of the wooden spoon along the sides of the pot, Akira barely noticed Sojiro looking over at him, who was trying to get his attention.
"Akira, I know I let you have permission for tonight with Leblanc with that Okumura girl, but calm down before you keel over." Sojio chuckled, setting down his cleaning cloth and turning towards him. "Besides, you look like shit right now." Akira was about to take offense, but when you're wearing your work outfit, and an apron dirtied from all the cooking, you had nothing to argue with. "Tell you what, I'll might have something for you at home, and remember to wash up when you're done there."
"Yes boss," Akira spoke, turning his attention back to his cooking, but then paused before speaking again. "Also, thank you for letting me use your place for tonight, if there is anything I can-" Sojiro stopped, a smile appearing on the bearded man's face as he cut him off mid-sentence.
"No need for that, besides it's for your lady friend. Besides, you're a big help and I'm returning the favor."
Sojiro then passed the counter, opening the door and it rang gently as he stepped out, heading towards home.
Tonight was going to be a good night, Akira was already finishing up, and took it off the burner, or attempted to with his bare hands and burnt himself. "Shit!" His mind was elsewhere, not really paying attention to whatever was going on around him. It was a terrible habit of his, to let his mind wander too far, only to hurt himself in someway shape or form. "Boss is right, I really need to chill out..."
Around the corner, a familiar black cat appeared, holding back a laugh as he saw Akira fidgeting with the oven mitts, nearly dropping one. "Hey Akira, how goes dinner? Sounds like you're in a bit of a pickle right now." Morgana spoke, heading over to the counter and jumping up on the stool near him. "Why not let me help? I might be able to-"
"Morgana, you might eat it all and I won't be able to share with my girlfriend." Akira spoke, finally getting on the other mitt and grabbing the curry pot and setting it over on the trivet on the counter. Soon as he set the pot down, the rice cooker beeped. Perfect timing, he set it to keep it warm as he looked over to the table he set up for the night. Two candles were in the middle, along with a set of cutlery beside each plate. Sojiro did joke about bringing them wine, but Akira knew that he wouldn't ever do that.
"So, boss told you to get cleaned up, so get to it, stinky!" Morgana spoke, watching Akira take off his apron and set it on the hook on the wall. Akira did take a moment to pause, and let out a deep sigh. He couldn't help but be nervous, even if Haru would be happy with almost anything that he'd do for her. One year, he once set up his old TV with some DVDs and binge-watched them all with her. Of course, he made sure they were all horror flicks she might like, ranging from blockbusters to B-movies. In the past, Akira used to be unsettled by horror, making it his least favorite genre. Now ever since Haru came into his life, he's willing to see any horror movie she might be interested in.
"Alright, I better not come back to see anything eaten, got it." Akira looked back, seeing Morgana scrunch his face up in annoyance, fur standing up on end.
"I told you, nothing will be eaten! Unless you want to keep cracking jokes, then I'll will!" This made him chuckle, seeing his cat friend jump off the stool and head upstairs.
After the little talk with Morgana, Akira headed straight out the door, and met Sojiro outside, who was holding a black suit. "Ah, perfect timing. I'll make sure everything stays heated up, you go ahead and get clean." After handing him the suit, Sojiro went inside Leblanc, the bell on the door chimed gently. Making his way to the bathhouse, Akira sighed as he looked at his phone. Sure, this was like any other date they had, but this was the first time he got fancy for one. Was Haru going to enjoy this or will this all explode in a fiery mess? The black haired teen only gripped the suit tighter, and finally decided to message someone about it. Not caring who he messaged first, he began the text to the first person in his recent contacts.
Akira: Hey, do you have a minute?
Nothing yet, until he saw a message pop up. He ended up texting Ryuji, who probably was the last person he should ever come to for advice.
Ryuji: hey bro whats wrong
Akira: I know you're the last person to come to for advice on relationships, but...
Akira: I have an important date tonight, and I'm just nervous about it all, but it's like I shouldn't be. Why am I stressing over this?
Ryuji: god i thought morgana was bad with always insulting me
Ryuji: btw if he's on your shoulder fuck you stupid cat
Ryuji: anyways dude why are you stressing over this? youve been on like, many dates with her...
Ryuji: so why should this one be any different?
After reading the messages, Akira let out a small chuckle, it kind of helped texting him. Usually Akira would've texted Ann or someone else, but Ryuji seemed to always be right to the heart of it. Quickly, he gave a few replies and set on his way.
Akira: Thanks man, I guess you're right about me being stressed. Perfectionism is kinda my thing, and maybe Haru wouldn't mind if it's not like, totally perfect.
Akira: What say we hang out sometime later this week? Been awhile since we did something, and maybe you'd want to hit the arcade?
Ryuji: bro im down!
Ryuji: alrighty have a good one man just remember to keep calm and all that sappy shit
Ryuji: btw your buying if we grab a bite
Akira: *you're
Ryuji: oh lookit mr einstein over here correcting me like hes some kind of teacher
After a few more texts, Akira finished up and made his way into the bathhouse. It felt nice, the warm air already was welcoming as he payed the fee and entered, going over to his locker to change. Slowly, he began thinking of all the other times with Haru as he began to change, from the time they went to the boardwalk together, and a visit to the local park. No matter how mundane of a place they went to, she always had a happy expression across her face. God, that smile of hers made him melt and feel warm inside. Maybe tonight, she'll have the smile she had whenever they went on dates. The same smile that she had when Akira won her a giant stuffed bear at the carnival, the same smile that she had when they both went to the movies together, and Akira almost had cold feet about watching a horror unless she was holding his hand.
After a few minutes, Akira almost lost track of time and quickly got into the bath, knowing he had the warm smile waiting for him.
Meanwhile, at Okumura's place...
"Oh, I hope Akira likes what I'm going to wear tonight..." Haru sighed, standing in her undergarments as she held up a dress in front of the mirror. Poor girl was stressing over how she was going to look, and what she was going to wear, and how she was going to style her hair... Everything she thought was looking right didn't feel right. Pacing around her room, Haru looked around and thought about her boyfriend, Akira. She's been in a relationship with him for almost a year now, and she really did love him, she always appreciated every little thing he did for her. Tonight however, she felt that getting all dressed up was a chore and would be for waste.
Then she ended up flopping back onto her bed, sighing as she rested the dress she had in hand on top of her. Haru didn't want to feel this way, and tried to do something else to get her mind off the current situation. She began by reaching a hand up to her nightstand, grabbing her phone off the charger and opening it up. It was only 8:12pm, and their date was at 9pm, the time that Leblanc usually closes up for the night. She was about to text someone, but then she thought otherwise, since it wasn't going to be worth bothering someone over something so trivial.
"Actually, maybe I should, someone else's opinion would be nice." Haru spoke to herself, and pulled up her contact list, looking over who she should bring up such a topic to. Ann would be a good pick, same with Makoto. Yusuke might try to barge in on their date to paint them, which didn't sound like a bad thing but they wanted it to be just them tonight. Futaba has absolutely no interest in this sort of thing, and Ryuji was the last person she wanted to go to for sound advice for her. Finally, she settled on Makoto's number and began to message her.
Haru: Makoto, are you busy right now? I have a question for you.
She waited for a bit, messing with her thumbs and then finally came a message on the screen.
Makoto: Is something wrong, Haru? You only really ask if it's something severe.
Haru: This time, it feels a bit... Silly of a reason.
Haru: I have a date tonight with Akira, and I guess, well... It's making me feel nervous that I don't have something nice.
Haru: I guess the right thing to say is I'm getting cold feet, is all.
Makoto: I see.
Makoto: Honestly, I don't see what the worry is about. You might just be overthinking this whole scenario, and it's making you perceive that it'll be bad.
Makoto: So, maybe you should relax, Akira isn't going to judge you. Besides, who's to say he isn't nervous as well? You two might be in the same boat.
Haru: Hm, if you put it that way, I guess you're right. I'm making a huge fuss over something this mundane.
Makoto: Exactly, you have nothing to fear.
Makoto: He might be fussing over how the meal is being made, probably put too much pepper in and burned his tongue on it.
Makoto: Maybe he's not thinking the candles are right, probably making the last minute adjustments.
Makoto: He's probably in a fight with Morgana, trying to keep him from eating the food again.
Makoto: I know it's silly to think of it like that, but sometimes you have to think of something positive to counteract the negative, you see.
Makoto: Take me for example, I'm often busy with errands or taking care of paperwork, which can be exhausting, and then I sometimes think of all the good times all of us had, and sometimes the humorous things. It helps, and I hope it does for you too.
Haru couldn't help but giggle at the mental image of Akira and Morgana having a small fight over the meal tonight, or maybe he's trying to keep his composure around her. She did like that about him, he always seemed so calm and collected, but deep down he wasn't much different. Makoto was right, she didn't have to worry so much about tonight. Haru's lips formed into a smile as she began to message Makoto again, fingers tapping away.
Haru: Thank you, Makoto. I kind of needed that peptalk! I should do something for you helping me out sometime.
Haru: Oh, how about we see a movie sometime? I'll buy the tickets.
Makoto: I couldn't ask that of you, you're too kind, Haru.
Haru shook her head, she didn't like that answer and she wanted to repay her for her kindness. After a minute, she had a thought and began typing an offer that even Makoto couldn't refuse.
Haru: Oh poo! And here I was, going to get a tickets for the next week showing of Like A Dragon. I thought that would suffice, but...
Makoto: ...I take back my statement, please disregard that I even typed it.
Makoto: Thank you very much, Haru. Feel free to message me if you have anymore concerns.
Haru: Well, that was it really, again, thank you very much, Makoto! :)
Makoto: Have fun, and be safe!
Makoto: :)
Seeing her use the smiley face was weird, but it was also quite endearing. Haru finally closed her phone, getting up from the bed and grabbing the dress she had on top of her. Finally, she took it off the hanger and began to slide it on. It was a simple light blue halterneck dress, with lace towards the ends. After she got it on, she looked around for a pair of shoes, but she settled on a pair of white flats. Finally, after getting all dressed up she began to mess with her hair, grabbing a brush and brushing it out, humming as she looked at herself in the mirror.
"Alright, now for the finishing touch..." She spoke, grabbing the tube of lipstick on her mirror. Haru never was one for wearing makeup too much, but Ann encouraged her to try it out sometime, and it lead to her wearing lipstick most of the time. She did have the eyeliner from her birthday, but she didn't feel like wearing it tonight. After applying a coat on her lips, she smiled to her reflection and went over to her closet once more, pulling a coat out and sliding it on. Before she left her room, she thought about what she was missing, and she went over to her desk, grabbing her purse. Finally, after she got her purse on her shoulder, she began to leave her room and went out the door of her estate.
Haru still lived in the Okumura Estate, but was preparing to leave in a month or so. Finally, she had everything prepared for the cafe and was setting up the final plans. It was thanks to everyone being very supportive of her dream that she was able to even begin setting up the ground plans for it all. A couple times she helped out at Leblanc, which took her a bit to convince Sojiro to help out around. At first, he said he thought about it, and the next day she was handed an apron and told she can drop in to help at anytime. Since then, she always drops by to help out whenever, making sure she learns everything that Sojiro does, following his instructions exactly as he tells, which often results in him making fun of Akira, poking fun that his girlfriend does a better job than him and to take her as an example of a valuable employee.
Once she began her way out, she left through the front gate, closing it behind her. Taking a moment to pause, she looked at upon the Okumura Estate, thinking to herself. Her first thought was about how life will be much more different without coming back here, and she's going to live a brand new life soon. A part of her kind of felt some attachment to this home, since she grew up and lived there for most of her life. Then again, this was the same home her father almost forced her into a loveless marriage in and made her do things she never wanted to do, people speak to people she never liked, and made her into some kind of trophy or a possession. The thought alone got her skin crawling, and she only looked up, speaking to herself.
"I cannot wait to leave soon, and never come back." She sighed to herself, finally turning around and clenching a fist to her chest. She knew it would be throwing away everything, but she'd rather start from a clean slate, rather than continue off of one that was already set for her and gives her no freedom. As she walked, she pulled out her phone, and it was already 8:40pm, which she began to hurry a little to the train station. As she began walking faster, she pulled up her contacts and began to text Akira, a smile across her lips as she typed away.
Haru: Akira!! ♥
Haru: I'm going to the station right now, see you soon!
Back to Leblanc...
Akira was already out of the bathhouse, all dressed up in a suit that Sojiro lent to him for the night. It was just a blazer, dress pants and shirt, along with a black tie and shoes. After he was finished, he began to get dinner prepared. He began to serve the rice and curry onto the plates, setting them on the table as he hummed to himself, also getting the glasses of water ready too. Slowly, he was getting everything prepared and tried not fussing too much over the little details, no matter how troubling they might be for him.
Akira was getting the final preparations done for the dinner, looking at his masterpiece. To him, it was a huge deal that it look good. He never was one to half something, since it was all or nothing with anything he does. As he was adjusting the candles, he felt his phone go off in his pocket, and he stopped for a bit to pull out his phone, and the messages made him smile. Sliding open his phone, he decided to reply back to her.
Akira: Be safe! I got the table set up right now, so...
Akira: I'll meet you at the station in a few, see you soon.
Before he set down his phone, he stopped for a moment because he wanted to send one more message.
Akira: ♥
There, now he can finally get going to the station nearby, ready to pick her up. After a minute, he began mentally preparing himself for tonight. Right now, he didn't feel nervous, in fact, he felt more ready than ever before. After adjusting his tie and jacket, he looked at his phone one more time, and it showed 8:49, which was right around the time she should be arriving. After he was done, he began to head out the door and to the station, clearing his throat and opening the door.
"Alright, showtime."