Chapter Text
Kanda is desperately trying to shake off his 'so-called' 'significant others' before they reach their shared apartment when they hear the scream.
It’s high-pitched and sounds terrified – nothing that wouldn’t be out of place in a shitty low budget horror flick, much like the one he had just been forced to spend 15-fucking-dollars on because of Lavi’s stupid ideas. Though if you asked Kanda, he would say that most of Lavi's date ideas were all pretty fucking stupid (though, even he's got to admit the petting zoo last month had been pretty sick.)
Kanda, Lavi, and Lenalee all freeze at once when they’re in between apartment 14A and 14B and, as one, they all look at 14B, where muffled sounds and thumps now follow.
“Did… Did we just hear someone get murdered?” Lavi asks, looking both bewildered and intrigued, his visible eye gleaming with the clear opportunity for mystery.
From the thumps coming from the room, they can tell that someone is still alive in the apartment.
“I don’t… think so?” Lenalee answers slowly, unsure. She puts a hand on her waist, shifts her weight to one leg, and gets one of those overly inquisitive looks Kanda knows all-too-well and, frankly, not something he feels like indulging in today.
“You guys can figure that out if you want to, see ya.” Kanda waves, yawns, and starts walking down the hallway. Just as he reaches the mystery suite, the door bursts open, and Kanda is nearly bowled over by a significantly shorter body that comes bursting from the door. Instinctively, Kanda holds his arms out and catches the body that collides into him and nearly falls.
The body is silm and young, which contrasts the fact that they have long white hair when they raise their head. the first thing they all see is that he's a young man and that he has a jagged red, scar over his left eye. He has bright grey eyes and enough freckles on his face to rival Lavi. He's also wearing a figure fitting long-sleeved shirt and a single leather glove in the middle of a July heatwave.
“Oh, I’m so sorry! Are you alright?” The youth says as he tries to recover his footing. They can also see that this boy is unusually pretty.
Lenalee and Lavi both choose this moment to call out, "Kanda, don't be mean!" and "Woah, are you British?" Kanda, however, can give less of a shit.
“Watch where the fuck you’re going!” Kanda barks, but still lets the other man right himself.
“Oh, well excuse me!” the platinum blond exclaims, clearly taken off guard as he looks up at Kanda, “I didn’t expect anybody to be outside of my apartment and I already apologized!” The older Japanese man opens his mouth to speak, but Lenalee bumps Kanda away.
“I’m sorry about Kanda, he never knows how to shut his mouth. Like, ever,” she mediates before a fight can break out. She sents Kanda one of her fortified looks. And he doesn’t even bark at her, just merely sends her a halfhearted glare. What a sweetheart. “I haven’t seen you around here, though! I’m Lenalee and this is Lavi.”
“Ah, it’s nice to meet you.” The boy congenially says, extending a gloved hand to Lenalee and then Lavi. “I’m Allen and I just moved in… last Tuesday, I believe?”
“You have a really killer accent, man. Are you here from England?” Lavi asks, leaning against the wall casually.
“Technically, I was born and raised in Manchester for a while, yes.“
“Okay, fuckin’ yippee, so why the fuck did you just run into me?” Kanda interrupts, clearly ignoring the fact that he had just ruined what could have turned into a nice conversion.
“If you must know, there’s a spider in my kitchen.” Allen says matter-of-factly, suddenly losing a bit of his previous calm demeanor and gaining a rather panicked look in his eye at the reminder of his own personal eight-legged nightmare.
“You ran away from your apartment because of a fucking spider?”
“Yes, because spiders are actually demons from hell,” He says this so convincingly that all three of them almost want to believe him. Almost.
“Okay, but I don’t a shit about spiders. Go get your mother to kill it for you and don’t run into me next time, squirt.”
‘My mother?’ Allen mouths to himself before turning back to the brute in front of him, eyebrows creased. “In case you haven’t noticed, this is my apartment. I’m an adult.”
“Yeah right kid, every 17-year-old likes to think they’re an adult. Tell me that again when you’re taller than five feet.”
“Excuse you,” Allen blurts out, affronted. “I’m 20! And I’m not five feet tall!”
“Whoa, really? I thought you were waaaay younger,” Lavi cuts in, looking quite impressed.
“20, my ass. He’s gotta be 18, and I’m being nice.”
“You guys are being so rude right now!” Lenalee chides before turning to Allen with a kind, pretty smile. “You’re so youthful; you’ll have to tell me your secret someday! Do you need any help with the spider?”
Allen sighs, both at a loss and relieved at once. “Yes, please.” He does send a dirty look to Kanda, however.
“I suppose this is my cue then, isn’t it?” Lavi flourishes and takes the time to act like he’s rolling up his sleeves, even though it was only a spider, and he was wearing a crop top with short sleeves anyways. He comically flexes, which gets a chuckle from Lenalee and a bewildered look from Allen. “Just lead the way. C’mon Yuu, I’m gonna need backup.”
“Don’t call me that,” Kanda huffs out for what is probably the billionth time and crosses his arms, “Why do I have to help, this shit is none of my business.”
“Hm, you didn’t strike me as the type to be afraid of spiders.”
“What the fuck?” Kanda balks, staring at the shorter adult in front of him. “You ran out of your fuckin’ apartment because of a spider, squirt. Who the hell are you to talk shit about me for being afraid of spiders, which I’m not .”
The young British man shrugs carelessly. “I have no problems admitting my fear of spiders. But acting all pissy because you don’t like spiders and then talking bad about my fear is a bit hypocritical, don’t you think?”
“Holy shit, that’s such a reach, but he’s technically not even wrong.” Lavi stage whispers to his girlfriend, who merely nods. The two watch heatedly, not wanting to miss what happens next.
Kanda sends his significant others a dirty look before turning back to the darker skinned man, who looks extremely unimpressed. "This is just how I act, kid. I’ll kill the spider and prove I’m not afraid of them.”
“Whoa, I don’t condone the spider killing!” Lavi announces, “but, you can be my lovely assistant, if you do so please.”
“Go jump out the window.” Kanda barges past Allen and into his apartment, ignoring the shorter man’s protest.
“I love it when Yuu talks dirty to me.” Lavi sighs at Lenalee and Allen, following his boyfriend.
“…What?”
“Kanda’s first name is Yuu.” Lenalee clarifies, following Allen into his apartment and letting him close the door behind her. “…Don’t call him that though. Lavi just likes pushing his buttons.”
Allen’s apartment is like theirs, though perhaps a few square feet smaller. Even then, it was probably a bit too big for one person. It’s clear that he’s in the middle of moving still from all the half empty boxes and how unlived in it looks. There is, however, something particularly large and eye catching in the room.
“Nice piano, man. How long have you been playing?” Lavi says, whistling at the pure white piano taking up a bit of space in the living room. Allen hums for a moment; it’s almost musical in nature.
“A few years, give or take.”
“Oh wow!” Lenalee says, looking in awe. “That’s awesome, Allen! None of us really know how to play any instruments.”
“Speak for yourself, Lenalee.” Kanda says, following Lavi into the kitchen, looking awfully tense.
“Is he ok?” Allen whispers when they’re out of hearing range.
Lenalee grins and waves her hand, “Yeah it’s fine, Kanda really doesn’t like spiders, he’s just trying to look tough.”
A clear, “What the hell, Lenalee?!” is heard from the kitchen. The Chinese woman sends Allen a pointed look that clearly says, ‘see what I mean.’
“I thought that was just him being unpleasant.”
“…Maybe that too, but hey, we have Lavi to deal with all of our spider needs! He thinks they’re too interesting and cool to kill.”
“What the fuck is that?!” Kanda barks with obvious surprise.
“Whoa, this thing is huge!” Lavi’s voice exclaims from the other room. “Do you have anything I can catch it in to release outside.”
“There’s tupperware in the cupboard above the sink.” Allen calls out, before turning his head back to Lenalee. “I definitely see what you mean. How long have you guys known each other?”
“God… It’s been years. I met Kanda when I was around… eight or nine? Lavi transferred into our high school like five years after that.”
“Oh, how time has flown by!” Lavi melodramatically laments as he strolls back into the front room, a tupperware container in his hands.
“Not fast enough, dork.” Kanda huffs, leaning on the wall with easy confidence as if he owned the place. Which he did not, Allen would like to point out.
“Chill out, Yuu.” Lavi says as he nearly struts across the room, briefly taunting Allen and Lenalee by gently thrusting the sealed tupperware container back and forth in their direction as he passes, making Allen jump and nearly collide into Lenalee.
“Lavi!” Lenalee protests, her voice stern as she helps right Allen. “Don’t you ever do that again!”
“Whoa, Lena, chill. It’s not like it’s going to get out.”
“You better make sure it doesn’t, Lavi.”
“Absolutely not! And if it does, I’ll just catch it again. But, I’ll go take care of our fuzzy friend here.” Lavi chimes, enjoying the shudders he gets from Lenalee and Allen. The redhead doesn’t make it too far though, stopping once he reaches the door and turning back to look at the two. “Oh hey, new pal, you wanna come to Jerry’s with us later?”
“Oh, that’s a great idea! What do you think, Kanda?”
“Whatever.” The Japanese man says, yawning again as he makes his way to the door. Today was way too chaotic for his liking and he can see a nap in his near future even though it was almost three o’clock. “I don’t give a shit.”
“Good, because I would have invited him even if you said no.”
“What’s Jerry’s?”
“One of the best places in town. It’s run by one of my brother’s close friends and he’s a great chef! Plus, I work there part time, so we get discounts. You’re our neighbor, should totally come to dinner with us, if you want to.” Lenalee explains, a sweet, enthusiastic smile on her face.
Allen smiles just as sweetly and says,
“You had me at chef and discount.”