Work Text:
Yuuto stormed into the café a bit more aggressively than they’d like to have. They paused at the entrance and took a deep breath, fuming. This wasn’t the place to be angry, though. This is where they went to get away from the things and people causing the problems.
Relax, Yuuto told themself. This is one of the few places close to Hakone Gakuen that don’t know my name.
“Hey Yuuto!”
My surname.
“Hey there Keiji-san,” Yuuto smiled as they approached the counter. Behind the register stood their friend Keiji, a tall cashier in his mid 20’s who had worked at the café for as long as Yuuto could remember him. Which wasn’t long at all, given that Yuuto only discovered the place a year ago, when they were still in middle school. But it was long enough for Yuuto to both acknowledge and appreciate his presence.
“What’s up? Anything new?”
“Nah, not really,” Yuuto mumbled as they shoved their hands into their pockets and shrugged nonchalantly.
Someone behind Yuuto scoffed. "You sure? You barged in like you were out for blood."
Yuuto turned around at the unfamiliar voice. Behind them stood someone they had never seen before. This guy, whoever he was, stood only half a head taller than Yuuto. He had straight, red hair that spiked out along the edges, and thick eyebrows that mirrored the look. He wore a white button up shirt with its sleeves rolled to his elbows, and black slacks, all of which rested behind a navy-blue work apron. He was relatively handsome, Yuuto concluded. Depending on the lighting.
“I’m sure,” Yuuto said between a forced smile.
“Convincing.” The guy smiled back, the bags under his eyes making him look fiendish rather than pleasant. Yuuto immediately scowled. Who the hell was this guy?
“Alright Machimiya. Stop bothering Yuuto.”
Yuuto turned to their cashier friend and cocked an eyebrow, silently asking for more information.
“Yuuto, this is Machimiya. He’s a new hire. I’ve been training him this week.”
Yuuto didn’t really have much to say to that. They simply nodded at Keiji and remained silent, the bad mood immediately creeping back. They hated when people acted familiar with them, and that Machimiya guy did just that; rubbing them the wrong way.
“Do you want the usual?” Keiji asked softly. Yuuto nodded silently. They always came to the café when something bothered them at school, and silently prayed that this place wouldn’t be another source of their problems.
Maybe something sweet will improve my sour mood, Yuuto thought through stubborn optimism.
***
Yuuto swirled the straw in their milkshake distractedly as they mulled over the day's events. This was the seventh time someone mistook them for Hayato. What sucked about the interaction was that it wasn't the standard hey, you look just like Shinkai-san. It was closer to hey, you are Shinkai-san. It made no sense! Yuuto had asked their senpai to repeat his name, and was scolded for not remembering! "You should know my name by now. Shinkai-san called me Hachijo!"
I'm! Not! Hayato!
Why was that such a hard concept to grasp?
“Hey…”
Yuuto jumped at the sound. They glanced up from their drink to see the new guy looking at him with a slight frown.
"Yes?"
"Sorry about earlier," Machimiya apologized. "Keiji told me I upset you."
Yuuto sighed. It hadn’t taken them long to understand that Machimiya simply had a loud personality through a few minutes of discreet observation. The offense he caused was completely unintentional, and quite frankly, totally nonexistent. Yuuto’s shitty mood had made them seek excuses to be upset.
"Nah, you're fine,” Yuuto mentioned. “Actually, you were right. I was pretty pissed off when I stormed in."
"CALLED IT!" Machimiya screamed as he sat down on the seat across from Yuuto.
Yuuto flashed the other a fiendish grin. Was this guy using their mood as an excuse to skimp out on mopping the floor?
"So, what's the real issue, huh? Girl problems at school?"
"Girls are the only good thing about my school," Yuuto mumbled.
When Machimiya hummed but did pry, Yuuto figured he was giving them the chance to talk.
How much should I tell this guy? Yuuto pondered. Machimiya probably wasn't a bad person. Plus, he was a total stranger; completely disconnected from Yuuto's personal life. Whatever Yuuto disclosed wouldn't come back to bite them.
Probably...
"I feel like I'm having an identity crisis."
"Dude, you're like 12."
"I'm 15," Yuuto snapped. Nevermind. This was a bad idea.
"Sure. And I'm well-rested," Machimiya muttered while pointing at his eyebags.
Yuuto giggled. Okay fine. He could be trusted. To some extent. He just had a bad sense of humor.
"I'm attending the same school my older brother went to… And just joined the same club he did."
"Do you have a fucking death wish?"
Yuuto was taken aback by the statement.
"What do you mean?"
"You know how people get. Something, or in your case, someone, is brought up to them and they try to relate it to the only thing they know. You come in and I bet all they talk to you about is your brother.
Yuuto was shocked at how accurate Machimiya was.
“Am I right?”
“Yes,” Yuuto admitted. Then they sighed heavily and sipped their milkshake. Would asking for advice even matter at this point? There was nothing to be done about other people’s behaviours.
“So, what exactly happened today that had steam coming outta your ears?”
“They —my clubmates— are taking things to the next level. They’re starting to talk to me like I am my big brother.”
“Are they fucking stupid?”
Yuuto didn’t know why, but it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off their shoulders at that question. They had spent a lot of time supressing those thoughts and feelings. Thinking down or bad of a senpai was not something they did. It was disrespectful and mean, but part of Yuuto —the darker more selfish side of them— figured it was warranted, so hearing someone else mirror those thoughts was a huge relief.
“They’re not stupid,” Yuuto tried. They didn’t want to agree. They didn’t want to bad-talk anyone.
“They’re legitimately stupid,” Machimiya proclaimed. “What happened today? I really wanna gauge how fucking dumb your team is.”
“Not my team!” Yuuto corrected. “The main team is fine. I’m actually doing my best to join them and go to the In-High. But some of my senpai… that are part of the club…” Yuuto shook their head and started again. “Today I was scolded for forgetting someone’s name.”
“Aren’t you a first year?”
“Yeah.”
Machimiya’s face screamed confusion and scepticism. It was like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Yuuto was thrilled to see someone as dumbfounded by their senpai as they initially were.
“He told me I should have remembered it. That my brother always called him by that certain name.”
“You’re not your brother!” Machimiya exclaimed as he slammed his hand against the table. Yuuto jumped, and Machimiya muttered an apology in haste. “Seriously, the fuck’s his problem? And you’re saying other people are like that too?”
Yuuto nodded. “A few, yeah.”
Machimiya looked irritated. “Well that’s fucking annoying. And I’m guessing your little first year ass was too intimidated to talk back, eh?”
Yuuto didn’t like his phrasing. “I have spoken up about it, but they either ignore me or talk over me.”
“Then yell!”
Yuuto rolled their eyes. It wasn’t that simple. “I said I was trying to be a member of the main team, didn’t I? I don’t want to piss anyone off. I don’t need the captain banning me from the race.”
“Machimiya! Stop sitting around!”
Both Yuuto and Machimiya snapped their heads to the side to look at Keiji. The other didn’t look too happy, which prompted Machimiya to leave Yuuto with no answers; only slight relief that they weren’t wrong to be upset.
***
Yuuto walked into the café feeling calm. It was an odd sensation. They were burning on the inside —livid from the day’s events, but the knowledge that they could comfortably rant to Machimiya kept their neutral facial features in check.
“What happened now?” Machimiya asked the moment he noticed Yuuto approach the counter.
Okay… maybe they needed to work on the expression thing. This was the fifth visit where the other had predicted Yuuto’s mood from a single glance.
“They’re trying to make me sprint.”
“Huh?”
“I’m a climber! It’s what I’m good at! It’s what I want to fight for on the roster but everyone is telling me to sprint!”
Machimiya got to work making Yuuto’s milkshake as he sensed the first year getting worked up.
“I don’t sprint! They wrote my name down for the sprint race without asking me first! I had to talk to Izumida-san after school for half an hour just to clarify. That time could have been used to practice for tomorrow. I’m screwed!”
“You’re not screwed,” Machimiya mentioned as he passed the drink to Yuuto. “You got things sorted, right? You’re in the climbing race thing, aren’t you?”
“Yeah,” Yuuto mumbled between gulps of their milkshake.
“So just win it.”
“That’s not the point,” Yuuto whined. “They’re going to insist I sprint. The climbers are gonna question and mock me for being in the wrong bracket. I’m tired of them fucking me over like this!”
Yuuto immediately covered their mouth. They didn’t mean to swear —to speak so impolitely. Machimiya’s influence was dangerous.
“Keep them in check,” Machimiya shrugged.
“How?”
“If they refuse to believe that you’re Shinkai Yuuto, drill it in their thick skulls that you’re not Shinkai Hayato. Play dirty.”
“I don’t know…”
“This bike racing stuff you do, it’s like any other sport ain’t it? There are certain things you can’t do to the other players without fouling, but there’s always a fineee line,” Machimiya drawled, his voice increasing a pitch as he squeezed his thumb and index finger together —showcasing the diminutiveness of said line. “You just gotta figure out what that is.”
Yuuto bit their straw distractedly, deep in thought.
Prove that you’re not Hayato.
Yuuto was too similar. Their facial features, laid back mannerisms, and even their bike brand. It was all too similar to Hayato. Nobody saw Yuuto for Yuuto, but maybe they’d stop seeing Hayato for Hayato if Yuuto ruined the image.
Figure out the fine line between a foul play and something legal.
“I’ll do it,” Yuuto concluded with steely eyes. “I’ll play dirty.”
***
Yuuto ran into the café feeling elated.
“Hey Yuut—”
“Keiji-san! Where’s Machimiya-san?!” Yuuto screamed as they practically tackled the front counter. Machimiya appeared from the backroom at the sound of his name.
“Hey kiddo, what’s u—”
“I did it! I won the climbers race!” Yuuto interrupted.
“Hey that’s gr—”
“I played dirty just like you said! Shoved a guy into the dirt and another against the guardrail.”
“Yuuto!” Keiji screamed in shock. His wide eyes flew from Yuuto to Machimiya, who was also mirroring an astonished expression. “What the hell did you tell Yuuto?”
“I didn’t think… Why would you listen to me?!” Machimiya stammered.
“Yuuto, you shouldn’t be a poor sport. Biking like that isn’t allowed.”
“Oh, but it is,” Yuuto countered. “I didn’t actually shove them. I just got really close to them until they biked themselves off the track."
Keiji looked astonished, but Machimiya was grinning with pride.
“So, you didn’t get in trouble?”
“Nope!”
“And you won? You’re going to the Inter-High?”
“Yup!”
Machimiya laughed. His head flew back as he let out an impressive howl of laughter, visibly overjoyed by the story he was told.
“And your stupid senpai? Did they say anything?”
“They’re shocked that a Shinkai would act that way.”
“They’re going to be doubly shocked when they realize you have a given name.”
Yuuto beamed at the statement. Machimiya had helped them substantially. He didn’t encourage passive behaviour, like so many others had done in the past, and his advice had worked! Yuuto was slowly going to drill their name home. Even if it wasn’t the best reputation to have, Yuuto was going to make it their own.
“Keep me updated Yuuto,” Machimiya requested. “And good job,” he muttered softly as he leaned over to gently ruffle Yuuto’s hair. Yuuto beamed against their warm cheeks. Over the course of a few weeks, they really started to enjoy being in Machimiya’s presence.
“I’ll come visit you as much as I can.”