Chapter Text
Akutagawa Ryunosuke has less than a thousand yens to finish the month. His monthly allowance had disappeared into buying food (cafeteria sandwiches which had become his usual lunch) and books (which didn’t have a place on the shelf anymore and were organized in straight mountains back at his dorm). This meant this is maybe his last ‘black coffee with five spoonfuls of sugar and a glazed donut’ breakfast in a looong time. Akutagawa wondered if he could survive with just the coffee machine, but the taste disgusts him. It only let you add a maximum of three sugar packets, so it tasted too bitter for Akutagawa’s sweet tooth.
Tanizaki had told him an uncountable amount of times to just choose another mix. He didn’t understand black coffee wasn’t a choice, it was a necessity.
After buying his breakfast, Akutagawa would normally choose the farthest seat from the door, close to one of the big, circular windows and work on his essays, drafts and projects until class hour arrived. This week they needed to write a tale with the theme of ‘hope’ to present to the class. Akutagawa is at a completely loss here, not even the authors Tanizaki recommended him to get a clue on the topic helped him and his professor, Dazai-san, was too worried organizing today’s lecture to even give him any attention. It is today’s lecture the reason Akutagawa is exiting the café instead of going to his spot.
To be honest, Akutagawa doesn’t like the author his professor had chosen to give them a lecture. He could admit that the books were alright , but the way the writer chose to describe all the feelings was overwhelming and managed to captivate Akutagawa perfectly, like it was written intentionally for him. He was frustrated to no ends and jealous his own drafts would never reflect that emotion.
It isn't that he despised the author, he just… well, whatever.
As he is closing behind him the door to the café, thinking of all the time he was about to waste on the seminar (he was a model student and Dazai-san will be there after all, he needed to attend), a flying skateboard hit him on the forehead and sent him to the ground. His coffee flew and splashed on the street and his glazed donut went rolling down and Akutagawa isn't unconscious enough to not notice how his last breakfast gets ruined in front of him.
“OHMYGODIMSOSORRYIDIDNTMEANTO!”
The pain of the hit feels like a needle against his head. Is he bleeding? Gin is going to freak out if she sees him like this. The idiot who had hit him appeared gasping for air with his head down and his hands resting on his thighs, sweating. Ugh . But then the guy raises his head and Akutagawa is all oh instead. A pair of golden, round eyes stare at him with worry. Wow . It isn’t the time to get all ‘poet mode’ like because he is about to get knock out but aren't those beautiful honey-colored eyes worth at least a small verse?
His head is going to kill him from the pain and the only thing Akutagawa could do is stare .
“Are you okay?! I mean, of course you aren’t––– Uh––– Anyway, I’m sorry! Let me help you!”
The stranger offers him his sweaty hand which Akutagawa uses to help himself up.
“I’m so, so sorry. I’m just starting with the skate and I don’t do loops well.” He chuckles.. “It flew out of my feet and I panicked if it could have hit anyone and, well––”
“Did you fell too?”
“Uh?”
“Your chin.” Akutagawa points his. The guy has from his chin to his left cheek scratches He is an absolute disaster of human being, why is Akutagawa thinking then how cute he looks embarrassed like this? Definitely he hit his head hard.
“Oh, hehe, yeah. But it’s okay, I’m used to it by now. I remember this one time––––“
“Stop.”
Akutagawa knows he is going to start blabbering again. And as much as his head received a bump strong enough for him to not be able to think straight (in both meanings) now that the pain is subduing, Akutagawa is getting angrier and angrier at his wasted breakfast. “I’m not interested. Also, you should try to vocalize a little before speaking, it’s hard to get what you are saying.” The guy frowns feeling insulted. “Because of your foolishness my breakfast is completely ruined,” and then he sighs, rubbing his temples.
“I–– uh–– I could repair you. I don’t have a lot with me right now, but my friend is waiting for me so I can ask him to lend me some money.”
“That’s why you were in a hurry?”
“Kinda. He invited me to a lecture they are having at his department, I didn’t wanna be late. Which I am by now. But it’s okay it doesn’t start till 10 so–––.”
“On the Literature Building?”
The guy nods, enthusiastically. So, this guy is also a student? Akutagawa isn’t the best at remembering faces, but he’s pretty confident he would have remembered his. He keeps talking, or at least, his lips are moving (way too fast.) Akutagawa tons again into the one-sided conversation he's having.
“––––because I’m a big fan of Oda-sensei’s work, you see. I just bought his last book yesterday. Here,” he searches inside his backpack with the big sticker of a cute white tiger on it and takes the same book Akutagawa has on his bag. His is cleaner, and not full of sticky notes and bookmarks like Akutagawa’s.
He groans Oh, great, another idiot who likes that man’s books.
“His writing doesn’t have any consistency, it’s bland. His characters are plainly boring, honestly. Amateurs like him shouldn’t be giving lectures but receiving them. You people who like this kind of books are so simple it irritates me.”
“Huh? Well excuse me for being simple”. The guy frowns, visibly upset and starting to get angrier giving how his tone is raising and getting clear. He is cute when angry, Akutagawa is doomed. “Sometimes things don’t have to be deep to be good, y’know? Who are you to decide all that, anyway? Even critics say his work is promising why would you––– Wait––– You are Akutagawa, right?!”
Well that is unexpected. Akutagawa isn’t a person people knew about outside of his department. “My friend Tanizaki told me about you. The Elite of the Literature Department.”
Tanizaki is a damn idiot. He would have to kill him.
“Excuse me.” Deciding to ignore this headache with legs and a cute face is probably for the best. But fate still against him makes the guy decide to follow him after shouting ‘Wait!’ and rushing to his side.
“Can I go with you? I don’t wanna get lost.”
“Not for free.”
“I told you I’ll pay your breakfast once I met Tanizaki.”
“That’s one thing. Accompanying you is completely different. Are you free tomorrow?”
“Uh, yeah. What–––”
“I’ll treat you to coffee and explain you why sensei’s work is a waste of time, giving how your literature taste is this bad. Your name?”
“Uh… Nakajima Atsushi… But–––”. Before Nakajima gets out of his dumbfounded state and starts complaining at him, Akutagawa starts walking again. It worked pretty well because Nakajima calls out to him once again.
“I accept.” He says. It’s not like you have any option, idiot Akutagawa thinks. “I’m still mad you call me simple, but it’s what I expected from what Tanizaki told me.” Then Nakajima chuckles and Akutagawa knows he is not gonna be able to concentrate on anything but him for the whole seminar.