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Akira was honestly tired.
He had been running around the train station for what felt like forever and he STILL wasn't able to find the line he needed to be on to get to school. His sense of direction wasn't that bad, but it certainly wasn't that great either.
Honestly, he had only gotten lucky that he found the Ginza line on his first day of school, even though he had gotten a stern talking to from Mr. Sakura since he had been incredibly late on his first day. What a way to make a first impression. Not to mention the fact that it seemed that everyone in the entire school somehow knew of his 'record'.
Typical really.
But either way, even if he and Ryuji hadn't somehow gone to that weird palace place, Akira was certain he would've been late either way because he really had no idea where he was headed. If he hadn't known better at the moment from what he'd been told, that ride from that gym teacher on his first day would've seemed like a good idea and he would've kicked himself for not accepting. But he hadn't known him, nor the girl getting in (Ann, was it? He thought so.), so at the same time, it was only instinct that he wouldn't get into the car.
Whatever though, he didn't have time to dwell on it. Right now he just had to focus on finding that damn line. It really didn't help that there was just so many damn people here! Akira was starting to feel a bit claustrophobic. He hated big crowds and before coming to Tokyo, he'd never seen one this big except on tv. And god only knew how much bigger the crowds could get.
He took a moment to lean against a nearby wall, hands gripping onto the straps of his bag that rested on his shoulder and taking a few deep breaths as he was finally a decent amount away from the pack of people waiting for the oncoming train.
'This is a nightmare...I hate this....I wanna go home...' he thought, tired enough to just pass out right then and there. He'd never would've known that such large amounts of people would make him feel so suffocated and anxious. It sucked.
By nothing short of a miracle, Akira heard a familiar voice call out. "Hey!!"
He looked up, seeing a bright smile and bleach blond hair. He'd never been more relieved in his life.
"Ryuji." he said, smiling softly as he pulled himself away from the wall.
"So you're late today too huh?"
"Hm?" Shit, he knew it. He'd wasted too much time running around like a chicken without a head and now he was late. But at least he wasn't alone. "Y-Yeah...kinda heh."
The blond's smile turned into a concerned frown. "You doin' ok, man? Ya look like you're about to puke."
That was an understatement really. Akira knew he looked like hell and that Ryuji was probably just trying to be nice.
"Y-Yeah...I mean..." he sighed before shaking his head, his grip on his bag tightening. "No....no not really..."
Ryuji's eyebrows raised slightly as he leaned in a bit closer. "What's up? Ya not feelin' good? I can take ya back if ya want."
How in the actual hell anyone could ever say anything bad about Ryuji was honestly beyond him. The guy had a heart of freakin gold for cryin out loud!
Akira smiled softly and shook his head. "N-No... it's not really that. I just...don't really do well with uh...." he started, motioning towards the whole new mess of people waiting for the next train.
"Ohhh, I getcha. Ya not good with crowds huh?" he asked, receiving a nod in conformation.
"I just....I'm kinda worried about getting lost...I'm not really used to this..." he mumbled. 'Not to mention my sense of direction kinda sucks....'
The blond chuckled softly before grinning and giving him a thumbs up and a wink. "Stick with me then, I'll make sure ya don't get lost!"
Akira seriously didn't understand how so many people seemed to hate this guy. But then again, they had established that they were both misunderstood, so it made sense. However Akira needed to restrain himself from butting in every time he heard Ryuji's name being used negatively in school (though it wasn't really too often, considering Akira himself was the talk of the school, much to his dismay.)
"Thank you...I appreciate it a lot." he said, expression already seeming more hopeful and bright, which made Ryuji's smile return almost instantly.
"By the way, the line we gotta be on is right over there." he said, pointing to the track literally right behind them. To think, it had been there the entire time. Akira wanted to bang his head against the wall.
They did have to wait for the next train to arrive, so Ryuji went and grabbed them some drinks from a nearby vending machine. Akira was more than grateful, the heat that had risen to his face from exasperation starting to die down. Was it really exasperation though? Oh well. Either way, he was feeling much better, especially since he wasn't alone now.
———————————
They still had a few minutes before the train would arrive and the crowd of people seemed to only get bigger. Akira bit his lip once he saw all of them waiting by the edge. He really wasn't in the mood for this.
However, Ryuji placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a comforting nod. He wouldn't leave Akira alone.
They could hear the distant sound of the train, all of the citizens starting to bunch together, obviously trying to secure spots so they could get into the train first. The darker haired teen turned to the blond, inching his way closer to his side.
"Hey um...is it ok if I..hold your hand?" he asked, averting his eyes for the moment. He was worried Ryuji might laugh and tell him hell no, but to his surprise, the blond only smiled.
"Sure. It'll be easier to make sure I don't lose ya after all haha!" he explained, taking Akira's hand in his own and walked with him towards the crowd.
Hardly even fifteen seconds later, the train entered the station and everyone started moving to either get into the cars or out of them. Ryuji himself tugged Akira into one of the emptier cars and kept him close, never once letting go of his hand. Akira appreciated it more than anything. It was nice to have someone he could rely on with this.
Once the doors shut, Ryuji looked over at Akira, who currently had his forehead against the blond's shoulder. "You good Aki?" he asked.
The nickname made him blush, and he felt like an idiot for actually lifting his head and revealing that fact to the guy who said it, but he smiled softly and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah I'm good!"
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Akira stood by the same wall he did that one day, however this time, he wasn't lost, having memorized the way to school a while ago. Though he refused to move from the spot until he saw a familiar blond head of hair with the brightest smile to match. Truly the personification of the sun if you wanted his opinion.
Ryuji walked right up to him and held out his hand, this becoming the normal routine for them for a few months now. "Ready to go Aki?" he asked as his best friend-turned boyfriend nodded and took his hand, moving closer to him before they started walking to the train that had just pulled in.
"You remembered to study though right?"
"..."
"Ryuji?"
"Excuse me?"
"Ryuji we have our first exam today."
"ARE YOU FOR REAL??"
Akira couldn't help but chuckle softly, giving his boyfriend's hand a small squeeze before the doors of the train opened. "We're gonna be late."
"Ugh..."