Chapter Text
Normally, Kaito loved the rain.
He loved hearing the constant and steady raindrops pit pattering on the rooftops and how it calmed and soothed his soul, how the white noise drowned out all the problems and worries in his mind, how everything seems to just...stop. It made everything feel comfy and cool as well, and boy was he a huge sucker for the cold, what a perfect excuse for hot chocolate and cuddling.
But tonight...well, tonight is different.
How the violent raindrops pelting his rooftops seem to echo the beating of his heart, how the chaotic noise that used to soothe him now unnerved and irked him to no end, and how the bitter cold made him feel lonely without anyone to cuddle with.
Without her to cuddle with.
He looks down at his phone for the umpteenth time. No messages. No missed calls. No anything from her. The time flashed 3:09 AM in a large and stark white font, though it may as well be a time bomb by how he seemed to be on edge as the seconds, minutes, hours ticked by.
He takes a deep breath, then two, then three, to try and calm himself.
She's fine. She's fine. She’s fine.
Kaito usually isn’t the type to worry, far from it, actually. He knew Meiko was a strong woman, perfectly capable of defending herself and others, even more so than he himself could ever do.
If anything she herself was almost always the one who defended him on several occasions, from childhood up to now. From knocking out their old school bullies to expertly diffusing a hostage situation. She was a strong person, inside and out.
But it's already 3 AM, the rain shows no sign of stopping any time soon, and Meiko has yet to come home.
He scolds himself for the umpteenth time. This is his fault. That he’s worrying. That Meiko left. His fault. His fault. His fault. His fault.
It was a fight—a dumb, stupid fight about…., something . He doesn’t even remember what, it probably wasn’t something they cared about too much, something insignificant, but they were tired and stressed after their rehearsals for their next concert and the pressure got to them. The dam broke, words were thrown around, and before he knew it, Meiko grabbed her keys and coat and bolted out, muttering something about having a drink and to not wait for her.
It’s not unusual for her to go out for drinks alone, he knows and trusts her enough to know it’s just her way of cooling off and gathering her thoughts, and he understands that.
Yet...she always came home no matter what, and when she didn't, she would have at least called, or texted him. At this point, a "Hey, it's raining really hard so I'm crashing at Haku's for the night," or "Hey, it's Luka. Your girlfriend is passed out drunk on my couch." would have been better than nothing.
Anything would have been better than nothing.
Kaito takes a deep breath, and another as his eyes land on the black, rectangular object on the coffee table—the TV remote— right next to the red coffee mug and an emptied pint of Häagen-Dazs he had forgotten to clean out. That was my last pint, isn’t it…..? He remembers wryly as he picks up the remote and sits back, making a mental reminder to buy groceries tomorrow as he turns the TV on. He could use another pint to ease his worries right now…
But for now, he’ll have to rely on television to distract him, until if—
He shakes his head frantically. Not if. When Meiko comes back for sure. Kaito relaxes his previously tensed shoulders as he tries to focus on...whatever’s on.
It looked like a drama of sorts. A hospital room, machines beeping, the lights dimmed, in the middle of the room, was a man and a woman. The woman was pale and bandaged up, connected and being kept alive by the machines. A man lay beside her, holding her hand, brushing her hair, muttering sweet and soothing words, barely concealing his shattered heart.
“The crash wasn’t your fault….”
“I should’ve— I should’ve stopped you, From walking out. From getting into that car. I should’ve done something . I’m…a useless husband, aren’t I?”
“You aren’t...I love you, so much.”
“I...I love you too, so much.”
“...I think it’s time to say goodbye—”
With shaky hands holding the remote, he shuts the TV off. He heaves in the darkness of their empty living room, pinching the bridge of his nose, trying not to let his tears spill out.
What if...what if that will happen to them?
A car accident in the heavy rains of the darkness of the night, a phone call or a knock at the door, a policeman looking grim. A white and dull hospital room, beeping monitors, denial and tearful farewells —
Kaito jolts back into reality as he hears a noise, a quiet noise, as if it were pleading not to be heard. He gulps when he hears it’s the creaking of a door—their front door, specifically, and his heart pounds so hard and so harshly he feels it will burst out of his chest and the floor and his surroundings will collapse in and of itself and swallow him whole.
It’s just a door, Kaito, get a hold of yourself! He grits his teeth and scolds himself as he gets up from the couch, warrily, anxiously, his chest pounding so hard he couldn’t tell the difference between it and the heavy rain.
As he comes closer, the door opens wider and wider, briefly stopping each time it creaks, as if it was flinching, before a figure appears, and it becomes increasingly clear who it is. “Meiko….?”
She turns to him, startled, eyes wide and cheeks red.
He lets out a quiet exhale, his shoulders slumping, all his worries and anxieties melting away as this fiery and passionate force in his life has returned. “Meiko.”
"Hi," she smiles at him and tilts her head sheepishly, causing several droplets of water to fall off from her soaked locks. “You’re still awake? I told you not to wait for me. It’s rather late…” She scolds him , her unusually soft and quiet voice was drowned out by the raging storm outside.
Meiko seemed drunk. Maybe not the usual completely-wasted-and-puking-everywhere kind of drunk, but she had a sway in her step and her speech slurred, just a little bit, bordering between tipsy and drunk.
"Hi," he returns, though it came out more as a sigh of relief. She is here. Soaking wet, sure, tired, probably, but alive and well. Not a scratch, nor a bruise. She is here and she’s safe. And for now, that’s what really matters.
“Sorry I got home late, I took a walk to clear my mind, had to stop by a store too…”
"You — you walked all the way home? It's raining! At three in the morning!" It’s Kaito’s turn to scold Meiko now.
“It’s not that long of a walk.”
“What about your car?!”
"Tonio wouldn’t let me drive~ he says it’s too dangerous…” Meiko taps her chin, trying to remember what her bartender told her, “he told me he’ll keep an eye on the car until I pick it up sober.”
"Still! You could've called me or took the bus or-"
"Aw, you were worried about me,” Meiko simply says, smiling at him, almost smugly as a finger teasingly pokes his chest, unaware of the turmoil her partner had just gone through worrying about her.
Kaito frowns, almost pouting, “Maybe I was,” he admits, which he usually doesn’t do, but he’s tired of holding his anxieties in, and he feels his eyes tearing up. “I….I was really worried about you, Mei.”
That throws Meiko off as she notices Kaito’s expression and she pulls back her finger, “Kaito, I’m — I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you.”
“It’s...it’s fine, as long as you’re here now,” he smiles and holds her hand, remembering she had been walking in the rain. “You’re still wet…. let’s get you dried up, shall we?”
He turns and begins to make his way to the bathroom to prepare some towels and a hot bath when Meiko grabs his hand, stopping him.
"Wait," she says, taking a step back as she pulled something out of her drenched coat.
"Here. I...um, bought something for you." Red dusted her cheeks and she looked away as she gently shoved the plastic bag to him, he wasn't sure if she was blushing due to the cold, or if she was drunk, or out of embarrassment. Maybe it's a combination of all three. "As a "sorry" gift...I guess you can say."
He frowned. She walked in the rain for who knows how long in the night just for some "sorry" gift?
"You don't need to do something like this-"
He takes a peek in the bag, scanning the items as his eyes brightens from surprise, a fond, lopsided smile gracing his lips.
“I remembered...we ran out of ice cream,” Meiko adds quickly, shifting, "I didn't know what flavor you liked so I just chose whatever," she shrugs, trying to look nonchalant.
He grins and tears up — in a good way this time.
She was lying. All of his favorite flavors were here. “Meiko...thank you.”
“It’s nothing, really,” Meiko returns the smile, and seems to have sobered up a bit, her smile a little brighter. Though, he couldn’t help but notice her shivers…
Kaito pulls his scarf off of him, his staple item since children, almost never seen without, and wraps it around Meiko as he begins escorting her to the bathroom. "You need to get all dried up before you catch — "
Meiko stops and sneezes.
" — a cold."
They stare at each other.
She blinks.
He blinks.
Then, she laughs. And he couldn't help but laugh as well.
"No ice cream for you, then."