Work Text:
Shouto growled with frustration as he set down his car keys, knowing there was no way he was getting in to work tonight with the roads being closed. His restaurant was everything to him. He had put his entire life into building that place, and it hurt to be away from it even for a night.
He couldn’t argue with the weather service, though, and he couldn’t just shut his eyes and pretend there wasn’t a blizzard going on. The roads were closed for a reason and no one was going anywhere tonight. He kicked off his shoes and paced around the living room, radiating nervous energy and anxious thoughts.
Shouto was not the type of person who could slow down. From the moment he’d graduated college his life had been busy. He just never seemed to stop moving, because there was always something else to do. Most of his work was at night when his restaurant was busy, but he tended to work around the clock.
This constant state of being busy was what had prompted him to start dating a like minded person who was equally busy, so putting work first would not cause hurt feelings. That person had become his boyfriend and they’d moved in together.
Eijirou was currently in the bedroom, fast asleep and unaware of the blizzard. He owned a gym and worked just as much as Shouto did, and his busiest time at the gym was early morning. Sometimes they went for days without even speaking to each other because they both worked so many hours on opposite schedules.
It had been a kind of cornerstone for their relationship, this agreement that their careers would come first and they understood that about each other. Things were great at first, because they could be together and do what they wanted for a living and neither of them minded.
Except, unfortunately, they had both begun to mind. It snuck up on them out of nowhere. Things were going great and then one day they weren’t. They had drifted apart and didn’t even know when. Their date nights had been sacrificed in the name of improving their businesses and meals together became a hurried few bites, if they even ate together at all.
It had hit Shouto one day, when he was driving to work. They had fallen out of love.
He had spoken to Eijirou that night and discovered he felt the same. They had no negative feelings toward each other, but at the same time couldn’t really think of a reason they were together anymore, other than convenience. And so the decision had been made. They would mutually end their relationship, on amicable terms, and go their separate ways.
That had been just over a week ago. In between shifts at work Shouto had been looking at ads for apartments and packing what few possessions he had. They had decided it was easier for Shouto to move out because their current apartment was near the gym and that made things convenient for Eijirou. Shouto would find an apartment closer to his restaurant, and then he would save time on his commute.
Shouto stared out the window, watching the snow fall on the shining street lamps. He did hate to slow down, but tonight there wasn’t any choice. He sat down in resignation and turned on his computer, thinking he could at least get some work done on his new menus and it wouldn’t be a total waste of time.
After a couple of hours he still hadn’t moved from his desk. Eijirou stumbled groggily out of the bedroom to get a glass of water and blinked at him in surprise.
“Shou? What are you still doing here?”
“There is a blizzard and the roads are closed. I can’t get to work to open the restaurant,” he explained, not taking his eyes off the computer screen.
“Ah. Okay. I should check the weather in the morning then too, if it is that bad I might need to close the gym.”
Shouto hummed his acknowledgment and Eijirou went to the kitchen.
Just then there was a quick surge and the power flickered off, leaving them in the dark. Shouto stared blankly at his now lifeless computer screen. At least he had saved his work so nothing would be lost. But now he couldn’t continue! What a waste of time tonight was turning out to be!
Eijrou sat down on the couch with his glass of water, looking out the window into the darkness. The street lights were off and the only thing visible was the snow falling close to the window. The apartment was eerily quiet and the large snowflakes could be heard thumping against the glass as they fell.
Shouto joined him on the couch, also watching the snow. For a long time they said nothing, and simply watched. After awhile Shouto shifted uncomfortably. He pulled his phone out of his pocket only to find the battery had died.
“I don’t think the power is coming back on,” he said, getting up. “Maybe I’ll head to bed.”
Eijirou stopped him by grabbing his hand.
“Not yet,” he said. “Let’s just stay here a little longer.”
Shouto sat down again and they continued to watch the snow.
“This is nice,” Eijirou said.
“What is?”
“Just being here with you. With nothing to do. Just being together.”
Shouto nodded, then realized Eijirou couldn’t see him in the dark. “Yes,” he said out loud. “It is nice. It reminds me of when we went on our first date. Remember we hadn’t brought our phones or anything; we just sat outside together and watched the stars.”
“I remember,” said Eijirou fondly. Then suddenly he sniffled. “What happened to us, Shou? How did we get so far away from that?”
“We were doing other important things,” Shouto reminded him. “Your gym is a huge success, and my restaurant is one of the top ten in the city. We couldn’t have done that without all the hard work we put in. We did the right thing.”
They sat in silence again and the wind picked up outside. The snow was still hitting the window but there was more of it now, enough to block off the window and create a barrier between the apartment and the outside world.
“I’m not so sure,” Eijirou whispered softly.
“About what?”
“I’m not so sure we did the right thing,” Eijirou admitted. “I- I really miss you.”
“I miss you too,” Shouto replied.
Hesitantly, and afraid of being rejected by this person he barely knew anymore, he scooted closer to Eijirou on the couch and reached out for his hand. Eijirou not only let him take his hand but squeezed back, and if the lights had been on Shouto would have seen the smile on his face.
Then again, if the lights had been on, they would not have gotten to this point in the first place.
~~
The power stayed out for a full day and a half, and during that time they simply sat and talked. They got up occasionally to grab snacks from the pantry and they lit candles so they could see better. At one point they pulled out a card game but gave up when they couldn’t remember how to play it. It was as if they were meeting again for the first time, and getting to know each other all over again.
When it got too cold they snuggled under a thick blanket, wrapping their arms around each other even though they felt shy and awkward about it. It had been so long since they’d touched each other in this way it felt foreign to Shouto, but it also made him feel more alive. There was no work and no email and no schedule. Just the two of them, existing together.
On the morning of the second day the lights flickered back on and the electronics whirred to life. Shouto fought down a surge of disappointment. He didn’t want this to end. Eijirou came back from the kitchen, the same look of fear and disappointment on his face.
Suddenly, Shouto had an idea. He jumped up and walked quickly to the gray box containing the breakers for the apartment, and flipped the main one off. The power disappeared again and Eijirou stared at him incredulously.
“What... why would you...”
“Shh. Just a little longer,” said Shouto.
~~
Eventually they had to turn the power back on and face reality, and decisions had to be made. Different decisions this time; better ones. For example, they decided not to break up and Shouto didn’t move out. It turns out when someone owns a business and has lots of money, that person can hire managers to help run said business. This concept was alien to them both and would take some getting used to, but they had each accomplished their goal of creating a successful business and now it was time to put their relationship first.
Every year going forward, they shut off the power on that particular day as a sort of new anniversary. It was a reminder of just how close they had come to throwing it all away, and how fortunate they were not to have lost each other.