Work Text:
The plan is simple. Actually work hard for once in this dead ass-job that he had mired himself into for ages. Do every possible job handed to them. He might also have to sneakily convince Baba to advertise the Yorozuya, cause work was always scarce. Maybe he could call in some favours from the Prime Minister, but that would be way to easy for something like this. He wanted to earn this, like he never wanted anything else. Maybe even ask Hinowa for work… that could be possible. His skills will never get rusty, and sword training has surprisingly revitalized since the war. Maybe, just maybe, he could get this one right.
Gintoki was a nervous wreck planning this. He usually didn’t plan anything at all, and had always swung with what life had gave him. But this time, the problem posed was truly a rigmarole that he’d have to navigate in the most careful of ways. He had to make sure that the scenery, the timing, the actions, and the object itself was as pristine and perfect as possible. Somehow, it had woken a perfectionist side of him that he never knew existed, and while he was happy about being motivated for an event like this, it was also nerve-wracking and emotionally draining. The fact that he had to keep it a secret from everyone but a select few didn’t help one bit.
Well, even if it all burns down to the ground, I’ll have strawberry ice cream to keep me company… oooh, shit. I have to budget for the ice cream too…
With that in mind, Gintoki got to work. To repeat, Sakata Gintoki actually started working hard for once.
Everyday, Shinpachi’s confusion grew. He couldn’t make sense out of what he had been witnessing for the past couple of weeks. The silver haired samurai was… working. Working hard.
Dedicating every resources he had towards the job, the man somehow morphed overnight, and the odd jobs business followed suit. Shinpachi had never seen more than two customers at a time requesting jobs in the headquarters, much less a line of people. He felt like he had seen some of them hanging around Otose’s bar. Now that he thought about it, most of the people frequenting the bar were Kabuki-cho working class people, local business owners and such, coming over for drinks and food after a long day of work. He did remember Gintoki muttering about trying to negotiate with Otose-san about advertisements, but he never thought that Gintoki would go through with it.
They’ve never had work, let alone this much work. Shinpachi had to arrive earlier at Gingko’s place these days just to get everything in the place cleaned up. The first time he did show up early, he received the shock of his life, as he saw Gintoki up already, preparing breakfast for all three of them. Kagura had to be woken up grudgingly, but Gintoki had seemingly baited her with mounds of eggs on rice every morning. The man would never wake up any later than one in the afternoon, yet here he was, all ready and set by eight forty-five sharp.
For the first time, Yorozuya was actually making profit. The sheer number of requests from local businesses and the general public (as well as the unusual mob requests too, mind you) funded all the food and living expenses that they would usually incur as debt, and more. Gintoki actually paid the rent on time, as Otose happily exclaimed the first time he did. He was smartly utilizing the profits as well, somehow managing to fund advertisement and reach for the Yorozua over time. For the first time in ever, Gintoki managed to pay both him and Kagura with a consistent wage over the months. This wasn’t just uncanny, it was straight up a huge anomaly on the laziest man that Shinpachi ever knew in his life.
As he dusts the sofas, recollecting, he notices Gintoki busy peering over the account balances on the table. He seemed to be carefully scrutinizing all the numbers, before finally letting out a sigh and slacking back on the chair.
“Just a couple more to go, Patsuan,” Gintoki loudly exclaims, as he gets up and walks to the fridge, opening the door to look for his strawberry milk.
“Before what, Gin-san?”
Gintoki sniggers, grinning from ear to ear. “Nothing.”
Shinpachi shrugs, and kept on dusting. Gintoki plops down back on the chair with the milk carton, happily indulging in the milk.
“Oh also, Gin-san, why do we have so much ice-cream in the freezer?”
Gintoki pauses for a while, slowly turning to Shinpachi with a dead stare.
“Urusai.”
“Shin-chan tells me that you’ve been awfully hard at work nowadays, Gin-san,” Otae said softly, her trademark innocent smile plastered on her face. Gintoki shuddered.
It was a hot, sunny day, and Otae had hired the Yorozua for house cleanup to fix up any possible leaks in pipes and structures. Since he had already assigned the other two into other jobs, Gintoki decided to attend to Otae’s job personally. And now here he was, checking up on the dojo hall, the last place remaining. Of course she was here, training with her naginata.
“How’re things going with Tsukuyo-chan, Gin-san?”
“Huh? Swimmingly, I guess. She’s finally starting to get my jokes, although I still get those random kunais to the forehead.” He rubs his chin, deep in thought. “Oh, I also got her to like parfaits! She’s slowly warming up to chocolate, but says too much sweets are bad. I strongly disagree.”
She smirks. “Planning to tie the know anytime soon then?”
Gintoki shakes. “Hmph.”
Otae laughs, figuring it out. She puts the naginata down and approaches Gintoki, holding a small parcel, with a wad of bills on top of it. She hands it to him, who slowly reaches out a hand, wondering what this was all about.
“A bonus for the job, and for what’s to come, if I’m not wrong.” She smiles, looking at him earnestly. “This arrived early in the morning, as per your instructions. Good luck, Gin-san. I’m sure she’ll love it.”
Ginkoti shrugs, smiling.
“I know what you’re trying to do, Gin-san,” Hinowa grins, seeing Gintoki arrive at the porch, winded.
“If you do, then pray tell me why are you trying to murder me with all these difficult tasks, eh?” Gintoki snarls, peeved. Hinowa giggles, incensing him more.
“Are, calm down, Gin-san. If I do recall, you were the one asking for jobs, no matter what.”
“I know, but holy shit, the training regimen the Hyakka follow… it’s a miracle I’m in one piece after every one of those sessions. Tsukuyo really gets them all prepped up.”
“You know her, Gin-san.”
Gintoki shudders, taking a seat on the porch step, while Hinowa approaches closer.
“You know, Gin-san, she would never say no. You worry too much.”
“Easy for you to say…”
Hinowa laughs again. “I’m honestly surprised. You did put a lot of effort into this. As her big sister, I couldn’t be more happier for her.” She turns to Gintoki, beaming. “I wish you all the best, Gin-san.”
He grins. “Don’t worry. I got ice cream, just in case.”
The date went as smooth as possible, and yet she couldn’t help but worry about him. Gintoki had been acting… much more earnest the whole day. Treating her to a movie, getting parfaits, he had funded the whole thing. They had been out the whole night, to the point where he was walking her back home late at night. Even the Yoshiwara streets had gone quiet, for people had closed up early. Makes sense, as tomorrow was the beginning of a new week.
Even so, the date was fun. She had needed a break like this for a while. Work was definitely much more stress than usual, and age was slowly, yet definitely taking its toll. She wasn’t much old, mind you, but years of work and toil with the Hyakka took a toll on her body. Gintoki too knew it very well. He had definitely lifted her spirits in tonight’s date, even though she was pretty sure that she had been sleepy for most of it. However, he understood, and had kept on through it all. She was truly lucky, truly blessed to have had the privilege of having a relationship with Sakata Gintoki. Words fail to express her gratitude for his presence.
In deep thought, she realizes that they had reached Hinowa’s place in no time. The porch lights were on. She turns around to wish him goodnight, only to find him on his knees, with a hand reaching out, a small open box lying on the palm. Inside the box was a silver ring.
She gasped, hand covering her mouth, shocked. She couldn’t believe it. He grinned, and cleared his throat.
“Marry me, Tsukki.”
“You know,” he started, as they walk back to his place after exiting Hokuto Shinken. They’d been out on another date since then, both wearing their engagement rings. “I, uh, still have a lot of chocolate ice cream left. We could use that for desserts after the spicy ramen.”
“Why do you have so much ice cream to begin with?” Tsukuyo groans. “I specifically remember warning you about your sugar intake.” He does a double take.
“C’mon Tsukki, it was necessary, ya know,” he shrugs, looking away. “In case…”
Tsukuyo grins, gripping his hand tighter. “Fine, fine.” She holds up her right hand to catch a glimpse of the silver ring, and smiles serenely.
The things we idiots do for love…