Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

May 10th, 2013

Kurosawa felt himself going down, too drunk to even right himself with his large wings. In his last few seconds of consciousness, he could feel someone clasp his shoulders, and wondered who would attempt to touch him like that.

As Kurosawa gained consciousness, he realized he was on a bench, an ivy-covered trellis over him. He blinked, and Adachi from Data was now in his line of sight. Kurosawa could just barely see the outline of his wings through his drunken haze. The top half of his own wings were spread out over the bench, the left one outstretched and the right one drooping on the ground, the bottom half underneath his body. 

“Are...are you okay?”

“Adachi?” Kurosawa was confused on what was happening and made to get up. 

“Don’t force yourself. Lie down for a while,” Adachi urged, his wings fluttering as Kurosawa moved, holding out his hands to try and stop him from getting up. 

Kurosawa nodded, settling back onto the bench, realizing he must have been on Adachi’s messenger bag when he rested his head back down. He closed his eyes, listening to Adachi move around, sounding like he was taking care to avoid Kurosawa’s wing. 

“What the hell am I doing?” Kurosawa asked.

“What?” 

“They brought me along as eye-candy, yet I angered President Matsuura. In the end, I was useless,” Kurosawa said, the wine in his veins making his tongue looser than usual, especially to a boring coworker like Adachi. He immediately regretted it, knowing that Adachi probably didn’t want to hear it and feeling pathetic for having “too pretty a face” instead of real problems. 

“I...don’t think so.”

“What?” Kurosawa turned to look at Adachi.

Adachi looked a little nervous, and his wings were fluttering, but he kept going. “You did a lot of research on President Matsuura. You even memorized all of her products.” Adachi's wings stilled for a second as he smiled a little. “You drank the wine in my place. You are amazing enough, Kurosawa.” 

Kurosawa was sure that if he wasn’t so drunk, his wings would also be fluttering as he tried to process Adachi’s words. “Is...that so?” he asked.

Adachi laughed a little, making Kurosawa turn to look at him again.

“What is it?” 

“Nothing.” Adachi was smiling, and his wings were the most relaxed Kurosawa had ever seen. “Kurosawa, you always seem so perfect. It’s refreshing seeing the weaker side of you.” Adachi paused, a big smile growing on his face. “It’s kinda nice.” 

Kurosawa could feel himself start to tear up. “What the hell is that?” His eyes tried to focus on something yellow behind Adachi before he gave up and faced the sky again. 

“Come on, get some sleep.” 

Kurosawa felt a slight pressure on his chest, and looked over to Adachi, who started patting his chest. Kurosawa knew he probably didn’t know, but Adachi’s wings were slowly losing their transparent blankness, the tips exposing a sun and moon motif. He blinked, the tears definitely starting to fall, so he brought his hand to his eyes, letting himself cry in front of the one person he knew he could trust completely and complicitly. 

October 1st, 2020 

Adachi woke up on his 30th birthday the same way he woke up most mornings: to a beeping alarm. He reached over, turning it off before throwing off his covers, unfurling his wings from where they had been curled around himself. He grabbed his phone, finding two messages on the screen, one from his mom and one from his best friend. He replied and got dressed, shoving his wings through the wingslits of his work jacket. He knew he should probably get a new one, but he was used to this one. He got out the potion that would turn his wings from yellow and blue, decorated with suns and moons, into the socially acceptable outlines. He vaguely remembered his great-grandmother remembering the “good old days” when you could see everyone’s wing patterns before it was decided that making them transparent was less distracting. Adachi rarely thought about his wings, which were in the “regular” fairy shape, but knew his parents had been soulmates, with their matching wing shape and matching patterns of constellations. Not everyone got as lucky as his parents, and Adachi didn’t expect to get lucky, especially considering he was thirty and still a virgin. He got on his messenger bag and headed out.

Like he did every morning, Adachi went to a convenience truck near his apartment to pick up his breakfast, keeping his head down as usual. However, this morning, the older man who manned it appeared to have forgotten to take his potion, since Adachi could see that his wings had a pattern of green, black, and white swirls. Adachi didn’t think much of it, until he got onto the train and saw that either 1) everyone had forgotten to take the potion today or 2) Urabe’s stupid confrontation the day before had a lot more merit than he had realized. Even worse, if his wings touched someone else’s wings, he could hear their thoughts. For an introvert like Adachi, this was pretty much his worst nightmare. 

He got to the office, a nervous wreck, which wasn’t helped by Urabe clapping a hand on his shoulder, taking care to avoid Adachi’s wings. Urabe’s wings, imp-shaped and almost neon red, were just large enough to touch Adachi’s wings at the angle he was at. 

“Enjoy your thirties!” Urabe said out loud, while his thoughts were “ Man, he looks gloomy so early in the morning.” 

Adachi watched him go to his seat, wondering if the stress was finally getting to him. He scooched over, letting his wings touch Urabe’s. 

“He doesn’t get my joke. Ah, but Adachi is a nice guy. He’s willing to help even if it’s too much work.” 

Adachi pushed himself away, asking out loud if this was real, catching Urabe’s attention. 

“What’s the matter? ~Magic user~”

Adachi looked up at that, remembering the conversation from the day before, and stood up, suddenly overwhelmed. 

“No way!” he shouted, making everyone in the office look at him. He could feel his wings tremble and had to make sure he wasn’t accidentally flying. He couldn’t believe that he could now see everyone’s wing patterns and could read minds on top of that.   

October 8th, 2020

Adachi had adjusted to life with mind reading powers, for the most part. Instead of getting up at seven, he had started getting up earlier to avoid the rush. While for the most part, he didn’t mind seeing wing patterns (although after a lifetime of being told the patterns were private, it did feel a little invasive), the mind reading powers were exhausting. 

As he waited for the elevator, Adachi reflected on the urban legend and how if he lost his virginity, he’d lose the abilities as well. The elevator door opened, and Adachi let everyone go ahead of him. When he saw how crowded it was, with everyone’s wings touching each other’s, he stepped back, deciding to wait for the next one. He vaguely thought about how it was going to be impossible for him to lose the magic when Kurosawa, ace of their office, came and stood next to him. 

“Good morning,” Kurosawa said, startling Adachi to the point where he stepped away. Kurosawa went to push the button, Adachi doing his best to stare straight ahead. 

“You’re early today,” Kurosawa remarked. 

“Oh, yeah,” Adachi responded, wondering why Kurosawa was talking to him. He glanced at Kurosawa but went back to looking at the elevator doors, uncomfortable with talking so early in the morning, especially with someone like Kurosawa, who was so good at everything. 

“We just missed it, huh,” Kurosawa said before turning to Adachi. “Wanna take the stairs?” 

“What?” Adachi was confused out of his mind. “But our office is on the tenth floor.” While almost everyone could fly, with the different types of wings, it was frowned upon to fly in office spaces. Even if they could fly up to their office, flying up ten levels wasn’t Adachi’s idea of fun. Maybe if he had bird or angel wings it would be a different story, but he didn’t. 

“It’s good exercise though,” Kurosawa pointed out, eyes crinkling into a smile. With a smile like that, Adachi couldn’t look anywhere but at his face, which Adachi considered “blinding”. Now that he thought about it, Kurosawa had been out the entire week for a business trip. The elevator came, interrupting Adachi’s thoughts. He got in, Kurosawa standing behind him while saying good morning to everyone. Adachi thought about how Kurosawa must be enjoying his popular life before he was knocked backwards. The way Adachi was standing, shoulder to Kurosawa’s chest, his wing tips touched Kurosawa’s. 

“ I’m so lucky. I didn’t think we’d run into each other first thing in the morning. I can’t stare too much or I’ll look suspicious.”  

Adachi had to smile at that, wondering who was good enough for the most popular guy in the office. 

“ Oh, what a cute bed head again.” 

Adachi looked around, curious to see had a bed head. The elevator stopped and people got off, causing Kurosawa to bump into Adachi, nearly grabbing Adachi’s wing before managing to catch his balance on the elevator wall. 

“Sorry, are you okay?” Kurosawa asked.

Adachi looked at him with wide eyes, but managed to get out a “Yeah.”

“ Shit! He’s so close! It almost feels wrong that I’m this lucky today. My heart is beating so damn fast!” Adachi could feel vibrations through his wings, and figured it must be Kurosawa’s wings, which was unusual for the usually composed Kurosawa. “ Anyway, I wonder if Adachi can feel my heartbeat.”

Adachi looked up at Kurosawa. What??

As they got off the elevator, Adachi kept his head down, wondering what it meant. 

“Well then, let’s do our best today,” Kurosawa said, turning back to look at Adachi when he realized Adachi was following him. 

Adachi nodded and said “okay,” still wondering what was going on. As Kurosawa walked away, Adachi got a good look at Kurosawa’s wings. His eyes widened and he checked his hair, finding it slightly messy. 

“Me??!” 

Adachi sat at his desk, contemplating everything he knew about wings and soulmates, as well as the mind reading powers. 

Maybe everything that’s happened so far, like my ability to read minds and see wing patterns, is all a delusion, and these are hallucinations. There’s no way that Kurosawa likes someone like me, let alone is my soulmate. 

Adachi watched as Kurosawa talked to another coworker, his wings politely out of the way, before his attention was caught by Urabe’s conversation with the Chief. Adachi did his best to look like he was working, but Urabe came over anyways, and Adachi found himself agreeing to work overtime after hearing (through their wings touching) that Urabe’s wife, Yumi, wanted him home for their anniversary. 

Adachi groaned, annoyed at himself for agreeing when he could have been home hours ago. He knew his wings had to be drooping, but he ruffled his hair and got back to work. 

“You’re still here?” someone asked, and when Adachi looked up, he couldn’t help backing up from being startled. His wings picked up and started fluttering, which was a nervous habit he knew he had. Kurosawa clearly ignored that, coming closer. 

“Kurosawa…” Adachi got out as Kurosawa came closer, whipping a can of coffee from behind his back. 

“Here you go,” Kurosawa said, his face falling slightly as Adachi didn’t take it. “Oh, I bought some for my juniors, this is an extra.” 

Adachi nodded and accepted the can. “Thanks. Well then, see you” he said, hoping Kurosawa would go away, but it wasn’t meant to be, considering Kurosawa just stood there before swooping next to Adachi, mindful of his body and Adachi’s wings, but still too close. 

“ I can’t believe he accepted the can, the one I got just for Adachi.” 

“Is this Sajima Stationary’s data?” Kurosawa asked, like he hadn’t just thought about how he had bought a can just for Adachi. 

“Yeah, he told me to compile their past transactions.” Adachi tried to still his wings, but with Kurosawa being this close, Adachi wasn’t going to calm down any time soon. 

“For this, you’ll need more than just the data from the past five years.”

“Yes, but-”

“I’ll help you. Let me get the documents.” And with that, Kurosawa left, leaving Adachi blinking in his chair, his wings quivering like he had flown five kilometers. 

We are alone after all. But a capable man says and does things differently indeed. Adachi didn’t realize he was staring until Kurosawa asked him what was the matter. 

“Oh, nothing,” Adachi replied, trying not to let his eyes roam on Kurosawa’s wings, much larger than his, but the same shape and same pattern. “I was just thinking, you are kinda amazing.” 

“What’s that?”

“I mean, you are so good in your work, and everyone trusts you.”

“You’re suddenly praising me,” Kurosawa said, an unreadable look on his face before he smiled and straightened the papers in his hand against the desk. “Come on, let’s focus on work,” he said, using the chair wheels to slide over to Adachi. 

“Sorry...eh? Where were we again?” Adachi asked, leaning over the paper. 

“Hmm...this one, I guess,” Kurosawa replied, pointing with his finger to a line of data. 

“ Oh crap. I had always thought so, but Adachi smells so good. Shampoo? Fabric softener? I wonder what he’s using. Alright! I’ll check out the drugstores.”

Adachi glanced up to their wings which were overlapping, trying to scoot away a little. Why was Kurosawa having these thoughts about him?? They had the same wing shape, yes, but still, so did several other people in the office. Honda-san from Reception came to mind. 

“It’s this one, right?” Kurosawa asked, looking up to ask.

“Oh...yes.” Adachi said, leaning over the paper again. 

“ Also, the mole on the nape of his neck is sooo sexy. Oh crap. Am I the only one who noticed it?? Crap. Crap! The mole on his neck! The mole!”

Adachi couldn’t take it anymore and stood up, using the toilet as an excuse. He knew Kurosawa probably saw his wings vibrating, but he couldn’t worry about that. 

Once in the restroom, Adachi pulled down the collar of his jacket, checking the right side. Just as Kurosawa had thought, there was a mole on his neck, below his ear. Realization struck in. 

Once they were in the elevator, Adachi did his best to stay away from Kurosawa, knowing that his thoughts were true and that if the soulmates thing was true, Kurosawa was also his soulmate. He wasn’t sure how much he believed that now, considering Kurosawa was much better than him. 

The two of them walked outside, Kurosawa remarking on how it had gotten cold. Adachi just wanted to fly away, but his apartment was much too far for that. 

“Adachi?” Kurosawa asked. 

In the first place, why does this guy like me? Has he gone nuts from overworking--? A sneeze interrupted Adachi’s thoughts. 

“Are you okay?” Kurosawa asked. 

“Ahh, yeah. It’s really getting cold,” Adachi said, shivering a bit in the cool October air. Kurosawa dug through his leather briefcase and pulled out a scarf, holding it out to Adachi. 

“I’ll lend you this.”

“No, use it yourself. Everyone will be in trouble if you fall sick. Someone like me doesn’t…”

“Just use it,” Kurosawa walked over and dropped his bag, coming over to Adachi and wrapping the scarf around his neck. He did it carefully and methodically, making sure it was snug but comfortable. Adachi felt a little like crying with how much care Kurosawa was putting into it, especially after Kurosawa said it looked great on him, easily smiling at Adachi. Adachi stood there as Kurosawa received his bag from the ground. 

“Well then, let’s go home,” Adachi said, turning around to head to the train station and walking away. 

Kurosawa called out to him, so Adachi turned back around.

“Do you still have a train back?” 

Adachi immediately reached for his phone, checking the time and finding out that it was past time for the last train to run. “Ah no, I’ve missed the last train!”

“I knew it,” Kurosawa remarked as he came closer.

“Ah, but it’s fine. I’ll sleep at an internet cafe or something,” Adachi said, not looking forward to it, but willing to put up with it. He looked at Kurosawa’s wings, the ones that matched the ones on his back. “Thank you for your help today. See you.” He turned around, ready to go find said cafe. 

“Wait.” 

Adachi turned back around, Kurosawa freezing for a second before coming over. “Why don’t you stay over?” 

“What?” 

“Stay over at my place. It’s near, within the taxi’s base fare.”

“Umm…” Adachi wasn’t sure what was happening, but Kurosawa kept talking. 

“It’s tough if you don’t get enough sleep, right?” 

“But I don’t want to bother you.” 

“It’s not a bother at all,” Kurosawa promised. “I’d feel safer if you did,” ignoring Adachi’s startled “what?” 

Adachi stood there, awkwardly bobbing his head, his wings nearly picking him off the sidewalk with how fast they were shaking. Kurosawa came over with a “let’s do that!”, clapping his hand on Adachi’s shoulder, making their wings brush.

*~adachi blowing on a cup of coffee, dressed for work in an unfamiliar kitchen; adachi in a t-shirt, brown towel around his neck, rubbing his hair dry; adachi in silk pajamas, sleeping on a bed much bigger than his own~*

“C’mon, let’s go,” Kurosawa said with a grin, letting go and walking ahead. 

Adachi stood frozen until Kurosawa called for him. He slowly turned around, finding Kurosawa grinning at him, eyes all crinkles. 

“What??!”

Chapter Text

The taxi ride was slightly awkward, with Adachi overhearing thoughts Kurosawa had about him, about how kind and dedicated Adachi was and how he didn’t mind work pushed on him. It made Adachi realize that Kurosawa had been watching him for a while, and he wasn’t sure how to feel about it. Either way, all too soon they were in front of Kurosawa’s apartment building, which looked much nicer than Adachi’s. 

Is this really okay, for me to be staying at Kurosawa’s place? What should I do? Now that I’m in front of his house, I’m starting to get scared.

Kurosawa, who was now above him because of the stairs in front of the building, turned to look at Adachi. 

I found out about how Kurosawa feels about me, as well as us apparently being soulmates. I even saw those things.

Without noticing, Adachi had followed Kurosawa up the steps, thinking hard about what it all meant. 

What does Kurosawa want from me?? Is he going to attack me?!

Adachi looked at Kurosawa, whose wings were totally relaxed, unlike Adachi’s, which were starting to ache at the base from being held up so tensely. 

No, no, no. No way, no way. Adachi took his hands and lightly slapped his cheeks. That’s disrespectful to Kurosawa. 

“Adachi?” Kurosawa asked, making Adachi straighten. Kurosawa smiled and opened the door. “Please come in. It’s messy though,” he said as he turned on the light, turning to smile at Adachi. 

Blinding! I seriously don’t know what he’s thinking. Adachi glanced at his wings, trying to make them relax. But...I have the ability to read his mind. I think I can manage. 

“Adachi?” Kurosawa called out again. 

Adachi adjusted the strap on his messenger bag, holding on to it for moral support. “Thank you for having me,” he said with a nod. 

“How is this even messy?” Adachi wondered out loud, rolling up the scarf that had been around his neck. He looked around, noticing the lamp and the plant that looked well-taken care of. “What’s with all the glamour in this room?” he asked before something under the coffee table caught his eye. He reached out to check, finding some tankōbons of Ragna Crimson next to a beer can and an open bag of chips. 

“Sorry, let me put them away now,” Kurosawa said once he caught Adachi looking, his wings fluttering faster than Adachi had ever seen. “I couldn’t stop doing either of these things yesterday,” Kurosawa explained before going over to the kitchen table, putting the can of beer and chips on it. 

“I like...them both, too,” Adachi said. He watched as Kurosawa paused before turning to Adachi.

“Really?” 

“When there are limited-time snacks like that, I’d definitely get two packets. And Ragna Crimson is really wicked.”

“It is!” Kurosawa sounded delighted, coming over to sit on the couch, sitting on the end, not close to Adachi, which Adachi appreciated. The two of them talked about Ragna Crimson until the hot water warmer beeped and announced that the bath was ready. Kurosawa got up, telling Adachi to take a bath first. 

“What?” 

“Here. A change of clothes,” Kurosawa said, offering Adachi pajamas. 

Adachi hesitated, but stood up and made to take the pjs, only to find they felt really nice. “Oh, what is this? It feels so comfortable,” he said as he ran his hands through it. 

“Right?” Kurosawa asked as he stepped closer, his body angled just enough for his wing tips to touch Adachi’s. 

“Can I really be rewarded like this?” *~adachi in the pajamas with a towel around his neck, biting his lip, ruffling his hair~* I bought these pajamas thinking they’d suit Adachi, but to have him actually wear them…is a feast for the eyes.”

Adachi quickly moved away from Kurosawa, holding the emotionally-loaded pajamas. I...don’t wanna wear these. 

Adachi came out of the restroom, wondering why everything, including the wing slits, fit perfectly. 

“Umm...thanks for letting me use the bath first.” Adachi said.

Kurosawa got up from where he was setting up the futon, freezing when he saw Adachi, his wings snapping shut. 

“Kurosawa?” Adachi asked. 

Kurosawa’s wings opened up again, and he put his thumbs in his pockets. “Well then, I’ll also take a bath. Make yourself at home,” he said as he gestured to the futon. He walked by Adachi, Adachi making sure to keep his wings out of the way of Kurosawa’s. 

Adachi laid on his back, staring at the ceiling. Even if I can read minds, I have no idea how to react! If I knew, I wouldn’t be a virgin for 30 years! He rolled on his side before going lying on his back again. There’s only one option for me now. 

Adachi heard the door open, on his side with his wings curled around him, the way he usually slept, facing away from where Kurosawa had exited. 

“Oh? He’s asleep already?” Adachi heard, apologizing in his head for pretending to be asleep. “Good night!” Kurosawa said. Adachi heard him take some steps back from where he came from before he paused and started coming over to where Adachi was. Despite Kurosawa coming over quietly, Adachi couldn’t help his thoughts, wondering why Kurosawa was coming over. As he felt Kurosawa reach over him, Adachi was glad he had his wings curled around himself, holding them to stop them from moving.

Kurosawa took his phone and walked away. Once the door had closed, Adachi sat up, his wings quivering madly. “He scared the hell out of me!” he said, ruffling his hair and apologizing again to Kurosawa in his mind while also wondering why his heart was beating so fast. He laid back on his back, ignoring that he was crumpling one of his wings, thinking about how he wasn’t going to be able to sleep. He ended up flying around the room a few times to let off some nervous energy before falling into a restless sleep. 

[Kurosawa couldn’t believe how cute Adachi looked while sleeping. He still curled his wings around him while he slept, unusual for an adult with fairy wings, and Kurosawa frankly found that adorable. It took him a long time for him to settle down, his wings refusing to stop quivering, and he found himself flying around the room in a way he hadn’t for a very long time. He couldn’t believe his soulmate was here, even though Adachi didn’t know that they were soulmates and Kurosawa didn’t know how to tell him how he knew, especially after seven years of just being coworkers. But still, Adachi was here, in his apartment and it would be enough. Even if they weren’t soulmates, Kurosawa knew after the night of wine he would have fallen for Adachi regardless. He didn’t sleep a wink.]  

October 9th, 2020

Adachi woke up, the sunlight in his eyes, and a cup of the transparency potion in front of him. He vaguely wondered when Kurosawa had placed it there, since it hadn’t been there in the morning, wondering if his wings had lost any transparency. He drank it as he slowly realized he was smelling breakfast. He sat up and faced Kurosawa, who was standing over the stove, apron on. His large wings were relaxed and Adachi couldn’t help but reflect on how natural he looked there. He hadn’t realized he said it out loud until Kurosawa turned around, careful to keep his wings away from the stove. 

“Good morning,” Kurosawa said with a large smile. 

Adachi untangled himself from the comforter, saying good morning before staring at his knees. 

“Was the futon okay to sleep on?” Kurosawa asked.

“Yes, perfect. It’s five times softer than mine,” Adachi replied, not looking at Kurosawa.

“Five times?” Kurosawa chuckled before asking Adachi if he’d stay for breakfast. Adachi said that he would, so Kurosawa asked if he wanted his tamagoyaki sweet or salty. Adachi frowned at that, before replying “sweet.” Adachi expected judgement, but all he got was “got it”, making him look up as Kurosawa whisked the eggs.

Adachi took a bite of the tamagoyaki, finding it better than any tamagoyaki he had had in years. 

“Delicious!” he told Kurosawa, knowing his wings were fluttering like crazy, but unable to help himself. After years of convenience store breakfasts, this tasted heavenly. “Tastes like the ones in ryokans.”

Kurosawa laughed, not unkindly. “You’re exaggerating. Come, let me have the bowl.” 

Kurosawa took the bowl and poured some sesame sauce on Adachi’s rice. After handing it back, he started eating from his own bowl. “But I’m glad you like the taste.”

“It’s amazing to have so many dishes in the morning. I usually settle my three meals at the convenience store,” Adachi explained. 

Kurosawa set down his bowl, his elbows going on the table, his wings opening and closing as much as they could with the back of his chair in the way. 

“Then, wanna come here to eat every day?” he asked. 

Adachi choked on his rice. “Well, that’s...I’d feel bad,” he said, flustered, fiddling with his chopsticks. 

Kurosawa laughed. “I’m only joking.” 

Adachi stared at him, not sure that he was, considering that Kurosawa’s wings had drooped for a split second before going back up. 

“You’re so serious, Adachi.” 

Adachi just nodded at that, taking a sip of his soup and finding it very hot. 

“Eat slowly,” Kurosawa chastised. 

Adachi wanted to, but instead started shoving food in his mouth so he wouldn’t blurt out anything stupid. He knew he needed help, so he decided to get help from his best friend, Tsuge. 

At the izakaya, Adachi watched as Tsuge took a long sip from his beer, his hummingbird wings shining in the light. Adachi hadn’t known that Tsuge’s wings went from such a deep black to such a shimmering rainbow, as he had always only seen the outlines. At the moment, they were folded against Tsuge’s body, but Adachi knew that they could come up at any moment. 

“To sum it up, because you are a virgin at 30, you’ve acquired a magic that lets you read minds when wings brush.”

Adachi nodded, listening expectantly. 

“Then by chance, you found out that a guy at work likes you.” 

Adachi nodded frantically. He had left out the soulmate thing because he wasn’t sure if he could handle that at the moment. Just advice for the mindreading was enough at the moment. He moved forward, focusing all his attention on Tsuge, his wings curling forward as well. 

“Is your work really that tough?” 

“Huh?”

“I can introduce you to a counsellor at any time,” Tsuge said.

Adachi put a hand up. “No, it’s not like I’ve gone crazy from stress or something,” he protested, crossing his arms. 

“You can read people’s minds, huh.”

“Well, I know it’s hard to believe. But I am really troubled by this. Even this morning…” Adachi told Tsuge about how he had found out that Kurosawa knew about his preference for Japanese food, had seen him while asleep, and that letting Adachi wash the scarf would be a “waste”. 

“I don’t know what to do anymore!” Adachi concluded, putting his head in his arms. 

“Calm down,” Tsuge said. “Okay, even if what you’re saying is true, what advice do you want from me?” 

Adachi pouted a bit. “I mean, Tsuge, you are a master of romance.” 

Tsuge’s wings lifted a bit. “I’m no master--”

“If you weren’t, you wouldn’t have written so many romance novels. Love, Struck by the May Moon , and Farewell, Blue Moon , too, you know how many times I cried?” 

“Don’t say my novel titles out loud like that,” Tsuge said, his wings starting to flutter. 

“Please! What should I do in such a situation?” Adachi begged.

“You’re asking the wrong person,” Tsuge said, looking up to the heavens as he took another sip from his beer. 

“But you’re the only person I can go to for advice!” Adachi said, frustrated. “Hey! What am I supposed to do now?” 

“Well, just ignore it.” 

“What?!” Adachi cried, putting his head on the table, his wings drooping as he leaned over. 

“I don’t know what you’re worried about, but...How do you feel about him?” Tsuge asked. “How do you want this to turn out? That’s all that matters.”

Adachi sat up and considered Tsuge’s words. “I see...how I feel…” he fell silent, thinking about the wings problem as well. 

“Well, personally, I do not recommend you fall hopelessly in love. Get a cat if you feel lonely,” Tsuge said around a mouthful of food. 

“Oh yes, how is Udon-chan?” Adachi asked, remembering the cat Tsuge had acquired recently. 

“Wanna see?” Tsuge’s wings spread out as he got out his phone, excitedly showing Adachi pictures of his small cat. Adachi leaned closer, Tsuge’s wings brushing his as he made the picture bigger. 

“ I talked like I knew it all. I didn’t expect the virgin Adachi to ask me for relationship advice. Well, I’m a virgin myself, though.” 

“What?” Adachi couldn’t help but say out loud. 

“Hmm?” Tsuge asked, his wings folding back down. 

“Nothing…” Adachi said, his mind whirling with the new information. What?? You too?! Adachi had to mentally scream over the side of the table. 

October 12th, 2020

Adachi sat at his desk, reflecting on what Tsuge had said, and if he would feel different if it was Fujisaki, the nice lady in his section. He gazed at her, her angel wings with feathers of green, purple, white, black, and gray folded neatly behind her. Surprisingly, the answer was no, he wouldn’t. Urabe came over, looking unprofessional with his knees against the back of the chair, slightly startling Adachi, who got his wings out of the way. 

“About the document you did for me the other day…” Urabe started. 

“Yes? Is there a problem with it?” Adachi asked, confused.

“Nope, no problem, but…did you create that by yourself?” 

Adachi was confused on how Urabe could tell, but answered honestly. “Actually, Kurosawa helped me.” 

“Right! I knew it! I thought it’s too perfect to be done by you,” Urabe said, slapping Adachi on the shoulder. Adachi gave him a look but decided it wasn’t worth getting into. 

“Okay,” Adachi responded, getting ready to work. 

“Hey, Kurosawa, Kurosawa, come here, come here,” Urabe called.

Adachi startled, his wings starting to flutter. He leaned back, annoyed at Urabe for calling over Kurosawa when he wasn’t sure how he felt about him. Hey, not Superman Kurosawa! Kurosawa saw that Urabe was calling him and started coming over, making Adachi bang his knees with his fists in frustration. I haven’t come up with a solution yet. 

Urabe grabbed Adachi’s arm, pulling him up to stand next to him. “Well, I heard you helped our Adachi out.” Urabe tugged on Adachi’s arm and Adachi followed the movement into a bow, straightening up and going behind Urabe after he was let go. He watched as Urabe praised Kurosawa, Kurosawa moving his kohai out of the way when he asked Kurosawa a question. Kurosawa protested on being praised, causing Urabe to turn to Adachi. 

“Adachi, did you thank him properly?” Urabe asked. 

“What?” Adachi frankly had no idea what was going on. He knew that his wings were vibrating at being put on the spot, though. “No…” 

“You should let him treat you,” Urabe told Kurosawa as Adachi stared at his desk. He looked up at Urabe’s declaration, thinking about how Urabe was being unnecessary. 

“I really didn’t do much,” Kurosawa said, his wings raised higher than usual. “Right?”

“What? Well, he helped me quite a bit.” Adachi said as he ruffled his hair. 

“Right? This guy is always so unreliable,” Urabe said. “Help me with the Asukita Corp document too,” he told Adachi, poking him and making Adachi startle. 

Adachi was used to this sort of treatment from Urabe, but not in front of Kurosawa. “I’ll do my best,” he said awkwardly, wishing he could just disappear. 

“I...have faith in his work,” Kurosawa said firmly.

Adachi looked up. Kurosawa looked intense and it looked like his wings were being held open with sheer will. 

“What?” Urabe asked. 

Kurosawa stepped into Urabe’s space, Urabe’s wings going higher for a second like he wanted to take off. “Adachi completes every job with care,” Kurosawa said. 

“Is..is that so?” Urabe asked. 

“Senpai, you know best, don’t you?” Kurosawa was being polite, but Adachi could hear an undertone of a threat. “So...please say thank you to Adachi instead.” He smiled a very fake smile at Urabe before Urabe moved out of his way. “I’m off for a sales visit.” 

“See you later,” Urabe said, nodding as Kurosawa and his kohai left. Adachi could barely overhear a conversation about how Kurosawa wasn’t that cool. 

“You’ve got a good colleague,” Urabe remarked. 

Kurosawa is a really nice guy. He’s good at his work, he’s kind, and he’s fun to talk with. No doubt about it. But…I mean, I have no idea what I want to do. I guess I should just ignore it, as Tsuge said. It’s not like he told me in person that he likes me. If we ARE soulmates, he would have no idea. I don’t know anything. I didn’t find out anything. I’m just a colleague who has a few common interests. Okay, I’ll go with that. 

Adachi’s intense thinking had taken him to the end of the day, most people long gone when he came back to his desk. However, Kurosawa was hanging around his desk, for some reason. 

“Good work today,” Kurosawa said when he saw Adachi. 

Adachi nodded, unsure why Kurosawa was there. 

“You still have work?” Kurosawa asked, referring to the binder in Adachi’s hands.

“No, I’ll leave after putting this away,” Adachi explained. 

“I see…” Kurosawa said, looking like he was trying to be casual. Adachi thought he must be taking Urabe’s words literally, and wondered if he had to thank Kurosawa now that Urabe had made a big deal out of it. As he got to his desk, Kurosawa held out a fold-out folder to him. 

“Here you go.”

“What?” 

“Just now he told you to work on Asukita Corp, right?” Kurosawa asked. “Here’s the data I have, if it helps.” 

Adachi moved back a little. “What...is it okay?” 

Kurosawa chuckled, his eyes crinkling. “Of course. As colleagues, we have to help each other.” 

“Colleagues?” 

“Yeah,” Kurosawa said with a nod. 

Adachi felt himself relaxing, smiling as he admitted that it was true, they should help each other. Kurosawa smiled and nodded again. 

We are colleagues. Nothing more, nothing less. Adachi thought as he bit his lip. Kurosawa said so himself, so it’s fine. 

“Here.” 

Adachi set down the binder. “Thanks,” he said as he took it, not realizing it was open and spilling the papers on the floor. “Sorry!” 

Kurosawa simply laughed it off, telling Adachi not to worry as he set down his bag and crouched down. Adachi followed him, sitting on his knees and trying to pick up the papers. 

“It needs to be in a certain order, so...Adachi hold that,” Kurosawa ordered, pointing to the folder. He started going through the papers, his height and the way he was sitting putting his wings over Adachi’s. 

“ He accepted it. I’m so glad to be of help to him. I should have done more of this. I don’t care what way. I just want to see Adachi. I want to hear his voice. I’d like him to smile if possible...Adachi wouldn’t want anything more than this. As long as I can be by his side, I’m fine with being just a colleague. 

Kurosawa finished getting the papers in and closed the folder properly, standing up and telling Adachi they were done. 

Adachi stayed on the floor a little longer, trying to control his heart and his wings. 

“Kurosawa.”

“Yes?”

“Kurosawa...sorry,” Adachi said, unsure exactly why he was apologizing, but feeling like he should say it. 

Kurosawa crouched down a little, getting more to Adachi’s level. “You don’t have to apologize for this. Here.” He gave the folder to Adachi, who accepted it. 

“Well then...see you,” Kurosawa said with a little wave. 

Adachi sat there, his wings opening and closing as he pondered the folder. He hugged the folder to his chest. “I’m the worst.” Ignore it? Who am I kidding? I was selfishly acting scared and spoiled. 

[Kurosawa left the office, his wings trembling madly after holding them so still so Adachi wouldn’t get alarmed. He let out a big breath, standing there and getting his wings under control. At least he had given Adachi the folder.]

Kurosawa is always so nice to me. He is serious about me. Adachi ruffled his hair and looked at the folder again, thinking about how Kurosawa had said he was fine just being a colleague. I made him say all that, and then I ignore it...I can’t just...ignore it. He steeled his resolve and stood up. He grabbed his stuff and in a move that was very unprofessional, flew out of the office. He managed to get there just in time to open the elevator doors, his shoulders heaving as he held the doors open. Kurosawa looked surprised, his wings held up high like he had been startled. 

“Adachi?”

“Well…” 

“Yes?”

Adachi took a few more breaths. “Wanna go for a meal or something?” he asked, smiling a little at the end. 

Kurosawa looked at him. 

“What?” 

Chapter Text

Adachi waited for Kurosawa’s response, letting go of the elevator doors as Kurosawa stared at him. Adachi’s wings started drooping just as the elevator doors closed on him. He stumbled out of the elevator doorway, Kurosawa frantically following him. 

“Are you okay?” Kurosawa asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Adachi said as he rubbed his arm. “Do you have something on? Then let’s do it another day.” Adachi turned to leave, only for his arm to be grabbed by Kurosawa.

“No. I have nothing on,” Kurosawa said while looking intensely at Adachi. He must have realized he was being intense, since he straightened up and smiled. “It’s the first time you’ve asked me out for a meal, so I was just a bit surprised.” He let go of Adachi, taking a deep breath as his wings opened and closed a few times before falling open. 

“Is that so?” Adachi asked. That was close. I was about to run away again.  

Kurosawa stepped closer to Adachi. “Well then, where shall we go?” he asked, a kind smile on his face. 

Adachi couldn’t help but smile back. Hang in there, me!

Adachi made a face at Rokkaku, who was sitting next to him, oddly shaped wings held high. Adachi couldn’t remember anyone else with a literal hexagon pattern for wings, but Rokkaku’s were hard to miss, being neon green, almost butterfly shaped but not quite. 

And...I plucked up the courage to make the biggest move of my life…

He side-eyed Rokkaku as Rokkaku led the office members into a cheer. 

But it was shattered by the appearance of this man. 

Rokkaku had ran up to Kurosawa, telling him he had gotten his first sale and that the Chief had been willing to get them all drinks. Since neither Adachi nor Kurosawa had come up with a reason to not go, they had been roped into joining Rokkaku, who was currently being praised for drinking so well. Rokkaku declared he would be “Kurosawa the second,” causing Kurosawa, who was sitting basically on the other end of the table, to protest.     

Well, but, even if we did go out to eat, I doubt I’d be able to talk to him properly. I’ve never been one to take chances. I’ll find my own way to face Kurosawa. 

Adachi ate in silence, mostly ignored at his end at the table, until Rokkaku came to him with another mug of beer, despite Adachi not finishing his first one. 

“Adachi-san, wanna drink?” Rokkaku asked, ignoring his own question and placing the beer in front of Adachi anyways. “Here! Beer’s fine, right?” He turned to Fujisaki, who was on his left. “How about you, Fujisaki-san?” 

“No, I’m good,” Fujisaki said. 

“Are you sure?” Rokkaku asked before his attention was caught by a different coworker, saying they were a good drinker and that the Toyokawa office members should drink up all the booze. The table good-naturedly did a “cheers” for Rokkaku at that. Adachi awkwardly put up his mug a little at that. 

I’m not very good at this sort of thing. 

Kurosawa came over behind Rokkaku, telling him that the Chief was leaving and that Rokkaku should walk him out. Rokkaku cheerfully agreed, nearly hitting Kurosawa with his wings as he got up. Adachi wasn’t prepared for Kurosawa to sit down next him, but that’s what Kurosawa did. 

“Sorry, he’s a little too excited,” Kurosawa apologized for Rokkaku. 

“No, I’m fine,” Adachi replied, staring at the table. Kurosawa announced that the Chief had left him dessert money, much to the happy surprise of the remaining coworkers. He reached over Adachi to grab the menu, giving it to Fujisaki. Adachi swirled his beer, not really wanting to drink it, but needing something to do. His wings, which he had managed to keep from fluttering by letting them droop, brushed Kurosawa’s. 

“ Oh man, this is tough…”

Adachi started gulping his beer as he realized what was happening. 

“ I should have been on a date with Adachi right now.”

Adachi choked on his beer. Did he say “date”?

“Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, sorry.” 

“Here.” Kurosawa gave Adachi a napkin, their wings still touching. 

“ Am I giving him the wrong idea?” Kurosawa used another napkin to wipe the table in front of Adachi. “Is our meal date not going to happen anymore? No, I just have to make sure it happens.” 

“Say, Adachi…” Kurosawa started. 

“Sorry, I need to go to the toilet,” Adachi said, needing to collect himself. 

Once in the restroom, Adachi became frustrated with himself. In the end I ran away again...what am I doing? What do I want to do? He looked at himself in the mirror, his wings quivering slightly. He texted Tsuge, saying he didn’t understand himself. After standing in the restroom for several minutes, composing himself, he remembered that it was Tsuge’s birthday and sent him a text wishing him a happy birthday.  

Adachi finally left the restroom, finding Rokkaku in a backroom when the younger called out to him. 

“What’s the matter? Are you drunk?” Rokkaku asked. 

Adachi shook his head. “No…” 

Rokkaku grabbed Adachi’s shoulders, avoiding his wings but still getting far too close to Adachi in Adachi’s opinion. “Our night has just started, hasn’t it? Let’s get fired up, alright?” Rokkaku paused in his chatter. “Your shoulders are pretty stiff.” At the angle Rokkaku was at, his wings were overlapping Adachi’s. 

“ Damn. He might have found out I was hiding.”

Rokkaku gave a slight massage to Adachi’s shoulders before asking if they should go back. Adachi nodded, and started following Rokkaku back, wondering why Rokkaku, who was being celebrated and was clearly more of an extravert than Adachi, felt the need to hide. Rokkaku got out his phone as Adachi walked just close enough for their wings to brush. 

“The cigarette smell in that room is so uncomfortable. I feel sick. I don’t want to go back in there. But this drinking party is for me. Adachi-san and the rest also had to come along. Okay! I must endure!”

Adachi was surprised to find out the thoughts of Kurosawa’s kohai. Don’t tell me...he’s actually a nice guy? He gathered his thoughts and asked Rokkaku if there was a convenience store nearby, lying and saying he wanted some stomach medicine. Rokkaku took the bait, saying he would go get it, rushing to leave the smoke-infested izakaya, his wings making him stand out in the low light. Adachi smiled a bit at that, feeling like he had been helpful and that he had maybe made a too-hasty judgement of Rokkaku.  

Adachi walked back to their table, where he was being called over, for some reason. He hurried over, finding out that they were playing the King Game. He was forced to pick a stick, and his coworker declared that she was the King. She ordered 3 and 6 to kiss, making Adachi glance at his stick. Of course, he was 6. After some asking, it was discovered that Kurosawa was 3. Adachi tried to get out of it by saying they were both men, but the King was having none of it. It wasn’t so much that it was that they were men that it was his first kiss, ever . And while Kurosawa was certainly a better choice than some of his other coworkers, Adachi didn’t want his first kiss to be in a crowded izakaya, surrounded by coworkers.   

“Aren’t you guys drinking too much?” Kurosawa asked. While Adachi’s wings were trembling, Kurosawa’s just seemed to be a little stiffer than usual. However, Kurosawa’s question was shot down and Kurosawa turned to Adachi. 

“Let’s get it over with. It’s just a game,” Kurosawa said. He put his hand on Adachi’s shoulder, Adachi’s wings fluttering madly as he closed his eyes. He waited for Kurosawa’s lips to be on his, only to feel his bangs being pulled back and Kurosawa’s soft lips on his forehead. As Adachi read Kurosawa’s thoughts through their wings overlapping, he slowly opened his eyes. 

The table broke out in protests, but Kurosawa pulled out his phone, saying he had to make a call. Despite saying he wasn’t mad, Adachi saw how his face fell as he turned away to go outside. His wings also very slightly fell, although he wasn’t sure if the other coworkers noticed, considering all they saw were outlines. Rokkaku nearly ran into Kurosawa as he came back from the convenience store, and clearly noticed the mood of the table. When he sat back down, he called the King Game outdated, to Adachi’s slight amusement. Mostly, however, he was worried about Kurosawa, who had said “I’m sorry” in his thoughts as he had kissed Adachi’s forehead. When Rokkaku asked if the medicine was okay, Adachi got up to go check on Kurosawa. 

Adachi opened the door, feeling the cold October air, a bottle of water in his hand. He went around the corner and found Kurosawa looking over the railing, his wings opening and closing.  

“Kurosawa?” 

Kurosawa turned around at his name, wings stilling and smiling slightly as he saw who it was. Adachi walked over, fiddling with the water bottle in his hands.  

“Umm...are you okay?” Adachi asked. 

“Oh, I think I drank a little too much,” Kurosawa said as he put his thumbs in his pockets. Adachi held out the water bottle he had brought. 

“Here.”

“Thank you,” Kurosawa said in English. He smiled, showing off all his crinkles before opening the bottle and drinking from it. Adachi held on to the railing, looking at all the buildings. Kurosawa came over and leaned on the railing as well, his elbow hitting Adachi’s hand, so their wings overlapped.     

 “They got too carried away, huh. Making two guys kiss and all that…” Kurosawa said. “ Touching Adachi in that way doesn’t make me happy. Well...If I said I was not the least bit pleased, I’d be lying. But...Adachi looked really frightened. Of course he would be. After all…” Kurosawa started talking aloud again. “You wouldn’t normally like it, right? Doing it with a guy?” 

Adachi gripped the railing, considering both what Kurosawa said out loud and what he was saying internally. 

“Right?” Kurosawa asked. Right as Adachi looked at him, Kurosawa apologized for falling for Adachi. Adachi swallowed, trying to get a hold of his feelings. Kurosawa twisted the cap of the bottle back on and stepped away. “Alright! It’s time to go back and call it a night.” He started walking back to the izakaya, making Adachi take one last big breath. 

“N…” Adachi heard, rather than saw, Kurosawa stop and turn back around. Adachi turned to face Kurosawa, one hand still on the railing before letting go and fully facing Kurosawa. He knew his wings must be fluttering overtime, but he wanted to let Kurosawa know that he hadn’t hated the kiss. He saw how Kurosawa’s wings jumped at that, and how his eyes grew wider.

“Adachi?” Kurosawa asked.  

That’s right. I didn’t hate it. He thought about the upset faces Kurosawa had made because of him. I don’t want Kurosawa to make that face. He steadied himself before he looked up at Kurosawa again, who was patiently waiting for Adachi to talk again. 

“Umm...well...actually, I...have never kissed before.” 

Kurosawa’s mouth dropped a little before he asked “what?” 

“Don’t laugh,” Adachi protested. 

Kurosawa took his hand out of his pocket. “I’m not laughing.”

“I mean, as you can see, I’m not really popular. I’ve never dated anyone before, let alone kiss. So I was very nervous, or rather...I was just scared.” Adachi knew he was moving his arms around a little too much, but he had gotten it out. “So, in other words...there’s nothing for you to feel bad about or get depressed over.”

Kurosawa looked at him, his hand near his lips, before dropping his hand and smiling at Adachi, one that didn’t quite meet his eyes. “I see. Then it’s a relief. I didn’t take your first kiss.”    

“No, no, that’s not what I mean,” Adachi said, frustrated, taking a few steps forward. 

“What?” 

“I mean...well...ummm...well...in other words…” 

Kurosawa stood there patiently. 

“I didn’t hate...your kiss.” 

Kurosawa stood there, his wings vibrating, the same wings that matched Adachi’s.

I should have just ignored it, but I couldn’t. I don't know what this feeling is but..perhaps...I just want to know more about this guy.

“That...Do you know what that means?” Kurosawa asked. 

“What?” 

Kurosawa walked over, slowly, looking deeply at Adachi. 

“Kurosawa?” 

Kurosawa searched Adachi’s face before putting his arm over Adachi’s shoulder, hand resting on his neck, bringing Adachi closer. He dropped the water bottle, which sounded very loud to Adachi, bringing up his other hand and leaning closer and closer.  

Chapter Text

Adachi’s phone rang, sounding loud in the relative silence they had been in, making Adachi jolt. He got it out of his pocket and answered. 

“Hello, Tsuge? What’s the matter?” Adachi asked as his wings nearly lifted him off the ground.

“A cataclysm has occurred,” Tsuge said gravely. 

“What?” 

“Actually just now…”

Adachi nodded, even though Tsuge couldn’t see him. Tsuge wasn’t talking, so Adachi said Tsuge’s name in case the connection was bad.  

“I’m sorry for doubting you,” was all Tsuge said before hanging up. Adachi looked at his phone in confusion, wondering what was going on, before putting it away. 

“Have you finished the call?” Kurosawa called. 

Adachi felt his eyes widen. Right, Kurosawa had been about to… He turned around, finding out that Kurosawa was now holding the water bottle again and that his wings were quivering at the tips. Adachi stood there, feeling like a deer in the headlights, as Kurosawa came closer, searching Adachi’s face. 

“Ohhh you are here!!!” Rokkaku yelled, starting Adachi badly again within the span of two minutes. Adachi stumbled back, putting his hands awkwardly in his pockets as Rokkaku said that they were wrapping up. Rokkaku then gave Adachi the medicine, which Adachi took. 

“Shall we go?” Adachi asked the two of them. 

“Yeah,” Kurosawa agreed. 

Rokkaku enthusiastically agreed as well, running off ahead of his two senpais. Kurosawa chuckled at that, putting his hand on Adachi’s shoulder, and letting their wings touch as they walked.

“Maybe I got a little carried away.” Out loud, he thanked Adachi for the water. “ I’ll leave the rest for another time. Got to take it slow and steady. So that he will fall for me, even a little bit.”

Kurosawa smiled at Adachi and left, leaving Adachi to clutch his medicine to his chest as all the events started sinking in. 

October 26th, 2020

Adachi felt bad for avoiding Kurosawa for two weeks, but he really didn’t know how to process the information that Kurosawa--perfect, ace of sales, walking model Kurosawa--had wanted to kiss him. He watched as Kurosawa entered the elevator, feeling relieved he had avoided him again, but guilty as well, banging his head against the wall and wincing when it hurt. He reflected on the almost kiss, and the two weeks of repression caught up to him and he banged his head on the elevator wall, startling the other people in there.

Adachi hid nearly under his desk once he heard Kurosawa call out to Rokkaku in the quiet of the office. He knew he was being ridiculous, but instinct was overpowering logic. Urabe turned around, clearly concerned when he saw Adachi with his arms around his knees and wings curled around him. Urabe sent Adachi off to lunch after asking if he didn’t feel well or if he was cold.  

Adachi ate his onigiri, reflecting on how he was acting and letting out a big sigh, same time as Fujisaki, who was sitting at a table behind him with two other office ladies. 

“We sighed at the same time,” Fujisaki said with a little laugh, her wings folded behind her. 

“Th-that’s right,” Adachi stammered, feeling a little awkward. “Did something happen?” 

“It’s not a big deal, but my mom will be coming over from the countryside,” Fujisaki explained.

“What?” Adachi slipped out.

“And I’m kinda dreading it,” Fujisaki continued. 

“Is that so?” Adachi asked. I’m somewhat surprised. Fujisaki-san seems family-oriented, so I had assumed she’s close to her family. 

“Sorry. It must be hard to react,” Fujisaki apologized with a kind smile. 

“No…” Adachi said. 

“But, I really feel you!” Mimura from sales said. “I understand they’re worried, but it’s so annoying!” 

“Yeah. They will ask if you have a boyfriend, then when you will get married, then finally ask to see their grandchildren, right?” said the woman next to Mimura, whose name Adachi couldn’t recall.  

“That’s right,” Fujisaki agreed. 

I’m at a loss. I don’t even know how to respond to this kind of talk. Adachi thought. 

“My hometown is in the countryside, so they might just show up with matchmaking photos or something,” Mimura continued. 

“I’ve been through that already,” Fujisaki admitted, much to the astonishment of the other two women.

“Well, why don’t you get some guy to stand in as your boyfriend?” Mimura asked Fujisaki. “Oh, yes! Adachi-kun, you can pretend to be her boyfriend,” she said, slapping her hand on the table for emphasis. 

“What? Well, that’s…” Adachi was flustered and wasn’t entirely sure what to do. 

“Then her mom will have a peace of mind,” Miruma said, the other lady agreeing with her. “Well, even if it ends up becoming real, that’s totally fine.”

“Well…” Adachi tilted his head, mind going a million miles an hour. 

“What do you think? Good idea, isn’t it?” Mimura asked. 

“If I have to, I guess I’ll ask Adachi-kun for help,” Fujisaki said, turning to Adachi. 

“What?!” Adachi couldn’t help but ask. 

“Yeah,” one of the ladies said, although Adachi wasn’t sure who. 

“Fujisaki-san and Adachi, after lunch, can you help me run an errand?” Urabe asked, having come into the cafeteria. 

“Sure thing,” Fujisaki said, while Adachi gave a nod to agree. 

“Sorry about that,” Urabe said before walking off. 

Fujisaki stood in front of the pastry case, picking the last few ones. It was their last errand, and Adachi was holding several bags while watching her. 

I’m sure some guys will get the wrong idea about that earlier, Adachi thought, shuffling as Fujisaki made her choice and paid the cashier. 

“I’m sorry, Adachi-kun,” Fujisaki said as she waited for the cashier to get her choices. 

“What?” 

“I won’t ask you to act as my boyfriend.”

“Oh, well, don’t worry about it,” Adachi said. Boy, that was close. I’m glad I didn’t get the wrong idea! 

“But...it must have felt uncomfortable,” Fujisaki said. 

“No...I know everyone likes to talk about romance.”

“What?” Fujisaki asked. 

“It’s not like that’s all there is to life. Even if I don’t have love or romance, every day is fun in its own way.” Adachi explained, looking at the pastries so he wouldn’t have to look at Fujisaki. He had always felt this way, and even with the wing nonsense and Kurosawa supposedly being his soulmate, his feelings towards life hadn’t changed that much. 

“I see,” Fujisaki said before the cashier gave her the bag of pastries. 

“I’ll hold it for you,” Adachi offered. 

“Really? Thanks,” Fujisaki handed him the bag, Adachi just close enough that the bottom of his wing hit the top of Fujisaki’s. 

“ I like Adachi-kun, after all.”

What? Did she just say “like”? 

“Alright! We’ve got it all. Shall we go?” Fujisaki asked. 

Adachi agreed before smiling and following her, thinking about he was getting a little more popular.   

The amazing Fujisaki-san likes me? Honestly, I’m so excited. But...eh? It’s kind of different from what I expected. If you think that such a cute girl likes you, wouldn’t your heart beat faster than this? 

A shout interrupted Adachi’s thoughts as he saw two rough-looking men bump aggressively into Fujisaki, starting to leer at her once they saw how cute she was. Fujisaki was clearly aggravated, her wings starting to open, which Adachi had never seen before. She usually kept them folded behind her. Adachi fought with himself before going over to help Fujisaki in any way he could, especially after they started touching her to bring her with them. 

“Wait, wait, wait a moment, please,” Adachi broke in, putting himself in front of Fujisaki. He knew his wings were going crazy, compared to the two men’s, which were opening and closing lazily. The two of them both had moth wings, but different patterns. “Hasn’t she already apologized?” he asked. 

“Adachi-kun!” Fujisaki cried. 

“Huh? Who the hell are you?” one of the men asked.   

“We may have been careless, but you were the ones who bumped into…”

The other man grabbed Adachi around the neck. “Whoa whoa whoa. Are you trying to say it’s our fault?” When Adachi didn’t say anything, the man threw him to the ground.  

I shouldn’t do something I’m not used to, after all. Despite thinking that, Adachi still got up, wanting to keep their attention off of Fujisaki. 

“W-what I’m trying to say is...we’re both at fault here…” Adachi knew that wasn’t true, but he was trying to get the men to at least admit to their rudeness. 

“What?”

Adachi regretted saying anything. “Nothing...” 

“What do you mean, we’re both at fault?” With that, one of the men threw a punch, only for it to be stopped as Adachi felt someone grab him around the chest, crumpling his wings as they protected his back. Time seemed to slow down as he realized it was Kurosawa, then it all sped back up as he caught Kurosawa’s thoughts from where his wing was crumpled against Kurosawa’s, whose wings were actually going fast enough to lift him off the ground a little bit. 

“Ow ow ow...ouch!” the man who threw the punch cried, as Kurosawa was twisting it while talking politely, which apparently scared the other men enough to make them run off. Once they had left, Kurosawa let Adachi go, who shook out his wing and let it straighten. Since it didn’t hurt to have wings be folded or anything, Adachi wasn’t in any pain from Kurosawa doing that. But it was unusual for anyone to touch wings with their body like that. Adachi started picking up the bags, which had gone every which way when he had been thrown against the ground. 

“I’m glad they backed off,” Kurosawa remarked. 

“Sorry for the trouble I’ve caused,” Fujisaki apologized. 

“Not at all,” Kurosawa said. “It was a disaster, huh.”

Fujisaki simply bowed in response. 

“Adachi, are you alright?” Kurosawa asked now that Adachi had straightened up and collected all the bags.

“Yeah.”

Kurosawa smiled, coming over saying that Adachi’s hair was messy, straightening it carefully, alternating hands but keeping one hand on Adachi’s shoulders when the other one was straightening. Adachi didn’t need to use his powers to know Kurosawa was relieved he was okay, Kurosawa’s wings having since stopped vibrating, while Adachi’s were still opening and closing nervously. Having finished straightening Adachi’s hair, Kurosawa let go and asked Fujisaki if the two were heading back to the office, turning back to Adachi at the end of the question, so Adachi nodded. The three of them started heading back, Kurosawa taking the bags from Fujisaki and grabbing his leather briefcase. 

It’s times like this that I feel the gap between me, who tried to help her but in vain, and Kurosawa, whose actions are so slick he looks good in everything he does. How should I put it...we are fundamentally different. 

As they waited for the elevator, Adachi realized why he had been afraid of being with Kurosawa. He didn’t want to be a disappointment, especially to someone who was supposedly his soulmate. I mean, Kurosawa isn’t like me. He’s perfect, and he’s got everything. The things I don’t have.  

The elevator opened and people got in, Kurosawa holding the door open. Adachi found himself tucked in the corner, Fujisaki next to him, while Kurosawa was slightly ahead of them and separated by a few people. Fukisaki’s wings ended up slipping against his because of how many people there were. 

“This is love, indeed.”

With all that had happened, Adachi had forgotten that Fujisaki apparently liked him. 

“Yeah, it’s love indeed. Kurosawa-kun is in love with Adachi-kun.”

Adachi sharply turned to look at her. Don’t tell me Fujisaki-san noticed his feelings for me? Kurosawa looked over to them, smiling when he caught Adachi’s eye, making Adachi awkwardly smile back.  

“I want Adachi-kun to be happy. Even if it’s with Kurosawa. Even if he’s in love, or not.”

Adachi tilted his head, wondering what Fujisaki meant.  

“I like Adachi-kun. I like the way he can easily say that there’s more to life than just love. I’m sure, even if I tell him I’m not interested in relationships, he would probably say ‘is that so?’ without a care, I believe. Well, I don’t care what people say about me. I’m used to pretending to be normal anyway.”  

The elevator stopped and people got on and off, allowing for a little more between people. Still, Adachi looked over at Fujisaki, thinking about how she always smiled, but maybe the smile was to protect herself. 

They got off the elevator, Kurosawa holding the doors open once he was out. Fujisaki wondered aloud if Urabe was going to be angry at the delay. Adachi slowly followed his coworkers. 

It feels like...there’s nothing I can do. He unknowingly tightened his fist, making the bag straps brush against a wound he didn’t know he had. He let out a gasp, startling both Fujisaki and Kurosawa. When asked what the matter was, Adachi lied and said nothing, but Kurosawa quickly noticed the wound on his hand. When Adachi brought his hand up, he quickly noticed it was even worse than he had thought. 

Kurosawa had brought him to the break room, first aid kit now out on the table. 

“This isn’t a big deal…” Adachi protested. 

“No, we have to disinfect it.” Kurosawa insisted. 

“Sorry. For everything,” Adachi felt compelled to say. 

Kurosawa just smiled at him. “Come on, give me your hand.” 

His smile and kindness are perfect, which irks me a little. If I were Kurosawa, I guess I would never be disappointed with myself. 

Kurosawa took Adachi’s hand, leaning over. With the way the two of them were sitting, their wings brushed. 

“ I screwed up. I’m sure he finds me annoying. I treat his wound like this. I even tried to stop that fight. Before I knew it, my body reacted on its own. Really, I’m a mess whenever it comes to Adachi. But...rather than not doing anything, I want to do whatever I can. Will this put him off?

Having cleaned the wound and put on a band-aid with utmost care, Kurosawa straightened up, and started putting everything away. He stood up and told Adachi he would get going. Adachi stood up as well. 

“Kurosawa.”

Kurosawa turned back to Adachi, quirking his eyebrows.

“Thank you. I’m really grateful to you.” Adachi gave him an awkward motion, unsure what he was going for but continuing anyway. “For treating my wound, and for what you did just now.” Oddly enough, Adachi’s wings stayed steady during this small speech, while Kurosawa’s had been stiff until Adachi finished, his eyes crinkling as he smiled and his wings relaxed. 

“You’re exaggerating,” Kurosawa said, still smiling. His wings were slowly flapping as he said goodbye to Adachi. 

I thought he’s perfect. Adachi thought as he made his way back, looking at the large band-aid on his hand. But he worries and panics, just like me. If that’s the case, perhaps there’s something I can do. 

“Adachi-kun, is your hand alright?” Fujisaki asked, interrupting Adachi’s thoughts. 

“Yes.”

“That’s great.” Fujisaki kept walking as Adachi stopped. 

“Fujisaki-san.”

“Yes?” 

“I...will meet your mother.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to act as my boyfriend.”

“It’s not that. ‘From what I can see, Fujisaki-san is working really hard. She looks happy every day, so don’t worry.’ I will tell your mother that,” Adachi said, meaning what he said. Fujisaki looked at him, an unreadable look on her face. 

“Oh, sorry. What am I saying?” Adachi said, embarrassed. He started wringing his hands, rubbing against his wound accidentally. 

“No.” Fujisaki said, not meanly, more like she was considering his words. “Thank you. I may ask you to help me some day,” she said with a warm smile. Adachi smiled back, nodding. He walked up to be next to her, and she asked for his help on another Urabe-assigned job, which he agreed to. As they walked back to the office, Adachi reflected on how he didn’t need the ability he currently had, but how it was making him want to help others and grow closer to them. He and Fujisaki grabbed the materials that Urabe wanted before going back into the office. As they came in, they noticed everyone was watching something in the corner.  

“What’s going on?” Adachi asked Urabe. 

“Seems like Kurosawa messed up,” Urabe replied. Indeed, when Adachi looked over, Kurosawa was bowing at a client, his hands folded in front of him, wings folded behind him. 

“This is bad! That client always looked so gentle,” Rokkaku said from next to Urabe. “I;ve never seen him this angry.” 

Kurosawa was biting his lip as he bowed yet again, Adachi noticed. His wings had to be aching from how stiff they looked. Adachi looked at the binders in his hands, and made up his mind. He shoved them at Urabe and started walking over, determined to help Kurosawa. 

Chapter Text

Adachi heard Fujisaki call his name, but ignored her. He took the tea from Mimura, not worrying about what was the “correct” way to do things in order to help Kurosawa. He placed the tea down, managing to figure out quite easily what was making President Hashimoto upset and running off to get the Mont Blanc. The president was made much happier and allowed Kurosawa to close the deal. After Kurosawa was done, he came to Adachi, causing Adachi to lie and say he remembered Chief mentioning it. Once Kurosawa was gone, Adachi hid--not out of embarrassment, out of pure elation--in the copier until Fujisaki came over. 

Adachi looked at the treats Kurosawa had left him, reflecting on if he had changed at all and if it was because of the magic or because of Kurosawa, turning to look at said man. Despite facing the rest of the office now, Rokkaku still startled him when he came over and invited him to lunch, grabbing Adachi’s chair and trapping him. 

“Here! Deluxe Makunouchi Bento!” Rokkaku said proudly, his wings nearly lifting him off the ground with how proud he was. Adachi wasn’t quite sure what was happening, if he was being honest. Rokkaku opened his bento, saying his thanks, and was about to dig in when Adachi asked if he had anything to tell him, considering he had given Adachi an expensive bento. Rokkaku explained it was to thank him for the night at the izakaya, when Adachi had given him an excuse to leave for a while. Despite nearly getting a heart attack when Rokkaku stood up and started saying how good Adachi was at noticing moods, the young man just wanted to become more like Adachi. When Rokkaku gave him a bunch of snacks, he couldn’t help but smile, especially at the can of coffee similar to the one Kurosawa had given him. Rokkaku might be a little over-eager, but he was a good kid, Adachi thought. 

The day over, Adachi thought about how he never thought he would have influenced anyone, and that it was quite nice to be noticed, and it was thanks to the magic he now had. However, it wasn’t just the magic, he realized. It was Kurosawa falling in love with him. Yes, they might be supposed soulmates, but Kurosawa didn’t know that. Walking out of the building, Adachi didn’t realize it was raining until he nearly stepped into it. He curled his wings around himself and prepared to run for it, only for Rokkaku to come barrelling towards him, telling him he couldn’t let a respected senpai get wet. At Rokkaku’s large smile, Adachi couldn’t help but smile back. 

“I said wait!” A woman’s voice caught both their attention. They looked over to see a very pretty woman, holding a polka dot umbrella, walking behind Kurosawa and demanding to let her stay at his place. Kurosawa looked annoyed, turning around and telling her to go back to her boyfriend, but she wouldn’t be swayed, breaking out Kurosawa’s first name, much to Adachi’s horror. Her wings were a similar pattern to his and Kurosawa’s, but butterfly shaped. 

“That girl is his ex-girlfriend, right?” Rokkaku asked, presumably rhetorically. 

“What?” Adachi had known Kurosawa for seven years now, and while they hadn’t been exactly close , he had never seen Kurosawa with a woman before. 

“I’ve seen Kurosawa-san with her before,” Rokkaku explained. Before them, Kurosawa turned around and the woman followed, grabbing his arm without hesitation. “I’m certain she’s his ex-girlfriend.” Kurosawa and the unknown woman walked away as Rokkaku cheerfully said they were a good match. Adachi couldn’t take it and said goodbye to Rokkaku, walking out into the rain. 

As he walked, not looking where he was stepping, his wings getting heavier and heavier with the rain, Adachi held his heart, wondering why it was aching so badly.

The woman Kurosawa was with was sitting on Kurosawa’s couch, dressed in white and looking like an angel, sipping on a glass of wine. Kurosawa told her only for a night, to which she responded by using his first name. Kurosawa joined her on the couch, wearing a robe of red, swirling his own glass. He asked her if she knew what was meant by her staying over, and she placed her ankle over his knee. He put his hand on her head, getting closer and closer, about to…

Adachi woke up, still in his work clothes, his wings mostly dry but damp near the base. He realized that it was a dream, and found out that he was freezing, going back under his covers. 

As he made his way to work, mopier than usual, he mused about how pretty the woman was. He coughed before making his way to his usual convenience truck, getting his usual and an energy drink so that he could get through the day. He tried to convince himself that he and Kurosawa were just peers as he waited for his copies, his feelings made stronger when Kurosawa came over to the coffee machine without saying anything. When he had gathered the courage to start a conversation himself, Rokkaku came to him, robbing Adachi of the chance to say something. Adachi chugged his drink when he got back to his desk, thinking about how it was better this way, even though he felt very uneasy about the entire thing. 

The day dragged on, and no matter how many energy drinks Adachi drank, he didn’t gain any energy, too tired to even clear his desk when he left. Kurosawa walked by, and Adachi said goodbye on reflex. Kurosawa smiled at him, asking him somewhere until he got a good look at Adachi’s face, his face turning to one of concern, asking Adachi if he felt unwell. Adachi told him he was in a hurry and left. 

As Adachi left the building, he continued to try and convince himself that he and Kurosawa were just peers and that it was better that way. 

“Adachi!” Kurosawa’s voice broke into his thoughts. “I’ll send you home,” Kurosawa said as he stepped in front of Kurosawa. “You don’t look well.” When Adachi didn’t answer, Kurosawa said he’d get Adachi a taxi, which Adachi refused, saying he could get home himself. 

“What if you faint? Don’t push yourself!” Kurosawa insisted, trying to walk in front of Adachi. 

“I’m not pushing myself!” Adachi protested, louder than usual. The two of them froze at the outburst. 

“What are you angry about?” Kurosawa asked gently. 

“I’m not angry or anything,” Adachi replied, internally asking himself why he was indeed angry. He turned to Kurosawa, saying he was fine, only for the world to turn gray as he started falling. 

When he came to, Adachi was in a bridal carry, Kurosawa making sure his hands weren’t on Adachi’s wings, but crumpling them all the same. He looked into Adachi’s eyes. “You are not fine at all,” he said firmly. Adachi could only look at him, Kurosawa holding him until a taxi was acquired. Kurosawa allowed Adachi in first, handing him his messenger bag and giving directions to the driver. 

I finally understand why I’ve been feeling so uneasy after seeing Kurosawa with his ex-girlfriend. I...will feel sad if Kurosawa has a change of heart. 

The taxi door opened and the woman Kurosawa had been with the night before peered in. 

“Found you!” she said. 

“What are you doing?” Kurosawa demanded. 

“You didn’t answer my calls so I could only wait for you here,” she explained before climbing in, telling Adachi to move in. He didn’t want to, but she crowded him as Kurosawa angrily asked her why she was getting in. She told him never mind and told the driver to start driving. Adachi felt stuck in the crossfire as the taxi started heading to his apartment. 

Chapter Text

Adachi looked up at Kurosawa, who was on top of him. Kurosawa had tried to keep himself upright, both with the hand on his wall and his wings, but gravity was stronger and he so that both arms were around Adachi. Adachi’s eyes roamed Kurosawa’s face, thinking about how he had found out that the woman had been Kurosawa’s elder sister and she had persuaded both of them that the best course of action was to have Kurosawa stay at Adachi’s place. Kurosawa hadn’t meant to fall on Adachi, Adachi knew, but with him over him, touching Adachi’s wings with his hands, Adachi didn’t know what to do or think. After a few seconds of being frozen, Kurosawa got off, saying he’d look for a thermometer and apologizing. Adachi laid there, lifting his head to watch Kurosawa, before letting his head hit his pillow again. He knew that Kurosawa was a nice person, and wondered why he was so scared as he moved to get under the covers. 

Adachi woke up, feeling much better, Kurosawa looking at him. His wings were a little droopy, but he was still looking much too good for having stayed up all night. Kurosawa smiled at him before saying good morning. Adachi blinked up at him. 

“How are you feeling?” Kurosawa asked. 

“I feel much better now,” Adachi admitted. 

“That’s great,” Kurosawa said. “I’m borrowing your kitchen,” he remarked before walking towards said kitchen. Adachi started to get up as well, watching as Kurosawa hung up his jacket next to Adachi’s. He wasn’t sure how it made him feel, but it got him to start remembering the night before. He had felt cool cloths on his forehead, and vaguely remembered Kurosawa facing away from him as he got into pajamas. Adachi glanced at his wings, noticing that they had the shine of having taken the potion. It had taken him a while to realize, but potioned wings vs non-potioned wings looked slightly different. He didn’t remember taking it, but Kurosawa must have given it to him at some point. Adachi glanced over the room again, noticing that Kurosawa must have gone to the store with onions on the table. He took a deep breath. 

“Thank you.”  

Kurosawa came to the doorway, leaning on the sliding door. “I didn’t do much,” he said as he grabbed something off the table. “I made porridge. Can you eat?” 

Adachi nodded. 

Kurosawa placed the porridge in front of Adachi, settling down next to Adachi. 

“Looks good!” Adachi said, meaning it. Kurosawa took the spoon and used it to put the porridge in the bowl.

“I’ll go back to my own place tonight,” Kurosawa said as he continued putting the rice in the bowl. 

“You can...stay here as long as you like,” Adachi said, nodding to himself as he looked down. He meant it, but it was embarrassing to say out loud.  

“What?” 

“Oh, I mean, your older sister seemed to be having some problem. You have also taken care of me, so…” Adachi trailed off. 

“Ah…then I guess I’ll stay here for the time being.” 

“Okay.” 

Kurosawa smiled, eyes crinkling, before schooching closer and handing Adachi the bowl and spoon. 

“Today, October 28th, will be the anniversary of my cohabitation with Adachi.” 

Adachi looked at Kurosawa, who remarked that the porridge was dripping and grabbed a tissue. 

“ Today is the start of our private sweet life! *~adachi taking off the lid of a soup kurosawa had made; the two of them drinking something in adachi’s kitchen, kurosawa smiling at adachi; kurosawa helping adachi fold his clothes~* 

Adachi watched as Kurosawa started blowing on the porridge before sitting back. 

“Don’t get burned,” Kurosawa said simply. 

I’m already going to be burned, Adachi thought as he took a bite and indeed, burned himself on the porridge. 

Adachi looked at the clock, despairing how close it was to the end of the work day. Of course, on the day Adachi wanted Urabe to give him extra work, he just simply told Fujisaki and Adachi to finish cleaning up after the meeting. There wasn’t much left to clean up, so Adachi recalled Kurosawa’s fantasies, wondering what was going to happen. He ruffled his hair, frustrated. 

“What’s the matter? Your hair is a mess,” Fujisaki said, coming over. While Adachi initially moved away, Fujisaki’s expression made it clear he better just comply. He bent down so she could reach his bangs better. 

“Done,” she announced. The two of them finished packing up, and Adachi started going back to his desk, holding the box of leftover items. He stopped in his tracks when he saw Kurosawa at his desk, holding his phone. Adachi felt his phone buzz, and got it out. 

Kurosawa Yuichi: 

When will you be done? Let’s go back together. 

Adachi looked to the heavens as he realized Kurosawa was waiting for him. Kurosawa seemed slightly impatient, pacing and brushing something off Adachi’s chair.

“Please give me some time,” Adachi said out loud before turning to go back to the conference room. However, Rokkaku ruined his plans by calling out that he had found Adachi--loudly. While Rokkaku was asking him questions, Kurosawa ran in.  

“Adachi, so you’re here,” Kurosawa said. 

“Yeah, my meeting just ended.”

“I see.” 

Adachi internally screamed at Rokkaku. 

“Kurosawa-san and Adachi-san, you are really close, huh,” Rokkaku remarked. “You came to work together today, right?” 

Adachi didn’t know what to do if Rokkaku had seen them, so he started lying, only for Kurosawa to interrupt him and say that he was indeed crashing at Adachi’s. Adachi looked at him, surprised he would just...admit it like that. 

“That sounds so fun!” Rokkaku exclaimed. “Can I go to your place too?” 

“What?” Adachi asked. He wasn’t used to people wanting to come over, other than maybe Tsuge. 

“Please let me join you!” Rokkaku begged, grabbing Adachi’s shoulder before snaking his arm around Adachi, avoiding his wings, but getting his arm around Adachi nonetheless. “Adachi-senpai, we’re friends. Right?” 

Kurosawa grabbed Rokkaku and led him away, saying it would be a bother if there were too many people there. Adachi noticed Kurosawa’s wings were vibrating again, but thought about how if Rokkaku came over, it would mean Kurosawa couldn’t do anything. 

“Sure!” he blurted out. 

“Really?” Rokkaku asked. 

“Yes,” Adachi assured him.  

“Then I’m going to make it so fun! Yesss!” Rokkaku cheered. “What should we eat?” 

“Anything’s fine,” Adachi said, thinking about how this would let him avoid the sweet life for a little longer. 

“Hot pot, maybe?” Rokkaku mused as Kurosawa leaned against the wall. 

Adachi looked at the string of texts Tsuge had sent him, wondering what was going on. When he looked up from his phone, Rokkaku was holding up a mouthful of food, which he then fed to Adachi. After trying to cool it down a little, Adachi declared it soft inside. Rokkaku seemed relieved, making Kurosawa cough. Kurosawa declared it “not bad” after trying it. 

“Adachi-san, you’ve got something there,” Rokkaku said, pulling a tissue from under the table and wiping Adachi’s face with it. 

Kurosawa cleared his throat. “I’ll cook the next one.” 

“Ahh it’s okay!” Rokkaku said, grabbing the bowl with the dough. “Kurosawa-san, just enjoy the food.” 

“No, I’ll do it.”

“No, no, no,” Rokkaku said, trying to pull the bowl away from Kurosawa. 

“ I will do it,” Kurosawa insisted forcefully, successfully pulling the bowl away from Rokkaku. 

“Alright then,” Rokkaku said, going back to his food. 

Kurosawa, who had been smiling, dropped the smile as he started mixing the dough. 

Kurosawa?

“Go on, eat up!” Kurosawa told Adachi and Rokkaku. 

 The two of them looked at the food Kurosawa had prepared, Rokkaku asking if it was ajillo.

Kurosawa didn’t answer, saying instead that he hoped they would like it.  

“Itadakimasu” Adachi and Rokkaku said before digging in. 

“Yumm!” Adachi exclaimed. Kurosawa smiled, looking more genuine than he had earlier. 

“Pass me the plate,” Kurosawa requested. 

“Okay,” Adachi said, passing it over. He hadn’t realized how close Kurosawa had gotten until their wings brushed. 

“It’s about time he wants something not seasoned with sauce. I know everything about Adachi.” Kurosawa thought as he plated Adachi’s food. 

What? Adachi thought. 

“Adachi’s ‘yumm!’ belongs only to me.”  

Kurosawa finished plaiting it, handing it over to Adachi, who stammered out a thanks. 

“But...was I a little immature?”  

Adachi looked over. Despite having moved a little, their wing tips were still brushing, even as Kurosawa handed Rokkaku more food. 

“To think I was jealous of Rokkaku. I was also jealous of Fujisaki-san in the office. I need to hold my composure more.” Kurosawa took a drink of his beer, his wings opening and closing once before falling open again. 

I see. No wonder he was like that just now. Kurosawa might be a little cute.  

“You know, I’ve been thinking about this for a while now. Adachi-san, you have a lot of stationery here,” Rokkaku said, having stood up and gone near Adachi’s desk. 

“Yeah,” Adachi said. 

“Rokkaku, you’re observant,” Kurosawa said. 

“I have a sharp eye for this kind of thing. When I was in college, I discovered that one of the guys in my club bookmarked a porn site,” Rokkaku said as he came back to the table.

“That’s completely different,” Adachi protested. 

“That’s true,” Rokkaku agreed, sitting back down. 

“What club were you in?” Kurosawa asked. 

“Dance club,” Rokkaku answered, finding his phone and bringing it out, showing Adachi pictures of him dancing, two people behind him. 

“You were pretty serious about it,” Adachi remarked. 

“Yeah, I was,” Rokkaku agreed. 

“Have you stopped dancing?” Adachi asked. 

“Yes. The best dancer among my peers still dances now though. Sometimes it is important to give up. Look, this too,” Rokkaku said as he leaned against Adachi, his wings going in front of Adachi’s. 

“Why am I talking about how I gave up my dream? I’m so lame.” 

“Well, I just wasn’t talented enough,” Rokkaku said. “The best dancer--”

“That’s fine,” Adachi interrupted. “Now you want to be the ace of the sales department. I think it’s great that you can find a new dream and work hard at it again. For someone like me who doesn’t have any dreams or talents, I’m just sort of living in a daze, so...I envy you, Rokkaku.”

Rokkaku smiled at that. “Thank you.” 

Adachi nodded, and Rokkaku asked if they wanted to play spicy roulette. 

Adachi tried to sleep, but Rokkaku’s snores were so loud. He heard someone get up, knowing it had to be Kurosawa if the snores were still going. He heard Kurosawa stop, then come over. He felt his arm be lifted, and figured Kurosawa was trying to tuck him in. Kurosawa pulled the duvet over Adachi, and must have sat next to the bed in a way that made his wing touch the one that Adachi was currently laying on, that was sticking off of the bed. 

“When he said he envies Rokkaku, did he mean it? Why does he have so little confidence in himself? Stop saying things like ‘someone like me’ anymore. Because...Adachi is special to me.”

Adachi felt a hand go near his cheek and reflexively recoiled, turning to shift. He heard Kurosawa get up, sounding a little panicked.  

He scared me…What’s with him all of a sudden? 

Adachi could see him, barely. His wings were opening and closing, not shiny so Adachi could see that they really matched his. Because Adachi tended to get his shirts big, the borrowed shirt had wing slits big enough for Kurosawa. As Kurosawa stood there, Adachi could just barely hear him say something, wings still going. He sat up, wondering what Kurosawa was saying. 

Adachi woke up, not to his usual alarm, but to Rokkaku’s phone alarm. He started cursing, angrily getting out the bed and turning off Rokkaku’s alarm. He had to pull it out of Rokkaku’s grasp, marvelling that he was just sleeping through the alarm. Adachi nearly tossed the phone on Rokkaku’s chest before gently setting it down. He looked next to Rokkaku, finding his shirt neatly folded and Kurosawa nowhere to be found. 

At his work desk, Adachi reflected how it wasn’t like Kurosawa to leave without saying anything. He checked his phone, where he had sent Kurosawa a text, to which there was no reply, although it had been read. He put the phone down, clasping his hands together tightly, wondering if Kurosawa was suffering because of him. A buzz said he had a text.

Kurosawa Yuichi: 

What time will you be done today? Let’s go back together. 

Relieved, Adachi sent back an “okay!” sticker. 

The day over, Adachi walked with Kurosawa out of the elevator, telling him that the meal the night before was very good, but not as good as the porridge Kurosawa had made him when he was sick. Kurosawa smiled at him, but was otherwise quiet. 

“You know, it’s the first time someone other than my family made porridge for me when I was sick. I was moved,” Adachi admitted before realizing Kurosawa wasn’t next to him. He stopped, Kurosawa smiling politely when he noticed that Adachi had stopped walking. Adachi was confused, starting to backtrack. “Was I too dramatic when I say I was moved?” 

Kurosawa shook his head, saying “no” but there was something about it that bothered Adachi. Kurosawa smiled at Adachi and walked ahead of him, leaving Adachi to remember when he was in college and he overheard people talking about how he had never had a girlfriend and how it was “heavy.” As a result, he stayed several steps behind Kurosawa as they walked. Eventually, the silence was too much for Adachi. 

“Normally people of our age would have at least been nursed by a sweetheart or something,” he said, tensing up when Kurosawa still didn’t say anything. This was very unlike Kurosawa. “Kurosawa?”  

Kurosawa took a deep breath. “The person who gets to date you will be blessed,” he said, still walking ahead of Adachi. 

“What?” 

“Whether it’s going on a date, having a meal together, or holding hands, that person will be your first in everything.” He turned to look at Adachi. “I’m sure they’ll be really happy,” he said, smiling at Adachi. “If it were me, I’d be so happy.”

The two of them walked, slowly, Kurosawa ahead, Adachi looking at the ground. Kurosawa stopped, looking like he was taking a second to compose himself as his wings opened and closed. He turned around. “You don’t have to let me stay at your place anymore.”

Adachi didn’t understand why he felt like the world was crashing at his feet at that statement. His wings, which had been tense but unmoving the entire time, started fluttering. 

“But your sister…”

“It’s painful for me to stay with you any longer,” Kurosawa interrupted. 

“What?” 

“Because...I like you.” 

Chapter Text

“I...I like you,” Kurosawa admitted, wings held unnaturally stiff.   

Adachi stared at him. 

“Until a while ago, I thought being close to you is enough for me. But...as I got closer, I became greedy.” 

Adachi nodded, just a little. He knew that Kurosawa could see that they had the same wing shape, but he wouldn’t have any idea that they were soulmates. 

“I don’t want to be just a colleague...or a friend,” Kurosawa stated before taking a few steps towards Adachi. “It’s the first time...I’ve ever liked someone this much…” 

Adachi couldn’t quite read the look in Kurosawa’s eyes. Since he was staring at Kurosawa, he didn’t see the movement of Kurosawa’s hand, which was clearly coming to caress Adachi’s cheek. As Kurosawa’s hand got close enough for him to start feeling the warmth, Adachi looked down, swallowing. Kurosawa’s face fell, and he slowly removed his hand. Adachi looked at Kurosawa’s hand, wondering why he had removed it, before looking up to Kurosawa, questioningly. Kurosawa was clearly composing himself, swallowing before looking back to Adachi. His wings, which had drooped, were now being held up with what Adachi felt had to be sheer force of will. 

“Sorry! Forget what I just said. I’ll do the same too.” 

“What?” Adachi didn’t know what was happening. 

“I just wanted to tell you how I feel,” Kurosawa said, pasting a fake grin on his face. Adachi blinked at him, trying to find the words he wanted. “Sorry for being so selfish. The next time we meet everything will be back to normal.” Kurosawa turned away, the fake smile still on his face.

Adachi took a few steps forward, wanting to stop Kurosawa, but unsure how to. Kurosawa’s wings were starting to flutter, just at the edges, and he held his right hand in a tight fist. Adachi stood there, saying he had to stop him, but not doing anything as his wings vibrated harder than they had in the last few weeks. The fact was that he didn’t know what to do after he stopped Kurosawa. He ruffled his hair, upset. 

October 29th, 2020

Adachi came into the office, hearing Mimura talk about how Kurosawa was away on a business trip. As the other lady complained about not being motivated if Kurosawa was in there, Adachi couldn’t help but agree. He said good morning to Fujisaki before going to his desk. 

Having somehow managed to get through the day, Adachi finally allowed himself to think about what Kurosawa had said. 

The next time we meet...the next time we meet, everything will be back to normal. Kurosawa said that. But...what does “back to normal” mean? I can’t get it out of my head. Everything that happened between me and Kurosawa. *~Kurosawa putting the scarf on; Kurosawa giving the folder full of data; Kurosawa apologizing for falling for him in front of an izakaya; Kurosawa tending to the wound on Adachi’s hand; Kurosawa lifting a sick Adachi like a princess; Kurosawa looking over a “sleeping” Adachi; Kurosawa trying and failing to touch Adachi’s cheek~* Every single thing that happened...everything! Everything! Everything! Everything! They just won’t go away! 

Adachi checked his watch. Yes, he had just enough time, if he left right now . Urabe came over, and for the first time in his seven years of working at Toyokawa, Adachi ignored him and left without accepting the extra work. Once he was out of the building, he started running and then flying, ignoring people’s looks. Before I knew it, I was searching for Kurosawa. I was thinking of Kurosawa. The next thing I knew, my mind was full of Kurosawa.  

He made it to the bridge where he was pretty sure Kurosawa would be, panting as stopped to breathe. That’s right...I… Adachi started running again. To his relief, he saw Kurosawa, whose wings were drooping. 

“Kurosawa!” Adachi called out. Kurosawa looked up, looking stunned when he saw that it was Adachi. 

“Adachi?” he questioned, his wings going up. 

Adachi stood there, panting. Kurosawa walked towards him, clearly concerned. “What’s the matter?” Kurosawa asked, stopping a few steps away. 

Adachi took a few more breaths. “Thank god...you’re here.”

“What’s the matter?” Kurosawa asked again. 

Adachi went into a bow. “Sorry!” He couldn’t see Kurosawa’s face, but he could feel the confusion from him. “About yesterday...no. About all that happened so far...I’m really sorry.” Adachi bowed again, not as deeply, but to make his point.

Kurosawa looked like he was trying to figure out what was going on, not saying anything.

“I...I am a real scaredy-cat.” Adachi continued. “So many times...so many times, I ran away and hurt you. I mean, we are both guys. It would be easier if we remain peers.” 

“Yeah, I understand,” Kurosawa said, his mouth going into a tight line. 

“Just listen to me!” Adachi said, slightly frustrated. Kurosawa was taking his lines the wrong way. He steadied himself, forcing his wings, which had been opening and closing in agitation, to relax. “Being with you, there were times when I got surprised, but before I knew it, I was smiling. It feels comfortable being with you. It made me feel that...those times with you aren’t too bad.”

Kurosawa looked at him, his wings starting to open and close. 

“No. Putting all those reasons aside, I…” Adachi steeled himself. He had never done this before, and it was hard to get the words out, even though he was sure of his feelings. “I...I like you.” 

Kurosawa stared at him, hard. It flustered Adachi, making him apologize for responding late. Adachi’s wings, which had actually stayed pretty still during the confession, started fluttering. “But this is how I fee-”

Kurosawa pulled him into a huge hug, barely avoiding Adachi’s wings. His own wings were curled around Adachi as well. 

“Are you sure about this?” Kurosawa asked. 

“What?”

“Even if you want to run away, I’m not going to let you go.” Kurosawa promised. 

“Oh.” 

“‘Oh’?” Kurosawa teased gently. He adjusted his hands, putting his face into Adachi’s shoulder. 

His heart is beating so fast. Kurosawa’s feelings are beyond words. They are flowing into me. 

Adachi took a big breath, carefully adjusting his hands so he could put them around Kurosawa’s waist while avoiding his wings. He could feel Kurosawa’s shaky breaths, one of Kurosawa’s hands going to hold the back of Adachi’s neck. 

Perhaps...I became a magic user...so that I can touch his heart. Adachi thought, allowing himself to be hugged tightly. 

The two of them walked on a covered sidewalk, Adachi’s wings fluttering while Kurosawa’s were completely relaxed. Adachi swung his arms nervously, having no idea what to do now that he confessed. 

“Don’t be so nervous,” Kurosawa said. 

“What?”

“You’re making me nervous too,” Kurosawa admitted. 

“Even you get nervous?” Adachi asked. 

“Of course! Didn’t you hear my heartbeat just now?”         

Adachi nodded. “I heard it.” 

“I thought so.” 

Adachi rubbed his hands. He wasn’t entirely sure what this whole confession thing meant in terms of what people did. “Ummm...what do we do now?” he asked as walked. 

Kurosawa stopped. “What?” 

Adachi turned around, looking around nervously. He gestured at nothing in particular, trying to get Kurosawa to understand him. “Shall we go eat something? Or…”

“Or?” Kurosawa stepped closer, raising his eyebrows as he stared at Adachi. “Does that mean...I can go to your place?”

Adachi looked up. Kurosawa looked serious. He opened his mouth to respond.

Chapter Text

“Adachi.” 

Said man startled when he heard his name be called, much to Kurosawa’s clear amusement. 

“Thanks for compiling the data,” Kurosawa said. 

“Oh, okay,” Adachi said. Kurosawa walked away and Adachi got up, his brain telling him to get away from the desk. Urabe clearly noticed, asking what was wrong, but Adachi didn’t think he was physically capable of answering, instead making his way to the cafeteria. 

Once in the cafeteria, he sat down and sprawled himself on the table, remembering how Kurosawa had teased him the night before and called him that morning and how mushy it all was.  

“Were you just thinking about me?” Kurosawa’s voice interrupted Adachi’s thoughts. Adachi whirled around, finding Kurosawa looking far too casual for someone who was plaguing all of Adachi’s thoughts. 

“No, umm, well…” Adachi stammered out, his wings fluttering as Kurosawa leaned closer. “Yeah…”  

“Really?” Kurosawa asked, sounding delighted as he pulled out the chair next to Adachi. “I’m so happy.” 

“Umm, you’re looking for me?” 

Kurosawa turned his body so he was facing Adachi more. “Say...are you free tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I am.” 

“Then, shall we go out together?” 

Adachi looked at Kurosawa. 

“No?” Kurosawa asked. 

Adachi made a movement that Kurosawa took as a “yes”. 

“Then I’ll pick you up tomorrow,” Kurosawa said, getting up. 

“What?” Adachi asked. 

Kurosawa turned back around. “Look forward to it. I’m going to make it the best day!” With his blinding smile, he left. 

“Everything about him is so cool, ehh,” Adachi said. “Or rather, is that...what people call a ‘date’?”

November 2nd, 2020

Adachi threw potential outfits on his bed, wondering what he should wear. “Oh shit...when you’re in a relationship, there is just too much to think about.” The doorbell ringing caught his attention. 

Kurosawa is here!!! He took a deep breath and went through the noren, opening the door to find...Tsuge? 

“What?” Adachi asked. 

“Adachi…” Tsuge said. 

“Tsuge?”

Tsuge grabbed Adachi by the shoulders, curling his hummingbird wings so that they touched Adachi’s fairy ones. 

“You’re too close.” 

Tsuge ignored him, saying he couldn’t do “this” anymore. 

“Hey...what’s the matter?”

Could he be in a slump? Writer’s block?

“No, it’s not that.”

What? *~a young man, blonde, opening Tsuge’s apartment door, with wings that matched Tsuge’s~* Who is this fashionable youngster?

“Actually, I…”

A “what” from underneath them made Tsuge let go, the two of them looking at Kurosawa, Tsuge keeping on hand on Adachi and their wings still touching. Kurosawa came closer, tripping on a bike as he clearly tried to make sense of what was happening. Adachi looked back at Tsuge, figuring out what Kurosawa was concerned about and rushing to fix the misunderstanding by waving his arms in an “X” motion and saying it wasn’t what Kurosawa thought. 

Once all three of them were inside and sitting around Adachi’s table, Tsuge apologized, to which Kurosawa apologized as well for overreacting. Once that was done, Adachi decided to introduce them to each other. 

“This is Tsuge, my friend from my college days,” Adachi explained to Kurosawa. 

“Nice to meet you,” Kurosawa said with a deep nod. Tsuge returned the sentiment. 

“And this is Kurosawa. He’s my…” Adachi trailed off. He’s my...how should I introduce him? B--boyfriend? Soulmate? He doesn’t know that…

“I’m Adachi’s colleague, Kurosawa Yuichi. We are pretty close now.” Kurosawa smiled at Adachi after introducing himself. 

He’s being considerate for me. 

“Kurosawa-san…Kurosawa?” Tsuge asked Adachi. 

“What?” Kurosawa asked. He looked at Adachi questioningly. 

“Well, Adachi told me a lot about you,” Tsuge said. 

“So you told him about me...what did you say?” Kurosawa asked.

“Well...all sorts of things.” Adachi admitted. Kurosawa sent him a sly look. 

Tsuge started getting up. “Well then, I’ll leave first. I’m sorry for barging in without checking if you had plans.” 

“Wait!” Adachi grabbed Tsuge’s arm, getting a little closer so that they could communicate through the wings. 

“You came because something happened, right?” 

“That’s…”    

I want to talk to you about this magic too. 

“I’m sorry for not taking you seriously when you came to me for advice.” 

No worries at all. 

“As you can tell, I’m also a vir--”

“I knew you’re a virgin. Sorry!” 

Tsuge startled, moving out of Adachi’s reach. 

“Are you both okay?” Kurosawa asked. 

“Yup, we’re good,” Adachi said. He settled back to his sitting position, looking up at Tsuge and telling him with his eyes that Tsuge could stay. Tsuge sat back down. 

“Could I have a bit of your time?” Tsuge asked. 

Adachi agreed, listening to Tsuge’s story about the delivery boy and how there was a dance practice Tsuge wanted to attend now. Kurosawa was confused on why it was a lot to go to this dance practice, but offered to go, all three of them. 

On the bus, sitting next to Kurosawa with Tsuge in front of them, Adachi pulled out his phone. 

Kurosawa, I’m sorry it turned out like this.

You must have a lot planned for today. 

You don’t need to apologize.

I’m happy as long as we’re together.

Kurosawa looked at Adachi and smiled reassuringly. 

Let’s save the fun for later. 

Since we’ll always be together from now on.

Adachi looked at Kurosawa, startled. The bus hit a bump, throwing Adachi against Kurosawa. 

“Sorry,” Adachi apologized. 

Kurosawa shook his head, indicating he didn’t mind. “Are you okay?” 

Adachi nodded, and Kurosawa turned to the window. 

“My boyfriend.” 

Adachi looked at Kurosawa. What?

“By Kurosawa Yuichi. 

You are right there beside me.

My little shy angel.” 

Adachi couldn’t believe what he was hearing. A poem out of nowhere?

“Our date is postponed, but my heart…

Still beats hard.

With Adachi by my side

I will be happy for life.”

Adachi c

ouldn’t help the snicker that escaped out of him, causing both Kurosawa and Tsuge to look at him. Adachi apologized before moving slightly away from Kurosawa. 

At the park, much to their surprise, they found Rokkaku, who was also surprised, who commented on what a small world it was. 

Tsuge pointed to the short young man who was stretching. “He always delivers packages to my place.”

“‘He’?” Rokkaku asked.

The conversation clearly caught the attention of the blonde, who pointed at himself and said that he was Minato. 

“Is that so?” Tsuge asked. “That’s a nice name.”

“What? You didn’t know his name?” Rokkaku said. “That’s funny.”   

“You also brought your friends here?” Minato asked. Tsuge gestured towards them while agreeing, so Kurosawa and Adachi bowed. Minato nodded back from where he was still stretching. 

“Are your dance friends all here already?” Tsuge asked. 

“Wha…?” Minato seemed to be doing a mental tally as he looked around. “Yes.” 

Tsuge nodded. “Got it.” He turned around and started walking away, to everyone’s surprise. 

“Ummm,” Minato said.

“I’ll go buy some refreshments,” Tsuge explained. 

“Then shall we go with him too?” Adachi asked Kurosawa. 

“Yeah,” Kurosawa agreed. 

The three of them left, Rokkaku calling out he wanted something cold. 

Adachi and Kurosawa watched Tsuge, who was looking intently at the sign for some drink. 

“I wonder if Tsuge-san likes Minato-kun,” Kurosawa mused. 

Adachi knew that the two were most likely soulmates, having seen their wings, but agreed with Kurosawa. Tsuge wasn’t being subtle. 

“It’s like his eyes sparkle when he looks at Minato-kun,” Kurosawa said. 

“Popular guys are more insightful indeed,” Adachi said without thinking.

“What the hell is that?” 

“Nothing. Kurosawa, can you actually read people’s minds?” Adachi asked. 

Kurosawa laughed. “No way.” He stood nearer to Adachi, their wings overlapping as their hands touched on the basket Adachi was holding. “If I could read minds, I would have done more to make Adachi’s wishes come true.” 

“Shall we go?” Tsuge asked, holding up a basket full of the drink whose sign he had been looking at. 

The three of them walked back, finding Rokkaku filming Minato and his dance partner. Adachi looked at Tsuge, who looked very happy watching Minato. Rokkaku continued cheering them on, giving them occasional instructions. The young man in a suit that had been hanging around stepped forward. 

“I’m glad I chose a full-time job after all,” he said. 

Rokkaku looked at him. “What?” 

“This is never going to work.”

“What are you talking…” Rokkaku started asking. The young man in a suit walked away, so Rokkaku continued encouraging the dancers. 

“See ya,” he said to Rokkaku. 

Minato stopped dancing and came over, grabbing the young man by the lapels and shaking him. Rokkaku tried to stop him, the other dancer coming over as well. Since they were so close, wings were going every which way, especially as Minato’s hummingbirds started flapping. 

“Did you come here just to make fun of me?” Minato asked angrily.

“I was just being honest,” taunted the other young man. His wings were a similar pattern to Minato’s, but moth shaped. “It’s useless working so hard.” 

“Keita!” 

“Let go of me!” the young man--Keita, it seemed--said before pushing Minato away. Adachi went to make sure Minato didn’t fall on the ground, carefully grabbing his shoulders the way he had done with Tsuge in college. 

Kurosawa rushed in, getting in Keita’s way. “Calm down.” 

“What’s with you, ossan ?” Keita asked. Adachi could see Kurosawa’s wings fall as he stayed with Minato. 

“Do you even know what level you are at?” Keita asked. “You should know why you haven’t made it big yet!” 

Minato broke free from Adachi, rushing Keita again. Rokkaku pressed against Minato’s chest, keeping him away from Keita. 

“Stop it!” Tsuge shouted. Everyone stopped and looked at him. His wings were flapping furiously, and Adachi waited with baited breath. Tsuge reached into his bag and gave a drink to Keita. “Drink this, and cool down a bit.” Tsuge stared Keita down when he didn’t respond. 

Keita scoffed. “What a pain,” he said before leaving. Minato’s dance partner ran after him, Rokkaku doing the same after some quick bows. 

The four of them looked where the others had left. 

“You didn’t have to do anything unnecessary,” Minato said. 

“I see,” Tsuge said. “Alright.” He turned around and left. Adachi ran after him. 

At the bus stop, Tsuge was quiet, Adachi sitting next to him on the bench while Kurosawa stood around. Adachi got a little closer, letting their wings touch. 

Tsuge...just now, I happened to hear Minato-kun’s inner voice. He relayed Minato’s thoughts about how he was chasing his dream while Keita had given up.  

“Why are you telling me this?”

You like him, don’t you? Adachi wasn’t sure if Tsuge knew about the soulmates thing and wasn’t sure if he should bring it up. But even without that, it was clear Tsuge liked Minato. Tsuge startled, his wings coming unfolded. I understand you want to take a step back when he refuses you. I was like that too a while ago… The two of them looked at Kurosawa, who smiled politely back when he felt their gazes. Adachi couldn’t help but smile back. Adachi took a deep breath before sitting up. 

“Tsuge! Listen…” he pushed himself off the bench and went over to Kurosawa. “I...and Kurosawa are in a relationship...now.”

“What?” Kurosawa asked. Tsuge stood up as Kurosawa looked at Adachi. 

“That’s why...it’s weird to say ‘that’s why’, but...in any case…” Adachi grabbed the bag of drinks and tried to give it to Tsuge. “Go for it!” He opened Tsuge’s hand when he didn’t respond and gave him the bag. Tsuge looked up, and Adachi smiled encouragingly. “Tsuge!” he said with a firm nod. 

Tsuge looked at him, smiling a little before nodding and dashing off. 

“Umm…” Kurosawa said, coming to stand next to Adachi. “What was that just now?”

Adachi started floundering. “Sorry, that was sudden.” 

“If you catch me off guard like that, my heart cannot take it,” Kurosawa told Adachi. Adachi wasn’t sure what to do, so he simply nodded. 

“It’s cool indeed, to have a dream or a goal,” Adachi said as they walked up the hill to get to Adachi’s apartment. 

“You were also cool just now though,” Kurosawa replied. 

“What?”

“Just now, when you encouraged Tsuge-san.”

“No...that’s nothing.”  

“Things like dreams or goals, you might discover them unexpectedly.”

Adachi nodded at that, and they walked a little before Kurosawa slipped his hand into Adachi’s. Adachi looked down, then up to Kurosawa. 

“Let’s take it slow and easy,” Kurosawa said. “Like this, step by step...won’t it be nice to enjoy every new experience?” 

Adachi nodded, slowly curling his hand around Kurosawa’s. “Yeah.” 

The two of them smiled at each other, Kurosawa’s showing off all his crinkles. 

When you’re in a relationship, there might be a lot to think about...but this doesn’t feel to bad, Adachi thought.

“I like him. He’s so cute. I like him, I like him, I like him so much!!”

Yeah. But...I still find it mushy. 

Chapter Text

“Thanks for waiting,” Kurosawa said, setting a bowl of miso soup in front of Adachi. “Okay, let’s eat,” he said, settling down to sit across from Adachi. 

“Itadakimasu,” the two of them said in unison. 

Adachi eagerly dug in, and the food was as delicious as it smelled, even if Kurosawa was nervous about it, since he had made it in a hurry. Adachi reassured him that it was better than fine. 

“There’s a mark on your face,” Kurosawa said, pointing at his own cheek so that Adachi would know where it was. 

Adachi put his finger on his cheek and went to check in the mirror, which had been brought out ever since he started dating Kurosawa. To his surprise, there was indeed a mark, in the shape of the video game controller. 

“You must have slept on the controller last night,” Kurosawa remarked. 

“Wow, is this for real?” Adachi asked, stretching out his cheek. He continued looking at himself until he heard the shutter sound of a camera. He looked over to Kurosawa. “Did you just take a pic?” 

Kurosawa was lying on the floor, giggling up at the ceiling. 

“You definitely took one!” Adachi accused. Kurosawa started getting up, so Adachi scrambled up as well. “Hey, delete it!”

“I don’t want!” Kurosawa said as he started running. 

“Hey! Delete it!” Adachi demanded as he started chasing Kurosawa. Kurosawa held the phone out of reach, not allowing Adachi to get it. 

“No, I don’t want!” Kurosawa insisted. Adachi chased him, their wings overlapping as they started flying about half a meter off the ground. 

“I’ve got a rare shot of Adachi! I’ll make this my wallpaper and admire it every day and night!” 

Adachi stopped chasing him after hearing those thoughts. It’s been nine days since we started dating. It can get confusing at times, but days like this aren’t too bad. Adachi stopped reflecting on his thoughts when he realized Kurosawa had gone very still, with his phone pointed at Adachi. 

“Is that a video?” Adachi asked. 

Kurosawa snickered before putting on a serious face and shaking his head. 

“I’m sure it’s a video! I heard a ‘beep’ just now! That’s a video!” Adachi said, stepping towards Kurosawa. 

“I’m not filming anything,” Kurosawa insisted, moving out of Adachi’s reach. 

“Delete it!” Adachi started waving his arms. “Don’t film me.” 

“What did you say?” Kurosawa teased. 

“Why are you...stop it,” Adachi groaned as Kurosawa gave up the pretense and got close to film Adachi. 

Adachi sorted papers at his desk, taking in absolutely nothing written on the papers. It took him a while to realize Urabe was looking at him, looking at him questioningly when he realized. 

“Have you gotten a girlfriend?” Urabe asked. 

“Huh?” 

“I mean, you are so motivated recently, and you’re exuding this aura of pure bliss!” Urabe told Adachi. 

“Is that so?” Adachi asked. 

“What kind of girl is it? Show me her pic!” 

“Ah, no…” Adachi was flustered, especially as Urabe got closer. 

“What? Don’t tell me she’s one of our colleagues?” 

“No…” Adachi had no idea how to tell Urabe he was half right, half wrong. 

“Urabe-san, Chief is asking for you,” Fujisaki said. 

“Got it,” Urabe said, clapping his hand on Adachi’s shoulder as he went to talk to the Chief. 

Adachi sighed in relief when Urabe left. He knew Urabe meant well, but it still felt too close. Anyway...do I really give off an aura or pure bliss? He wondered as he rubbed his face, getting distracted by a text. 

Wanna have lunch together?

:duckling&rabbit_peek: 

Adachi couldn’t help the smile on his face, looking around before he replied with “okay”. As he typed, he smiled as he thought about their lunch together. 

Adachi sat across from Kurosawa, eating his onigiri, having bought some for Kurosawa as well.  

“Double mayo is really good!” Kurosawa exclaimed. 

“Right? I have a hard time deciding, but I always end up buying these!” 

Kurosawa nodded before looking at Adachi. “Adachi? There’s a rice grain.” 

“What?” Adachi checked where Kurosawa had pointed, finding nothing there. 

Kurosawa reached over and took it off Adachi’s face, eating it and licking his lips, making Adachi smile in slight embarrassment. 

“What?” Rokkaku asked, running over and making Adachi drop his onigiri as he fell backwards. “Both of you are eating the same onigiri.” 

“What?” Adachi asked, accepting the onigiri Kurosawa had picked up for him.  

“I asked Adachi to buy them for me. A shop near his place sells good onigiri,” Kurosawa explained. 

“Yes...that’s right,” Adachi confirmed. 

“How nice…” Rokkaku said with a pout. “Please also buy some for me next time.” 

“Okay...next time,” Adachi promised. 

“Thanks!” Rokkaku said as he sat next to Kurosawa. 

Kurosawa winked at Adachi, which Adachi smiled at, looking away to collect his feelings. 

“Oh, yes,” Rokkaku said, making both Kurosawa and Adachi turn to look at him. “Wanna have a party at Adachi-san’s place again? That was so much fun! How about a temaki sushi party this time? Let’s call your glasses friend and Minato as well.” 

“Y-yeah,” Adachi said, wondering where Rokkaku got all that energy. 

“Then, how about this weekend?”  

Adachi knew his weekend was clear. “No problem for me-”

“Sorry. I’m not free this weekend,” Kurosawa said.

“Is that so?” Rokkaku asked. “Then, when shall we have it?” 

“If it’s next week--” a buzz from Rokkaku’s phone interrupted Adachi. 

Rokkaku fished the phone out of his pocket, excusing himself when he saw the number. 

The two of them walked out of the cafeteria, Kurosawa holding the door open for Adachi. 

“You have plans this weekend?” Adachi asked. 

“What?”

 “I mean, you turned Rokkaku down just now,” Adachi clarified. 

“Oh...I thought of giving our date another go,” Kurosawa admitted. Adachi stopped, and when Kurosawa noticed, he turned back. “Sorry I didn’t ask you first.” 

“No, it’s okay…” Adachi said. 

“You don’t want?” Kurosawa asked, looking a little nervous, his wings fluttering just a tiny bit. 

“No, I don’t mind at all!” Adachi reassured him, coming over. 

Kurosawa smiled in relief, his wings relaxing. “Then it’s decided.”

Adachi nodded and the two of them started walking. Adachi felt himself start to smile at the thought. A date with Kurosawa, huh. He put his hand over his face, trying to make it more appropriate for the office. 

“Oh, there’s one here too,” Kurosawa said. 

*~the two of them clinking glasses of champagne, wearing nice clothes; kurosawa holding adachi in a bridal carry while wearing robes, leaning him down on a bed before leaning closer and closer, adachi helping him bring him closer~*

Adachi startled away, thanking Kurosawa and taking his coffee cup from him. “I’ll throw them away.” He quickly walked away, tossing the cups in the trash can, his eye catching on a poster for a company-wide contest. 

“Seems like there’s a planning competition,” Kurosawa said, having come over. 

“All employees are eligible,” Adachi said, reading the poster. 

“Yeah, this time it isn’t limited to the planning and development team. Looks like it’s gonna be quite a big one.” 

Adachi looked at the poster, thinking about how he was in a stationary company and even though he had joined the company to be close to stationary, he had never considered designing a product. 

“Are you interested?” Kurosawa asked. 

Adachi looked at him, startled. “No, no, no. A competition isn’t for me.” He turned and walked back to the office. 

Adachi sat in his chair, musing. It’s not that I’m not interested. But...I’ve never done any product planning before. It’s not something I’m capable of... He settled on his desk, turning his neck to look at Kurosawa. In a situation like this, Kurosawa would probably be up for any challenge. 

Rokkaku came into Adachi’s line of view, looking more serious than Adachi had ever seen. He walked straight up to Adachi. “Adachi-san. Please contact that glasses guy.”

“What?” Adachi was very confused on why Rokkaku needed Tsuge. 

“That glasses bastard!” Rokkaku shouted, clutching Adachi’s chair. Adachi’s wings started fluttering, while Rokkaku’s angrily opened and closed. 

Adachi sat across from Rokkaku and Kurosawa in the cafe Rokkaku had made Adachi come to after work. He and Kurosawa had received their drinks, while Rokkaku was waiting for his. 

“Sorry I made you come with us,” Adachi said softly. 

“That’s fine,” Kurosawa said as Rokkaku fidgeted. 

“Thank you for waiting. Here’s your iced coffee,” a waitress said, placing the iced coffee in front of Rokkaku. Once she walked away, Rokkaku grabbed the glass and started chugging it down, much to Adachi’s alarm. 

“Is it really okay for me to be here?” Kurosawa asked, also clearly concerned for his kohai. “I don’t know what’s going on at all.” 

“It’s okay. I don’t know what’s going on either.” 

Rokkaku slammed the glass down, having downed the entire drink. He stared at it, breathing heavily. The door opened, revealing Tsuge, Adachi calling him over. 

“Why did you suddenly call me out?” Tsuge asked exasperatedly. “Sorry, but I’m not in the mood for this.” 

“You glasses bastard!” was the only warning any of the rest of them got before Rokkaku rushed Tsuge, grabbing his shirt. 

Adachi and Kurosawa rushed over, pulling Rokkaku off Tsuge, getting hit in the face by his wings, which were flapping furiously. 

“Why are you hurting Minato?” Rokkaku demanded. 

“Hurt? I’m hurting Minato?” Tsuge asked. 

“You’re avoiding him, aren’t you? It’s because he’s gay, right?” Rokkaku spat out. 

Once they had sat Rokkaku back down and he had explained the phone call he had received earlier, Rokkaku told Tsuge that Minato wouldn’t go near him again, despite the fact that Minato had been encouraged by Tsuge. After telling Tsuge that, Rokkaku demanded to know if Tsuge was avoiding Minato because Minato was gay. 

“No!” Adachi interrupted. He didn’t know the full story, but he knew that Tsuge wouldn’t avoid Minato just for being gay. “Tsuge is like me, he gets overwhelmed very easily, and withdraws into his own shell.” He stood up so he could look at Rokkaku at eye level. “But he wouldn’t avoid anyone because of that. Tsuge isn’t that kind of person!” Adachi looked at Tsuge, hoping he was correct. “Right, Tsuge?” 

“You think too highly of me,” Tsuge said. “It’s true, I was avoiding Minato.” He took a second before drawing himself up. “But that’s... not because he’s gay.” Tsuge turned to Adachi, putting his hand on his shoulder and extending his wing, just a little. “ Thank you.” Tsuge marched out of the cafe. 

Having left the cafe, the two of them walked in the cool November air. 

“I hope that Tsuge-san can break out of his shell,” Kurosawa remarked. 

“What?” Adachi asked. 

“You said just now, didn’t you? He gets overwhelmed easily, and withdraws into his own shell, but he wouldn’t avoid anyone because of that.”

“Yeah.” 

“I was a little jealous of Tsuge-san,” Kurosawa admitted. 

“What?” Adachi couldn’t imagine why Kurosawa would be jealous of anyone. 

“When you stood up for Tsuge-san, you were cool.”

Adachi didn’t have a response, so he nodded, smiling at Kurosawa’s expression. 

“Oh, right.” Kurosawa opened his briefcase, pulling out a manila envelope. “This...it might be none of my business, but you looked like you were interested.” He held it out to Adachi, who took it and found an application for the contest inside. He looked up to Kurosawa, surprised. “Why don’t you give it some thought? If you take part, I’ll be rooting for you all the way!” He started walking again, Adachi still looking at the application. 

“K-Kurosawa!” Adachi called. Kurosawa turned to look at him. “Maybe I’ll give it a go.” 

Kurosawa gave him a smile that showed off all his crinkles.    

“Just now you said I was cool, but if that’s true, it’s probably...no...it’s definitely thanks to you. So, now I feel like...I can give it my all,” Adachi said as he walked up to Kurosawa.  

Kurosawa looked at Adachi, eyes growing fond before he hugged Adachi, curling his wings over him again. 

“What? Wait...Kurosawa...people are watching,” Adachi said, patting Kurosawa in an attempt to get him off. 

“ Oh man, this isn’t fair! What am I supposed to do when you are making me like you even more than this?”

Adachi couldn’t help the smile that came to his face. He carefully threaded his hands around Kurosawa’s wings and clutched at his jacket. I...might really like him a lot. They stayed like that for a while, swaying and ignoring the passerby. 

Adachi looked at the now-filled-out application as he walked into the office. 

“Adachi-san,” Rokkaku called. 

Adachi instinctively hid the application behind his back as he said good morning to Rokkaku.

“I’m sorry about yesterday!” Rokkaku said as he went into a bow. 

“What? No worries, no worries,” Adachi said as he tried to get Rokkaku to stand straight. 

“I kinda got too heated up,” Rokkaku admitted. 

“Minato-kun is a very important friend, right?” Adachi asked. 

“He is our star of hope!” Rokkaku said proudly. 

“Star of hope?”

“Yes! All of us are rooting for him!” 

At those words, Adachi looked at the manila envelope in his hands, remembering what Kurosawa had said. He took a deep breath and nodded. “Alright!” he said, ignoring Rokkaku as he went to submit the application.

Chapter Text

“Having someone greet you good morning and good night every day is indeed a nice thing,” Tsuge said over the phone. 

“That’s great, Tsuge,” Adachi said. He was only half listening to the conversation, as he was trying to focus on a design for the contest. Something about Tsuge’s room getting more crowded and Tsuge wanting to get a bike for Minato. Eventually, Tsuge caught on. 

“Is that all you can say?” Tsuge asked. 

“What?” 

“All you’ve been saying just now is ‘that’s great’,” Tsuge complained. 

“Oh, sorry. I was thinking about the competition,” Adachi explained. 

“Competition?”

“Yeah. I thought of giving it a try.” 

“Is that so? New challenges make people grow. You can do it, Adachi.” 

Adachi smiled. “Thank you.” 

“You seem busy, so I should get to my main point now.”

“That wasn’t your main point?” Adachi asked in disbelief. 

“Adachi, I have...broken free from my magic,” Tsuge said. 

Adachi stood up in shock. “Are you serious?”   

“Yeah. There was no mistake in that urban legend.”

“Ahhh so it’s true after all.”

“You’ll break free from your magic sooner or later, so don’t worry.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, as your senpai here, let me tell you…”

“What is it?” 

“Although they use the word ‘loss’, you will not lose anything. You’ll be fine,” Tsuge told Adachi. “There’s nothing to be afraid of--” 

Adachi hung up. He had heard enough. There’s no point in telling me that… He thought about how he had told Kurosawa he had applied for the contest, and how Kurosawa said he would postpone their date so Adachi could focus on designing a product, since Kurosawa was the type to save the fun for later. But Kurosawahad also mentioned a “reward”. 

I guess he’s referring to that, huh. I’m still not emotionally prepared...No. I don’t mind if it’s with Kurosawa. Hey, why am I getting all fuzzy inside? Focus on the competition now! Oh, but...no, no! I have to do my best! Yes, but... 

Adachi sat at the table in their office with Kurosawa on his right and Fujisaki on his left. He nervously showed them his product idea, and while they praised it, Rokkaku said it was “nothing special”, and even though the words stung, Adachi knew Rokkaku was right. Kurosawa told him not to worry, that ideas could come in unexpected ways. 

At his desk, Adachi scribbled away, before throwing his pen down in frustration. “This wouldn’t work...geez!” He put his face in his hands, hearing Kurosawa come in and put something on his desk. 

“I’ll leave it here,” Kurosawa said. 

Adachi took his hands away, seeing the tea on his desk. “Thanks. I’m sorry. We rarely get a day off, but I’m doing this…” Adachi apologized. 

“I’m happy as long as I’m with you,” Kurosawa said from where he had sat down, in front of Adachi’s bed. 

Adachi smiled, then looked at the mug, considering his options. He grabbed the mug and sat next to Kurosawa. “Maybe I’ll take a short break.” 

“Alrighty,” Kurosawa said easily. He then told Adachi how Rokkaku had been inspired to do better by Adachi joining the contest, which made Adachi stare into his tea, something Kurosawa clearly noticed. “What’s the matter?” 

“I’m happy, but I have mixed feelings,” Adachi admitted. He told Kurosawa about how Fujisaki gave him chocolates and how Urabe had let him leave work early to focus on the contest. Kurosawa was happy for him, saying how they were rooting for Adachi. 

“That’s true, but...what if I can’t live up to their expectations?” Adachi asked the question that was troubling him the most. “Kurosawa, you’re amazing. You always live up to people’s expectations. You’re perfect,” Adachi said, not looking at Kurosawa. 

Kurosawa closed the book he was reading. “Wanna go out for a while?”

“What?”  

Kurosawa leaned in close. “A practice for our date.” 

Adachi looked at him, smiling uncertainly. 

The teacups were filled with couples, all straight, Adachi noticed. “Don’t you think we’re out of place here?” 

Kurosawa ignored his question. “Adachi?” he asked when Adachi kept looking out of the teacup. 

Adachi looked at Kurosawa to find him blatantly pointing his phone at Adachi. “There you go again!” he protested, swatting the phone. 

“Look,” Kurosawa said. “Look at this,” he showed Adachi the pictures. They were pictures of Adachi looking away or caught in an embarrassing pose. Despite that, Kurosawa wanted to make one of them his wallpaper, and the two of them laughed at the pictures together. 

They did a water shooting ride, ate crepes (Kurosawa feeding Adachi), and rode the carousel, where Adachi got stuck on a hippo (and Kurosawa shamelessly filmed him). Despite all that, Kurosawa still insisted it was a practice date, saying that their actual first date would be more special, since it would be Adachi’s first date ever. Adachi smiled at that before his attention was caught by the Viking ship.

“How nice! I’ve always wanted to ride one!” Adachi said, bouncing up and down in excitement. 

“Then, wanna ride?” Kurosawa asked. 

“Yeah!” 

“Alright!” 

They got in, but once it started to go higher and higher, Adachi fainted. 

Adachi sat with his head on the table, feeling terrible. He knew his wings were drooping, both from nausea and from feeling bad he had ruined the date. Kurosawa ran up to him, handing him a water bottle. 

“Are you okay?” 

“Oh...yeah,” Adachi said. “Thank you. I didn’t expect to feel so sick.” He drank some water, still feeling terrible. What am I doing? I had to spoil the mood at the very end. He looked at Kurosawa. Kurosawa looks dejected too. This date practice didn’t come easy, but I ruined it. “But...I had fun today!” Adachi told Kurosawa, meaning it. “Let’s do it again.” 

Kurosawa nodded, but his mouth was a line. “Yeah.”

Could he be angry? No, Kurosawa wouldn’t get angry over something like this. I’m sure he’s just tired. “Kurosawa, aren’t you feeling tired too?” Adachi asked. 

“No, I’m fine,” Kurosawa said. 

What?? Is he angry after all? Oh no! I don’t know what Kurosawa is thinking! Adachi ruffled his hair before remembering that, duh, he had magic powers. He made an excuse of something being on Kurosawa, stilling his wings so that he could figure out what Kurosawa was thinking. 

“I wanted to cheer him up but what have I done? I didn’t even notice that Adachi was feeling so sick. I like Adachi when he’s working hard, but when he’s with me, I want him to have fun and smile.” 

Adachi moved away. Kurosawa…

Later that night, in his apartment, Adachi reflected on the day before working on a powerpoint. 

Adachi bowed on his way out of the conference room. He closed the door and started walking back to the office, slightly fiddling with the folders in his hands. By chance, he happened to catch Kurosawa walking past the hallway he had just exited. 

“Good work,” Adachi called out. 

Kurosawa turned around, breaking into a smile when he saw it was Adachi. “Adachi!” he said as he walked towards him. 

“You just came back?” Adachi asked. 

“Yeah.”

“Are you free today?” 

Kurosawa looked a little surprised, but nodded. “Yeah.” 

“Well...d-do you want to practice for our date?” Adachi asked. 

Kurosawa looked stunned. 

Adachi brought Kurosawa to the manga section of the bookstore, answering Kurosawa’s question as they walked. Kurosawa had been in a daze the entire time, his wings alternating from vibrating to opening and closing. Adachi quickly found what he was looking for. 

“Ragna Crimson was released today,” he explained.  

Kurosawa broke into a smile. “Oh, that’s right.”

“Yes, yes, yes. The previous chapter ended with Crimson teaming up with the people to fight back.”

“That’s right. Then, that. Ike’s confession.”  

“Yes, that.” 

“In the first place, my glasses are…”

“Fake!” the two of them said in unison, breaking out in laughter. 

At the izakaya, Kurosawa took the stick with the chicken hearts on it, exclaiming on how good it was. Adachi explained that it was a cheap but good place and that he had been going there for a long time. Kurosawa smiled and looked around as Adachi grabbed something out of his messenger bag. 

“This,” Adachi held the blue folder for Kurosawa to take. “I submitted it today.” 

Kurosawa looked at Adachi in surprise before setting down his chicken hearts and taking the folder.  “Cheer-on clips that convey your unspoken cheers to your colleagues.” 

“I thought it’d be nice if people can use clips to convey words that they find hard to say out loud due to embarrassment,” Adachi explained. 

“I think it’s great, it’s very you,” Kurosawa replied, smiling.

“Thank you.”

“I see...this is cute.” 

“You know...I realized...when I was with you...during our date practice. I realized we have to tell the people we care about how we really feel. If the person doesn’t know how you feel, they will feel anxious.”

Kurosawa nodded seriously.  

“I...I want to do fun things with you. It shouldn’t only be me having fun. If you aren’t having fun too, then it’s pointless having a date. When you are with me, I want you to have fun...and smile,” Adachi said. 

“Was that why we went to the bookstore and came here?” Kurosawa asked. 

Adachi shifted in his seat. “Got a problem with that?” 

Kurosawa immediately put a hand up. “No. It’s fun,” he reassured Adachi. “As long as I’m with you, anywhere’s fun.”

Adachi couldn’t help but smile at that.  

Kurosawa flipped the folder closed and took a deep breath. “Then...I have to tell you how I really feel too.”

Adachi sat up straighter, ready to listen. 

“Adachi, you said before, didn’t you? That I always live up to people’s expectations, that I’m perfect.”

Adachi nodded. “Yeah.”

“Since a long time ago, I’ve always considered what people wanted from me before I took action. If I could meet their needs perfectly, I thought they would then see the real me. That’s why...I unknowingly did the same to you. I’m sorry. I made you worry for me.” 

“No...it’s me that always depends on you. Sometimes, you should also depend on me. I like you when you’re perfect, but in front of me, I hope you’ll relax a little bit more.”

Kurosawa shifted. “But...I don’t want you to hate me.”

“I won’t hate you.”

“Really?” 

“Of course!” 

“Even if I burn the hamburgs?”

“I’m more impressed you can cook them.” 

“Even if I snore loudly?” 

“I snore even louder.” 

“Even if my nose hairs stick out in the morning?” 

“I don’t min--well, maybe I do mind a little…”

Kurosawa snickered.   

Adachi leaned back as he realized he had been tricked. “What the hell? I was serious!” 

“Sorry, sorry,” Kurosawa said as he continued laughing. He covered his mouth, looking like a mischievous gremlin before laughing again. Adachi couldn’t help but laugh as well.

The two of them walked out of the subway station, Kurosawa remarking on how it was a nice restaurant they had left. Adachi told him how it got more and more crowded the later in December it got.  

“December...this will be our first Christmas since we got together, right?” Kurosawa asked. 

“That’s right,” Adachi agreed. 

Kurosawa slipped his hand into Adachi’s, their wings intermingling. 

“ Christmas Eve...I’ll make it a fireworks date and the best first experience ever!” 

“So there’ll be fireworks on Christmas Eve,” Adachi said absentmindedly. 

“What?” 

“What?” 

“Did I say ‘fireworks’?” Kurosawa asked. 

Oh crap! I was too careless! “Oh, yeah. You said so.” Adachi lied. 

Kurosawa made a frustrated face. “Why did I say it out...I thought of giving you a surprise.” 

What should I do? It’s my fault...I have never thought about it before, but nobody likes it when other people can read their mind, right? Is it okay to continue being with him while keeping this a secret?   

“About that…” Adachi started. 

“But I was surprised. For a moment, I thought you read my mind.” 

“ If he really read my mind, I…” 

Adachi yanked his hand away, trying to give Kurosawa space and getting his wings away from Kurosawa. “I...I wonder where my phone is…” Adachi stammered, the first explanation he could think of spilling out. He made a show of checking his pockets. 

That’s true. Even if it’s Kurosawa, if he knows about this magic, I’m sure we will...never be the same again.

Chapter Text

Adachi waited for Tsuge in the cafe, wondering what he should have done about accidentally ruining Kurosawa’s surprise and if he should have told him about the magic. 

“Thanks for waiting,” Tsuge said, breaking into Adachi’s thoughts. After sitting down, Tsuge lowered his head like he had problems as well. 

“What’s wrong?” Adachi asked. 

 It took Tsuge a few seconds to respond. “Yesterday, I gave Minato a bicycle as a gift.” Tsuge went on to explain that he’d apparently gotten the wrong type of bike, which was making him unable to write, his wings coming unfolded and flapping in his agitation. 

The waiter came and placed water on the table, prompting Adachi to tell Tsuge to calm down.

“Why don’t you apologize to him?” Adachi offered. 

Tsuge froze, staring at Adachi before saying he didn’t know how to apologize, saying he had forgotten how difficult it could be to sense people’s feelings since he had lost the magic. Adachi wasn’t sure what Tsuge was trying to say, so when Tsuge asked him if he understood, he apparently said the wrong answer. Tsuge told him that he shouldn’t rely too much on the magic, considering that he would lose it at some point. 

Tsuge is right. Without even realizing it, I...might have been relying on my magic. 

I can’t let this go on...right? Adachi thought as he walked up the steps to the office. In the elevator, he made up his mind. He would try and not use the magic and figure things out on his own. He walked out of the elevator, turning when he heard his name called. 

Kurosawa threw his arms around Adachi, curling his wings around Adachi as well. Adachi could see Rokkaku looking stunned, and assumed he was making a similar face. He frantically patted Kurosawa’s back, trying to get him off. “K...Kurosawa...R...Rokkaku is watching…” Kurosawa simply snuggled in harder. 

“Kurosawa-san, you have a worldwide way of rejoicing!” Rokkaku said.  

“Huh?” Adachi was confused. Rejoicing? 

Kurosawa finally let go, his wings vibrating in delight as Adachi shook his out to get them back to regular. “The competition! You passed the first round!” Kurosawa explained. 

“What?” 

“Someone from Planning and Development said so,” Kurosawa said, letting go of Adachi. 

Adachi couldn’t help but look everywhere. “What?!” 

“Isn’t that amazing?!” Kurosawa exclaimed, sounding so excited for Adachi. 

“A-are you serious?” Adachi’s own wings started fluttering as well. 

“As it is, your idea might be made into an actual product!”

“No, it’s still too early,” Adachi reminded him. 

“The second round is a presentation, right?” Rokkaku interrupted. “Please be careful,” he said, walking up to Adachi. 

“Be careful?” Adachi asked. 

“Planning and Development’s Director Terashima is super scary,” Rokkaku explained. “‘That’s enough.’ When she says that, it means you’re out!” 

“What?? That’s so scary!” Adachi exclaimed. This was not good for his anxiety. 

“Well, but it’s no use being afraid,” Rokkaku said before putting his fist out in front of Adachi’s face, making him fly backwards from being startled so badly. “Nothing ventured, nothing gained!”

“You’re one to talk. You keep scaring me,” Adachi said reproachingly. 

“Adachi?” Kurosawa asked. 

Adachi looked at him. “Yes?” 

Kurosawa looked at him intensely. “Special training starts tonight!” 

“What?” 

Kurosawa just raised his eyebrows at him. 

“The key to a good presentation is to reduce the burden on the listener. Start with the conclusion. It’s good to give a preview of what you are going to say,” Kurosawa said later, as most people around them left. 

Adachi looked up from where he was taking notes. “A preview?” 

“Yeah. ‘I’m going to talk about three features of this product.’ Say something like this first. Then the listener will go ‘This guy is so easy to understand.’”

Adachi nodded. “That’s very helpful.”  

“We have a week left. Let’s practice loads!” Kurosawa said. 

Adachi nodded, taking a few notes before apologizing, saying Kurosawa had to be tired. Kurosawa insisted he wasn’t, saying he’d be happy if Adachi passed. He also slipped in something about having fun after, making Adachi look up.  

Kurosawa slid close. “The best first date ever. Our very first Christmas. There’s nothing but fun ahead, so it’s no trouble at all.” 

Adachi looked around, finding the office pretty empty. “You say that so easily again.” 

“Hmm?”

“No. I’ll do my best too. So...so that I can enjoy our date,” Adachi mumbled.

Kurosawa leaned in. “What? Can you say it again?” 

Adachi looked up. “You must have heard that!” 

“Say it again?” 

“No!” 

“One more time.”

“No!” Adachi said while smiling. 

 “Please?” 

I don’t want to leave any regrets in this competition. 

The next few days flew by, Kurosawa reserving conference rooms after work so they could practice. Adachi learned a lot on how to do a presentation, and made the decision that he wouldn’t use magic at all to get through it.  

December 21st, 2020

Adachi circled the 21 on his calendar. “Alright.” He could do it. 

Outside the office building, Adachi found Kurosawa waiting for him. “Kurosawa? 

Kurosawa broke into a smile when he saw Adachi. “Good morning.”

“What’s the matter?” Adachi asked. 

“I’m going on a one-day business trip so I might not be able to see you before the presentation,” Kurosawa explained.   

“That’s why you waited here for me?” 

“Also, this,” Kurosawa said as he held out a bag for Adachi to take. 

“What?” Adachi asked, accepting the bag and looking into it. 

“Bento.”

“Really? You made for me?” Adachi couldn’t believe it. He looked in the bag again. 

“Even if you’re nervous, you have to eat!” Kurosawa told Adachi. 

Adachi gathered the bag in his arms and nodded. “Thank you.” 

“Let’s have a celebration at my place afterwards,” Kurosawa said. 

“Okay,” Adachi replied.

“Do your best then!’ Kurosawa said. 

“Okay.” 

Kurosawa gave him an encouraging fist, Adachi mirroring him. 

Adachi held the bento to himself as he waited for the elevator. Kurosawa looked kinda happy. He straightened up. Alright. First, I have to do well for the competition. He hugged the bento closer to himself. 

“Good morning, Director Terashima.” Adachi heard behind him. 

“Good morning.” 

Adachi glanced behind him. Sure enough, a severe looking woman was behind him, her dragon wings neatly tucked behind her. She is Director Terashima? 

Everyone packed into the elevator. The way they were standing, Adachi’s wing tips were touching the Director’s.

“ Lackluster. All the proposals are lackluster.”

Oh crap. This is her inner voice.  

“They only care about appearance. They don’t consider the stationery’s function or if it resonates with the user.”

I need to get away from her. I already decided to seal away my magic. Adachi tried to shift away, but it was very crowded. 

“I shouldn’t have called for entries. I wanted to motivate the young ones in our department...but this won’t do.”

Adachi looked down. 

At lunch time, Adachi opened the bento box, finding his favorite foods on the first level and rice on the second. The rice had “believe in yourself” written in carefully cut out seaweed. “Itadakimasu,” Adachi said.

Adachi stood in front of the people evaluating him, trying to keep his wings as still as he could. “Th-thank you for your time today,” he said with a bow. I must calm down. First, give a preview of my presentation. “Firstly, I’ll talk about the three…”

“It’s somewhat plain,” Director Terashima interrupted. 

“What?” 

“Why did you decide to go with clips?” she asked.

“Well, about that...please look at page three,” Adachi tried, flustered at being thrown off script. 

The Director slapped the proposal down. “That’s enough.” 

“What?” 

“Thank you for your time.” 

That’s it? She can’t spare time for people who stand no chance? 

“You can leave now.” 

After all the training Kurosawa gave me… He ignored the Director, trying to get his breathing even and calming himself down by clenching his fist. “Now...nowadays, focus is only on the stationery’s appearance. So I wanted a product that’s functional and resonates with the user.”

Director Terashima folded her hands. “Continue.” 

Adachi let the other people get off the elevator before him. That’s cheating. I ended up using the information I got from my magic to draw her attention. He unclenched his fist before looking up at his name being called. 

Kurosawa came over, a big smile on his face. “I was just about to go get you. I’m happy to meet you here.”  

Adachi tried for a smile. “Yeah.” 

Kurosawa noticed that something was wrong, however, considering how quickly he asked what was wrong. Adachi said it was nothing, wanting to get out of the office. Kurosawa smiled and nodded. 

“Hey,” a voice called out, causing the two of them to turn to it. 

“Director Terashima,” Adachi said in shock, Kurosawa quickly moving so that he could bow to her and wishing her a good evening. 

“Oh, you guys are close?” she said in surprise.

Adachi studied the floor as Kurosawa responded. 

“Adachi-kun. I’m sorry, but your proposal did not make it to the final round,” the Director said. 

Adachi was disappointed but also relieved. It was over now. “I see.” 

“But...your thoughts on stationery weren’t bad. That’s all. Good work.” 

Adachi bowed as she left. 

“You’re amazing, Adachi,” Kurosawa said. 

“What?” 

“It’s pretty rare for Director Terashima to compliment anyone,” Kurosawa said before grinning. 

What’s amazing is the magic. Outloud, he apologized to Kurosawa, which confused Kurosawa, even when Adachi explained, saying there was no need to apologize and that Adachi should still be happy. There was a bit of an awkward silence until Kurosawa said they should go home. Adachi nodded and they started heading out. Kurosawa put his hand on Adachi’s shoulder, close enough to let their wings overlap. 

“ So his hard work does not go unnoticed. Is he a bit more confident now? As long as Adachi doesn’t think lowly of himself, and continues smiling, that’s enough for me…’

Adachi stopped in his tracks. 

“Hmm?” Kurosawa asked, 

“Oh, nothing,” Adachi lied. If I had known, it’d have been better if I bowed out gracefully. 

Adachi sat at the table, staring at his lap. I’ve decided to give my all, but I even cheated...in the end, I’ve only realized that I’m empty inside. 

“Did I overdo it? With the candles and stuff?” Kurosawa asked, having poured Adachi some wine. Adachi could see his wings were held high, the wings that matched Adachi’s. 

“No, it’s fine,” Adachi said. 

“Alright. Then, let’s eat while it’s hot,” Kurosawa said as he sat down. “Cheers.” 

“Cheers.” Adachi sat there, thinking about how Kurosawa had revealed plans for watching fireworks at the top of a building in between thoughts about dinner and how worried he was for Adachi in the taxi ride to the apartment. He knew Kurosawa meant for it to be a surprise, but the magic had revealed it too early. Adachi hated it, hated the magic that gave him an edge in the competition, even if it went nowhere, the magic that both brought him closer to Kurosawa and was now pushing him away from it. If I could just get rid of the magic… The silence was getting to Adachi, especially as he saw Kurosawa’s concerned face. 

“Kurosawa.” 

“Yes?” 

“I...really don’t know much...so that…”

Kurosawa watched him carefully. 

“Teach me.” 

Kurosawa studied Adachi before nodding. “Alright.”

Slowly, carefully, Kurosawa came over. Adachi moved so that he could face Kurosawa better. He could feel his wings flutter as he closed his eyes. He felt a hand on his cheek, and as Kurosawa knelt down, his wings started touching Adachi’s. 

“ What’s with him all of a sudden? He’s so cute. But...Adachi isn’t quite being himself.”   

Adachi opened his eyes as Kurosawa cupped his cheek. 

“I’m sure...he’s mustered up his courage for me.”

It’s not courage. Adachi thought miserably.

As Kurosawa got closer, the guilt Adachi was feeling about everything built up and crashed, and he ended up pushing Kurosawa off of him. Kurosawa fell hard, grabbing the couch for support. Adachi scrambled up to help Kurosawa, apologizing as he did. Kurosawa’s wings had curled in on themselves, and with the way Adachi had thrown himself to help Kurosawa, he could hear his thoughts again. 

“ Did I push him too hard?” 

“No...it’s not that!” Adachi was frustrated with himself even though he knew he would have to explain what was happening. 

“What?” Kurosawa asked, still on the floor. 

Adachi stood up, in a half bow. “I…there is something I must tell you.” 

Kurosawa looked at him, his wings drooping a little. 

 Adachi took several shuddering breaths. “I…” he swallowed, trying to get the words out. “I can read the minds of people when we touch wings.”

He watched as Kurosawa tried to figure out what that meant. 

“I’ve become like this since my recent birthday. They say being a virgin makes you a magic user, right? That’s true! I heard everything you said about the surprise. The rooftop of the Anton building, right? Just now, you were also worried I wasn’t being myself.” Adachi could feel himself start to tear up. “Sorry…I’ve kept this from you all this while. I’m the worst, huh. But this isn’t a lie.” 

“Adachi…” Kurosawa stood up. “Calm down.” 

Adachi looked at Kurosawa as Kurosawa gently backed him up so that Adachi was sitting again. 

“I don’t think you’re lying.” 

Kurosawa gently took Adachi’s wrist, wrapping his large hand around it, not worrying about how this position of standing over Adachi like this meant their wings were slightly touching.   

“You’re speaking so earnestly. You can’t be lying.”  

Adachi searched Kurosawa’s face before removing Kurosawa’s hand. “That isn’t all.”

“What?” 

“I...right now, I’m afraid of losing my magic. Without my magic, I’m afraid things won’t go well between us.” Adachi could feel his composure--what little remained of it--breaking more and more. “This is ridiculous, right? This…I don’t deserve to be with you.” Adachi was starting to cry, but kept going. “I don’t know what to do anymore…”

“I...want you to make a decision, that won’t cause you pain,” Kurosawa said. 

Adachi looked up at Kurosawa. His wings were being held so stiffly Adachi wasn’t sure how he was upright. 

“I want you to keep smiling,” Kurosawa said before sitting down. “Should we…” Kurosawa looked like he was trying to get words out. “End it here?” The smile on Kurosawa’s face was heartbreaking. 

Adachi sat there, tears falling, as his wings drooped lower and lower. 

Kurosawa took a shaky breath. “Got it.” 

Adachi stood up. “Sorry,” he said before fleeing Kurosawa’s apartment. 

Once outside, Adachi stood there for a while, in the cold, wondering what he had just done.

Chapter Text

Adachi turned off the alarm. Another day since he had broken up with Kurosawa. My life has completely gone back to the way it was. In a daze, he accepted the food from the convenience truck man. I’m back to doing the same things every day. I’ve barely spoken to Kurosawa since then. Now at the office, he watched Kurosawa and Rokkaku leave, Kurosawa determinedly not looking over to Adachi. Well, of course. Because I hurt him so much.  

Finally home, he got into bed without bothering to change, ignoring the mess around the apartment. He looked at the calendar, with “Date” written on the 24th. He closed his eyes and apologized, yet again, to Kurosawa.

“Adachi,” Urabe said as he slid over. “It’s about time you move on.”

“What?” Adachi didn’t think Urabe had any idea that he had dated and broken up with Kurosawa. 

“The competition. Even if you only passed the first round, it’s a great achievement,” Urabe continued. 

“Oh. If it’s that, I’ve moved on already.”

“If it’s that?”     

“In any case, I’ll be back to my usual self,” Adachi said, ending the conversation. 

At lunch, Adachi stared at his unopened onigiri. 

“Good work,” Fujisaki said as she pulled out a chair. 

Adachi returned the sentiment before staring at his onigiri again. 

“Something happened between you and Kurosawa-kun?” Fujisaki asked. 

Adachi stared at her. 

“I see,” she replied. 

“What?” 

Fujisaki smiled. “You’re easy to read. Both you and Kurosawa-kun.” She explained how Kurosawa had asked her for advice before apologizing for being nosy, to which Adachi waved away. Fujisaki took a breath. “You know, I’ve started studying labor and social security laws. I’ve had interest in it for a while, so I thought of giving it a go. I was inspired after seeing you recently.”

“After seeing me?”

“Yeah.”

Adachi blinked at that, wondering why anyone would be inspired by him.   

“Whether to be with someone or not, to be in a relationship or not, it’s all up to the person to decide. But whatever you decide on, you have to like yourself for making that decision,” Fujisaki said seriously. “Otherwise, no matter what answer you give, the other party won’t be convinced.”

Adachi considered her words and nodded. 

“I’m sorry for being nosy again,” Fujisaki apologized.   

“No,” Adachi said. “Thank you.” 

Fujisaki beamed at him. 

For our date, I had taken paid leave for Christmas, Adachi thought as he looked at the “Cancelled Fireworks” news notice. I didn’t cancel the leave and go back to work, because whether I meet Kurosawa or not, it’s gonna be too awkward. 

The doorbell rang. Adachi got out of his bed, ruffling his hair. He paused. Could it be…

He opened the door. 

“Merry Christmas.” 

“Tsuge,” Adachi said in equal parts disappointment and relief. 

“What do you want? Cake? Or chicken?” Tsuge asked once they were at their usual cafe. “There’s a Christmas plate too.”

Adachi smiled a wry smile. “Are you sure? It’s Christmas, but you’re eating with me...don’t tell me you guys haven’t made up yet?” 

Tsuge put down his menu. “I’m not so spineless as to ignore a friend in crisis.” 

Adachi looked up. How did Tsuge know?

“Minato told me. That goofy junior of yours seems worried. He said that ‘the air has been tense between his seniors lately’.”

“Rokkaku said that?”  

“So? What happened?” Tsuge asked. 

“What happened? A lot happened.”

“I’m asking you to tell me what that ‘a lot’ is.”   

“So, at the end of the day, if I have no magic power, I…” 

“You are a really big fool,” Tsuge sighed. “Two days ago, I knelt and bowed to apologize for the second time in my life.” 

“What?”  

Tsuge explained that he cared more about Minato than his pride, and that it had also been a slight misunderstanding, where Minato had laughed because he was embarrassed. He also explained that magic wasn’t necessary to connect with Kurosawa, just communication.  

Adachi shook his head. “But Kurosawa and I have already…”

“Try to feel your own heart too,” Tsuge said gently. “Your feelings have nothing to do with magic. In the end, it’s about what you want to do.” 

Adachi gathered his feelings before looking up. Tsuge smiled like he knew what Adachi’s answer was before reaching for his pocket and pulling out keys. 

“I’ll lend you my beloved bike,” Tsuge said as he tossed the keys to Adachi. “Go!” 

Adachi nodded firmly before rushing out of the cafe, calling Fujisaki once he was out, confirming that Kurosawa was indeed off as well. 

Until the day I turned thirty, I had no idea...that my ordinary life...no, that I myself...am capable of such magic. Whenever I’m about to run away...I never thought there are people who’d give me a nudge like this. 

Adachi biked until dark, finding the Anton Building and leaving the bike next to it before racing up the stairs that led to the rooftop, nearly stumbling every other step but not caring. 

“Kurosawa!” he yelled. He looked around, not seeing anybody. “Of course he won’t be here…” Adachi tried to catch his breath, sinking to his knees before pulling out his phone. He looked at Kurosawa’s call page, debating whether to call or FaceTime. 

“Adachi?” he heard from behind him. He turned to find Kurosawa, his wings closed in shock. 

“Kurosawa!” Adachi said as he stood up.  

Kurosawa walked closer. “The fireworks...are cancelled.” 

“I know,” Adachi said. 

Kurosawa looked unsure of what was happening. “I’m sorry. Did I make you worry about our plans?”

Adachi couldn’t believe how Kurosawa was still worrying about him. 

“Adachi…I…” 

“I couldn’t do it!” Adachi interrupted.  

Kurosawa stared at him. 

“Leaving you...was my own decision, but I regretted it so much. I know that I’m selfish and I’m a horrible person. But I…I still want to be with you! Even if I lose my magic, even if I keep getting it wrong, each time...I want to know more about you. I...I still…”

Kurosawa wrapped him in a hug, his wings curling around Adachi like usual. “ I really like you, Adachi.” Adachi felt like crying as Kurosawa had his hand in his hair. “Adachi, when I heard about your strange power, there was one thing I accepted.” 

“What?” 

“Adachi, it’s because you read my mind, that we could be together. That’s why I’m grateful to that power. But... i don’t care if you have magic or not.”

Adachi tried to pull away a little, but Kurosawa wouldn’t let him. 

“It doesn’t affect my love for you. I’ve been watching you all this while. With or without magic, you are still you. I mean, you’ve read my mind so you should know that.” Kurosawa let Adachi out of the hug, looking into his eyes. “For me too, I don’t want anyone...but you!” 

Adachi was feeling so much, tearing up yet smiling, but nodded at Kurosawa’s words. Kurosawa took a shaky breath and stepped back. 

“I thought, if there was a miracle and you came here, I would pass it to you.” Kurosawa stepped back and got down on one knee. He pulled out something from his coat pocket, revealing two beautiful red fountain pens.  

“These are?” 

“I mean...if it’s a ring, you would be...too embarrassed to wear it, right?” 

Adachi nodded at that, still shocked at what was happening. 

Kurosawa held himself before continuing, his wings held closed. “Please...be with me forever.” 

Adachi bit his lip, but he knew his answer. He clasped his hands together. “Okay!” 

Kurosawa gave him a smile, and Adachi started wiping the tears that had sprung up. 

“Here,” Kurosawa said, giving him a pen.

A boom going off made Adachi turn around. The two of them walked closer to the edge of the building. 

“Are those fireworks?” Adachi asked. 

“Yeah,” Kurosawa confirmed. 

“Did you arrange that?” 

“No.” 

The fireworks were clearly not professional ones, but they still looked nice against the Tokyo skyline. 

“Are you sure? Even if you lose your power?” 

“Yes,” Adachi said. This was his soulmate. He would be okay. “If you’re with me, I don’t need magic.” 

Kurosawa smiled fondly before taking Adachi’s hand in his. They stood like this before smiling at each other. A particularly big firework made them look up before they looked at each other and laughed softly.  

(a night of magic being lost and discovering that they had known they were soulmates but were too afraid to admit it, but it was okay now that they were together and had no plans of leaving each other ever again)

Adachi woke up on Christmas morning, sunlight streaming in. He rolled over, Kurosawa putting his arm over him before opening his eyes. Adachi could see his wings, slightly crumpled from being slept on, not shiny, matching the ones he had. 

“Merry Christmas,” Kurosawa said. 

This struck Adachi as funny and he started laughing. 

“Why are you laughing,” Kurosawa protested. 

“Well...because…”

“Because?” 

“Because...usually people would say ‘good morning’.” 

Kurosawa got closer. “Good morning,” he said before attacking Adachi with tickles, pulling the comforter over them both. 

Adachi reflected on how he lost the magic as he was forced into a crowded elevator. He closed the fountain pen, tapping it in response to Kurosawa flicking it towards him. 

Kurosawa smiled at him, getting closer than usual coworkers would as they walked to the elevators. 

“Stop it, it’s embarrassing,” Adachi protested. 

“Why?”

“Right now, you must be thinking you really like me, right?”  

“Correct!” Kurosawa exclaimed. “That’s amazing, for someone who has no magic.”

“Huh? I can tell that just by looking at your face.” 

Kurosawa got into Adachi’s face after pressing the elevator button. “Really?”  

Adachi just laughed at him before following him into the elevator. 

“Then, what am I thinking of now?” Kurosawa teased. 

“Huh? What kind of quiz is this?” Adachi asked. 

 Kurosawa put a hand on Adachi’s shoulder, bringing him into a kiss as the elevator doors closed.