Work Text:
“Sorry! I didn’t mean for it to take this long. We could hit the food court before we leave!” Kaede hits him with her token wide-eyed smile that she knew he couldn’t get mad at. Not that he would be. Even if clothes shopping wasn’t his highest on the list of ways to spend his day off work, they had both been so busy lately it was still nice to get to see her.
He doesn’t mind helping her out, but he did wonder why she picked him over her many other friends. Friends that dressed way better and understood fashion beyond his discovery that dark colors always just looked good together.
“No, sorry. It’s my night to cook, and last time I forgot Kokichi ordered in three giant birthday cakes, so…” Shuichi rubs his hand through his hair, remembering how Kokichi had made himself sick on sugar just to prove some sort of point. He had spent the whole night holding his boyfriend’s hair back and cleaning up after him, which he didn’t mind but definitely didn’t need to repeat.
Kaede giggles, “You guys are like married.”
“We might as well be.” He jokes. Kaede gives him a strange smile but doesn’t say anything else on the matter. She just talks about her next recital while Shuichi listens.
There’s a jewelry store on the way out of the mall. He’s never paid it that much mind before, but thoughts of weddings and marriages still swam around his head. And his gaze lingers for a moment before looking down at his own hand— imagining a ring on his finger and thinking how he might not mind a glint of silver reflecting back at him. A reminder of love and eternity and things he used to think were fake.
Shuichi collapses on the ground after finishing his one-hundredth pushup. No matter how many weeks they train, pushups always still knock him out. He doesn’t pause and skip around numbers like Kaito does. Nor does he have the insane level of physical endurance that Maki does that genuinely freaks him out. He likes to thinks he’s at least in decent shape though.
As silly as it is, he likes their workouts. They go on runs and do basic bodyweight exercises around the apartment. It keeps them all in shape and means they don’t have to go to the gym (something Shuichi cannot handle- people watching you while you exercise seemed to be torture specifically designed for him).
His phone rings, and the idea of having to use his arm to hold it up to his ear makes him not want to answer. His arm is a wet noodle, and the phone might as well be a concrete brick.
But he sees the caller ID flash and the image of a man winking with a peace sign and tongue stuck out on the screen, and he knows he has to answer.
Maki must have noticed his struggle because she sighs and says, “Just put him on speaker Shuichi.”
He answers, his arm immediately protests with sharp pain from forcing it to move after all those pushups.
“Do you mind if I put you on—?”
“Speaker? Yeah, yeah, whatever.”
“I’m with —“
“Kaito and Maki, yeah yeah, I know already. I’ll have to annoy them some other time. I’m at the store—“
Shuichi flips on speaker and sets the phone on the ground by his head, “Getting butter?”
“Nope! I would never get exactly what you asked me to. I’m getting things to prank you the next time you ditch me to do dumb jock things with spaceman and killer girl.” Maki frowns, and Kaito gives a half-hearted groan from where he collapsed a few feet away after however many push-ups he actually made it through this time.
“Unsalted. That’s what you called to ask, isn't it?”
“Nope!” He hears rustling through the phone, and he’s pretty sure it’s Kokichi grabbing unsalted butter like he asked, but he doesn’t bring it up.
“We’re also low on—“
“Soda! I know what a tragedy! What am I supposed to do? Drink water like some sort of animal!?”
“Well, that and—“
“Ohmygod, Shuichi is so needy!” Kokichi wails out through the phone, and he can only imagine how loud it is in person. And how many people are staring as he cries in the aisle of the store. Something that would mortify Shuichi, but he knows Kokichi thrives on that kind of attention.
“Kokichi—“
“Oh, hush, I already got the rice. And cereal. And fifty bags of coffee.”
Shuichi snorts, “Well, that seems a little excessive.”
“And drinking like ten cups a day, isn’t? Huh?”
“Fair enough. I’ll see you—“
“At home! Yep! Better not be late, it’s my turn to make dinner, and if you miss it, I’ll definitely have to kill you!”
“Sure you will.” Shuichi sighs.
There’s an ominous giggle before the call ends.
Kaito runs a hand through his hair, the sweat slowly counteracting the gel keeping it at its normal gravity-defying state, “Bro. What the fuck was that?”
“Oh, aah, sorry, was that rude of me?” Shuichi sits up.
Maki hands him a glass of water, “No. Just weird. You two.”
“Yeah, all the finishing each other sentences crap. You guys are like married or somethin’” Kaito chugs his glass of water in one go.
“We might as well be.” Shuichi shrugs and then grins over at Kaito, “But you aren’t one to talk.”
“What’s that’s supposed to mean, bro?” Maki had gone back to the kitchen to refill Kaito’s glass, muttering under her breath about how ‘useless’ he was but blushing furiously all the same.
Shuichi taps his chin with his finger, “I mean… haven’t you guys been engaged for over two years now?”
Kaito sputters, “The stars just haven’t aligned for the perfect day!”
Shuichi laughs but doesn’t push anymore. He has his own relationship to manage and didn’t have any intention of meddling with theirs. But he had been dating Kokichi almost as long as Kaito and Maki had been together. Maybe they should…
He finds himself thinking about rings and proposals once more as he finishes his water, his aching arm almost forgotten.
Shuichi stands frozen at the coffee shop, staring hopelessly at the menu (even if he orders the same thing everytime). He should try something new. He knows it’s boring getting the same ole thing. Kokichi is always trying some new thing, and he usually tries a sip and sometimes likes it. But committing to full size with the potential of hating it…
Rantaro looks back, “You decide yet?”
Shuichi probably should just get a plain black coffee and not even his usual. Rantaro had offered to pay since he invited them out to talk about his latest trip. And it would be rude to make him pay for something expensive. Although Kokichi didn’t seem to care, he had just finished his weirdly specific order that resulted in the receipt tripling in size.
Kokichi looks over at him. Those sparkling and inquisitive purple eyes analyze him for a moment before he sighs and turns to the cashier, “He’ll have a salted caramel latte with skim milk and a shot of espresso.”
It’s not his usual. But it’s similar to the drink Kokichi let him try a few weeks ago that he liked.
Rantaro pays and places a very generous tip in the jar that he’s pretty sure is an apology for whatever monstrosity of a drink his boyfriend just ordered. He looks back at them, eyebrows raised.
“You order for each other now? You really are like an old married couple.”
“Might as well be.” The familiar words come out again—almost a reflex at this point.
Kokichi shoots him a strange look. One he can’t quite figure out. And he’s oddly quiet as Rantaro talks about his trip. Not even interjecting with his usual teasing and jokes. He just silently sips on his sugary monstrosity that could hardly be considered coffee, and Shuichi can feel his gaze on him as he looks at Rantaro’s photos.
Did he say something wrong?
Kokichi is weirdly quiet the following week. But Shuichi is too busy to question it. Plus, if it has something to do with DICE, he knows Kokichi wouldn’t tell him. Once he’s less busy, he’d get to the bottom of it.
Shuichi wants to crumple up all his papers and just rip them to shreds. He hates this case—so many dead ends. And everyone involved was just so infuriatingly awful. Both sides were so aggravating it almost didn’t matter who ended up being right. But it was his job, so it did matter. Unfortunately.
“My beloved Shuichi has such an ugly look on his face. You better watch out, or it might stay that way!” Kokichi sits across the dining room table where Shuichi had spread out his work, head in his hands with a familiar devilish smirk on his face.
He doesn’t have the patience for his antics right now. So he looks back down at his papers. Kokichi, as always, is undeterred. “If you get stuck with that ugly face, I’ll have to divorce you!” Tears start streaming down his face. Fat and fake droplets of water accompanied with a grating wail.
Shuichi pushes away his papers, a surrender. Even if he knows his boyfriend is being purposefully obnoxious, it’s better getting wrapped up in his antics than being stuck on this stupid case. And maybe he’d finally figure out why his boyfriend had been so distant these past few days, “And how would that work, Kokichi? We aren’t married.”
A finger dances over Kokichi’s lip as his eyes narrow and lips curl from a smirk to a smug grin, “But we might as well be.” His tone is high-pitched and mocking.
Shuichi’s mouth opens, but no words come out. He’s throwing his own words back at him. But come to think… didn’t he start acting weird after coffee with Rantaro… the first time he said it when Kokichi could actually hear.
Shuichi considers. He’s not sure what Kokichi’s game is here. He’s messing with him more likely than not. Kokichi loves finding ways to fluster him and probably thinks he’s struck the jackpot by the way he’s blinking over at him innocently. Retaliation for being so casual about something so serious. That must be it.
Well… two can play that game.
“Then let’s get married.”
The grin slides right off Kokichi’s face, and he falters. His lips purse together, and there’s a faint brush of pink on his cheeks. It’s fleeting because Kokichi recovers and starts pouting again, “Is this a proposal, Shuichi? Wooow, you’re so bad at this. It’s pathetic. Do you really think I’d say yes without a ring?”
Kokichi thinks he’s joking.
Kokichi thinks it’s a joke and wants him to back down first. But it’s not. And he won’t. Shuichi looks over at his boyfriend’s gloating expression and frowns before hastily coming up with his retaliation.
He grabs a blue post-it note from his mess of work paraphernalia and folds it in half and then in half again. He arranges it in a circle and staples it together. Getting up from his seat, he moves over to Kokichi and kneels on one knee, holding up his creation. “How about now?”
Kokichi looks stunned, but he hesitantly grabs the paper ring, turning it in his hand. “This is pretty cheap of you, Shuichi.” He teases, but his voice is devoid of its usual spark.
“That’s not an answer.” Shuichi looks up at him. He was so wrapped up in their little back and forth it took him until now to realize he just kind of sort of actually proposed. His hands tremble a bit, but he doesn’t move.
A tongue flicks over Kokichi’s lips, and his voice lowers, “This is pretty cruel, Shumai. Joking about something like this.”
“It’s not a joke.”
Kokichi’s eyes flash. “My beloved Shuichi is taking this a bit far.”
Shuchi looks up at Kokichi, his face now blank. Part of him is panicking that he did something so serious solely because he was annoyed and wanted to prove Kokichi wrong, but another, much bigger part knew that it was something he’s wanted for a long time now. “No… I’ve been thinking about it for a while now, actually. How we should… get married.”
“And this was your big plan?” He rolls the hastily created ring between his fingers, staring at it as he does.
“No! I—you started messing with me and—“
“Nishishi, and you still wanna marry me?” Kokichi goads, attempting to look haughty, but Shuichi notices the doubt in his tone and the way his lip quivers.
“Yes,” Shuichi replies without hesitation. Kokichi freezes, the post-it note ring caught between his fingers. Shuichi delicately plucks it away and holds it out again. “So… I need an answer. Will you marry me?”
Kokichi blinks back at him, his voice softening, “You really aren’t lying.”
“Of course not.” Shuichi’s knee is starting to hurt from kneeling for so long, but he wasn’t getting up. Not until he got his answer. Good or bad.
Kokichi’s face scrunches up and grows red, “You are the worst you know that Shuichi.”
“I think that’s a lie.” Shuichi raises his brows.
“Of course it is… I love you… even if you are an idiot proposing to me with a post-it note.”
“An idiot that still doesn’t have an answer.”
Kokichi grabs the ring out of his hand again, “I guess I could give you the honor of getting to spend the rest of your life with someone as amazing as me.” He slides the ring on, looking at it while biting his lip. Shuichi wonders what’s going on in his head but also is processing that he actually may have just gotten engaged for real (even if it is just a hastily crafted ring).
“R-really?” Shuichi sputters.
“Of course,” Kokichi responds, full of warmth, wrapping his equally as warm hands around his own. “I... want to spend the rest of my life with you Shuichi Saihara, and that’s no lie.” He smiles widely down at him and Shuichi’s cheeks burn from smiling back. It wasn’t how he planned it (not that he really ever had planned it out) but it’s perfect all the same.
“I love you Kokichi Ouma.” He almost knocks Kokichi out of the chair as he moves off his aching knee to grab his face and kiss his boyfriend (and future husband he realizes as the kiss deepens).
“That’s so…” Kaede trails off, clearly trying to put a positive spin on her reaction to the story of their proposal they just relayed to her and Rantaro over breakfast.
“Only you two.” Rantaro chuckles and sips on his orange juice.
“Maybe Kokichi can lie and make up something a bit more romantic to tell at the wedding!” Kaede jokes brightly as she cuts up her pancakes.
“Oh, oh! I’ll tell everyone my beloved proposed to me with carrier pigeon and bought me ten thousand roses and gave me a ring of blood diamonds!”
“No one will believe that.” Shuichi shakes his head, his food left untouched because he didn’t want to let go of Kokichi’s hand. He kept running his finger over the staple in the paper ring and remembering that soon enough it would be a proper metal one. He realizes it’s not the best story, but he’s so happy it doesn’t really matter. Their other friends would likely give them way more crap about it (he cringes thinking about how much Miu will laugh at them), but they’d deal with it when the time comes.
“Eh, Kaito’s toootally gullible enough to eat that up,” Kokichi smirks and looks over with his eyes gleaming with mischief and watering slightly as if prepping for an onslaught of crocodile tears, “Unless my beloved fiancé would ruin my fun and tell his BFF about my lie?”
The word fiancé sends such a pleasant buzz through his body he can’t even bother being annoyed by Kokichi’s attempt to toy with him or the tears he was now shedding. He squeezes his hand and lets go to finally eat his omurice. The tears dry up almost immediately and shift into a slight smile and faint blush. They eat and listen to Kaede and Rantaro chat about an upcoming trip. Shuichi’s eyes kept flitting down to Kokichi’s hand and the blue paper ring wrapped on his pale finger.
They aren’t married, but soon enough, they will be.