Work Text:
The ex-detective exhaled softly as he reached the subway station, glad that the day was finally coming to an end. Going to college and doing his best to stay out of the eyes of the public was exhausting work. Thankfully, during his time out of the spotlight, he had managed to evade nearly every paparazzi and journalist that came his way.
Akechi glanced at his phone as he hopped onto the train to Shibuya in order to get home, only for a slight feeling of shock to overcome him for a brief moment. On his screen was your name, with a text message attached. All the message had was an unfamiliar address to what seemed to be a restaurant in Minato City, as well as a reservation time.
Despite the confusion that ran through his veins, you had piqued his interest. He thought it wouldn't hurt to stop by. He needed to eat dinner anyways. Although, he did his best to deny that he was hoping to see you there.
As Akechi approached the restaurant you had mentioned, he wondered if that message had just been a mistake and that you had meant to send it to someone else. However, as he approached the doors, the hostess behind the counter perked up and grabbed a menu.
"Good evening, Akechi-san. Your table is right this way." The hostess chirped as she beckoned for him to follow her.
He did his best to put on a pleasant face and followed along behind her. His confusion only grew as he took a seat at a table for one. He now knew that you definitely had something planned, but he had no idea what.
"Your server will be with you in just a moment." She said to the young man, then walked away to seat some other customers who had entered the building.
Akechi glanced over the menu items, taking a moment to decide on what he wanted before he had to place his order. Although, before he could fully decide on what he wanted, a figure appeared in the corner of his vision. He immediately plastered a smile on his face and turned his head, only to be met by you. He had been expecting you to join him for dinner, not serve him.
"Good evening, Akechi. Have you decided on what you want? Or would you like a few more minutes?" You asked him, a soft smile gracing your face. He could almost feel the smugness rolling off you in waves. You were clearly proud of what you were pulling.
"I haven't yet. Do you have any suggestions?" He responded, smiling up at you in return. The feeling of his smile curling upwards towards his eyes was foreign to him, and yet, it wasn't unpleasant.
"Hmm..." You trailed off as you reached over and opened the menu to point out the items. "I enjoy the chicken tender combo meal. As well as the cheeseburger and fries. I think you might enjoy the T-bone steak." You told him, earning a huff of a laugh in response. You looked over at him and raised an eyebrow, wondering what he found so amusing.
"Still a picky eater I see." He teased, not missing the surprise that flashed across your face.
"Sorry for knowing what I like." You quipped, giving him a playful glare in return. You watched as his smile turned into more of a smirk as you held eye contact.
"Well, I'll take the cheeseburger and fries with a water then. Hold the onions please." He said, closing the menu as you wrote down his order, then handed it to you.
"Sure thing. I'll be back soon with your drink." You told him, giving him one last happy smile before you turned and walked back towards the kitchen. You couldn't believe that he actually came. You had figured that a message like that would catch his attention, but you didn't expect him to actually show up.
As you put in his order, you also put in an order for the deluxe pancake breakfast meal. You knew he hated the word, but you were pretty sure that he still loved the food item. Plus, it was a free meal for his birthday. Could he really complain?
Once the cooks had finished his burger, you quickly took it to him.
"Alright. Here you go." You said as you placed down the plate. "Do you need anything else?" You asked him, tilting your head.
"No. Thank you." He hummed, unable to hold back his smile.
"I hope you enjoy." You responded, giving him another smile as you left to tend to some other tables.
You made sure to keep an eye on him as he ate. You didn't want him to leave before you could give him his dessert.
Finally, he wiped his face with a napkin before placing it on the table next to his plate. Now was the perfect time to bring him his gift.
You sneakily grabbed the plate from the window and approached him from behind quietly, hoping that he wouldn't turn around and ruin your surprise. When you entered his line of sight, a look of shock colored his face as his eyes landed on the small stack of pancakes that were covered in whipped cream and fresh fruit.
"Happy Birthday, Akechi." You said softly, feeling your heart race in your chest as you placed the food in front of him. He looked so conflicted as he stared at it, then slowly raised his eyes to look at you. You could practically see the gears turning in his head as he tried to formulate a response.
After a moment of silence, a genuine smile slid up his pink tinted cheeks as he finally accepted your gift.
"You remembered..." He murmured as he looked back down and picked up a fork.
"Of course I did." You giggled lightly, watching as he began cutting up the fluffy breakfast cakes.
"Are you going to sing to me too?" He asked, smirking up at you.
"I think we'd both rather die than have me sing to you in public." You quipped, earning a laugh in response.
Once he stopped, he took a moment to look at you before he asked his next question.
"Will you join me?" He inquired, looking a little hopeful. It took a second for his words to sink into your brain. This wasn't the outcome you had expected at all.
"I suppose I could take my 15 minute break now." You said as you removed the apron that hung around your waist. Before you took a seat beside him in the small booth, Akechi stood and stole one of the appetizer plates from the table next to his.
He quickly sliced up the pancakes and placed some on the smaller plate, then looked up at you expectantly.
"I can't eat all of this by myself." He said, looking down at you as you sat.
All you did was giggle in response as you stole a knife and fork from that same table so that you could eat with him.
You both stayed quiet as you began eating; just enjoying each others company for the first time in nearly three years. The last time you ate together was the night before you invaded Sae's palace. You all went out to dinner for one final hurrah as a Phantom Thief.
"Thank you." He mumbled, unable to look at you. You didn't miss the sad expression that overcame him as he spoke. "It's been a while since I've spent time with someone like this. I can't remember the last time I celebrated my birthday." He finished, still looking down at his near empty plate.
"Sorry for not messaging you sooner. I planned on doing this last year, but to be honest, I chickened out." You laughed awkwardly, shifting uncomfortably in your seat.
"No need to apologize." Akechi chuckled, finally looking at you with a vulnerability you've never seen from him before. "I... appreciate the fact that you decided to do it at all." He hummed. He had changed a lot since the last time you had spoken with him. You kind of liked these changes.
"L/N-san, your break time is over." Your boss barked, making you jump.
"Oops." You muttered as you stood and retied your apron around your waist. Akechi just laughed as he watched you hustle to get back to work.
"Hypothetically, if I were to come back tomorrow evening for dinner, would you serve me again?" He asked hesitantly, carefully watching your expression.
"Not tomorrow. However, if you hypothetically came back the day after, I would." You told him, watching as one last smile curled up his cheeks as you handed him the bill for his burger.
You waved goodbye to him as he exited the little restaurant and went on his way, relieved beyond belief that that had gone as well as it did. This was surely something you would be gloating about to the Thieves when you got off work. You could easily picture the jealous look on Akira's face.
As Akechi opened his wallet to put away his copy of the receipt, he noticed something written on the back of it. "It was nice to see you again. I've missed you :) -Y/N"
It took all of his willpower to keep himself from smiling like an idiot as he made his way towards the subway station. He knew he would find himself visiting that restaurant again in the near future.