Work Text:
Nijimura stares at the boy in front of him: red hair, heterochromatic eyes and a slight furrow in his brow as he concentrates on his work in front of him. Nijimura has long been distracted from his own work and has now taken the time to instead observe his boyfriend.
"You look cute like that," Nijimura blurts out shamelessly, tilting his chair back, fingers laced behind his head. Akashi stops writing and looks up in amusement.
"I find it endearing how you always say such things," he returns smoothly."So on the contrary, I think it is Nijimura-san who is the cutest," he teases.
Nijimura lets his chair fall back into place, his face turning pink. "I am not cute," he sputters indignantly, and Akashi only responds with his infuriating charismatic smile. Two can play at this game, Nijimura thinks.
"Are you a camera? Because every time I see you, I smile," he remarks, crossing his arms in front of his chest. Akashi bursts out into quiet laughter. (His laugh is real nice, Nijimura thinks. He doesn't laugh often, but when he does, it's genuine and warm: everything that Akashi Seijuro appears not to be at first.)
"That was quite possibly," he begins, his smile widening. "the most ridiculous thing you have ever said, Shuuzou."
"I don't suppose you could do better?" Nijimura says grumpily. Akashi raises an eyebrow.
"Was that a challenge, Shuuzou? I almost always win," Akashi reminds, leaning forward, abandoning his work. "Are you a parking ticket? Because you have 'fine' written all over you." This time, it's Nijimura who laughs, as, after all, it was not everyday that everyone got to hear the Akashi Seijuro utter such a cheesy pick up line shamelessly.
"Can I take a picture of you to prove to my friends that angels really do exist?" Nijimura shoots back, refusing to lose.
"You're cheating Shuuzou," Akashi says. "You keep looking so beautiful that you made me forget my pick up line."
Fuck, Shuuzou thinks, as he turns away, trying to hide his blush. If it had been anyone else, Nijimura would have no trouble keeping a straight face, but it was Akashi, and the redhead knew how to fluster Nijimura better than he would like to admit.
"I'm not going to lose," Nijimura mutters under his breath.
"Good. I would be disappointed if you gave up this early," Akashi replies, returning to his work.
"I suppose that if people were words on a page, you'd be what they call 'FINE PRINT'."
"You used two pick up lines that both call me 'fine', therefore, I think you lose," Nijimura says.
"Yet you're still blushing," Akashi points out, smirking. Nijimura scowls.
Throughout the next couple of days, they leave post it notes written with cheesy little pick up lines for each other in places they're likely to find them in their shared apartment: in the pocket of the other's favorite jacket, next to the alarm clock or under their mug of tea. Other times, they'll shout it across the apartment when they're doing chores. It's quite childish, they both know, but they continue to humor each other. Even though the pick up lines are ridiculously cliche, Nijimura finds himself smiling or blushing at each one that Akashi leaves behind. When Nijimura shouts a pick up line from the kitchen and Akashi replies without hesitation, Nijimura can feel his heart beat just a little bit faster and he realizes that, shit, he really is getting mushy, and shit, he really is in too deep.
"Are you made of copper and tellurium? Because you are CuTe," Nijimura asks over their shared dinner of Chinese takeout. It had been a lazy Friday evening; both of them were tired and had now retired onto the couch instead of the dining table, neither wanting to make dinner, so they had settled on ordering from their favorite takeout shop from across the street. Akashi is sitting on Nijimura's lap, his shoulder leaning on Nijimura's chest, and the box of orange chicken and noodles on his own lap.
"Your body must be made of oxygen and neon, because you are the ONe," Akashi remarks, without missing a beat. "You know, this has been going on for nearly five days." he points out, eating another piece of chicken.
"Has it now?" Nijimura asked absentmindly, staring at Akashi. He can't help but think about how fast time has passed with Akashi, and how he thinks there is no one he would rather have by his side. (Shit, how mushy, he thinks, inwardly embarrassed.)
"You're staring," Akashi says dryly, his heterochromatic eyes peering at Nijimura's brown ones. Nijimura snaps out of his stupor and shrugs.
"Guess I was," he agrees. "You should stop being so beautiful."
"I find it endearing how you say these things without any trace of embarrassment, yet one simple pick-up line can make you blush," Akashi comments.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Nijimura huffs. Akashi smirks and Nijimura scowls. "You are absolute: absolutely the worst."
"I do try," Akashi hums and Nijimura laughs at this, wondering when he had gotten into this messy situation: where he was falling more and more in love with the person in front of him, watching him eat Chinese food and noticing how his red hair looked as soft as it was, how he had two freckles on his jaw on his otherwise unblemished face and how long his eyelashes were...
"I love you," Nijimura blurts out suddenly. It is not the first time they've said it: they've said it before many times, but more often than not, it came in other subtle forms, like the simple 'you can have the last piece' or 'don't worry, I'll wake you up when it's time' and 'I got you that tea you really liked from the store': it usually goes unsaid but still recognized.
"Why, thank you, Shuuzou," Akashi replies, without blinking an eye. "I love you too. Although, if you keep observing me, the food is only going to get cold."
"Maybe I like cold dinner," Nijimura responds cheekily. Akashi raises an eyebrow, but he's smiling now too.
Akashi shoves the rest of the takeout box towards Nijimura, yawns and stretches, careful not to hit Nijimura in the face, before curling up even closer to Nijimura.
"You're giving the rest to me?" Nijimura asked, half touched, half suspicious.
"Of course," Akashi says, looking up at him.
"It's all cold now." Nijimura frowns and flicks him on the forehead. "Brat,"
"A brat, whom you so happen to love and cherish," Akashi replies smugly. Nijimura raises an eyebrow.
"You're getting mouthy,"
"Perhaps you would like to shut me up?" Akashi teases.
(Nijimura takes him up on the offer.)