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Akutagawa didn't know why he was being pulled around Yokohama by his so-called rival but here he was. His day started slowly as it was his day off. He had planned to stay in bed all day to catch up on some sleep he had missed during missions.
However, that plan was pushed aside when his sister told him that he should join her in shopping, which means he would be the one paying for the clothes that she would pick out.
He loves his sister really but sometimes, they just do these things to him to simply annoy him. If it was any other person, they would've been dead already, with Rashoumon puncturing every part of their body but it was his sister. He can't deny them. Then he found himself at the mall, waiting outside every store that piped Gin's interest. He could care less about clothes, he was already satisfied with what he had so why buy more?
While he tried to kill off some time by scrolling through his phone, he felt someone grab him. He nearly activated Rashoumon and was about to penetrate the man who took him by surprise when he saw a familiar white-headed male with a jagged haircut.
"Jinko," he said casually, not in his usual snarly tone that was already directed to the younger male.
"Akutagawa!" he said cheerfully, not even batting an eye at Rashoumon who was ready to attack behind Akutagawa.
"What do you want?" he stared at the hand holding him by the wrist.
"I need you to come with me" was Atsushi's last words before he pulled Akutagawa outside of the mall. The mafioso could easily break off from his grip by then but for some reason he didn't, he allowed himself to be dragged. His terrifying reputation had been stepped on the ground by the weretiger.
He quickly sent his sister a text indicating that he would be gone for a bit and they were allowed to buy anything she wants. The other mafioso replied with a thumbs up, Akutagawa was sure that his bank account would be gone by the end of the day. He didn't mind, not that he was complaining about being dragged away by a weretiger.
Akutagawa almost fell on the ground if Rashoumon wasn't fast enough to catch him when Atsushi suddenly let go. "You dragged me all the way here, can you at least warn me?"
The weretiger stuck out his tongue playfully, "Stop being a big baby" he elbowed the other. Akutagawa tsked, scoffing as he wiped out the dirt he caught while being dragged. He looked up at the establishment Atsushi brought him to.
"An art gallery?" he questioned, turning to Atsushi who was gleaming beside him.
"Yes! it would be fun, wouldn't it?" Atsushi grinned, excitedly jumping at the balls of his feet as he stared a bit longer at the building.
Akutagawa hummed, "I have much more important things to attend to."
The weretiger's smile turned upside down but the mafioso didn't miss the evil glint in his eyes, "Well then," Atsushi turned his back to the other, making a loud huffing sound. "Tanizaki is here anyway, maybe I'll just—"
A strong grip on his collar stopped him from moving any further, Akutagawa's fiery gaze caught onto his soft ones as he turned around, "Go ahead." he let out a deep snarl, Atsushi internally had to push away the urge to laugh as he successfully achieved his goal.
"You don't need to be so possessive," Atsushi teased, lightly pinching Akutagawa's soft cheeks, Akutagawa rolled his eyes but didn't do any move to push his hands away. He was down bad for the weretiger. It was a normal exchange for the two of them, as if it was a game, on who would make the other jealous more and who would fall much deeper first.
Atsushi took Akutagawa's cold hand in his, intertwining their fingers. He made a move to walk towards the door, the other simply allowing him to. The building wasn't that big, to say the least, and yet, it made up its lack of width with its admirable structure.
An enormous chandelier decorated the middle of the space with paintings surrounding every single corner of the art gallery. Art pieces could be found scattered around the room, each of which has its own artistic aura.
"Ryuu… this'' Atsushi looked around, his smile becoming wider and wider as he took a look at every single piece. "It's so beautiful, Ryuu." he teared up.
Akutagawa reached a hand, cupping one of his cheeks lightly. He ran a thumb over his tear-stained cheeks, "Hey," he mouthed, soothing over his thumb at the dampened area, "Why are you crying?"
"It was my dream to visit an art gallery since i was younger," Atsushi sniffled, puffing his cheeks as he made eye contact with Akutagawa.
"Why didn't you tell me? I could've brought you here a long time ago." Akutagawa felt his heart clench at the sight of his boyfriend crying. He was uncertain whether it was out of sadness or happiness.
Atsushi's sunset eyes stared at him for a moment before he broke eye contact, averting his gaze elsewhere. "You… You can go now, I've done what I wanted to do so…" he trailed off, unsure of what to say as his mind was still clouded by the memories he unknowingly reawakened.
The older male was having none of it, he held Atsushi's wrist as the other tried to compose himself properly and took the initiative to walk. "This was your childhood dream, now experience it to the fullest."
Atsushi nodded and reluctantly observed the paintings on the wall. He was fascinated at how such abstract sceneries could reflect the artist's emotions, their message. Akutagawa kept quiet, keeping a lazy eye on the detective.
"Have you tried painting before?" Atsushi asked out of the blue. His question was answered with a soft hum. "Yeah, I have." Akutagawa turned his gaze elsewhere and saw something that caught his eye.
"Jinko, look ever there, at the corner," Akutagawa said, Atsushi followed his line of vision and saw an activity space. It was a small space where visitors could try out and paint their own paintings and afterwards, they could choose whether the painting would go on the wall or they would take it home.
"Would you like to?" Akutagawa asked, his tone was a mix of a slight plea and anticipation.
They walked over hand-in-hand and the staff welcomed them warmingly. She told them that they should pick a canvas and a workplace to create their masterpiece. They have unanimously decided to pick up only one canvas. They didn't want to waste more art supplies for the chaos they were about to draw.
Atsushi was hesitant as he dipped the paintbrush into the color palette. Akutagawa elbowed him to caught his attention and mouthed, "Go"
Atsushi gulped, lightly stroking the brush against the canvas. He gazed up and found akutagawa smiling at him. "What do you think?" he asked out of reflex.
Akutagawa laughed, a low grumble bubbling his throat, "It's only one paint streak, Jinko." he held a similar brush in his hand and dipped it into a darker paint. Atsushi immediately followed suit, creating the image in his head.
A sunset was what they agreed to do. A simple sunset. Atsushi focused on the lighter colors of the painting while Akutagawa painted the shadows. The shadows slowly envelop the serene scenery. The contrast of the elements inside the painting somehow brought everything together.
Akutagawa pulled back, allowing atsushi to take over for the final touches. Atsushi didn't know what to do and sighed and stared at what they had made longer. He felt jittery, anxiously tapping his fingers against the wooden brush in his hands.
He felt a thin and chilly hand wrap around his own, Akutagawa rested his head on his shoulder. "Does this make you feel at ease?" the older asked. He was referring to their close proximity, he knew that physical contact makes Atsushi relieved.
"Yeah" Atsushi breathed out the air he didn't know he was holding. He continued to add more details to their painting, leaning back to the warm body against him.
"Now do tell me," Akutagawa breathed against his ear, it was unintentional really but it sent shivers down his spine. "Why haven't you told me about this dream of yours before?"
Atsushi was caught off guard, he thought the topic had already been dropped but it hadn't. His first instinct was to pull away but Akutagawa held him in place. Not the forceful kind, it was rather a "I'll drape my whole body weight on to you" kind.
Atsushi took a deep breath, calming his mind to properly say what he was holding in. "It was because I didn't see the beauty in myself. I didn't see myself worthy to be in the same place as these alluring art relics." his head hung low, feeling a lot more ridiculous than he did before.
Akutagawa hummed from behind him, tilting atsushi's head upwards for the other to look straight forward. "Jinko, where are we?"
Atsushi took a moment to reply, "Uhm… an art gallery?"
"Now, what are these things around us?" he twirled his fingers near Atsushi's peripheral view.
"Art"
Akutagawa leaned closer to him, "All this art surrounding us and I'd rather stare at you."
Atsushi cocked his head to the side, making eye contact with Akutagawa who was already staring at him. "You mean it?"
"Of course, why wouldn't i?" he smiled. He moved his gaze to the painting they made. "Hey, look." Atsushi stared at the painting.
A sunset that was made with light strokes of light paint and thick strokes for the dark paints to represent the shadows. A painting that perfectly matched their unfortunate lives. The sorrowful experience a child shouldn't have experienced at a young age. A life that led them to where they are today and a painting that will indicate the start of their healing from their own traumas.
"It's the art of Shin Soukoku"