Archive of Our Own ^beta

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Ken blinked at Chibimon 

Daisuke ignored this comment and launched into an explanation of the finer details of Sakura Ramen’s classic dishes. Ken ate in silence. Listening to Daisuke talk was soothing to him, reminding Ken of when they were younger, and he used to visit his friend’s house on the weekends. 

They were far from kids these days-- Ken and Daisuke had both turned 24 not too long ago. And being 24 years old brought with it the woes of a difficult work-life balance. Before Daisuke had suggested they meet up monthly, both had been too busy to see each other regularly. Detectives and chefs kept odd hours, and they were no exception. 

In fact, Ken’s still not sure how this whole “Friday Whatever” thing happened in the first place. He didn’t have any more free time than before, but somehow he just couldn’t say no when Daisuke shot him that fateful text saying: 

Daisuke was magnetic, somehow, and Ken found himself inexplicably drawn into his world. 

About halfway through his exposition on the unique flavor of Sakura Ramen’s broth, Ken became distracted by something in Daisuke’s hair. It appeared to be a… cherry blossom petal? 

Ken’s cheeks flushed with heat. He hoped Daisuke wouldn’t notice, given the orange-tinted lighting of the restaurant. 

Daisuke grinned and snapped his fingers. 

Daisuke poked at his hair a few times, completely missing the petal and knocking his tinted glasses askew. Chibimon hopped up and down on the counter trying to retrieve it, but ended up tugging on Daisuke’s hair instead. He could sense his friend was a second away from causing a disturbance in the restaurant, so Ken quickly reached out toward him and gently plucked the petal out of his hair. He offered it to Daisuke, who let Ken drop it into his open hand. 

Ken blanched. 

Immediately, Ken tried to divert the topic. 

The shorter man nodded and pointed to the cherry blossom petal sitting in the center of his palm. 

Chibimon looked up from Daisuke’s lap. 

Daisuke reached out and set a hand on Ken’s shoulder. The gesture provided a startling amount of warmth. And his friend’s smile was just as warm. 

He released Ken’s shoulder and picked up his glass of beer. 

Ken’s heart flipped in his chest as their glasses clinked. 

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And the students had definitely noticed Ken. Well over a decade removed from his years as a child prodigy, somehow people still knew about him. As a detective who preferred not to be seen, having so many eyes on Ken was already wearing him thin. 

Daisuke chuckled and rubbed his Digimon partner’s head. When he noticed that Ken hadn’t even cracked a smile, Daisuke poked him in the chest. 

Ken lowered his voice, hoping the people around him didn’t have super-hearing. 

Daisuke snorted with laughter. A group of girls sitting nearby started to giggle. 

Ken shot his friend a suspicious look. 

Daisuke continued to laugh. 

The shorter man rolled his eyes, then leaned over to whisper in his ear. 

Ken froze, but his face seemed to be bursting into flames. If he was being honest with himself, it had nothing to do with the girls staring at him and everything to do with the man who just told him he found Ken… 

The shorter man dangled his fingers against the sides of his face, supposedly imitating Ken’s hair. Daisuke, as usual, had no shame. At least he had the decency to lower his voice when talking about Ken’s… attractiveness.  

Ken wasn’t too keen on being portrayed as naïve about his own appearance. 

Daisuke shrugged. He used his chopsticks to gather a large helping of ramen and shove it into his mouth. Chibimon tried to imitate him, grabbing one chopstick in each hand and stabbing the contents of his own bowl. 

They were lucky most people knew about Digimon these days, but Ken wondered if Daisuke might at some point invite him out to a place where Chibimon and Minomon would have to stay at home. As much as Ken loved Minomon, the idea of going somewhere with just himself and Daisuke was kind of... exciting? 

Another group of high schoolers entered the restaurant, but thankfully it was becoming too crowded for them to notice Ken right away. 

Ken sighed. 

Daisuke was silent for a while and looked like he was contemplating what Ken said. Finally: 

Daisuke patted his own chest in the spot right over his heart, but didn’t say anything else. Ken’s eyes widened. 

Still had. They were still jogress partners, even if they hardly had a reason for their Digimon to combine these days. Ken wondered what was going through Daisuke’s head when he thought about them being partners. He wondered if, just as their Digimon evolved, that connection in their hearts could evolve too. 

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Daisuke held his fist up to his mouth, miming the action of holding a microphone. 

Daisuke rolled his eyes. 

Chibimon hopped up and down, sending a wave of sand into Ken’s pant legs. The Digimon announced loudly: 

It certainly was summer. The days were at their longest, though the sticky heat normally associated with the season hadn’t quite settled into the air yet. A cool evening breeze made standing on the beach bearable. 

Sunset today was at 7PM, and Daisuke had requested they watch it together. Ken couldn’t say no to something like that, so he left work 15 minutes early just so he could join his best friend for a beach sunset. 

A few other people were scattered around the shoreline as well, most of them couples. Nearby, Ken noticed a man reach out and grab his partner’s hand. She immediately leaned into him and smiled. Something about that exchange had Ken’s heart pounding. 

A thought crossed his mind that he probably shouldn’t ponder on for too long, but the lack of Daisuke’s usual babbling left Ken with few choices. 

Clearly, obviously, Ken wasn’t going to touch Daisuke’s hand while they stood on the beach watching the sunset. 

But there was always the possibility that, if Ken grabbed his hand, Daisuke would reward him with a playful smile. Maybe Daisuke would pull him along to the water’s edge and pick up a funny looking seashell that he would press into Ken’s other palm, connecting both of their hands. 

Maybe that interaction would pull them as close together as that couple. 

Because whether Ken liked it or not, just being near Daisuke made him feel as happy as he did when they first became friends. What a weird reason to have a sense of longing in his chest. 

A sensation on the side of his hand jolted Ken out of his thoughts. Daisuke had tapped their hands together for a split second to get his attention. 

Ken disliked seeing a worried expression on his friend’s face. But if he didn’t lean into the “thinking about work” excuse, would he have to tell Daisuke the truth? Ken weighed the two options in his head. A third, secret option won. 

The frankly delicious aroma of food coming from the restaurant behind them made his Digimon’s stomach audibly growl. Ken was surprised such a loud sound could come from the tiniest little Digimon. 

Daisuke chuckled. 

The shorter man rustled around in his messenger bag for a moment before pulling out what looked like some packaged crackers. He tore one open and bent over to hand a cracker to Minomon. Then, Daisuke stood back up and immediately grabbed one of Ken’s hands to press a package of crackers into his palm. 

It was absolutely not lost on Ken how similar this action was to the fantasy he’d just had. Daisuke removed his hand, but not before stroking his thumb across Ken’s wrist. Ken cleared his throat before speaking, not wanting his voice to crack. 

When Ken got home that night, he ate the crackers Daisuke had given him, then carefully smoothed out the packaging and stored it in the top drawer of his desk, alongside his Digivice. It wasn’t a seashell, but Ken weirdly liked it all the same. 

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Daisuke displayed one of the most gobsmacked expressions Ken had ever seen on the man. 

The shorter man cleared his throat and looked away from Ken. Colorful lights from the nearby festival stalls reflected on the back of Daisuke’s head, turning his hair blue, red, yellow... 

The two men were currently sitting in front of a ramen stand at the annual Odaiba Summer Festival. Chibimon and Minomon sat on the ground by their feet, munching on snacks. While Ken would have liked to try food from some of the other stalls, like maybe some takoyaki, today was technically one of their “Friday Ramen Whatevers”, so he would indulge Daisuke in his “research”. 

When Daisuke finally turned back around to face Ken, his expression had reverted to its typical casual happiness. 

Ken lamented the fact that neither of them had gone home after work to change into a yukata before meeting at the summer festival. He probably could have suggested they arrive an hour or so later, but that would have meant less time with Daisuke in general. 

Daisuke burst out laughing, a true belly laugh that made Ken’s chest tingle. Ken was not a naturally humorous person, but tickling Daisuke’s funny bone was relatively easy. Regardless, Ken still felt a sense of accomplishment when he was the reason for that laugh. 

He had that glint in his eye that was all too familiar to Ken because he usually only made that face around Ken– the expression that said: “I still think of you as a rival, so I’ll show you how it’s really done”. It usually meant that Ken would be sucked into a game of soccer or a footrace or some sort of fighting video game. Tonight, it probably meant he would beat Daisuke at shooting targets. 

Once both of them had finished their meals, Daisuke jumped out of his seat and pointed a finger at Ken. 

Daisuke said with a challenging smirk. He of course meant “let’s goof off at the game booths”, but Ken almost wished that “let’s dance” was literal. 

As Ken watched Daisuke almost beat him at target shooting, he couldn’t help but wonder if Daisuke still felt like a kid when he did stuff like this. Not two hours ago, Ken had been investigating a crime scene and filling out a rather gruesome report. That kind of thing was so far removed from what they were doing now, it was almost comical. 

When, as predicted, Daisuke failed at beating Ken’s score, they were both still given prizes– squishy stuffed animals the size of throw pillows. 

Ken had absolutely no idea what he meant by “stylish” in this context, but who was he to question it? The real prize was getting to see Daisuke force Chibimon to hold a stuffed animal bigger than he was, and laughing when Chibimon chucked it his partner’s backside. 

They reached the festival entrance, where Daisuke and Ken would be parting ways for the evening. Daisuke looked like he really didn’t want to leave, and Ken silently agreed with that sentiment. Because leaving the festival meant going back to their adult lives. 

Ken assumed he was going to say something like “because it’s partially a memorial for Wizardmon”. But instead: 

Daisuke rubbed the back of his neck. 

It suddenly dawned on Ken exactly why Daisuke had acted strangely earlier in the evening. His logic was a little off and the notion was an odd one– If Daisuke’s motivation for dragging Ken to all these restaurants was truly for “research”, why would it matter if Miyako came along? 

Ken shuffled his souvenir bags and the stuffed animal around in order to free one of his hands. He grabbed Daisuke’s wrist and they both stopped. Chibimon and Minomon bumped into the back of Ken’s legs. 

Was that a blush on Daisuke’s cheeks, or just the festival lights? 

Chapter Text

Ken rubbed the back of his neck. 

The Department of Criminal Affairs, where Ken worked as a detective in the Digimon Crimes Unit, was located near his home in Tamachi. This particular evening he’d been required to work late due to a case that was forced on him at the last minute. 

Daisuke had suggested they postpone, or cancel, but surprisingly Ken was having none of that. They’d already had to cancel October’s ramen tour because of Ken’s work. He wasn’t about to miss out on seeing his friend for another month. 

They could just as easily have waited until Sunday to meet up. But there was something about this tradition Ken and Daisuke had going on that was so... official. Ken wasn’t sure why he had that word in his mind when he thought about their monthly ramen meetups. Official.  

It inserted something tangible into their friendship. Something they could see and smell and eat and use as proof that they were indeed still best friends and still connected with each other. 

Ken opened his mouth to ask Daisuke how his day was, but Daisuke spoke first. 

It took him a moment to process. 

Daisuke grinned. 

The shorter man leaned in closer to Ken, but didn’t raise his voice any louder. 

With an eyeroll and a smirk, Daisuke explained himself. 

Daisuke snapped his fingers and pointed at Ken. 

They said the word at the same time, though Daisuke was more enthusiastic. 

But instead of pointing to his head after the “smart” comment, Daisuke tapped a finger against his chest. Ken’s heart fluttered in realization. Their eyes met and they both held their breath. 

Chibimon broke Ken and Daisuke out of... whatever that was. Minomon looked up at Ken from his lap. 

Ken smiled warmly at his Digimon partner. 

Ken’s phone buzzed angrily on the counter next to the ramen that had only just been set down in front of him. A text message lit up the screen. 

Ken stared in contempt at his phone screen as if it had just insulted him. Which in a way, it had. He’d been having a perfectly wonderful, possibly amazing time with his best friend, and work had to crack down on his skull like an anvil. 

Only Daisuke could get away with saying something like that. 

Ken bid him a painful farewell and began his ascent out of the train station and into the chilly November evening. Would this weekend finally be the moment when he asked Daisuke to see him outside of their ramen thing? 

Ken turned around to see that Daisuke, with Chibimon close behind, had followed him out of the station. 

Daisuke scratched his chin and kicked his feet around for a few seconds. Ken really did need to leave, but somehow Daisuke had the power to root him to the ground at a moment’s notice. 

Ken nodded slowly. Even in the dim glow of the streetlights, Daisuke’s hair matched the leaves of the nearby crimson queen maple tree. Ken wished he could study this further, to see if Daisuke’s eyes matched it too. He wanted to wait until sunrise to see both the tree and his friend in full, glorious color. 

Daisuke smiled at him from underneath the tree, and something changed in Ken’s heart. Or maybe slid into place. Minomon nudged his partner in the arm. 

Ken blinked. 

Daisuke tilted his head questioningly. 

Ken waved goodbye and then bolted down the street to the criminal affairs office. 

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“You’re too serious, Ichijouji. You need to lighten up a little.” 

Ken heard those words from a coworker just before he left work. His day had been grueling, with his meeting with Daisuke being the light at the end of the tunnel that Ken kept close to his heart. So even police officers and detectives, who spent their days dealing with non-stop crime, thought Ken was too... what? Solemn? Humorless? 

But none of that mattered now. Ken was about to meet someone whose positive outlook was so bright you couldn’t help but mirror it. 

He hadn’t seen Daisuke since last month, disappointingly never getting to compare his hair to the leaves of the trees that were now completely bare. But the image of him smiling while telling Ken to take care of himself– that had been enough to get him through even the toughest of November’s cases.  

Ken wasn’t so dense to not understand what that meant. He had feelings about Daisuke. For Daisuke. Romantic feelings. The kind that Ken had occasionally wondered throughout his life if he would ever feel for someone else. He would hold these feelings inside for now, until he figured out what to do with them. 

Arriving at Ichiban Ramen before Daisuke, Ken decided to sit down at a booth instead of a counter. He didn’t pull his overcoat off just yet, letting Minomon bury himself into Ken’s side, still cold from their brief walk from the station to the restaurant. 

That wasn’t the worst thing in the world if it made Daisuke laugh. He looked forward to it. 

Daisuke’s body temperature was apparently on a different level than everyone else’s. As soon as he entered the restaurant, Ken noticed his friend was wearing a lightweight bomber jacket and cargo shorts. It reminded Ken so much of their elementary school days when Daisuke would wear shorts on the coldest days of winter. 

God he looked good. Nostalgic. Ken wanted to wrap his arms around his friend and pull him in until all the darkness from his day at work dissipated. 

The shorter man slipped into the seat across from him and immediately pointed a finger at Ken’s chest. 

Daisuke waved his arms back and forth. 

Ken’s cheeks were thankfully already pink from being out in the cold air. But Daisuke really had a way with saying things that struck Ken right in the heart. It was the nature of their bond as jogress partners, but he couldn’t help but associate the way Daisuke said the word “love” with his recently realized feelings. 

Daisuke leaned his chin on his hands and grinned. 

He didn’t need anything, but boy did he want something. 

Daisuke looked over at Chibimon. 

Chibimon belted out. A few other restaurant patrons glanced over at them, but Daisuke never seemed to care about that. 

Ken couldn’t help himself. He felt laughter bubble up from his chest. 

Daisuke bit back a smile. 

Those words were still fresh in his mind. 

The shorter man sighed. 

Ken looked at his friend seriously. 

Ken rolled his eyes, but he wholeheartedly agreed. He felt Daisuke’s foot gently tap his leg under the table. 

Ken’s heart felt warm. His face felt warm. Daisuke watched him curiously, waiting for Ken to respond to probably the most intimate thing he could have said this evening. 

A feeling of resolve spread through Ken’s chest as they continued with their meal. He wasn’t going to let any more “Daisuke and Ken Ramen Days” go by without getting what he wanted. 

Chapter Text

Ken didn’t, but he had faith that his friend would find the right Digimon to work for him. Daisuke seemed to be vibrating with enthusiasm tonight and as usual, it was rubbing off on Ken. They sat at a booth again, which Ken preferred to the counter because it meant he could watch Daisuke’s animated expressions without having to turn his head. 

That expression was now focused entirely on Ken, with his eyebrows raised up high on his forehead. 

And there it was. Ken’s heart jumped, even though he expected the question. Ken had been hoping for Daisuke to bring the topic up earlier in the evening, but he’d apparently needed some time to brag about his restaurant. 

Daisuke had a point, Minomon was extremely overprotective of Ken. He wasn’t sure how he accomplished it either– maybe it came down to the fact that Minomon trusted Daisuke as much as he trusted his own partner.  

Ken’s face was hot, he had a lump in his throat, and his heart was approaching a dangerous speed. But he had to do this. He was a detective, for god’s sake. Ken had the ability to be brave just like the rest of their friends, even if Daisuke was the one who inherited the most courage. 

Why was he derailing the conversation before Ken had a chance to say anything? 

Daisuke shook his head. 

That didn’t answer anything. Daisuke continued. 

Ken looked down and was shocked to discover that he’d subconsciously grabbed Daisuke’s hand. There was no denying Ken was the one who initiated it– his hand was on top. He swallowed. 

Not wanting to lose momentum, the taller man closed his eyes and whispered, his voice shaking: 

He felt Daisuke pull back his hand from underneath Ken’s, and his eyes flew open in surprise. 

But instead of being angry with him, apparently Daisuke had only removed his hand so he could reach back in and thread their fingers together. His touch made Ken shiver. 

Daisuke shook his head again and used his free hand to poke Ken in the chest with his pointer finger. 

Daisuke grinned, but not in the usual, friendly way. This grin was... attractive? Seductive, even. Ken held his gaze, not wanting to miss any more “hints”. 

Reaching out with his other hand, Daisuke played with Ken’s fingers for a bit. Wide-eyed, Ken briefly broke his gaze to look down at their joined hands, still not sure what to make of all this. 

This particular psych major, detective, boy genius, whatever , wasn’t so dumb to not realize his own feelings as they developed. But for him not to realize that Daisuke felt the same way? Ken mentally smacked himself. 

At this point, Ken wanted to literally smack himself. He settled for using his free hand to cover as much of his burning face as possible. Daisuke snorted with laughter, which didn’t really help matters. 

Naturally, they each needed both of their hands to finish their meals, but Ken wasn’t ready for that to be the only time they touched this evening. They paid, then Ken followed Daisuke out of the restaurant, his heart in his throat. As soon as they were outside, their hands found each other again. 

Daisuke tapped the ground with the tip of his shoe, suddenly embarrassed. 

Ken watched Daisuke’s lips as he spoke. What had he just said? Something about not kissing? That just wouldn’t do. As a detective, Ken considered himself more than adept at finding secluded areas, though usually they weren’t for something like this . 

He quickly led them around to the back side of a shop that had already closed for the night. Daisuke chuckled as he leaned his forehead against Ken’s shoulder. 

Daisuke’s laugh echoed off the walls of the building, lighting up Ken’s heart. He knew saying something nonsensical like that would have an effect on the other man. 

As usual, the warmth and happiness radiating from Daisuke pulled Ken into him, like a cat drawn to a patch of sunshine. His mouth tasted like ramen, and Ken’s probably did too. They kissed, broke apart, then were drawn back in again and again. This was the warmest Ken had ever felt in the wintertime. 

Ken muttered. 

Ken shoved him playfully in the shoulder. 

Daisuke groaned. 

His lips were on Ken’s again and the taller man found himself sighing into Daisuke’s mouth. They tilted their heads to get a better angle, and Daisuke’s fingers traveled up into Ken’s hair, pulling them impossibly closer. 

After the kiss came to a natural conclusion, Daisuke pulled away and reached up into Ken’s dark locks again. 

Ken pressed a kiss into Daisuke’s jaw to cover up his burning face. 

Chapter Text

Ken felt a wave of pride wash over him as he and Wormmon took their first steps into the completed File Island Ramen restaurant. The place wasn’t officially open yet, but the interior was fully decorated and the kitchen, along with the staff Daisuke had hired, was ready to go for next month’s grand opening. 

Today, Ken and Wormmon would be sampling some of the ramen dishes Daisuke was preparing for the menu. Ken slipped onto a barstool at the counter and waited for the “head chef” to make an appearance. 

They had met up a few times in the weeks since they first kissed, though they hadn’t had any more dates without their Digimon partners. Ken and Daisuke were still trying to figure out how to make that work, and to be honest, it probably hinged on them actually telling the Digimon they were dating. 

Daisuke and V-mon appeared through a door that led to the kitchen, carrying two large, steaming bowls of ramen. He’d only seen Daisuke in a chef’s outfit a few times, as he usually changed before their meetups. The pride Ken felt earlier morphed into affection. He wanted more than anything to kiss Daisuke hello, but he refrained from doing so. 

The chef pulled up a stool on the other side of the counter and sat down on it. He grinned at Ken– that cute, boyish grin he’d probably never grow out of. Ken’s heart flipped in his chest. 

Unlike Daisuke, V-mon walked around the counter to sit next to Wormmon. 

Daisuke snapped his fingers. 

After saying their thanks for the meal, Wormmon broke apart his chopsticks and was thankfully able to feed himself in his current form. Ken pulled up some noodles to eat as well, and was unsurprisingly met with some of the most flavorful and delicious ramen he’d had in a long time. It was clear Daisuke had been working hard to perfect the recipe. 

Daisuke was still staring at him expectantly. Ken smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. 

Ken cleared his throat. 

The shorter man held a hand to his chest in mock horror. 

Daisuke leaned in closer until the tips of their noses brushed. Ken froze, not quite sure why he was letting Daisuke do what he was doing. 

Heat rose from his neck to his cheeks. Ken whispered sharply: 

Daisuke chuckled and pulled back. 

Wormmon was already watching them both very closely. 

The insect Digimon’s eyes shone brightly, and Ken could tell he was blushing. Ken was right there with him, his face completely on fire. 

V-mon shrugged. 

Wormmon had never been quick on his feet, but somehow he was able to reach the door before Ken finished his sentence. V-mon dutifully hopped off his stool and shot them a peace sign before following his friend. 

They matched each other’s smile. After watching each other silently for a moment, Daisuke winked at him. 

As embarrassing as Daisuke's words could be, that sounded amazing. 

Daisuke leaned over the counter and Ken met him halfway. 

Their kiss was slow and soft, though a little uncomfortable with an entire bar between them. Ken sucked on Daisuke’s bottom lip until he opened his mouth to deepen it. At some point in the middle of their kiss, Daisuke’s glasses fell off his forehead. Ken caught them midair before they collided with the counter. 

Daisuke’s voice was rough when he spoke, and it was driving Ken wild. He disappeared for a second, then reappeared on Ken’s side of the counter a moment later. Ken grabbed his boyfriend’s hips and dove back into that “searing” kiss he’d wanted so badly. 

When he inevitably had to pull away to catch his breath, Ken noticed Daisuke’s cheeks were tinged pink and he had on a dreamy expression. 

Ken laughed. He eventually got around to finishing his bowl of ramen before it got cold. As he listened to Daisuke rave about the kitchen he was miraculously able to get built in the Digital World, Ken’s mind wandered ever so slightly. 

Daisuke and Ken were another year older, another year removed from that eventful childhood they shared. There was no doubt that they formed a unique bond back then. 

Ken had wondered all those months ago if the connection in their hearts could evolve just like Digimon could. He should have known that only falling in love with Daisuke could make that happen.