Work Text:
Despite the fact that he was sitting inside his office building, it was so cold that Reigen could see his own breath. This was actually quite convenient, considering that his phone was dead, and not a single client had come in that day; not to mention the workload he was vehemently avoiding. Procrastination and boredom had overtaken him. He took deep, slow breaths in, and let it all out as fast as possible in hopes of making a huge cloud.
"Ahh, it's no use," he said to no one in particular after about 10 minutes of glorified breathing exercises. He pushed himself off from his desk using his legs, making his swivel chair roll backwards towards the window behind him. "I should just call it quits and go home already."
The light from outside shined in on him through the window. He turned around in his chair, sitting up on his knees to peek out. It was around midnight, so the road that his window faced was dark, lit only by dim streetlights. Everything was covered in a thin layer of snow. Reigen glanced towards the sidewalk, gripping the back of his chair when he noticed a small figure wearing brightly colored clothes. They were sitting down on a bench that was beneath a streetlight.
Reigen tried to prop himself up more, the chair wobbling beneath him. Realizing who the figure was, he leaned closer to the window, the chair tipping onto one leg.
"Ritsu?"
Ritsu hunched over, staring at the ground. It was covered in snow, which had taken on an orange tint from the streetlight above. He ran his hands down his face, trying to simultaneously ignore the chill that had spread throughout his entire body and the thoughts running rampant in his head. He closed his eyes and focused on the crunching noises that the snow made as someone walked by him.
Until they stopped, and something was draped over his head.
"I don't need your jacket," he said, seeing the perpetrator out of the corner of his eye, but he made no move to take it off.
Reigen sat down next to him, crossing one leg over the other and lacing his fingers together; body language that Ritsu had seen him use around clients. He rolled his eyes.
"I dunno," Reigen said, making his words longer and louder than they needed to be, "it's pretty cold out, wouldn't you say?"
Ritsu pulled the jacket off of him, dropping it on the empty bench next to him with as much disgust as he could muster while being half frozen. "If you need something from me, can you cut to the chase?" He looked up at Reigen, unimpressed.
Reigen let out a sigh, a cloud of water vapor accompanying it. He uncrossed his legs, leaning back on his hands. "You're the one who's sitting outside my office in the middle of the night, aren't you?"
"There just happened to be a bench here," Ritsu replied defensively. He shifted slightly and turned away from Reigen. "You're not gonna tell my parents I'm out here, are you?"
Reigen shifted his weight to one hand as he used the other to tap at his chin, pursing his lips thoughtfully. "I won't," he said finally. "If you put that jacket on."
Ritsu groaned, but he complied, not wanting to get in trouble with his parents. "Didn't I say I didn't need it?" he complained as he pulled the sleeves over his arms, his hands just barely visible at the ends.
Reigen waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Just think of it as peace of mind for me."
"That makes me want to do it less," Ritsu muttered, and Reigen pretended not to hear him. Ritsu crossed his arms, shivering slightly.
The two settled into an uncomfortable silence as Ritsu returned to staring at the ground and Reigen looked up at the sky. Ritsu shoved his trembling hands into the pockets of Reigen's jacket. He cursed how cheaply it was made; the pockets were made out of a thin fabric that did nothing to protect his hands from the cold. His head was starting to hurt.
"So," Reigen said, far louder than he intended, "what's a kid like you doing out here in the middle of the night, anyway?"
Ritsu tensed up, turning to look at Reigen. "What's 'a kid like you' supposed to mean?"
Reigen was still looking up at the guy, but Ritsu could see his brows furrow slightly. "A kid who should be in his room sleeping because he has school tomorrow." He spoke slowly and put emphasis on every word, as if he thought Ritsu was struggling to hear him.
Ritsu made a little "oh" sound under his breath, and looked back at the ground. "Just needed some fresh air." There was still some annoyance present in his voice.
Reigen rested his elbow on his thigh and his head in his hand, leaning over in such a way that Ritsu could see him out of his peripheral vision. "What's on your mind, then?"
"Nothing." The annoyance he had seconds before seemed to disappear at Reigen’s question. Ritsu took his hands out of the jacket pockets, opting to pick at some loose fabric on the knee of his pants instead. "I just said I needed some air."
Reigen made a smug expression, and Ritsu looked in the opposite direction, his headache getting worse. "Nobody just 'needs some air' at midnight during winter."
Ritsu scoffed and waited for Reigen to once again ask him what was up, but was met with silence. He didn't look back, but he could tell that Reigen was staring at him, waiting for him to speak of his own accord.
Despite himself, Ritsu fessed up, just like he knew Reigen was expecting. "My 9th grade year's almost done, and I just got to worrying about the future and stuff.” He waved his hand dismissively. “It's dumb, honestly."
Once again, Ritsu was met with silence. He turned to face Reigen, and found that he was just staring, expression unreadable.
"What? What is it?" Ritsu slid a bit further away, as if Reigen was going to jump out at him.
Reigen sat up straight, turning away from Ritsu and staring out at the road. "I'm just not sure what you're worried about. You get good grades, you're athletic, and you're talented in just about everything, from what I've heard.” He looked back at Ritsu, pointing at him. “You could get any job you wanted."
Ritsu sighed, hiding his face in his hands. "That's just it. I don't want any job."
Reigen’s mouth quirked up into a half-smile. "What, so you wanna be a NEET?"
Ritsu sat up, staring out at the road. "Ugh, maybe." He laced his fingers together. "I mean-- are there any jobs that are fun? Like, at all?"
"Of course there are!" Reigen said, crossing one leg over the other.
"Like what?"
Reigen froze up. "Uh, well," he tapped his chin, smiling nervously. As he spoke, he waved his free hand around. "I mean, I can't name any on the spot, but I'm sure there's something you'll enjoy. I mean, there are probably plenty of jobs that are enjoyable!" He withered slightly under Ritsu's gaze. "Most aren't," he added on, almost bitterly. He seemed to be reminiscing on his own experience with work.
"Maybe I should just become a criminal or something," Ritsu said, slouching over again, and Reigen couldn't tell if he was joking or not.
Reigen uncrossed his legs, returning to leaning back on his hands. He used his foot to mess with the snow on the ground.
"You're thinking about it the wrong way," he said after a long pause. His voice was level.
Ritsu scoffed. "Then how should I think about it?"
"If you don't want a job, what is it that you want?"
"I want to have fun." Ritsu said without hesitation, placing his hands down on the bench, grabbing the edge.
Reigen's eyes widened. "That's a bit simple."
"Does it need to be complicated?"
"No, I suppose not." Reigen turned his head to look at Ritsu. "What's fun to you, then?"
Ritsu's posture relaxed, and his face didn't seem as scrunched up as usual. "Hanging out with friends, traveling on occasion..." he looked down at his shoes. "I guess I just don't want things to get monotonous, that's all."
Reigen made a stifled noise, and Ritsu tensed up again.
"What are you laughing about?" he said defensively.
"It's just like I said earlier." Reigen didn't even try to hide his smirk. "I don't know what you're worried about."
Ritsu furrowed his brows. "Elaborate."
“I’m saying it's a non-issue,” Reigen said flatly, rotating his hand around. “Sounds to me like you don't even want a career, so why are you so worried about getting one?”
Ritsu straightened up. “What else is there?”
Reigen let out a puff of air through his nose. “You know, if you wanna have fun, you have to stop thinking so uptight all the time.” He looked at Ritsu, making an expression that could probably qualify as a smile. "In any case, you don't have to focus so hard on what career you're gonna have when you grow up if you don't even care in the first place. Just find a quick and easy way to make money, and spend the rest of your time actually doing what you want."
Ritsu furrowed his eyebrows. "Is that really advice you should be giving to a middle schooler?"
"It's better than telling you to be a criminal, at least."
The way Reigen was speaking and acting felt strange, but not necessarily uncomfortable. It was an unfamiliar warmth.
Ritsu leaned back on his hands, staring off into space. At the very least, his headache was gone.
He stood up. "I should go home," he said, and the strangeness was gone.
"Yeah, see ya." Reigen stood up, yawning loudly. "Don't get kidnapped or anything on your way there."
"I'll try."
Back in his office, Reigen stared at his computer screen, finishing up some extra work he had been procrastinating on. He felt colder than usual, and it suddenly hit him as to why.
Finally at home, Ritsu took off Reigen's jacket and threw it in the trash can.