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Keisuke glances at the clock, the credits rolling across the TV. It reads five minutes until midnight in dull green numbers. He grabs the remote, taking great care not to jostle Takumi. His head rests on Keisuke’s shoulder, practically asleep. He only snuggles closer as Keisuke shifts.
Keisuke grins, small and soft, before flipping to the channel Takumi described earlier. It’s some British tradition that Takumi brought back with him after going to the UK, one that Keisuke had heard of in passing but never thought to try.
It’s Takumi’s first year back in Japan and Keisuke’s willing to try anything Takumi wants.
Of course, Takumi needs to be awake for his efforts not to be wasted.
Keisuke leans over and presses a soft kiss against Takumi’s temple, light enough that it won’t wake him if he’s truly asleep. In the background, some reporter is speaking, but the volume is so low Keisuke can barely make out a word.
Takumi leans up and rubs at one of his eyes. “The movie’s already over?”
“Yeah.” Keisuke smiles at him. It’s endearing seeing him like this. “You’ve almost made it.”
Takumi hums, settling back against Keisuke’s side. Keisuke teases with his hair, already mussed from leaning against Keisuke’s shoulder. On the TV, the camera pans over the crowd. “I put on what you said to, but is it the right one? Everything’s from last year.”
“It’s a recording,” Takumi murmurs without moving. “This year’s won’t be one for a while.”
“Wanna wait for it?”
“No, this is fine.” Takumi looks up and gives Keisuke a grin. It’s supposed to be sly but with the exhaustion hanging heavy in Takumi’s expression, it’s soft. “All I need is you.”
Keisuke smiles, holding Takumi tighter. “You’re a sap.”
“I think I’m allowed to be a little sappy.”
Keisuke glances at the TV and spies the countdown. “We’ve got 30 seconds until midnight.”
Takumi sits up. He reaches over and cups Keisuke's cheek, tracing his cheekbone with his thumb. The touch is light. It sends shivers down Keisuke’s spine and he leans into it. From this close, Keisuke can smell the lingering remains of his own cologne mixing with the slightest hints of motor oil.
He always thought Takumi smelled good wearing his cologne. It’s the only reason why he still buys it.
And Takumi thought he was being subtle.
Keisuke glances at Takumi’s lips, tracing his gaze up to his eyes. In the low light, they’re almost grey. “Do we have to wait until midnight?”
Takumi grins, sharper this time. “I thought you had more patience than that.”
“It’s harder,” Keisuke turns to press a quick kiss against Takumi’s palm. When they were younger, that would’ve left Takumi a blushing mess. Now he just gives him a look of fond exasperation. “With you sitting this close.”
“And you call me the sap.”
“I never said I wasn’t one too.”
Keisuke glances at the countdown, watching as the last few seconds tick down.
The second it hits midnight, Keisuke kisses Takumi.
Keisuke holds Takumi close, threading his fingers through his hair. It’s a soft kiss, one that Keisuke melts into slowly. It’s far more gentle than passionate.
It’s the exact thing he needed.
It’s a reminder of Takumi’s presence, of the constant Takumi is in his life. Of the fact that there isn’t anyone else Keisuke wants by his side.
Keisuke pulls away slowly, relishing in Takumi’s touch against his skin. If it were possible, Keisuke would keep kissing Takumi, but he knows how exhausted he is. He should get some sleep. They both should.
Doubly so since they’re planning to get up before the sunrise.
“Do you have it in you to move to the bed?” Keisuke watches as Takumi tries to blink sleep from his eyes. “Or do you just wanna sleep here?”
“Here’s fine.” Takumi rests his head against his chest, shifting so Keisuke’s arm drapes over his shoulders. “Just—” Takumi yawns “—wake me up.”
Keisuke smiles, soft and unrestrained. He reaches over and turns off the TV, taking care not to jostle Takumi. He sets an alarm on his phone and pulls over the blanket thrown haphazardly over the arm of the couch.
He drapes it over them, the material worn and soft. It only takes a few minutes for Takumi’s breathing to even out, his breath tickling the exposed skin of Keisuke’s collarbone. Keisuke presses a soft kiss against Takumi’s hairline before letting himself slip off into sleep.
The sound of his alarm is no more wanted when he heard it on the off chance he needed to get up before noon. For a long moment, he just wants to sit there and let the alarm ring. But Takumi’s weight against his side reminds him of their plans.
He sits up slowly, letting the blanket fall down from his shoulders, and stops the alarm. Only now does Takumi stir, moving away from Keisuke and glancing around the living room in a sleepy daze.
Keisuke reaches over and brushes a few stray strands of hair off his forehead. “Are you awake enough to go, love?”
Takumi nods. “When are we leaving?”
“Once we get everything packed.” Keisuke untangles his arms from around Takumi’s waist and runs a hand through his hair. He knows it does nothing to fix the mess it’s in but a grin pulls at Takumi’s lips. “Is the Eight-Six up for a drive?”
“Mostly.”
“Mostly?” Keisuke parrots.
“Well, it’s not like she has any heat.” Takumi shrugs, the start of a cheeky grin pulling at his lips. Keisuke’s rubbed off on him a little too much, hasn’t he? At least he looks damn near adorable with that grin. “What about the FD?”
“It isn’t street legal yet and you know that.” And Keisuke may have a small incentive at play too. It’s been a long few months since he’s seen the Eight-Six in action while Takumi is trying to fix the current problem that plagues her.
She’s ornery and stubborn, but Keisuke would never let Takumi trade her for anything in the world.
“Not like that’s stopped you before.” Takumi’s grin grows, sharpening on the edges.
Keisuke shrugs. “What, is wanting to see how your car runs a crime?”
“Of course not.” Takumi wraps Keisuke into a quick hug, his arms tight around his waist. “But you could just say that, y’know.”
“But where’s the fun in that?” Keisuke gives Takumi a lopsided grin and musses his hair.
“Fine, I’ll give you that.” Takumi sighs, resting his head in the crook between Keisuke’s shoulder and neck. His eyes start to close again.
Keisuke’s smile softens. Any other night, he’d let Takumi sleep. But Takumi was insistent on all of this, no matter how tired he was. “Alright, I’ll get everything packed. Do you want to warm up the Eight-Six?”
Takumi nods against his shoulder. “Not like she needs it like your FD.”
“I think any car is grateful for a warm up in this weather.” Keisuke waits until Takumi pulls away to stand, holding out a hand. Takumi takes it in a firm grip, calluses rough against his skin, and Keisuke pulls him up in one single motion. Takumi gives him a teasing wave and walks over to the door.
He grabs his jacket before stepping out into the garage, letting the door swing shut behind him. His scarf, a splash of bright colors against the dark wood of the coat hanger, sits left behind.
Keisuke sighs, a mix between exasperation and endearment. He grabs a checkered blanket from the closet and the small box from the fridge. Somehow, he managed to hide its contents from Takumi, and endeavor in itself when he’s constantly pilfering the fridge.
He pulls on his own jacket and scarf, draping Takumi’s on top of the box. He flicks off the lights, plunging the room into darkness. With one hand, he fishes out his keys. He gives the room one last glance over before stepping outside.
The cold nips his skin and he almost wishes he brought his gloves. But he knows they’re shoved somewhere in the mess of his drawers—a compromise from the mess of his room before he moved in with Takumi—somewhere he won’t easily be able to find them.
He locks the door behind him and dips around the corner to the driveway. The Eight-Six sits out from the garage, the white of her paint gleaming in the low light from the street. She idles quietly, the sound piercing the late-night silence that settles over them.
It’s nostalgic. It’s been far too long since Keisuke’s heard that sound clear in the dead silence of night.
Takumi steps out of the Eight-Six, his hands shoved into his pockets. He pops open the truck and Keisuke sets down the blanket and box. He grabs the scarf, the material soft in his hands. Slowly, he lifts it over Takumi’s head and wraps it loosely around his neck. “You forgot this.”
A faint blush creeps up on Takumi’s cheeks from beneath the scarf. “Thank you.”
Keisuke grins, sharp and teasing. He can’t help but relish the fact that he can still make Takumi blush with such a simple gesture. “Ready to go?”
Takumi nods and starts walking towards the passenger’s side.
Keisuke grabs onto his wrist. “Wait, don’t you want to drive?”
“You can drive.” Takumi gives him a reassuring smile in the face of his concern. “I’m fine. Just a little too tired.”
The tension in his shoulders loosens. “I’m sure you’ve driven with less sleep.”
“Maybe I have a little incentive too.” Takumi gives him another one of those absolutely adorable smirks and climbs into the passenger’s seat.
For a moment, Keisuke just stares at the passenger’s door. He shrugs and walks over to the driver’s side. “I guess I’m driving,” he mutters with a grin.
He climbs into the driver’s seat and quickly glances over the interior. More often than not Takumi’s the one driving the Eight-Six, although on rare occasions like this he’s been the one sitting behind the steering wheel.
It never grows old. As much as he loves his FD, and he does, truly, there is something endearing about driving the Eight-Six.
He eases the car out onto the street and glances at Takumi. “Are we going to Akagi or Akina?”
Takumi is already leaning against the window, his head propped on his hand. His other hand rests by the transmission. “Akina. It’s where we first met.”
Keisuke looks back at the road, flicking on the turn signal. “A sap, I tell you.”
Takumi laughs, soft and quiet. It’s barely heard over the roar of the engine.
The drive to Akina isn’t long by any stretch of the imagination. When they first merge onto the freeway, there’s some traffic, but it quickly clears the further they drive away from the main cities. Keisuke hopes that this keeps up even when they are closer to the peak.
Even if Akina isn’t exactly one of the popular mountains, it still rises above all the buildings in the neighboring cities. He knows that he isn’t the only person with this idea.
The moment he turns off the main road and onto the pass, something shifts within him. A long-engrained instinct settles into his bones, this deep-set desire to run the pass. He isn’t, not with a car that isn’t his, but it doesn’t change the fact that he wants to.
He glances at Takumi again, and wonders if that was part of the reason why he didn’t want to drive up Akina. It must've been just as hard on him to not be able to drive these past couple of months while fixing up the Eight-Six as it is for Keisuke to wait for his FD to be street legal again.
For most of the ride over, Takumi was dozing. His reflection flickered in the window with the passing street lights, his eyelids drooping. But the moment they cross onto Akina, he sits up. He drinks in the pass, the way the Eight-Six darts around the corners.
Keisuke knows that the moment the Eight-Six is back in good shape, Takumi is bringing her to Akina. And Keisuke will be joining him with his FD.
The lake is empty, with the expectation of a scattered few cars. At Takumi’s direction, he parks in a secluded corner by the water. It gives them a clear view of the horizon, with the faintest hints of yellow peaking over.
Keisuke kills the engine and hands back the keys with a grin. “She still drives well.”
Takumi huffs. “I hope so. The last thing I want is my work to be for nothing.”
“It could never be for nothing.” Keisuke grabs Takumi’s hand and gives it a quick squeeze. “Now c’mon. Let’s get the blanket spread out.”
Keisuke climbs out of the car and follows Takumi to the trunk. Takumi already has it open and grabs both the box and blanket from it. Once Takumi is clear, Keisuke pushes it closed. He takes the blanket from Takumi, making the, probably risky, choice to leave the box with him. “Don’t open that yet.”
“You don’t have to say that to me,” Takumi tries to deadpan but a lilting excitement bleeds through. “I do have some patience.”
“Sure you do.” Keisuke unfolds the blanket and shakes it out. He spreads it over the grass. “It wasn’t you that spoiled the cake for Christmas.”
“You were the one who put it in our fridge.”
“It’s not like I had anywhere else to put it.” Keisuke sits on the blanket and pats the spot next to him. “But it’s okay, I forgive you.”
Takumi settles down next to him, leaning into him. “I would hope so. Or I would have to wonder who you could’ve planned this for.”
Keisuke wraps his arm around Takumi’s waist and rests his head against his shoulder, his scarf soft against his cheek. Buying him that was another one of his better ideas. “Go ahead, open it now.”
Takumi smiles, wide and unrestrained. He slowly slides off the ribbon, letting it drop on the blanket between them. He pulls off the top and peers inside. “Oh!”
“Do you like them?” Keisuke grins again, smug.
“There are so many flavors. I didn’t even know chocolate came in all of these.” Takumi reaches in and pulls out a small slice of cake. “And more strawberry shortcake?”
“Well, I had to surprise you with it somehow.” Keisuke is still grinning and Takumi is fighting the one pulling at his lips. “You can’t say that you expect that.”
“No, I didn’t,” Takumi says while laughing.
Keisuke loves that sound.
Keisuke reaches over and swipes some of the frosting, making sure to dip it in the syrup oozing from the filling. “Hey!” Takumi protests halfheartedly. “Aren’t you supposed to let me have the first taste?”
Keisuke licks off the frosting without breaking eye contact. “You should’ve been faster.”
Takumi narrows his eyes. The smile he was fighting turns into a smirk.
He leans forward and presses a deep kiss against his lips.
The sun breaks over the horizon, casting the world in a soft glow.