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It starts with an impromptu visit to Leblanc.
Normally, Ryuji texts before he heads over just in case Akira is busy. Most nights he is, otherwise they’ll already be hanging out. Except this time it’s an emergency because Ryuji has a VERY important English assignment due tomorrow and English is his worst subject and his best friend revealed himself as an actual genius after last semester’s exam results. Like, placed #1 in every single subject type of genius. It doesn’t matter what Ryuji placed, that’s between himself, God, and his mother.
So he didn’t send his best friend the customary “hey, I’m gonna be coming over dude please help me” text but given the circumstances he can be forgiven because it’s a legit emergency. Also, if he’s going to consistently look like an idiot compared to Akira he can at least reap the benefits of being best friends with the world’s most impressive 17 year old. Worst case scenario, Akira isn’t home and Ryuji has to loiter around for a couple of hours while he waits. Sojiro has been easier on the group ever since they rescued Futaba from her palace anyways.
The door flies open as he pushes his way in, almost falling over himself in his rush to get inside. Part of him is expecting for it to just be Sojiro working behind the counter, with maybe the 1 or two customers. What he encounters is much worse.
Sitting there, playing chess as though there’s absolutely nothing strange going on, is Akira and Goro Akechi. The asshole detective who spends all day on TV complaining about the Phantom Thieves and vowing to catch them. They had run into him back at the tv station ages ago, after he had the audacity to ask Akira what he’d think if the Phantom Thieves changed Ryuji’s heart (which was total bullshit by the way). Ryuji had no idea that Akira had apparently been hanging out with him ever since.
Of course, he’s probably jumping to conclusions. After all, he rants about the so called Detective Prince at least once a week and Akira has never mentioned being friends with the guy. And Ryuji had already sort of declared the guy his mortal enemy and if you’re chess buddies with your best buddies’ mortal enemy that’s something you let them know, you know? So maybe this is the first time and Akira just doesn’t want to seem suspicious. That makes the most sense.
“Oh, hey Ryuji,” Akira breaks the silence after a solid ten seconds of Ryuji just staring at the two. Akechi gazes back at him with a curious look on his face.
Ryuji swallows his pride and his confusion and steps towards the pair, “Hey dude.”
The rest of Leblanc is completely empty, and clean. Sojiro must’ve closed early today cause business was slow. Except, if Leblanc is closed then why (and how) is Akechi here? Sure, the detective coming in while the shop is open and Akira playing a game out curtesy with the guy makes sense but only friends hang out in the shop when it’s closed.
“Did I miss a text?” Akira smiles apologetically, “I left my phone upstairs.”
“Oh, no,” Ryuji shakes his head, feeling a blush rise to his cheeks, “I, um, didn’t text. I have an English emergency and I just sort of rushed over. Sorry, you’re busy. I can go back home, it’s not that big of a deal.”
Akira opens his mouth but Akechi quickly cuts him off, “No need, Sakamoto-san. We just finished our game, and I should probably be going anyways. Thank you for the match, Kurusu-kun.”
With that, the detective prince gracefully gathers his briefcase and exits the shop. There’s a few moments of silence while Ryuji attempts to work up the courage to ask what the hell is going on and why their mortal enemy is sitting in Leblanc like it’s no big deal. In the end he’s not successful, feeling too embarrassed and lost to find the words to confront him.
Plus, how could he when Akira gives him that smile and asks, “So, what do you need help with?”
The two of them do Ryuji’s English homework and pretend like everything is completely normal. Yet the encounter sticks to Ryuji’s mind over the next few days. Every single time he closes his eyes he sees the two of them sitting there, playing chess and smiling at each other softly. Though it never happened in reality, sometimes Ryuji watches Akechi reach across the table and take Akira’s hand, or hold his cheek, or lean in slowly. That only happens at night, and Ryuji always wakes up in a cold sweat before anything happens.
Still, he’s tired of being tired and his performance in the Metaverse is beginning to get sloppy so he decides that he has no choice but to ask Akira about it. They’re best friends anyways, so there shouldn’t be anything in the world Ryuji is scared to ask him.
The moment finally comes one day at lunch when they’re up on the roof. Ann is nowhere to be seen, probably somewhere quiet where she can talk to Shiho on the phone, and Morgana is “taking a walk”.
“So,” he spits the words out quickly so he doesn’t have a chance to back out, “what was up with Akechi at Leblanc?”
“Oh,” that smile returns, it’s one that’s so small and heartbreaking because it’s reserved for Ryuji exclusively, different from the usual ones full of false confidence and grandiose, “you know the saying, right? Keep your friends close, and you enemies closer."
That answers everything, and nothing at all. Ryuji has so many questions, so many pressing thoughts that he knows will continue to keep him awake at night. But the phrasing strikes a painful cord deep within him.
He jokes instead of asking any of those questions, something to fight off the way his knees feel shakeyand his stomach fills with nausea, “But keep your best pal closest, right?”
The look Akira gives him in response is surprised, and he’s suddenly incredibly grateful that he waited until they were completely alone to have this conversation. There’s something in the air that neither of them are addressing, but Ryuji is lost even trying to figure out what it is.
“Of course,” Akira nods after a beat. A pause so small that anyone who hadn’t allowed their entire soul to be consumed by him wouldn’t notice. Then, “Our place is beside each other, right?”
Finally, for the first time in days Ryuji has a moment of calm. Akira has exercised his strange ability to turn Ryuji into goo, and quoted his own words back to him in one go. How could he feel anything but secure in that moment?
Yet, that moment eventually passes.
He still worries.
Thankfully, there’s enough going on to ignore the lingering dread he feels. Between Phantom Thief business and homework all of them stay busy, not as busy as Akira of course but still enough that Ryuji barely has any time to play video games much less worry about what his best pal is doing. He still sees them sometimes when he closes his eyes but after the reassurance he gets better and pushing it away. It’s better to pretend that everything is still normal and he doesn’t know that Akira and Akechi are hanging out at least semi regularly. He still goes on his weekly Akechi rants and Akira never interrupts or defends the detective prince. In those moments he feels somewhat vindicated; he knows that if Akechi dared talk poorly of Ryuji around his best friend that he would stick up for him.
Or would he? A cruel voice in the back of his head whispers.
Okumura dies. The Phantom Thieves get blamed. Akechi goes from hated by the public to everyone’s favourite, again. It pisses Ryuji off in ways he can’t begin to articulate because that would expose Akira’s secret, and he could never do that to him. Then Akechi is the #1 pick for the Guest of Honour at the School Festival, and suddenly Ryuji has no control over anything.
At first Makoto decides it’s too dangerous, which is correct, but then the next day she suddenly gets the idea that inviting him would be a good opportunity to ask him questions about the interrogation. Makoto got the idea from one of his interviews that he could be a potential ally, which is total BS if you ask Ryuji, but no one does. He tries to say there’s no way they could contact him anyways, hoping that Akira will either come out with the information that they’re best buddies so Makoto can tell him what a bad idea it is, but instead Futaba it was easy to find through hacking Sae’s PC. Akira stays silent through all of this, apparently willing to let the other thieves jump through hoops rather than use his apparent friendship with the guy.
That pisses Ryuji off even more.
Through all of that Ryuji gains an unexpected ally: Mona. The cat is the one who notices the pancake comment, and he’s the one who relays it to the rest of the thieves. An ugly part of Ryuji wonders if Akira would have told them otherwise. An uglier part wonders if Akira somehow lead Akechi to the group so that they would be forced to accept him.
All of that flies out the window when Futaba bugs his phone and they find out the truth: Akechi wants to kill Akira. They knew they couldn’t trust him but this is an entirely different level of evil. The reaction Ryuji has to the recording is unlike anything he’s ever been through, and for the first time since Kamoshida he considers hurting someone else. The rage is all consuming.
Yet nothing changes. In fact, some could say it escalates.
The two of them exchange “secret” glances at meetings, they hover around each other in the Metaverse. There are moments where Ryuji feels invisible with the rest of the thieves as the world narrows to only Akira and Akechi.
Keep your enemies closer.
It’s almost not a surprise when Ryuji enters Leblanc one day for a meeting and finds them alone in a booth. Kissing. The all encompassing horror that fills his body feels more like something awful has been confirmed, not revealed. Akechi, presumably hearing the door, pulls away and looks right at him. A smirk spreads over his features, and he winks.
Ryuji doesn’t wait for Akira to turn his head, doesn’t want to see whatever reaction his leader will have. He turns around and runs out the door, turns the corner down the alley, and empties his stomach of all the ramen he had for lunch.
Like most things concerning Akechi, he never brings it up to Akira. He never brings it up to anyone because no matter how he feels he could never betray his best friend that way. They just move forward like it didn’t happen, like it’s not lingering in the air and souring every single conversation they have.
On the most difficult days, when he’s feeling the most useless and the most replaced, he wonders what it would be like to speak his mind. If he could just gather up the courage to grab Akechi by the shoulders and shake him. Would his tears or his frustration make a difference? He already knows the answer, but he’d rather give himself the small mercy of pretending it could go either way.
None of the thieves know about the change in their relationship, or at least that’s what Ryuji assumes. It would probably be difficult for Akira to keep a secret that big from Morgana, but there was also no chance the cat would be able to keep his mouth shut. As Akira’s schedule continues to fill up more and more than it ever has due to all the new responsibilities he keeps taking on, Ryuji wonders if this is the only way he’ll be able to feel close to Akira anymore. Through secrets and silent understandings he was never supposed to be part of.
Of course it makes him bitter, so the snide comments grow and grow until one day Ann has to take him aside and firmly tell him to stop being such a dick. They all hate Akechi, but they all have to pretend they don’t so that his plan won’t change and they’ll actually have a shot at beating him.
Ryuji’s throat burns as he is forced to shove down every bitter word that threatens to force its way out. Akira doesn’t hate him. Akira probably cares about him more than he cares about the rest of us. How can we be sure that he hasn’t already sold us out, and they aren’t the ones playing pretend?
It’s irrational, he knows. He knows he has to trust Akira above anything or anyone else because if he starts questioning him, he’ll never be able to stop. So he continues to trust his leader but every night he lies in his bed and he wonders if they’re together. If they’re alone. If Morgana has “snuck out for a walk around the neighbourhood”. He wonders if they’re sitting firmly on the bench and the desk chair (like Ryuji and Akira do every time he hangs out there) or if they’re sitting together on the bed.
Sometimes he picks his phone off his fightable and opens up Akira’s contact. He stares at it, imagining what would happen if he called him. Would he pick up? What if he was alone, then would Ryuji feel guilty or relieved? Although there were honestly a number of people that Akira could be spending time with anyways, so there was a likelihood he would be with someone other than Akechi. Then Ryuji would definitely feel guilty (and probably a little jealous because the days that Ryuji got to spend time alone with his best friend were becoming more and more rare).
Deep down, Ryuji knows he sort of wants Akira to be with Akechi. He knows this, because that is what he fantasizes about the most. His eyes slip shut and he thinks about Akira answering the phone, and hearing Akechi in the background. What if he confronted him? He might finally find the courage to say everything that’s been on his mind, and force Akira to confront this tension that’s built up between them.
Or what if the detective prince himself answered the phone? Ryuji wouldn’t have to worry about the plan anymore because he’d have every justifiable reason to rip into the pretty faced demon. Could he finally make the other boy snap and reveal his true self, his true anger? And how would Akira react? Whose side would he take?
But he’ll never get the answers to those questions because he never calls.
Every night he ends up closing his phone, sets back on his night table, and tries desperately to sleep. Most nights he’s up until all hours tossing and turning and hating himself.
Finally, everything comes to a climax on November 19th. After they defeat Sae’s shadow, Akechi and Joker seem to have a moment. Ryuji feels sick watching it, beginning to feel a little insane because how was everyone missing this? Thankfully, the entirety of Japan’s police force showing up breaks up the mood and they all go into action mode. Everyone plays their roles perfectly, even Ryuji as he cheerfully hands the second most important person in his life over to his worst enemy. It takes everything not to take out his gun and shoot Akechi right there. When he hands the “treasure” over, there’s a moment where they both hold the briefcase and look in each other’s eyes. Ryuji hopes that Akira can feel everything that he’s unable to say, that he can somehow tell just how much Ryuji feels for him.
After that it’s a blur. They split up and they escape, as planned. They agree to go along with business as usual, as planned. They basically end the Phantom Thieves and leave the group chat, as planned. Ryuji is home by 8 o’clock and has a nice evening snack with his mother. From the outside, this is not a very significant day in Ryuji’s life. Internally, Ryuji feels as though he is barely holding it together. Every being inside him needs to believe that the plan will work. If for even a single moment he loses faith in the plan then everything will fall apart and he will probably never fully recover.
“Please,” he whispers late at night, to anyone in particular. It’s the only thing he’s willing to give himself, the only small moment where he’s allowed to face reality.
There’s no school the next day, but Ryuji can’t stay home. He’s much too reckless so instead he paces around Shibuya. The sky is dark by the time he hears the news, conveniently while he’s walking by an electronics store with a row of TVs on display in the window. There’s a moment of shock while he registers that the news anchor just announced Akira’s death, but there’s something so wrong about that reality that it doesn’t settle. It only takes a moment before Ryuji is smirking triumphantly and affirming that they really did it, because of course Akira is alive. The world hasn’t shifted, it didn’t so much as stutter so there is no chance that Akira Kurusu is dead. If Akira had died, Ryuji would just know. But the birds are still chirping and the colours flashing behind the glass are still just as bright as ever so Akira has to be alive.
It’s another 24 hours until he’s sitting in Leblanc. This means he has to spend the entire day at school, a task nearly impossible to complete. The day has been so stressful that he can’t help himself when Akira enters, and he immediately rushes to hug him. In the moment he doesn’t realize that Akira winces at their hug, but a couple hours into the night he sees the limp, and under the shine of the light he sees the foundation covering Akira’s face.
Sojira kicks them all out, but Ryuji lingers around Yongen-Jaya. Something inside him is forcing him to stay, in much the same way that he slept in his mom’s bed for weeks after his dad finally left. Rationally, he knows there’s nothing he can really to protect Akira in the same way he couldn’t protect his mom, but just being close gives him a sense of control.
Just as he’s mustering up the willpower to take the last train, he gets a call from Akira.
Akira doesn’t call him, ever. If he needs anything he’ll text, but not call. Every phone conversation has been initiated by Ryuji, and while he’s never thought too hard about it before seeing his phone light up with Akira’s contact is jarring. It sets off sirens.
“Hello,” Ryuji answers quickly, not letting it ring more than twice.
There’s a pause before Akira answers, and when he does it sounds small, “Hi.”
“What’s up, dude?”
“I was just wondering if we could talk.”
That is also new.
“For sure,” Ryuji responds immediately. There’s another pause, so he quickly follows up before he can think too hard about it, “Actually, um. I’m still in Yongen-Jaya. So, um, if you’re feeling it I can head to Leblanc. But no stress if you just want to talk on the phone! That’s totally cool too.”
Akira lets out a breath that Ryuji optimistically believes signals relief, “That would be great, yeah.”
“Cool. Cool. I’ll be over in five.”
“Just let yourself in.”
While he said five, it ends up being more like two. He’s lucky that Yongen-Jaya is almost empty at night because he would surely attract attention running through the streets if anyone was around to see. There’s this desperation seeping into his bones that lasts until he makes his way through Leblanc’s door and up the stairs to the attic, until he sees Akira curled up on his bed.
“Hey.”
Akira doesn’t react, not even a twitch. Ryuji scans the room and realizes that Morgana isn’t there, and there’s a brief moment where he wonders what the hell Akira could’ve possibly said to the cat to get him to leave. That quickly falls way when he looks back at his best friend.
“‘Kira,” he mumbles because he has nothing else to say. One, two, three steps to the bed and he’s taking Akira into his arms.
No more words are spoken for a long while. Ryuji has no idea what he would even say and Akira seems content to sit silently, huddled together. The cruel voice in the back of Ryuji’s head is quiet for once, and Ryuji can’t help but feel like things are right for the first time in months.
The, Akira pulls away and finally speaks.
“I just,” he starts, and then pauses. He takes a few breaths and visibly forces himself to continue, “I just. I know it’s stupid, okay, I understand that it’s ridiculous but I thought. I thought he wouldn’t be able to do it. I thought he-. We-. How heartless do you have to be?”
Akira has tears in his eyes. Akira is crying. Akira sounds unsure. Akira is vulnerable. Perhaps it shouldn’t be hocking, but it is. It causes Ryuji to swallow his feelings, every vile thought he’s ever had about Akechi and everything screaming inside him to agree and condemn the boy. Instead he offers what little solace he has and tells the truth, “I don’t think he’s heartless. I think he’s broken, and he doesn’t know what love is supposed to be. I think it scares him. How easy it is to fall in love with you.”
When Akira looks at him Ryuji feels just as exposed and vulnerable as his best friend looks, like he’s said too much and given everything away. It’s impossible to tell, though, because of instead of responding Akira pulls him back into their hug and cries into his neck.
Morgana returns sometime after Akira stops crying, and Ryuji spends the night curled up with both of them in bed. Shujin calls his mom when he doesn’t show up the next day but he promises her that a friend needed him and it was really important. Thankfully, she’s not too upset but he promises her he won’t be skipping anymore school. The worry in her eyes reminds him of before the Phantom Thieves, and he tells himself he won’t do that to her again.
In some ways Ryuji has the easiest time playing pretend at school. Everyone knows him and Akira are best friends so he’s allowed to be as mopey as he wants and no one suspects a thing; they just think he’s upset because he’s back to being alone. Ann gets the same pass so they spend lunches on the roof just the two of them. It’s weird, but nice. In some ways things feel much simpler when it’s just him and Ann, almost like they’re in middle school again.
One thing that changes a lot is how clingy Akira is. Ryuji finds himself having to ignore the boy’s texts while in class, and everyday after school he makes his way over to Leblanc so the two can spend time together. He knows that Akira is able to go out in disguise, but still his best friend seems to only want to spend time with Ryuji in the attic.
That ugly bitter part of his brain makes an appearance sometimes to question if he’s simply become a replacement. If the one person Akira actually wants to see needs to believe he’s dead so instead he calls Ryuji as the second best thing. It’s a thought he doesn’t like to dwell on.
It’s the days spent exploring Shido’s cruise ship that are his favourite. Losing himself in Phantom Thief business has been a constant this past year and it stays just as exhilarating. When they’re fighting shadows he doesn’t need to wonder whether his place is really beside Akira because it just clicks into place. As they pass the baton back and forth and take down high level shadows with ease it feels like they were made for each other.
Then the engine room happens, and Akechi dies.
Akira can’t look at anyone on their way out. No one questions it, they all know how complicated the two’s relationship is (even if only Ryuji knows how deep it goes). Once they’re back in front of the diet building Akira doesn’t waste any time in putting Morgana back in his back and heading out. Ryuji almost follows him, but decides it’s better not to.
SKULL: Hey man. Want me to come over?
Read 20:17
They find the treasure on the next day, and steal it the day after. Akira doesn’t really talk to anyone throughout the whole thing (unless it’s to bark orders in battle). Defeating Shido’s shadow feels hollow, not like they’ve won anything at all.
But of course the ship starts to sink. And what is Ryuji supposed to do? He sees the lifeboat hanging there above the ocean and he sees his friends on the ship and he knows that if they can’t get to it they’re all going to die. He does what he’s done his entire life and he runs as fast as he can. The ache in his knee disappears as he bounds up the steel scaffolding and against all odds he makes it! His friends are safe, Akira is safe. And Ryuji saved them all. He can’t even feel himself smile but he knows he is as he gives everyone a huge thumbs up.
Boom.
Ryuji hears the explosion before he sees it and then nothing. The next thing he knows he’s waking up on the grass near the diet building. Everything hurts, but he’s alive and he knows his friends made it to the boat so he brushes that aside and rushes to see them.
Everyone’s crying. It makes his heart drop, but he counts the heads and he sees that there’s no one missing. It’s okay then, if they’re all alive then everything will be okay. To ease the tension he cracks a joke about how ugly their crying faces are, but apparently that’s the worst thing to say.
He finds himself alone on the grass in front of the diet building again, but this time it’s his friends who put him there. Everything is hurting even more now but at least he’s not dead and he has no obligation to get up anymore. So he lays there.
Some time passes (it could be hours or seconds, he feels so disconnected from everything that it feels impossible to tell) before he hears footsteps. A pale hand enters his vision, almost glowing in the dark.
Of course it’s Akira.
“I’m sorry,” he says.
“I probably deserved it.”
Akira cuts him off immediately, “No. You didn’t deserve it. Stop being so self sacrificial.”
“I’m not being self sacrificial,” Ryuji sighs as he sits up. The movement makes his entire body ache, and he must show it because Akira wraps an arm around his shoulders to help him.
“I just watched you blow up for us.”
“I didn’t blow up! I’m still here, aren’t I?”
“Yeah. You’re still here."
The rest of the walk back to Leblanc is spent in silence. Several times Ryuji tries to think of something to say but ends up falling short. Akira doesn’t seem angry, but things have been off since the engine room and Ryuji has been awful about putting his foot in his mouth lately so he decides to just stay quiet. At least until they reach Leblanc.
The coffee shop has already been closed for the night when they get back to Yongen-Jaya, which is nice because that means Akira can make them hot chocolate. Hot chocolate instead of coffee because Ryuji can't stand the bitter drink and Akira is always thoughtful like that.
Their actions are normal but the atmosphere is anything but. There’s tension lining Akira’s shoulders as he moves around Leblanc’s kitchen and neither of them seem to want to break the looming silence. Akechi is gone but he’s changed their relationship so deeply that Ryuji worries they’ll never regain what they had before. The comfort and ease that used to come from being around Akira has disappeared and he’s just so tired.
“Akira,” Ryuji whispers while the other boy places a mug in front of him, “Can we talk?”
A sigh leaves the other boy’s lips and he nods, “Yeah. I think we should. Let’s do it in the attic, though.”
That makes sense to Ryuji so the two make their way upstairs. Akira places his mug on his desk so Ryuji follows suit and the two end up sitting together on his bed.
“Thank you,” Akira starts before Ryuji has a chance to, “For not telling anyone about Akechi. And for not hating me for it.”
“Dude,” he shakes his head. “I could never hate you. Even if you have awful taste.”
That draws out a small laugh, “Never?”
“Of course!”
“Promise?” Akira is looking at him seriously now. So seriously that it sets off alarm bells in Ryuji’s head.
He doesn’t waste time in gently grabbing Akira’s hand and agreeing sincerely, “I promise. It’s you and I no matter what.”
Akira nods, looking back at him with an odd expression. Ryuji opens his mouth to ask why he’s asking but he’s cut off by Akira kissing him.
Akira kissing him.
Akira is kissing him.
By the time his brain catches up he’s already kissing him back. It’s messy and full of desperation but also so much feeling. His free hand reaches up and he twists his fingers into Akira’s hair, who responds by moving closer and using his free hand to grab his shoulder. The only thing running through his head is: holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit.
When they finally break for air Ryuji rests his forehead against Akira and they stay there, both panting lightly. The moment should be amazing, Ryuji should be feeling completely over the moon. But this ugly feeling twists up inside of him and he’s so tired of ignoring his doubts that he just speaks.
“Is it because he’s gone?”
The question isn’t asked with any malice, or any emotion at all really.
“NO! It’s-“ Akira is frantic, immediately with an expression as though Ryuji had stabbed him. He’s stumbling over his words as he hurries to get them out, “God Ryuji. This is awful and it’s terrible, I know that, and I know I’m being selfish but I-. I- when we left the engine room I was crushed Ryuji. I thought it was the worst thing that could happen than me, even worse than the interrogation room or the night I got arrested or any moment from the past year. But then today, god today we woke up on in front of the Diet Building without you, and we thought you were gone. And it felt like my soul had been ripped from my body.” Akira is crying now but he finishes with, “I realized that I can’t live without you Ryuji. God, I’ve been so stupid. And blind. How could I miss this?"
And in that moment, Ryuji Sakamoto is given everything he wants on a silver platter. But he can’t accept it.
It’s sounds so sweet, so perfect. It’s everything Ryuji has dreamed of hearing and it’s everything he thought he wanted, but it’s not enough. No, Ryuji’s stomach is sinking because as much as he wants to take everything Akira is saying at face value and fall into his arms he knows that he can’t. It’s too soon and too messy, and even if Akira has had some big realization he’s still going to need time. And Ryuji can’t ruin the most important relationship in his life because he was impatient.
“I can’t live without you either,” he chokes out first because it’s the most important thing, “And I care about you so much, ‘Kira. You’re- you’re everything.” He takes a shaky breath, “But we can’t. Not now, not right after-. You have to be ready, we both have to be ready. You see that, right? We’re forever, and it’s not worth risking that.”
The expression on Akira’s face almost makes Ryuji change his mind, but he can’t. Akira doesn’t have it in him to be the strong one right now so it has be to Ryuji.
“I promise, I mean it ‘Yuji. I wouldn’t- I wouldn’t do that to you. I-.”
“I know. I know that. But we’re both really hurt and fucked up, and. And I need my best friend,” he moves his hand to hold Akira’s cheek, “Why don’t we wait until after all of this shit with Shido is done, okay? Everything will be less raw and we’ll be able to do this right.”
“Since when are you the responsible one?” Akira frowns softly, though it looks more like a pout to Ryuji. It awakens a strong urge to kiss him.
“I’m always responsible,” he responds while shaking his head and then reaches in to peck his lips. Akira’s cheeks turn a little pink while his frown deepens even more.
He sighs softly, “Okay. We’ll wait until Shido’s heart has changed and all of this is over. Then we’ll see what comes next.”
It’s an agreement for the future, and even if it feels difficult both of them know that it’s for the best. Besides, Shido should have his heart changed by the end of December so it’ll just be a small amount of time for them to finish the semester and be completely done with the Phantom Thieves before complicating everything else. It makes sense, it’s a solid plan. Even if it ends up getting extended because of course they have to fight a god, once Yaldaboath is defeated they both look at each other and know that it’s finally over. So they can look towards a new beginning for them.
In the streets of Shibuya, just before Akira can text Ryuji and ask him to spend Christmas Eve together, Sae asks him to turn himself in. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Akechi appears.