Chapter Text
And you're singing the songs, thinking this is the life
And you wake up in the morning and your head feels twice the size
Where you gonna go, where you gonna go, where you gonna sleep tonight?
——
Akito doesn’t quite remember how he got here, laying on the floor of the Shiraishi living room, his best friend's arm gently slung around his waist.
Sure, he remembers An inviting him and the others out to a party. He remembers taking the first drink handed to him and throwing it back as fast as he could; ignoring the quiet look of concern that Toya gave him; or the look from Kohane that seemed like a combination of shock and awe.
He remembers finding the drink table shortly after. Things get blurrier after he encounters the table and pours some sort of concoction for himself.
He remembers stumbling out onto a balcony, and heaving over the edge -where had Toya gone off to?- only to be greeted by a scandalized gasp.
“Is that theee Akito Shinonome?”
“…Mizuki.” He looked over at them, sitting on a chair, something resting between her fingers.
“I didn’t take you for much of a partier, if I’m being honest,” she took a drag -it was a joint, he realized a little too late. “Does Ena know you’re here?”
“Does she know you’re here?”
“We were supposed to go together,” Mizuki pouts, “but she canceled last minute to work on something. I figured it could be fun without her, so I came anyway.”
Akito dry heaves again, before spitting over the edge and sitting in a chair across from Mizuki. He's hot. When did it get this hot out?
“And?” The world around him is spinning more than he’s used to.
Mizuki takes another drag. “And… what?”
“Is it as fun without her?” There's a bit of sarcasm in his voice, as much as he can muster, considering he’s one bad jostle away from throwing up his stomach's contents all over his shoes.
They shrug. “It's alright. An’s here. We talked a little bit, but she ran off somewhere." She takes another puff before holding the joint out to Akito. He hesitates, as if the half-smoked joint is going to bite him.
“Are you going to tell Ena?” he asks, rougher than intended.
“Not if you don’t.”
He hesitates another second before taking the joint, as if An is going to pop out and scold him and say he's going to ruin his voice (though Akito doesn't think one joint is going to render him unable to sing) before taking the joint.
He puts the joint to his lips and inhales deeply. The smoke hits the back of his throat, filling his lungs and burning as it settles in the bottom of his chest. He begins coughing almost instantly, and the nausea that’s been slowly building over the course of the night spills over.
With a stunning display of coordination for someone as drunk as he is, Akito picks himself up and leans over the edge of the balcony again, throwing up alcohol and the remains of the dinner he’d had at Weekend Garage earlier.
Shaking as he pulls himself back from the edge, he drops onto his chair again. Mizuki hands him a bottle of water.
Akito drains half of the bottle in one go, breathing heavily. He doesn’t know when he dropped the joint, but Mizuki has already begun lighting another one.
“I didn't take you for a stoner.” His voice is hoarse.
“I'm not. this one’s for you. I figured you were going to hurl sooner or later, so.” They hand the newly lit joint to Akito.
He takes it, but hesitates again.
“It’s not going to bite you, you know.” Mizuki says flatly.
Akito shoots her a look that would be a lot more intimidating if he were sober, and takes a massive drag off the joint.
His ribs are screaming at him as he coughs, but his binder is very much not at the forefront of his mind right now.
He doesn't think he can handle another hit right now, so he looks up at the sky and closes his eyes, joint slowly burning out in his fingertips.
When he tips his head back down and opens his eyes, Mizuki is staring at him.
“What?”
“It's kind of funny. You and Ena look so different.” They think for a second. “You have the same nose. I think you’d look weird with brown hair, though.”
Akito isn’t sure how to respond to that, so he just takes another drag.
“It's not a bad thing, I don't think. It’s just kinda funny.” Mizuki sticks her tongue out. “You’re not my type, so don’t get any ideas, alright?”
Akito looks at them funny. His head feels light. “My sister's friends don’t exactly fall into ‘my type’, either.”
Mizuki looks like they’re holding back a comment, but they just give Akito a sneaky grin and snatch the joint out of his hand.
“Well. If you’re not going to finish this, I’m taking it back.” Mizuki takes one last drag off the joint, before putting it out on the back of her lighter, and storing it away in a little container, lined with what appears to be more joints, and decorated with a baby pink bow. Akito snorts a little, stifling a laugh.
Mizuki pouts. “What's so funny?”
“I don't know. I just think it’s fitting.” He gestures to the container. “The bow.”
“Thank you! I decorated it myself.” Mizuki says, snapping the container shut and putting it in her bag.
“I can tell.” He replies, but there’s no real bite to it.
A silence falls over the balcony. Akito and Mizuki sit under the stars for a while, the passage of time seemingly dwelling to a calm halt. Akito thinks it’s nice. The closest he ever seems to get to feeling like this is studying with Toya (though Toya does most of the studying) in the SEKAI, with the smell of coffee in the air, and the gentle sound of Meiko’s humming.
His brain feels foggy, but not like it does after he exits the SEKAI, or sleeps in a little too late. Usually leaving the cafe and the virtual singers behind makes his brain feel like someone has stuffed cotton in it. This feels warm, and light, like the sunset after a rain.
In his haze, Akito lazily wonders where Toya is. He feels kind of bad for leaving him, since An and Kohane have probably disappeared together by now. That, or they’re making googly eyes at each other, while Toya says nothing because he’s too polite to do so.
Akito decides he should probably reunite with the rest of his group and stumbles to his feet. Mizuki opens her eyes -when had she closed them, he wonders- and looks at him.
“Leaving?” They ask, sounding just a little disappointed.
Akito nods. “Yeah. Going to find the others.” His mouth feels dry, and speaking is a little weird.
Mizuki nods. “Alright. have a nice night, little brother ,” she adds playfully at the end.
Akito just rolls his eyes, but wishes them good night as he stumbles back through the door.
The party is overwhelming, compared to the calm of the balcony. The lights are low, aside from some sort of color changing LED’s, emanating from an unknown source. The music makes his head hurt a little bit, and he can’t quite recognize the song. Akito scans the crowd, trying to find any sign of the rest of his group, either Toya or the girls.
He's mostly looking for Toya, since he’s the tallest and easiest to spot. Akito could pick Toya out from miles away. Except for tonight. Everyone is kind of blurry as he stumbles through the crowd. He hits his leg on the drink table, nearly knocking it over. He blinks, taking a second to process what it was he’d run into, before grabbing a cup and filling it with some mystery alcohol and coke. He doesn’t chug this one though, simply sipping on it, as he tumbles through the crowd.
Eventually, he gets tired of sloshing drink all over his hand and wrist, and decides to toss it back anyways, and the haze settles back in over his brain again.
The next thing he remembers is smacking his head on a wall and tumbling backwards. He doesn’t recognize this specific area of the house. He assumes he took a turn or something, looking for the others. He sits there, attempting to remember what it was he was doing.
“Is this where you wandered off to?” a voice chastises above him. He looks up. An is staring down at him, hands on her hips. Kohane is standing behind her, looking bewildered.
Akito shrugs. “I kinda just ended up here.” He tries to stop himself from slurring, but fails.
“Oh my god. You’re drunk, aren’t you?"
“No,” Akito lies.
And pinches the bridge of her nose. “Do you know where Toya is at least?”
Akito shakes his head dumbly. An sighs, holding her hand out and helping Akito stumble to his feet.
“Can you walk? ‘Cause I’m sure as hell not gonna carry you.” An asks. He nods. “Good. We’re finding Toya and leaving.”
She gives Akito no chance to argue. She drags him through the crowd, Kohane jogging a little to keep up.
He remembers stumbling into people, and Kohane asking him why he smelled kind of funny.
He remembers them finding Toya leaning against a wall, face neutral as a girl leans against the wall, attempting to flirt, but hitting a dead end.
He remembers An practically throwing him at Toya, who catches him easily. The girl beside him looks confused. So does Toya.
An says something to the girl beside them, but Akito doesn’t register it. He's too busy staring at his best friend. The world seems to fall silent, and despite his blurred vision earlier, it’s like every aspect of his partner has been heightened. Has Toya always been this pretty? Akito’s face feels warm, and thinks he could spend the rest of his life staring at him like this. He's very glad Toya has been more focused on whatever conversation was happening with An and Kohane. He doesn’t know if he’d be able to continue the group if Toya had noticed.
He’s brutally snapped out of his daydream by someone knocking him on the head. Akito realizes he’s been staring, and a sinking feeling of realization and shame sinks over him. He feels nauseated again.
Deciding to deal with this particular revelation another day, he whips around. “What?”
“I said, we‘re leaving.” An seems annoyed, but Akito can’t seem to tell if she’s annoyed at him or something else.
“Where are we going?” Kohane pipes up.
An didn't seem to have gotten that far.
“Can we go to yours, Shiraishi?” Toya suggests, and Akito lets out a strangled noise. “I don’t think my parents or Akito’s would be particularly fond if we showed up like this, and-“
“My dad probably wouldn’t let you guys stay over. An would be fine, but…” Kohane cuts in. Toya nods.
“You guys are probably right. I'll call my dad once we’re on the way. Do you think you can handle him on your own, Toya?”
“I think I can.” Toya adjusts Akito, slinging one of his arms across his shoulders. Akito’s brain feels like it’s going to explode, but he doesn’t know if it’s intoxication or something else.
“You guys know I can walk, right?” Akito whines.
“Not like this. I'm not letting you, you’ll fall.” Toya says, as they head out the door.
The outside is cool and damp, compared to the heat of the house. Akito’s brain goes fuzzy again.
He doesn't remember much from the walk home. He remembers An explaining the situation to her dad, and hoping she didn’t have to wake up Ken. He sees Kohane and her quietly intertwine their hands together under the stars.
He remembers breaking away from Toya, and throwing up into a trash can while Toya just rested a hand gently on his back. When he’s done throwing up, Toya helps him back up gently, keeping his hand on Akito’s lower back. His hand stays there as they rejoin the girls.
Toyas hand on his lower back is all he remembers for the rest of the walk to An’s.
Akito stops when they get to the entrance.
An pulls out her keys to unlock the door.
“I can't let Ken see me like this,” he says.
“Akito…” Toya says quietly.
An sighs. “Dude. My dad owns a bar. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“That’s not it.” His throat feels tight.
“Akito, I know you think very highly of Ken, and you don’t want him to see you like this. But he’s the safest option to go to.” Toya’s voice is calm. Akito deflates, and An swings the door open.
Ken greets them as soon as they walk in, a cup of water in one hand. He helps Toya hold Akito steadily as he stumbles out of his shoes. He hands Akito the glass of water, and beckons them all inside.
The others flock in. Akito hangs behind, staring intently at his glass of water.
“Akito.” Ken says quietly. He looks up, but won’t meet Ken’s eyes. “You should drink something.”
“He threw up on the walk over.” Kohane pipes up.
“Don’t drink it too fast then. You’ll throw up again.”
Akito sips at the cup, conceding defeat.
As the water hits his lips, he becomes acutely aware of the sharp, stabbing pain in his ribs. His earlier forgotten binder has returned to the forefront of his mind, and he realizes he can’t stay in it for much longer. He's also not at all prepared to have this conversation tonight -or ever, if he had it his way. Akito feels nauseated again, but he doesn’t think it’s the alcohol this time.
“I think I'm gonna throw up again,” is all he can mutter.
“An, I have some blankets set out in the living room. Can you three get the air mattresses set up? I'm going to take Akito to the bathroom.” Ken gently places his hands on Akito’s shoulders.
An nods, and Ken leads the younger man down the hallway. He opens a door, flicking the light on. He takes the glass of water, and helps Akito sit on the floor in front of the toilet.
Ken sets the glass of water on the counter. “Are you warm at all?”
Akito shrugs. He is, a little bit. He decides to take his hoodie off, struggling to get it over his head. He finally succeeds, but his t-shirt rides up and he feels the air hit his bare skin, right below his binder.
He’s definitely going to throw up now.
He manages to pull his shirt back down, but he’s almost positive it’s too late. His mind races as he dry heaves. There’s physically nothing left for him to throw up, so the nausea lingers
“Akito,” Ken says gently. He doesn’t look up. He can’t. “Has An ever mentioned anything about her mom?”
That's… really not where Akito thought his mentor was going. “Uh.. I don't know. I've never really asked her about hers, though.”
“Can I tell you a secret?”
Akito nods.
“She has one.” Ken says. “But she didn’t give birth to An.” Akito wonders if he had too much of Mizuki’s weed. He looks over at Ken, confused.
“What do you mean?” Akito feels like he’s missing something he should be getting.
Ken doesn’t say anything, but he lifts the front of his shirt up, just enough so Akito can see two matching scars on his chest. They’re old and faded, but he knows what they are.
Something washes over Akito. It’s recognition. It's a sense of he’s like me. He's like me. He feels something well up in his throat. He swallows hard.
“I don't know how long you’ve had that on, but you have to take it off.” Ken’s voice is gentle.
Akito shakes his head, the lump in his throat rising again. it threatens to spill over this time, but he manages to squeak out a small, “I can’t.”
He feels small sitting on the floor. He feels like he did when he was a kid, hiding in Ena’s room while his parents fought, shaking while she soothed him.
He wipes the corner of his eye -when had he started crying?
“You don’t have to tell them tonight.” Ken says. “But they love you, Akito. This won’t change that.”
He stands up. “I'll bring you an old sweater.”
He doesn’t give Akito a choice. Ken exits the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
Akito sighs, before struggling to pull his shirt over his head. His binder takes longer to remove, as halfway through his struggle Ken knocks on the door.
“Akito, let me know when, and I'll throw the sweater in.”
He finally manages to dislodge the binder, almost launching it at the door. “Okay.”
The door opens a crack, and a sweater is lightly thrown in. It lands close to Akito, and he pulls it on.
“I'm good now.” Akito says. Ken re-enters the room.
“How are you feeling?”
“Tired.”
Ken chuckles a little. “I figured. An and the others are all set up.” He helps Akito up, and they make their way to the living room.
In the living room, there are two large air mattresses spread across the floor. On one, An is laying, scrolling on her phone with one hand. Kohane is asleep on her chest, and An’s free arm is wrapped around her.
On the other mattress is Toya. he’s laying straight, overtop of the blankets, ankles crossed. He looks up when they enter.
“Ah, Akito. How are you feeling?”
“Like shit.” Akito mumbles. He's hunched over so his chest is hidden as much as possible.
“I didn't know you even still had that sweater.” An says. “What happened, Akito, miss the toilet?”
“Shut up.” He says, flopping onto the mattress next to Toya. His face hits a pillow.
Ken chuckles. “Do you guys need anything else?”
An shakes her head, yawning. “I think we’re okay. thanks, Dad.”
“Wake me up if you do.” Ken flips a switch, and the lights cut out. “Night!” they hear his footsteps trail off back down the hall.
“I'm gonna sleep now. Akito, if you puke on me in my sleep, I'm banning you from Weekend Garage.” An locks her phone, before turning over and wrapping herself around Kohane.
“Goodnight to you too.” Akito grumbles.
He lays there for a while, face down in the pillow, before Toya breaks the silence, his voice quiet and soothing.
“Akito?”
Akito lifts his head, laying his head on its side. “Hi.” he shuffles, flipping onto his side and bringing his knees to his chest.
“Do you want some blanket?” Toya asks.
Akito gives a half shrug. “I guess.”
Toya pulls the blanket out from under them, and drapes it across his partner. He lays down beside him, pulling the other half of the blanket over him. “Is this okay?”
Akito nods. His eyes have adjusted in the dark by now. He doesn’t sleep yet. He just watches as Toya’s eyes gently flicker closed. He can see almost every detail of his partner's face. Akito gets lost, studying as many details as he can- the curve of his lips, the shape of his nose, the beauty mark under his eye. He doesn’t register that Toya has opened his eyes until he speaks.
“Is everything okay?” There’s concern about his voice.
“Yeah.” Akito replies. He doesn’t think before mumbling the next part of his sentence. “Just think you’re pretty, s’all.”
His face heats up, and he looks away, regret very quickly seeping into his bones.
“Oh.” is all Toya says. He hesitates, before shuffling closer. He gently drapes an arm across Akito’s waist.
He thinks his brain is going to explode.
“…Is this alright?” Toya’s voice is laden with something, but Akito is a little too out of it to be able to tell what it is. He swallows.
“Yeah.”
“Okay.” Another minute passes. “You should get some sleep.”
Akito nods, letting his eyes drift shut, before the darkness swallows him whole.
————
Akito is woken up the next morning by a pillow hitting him in the face.
“Morning, sunshine!” An says cheerfully. She’s standing overtop, grinning.
He groans as he rolls to face an. his head is pounding. “Fuck you.” he grumbles. Beside him, Toya shuffles a little closer, arm still around Akito.
“Get up! We've got practice today. Kohane is down waiting for us at Weekend Garage. We’re collecting her and heading to SEKAI!” She doesn’t give him a chance to reply, bouncing out of the living room.
Akito rolls over. Toya’s eyes are open, and he yawns, sleepily. “Morning. How are you feeling?”
“Someone is bashing my head in with a sledgehammer,” he replies.
Toya chuckles. “That's expected. You were very inebriated last night.” He looks away for a second. “What do you remember from last night?”
Akito frowns. He tries to think over the hammering in his head. He remembers Mizuki and the balcony, the walk home, the bathroom and Ken, he remembers telling Toya…
His face heats up. “Nothing.” He's lying, both of them know this; but Toya doesn’t push it.
“That's alright.” He stretches before sitting up. “We should get going before An comes back.”
Akito groans, pulling the blanket over his head. He doesn’t want to get up. He wants to continue to lay, his partner draped across him. Toya sets something beside him.
“Ken left your clothes on the edge of the mattress. I'll meet you down at the cafe, alright?”
“Fine.” Akito concedes defeat. He pulls the blanket down from over his head, and sits up. Toya hasn’t left yet, and he chuckles a little.
“What?” Akito asks, running a hand through his hair.
“Nothing.” Toya says, face turning red. “You've just got some bad bed head. It’s…”
“It’s what?”
Toya shakes his head. “Never mind. I'll see you downstairs, alright?” he slips off, embarrassed.
Akito lays back and groans. He lays there for a few minutes, debating the pros and cons of leaving town forever to avoid ever confronting his feelings for Toya. Eventually he sighs, and sits up. He grabs his clothes and heads back to the bathroom.
Closing the door behind him, he unfolds his clothes. A note falls out.
Akito,
I washed your things up for you. Your secret is safe with me. When you’re ready, they will listen. I promise.
Ken.
Akito smiles, putting the note into his pocket. He takes the old sweater off, and begins the tumultuous process of struggling into his binder. His ribs still hurt a little, but he pulls his shirt and sweater on anyway.
When he makes it down to the cafe, An puts her hand on her hips, but she’s grinning. “There you are! We thought you fell back asleep. I was going to come find you”
“I wish I was still asleep.” Akito mutters, sitting between Kohane and Toya at the bar.
“Good morning! Are you feeling better today, Shinonome?” Kohane says cheerfully.
“No.” Akito slumps over onto the counter.
“He's got a headache.” Toya supplies.
“He was cooked last night, I think I would be surprised if he didn’t have a headache.” An snorts, sitting beside Kohane.
Akito doesn’t have a chance to respond, as Ken sets a bottle of water in front of him.
“Morning, Akito,” he says.
Akito sits up. “Morning, Ken.”
Ken smiles. “How are you feeling today?”
“Okay. Um… thank you.” Akito is acutely aware of the others staring at him. “For letting us stay over, and looking after me, and everything.”
“It's nothing. You are welcome anytime, all of you." Ken nods, before heading off to help a customer.
“So you do have manners!” An almost cheers.
“Fuck off.” Akito glares at her
“Shinonome must be feeling better!” Kohane giggles.
Toya smiles too. “We should probably head out, if we’re planning to get some practice in.”
“We should get going then!” An says excitedly.
The trip over to the SEKAI does nothing to help Akito’s headache. The four of them enter the Crase Cafe, sliding into a booth. Akito puts his head down on the table.
“Hello, you four!” Miku greets them cheerfully. Akito winces, as if her voice is a little too loud.
She raises an eyebrow. “Is he okay?”
“We went to a party last night!” Kohane pipes up.
“He got shitfaced.” An says, almost at the same time. Akito flips her off, not raising his head.
“Ah.” Miku says. “Give me one second.” She skips away.
Miku hops back behind the counter. “Hey Meiko.” She draws out the ‘o’ sound.
Meiko comes out from the back, drying her hands on a towel. “Miku, is everything okay?”
Miku just points to the table with the four teenagers. “To quote An: ‘he got shitfaced’.”
“Watch your language. I don't know where the twins are,” Meiko chastises.
Miku rolls her eyes. “They’re not going to die if they hear a curse word, Meiko. They’re not babies.”
Meiko shoots her a look, but she doesn’t say anything else about the topic. Instead she asks a question. “Did you get their orders at least?”
“Shit!”
Miku heads back to collect their orders, while Meiko begins to work on a separate drink for Akito. Miku comes back a few minutes later.
“It's the usuals for An and Toya. Kohane wants to try a white chocolate mocha with whipped cream, caramel drizzle and chocolate chips,” she reports.
“Alright, thanks Miku! Could you get started on those?" Meiko asks. She washes her hands. “I'm going to deliver this.” She holds up a cup with an amber liquid in it.
“Is this your miracle hangover cure?” Miku asks, starting on Kohane’s mocha. “You haven’t made those in a long time.”
“For good reason.” Meiko smiles, a tinge of bitterness to it.
Miku just nods. Meiko heads around the counter, stopping at the table, glass in hand. “Mind if I sit?”
"Meiko!” Kohane squeaks. Her and An shuffle down the seat in the booth, and Meiko joins them.
“Is he asleep?” She indicates to Akito.
An kicks him under the table. He jolts up, glaring.
“What the fuck are you-oh. Hi, Meiko.” His threat falls short when he notices Meiko at the table. She chuckles.
“I heard you had a rough night last night.”
He looks sheepish. “I guess.”
“Drink this. iIt’ll help.” She pushes the glass towards him.
“What is it?” He looks at the glass suspiciously.
“It's her mystery hangover cure.” Miku winks, tray in hand. She doesn’t stick around, though, dropping their drinks off and leaving.
Akito looks at it for another second, before taking a sip. His face sours as soon as he tastes it. “What is in this?”
“That's a secret.” Meiko winks. “But it works. trust me. You get used to the taste after a while.”
“How long is a while?” Akito gags down another sip.
Meiko thinks. “About… three of them?”
It takes a lot of self control to prevent Akito from spitting all over the table. “I have to drink three of these?”
Meiko chuckles. “No, but that was how many it took before I got used to them”
“You’ve had these before?” Kohane asks.
“More times than I'd like to admit. This place wasn’t always a cafe.” She says, a little embarrassed.
“It wasn't?” Kohane pokes at the whipped cream on her mocha.
“It was a bar for quite a long time,” Meiko explains. “But it wasn’t… a very good thing for me to be around, let alone running. I think the SEKAI would’ve been a much… different place, if it weren’t for Luka and Kaito.”
Akito doesn’t say anything else, but he downs the rest of Meiko’s mystery drink.
“I much prefer running the cafe to a bar, though!” Meiko grins. “Now Miku and the twins can come and go as they wish.”
Before anyone can speak, the door opens, and the twins come bounding in, Luka behind them.
“Where's Kaito?” Len almost shrieks.
“We need his help with this part!” Rin is equally as loud as her twin.
Akito winces.
“Where is Kaito, anyways? I haven't seen him all day.” Luka speaks at a much more manageable tone, approaching the table.
“He's in the back. He's recovering.” Miku calls, winking. Meiko ignores her pointedly.
Luka chuckles, but Meiko cuts her off before she can speak. “Luka, why don’t we talk after the kids are gone?”
Luka takes the hint. “Alright. I'll find him myself.”
She trades places with the twins, who seem to teleport to the table.
“Meiko, where’s Kaito? We need his help.” Rin starts.
“Akito, you don’t look so good.” Len comments.
“I'm aware.” Akito replies dryly.
“What's wrong? Are you sick? " Len is clearly concerned, but he’s still almost yelling.
“He's hungover.” Toya explains.
“Oh.” Len draws out the ‘h’ sound, but he drops his volume. “You probably have a headache then, huh?”
Akito nods. “It’s getting better. Thanks, Meiko.”
Meiko winks, before getting up. “You guys came here to practice, correct? Once that headache is gone, you should get started.”
———
“I'm home.” Akito calls. He doesn’t know if Ena is home or not, but he calls out anyway.
“Welcome back. I'm glad you still know where we live.” Ena is in the kitchen. “Where were you last night?”
Akito shrugs. “Out. I ended up at An’s.”
Ena raises an eyebrow. “Sounds like fun.”
“Shut up.” Akito says. “I'm going to my room.”
He doesn’t give her an opportunity to retort back, heading back to his room. He drops his bag on the floor and collapses onto his bed. An went extra hard on practice today, so he’s exhausted. He lays in his bed for a while, debating falling asleep there.
But remembering how many times he’s done that, and how much it hurts after, he sits up. He wrestles himself out of his binder, and throws on the biggest hoodie he owns, before returning to his position sprawled across his bed.
He shuffles up to his pillow, kicking his legs under the blanket. Before Akito can even close his eyes, his phone goes off.
>Toya: Hey.
>Toya: Just wanted to check in. How are you feeling now that practice is over?
Akito yawns, before responding.
>Akito: i’m fucking exhausted man
>Akito: every bone in my body hurts
>Akito: an picked that song specifically to torture me
>Toya: HaHa.
Akito snorts. The way Toya types has always reminded him of a grandpa.
>Toya: I know it might not seem like it, but she was worried about you, too.
>Toya: Kohane asked why you ‘smelled funny’.
>Toya: Apparently, she was unaware what the smell of marijuana was.
>Akito: oh shit i forgot abt the weed
>Akito: was an mad?
>Toya: She was a little upset about the smoking, since it’s not good for your voice.
>Akito: i figured.
>Toya: Where did you even come across that at the party, anyways?
>Akito: that’s my secret man
>Akito: plus i think you’d get all paranoid if you tried it
>Toya: I see.
>Toya: I don’t know if I’d be comfortable doing it at a party like that.
>Toya: If I did try it, I’d prefer to try it somewhere safe, with someone I trust.
>Toya: Like you.
Akito feels his face heat up. He drops his phone, shrinking into his hoodie.
>Toya: Akito?
>Akito: yeah sorry
>aktio: i’m good
>Toya: Ah, okay.
A minute passes before he gets another text.
>Toya: Can I ask you a question?
Akito’s heart speeds up.
>Akito: anything dude
>Toya: Is everything okay?
>Toya: You went a little overboard. I just want to make sure you’re okay.
>Akito: yeah
>Akito: i think i just needed to like
>Akito: i don’t know.
>Toya: That’s alright.
>Akito: i think i just wanted to have fun
>Akito: it didn’t work
>Akito: ended up just causing everyone problems.
>Toya: I understand.
>Toya: Just don’t put yourself in danger next time, alright?
>Akito: i won’t
>Toya: You should get some rest.
>Akito: yeah
>Akito: i’m gonna try to pass out for a bit.
>Akito: before ena slams on my door for our weekly attempt at a normal civilized family dinner.
>Toya: Good luck.
>Toya: Sleep well, Akito.
>Akito: i’ll try
Akito’s chest feels light. He decides to let the feeling bloom, ignoring any shame that tries to bubble to the surface, and drifts off to sleep.