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He must be finished by now, Souji thinks as he opens the door to his room. He's immediately proven wrong by Kanji knitting at his desk. "Still at it this late?" Souji asks, a bit exasperated.
Kanji jolts from his deep concentration and spins around. "Wha?! Oh, uh, yeah. Gotta make up for not doing any work today," he replies, picking up the thread where he left off.
"If you say so." Souji peers doubtingly at Kanji's sewing kit on the desk, suspecting he was going to do more than just knitting that night. "Isn't this supposed to be part of your vacation though? You don't have to work yourself when you're trying to relax."
"Nah, don't worry about it. Knitting's relaxing, 's no big deal." Kanji lets out a long yawn and rubs his eyes before giving a quick head shake. "Besides, I gotta go home tomorrow night..."
"Which is why you should get some rest."
"I-I could always sleep on the train ride back!"
"Kanji..." Souji steps over and gives Kanji a squeeze on the shoulder. "Please. It's 1AM. You need to take care of yourself."
Both his plea and touch cause Kanji to sigh with a sheepish smile, and he places his hand on Souji's. "Heh, you're right. Sorry. Lemme just wrap this up." Souji giving his hand a light, grateful kiss makes him go from pink to bright red. Five months of dating each other hadn't changed how bashful Kanji was with most displays of affection.
"I can't believe you packed all your tools for a two night stay," Souji comments as he takes off his house slippers.
Kanji clears the desk and closes his sewing kit with a confident snap. "Hey, you never know when there could be an emergency!"
"That requires sewing?" is how Souji almost responds, but he instead replies with a bemused "True."
After storing the tools in his suitcase, Kanji glances around. "So...guess I should take the floor?"
"You could...sleep here, if you want," Souji gestures to the empty space next to him with a shy expression.
"Where, your bed? What about you? I don't want you sleepin' on the ground."
With Kanji as oblivious as ever, Souji lets himself blush and gives up on the subtle approach. "Actually, I was thinking...maybe we could share the bed?"
Once he fully processes the offer, Kanji does an over-dramatic double-take. "Huh?! You'd...y-you wouldn't, like, uh...mind?" he stammers, even more flushed.
"I'd want to, if that's okay with you. I was just wondering since we've slept together back in Inaba."
Kanji nearly trips into a fighting position. "Wait, when the hell have we- ?!" Souji gives him a deadpan stare. "O-Oh, you didn't mean...well...that was under a kotatsu, big difference!"
"Is it really?" Kanji only fidgets with his necklace as his eyes dart around nervously. Souji begins to regret the offer. The last thing he wants is to upset Kanji. "It's fine if you're not comfortable with that. I'm sorry, I-I wasn't trying to..."
"Don't apologize, damn it!!" he suddenly shouts, to the shock of both Souji and himself. The other residents of the apartment must be asleep at this hour, so Kanji draws back and lowers his volume. "That...sounds really awesome, honest. It's just..." He groans, trying to put the right sentence together. "It ain't you, it's me..."
"What do you mean?" Souji questions sitting up from the covers, brows furrowed.
Kanji swallows hard. "I...know we've been...t-together for a while and all, but I just..." He looks down timidly. "I don't want you to think I'm a creep or somethin'..."
Souji thinks back to their camping trip almost a year ago, particularly to Yosuke's comments about feeling "safe" with Kanji. And that's exactly what he was fearing. Did he think he was dangerous to be around? Souji knows this couldn't be further from the truth, but realizes that Kanji doesn't. "That's what you're worried about?"
Kanji nods, keeping his attention on the floor.
It was no wonder this was fresh in his mind. Any teasing from Yosuke had only recently subsided since the two had told the team they were together, and not by that much. Souji frowns and berates himself for not taking it into account. He makes note to later berate Yosuke as well. "I had no idea you still felt that way...I'm so sorry."
"Y-You don't gotta say sorry for anything!" Kanji's head shoots up and his hands wave. "Yosuke-senpai's the one who says all that shit-"
"But I let him get away with it for so long," Souji interrupts ashamed.
Kanji stares at him stunned. "Souji..."
"You deserved someone who stayed by your side. I should have been that person. Now I just hope I can...make it up to you at least, somehow..." Souji goes quiet, not expecting or feeling worthy of forgiveness.
Not knowing what to say, Kanji stays silent as well. A minute passes before he takes a seat on the bed. Souji keeps his face from his view. Kanji takes a few breaths, failing over and over to get the right words out. Eventually, his hand finds its way to Souji's again, and he takes it with a firm grasp. "Not gonna lie, all that stuff was a major pain in the ass to go through," Kanji begins slowly. "But...nobody's perfect, y'know? Even if you messed up, you're like, my best friend. I'm not mad at ya, and even if I was, I already forgive you." He brushes the hair from Souji's eyes as they meet, and he gives a warm smile. "So...don't sweat it, 'kay?"
Souji stares into Kanji's eyes, then cups his hand to his face, smiling back. "Well...I'd still like to make it up to you in any way that I can."
Kanji feels warmth creeping up his neck and breaks their eye contact. "L-Like I said, you really don't gotta do anything...just keep bein' the good guy that you are."
"Then I'll try my best," Souji nods. "But if there is anything you want from me, let me know."
"Dude, you are too nice." Kanji yawns once more. "So...you okay with sharing your bed then?"
"Of course I am, I'm the one who offered to," Souji confirms happily.
"Well, all right! Let's do this!" Kanji pumps his arms in excitement and he slips under the bed covers. He's confused, however, when Souji's smile changes to a smirk, obviously suppressing laughter. "...What?"
"You're...not in your pajamas."
Mortified by his mistake, Kanji rolls out from the bed instantly and scratches his head in embarrassment. "Yeah, r-right! I knew that!"
Souji snorts and fails to keep his composure any longer, covering his mouth as he cracks up.
"What are you laughin' at?" Kanji asks, somewhat defensive.
"You're really cute, that's all," Souji answers between a laugh.
In under a second, Kanji's cheeks heat up. "I- ! Shut the- ! You're- !" He does everything in his power not to shout again. Unable to think of a way to return the compliment, he opts out of doing so. "I...I-I-I gotta go change and crap! Not-not that I'm takin' a crap! I just, uh- !" And with that eloquently put statement, Kanji rushes to the bathroom, causing Souji to laugh even more.
Ten minutes after the two settle into bed and rest against one another, something on Kanji's mind prevents him from sleeping. He plays with Souji's hair and thoughtfully glances to him, appreciating how peaceful he looked. Kanji gives him a gentle shake and whispers "Hey? You up...?" No reply, so he assumes Souji's asleep and continues to stroke him. "...Y'know, there's only one thing I want right now: I wanna stay like this with you as long as I can." He pauses, then winces at himself. "Uggh...can't believe I said something so weird. Good thing you're not awake-"
"I feel the same way," Souji smiles against Kanji's fast pounding chest. "Good night, Kanji. Love you."
"I-I love you too."