Chapter Text
[Unknown]
00:33
Bro Im so scrwd
I FORGIT HOW TO BREATHE
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO PASS MU FLASSES UNDER THESE CONDITIONS!?
Rui blinks at his phone, brows furrowed as he reads and rereads the messages, fingers hovering over the screen as he thinks of a reply.
00:40
How terrible!
They should give you emergency leave~
He watches the three dots dance as the other replies before disappearing, then reappearing again.
[Unknown]
00:50
SNIT
WRONG NUMBER
Im so sorry
A soft chuckle escapes him, already very entertained by this stranger.
00:51
It’s alright, I don’t mind in the slightest.
[Unknown]
00:51
U type like a granny
Blink blink. He laughs into the air and shakes his head.
00:53
I’ll take it as a compliment!~
[Unknown]
[00:56]
Whtvr have fun ig
Srry again
Just forget about this or smth lol
[1:00]
No, no! Please, it was no trouble at all. A rather pleasant surprise actually ^^
What’s your name?
[Unknown]
[1:01]
Dyou think im that daft
Not givinb you mh name
Well he supposes that’s fair enough. Though a tad disappointing perhaps.
[Unknown]
[1:02]
Ycan cll me Dawn
Never mind, Rui is overjoyed. He never expected to get this far!
[1:03]
A pleasure to meet you, Dawn. You can call me Kami.
[Dawn]
[1:05]
Not calling you GOD
Choose something else or I will
[1:05]
Oya? What will you choose then?
[Dawn]
[1:09]
Barney
Rui blinks. Once. Twice. The bursts out in laughter. Not that Dawn knew it, but he supposes there’s some type of comparison people could make between Barney and him.
[1:10]
I graciously accept~
The other person doesn’t respond again, perhaps because of exhaustion or perhaps busy with something else and Rui can’t help the feeling of disappointment rising up inside him.
But it would be fine. After all, if the person had truly been opposed to talking to him more, they wouldn’t have bothered with a nickname for themself and Rui, right? He dearly hopes so, at least…
The rest of the night Rui spends like many others, working on one thing or another, catching up on classes for university.
When morning rolls around and Rui gets to see the actual dawn, a familiar tiredness has settled into his bones.
Not that he minds. No, there’s comfort found in the familiarity, negative in meaning as exhaustion might typically be.
And luckily enough, there’s a café just close by to him. A place he had been frequenting for quite some time now, enjoying the coffee whenever he finds himself tired enough— which happens to be most of the time. Ah~ If only he could live there… but alas!
Just a short time later, Rui is out of the house and at the café, eagerly waiting for his turn to order.
Now Rui isn’t usually one to take note of appearances, not when meeting someone for the first time, and certainly not when it’s a stranger he likely won’t meet again, but seeing all the zombies waiting in line in front of him, half dead on their feet, some even with clear eye bags from nights of missed sleep, he can’t help but take note of the barista’s appearance.
A light smile, as he handles each order with the amount of patience Rui knows he wouldn’t be able to muster up after the 6th time of someone falling asleep halfway through their order, striking ginger hair and skin covered in freckles, lively and alive. The slight tan of the skin, the ginger hair and the brown apron give him a very warm and cozy look— one that Rui can easily appreciate in these morning hours.
He doesn’t actually recognize him though… either Rui has somehow been missing his shifts all this time or he just started the job.
Well, in the end, it doesn’t truly matter to Rui, as long as the coffee will be good. It’s important to have priorities!
As it turns out, the coffee is indeed good! So of course, Rui approves of this new barista. He doesn’t dwell on it any further though, there’s much to be done and little time to do it.
He ignores the thought, telling him that he very much has nothing left to occupy himself with.
First and foremost, he promised to go shopping today and thus one of Rui’s rare trips to the grocery store is made. And all he buys in the end is instant ramen and some bread…
But that’s fine, he’s sure it’s better for him to stick to that anyway!
[Dawn]
[9:02]
Which shud I get
My friends r useless
> 1 image sent
????
Rui stares down at his phone, brows furrowed in concentration, even zooming in on the image. Dawn is asking for headphone recommendations and Rui will take his role as advisor very seriously!
[9:10]
I’ve heard good things about the left pair.
However, the right pair seems to be more comfortable.
Though the sound quality seems to suffer.
[Dawn]
[9:10]
Rlly?
Alr thx
Rui smiles to himself and pockets his phone to open his apartment door.
Food items are quickly put away, leaving Rui with nothing left to do. The all-nighter had done its job, allowing Rui to finish his tasks.
It leaves him horribly bored and hollow. He could ask Emu, Nene or Tsukasa to spend time with him, but he knows they have their own responsibilities and he’s bothered them enough for the week.
Minutes after lying on the couch, motionlessly staring at the ceiling, he pulls out his phone.
[9:32]
Hey~
Are you busy? :3
He drops his hand, along the phone to his chest and waits. He truly hopes Dawn would be free, he can feel his mind slowly slip away from the more pleasant thoughts already.
[Dawn]
[10:00]
Just got off work
Srry
Whassup?
The reply startles Rui out of his thoughts, a relieved smile making its way onto his face as he forces the thoughts plaguing him away from the forefront and into tiny corners of his brain, where he knows they may fester, but that’s a problem for the future.
[10:01]
It occurs to me that we barely know anything about each other!
So~ Would you like to play 20 questions?
[Dawn]
[10:02]
????
Why
R u 12??
[10:02]
Oya~
Starting already!
No, I am not twelve :3
[Dawn]
[10:03]
Gotcha
11 then
A soft laugh escapes Rui, eyes gleaming a little, soaking up the conversation. It’s surprisingly easy to talk to Dawn, despite the circumstances and it’s a welcome change of pace. Rui wonders what sort of person the other is, to continue to text a stranger.