Chapter Text
Another sunny day in Inaba. After a lengthy week of cold rain and fog, the sun began to trickle through the blanket of clouds and light up the town below. The sun was like a constant reminder to the people of Inaba that hope was always around the corner, even if the fog still lingered in the distance..
Yu, Yosuke and Chie strolled through the Central Shopping District. School had just finished, and the trio were free to walk around. Not that there’s much to be done in Inaba.
Chie carried a look … of anguish on her face. The cool breeze nipped at her skin, making her shiver ever so slightly. She sighed, gazing up towards the sky as she walked.
“So hungry …” she let out another disgruntled sigh, taking each ploding step more slow and sluggish.
“Relax, we’re almost there. The food’s not running from you,” Yosuke said.
“You’re one to talk, Yosuke … you were just talking about how much you want to eat those steak croquettes a few minutes ago …”
“Nuh uh, that was you! Jeez, I think your hunger is making you hear things. You’re worse than me …”
“So you admit you were whining about food then?”
Yosuke scoffed and frowned at her. “I didn’t say that!”
“Guys,” Yu interjected. “ We just passed the store.”
“Huh?” The troublesome two ceased their bickering, turning towards Yu, and then at the establishment behind him.
Inaba’s one and only ‘proper’ steakhouse, Honeido Grill. Unlike Souzai Daigaku, Honeido sold tender, juicy steaks and prime cuts to grill at home. It was delicious as it was expensive.
Chie took it upon herself to tap Yosuke on the shoulder. A wide smirk appeared quick on her lips, as she shifted her brows towards him. “I think someone owes us—“
“Okay, Okay! I get it! Sheesh … “ Yosuke brushed her hand off with a scoff. He reached for his wallet, but before he could grab it, a thought popped up into his mind. A short and sweet thought.
“Yosuke? Are you alright?” Yu asked. Yosuke’s eyes widened as he shook his head.
“O-Oh, yeah! I’m fine! Just … I remembered there’s someone here I gotta go see.”
Chie tilted her head. “Huh? Who?”
Yosuke winked. “It’s top secret! But don’t worry, I’ll tell you guys when the time is right. Here, Partner. You can pay with this.” He popped open his wallet, fished out a 10,000 yen bill and handed it to Yu. “I’ll catch up with you guys later, so you can find some seats while I’m gone. See ya!”
He then ran off to behind the steakhouse, where the backdoor was. Yu and Chie looked at each other, before Chie let out a huff. “Who could he be meeting that’s so important?”
Yu shrugged and said, “Not sure. Maybe it’s for business. Or maybe he’s seeing someone?”
“Yosuke? Dating someone?” Chie paused, before bursting into a fit of laughter. She playfully nudged Yu’s shoulder. “Yeah, right! As if any girl could fall for him!”
He shrugged again, moving towards the vendor. “It was just a suggestion … he has been pretty smiley lately.”
While they paid, Yosuke dashed off to the backdoor. The backside of the steakhouse was pretty clean– silver trash cans stood idly by the wall, undisturbed. The door ahead loomed before him. It had a square window carved into it, but the glass was pitch black and blanketed the inside.
He knocked once, then twice in quick succession. No answer. So he did it one more time. After a few seconds of waiting, the door flew open, revealing your face behind it. When both of your eyes met, a grin made its way on Yosuke’s face. It was so contagious that you couldn’t help but smile too.
“Yosuke! You didn’t tell me you were coming!”
“S-Sorry,” he chuckled. “I thought about it, but I felt that it would be better to surprise you. Y’know, liven things up a little?”
“Oh you,” You laughed, pulling him into a warm embrace. “I guess you’ve got me there.”
Yosuke returned the warm gesture, scooping his arms underneath your own. In one swift motion, he spun you around and around, sweeping you off your feet. It earned a hearty laugh from you.
After a few more spins, he planted your feet back down on the ground and let you go with a sigh of contentment. “So, how’s work? Your family’s business doing okay?”
“It’s … alright. Business has been pretty steady, but my dad’s health … “ Your voice trailed off towards the end. Yosuke’s eyes couldn’t help but widen. The grin on his face vanished.
“…Is he okay?”
“Yes—It’s … just all the stress. The doctors said he’d be fine as long as he takes some days off. I’m taking over management for a while. It’s nothing too difficult. Just a lot of deal making and checking bills, attending to customers. Nothing to worry about.”
Yosuke took a moment to scan your features. Tired, slightly baggy eyes. A hint of paleness present in your skin, expanding slowly through your body. A faded smile. Even though you told him you were fine, your body language told him a different story.
“I’m sorry … It must be hard, seeing as you skipped school again.”
You shook your head, and tucked your hands behind your back. “What are you apologizing for? It’s not your fault, Yosuke.”
He didn’t respond. A thick, heavy silence filled the air between you. It hung over your heads, casting a shadow of doubt. You. Yosuke. The two of you drowned in its presence. The claws of tension swiped away any glee, giggles or joy creeping out from your body.
Not standing it any longer, you quickly grabbed his hand. “Hey, let's come inside, alright?”
This made his eyes widen a little, but he nodded nonetheless. You guided him through the door and into a messy, cluttered looking room.
It was filled with a plethora of brown boxes stacked on top of another, some dusty, some newly-packaged. Two large fridges were situated on the right hand side. They towered over them like elephants. On the left hand side lay several different spices, sauces and succulent vegetables— all disorganized on a shelf.
“Phew! Sorry about the mess, it’s been a pretty hectic day!” you made a small chuckle, lifting your hand to shut the door. As Yosuke watched you, his solemn expression flew into one of shock.
Both of your hands were littered with plasters.
“Your hands—!” He ran over to you, scooping and cupping both your hands into his. His eyes widened. They had a slight shade of red to them, and a few brown plasters wrapped over the fingers.
“It’s alright, really!” You pulled them away so you could wrap them around his hands instead. “It happened earlier. I was just pitching in for an employee who was frying some steak and … accidentally burnt myself. I got distracted by my own thoughts. But it’s fine now, see?”
You gave Yosuke’s hands a small squeeze. A feeble attempt to reassure him. The spindle fibers of the plasters brushed against his skin, only cementing the reality of your circumstances.
He weaseled his hands out from your grasp. “No … I don’t think it is.”
A small sigh left your lips. Your hands fell to your sides. “Yosuke. “
“You … should take a break. I don’t want to see you get hurt, or overwork yourself like this. It’s just not right.”
“I can’t do that … I just can’t,” you whispered out, looking off to one side. “You should know that better than anyone else—”
“Why … ? Why is that?!” he exclaimed. You let out an inaudible gasp, as you looked towards him. He continued, “Is it because I’m the ‘Prince of Junes’? Is it because of our— my family’s business choking out every local business in Inaba?”
His woeful lament was met with your silence. You turned your gaze to his. Yosuke’s eyes watered ever so slightly, and locking them with yours only made the tears peek out even more.
“Maybe if we … no, I wasn’t around, you and your dad wouldn’t have to work so hard like this. Maybe even Saki-senpai …”
“Yosuke—d-don’t say that.”
“But it’s true, isn’t it?! No matter how many times you say it’s alright or fine, it can’t change the past! Dammit, I don’t know what to do with myself anymore …”
Tears finally eased out from his eyes, racing down his reddening cheeks. He lifted his hand to wipe them away, wetting his sleeves in the process. The happy mask Yosuke wore had shattered into pieces.
Now, there stood nothing between his darkest thoughts and you, the person he loved the most.
He just stood there, sobbing silently to himself. With each sound, your heart sank. You couldn’t bear it anymore. You shuffled over to him, cradled his body with both arms and pulled him into a hug. Yosuke tensed up, before allowing himself to relax. A sharp, short breath leaves his mouth. He doesn’t speak, nor does he move. Instead, he let out a quiet chuckle as he stared blankly ahead of him.
“ … I’m such a mess, aren’t I?”
“I think that makes two of us,” you said, leaning your head closer to his chest.
Yosuke didn’t respond to you at first. Only, a warming sensation wrapped around your waist as he returned the embrace.
“Please … don’t let go.”
“ … I won’t. I promise.”
You and Yosuke took in each other's pain and comfort. The slow beating of his heart echoed back a solemn song of solitude to your ears. You rubbed his back, which earned a soft sigh from him. He huffed, “Aren’t you mad at me?”
You paused, lifting your head to look at him. “Why should I be?”
“I— I kinda snapped without thinking about how you feel. It’s not fair on you … ”
You shook your head, leaning it back onto his chest. “It’s alright … It happens to everyone. When we’re upset and we box that all up inside, it has nowhere else to go but through words or actions. I’m sorry it had to get to that for you. I-I should’ve realized it sooner—“
“No. I should’ve told you sooner. But it’s just— it’s hard to find the right words, y’know? You have your own things to worry about, and I didn’t want to make things between us … tense.”
“Well, I guess that just means we need to stick together even more, right?” you tried to crack a small smile, but the clouded tears obscuring your vision made it difficult to hold.
Yosuke chuckled, and attempted to crack one back at you. “Man … You’re so strong. Honestly, I’m a little jealous of you.” The corners of his eyes wrinkled as he did so, albeit still carrying tears.
“You’re pretty tough yourself.”
He chuckled, the vibrato of his laugh reverberating through your body. “Me? Haha, nah. Not really. Without you, or my friends, I’m nothing special.”
“But you don’t have to be special,” you whispered, locking your gaze with his. “You just have to be you. There’s nothing I would hate more than for you to hate yourself. I love every part of you … even the parts you don’t like.
But I guess that’s easier said than done, right? Despite what you say, I’m not that strong at all. I just have to keep going, or I’ll never forgive myself. Knowing I have you by my side makes it easier.”
Yosuke took a moment to digest your words. Even though you struggled against the crumbling reality of your family’s business future, you still managed to smile. You still retained hope to go on. He stared into your eyes. Those bright, tearful eyes. Underneath the pool of tears, they shone with such vigor and resilience. It reminded him of how he stared into the eyes of his own shadow.
Even if he was still chained down by the fear of the past, he had Jiraiya, his friends, and you.
Another chuckle left his lips again, slightly softer. He shifted one of his hands so that it could rest at your cheek. “You’re way too humble, you know that? But … Thank you. Really, I … ”
His voice trailed off as he brought his face closer to yours. A pink blush spread across your face; mainly because his hand cupped one side of it. Your reaction prompted him to caress it back and forth.
The affectionate gesture made your heart flutter, and his stomach grew hot with fiery passion. His face was so close to yours that the tip of your noses brushed against each other.
You took it upon yourself to let your eyes close, leaning into his touch and parting your lips a little bit.
Yosuke held his breath. He knew all too well what this meant. He leaned in further and further until he pulled you into a gentle kiss.
They were soft. So soft. The cushiony sensation sent waves of happiness up your spine. A set of fireworks went off deep in your mind; growing more frequent the closer he got. Your hands dug into his back, making him release a sigh of contentment from his lips. The warmth consumed you. Each press of his lips fed into your love for each other.
Such a tender, gentle moment between you arose something heated inside you. You clutched him a little tighter, but then thoughts of work and business management arose in your mind. Your grip around his shoulders loosened as you pulled away. His eyes widened. The loss of heat prompted the cool, indoor air to nip at his lips. Yosuke let go of you, coughing up an ‘ahem’.
“S-So,” he spoke up, scratching the back of his head awkwardly with a chuckle. He looked around his surroundings. “I know this is the storage room, but it is looking a little like … well—“
“A disaster?”
“—I was gonna say organized mess, but yeah. I guess that sounds about right. You were about to start cleaning? Alright, it’s decided. I’ll be lending you a helping hand!”
Your ears perked up at that, but you waved him off. “You don’t have to, it’s not your mess to clean up!”
“I know, but look at your hands. They’re in no shape to be carrying stuff like this. Besides, what kind of partner would I be to leave you like this?”
‘Partner’. A word you heard Yosuke use a lot when he talked to his friends, but when it came to you it sounded all the more loving. You blushed, fiddling with your hands.
“A-Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure,” he nodded. Yosuke took one of your hands in his. His fingers caressed your warm skin, taking care not to squeeze too tight. “Your hands … look like they need a serious break. And the rest of you, too!”
“Ah, well … I could use a break. Will you be fine cleaning on your own?”
“You should see me when I’m working in Junes! Compared to our storage rooms, this should be a cakewalk. I’ll just reorganize and clean everything for you. Just leave it to me!”
You smiled. “Thank you, Yosuke! I owe you one.”
“You can repay me back by being in tip top shape again! That’s… all I want, really.”
“Then, I’m going to rest like I’ve never rested before!”
“Now that’s the spirit! I’ll call you when I’m done, yeah? You just focus on taking a break.”
“I will! Promise,” you said. Yosuke nodded with a grin. He patted your head before walking off towards the boxes. You trotted over to the corridor door— pausing as soon as your face reflected back towards you in the glass pane.
“Yosuke?”
He swerved his head back to face you. “Hm? What’s up?”
“I … I love you. Even if I might not say it all the time, I-I just wanted you to know that. And … you can talk to me anytime.”
A blush grew over his face. The grin you wore carried over to him, and his gaze softened as he looked at you. “ … I love you too. You’re like the best girlfriend ever.”
The heat in your cheeks grew hotter at his comment. So much so that just by being in the same room as him made that heated sensation resurface again. Your gaze softened back at him as you said, “S-See you … !”
You opened the door with a creak and closed it with a soft slam behind you. Yosuke let a sigh ease out from his mouth. “Hah … she’s so cute.”
He diverted his attention back to the task at hand— sorting out the boxes, reordering every spice and sauce scattered on top of the shelves and checking whatever laid inside the giant fridges. He gulped. That didn’t even account for the dust coating the floor, or the countless cobwebs in the corners of the walls.
“Oh boy, what was I saying earlier? I should’ve asked those two to come with me … “ A cold sweat dropped down his temples.
He didn’t even have a sigh big enough for this one.