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It isn’t very often that Goro can catch a break. Even though it was summer vacation, keeping on top of his homework, casework, and public interviews was enough to make a weaker man crumble.
In desperate need of a break, despite the darkness and rain, his feet take him to Yongen-Jaya. The neighbourhood doesn’t have much to offer, besides a bathhouse and a movie theatre, but it does feature a half decent café that is never too busy. What’s wrong with a late night cup of coffee, anyway?
Entering LeBlanc, he thinks that he heard some chatter, but there is only a boy and his cat. Having a cat walk around on the counter is technically a health code violation, but the boy was weirdly codependent with the cat, so he’ll let it go for now.
“Akechi!” the boy, Kurusu, smiles. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
Goro smiles back. “I just happened to be in the area, and needed to get out of the rain. I hope I’m not a bother.”
Kurusu begins fiddling around with something behind the counter, while Goro sits down for a moment. While Kurusu isn’t as good at brewing coffee as the café’s owner, he isn’t half bad. In fact, he seems to be good at everything. He gets good grades in school, appears to be relatively strong, and has a decent sized group of friends that just keeps growing. People should hate him, he’s a criminal in Tokyo on probation, and yet… he captivates them. Goro could even feel himself being charmed, as much as he hates it. Kurusu isn’t afraid to speak his mind, to fight for what’s right.
Goro’s celebrity status, among other things, sets limits on what he can do. Dodging the press and fans was a tiring task. The attention he receives is an empty sort of love, leaving him craving more. Yet, merely being seen with a girl his age is bad press, and he didn’t want to test his luck with a man. Despite this, his relationship with Kurusu seems to teeter on the edge between rivals and something else, but there isn’t anything Goro can do about that besides taking him out. The mere concept of a criminal being more free than him made Goro hate him even more.
“Here.” Kurusu sets out a fresh cup of coffee. “It’s on the house. Just how you like it.”
Goro blinks. “I… didn’t order coffee. Or anything, for that matter.”
“You looked like you needed it.”
Goro takes a sip of the coffee and… it was, indeed, just how he likes it. How did Kurusu know that?
That’s another thing Goro hates. How kind Kurusu is. He should be bitter at the world for everything that’s happened in it. And yet, he still goes out of his way to help others. Another way Goro can’t begin to compete.
He hates everything about Kurusu, actually. He hates his cool attitude and how easy things are for him. Even so, Goro’s mind couldn’t help but imagine what dating Kurusu would be like, which he also hates. Kurusu wouldn’t let Goro’s past shake him, wouldn’t even blink at the binder across his chest, wouldn’t force Goro to earn his love. Goro wouldn’t have to put on his Detective Prince persona. He could just be Goro. If he looks at Kurusu for too long, he starts noticing how calloused his hands are, how he doesn’t really need glasses but wears them anyway, or how he refuses to let his true thoughts shine through, just like Goro.
It was pointless to think about, anyway– as confused as Kurusu makes him feel, it was only that. A feeling. A feeling that can be pushed down until it doesn't need to be felt anymore. No doubt Kurusu would try to change his habits to be healthier, like cooking him homemade meals. Or worse: get in the way of a fate 18 years in the making. He can push down the hurt it made him feel, and the doubt it gives Goro about what justice really means. But why does he only feel free when he’s thinking about an impossible future? He isn’t sure.
Kurusu whispers something to his cat, and the cat runs upstairs to the attic. The cat, Morgana, must be impressively trained for it to follow commands like that.
“There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you,” Kurusu says, putting his hands on Goro’s.
Goro’s heart rate rises, but he won’t let anyone know that. “What? That you’re the leader of the Phantom Thieves?”
The other boy lightens up for a moment. “You’re not getting that out of me without a lawyer present. But seriously, I’ve been thinking. I really like hanging out with you.”
Goro smiles, a real one. “And I, you. You provide more intellectually stimulating conversation than most adults I talk to, after all.”
Kurusu blushes.
Suddenly, it’s like Goro is talking to any number of girls that have confessed their love for him. Whatever was about to come out of Kurusu’s mouth will end this game of cat and mouse. What little comfort Goro allowed himself to have, the rivalry he once longed for… gone, by someone else’s selfish desire for something more. Kurusu would certainly get in the way of his work, and perhaps even make him falter during the most important moment of his life. As much of a luxury that love was, it was just that. A luxury. Perhaps things would be different if they met a few years earlier, but thinking about that is a waste of time.
“I–”
“Thank you for the coffee. I have to get going, but I’ll be sure to repay the favour someday,” Goro says, moving his hands away and walking towards the door.
It’s still rainy outside, but there is no way Goro could face Kurusu and not cave in. Some things were more important than freedom.