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"I can't believe you dragged me to this," he said, groaning quietly. "You're being dramatic," he said, sighing quietly. "You know I hate these things," he said, glaring at the blonde. "You've never even been to one," Kunikida said as they sat down. "You should care more about your appearance, weretiger," Akutagawa said, sitting down a few seats from them.
"Oh, so now I'm weretiger again?" He asked, glaring at the ravenette. "No arguments!" He snapped, sighing quietly. It took him a few minutes to realize Katai had gone quiet. He looked over briefly, pausing as he saw the tense look on his face. Katai was looking up at the altar, the tight expression on his face hiding most emotion.
Unfortunately, he could see through it, and guilt settled in his stomach as he placed the look. Longing. He watched as Katai moved his hand, gently rubbing his bare ring finger. He and Katai had been together for nearly 6 years, longer than everybody at the Agency. Yet, he had always been hesitant to move past that.
They both still lived in their own apartments as well. He grabbed the brunette's hand suddenly, causing Katai to jump and pull his hand away. "S-sorry, you scared me," he said, looking away quickly. "Katai I-" he cut himself off. What promise could he offer? What promise does he know he could fulfill?
"It's fine, Doppo." But the way his voice shook Kunikida knew it wasn't. "I waited this long, didn't I? What's another half a decade in the grand scheme of things," he whispered and gave the blonde a half smile. Before he could say anything else, a hand landed on his shoulder. "Talk to him after," Dazai whispered, smiling softly. "Yeah," he whispered, still looking at the brunette.
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Time Skip
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Kunikida walked into the reception hall, rolling his eyes at the extravagant decorations. "You ok?" He asked after hearing Katai wince slightly. "Yeah, it's just loud," he whispered, smiling slightly. "Yeah, tell me about it," he said, trying to lighten the thick tension between them. He still felt guilty about earlier.
He could tell the brunette was trying not to ruin the mood. He could see through the forced smiles and wavering voice. "Kunikida! Hi!" Yosano yelled, walking over to the couple. "Hello, Yosano," he said, smiling slightly. "Dance with me!" She demanded, grabbing his hand and dragging him away from Katai.
"What! Yosano!" He yelled, looking back at Katai quickly. His eyes widened as he saw the brunette's panicked face before he was out of sight. "Yosano! What are you doing?" He demanded, glaring at the doctor. "Talking to you under the guise of dancing," she said, leading them both in a dance. "Talking about what?" He asked, sighing quietly.
"About your disastrous relationship," she said, spinning herself quickly. "My relationship is not disastrous!" He said, glaring at her. "Yes, it is," she said with a smirk. "Do you love Katai?" She asked before he could retort. "Of course I do," he answered in all seriousness.
"Then why not show him that?" She asked. "I show my love plenty!" He said, slightly exasperated. "Oh yeah? When was the last time you went on a date? Not counting today!" She asked, her brows raised in anticipation. He thought for a moment before sighing. "About 2 months ago," he said quietly.
"Yeah, people totally believe you love him," she said sarcastically. "I do love him," Kunikida said firmly, causing her to sigh. "Then act like it! Marry him if you love him so much!" She demanded, voice raising slightly. "Keep your voice down!" He whisper-yelled. "Katai wants to get married more than you think," she said softly, causing him to sigh.
"He just never brings it up because he doesn't want to ruin whatever you guys have now," she said, dragging him to a corner of the room. "What now?" He asked as Yosano pulled out her phone. "Here, look at these texts," she demanded, handing him her phone. As he skimmed the texts, he felt even more guilty. They were conversations between her and Katai, with the latter expressing how much he wanted to get married.
The most recent message caught Kunikida's eye. 'It just seems like we're not even a couple'. His eyes widened as he read that. "That last text?" She asked quietly. He nodded before handing back her phone.
"I know you're gonna get mad at me for asking, but when was the last time you guys did anything intimate?" She asked, causing Kunikida to splutter slightly. "What?!" He nearly yelled, glaring at Yosano fiercely. "Not just sex!" She whisper-yelled, rolling her eyes. "I mean like kissing or hugging or even cuddling," she said, causing the blonde to sigh. "Not for a while," he whispered, looking at the ground.
"Talk to him, ok? You guys have gone through so much together. Don't let something stupid ruin it now," she said before walking away. He sighed again before looking around the large dancefloor. There were quite a lot of people here, but he couldn't see Katai anywhere. He slowly walked toward the bar, hoping to find a better look before he was interrupted. "Kunikida!" Dazai yelled, causing Kunikida to roll his eyes.
"What Dazai?" He asked, glaring at the brunette. "Are you looking for Katai?" He asked suddenly, causing Kunikida to sigh for the umpteenth time. "Yes, I am," he said, looking around once again. "He went upstairs, probably to a balcony," Dazai said, smirking slightly. "I saw someone following him, though," he said, causing Kunikida's eyes to widen slightly.
He quickly walked away and upstairs, looking through the balcony doors before pausing. "I said no!" It was Katai, and he sounded upset. "Awwww, cmon doll. I could give you a good time." Another person, he remembered that voice, but he couldn't place it. "I told you already, I have a partner!" Katai said, sounding slightly distressed, almost like the person was advancing. "And? I don't see them anywhere," the man said, followed by a yelp.
"Don't touch me!" Katai yelled, and before he could think, Kunikida slammed open the balcony doors. There, he saw Katai being pinned against the railing, looking terrified but relieved to see him. Whereas the man pinning him seemed to look annoyed. He didn't say anything, only observing as the man retracted his hand from Katai's thigh, still glaring at Kunikida. "Do you need something?" The man asked, grabbing Katai's waist as he tried to put distance in between them.
He recognized the man now. His name was Kaji, from the port mafia. He was their demolition expert. "No, I was just looking for my boyfriend," he said, returning the glare from Kaji. "Really? Well, I guess you'll have to keep looking," he replied smoothly, tightening his hold on a struggling Katai.
Before he could reply, Katai brought his leg up and kneed Kaji in the stomach, hard. Immediately, the brunette ran toward him as Kaji let go. He grabbed Katai tightly, pulling him against his chest. "Are you ok?" He whispered, clenching his jaw as the shorter shook his head no. "What the fuck!" Kaji yelled, glaring at the two.
He held the brunette tighter, worry settling in his gut as he felt Katai's violent shaking. "Ohh, I see. You're the boyfriend," he said with a smug smile. "Leave," he demanded, discreetly rubbing comforting patterns into brunette's waist. "Oh, but why? We were just getting started," he said, walking toward the couple. Quickly, Kunikida pushed the shorter behind his back.
"Ooooo, guard dog," he said, smirking. "Alright, I'll go. But this isn't over beautiful," he said, winking at Katai before walking away. Before Kunikida could do anything else, the brunette hugged him tightly. He hugged back, pulling Katai into his chest again. "I- I'm sorry. I just wanted to get away from the noise and I came up here and he followed me and I panicked and just-" he said quickly, stumbling and tripping over his words as tears welled in his eyes.
"Hey! Hey, no, calm down! It's ok, I'm right here," he whispered, rubbing his hand up and down Katai's back gently. "I was just scared," he whispered before a small sob wracked through him. "I'm right here, sweetheart. And I would never let anyone hurt you," he said firmly. He quickly glanced at the love seat and table a few feet from them before trying to pull away. He didn't move very far before Katai's grip tightened fiercely.
"I'm not leaving," he reassured before picking the older up gently. He walked toward the love seat and sat down on it with the brunette in his lap. "Feel any better?" He asked after a few minutes. "Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry," he said, wiping his eyes quickly. "What? What are you sorry for?" He asked, wrapping his hands around Katai's lithe waist.
"For being dramatic and clingy and ruining everything with my stupid-" Kunikida cut him off quickly. "You didn't ruin anything," he said, kissing Katai's cheek gently. "And you're not clingy," he whispered, pulling the shorter closer. "Yes, I am. I always ask you to cuddle or do anything physical, and I'm whiny all the time and -" he was cut off again. "You're not whiny," he said, pressing gentle kisses along Katai's neck.
"Bullshit," he muttered, looking away from Kunikida. "Hey, where is all this coming from?" He asked, watching as Katai sighed silently. "While you were dancing... I thought about... us," he whispered, closing his eyes tightly. "O...k. What about us?" He asked quietly. "Well..." Katai trailed off.
"You weren't thinking about... breaking up, were you?" He asked, eyes widening as Katai sat up quickly. "No! No! No, never!" He said, eyes wide. "I thought that you were gonna break up with me," he admitted quietly. "What?" Kunikida gasped, shaking his head. "We hardly do anything as a couple! And I'm always the one initiating anything intimate! And I haven't even met your family, and I just..." He trailed off, eyes tearing up again.
He pulled Katai closer, pressing their lips together firmly but gently. "I will never, ever, break up with you," he said, bringing his feet onto the love seat, causing the brunette to press further into him. Katai just sighed before slowly melting into Kunikida's hold. "Is this about your texts with Yosano?" He asked, sighing as the shorter tensed. "You know about that?" He asked, pulling away slightly.
"She showed me your texts to make a point," he said, attempting to ease Katai's nerves. "Just ignore them, ok? It's fine and unimportant," he said, causing Kunikida to shake his head. "It's not unimportant, and I don't want to brush this off," he said, causing the brunette to sigh. "I want you to trust me, Katai," he whispered, releasing his grip as Katai slid off his lap. "I do trust you," he whispered firmly.
"Then tell me what you want," he said, grabbing his hand gently. "What if what I want is too much for you?" He asked quietly. "Then we compromise because I'm not letting you go," he whispered, smiling as Katai blushed. "I just..." He hesitated, sighing quietly. "Hey, don't think about me. Just tell me what you want," he said, wrapping an arm around Katai's waist.
"I don't like that we live separately," he started, pausing and glancing at Kunikida quickly. "I wish we hung out more and did more couple things. And..." He trailed off, blushing fiercely. "And?" He asked quietly, grabbing Katai's chin gently. "I want to have sex more," he whispered, looking away slightly. He just smiled before kissing the brunette gently.
"Anything else?" He asked quietly. "I want to meet your family. And..." He trailed off yet again, sighing quietly. "I want to get married... badly," he whispered, finally. "Ok, then let's get married," he whispered, smiling as Katai's eyes widened. "Are you serious?" He asked, sitting up quickly.
"Yes, I'm serious," he said, pulling a shocked Katai closer. "You-you don't have to do this just for me," he said, placing his hands on Kunikida's chest. "It's not just for you. I want to get married too," he said, kissing the older softly. "I can't believe this," he whispered, laughing quietly. "I love you, sweetheart," he whispered, kissing Katai gently. "I love you too," he whispered, kissing the taller again.