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"… wow, with the box still in good condition? I can't believe it!"
Itaru's excited voice filled every corner of the small second hand game store they've stopped at on the way home.
"What have you found this time?" Guy asked, stepping beside him.
"I can't tell, is it the first or second edition?" Itaru asked, handing him the box.
"First," Guy confirmed for him. "But I believe it's time for a new edition of your glasses, Itaru."
"I know. Already made an appointment," Itaru smiled.
"Thank you for taking care of your health."
"Thank you for making me want to," he answered, sneaking a kiss on Guy's cheek. "I love you, Gai."
"I love you too, Itaru."
"Are we in a rush?"
"Not at all."
"Cool! Then I'd like to look at a few more things," Itaru clapped his hands, hopping over to the next box of miscellaneous cartridges.
"Are we buying this one?" Guy asked, following him with the box still in his hands.
"Oh absolutely! It's the first edition of Youth Anklet - I streamed like a thousand hours of that the year we moved in together!"
"I know."
"I never owned a physical copy, but it has a special place in my heart, so I've always wanted to."
"I am glad we found it then."
"Me too! Oh, look here - did someone dump their whole collection? Sure the labels are scratched, but at least they work! I played this series as a kid, it was so fun - until the part I got stuck, and didn't know how to look up guides, but then I got back to it in high school just for the sake of getting it done."
"Your dedication is admirable."
"And this one, this I played with Banri … haha, they have a lot of things we've played together actually! All in the used bargain bin, huh? Gai, we're getting old …"
"Have been for a while now, my dear."
"Think I'm going too far?" Itaru asked, turning around with a handful of games from his youth.
"Not at all. The shelf unit in the living room has space for … probably at least twice that amount," Guy assessed after getting a good look at all the game cartridges Itaru had gathered.
"Let's get them all home then!"
They left the store together: Guy carrying the box, and Itaru happily swinging a paper bag with the random assortment of other games up and down with each step. Even after he'd gotten tired of that, the games still rattled softly with each step, and it made him feel like a kid again - almost like going home with a bag full of candy. It wasn't exactly a rare occasion, but Itaru still treated it with the gravitas of one.
Even if it was routine, it was their routine.
And that mattered immensely to him.
They'd get home together, like always. Guy would make them drinks before sitting at the table next to Itaru, helping him clean all the dust from the cartridges and breathe new life into the games they've bought. If there was any bit of dirt stubborn enough to require more than ten seconds with a q-tip, Itaru would give it to Guy to take care of. His glasses were usually more up to date than Itaru's anyway, and also … Guy was perfect for that job.
Patient and precise.
Always had been.
The precision may have waned over the years, moving from decimal points to percentages with whole numbers to rough, human-like approximations in halves and quarters. But the patience remained … perhaps only growing the longer they've been together.
"You forgot the disinfectant wipes," Guy gently reminded him, placing a pack of wipes next to Itaru's hand on the table.
"Eh? Right … was just gonna ask where they were," Itaru smiled, pulling the wipes closer and getting started on cleaning the first cartridge. "Thank you, Gai."
"You are welcome, Itaru."
It must have grown, Itaru thought. He'd only gotten more scatterbrained as they've gotten older, and yet … Guy still loved him anyway.
Their glasses slowly emptied over the course of the afternoon, the light outside their window fading to a soft, warm orange. The stack of clean games grew taller, the pile of wipes by Itaru's side spread wider, and the neat line of q-tips on Guy's side of the table continued onward.
Through it all, there were maybe a few moments of silence. The rest, Itaru had filled up with all his memories of every game they went through: whether they were childhood favorites or high school obsessions or just whatever junk he bought to kick Banri's ass and then ended up kinda enjoying on his own. Perhaps it was inevitable: before theater, games were his only hobby, and aside from acting, he spent most of his career streaming one game or another.
Perhaps it was inevitable that even after all these years, he'd still have so much to say about so many different games from his past.
It was dark outside before he knew it. Half a day gone, just like that … and Guy was still listening to him. Itaru wondered how many hours it had been: today, or this year, or … in the past few decades all together. Did Guy know the number? If Itaru asked, would he tell him?
… or would he smile and say it does not matter, because they were hours well spent?
"Itaru."
"Huh?"
"Are you starting to doze off? Perhaps we should go to bed," Guy smiled.
"No, just … I was thinking," Itaru shook his head.
"About what?"
"All the hours we've spent like this …"
"Enjoying our time together?"
"You are relentless with your reassurance," Itaru chuckled.
"I prefer to operate at a surplus so that you never find yourself in need," Guy whispered, moving his chair closer and kissing Itaru's cheek.
"How many hours has it been?" Itaru whispered back, dropping the game he'd just picked up in favor of cupping Guy's face and kissing him properly.
"Today? I apologize, I … haven't been keeping track."
"Today … forever … I don't know if it matters," Itaru smiled with tears welling up in his eyes. "You're still here."
"Of course I am. How could I not be?" Guy sighed, nuzzling their noses together.
"I don't know. I've filled your life with so many hours of talking about a playful youth you've never had, and still … you don't resent me."
"I wasn't that old when you first lent me your console for that April Fools," Guy softly protested. "But even then … I got to portray so many characters in Mankai - I think I have had a very play-full life. I might not know how skipping homework in favor of a video game would feel, but … I know how it felt for you. Because you have told me, over and over again …"
"Gai …"
"… and those memories are all I need. To be here with you as you reminisce … Itaru, that is everything to me."
"Thank you," Itaru sobbed, removing his glasses before burying his face in the crook of Guy's neck. "For being you, and 3D, and real … and so full of all the most wonderful feelings I barely deserve."
"Still low on reassurance today, I see," Guy poignantly nodded, setting his won glasses on the table next to Itaru's before leaning down to kiss the top of his head and getting lost in his hair. "Itaru, you deserve all the love there is … in this save file, and the next."
"If there is a next, I hope we can share it again."
"I am sure that we will. I think you were born for co-op games," Guy grinned, pulling Itaru off of his chair and into his lap.
The precision may have waned … but not by much. Guy was still dead on after all, Itaru thought as he got lost in their kiss.