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“Is there a reason you asked me to come here right after work?” You ask as you walk over to where Daichi is waiting for you, uniformed shoulders squared as if he knows you’re just waiting for a chance to bite them.
“Well,” he flushes. You latch on. “There is?”
“Well,” he scratches the back of his neck, his cheeks turning pinker. “It’s stupid.”
“Oh, now I really wanna know.”
“Well,” he repeats once more, offering his arm for you to take. “You’re an adult?”
“Ooookay?” You draw out the word in confusion. “And I’m an adult,” Daichi adds.
“Are you trying to give me the talk?” You ask, looking up at him. “I can assure you, I’ve had it already. My parents were very open with me about it.”
“Not-” He chokes. “Not like that, I don’t mean- I”
“Babe,” you ask, leaning in. His face is beet-red now. “What are you talking about? I want to know, but you’re being cryptic.”
Daichi huffs. Squeezes the arm linked through his. “I want to show you off,” he admits then. “And myself. Cause we’ve got proper adult jobs and all.”
“Aww,” you coo, giggling. “You could have said so. Why are you so nervous about it? Wait,” you stop. “We’re meeting your old classmates tonight, aren’t we? Are they judgy? Is this why I’m wearing my best office attire?”
“They won’t judge you,” Daichi calms you. “Me, on the other hand… Oh, they’ll rip me to shreds.”
-
“Daichi!” Someone bellows through the Izakaya, waving. “Look, guys, he’s in uniform. Behave!”
“Very funny, Suga,” Daichi snarls, though the smile playing around his lips tells you nothing is said in mean spirit. “But you should behave. A lady is present.”
“Oh, and what a lady,” Suga slips easily around the wall Daichi is, shaking your hand with a sly grin. “Looking good. Tell me, how did Daichi get your number? Did he beg? Get on his knees? Don’t tell me, he saved you from an armed robbery, and you took pity on him?”
You laugh as Daichi grumbles. “No, I accidentally ran a red light, and he let me off easy after I flirted so hard I feared he was going to pass out.”
“I wasn’t going to pass out!” Daichi grumbles, but you remember well how red his face had turned. “This is Asahi, by the way.”
Asahi’s tall, taller even than Daichi, his mouth pulled into a thin line. You’d probably be a bit taken aback by the sight if not for the tiny detail of his shaking hands and the stutter in his words as he introduces himself.
“Nice to meet you, Asahi,” you squeeze his hand and watch his grimace turn into a bashful smile. “I heard you work as a designer?”
“No fair!” Suga interrupts. “You told her about Asahi but not about me?”
“It came up one day, I’m not at fault here!” Daichi defends himself, waving absentmindedly at the guy who’s snuck up behind Asahi, ready to say hi.
“I’m-” “Chikara?” You ask, surprised. “You know Daichi?”
Chikara blinks, a little slower on the uptake. Daichi tenses on your side. “You know Ennoshita?”
“Well, yes, I-” “No way,” Chikara cuts you off. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. I’m probably still wounded from my last loss at your hands.”
You laugh. “It wasn’t that bad, was it? I mean, you used Chansey. You should know better.”
“What?” Daichi asks, confusion written all over his face, even as Chikara laughs good-naturedly. “Guilty as charged. I just like him, he’s pink and a healer, what more do girls want?”
“Uh, not that?” You ask back, before pointing at Daichi. “I’ll bet 1000 Yen with you that he would pick an Arcanine, or maybe a Stoutland, not a Chansey.”
“That’s not a fair bet,” Chikara shoots back. “Everyone knows he’d do that. He’s into dogs.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Daichi snaps, trying to laugh his insecurity off.
“Oh,” you turn, shaking your head. “Sorry, babe, I totally outed myself as a nerd here.”
“Babe,” Sugawara whisper-mocks behind him as Daichi laughs awkwardly again.
“Nerd? How? Enlighten me, please?”
You step into him, relieved when he pulls you in the rest of the way. It’s a little awkward, and you can tell he’s embarrassed. Daichi’s not one to show his insecurities openly, or at least not quite as publicly.
“Pokemon,” you explain quietly. “You know, the game? You can collect cards and, well, Pokémon? And fight with them? I’ve been at it since before Junior High and Chikara, and I met over an online fandom.”
“Mhm,” Daichi squints for a second before smiling, leaning in for the quickest peck. “Could have fooled me with your ‘adult’ attitude. Though I can’t say I’m surprised, Ennoshita.”
“Hey,” Chikara defends himself. “Why do I get the nerd label but she doesn’t?”
“Cause I’m cuter,” you defend yourself with your tongue out, slipping an arm around Daichi’s hips. He leans into the touch.
-
On the way back, your hand stuffed into the back pocket of his pants, you bring the topic up again.
“I like your friends,” you tell him quietly, leaning into his warmth as you walk. “They’re all so different.”
“Hm?” Daichi’s slow to respond, and you wonder if he’s tipsier than he lets on. “Yeah. I- You never dated Ennoshita, right?”
You laugh. “No. There was never that spark I had with you.” You squeeze his butt for good measure, relish in the surprised squeak he lets out.
“You menace!” He scolds you, though he’s quick to catch you when you try to run, pulling you in under the flickering light of a street lamp to kiss you.
“I’m just surprised,” he admits eventually, holding you still, unmoving. “I thought I knew you.”
“I’m an open book,” you admit, “but I’m still a book. I’ve got loads of interests you probably don’t know about. For example, I once tried my hand at Dnd-”
“No,” Daichi cuts you off with a laugh, “you won’t distract me with another weird topic when I’m still trying to grasp the first. Pokémon, you said. Do you still play? And you said I’d choose… was it something Arcane?”
“Arcanine,” you correct him, pulling out your phone. “Don’t laugh, but I built you a team.”
“You built me a team?” Daichi asks, sounding earnestly touched. “Let me see.”
“See,” you show him the pictures. “I picked two dog-like Pokémon, because the police in the Pokémon world use them a lot. And Aggron and Nidoking are known for their defense.”
“What about that one? Brave-Braviary?”
“Oh,” you rub your nose, a little flustered. “Well, your team motto was ‘Fly’, so you needed a flying type on your team. I thought this one looked the coolest. Since you’re the captain and all.”
He picks you up as he kisses you, your toes curling as they lift from the ground.
Flying, you find, is the best thing ever.
-
Pokémon teams as picked by @true-deru 🥰
Daichi: Stoutland, Braviary, Aggron, Arcanine, Houndroom, Nideking
Sugawara: Drampa, Kangaskhan, Watchog, Swoobat, Dachsbun, Jigglypuff
Asahi: Dragonite, Happiny, Cinccino, Indeedee, Dolliv, Wooloo
Ennoshita: Braviary, Audino, Chansey, Pyukumuku, Medicham, Chesnaught