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Kaoru Sakurayashiki was at his limit. He tried never to show emotions of an overly large nature to those around him. Those were for when he was in private. He had learned his lessons earlier in life and didn’t care to repeat those mistakes. But even he had limits, especially when it came to his beloved Carla.
So when Kojiro made one too many jokes about her, pushed one too many buttons and just wouldn't leave it alone, Kaoru stopped. And then he exploded.
They were are their way back home after a whole night of Kojiro’s snipping at Carla. Kaoru had told him to drop it, repeatedly, but this only seemed to encourage him. So when on their way home Kaoru was rushing because Carla needed to be charged and Kojiro just had to throw in his two cents.
“You know you care about your stupid robot girlfriend more than the kids. She’s not real Kaoru. We could have stayed and watched their beef.”
Kaoru stopped. He came to a complete halt in the middle of the road at two am. His brain went blank, consumed by a tsunami of years of anger. Slowly Kojiro turned around, confused about why his companion was no longer by his side. How funny of him to just now notice.
“She’s real to me.” Kaoru said. His voice was flat and quiet but in the foggy night it carried. Normally when he was angry he exploded, especially with Kojiro. But not this time. He pulled off his mask snarling at Kojiro. He was tired of muzzling his anger.
Kojiro began to speak but Kaoru cut him off with a sharp snap, “no Kojiro. You don’t get to talk now. You don’t get to apologize for your thoughtless comment that you just had to say even though you knew I was already tired and upset.
You weren't here. You weren’t here when I built her. Adam had just broken my heart and you left a week later to go off to Italy. And I couldn’t even be mad at you because it was your dream. But you left me here. Stuck where I have always been in this stupid town that never made sense for me. And I had to make it work. You left me with no friends, stuck with my parents. Who by the way did not suddenly become better.
So what did I do? I built myself someone, anyone, I could talk to and be myself. That's what Carla is, Kojiro. She was a friend for some of the worst years of my life, where I was desperately trying to build my business so I could get out of that horrible home. She was someone who knew everything about me, when the only other person on the planet had left me to go around the world.
So no. I don’t want to hear you insult her again. Because she was the only lifeline I had left.” Kaoru was nearly yelling by the end of it. Shouting out his emotions in the foggy street light like he was a teenager again but he just couldn't help it. He let out a ragged breath, and faced Kojiro with a sneer, teeth bared. Kojiro looked shocked, he had frozen midway through the rant and hadn’t even dared to breathe.
Kaoru knew it wasn't fair, that what he had said wasn't fair, that Kojiro had done his best, he’d called and texted and flown home for the holidays. It wasn't fair because Kaoru had shouldered and smushed this anger like he was Atlas for all these years. Now was not the time to air grievances, in some petty argument on a random weekday night. But life wasn’t fair and Kaoru was tired of pretending.
So he stood there breathing raggedly and thought about running away from this situation. Dashing away to his home to ignore the broken mess he had just made.
Except. Of the two of them it was Kojiro who was strong. Kojiro who never broke. So it was Kojiro who fixed the situation. He took two massive steps forward and wrapped Kaoru up in his arms.
“I’m so so sorry my dear. I never meant to leave you alone.”
“I know.” It was muffled by Kaoru’s face being pressed into the crook of Kojiro’s neck. But Kaoru knew Kojiro knew, he didn't even need to say the words outloud. He just knew.
“But if it helps, I am here now, and I don’t intend to ever let you go again. Even when you try to push me away.” Kaoru was crying now, because that was what he had been trying to do wasn’t it. Yes Kojiro had pushed him over the edge emotionally, but these emotions had been building inside him for a long time. Building and building up the walls around his heart. The fears of abandonment, the desperate need to be loved for all his messy self, and yes that included his AI assistant. The horrible uncomfortable skin crawling feeling of all of himself being seen.
“You better not,” Kaoru said.
Kojiro reached down and tilted his head back so that he could kiss Kaoru with saccharine earnest slowness.
Kaoru melted into him, letting Kojiro support his weight.
“Now,” Kojiro said, scooping Kaoru up so he could carry him like a princess. And yes, he paused to pick up Carla, who folded up into her bracelet form. “Are we going home or is there something else you would like to yell at me in the middle of the street.”
“Let's go home.” Kaoru said.