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Aki almost trips in his haste to get to him.
When Denji had called him in the middle of class, Aki had ignored it. When he called another two times, Aki had pulled himself away from his lecture and hissed out “this better be good” into the phone before Denji could get a word in, because he should’ve known better than to interrupt–
“It’s Angel!” Denji had shouted, and that’s all Aki needed to hear.
He didn’t even go back for his things, just started booking it down the hallway.
Checking all of Angel’s usual haunts as Denji rambled in his ear.
“I heard from Asa, who heard from Yoshida that–” not in the library. “Barem had approached Angel in the hallway–” not in the cafeteria either. “–yanked on Angel’s hair–” Aki’s gonna kill that guy. “–said something that got Angel really, really mad–” he’s gonna kill that guy. “–like, so mad–” he’s gonna kill that guy. “–a fight started and Angel kneed the guy in the groin!”
Aki had almost smacked into a doorway upon hearing that Angel, his Angel, got violent like that.
He doesn’t know what Barem said to him, but he’s seriously gonna kill that guy.
Denji was still talking away when Aki made it outside and spotted Angel on their favorite bench.
Napping.
Or dead, Aki’s brain had unhelpfully supplied, as if that was even remotely a possibility. But as soon as it was in his head, it wasn’t leaving.
Aki had broken into a run.
“That’s not all, Aki, apparently Angel also–”
“I’ve gotta go.” Not even bothering with a reply, Aki had hung up right then and there.
Because Angel was–
“Ang-Angel, are you okay?!” Falling to his knees in front of him, Aki takes Angel’s face in his hands, heedless of how clammy they must be from all of his running.
Angel’s eyebrows furrow before he blinks awake and squints against the dying sunlight.
“Aki, what—“ he’s confused, visibly and audibly so, but he pauses in his questioning to cuddle his face deeper into Aki’s palms.
Aki’s helpless to kiss him in this moment.
Angel’s even more confused once he pulls back.
“Aki—“
“Are you hurt anywhere?” Turning his head to and fro, Angel allows himself to be manhandled for all of a couple of seconds until he’s batting Aki’s hands away.
“I’m fine, what’s going on?”
Aki acquiesces, but his hands flounder and fidget and fall, before he’s cupping Angel’s face again.
“I heard you got into a fight.”
He watches as the confusion on Angel’s face fades to understanding before he snorts and settles back onto the bench.
“It wasn’t much of a fight.”
Still holding his face between his palms, Aki sits beside him and urges Angel’s gaze to follow.
As if he needs any urging or excuses to look at Aki.
“What happened? Denji said that–”
“It was just the usual, you know how Barem is.”
“I do but…you’ve never gotten violent before.” The concern in Aki’s eyes shines so brightly that Angel has no choice but to look away. “Did he say something?”
For some stupid reason, heat presses at the back of Angel’s eyes as he stubbornly refuses eye contact.
“Angel–”
“He called you boring.”
Aki waits for him to continue, but Angel offers nothing else.
“That’s it?”
“What do you mean, 'that’s it'?”
“Sorry, I just thought that—let me get this straight. Barem called me boring, and you…what? Kneed him in the groin?”
Angel mumbles something unintelligible, and Aki leans forward in an attempt to catch his eye.
“What–”
“And I broke his nose.”
“YOU BROKE HIS–”
Flinching away, Angel pushes himself up and away from the bench, and Aki’s arms fall uselessly to his side.
“What’s the big deal? He had it coming.”
“Angel, I–you can’t just–” he’s at a loss, he’s truly, truly, at a loss. His hands make and remake fists as he holds himself back from taking Angel in his arms again.
“Why not? He shouldn’t get away with talking about you like that.”
“Like what? Angel, I am boring–”
“Don’t talk about yourself like that!” Angel’s eyes sting, and whether from frustration or high emotions, he’s unsure. What he does know is that he’s on the verge of crying, and the thought is so mortifying, he turns his back to Aki and crosses his arms protectively in front of his chest. “You don’t get to talk about yourself that way, and neither does anyone else.”
At a loss for words, Aki just stares, mouth agape. Angel doesn’t get worked up often, if at all, and he certainly doesn’t get violent. When he had heard Angel had gotten into a fight, Aki had assumed the worst: black eye, bloody nose. What he wasn’t expecting was Barem to be the one walking away scathed, nose broken at the hands of someone less than half his size. The situation is so incredulous that in any other circumstance, Aki would be doubled over in laughter.
However, Angel had gotten into that fight for him. For Aki. All because Barem had called him…boring.
As if reading his thoughts, Angel interrupts his musings. “You’re not boring.”
Biting his tongue to keep from arguing, Aki reaches a hand to tug at the back of Angel’s shirt.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.” He admits, entirely truthful and entirely apologetic. He seems to be the only one able to rile Angel up like this, whether he’s in the room or not, and that is dizzying and it’s also scary.
To be loved so…
“I’m just not used to having someone who’s always on my side.”
“Denji and Power–” Angel cuts himself off with a snort, and Aki’s own huff of laughter follows.
“Denji and Power love me, but not in the same way you do.” He’s testing the water here, knowing neither of them has said those three words to the other. He wants to, he wants nothing more than to half the time, but he’s…scared.
“No, not in the same way I do.” Dropping his arms, Angel turns to face Aki again and steps back into his space.
Aki should’ve known it would’ve been okay.
Angel stops just short of contact, standing right in between Aki’s spread legs, and now it’s his turn to cup Aki’s face.
He runs his thumb across the piercings in Aki’s ear, and Aki drops his forehead onto Angel’s clothing-covered abdomen.
“When I heard you had gotten into a fight, I was so worried.” He confesses into the warmth of Angel’s body, shutting his eyes hard to fight back the tears that rise unbidden. Angel soothes his thumb across the flushed skin of his face and teases with the tie that holds his hair. His touch is so, so comforting, and Aki can only hold him tighter. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“I’m sorry I worried you,” guilt eats away at Angel; it’s evident in his soft voice and the way his hands shake, just the smallest bit. “I should’ve told you, I just didn’t want to pull you away from class–”
Shaking his head, Aki pulls Angel so close that he doesn’t know where he ends, and Angel begins.
“You’re more important than that,” he whispers, every word an admission. “You mean so, so much to me.”
Patting his chin, Angel urges Aki to look up at him, and when he does, Angel bends down to kiss him.
It’s a soft thing–gentle–as many things with Angel are.
He kisses Aki like he’s trying to remember this moment forever, and even after they pull back, his eyes remain closed, as if committing it to memory.
Aki loves him so, so much.
He watches as Angel’s eyelashes slowly flutter open, and he goes willingly when Angel nudges his shoulder until his back meets the backrest of the bench.
Angel allows Aki to get comfortable, shuffling for a moment or two, before plopping right onto his lap and curling up against his chest.
“You interrupted my nap earlier,” he mumbles into the collar of Aki’s shirt, pressing a kiss to the collarbone that hides underneath. “You owe me another one.”
The guffaw that Aki lets out is both incredulous and fond.
“I do, don’t I?” Burying his smile in Angel’s hair, he presses a kiss to his temple and wraps his arms around Angel, anchoring them together. “But on this bench of all places?”
“You know it’s my favorite.” Sleep pulls at Angel’s voice, and he grows heavier and heavier against him, but Aki has the feeling he’s not talking about a bench right now.
Because Aki isn’t either.
“Yeah,” he murmurs into Angel’s hair. "It's mine too.”