Work Text:
loki: hi ☺️
loki: you're babysitting
shidou: what
shidou: OH HELL YES
loki: tell sae i said hello
shidou: he's not even IN the country you dick!!!
Shidou grumbles, blearily peering over the balcony. Every time Loki drops Charles off at his apartment, it's as if he chases the sun, racing it before it fully rises.
The elevator slides open; hurried footsteps echo in the corridor, accompanied by steps at a more leisurely pace. Shidou quickly ties his robe, sprinting as the doorbell buzzes. He opens the door to Charles complaining, “Are you really out the whole day?”
Charles pouts, wearing a wrinkled graphic shirt tucked into his shorts, while Loki has his usual outfit—a tank and grey joggers. Loki shifts behind him, pausing briefly, “I'll let you both know when I’m back.” He nudges Charles towards Shidou, briskly pacing back down the hallway.
As Shidou leads Charles in, ruffling his hair along the way—Shidou furrows his eyebrows. “What’s he rushing for?”
Although Loki is the world renowned God Sprinter, it's not a title he needs to validate. They both peer over the balcony, looking where Loki’s car should be—only to find it long gone.
Charles turns back, standing on his toes as he whispers conspiratorially. “He didn't admit it to me, but it's totally for a date.”
Shidou gasps, before heartily laughing, “I thought coaches don't play,” leaning in to pinch Charles as he yelps. “You know who he’s with?”
Charles sticks his tongue out, “Why should I tell you? I’ll always be a contrarian!”
“Don't tell me then.”
Charles wilts, landing back on the heels of his feet. “Well, he hasn't told me,” Charles huffs before continuing. “But, realistically, there’s only one person it could be.”
Naturally, observations are the root of every hypothesis, which needs to be proven correct. The strongest evidence is first-hand after all. Shidou latches into Charles’ arm—who flails wildly as Shidou drags him just outside his bedroom, and slams the door shut.
Charles cups his hand on the door, “I’m kickin’ the door down in five,” rattling the doorknob aggressively, much to Shidou’s chagrin, “Hurry up!"
“Dude, give me like ten seconds max!”
Shidou swings his door open, fresh out of his robe, wearing a plain button-up neatly tucked into high-waisted jeans.
Charles squints at Shidou, almost expecting his outfit to transform into something more eccentric. “The hell is that?”
Shidou scoffs, “Don’t diss the guise!” He turns back, flicking through the closet, tossing his smaller shirts at Charles. He quickly scans each shirt—too boring—before throwing them back at Shidou.
“You little rascal,” Shidou finally finds a small-enough button-up, and coos at Charles. “Now we can match!”
Charles perks his head up—dodging the shirt, and catching a phone in his peripheral, open to a quick search of cafés near me.
He comes to a brilliant conclusion. “Are we crashing their date?”
Shidou chides him, “Nope! We're just observing,” pausing briefly to ruffle his hair, “We need to make sure Loki is in good hands!”
Charles quietly mutters, “Knowing who Loki could be with, he is exactly where he wants to be.” He tentatively holds the button-up, furrowing his brows before relenting.
Shidou idly flicks through his phone. Charles buttons his shirt, his gaze drifting around the unkempt bedroom, as sunlight peaks through the blinds.
“If I were Loki, where would I run off too?” Shidou whips his phone out, with the screen facing Charles.
He skims the list, scrolling down—when his gaze locks onto an oddly familiar café, “Oh, Loki’s bought me here before.” Charles hovers his thumb over the screen. “This one!”
Shidou raises his eyebrows, prompting Charles to elaborate, “He was so insistent on bringing me first, before his—” Charles pauses for emphasis, “His boyfriend.”
Shidou beams, pinching his cheek, “Awww! Loki got you to scout it out with him!”
Loki, ever so meticulous. If he’s well on track to becoming the best, his boyfriend deserves just as much. Charles huffs, and snatches his phone, navigating the quickest route for the café. Shidou peers over Charles’ shoulder, dutifully ignoring the current state of his bedroom.
He glances at his reflection—in the brief moment Charles tosses his phone aside. “Wait. They wouldn’t recognise us, right?”
Charles scoffs, “If you won’t wear glasses,” He points at Shidou’s (perfect) eyeliner, “Go wash that off!”
“I'm not dampening my own explosion! I’d feel too naked!”
“There's levels to being naked?”
Shidou huffs, making his declaration. “I’m keeping it on.”
“So you're a contrarian now, huh.”
Shidou slaps a cap onto Charles; the brim blocking his vision. Charles yelps, adjusting the brim—before retaliating by snatching another hat to smack into Shidou's face.
Lively laughter echoes around the room, as Shidou pinches the hat Charles so delicately handed over, patting down his hair, before placing the hat on his head.
Shidou gazes at the bedsheets, which bury an indispensable treasure—his phone. He dives his hand further in, fishing around for his wallet while opening the quickest route to the café. Charles ventures ahead, his light footsteps echoing down the hallway, and towards the living room. Shidou swiftly paces to catch up.
He walks further out, ushering Charles to come along—who is seemingly in awe of the miscellaneous decorations. In particular, a seagull and dragon plush, almost cuddling each other.
Shidou pockets his phone, and watches Charles skip ahead—hopping over the broken lines in the brick pavement. They follow sparse lampposts that line the path leading to the café.
Before heading in, Shidou glances through the picture-window, briefly searching for where Loki is sitting (at the back!), and prods Charles to step inside. He gently nudges the door open, which squeaks back. Shidou stifles laughter before following Charles inside, the latter eagerly searching for the most optimal spot.
There’s a warm ambiance; soft sunrays scatter throughout the café. It’s not noticeably crowded, with mainly couples dotted around. Charles quietly drags his chair out, glancing a few tables ahead, where a purple haired guy affectionately dotes on a blob of white.
Shidou plops down in the seat across from him, and absentmindedly shuffles the menus, before peering over to squint in Loki’s direction. He scoots his chair closer to Charles, before tapping his shoulder, “Look, he changed too!”
Loki—changed out of his previous casual wear, now adorns a more refined attire. A stylish waist-length coat, layered over a thin sweater, with the cuffs rolled up ever so slightly. Conclusively, it's a suitable outfit for his date.
The man across Loki hums appreciatively, casting his gaze over the sprinter. His eyes are framed by gorgeous bottom lashes—
Holy shit. Sae?
Shidou blinks in rapid succession, as Charles pats his back. His grounding touches serve as a tether to reality.
Charles peeks over, recognising who Loki is sitting with. “Hey, I was right!”
Shidou turns back to face Charles, as the latter wears a smug expression, “He’s taken.”
“Huh?”
Charles swats him lightly, “Dude! That’s Hugo!”
Shidou buffers slightly before gazing back at—not Sae—Hugo, with a newfound wave of clarity. If Sae’s eyes reflect a summer sky imprinting onto coastal waters, Hugo’s eyes reflect a deep midnight, illuminated by the radiance of the man across him.
Sunlight passes through the windowsill, casting a warm glow on Hugo’s hair. Its rich colours mirror the raspberries delicately perching on the cake slice in front of him, though his undercut is the same striking shade as his eyes.
Shidou drifts his gaze lower, down to the neatly wrapped scarf, thin jacket, and further to the button-up snug tight to his chest. He scoffs. “I was just wondering how he got so built.”
“Say that any louder and Loki would have your head.”
They both turn around (subtly, of course) to peek at Hugo, who gently slices the cake into smaller pieces. Charles salivates slightly, keenly observing chocolate ganache cascading down onto the plate.
Shidou elbows him—which Charles pointedly ignores to squint at Hugo, attempting to decipher his fond murmurs to Loki.
“Charles,” Shidou whispers, “Do you even know what they're saying?”
Charles smiles back, “Uh—Obviously!” He leans closer to the pair, and gasps. “I cannot believe he just said that.”
Shidou tilts his head, with an inclination to entertain whatever bit Charles is doing.
Charles deepens his pitch, trying to speak in sync with Hugo—though the timing is so off that it's laughable. “Loki, you must know our most suitable destiny is to be together.”
Shidou perks up to see Loki murmuring back, and pitches his voice to match, “Hugo-chan, it’s as true as there are stars in the universe. You will stay by my side, forever.”
Charles hits his fist on the table—trying not to burst out laughing. “Loki-chan, I think we should let Shidou officiate the wedding.”
“Charles being our flower boy is already a given.”
“For real?” Charles breaks character immediately.
“You're like their kid, man.” Shidou reconsiders the age difference. “Or, maybe a little brother?”
They turn towards Hugo—who delicately pierces the cake slice, hovering a smaller piece just in front of Loki. He flushes, softly shooing the cake away from himself, though Hugo takes this as encouragement to feed him properly.
Shidou watches in utter fascination, while Charles pouts at the sight. Shidou plucks a menu, sliding it across the table face-up—showcasing the desserts. Light steps tap on the floor, and stop just before their table.
“Are you both still loitering.”
Charles immediately shushes whoever spoke—dismissing the familiar berating tone, usually directed at Shidou and himself. Wait.
Shidou suddenly turns towards his voice, struck by teal eyes reminiscent of—
“Hurry up and order,” Rin punctuates by tapping on the menu, “Or get out.”
Shidou quickly recovers from his initial surprise. “Rinrin,” he hushes, “You're going to blow our cover.”
“Your cover was blown the moment you both walked in here. Neither of you know subtlety.”
Charles chirps, “But, Monsieur Itoshi, they haven't noticed us.” He glances back, observing Hugo blatantly staring at the sprinter. Though Loki has an air of nonchalance, he almost preens at his attention. Point proven.
Shidou playfully chides Rin, “You sure you didn't get lost, lower lashes?”
Rin grits his teeth, “I work here.”
He is met with two astoundingly blank stares. Rin scoffs, “Who says the best striker can't exceed in anything else? You lukewarms.”
Charles leans closer to Rin, and starts vigorously pointing at the menu. “Licky Rin—”
“Don’t start.”
“—What’s the waiter’s recommendation?”
“I'd recommend leaving.”
Shidou groans, “Rinrin, you're no fun.”
“I don't need fun. I need to be the best.”
A single-track mind, only seeking to crush his opponents. Shidou pouts—that’s so boring—though he doesn't verbalise this sentiment. He laments the lack of explosions in Rin’s life. “So much for being the best waiter, if you're gonna tell customers to fuck off.”
Rin clicks his tongue, ready to shut up a certain roach—though (by the skin of his teeth) he manages to control his temper. He taps the menu at random, “Just get that.”
Charles perks up—it’s the same cake Hugo was affectionately feeding to Loki. How lucky. Charles quickly nods at his suggestion. Shidou smiles at his antics, and glances up to see Rin diligently jotting down his order. Shidou hums, "Is this why Sae-chan wanted me to come here?"
Shidou reminisces on a previous call with Sae; readily suggesting places he would drag the midfielder—as soon as he could visit. Sae off-handedly mentioned a particular café, before prompting Shidou to continue.
Shidou, utterly smitten, quickly took note without question. "If Sae-chan says so, it must be good! We should drop by together!"
"I'll come when I can."
"You promise? I don't do take-backs!"
"Then hold me to it. Give me a proper tour, demon."
"Riiin!" Shidou pouts, squishing his own cheeks, "Your precious older brother wanted to check in on you!"
Rin refuses to indulge him any longer, though his eyes light up briefly before dimming. Rin huffs, with Shidou catching his murmurs of, "a shitty excuse to visit" and "he could've just called"—just as he starts walking away from their table. Charles curiously looks at Shidou, who shrugs.
Charles diverts his attention to Hugo, who is ready to brandish a napkin at any stray crumb, lucky enough to fall at the corners of Loki's mouth. Loki gently nudges Hugo to eat his portion, waving a fork in front of the latter.
Charles slouches in his chair, turning away from the couple, and pouting from the lack of cake in front of him. He resolutely ignores his grumbling stomach. Though, not for long, as Shidou waves Rin over—cake on plate, in hand.
Rin, trying not to scowl, places the plate in front of Charles. He pierces the cake slice (whole!) and hovers it just in front of his mouth—to the delight of Shidou, and the bewilderment of Rin. The slice wobbles on his fork, its movements similar to Shidou letting out gasps of bubbly laughter.
Rin wearily observes the cake, as Charles heartily bites into it, licking excess ganache off his lips. The rest of the slice plops delicately back onto the plate. Shidou reaches for another fork, before remembering to pay. Shidou rummages his pockets for his wallet.
Rin furrows his brows. "You cannot be sharing that."
Charles muffles in between bites, "Huh? Is that a suggestion?" He then hums, pretending to thoughtfully ruminate over this, and peaks over at Rin, who is noticeably more pale at the prospect.
"Hey, don't worry about it." Shidou pauses to pat Charles on the shoulder. "This is my treat!"
Charles grins—he's a contrarian at heart, after all. He splits (what remains of) the slice with a fork, and pushes the bigger, uneaten portion towards Shidou, who coos at such treatment. Rin, about to voice his distaste, opts to sigh instead. He sternly places the card reader in front of Shidou. "Pay."
"Now now, where's your manners?"
Rin taps the card reader.
Shidou grumbles before tapping his card, and decides to emphasise his very real first-class politeness, "Thank you Rin-chan!"
Charles begins to chew his portion of the slice, as a quiet beep! fills the silence. Shidou waves Rin off, as he notices a certain sprinter tucking in his chair. Charles places his hands at the edge of the table, ready to spring after him, before Shidou clinks his fork on the edge of the plate.
"Eat up Char-boy!" Shidou circles his fork over the almost empty plate.
Charles hums dismissively. He points to his own cheek, full of cake, and Shidou's untouched portion. Shidou huffs, using a fork to smear the bottom of his slice with spilled ganache.
Before he takes a bite, he flashes a peace sign. "We have, at most, two minutes before they fully leave." Shidou drops a finger down, "And one minute to catch them without getting caught."
Charles vigorously nods, then points his fork at Shidou. Finish eating then, he telepathically communicates to Shidou, via hair antenna. He hums and happily takes another bite. Transmission successful.
Charles shifts his attention towards the (now empty) table, where a certain couple were sitting moments before. Loki leads Hugo towards the door, hovering his hand just out of reach, before the midfielder delicately intertwines their fingers. Loki huffs, turning to hide a smile as Hugo tugs him closer, and pushes the door open with his free hand.
Through a series of urgent muffles, Charles alerts Shidou that the couple are already heading out. Shidou perks up—with a now empty plate in front of him, peering through the windowsill.
In contrast with his fluttering heartbeat and sprinter epithet, Loki strides at a slower pace as he hums along to Hugo's commentary. Shidou flirts with the temptation to lean in further as if he can truly listen, though he stays seated. When the pair disappear behind distant lampposts, Shidou grabs Charles by the arm, imploring him to follow through with their reconnaissance mission.
Autumn leaves gently sway in the wind, with speckles of sunlight shyly peaking through. Light glimpses between fragile branches, where foliage takes flight, before gently fluttering to the ground. Shidou and Charles stroll leisurely under auburn trees, when a single leaf drifts downwards, landing just at their feet.
Charles is ever so tempted to feel the crunch beneath his feet—though Shidou interferes with a stern stare. Damn it.
He sprints further up, hearing Shidou stifling a laugh, before stopping to peak behind a tree. Hugo and Loki continue intertwining their hands, and stroll further ahead—with the sprinter seemingly pulling him into his orbit.
"Huh, they're totally super close!" Shidou catches up, peaking behind Charles, "I'm surprised they haven't looked back."
Charles hums in agreement. The distance between themselves and the couple in question isn't substantial, and their own proximity with each other has been constant—wherever Loki goes, Hugo follows in stride. Charles then drifts his gaze to two butterflies chasing after each other, fluttering just ahead.
Shidou glances behind his shoulder, silently admiring the leaves above him, with vermilion hues transitioning into a faded maroon—one that Shidou is intimately familiar with. He meets a piercing gaze, which widens before quickly softening.
Shidou instinctually reacts faster than most, and naturally, fully turns around and sprints towards—
"Sae!"
His favourite Itoshi is quite cosy, wearing a simple cardigan and scarf; with a small satchel hanging off his shoulder. Sae huffs, effortlessly dodging all manners of hugging from Shidou. "You weren't home, demon."
"Stop being petty Sae-chan! I'm sorry!" Shidou drags out the last syllable, ready to explain himself back into his good graces, before Sae interjects with a sigh.
"Whatever. It means you owe me, then."
Sae turns around noticing Charles, with his hands over his ears. Charles looks over, sulking, and Sae bends down slightly—gently prying his wrists away.
"Blegh." Charles sticks his tongue out, "You two are so lovey-dovey, like, Hugo and Loki look at each other the same way."
Sae cools his expression. "Like what?"
"Like you're whipped."
"Enough."
Charles casts his gaze further ahead, gasping, "Wait! They've probably ran off and eloped already!" He reaches over to tug Shidou by his sleeve, "We need to go!"
Shidou bursts into peals of laughter, before Charles pulls him again, the two tumbling forward akin to rustling leaves. Sae causally strolls behind them, concealing a smile.
Charles loosens his grip on Shidou, grinding to a halt. They stay a reasonable distance away from the couple, with auburn trees providing enough coverage to (discreetly) sneak a peek. Charles leans in further and squints, making two circles with his hands—bringing them to his face as makeshift binoculars.
"Charles." Sae nudges him, offering an actual pair.
Shidou feels his eyes water slightly, "You're really an angel, huh?"
Sae remains silent, feeling the tips of his ears warming. Charles, with a surprising amount of consideration, holds the binoculars, observing the couple with total concentration. Sae lets Shidou lean against him, and murmurs quietly, "Only because you're still a devil."
Charles, after a minute of absolute focus, despondently returns the binoculars to their owner. "I'm bored," He emphasises this with a pout, "And they're just walking."
Sae raises his brows at Charles' resolve; accepting his newfound duty as their observatory, and slings the harness over his neck.
Shidou presses closer, "Sae-chan."
He turns to flick him on the forehead. Shidou remains undeterred. "Were you spying on us with that?" He points at the binoculars.
"I was bird watching earlier today."
Sae looks through his binoculars, noticing the couple are standing still; though the breeze picks up slightly—drifting leaves enhancing the idyllic scenery, framing them perfectly. Charles and Shidou peak curiously from behind, though from this distance, Hugo and Loki appear as blurry silhouettes.
Hugo turns towards Loki, noticing the latter is at a standstill. A stray leaf is a breath away from kissing Loki, precariously close, and Hugo instinctively flicks it away. The sprinter furrows his brows, folding his arms close to his chest—Hugo quickly frets, "This weather isn't suitable after all. You're cold. Should we head back in?"
Loki huffs, strangely fussy, though he refuses to budge, and looks up to see a fluttering leaf, softly landing on Hugo. He pivots, deflecting Hugo's concerns, "One landed in your hair."
Before Hugo reaches up to pluck the leaf away, Loki catches his wrist. Hugo furrows his brows in return, before Loki lightly pulls on his scarf, tugging him down; his eyes widen—almost expectant, with their faces closer together.
Loki gazes back at Hugo, inattentively plucking away the leaf—about to close the distance between them, instead diverting and kissing his cheek. Loki hears Hugo quietly whine, stifling a giggle—before glancing at a certain trio, a few paces away.
Sae loosens his hold on the binoculars; they softly bump against his chest. "Ah. They saw us."
Charles blanches at the (blurry) public display of affection from the couple. Shidou crumples slightly, “Did Loki know we would snoop.”
He's definitely that perceptive. Though, it's a thought Sae keeps to himself. He lets out a small smile, "He called me saying you were lonely.”
Shidou pouts and Charles just laughs.