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The streets of Shibuya still bustled with people making their way home, neon signs flickering to life one by one as the sun dipped lower behind the buildings.
Their footsteps blended into the steady rhythm of the city as BAD DOGS walked side by side along the familiar route they had taken together more times than either of them could count.
Usually, those walks were filled with conversations, no matter how mundane or ordinary the stories were.
Toya thought back to when he was asked how they never ran out of conversation topics. He wasn't sure himself actually.
They'd just… talk about anything that came to mind.
Today was different.
Toya noticed it almost immediately.
Akito had pulled the hood of his sweatshirt over his head despite the weather hardly being cold enough to justify that in addition to his many layers. His hands remained buried deep inside the front pocket while he kept his gaze fixed stubbornly on the pavement ahead.
Even when Toya casually glanced toward him, Akito seemed strangely determined to avoid looking back.
Toya quietly observed him for another minute.
Had practice gone badly?
…No.
Everyone had been in good spirits.
Had he accidentally said something upsetting?
He replayed the afternoon in his mind.
After he played his song, the Vivids had complimented the new arrangement Toya had written. An had immediately started teasing Akito about how proud he'd looked listening to it, earning an indignant denial that nobody believed.
The conversation had eventually drifted toward the song itself, and Toya...
Toya blinked.
He remembered. The speech he gave Akito.
He had spoken honestly—explained exactly why he had written it.
How Akito had found him when he had been running from classical music.
How Akito had kept him from abandoning singing altogether.
How he wanted to continue standing beside Akito for many years to come.
How Akito was the best partner he could ever ask for.
Toya slowed his steps ever so slightly.
Perhaps...
He glanced sideways again.
Akito's hood had somehow been pulled even farther forward than before.
"Akito?" Toya called gently as he tilted his head, concern evident in his voice.
His shoulders twitched almost imperceptibly before he finally turned his head just enough to acknowledge him.
"Hm?" he answered, though his face remained mostly hidden beneath the shadow of his hood.
Toya studied him carefully.
A faint shade of red stretched across the part of Akito's face that wasn't concealed.
His eyes widened slightly.
"You're blushing…?"
Akito froze.
He immediately jerked his head away again before tugging his hood even farther down. "Shut up," he muttered under his breath, his voice carrying far less annoyance than embarrassment.
Toya couldn't help smiling a little.
"I wasn't teasing you," he said softly as he continued walking beside him. "I was just surprised."
Akito let out a long, defeated sigh before dragging one hand over his face beneath the hood. "Yeah, well..." he mumbled. "You surprised me."
Toya looked at him curiously.
"I did?"
Akito scratched awkwardly at the back of his neck before shoving his hand back into his pocket.
He hesitated for several moments, clearly trying to search for the right words, before finally letting out another sigh.
"Dude," he began while rubbing the bridge of his nose, "How the hell do ya..."
He paused again before giving up halfway through the sentence. "How do ya find all those words an' shit?"
Toya blinked.
Akito finally glanced toward him for only a brief moment before immediately looking away again.
"I mean..." Akito continued awkwardly as he kicked a tiny pebble along the sidewalk.
"Every time ya start talkin' like that, it's like..." He laughed once under his breath before shaking his head. "I dunno."
His shoulders lifted in a helpless shrug.
"You just..." he murmured, "Say exactly what's in your heart."
Toya listened silently.
Akito let out another embarrassed laugh before burying his face a little deeper inside his hood. "I can't do that."
His voice had become noticeably quieter now.
"Not like you."
They walked another few steps before Akito spoke again.
"I think plenty of stuff."
He shoved both hands deeper into his hoodie pocket.
"I just..." He searched for the words before exhaling through his nose. "I dunno how to say it."
His gaze stayed fixed on the sidewalk stretching ahead of them.
"You make it sound easy."
Toya's expression softened.
"It wasn't easy," Toya admitted as he looked ahead thoughtfully. "I've wanted to tell you those things for a very long time."
Akito finally looked up. "You have?" he echoed.
Toya nodded. "I have."
A small smile settled on his face as memories drifted through his mind.
"There were many times when I wanted to thank you properly," he continued, reminiscing. "After our performances, during our walks home… sometimes while we were practicing together."
He laughed at the memories of his failed attempts. It was a miracle he even managed to confess to Akito in the first place.
"But every time I thought about saying it..." He looked down at his own hands before smiling sheepishly. "...It never felt like the right moment."
Akito listened without interrupting.
"When I finished writing that song," Toya continued, "I realized everything I wanted to tell you. Well, not quite everything but…"
He lifted his eyes again.
"I had written it while thinking about you." His smile became just a little warmer as he said that. "So presenting it felt like the perfect opportunity."
Akito stared at him—the blush he'd been trying so desperately to hide quietly returned.
"...You're unbelievable." he mumbled.
Toya tilted his head. "Is that a compliment?"
Akito thoight about it for a moment. "Yeah," he admitted with a smile. "Yeah, it is."
The tension that had followed them since leaving practice seemed to melt away alongside the laughter.
After another comfortable silence settled between them, Toya spoke again.
"You know," he began thoughtfully, "I've never felt that you were lacking in expressing yourself."
Akito blinked. "Huh…?"
"You just show it differently."
Akito frowned slightly. "The hell's that supposed to mean?"
Toya smiled. "I noticed it quite a long time ago."
He looked toward Akito with the same calm sincerity that always made it impossible to doubt his words.
"You tell people how important they are through your actions." he explained.
Akito opened his mouth to argue.
Nothing came out.
Toya continued before he could.
"When I struggled with my singing, Akito stayed after practice without me asking."
His smile remained gentle.
"When I was overwhelmed because of my father, Akito kept bringing me food because he knew I'd forget to eat."
Another memory surfaced.
"When I was sick, Akito came over and visited me despite me telling him he would get sick too."
Akito's ears turned noticeably red. "Dude..."
"Akito remembers every small preference I have, including jewelry." he pointed out, gesturing vaguely at Akito's wrists.
"Akito buys my favorite canned coffee without asking."
He glanced toward Akito again.
"You do show you care, just with actions. It's really… really not that hard to see," he continued. "You do the same for Shiraishi and Azusawa as well."
Akito immediately looked away.
"That's just..." He scratched awkwardly at his cheek. "Anybody'd do that."
Toya smiled knowingly. "You believe that." He shook his head ever so slightly. "I don't think so."
Akito fell silent.
Toya looked ahead once more. "I've always known how much you care. You've been showing me how for years."
Akito looked at him again. "I have?"
Toya nodded.
"You simply weren't using words to do most of it."
The evening breeze gently stirred the edge of Akito's hood.
He stood quietly for several moments before letting out a quiet laugh through his nose.
"So..." he muttered while rubbing the back of his neck, "...Your whole confession was—"
"Long overdue—yes, I suppose it was."
He lifted one hand between them, curling it into a loose fist before holding it toward Akito.
"Partners?" he asked with a warm smile.
Akito looked at the offered hand. A grin slowly spread across his face.
Without another word, he raised his own hand and lightly bumped his forearm against Toya's.
"Partners."