73 with Akira, please?
“I’m not wearing a dress.”
Akira is washing the last of a couple dirty plates from the day,talking to you from behind Leblanc’s counter as you sit by a table, swirlingthe remaining sips of coffee sat at the bottom of a plain, white mug.
“Would you really not be able to fill in for me just this once?”You ask, as politely as you can. “I promise to make up for it. I’ll doanything!”
It’s a moot argument, really. Akira knows for a fact he’ll beagreeing to it by the end of the hour at worst, if only because there’s nophysical way he can say no to you. Besides, you’re giving him the eyes (the cute ones you save just forhim) and his resolve is no match against that.
“You work as a maid,” he says. “I can’t fill in for you.”
It’s only for the sake of his own dignity, that he even botherscarrying this argument on for any longer; it’ll still be a couple more minutesbefore the sight of you holding out the maid outfit for him will stop beingembarrassing. He wonders if he knows you’ve got him wrapped around your middlefinger.
Ifso, then he can’t help but think that you’re a cruel mistress.
“Please!” You insist. “No-one will notice! All I do on Saturdaysis sit in the back and wash the dishes anyway.”
To your credit, you do seem frantic. The idea of not attending aclose friend’s wedding (where you’re supposed to be the bridesmaid) because theplace you work at won’t give you a day off is depressing at best, and kind ofheart-breaking when he thinks about how much you were looking forward to thewhole thing.
He leans on his elbow and props himself up to look at you.
“Just don’t come to work.”
“I’d get fired, I’ve told you.” You reply quickly, but thepleading enthusiasm in your voice is dissipating into a solemn acceptance, likeyou’re coming to terms with the fact you’re going to have to tell your friendthere’s just no way you can make it. You put the outfit onto a table, and pushit away from you. “And I’m barely making ends meet as it is.”
There’s a long silence after that. Akira’s thinking it over, youknow that, but you’re also thinking it over, and the more you think the moredepressed you get. Because sure, maybe you are being unreasonable; even if theboss doesn’t come in during the weekends, it’s pretty likely the people thatwork with you will notice your absence and Akira’s sudden appearance. Besides,as cute as you’re sure he’ll look in a dress, you’re not convinced he’ll beable to look like a girl the entire day. Someone’s bound to notice that he’sway too masculine for a woman eventually.
“Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.” You sigh. “I’m sorry. Youjust felt like my last resort. Everyone else will be at the wedding.”
You’re not sure whyexactly he feels like the last resort; it’s only barely that you’re closer toAkira than any of the other Phantom Thieves, but it’s probably got to do with hisinherent reliability, the ability to somehow always be there for you, regardlessof the problem. Akira is still thinking, which makes sense considering thebomb he’s about to drop.
“I feel like it’s probably my fault. I should have called insick straight away instead of asking them in advance. Now they’re gonna knowI’m just skipping work for –"
“How about you quit your job and come live with me?”
Your hand stops playing with the mug.
“What?”
Akira walks out from behind the counter and sits in the seatsopposite yours.
“You wouldn’t have to worry about paying rent that way. Sojiro wouldfill the fridge and I’d cook meals for the both of us.”
Quite honestly, you’re blown away with how sudden his offer is.There’s nothing in his face that would hint he’s just joking (not like youreally need to look at his face to know; he’s not the kind of person to makelight of things like this) but the whole thing still feels like a massive prank.You laugh.
“Are you serious?”
You can’t take your eyes off him, but he’s not frightened byyour eye contact. He nods at you once, and then just stares back.
“That’s – I mean, wow. Thank you. But… I can’t accept thatoffer. People would get the wrong impression about us.”
His reply is immediate, and comes to surface without the needfor any consideration.
“Impressions don’t matter to me,” he says, and it doesn’t comeas a surprise to you. Akira’s not the kind to care about prattle or gossip.Never was, and probably never will be.
“I believe you,” you say,and you’re telling the truth, but there’s still something nagging at you. “Ijust – I think you’re being too generous with me. I can’t leech off yourhospitality forever, you know. Like, what if you get a girlfriend down the line?Do you think she’ll be alright with you sharing your room with another girl?”
There’s a bit of quiet that makes you feel like maybe you’veconvinced him to reconsider. He’s got that depth to his eyes that tells youhe’s mulling things over, like he’s weighing the pros against the cons to makesure his final decision is the right one.
“You said you’d do anything if I filled in for you, right?”
With a bit of hesitation, you nod. Akira doesn’t reply for muchlonger than you expect him to drag out the silence for, which is probably thefirst sign that the next thing that decides to come out of his mouth will bedeadly.
“Would you come live with me, as my girlfriend?”
The way you jolt in shock almost spills your drink.
“As a girlfriend? You want me to be your girlfriend?”
“Yeah,” he replies, simply.
You go back to swirling the coffee around in the mug, and itmakes you feel somewhat better – like you’re at least partially in control ofthe situation. The black liquid has been reduced to a transparent brown againstthe bottom of the mug, and It swishes against the walls: right to left, left toright, up and down, until you’re ready to continue.
“You’ve picked kind of an unconventional way to tell me that.”
Akira doesn’t reply, and you’re grateful for it; he seems torealise you’re going to need a couple more seconds to swallow such a suddenconfession. When you look up at him to judge his face (not that youparticularly need to, it’s more out of habit than anything else) he meets youreyes, and their gaze stays with you even as you look away.
There’s been signs,that Akira wants something more from your relationship. He’s more doting on youthan he is on the other friends he hangs out with, always ready to help, andhe’s never refused you when you send him a message asking him if he’s free tomeet up. Now that you think about, it all those littlecompliments add up too. But this… This is still too sudden.
You take a deep breath.
“If you come to work instead of me,” you start, and another deepbreath comes and goes. “I’ll be your girlfriend.” You try to distract yourselfby looking away to the maid outfit. “But… I can’t move in with you.” Eventhough Akira’s face barely changes, you think it’s safe to assume he’sdisappointed from the way his shoulders droop. “I don’t want to depend on youand Sojiro,” you try to explain. “I’m really grateful for the offer, but I justwouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did nothing to contribute in terms ofmoney.”
“Sojiro wants you to move in too.”
Again, you’re floored. It’s not easy to predict what Akira’sgoing to say at any point in time, because he doesn’t tend to tell people whathe thinks about. But this? This goes beyond what you’re used to with him.
“He does?”
Akira nods.
“I’ve already asked, and he thinks you would keep my out oftrouble.”
The whole situation is funny enough that you can laugh about it,so you do. It comes out as a cute little chortle that makes Akira smile too.
“Yeah, you could probably do with some of that.” You say,because the amount of times Akira’s been caught up in troublesome situations goeswell above what you consider average. The last deep breath of the evening coilsfor a few full seconds before you finally push it out.
“Would it really be alright?”
Akira nods, and there’s no hesitation to it. You think about itproperly, now that you have the time, and you can’t help but find the ideasomewhat endearing. Quitting a job and leaving your shitty boss behind isprobably enough to make the whole thing feel like a too-good-to-be-true dream,but coming to move in with your boyfriend (wow, it feels weird to say thatabout Akira) seals the deal with a pretty bow and a cherry on top. There’s onlyone thing that you’re kind of sad about.
“Suppose there’s no need for you to wear the maid outfit anymore,”you say. There’s disappointment in your voice, he can tell, so he gathers itfrom the table and pulls it towards him.
“I don’t mind wearing it if it’s just for you,” he says.
Whatcan he say? He just likes seeing you happy.
Bonus:
