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[And just like that, Fudou is left behind, stranded in the office with not just the food Sakuma left unfinished but his work as well, the last few pages of a document he'd been reading through but has now abandoned, stacked just a little haphazardly away from the food.
The door clicks shut with the softest tone of finality, and Fudou
sighs.]
This is your goddamn office, Sakuma...
[Well, time to clean up the food and put it in that mini fridge and maybe he can take care of the last of those papers. He could probably figure out a way to lock the door, and he'll just have to message Hakuryuu before he headed out.]
[A revelation Sakuma had too as soon as he got outside of Teikoku's doors. His body stops dead in its tracks, knowing full well he'd left Fudou all alone in his office with no key to lock up and all that food to put away. Food Fudou had offered to share with him...gotten FOR him...
A part of him's too embarrassed to got back up there. He could only imagine the smile on Fudou's face when he'd walk up, tail in between his legs and flustered beyond belief. But another part of him knows he's an adult, and these are the kinds of things he tossed away from himself as a child. To still get flustered over that man and what he said already proved he had not grown up as much as he wished he did. Those old feelings resurfaced far too quickly, and far too vigorously. He's internally grateful for his dark complexion--it was able to hide that deep flush of red on his cheeks as he marched stiffly back in, up the elevator and down the hall back towards the classroom he'd called his office.
He turns the corner down the long corridor that marked his office.]
[Fudou is not, in fact, gone. He looks up calmly when he hears Sakuma come back inside, the boxes of food already packed and put away in the fridge, dropping Sakuma's pen into its stand as a last part of his clean-up. The papers that weren't a mess but still pushed aside to accommodate the food are now spread in neatly organized stacks -- kept weighted down so they wouldn't get blown away by any gust of air -- and Sakuma's briefcase, forgotten also, is sitting on the couch in the meeting area next to Fudou's own jacket with the intention of dropping it off at the man's place after.
But all that's unnecessary now, he supposes, since the owner of the office is now back. He regards him neutrally, not a trace of a smirk or smile on his face.]
Oh, good, you're back. I was wondering what I was gonna have to do with the lock.
[His breath stops short once Fudou speaks, suddenly unable to really meet his gaze as a finger combs that long stray strand that didn't quite meet the length of the rest of his hair behind his ear. But what his eye does fall on are the organized papers, the way dinner was cleaned up (probably the only part he expected that would actually be picked and put away), the way his office should have always looked at the end of each day, but Sakuma often kept telling himself he'd organize when his workload was less.
A day that never usually came.
The frozen heart covered in thorns softens, knowing it would only be Fudou who would have done this for him, eye tracing along until it trails up Fudou's arm to meet his face, searching for any kind of an answer that could explain just why he had done this.
He did kind of abandon the man in his office after all.
His throat clears, swallowing hard as he answers, voice quivering with just the slightest bit of breathlessness.] I keep a spare in my desk.
[There's no bite to that remark, walking his way over to get the briefcase, and although his lips don't say a word (yet) about the hard work Fudou had done, it's more than obvious that he notices, and even more obvious how touched he is.]
Not that you would have known that...[A slight chuckle.] I can't believe I just left you here.
I don't mind. Probably would've just waited until security came by.
[Whatever time that would've been. Fudou straightens up from the desk with an exhale and a stretch, running his hand through his hair to get the unruly mess out of his face.]
Well, either way, you're back for your stuff, and I think you can get going home today. For once, because I know you crash here sometimes. I saw some stuff you finished working on but needed to mail out and put 'em all in envelopes here. [He pats a small stack sitting in a now-cleared up tray that had once lost its function as an Outbox months ago.]
And put away your folders and threw out some dead pens.
[He freezes, eye wide and staring at him as if Fudou had suddenly started claiming that Santa Claus was real and love at first sight was a scientific fact. Sure, he could buy that Fudou had tidied up the place--something he was eternally grateful for (how long had it been since he could place a mug at his desk without moving something?), but him willing to send out papers for him? Him finding out that his stay sometimes meant overnight? Consider him a deer caught in the headlights, hand immediately brushing some of the bangs out of his eye and looping it behind his ear. A moot effort, as it wasn't long enough to be kept there and only falls back right into the place it was before.]
Sometimes it's easier than bringing work home, is all.
[He smiles, thumbing the edge of that case.]
Guess I won't need to tonight...Thank you, for doing all of that. [For something as simple as throwing away dead pens or putting a folder in a filing cabinet, it was a relief. Something he didn't have to think to do later.]
[Fudou has walked around the desk while Sakuma was stupefied, and now he's standing next to him, head tilted down to meet his gaze from a few inches above, one hand picking up Sakuma's briefcase and his own jacket, throwing the latter over his shoulder and tucking the former under his arm. His free hand reaches up, landing on Sakuma's head to pat it once -- twice -- before he realizes what he's doing and pulls back quickly.
Embarrassing.
But he doesn't even need to take a breath before he regains the composure he didn't even lose, lips curling up in a smile that's as smirk-like as it once was but infinitely softer than twelve years ago.]
Need a ride? I know you've got a car but I've got something you might find interesting.
[Had anyone else done such a thing, they might be looking at their arm twisted behind their back, one singular, angry golden eye boreing deep into their soul and making them question their actions within the past ten seconds, and if said seconds were worth it. He would have elbowed them, some form of retaliation for disrespect like that, as from anyone else, it would have been condescending.
But Fudou wasn't anyone else, and his eye widens, realizing all too well just how close they are, and how tall Fudou had gotten over the years.
His hand, already held up to grab that wrist but stopped only a few inches from where it had originally rested, moves to adjust his tie. Had the air conditioning in the school turned off? It was suddenly so warm...]
I--
[Fudou's sentence catches his attention, taking this moment to grab a folder he'd meant to bring home and open the briefcase a crack--all while Fudou was still holding it.]
Something -I- might find interesting? You seem pretty confident.
[There, that tone was a lot easier than the soft, inquisitive one he'd only had just a few moments ago.]
[Fudou, left unharmed despite his dangerous thoughtless act, only moves to hold out the case so Sakuma could access it more easily. His own blue eyes are watching Sakuma with an almost curious look, wide and cat-like as the other man's head bobs up and down near his shoulder level.]
[After slipping that folder in, he closes the case once more and steps back, moving to adjust his hair out of nervous habit.]
Mmm?
Well now I'm curious.
[He can't hide that small, budding smile on his lips, whittled own to giving in to this mystery that Fudou wanted to show him.]
Lead the way. Let's see this 'something' I'd get a kick out of.
[He can't even think of what Fudou would want to show him, honestly. The man was such an enigma, even now, ten years since they'd reconciled the first time in middle school, and only a couple of months after they'd made amends yet again.
[With consent gained, Fudou mirrors the smile before he starts walking, his feet carrying him with no hesitation down halls that were once familiar and a place he called home.
He still remembers, over ten years ago, when he was packing up his bags after FFI and Kidou came up to him to ask if he'd ever consider transferring to Teikoku. That the Kidou would handle the finances."It's not a handout," Kidou had said with eyes glinting behind his goggles before Fudou could even open his mouth to protest, and that had been that. He was moved into the dormitories as soon as they were back in Japan, and in Tokyo he'd ended up staying for the next four years.
As much as he liked to give Kidou Yuuto crap (especially around Sakuma), he could never deny that the boy who once seemed to have everything he couldn't was a man he owed a lot of what he had now to.
But the reminiscence only lasts a few minutes, as that familiar path takes them through the school and they end up in the parking garage at back, mostly empty now as everyone else had gone home. The only cars left are those of the security guard, Sakuma--
and a lone motorcycle standing in a corner away from the two. The only one that usually isn't in this area.]
[It's a feeling they both share. Kidou Yuuto, as delightfully frustrating as he could be, and as much as he'd torn his hair out wanting to be noticed as more than just a good friend and lieutenant, he owed quite a bit of his successes to him, as well as his life.
Shin Teikoku seemed so distant now, but it was a very real reality that he knows he owes to Endou and Kidou. He might not even be standing were that not the case.
He also owes him for Fudou sticking around--as he had been one of the people to protest his leave after FFI, told Fudou that the should stay in the dorms with the rest of them. In the end, he yielded.
And began a bond much stronger than he could have ever imagined. One that--even strained as much as it was, held firm over ten years. Fudou had come back and opened his arms. And Sakuma...as cautious as he was, still came back to them.
It pissed him off so much.
He bites his lip while shaking those thoughts out of his head, moving down to the parking lot and immediately spotting his car--the only one left in the lot. That is...aside from one lone motorcycle off to the side, parked in the far corner, almost diagonal from where his car was.
Yeah. I got it off some guy I knew from high school who wanted to sell it to get a new one.
[He makes his way over to it as he answers, inspecting the bike carefully to make sure it was going to function. It wasn't so old that it posed such a danger and he'd already had work done on it before, but Fudou took no chances, especially when he was going to be putting someone else on it. The bike has a compartment box that he opens up now, pulling out a pair of helmets and holding one out toward Sakuma, along with a hairtie he's pulled from around his wrist.]
I didn't plan on being in Japan for long so I didn't want to bother with a car or paying for the parking space. When it's just me and Hakuryuu, this is usually enough.
They're definitely a cheaper option, and a lot easier to take care of when you've got other priorities.
[You can't tell unless you've known Sakuma as long as Fudou has, but there's an air of pride in that. Fudou had time and time again shown just how much he'd changed from the middle-to-high school boy he knew, those eyes that held such a thirst for power now relaxed and gentle, despite how sharp they looked.
It certainly didn't help Sakuma's own situation, that's for sure. But it was one, like many things, thrust on his life that he had to adapt to.
...
Another wrench thrown into that path when Fudou offers the helmet and the hair tie to him.]
Mm?
Ah--[Something inside him instinctively reaches out to grab both, despite looking over at his car, as if he should immediately be walking towards that.]
One time shouldn't hurt, [he says as if to reassure him, pressing the hairtie into his palm and nodding over to the car.] I'll give security a call to make sure they know about it, too.
[Sakuma doesn't move just yet, eyes fixed on the car that waited for him, ready for the same old traffic and the same old radio stations. Same streets. Same red lights. The comfort of routine and the safety of stability.
And then there was that hairtie pressed into his palm.
He sits there in silence a moment, the only telltale sign of any brain activity at all being the characteristic bite of his lip. Seconds feel like minutes, and after Sakuma considers this after only a few, his hand whips up to gather silver strands of hair, bundling them up and securing them loosely in a ponytail. With that hand now free, he reaches for that helmet Fudou held out to him previously.]
I show up for work early, you know.
[Said with a smile.
He was beginning to hate being comfortable and stable, anyway.]
I'm usually up and about taking a jog before the sun comes up. I think you and I'll match up pretty well.
[Sakuma's answer is satisfactory. With a nod, Fudou hands over the helmet and slips his own over his head, fastening the strap and mounting the motorbike after carefully placing Sakuma's briefcase into the luggage compartment. There's enough space behind him for one more person.]
Waking up early and jogging. Where did Fudou Akio even -go-. You're the worst imposter I've seen.
[He laughs, snugly fitting that helmet over his head and awkwardly rocking back and forth on his heels as Fudou situates himself with that bike. Is it protocol to get on first? Or should he wait for Fudou? The second one seemed more likely...easier to get on one after the other than to fit inbetween himself and the handlebars.]
[That dragon child is one step away from going completely vegan and gluten free or whatever other health nut trend a teenager could get into. Not that he minded. He pats the space behind him on the bike to indicate to Sakuma his seat.]
[When Fudou pats that seat, he obediently slides into it, feeling his body press right up against Fudou's and its--
It's all too clear how unprepared for this he was. Because here they are, sitting on a motorcycle back to front and Sakuma's entire line of vision now occupied by one man's muscular, if still a bit lanky, body.
He can't even reply to the conversation now. Whatever he was going to say went out the window as soon as he realized he'd have to put his arms around Fudou's torso if he was going to say on. He'd have to huddle close to his body and feel it against his chest and goddess of victory please save him.]
...
Yes.
[That seemed like a safe answer.]
I-I mean, that's good. An athlete needs a balanced diet anyway.
[Of course Sakuma's realization would come belatedly. Fudou keeps that poker face on, hands loosely placed on his handlebars and body relaxed as the other man climbs on, and waits out the seconds it takes him to work through the knowledge of how close they were going to be this ride.
The truth is that he isn't unaffected by this, either, but he's more aware of his own feelings for Sakuma than Sakuma is of his own, most likely, and Fudou knows it likely won't come to anything. There's no point in getting greedy and hopeful when this friendship is more than he thought he could have already.
Holding back a sigh, he leans back just a little.]
[It's not like Sakuma was oblivious to what his own feelings were doing--he wasn't so naive that he didn't recognize attraction when he saw it. He'd wanted it for so long, hoping for a day that would never come, that the feeling became almost too familiar to him. For Kidou...who would never truly return his affections in a way that Sakuma wanted, needed.. and for Fudou, who he'd possibly felt the same for before he'd left Japan for unknown parts of the world with no contact and no goal in mind. He'd hardened himself, sheltered that soft heart of his.
So to feel this blossom again after he'd succumbed himself to winter...it's a lot to take in. The man was nothing like Kidou, after all. None of the etiquette, unruly hair, trackjackets and boots...If they were seen on the street together, people would assume they were never associated with each other, just in the same place at the same time.
But those blue eyes were so much calmer now, his entire body language like an old, tired cat instead of the feral one he'd known years before. His voice was just as calming, a light, relaxed tone compared to the teasingly aggressive one he'd remembered. Muscles were new, easily felt from the fabric as his arms wrapped securely around the man's back and around his torso.
He really wishes he weren't focusing on that one the most.]
Ready.
[Fudou just wanted to make up for years of a failed friendship. It'd be taking advantage of the situation if he wanted anything more. And heck...Fudou probably doesn't want that either.
You don't drop everything and leave the country if you actually felt like you left something important behind...right?]
[Fudou is quiet as he nods in response, turning the ignition key and starting up the motorcycle as soon as he has Sakuma's answer. He drives slowly, carefully -- he was never a reckless driver -- through the empty parking lot, only picking up speed when they turn onto the road. He already knew where Sakuma's apartment was, having been asked by Kidou to drop off a few things once or twice in the past. Once they're driving, with the sound of the wind whipping past them and the engine's rev, there's not much reason to raise his voice just to get a few words at him.
There is no way he'd be able to truly pay for what he did. The way he made Genda and Sakuma's injuries worse when they were still recovering from injuries against Zeus. The way he tore their broken heart to shreds, planting seeds of doubt that should never have taken root, damaging relationships that were precious to everyone involved. He never belonged there. Even when he got chosen for Inazuma Japan, he was sure he'd be no more than an outsider.
He got to enjoy a few weeks of being involved, but once they graduated Teikoku the year after...
It was unease, he knew. Unease, an unwarranted contact from his mother, and a surge of old memories he didn't quite know how to deal with. He was older, wise, and stronger now, but the damage had been done. He left Sakuma once again, and he didn't think another miracle was possible. He'll do what he can do now, he tells himself, thinking about that brief conversation with Fubuki and Kiyama about Sakuma's drinking habits, about Kazemaru actually voicing anything of meaning to him. Sakuma was hurting, and if he needed a buoy...
They reach a stoplight in the middle of their drive. Go forward, and they'd be on their way to Sakuma's apartment. Veer to the right, and there was a harbor with a view he knew of.
Without consulting Sakuma for his opinion, he tilts the bike to make that turn, taking them away from the same old route this man must take. Away from a boring route home so Sakuma could crawl into bed and repeat the same thing tomorrow. A change of pace. That can be good, right?]
[Despite the scar remaining on his heart, Shin Teikoku still felt so far away. He may have held resentment back in FFI, but even Sakuma had to admit that Fudou was nothing more than just another boy manipulated by Kageyama for his own ends. It hurt, and in the end Sakuma had probably suffered the most out of all of them--his desire to be noticed by Kidou the strongest of the two of them. The feeling of inadequacy hitting deepest in his heart. But he knew...he knew that Fudou wasn't inherently a bad person. Someone had to create him that way.
Just like he had.
That last year of Teikoku had been pretty fun, too. Repairing and rebuilding what could be a strong friendship...only for it to shatter when Fudou had taken off for Europe without so much as a word. He'd been left behind again in that moment, and no meteorite or penguins would give him the power to combat this one. He wouldn't have survived another episode like that, and instead turned his turmoil internally.
Drinking, Sleeping...Working. It just wasn't working.
Sakuma's lost in thought as Fudou pulls up to that intersection, but instinct knows that from here he'd go straight, and then make another turn at the next light and they'd be heading towards his home.
That is...if Fudou took that green light. The vehicle veers gently to the right, taking the turn too early in Sakuma's mind. You didn't have to read his face to understand his confusion, his head lifts immediately from Fudou's back (oh yeah, that's right, he was pressed right up against Fudou's suddenly muscular body don't remind him) and looking at the street that led to his house. Only turning it back to face Fudou again, silent curiosity slowly taking over.
He's not protesting, at least. But the confusion is there.
Sakuma, [he says, his voice in no way loud but still managing to carry over back to the man behind him. Like a voice speaking directly to his mind, as if the world around them had gone completely silent. Not even the wind can snatch away his voice.
He can't dedicate himself completely to this. He told his team in Europe -- the team that helped him heal, more than anything in his life had up to this point, that he would go back. He told Kiyama and Endou that he'd take care of Hakuryuu, and he promised to himself that if there was anybody in this world who would never know abandonment at his hands, it'll be that child. But what he could do... he wanted to do it.]
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[And just like that, Fudou is left behind, stranded in the office with not just the food Sakuma left unfinished but his work as well, the last few pages of a document he'd been reading through but has now abandoned, stacked just a little haphazardly away from the food.
The door clicks shut with the softest tone of finality, and Fudou
sighs.]
This is your goddamn office, Sakuma...
[Well, time to clean up the food and put it in that mini fridge and maybe he can take care of the last of those papers. He could probably figure out a way to lock the door, and he'll just have to message Hakuryuu before he headed out.]
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A part of him's too embarrassed to got back up there. He could only imagine the smile on Fudou's face when he'd walk up, tail in between his legs and flustered beyond belief. But another part of him knows he's an adult, and these are the kinds of things he tossed away from himself as a child. To still get flustered over that man and what he said already proved he had not grown up as much as he wished he did. Those old feelings resurfaced far too quickly, and far too vigorously. He's internally grateful for his dark complexion--it was able to hide that deep flush of red on his cheeks as he marched stiffly back in, up the elevator and down the hall back towards the classroom he'd called his office.
He turns the corner down the long corridor that marked his office.]
Fudou I--
[Maybe he'd be gone by then. Who knows.]
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[Fudou is not, in fact, gone. He looks up calmly when he hears Sakuma come back inside, the boxes of food already packed and put away in the fridge, dropping Sakuma's pen into its stand as a last part of his clean-up. The papers that weren't a mess but still pushed aside to accommodate the food are now spread in neatly organized stacks -- kept weighted down so they wouldn't get blown away by any gust of air -- and Sakuma's briefcase, forgotten also, is sitting on the couch in the meeting area next to Fudou's own jacket with the intention of dropping it off at the man's place after.
But all that's unnecessary now, he supposes, since the owner of the office is now back. He regards him neutrally, not a trace of a smirk or smile on his face.]
Oh, good, you're back. I was wondering what I was gonna have to do with the lock.
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A day that never usually came.
The frozen heart covered in thorns softens, knowing it would only be Fudou who would have done this for him, eye tracing along until it trails up Fudou's arm to meet his face, searching for any kind of an answer that could explain just why he had done this.
He did kind of abandon the man in his office after all.
His throat clears, swallowing hard as he answers, voice quivering with just the slightest bit of breathlessness.] I keep a spare in my desk.
[There's no bite to that remark, walking his way over to get the briefcase, and although his lips don't say a word (yet) about the hard work Fudou had done, it's more than obvious that he notices, and even more obvious how touched he is.]
Not that you would have known that...[A slight chuckle.] I can't believe I just left you here.
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[Whatever time that would've been. Fudou straightens up from the desk with an exhale and a stretch, running his hand through his hair to get the unruly mess out of his face.]
Well, either way, you're back for your stuff, and I think you can get going home today. For once, because I know you crash here sometimes. I saw some stuff you finished working on but needed to mail out and put 'em all in envelopes here. [He pats a small stack sitting in a now-cleared up tray that had once lost its function as an Outbox months ago.]
And put away your folders and threw out some dead pens.
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[He freezes, eye wide and staring at him as if Fudou had suddenly started claiming that Santa Claus was real and love at first sight was a scientific fact. Sure, he could buy that Fudou had tidied up the place--something he was eternally grateful for (how long had it been since he could place a mug at his desk without moving something?), but him willing to send out papers for him? Him finding out that his stay sometimes meant overnight? Consider him a deer caught in the headlights, hand immediately brushing some of the bangs out of his eye and looping it behind his ear. A moot effort, as it wasn't long enough to be kept there and only falls back right into the place it was before.]
Sometimes it's easier than bringing work home, is all.
[He smiles, thumbing the edge of that case.]
Guess I won't need to tonight...Thank you, for doing all of that. [For something as simple as throwing away dead pens or putting a folder in a filing cabinet, it was a relief. Something he didn't have to think to do later.]
Come, I'll walk you out.
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Embarrassing.
But he doesn't even need to take a breath before he regains the composure he didn't even lose, lips curling up in a smile that's as smirk-like as it once was but infinitely softer than twelve years ago.]
Need a ride? I know you've got a car but I've got something you might find interesting.
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But Fudou wasn't anyone else, and his eye widens, realizing all too well just how close they are, and how tall Fudou had gotten over the years.
His hand, already held up to grab that wrist but stopped only a few inches from where it had originally rested, moves to adjust his tie. Had the air conditioning in the school turned off? It was suddenly so warm...]
I--
[Fudou's sentence catches his attention, taking this moment to grab a folder he'd meant to bring home and open the briefcase a crack--all while Fudou was still holding it.]
Something -I- might find interesting? You seem pretty confident.
[There, that tone was a lot easier than the soft, inquisitive one he'd only had just a few moments ago.]
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[Fudou, left unharmed despite his dangerous thoughtless act, only moves to hold out the case so Sakuma could access it more easily. His own blue eyes are watching Sakuma with an almost curious look, wide and cat-like as the other man's head bobs up and down near his shoulder level.]
You'll probably get a kick out of it.
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Mmm?
Well now I'm curious.
[He can't hide that small, budding smile on his lips, whittled own to giving in to this mystery that Fudou wanted to show him.]
Lead the way. Let's see this 'something' I'd get a kick out of.
[He can't even think of what Fudou would want to show him, honestly. The man was such an enigma, even now, ten years since they'd reconciled the first time in middle school, and only a couple of months after they'd made amends yet again.
Nothing was certain.]
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He still remembers, over ten years ago, when he was packing up his bags after FFI and Kidou came up to him to ask if he'd ever consider transferring to Teikoku. That the Kidou would handle the finances."It's not a handout," Kidou had said with eyes glinting behind his goggles before Fudou could even open his mouth to protest, and that had been that. He was moved into the dormitories as soon as they were back in Japan, and in Tokyo he'd ended up staying for the next four years.
As much as he liked to give Kidou Yuuto crap (especially around Sakuma), he could never deny that the boy who once seemed to have everything he couldn't was a man he owed a lot of what he had now to.
But the reminiscence only lasts a few minutes, as that familiar path takes them through the school and they end up in the parking garage at back, mostly empty now as everyone else had gone home. The only cars left are those of the security guard, Sakuma--
and a lone motorcycle standing in a corner away from the two. The only one that usually isn't in this area.]
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Shin Teikoku seemed so distant now, but it was a very real reality that he knows he owes to Endou and Kidou. He might not even be standing were that not the case.
He also owes him for Fudou sticking around--as he had been one of the people to protest his leave after FFI, told Fudou that the should stay in the dorms with the rest of them. In the end, he yielded.
And began a bond much stronger than he could have ever imagined. One that--even strained as much as it was, held firm over ten years. Fudou had come back and opened his arms. And Sakuma...as cautious as he was, still came back to them.
It pissed him off so much.
He bites his lip while shaking those thoughts out of his head, moving down to the parking lot and immediately spotting his car--the only one left in the lot. That is...aside from one lone motorcycle off to the side, parked in the far corner, almost diagonal from where his car was.
...
It clicks.]
Fudou.
You drive a-?
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[He makes his way over to it as he answers, inspecting the bike carefully to make sure it was going to function. It wasn't so old that it posed such a danger and he'd already had work done on it before, but Fudou took no chances, especially when he was going to be putting someone else on it. The bike has a compartment box that he opens up now, pulling out a pair of helmets and holding one out toward Sakuma, along with a hairtie he's pulled from around his wrist.]
I didn't plan on being in Japan for long so I didn't want to bother with a car or paying for the parking space. When it's just me and Hakuryuu, this is usually enough.
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[You can't tell unless you've known Sakuma as long as Fudou has, but there's an air of pride in that. Fudou had time and time again shown just how much he'd changed from the middle-to-high school boy he knew, those eyes that held such a thirst for power now relaxed and gentle, despite how sharp they looked.
It certainly didn't help Sakuma's own situation, that's for sure. But it was one, like many things, thrust on his life that he had to adapt to.
...
Another wrench thrown into that path when Fudou offers the helmet and the hair tie to him.]
Mm?
Ah--[Something inside him instinctively reaches out to grab both, despite looking over at his car, as if he should immediately be walking towards that.]
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I'll even come pick you up in the morning?
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And then there was that hairtie pressed into his palm.
He sits there in silence a moment, the only telltale sign of any brain activity at all being the characteristic bite of his lip. Seconds feel like minutes, and after Sakuma considers this after only a few, his hand whips up to gather silver strands of hair, bundling them up and securing them loosely in a ponytail. With that hand now free, he reaches for that helmet Fudou held out to him previously.]
I show up for work early, you know.
[Said with a smile.
He was beginning to hate being comfortable and stable, anyway.]
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[Sakuma's answer is satisfactory. With a nod, Fudou hands over the helmet and slips his own over his head, fastening the strap and mounting the motorbike after carefully placing Sakuma's briefcase into the luggage compartment. There's enough space behind him for one more person.]
Need to stop by anywhere before you go home?
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[He laughs, snugly fitting that helmet over his head and awkwardly rocking back and forth on his heels as Fudou situates himself with that bike. Is it protocol to get on first? Or should he wait for Fudou? The second one seemed more likely...easier to get on one after the other than to fit inbetween himself and the handlebars.]
Next you'll be telling me you don't drink.
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[That dragon child is one step away from going completely vegan and gluten free or whatever other health nut trend a teenager could get into. Not that he minded. He pats the space behind him on the bike to indicate to Sakuma his seat.]
He's pretty much taken over the kitchen.
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It's all too clear how unprepared for this he was. Because here they are, sitting on a motorcycle back to front and Sakuma's entire line of vision now occupied by one man's muscular, if still a bit lanky, body.
He can't even reply to the conversation now. Whatever he was going to say went out the window as soon as he realized he'd have to put his arms around Fudou's torso if he was going to say on. He'd have to huddle close to his body and feel it against his chest and goddess of victory please save him.]
...
Yes.
[That seemed like a safe answer.]
I-I mean, that's good. An athlete needs a balanced diet anyway.
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[Of course Sakuma's realization would come belatedly. Fudou keeps that poker face on, hands loosely placed on his handlebars and body relaxed as the other man climbs on, and waits out the seconds it takes him to work through the knowledge of how close they were going to be this ride.
The truth is that he isn't unaffected by this, either, but he's more aware of his own feelings for Sakuma than Sakuma is of his own, most likely, and Fudou knows it likely won't come to anything. There's no point in getting greedy and hopeful when this friendship is more than he thought he could have already.
Holding back a sigh, he leans back just a little.]
Ready?
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So to feel this blossom again after he'd succumbed himself to winter...it's a lot to take in. The man was nothing like Kidou, after all. None of the etiquette, unruly hair, trackjackets and boots...If they were seen on the street together, people would assume they were never associated with each other, just in the same place at the same time.
But those blue eyes were so much calmer now, his entire body language like an old, tired cat instead of the feral one he'd known years before. His voice was just as calming, a light, relaxed tone compared to the teasingly aggressive one he'd remembered. Muscles were new, easily felt from the fabric as his arms wrapped securely around the man's back and around his torso.
He really wishes he weren't focusing on that one the most.]
Ready.
[Fudou just wanted to make up for years of a failed friendship. It'd be taking advantage of the situation if he wanted anything more. And heck...Fudou probably doesn't want that either.
You don't drop everything and leave the country if you actually felt like you left something important behind...right?]
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There is no way he'd be able to truly pay for what he did. The way he made Genda and Sakuma's injuries worse when they were still recovering from injuries against Zeus. The way he tore their broken heart to shreds, planting seeds of doubt that should never have taken root, damaging relationships that were precious to everyone involved. He never belonged there. Even when he got chosen for Inazuma Japan, he was sure he'd be no more than an outsider.
He got to enjoy a few weeks of being involved, but once they graduated Teikoku the year after...
It was unease, he knew. Unease, an unwarranted contact from his mother, and a surge of old memories he didn't quite know how to deal with. He was older, wise, and stronger now, but the damage had been done. He left Sakuma once again, and he didn't think another miracle was possible. He'll do what he can do now, he tells himself, thinking about that brief conversation with Fubuki and Kiyama about Sakuma's drinking habits, about Kazemaru actually voicing anything of meaning to him. Sakuma was hurting, and if he needed a buoy...
They reach a stoplight in the middle of their drive. Go forward, and they'd be on their way to Sakuma's apartment. Veer to the right, and there was a harbor with a view he knew of.
Without consulting Sakuma for his opinion, he tilts the bike to make that turn, taking them away from the same old route this man must take. Away from a boring route home so Sakuma could crawl into bed and repeat the same thing tomorrow. A change of pace. That can be good, right?]
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Just like he had.
That last year of Teikoku had been pretty fun, too. Repairing and rebuilding what could be a strong friendship...only for it to shatter when Fudou had taken off for Europe without so much as a word. He'd been left behind again in that moment, and no meteorite or penguins would give him the power to combat this one. He wouldn't have survived another episode like that, and instead turned his turmoil internally.
Drinking, Sleeping...Working. It just wasn't working.
Sakuma's lost in thought as Fudou pulls up to that intersection, but instinct knows that from here he'd go straight, and then make another turn at the next light and they'd be heading towards his home.
That is...if Fudou took that green light. The vehicle veers gently to the right, taking the turn too early in Sakuma's mind. You didn't have to read his face to understand his confusion, his head lifts immediately from Fudou's back (oh yeah, that's right, he was pressed right up against Fudou's suddenly muscular body don't remind him) and looking at the street that led to his house. Only turning it back to face Fudou again, silent curiosity slowly taking over.
He's not protesting, at least. But the confusion is there.
Did Fudou have somewhere he needed to stop?]
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He can't dedicate himself completely to this. He told his team in Europe -- the team that helped him heal, more than anything in his life had up to this point, that he would go back. He told Kiyama and Endou that he'd take care of Hakuryuu, and he promised to himself that if there was anybody in this world who would never know abandonment at his hands, it'll be that child. But what he could do... he wanted to do it.]
I'm going to kidnap you for a little bit.
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