Chapter Text
Though Ibushi adored the quietness and comfort of his quaint little home, it was beginning to get a tad bit lonely. He had work, of course, but...when he did have the time to relax in his home, it felt empty. And despite how much he did enjoy his alone time, sometimes having company was better than being alone.
He'd called the few friends he had from high school, sighing as the majority of them gave valid excuses as to why they were unable to visit. Kinshiro was overwhelmed with work, Yumoto had the Kurotama Baths to take care of, and Io and Ryuu were, sadly, out of the country now. En and Atsushi wanted to come, they really did, but were unable to find a babysitter in time.
His last choice was Akoya Gero, the man he so desperately wanted to get to know better when he was younger, but was never given the time to do so.
Taking a deep breath and dialing the perlite's number, he contently hummed as he awaited for the man on the other line to pick up. It was...sudden, but Akoya was his last hope--and perhaps, in time, they could get a bit closer. Ibushi had already picked up some simple food for them to enjoy, and he'd probably run over to the bakery down the street to fetch some macarons for Akoya. That was, of course, if he would even agree to it.
"Akoya?"
"Arima?" There was nothing but shock in Akoya's voice, having decided to answer the caller with no contact ID on a whim he might have someone pleasant to talk to for once. He hadn't expected, however, for it to be his high school crush.
He had remembered the day he'd decided to forget his senior entirely and erased his contact information vividly. It was the day before he went to university, and the only ones who wished him well were Yumoto, Io, and Ryuu. Over the summer, En Yufuin and Atsushi Kinugawa often invited him over with everyone else to do things with them, but with them, he'd always felt like an outsider. Even Kinshiro, as busy as he was, took the time to come to his graduation and encouraged him to chase after what he loved instead of following the hellish route he'd known his senior was on right now. But, throughout that entire third year of his high school career, up until the day before he left to pursue something he wanted outside of his family's wishes, he'd had no contact with the man at all.
Of course, he couldn't have called him, not when Arima was in university! Students in such a high tier of education ought to be the ones taking the time to call someone rather than being called and possibly interrupted from their work. Yet, there was a great pain in his heart at having never been contacted. Were they even friends in school? Certainly, they spent time as Student Council members, but never outside as such.
He'd always thought Arima had simply deleted him. He wasn't really needed, or even a companion. Just filler space on the man's contacts. Of course, Akoya should return the favor and remove him as well. That was the day he'd began to fight against his already defeated feelings for the other.
But upon hearing Arima's voice, Akoya jumped up from his bed and brushed back his hair, as if actually in front of the person at the other end. There's no reason to act like such a school girl! He scolded himself, fuming internally as he repressed any and all heart flutters.
Ibushi sighed contently upon hearing the sweet voice of the man he knew long ago, or so it seemed--they hadn't talked in seemingly forever, had they? Why didn't he call sooner? Why simply leave Akoya out of his life like this...?
It was his own fault. He simply hadn't paid the man enough needed attention in his life. Was it too late to fix a friendship that was already broken, one that was possibly nonexistent in the first place? Ibushi only hoped so.
"Akoya," he repeated, gripping the phone tighter in his hand. "I-It's...been a while, hasn't it?" Ah, was he already making this awkward? He wanted to redeem himself, not make him appear to be such a fool!! "I'm sorry for not calling sooner, but...I was wondering if you'd like to come over tonight? For dinner and such?"
Akoya really hoped that the sound of his phone shaking in his hand as he forced himself to not throw it across the room wasn't audible.
This wasn't real. He was asleep and was dreaming this was happening. No way was the fantasy of his from back in high school suddenly coming true. Especially not now, considering the two hadn't even talked for at least five years. Memories of complete pain and held back emotions at accepting his loneliness were rushing through the perlite, causing his grip on the phone to grow even weaker. At the very least, however, Arima even sounded awkward about this.
Speaking of which, he'd been silent for far too long as he snapped out of his internal monologue, searching for words to say. "I haven't any plans this evening," Akoya replied slowly as he picked and chose what to say, "so if you would appreciate my company, perhaps I could come over." He certainly wasn't going to reject such an offer, even if just talking to Arima for the first time in so long was making Akoya's body act against him. After all, once with the other man, he could easily collapse back into the secretary mode he had back in high school, right?
He breathed out in relief, still clenching the phone tightly in his hand. So he agreed to the dinner...that was good. But still; why did the perlite seem so completely and utterly hesitant to do so? They hadn't talked in a while, but...was it really that difficult to accept an offer like this?
It made his heart hurt a bit, it really did. "I'd like that," he replied slowly, a small smile appearing on his lips. He quickly told his address to Akoya and stood up, still on the phone and walking out of the house--to fetch the macarons he knew the other loved so dearly. "I'll see you soon, then," Ibushi spoke softly, ecstatic to see him again. He was just curious as to if the feeling was mutual.
"I'll see you soon," Akoya returned, hanging up his phone slowly as he let the back of his hand collapse onto his leg, letting it drop from his grip as he collapsed back onto his bed. He needed a moment to sort all of this in his head, closing his tired blue eyes and clenching his soft sheets.
Arima had sounded so happy to talk to him, entirely pleased with his response. Surely they had to be a catch. Otherwise, why on earth did he decide tonight was the night he'd ask someone he hadn't talked to in years to join him for dinner?
He must have had other plans. Maybe he wanted to see someone else, that was a real possibility. But who would reject an evening with him that he was forced to call Akoya? The questions burned inside his tense body, swallowing hard as he came to grips with the fact that he'd have to get dressed soon.
After a few moments of self-wallowing, Akoya sat up once more and headed to his closet, searching through his self-designed outfits and decided something casual for an evening in would do. He eventually decided on wearing a long-sleeved royal purple sweater with a shoulder revealing collar and a pair of brown well-fitting trousers, finished with a silver cross necklace and complementary purple shoes. He fixed his hair into a thick braid and looked in the mirror, practicing what he would say upon seeing the other once more, even if he was certain it would all fly out the window once seeing him. Still, he prayed he'd be strong enough to put up a brave face once in front of the other.
With everything in place, he was soon enough dropped off from his limo in front of Arima's incredibly small home. Or at least, small to Akoya, given the fact that he lived in quite a luxurious estate himself. Was this really his house? He rang on the doorbell, anxiety only increasing as he wondered if he'd have to face even more embarrassment by arriving at the wrong place.
Ibushi quickly made his way to the bakery and purchased a few freshly made macarons for his guest for the evening, hoping the delightful snack would lighten the mood up a little. After all, the perlite still seemed hesitant to agree--perhaps these snacks could assist them in their attempt to bond once more? Once more...they hadn't even bonded before.
Quickly travelling back to his small house once more, box in his hands, he quickly prepared their meal for the evening, reminding himself to make the tea he remembered Akoya adoring all those years ago in the student council room. Would he still have that little smile on his face when the flavor finally hit his tongue?
It wasn't long until he heard the doorbell ring throughout the house, quickly making his way to the door and opening it in a simple swift motion. And, as expected, the young and still beautiful Akoya Gero was there, looking nearly the same as he did in high school. His pearl hair was still long, possibly a tad bit longer than it used to be, and his fashion sense was as charming as ever. "Akoya," Ibushi greeted sweetly, smiling genuinely and leading the other inside.
Arima was wearing that blue bolo tie he hated so vehemently. Why was that the first thing Akoya had to notice? "Arima," the pearl haired male returned with a bow of his head, stepping inside as offered and keeping his hands to his side. "You have a lovely home," Akoya offered, looking about the spacious hallway as he removed his shoes, the rooms from his view looking clean and simple, with a few plants as decoration, "and it smells quite nice as well." Among the aroma of Arima's house included that of the tea he was once privileged to drink almost every day during their Student Council meetings, filling him with utter nostalgia for his school days. "What blend have you prepared?" He asked, instantly desiring a chance to taste it.
"The same as always," he hummed with another soft smile, the table already set with their meals and the delectable tea close by. He quickly led the perlite into the kitchen, not certain if the other man was enjoying the smaller house as much as he did himself--Akoya was always one for maximum luxury, wasn't he? "Ah, and I picked up some macarons for you earlier, if you'd like any of those after our meal." And through it all, Ibushi continued to offer the smile he always tried to, hoping that the perlite would soon become comfortable with him once more.
This entire scene was playing out quite oddly from Akoya's perspective. They were acting like old friends, and that there hadn't been years where they simply never talked. Was this normal? Was this the way this was supposed to be? Ignoring such talk seemed like the easiest way to go about things, certainly...And Akoya couldn't find much to argue with that didn't make him come across as petty. And so, he returned the smile and sat down at his seat, taking a sip of the tea immediately. As he did, the warm liquid filled him with precious remembrances of the nicer times when with his upperclassmen, reading visibly on his face as his lips curled upwards. "It's delicious, Arima," he complimented, looking up from his cup at his host.
Ibushi settled himself down across from the other man, taking a sip of his tea. Ah, how he was most certainly glad that Akoya was enjoying it...he always knew how to perfectly make it to suit Akoya. "I'm glad you're enjoying it," he replied as he looked the other in the eyes over the table. Ah, he was just glad he hadn't lost his special touch. "It really has been a while, though." Ibushi took a bite of his food, humming a bit--he needed to start the conversation somehow. "It's nice to see you again."
They were moving onto this conversation already? Well...Akoya could somehow make his thoughts known in a tactful manner, yes? "The same goes to you," he clicked, taking a bite of the food and letting out a small moan of enjoyment to indicate he was pleased, "this was really rather unexpected. I thought you must have forgotten all about me, but I suppose I'm simply too beautiful to be wiped from anyone's memory~!" Of course by tact, he meant instead fueling Arima's taunts that he was indeed a chief narcissist and full of himself. How smooth.
"You seem to dismiss your personality when you're speaking of your outer beauty," Ibushi replied simply, taking another long sip of his tea and laughing a bit under his breath at Akoya's major obsession with himself. Really, it was quite odd to see someone think so highly of them-self...but then again, it was to be expected, considering it was Akoya. "Your personality is rather pleasant as well, don't you think? I always loved carrying on conversations with you in the council room."
Akoya's cheeks flushed upon hearing such a statement from the other's voice, utterly flattered. He loved conversations with him? "I didn't realize I left such an impression on you," Akoya spoke in a quiet voice, less confident than the one he had used before. No, he couldn't be coming undone so easily!! He couldn't show how he really felt about all of this, it'd only serve to make this situation even more awkward. Akoya stuffed another piece of the food in his mouth, attempting to find some way to salvage his statement.
It went quiet for a moment before Ibushi slowly nodded, taking a bite of his food as well. Was the simple compliment enough to tone down Akoya's composed state? And he was blushing, too...hadn't Akoya blushed rather heavily around him in high school? "Of course you did," he slowly replied, sipping his tea slowly as he offered another grin, a softer, more reassuring one this time. "Besides Kinshiro, I spent the most time with you."
Akoya blinked at the statement and raised his head immediately, concern forming upon his brow. He spent the most time with...him? "I don't recall you and the president sharing all that much leisure time together," he replied, a little worried. He was already hard pressed to remember a single time they'd been alone together when outside of Student Council and school practices, so if he'd truly be the second most person Arima had been around...that was incredibly sad.
Ibushi shrugged his shoulders slightly, sighing and sipping his black tea once more--ah, that was true, but...he hadn't really socialized with anyone but them. "You're not wrong," he admitted, taking another bite of his meal. "Barely any leisure time, in fact; I never found myself socializing much. I always found time to speak with Yumoto occasionally, being as he spent some time occasionally with Kinshiro, but...that's about it." It was a bit sad, wasn't it? Especially considering that...Akoya didn't seem close to him at all. Neither did Kinshiro, for that matter.
Finished with his meal, Akoya sat back and began to have the rest of his tea, biting his lip as he grew angry at himself. Ah, he had to make this worse...!! Thinking of anything he could possibly do or say, he looked around for discussion pieces. But that was when he noticed..."You have nothing on your walls," he remarked, blinking as he realized that he hadn't even hung any plants. Was Arima really so pressed for time that he couldn't decorate his own home?
"I haven't gotten the time to decorate, really," he commented with a light sigh, pushing his plate off to the side and finishing up his tea. Ibushi stood up and reached over to the teapot, pouring both Akoya and himself more to drink. "Busy with work, I think." Work...what was Akoya doing now for work? Surely his parents wanted him to take over the business, but...he hadn't remembered that Akoya was very fond of that future. "Speaking of, have you begun working yet?"
Of course Arima would ask that of him. Taking a sip to calm his already boiling blood, he reflected upon how he should say what he felt delicately. "I have," Akoya answered slowly, "but not upon my family's empire. I'm creating my own fashion line." He stayed quiet, not wishing to indulge in further details unless asked. He was here as a guest after all, right? Certainly they should focus on more positive things.
Ibushi nodded, biting his lip. "And your family's alright with that?" For some reason, he felt as if...it wasn't that easy. Akoya was born into a wealthy family, and high expectations were most likely placed upon him--would they simply allow him to pursue his dreams? He slowly took another sip of his hot tea, folding his hands shortly after.
"They were," Akoya admitted, wanting to leave it at that as Arima pried. If he made it seem as though perhaps it wasn't that important, maybe Arima would drop it all together. Still, he found it hard to calm himself with the tea alone and scolded himself mentally as he slammed the cup down upon the table.
Ibushi blinked, looking over the table with concern in his eyes. "Akoya..." he slowly began, sipping his tea, not looking away from the perlite. "It's...more than that, isn't it? You seem tense. Did something happen?" Though they hadn't seen each other in so, so long, he couldn't help but sense something was the matter--he was acting off.
He couldn't hide it much longer, could he? Placing his hands down on the table, Akoya took a deep breath before allowing himself to vent. "Were," he stated bitterly, "they were alright with it. So long as I took a business course, that is. They said they didn't mind me studying fashion, but that was only because they thought of it as an adolescent desire. They didn't think I would actually want to choose it over the family business." He grew quiet as he spoke, remembering the choice words they had said to him. Considering how he hadn't broken through yet, perhaps he really was a disappointment.
Ah, so that was it...Akoya was stuck. What would he do now, though? Would he have to conform to his parent's desires? Or would he have to do something different...? "And...what do you plan on doing about it, Akoya? Will they allow you to pursue fashion?" Akoya sounded so bitter as he spoke...this was really hurting him, deep down. Ibushi couldn't help but wish to help, in some way.
"No," Akoya sighed, collapsing back into his chair and letting his blue eyes glaze over the bare and high ceiling, "they gave me an ultimatum instead. I either give up what I want and do what I have been raised to do, or I get married to someone who would take care of the business for me. Of course, marriage is the most desireable arrangement, even if I'll be expected to act as my father did in our household." Namely, he'd be in charge of house up-keep and tangental affairs to the family business. So really, depending on the type of person he'd marry, he'd probably not be able to pursue his line anyway. "My family has suitors they've arranged for me," he followed up in a whisper of a voice, "they told me right before you called me."
Ibushi blinked, eyes quickly appearing sadder and sadder as he continued to listen to the horrible mess Akoya was in. Forced to marry...he absolutely hated that. Having Akoya stuck with a random human being, in a loveless relationship, only so he could pursue what he loved most in life? That entire ordeal disgusted him. He suddenly got an idea brewing in his mind, though it was bound to be a bit farfetched, but still--it would help Akoya immensely. "Akoya," he began slowly, taking a deep breath. "I want the best for you; I always have. And...honestly, I don't find it fair in the slightest that they're forcing you into marriage to pursue your dream." Ibushi continued staring at the other hard, biting his lip nervously but with determination in his eyes. "What I'm saying is...let's get together. So you can live your dream like you've always wanted to. My family is rich, so I doubt yours will have any issues with this."
Akoya's head whipped down and squinted at the other, confused by what he meant. "Get together?" He repeated, the words strange on his lips. What did he mean by that...? The only way he could take that context was...but that was impossible. Surely he meant something else? "I'm not certain a merger would go over well with my parents," he bit his lower lip, "they'd probably see right through the business partner facade when I put out my first line..."
"No, no, not business partners," he spoke, stopped Akoya mid-sentence. "We can get married. Like, ah...those people do for tax benefits. No strings attached, we just have to be legally bound." Though the two didn't particularly need the tax benefits, that was an easy way to explain it. They'd be married, they'd be together, but...only until Akoya's business launched and they both found someone they truly loved. "I'm not particularly looking for a relationship now, I must admit," he added, having minor flashbacks to his undeniable crush on the president, "but I want to help you. I don't want you marrying someone you barely know."
He did mean it. But of course, he had to put a back door on what exactly he meant. Why would Arima want to marry him otherwise? Akoya's heart was pounding rapidly nonetheless, absolutely panicked by the loaded question. Arima's logic made sense, he had to admit, but even so...to marry the man he'd so long ago had a deep crush on that he might yet still not be over made him worry. This could go entirely wrong, or entirely right, but either way it seemed like a gamble. "It doesn't seem fair to you," Akoya worriedly remarked, "after all, you deserve far better than a placeholder husband. Wouldn't your family be upset at a divorce?"
Ibushi shrugged a bit, still seriously looking over at Akoya. "Honestly, I'll burn that bridge when I get to it. I'm sure they'll understand." Akoya looked...a bit nervous about this all--could he really blame him? Still, though...he hated arranged marriages to an incredible extent. This was better for him. "And besides, I'm not looking to get into a relationship now anyways. I don't mind, Akoya; I want to do this for you."
The part of his brain still ruled by his parents kept telling Akoya that this wasn't a good idea. After all, what would happen if Arima did meet someone he wanted to get with? Would he dump Akoya early or would the perlite have to suffer with the fact he was keeping his host away from a happy relationship? Not to mention his own easily swayed heart...it wouldn't be fair to Arima if he'd suddenly developed feelings for him. And yet, he couldn't really think of any other option that would be as good for him as this. And so, he quickly took the other's hand and nodded, a determined glint in his eyes. "I'll marry you," Akoya agreed, "it would turn out well for both of us."