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ahwait-no-yes · 3 years

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so basically my friend told me today about her dream she had that involved a demon and of course my mind went “...SAIOU AU”

here’s our convo so it makes sense:

if I had the motivation i would DEFINITELY write a fic about this- the fluff/crack/angst potential is t h e r e

and as a bonus doodle,

story is under the cut (it’s long)

“I was gonna keep this in tags but hsdf;j” is what I originally wrote here until I started thinking about this more and sorta wrote the whole plot-

-> as ouma’s killing the other monster things he flirts with shuuichi while the poor demon has never been flirted with so he’s stood there all confused and ??? (his version of blushing would be like, the fire coming from his small horns gets bigger and brighter)

-> the one he summons ends up being like. kaede and they both just end up having to lecture shuuichi on why it is that he should not want to die so easily

-> eventually kokichi and kaede wanna give him a hug so they try to but shuuichi’s Extra Hot™ (from being a demon and also probably blushing) so they both immediately regret that choice but kokichi laughs and gives an obligatory pun about shuuichi being hot which only confuses him because ‘of course im hot?? im a demon??’ while kaede explains what ouma meant

-> imagine shuuichi crying (fire tears..) at the generosity of these two strangers who a) aren’t absolutely terrified of him, b) refuse to hurt him and c) actually *want* to help him and ouma actually inwardly understanding a little bc he’d never imagine someone actually wanting to be with himself either

-> saihara now wanting to know what it’s like to live as a human with ouma and akamatsu but being unable to find a way (except for maybe being undercover?) but promising he’ll bring ouma back to him (he’s aware of the whole aging phenomenon in the lil demon world so he wants to keep their time short) and ouma finding that now he has something to look forward to

-> the 👏 mutual 👏 pining 👏 that commences after they both have to leave each other (if kaede knows kokichi in the real world she’d definitely tease him a little knowing he has a crush- this is probably good potential for building oumaede friendship)

-> it takes a while before ouma and saihara can see eachother again because getting the two to escape without killing saihara exerted a lot of energy on him, but they do get to! about once a month to be safe, and they get to know stuff about eachother like which shops ouma likes to steal from and shuuichi’s really loud demon friend he once had (aka momota)

-> one day though saihara tells ouma that if he keeps doing this he’ll die of exhaustion (it takes a lot of energy from saihara to get ouma in and out of there) and ouma calling him an idiot but really being worried. saihara tells him not to worry about him even if something happens to him, and makes ouma go back to the real world

-> ouma doesn’t hear from him after that

-> he worries he might have been killed or saihara forgot about him and feels stupid for being so hopeful in something so childishly impossible and starts trying to forget about him

-> the real world is aware of demons cause people talk about them (and obvs you can tell when someone’s gone to their.. dimension thing because you can visibly see them age) so still denying that he’s curious and likes saihara still, ouma tries to go to libraries and do his own research on demons and ends up finding out that saihara specifically comes from a bloodline that makes him quite powerful if not for that he wouldnt want to take the risks that come with it and then lowkey gets excited again for saihara while still in ✨denial ✨

-> it’s been almost a year when saihara has enough energy (and more) to ensure that his new plan is successfully carried out and that ouma (and potentially 1 more..) gets back to the real world safely. he created this plan when he figured out how to exist in the real world- by sacrificing the thing he cares most about

-> so when ouma suddenly gets that off-feeling people get when they’re leaving the real world he feels very many emotions at once (giddily going ”ohh my god its not this it cant be this no way oh heck tthisis not happening not a chance”) until he sees the face he’s been waiting 4 months for again except this time it looks.. frighteningly cold

-> ouma’s instincts are screaming at him that something is very, very wrong here especially when he can’t hear any warmth when saihara says “Welcome back, Ouma. It’s your final time” and explains the whole ‘kill these monsters then kill me’ thing again

-> ouma’s confusion inevitably turns to annoyance as he kills the dudes (there appears to be a lot more than there was last time) and fires questions at saihara (‘is this saihara?’ ‘what happened to you??’ ‘do you even remember me?’) while saihara stays silent for the whole time thinking about how he really doesn’t want to be doing this.

-> eventually ouma decides he was wrong (again) to have put his faith in a guy- a demon- he only met once a month.. even if said demon gave him something to look forward to

-> when he finally gets to saihara alone he internally notes that saihara cant look him in the eye, but he finally speaks to tell ouma that now either himself or ouma will now die (saihara knows this is for sake of the sacrifice, but he can’t let ouma know else it won’t work)

-> ouma refuses to fight him again, expecting saihara to snap back into the meek demon from a year and some months ago, but rather than that happening saihara actually says something like “if you won’t kill me, I’ll have to kill you” and swings at him

-> even if ouma was on his full guard, he still would’ve been surprised by how strong saihara actually could be when he tried to fight- and of course saihara can’t stop now that he’s started but ouma hears the hesitation when saihara asks “are you going to kill me yet?” and gets annoyed that the whole time he spent with him and even akamatsu meant nothing. saihara smiles sadly knowing he’s achieving his goal but ouma thinks he’s smiling at the thought of dying and gets somehow even more annoyed

-> during their whole fight, insert “I’m alone, Ouma, and I will always be” line from saihara, “No amount of talking can convince me otherwise, Ouma. I’m sorry it took so long, but it was foolish of you to trust a demon you met only once” or something and yes it hurts saihara too but ouma’s staying silent and before saihara can continue, ouma fires back with “You’re right- you are meant to be alone. You were always meant to be that kind of guy” and stops dodging to start finally attacking- this is when saihara knows he’s pretty much achieved his target: sacrificing ouma’s trust in him

-> just as ouma swipes at him, saihara’s lil spell thing is activated that takes saihara back to the real world, disguised so people don’t see him as a demon. but now ouma thinks he’s just killed saihara (I just attacked him. and he is gone. i dont know what that light was but i must have just killed him. oh my god im a murderer.”)

-> saihara hiding in the forest to do the lil spell thing again but on ouma (all the time he spent saving on energy was worth it) so ouma gets transported to the real world too and immediately runs to tell akamatsu everything that happened

-> saihara trying to find to blend in with humans from what he remembers of how they act but he doesnt need to particularly eat he just needs a heck ton of sleep so he basically just lives in the forest now. he’s very sensitive to water so he actively stays away from it too (it wont kill him but it does make him sick). he’s still feverishly warm but not scalding and he also decides to work at a store to fit in more

-> ouma regretting what he did to saihara even though saihara hurt him first and realising he misses him

-> saihara ends up accidentally bumping into him at the store he works at that ouma conveniently steals from a lot (”Ouma, you’d make a good demon” “Nishishi! What do you mean? I’m a perfect little angel!”) and saihara gasping when he notices ouma’s unforgettable purple hair and cute smile.

-> ouma finding something familiar about this awkward new staff with the cute face and deciding he’ll visit the shop more often to see this stranger and not because said stranger might help him get over his demon crush

-> then they get to know eachother again for the 2nd time, and as much as this guy is really cute, he clearly knows more than he’s letting on... so of course ouma’s gotta now pay even more attention to him. just so he knows what the guy’s hiding. not cause he wants to know him.

-> one day saihara is sick from trying to protect himself from the rain (cause yk, water bad) so he stays in the forest instead of coming in to focus his energy on getting better and also not blowing his cover. ouma notices he isnt there on that day and asks other staff members where he lives and they’re all like ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

-> it rains quite a bit after that, inevitably making saihara even more sick and in turn needing time away to himself, so ouma starts getting worried when saihara stops coming to work

-> saihara really wants to see him though, so one day he tries to drag himself to work in a terrible state where he’s actually almost cold for once and collapses after trying to run to ouma. ouma sees him and tells his manager he cant work nd takes him home himself where saihara wakes up confused

-> ouma lecturing saihara because he worried him and the way he fell reminded him of.. someone (demon shuu).. then he asks vague questions to saihara about if he’s ever met a demon and half-confesses to having met one himself multiple times and ending up falling in love and then probably killing them

-> saihara, in his tired state, tells him his story of how he was raised to believe he had no purpose other than to meet someone who would kill him, eventually finding that person but instead of looking at him with fear or anger he looked at him with admiration and playfulness, how the guy meant to kill him refused to and flirted w him instead. ouma has probably clicked on by this point but saihara continues to tell him he wanted to protect that guy with the power he had so he took time away from his first ‘job’ to find out how to be with him. saihara is probably shaking at this point while he continues telling him about how he found out he had to sacrifice the most important thing to him, so he “went and had a terrible argument with him one day and i ran away. but i’ve never stopped looking for him since, he showed me that even a demon like me can fall in love” (there’s the ✨grand confession ✨)

-> ouma saw it coming from the moment saihara started speaking, but that didnt stop him from being utterly paralysed. of COURSE saihara has to say “When I said you’d make a good demon I really wasn’t lying. Your hand is so warm it could fool even me” which possibly makes ouma completely combust before absolutely bolting out the door and calling akamatsu to tell her to get to his house (”AKAMATSU-CHAN I’M GONNA DIE RIGHT NOW IF YOU DON’T GET HERE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT THIS SECOND”)

-> while waiting for kaede, shuuichi explains that he needs to be Warm™ and immediately holds kokichi’s hold again, while the other’s having a gay panic.. and he doesnt know how to feel because on one hand, his beloved demon is.. right here, in the ‘flesh’, holding his hand, telling him he fell in love with him.. but on the other hand, that doesnt excuse the confusion and hurt he put him through back then, not being able to see him for a whole damn year..

-> ouma ignores all the feelings when akamatsu arrives where she’s brought water and blankets (just in case- i feel like shes the kind of friend who would do that) so saihara takes the blankets and ouma takes the water and she calms them both down and gets them to explain everything slowly and in their own time. its awkward esp for ouma who isnt particularly close with her, but they manage it in the end

-> they decide shuuichi literally cant live in the forest so of course now he has to live with ouma but akamatsu offers to help if it ever gets too much for ouma which obviously ouma denies. she leaves soon and its just them but ouma needs some time to himself to clear his head and he only returns late to see saihara asleep clinging onto akamatsu’s blanket with his life lmao so ouma sighs and brings him more. and if he kisses the sleeping demon’s forehead, nobody has to know

-> ofc its still very much awkward and it takes ouma getting used to having even just another presence in his home, let alone his sort-of-unofficial-demon-bf and saihara’s still sleeping a lot of the time but recovering

-> they probably establish their feelings for eachother properly when they’re more mentally prepared for it, and then 👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨 (they kiss) and are now actually legally boyfriends. i absolutely cannot let this end in angst so they’re happy and love eachother now yay the end

nngl. i talked about this with that same friend and I lowkey want to start writing an actual fic for it now that ive written... literally the entire plot, but if i do that it probably wont be out for a while bc i take 10 years to write lmao-- plus i hardly ever finish what i start so uh yeah.. but hopefully! im not even good at writing fic this is just the plot but yello

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kawaiikichi · 5 years

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See You on the Other Side (1/5)

Part one of five of my Saiouma Day one-shot! There is a reason that this is getting broken up into five parts; I will get to that in the notes.

So, this will be a soulmates AU with my own twists put in place. For some reason, I wanted to do something involving angst with a happy ending, so that’s how this idea came about. It wound up being more complicated than I originally thought XD

I hope you guys like it!

Title: See You on the Other Side

Summary: The world works as such: everyone has a soulmate that they must find before either one of them dies. If one of them dies, the other person will become stuck in a loop, starting from a specific moment in time. However, the soulmate indicator changes each time and gradually becomes harder to recognize. This will continue until they find their soulmate.

In a situation as dangerous as the killing game, Shuichi Saihara has no time to bother with finding a soulmate. But, when he sees a mark on the supreme leader’s neck that looks eerily similar to his soulmate mark, he can’t help but grow curious about it...

Notes: This is a mashup of both soulmate and time loop AUs; there are many rules that are put into place in this particular universe (I’m going to put up a set of rules for this universe shortly after this is uploaded); some parts will be longer than others due to how much content needs to be covered (particularly Loop #4); after the Love Hotel scene between Shuichi and Kokichi, Shuichi is actually able to recall small bits and pieces from it; it is implied that they slept together coming close to the end of the Love Hotel scene

Warnings: Character death; read at your own risk!

Link down below:

♾ Next ♾

Continue reading under the cut!

♾ Ｌｏｏｐ１Ｓｔａｒｔ ♾

There was a purple star on Kokichi’s neck.

Shuichi noticed it the minute Kokichi took off his scarf. The supreme leader had roped him into a game of tag during free time. They found themselves in the pool and Kokichi slipped, falling face first into the water. Shuichi went after him soon after and helped him out, the two of them trudging back to Shuichi’s room to change into their spare outfits.

Shuichi felt the curiosity gnawing at him as he eyed Kokichi. He tried to avert his gaze, but he couldn’t help but gaze at the tattoo adorning the supreme leader’s neck.

It didn’t help that it looked almost exactly like the soulmate mark that was on his lower hip.

Maybe it was just a coincidence?

Or could it be...

Shuichi swallowed.

No, there’s no way. Ouma-kun couldn’t possibly be my soulmate, could he, he asked himself.

He reached up to smack his cheeks.

Why am I even thinking about this, anyway? I have no time to be wondering about my soulmate. Getting out of this academy without having anyone else die is my top priority. Searching for my soulmate can wait until then, he told himself.

But, something was telling him that he should look into this.

He bit his lip as he buttoned back up his shirt.

“...Ouma-kun?” he spoke hesitantly.

“Hm? What is it, Saihara-chan?” Kokichi hummed in response.

Shuichi’s tongue darted out to lick his lips.

“That star mark on your neck...how did you get it?” he asked.

“Star mark? What are you—Oh.” Kokichi reached up to where his scarf covered the mark. “This is a tattoo I ended up getting.” he replied.

“A tattoo, huh...” Shuichi trailed off.

“Sounds like that answer doesn’t satisfy you, Saihara-chan.”

“It’s not that! It’s just...”

“Just what? Were you expecting me to say something else?”

Shuichi pressed his lips together, keeping quiet.

God knows what would happen if Shuichi told him that he was wondering if that was actually his soulmate tattoo or not...

“You know, if you were trying to keep those thoughts to yourself, you sure weren’t trying hard enough.”

Shuichi drew in a sharp gasp, hand flying over his mouth.

“Well, to answer your question, it might be my soulmate mark, it might not be. Who knows~” Kokichi singsonged.

Shuichi furrowed his brows.

“Is that so...” he trailed off.

“Weeeeeeeeell, if you’re done trying to interrogate me about it, then I’ll just be on my way!” Kokichi walked past Shuichi, raising his hand up in a nonchalant wave. “Bye bye, Saihara-chan!” he chirped.

“Ah! Wait a minute, Ouma-ku—“ Shuichi whirled around just as Kokichi stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him.

Shuichi released a sigh.

“And he’s gone...” he murmured.

His lips curled down into a frown as he lowered his eyes down to his lower hip. He ran his fingers along where his soulmate tattoo was under his shirt.

“I know this should be the least of my worries, but I can’t help but be curious...” he trailed off.

Maybe I can look into it while I’m trying to figure out how to get everyone out of here without anyone else dying, he thought to himself.

“I need to look into this.”

💜💜💜💜

His constant observations and spending time with the supreme leader eventually drove Shuichi to a dead end. Every time he brought the subject up, Kokichi would find a way to lie his way out of it. Eventually, Shuichi decided to give up.

He couldn’t find himself to be focused on it when he had other things to take care of.

His efforts to prevent the killings were all in vain, he realized. During the time between now and when he had first asked Kokichi about the purple star on his neck, five more of their classmates had been either murdered or executed by the psychotic bear.

The recent class trial had tensions running higher than ever, with Gonta’s execution, Kokichi spiraling into insanity, and the disaster that took place afterward when Kokichi declared that he was the mastermind and kidnapped Kaito, taking him back to the Exisal hangar. Everyone was more stressed out than ever.

As for Shuichi, he spent a lot of his nights in his lab, thinking over various things.

Why did Gonta have to die?

Why would Kokichi do such a thing?

Why wasn’t he strong enough to prevent anymore killings?

Why did he let thoughts about his potential soulmate take priority?

Why the hell did he feel like there was more to Kokichi’s actions than meets the eye?

He released a loud groan, running his fingers through his hair.

“Why does this all have to be complicated?!” he complained.

He let his head fall back against the chair’s headrest, looking up at the ceiling.

“I never asked for this...” he muttered.

He felt his eyelids begin to grow heavy and eventually, he drifted to sleep.

💜💜💜💜

When Shuichi came to, the first thing that immediately grabbed his attention was the pungent smell of sickly sweet perfume permeating the air.

“What in the...?” he muttered out.

He then took in his surroundings, observing the circular bed he was on, the gaudy colors that painted the walls, the neon glow from the lights, the devices hooked up on the walls, and a carousel horse moving back and forth around the bed.

“What the heck is this place...?” he wondered out loud.

He looked over to the end of the bed and saw Kokichi.

Ouma-kun’s here, too? Maybe he knows why we’re here, he thought to himself.

“Ouma-kun...I didn’t know you were here, as well.” he commented.

“Yeah. I’ve been waiting for you to come to.” Kokichi replied.

Shuichi swallowed, recalling everything that had happened involving the supreme leader.

Was it safe for him to be in the same room as him?

Kokichi let out a half-hearted chuckle.

“There’s no need for you to worry, Shuichi. I’m not going to kill you.” he said.

“How can I tell you’re not lying to me?”

“Because when I summoned you into the love suite with my key, I made it so that we can both be transparent with one another. In other words, I put restrictions on myself. So basically, I am unable to harm you.”

Shuichi blinked his eyes twice at this.

“Is that even possible?” he asked.

“Oh, come on, Shuichi. If you can easily believe that we’re being manipulated by a psychotic robot bear to kill each other as a game, then I’m sure you can believe this, as well.” Kokichi replied. Shuichi’s tongue darted out to lick his lips as he noticed something.

“Wait...did you just say my name?” he asked.

“I did.” Kokichi turned to him. “I mean, we’re lovers, aren’t we?” he asked.

“Lovers...?” the word sounded foreign to the detective. “What are you saying?” Shuichi asked.

“Oh, don’t worry.” Kokichi turned, crawling onto the bed. “You won’t remember any of this in the morning, anyway.” he said.

Shuichi gulped, watching as Kokichi got closer. He backed up until his back hit the headboard. The supreme leader reached up towards his scarf as he climbed onto the detective’s lap.

“Hey...” he began to slowly tug it off, the action mimicking that of loosening a tie from around one’s neck. “Is it wrong of me to want to indulge every once in a while?” he asked, voice low and seductive.

Shuichi felt his heart pound rapidly against his rib cage. The simple action of Kokichi taking off his scarf looked downright sexy. Shuichi looked eyes with him, seeing the lust swirling around in the depths of his purple eyes.

“Ou...Ouma-kun...” he breathed out.

“Why are you being so formal? Call me by my name.” he threw the scarf off to the side. “Like I said before, we’re lovers, aren’t we?” he asked.

Shuichi said nothing as Kokichi looped his arms over his shoulders, pressing their bodies together. His gaze fell onto the purple star that sparked his curiosity from the beginning.

Just as I thought, it looks a whole lot like mine, he thought to himself.

“Ouma—I mean, Kokichi,” he quickly corrected himself upon seeing the stern gaze the supreme leader shot him, “I know you told me to stop asking about it, but that mark on your neck...is it really a tattoo? Or is it actually your soulmate mark?” he asked.

“I told you, it’s a tattoo. Besides, who in their right mind would give someone as wretched as me a soulmate?” Kokichi asked.

“But...everyone has a soulmate. How can it be possible for someone to not have one?”

“Oh, you’d be surprised, Shuichi. And besides, I’m not all that interested in this whole soulmate bullshit. It’s stupid.”

Shuichi furrowed his brows.

“You may say that, but your eyes are telling me a different story. Could it be that you actually want to have one?” he asked.

Kokichi stared at him, his expression turning blank. It was silent between them for a few minutes before he spoke.

“Maybe I do, maybe I don’t. The world may never know.” Kokichi replied.

“Kokichi, I thought you said that you were going to be transparent with me. So, why are you lying all of a sudden?” Shuichi asked.

“Ah, that was a lie.” Shuichi glowered at him. “Okay, okay, I’ll be honest! I promise!” Kokichi exclaimed.

Shuichi sighed as Kokichi spoke.

“You won’t remember any of this, anyway, so I may as well tell you. It is indeed my soulmate mark.” he said.

“So, I was right...” Shuichi stared at him. “Do you know who your soulmate is?” he asked.

“No. And if I’m being honest, I don’t think I want to know who it is.”

“Why is that?”

“That’s because I know for certain that the person who’s my soulmate isn’t my ideal soulmate.”

“Your ideal soulmate? Who would that be?”

“You.”

Shuichi blinked, trying to process what Kokichi just said.

“What?” he asked.

“I said my ideal soulmate is you, Shuichi.” Kokichi’s hand glided along the side of Shuichi’s neck. “I want you to be my soulmate, but I know that that will never happen.” he stated.

“Kokichi...” Shuichi trailed off.

“So, before everything is set in motion, I want to indulge in my one guilty pleasure: you. It will be the last thing I accomplish before I go away for good.” Kokichi explained.

“Before you go away for good?” Shuichi felt a sense of dread overtake him. “What do you mean by tha—“ he was cut off by the supreme leader placing his fingers against his lips.

“No more questions. Just let me give myself over to you and you do the same.” Kokichi removed his finger. “Tonight is the night we lose ourselves to senseless passion and lust.” he said.

Cupping Shuichi’s cheek, he leaned in and pressed his lips against Shuichi’s. The detective immediately stiffened as Kokichi’s lips moved against his own. He felt Kokichi press his lips to his a little harder, urging for him to kiss back. He gave in, letting the sensation of Kokichi’s soft, plush lips against his own whisk him off to a faraway land.

Shuichi found himself growing heady, briefly wondering if it was the perfume that made him feel this way. He moaned against Kokichi’s mouth as he reached to undo the buttons and clasps on it. Kokichi rolled his hips against Shuichi’s as he reached to unbutton Shuichi’s shirt.

After discarding their shirts, Shuichi pushed Kokichi down onto the mattress.

“Shuichi...” the supreme leader whispered.

“Fine. I’ll go ahead and play along.” he said before capturing his lips in another kiss.

Kokichi moaned, tears sliding down his cheeks.

“Mmmm...Shuichi...” he drew away from the kiss a couple minutes later, cupping Shuichi’s cheeks with his hands. “I love you...and I’ll continue to do so even after I die.” he said.

Something tugged at the detective the moment those words left Kokichi’s lips. They were morbid, almost sounding as if it were foreshadowing something.

Before he could question Kokichi about it, the supreme leader pulled him back in for another kiss, letting them lose themselves in their passion.

💜💜💜💜

Shuichi woke with a start, nearly face planting into the carpet. He grabbed for the arms of the chair to steady himself.

“What the...? Did I fall asleep here without realizing it?” he wondered out loud.

He looked over at the clock.

“It’s that late already...?” he muttered out.

He stood, stretching.

“I should head back.” he said as he turned and left his lab.

As he walked through the moonlit halls, he began to think.

My mind feels fuzzy...did I dream about something, he asked himself.

Bits and pieces circled about in his mind, but nothing seemed to add up. Then, a voice appeared in his mind.

“I love you...and I’ll continue to do so even after I die.”

Shuichi stopped, bringing a hand up to his chin.

That voice...it sounded like Ouma-kun. But, why would I be hearing his voice? And those kind of words...there’s no way he’d say something like how he loves me, right, he told himself.

He got ready to continue walking when he felt it. It felt like someone set his nerves on fire, his vision turning white.

A loud scream ripped itself from his throat as he grabbed for his head, collapsing to the floor.

What is this pain, he asked himself.

He continued screaming. He felt like his head were to split in two if the pain continued.

This pain...they say it’s only felt if your soulmate dies before you, he thought to himself.

His eyes grew wide.

“Did...my soulmate die?” he choked out.

He never got to answer his question as his vision went black.

♾ Ｌｏｏｐ１Ｅｎｄ ♾

#danganronpa v3 #saiouma #oumasai #shuichi saihara #kokichi ouma #early start on saiou day one-shot #soulmates au #time loops #loop 1 #some angst #tw: character death #don't worry it will have a happy ending #kawaiikichi

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daisiesanddanganronpaimagines · 7 years

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The Blonde & The Detective

Title: The Blonde & The Detective

Word Count: 5,580

Fandom: Danganronpa, Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony.

Pairing: Kaede/Saihara

Rating: T

Summary: He felt an arm hook around his waist, and the girl beside him scanned the girls in front of him, blonde hair shining under the nightclub’s light. “Babe, who are they?” Confusion swamped over him but he was careful not to let it show on his face, lest he give himself away. He hadn’t an inkling as to who she was. Written for Saiede Week (@saiedeweek) Day 6: AU

A/N: Aaaaah! I'm in love with this honestly? Does that sound arrogant? I hope not... But it's just the longest one shot I've ever written so I'm vv proud I really hope you guys like this one! <3 Saihara and Kaede are so pure I love my nerds

Anyway, maybe leave a like if you enjoyed? And please please, please reblog! Even a comment on the post or in the tags with a reblog would be amazing! <3

Thank you for reading!!

(pssst: reblogging and tagging it helps me a whole lot!!)

Ao3 Link

Fanfiction.net Link

A low groan slipped from Saihara’s lips as he rested his head on the cool surface that was his office desk. His body felt as if it were being dragged down and pressed to the lowest available surface. A sleepy feeling washed over him in waves.

Maybe if he took a small nap at his desk, no one would notice. He had been up from 9:00 the previous morning until now. His eyes glanced over to the clock on the wall, which read 5:27. A grand total of 32 hours with no sleep. Quietly, he snorted to himself. Yeah, like that was going to help his insomnia any.

A hand clasped on his back, and he sat up and turned around, ready to spew apologies to his boss, who he was sure was standing behind him.

To his relief, it was only his coworker and best friend - Kaito Momota. The man had rich purple hair that stuck up almost unnaturally so, and an equivalently colored goatee. Unlike himself, his uniform was a bit disheveled, and he was muscular. Well built.

In comparison, Saihara seemed scrawny.

The young detective sighed. “What’s up?”

Kaito beamed over at him. A sinking feeling settled in his gut, but it wasn’t the kind that came with loss. No, this was different. This was the sinking feeling of premonition.

“We’re gonna go to a nightclub tomorrow night to celebrate a case closed! You coming or what?”

Shuichi sighed, knowing this was coming. He had a feeling that he wasn’t going to be able to get out of this either, but he still tried.

“Well, I’m pretty tired, and I don’t know how much more after-case cleanup I’ll have to do…”

Kaito grinned even wider, as if expecting this response. “I’ve already talked to our boss and he says he’ll give you the entire day off tomorrow to sleep. And you won’t have that much to do because I’ve already done a lot! Plus, I’ll pay!”

Shuichi sighed. While he would love to stay home all night tomorrow night and just sleep; he wasn’t getting out of this. Well, that was provided with the fact that his insomnia would even let him sleep in the first place.

He sighed, but nodded. “Fine.”

The other man cheered, and he rested his head on the desk again for a moment. He could feel Kaito’s eyes on him, and he finally summoned up the strength to grab his bag and coat, standing up.

The blue haired man began to walk away, as Kaito called after him. “Where are you going? You’ve got after-case stuff to do, remember?”

Shuichi sighed, and then turned around. Kaito froze on the spot at the tired and irritated look in his eyes. “Kaito,” he said calmly, “if you’re going to drag me out to some nightclub tomorrow night, you’re going to do all of the paperwork.”

Kaito was dumbstruck. “But ace detectives don’t do paperwork for their sidekicks!”

Saihara sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “For the last time, Kaito, I’m not your sidekick. If anything, you’re my sidekick. Now, I’m going to bed. Good luck on the paperwork.”

He turned on his heel and left, not stopping to pay attention to the groans and moans of the purple-haired man behind him.

He had sleep to get.

A day passed, with much sleep, and before he knew it, he was waiting out front of his apartment complex, dressed in a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt. His hat that he typically wore was missing. He felt a little bare without it, but what could he do, really? Kaito and whoever else he brought along were sure to snatch it off of his head the second he got in the car if he did bring it. He sighed, texting Kaito and waiting for the man's car to show up outside.

Soon enough, it did, and he climbed in the backseat. In the front was the man himself, dressed in a black shirt like his own and a very form fitting pair of jeans. They fit tightly enough hat he blushed and had to look away, cursing his sexuality for a moment.

He looked back to the backseat, where another coworker of theirs sat. His name was Ouma Kokichi. Like Kaito, he had purple hair, but unlike his friend, his was longer and came out in almost spiky tendrils at the end. It was a bit strange, but he'd never questioned it. The young man wore his usual attire, some sort of elaborate white suit (that almost resembled what patients wore in asylums), a checkered scarf, and dress shoes. Sighing, Shuichi settled himself in his seat. Only one way to do this.

And that was to go.

Kaito hit the gas, and they were off. Ouma leaned up and stuck his head between the seats. "So, what's with the impromptu nightclub visit? Did your girlfriend dump you already?"

Kaito glowered at him slightly, but his posture didn't show too much hostility. Shuichi knew this was because he had a slightly soft spot for the other purple haired man, although it had never struck him why in the world that was.

"No, I don't even have a girlfriend, idiot!"

Ouma laughed. "Yes, yes! I forgot that my poor Kaito is horribly alone!" He sniffled. "Wahh!"

Shuichi rolled his eyes. Ouma caught the movement and poked his cheek. "Hey, now that I think about it, isn't Shuichi single, too?"

Shuichi nodded reluctantly, the movement so small that it could be interpreted either way.

Kaito slapped the wheel suddenly, making him jump. "That'll be the purpose of tonight's visit, then! Find Shuichi a girlfriend!"

Shuichi let out a noise, something akin to indignation. "I thought tonight's outing was supposed to be for a 'job well done'! And plus, I don't need a girlfriend."

Ouma laughed again. "Maybe you need a boyfriend then, huh?"

Shuichi went red. "N-no! That's not what I meant-"

"Nishinishi, I knew that! I just wanted to see how red you would get."

Shuichi sighed, bowing his head. As much as he wanted no part in this, when it came to these two, he had no choice. And, now that he thought about it....

"Hey, Kaito, why didn't you bring Maki?"

Kaito flushed, and said. "Well, I asked and she said that she would rather die than go. So...I took that as a no."

"Plus, she said that if he asked again, she'd kill him!" Ouma chimed from the back, grinning merrily.

"Y-you said you weren't going to mention that!"

Shuichi laughed.

"A-anyway, back on topic!" Kaito said, the redness in his cheeks dying down. "How are we going to get Shuichi a girlfriend?"

Ouma shrugged. "I guess we'll find out when we get there."

Shuichi had a feeling that this wasn't going to go very well.

When they'd arrived, he'd just taken a seat at the bar. Kaito and Ouma could do whatever they wanted, but he wasn't going to actively take part in whatever the two were scheming together.

He ordered a drink, watching the people around him. By no means was he here to get wasted or anything of the sort, but he wouldn't mind feeling a bit buzzed.

Besides, he needed something to curb his quickly growing annoyance with the two.

The detective decided that he was going to people watch for a bit, deeming that the most suitable course of action.

The nightclub, itself, wasn't any different than how the movies described it. Flashing lights flickered all around a dance floor, and there was a VIP area, music, a bar, food, etc. All of the above were lit up in neon colors, and the bodies of club-goers shone under the lights.

People around his age crowded the dance floor, socializing and interacting. Some were grinding up against each other, but he quickly averted his eyes from those scenes. It wasn't like he minded seeing it - it's what happened in nightclubs - but it almost felt like an invasion of privacy to watch. The detective studied the dance floor, eyes skipping from person to person as he silently profiled them all in his head.

It wasn't until a pair of violet eyes caught his that he stopped.

From across the room, he could vaguely see a blonde girl with violet eyes. She had on a black dress that easily fell to below her knees, but hugged her body. The blonde's hair was piled into a messy and relatively short ponytail at the top of her head. Her feet were housed in equally black heels. They simply stared at each other for a minute. Nonetheless, his breath hitched quietly, and he could feel his heart rate elevate, pulse slamming against his skin like a jackhammer. Color bloomed on his cheeks.

In his peripheral vision, he could see her face growing in color too. But, she turned away to smile at one of her friends, thus breaking the eye contact. He averted his eyes. Staring at her would be creepy.

His eyes eventually focused on the drink he'd set on the bar. He frowned. He hadn't been looking at it for a solid 10 minutes, and even though he hadn't seen or felt anyone pass by, he didn't know that someone hadn't done something to it. Pushing it aside, he asked for another drink. He didn’t know if it was another stupid anxiety of his or what have you….but he was still worried. So, he’ll just order a new drink.

Just in case.

The bartender complied quickly, handing it over to him with a little nod. He smiled at her, and she went a little red, but looked away.

Sipping it, he returned to his previous task. Or, at least, he was going to, but judging by the three people standing in front of him, that wasn't happening anytime soon.

The people in front of him consisted of three girls, each dressed in skimpy clothing. He smiled politely and slid out of his seat, taking his drink with him. "I'm sorry, ladies. Am I in your way?"

All three of them shared a look and giggled. "Actually, no. We're here for you, cutie!"

Pink dusted his cheeks, and he forced himself to smile. Really, he should be used to this.

By no means was Shuichi Saihara bad looking - no, it was quite the opposite. Many people had told him that he had wonderful eyes, and that he just gave off an aura that attracted girls to him. He'd witnessed this firsthand as well, of course, and had sat through many nights of Kaito and Ouma's attempts to find him a girlfriend, or love, or something of the sort.

It was still unsettling, and he still didn't believe a word of it. The detective's self esteem was at rock bottom. It was a miracle that he even thought he looked decent on a daily basis.

The girls in front of him continued to make passes at him, giggling all the while. He accepted the compliments graciously, but didn't dare return any of them.

As time passed, they began to get more raunchy and daring, even placing their hands all over him. The smile from his face never faltered, even as he shifted uncomfortably from side to side.

Oh, it was going to be a long night.

Visits to the nightclub were a frequent for Kaede Akamatsu. She liked going and people watching, of course, and drinking. It wasn't like she was a party girl or anything, but it was a nice change of pace from staying inside and playing the piano all day.

Usually, no one really caught her eye - so she just talked to her friends the entire time.

Tonight, though, someone did.

He was well built - but not super muscular. Anybody that was muscular would make him look as if he were a dweeb in comparison. She had the feeling that she'd seen him somewhere, but couldn't place where. He had blue hair, blue that was such a shade of blue that it almost dipped into black. She found herself mesmerized by the way the light reflected off of it. His eyes scanned the room, back and forth in an easy swoop. He was clearly analyzing everyone, and at an impressive rate.

Somehow, she found herself wondering when he'd notice her. It was unlikely that he even would, really - there were easily a hundred people in this nightclub.

But, by some miracle, he did notice her. His light grey eyes clashed with her violet ones, and she felt as if she couldn't breathe for a moment. His eyes seemed as if they were...trapping her, somehow. Staring straight into her soul. Color bloomed on her cheeks. Under the light, he seemed handsome. God, was someone that good looking staring at her, of all people? And was she....liking it?

After a moment, though, one of her friends tugged on her arm, and she looked away, quickly smiling at them as they droned on about some topic that she hadn't been listening to. The man's eyes seemed to stay firmly pointed at her for a moment, before he looked away and she felt as if she could breathe and think again. She responded with a nod and the occasional, "Yeah, sure!", and "Agreed!"

They seemed satisfied by that and let her go, and she looked back in his direction. Part of her craved a connection with him in some way, and another, much larger part of her wanted to make sure he was doing okay.

He wasn't.

Three girls were surrounding him and giggling, but even from her vantage point, she could see that he was uncomfortable. He was shifting from side to side, but he had a polite smile plastered on his face, even though his body language said he was uncomfortable.

Her eyes narrowed. Something did not sit right with her about this. Glancing over at her friends, she decided that it was time to take action.

Sliding off her chair, she sauntered over to him. If he noticed, he showed no signs of it, even as she got catcalls. For all of her faults, Kaede Akamatsu was a good actor. She went around the group of girls, but finally got to him. Her arm snaked around his waist, and she smiled.

It was time to do what she did best, other than piano.

Act.

Shuichi thought he was about at his breaking point. He'd seen Kaito and Ouma pass by several times now, but they were making no move to help him.

Outwardly, he just kept smiling. Inwardly, however, he cursed his friends to hell and back. If they’d set this up, they were in trouble. Something told him that they were. These girls would never give up. A bitter feeling rose up within him. One person? Fine, he could handle that. Three? No thank you. He was going to get them back for this.

Provided these girls ever gave up, that was.

Just when he had thought that, something happened.

He felt an arm hook around his waist, and the girl beside him scanned the girls in front of him, blonde hair shining under the nightclub’s light.

“Babe, who are they?”

Confusion swamped over him but he was careful not to let it show on his face, lest he give himself away.

He hadn’t an inkling as to who she was.

Still, he found himself pulling her closer, hooking an arm around her waist. She took her arm from around his and curled into him, smiling.

"I don't know," he said, making eye contact with her, "why don't you ask them yourself?"

She turned to them, pearly whites flashing as she smiled. "Hey, I don't know who you are, but if you could lay off my boyfriend, that would be awesome." The blonde said it in such a sweet, yet intimidating tone that he found himself genuinely smiling as they scoffed and walked away, watching them still.

Just for show, she pecked him on the cheek and then moved around so that they were face to face and leaned into his ear. "Are they gone?"

He glanced at them. "Yeah," he whispered.

She smiled and pulled back, keeping a good bit of distance between them. "Good. Sorry for forcing you to act like that, but I guess it's better than being hit on, yeah?"

He laughed. "You'd be correct, Ms..."

The girl smiled at him. "Call me Kaede."

"Shuichi." He said in response.

They stood there for a moment, just staring at each other.

After a minute, she finally said something.

"Do you maybe want to get coffee or something sometime? Not as a date, just as a 'get to know you' thing."

He nodded. "That sounds really good actually. I'll pay, as thanks for saving me."

Smiling, she said; "Good deal! Let's trade contact info."

He nodded, and they did so. As they did, he slipped back into his seat at the bar. Conveniently, there was a seat open next to him, and she sat down, too.

"Why were they over here, anyway?" Shuichi wondered.

Kaede giggled and reached over, pinching his cheek. "Well, it's either the fact that you are cute as a button, or someone sent them your way and then they noticed you."

Shuichi sighed. "Damnit, I knew it was Kaito and Ouma."

"You came with friends?"

The detective nodded. "Yeah, they're two buddies I work with who have been trying to set me up with someone for as long as I can remember."

Kaede raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

He nodded solemnly. "Yeah. It's honestly a bit of a pain. Well, it's not that they're a pain it's just-"

She giggled. "I know what you mean. I came with friends too, but I'm not really the biggest fan of them."

This time it was his turn to quirk an eyebrow. "How come?"

Kaede shrugged, and after flagging the bartender down for two drinks for the both of them, she explained. "I just don't click with them. They want to watch those reality shows and do stuff I don't really like. But, friends are friends, huh?" She held her drink up.

"Yeah." He clinked his glass with hers, and they both took a sip.

She sighed in bliss, and then, after taking another long sip, seemed to come up with an idea. "You know, we could get some revenge on your friends...."

He smiled deviously. "I'm listening."

Something in Kaede stirred at the smile, but she didn't pay it much mind. "We could take this to the next level."

"'This'..." he thought for a second, "As in, you being my 'girlfriend'?"

She nodded, grinning. "Say, I spill some drinks all over them and totally bitch them out because I caught them trying to hook you up with someone else."

Shuichi laughed slightly. Part of him felt bad for doing this, but the other, bigger part of him, wanted revenge. "Let's do it."

And so, he bought two drinks. One for him, and one for Kaede.

Kaede clasped their hands together, and he looked at her quizzically. She laughed lightly. "We've got to make it convincing, yeah?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

They walked through the club for a bit, weaving in between couples and grinding lovers. A couple times, they'd even seen more....unsightly things.

After about half an hour or so, Shuichi spotted them. "There." He said to Kaede, moving his head in that direction. She understood immediately.

The both of them were sitting there, being chatted up by two other girls. He snorted. "Of course they found a couple girls. What else was I expecting?"

He glanced over to Kaede, who probably would have snorted at him, only to find her eyes closed for a second. "Uhh...Kaede?"

She put her finger up to his lips. "Shh."

He stood there for a moment, just watching her. She was seemingly concentrating on something, quiet and focused. After a moment, though, she opened her eyes and looked at him, lips set in a frown. "I'm ready. Let's go."

He made a face of confusion, but said nothing. Instead, he led her to where they were sitting with the girls. "Hey."

They both looked up at him, and Kaito grinned. "Hey, Shuichi! What's up?"

Ouma, seemingly not caring for his presence, simply asked; "Who's she?"

Kaede then made a face of sheer anger. "I'm his girlfriend, idiot! We've only been going out for three months!"

Ouma's eyes widened, and to stop himself from showing any emotion, Shuichi rolled his lips together and looked down as if out of shame.

"Ugh! You guys are the worst! First, you sick some girls on him and now you're forgetting about his girlfriend of three months?!?!? I can't believe you!"

Kaito opened his mouth, but she rounded on him, using the information that Shuichi had passed on to him.

"And you! I think Maki wouldn't be very pleased to see you with another girl on your arm!"

She turned to Shuichi and plucked his drink from his hand and dumped it over the two of them, huffing and stomping away.

Shuichi looked up, and simply said; "You two look better with the drinks on you, by the way."

He then turned on his heel and left, going back to the bar where Kaede was standing.

One look at each other was all they needed to start laughing uncontrollably.

The ride home that night had been....awkward to say the least. He'd had to make up fact after fact about their relationship and why he'd nodded his head. He claimed that he had actually shook his head to say that yes, he did have a girlfriend, but they'd misinterpreted it.

After he'd gotten home, though, all was well. He took a shower and brushed his teeth before ordering some pizza. Afterward, he'd turned on the TV to see if he could find anything good. No such luck, but a new episode of Buzzfeed Unsolved was out, so he thought that would make do.

He was about halfway through his second episode when his phone buzzed, screen lighting up. It was a text from an unknown number.

Shuichi paused his show, unlocking his phone and checking the text. It read:

"Hey, this is Kaede. I was wondering when our coffee shop meeting would be. I'm looking forward to seeing you again! <3"

The heart at the end of the message left him a blushing mess - but he responded.

"How about next Monday, in the afternoon? I'll only have my lunch break, but we can probably go out some other time."

Not 5 seconds later, a text came back.

"Sure! What time is your lunch?"

"2:30."

"Ooh, late lunch I see~~. Well, that's good with me! We're meeting at the Apricot Cafe, right?"

"Yep, that should be it."

"Okay, see you then! Night, Shuichi!"

He felt a genuine smile come to his face as he responded:

"Night, Kaede."

Even though they were going to meet a week and 2 days after the nightclub incident, they texted a lot. She'd text him whenever she was able, and he'd text back. They texted about anything and everything, from the stories Kaede had from working retail, to agreeing on set details about their “relationship”, to deep conversations at 3:45 am in the morning.

Kaito teased him endlessly about being “a boy in love”, to which he rolled his eyes and said “well, at least I have a girlfriend.”

He found himself having to cover his mouth to not laugh at her texts, and eagerly awaiting her responses.

On Kaede's end, it was much the same. Making him laugh was quickly becoming her new favorite activity, and she loved texting him. Her friends teased her about it, calling her the new "girl in love" to which she responded with "He's just a friend!"

But, at long last, the day came.

He made his way out of the station 10 minutes early, and arrived at the cafe and had ordered with 5 minutes to spare. He looked out the window the entire time, waiting for her arrival. He wore the standard outfit for his detective work, a jacket like top that buttoned over to his right, black pants, and his hat. He supposed the hat would come in useful today, too - as he was going to need to hide his blush often - or she'd keep calling him cute, and making him blush more.

Person after person passed by, and he watched with increasing anxiety. Eventually, though, he saw her. She stopped, and went to look in through the glass. He wanted to wave or something, but he was frozen from just the sight of her. She had on a pink vest with a white long sleeved shirt under it, and a dark purple skirt with a black music note patterning on it, looking as if it were a song. She also wore purple tights, and a pair of brown shoes. White hair clips shaped like music notes adorned her hair blonde hair, which had been left down.

She seemed to finally catch sight of him, and walked in, sitting across from him.

He smiled at her, and she beamed back, pink dusting her cheeks.

"Hey, Shuichi!"

"H-hey.." He said, growing red. He ducked his head.

She giggled. "C'mon, it's just me! Nothing to be so shy over!"

Shuichi exhaled. "S-sorry..."

The blonde pouted over at him. "Don't apologize!"

"Ah!"

She giggled. "You're so shy! It's just so cute!"

Shuichi ducked his head. "Um, so where did you come from?"

"Oh, I just came from work! I teach piano lessons and piano at schools, and I also work in retail during the time I have off from schools!"

"So, which of the three were you at?"

The violet eyed female giggled sweetly. "Well, I just came from lessons. I have a session with this old man every monday. He's learning the piano so he can play it for his wife for their 40th anniversary. He's been learning for 2 years now."

"That's really sweet." He stated, smiling.

Kaede nodded. "So, where do you work?"

"Oh, I'm the leading detective for the police." Shuichi said, blushing at the title.

Kaede's eyes lit up. "That's so cool! Do you like what you do?"

Shuichi faltered. "Sometimes. Sometimes it's hard to put someone behind bars but....I do like what I do, mostly."

Kaede nodded solemnly. They sat in silence until their food came, at which point, they started to eat. After they were done, Kaede spoke up again.

"So, what's the deal with the hat?"

"H-huh?" He said, visibly shocked.

"You heard me! Why do you wear it?" The blonde persisted, looking at him.

"Uh, because I like wearing one?

As if telling him that this was the wrong answer, she reached over and plucked it from his head, securing it on hers.

"Hmm....well you have hat hair, but even still, I think you look much better without the hat!" She giggled at his flushed expression. "Which is why I'm keeping it until we meet again!"

Shuichi gaped, and she laughed at his expression again.

Through everything going on his his mind in that moment, he couldn't help but think that she looked amazing in that hat.

Months go by, and slowly, yet surely, they meet more and become the best of friends.

Today is yet another Monday, and they're going to meet at a restaurant instead of their usual spot - a cafe.

He's five minutes early, as per the usual, and strangely enough, doesn't have his hat.

Kaede kept taking it so much that he was forgetting to even wear it in the first place.

Speaking of the blonde, she skips in right on time, wearing his hat. He'd never quite stopped being so....struck dumb by her, and he couldn't figure out why.

She slides into the seat opposite him, and they begin to chat over random things, but his mind is someplace else. Someplace analytical that it only goes for work, to profile criminals.

Except, this time, he's profiling himself, trying to figure out what's making him act this way.

He watches her closely, noting the reactions his body and mind have. Slowly, his eyes close, as he thinks over everything. Over the next couple seconds he crosses out multiple reasons why he could be seeing this, and is left with only one.

He's in love with her.

Of course, he refuses it. He is not in love with Kaede Akamatsu. If he was, that would ruin the friendship they had. So, it would be better not to be in love with her.

But, as he opens his eyes, he catches hers once more, and freezes.

The world falls out around him, and suddenly, he can't hear the clatter of servers setting down plates and the buzz of chatter. Suddenly, all he can hear is her. All he can see is her. All he can smell, think, hear, taste, do, anything, is her.

He's in love with every part of her, he realizes, from the way she smiles to the compassion she had for others to something as petty as her hair.

He lets out a deep breath, and is snapped out of his reverie when she asks; "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

He had responded with "yes," but the fact of the matter is that he just realized that he was in love with her.

And he was not okay.

Another month passed with the knowledge that he had a crush on her. He'd only told one person so far, the only other person who knew that Kaede was, in fact, not his girlfriend out of his friends.

Maki Harukawa.

When he'd said something, she had said; "And?"

"And...I don't know what to do."

Maki had sighed, but said: "Look, I'm not good with this romance stuff, but maybe you should just tell her."

"But, what if I-"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Stop saying 'what if', and just do it."

He had stood and bowed his head. "You're right...there's not other way other than to just do it."

Maki had smiled and nodded. "Now, get out of my office."

"Yes, ma'am."

Now, he was walking to a restaurant to meet up with Kaede again.

To his surprise, she was already there when he got there, and was waving at him from a booth. This time, unlike the others, her hair was tied back and she wore a black shirt and jeans.

"You're here awfully early." He said, looking at her.

She smiled. "Last week was the last of the lessons for the old man."

He nodded. "Oh, I didn't know that."

She rolled her eyes, but giggled. "Jeez, I only talk about it all the time. You'd think that you would pick it up by now."

He ducked his head. "S-sorry."

Shuichi sat down in his seat, and they sat in silence for a minute. He dared to look up at her, and found his breath catching. It was now or never.

"Kaede....?" He asked.

"Yeah?" She replied, violet eyes quizzical.

"I- uh..."

"You...?"

"I think I'm in love with you." He said, confession coming out in a rush.

It was so sudden, so quick and easy - and rushed, that he even surprised himself. This was the second time that he had openly admitted that he had a crush on her to someone, the first person being Maki.

"You - you what?" She said, cheeks stained red. She was clearly shocked, although he couldn’t quite tell in what way.

"I think I'm in love with you. And I understand if you don't return the sentiment or something, I just thought I'd get it out there."

Kaede's tongue seemed to soak in all the saliva in her mouth like a sponge, and her breath hitched as she searched for the right words to say.

"I..."

Shuichi smiled over at her sadly. "It's okay, you don't have to say it. I think I get it. Sorry, I'll just...leave you be."

He got up from his seat and began to walk away, but her hand came out, grabbing onto his arm like a vice.

"Kaede...?!"

"Just, shut up for a minute and let me think." She said, pulling him down into the seat beside her.

He did as told, and she began to think.

This is what she wanted, was it not? A confession? To be with him? Still...it was so out of left field that she was reeling.

She had realized she was in love with him a while ago - that was no surprise. But...he returned her feelings? Was that even possible?

Only one way to find out. Shuichi was looking at the table.

She turned to face him, and then called his name.

He looked up, and she took that chance to swoop in and kiss him. He was shocked at first, but kissed her back after a moment.

After a moment, she pulled back.

"I love you, too."

He blinked. "S-so, what does that -"

"I'm your actual girlfriend now, duh!" She grinned, and then stuck her tongue out at him. "It's about time."

In response, he just grinned and leaned in to kiss her again.

She happily complied.

Anyone who had seen Shuichi before and after the confession would say that he looked like the happiest man in the world.

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