APH Rarepair Week 2021!

Day 1: Language

Kiku wanted to make dinner.

He was spending that week at Lukas's house and it was the last day before he would be flying home to Japan. He was hoping he would have been able to spend it with his boyfriend, but that morning Lukas had gotten an urgent call from his boss about important paperwork being lost and he had had no choice but to retreat to his office and redo it all. Kiku understood that this couldn't be put off, but it was rather disappointing that he would barely get to see Lukas the entire day.

So, why did he want to make dinner?

Lukas mentioned before shutting himself in his office that he might be done with that mess in time for dinner. And, after about 5 hours of playing Animal Crossing in solitude, Kiku decided that he wouldn't let the rest of his free time go to waste. He'll make something special for dinner so Lukas can just relax after he finishes work, and the two of them can spend the rest of the night together.

It was a great idea until Kiku realized halfway through making something that he was missing two ingredients.

Rather than throw it all out in despondency and make something else, Kiku resolved to just go and buy what he was missing. So, he left a note on the table explaining he was going shopping and would be back soon. This wouldn't be too hard, right?

Wrong.

After 3 hours of going to various stores in and around the Bergen area that didn't have the specific ingredients he needed, he finally found two items that could work as substitutes and called it a day.

Kiku had never been so relieved to drive down the terrible gravel road that led to Lukas's house.

Once inside, Kiku dropped the grocery bag onto the kitchen counter and sank into a chair at the kitchen table with a deep sigh. He let himself relax for a few moments, his gaze falling to the table, where he saw his note. He smiled slightly. Scrawled in red pen at the bottom were the words: 'I'm done with work. Let me know when you're back.' Followed by a very small heart.

"I'm back!" Kiku called out. "Sorry for taking so long."

He was met with silence.

"Lukas?" Kiku stood up from the table and walked around the bottom floor of the house. Not a trace of the Norwegian. So, he made his way upstairs. He figured he would check Lukas's office first in case Lukas was still in there. Once he reached the top of the staircase, however, something else caught his eye. There were a few rooms in Lukas's house that he didn't use. They were made into guest rooms when needed, but otherwise they stayed almost completely untouched.

At the end of the hallway, the door to one of these rooms stood ajar.

This was odd, and Kiku's curiosity was piqued. He knew the most likely scenario would be that Lukas is in that room for whatever reason, even though Lukas barely goes into the guest rooms when there are no guests. But there was also the possibility of it being some sort of animal in there. The house was situated near a forest after all. It could also be nothing, but either way, Kiku decided to check that room before the office, just in case. He walked down to the ajar door and very gently pushed it open.

Kiku's first guess turned out to be correct.

Lukas was kneeling on the window seat with his back to the door, leaning slightly against the wall to his side. The window in front of him was open half-way, letting a cool breeze into the room.

Although Kiku wanted to talk to spend as much time with Lukas as possible, he figured that he should leave Lukas alone for now. At least for a little. The Norwegian seemed so peaceful and relaxed there... Kiku didn't want to interrupt that.

But of course, as the Asian took a step back to leave, the floorboard he placed his foot on squeaked loudly. He cringed when he saw Lukas flinch, now alerted to Kiku's presence.

"Hello?"

Lukas turned around to face Kiku, and Kiku was about to apologize when the words died on his tongue. A cloud had been blocking the sun until that precise moment. Sunlight suddenly streamed through the window and hit Lukas like a spotlight, highlighting the edges of his figure with a soft, almost holy glow. Strands of blond hair fluttered in the breeze, shining like pure gold in the light. The bits of Lukas's pale skin that the sun touched seemed to sparkle.

At this moment, Kiku wouldn't have been shocked if Lukas sprouted wings.

Lukas raised an eyebrow. "Kiku?"

Anything sensible vanished from Kiku's head as the butterflies welled up inside his stomach. The butterflies brought words up with them too. Words that weren't meant to leave his head, but spilled out of his mouth anyways.

"Anata wa tenshida," Kiku blurted. A moment went by before the realization hit him. He blinked, eyes widening, and a blush began to crawl up his cheeks. "Ah- Sorry, that just slipped out-"

Lukas didn't speak Japanese, but he had spent enough time around his boyfriend to understand the first half of Kiku's statement. It was the last word that made him tilt his head. "What did you call me?"

"It was nothing," Kiku quickly lied.

Lukas wasn't buying it. "It must have been something if you're this embarrassed over it."

"Well- It-" Kiku stumbled over his words, trying to land on some explanation that didn't involve telling Lukas what he just said. He couldn't. Instead, he decided to escape. "I- I need to finish making dinner, sorry for interrupting you-"

Kiku spun around on his heel to leave, but in three quick strides, Lukas had made it to the doorway and grabbed onto Kiku's shoulder.

"Hold it, kjære."

Kiku gulped. He tilted his head down to hide his burning cheeks.

"Tenshida..." Lukas mimicked the word as best as he could, though his accent muddled the pronunciation slightly. "Is that what you said?"

"...Hai," Kiku confirmed slowly. He still can't believe he said that outloud. What was he thinking? He wasn't. He wasn't thinking.

"What are you afraid of?" Lukas asked. "I'm not going to make fun of you, you know."

"I know... It's just- It might have been a bit much." Kiku sighed. He looked over his shoulder at Lukas, who, to his surprise, was smiling ever so slightly.

"So it was a compliment?" The Norwegian asked. "Or am I just assuming the best?"

"I wasn't insulting you, I promise," Kiku assured, a little smile appearing on his lips as well. Something about seeing Lukas smile at him made the embarrassment start to fade.

"Well?" Lukas prompted. "Are you going to tell me yourself, or will I have to use Google Translate? Just letting you know, it will be less meaningful if it comes from Google."

Kiku turned to face Lukas completely, looking up into Lukas's beautiful violet eyes. Maybe, Kiku suddenly thought, it wasn't a bit much. Maybe it wasn't enough.

"Hai, hai," Kiku murmured. He has no choice now. He wouldn't want Lukas to have to use Google of all things. "You... are an angel, Lukas."

A moment of silence passed between the two of them. Lukas's cheeks seemed to turn pink for a fleeting second-

Then, Lukas just nodded. "True," he replied simply. "I'm glad you've noticed. So, what were you making for dinner?"

Scratch that part about it not being enough. It was definitely too much.

Kiku quickly turned around, another round of blushing hitting him hard.

"I take it back," he declared, shrugging off Lukas's hand and marching back down the hallway. "There are no angels in this house."

"Kjære, wait- I was kidding!"

"If you want to eat, you'll have to help me now!" Kiku glanced over his shoulder as he reached the stairs, and he smiled to himself. Because Lukas really was blushing.

What an angelic asshole.

The end.