to greater things beyond the unknown||RK96000||

Chapter 18: Salvation for the Damned

ao3 - RK96000

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By the time Shouyou and Akira finally arrive to Akira's home, Shouyou has already explained, in hushed whispers, the way his mother had threatened him to not tell his friends- a lot less hushed, Akira snorts, seeming absurdly pleased at how obviously Shouyou was defying his mother's (hopefully) empty threats.

Still, Akira's eyes burn with his righteous fury, but even as the sight sends the phantom remnants of fear crackling up his spine, he pushes it aside, and breathes in the crisp air outside, instead.

(Akira would never hurt him.)

"We're here," Akira announces, startling Shouyou out of his thoughts, his apathetic gaze still set- even if Shouyou could see his fingers trembling and the way his eyes kept scanning Shouyou for bruises he knew weren't there. With a practiced motion, the door unlocks and he steps inside.

Shouyou stares at Akira's house before them.

A familiar sight, as usual, but one that has never failed to drag out the stirrings of anxiety in his stomach.

"Yeah," he says, and he can only hope the dread lurking underneath his skin isn't as obvious to Akira as it feels like to Shouyou. "We are."

"Kindaichi is already here," Akira adds on when Shouyou hesitates over stepping inside the house (the boundary between friend to guest- to someone not truly wanted). "My mom's the only one home and she thinks this is just a regular sleepover, even if you're... arriving late."

Shouyou nods, but even the thought of crossing the line makes it feel as though the ground beneath him is giving away- as though if he makes just one wrong move, he'll fall right through into the abyss and never be seen again.

Akira shifts, and then, steps back outside and holds out his hand, a little awkwardly. "We'll figure it out together, remember?" And then, with a smile, small but true and genuine, "No matter what."

The whirlwind of anxiety and panic (and the fear that if he stepped into Akira's home, he'd never want to leave) inside Shouyou falters for a moment, and then, stops.

"I trust you," Shouyou echoes, grasping Akira's hand in his own, a steadying weight reminding him where he was, and Akira nods, leading him inside (another boundary crossed- but for some reason, Shouyou can't even mind) and locking the door before pressing onwards.

Just as they finally reach Akira's bedroom, the door closed, he pauses, and without looking back, quietly says, "I trust you, too, Shouyou," as if it had even needed to be said.

Shouyou can't help but smile, and as Akira quickly opens the door, his smile only widens as he spots Kindaichi, lazily spinning in circles in Akira's desktop chair.

"Hinata!" Kindaichi shouts, before coughing and continuing at a lower volume. "You're okay."

Then, before Shouyou can assure Kindaichi that he really is, Kindaichi glances down and his gaze freezes on Akira and Shouyou's hands.

"Shut-" Akira hisses at Kindaichi just as the shock settles onto his face, and then Kindaichi snorts, before trying to keep a straight face (very badly, Shouyou will add). "Not a single word."

Then, Akira slinks over to his bed and dives underneath the covers, before emerging as a blanket cocoon, only his eyes peeking out in a harsh glare aimed at Kindaichi.

Kindaichi keeps it together for exactly six seconds (which is also exactly enough time for Shouyou to settle on the bed next to Akira, who begrudgingly lets him lean against his shoulder), before dissolving into laughter.