Persona 5 x persona 4

chapter 34

There was just something about being home that just felt right. Yu leaned back against his old couch as he took a second to appreciate the fact he was truly home. Rise's condo had been home for quite some time, but this place? This 1200 square foot house; was truly home. Compared to the condo it was tiny at almost a third of the size, but it was all his. He had bought it a few months just before he finished college from an older couple that his uncle knew. The price was right and Yu had always been good with money even after college. While he still made payments, if the next few years continued how they were going, he'd have this whole place paid off and would be his very own private piece of Inaba.

It was only two bedrooms. Which was one bedroom as the other one had been converted into an office the second he got it. The kitchen was probably the largest part of the house, it had been renovated from the older style kitchen when he got it. After all, Yu preferred to cook for all his friends so no one was ever going to have to deal with Mystery Food X with him around. Several times he had friends over and he cooked for them all. This house was filled with good memories like that and that's what truly made it home. Speaking of good memories with his friends, he had invited Ren and Futaba over later for dinner. A glance at the clock told him it was 3 o'clock. He still had plenty of time. After dropping Nanako back off at Dojima's place Yu had made a quick stop at Junes to pick up everything he needed for dinner. He had an hour to relax before he would be starting that. His house wasn't too far from the Amagi Inn, so luckily Ren and Futaba wouldn't have a long walk.

Rise appeared from the small hallway that led to the two rooms in the back of the house. The look she wore on her face was one of someone who no longer had any fucks to give, but people still kept asking her for them. She stepped up to the couch Yu was currently occupying where she collapsed upon it taking up the rest of the merger space upon it. Her head resting on his leg. She didn't say a word and honestly, Yu was okay with that, he had heard her a few minutes prior, dealing with her relatives over the old tofu shop. Rise didn't have a bad relationship with her family as far as Yu knew but something about inheritance and money brought out the worst in people. Rise had more than enough to simply pay for them to shut up but she wasn't about to give them a small fortune for nothing. Rise was done playing nice.

Yu reached down and ran his hand through her hair. Rise gave him a content noise as she snuggled against him. As much as this house was his home, it was the same for Rise. She could have bought almost any place in Inaba but honestly, she preferred this place as much as he did. They had lived together here for the past two years. Rise's official residence was that huge condo in Tokyo. Yu had been there when she purchased it and it wasn't cheap, several billion yen not cheap. All of her fan mail and official Risette business was sent there. When she was on tour or just here in Inaba she had an assistant that checked on the condo for her. In total, she probably spent more than half of her year in Tokyo and even less time with him in this tiny little Inaba house, but honestly, that seemed to make this place even more special to her. Distance didn't matter for their relationship. Rise needed to travel a lot but Yu made it clear he'd always be there for her to return home too.

They sat like this in silence for quite sometime before the sound of a familiar car engine announced Naoto's arrival before she even stepped up to the door. Rise knew that sound all too well and slowly got up, offering her boyfriend a small smile. Just those few minutes they had shared were enough to wipe that irate look from her face. Yu gave his girlfriend a quick kiss before he rose to his feet and headed for the door. Rise collapsed back onto the couch and curled up, no doubt safe in the knowledge Yu's partner expected nothing from her.

Yu stepped up to the door and opened it just as Naoto appeared on his doorstep. She might have been surprised by his seemingly psychic knowledge that she had arrived but Naoto was well aware of the distinct noise her car made. That noise was by design. The old 1972 Datsun sat in front of his house. It's light green coloring contrasting against the snow that covered Inaba. That was Naoto's baby. While the outside looked like an old Datsun from almost every angle, under the hood was a far different story. A larger engine, a different exhaust, and various other modifications made the car an utter beast with a mechanical growl one could hear a block away. For a car made almost 50 years ago it didn't look far from being showroom ready. Naoto had put blood, sweat, and tears into that thing to modify and restore it to its full glory. Naoto had long given up most of her masculine ways but being a bit of a petrol head wasn't something that she'd probably ever give up. Naoto liked driving and she loved driving fast.