Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"I'm here." Reo's panting when he bursts through their living room, coat haphazardly thrown on. "What is it, what's wrong. Nagi."
He crosses the room briskly to reach his partner. Nagi, sitting on the ground, slouched in front of the TV regards Reo kneeling in front of him quietly. There are dark bags under Reo's eyes. His usually pristine hair is a mess, and his necktie is skewed from his collar. He hasn't even taken his coat off and he's already inside the room, which is something Reo never forgets to do.
"Nagi, what's going on? What's the emergency?" The hands that inspect Nagi's body are cold, and Nagi has to touch Reo's frantic hands and assure him No, I don't have a fever . Nagi's waiting for Reo's breaths to become normal. He's still panting, little eyebrows worriedly knit together, and it's only when Nagi massages the space between them that Reo's breathing somewhat becomes steady.
The look of distress morphs into confusion. He says, "I don't understand. You said there was an emergency?"
Nagi answers, simply, "Video games."
He's got a controller in his hands. He pulls back from Reo's face and grasps around beside him, and when he finds the other controller, Nagi pushes it towards Reo. Part of it is exhaustion, but Reo has to take a moment to process it all.
"The emergency is video games."
"We were supposed to finish Rose's Room-"
Jesus fuck.
"Nagi, you called me to get out of work because of an emergency. And it's video games ," a hand flies up to press on a pressure point above the eyebrow. This isn't good. Reo's been up all night, and he's dangerously displeased right now. He doesn't want Nagi to needlessly witness a pissed Reo, but at the same time why the fuck would his partner call video games an emergency.
He takes a long breath in. Exhales out. In, then out again. Nagi just watches Reo struggle to compose himself.
"The emergency is that I missed Reo..." Nagi corrects shyly.
And at this, Reo can't help but soften up. Nagi's big grey eyes are shining with honesty, a trace of loneliness in them, as if he really did miss him, and Reo can't fight the guilt that lands on him.
Reo's been spending more time in the company this past week. It's been piles and piles of dreadful paperwork, project launches he's had to meticulously strategize for, meetings with foreign dignitaries and board members and executives and his dad , on and on and on endless, never-ending . He gets one thing done, and into his office Baaya will come, apologetic but supportive and already taking some of his work as her own. Then a phone call. An email. His dad by the door. Rinse, repeat, and recycle.
