Writing Playground

19. Anger Issues

Fandom: persona 5
Tag(s): argument, scolding, anger issues

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"I expected better from you," Sae scolded as he approached her desk, fingers clacking away on the keyboard of her laptop. Her eyes were glued to her screen, intently focused on her work.

"I apologize. I've been--" Akechi winced at his own vague words, "busy lately."

She stopped, before her brown eyes removed themselves from the screen to fixate upon the boy with a hard glare. The lighting gave them a reddish tone and deepened the dark rings under them, making her all the more intimidating. "We're always busy and we always will be, the only difference is that we know what to prioritize and what comes second-hand. Tell me, what could possibly be more important than the investigation?"

"I..." Akechi looked away from her icy gaze, aware that no truth nor lie could placate her enough. "I apologize."

Demanding, that was what Sae Niijima had become due to the Phantom Thieves' investigation and her own palace taking form. Even though Akechi knew about her increasing distortions--he was after all one of those feeding it--he couldn't deny that it hurt. Not to himself, at least. She was only a means to an end, but he admired her more than any other person he had ever met. It was truly a shame, and really irritating, too.

"No excuses? That's unlike you," she jeered, and Akechi had to keep himself from frowning. Sae's focus returned to the files on her laptop, and her purple-painted nails started once again to tap away on the keyboard. "That's alright. Started growing sick of your lies, lately."

"Pardon?" Akechi asked, flabbergasted by her words.

"Your schedule isn't as full as you think, you know," she started, not even glancing in his direction. "You could at least try to be efficient with your time. Then again, you're just a kid."

Akechi bristled at the remark.

"Spending hours a week 'bouldering' without showing up half as much, and now you're playing around with a bunch of kids? And what happened with your suspects? What's with the secrecy that you can't even tell me, the head of this case, about it?" The seething fury bubbled in her tone, and Akechi had to fight down his genuine surprise. She knew?

"And why do I see your phone ID on my sister's phone? Of all the kids and fangirls in all of Shibuya--no, in all of Tokyo, you had to get tied in with Makoto and her friends?" Sae's voice rose as she spoke and Akechi hadn't noticed that she had stopped typing, instead digging her nails into the table with knuckles porcelain white. "Are you doing this on purpose?"

"Wha--no! Sae-san, I would never--!"

He was interrupted by a bitter chuckle, and the woman in black buried her face in her hands to let out a deep and frustrated sigh. "I'm sorry, that was unbecoming of me as your superior and colleague. It's just--things are so hard right now, and I need all the help I can get in order to wrap this up. I shouldn't have pried into your social life just because the road gets bumpy. You're doing your best too, after all."

Akechi stood there, stunned at the sudden apology. "It's... It's quite alright. Why don't you take a break, Sae-san, and I'll start reviewing the papers until you get back."

"Thank you. I'll be back in five."

As she got up from her seat, Akechi said, "why don't you take ten minutes, you deserve it after all. And..." he trailed off, expression darkening. He was almost there. "This case is important for me too, you know?"

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If only Sae was less buried in pressure and denial is2g she would've figured most of it out by herself (a.k.a. the PT's and the culprit's identities).

.demondaughter21