Chapter Text
Akihiko’s head was pounding from a hangover when he woke up, he groaned and started to sit up so that he could stretch. But then he noticed an unusual warm and soft feeling clinging to his body, so he shifted slightly to try to figure out what it was. A blush crept up his face as he realized that it was another person in his bed. He knew he’d been at a celebration party for Junpei and Chidori’s engagement last night, but he wasn’t quite sure how that had led to this. He knew himself well enough to know that even drunk, he wouldn’t just hookup with some random woman.
He only had free arm, the other one being wrapped around the woman, that he could use to carefully lift the sheets and reveal the mysterious woman. His “oh shit” response went into overdrive because he recognized the woman in an instant, it was one of his oldest and closest friends, Mitsuru Kirijo. Further, he couldn’t just write the situation off as they had drunkenly fallen asleep in the same bed, both of them were naked. His suspicions of what they had done were confirmed beyond a doubt when he glanced over at the wastebin in the corner of his bedroom and saw a few used condoms in it as well as clothes strewn on the floor.
He tried to remember as much as he could of the previous night, Yukari had started planning the party as soon as the engagement was announced. She had ensured the party happened on a night where everyone could make it. Which was nice, with how busy most of them were it was hard to meetup like that. Maybe that was part of the reason he ended up getting caught up so much in the revelry. Another factor was that he was off today from his training, he’d only recently finished police academy and gotten his first assignment. The final factor that didn’t help was the man of the hour himself, Junpei insisted on keeping Akihiko’s cup filled throughout the party.
Now that he thought about it, he also remembered that Mitsuru had also been drinking unusually heavy too. Because he knew her so well, he felt that he could safely speculate that her frustrations had gotten to a point where she let loose a little bit to relieve her stress. He couldn’t entirely blame her, running a company as large as the Kirijo Group at her relatively young age had to be headache inducing. Not to mention how much the board was increasingly hounding her year after year about getting married and producing an heir. Her workaholic tendencies also didn’t help her, or that she dedicated a large chunk of her little free time to running the Shadow Operatives.
His memory starts to get hazier towards the end of the party, he does vaguely recall leaving with someone hanging on his shoulder. It’s pretty obvious who that person was given the evidence literally right next to him. He questions their friend’s judgement a little bit for letting two very intoxicated people wander off into the night. Even though they had ended up at Akihiko’s apartment, things could have gone very badly very easily. He might have to lecture them later about it.
His blush returned deeper than before as flashes of what transpired after they got back to his apartment emerged in his mind. Assuming that his memory was accurate, they had not wasted much time. They barely got through his door before they started making out and frantically touching each other. He couldn’t recall exactly how far they had gone in the entryway, or how much of their clothes had been left there.
Another image flashed in his mind, of him carrying a half-clothed Mitsuru presumably to the bedroom. The next things he remembered weren’t really memories per se, but more sensations. The main ones being how soft Mitsuru’s bare skin felt making contact with his own, and how it felt to be inside her. The two combined caused a rush of blood to sprint downwards to his other head, which apparently had done most of the thinking last night.
He desperately tried to think of something else, anything else, to calm down, because Mitsuru had started to stir next to him and he did not need her waking up to that. The situation was already embarrassing enough without him being actively hard as soon as she woke up. She hadn’t performed an “execution” in a few years, but he still feared them all the same. Luckily, his endeavor was successful right before Mitsuru’s eyes flit open.
He fully expected her to freak out at the sight of him next to her in a bed, but to his surprise she seemed rather calm. She quickly surveyed the situation, noticing the wastebin, the hastily discarded clothes, and their state of undress and then finally made eye contact with him.
“Is this a dream,” she asked him, her voice still drowsy.
“No it’s not, we’re both awake right now,” Akihiko responded, trying to choose his words carefully.
“Oh,” was all she said in response, he was surprised as he watched her facial expression. She didn’t look disappointed like he was expecting her to be. She groaned from what he figured was her own hangover and then looked over at his nightstand. Akihiko also looked over to see her staring at his clock, it was a little after seven in the morning.
Mitsuru pulled herself out of Akihiko’s arm and slipped out of the bed, part of him, that he didn’t know existed, wished she wouldn’t go. Out of respect for her, he averted his gaze so she could preserve what little modesty she had left if she so wished. However he opened them and looked at her again when she asked a question.
“Can I borrow your bathroom, I want to freshen up before I go into the office,” she asked as she stood there still naked but now with a few articles of clothing in her arms.
Akihiko sighed, of course she was going into the office, she never changed. He desperately tried to focus on her face when he replied, “As long as you have no problem with using my shampoo and conditioner, then feel free.”
Her “answer” was a smirk before she turned around and started to walk out of the room heading for his shower. Akihiko wasn’t entirely proud of what transpired next, he found himself enchanted by how Mitsuru’s hips swayed as she walked. So he ended up just staring at her ass. He felt the blood rush again and he’d be lying if he claimed the thought of hopping in the shower with her didn’t occur to him. But he quickly banished that thought, he already had enough problems without attempting that stunt.
Once he calmed down again, Akihiko was free to finally process the whole situation. He’d always found her attractive, but he’d assured himself that they were nothing more than friends, so he thought it was a moot point. But now he was questioning if he had really been content with that given all it took for something more to surface was a little bit of alcohol. So he pushed aside his previous hang-ups and seriously thought about the possibility of dating her. It surprised him how open he was to the idea, he doubted anyone else could ever truly understand him the way she did or the things he’d been through.
But at the end of the day, that was a discussion he needed to have with Mitsuru, on how they moved forward.
~
Mitsuru took a quick detour to gather the rest of her clothing from the entryway and also grabbed her purse before she got into the shower. She left her clothes in a basket that Akihiko had placed just outside the bathroom door. If she had more time she would have loved to take a full bath, but she wanted to be quick so that was out of the question. As the water cascaded over her body, she found herself unable to avoid thinking about the state she woke up in and the events of the previous night.
She wasn’t willing to admit it to anyone outside of Kikuno and Yukari, but her feelings towards Akihiko had evolved beyond friendship and into love at some point. It had been a long process, and she still wasn’t sure exactly when that evolution had occurred. But she was certain now that no other man could possibly compare to him, nor could she imagine herself with any other man.
Akihiko had proven a dependable friend over the years, even if the way they met wasn’t exactly the most natural. Fighting side by side with him had by necessity instilled a deep trust between the two. There were also all the times they’d patched each other up after a night in Tartarus, even when she had naively shrugged off wounds and he’d insisted. She could count on him to show up whenever she needed him no matter the time or place. Not to mention how much he had been there for her that night her father died, carrying her back to the dorm and then providing a shoulder to cry on.
She’d worried about him a lot when he had disappeared on his training journeys a few years ago rather than focusing on college. Her questioning why she was so worried had actually been what initially put her on the path of realizing her feelings.
It wasn’t an entirely chaste attraction either, even setting aside the previous night’s drunken hookup. They had agreed not to talk about it, but she still vividly remembered that July night back in their third year of high school. It had been another of their full moon operations, and they had tracked down one of the larger shadows to a love hotel. However after they defeated that shadow another that had been hiding in the same place manipulated their minds and moved them to other rooms.
The mind control had gone further and tried to convince them to give into their desires. Mitsuru could still remember how tenderly he caressed her; he’d started to feel her up when they snapped out of the manipulation. Only to then find themselves laying on one of the love hotel beds partially undressed. Her cape and vest had been cast aside to the floor, and her blouse fully unbuttoned and opened, exposing her bra. Akihiko was hovering over her and had taken off his shirt which laid near her own clothes.
They had blushed profusely and, after Akihiko got off her and fervently apologized, rushed to get their discarded clothes back on. When they regrouped with Makoto and Yukari and Makoto asked if anything happened, she’d denied it. Though that was more so out of embarrassment because part of her didn’t want to stop.
Remembering Makoto also dredged up memories of her fleeting infatuation for him and how he helped her escape an arranged marriage. However that infatuation went nowhere because he rejected her after she confessed. Moving past her feelings had been easier than she expected, but it helped seeing that he seemingly only had eyes for Yukari. Something made abundantly clear when she looked through the video archive in the command center before moving out of the dorms and needed to hastily delete some recordings of Yukari’s room.
Returning to more contemporary memories, another thing that didn’t help the situation was Akihiko’s traveling and Shadow Operatives outfit. It meant that she saw him shirtless relatively frequently, though at the end of the day she couldn’t complain about getting an eyeful of his well-defined muscles.
All of this thinking about Akihiko and especially thinking about him shirtless caused an old familiar longing to return. One that had tended to make itself known on particularly lonely nights. As much as she wished she could indulge it, especially with the tantalizing prospect of new fantasies, she didn’t have time for that.
She turned off the shower and started to dry off, as soon as she opened the door to grab her clothes out of the basket she was greeted by a delicious smell. Apparently Akihiko had started to cook something, but she’d have to investigate after getting dressed. She held up her clothes and couldn’t help but notice that they were pretty obviously worn previously. She just hoped that no one at the office would notice, granted even if they did they probably wouldn’t say anything due to her position. It was another aspect of Akihiko that she loved that he was capable of being bluntly honest with her when necessary.
She briefly used the mirror in the bathroom so that she could apply a little bit of makeup that she kept in her purse. It wasn’t as robust of options as usual, but enough to look professional for the office. One final thought about Akihiko bubbled up as she stared in the mirror, or more of a worry if she was being honest. That despite their hookup, he’d chalk it up to the alcohol and dismiss the possibility of her being interested in him that way. She sighed and put away her makeup before she left the bathroom and headed for the kitchen to investigate what Akihiko was cooking.
She found Akihiko making toast and eggs in his small kitchen, she also noticed that he had thrown on some casual, but comfortable looking clothes while she was showering. She was almost envious, the thought of just curling up on a couch with a cup of tea and reading a book was tempting. Especially the thought of having Akihiko sitting on that couch next to her, but alas she had seemingly never-ending piles of paperwork to deal with.
Akihiko was buttering a piece of toast when he looked up and saw that she had come in, he smiled and offered it to her.
“I was trying to quick make breakfast so you could eat before you leave,” the smile never left his face.
That damn smile how could this man be so effortlessly sweet, and yet so infuriatingly dense at the same time. This was the thought running through Mitsuru’s head as she accepted the toast and began to munch away at it. She was still a little pissed off at the thought of her feelings not getting through his thick skull. So she contemplated how to rile him up as she ate, because it wasn’t like she was working with nothing. She knew him well enough to know that he wouldn’t just casually hookup with someone, even if he was drunk. So at the very least he subconsciously had some form of feelings for her.
A bold idea popped into her head, one that she wouldn’t have been able to pull off if she were still that shy and surprisingly easily flustered teenager. Well if she was being fully honest with herself she was still somewhat scared by her idea. She must have still had some alcohol in her system that helped her pluck up her courage.
Once she finished her toast, she marched over to Akihiko, who was now busy finishing the eggs for himself, and kissed him on the check. He froze and then stared at her with a shocked look on his face. She felt her face heating up, and at the same time that courage was fading just as quickly as it had risen.
Mitsuru started to panic and stuttered out, “Thank you for the food and the lovely night, I have to go now, bye.”
With that she bolted out the door and pretty much sprinted out of Akihiko’s apartment building. She started to calm down and slow to a walk as she got closer to the train station to head for the office. She held it together until she got on the actual train but then found herself burying her face in her hands.
“Why did I do that,” she thought to herself even though at the same time she didn’t regret a thing. She took a breath and finally fully calmed down; she would need to have a proper conversation about the future with Akihiko later. But for now she had to devote her full attention to her work, that paperwork wasn’t going to fill out itself.
~
Akihiko was still stunned by her kiss, to the point that he almost dropped the pan in which he was making eggs. Now he knew he wasn’t exactly the best with women, but even he wasn’t that dense. They generally don’t casually kiss male friends on the cheek, and it being Mitsuru reaffirmed this even further. She put careful thought into everything she did, so it wouldn’t be like her to randomly do that.
He finished his cooking as quickly as he could and then wolfed them down. After he washed the pan and other dishes he’d used for breakfast he went about doing the other chores. The main one that needed doing was laundry, so he pulled the sheets off his bed. After he got the sheets going in the washer, he finally got to his morning workout
Throughout all of this, try as he might, he still couldn’t stop thinking about last night and what he should do about it. There were three conclusions he came to, one being that Mitsuru almost certainly had deeper feelings than friendship for him. The second being that he couldn’t deny that he also had feelings for her, even if they had been buried so deep that even he didn’t realize they existed. The third and final conclusion was that he needed to have a meaningful conversation with Mitsuru.
He didn’t want to put that conversation off, because if he did who knew when both of them would have another opportunity when their schedules lined up. With that decided he now ran into another obstacle, he had no idea how late Mitsuru was working today. To make matters worse, he knew that she would not be abiding by normal work hours.
A challenge lay before him, getting a workaholic out of her office, and he’d never been one to back down from a challenge. Hell they had always excited him, granted most of the challenges he’d faced revolved around fighting rather than more mundane things.
He went about the rest of his day normally; Mitsuru wouldn’t be sending any personal messages during work hours unless absolutely necessary. So instead he waited until the workday had ended for most people before he even started to consider receiving a message from her. A couple of hours passed with nothing, so he finally got impatient enough that he decided to take things into his own hands. First though he wanted to double check that he wouldn’t be interrupting legitimate work before he just showed up.
To that end, he called up the one person who would probably be the most in the loop outside of the office.
“Greetings Sanda, how can I help you this evening,” Mitsuru’s personal maid, Kikuno Saikawa, answered the line for the Kirijo estate where Mitsuru lived now.
“Good evening Kikuno, I was just calling to ask if Mitsuru was still in the office and if she was supposed to be busy if she is. I was planning to drop in on her and didn’t want to interrupt anything important,” Akihiko replied.
Normally he would’ve referred to Kikuno by her last name as was customary given he wasn’t all that close to her. However Kikuno had insisted that he refer to her by her first name, probably because of his close relationship with Mitsuru.
“She is still in the office, and according to her schedule has no meetings, so there should be no issue in you visiting her,” Kikuno’s voice didn’t betray the fact that she suspected why he wanted to see her.
“Thank you for your help, you have a good rest of your night,” Akihiko hung up the phone without even waiting for a response.
He started thinking up a plan for where they would go after he got her out of the office, and he slightly changed in anticipation of that. Mainly just switching his sweatpants for a pair of actual pants and throwing on a jacket. Then he headed out the door and locked his apartment behind him before he made the short walk over to the train station. He boarded the train and as he rode it, his determination swelled to get the answers he so desperately desired.
~
Meanwhile at the Kirijo estate, after Kikuno placed the phone down, she contemplated contacting Mitsuru to let her know that Akihiko was heading over. She decided against this partially because she thought it would better serve Mitsuru to not have the opportunity to escape, and partially because she thought it would be funnier for Akihiko to surprise her. Besides, Kikuno had already been made aware that Mitsuru had ended up at Akihiko’s apartment after the party last night. So she had connected the dots on what had more than likely occurred and hoped that her lady was finally making progress on finding happiness.
~
Mitsuru was sitting at her desk, methodically typing away on her computer while also occasionally glancing at some papers in front of her. She was so focused on her work that she had been able to banish any thoughts of Akihiko or last night to the back of her mind. Another consequence of here being so focused on her work was that when she heard a noise that almost sounded like a knock on her door, she chose to ignore it. So she almost jumped out of her chair and into a fighting position when someone simultaneously placed a cup of tea on her desk and tapped her forehead with their fingers.
She calmed down when she looked up and saw that it was Akihiko standing over her with a worried look on his face. Mitsuru almost questioned how he had snuck in, until she looked over at her work phone and noticed that she had somehow tuned out several calls from Fushimi, her personal secretary. Apparently she was a lot more desperate to avoid her personal thoughts than she thought, she didn’t think she had been that absorbed in her work.
She gestured at the cup of tea, “Did my secretary ask you to bring that in for me?”
“No I brewed it myself; I’ve picked up a few things from you over the years and I know how you like your tea,” the worry on Akihiko’s face visibly deepened as he continued, “She did mention that you haven’t left this room all day, not even for lunch.”
She was about to retort until she realized he was right, not only had she not left her office even for lunch, but she also didn’t even eat lunch. Something she was only just now realizing, and that was further proven when her stomach grumbled loud enough for both of them to hear. Mitsuru’s face flushed in embarrassment, and she heard Akihiko try to stifle a chuckle.
Once he regained his composure, Akihiko said, “Well I was already going to suggest we get dinner and have that discussion we need to, and it sounds like your stomach agrees with me.”
If she didn’t fully agree with him she probably would’ve scolded him, so instead she held up her cup of tea, “I’m finishing this before we go, wouldn’t want to waste your work.”
Akihiko smiled, “of course,” then he sat down in one of the chairs in her office and patiently waited.
Mitsuru had to admit that the tea had turned out a lot better than she would’ve expected from him. It was also nice that she could take the time to really enjoy it because she knew Akihiko wouldn’t rush her. While she drank, she slowly went through the process of clocking out, shutting down her computer, and placing the papers in her desk where she could easily grab them again when she next came in. Once she finished the tea, she grabbed her bag and after she locked up her office. They made a quick detour to drop off the empty cup in the office kitchen before they left the building.
The restaurant they ended up at was a relatively nice one, however it wasn’t too fancy given Akihiko couldn’t afford anywhere too expensive. While Mitsuru could easily pay for both of them to go to a fancy restaurant, Akihiko didn’t want to rely on her wealth when he was the one that asked her out. They were seated in a window booth, and they began to look over the menu, however they weren’t saying anything to each other. Once they decided, they summoned a server and ordered their food. Akihiko ordered himself grilled fish, while Mitsuru ordered herself pasta.
Neither of them was quite sure how to start the conversation that brought them here. It was probably fair that they were struggling given it was such an important conversation that it could have massive implications for their futures. Mitsuru was the one who finally broke the silence and started to speak.
“I don’t think either of us can deny what happened last night,” she stated, with a hint of a blush on her face.
“That’s true,” Akihiko tries, and fails, to keep himself from blushing, “I’m not sure how you want to move forward, but I do hope that we can remain friends no matter what decision we make.”
A gentle smile appeared on Mitsuru’s lips, “Of course, you’re one of my closest friends, and I don’t want that to go away.”
Akihiko was relieved to hear that, but decided it was time to get to business, “Our first option is to just regard last night as a drunken mistake, wouldn’t be the first secret we agreed not to talk about.”
The smile faded from Mitsuru’s face to be replaced with a serious expression, “I don’t want to do that,” her expression softened slightly before she continued, “If I were to be completely honest about that secret, I wanted to keep it between us more so because I was too embarrassed to admit to myself how much I enjoyed it.”
Admitting that truth aloud caused Mitsuru to blush again, and she watched as the gears slowly turned in Akihiko’s head and a blush started to creep up his face too.
Akihiko almost couldn’t believe what he was hearing, he’d agonized over that night for years. Well if he were being completely honest agonizing over it wasn’t the only reason he’d thought about it, not that he’d admit that to Mitsuru. Even if this did end with them agreeing to start dating, he was going to keep that secret for at least a little while longer.
“So what about our second option,” Mitsuru’s blush had abated somewhat, and she wanted to stay on subject.
Akihiko was still somewhat bewildered by what Mitsuru admitted. To the point that while he heard what she asked, it took him a moment to respond.
“I guess it would be for us to consider the prospect of starting a relationship, but I mean I wouldn’t want to force you into it.”
That gentle smile returned to Mitsuru’s face, and she decided that since she had already shared the other secret she had been keeping, it wouldn’t hurt to share a more recent one.
“Akihiko last night wasn’t a mistake, at least not on my part, I would’ve said yes to doing that with you even without being intoxicated if you had asked,” it was freeing to be so close to confessing the full truth, but she wanted to gauge Akihiko’s reaction before she committed to it.
Akihiko’s bewilderment continued, and he thought he understood what she was getting at, but he thought it was fair that he wanted just a little bit more clarity. So he cleared his throat and asked, “what, what are you saying?"
Mitsuru was happy that he seemed receptive, and she started to open her mouth to confess her love. However the words died in her throat as another new voice spoke up next to them.
“I’m sorry to interrupt whatever you two have going on, but here’s your food.”
It was their server who had returned with their food in hand, and they both realized at the same time that she had probably overheard at least part of their conversation. Their faces went beet red in embarrassment as the server placed their food on the table. In their embarrassment neither of them realized the server had only been there long enough to hear them vaguely talk about last night, and in such ambiguous terms that it could refer to a lot of things. Mitsuru starts to apologize, but before she could even finish the server had left, because they couldn’t care less about the conversation.
A nonverbal agreement is communicated between the two to take a break from the conversation and eat their food. So they silently ate, Mitsuru found that the pasta tasted much better than much of the pasta she had eaten at much fancier restaurants, which was a pleasant surprise. Akihiko already knew that this place had great fish, he’d eaten here a few times before with some of his coworkers.
Once they finished eating, Akihiko was the first to speak this time, “Before we were interrupted, you said if I had asked you would’ve slept with me even if we weren’t drunk,” he nervously gulped before he continued, “Are you saying that you want to be together with me?”
Mitsuru blushed so deeply at the question that Akihiko couldn’t tell where her face ended and her hair began. She found herself so overwhelmed with emotion that she couldn’t even muster words to respond, so instead she just nods.
He couldn’t stop himself from smiling, but at the same time the thought occurred to him that their shallow understanding of relationships when they were teenagers had greatly expanded as they got older. For all he knew she might just want this to be a purely physical relationship and nothing more than that. Maybe she didn’t have the time or desire to pursue a deeper relationship than that. So he wanted to be sure that they were both on the same page.
“I hope this isn’t a stupid question, but do you want a traditional relationship or something more like friends with benefits?”
The blush on her face faded in an instant, and Mitsuru almost looked offended at the question, “Akihiko, what kind of woman do you take me for, I want a committed romantic relationship with you, and all that entails.”
Shame washed over Akihiko for even asking such an absurd question, and he knows he needs to make up for it. So he tentatively reaches his hand over the table to where she could reach out and grab it if she so wished.
“I would be honored to accept that relationship if you’re willing to put up with a man like me,” he looked away as he was too embarrassed to look her in the eyes at the moment.
He waited for what felt like an eternity until he heard a sigh and then felt the soft warmth of her hand grasping his. Returning his gaze to face her, he saw that the gentle smile he was discovering he loved so much had returned.
A hint of red and a bashful smile appeared on his face, “I’m sorry that we got things so out of order but thank you for this opportunity.”
Mitsuru chuckled a little, and her laughter had this enchanting effect on Akihiko, “You’re making it sound like I just hired you,” she said after the chuckle faded.
Hearing that Akihiko also started laughing as he realized the absurdity of how he phrased his acceptance of their new relationship status. Once he finished laughing, they went up to the counter where Akihiko paid their bill and then they left the restaurant. It’s only when they get outside that they realize that they are still holding hands. It felt so natural that neither had noticed until now.
They look into each other’s eyes almost daring each other to be the first one to let go. As they’re doing this, another question occurs to Akihiko, one that was of the utmost importance.
“How soon do you want to tell the others about this, and will we need to inform the Kirijo group?”
Mitsuru pondered the question for a second before she answered, “Let’s wait to tell the others for a little while, I’d hate to steal the spotlight from Junpei and Chidori.”
Her expression hardened a little bit, “I’d rather put off telling the group as long as possible, we both know they probably won’t be too fond of my choice of partner.”
Akihiko squeezed her hand a little and gave her a warm smile, “Understood, I’ll walk you to the station.”
Mitsuru’s expression melted from her barely contained happiness. As they walked to the station, they kept holding hands until they had to separate to get on the train.