[Closed] Birthday Noodles!

[blazeoflife]

Who: Junpei Iori and Akihiko Sanada

Where:  Ramen Noodle Restaurant, District 3

When: Jan 16th

Summary:  It's Junpei's Birthday,  and what better excuse to catch up with his senpai than going to a noodle join having having some nice, hot ramen (Akihiko's treat, of course)
Warnings: Junpei's got a dirty mouth, maybe punching? ...Maybe.

It was funny; they'd lived in the same dorm for so long, that sometimes Junpei forgot that Akihiko's and his rooms were no longer side by side. He had to seek his senpai out if they wanted to chill out together, but in the last few weeks it had been a bit of a blur.

But this? This was the perfect opportunity to hang out with his senpai annnnd get a free meal off of it! Not to mention ask a few questions he'd had for two months now...

"Man, some of this stuff looks kinda weird..."

He was still getting used to this weird combo of Saeng Seong and Japanese food...

Comments

[emperor_with_no_groove]

His expression should have been answer enough, as to whether or not he was serious. While chewing through his food, he was trying to figure out if it was something strange that he did, as usual. But then Junpei helpfully answered his question.

“Well, yeah, but…” he went back to looking confused again, “is that weird, or something? I touch him all the time. We have that contact requirement, remember?”

If it was, or Shinji just plain didn’t like it, he would have told him not to do it.

“We’ve lived together before, when we were kids.”

[blazeoflife]

"..."

Akihiko senpai, you're such a dense, dense derp.

"Dude, okay; around here, hands on shoulders or a handshake, or even short hugs are one thing between two dudes-- but nuzzling? That's like, super affectionate; couples back home don't even do that in public too often! And sure, we weren't in public, but there were a few new people around... And you just did it without thinkin', didn't you?"

[emperor_with_no_groove]

If you’re just now learning that, Junpei, then you’re a little slow on the uptake. Too many baseballs to the head.

He was going to have to take his word for that, since Junpei knew more about relationships than him. Some couples were reserved, sure, but Akihiko had seen others acting affectionate, even in public.

“No, I didn’t think about it beforehand,” he replied with a slight frown, “Why does it matter, anyway?”

He had a close friendship with Shinji. It wasn’t like he couldn’t do the same with, say, Mitsuru. Just that she wasn’t as openly affectionate, so their interaction seemed more professional than friendly, to most onlookers. Their friendship was different, but no less significant.

“So if I ever did something like that to you, it’d freak you out?”

[blazeoflife]

Oh no, he knew it already, but sometimes you just need a fresh reminder of how MUCH of a derpface Akihiko is.

"It matter's cause it's instinctual; you just did it. Hell, you both did it, so that's gotta say somethin'..."

That's right, Shinjiro-senpai had gone along with it too, didn't he? So maybe...
--Okay, what?

"I... dunno if it would freak me out or just weird me out, man. I mean, we're buddies and all, but, I wouldn't think you'd want to do that to me. That's the thing, right? It's just not... how we act around one another."

Their ramen arriving, Junpei turned to counter again, not diving in yet due to not wanting to burn his mouth.

"That make sense?"

[emperor_with_no_groove]

Thinking back to the way they had acted when they were children, Akihiko started to open his mouth, intending to recall those memories out loud. Yes, it had felt natural to him, just like running or boxing. It was something familiar that he enjoyed doing. But then he closed his mouth, wondering if maybe Junpei had a point? Their behavior seemed strange to outside people because they didn’t know how their bond had been, before.

Shinji didn’t like talking about the past with anyone, though. Might not be a good idea to disclose any of that info.

“Hell, I wouldn’t be doing it to hit on you,” Akihiko grumbled, still looking at his friend a bit askew, “I might’ve read about that technique though. Don’t girls usually-ah, never mind.”

No one knew he had perused magazines for advice after Yakushima, and he was planning to keep it that way.

He shook his head. “I’m pretty sure Shinji didn’t take it like that, anyway. He likes girls.”

[blazeoflife]

"... Don't girls what?"

He was gonna let that drop though, when Akihiko continued. So, he knew Shinjiro perferred ladies? Well, him and Minako had been sorta close, but he also talked about girls being a waste of time, considering Shinjiro's comments on Chidor--

... There was a long pause as an long coming realization hit Junpei, which made his chopsticks stop mid swirl. Knowing what he did about Shinjiro now, it was likely he knew something of what Chidori had been up to; that she was involved with Strega, and knew what crimes Strega was committing. It made sense, after all; he knew about the drugs Chidori had to take, saved her from her own Persona killing her. So all along, when he was making those comments about Chidori, he might have really meant...

...The thought wasn't a pleasant one, and he decided to push it to the side for now.

"Just cause he likes girls doesn't mean he can't like guys too, right?"

[emperor_with_no_groove]

That was a natural follow-up question, but Akihiko casually waved him off. Most likely, Junpei still remembered how hopeless he had been with girls, and if he said anything stupid now… Like hell he needed to give Junpei anymore ammo to rag on him.

Akihiko fell quiet to keep eating and listen, then took some time to think about his answer.

“Dunno. I never asked.” It wasn’t a common topic of conversation for them. They had other subjects to dance around, like anything in relation to their past. “He told me girls complicate things.”

But that didn’t mean Shinji really had anything against them. It could be part of his defense mechanism, his desire to push people away. Besides, Junpei hadn’t been there when he asked Shinji about his relationship with Minako. He had tried to brush it off in a way that only Shinji could, but Akihiko wasn’t stupid when it came to his best friend. Minako meant more to him than just a casual companion, considering the short amount of time they had, to become acquainted.

[blazeoflife]

"...Heh. Guess he wasn't totally wrong..."

That came off as a lot more rueful than Junpei meant it to, and shook his head.

"But life is just complicated man... so why not just uncomplicate it and ask? ...I mean--"

Here, Junpei turned to look at his senpai, putting his chopsticks down for a moment.

"You don't seem to dislike the idea, after all..."