Chapter Text
In the end, Takumi wasn’t at all shocked that no one wanted Eito Aotsuki.
Initially after arriving at the Artificial Satellite, everyone was overwhelmed. True to the word of their now deactivated commanding officer, they were given anything they could ever want. Money was a non issue. Though in the beginning, everyone hesitated to split apart from one another. After knowing the truth about their memories being fabricated, they felt like they were all each other had. Everyone without words decided to just remain in each other’s company. They didn’t have the strength to speak to one another every single day, but it was comforting just to have the option.
It would take time to heal. What they had done would forever linger on their consciousnesses, no matter the time spent in mourning.
After about a year, one by one of the remaining special defense unit members made the decision to split apart. Hiruko was the first to go, then Takemaru, Yugamu, and within due time, the rest as well. Takumi himself had even decided to persevere into a new future for himself. Nozomi was there at times, but she started picking up where her mother left off with her work, mostly in hope of preventing something like this from ever happening again.
Takumi had begun making arrangements to move into an apartment in the city. He wasn’t sure what he would do when he got there. No matter how much time had passed, he felt undoubtedly lost. Futurum had only begun being stabilized. It was estimated to at least take a couple years before they could properly begin moving humanity onto their new earth. In comparison to how long they were on that artificial satellite, a couple years was nothing. Not that Takumi was exactly eager to return after what they had done.
The sight of Eito sitting by himself at their kitchen table wasn’t surprising. People managed to warm up to him somewhat, but there were always boundaries separating them from one another. It was definitely partly Eito’s fault. He still made snide comments and tacked on insults when addressing people. Takumi was so used to it that he would just sigh and move on with his day. Yet now, with the knowledge that Eito would be the last one here, he felt himself stop and stare.
The man remained somewhat secretive. Whenever the two of them happened to be alone, Eito would spark up a conversation, and one recent occurence, the subject of his condition came into question. Takumi initially assumed that there was something the scientists here could potentially do to help him with his disorder, and that was true, except, there was no promise that it would work, and it could even just make his situation worse. The brain was complicated. There was no way to tell exactly how tinkering with someone's entire consciousness would turn out until they were already sewn back up and awake.
Eito declined. Takumi was initially surprised. Considering what he did to his own two eyes back on Futurum, he figured Eito would take any opportunity to improve his quality of life. Thankfully he had stopped messing with his sense of smell and decided to cope with it, but his eyesight was gone forever. He seemed happy enough without it, but Takumi knew the situation had to be more complicated than that.
With the living area now quiet due to their lack of numbers, Eito spent a lot more time outside his room with his studies. Recently he had begun attempting to pick up braille. He was extremely intelligent, so Takumi was sure he could pull it off, but it did nothing to fight off the pity growing in his chest. The first Eito he ever met was adamant on how much he loved reading. Although those memories were fabricated, it still made him into who he was today. Audio books did nothing for him. It was still a human voice meeting his ears, so he couldn’t stand it.
Takumi inhaled heavily. Without noticing, his hand had gripped the doorway, and he released it after properly stepping into the room. Instantly the other man’s head tilted up with a smile on his face.
“Ah, hello Takumi!” He was disturbingly good at telling who he was in the room by smell alone. It was honestly extremely freaky, but this scenario was different. There was no one else it Could have been. “Are you here to say goodbye? I remembered you’re leaving in the morning.” His voice was cheery despite the implications.
The red head stood in place and nodded. After a few seconds with no response from Eito, he couldn’t fight off a barely audible sigh. He should have become more aware of this by now. Anyone else present would’ve called him either an idiot or a jerk. “Yeah, I am.” Was all he spoke before a small pause. “Are you going to stay here? I know they offered you some live in help.”
“Hmmm…truthfully, I have no idea what I’ll do.” He responded while leaning back a bit in his chair. The room was pretty dimly lit. Only two warm lamps did anything to offer light into the space. “If I had to deal with some random human babysitting me, I think I’d puke. So, I turned down their offer instantly.” Despite there being no gaze on the other side of those glasses, Takumi watched as Eito’s head followed him from the center of the room until he was sitting across from him. Looking down at the table, he saw a textbook on braille, a smartphone, and a pair of earbuds to help him follow along.
This entire situation was so Eito that he didn’t have it in him to be annoyed anymore. They had spent way too much time with one another for him to not know any better.
“Are you sure you won't reconsider? It will probably be rough for a while, even for you.” It wasn’t just physical limitations. Takumi would admit that he had stopped Eito from chopping off his own fingers once or twice before while preparing a meal, but loneliness was a major factor. He probably Shouldn’t care about how Eito will cope with that sort of thing. He had betrayed him so many times he lost count. Eito did begin to change after finding out the truth about their situation, but after all the pain he had caused, it was difficult to admit he wanted to help him. Others would definitely sneer.
“Sure am. What else am I supposed to do anyway?” He asks, and Takumi begins to feel undoubtedly anxious. For the past couple days this situation had been on his mind, and was even eating him alive. He clenches his fist in his lap and goes silent, for quite awhile actually. Eito frowns, and tilts his head. “Takumi?” The red head isn’t sure if he’s about to regret the words that flee his lips.
“Eito, do you want to come with me?”
The sudden question causes the taller man to go silent. His lips hung open for a few seconds, and then his head leaned downwards towards the table. Takumi feared this had all been some elaborate plan to get him to end up offering this out of pity. Eito was fully capable of pulling something like that off, but he did seem genuinely shocked at the offer. His fingers ran over one of the pages in front of him just trying to find something to occupy himself with while he processed the question.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting that.” He exhales sharply through his nose with his smile taking a sad turn, “Are you sure that's something you wont regret? Our past is rather complicated after all.”
Takumi froze. No, he wasn’t sure if this was something he wouldn’t regret. Everyone else wished to move on and try and make something of their lives. It wasn’t like they were on bad terms, but they couldn’t just all cling to each other forever. It was the healthier option. Takumi of all people definitely deserved time alone. Adding Eito into the mix seemed like a recipe for disaster. He didn’t want to forget what happened on Futurum, but he also didn’t want to stir himself up into it for the rest of his life.
Glancing back up at the other man’s face, he almost sees the memory of the first Eito laughing at the back of his mind. The way he so condescendingly stared down at the red head after absorbing the cryptoglobin from the baby inside the defense room. In the days before he ended up going back in time, the betrayal was pushed onto the back burner. Nozomi’s demise was the primary concern on his mind, but after returning to the past and stopping Eito in his tracks before Sirei could be destroyed, everything flooded back to him over the course of a couple days.
Takumi spared the second Eito because he hadn’t actually Done anything yet. Sirei and Hiruko were both still alive. The baby (who was now remembered as Shion) was still powering the undying flames inside the defense room. Meanwhile, Eito sat locked in a cage, and just used his first chance to escape. Takumi convinced himself the only reason he spared him a second time was to try and get some important information out of him. After some reflection, he remembered there was definitely a part of him that wished things worked out with the first Eito he met. There was of course the memory of the disgusted, hate filled Eito, then behind him the cringe but charming Eito he spent those first 95 days with. Even if the act was a lie, he desperately wished it wasn’t.
Now he sat across from a version of Eito he never thought could actually exist. He had done nothing remotely malicious after leaving Futurum aside from having a sharp tongue and no desire to say anything but the first thought that came into his mind about their friends. In fact, he had even attempted to over compensate more than anything. Sometimes, he took it to the extremes, and Takumi had to stop him before he did something undoubtedly stupid. Only in the past couple of months did he seem to calm down with said behavior.
“Honestly, I’m not sure.” He finally speaks while his fingers clench onto the fabric of his pants. Before he could continue, Eito interrupted him.
“It’s extremely ugly of you to just offer this out of pity. I expected this to be the outcome of my future long before we met, and I’m ready to accept that. I put myself in this situation and plan to take accountability for it.” The words seem so matter-of-fact when leaving his mouth. It was clear that he wasn’t lying. He really had put some thought into this.
“It’s not out of pity.” Takumi responds sternly, “I…I don’t want things to end like this. You’re too important to me to just leave things off as they are, so I’m willing to take this gamble. Besides,” His voice takes a more light hearted tone, “Who else is going to keep you in line? I’m basically an expert at this point.”
A small ‘hmm’ fled Eito’s throat. This time, the silence became suffocating. He could see all the cogs turning inside of the taller man’s head. It would be pretty embarrassing to be rejected. Eito was the type to build up all of this tension then just drop a bomb and leave. Without a doubt, he would probably always be a bit of an asshole.
“Alright.” He finally responds while resting both his arms on the table in front of him. “Sharing a space so close with you might send me to an early grave, but I’d rather it be with you than with those other freaks. Thank you, Takumi.”
Takumi sighed. Chances were that Eito had nearly capped out on his personal development.
Since it was on such short notice, Takumi offered the other man help with packing his things before they left later in the day. They weren’t on a super stern time limit, but he had to make it there in time to catch the landlord and get their keys. He didn’t know the exact state of the apartment. Again, money wasn’t an issue, so he just asked their overseer to get him a roof over his head. The rest would come later.
Eito was so stubborn sometimes it made him want to rip his hair out. He declined any help with a rude jab about how he would have to wash all his clean clothes again if Takumi touched them. Instead, Takumi just grabbed a suitcase and rested it on Eito’s bed.
For a couple minutes he just stood leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed. Eito’s room was pretty unremarkable. Most of the others didn’t go out of their way to decorate, but Eito’s was especially bad. He had a bed, desk, a couple books on said desk, and a pretty bare closet. There wasn’t anything unique about them. It was mostly long sleeves, his old jacket, and simple clothes.
Turning back to look at the taller man, Takumi exhaled inaudibly through his nose. He thought something looked a bit off, and after staring at the back of Eito’s head, finally realized what it was. “Eito.” Takumi spoke, and you could noticeably see the other man’s shoulders stiffen. In his hands was a folded shirt. “Will you let me cut your hair later? It’s getting really long.”
The room went silent. Takumi was instantly left wondering if that was a stupid question. It took a small delay for Eito to place the shirt in his suitcase, and then afterwards, one of his hands reached back to run through his hair.
It wasn’t like he was going to do anything weird, but this was Eito. A light chuckle fills the space, and Eito lowers his hand to grip his upper arm. “Sure.” He responds flatly. There’s potentially a microscopic bit of gratefulness in his voice, but Takumi fears he imagined it.
It didn’t take him too long. A bit before noon the two of them were sitting in the backseat of a hired driver’s car with their suitcases in the trunk. The ride was completely silent. Takumi kept peeking out the corner of his eyes to see if the other man had a readable expression on his face. He seemed conflicted. He was just facing the window with his left elbow against the wall to press his cheek into his hand. Takumi couldn’t remember the last time he wore gloves since coming here.
Getting out of the car, Takumi pulled their suitcases out and raised the handles to wheel them to the large set of double doors. Turning around, he released the handles and extended his hand to Eito. He paused before making contact, “Here. Even I don't where we’re going.” Eito opened up his palm, and glanced down at the feeling of a warm hand taking hold of his own. The ends of his lip twitched, but he stepped forward to stand beside him.
“You didn’t even check this place out before agreeing to it?” He asked with a raised brow. There was definitely some judgemental undertones in his question.
With a bit of awkwardness, Takumi slid the other suitcase handle into Eito’s spare hand. “It’s not like I’m paying for it. If it has a roof then it’s fine.” Glancing back up at the building, this place definitely had a roof, and a lot more at that. All he said was it doesn’t matter where he goes, and their assistant took that seriously. This didn’t look like the type of place you would find someone like themselves. It was a bit embarrassing.
If his previous average life had been the real deal, he would never have been able to afford to stay in a place like this. It had to have at least eight floors. Just from an outside perspective, everything seemed well maintained. Even the upper floor windows were basically shining.
Eito was quieter than usual. He just walked alongside Takumi into the elevator, and briefly let go of the suitcase to grip the elevator handle to stabilize himself. As difficult as he could be, Takumi doesn’t think the thoughts running in the other man’s heads are all that complicated right now. It was one big change after another. Not to mention, Eito had been fully prepared to stick it out on his own. Let it be as one who destroyed humanity, or someone who gave up on their wish. Takumi of all people didn’t owe him a damn thing.
When the elevator jerks to a stop, he feels Eito’s hand tightly grip his own. He doesn’t say anything, and instead guides the both of them into the hallway. Just the state of the rest of the building made him extremely nervous about the actual contents of the apartment. This was all too luxurious for him to feel normal in. Then after inserting the key card and opening the door, he’s still somehow shocked at what was waiting for them.
“Oh man.” He whispered. The living area had floor to ceiling windows and easily overlooked the street below. They weren’t on the top floor, but instead one below it. The man that guided him through this entire process said he already had basic furniture delivered ahead of time, and he was not lying. There was a couch, love seat, and a mounted tv with two remotes readily placed on a large coffee table. Not to mention the kitchen just from a glance seemed to be stocked with essentials. The kitchen table had far too many chairs that they would most likely never use, alongside a small bar.
Eito turned to look at him while still holding his hand. “You’re making me a bit nervous.” He spoke while readjusting his glasses with his sparehand. “Is something wrong with it? You really should have stopped by before just agreeing to this, you know.”
Takumi sighed and took them further inside. “It’s not like that. It’s…too nice.” Did they deserve luxury after what they had been put through? Yes, but this was still an entirely new experience for him. Something more humble would have been just fine, but he wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it. They were in their own right basically heroes, so no one could be all that shocked to see them here if they knew who they were (and most people did).
It was his first tour of the place, so he kept a hold of Eito and led him along. He got a feel for the walls and corners as they went. There were two bedrooms each with their own bathroom. Both had king beds already covered in fresh sheets and pillows. They were nearly identical, so he just picked the one further down the hall. It didn’t matter to him. He didn’t ask for anything with two bedrooms, so maybe the other was just going to be an assumed guest room. Takumi only mentioned the day of that he was taking Eito along with him.
Takumi released Eito’s hand before tugging his suitcase into the room. Eito was still sure he didn’t want him touching his clothes, and ended up taking the job of hanging them up on his own. On that note, he decided to go to his own room to try and do the same. It didn’t take long. He didn’t have many belongings either. Despite having previously confidently lived out 18 years of his life, he now had nothing. All he did everyday was play video games and watch tv. It was a perfectly blank slate.
As a gift to himself, the red head face planted onto the soft mattress. With how fresh the sheets smelled, someone definitely must have been in here earlier in the day of setting everything up. Did they have a housekeeper? Eito would probably be upset about it so he makes a mental note to ask their assistant later.
A muffled groan fills the room. He really had gone through with this. He did lie to Eito back at the facility. Pity definitely factored in with his offer. Without him even initially noticing, he was already trying to work things around making the taller man more comfortable. If he did end up just leaving Eito behind, he’s not sure how well he would have been able to sleep.
Takumi lifted his head off the soft bed sheets with a warmness creeping up on his face. This was all embarrassing. Literally nobody would have ever assumed he owed Eito this much. Yet, even the cheery Eito from his first 100 days was beginning to fade from his memory, and become instead replaced with the one in the room down the hall. He wasn’t just desperately trying to salvage that Eito that he had lost, he had genuine concern for the one he had managed to save. That part he doesn’t completely understand. At the very least it wasn’t like he would run out of time to try and get his thoughts straight. Their days were rather dull.
When he got back up, Eito was standing in the living room with his hand running over the surface of the couch. Takumi just stared at his back with a small frown.
The unfortunate truth is that Eito was a better cook than he was. Not that it really mattered tonight, there weren't enough basic ingredients laying around to make a simple meal. While Eito was zero help with him trying to think of something to order, he ended up agreeing with a groan to head to the grocery store in the morning. He was so weird about others preparing his food. Due to something along the lines of ‘i dont want vile humans touching my food’. Takumi practically tuned him out once he started rambling about it.
After dinner, Eito, true to his word, accepted Takumi’s offer. It led to the both of them standing in Takumi’s bathroom with a pair of scissors in his hand. Eito was silent again. With the first gentle grasp of hair the red head took, Eito felt the tip of his finger poke the back of his neck. He didn’t jump, but Takumi could see his shoulders stiffen and a shaky breath leave his lips. “Sorry.” He apologized quietly, raising the pair of scissors up to carefully begin chopping off the ends. For the sake of simplicity, he aims for an end result similar enough to the day he met him.
“It’s fine.”
Eito remained eerily quiet as Takumi worked. He was trying his hardest to return his hair back to the state that he had met him with. The difference in their height was a bit awkward, but he seemed to be managing. Initially he wonders if it was just a better idea to have had Nozomi or an actual hair stylist do this, but once again, he figures Eito wouldn’t be comfortable with it. In fact, Eito never seemed interested in heading out anywhere. He almost always preferred to stay behind. It was Takumi who actually ended up helping him build a wardrobe since he didn’t want to go shopping with them.
“This feels so domestic.” Takumi blinked, and looked in the reflection of the mirror to see Eito break the silence, “All of this was very thoughtful of you Takumi. Are you perhaps falling in love with me?” He asked with a stupid smug smile on his face. Instantly Takumi felt his cheeks turn red, and he gripped the back of his hair tighter than before - enough to make him have to bend his neck backwards.
“Real stupid of you to joke like that when someone has a pair of scissors near your head.” Eito’s mocking laughter filled the room.
After running his hand through Eito’s hair one last time, Takumi decides not to acknowledge the satisfied hum that left the other man’s throat.