[The anxious look he shoots the precariously balanced glasses gets a soft laugh out of her. She can perfectly see the horrible tragedy the wrong jostle or nudge would spell out for Bandou, and accordingly takes a measured step back towards the opposite counter.]
I suppose we don't want your hard work going to waste.
I don't see why we can't just shove them all in a dish washer.
[He shouldn't complain. Kusanagi could 100% make him do them without paying him. Though the potential of that meager paycheck turning into stifling debt is a pretty high risk gamble. So he is absolutely following her as she moves them along. Plus, with her back to the counter now, he could possibly have a little advantage to go in for a kiss!]
[Once the counter is against her back, Youko glances towards the door, checking for impending foot traffic as if she were actually up to something illicit, and then carefully hoists herself up to perch on the edge. Far away from any precious breakables, but much closer to eye level with Bandou.]
I could probably be persuaded to dry if you're going to be Kusanagi's hostage for a while yet?
[With that classic nerdy grin of his on, he closes any distance left between them. Considering Kamamoto was in here only a few minutes earlier, any of the guys could walk in on the potential makeout session he's very keen on initiating right now. But that's fine. He'd wanted to put 'semi-public' on the TSAL at one point, didn't he?]
You might have to go up against HOMRA's second in command to claim ownership of me~
[It's his turn to settle his hands on either side of Youko as he leans in to capture that first kiss.]
I didn't exactly think up any plans for taking on the HOMRA second-in-command...
[The telegraph of him coming in for a kiss is crystal clear, and while it's tempting to lean into it and hang the risk of an audience joining them, Youko isn't ready to give in just yet. Instead, she opts to cup his face and tilt just out of range, eyes rolling towards the door again with a thoughtful hum. Like she was taking the opportunity to formulate a real plan on the spot.]
He'd probably give up if an ally of mine with big teeth and claws threatened the bar, right?
[Not that she'd order Hyouki to do something as unkind as that, especially when she just said 'hello' to the man in question minutes ago, but...]
[His puckered lips look more like a pouting duck face now that his cheeks are squished in her hand. It pairs well with the disappointed sound he makes at not being able to get that kiss.]
That or he wouldn't hold back. I kicked a barstool once and he grabbed and lifted me up by my face so we could have a talk about my 'status in the bar'. He's terrifying when you put this place on the line.
[He sounds really convincing trying to speak with squished cheeks, too.
[It takes a not insignificant amount of restraint on her part to keep from laughing once she looks back to Bandou and comes face-to-face with his duck face. Even if the anecdote he's offering is — as it usually is with these boys and their treatment of each other — appalling, the pout is just a little too cute for her to not allow herself to be distracted and take some pity on him. Giving his face one gentle squish, she leans forward into his strike radius, repositioning her hands onto his shoulders. Primed to play nice if he wanted to make a second pass.]
Is this warning because you're counting me out of that fight? Because you just told me he's apparently hurt something a lot more important to me than furniture...
[She relaxes into the kisses with a soft, contented noise, hands coaxing him back to catch him in a fourth, and knees splaying enough for him get closer. It, and the sigh she lets out when they break apart, takes any building bite out her voice.]
I know you don't. For what it's worth, I don't really want to either.
['Whose side,' indeed. If a fight did break out, it would put him in an awful position, one of questioned loyalties and conflicted feelings. No matter how badly as she may want his clan-mates to straighten up and act better towards him, creating a new source of pain is definitely something she doesn't want.]
... sort of wish I had it in me to tell you to root for me, though.
[While she may not be causing a new sense of pain for him, there's still something off. She's urged him closer with her legs, given her permission for more kisses by reciprocating, yet he hesitates in continuing. The crease forming in his brow, the almost guilty look in his eyes as he gazes off at nothing particular behind her... There's something there that wasn't showing itself moments before.]
[The hesitation and the look on his face, the guilt and distance coloring it, bring her to a halt. Pulling back a little, the curious look she shoots him slowly turns into one of concern as the pause stretches further out.]
[She follows the cagey dart of his eyes, giving each spot a second glance before turning back to him, head tilting. Given there is nothing to obscure them or muffle their voices back here, maybe that wariness is warranted? Not that Youko has the faintest idea what thought he's put the brakes on. Her nose wrinkles slightly as she parrots that line back to him.]
You probably shouldn't say it here?
[That isn't concerning to hear sitting in the heart of HOMRA's territory.]
Because it's something... serious? Something private?
[If actually pursuing that line of thinking wouldn't just knock the lid off Pandora's box and set loose anxious thoughts currently held at bay, she might be seizing on the knee-jerk impulse to ask why he didn't mention this the last time they were alone. Given the look on his face, that would be as unhelpful to him as it would be to her.]
It is something you want to talk about, though? Just not here?
[There's a heavy, defeated sort of sigh, as if this secret is a school assignment he's procrastinated to the point of having no option but to hunker down.]
But, maybe we could make out a little longer first?
[Doesn't mean he won't try to prolong it, regardless of bringing up the topic, himself.]
[Drawing things out, delaying some inevitable crossroads up ahead of them with kisses is a tactic she has used herself, so she can't begrudge him the suggestion. Despite the unknown Sword of Damocles dampening her smile some, he gets an affectionate huff from her and a kiss to his cheek — the spirit of the thing, if not the thing exactly.]
[Defeated by temporarily placated, Bandou steps back so Youko may hop back down to the floor. The dishes are complete (for now) so they should be able to run off and seek a better place to talk without Kusanagi scolding him for anything later.]
[Easy enough for her to slip off the counter and land in the space vacated for her, though a bit of unease slips into her tone, and not because of the suggested change of venue. That is a history of disliking being in the dark rearing its troublesome head.]
Sure? A coffee shop is—
[She reaches out for his hand, looking to close the sense of distance.]
Actually, you'll have to tell me if that's a good setting for this.
[Returning the squeeze he gives her hand, she nods slowly, curling her fingers around his. Without enough pieces to scrape together a clue, there isn't much to do but go along with this and find out in the moment.]
[A short time skip forward and Bandou's returning from the pick up counter with both of their ordered drinks. He hands Youko hers then settles into the seat beside her.]
[Youko takes the drink with a quiet 'thank you', hands settling around the cup, soaking in the warmth. The apology gets a weak, embarrassed laugh out of her, a joke, and she gives him a gentle nudge with her elbow.]
[It is such a brief return to form, but it does plenty to loosen the tension she carted with her all the way from HOMRA.
Seeing that playful streak bleed out of him though, replaced with an uncharacteristic somberness, is a bit hard to watch. Even as it does clear up the need for secrecy and distance from the bar, all his comrades. She leans forward into his periphery, fingers tapping against the cup in her hands, falling into that measured tone she gets when she is treading lightly.]
You haven't mentioned how that happened. Well... you mentioned shaking Mikoto's hand while it was on fire, but not why you did it.
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I suppose we don't want your hard work going to waste.
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[He shouldn't complain. Kusanagi could 100% make him do them without paying him. Though the potential of that meager paycheck turning into stifling debt is a pretty high risk gamble. So he is absolutely following her as she moves them along. Plus, with her back to the counter now, he could possibly have a little advantage to go in for a kiss!]
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[Once the counter is against her back, Youko glances towards the door, checking for impending foot traffic as if she were actually up to something illicit, and then carefully hoists herself up to perch on the edge. Far away from any precious breakables, but much closer to eye level with Bandou.]
I could probably be persuaded to dry if you're going to be Kusanagi's hostage for a while yet?
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[With that classic nerdy grin of his on, he closes any distance left between them. Considering Kamamoto was in here only a few minutes earlier, any of the guys could walk in on the potential makeout session he's very keen on initiating right now. But that's fine. He'd wanted to put 'semi-public' on the TSAL at one point, didn't he?]
You might have to go up against HOMRA's second in command to claim ownership of me~
[It's his turn to settle his hands on either side of Youko as he leans in to capture that first kiss.]
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[The telegraph of him coming in for a kiss is crystal clear, and while it's tempting to lean into it and hang the risk of an audience joining them, Youko isn't ready to give in just yet. Instead, she opts to cup his face and tilt just out of range, eyes rolling towards the door again with a thoughtful hum. Like she was taking the opportunity to formulate a real plan on the spot.]
He'd probably give up if an ally of mine with big teeth and claws threatened the bar, right?
[Not that she'd order Hyouki to do something as unkind as that, especially when she just said 'hello' to the man in question minutes ago, but...]
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That or he wouldn't hold back. I kicked a barstool once and he grabbed and lifted me up by my face so we could have a talk about my 'status in the bar'. He's terrifying when you put this place on the line.
[He sounds really convincing trying to speak with squished cheeks, too.
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Is this warning because you're counting me out of that fight? Because you just told me he's apparently hurt something a lot more important to me than furniture...
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[He'll take this open opportunity to finally get that kiss! Okay, maybe two. Or three, slinking his arms around her waist as he does.]
Whose side am I supposed to root for?
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I know you don't. For what it's worth, I don't really want to either.
['Whose side,' indeed. If a fight did break out, it would put him in an awful position, one of questioned loyalties and conflicted feelings. No matter how badly as she may want his clan-mates to straighten up and act better towards him, creating a new source of pain is definitely something she doesn't want.]
... sort of wish I had it in me to tell you to root for me, though.
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Saburouta?
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[The simple utterance of his name gets him to snap out of the daze he seemed to place himself in.]
Ah...there's just something I've been thinking about lately and—
[He cuts himself short, glancing around the backroom to make sure no one else snuck in without him noticing.]
Actually, I probably shouldn't say it here.
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You probably shouldn't say it here?
[That isn't concerning to hear sitting in the heart of HOMRA's territory.]
Because it's something... serious? Something private?
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[He looks like he's thinking way too hard on it.]
Controversial might be the best way to describe it.
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[If actually pursuing that line of thinking wouldn't just knock the lid off Pandora's box and set loose anxious thoughts currently held at bay, she might be seizing on the knee-jerk impulse to ask why he didn't mention this the last time they were alone. Given the look on his face, that would be as unhelpful to him as it would be to her.]
It is something you want to talk about, though? Just not here?
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[There's a heavy, defeated sort of sigh, as if this secret is a school assignment he's procrastinated to the point of having no option but to hunker down.]
But, maybe we could make out a little longer first?
[Doesn't mean he won't try to prolong it, regardless of bringing up the topic, himself.]
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Tell me what you've been thinking about? Please.
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[Defeated by temporarily placated, Bandou steps back so Youko may hop back down to the floor. The dishes are complete (for now) so they should be able to run off and seek a better place to talk without Kusanagi scolding him for anything later.]
Wanna hit up a coffee shop?
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Sure? A coffee shop is—
[She reaches out for his hand, looking to close the sense of distance.]
Actually, you'll have to tell me if that's a good setting for this.
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[He can tell he's making her uncomfortable with how vague he's being, but even so, his voice drops substantially in volume to finish his thought.]
I don't wanna be where any of the guys can hear us talking.
[He tries to reassure her with a brief squeeze of her hand.]
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Okay. So let's go find... somewhere they're not.
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Sorry if I freaked you out back at the bar.
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Sure it's not payback for sneaking up on you?
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[A bit of goofy flirting before his tone settles to something closer to melancholy.]
I've just been thinking a lot about HOMRA and why I joined.
[There's a pause where he simply stares down at the drink in his hands.]
And if I feel the same way now.
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[It is such a brief return to form, but it does plenty to loosen the tension she carted with her all the way from HOMRA.
Seeing that playful streak bleed out of him though, replaced with an uncharacteristic somberness, is a bit hard to watch. Even as it does clear up the need for secrecy and distance from the bar, all his comrades. She leans forward into his periphery, fingers tapping against the cup in her hands, falling into that measured tone she gets when she is treading lightly.]
You haven't mentioned how that happened. Well... you mentioned shaking Mikoto's hand while it was on fire, but not why you did it.
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