[AIM log] - complete
WHO: Spanner
divaricatore and Irie Shouichi
technobabbling
WHAT: Spanner takes Shouichi home after his 42-hour work shift
WHERE: Shouichi's apartment
WHEN: After this post
Spanner should be here soon.. Shouichi thought as he stood alone on a dark street, the only direct light coming from the lamp post he was leaning against. It was about a block from his work building, having to avoid giving his friend the exact location of his workplace. With his superior on a sudden sabbatical, the work had piled up around him before he could even think to say something.
Then, he drowned.
Heavy lidded eyes dragged Shouichi's gaze downward until they closed. His shoulders ached with tension as he put his weight on the lamp post, holding a manila folder in close to his chest. Consciousness would escape now and then, though he would snap back with a light gasp after only a few moments. He'd waited this long without rest, so why now that it seemed to be right around the corner could he not keep himself from dozing off?
He may have been able to answer his own question had he not fallen asleep again, under the buzzing of the light with his cheek pressed against the soothing cold metal.
Barely keeping his speedometer in check, Spanner sped through the labyrinth that was the streets of Reggio Calabria, not caring if there were lurking traffic cops around the corners. He glanced at the blinking lights on the built in navigator on the dashboard - about another fifteen miles until he reached the coordinates that Shouichi had given him. He wasn't kidding. This is pretty far, mused Spanner inwardly as he pressed on the gas pedal an the wheels picked up their pace on the hot, scruffy surface of the road.
The red lights blinked one twenty three a.m. and Spanner got just a little bit more impatient amongst other annoyed sensations he was feeling then. It was too much to ask for Shouichi to fix that bad habit of his, and Spanner was almost running out of patience. He turned the radio on louder to drown those thoughts.
The thin silhouette of Shouichi came into focus as Spanner turned a corner, tires squealing just a bit as breaks were hit and the car rolled to an abrupt stop. The mechanic clicked his tongue and got out of the car, approaching the dozing man leaning against the lamppost.
"Oi, don't sleep here." He held on to Shouichi's shoulder and gave it a light shake.
The sounds of the car and Spanner's voice sounded distant to Shouichi, taking more than a moment to register as something real, rather than something he'd been dreaming. Eyes opened to a half-lidded state and he adjusted his glasses in attempt to focus. Before words there were light groans in attempt to conjure proper phonetics.
"Thank you for coming.."
If Spanner hadn't insisted on coming to get him, he'd either be spending his fifth straight night in the office or he'd be asleep in the back of a cab somewhere racking up a bill he'd be too incoherent to comprehend. Though he wasn't ever the type to ask for help, Spanner was much more insistent than he was in situations like these - it was simply easier to give up and listen. He was certain there would be opportunities in the future to nurse his bruised ego.
As Spanner pulled the dead weight of Shouichi in his arms, the thought of just putting the smaller man on his shoulder and carry him into the car sounded a very, very good idea to do, since Shouichi was already mostly asleep. The mechanic brushed it away though, since his friend would have protested vehemently (or as strongly as he could with his eyes not opening anymore.)
"Not a problem. Get in the car and you can sleep." He grunted softly, supporting Shouichi on his shoulder and dragging him along towards the car. Spanner had never seen his friend being this exhausted - but that was just reasonable. Shouichi had never stayed up for forty-two hours straight, at least not from Spanner's knowledge. Any normal person would have collapsed by now, and Shouichi looked like he was pretty damn well collapsing right there and then.
The door creaked open and Spanner helped Shouichi on to the backseat, laying his body down on the leather and adjusting the balance so he would not fall down on to the ground when the car was moving.
"Where do you live?" asked Spanner as he slammed the door on the driver's seat, pulling on his safety belt.
Shouichi made conscious effort to help the other in assisting him, though his actions were subdued by the overwhelming sense of disorientation that had clouded over his mind. Mumbling incoherently, he strived for balance and eventually - more than mostly with the help of Spanner - made it into the back seat of the car, where he felt like he could melt into the cushions forever and simply die. Exhaling heavily, he managed another mumbled "thank you."
His eyes fluttered closed again. Upon hearing Spanner's question, he again felt grateful for this rescue of sorts. "Nn.. 51st and J. The.. building on the corner.."
The navigator beeped, announcing that the destination was found and the car moved away - this time spending only five minutes on the road because Shouichi's home was as he said - close to the building he worked at. Spanner pulled into the parking lot, picking a space as close as possible to the entrance and parked his car, keys jingling in his pockets as he once more helped the almost-dead Shouichi into the building.
It was a late hour, so there weren't many people around, and Spanner was thankful for that. He walked on, almost dragging Shouichi along as the other was too tired to walk on his own, until they reached the elevator.
"What room are you in?"
Shouichi was doing the best he could, but his legs had other ideas about how and when to move. Guided and dragged along by the other, he opened his eyes half-way again to find himself leaning into Spanner with his face partially buried in the fabric of his jumpsuit. His gaze flickered upward in an attempt at eye contact. "Th-three forty two.."
A brief wave of concern hit him in regards to the state of distress his apartment was probably in, though in reality Spanner probably wouldn't care in the least. It left Shouichi's mind as quickly as it came, knowing that a messy living space was a dumb thing to be worried about since they were already in the elevator. It couldn't be helped.
Pale eyes scanned the map of the building on the wall of the elevator before pressing the button and the machine rumbled to life, lifting the two upwards. He leaned Shouichi back against the metal wall, taking the time to study the pale, ragged features of his friend's face. A scowl appeared on the mechanic's brows as he inwardly cursed at Shouichi's inability to take care of himself - dark bags under lidded eyes and hollow cheeks and dry lips. He probably hadn't been eating either.
A chiming noise announced their arrival at the floor and Spanner once more pulled Shouichi along, eyes glancing around and looking at the elegantly engraved numbers on the doors. Three thirty-eight... three thiry-nine... three forty... They arrived at number three forty-two, and Spanner remembered that he did not have the key.
"Where is your key?"
"Mm.." Shouichi groaned quietly as he reached into his back pocket to retrieve a key ring. There were several different keys on it, as he often opened and closed the building he worked in. His fingers fumbling around, he found the one that he could recognize as his apartment key.
Not really thinking about it much, he offered the key to Spanner. It was quite possible that he'd rather open the door right away than wait for Shouichi to conjure enough dexterity to do the job himself. Though really, that would require him to keep his eyes open for more than three seconds at a time.
Without much delay and wasted time, Spanner kicked open the door after turning the key noiselessly in the lock. The light from the hallway streamed into the dark room, revealing objects and papers strewn on the floor just inside the entrance. He stepped inside, pulling Shouichi's body along with him and groped for the light switch on the wall. A click and light flooded the messy room, but Spanner didn't give it a second thought, scanning along the numerous doors to locate Shouichi's bedroom.
"Hey, where's your bedroom?" He shook the other lightly, leaning down to look at Shouichi's face.
Shouichi's eyes met Spanner's a moment as he questioned him. "Second on the left.." he muttered, contemplating the possibility that Spanner could be angry with him right now. Though it was probably deserved, he figured. Sighing, he decided he would have to figure out a way to make it up to him.
As the door to Shouichi's bedroom opened, he peered inside almost as curiously as Spanner might. It'd been a while since he'd been there, as it wasn't a room he used much. His computers were kept with his book case and stereo in another room, while his laundry was in various baskets scattered up and down the hall. In his bedroom was simply a bed. One that had been made up and not used for well over a month. Several papers and files scattered across the top of it, with a couple of briefcases on the ground - but otherwise clean in comparison to the rest of the apartment.
Upon reaching the bed, Spanner dropped Shouichi on it with as much care as he could. The structure gave a creak as though it hasn't been used in a long time, something supported by the amount of dust gathered on the other objects around the house. The mechanic stared at the limp body of Shouichi for a minute before muttering a "sorry," then proceeded to undress his best friend.
Because the suit he was dressed in looked stifling, of course.
The fabric was rough against Spanner's fingers as he fumbled with buttons and zippers and sliding sleeves off Shouichi's arms. Shouichi would have protested a damn lot if he was anything close to coherent right now, and Spanner was a little bit glad that Shouichi was too tired to do anything rough. Sleeping in those clothes wouldn't have been comfortable anyway - and they were both men, so Shouichi had nothing to be embarrassed of.
Spanner pulled the blanket over the red-haired man's body after he had discarded most of Shouichi's clothing - he had tried to look for something resembling PJs, but nothing came in sight. Shouichi probably never bothered much with sleeping clothes anyway.
Shouichi's body easily complied to sleeves and pant leg, only sighing in exhaustion every now and then. Distantly, he could hear fabric shuffle and the pistol in his hidden pants pocket give out a muffled clatter against the hardwood floor. It didn't really matter. The soft, rarely used sheets were a welcome sensation and he could feel his body sink into the mattress. Chest rising and falling as his lungs attempted to catch up with the rest of the journey.
His eyes opened half-way again.
Spanner pushed the blanket into the mattress, tucking Shouichi in properly as he arched an eyebrow at those disobedient eyes. Glasses were lifted off the other's face and placed on the side table. "Go to sleep already." The mechanic whispered, sitting down on the edge of the mattress and patting the place where Shouichi's shoulder should be.
Shouichi squinted at the sudden loss of vision - what had been blurry already was now blurred beyond recognition. While his mind was moving slowly and his mouth even slower, he still felt a sense of unease. Reaching out across the blanket, he lightly grabbed onto the fabric of Spanner's sleeve.
"Don't be mad.."
The corners of Shouichi's mouth formed what could have been a tiny, exasperated smirk. He knew full well what a nuisance he was. Obviously, there was a debt at hand that Shouichi owed Spanner. The resolution would have to be figured out tomorrow, however, as he couldn't help but slip and fall into his subconscious.
***
With a soft groan, Spanner stirred and his eyes creaked open, squinting at the light streaming through the opening between dark curtains. His head fell back on the arm of the couch and body shrunk deeper into the cushion, hiding from the blinding light. As he laid there, trying to go back to sleep, his foggy mind slowly cleared, jogging his memory of the previous night.
An eye cracked open and swept across the room - some of the mess Spanner had tried to tidy up - only he couldn't do it well, because he never really cleaned up his place either. From the looks of it, Shouichi was still sleeping.
The watch told him it was two in the afternoon - and Spanner quickly scanned his memory to see if he had any appointments that day. None came to mind, and he let out a sigh of relief. He still had some things to do over here for Shouichi, after all.
Dragging himself up, the mechanic let out a strangled noise as he stretched, feeling muscles on his back creaking. Footsteps took him to the kitchen and Spanner opened the refrigerator which he had stocked up with some groceries last night after finding out that most of the old food had expired. Shouichi would probably prefer a Japanese meal, but Spanner wasn't at all confident in his cooking skills to even dare trying anything.
He settled with some eggs and bacon.
Head still heavy and mind still cloudy from everything, Shouichi had managed to get himself out of bed. Though he was still quite tired, he felt significantly better than he had the night before. He also needed to piece together exactly how he'd gotten home, what had happened and properly thank who he figured was rustling around in his kitchen.
He walked out from the hallway - clad in his boxer shorts, but hastily buttoning up his wrinkled white collared shirt from the day before. Slightly flustered from finding himself so undressed, he couldn't hide the red painted across his face.
Before he could say anything, his attention was diverted. The room somehow seemed cleaner than when he'd last seen it. Has Spanner been taking care of his apartment while he'd slept..? This is too much.. he thought as he felt pangs of guilt resonate in his chest. Almost timidly, he set foot into the kitchen and spoke up. "Aa.. Spanner-kun.."
Spanner almost didn't hear Shouichi's mumble behind the loud popping noises on the heated pan. Some of the oil droplets landed on his skin, and the mechanic winced, just barely refraining himself from jumping at the sudden sting. He flipped over the egg, letting it settle as he turned, waving a hand at his best friend.
"'morning, Shouichi." The egg popped once more and Spanner decided that it was enough. "Well, afternoon, rather." He scowled at the blackened edges of the food and scooped out out on a clean plate by the stove. "Sorry. I'm not much of a cook. The edges are kinda burnt."
The toaster gave a ding and two pieces of toast popped up. In a quick movement, Spanner grabbed the bread, skin on his fingers already calloused enough to ignore the heat, and placed them on the side of the eggs. "Grab the butter in the fridge, would you?" Spanner called over the shoulder as he set the plate on the dining table.
"You did all of this.." Shouichi mumbled again, in a state of half-disbelief. He was shaken back to attention when Spanner asked him to get a stick of butter from the refrigerator. "Aa.. I don't think I have any-" he was silenced once he opened up the door. He hadn't been shopping in weeks and yet, there seemed to be an abundance of fresh food. Trying to mind the time he spent slack-jawed, he blinked and reached for the wanted item.
Still, Shouichi couldn't help but be completely dumbfounded by the sight in front of him. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been treated this way. It was really touching, to tell the truth. Face still colored red, he handed over the stick of butter, twisting his expression somewhat nervously. "Aa... here."
The sizzling sound of the cooking bacon kept Spanner from paying much attention to Shouichi's flushed cheeks as he just nodded at the stick of butter then jerked his head towards the table. "You can butter the toast by yourself, right?" And not waiting for an answer, he turned and went back to the stove, tossing and turning the browning strips of meat until they were done.
As more eggs fell into the other pan where he had used to prepare Shouichi's eggs, Spanner tossed the shells to the nearby trashcan, this time the distance was close enough so he did not miss. The bacon was scooped into another plate and Spanner brought it to the dining table, placing it in the middle and moved on to grab the milk jug in the fridge. "Shouichi, get some glasses. Put the milk and the glasses on the table for me." The eggs were demanding his attention now, so Spanner called for other man instead.
"R-right..!" Shouichi said as he was pulled out from his overwhelmed trance and called to help out in the kitchen. Buttering toast and pouring milk were both tasks he could do, but he'd be lying if he'd said they were familiar to him. Not quite as familiar as opening a can of coffee or a bottle of water and ignoring hunger pangs for the sake of cramming in an extra hour's worth of work, anyhow.
How he found himself taking orders from Spanner so easily wasn't something he'd even noticed until he was pulling glasses down from the cabinet and walking towards the table. This was all a bit too surreal at the moment. Perhaps he'd hit his head somewhere along the way?
Another set of toast popped up and the eggs were done. Spanner gathered up the food for himself and grabbed the nearby pepper shaker, bringing the plate and the pepper to the dinner table. He sat down and nodded to Shouichi, motioning towards the chair in front of him.
"This is the only thing I'm decent at." He made a gesture towards the eggs and bacon as he grabbed for the stick of butter. "I don't cook much, or at all, really." The butter knife slid easily on the surface of the toast as the pale yellow butter was spread. "I'm sorry if you wanted a Japanese breakfast."
Nodding in compliance, but twisting his face as he sat down at the table, Shouichi blinked in surprise. "What..? Spanner, th-this is remarkable..!" he couldn't help but exclaim - not only were his cooking talents below minimal, but he'd never seen his dining table with food on it rather than papers and books. Staring down at the breakfast before him, his face never lost its coloring. Spanner had prepared this for him.. as well as all the other things he'd done the night before..
The chair slides out from behind him as he bolts to his feet and bows his head. "Spanner..! Thank you for everything!" he exclaimed quite a bit louder than intended. Recoiling, he still wanted to finish. "Sorry to have caused so much trouble.."
Where Shouichi would be had he not had a friend like Spanner? He really couldn't tell. So as he returned to his seat, bit at his bottom lip nervously. He still felt like he owed him more.
Stopping in his tracks as he was biting down on a corner of his toast, Spanner blinked and stared as Shouichi bowed to him like some sort of God. "I think you're mistaken here." A chuckle escaped his lips as he tore off a piece of bread with his teeth. "It was no problem, Shouichi." The salty taste of butter spread on his tongue as he chewed on the food.
It was funny nonetheless, how Shouichi could not relax and let a friend do things for him without feeling guilty about it. "If you wanted to repay me back, though..." The mechanic spoke after swallowing the bread and piercing his eggs with silver fork. "Then do me a favor and stop killing yourself over work."
"Of course. .. I'll try my best." Looking rather sheepish, Shouichi nodded and started to eat his breakfast. For Spanner acting so humble about it, he certainly could cook well. The taste surpassed the aesthetics by far, anyhow. He really had gone to a lot of trouble just for Shouichi's sake, so he vowed to do his best to not let him regret it. While Shouichi was aware his working habits would be hard to break, the least he could do was make a conscious effort to get some more rest and possibly eat more than once every couple of days.
Speaking of which, he'd begun to inhale his breakfast without noticing. Setting down his fork to take a drink of milk, his shoulders tensed. "This is really good.."
The mechanic paused for a brief moment as a fleeting hint of a flush passed by pale cheeks then disappeared. "No... not really..." He laughed it off, masking the sheepishness inside his voice. It was actually the first time he cooked for somebody, and given his meager skills, there was no way this could be anything more than edible. "It's just some basic breakfast, nothing fancy at all."
He swallowed down a piece of egg and reached for the glass of milk on the side. "How was your sleep?"
Shouichi looked up, blinking. While maybe it was because the only other people to ever cook for him were his mother and sister - sub par, at best - or the fact that just about anything would have tasted good to him at this point, he was sincere. Since when do I require something fancy... he briefly wondered, but shrugged it off and continued to sip at his glass of milk.
"Mm.. I don't really remember, but I feel a lot better." he answered truthfully, still obviously embarrassed by the trouble the whole ordeal caused. Though the sleep he'd had was enjoyable and he'd forgotten how nice it was to sleep in an actual bed now and then, rather than hunched over a desk or sitting on the train. "And you..?" he asked as he briefly looked around the room. "You got some sleep, didn't you?"
Spanner nodded absentmindedly, his fork made a noise against the ceramic plate. "Mm, your couch was surprisingly comfortable," despite it not being used much, or at all, from the way it felt when Spanner had slept on it. The leather, albeit dusty, felt new and barely used. "Don't worry about me cleaning your stuff. It's not a problem, I said."
Shouichi still looked troubled, and though Spanner wanted to use it to force the other to be a little bit more mindful of his own health, he couldn't help but chuckle at the expression his best friend had on his face. "Feeling guilty isn't going to get you anywhere, you know." He chewed on the last piece of toast. "Just take care of yourself more and everything'll be fine."
"Aa - " Shouichi made direct eye contact with Spanner a moment. His friend was a bit too perceptive for his own good. Once he'd convinced himself he wasn't going to drop the glass of milk he sighed, looking to be almost morbidly amused by the situation. "I'm just a little overwhelmed, I think. But you make perfect sense."
Shouichi eaten all he could, so he rose to his feet and began to clear some plates from the table. Upon bringing them back into the kitchen, he suddenly realized something. "I'm not keeping you from work, am I?"
The empty glass made a soft thud against the table top as Spanner also stood up, empty plate in hand. "I'm not telling you to stop working, just try to balance it a bit." The chair was pushed in and Spanner walked towards the sink, placing in the dirty dishes. "And no, my work is commission-based, and I don't have anything due immediately."
Water hit the oily surface of the dish and Spanner reached for the sponge. "You should take the rest of the day off and rest." He already had a feeling that once he left, Shouichi would immediately run back to that building and once more bury himself under mountains of paperwork. "With all that work you've done, nobody can complain if you don't go to work for a day."
Shouichi nodded, understanding. "I suppose despite it being commission work, you don't do too badly?" Considering his home and the equipment inside were anything but lacking. A great contrast to the outside neighborhood, for certain. "You seem to be living well."
Leaning over to place the remaining dishes into the sink, upon standing back up straight Shouichi felt his head rush. What.. he thought as he attempted to find a reason. Had he gotten up too fast? Low on sugar? Still tired from the night before? As a sense of diziness swirled around he rose one hand to his temples while another grabbed onto the fabric of Spanner's jumpsuit. "Nnn.. I'll call them now and let them know I won't be coming in.."
Spanner's intuition had been right, because Shouichi had planned to head right back to the office as soon as possible to make up for lost time. However, suddenly staying in sounded like a much better alternative.
"Considering I sell custom weapons, the amount of money I make is not sur-" All thoughts were cut off as Spanner felt Shouichi clutch at his clothes, dirty dishes forgotten as he swirled to the side, catching his best friend in his arms. "Shouichi, you okay?" The mechanic gasped, holding the red-haired man's shoulders in his hands and leaning down to look at the other's pale face.
He helped Shouichi out of the kitchen and sat him at the sofa where Spanner was sleeping on the previous night. "Do you have any medicine?" The mechanic scowled, a hand coming up to press against Shouichi's forehead to check if he had a fever. "You probably need to go to a hospital... But stay there for a bit first."
A slight sense of deja vu flickered in Shouichi's mind as he was helped into the other room. And though slightly disoriented, he looked up at Spanner from the sofa and smiled weakly. "I think it's fine.." he tried to explain, thinking perhaps it was just more recourse from the goings on of the last couple of days. Maybe a touch of hypoglycemia at worst. Lightly closing his eyes he leaned into Spanner's hand a bit before reaching up to bring it away from his forehead. "I'll just stay in today, for sure.."
And that was a promise.
divaricatore and Irie Shouichi
technobabbling
WHAT: Spanner takes Shouichi home after his 42-hour work shift
WHERE: Shouichi's apartment
WHEN: After this post
Spanner should be here soon.. Shouichi thought as he stood alone on a dark street, the only direct light coming from the lamp post he was leaning against. It was about a block from his work building, having to avoid giving his friend the exact location of his workplace. With his superior on a sudden sabbatical, the work had piled up around him before he could even think to say something.
Then, he drowned.
Heavy lidded eyes dragged Shouichi's gaze downward until they closed. His shoulders ached with tension as he put his weight on the lamp post, holding a manila folder in close to his chest. Consciousness would escape now and then, though he would snap back with a light gasp after only a few moments. He'd waited this long without rest, so why now that it seemed to be right around the corner could he not keep himself from dozing off?
He may have been able to answer his own question had he not fallen asleep again, under the buzzing of the light with his cheek pressed against the soothing cold metal.
Barely keeping his speedometer in check, Spanner sped through the labyrinth that was the streets of Reggio Calabria, not caring if there were lurking traffic cops around the corners. He glanced at the blinking lights on the built in navigator on the dashboard - about another fifteen miles until he reached the coordinates that Shouichi had given him. He wasn't kidding. This is pretty far, mused Spanner inwardly as he pressed on the gas pedal an the wheels picked up their pace on the hot, scruffy surface of the road.
The red lights blinked one twenty three a.m. and Spanner got just a little bit more impatient amongst other annoyed sensations he was feeling then. It was too much to ask for Shouichi to fix that bad habit of his, and Spanner was almost running out of patience. He turned the radio on louder to drown those thoughts.
The thin silhouette of Shouichi came into focus as Spanner turned a corner, tires squealing just a bit as breaks were hit and the car rolled to an abrupt stop. The mechanic clicked his tongue and got out of the car, approaching the dozing man leaning against the lamppost.
"Oi, don't sleep here." He held on to Shouichi's shoulder and gave it a light shake.
The sounds of the car and Spanner's voice sounded distant to Shouichi, taking more than a moment to register as something real, rather than something he'd been dreaming. Eyes opened to a half-lidded state and he adjusted his glasses in attempt to focus. Before words there were light groans in attempt to conjure proper phonetics.
"Thank you for coming.."
If Spanner hadn't insisted on coming to get him, he'd either be spending his fifth straight night in the office or he'd be asleep in the back of a cab somewhere racking up a bill he'd be too incoherent to comprehend. Though he wasn't ever the type to ask for help, Spanner was much more insistent than he was in situations like these - it was simply easier to give up and listen. He was certain there would be opportunities in the future to nurse his bruised ego.
As Spanner pulled the dead weight of Shouichi in his arms, the thought of just putting the smaller man on his shoulder and carry him into the car sounded a very, very good idea to do, since Shouichi was already mostly asleep. The mechanic brushed it away though, since his friend would have protested vehemently (or as strongly as he could with his eyes not opening anymore.)
"Not a problem. Get in the car and you can sleep." He grunted softly, supporting Shouichi on his shoulder and dragging him along towards the car. Spanner had never seen his friend being this exhausted - but that was just reasonable. Shouichi had never stayed up for forty-two hours straight, at least not from Spanner's knowledge. Any normal person would have collapsed by now, and Shouichi looked like he was pretty damn well collapsing right there and then.
The door creaked open and Spanner helped Shouichi on to the backseat, laying his body down on the leather and adjusting the balance so he would not fall down on to the ground when the car was moving.
"Where do you live?" asked Spanner as he slammed the door on the driver's seat, pulling on his safety belt.
Shouichi made conscious effort to help the other in assisting him, though his actions were subdued by the overwhelming sense of disorientation that had clouded over his mind. Mumbling incoherently, he strived for balance and eventually - more than mostly with the help of Spanner - made it into the back seat of the car, where he felt like he could melt into the cushions forever and simply die. Exhaling heavily, he managed another mumbled "thank you."
His eyes fluttered closed again. Upon hearing Spanner's question, he again felt grateful for this rescue of sorts. "Nn.. 51st and J. The.. building on the corner.."
The navigator beeped, announcing that the destination was found and the car moved away - this time spending only five minutes on the road because Shouichi's home was as he said - close to the building he worked at. Spanner pulled into the parking lot, picking a space as close as possible to the entrance and parked his car, keys jingling in his pockets as he once more helped the almost-dead Shouichi into the building.
It was a late hour, so there weren't many people around, and Spanner was thankful for that. He walked on, almost dragging Shouichi along as the other was too tired to walk on his own, until they reached the elevator.
"What room are you in?"
Shouichi was doing the best he could, but his legs had other ideas about how and when to move. Guided and dragged along by the other, he opened his eyes half-way again to find himself leaning into Spanner with his face partially buried in the fabric of his jumpsuit. His gaze flickered upward in an attempt at eye contact. "Th-three forty two.."
A brief wave of concern hit him in regards to the state of distress his apartment was probably in, though in reality Spanner probably wouldn't care in the least. It left Shouichi's mind as quickly as it came, knowing that a messy living space was a dumb thing to be worried about since they were already in the elevator. It couldn't be helped.
Pale eyes scanned the map of the building on the wall of the elevator before pressing the button and the machine rumbled to life, lifting the two upwards. He leaned Shouichi back against the metal wall, taking the time to study the pale, ragged features of his friend's face. A scowl appeared on the mechanic's brows as he inwardly cursed at Shouichi's inability to take care of himself - dark bags under lidded eyes and hollow cheeks and dry lips. He probably hadn't been eating either.
A chiming noise announced their arrival at the floor and Spanner once more pulled Shouichi along, eyes glancing around and looking at the elegantly engraved numbers on the doors. Three thirty-eight... three thiry-nine... three forty... They arrived at number three forty-two, and Spanner remembered that he did not have the key.
"Where is your key?"
"Mm.." Shouichi groaned quietly as he reached into his back pocket to retrieve a key ring. There were several different keys on it, as he often opened and closed the building he worked in. His fingers fumbling around, he found the one that he could recognize as his apartment key.
Not really thinking about it much, he offered the key to Spanner. It was quite possible that he'd rather open the door right away than wait for Shouichi to conjure enough dexterity to do the job himself. Though really, that would require him to keep his eyes open for more than three seconds at a time.
Without much delay and wasted time, Spanner kicked open the door after turning the key noiselessly in the lock. The light from the hallway streamed into the dark room, revealing objects and papers strewn on the floor just inside the entrance. He stepped inside, pulling Shouichi's body along with him and groped for the light switch on the wall. A click and light flooded the messy room, but Spanner didn't give it a second thought, scanning along the numerous doors to locate Shouichi's bedroom.
"Hey, where's your bedroom?" He shook the other lightly, leaning down to look at Shouichi's face.
Shouichi's eyes met Spanner's a moment as he questioned him. "Second on the left.." he muttered, contemplating the possibility that Spanner could be angry with him right now. Though it was probably deserved, he figured. Sighing, he decided he would have to figure out a way to make it up to him.
As the door to Shouichi's bedroom opened, he peered inside almost as curiously as Spanner might. It'd been a while since he'd been there, as it wasn't a room he used much. His computers were kept with his book case and stereo in another room, while his laundry was in various baskets scattered up and down the hall. In his bedroom was simply a bed. One that had been made up and not used for well over a month. Several papers and files scattered across the top of it, with a couple of briefcases on the ground - but otherwise clean in comparison to the rest of the apartment.
Upon reaching the bed, Spanner dropped Shouichi on it with as much care as he could. The structure gave a creak as though it hasn't been used in a long time, something supported by the amount of dust gathered on the other objects around the house. The mechanic stared at the limp body of Shouichi for a minute before muttering a "sorry," then proceeded to undress his best friend.
Because the suit he was dressed in looked stifling, of course.
The fabric was rough against Spanner's fingers as he fumbled with buttons and zippers and sliding sleeves off Shouichi's arms. Shouichi would have protested a damn lot if he was anything close to coherent right now, and Spanner was a little bit glad that Shouichi was too tired to do anything rough. Sleeping in those clothes wouldn't have been comfortable anyway - and they were both men, so Shouichi had nothing to be embarrassed of.
Spanner pulled the blanket over the red-haired man's body after he had discarded most of Shouichi's clothing - he had tried to look for something resembling PJs, but nothing came in sight. Shouichi probably never bothered much with sleeping clothes anyway.
Shouichi's body easily complied to sleeves and pant leg, only sighing in exhaustion every now and then. Distantly, he could hear fabric shuffle and the pistol in his hidden pants pocket give out a muffled clatter against the hardwood floor. It didn't really matter. The soft, rarely used sheets were a welcome sensation and he could feel his body sink into the mattress. Chest rising and falling as his lungs attempted to catch up with the rest of the journey.
His eyes opened half-way again.
Spanner pushed the blanket into the mattress, tucking Shouichi in properly as he arched an eyebrow at those disobedient eyes. Glasses were lifted off the other's face and placed on the side table. "Go to sleep already." The mechanic whispered, sitting down on the edge of the mattress and patting the place where Shouichi's shoulder should be.
Shouichi squinted at the sudden loss of vision - what had been blurry already was now blurred beyond recognition. While his mind was moving slowly and his mouth even slower, he still felt a sense of unease. Reaching out across the blanket, he lightly grabbed onto the fabric of Spanner's sleeve.
"Don't be mad.."
The corners of Shouichi's mouth formed what could have been a tiny, exasperated smirk. He knew full well what a nuisance he was. Obviously, there was a debt at hand that Shouichi owed Spanner. The resolution would have to be figured out tomorrow, however, as he couldn't help but slip and fall into his subconscious.
***
With a soft groan, Spanner stirred and his eyes creaked open, squinting at the light streaming through the opening between dark curtains. His head fell back on the arm of the couch and body shrunk deeper into the cushion, hiding from the blinding light. As he laid there, trying to go back to sleep, his foggy mind slowly cleared, jogging his memory of the previous night.
An eye cracked open and swept across the room - some of the mess Spanner had tried to tidy up - only he couldn't do it well, because he never really cleaned up his place either. From the looks of it, Shouichi was still sleeping.
The watch told him it was two in the afternoon - and Spanner quickly scanned his memory to see if he had any appointments that day. None came to mind, and he let out a sigh of relief. He still had some things to do over here for Shouichi, after all.
Dragging himself up, the mechanic let out a strangled noise as he stretched, feeling muscles on his back creaking. Footsteps took him to the kitchen and Spanner opened the refrigerator which he had stocked up with some groceries last night after finding out that most of the old food had expired. Shouichi would probably prefer a Japanese meal, but Spanner wasn't at all confident in his cooking skills to even dare trying anything.
He settled with some eggs and bacon.
Head still heavy and mind still cloudy from everything, Shouichi had managed to get himself out of bed. Though he was still quite tired, he felt significantly better than he had the night before. He also needed to piece together exactly how he'd gotten home, what had happened and properly thank who he figured was rustling around in his kitchen.
He walked out from the hallway - clad in his boxer shorts, but hastily buttoning up his wrinkled white collared shirt from the day before. Slightly flustered from finding himself so undressed, he couldn't hide the red painted across his face.
Before he could say anything, his attention was diverted. The room somehow seemed cleaner than when he'd last seen it. Has Spanner been taking care of his apartment while he'd slept..? This is too much.. he thought as he felt pangs of guilt resonate in his chest. Almost timidly, he set foot into the kitchen and spoke up. "Aa.. Spanner-kun.."
Spanner almost didn't hear Shouichi's mumble behind the loud popping noises on the heated pan. Some of the oil droplets landed on his skin, and the mechanic winced, just barely refraining himself from jumping at the sudden sting. He flipped over the egg, letting it settle as he turned, waving a hand at his best friend.
"'morning, Shouichi." The egg popped once more and Spanner decided that it was enough. "Well, afternoon, rather." He scowled at the blackened edges of the food and scooped out out on a clean plate by the stove. "Sorry. I'm not much of a cook. The edges are kinda burnt."
The toaster gave a ding and two pieces of toast popped up. In a quick movement, Spanner grabbed the bread, skin on his fingers already calloused enough to ignore the heat, and placed them on the side of the eggs. "Grab the butter in the fridge, would you?" Spanner called over the shoulder as he set the plate on the dining table.
"You did all of this.." Shouichi mumbled again, in a state of half-disbelief. He was shaken back to attention when Spanner asked him to get a stick of butter from the refrigerator. "Aa.. I don't think I have any-" he was silenced once he opened up the door. He hadn't been shopping in weeks and yet, there seemed to be an abundance of fresh food. Trying to mind the time he spent slack-jawed, he blinked and reached for the wanted item.
Still, Shouichi couldn't help but be completely dumbfounded by the sight in front of him. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been treated this way. It was really touching, to tell the truth. Face still colored red, he handed over the stick of butter, twisting his expression somewhat nervously. "Aa... here."
The sizzling sound of the cooking bacon kept Spanner from paying much attention to Shouichi's flushed cheeks as he just nodded at the stick of butter then jerked his head towards the table. "You can butter the toast by yourself, right?" And not waiting for an answer, he turned and went back to the stove, tossing and turning the browning strips of meat until they were done.
As more eggs fell into the other pan where he had used to prepare Shouichi's eggs, Spanner tossed the shells to the nearby trashcan, this time the distance was close enough so he did not miss. The bacon was scooped into another plate and Spanner brought it to the dining table, placing it in the middle and moved on to grab the milk jug in the fridge. "Shouichi, get some glasses. Put the milk and the glasses on the table for me." The eggs were demanding his attention now, so Spanner called for other man instead.
"R-right..!" Shouichi said as he was pulled out from his overwhelmed trance and called to help out in the kitchen. Buttering toast and pouring milk were both tasks he could do, but he'd be lying if he'd said they were familiar to him. Not quite as familiar as opening a can of coffee or a bottle of water and ignoring hunger pangs for the sake of cramming in an extra hour's worth of work, anyhow.
How he found himself taking orders from Spanner so easily wasn't something he'd even noticed until he was pulling glasses down from the cabinet and walking towards the table. This was all a bit too surreal at the moment. Perhaps he'd hit his head somewhere along the way?
Another set of toast popped up and the eggs were done. Spanner gathered up the food for himself and grabbed the nearby pepper shaker, bringing the plate and the pepper to the dinner table. He sat down and nodded to Shouichi, motioning towards the chair in front of him.
"This is the only thing I'm decent at." He made a gesture towards the eggs and bacon as he grabbed for the stick of butter. "I don't cook much, or at all, really." The butter knife slid easily on the surface of the toast as the pale yellow butter was spread. "I'm sorry if you wanted a Japanese breakfast."
Nodding in compliance, but twisting his face as he sat down at the table, Shouichi blinked in surprise. "What..? Spanner, th-this is remarkable..!" he couldn't help but exclaim - not only were his cooking talents below minimal, but he'd never seen his dining table with food on it rather than papers and books. Staring down at the breakfast before him, his face never lost its coloring. Spanner had prepared this for him.. as well as all the other things he'd done the night before..
The chair slides out from behind him as he bolts to his feet and bows his head. "Spanner..! Thank you for everything!" he exclaimed quite a bit louder than intended. Recoiling, he still wanted to finish. "Sorry to have caused so much trouble.."
Where Shouichi would be had he not had a friend like Spanner? He really couldn't tell. So as he returned to his seat, bit at his bottom lip nervously. He still felt like he owed him more.
Stopping in his tracks as he was biting down on a corner of his toast, Spanner blinked and stared as Shouichi bowed to him like some sort of God. "I think you're mistaken here." A chuckle escaped his lips as he tore off a piece of bread with his teeth. "It was no problem, Shouichi." The salty taste of butter spread on his tongue as he chewed on the food.
It was funny nonetheless, how Shouichi could not relax and let a friend do things for him without feeling guilty about it. "If you wanted to repay me back, though..." The mechanic spoke after swallowing the bread and piercing his eggs with silver fork. "Then do me a favor and stop killing yourself over work."
"Of course. .. I'll try my best." Looking rather sheepish, Shouichi nodded and started to eat his breakfast. For Spanner acting so humble about it, he certainly could cook well. The taste surpassed the aesthetics by far, anyhow. He really had gone to a lot of trouble just for Shouichi's sake, so he vowed to do his best to not let him regret it. While Shouichi was aware his working habits would be hard to break, the least he could do was make a conscious effort to get some more rest and possibly eat more than once every couple of days.
Speaking of which, he'd begun to inhale his breakfast without noticing. Setting down his fork to take a drink of milk, his shoulders tensed. "This is really good.."
The mechanic paused for a brief moment as a fleeting hint of a flush passed by pale cheeks then disappeared. "No... not really..." He laughed it off, masking the sheepishness inside his voice. It was actually the first time he cooked for somebody, and given his meager skills, there was no way this could be anything more than edible. "It's just some basic breakfast, nothing fancy at all."
He swallowed down a piece of egg and reached for the glass of milk on the side. "How was your sleep?"
Shouichi looked up, blinking. While maybe it was because the only other people to ever cook for him were his mother and sister - sub par, at best - or the fact that just about anything would have tasted good to him at this point, he was sincere. Since when do I require something fancy... he briefly wondered, but shrugged it off and continued to sip at his glass of milk.
"Mm.. I don't really remember, but I feel a lot better." he answered truthfully, still obviously embarrassed by the trouble the whole ordeal caused. Though the sleep he'd had was enjoyable and he'd forgotten how nice it was to sleep in an actual bed now and then, rather than hunched over a desk or sitting on the train. "And you..?" he asked as he briefly looked around the room. "You got some sleep, didn't you?"
Spanner nodded absentmindedly, his fork made a noise against the ceramic plate. "Mm, your couch was surprisingly comfortable," despite it not being used much, or at all, from the way it felt when Spanner had slept on it. The leather, albeit dusty, felt new and barely used. "Don't worry about me cleaning your stuff. It's not a problem, I said."
Shouichi still looked troubled, and though Spanner wanted to use it to force the other to be a little bit more mindful of his own health, he couldn't help but chuckle at the expression his best friend had on his face. "Feeling guilty isn't going to get you anywhere, you know." He chewed on the last piece of toast. "Just take care of yourself more and everything'll be fine."
"Aa - " Shouichi made direct eye contact with Spanner a moment. His friend was a bit too perceptive for his own good. Once he'd convinced himself he wasn't going to drop the glass of milk he sighed, looking to be almost morbidly amused by the situation. "I'm just a little overwhelmed, I think. But you make perfect sense."
Shouichi eaten all he could, so he rose to his feet and began to clear some plates from the table. Upon bringing them back into the kitchen, he suddenly realized something. "I'm not keeping you from work, am I?"
The empty glass made a soft thud against the table top as Spanner also stood up, empty plate in hand. "I'm not telling you to stop working, just try to balance it a bit." The chair was pushed in and Spanner walked towards the sink, placing in the dirty dishes. "And no, my work is commission-based, and I don't have anything due immediately."
Water hit the oily surface of the dish and Spanner reached for the sponge. "You should take the rest of the day off and rest." He already had a feeling that once he left, Shouichi would immediately run back to that building and once more bury himself under mountains of paperwork. "With all that work you've done, nobody can complain if you don't go to work for a day."
Shouichi nodded, understanding. "I suppose despite it being commission work, you don't do too badly?" Considering his home and the equipment inside were anything but lacking. A great contrast to the outside neighborhood, for certain. "You seem to be living well."
Leaning over to place the remaining dishes into the sink, upon standing back up straight Shouichi felt his head rush. What.. he thought as he attempted to find a reason. Had he gotten up too fast? Low on sugar? Still tired from the night before? As a sense of diziness swirled around he rose one hand to his temples while another grabbed onto the fabric of Spanner's jumpsuit. "Nnn.. I'll call them now and let them know I won't be coming in.."
Spanner's intuition had been right, because Shouichi had planned to head right back to the office as soon as possible to make up for lost time. However, suddenly staying in sounded like a much better alternative.
"Considering I sell custom weapons, the amount of money I make is not sur-" All thoughts were cut off as Spanner felt Shouichi clutch at his clothes, dirty dishes forgotten as he swirled to the side, catching his best friend in his arms. "Shouichi, you okay?" The mechanic gasped, holding the red-haired man's shoulders in his hands and leaning down to look at the other's pale face.
He helped Shouichi out of the kitchen and sat him at the sofa where Spanner was sleeping on the previous night. "Do you have any medicine?" The mechanic scowled, a hand coming up to press against Shouichi's forehead to check if he had a fever. "You probably need to go to a hospital... But stay there for a bit first."
A slight sense of deja vu flickered in Shouichi's mind as he was helped into the other room. And though slightly disoriented, he looked up at Spanner from the sofa and smiled weakly. "I think it's fine.." he tried to explain, thinking perhaps it was just more recourse from the goings on of the last couple of days. Maybe a touch of hypoglycemia at worst. Lightly closing his eyes he leaned into Spanner's hand a bit before reaching up to bring it away from his forehead. "I'll just stay in today, for sure.."
And that was a promise.