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"Atsushi…"
"hmm?"
"what're you doing?"
Atsushi stirred, his head resting clumsily on the table but his eyes never really leaving Akutagawa's. the lights in the bar reflected quietly off the edges of the glasses in front of them, colleagues' voices echoing loudly in the room around them. Atsushi was just a little drunk, and Akutagawa knew - but he still pretended he didn't, though.
Atsushi hummed, innocently pensive for the fraction of a second, testing out his words as they came.
"I think... I'm committing my Akutagawa to memory, every last bit."
my Akutagawa. Akutagawa resisted the irrational urge to smile, maybe even crinkle Atsushi's hair and watch him laugh and pull at whatever part of Akutagawa's clothing he could reach.
"...really?"
the efforts to nod took quite a toll on Atsushi, but he still resolutely made it happen, the side of his face rubbing childishly on the varnish of the table.
"really! ...if you're all right with it?"
it was Akutagawa's turn to stare wordlessly for a moment- before seizing his glass with one hand as he turned away, raising it to his lips in a hopeless attempt to slow the racing of his heart.
"...why not?"
a beat of silence passed, and Atsushi did laugh now, sitting up and sending off a peal of giggles under his breath, the sound airborne, dancing in the atmosphere.
"I'll keep doing it, then. I knew you were nice, Aku- "
Akugatawa's newly-emptied glass clinked against the tabletop as he set it down and turned towards Atsushi.
Atsushi slowly read the look in Akutagawa's eyes.
"is everything- are you- ?"
Akutagawa shook his head.
"you're not too drunk."
Atsushi knew Akutagawa well enough to tell that it was a careful question, more than a presumptuous statement.
"of course not! just apple cider-drunk. I don't know how you never get drunk on your strawberry daiquiris."
Akutagawa scoffed mildly, trying unsuccessfully to hide the somersaults in his heart caused by the shine of Atsushi's eyes.
"you're the lightweight here."
Atsushi didn't need to read Akutagawa's voice to hear the almost-breathless anticipation tinging his words, already surging forward in his seat.
and Akutagawa didn't stifle his smile this time, one hand reaching up to cup the side of Atsushi's face like Atsushi was the priceless hand-bound and gold-lined book of fairytales on Akutagawa's bedside table.
Atsushi paused.
"… can I commit this to memory, too?"
"why not?"
Atsushi laughed, closing his eyes as their lips met for what felt like the first time ever. Akutagawa tasted like strawberries and white rum, already mixed with the sparkle of Atsushi's apple-cider smile.
so Akugatawa's hands did end up winding in Atsushi's hair, and Atsushi's hands did end up tugging insistently at Akutagawa's coat-lapels, and Atsushi did end up letting out featherlight breaths of laughter against Akutagawa's lips, too in love to really be reproachful about the mess Akutagawa had made of his hair.
when they parted, and time started passing again, Akutagawa didn't look away as they waited for their breaths to steady again.
"Atsushi."
Akutagawa's eyes searched Atsushi's, as if he was mindlessly searching his favourite page of his favourite book in the world for the one unchanging sentence he would never fall out of love with, the one highlighted phrase his heart would never stop repeating.
Atsushi smiled, tilting his head in that trusting way that made Akutagawa want so desperately to etch the sight on the forefront of his mind.
"... dance with me?"
"here I was thinking you were about to kiss me again!"
Akutagawa paused.
"... we could do both."
Akutagawa forced himself to stay in place, to keep looking into Atsushi's eyes despite the heat burning on his face.
the stars in Atsushi's eyes lit up brightly enough to illuminate the entirety of the room, down to the last piece of quartz glimmering under the lacquer of the last marble tile lining the dance floor.
"... I think we could."