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It's been a very long day.
Ren still feels the restlessness of it- simmering under his skin, aching to do… something. What that 'something' actually is turns out to be up for interpretation, but all his guesses still turn out to be wrong anyway. Great. Fantastic.
Dinner's already prepped for tonight. Uni work's done. Group chat's dead- everyone's busy- and he doesn't have anything scheduled soon.
Normally it'd be great news. Always good to have free time, right? He wishes he could properly enjoy it. Get to relax, as he should, without some annoyingly persistent insistence wriggling in his head that he's missing something or wasting time.
…Wait.
There's an idea. Pretty obvious that he should try to relax somehow… But the quiet running of water through old pipes behind thin apartment walls gives him an actual tangible plan instead of just some vague concept.
So he heads for the bathroom, the little idea growing and blooming with every silent step. A good excuse to stretch his thief muscles a bit.
As is opening the door slow and quiet, keeping the handle curled until he's pressed it back in on the other side. Slipping into the room. The rushing water of the shower head covers any slight creaks that still sound, and their dark-patterned shower curtain is pulled over. Protecting the rest of the room from the spray… and covering his tracks to the person inside.
The person nestled in his little alcove, washing up in relative silence save for the occasional hum. There's not even a hint of fog in the air, 'cause for some reason, he prefers cool (or even ice-fucking-cold) showers. 'Helps him keep time' or something. Ren has other theories, though.
That person is his rival, his roommate, his boyfriend, his soulmate in more ways than one- Goro Akechi. Many, many words can be used to describe him, depending on who you ask.
Goro would (and has) call[ed] himself 'quick and efficient' in the shower, among far less charitable names.
Ren would call him 'a fun target to mess with', among a sea of sentiment.
It's part of how he shows his love, after all. Goro unfortunately hasn't had a lot of that over the course of his life… so Ren gives it to him in spades.
He considers his next course of action for only a second or so. Not wearing anything particularly important to him, so it's fine if it gets wet, he decides to go the funnier route. Obviously. Nearly anything's worth it for the bit.
Though he does take a moment to slip off his socks. Both cause of the bad texture of getting 'em wet… and to avoid falling once he's in. Juuust in case. He slings them on top of the pile of Goro's dirty clothes on the far side of the sink counter…
…Before slipping in past the border between Goro and the rest of the world. Infiltrating his cozy little space. Thankfully there's a bit more room for Ren with where his boyfriend's standing, washing shampoo out of his hair. Combing his fingers through to help rinse all the suds out as soon as possible, eyes closed to keep the water out. Letting his peace be preserved just a few seconds longer.
Ren sees the moment Goro starts to realize. To sense that something's new, something's off now from how it was before. It doesn't surprise him, with how sharp he is, but it is fun to watch his little face journey. His brows only furrow more when he takes a half-step backward and barely brushes against the leg of Ren's sweats.
Why the hell would he be feeling fabric in here, he must be wondering, wheels in that wonderful head of his turning. Whirring into higher gear. Equations dancing in the hollows of his eyelids.
Ren doesn't leave him in the dark for long. "Hi honey."
And can't suppress his smile at how Goro jumps a bit, can't hide how startled he is. The hand not currently in his hair curls into a fist, ready to defend himself, seconds from striking… Before the dots connect. Before he realizes and relaxes slightly.
"Fucking hell, Ren," his voice is still a little sharp, on edge. Fair enough. "What in the world are you doing?"
"Oh y'know- standing, talking," he lists out, pretending to think before he looks Goro over. "…Among other things." Letting his eyes deliberately drag before they return to meet his own.
Goro doesn't have any warm water he can pass the slight pink tinge off on. Good- it's pretty on him. Even (especially, in Ren's opinion) as he scoffs and rolls his eyes. "Don't play stupid with me, no matter how adept you are at it. I meant why are you here? In my shower."
"Our shower, actually." Ren corrects. Wishes he had his glasses on so he could push 'em up the bridge of his nose. "And it's pretty simple- I missed you." He leans back, wrist to his forehead like a bereaved Victorian widow. "You were gone for so terribly long, I feared you were never to return." Punctuating it with a theatrical little sigh, eyes fluttering shut as he throws his head to the side. For funsies.
Even before Ren cracks an eye open to look at him, he can pretty easily guess Goro's stance just from how flat his voice sounds. "I've been in here for less than five minutes." Looking only confirms the deadpan stare, the crossed arms. Utterly unimpressed at the performance.
Ah, well. Everyone's a critic.
"Still." He tries not to pout.
"Also, since we're on the topic…" Now it's his turn to look over Ren, though his stare is less desire and more mild confusion. For now, at least. "Why the fuck are you wearing clothes?"
He shrugs. "Why the fuck not?"
"Well… For one, you look ridiculous." Goro answers easily. "And on another hand, I'd imagine such things would hamper you quite considerably were I to do something liiiike…" He's up to something. No way he's dragging it out for any other reason. "This."
Quick as a viper, his hand shoots up to adjust the shower head. Directing the spray to the far back wall of the shower and thus right at Ren. Soaking him through pretty quickly with water that sharply turns ice cold.
Ren exclaims, near jumping out of his skin at the shock. Darting forward to get out of the line of fire.
Er, well, water. Anyway.
Though it still clings to him, hounds him through the clothes that hold that temp and weigh him down a little. Sending him shivering in Goro's arms as his boyfriend laughs at his plight. A low, kinda crackly but deliciously real sound. Beautiful even at his expense as he re-adjusts the temperature to be more bearable.
"Pretty dirty trick, Crow." He lightly elbows his boyfriend in the side. Could've seen it coming, but even if he had, the small space doesn't really allow for a clean dodge. Especially with two people in it.
"Ah, yes," Goro's tone is thankfully warmer. Just enough. "Likely the worst betrayal you've ever endured, Joker. Now come on," his thumb teases at the hem of Ren's oversized tee. "If you're going to join me, you may as well look the part."
Fair point. Might as well, since he's already here. Better than slipping out sopping wet.
So he obliges the indirect request, pulling the fabric up and off. Flinging it over the curtain rod once it's free. Even over the running water, the damp smack of it hitting the floor bounces off the walls enough to hear. Hopefully it didn't splash too much on their bath rug- Goro fucking hates that texture. Even if he doesn't say it. Ren noticed.
"I'll pick that up later." Ren's quick to assure, just in case.
Though Goro didn't look like he was about to ask (or demand) anyway. Instead, his eyes flick down to his boyfriend's pants. "You'll have to pick those up, too."
"Why," Ren gasps, sounding scandalized. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to get me naked or something."
"Oh no, you found out my plans." Goro pretends to be shocked. Not his best performance by far, but he's not really trying. "Whatever gave it away?" He steps forward, hands drifting to Ren's waistline.
He hums noncommittally. "I dunno," Ren shrugs, his own hands chilling at the hem of his pants. "Lucky guess."
"Such luck indeed." Goro scoffs. "I should have figured that. Luck always seems to favor you."
"Gotta agree." He can't completely tamp down his smile before he follows it with- "Lucky enough to be with you, after all." Ah well.
It still gets his boyfriend to snort, even if it's followed by a light slap to Ren's stomach. "Quit dallying and take your fucking pants off already, Amamiya. We're wasting water."
Ouch, back to last names now. "You're such a romantic," he heaves out a great big totally-not-played-up-for-effect sigh. "But fine. Your wish is my command, Akechi." With a bow, Ren shimmies out of his sweats easily. Throwing it over the curtain rod once he's done.
"Underwear too."
Oh, he wants him nakey-nakey. Ren would say it out loud, but he's played the dumb tease long enough. So instead he follows through with little more than a muttered, "So demanding."
"Please. Like you're complaining." Apparently Goro still heard it.
And he has a point there. So Ren lets him have that one, flinging his (thankfully decently dry) underwear to join his clothes on the other side. Leaving him as bare to the world- or their little private pocket of it- as Goro is.
Goro doesn't say anything, but honestly… He doesn't really need to. His wandering eyes do all the talking for him. Roaming over the planes of Ren's body, lingering on his favorite spots… or his scars. Not long enough to lag, of course. But enough for him to notice pretty easily.
Not that Ren can really blame him. Both cause he's not that bad looking himself… and his scars are far more plentiful. An abandoned battleground littered with dozens of little nicks and scratches. The price of being a lone wolf with few healing options in the Metaverse, he supposes. Especially the big, gnarled scar tissue on his chest, near his heart. Mirrored on his back.
But as sad as the sight still makes him… They're also signs he survived. Made it through all the shit that was thrown at him, came back up every time he was knocked down relentlessly. Even when he probably didn't want to, he still did.
So Ren focuses on that, on the fact that the freckles dotting his boyfriend's skin far outnumber the scars. More than he used to have. His body has filled out a bit more by now, gauntness slowly eased by having multiple proper meals a day. Signs of healing, of recovery, of growth after the war.
"Scooch over," he says, stepping toward Goro. "Gotta get more wet." Graciously he decides not to make any kinda joke about that. No matter how tempting.
Goro nods and acquiesces, standing aside to let Ren have the brunt of the spray. He braces himself a bit for the polar plunge, takes a breath, and…
"…Oh." Ren exhales. "It's warm." It washes over his shoulders pleasantly, loosening the tension in him. A stark contrast to the mild shock he had to bear earlier.
"Of course," Goro says. "This is the setting you prefer, isn't it? It's not too hot?"
As he connects the few dots, he feels warmer for a different reason. The temp handle's at the exact spot he likes to keep it. A near mirror to where Goro tends to keep it, on the right rather than the left.
Ren sighs in utter contentment, waiting to answer 'till his hair's all wet. Just so he can angle it out of the spray and shake his head like a dog attempting to dry. All to hear the shriek of laughter his boyfriend lets out as the drops hit him.
He doesn't keep it up for too long, though. "It's perfect, honey. Thanks." He reaches over Goro's conditioner, a fancy brand he likes to splurge on. Apparently part of his secret to silk-smooth hair, the tip he never told to tabloids. "C'mon. You still had a step left, right?" Don't wanna mess up his routine, after all.
"Oh, that's alright," Goro quickly tries to assure. "You don't have to do that."
"I know." Ren fires back just as fast. "I want to, though."
That earnestness hits him right in the weak spot. He still hesitates for a couple more moments… But then he nods, both of them switching places and taking a step away from the shower spray. Just so the conditioner doesn't wash out.
Goro's drawn-up shoulders slowly loosen as he turns his back to Ren, allowing his boyfriend better access to his hair. The vulnerability of the gesture- of this entire situation- isn't lost on him. Doubtful it's lost on either of them.
Such inherent trust is an honor Ren doesn't take lightly. He never will.
So he applies the conditioner to Goro's hair as efficiently as he can, combing his fingers through to get right down to the roots. Nails scratching lightly at his scalp. Humming a little tune as he works.
His boyfriend's leaning for cold water might very well be a simple matter of preference, like he says it is. But, knowing him and seeing how he basks in the warmth, Ren can't help but have another theory.
He can't help but wonder sometimes if some part of Goro thinks he doesn't deserve the comfort of warm water. Or anything besides bracing cold, like some kind of self-inflicted punishment. Repentance through suffering. Like he hasn't gone through enough.
Maybe he's reading too much into it.
Either way, Ren works to show him otherwise. Allows him a safe place to relax, lets the world-weary crow rest his wings awhile.
He can't just wash away all his boyfriend's doubts and worries, of course. He wouldn't even if he could.
What Ren can do is be there for him now, can help him wash up in a more literal sense and allow himself to be helped in turn. Can make him blush a bit when he presses a kiss to Goro's freckled shoulder before he turns around.
And that is enough.