Mondo lived in a strangely normal-looking house. Kiyotaka wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but he found himself surprised to look at it.
"You own the place?" Kiyotaka wondered aloud. Mondo grunted a confirmation.
"It's not like I got it myself. Daiya n' I got the place together. N' trust me, it was cheap for a reason."
"Did you have to do a lot of repairs?"
"You wouldn't fuckin' believe it if ya saw it. Place was a disaster."
Kiyotaka nodded along as they got out of the car and Mondo pointed at things he and Daiya had apparently had to fix. They'd gone as far as replacing the front door and most of the siding and giving it a fresh coat of paint, and they had done most of the labor themselves to save money. It would make a nice return on investment, Kiyotaka thought, if Mondo ever decided that he needed more room.
It was kind of ironic, really. Mondo was a homeowner and Kiyotaka wasn't. His apartment's rent was probably more than Mondo's mortgage, but still.
Kiyotaka heard barking and whining and scratching before Mondo could successfully unlock the front door. He greeted the eagerly waiting animals as he stepped inside. Kiyotaka squeezed in after him and remained still, his back pressed against the door. One of the dogs— the only big one— gave him a quick sniff before joining his siblings in tackling Mondo. The man had sat down on the floor and was practically getting attacked with kisses.
"I know, I know," he laughed. Every time he tried to focus on or pet one of them, another would jump onto his lap or push the other out of the way or nuzzle into his chest. "I missed you guys too. ...Take it easy there, Gigi."
Kiyotaka shook his head and chuckled. Mondo had only been gone for a couple of hours at most, but looking at the little reunion, one would think he'd been away at war for years. Mondo was, at the moment, focusing on the blonde-ish Pinscher, who was snorting in an unusual way and sounded like she could barely breathe.
"Is she okay?"
"Oh, she'll be fine, it's just— y'know, she's fat. Not totally her fault, though. She's got a bad heart. Can't exert herself too much. If she gets too excited she has trouble breathin' sometimes. ...Just gotta make sure she settles down."
Gigi did, eventually, manage to calm down, as did the others. Mondo gestured up at Kiyotaka.
"This is Taka," he loudly announced. "We like Taka, understand?"
Kiyotaka knelt down and stuck his hand out. Chuck was the first to risk giving the hand a sniff and seemed to deem him safe, settling in for a scratch behind his ears. He was just as soft as he looked. The others followed suit and walked over as if introducing themselves.
"They like anybody that pets 'em," Mondo explained. "Bunch of attention hogs, I tell ya."
Mondo led Kiyotaka past the little entrance hallway and into the kitchen, which opened out onto the living room. He said that there had been a wall there before that he and his brother had removed. The place had probably seemed much smaller then. Kiyotaka tried not to giggle at the way that the dogs were constantly on Mondo's heels, like a fuzzy little entourage.
"Why dontcha sit down, n' I'll make us dinner?" Mondo offered. Kiyotaka tried to dismiss it with a casual wave of his arm. Mondo apparently had no intention of taking no for an answer, as he was already at his cabinets.
"I-It's a bit late for dinner, isn't it?"
"Maybe, but you've gotta be hungry. Y'said ya didn't really eat any of the food at your parents' place." He paused, in the middle of gathering his pans, to smirk over his shoulder at Kiyotaka. "N' as for me, I worked up an appetite."
Kiyotaka scoffed, but couldn't deny that that was probably true. He pretended to focus his attention on Tyson, who seemed curious about him. Mondo was getting out ingredients and turning up the heat on the stove like it was second nature.
"You didn't strike me as someone who could cook."
"What's that supposedta mean?"
"I-I don't know, you just... don't? I hardly ever have time to really make anything. I'm always using my rice cooker, and that's about it."
"Makin' your own food is cheaper, for one thing," Mondo retorted, "n' it's better for ya. I'm always at the gym, ain't I? Ya gotta fill up before that if ya wanna build any muscle. But it can't be junk food. I need a fuckton of protein." Mondo looked down at his feet, where Gigi sat casually, giving him big, innocent puppy-dog eyes, and shooed her away. "...Sometimes I feel like I spend more on their food. I mean, there's four of 'em, and I get 'em the expensive all-natural shit."
Mondo seemed to be making some kind of beef and vegetable stir fry with a bit of soy sauce. Kiyotaka could smell it cooking. He was, admittedly, very hungry. He was surprised that his stomach hadn't growled. He'd totally forgotten about food in the night's events.
"...You sure you don't need to go back to your place?" Mondo asked after a few minutes of near-silence. Kiyotaka jerked in place. He'd nearly fallen asleep sitting up. He shook his head before it occurred to him that Mondo wasn't looking in his direction.
"No, it's alright. My apartment is more of a nest for my bed than anything else. ...As long as you've got a spare toothbrush and something I can sleep in, I'm fine."
"Okay. If ya say so. Just make sure ya turn your cell phone off."
"Oh, don't worry, I'm ahead of you on that one."
"That's good."
Mondo went back to quietly cooking. Kiyotaka was expecting it to feel awkward, but it didn't. It felt natural. He could get used to this. Should I make breakfast tomorrow morning? he wondered. He didn't want to impose and felt that he should return the favor somehow. He'd have to wake up earlier than Mondo if he wanted to do that, though. He smiled at the thought of surprising the other man with breakfast in bed.
The food was finished before long. Kiyotaka wiggled in anticipation of it. Mondo scooped the contents of the pan onto two separate plates of equal size and slid one to Kiyotaka across the table. It looked both delicious and nutritious, which was a difficult balance to maintain.
Kiyotaka scarfed down half of his food before saying anything. He was distracted from it by Mondo's laughter.
"I was gonna ask ya if ya thought the food was okay, but I'll take that as a yes. Guess that's a good sign if this is gonna be a thing."
Kiyotaka nearly choked on the forkful of greens that he'd been halfway through swallowing. Mondo raised a very good point. One that he'd nearly forgotten about. He set the utensil down with a slight clatter, and Mondo raised an eyebrow.
"That reminds me... I've been meaning to ask you." He cleared his throat and averted his eyes, looking to Biscuit as if she could offer some kind of assistance. She wasn't doing anything. Just trembling, despite being wrapped in a nearly full-body doggie jumper of some kind, and staring from the corner of the room. "Are you, er, my boyfriend?"
Mondo didn't reply right away. He looked like he was trying not to smirk.
"...Are ya actually askin' me that?"
"Yes."
"Well, d'ya want me to be?" Kiyotaka nodded, fiddling with his fingers. Mondo snickered. "...Then, yeah, I'm your boyfriend, ya dumbass. Fuckin' hell."
"I just didn't want to assume—"
Without any warning, Mondo grabbed Kiyotaka's hand, reaching around the plates of food to do so, and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"I already told ya, remember?"
"Told me what?!"
"That I love you."
Kiyotaka reddened.
"I-I—" He swallowed. Saying it once, when the moment had been right and he'd been able to hide his face at least a little bit under the cover of darkness, was one thing, but saying it again— saying it now, in the privacy of Mondo's home— was another thing altogether. It would solidify things. He couldn't retract it.
He didn't want to retract it, though. He managed a shy smile.
"Yeah?"
"I, um, love you too."
"Okay then. That settles it. We're boyfriends." He squeezed his hand again and then released it. "I'll be cookin' for ya plenty from here on out."
"I guess we do have plenty of time for dates now that I'm out of a job..." Saying that felt strange. Kiyotaka hadn't been unemployed since he was in his first year of high school.
"So how're we gonna arrange our first date? Where are ya gonna crash your car—"
"Shut up!"
Mondo laughed uproariously, and Kiyotaka joined in after a fleeting moment of embarrassment. Now that Kiyotaka had thrown aside the silly things keeping them apart, they wouldn't have to meet under such absurd circumstances anymore. They could just call one another. Once Kiyotaka got his car back, anyway. Mondo had promised to drive him to pick it up in the morning.
Kiyotaka contemplated things as he finished his food, and Mondo didn't try and force a conversation. He had a boyfriend...? He had a boyfriend. He had an incredible boyfriend that he really, really loved and with whom he wanted to spend every day for the rest of his life.
The rest of his life— that was now a question mark. A blank slate. He was starting over from square one and choosing for himself what to do with it. It was as daunting a task as it was exciting.
"I'm not sure what to do next," he mumbled, letting his fork fall uselessly onto his empty dinner plate. "I don't want to rush things, but I don't want to get too settled into the unemployment lifestyle, either."
"I think you can afford to take your time," Mondo replied with a shrug. "I'd focus on gettin' your head on right before doin' anything drastic. Get yourself a shrink, n' take some time off to get some rest for once."
"What... What's that like? Therapy, I mean."
Mondo shrugged.
"Depends on the type. N' it's probably different for everybody. No two people have the exact same issues. But, uh..." He looked up as he tried to recall something that had probably happened years ago. "The early stuff tends to be pretty casual. Ya just explain why you're there and talk about what you'll need. Once I finished explainin', the doc was sure I needed t'learn healthy coping mechanisms. Connecting with your inner child and all that jazz."
"My inner child...?" Kiyotaka furrowed his brow. "That's one of those expressions I've heard a lot, and I still don't have any idea what it means."
Mondo laughed. He understood what Kiyotaka meant, apparently. The expression was rather vague.
"Hey, I didn't get it at first, either. But to put it simply, n' use myself as an example, I, uh... I set aside at least one night every month where I don't have any other plans. I make myself a milkshake, or maybe some cookies— somethin' I don't get to eat all that much. N' then I sit on the floor in my sweatpants n' with my dogs and I play with Legos for as long as I want."
Kiyotaka stared in disbelief. Mondo wasn't kidding.
"...Legos?!"
"Hell yeah. My parents never got us toys. I was always jealous of all the sets the neighbor's kids had. Now that I'm a grown-up n' I got my own money, I can buy as many damn Lego kits as I want. ...There's so much stuff to build. It's lotsa fun. I got a few of 'em displayed."
He flashed a proud, cheeky little smile and pounded his chest. Kiyotaka nodded along. It made sense when he thought more about it. Taking care of one's inner child just meant, well... taking it easy on oneself. It was taking the time to step back, relax, and let the wounded part of one's soul safely heal.
"...Which ones?"
"Wha?" It took Mondo a long second to realize that Kiyotaka was asking about the Lego kits. He blushed, very slightly. "...Oh, uh, some space ships. Star Wars. They look like real models. N' then there's the motorcyle I figured out how to make by myself."
"No instructions?"
"No instructions."
They shared another laugh, and then Kiyotaka studied the wood grain on the table as he thought. How long had it been since he'd had a proper hobby? He'd taken some time to read that book that Chihiro had given him, but he hadn't found the time to finish it.
"I guess I should find something to do in my down time. I used to do martial arts. Maybe I should pick it up again? I—"
"Oh, yeah, that reminds me. I gotcha somethin'. It's no big deal, though."
Mondo stood and walked to his living room, all four of the dogs following him, and retrieved something wrapped in tissue paper from a drawer in his coffee table. He passed it to Kiyotaka across the kitchen table as he sat back down. The gesture was a little bit too casual.
"What is it?" Kiyotaka squinted at the package. It was something rectangular, not especially large or especially small. Mondo snickered.
"Jus' open it."
Kiyotaka shrugged and tore at the paper. Mondo intentionally avoided looking him in the eye.
"This... is..."
Kiyotaka stared at the package. He honestly didn't know what to say.
He'd mentioned, what felt like ages ago and only in passing as part of a much longer tirade, that his parents had sold his prized calligraphy set and that he'd never had the time to buy another and resume his childhood hobby. He would never have guessed that Mondo would remember something so trivial. And he certainly never would have guessed that Mondo would buy him another. He knew for a fact that calligraphy sets were expensive. It wasn't like buying someone a greeting card.
"I dunno know anything about calligraphy, though, so I dunno if it's any good. I just asked the guy for a recommendation n' he pointed me t'that one—"
"Mondo, it's perfect." He clutched the package close to his chest. "I love it. It's— you're— I can't believe you remembered!"
He stood and ran to Mondo's side. Once more, he was reminded of how ridiculous he had been acting. Why had he tried to prevent this for so long? He leaned down to give Mondo a grateful kiss, one hand on either side of his face.
"That's where that went," Mondo said under his breath as soon as his lips were his own. Kiyotaka raised a questioning eyebrow. Mondo gestured at Kiyotaka's left wrist. "The— the hairband. I thought I lost it."
Kiyotaka had completely forgotten about it, but there was, in fact, a hairband around his wrist. He laughed awkwardly and returned it to Mondo, who casually thrust it into his pocket.
"Sorry."
"Nah, it's fine. I gotta take a shower anyway. ...Hell, we both do. Why don't you look around while I take one real quick, n' then you can take yours while I get your stuff for ya? I should probably straighten out the sheets on the bed, too. Maybe I'll change 'em."
Kiyotaka blinked.
"The... The bed? I thought I was taking the sofa."
Mondo scoffed as if Kiyotaka had proposed something ridiculous.
"I dunno about you, but I'm not the type of guy to make my boyfriend sleep on the couch when there's plenty'a room in my bed."
"I-I don't want to impose, though. Your bedroom is private, isn't it?"
Kiyotaka's bedroom, back in his apartment, was practically an empty room with a bed in it, but he still felt like it was his space and wouldn't want random people sleeping in it. He wasn't quite random people, of course. He and Mondo had just clarified that they were dating. Even so, he was surprised by Mondo's offer.
Mondo playfully jostled his shoulder.
"Listen, Taka: it's fine. I've got a queen-sized bed. It's gotta be big enough to fit certain people if there's a thunderstorm."
Mondo glared past Kiyotaka at the dogs by the wall. Kiyotaka laughed at the mental image of Mondo and all four of his fluffy companions snuggled together in the same bed.
"Alright, then," he agreed. "Your bed it is."
They exchanged a parting kiss before Mondo left to take his shower. Kiyotaka walked about the house, being careful not to be too invasive. The dogs followed him, apparently designating him their new leader for the time being. The other three seemed to trail behind Chuck. Chuck clearly thought he was in charge.
Eventually, Kiyotaka found the Lego kits that Mondo had mentioned. They were, admittedly, impressive. He wouldn't have guessed that Mondo had made the motorcyle himself. It looked like something he'd gotten in a box. The whole of the house was laid out in a surprisingly neat fashion, everything in its intended place.
"It's not usually this clean," Mondo said as he approached. "Ya just came at a good time, I guess."
Kiyotaka, who had been sitting on the couch and petting the dogs, smiled up at Mondo. He'd already gotten dressed and was toweling off his hair. Seeing him in baggy flannel pants and a ribbed black tank top made it that much more clear that he was, really and truly, spending the night.
"It's a nice place," Kiyotaka chirped. "You and your brother did a good job."
"You guys been hangin' out?" Mondo looked curiously at the pack of animals. Kiyotaka pointed at Gigi.
"She tried to steal my nose."
"Oh, yeah?" Mondo laughed. "She does that. She won't actually bite ya, though. Just a little play nibble. 'M glad they seem to like ya."
Kiyotaka gave each dog a final pat before he stood. Mondo gestured at a partially-open door.
"That's your room?"
"Yeah. My bathroom's attached. I laid out all the stuff you'll need. Before we do that, though... Lemme put these guys to bed."
Mondo clapped his hands, and the dogs stood at attention. He announced that it was time for bed, and they filed obediently to the large closet that he'd mentioned. Kiyotaka couldn't help but smile as he watched the routine. Mondo had the animals very well-trained. Tyson checked on each of the others before getting into his own bed, and Biscuit spent about a minute in hers before she crawled into Gigi's. Mondo probably allowed it since Biscuit was always so cold. Mondo made sure that each one was lying down, checked to see that their bowl was full of water, and then flipped off the light switch and closed the little doggie gate. He gestured at the bedroom door as soon as he was finished.
"After you."
Mondo's room was a bit messier than the rest of the house, and that much was to be expected. There were a couple of jackets thrown across the back of a chair, and the sheets weren't quite on right. There was a little desk with a framed picture of Mondo and Daiya sporting ridiculous hairstyles on the back of a couple of decked-out motorcycles. It must have been taken during their gang days.
The bathroom was clean, and there was a surprising amount of product in there. Mondo apparently liked to take long baths. His soap smelled like pine, and his shampoo bottle looked expensive. Taking a shower was more fulfilling than he could have anticipated. It felt like he was washing the day's stress away.
Kiyotaka dried off before he dressed himself in the clothes that Mondo had so generously provided. The shirt was far too big for him. He gave the collar a quick sniff. It was clean and didn't have that boyfriend's jacket smell he'd been hoping for, like the one that he still had in his apartment and had forgotten about until that very moment. Maybe he'd invite Mondo to his apartment the next day and allow him to retrieve it.
"Hey, handsome."
Mondo greeted Kiyotaka, as he returned to the bedroom, with a wide grin and patted the mattress. He had changed the sheets and made sure to fasten them properly. It was clear which side of the bed was Mondo's, so Kiyotaka climbed onto the other side.
"Hi."
He risked laying his head onto the pillow and pulling the covers over himself. Mondo set the alarm on the nightstand for eight. It would be nice to wake at eight rather than four. He could use the extra sleep right now. Mondo looked down at Kiyotaka and glanced at the lamp.
"Y'ready?"
"Yes."
He flipped the switch, and the room was plunged into darkness. Mondo scooted down and laid on his side, facing Kiyotaka. Kiyotaka could feel his breathing.
"...This is nice."
"Yes!"
Kiyotaka couldn't help but smile a little. It was nice. It was nice to lie beside someone and feel so comfortable. He didn't feel the need to say anything or do anything. He just felt safe and warm. Mondo's side was starting to feel like home.
He could already feel himself drifting off to sleep, so he didn't try to formulate those thoughts. He simply felt around under the covers until he found Mondo's hand and entangled their fingers together.
"Thank you," he murmured. Mondo smiled.
"Don't mention it." The last thing he felt, before drifting off, was Mondo planting a gentle kiss on his forehead. "G'night."
The future was empty and a bit frightening, but somehow, Kiyotaka thought that he would be just fine.
————
A/N: in case you missed the change earlier, i altered a couple of mondo's dogs. they used to be exact inserts of real ones and i'm trying to keep my real life private enough that people can't figure out who i am from details like that.