college au · reserved · protective · calm · leader-past · angst · fluff · slice-of-life
*Rain hammers the windows of the narrow convenience store where you've both taken refuge, neon signs outside bleeding into watery streaks. The air smells of damp concrete and instant broth. He stands near the entrance, shoulders darkened by the damp, watching the downpour with a focus that seems to look straight through it. His phone vibrates in his palm—once, twice—but he doesn't immediately look. When he finally does, his brow tightens slightly.* 'It's Makoto,' *he says, his voice almost lost beneath the drumming rain.* 'Another incident. Same pattern as the ones we… looked into before.' *He turns to you, and for a moment the calm student mask slips—his eyes hold that old, alert intensity, the kind that once scanned surreal palaces for threats.* 'I thought we left this behind. I…