Stop being sensible about if Atreyun would be here or not! This isn't about Atreyun. This is about an unworthy marria— date.
A slight frown tugs at his lips. There is much nuance he still needs to learn about the ways and customs of Akihito and his people. By Atreyun's estimation, Akihito is certainly old enough to be married. "I don't understand," he grumbles softly. "You're not alone now."
Well sorry but he's making it about Atreyun now too. Because when it's just about him, it's really awkward. When it's about just him and his dating life, as well as his maybe questionable dating choices, it's really awkward. It's a little less awkward when he can drag someone else into the fray with him.
Akihito shakes his head, glancing up at Atreyun and then forward toward where they're going, pointing down a side street with a quiet 'this way'. They're finally starting to put some distance between Akihito and where he was attacked. It makes him relax just a little more in Atreyun's arms. "It's okay. You don't have to understand." It's probably going to take time and patience to help Atreyun through the things he doesn't understand about the modern world. Akihito doesn't expect him to get things immediately. "No, I'm not alone now. But I was."
Don't feel awkward, Aki! Atreyun is with you.... WAIT! Oh no!
Akihito's relaxing. It's equal parts relief and concern as Atreyun has no way to know if it's just time and distance from the boy's attack or if he's very slowly losing consciousness. Well, as long as he gets them to their destination,the can address any injuries there.
Understanding of these strange customs can come later, too.
"Is it much further?" Not because he's tired. He wants Akihito to be able to rest comfortably. The sooner the better.
Akihito's relaxing, but he's conscious. He's conscious. He's awake. He's determined to stay that way until he gets home. It's be so easy to fall asleep right now or just give in to unconsciousness. It's been a long night. It's been stressful. He suffered physical abuse. Physical and emotional trauma. It's been exhausting. But with Atreyun, he feels safe. Safer. It would be so easy to let himself pass out right here in this man's arms. But this is also a man he doesn't know. A deity, maybe. A stranger, definitely. Someone who's been kind and helpful to Akihito, yes. Someone who may use that to their advantage, maybe.
"Not much further." He digs his apartment keys out of his pocket then slips the keyring around his index finger so he doesn't drop them. "See that blue building just ahead? You turn left there, then it's just three buildings up on the right."
Not much further, indeed. The whole trip wasn’t long to make on foot (not by Atreyun’s estimation). A few of these city blocks in one direction. A few more in another direction. Turn left at the blue building, three buildings up on the right. Easy enough. And with Atreyun’s brisk pace and long strides it isn’t long at all until they’re at the door. Unfamiliar with the concept of house keys, he waits staring, while Akihito opens the door and then proceeds to carry him inside. He maneuvers through the darkened apartment to lay the boy for rest on the couch.
It’s all very strange to him. He understands it all on a very surface level thanks to his initial connection with the boy. When Akihito’s feeling stronger, Atreyun has many questions. Now, he has only one.
Though it wasn't a terribly long trip as it was, it would've been shorter had Akihito been willing to go back the way he came. Specifically the direction he ran from. Even with Atreyun here, he couldn't do it. This also just goes to show how close he got to home before he was attacked. Does that mean they live near him? What if they're in his building? There's a sense of dread that comes over him at that thought.
No more than a handful of seconds after Atreyun lays Akihito on the couch, he's climbing back to his feet with a not insignificant amount of effort. He shuffles across the room to flip the light switch, lighting up the living room. The space is quaint. Cozy. There's a bookshelf on one wall, filled with a mix of novels and picture books, trinkets and cute stuffed animals. There's a small television in one corner, and a tall snake plant in the other. There are photos on the walls alongside art and other hanging wall decor. Quaint. Cozy.
"Fetch water? Oh! Oh no, you don't have to do that." And not in the brushing it off 'you've already done enough for me' sort of way. He gestures for Atreyun to follow as he slowly limps his way to a door next to the living room. "The water comes to us," he explains as he flips on the bathroom light and points to the sink before turning on the cold water. "See?"
A frown pulls his features down when Akihito instantly rises from where he’s been placed to rest. Atreyun’s dismay is short lived, replaced by some level of surprise and awe when the room is bathed instantly and fully in light. He physically jolts, blinking around the room to find the light sources that lit like magic. (Is electricity not magic to someone who knows no such thing?) A few seconds pass before Atreyun takes in the whole of the room. As expected, it’s very unlike what he knows. The homes of people thousands of years ago are alien in comparison to this.
Without a word more, he follows Akihito to another room (partitioned rooms! What a novelty!). Once more he jerks his head up when the lights come on. He’s much quicker this time to look at his surroundings. Very foreign to him, indeed. But the way he audibly gasps when Akihito turns the tap and the water pours forth. But the basin it spills into is fixed and not large enough to get a pail under…
Sorry Atreyun, but there are some things that are easier to show than explain. Which means he has to get up so he can show them. Besides, he can make his way around his apartment well enough. Oh, everything is still horribly painful (a little more so, even, since he hasn't really moved much since leaving the book store) but he can get around well enough. It's not like his apartment is too big that he has to do a lot of walking to get from one place to another.
"That one isn't for bathing." Akihito shuts the water off and moves to the opposite side of the bathroom where the bathtub sits against the wall. He sits on the edge of it (he can get around, but standing and walking are both incredibly exhausting) before leaning down to put the stopper in the drain. "I have a bathtub for bathing. It has the same taps at the sink does," he explains, pointing to the silver fixtures on the tub that match those on the sink.
A tiny, awed oh escapes him as the water flows on a slightly larger scale than from the sink. It's a moment before Atreyun moves closer, reaching out to move his fingers through the running water. This time, upon feeling that it's already growing warm, he gasps.
"It's done with electricity, like how the lights are powered. Or with fire? I'm not sure exactly how they do it in this building. But anyway, there's, like, a really big thank downstairs in the basement that is filled with water and the water is heated up in the tank with electricity or fire. Then it just sits there, nice and preheated, waiting until someone needs it. I think? I'm not super sure about how hot water heaters work. I can find a better explanation for it later if you want." He's sure there's somehow around a million youtube videos to choose from to explain water heaters. A video that will explain it much better than he can, given he knows very little about these sorts of things. He lives in an apartment so he doesn't need to know this stuff.
"Um, I'm going to get undressed now so if you could wait out in the living room for me... It's where you put me down when we got inside." Taking a few deep breaths to prepare himself, Akihito climbs back to his feet. There, he takes a few more breaths. Everything hurts and it makes everything feel like so much effort. It makes him have to think out every move before he makes it. No room for anything extra. So it's a full minute of standing there before he tugs on the zipper of his sweater, trying to shrug off the garment without too much effort. That the one place the sweater isn't full stretched out is around his injured wrist just feels cruel. Moving his arm enough to reach the sweater with his other hand feels like more than he's capable of right now, so he just stands, looking down at the sweater hanging from his wrist.
"Magic," he whispers softly, to himself. He's not trying to correct Akihito, but so little of that makes sense to him where magic does.
For a moment Atreyun doesn't move. He doesn't look away from the water. "Can you manage on your own?" There's nothing suggestive in his tone. When he does rise up and look at Akihito, it's with nothing but concern. However, he bows his hand and slips out the door to afford him his privacy. No argument on this matter. Which isn't do say Atreyun doesn't have his concerns.
"Magic," Akihito agrees. There's something about science being practically indistinguishable from one another right? If you don't understand the science, it can seem like magic. Well, he's sure that he barely understands the science better than Atreyun, truthfully. But he's going to learn about it. He has a general understanding from school, but not enough to properly explain it. And he wants to be able to explain it to Atreyun. Or find someone else who can.
"I think I can manage, yeah." He leans over to turn the water off with his free hand, the other still covered by the sweater pathetically hanging from his wrist. Despite that, he nods his head as though to further reassure Atreyun that he can handle this on his own. He watches as Atreyun leaves the bathroom before looking down at himself, down at the clothes he has to try to get out of. He spends some time doing just that, looking down at himself. Breathing. Inwardly trying to hype himself up to start moving. It sounds daunting. It shouldn't. It does. Because of those guys, he has to plan out his every movement. He has to talk himself into it and brace for it. He hates that. He hates them.
Over the next few minutes, all Akihito really manages to do is to get his socks and sweater off, and unfasten his pants. He finally got his sweater off by stepping on it and gently tugging his hand free, and employed a similar method for his socks. Anything beyond that and undoing his pants feels like it takes a wider range of movement than he's capable of right now. Stepping out of his pants, getting his shirt up over his head, it sounds impossible.
Slowly, Akihito shuffles toward the bathroom door, stopping just on the outside of the doorway. "Atreyun?"
While on his own, Atreyun takes some time to explore. Mostly, he's looking curiously at the items on Akihito's shelves and walls: the books, the photos, the cute plushes. While he can read the words thanks to his initial connection with Akihito, the titles mean little to him. Whether they're well-known works or obscure, Atreyun couldn't say. Nor would it matter save to give some indication of Akihito's tastes. Likewise, the faces in the photos are all strangers to Atreyun. Save perhaps familiar resemblance, he couldn't tell who these people are to Akihito. But they're important enough that he keeps their likenesses on display.
It's these things he's pondering when Akihito calls for him. He turns his attention toward the boy and crosses the room to stand before him.
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A slight frown tugs at his lips. There is much nuance he still needs to learn about the ways and customs of Akihito and his people. By Atreyun's estimation, Akihito is certainly old enough to be married. "I don't understand," he grumbles softly. "You're not alone now."
no subject
Akihito shakes his head, glancing up at Atreyun and then forward toward where they're going, pointing down a side street with a quiet 'this way'. They're finally starting to put some distance between Akihito and where he was attacked. It makes him relax just a little more in Atreyun's arms. "It's okay. You don't have to understand." It's probably going to take time and patience to help Atreyun through the things he doesn't understand about the modern world. Akihito doesn't expect him to get things immediately. "No, I'm not alone now. But I was."
Don't feel awkward, Aki! Atreyun is with you.... WAIT! Oh no!
Understanding of these strange customs can come later, too.
"Is it much further?" Not because he's tired. He wants Akihito to be able to rest comfortably. The sooner the better.
LMFAO!
"Not much further." He digs his apartment keys out of his pocket then slips the keyring around his index finger so he doesn't drop them. "See that blue building just ahead? You turn left there, then it's just three buildings up on the right."
no subject
It’s all very strange to him. He understands it all on a very surface level thanks to his initial connection with the boy. When Akihito’s feeling stronger, Atreyun has many questions. Now, he has only one.
“Where may I fetch water for you?”
no subject
No more than a handful of seconds after Atreyun lays Akihito on the couch, he's climbing back to his feet with a not insignificant amount of effort. He shuffles across the room to flip the light switch, lighting up the living room. The space is quaint. Cozy. There's a bookshelf on one wall, filled with a mix of novels and picture books, trinkets and cute stuffed animals. There's a small television in one corner, and a tall snake plant in the other. There are photos on the walls alongside art and other hanging wall decor. Quaint. Cozy.
"Fetch water? Oh! Oh no, you don't have to do that." And not in the brushing it off 'you've already done enough for me' sort of way. He gestures for Atreyun to follow as he slowly limps his way to a door next to the living room. "The water comes to us," he explains as he flips on the bathroom light and points to the sink before turning on the cold water. "See?"
no subject
Without a word more, he follows Akihito to another room (partitioned rooms! What a novelty!). Once more he jerks his head up when the lights come on. He’s much quicker this time to look at his surroundings. Very foreign to him, indeed. But the way he audibly gasps when Akihito turns the tap and the water pours forth. But the basin it spills into is fixed and not large enough to get a pail under…
“How do you use this to bathe?”
no subject
"That one isn't for bathing." Akihito shuts the water off and moves to the opposite side of the bathroom where the bathtub sits against the wall. He sits on the edge of it (he can get around, but standing and walking are both incredibly exhausting) before leaning down to put the stopper in the drain. "I have a bathtub for bathing. It has the same taps at the sink does," he explains, pointing to the silver fixtures on the tub that match those on the sink.
no subject
"What magic is used to heat this?"
no subject
"Um, I'm going to get undressed now so if you could wait out in the living room for me... It's where you put me down when we got inside." Taking a few deep breaths to prepare himself, Akihito climbs back to his feet. There, he takes a few more breaths. Everything hurts and it makes everything feel like so much effort. It makes him have to think out every move before he makes it. No room for anything extra. So it's a full minute of standing there before he tugs on the zipper of his sweater, trying to shrug off the garment without too much effort. That the one place the sweater isn't full stretched out is around his injured wrist just feels cruel. Moving his arm enough to reach the sweater with his other hand feels like more than he's capable of right now, so he just stands, looking down at the sweater hanging from his wrist.
no subject
For a moment Atreyun doesn't move. He doesn't look away from the water. "Can you manage on your own?" There's nothing suggestive in his tone. When he does rise up and look at Akihito, it's with nothing but concern. However, he bows his hand and slips out the door to afford him his privacy. No argument on this matter. Which isn't do say Atreyun doesn't have his concerns.
no subject
"I think I can manage, yeah." He leans over to turn the water off with his free hand, the other still covered by the sweater pathetically hanging from his wrist. Despite that, he nods his head as though to further reassure Atreyun that he can handle this on his own. He watches as Atreyun leaves the bathroom before looking down at himself, down at the clothes he has to try to get out of. He spends some time doing just that, looking down at himself. Breathing. Inwardly trying to hype himself up to start moving. It sounds daunting. It shouldn't. It does. Because of those guys, he has to plan out his every movement. He has to talk himself into it and brace for it. He hates that. He hates them.
Over the next few minutes, all Akihito really manages to do is to get his socks and sweater off, and unfasten his pants. He finally got his sweater off by stepping on it and gently tugging his hand free, and employed a similar method for his socks. Anything beyond that and undoing his pants feels like it takes a wider range of movement than he's capable of right now. Stepping out of his pants, getting his shirt up over his head, it sounds impossible.
Slowly, Akihito shuffles toward the bathroom door, stopping just on the outside of the doorway. "Atreyun?"
no subject
It's these things he's pondering when Akihito calls for him. He turns his attention toward the boy and crosses the room to stand before him.
"I am here."