The time on Narumi's expensive wrist watch said it was vaguely between his afternoon saunter around the local district and when he was to be sat in his office with a cup of coffee. Coffee brewed by Raidou, his assistant, to be enjoyed while they waited for the rapping on the door of a new client in need. Narumi was on his way to the Agency, actually, having taken a bit more time on his stroll to see about a new import trade-post opening up not too far away. For once it wasn't for his own selfish gains, either. Apparently Raidou had gotten a tip that some new imps from over seas were hitching a ride on cargo from their home land to the Capital, so of course Narumi had to investigate. Though he couldn't see demons he could certainly see how shady the business was. Not to mention some odd seals written across linens and on slips of paper that decorated the interior of the tiny cargo ship's shack. All in all the joint seemed like a poor cover for something more sinister, but all together amateur.
Narumi was confident his summoner would have the place sorted out in no time.
Speaking of, as he rounded the last flight of stairs before the Agency, Narumi knew he'd be returning home long after Raidou had gotten out of school. So, surely, a pot of coffee would be made. Unless he'd gone to do a case file, but even then the kid usually ground beans for when the Detective returned so he could brew some himself. The state of the Agency, however, when Narumi entered the front door was far from the norm.
The scent of hot coffee did not greet the man as he opened the front door wide and took a deep breath in, but Raidou's school bag sat alone on the table, disturbed as though it had been rummaged through, but not a hair of the summoner in question around. No coffee, even though his assistant was home? All of this was perceived in a moment, and thankfully no later than that, as the man heard a duet of youthful giggling down the hall just before he put a palm to his lips so as to call the summoner forth. Now the situation was very peculiar. Not only did Raidou neglect his unspoken duty to ready the coffee, fail to be diligently at work with his studies, and not notice when his boss returned, but he was fraternizing with a civilian that sounded his age. And, from the feminine mewl that came out from under his bedroom door, he wasn't just beating his gums about school with her either.
Narumi would have sworn, up and down, had the kid been anyone else but Raidou- Hell, had he been any other summoner but Raidou- there would have been two outcomes to his discovery. If Narumi thought the kid a square then maybe they'd get a pat on the back for finding time in their schedule to canoodle a bit and unwind. If they were a slacker he would have beaten the door down and embarrassed both parties till they sank through the floor.
But right now he was at a loss.
Suddenly all steaming irritation with the summoner for not having his coffee ready deflated into the empty, cold feeling of being sorry for himself. Gosh, did he ever wish he'd just taken his time up the stairs so he would have been spared the gal's satisfied coo. The color drained from his face and all at once the man felt completely broken up. And he wasn't even sure what for. A cool wave of betrayal, and acceptance of that betrayal, dripped down Narumi's back from the crown of his head as he shuffled to the stairs towards his desk and took a seat at his big pompous chair without bothering to remove his jacket or hat. At least from there the sounds of his summoner and the young lady were mostly muffled, but like any unwanted sounds of love making, they seemed to pierce right through the walls and echo mockingly in the detective's headspace.
It wasn't even like he knew the kid that way, though, so why did he feel so heartsick over his discovery like he'd walked in on a cheating lover? Again, if it were anyone else but Raidou, Narumi would have been ready to give the kid a clap on the back and a free dinner out for them and their date. But right now his guts were in knots over his summoner having a romp. After the events fighting King Abbadon, Narumi had to admit his admiration bordered on adoration. Total devotion, even. Despite tasking Raidou with some of the more petty Office duties, Narumi thought the world of him. He'd never entertained the thought of being jealous, though.
Perhaps it was his own fault for assuming Raidou's interests stopped at work and school. He never seemed all that interested in other things anyway. His life was constantly on the line, after all, and the Yatagarasu treated him as if he were expendable. Narumi held the kid in great esteem for being so serious and taking pride in his job despite the dogma surrounding it. At least he wasn't reckless in the face of all that danger, which Narumi was weak enough to do. He'd proven it before.
When he thought the kid was dead all those years before, he'd gone out for revenge, even if it meant he'd die as well. Raidou would never behave so recklessly.
Narumi made a fist in his hair, bumping his hat away, and cursed himself for not thinking Raidou was more than a soldier. Feeling like a cod for thinking Raidou thought best of him. Acting like he was the only person who loved the summoner for more than his looks. How could he have been so blind? Maybe Raidou would behave recklessly, just not for him.
The excited chattering from behind Raidou's door grew hushed, signaling an end, and the detective could almost hear the conversation. It was probably about when he, Narumi, would be getting back from his walk-about and whether or not the young lady could escape the Office unseen.
Lo and behold, after the sound of Raidou's door opening there was the hurried whispers of two young folks and the soft slow creaking of their feet across the floor as they made their way to the front door. Though the detective could not see them yet, Raidou could see the coat wrack, and the lack of Narumi's tells on it, so he straightened up and moved at his usual trot again, leading the co-ed to the front door. Narumi tried to look busy for a moment, almost wanting to play off that he'd not heard a thing, but the sight of Raidou coming out of the hall with his jacket gone and shirt untucked, followed closely by a shapely young woman. Her hair was short, shoulder length, but she was holding a hairband that she used to keep the long bangs out of her eyes. The both of them appeared to be wearing the same color lipstick at this point. As the gal fixed the Senior broach on the front of her school uniform, it was a bit too much for Narumi to ignore.
Staring straight at them as they walked out didn't help either. The duo seemed to pick up that they were being watched and their heads swiveled directly to the detective's gaze.
Instantly the gal's face turned pink and she laughed as she pressed her forehead into Raidou's back to hide. Raidou, on the other hand, did not laugh, and threw a hand out behind him to cover up his lady friend while the other hand wiped at something on his face. Narumi didn't have to say anything as he pulled out a drawer on his desk and got to work dumping out a box of matches onto his workspace.
"Thanks for visiting!" he barked in a strained tone, as if trying to sound jovial and failing miserably. Even though Raidou was standing right there the room swelled with a sense of abandonment that tugged Narumi's gaze through his desk and to the floor. The awkwardness of watching his boss behave like a forsaken child only made Raidou falter briefly. Turning about to look at the lady behind him, the summoner murmured to her very softly, his lips at her ear, and ushered her to the door in silence. They were both smiling, though Narumi couldn't see it, but the wet smack of their goodbye smooch was far to loud and it made the detective's vision go green with envy.
He was jealous without ever having considered it. Picking vaguely at the chaos of matches on his desk, Narumi sat hunched over and dejected, unable to hide his hurt expression. Raidou didn't even stay in the room to dwell in Narumi's devastated aura, though. With a bow and curt apology, Raidou excused himself into the kitchen and went to work getting their coffee ready.
Narumi was pointed towards a long voyage on a sea of roaring agony, years of debt into this idea that Raidou, somehow, loved him back pelting down on him like blistering hail. And the person he thought he was most close to and could depend on was the cause of his despair.
"God damnit…" he muttered into a quivering fist, wanting so badly to justify chewing Raidou out over seeing that civilian just so he could keep him from seeing her again. But it dawned on the detective that he'd only just caught Raidou this once. Who knew what else the summoner had been getting away with. The idea made him sick. Ignorance is Bliss, Love is Blind. None of those dumb phrases comforted the aging Detective. He was 34 at this point and had squandered his time taking care of some boy who'd never even batted an eye at him. He'd lied to himself and was finally face to face with what a terrible choice he'd made.
To say Narumi was on edge when Raidou returned with coffee was the understatement of the century. Eyes snapping up at the quiet summoner, Narumi used all his grace in that moment to speak as clearly and calmly as he could.
"Did you have a good day..?" he tried asking, but Raidou wasn't tone deaf and saw right through the friendly question, his cold stare telling Narumi to cut the shit. The older man looked miserably up at his assistant, a finger curled in his wild hair as the, now dressed, Raidou set down his coffee and turned to walk away. Words he wanted to say finally bubbled up.
"N-now you stop right there!" he commanded, standing up from his chair to lean over his messy desk, neck craning out to catch the summoner's cool eyes as he looked slowly over his shoulder. "Since when did you start… fucking around on my watch?" snarled the detective bitterly, "Since when did you have the time to?! When were you even remotely interested in other people?!"
Raidou turned all the way around to face his boss, a serving tray folded under his arm, and stared squarely at Narumi. His eyes were narrowed and his lips pursed into a fine line, but his expression otherwise unreadable. Under that gaze the detective's venom grew weak and the burning knot in his throat cooled as shame lit on his shoulders.
The summoner wasn't a kid anymore, he was young but he'd seen more than most. Done more than several could do in a lifetime. When he looked at Narumi he wasn't confused like a child or disappointed like a peer.
"When?" the summoner repeated, his expression placid like a still lake, "When I became interested in you." Instead of all those things one would expect, he was forgiving, like an elder. Narumi stared angrily at Raidou for a moment before blinking in disbelief.
"I knew pursuing you, Narumi, would be pointless until you learned I could feel," he explained, "I wanted you, but until now you didn't believe I could want. That I had desires outside of my duty. But, I do." The ferocity in Narumi's body was completely snuffed out. The summoner wiped at his brow like a tired old man, eyes closing with a deep sigh.
Narumi stared dumbstruck at the other. He'd been played this whole time? No, no. He was just too self centered. He loved Raidou so dearly he forgot what made him such a catch in the first place. Embarrassed he'd gotten so worked up, the detective sat down and buried his face in his hands. He'd felt far too much for one day. Too much for a week, even, in just those short minutes. The catharsis he was going through would be for the better, though. Walking to the detective's side, Raidou pat his shoulder and stared blankly down at the fallen man.
"I'm sorry, Raidou." confessed the detective, mulling over what had been said, applying it to moments in the past when he dumbly made passes at the summoner, trying to excite an emotion when Raidou knew all along he wasn't ready, "God I feel like a putz…" The summoner rubbed his shoulder again before leaning down to kiss Narumi's cool temple. Narumi could say he was sorry all he wanted, but it was on the summoner's head then. He knew that and so he planned on paying back that debt he owed the detective, with interest.
"It's fine, Narumi." he comforted, placing his cheek on the top of the detective's head, feeling the grown man shake, "Now, cream or sugar in your coffee?"