Susan: Hey! Happy Valentine's Day! This is just a cute little one-shot, so I hope you enjoy the fluffiness! I don't own Sekai ichi Hatsukoi or any of the characters, I'm just messing with them. This is for my friend Alara, cause she seems to have been on a kick for this show lately.
"Leave me alone Takano." Ritsu growled, moving to close his door. His neighbor, boss and personal sexual harasser was holding the small cat out in front of him like a tribute. The shorter man grimaced, not understanding the man's persistence.
"Listen Ritsu, I know you think that I'm just trying to get you to talk to me, but I need your help. I just got a call and I have to leave for Ninohe in the Iwate prefecture for the next few days. I need you to take care of Sorata until I get back." Takano pleaded, or at least as close as he got to pleading.
"Get Yokozawa to take care of him." Ritsu tried to close his door, but the older man had wedged his foot between the door and its frame, something that he'd become quite good at. "Good night Takano." Ritsu was trying to keep his temper and not just hit his boss before slamming the door.
"He can't take him! Yokozawa is with Kirishima and his daughter Hiyori and says that he can't be bothered."
"So instead you are going to bother me?" Ritsu cried, his irritation increasing until he couldn't keep his grip on it.
"Why are you being so stubborn? It's not like I'm asking you to admit your feelings about me!" By this time Takano had moved so that he was standing fully in the doorway, the door now pushed completely open so Ritsu couldn't hide partially behind it like he had been.
"No, you just try to get me to do that every other time that we talk!"
"So you admit that you have feelings for me?" Takano's voice dropped till it was something akin to a purr and Ritsu instinctively took a step back, trying to put more space between the two of them.
"No! Of course not! All I feel for you is irritation and the beginnings of hate because you can't just accept that I don't love you."
"There is that quote about love and hate being barely decipherable from one another. Are you sure you aren't just mixing the two up?"
"I'm sure that I can distinguish my emotions without you weighing in on it. I'll take the damn cat, but get out of my home!" Snatching the cat out of Takano's hands and cradling it to his chest with one hand, Ritsu used his other to shove his surprised ex-lover out the door before slamming it closed with a satisfying ~thunk!~ "Your owner is absolutely mental." He murmured to Sorata who just looked at him with bored eyes. "But I'm guessing you already knew that..."
"So what am I supposed to do with you now? Did you already eat? Have you been out? Wait, you're a cat, meaning you use a litter box. Meaning I need your litter box and other things from Takano's." Ritsu sighed, holding the cat to his chest like a shield as he opened his door again and glanced outside. His neighbor's door was wide open, and Ritsu steeled himself before stepping inside the much cleaner apartment. "Takano?" he called quietly, not really sure if he wanted a response.
"I figured you'd be over soon." The other man's voice rumbled from the kitchen area where he held a can of cat food and a bowl, appearing to be in the process of preparing Sorata's dinner. "You don't actually have to keep him with you, just come over in the mornings and evenings to feed him and play with him if he feels like it. His food is under the sink with his litter, and his box is over in the corner." Nodding, Ritsu let Sorata out of his arms and watched as the cat immediately went to Takano.
"When will you be back?" Ritsu mumbled, embarrassed by his earlier actions.
"Wednesday. Thursday at the latest." The older man disappeared into his bedroom, returning momentarily with a small suitcase and a key. Ritsu followed Takano to the door, not daring to look him in the face. Takano smiled down at him as he dropped the key into Ritsu's hand and after slipping on his coat, he touched Ritsu's hair briefly. The movement quickly turned into a grip on the back of Ritsu's neck so that the head editor could kiss the shorter man chastely. It was so quick that Ritsu didn't even have time to react before Takano had stepped back, murmured goodbye, and walked out of the door.
Staring at the now closed door, Ritsu felt his jaw drop for a few seconds before he growled, turning away. "I hate your owner." He told the cat who was paying more attention to his food than than the speaking man.
Other than a quick run over to Takano's apartment in the morning and some half-awake playing in the evening with Sorata, Ritsu didn't change his day very much. Despite being at the end of a cycle, Ritsu was still exhausted at the end of each day. Wednesday came and went, as did Thursday. By Friday Ritsu was getting both irritated and worried. Takano hadn't responded to any of his texts, emails, or even the two voicemail messages he'd left. The added emotions were wearing down Ritsu, leaving him to collapse onto his couch, or on Friday evening onto Takano's, to watch some TV and drift in and out of sleep. Sorata was playing at his feet but eventually ended up curled upon his lap.
When Takano finally did get home, furious with his newest artist who didn't even look like he was out of high school, he slammed the door shut behind him. The kid had a total melt down after his last storyboard critique and the older editor had to go and talk things out with the boy. He had talent, and very good ideas for where his stories would go, which were some of the only reasons that Takano hadn't decided to kick his ass into gear or fire him. There was also that fact that the kid reminded Takano of his high school boyfriend, which both endeared the artist to the older man, but also just reminded the editor about how Ritsu continued to deny that they cared for each other.
Takano dropped his bag in the entrance of his apartment, sighing as he toed off his shoes. He was surprised that there was another pair of shoes, but smirked when he realized they must've been Ritsu's. It was quite late, well past 2 AM. He should've been home and asleep by now. "Ritsu?" Takano called, surprised when he didn't hear an answer immediately. Walking farther into his home, the older man smiled slightly, catching sight of the man he loved on his couch with his cat.
Too tired to move Ritsu to his bed, Takano decided to grab a thick blanket from his closet. He took a few moments to dig through his bag, finally pulling out a small box with a fuchsia ribbon and placing it on the table directly in front of Ritsu before curling up beside the sleeping man. "I love you. Happy Valentine's Day." He whispered, placing a gentle kiss to the top of Ritsu's head.
Susan: HA! THERE! DONE! I should not find meeting a deadline so exhilarating...I seriously need a life, and not the one I've been having for the last few years. Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed this and have a Happy Valentine's Day! And for those who don't have a valentine, ahem me ahem, go have a blast with your buddies, eat tons of chocolate, and devour a pot of chocolate fondue with pound cake and strawberries!