Summary: Aki works too hard and doesn't take time for himself, or so Cid and Edea keep reminding him. Sometimes friendship - and possibly more - is where you'd least expect to find it. Post-game, B. Garden reconstruction AU.
They were an unlikely pair, just to look at them side-by-side; the older man in his starched collars and impeccably pressed suits, the younger one more casually clad in coveralls and a uniform at work - or, jeans and a t-shirt when he was off-duty. Both took life seriously, though to varying degrees; Aki was a workaholic, denying himself a personal life, his life was his career, his family was Garden. He knew nothing else.
Nida took life a little less seriously; of course he was serious about his work, serious about SeeD, driven to do something - he didn't know what - that people would remember. Not in some grandstanding, flashy way, either; he just wanted to find that one thing he was good at, something that he could see himself doing for the rest of his life.
Despite his quiet perseverance and his drive, Nida realized the value of taking time for himself, of leaving work at work, and of having some semblance of a social life. Aki's existence, by contrast, was a solitary one for the most part; his friends could be more aptly termed colleagues. He kept company with Cid and Edea, often being invited to supper by the Headmistress, who seemed to take pity on him in his perpetual bachelorhood.
"There is no rush," Aki had explained. "I just haven't met the right person yet." It wasn't a priority because Aki had never made it a priority. Dating was something the students did, they had more time for such things, Aki rationalized. "I have responsibilities -
"We want you to be happy, Aki," Edea told him over a bottle of wine one evening at supper. Cid shifted uncomfortably and looked away - how often he'd pleaded with his wife to just let it go, mind your own business, Aki is a grown man -
But she wouldn't, Edea liked Aki, he was one of their best instructors, and unbendingly loyal to her husband - and to her, throughout everything. Edea felt she owed him somehow.
"I am happy," Aki would patiently explain, and it wasn't really a lie, though not quite the full truth, either. "I have enough. I am content with my life...honestly." And he would smile, sip his wine, the smile slipping away as he thought about what he would do later on, after leaving the Kramers. He would go home to his quiet, empty room - still living among the students' dormitories - perhaps he would read a bit of the newspaper or Weapons Monthly over a cup of tea; meditate a bit, and go to bed.
The next day would be more of the same. Lather, rinse, repeat. Eat, work, sleep.
Content, Aki suddenly realized, was not necessarily interchangeable with happy. Happiness came in many hues and shades, and Aki was indeed happy in many areas of his life. His work made him feel accomplished; his students made him proud, made him realize all the hard work had been worth it. Love was one of those areas of Aki's life that he did not give much thought to, because he had convinced himself he did not need that in his life, he did not need someone.
Or anyone.
But he also knew he did not need to be in a relationship just for the sake of being with someone, he did not need someone in his life to make him whole. He already was his own person, and had been for a very long time. The Kramers meant well; especially Edea, always telling Aki to take time for himself, a sentiment echoed by Cid, who would remind Aki that he had banked so much unused vacation time he could take a full year for a sabbatical if he so wished.
He decided, as he lay in bed that evening, to take a trip during the summer term, as soon as classes were done. Aki would leave the day after graduation; he'd bought himself a motorcycle earlier that spring, a small roadster, just to get himself back and forth to town.
"What's that?" Nida asked, pointing at a note tacked to Aki's computer monitor in his office.
It said, in Aki's small and neat script, 'don't forget to eat.'
Aki looked taken aback and just a bit embarrassed at first – then he smiled at Nida. Then, as he explained what the note was about - simply a reminder to himself to remember to eat, since he so frequently would forget to do so during the day, he felt utterly absurd. Who does that, really? Aki scoffed inwardly to himself.
"It's...precisely what it looks like," Aki replied, embarrassed. He smiled again. "Sometimes...I get so caught up in my work that I do forget to eat. Haven't you done that yourself, though? On missions?"
"Well...sometimes." Nida sat back in the chair, staring across Aki's desk at him. He grinned. "But they do give us rations, you know. It'd be a cold day in hell when I'd forget to eat." Aki could believe that was true just by looking at him; Nida was athletic, well-built; he'd certainly filled out since he'd arrived at Garden as a gawky teenager.
"I'm sorry," Nida said quickly, realizing that what he'd said could be construed as mocking Aki, and that hadn't been his intent. "I just - well, I want you to know, I wasn't making fun of you. Just, I think you should...take better care of yourself, you know? You work too hard." He sat up, shoved a hand into his rear pants pocket, and withdrew a somewhat flat-looking, rectangular object, passing it over Aki's desk blotter.
"It's all right," Aki shrugged, though he was red-faced. "You're right, though...I really should. Nida - what...what is that?"
"It's an energy bar," Nida replied. "It's not much - and, uh, I kind of sat on it - but hey, you can have it. If you want."
Aki lay his face down on his blotter and crossed his arms in front of his head, shoulders heaving up and down. Muffled, weeping sounds were heard, and Nida's expression turned to that of alarm.
"Oh...shit, Aki - come on, man, don't be that upset!" Nida leaned forward, concerned, touched his fingers against Aki's forearm. Nice going, asshole. You made him snap, he's losing his shit.
Aki lifted his head, still laughing; he tried to catch his breath as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "Nida. Thank you. I haven't laughed like that in - I have no idea when. It's been too long, that's for certain."
Relieved, Nida grinned broadly. "Okay...good. I thought I'd insulted you - "
"By giving me a flattened energy bar? Hardly." Aki smiled. "That's probably the nicest thing anyone's done for me."
"Listen - " Nida stood, awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "I've got to get back up to the bridge. Maybe some other time - I'll buy you lunch in the caf, yeah? Or we can grab a beer at the Balamb Pub, whatever - "
Aki looked at Nida, surprised. "That would be nice, actually." He suddenly began to see Nida in a new and different light. Not as a student, but maybe – quite possibly - as a friend. Nida was no longer Aki's student, after all, he hadn't been in a classroom several years, so what harm could come of them sharing a meal together?
He realized he was staring too long at Nida as he mulled this over and quickly looked away, blushing a faint crimson. Nida, too, was beginning to feel his hackles rise in a not-altogether unpleasant way.
What the hell is happening here? Nida wondered, Was Aki flirting with him? Was he flirting with Aki? He'd always liked Aki as an instructor; strict but fair, he really was one of the best teachers Nida had in Balamb Garden.
Shit. Nida thought back half a dozen years or so, when Aki had finally shaved off that dreadful moustache that never really flattered him anyway. Never realized that Aki is actually hot, Nida recalled his realization on that very day, when he'd been caught staring a moment too long.
The same way Aki was staring at him right now.
Aki coughed, his blush deepening, and he straightened his lapels. "I have a Garden Council meeting to attend in five minutes," Aki told Nida as he stood up from his desk, closing his laptop shut, and tucking it into his bag.
"Sure, sure – sorry to hold you up – " Nida replied hurriedly, already turning to go. Great, made a giant ass of myself, I need to get out of here -
"Wait – " Aki reached out, grasped Nida's shoulder briefly, just to get his attention, then released it. "Seriously, I would like to meet with you later. I'm starving. Though I'll keep this handy for now." He smiled, patting his suit jacket pocket, where he'd deposited the energy bar Nida had given him earlier. A million little niggling thoughts were going through Aki's head, all of them nerve-wrought, as he began to realize his steadily increasing attraction to Nida.
Don't be ridiculous, Aki told himself. He's probably not even interested in that way, he's just being incredibly kindhearted.
Nida laughed. "Yeah, um – that isn't going to cut it for your dinner. How long's your meeting going to run?" Oh Hyne, did I just ask Aki out on a date? No, no, no – I just said grab a couple of beers. Two bros, just grabbing a couple of beers. Casual. That's all it is. Nida blinked, stared at a spot on the wall behind Aki's head until his eyes swam. He felt his throat suddenly go dry, and the tiniest drop of sweat began to trickle down the small of his back.
Aki looked at the clock on his wall and frowned, then sighed. "I am hoping no more than an hour. I'm also hoping that we'll get the funding we need for reconstruction. The Council is being a bit controlling with the purse strings."
"Good luck, man," Nida's voice squeaked as it came out, and he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him in that instant. "Hold on – " He pulled out his cell phone, tapped a few buttons, then presented it to Aki.
"Aki - just put your number in there – I'll send you a text, then you can call me back when your meeting's done, okay?" Nida's gaze kept meeting Aki's warm brown eyes, and he looked away quickly and nervously. "I mean – you don't have to, if you don't want to – "
Aki punched in the digits, then handed the phone back to Nida and smiled. "No, I do want to. I'll see you soon, Nida." Aki shouldered his laptop bag, then smiled again at Nida before taking his leave of him.
"Yeah…see you later, Aki." Nida turned to head in the opposite direction, back to his quarters, and let out a huge plug of air. He hadn't even realized until that moment that he'd been holding his breath.
Author's Note: This is an old story that I've reworked, cleaned up and reposted - discovered it sitting in a folder and decided it needed an update. Previously posted bits of this on Tumblr, but not in this final form - the ending kind of just hung there, having stopped abruptly. I am hoping this reads a little more smoothly. And yes - this is definitely the rarest of rare-pairs! Aki is based upon my RP version of Aki, who has become a full-fledged character with a background (at least in my AUs). I hope you enjoy!