Well, he was cute, Akaito thought to himself, shielding his half smile with his hand as he bounced down the steps to the first floor. He hated the way the cheap carpet felt on his new shoes and had been eager to try them out on the streets, hoping the concrete would prove to be a better match. As he made his way to the lobby, he greeted the fellow tenants he passed, keeping his ever flashing grin stretched across his attractive face. He had been dubbed the 'heart throb' of this complex and more than a few women, married or single, had fallen for his charms, ensnared by the mischievous twinkle in his eyes when he winked at them behind the back of their lovers, if they happened to have any, left weak-kneed by his flirty smirk. He passed a few of these and couldn't help but tease them for a split second before continuing on. If only they knew, he couldn't help but think. Once he left the complex, he slid his new headphones onto his ears and turned up his music, tuning out the rest of the world. He stood off to the side and spread his legs, stretching himself for a few minutes, getting his muscles ready to be used.

Finally prepared, he began his daily jog down the street, following the route that he usually took, the one that led him through town to his favorite coffee shop. He began to think as he ran, like usual, putting more and more distance between him and the subject which was currently on his mind with every pounding step. That adorable little tealette he had the pleasure of literally bumping into. Akaito had heard rumor that a new tenant would be renting the apartment down the hall from his. He had even seen the maintenance team come up with all their various equipment and clean everything in preparation of the new arrival, taking almost the whole day until they were finally finished, and yet for some reason he didn't think it was truly going to happen until he saw the blue headed boy unpack into 16B. 'It's been awhile since anyone new has moved onto that floor, he mused as he paused at a crosswalk, stretching lightly to keep his legs warm as he waited for the light to change. I think the last new person was me. The white little man finally made his appearance on the sign and Akaito continued down the street, keeping an eye out for radical speeding cars until he had safely passed through the crosswalk. He began to remember when he first moved out...the reason why he did...

Akaito pushed the memory out of his mind, far back to the base of his skull. He didn't feel like reminiscing now. His runs were his time to clear his head, not fill it back up with unpleasant thoughts. On his face, instead of his usual smile, hung a grimace. "Let's not think about that now, shall we?" he muttered to himself. He squared his shoulders into a firm line, then continued down the street.

xXx

Mikuo sighed from his place on the floor, the soft beige carpeting providing a cushion that soothed his weary muscles. The soft fabric tentacles bent under his weight, smelling faintly of carpet cleaner…something with a flowery scent. Despite its insistence to irritate his nose, producing a sneeze every now and then, it did wonders in helping to calm Mikuo's beating heart, which pumped at a slightly strained pace due to the effort of lugging box after box upstairs after stair into his new place, with little to no breaks, all by himself. "When did I get so much crap?" he groaned. It had taken him almost the whole afternoon to finish unloading all his stuff into the apartment. He hadn't even began to unpack yet and he was already ready to call it quits. "I'll just save if for tomorrow," he called into the apartment's emptiness, sighing once again. He then sat up and gazed around, taking in the place that will be his new home. The apartment, if he went by his mother's words, would be quaint. According to her boyfriend Jeff, it would be called pathetic. Yet Mikuo didn't mind how small it was. It was perfect for just him, nice and cozy. It's not like he took up that much space himself. Both the kitchenette and the dining area were a decent size, capable of holding three, maybe four, people at once. Not that Mikuo had many friends to invite over to begin with. The fridge had been included, one of its side pushed up against the wall, with chestnut brown cabinets hanging on the opposing side above cream colored marble counters and a white tile floor, exclusively for the kitchen and hopefully the bathroom which he hadn't mustered up the energy to check out just yet. The small living room, where Mikuo sat, was sparse and felt a little empty since none of the furniture had been set up yet. To be honest, Mikuo was a little glad that it had been small. He was sure everything he had would fit seeing as it wasn't a lot; if room, or even the apartment for that matter, had been any bigger there would have been too much unused floor space. Even now his mind raced as he started thinking what he was going to fill the cabinets with. "I guess I'm going to have to go house ware shopping sometime later," he mumbled with a yawn. He stretched himself along the floor, relaxing after holding the tension for a couple of seconds. "Get up already," he ordered himself, but with no avail; his body was simply refusing to get up. He entertained the idea of just falling asleep there on the floor, it was either that or take even more time settling out his bed, building the frame, putting on the cushions, then blankets, then pillows….it was exhausting just thinking about it. That's way too much work just to go to sleep, he decided. Mikuo threw himself to a standing position, locked up his new apartment and, after a bit of searching, found some pillows and blanket. He curled up in a spot and fell fast asleep, his exhaustion finally taking a complete hold on him.