Yasuo ?

Suddenly awake, Yi opened his eyes. Oh, I fell asleep. Obviously. Now he found himself lying on the couch, still rolled in his blanket. It wasn't the best position to sleep in, already he started to regret it. A bit stiff, that kind of light bother.

Anyway, his thoughts weren't much about his condition at the moment but on a more pressing issue. Where is he ?

It would be a lie to say panick wasn't getting to him slowly. Yi sat up on the couch, despite being so short after sleep. His phone had fallen nearby on the couch, in reach. What really worried him was time. The sun was up, clear in the sky. It could only mean he had slept a lot.

In a hurry he checked the time and his messages. It was a bit around noon, nothing too late but compared to his usual sleep schedule this was too far. Several texts waited for him, from Yasuo. It was from a bit earlier, maybe an hour or so.

Within seconds Yi relaxed. It was fine. He slept outside. Not a possibility he was aware of but it was still a lot better than learning he spent the night at the police station or in the street. Or simply no news from him. Yes, it could have ended far worse and he was glad it didn't.

Now that his worry was calmed down Yi registered several things. The rush was gone, only leaving him a bit slow in his moves because indeed he just woke up. It was only now that he noticed what probably caused such waking, Lily. She wasn't in the living – if she was no doubt it would have woken him up faster. No, she was somewhere in the flat, crying for attention. Other noise typical from cooking came from the kitchen so now Yi had all the clues to guess the situation at hands.

Aww she's hungry.

Last guess, Yasuo was back and had started making lunch for them. This was some really good news for Yi, one thing less to do. Also because even with some sleep, he felt a bit tired. Surely that night wasn't so good in his usual rhythm. Oh next night wasn't going to be easy, since he would have to return to this hateful sleep schedule.

Everything was fine. He stayed there, on the couch, thoughts wandering a little since the emergency was over. Really, all this time he worried for nothing. He shouldn't have waited that much, Yi could only blame himself for this decision. Yet no way for him to know that Yasuo was sleeping somewhere else.

Wait. It meant that when he texted him, he was probably busy. A completely reasonable explanation. Ah crap. This wasn't his business, he had no way to know but he still felt bad for keep asking the latter when he had far better to do. At now he knew, if he didn't see him come back, he was probably out there.

Sleeping outside…

Well, that was normal. Everyone got a life and Yasuo wouldn't stop his because he stayed here. Yi would just keep this as far away from his thoughts as possible. No need to give thoughts to people's sexual life, including friends. He said 'some guy'. That was still some news. He didn't know what to do with that information, especially because of the train of thought explained just before. So he left it there and went on his life.

It started to smell really good in the flat, pushing him to realize he was really hungry. After all, no breakfast. Plus he had to give a sign of life. Probably Yasuo got home in the hour and found him on his couch. Should have moved before falling asleep… Yet again, he couldn't have predicted that. Now it was too late, no way to change how it went.

Curious steps led him to the kitchen, where indeed he found a loud Lily turning around Yasuo while he seemed quite busy. The table was already done for lunch. Yi came closer until he could pick up the cat and make it easier for the latter. As soon Yasuo noticed his presence, turning around with a shortly surprised look.

« Oh, hey ! Sorry about peanut, she's been screaming since I started making food. »

He looked genuinely bothered by all this but Yi could see it wasn't just because of the loud presence of Lily. There was something else.

« It's alright, I had to wake up anyway. I'm glad to see you made it back home safely. » After shortly looking at what Yasuo was cooking, he went to sit and Lily asked to be left down. This was looking good.

The pause wasn't exactly expected though. Yi noticed it but said nothing, waiting for what would happen. Both had responsibilities about the night, even if he would rather take the blame fully on him for the small miscommunication.

« Sorry about that too. I fucked up. » Yasuo wasn't looking at him, attention on what he was cooking in the pan. There was still tension in his stance, a bit tense.

Mmmh. Of course he would say something like that.

« It's not your fault. I didn't tell you I'd wait for your return so it's fully in me. Plus, nothing bad happened. »

« Still, I should have texted you or something. »

It was obvious that Yasuo was bothering himself over this, at least for a time. Now their food was ready, he served them and so they started eating. In the background Lily kept meowing in complete despair.

« Shhhh. » He still tried to calm her but it would go like always, loud complaint till she understood there was no use. His attention returned to Yasuo. « Everything is fine. Now I'll know better than waiting for your return. »

Indeed everything was alright. No need to make a fuss for a mere matter. Still, Yasuo was a bit more quiet than usual, more busy eating his food and looking elsewhere.

After a hurried departure like a drama queen, Lily left them alone to this peculiar conversation.

« I'll text you next time, when I sleep outside. I don't know how many time though, it's not for every night. »

Yi wanted to ask about his choice. About this preference for men. It had simply picked his attention and now he wondered since when. When they were in highschool he didn't remember that so it must have come later. Although this curiosity wasn't really correct. He had no valid reason to even ask beside acknowledging this aloud. It didn't matter, they both lived their lifes as they wanted. Just it was funny to learn they revealed to be gay later in life. It's not useful, stay quiet.

« It's your life, do as you wish. You don't owe me anything. » A smile went, at the idea of parenting him. It wasn't his role, even if all this time back in the days he looked after Yasuo just in case. The fact that he had come to him when he needed help wasn't without reasons.

« Thanks. I mean, for letting me go out like I want. »

Why did he sound so 'far' ? There was no real matter. In any case Yi wouldn't push.

« Hey, I'm not your dad. Because you're staying there doesn't mean you're not free. » He tried to make it seem light, even though he really meant it. Sometimes everything seemed a big deal to Yasuo while it wasn't so serious. As if he expected him to be strict.

Silence fell after that. What ? Really, Yi was getting worried. Was that wrong to say ? There was almost a short reflex, whatever that was and now Yasuo averted his gaze. Only another reason to sigh innerly. Well done.

He hoped what he caused wasn't too bad. A few words could do so much damage and Yi started to really fear he might have caused something. Yet he couldn't ask. It was like in the first days, he couldn't force Yasuo to speak of things he didn't want.

Tell me…