"Okay Josh, you've dragged me all around Shibuya, you took me to Ramen Don, to Miyashita park, and then we went shopping at AMX, and you've refused to let me pay for anything today, and now we're here. At Udagawa. What's up?" Neku frowns, and Josh figures he's expecting some smug answer.
What Neku gets instead, is a blush rising to Josh's face, as he bites his lip and looks away. He has to pause and think, trying to remember the script he'd prepared, and he can feel the seconds tick past as he fails to think of the words. In the end, he sighs, and he knows he has to speak or the silence will stretch on too long, so he decides to wing it.
"I was wondering if you would like to go out. With me. In the dating sense… Like, I like you? And… ugh." He groans, covering his face with his hand and closing his eyes, because this is coming out horrible. "I had a script prepared," he mumbles, "but I can't remember it. But hanging out with you is a lot of fun, and when I'm around you I just feel all bubbly and happy and I don't ever have to play pretend, I can just be myself, and just… ugh."
He doesn't look up at Neku yet, afraid to see the reaction. "You make me forget all my words and scripts because I don't usually need them around you, but I wanted to do this right, even though I think I reversed the order since you're supposed to ask someone out before taking them out on what would probably count as a date… This is so awful I'm sorry you can just… forget this happened."
Josh stares at the ground, waiting for a reaction, any sort of reaction at all, but Neku's not speaking. As he dares to look up he hears footsteps, and Neku's in front of him, and as he drops his hand to his side, bracing for a negative remark, Neku leans in to kiss him.
It's soft, and short, and sweet, and Josh melts into it, eyes widened when it ends, as he stares at Neku, who has now circled his arms around him.
"You're a huge dweeb, ya know? Instead of me forgetting this, how about I always remember that adorable mess of a confession, and say yes?" Neku smiles at Josh, amusement sparkling in his eyes, but there's no ill intent.
"That… that works for me. I'd be happy with that. Super, super happy, actually, with that, like-"
Neku cuts him off with another kiss. "You're rambling again. Would asking questions help your brain start working again?" Josh nods, and so Neku asks, "Okay then, how come you chose today to ask me out?"
Josh grins. "It's the anniversary of when we met, it only felt fitting."
It takes Neku a moment, the gears in his brain turning, but when he realizes, he shoots Josh a glare. "Oh my god, you're such an ass. I cannot believe, of all days you could choose, you chose the one on which you shot me."
That gets a giggle from Josh. "You still said yes, dear. I'm surprised you didn't remember the date, it's only been a year. Of course, now you have a new date to remember."
Josh groans, feeling his body shake as he slips out of that dream. He blinks looking around, and oh this isn't his bedroom. It takes a moment to recall that he'd left, motivated by his nightmares to get out of the house. The last he could remember was texting Neku. Who happens to be looking down at him in concern.
"You okay, Josh? I got here and you were passed out, so I figured I should let you sleep, but it's been like half an hour since then."
He frowns, rubbing his head. "Ugh, has it? Must've fallen asleep while waiting for you. Had another dream I can't remember, different but similar again, to the other two. Felt happier though." Part of that was a lie, he could remember bits and pieces of it, yet the dream still had the same feel as the others, and that freaked him out a bit. He didn't want to tell Neku, though, because the content involved him asking Neku out. He never wanted to admit dreaming about that, it'd give away his crush.
"It took me like, five minutes to get here. You fell asleep in five minutes. That's not good." Neku frowns, sitting down to his right, and Josh scoots closer, hesitating for a moment before leaning on him. When he does so, Neku wraps an arm around him.
"I don't think I've had a good night's sleep in months, since these nightmares began. They're just so frustrating! I can't sleep half the time after them, too scared by the mysterious events that I can't even remember. My grades have started slipping, I'm always tired, and now I think I'm so sleep deprived that I'm seeing things. Things I don't usually see! I thought I saw blood when I got here, just a few feet away from the mural. Two days ago, Wednesday, at Towa records, I thought I saw Beat's sibling, Rhyme, but they were like, 13? I don't know how I recognized them. And then a Swing Shark Noise got them! But later that day I saw Rhyme at Ramen Don. I keep seeing Taboo Noise, and I don't even know how I'd know they're Taboo, but when I look again they're gone, and Hanekoma hasn't gotten any reports of Taboo."
He curls up tighter as Neku traces circles on his arm, sighing. "I'm just so. Done. With all of this shit. Pretty much every time I've gone by Hachiko for the past two weeks I've seen glimpses of you, but I go to say hi, and that turns out to be false too."
Neku frowns. "Well, I'm here right now, and I insist that you get some sleep. It's Friday, no school tomorrow, so I'm sure Hanekoma won't mind if I spend the night. It's helped before, after all."
Josh's eyes widen. "No no no, no, you don't have to, really, it's fine! I swear, I'm fine-"
Neku cuts off his protests by standing up, and picking Josh up, carrying him bridal-style. "No protests. I'm taking you to your room, and as long as you're fine with contact tonight, we are going to snuggle under that great weighted blanket of yours until you get a good night's rest." With that, he heads off, walking the path to WildKat.
"Neku, you don't need to do this, I'll be fine," Josh mumbles, holding back a yawn.
"Bullshit. Like hell you're fine. You are having actual hallucinations, which might not seem like a big deal to you with your ability to see the Game and all, but the Game is there, just hidden from most, while this stuff ain't." Neku glances down at him, before looking up again to pay attention to where he's going, and Joshua is thankful that the light given off by the street-lamps isn't enough to reveal his blush as he leans his head on Neku's chest.
"Doesn't justify you carrying me though…" He didn't want to be put down, but he's got a mask to maintain. Can't let it slip that he likes being carried, that'd be a sign of his crush.
"The more you protest, the more I am going to smother you in care. I've added letting you use my headphones to listen to music to the list of what you get tonight."
"Ugh. Fine, you win." He's known Neku since he was eight, and in those seven years, he's learned that a determined Neku is one that cannot be stopped.
"Maybe I should try and find that lavender candle you love, I'm sure there's some around your place. Smells good, I like it too, though if this all sounds like too much sensory stuff, I don't have to get that." Neku looks back down again, and Josh figures he's smiling by the soft lilt to his voice, but it's hard to tell with his eyes closed.
"Music is fine, candle is a no. Lavender may be calming, but smells are distracting and keep me up, as does the light from a flame."
Neku hums in acknowledgement, slipping his spare key to the quiet cafe out from his pocket, being careful not to drop Josh. Once they're inside, it's a simple matter of navigating through the storefront to the back, and up the stairs to Josh's bedroom.
Joshua looks up through half-open eyes at Neku, as the other sets him on the bed and grabs the blanket. He soon feels the comforting weight of Neku's headphones around his head, and the harmonic melodies playing from them would be enough to lull him to sleep alone. The weighted blanket, and Neku laying half on top of him, are both enough to ensure he passes out quick.
Neku sighs, pulling out his phone as the light starts to filter in from Joshua's window. He'd slept a bit, but not as much as Josh, who was still out cold underneath him. He didn't dare move off the other, disturbing this much needed rest that lacked nightmares didn't sound at all appealing.
Instead, he opts to send a message to Hanekoma, not wanting him to come in and wake Josh up.
^Josh is asleep beneath me, don't come wake him up. He's not having any nightmares right now, he needs this.^
^Wasn't aware you came over last night, 'Phones. He oughta run it by me before inviting friends over still, but alright, I'll wait to wake him up.^
^He was at the Udagawa mural. At three AM last night. He passed out in the five minutes it took me to get there. He's so sleep deprived that all this is bleeding into reality. You never mentioned he was hallucinating past events when you updated me last.^
^All he told me was Taboo, you're makin it sound like it's worse than the occasional glimpse of black Noise.^
^He saw /blood/ at the mural last night, probably mine. He admitted to seeing me at Hachiko when I wasn't there for the past two weeks. He saw what happened to Rhyme. He's got no clue what's going on, he's /terrified/, he's a moment away from breaking, and you're not doing anything.^
^His memories are most likely to return if he hits the breaking point.^
^Wow.^
^You're a shit guardian angel.^
^You are his legal guardian, and you are an Angel. Ergo, you should act like a guardian angel and actually care about his mental well being at this moment.^
^The ends do not justify the means. I thought you might've learned that from your past mistakes. Guess I was wrong.^
^Neku^
^Save it.^
^I've got paperwork to do, so once he's up, I'm grabbing some food and leaving. I suggest not doing anything to upset whatever stability he gains from having actual amounts of sleep after I'm gone.^