Chapter Text
Kokichi leaned back in his seat and glanced at his boyfriend with great love in his eyes. Shuichi was fixing his hair, while looking in the mirror, when he noticed the purplenette’s gaze and smiled at the reflection.
“Where are we heading to? Any ideas?” Saihara said as the couple got out of the car.
“I was thinking about taking a casual walk. Is that okay with you?” The dark-haired boy nodded and held out his hand. Oma gave him a friendly handshake, giggling at the confusion on the young detective’s face.
Shuichi puzzled for a second, then took the supreme leader’s hand and spoke. “Momota-san complained to me about your yesterday’s prank on him.”
“What a bully he is! All I did was putting paprika and salt in his drink, and he's being soooo dramatic about it.”
“He mentioned his throat was burning after that…” Oma tightened his grip and scowled at Saihara. “Look, no one died, okay? Why make such a scene? It’s funny, you just don't want to embrace it.”
“M-maybe a little.”
“A little? I’m taking that as a personal insult, Shumai.” Kokichi stopped and closed his eyes, pouting. Crocodile tears poured out. “WAAAAAHHHHHH!! I CAN’T BELIEVE MY BOYFRIEND IS BEING SO MEEEEEAAAANNNNN!!! PROTECTING THAT DUMB ASTRONAUT INSTEAD OF MEEEEE!!”
Shuichi put a hand on his shoulder carefully, urging him to stop. “K-kokichi, I’m sorry, p-please stop crying.” The tears dried up very quickly when Oma switched back to his joyful-self. “I’m just teasing you, Saihara-chan! I’m not mad at you, of course.”
The couple continued their walk on the coastline street, hand in hand, talking of all manner of things. Shuichi thought about how nice it felt holding Kokichi's pale, warm, thin hand. Physical touch didn’t scare him as much as it did before. Hugs were also nice, but sometimes his boyfriend would squeeze him so hard, it felt like a soul leaving his body with its last breath.
The detective’s flow of thoughts was interrupted by a firm grip on his waist. His gaze lowered to Kokichi’s grinning face.
“Saihara-chan, can we take a few pictures together, pretty please,” He sang out the last words and giggled.
“W-wait, what pictures?”
“Are you blind or something? There,” Oma clutched at his cheeks, turning his head to a photo booth. Shuichi gasped in surprise and smiled understandingly. “Okay, good idea.”
Kokichi squeaked happily as he led his boyfriend into the booth. They sat down on a bench inside and drew the curtain. Shuichi studied the surroundings, noticing a coin slot, a price list, a small glowing screen and an example of a photograph, featuring a smiling couple. He took out his wallet, grabbing a few coins. After paying for four photos total, cute bunnies and frogs, along with the words «Choose a theme», appeared on the screen.
“Love, friends or cool,” Shuichi read aloud and mused.
“We fit in all of these categories, nishishi.”
“Definitely,” they looked at each other and smiled. The silence fell.
“We still gotta make a decision, Saihara-chan.”
Shuichi leaned back, a smirk appearing on his face. “You know what, you’re the Ultimate Supreme Leader after all, you decide.”
“Ooo, careful there, you’re giving me too much power,” Kokichi grinned and pressed the button underneath the picture of one bunny giving the other one a flower, and the word «love».
Saihara panicked a little bit as the countdown started. “Um, what do we do?”
“Shuichi, you’ve never taken a picture before or what?” The purplenette gave a laugh and made the peace sign, moving closer to the detective and tilting his head to the side. Saihara smiled awkwardly at the camera, bright light flashed out, a new frame appearing on the screen.
“Hey, come on, I wanna see that pretty smile of yours!” Kokichi exclaimed as he began to tickle Shuichi.
The navy-haired boy was laughing hysterically as he felt a shudder running through him. “K-kichi, ahaha, st-ah-op!” Another flash left Oma smiling triumphantly. “Now I want a biiiig hug from you.” The short boy frowned and tapped Shuichi’s nose with his finger. “No! I order you to give me a tight hug right this second!”
The detective giggled and embraced him, Oma smiled contentedly and laid his head on his shoulder. One more photo was left for the couple to take.
Shuichi loosened his grip and looked at the camera, sitting up straight. Two seconds left. He was ready to put a smile on his face but gasped instead when Kokichi kissed him lightly on the cheek. Saihara’s face went red as he touched his cheek and looked at the leader in shock. Oma burst out laughing.
“Are you alright?” He asked innocently, eyes glinting slyly.
Shuichi nodded with wide eyes. “Y-yes, didn’t expect that, that’s all…”
The boys heard a beeping sound and glanced at the slot. Oh, looks like our photos are all done. Kokichi took out four polaroids, studying each with a big smile on his face.
“Can I keep this one?” Shuichi leaned over his shoulder and pointed at the photograph of himself embracing the other boy.
“No!” Oma raised his arm above his head, holding the picture. After a moment he let out a soft chuckle and handed him the photo. “Of course you can.”
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During the walk, they decided to take a look at the new ice cream store. Small bright room, light grey wallpaper, soft music playing, a few tables, a long bar table near the window across the whole wall. A blonde guy and a brunette girl were discussing something emotionally behind the ice cream counter. They noticed two potential customers and smiled brightly. “Welcome! What would you like?”
Kokichi bounced up and down like an excited child, looking at the different flavors. Shuichi laughed up his sleeve as he read the flavor’s name «holy cow». ‘How did they even come up with that?’
“I wanna have a taste of that bubble gum one!” Oma announced his decision. “And some strawberry syrup, and banana one, and caramel, and chocolate too! Yeah, add them all to the list please.” Saihara blinked at him in surprise but didn’t say anything.
A good-natured grin appeared on the woman’s face. “A sweet tooth, huh? Well, much the better for us.”
The young detective waited for Kokichi’s order to be completed and spoke. “Vanilla for me.”
“In bed?” The leader joked with a big grin on his face. Annoyed looking Shuichi leaned over him and said firmly. “Eat. Your. Ice cream.”
They sat together in the corner afterwards, on the bar stools, opposite the window. Kokichi put another spoon full of ice cream in his mouth and frowned. “Ew, I hate sugar.”
“Oh really?” Shuichi said in a high pitched voice. “Why spending so much money on it then?”
“It’s just that I, the leader of a secret evil organization, have so much money that I can throw it away on literally anything.” The navy-haired boy gave him a sarcastic nod. He then noticed the small boy having pink ice cream on his lips and pointed it out.
“Kichi, you got some ice cream on your lips.”
“Oh, I do?” He inched closer and stared Saihara in the eyes. “Kiss it clean then, Shumai.”
Shuichi’s face grew red with embarrassment in an instant and he lowered his head, looking out of the window. The purplenette threw his head back in laughter. “Neeheehee, teasing you is so much fun!”
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Clouds were floating across the sky, traces of jet planes were visible. A cool breeze was blowing from the sea. The sun was turning bright orange and becoming larger the closer it descended to the ground, slowly disappearing from the view. The sky grew a slight pinkish hue.
Kokichi and Shuichi were walking through soft sand, holding hands, when suddenly the shorter guy stopped, looking at the sunset in silence. Saihara stopped as well. “It’s so beautiful.”
Oma glanced at him and pondered for a moment. “Nah, I changed my mind, I’m not going to be cheesy.” Shuichi giggled, getting what he meant by that. “You’re beautiful too.” A barely noticeable blush appeared on Kokichi’s cheeks. He stepped aside and picked up a pebble in desire to change the topic.
“I played this game a lot when I was younger,” The supreme leader said and threw a little stone across the water with a deep sigh.
“See, I got ten on the first try!”
Shuichi smirked and picked up a rock. “I counted seven.”
“Such great math skills, I’m astonished, Saihara-chan.”
The dark-haired boy pouted when he only got three hits. “Don’t be sad, Shumai, I’ll teach you if you want,” Oma patted his shoulder in a comforting way and handed him another rock.
“You said you’ve played this game before?”
“Yup, there was this huge lake near the orphanage where D.I.C.E. and I would always hang out.”
Saihara threw the stone causing just one water splash. “Shumai, try throwing faster instead of harder. Strength is not the key, quickness is.”
After a few more unsuccessful attempts, Saihara managed to get ten hits. He squealed in joy pointing at the shimmers in the sea. “Did you see that?!”
Kokichi gave him a little round of applause. “Yeah, great job, my loyal student!”
Shuichi sat down on the sand, panting, the purplenette took a sit as well, getting into the lotus position. He put his head against his boyfriend’s shoulder mutely. Saihara leaned against the short boy, taking his hand in his, squishing it slightly.
“The sun's almost down,” Oma spoke softly, looking relaxed. The detective hummed a yes in response. “Kokichi, wanna hear a joke?”
“Not really,” He giggled, hinting at his obvious lie.
“O-okay. Um, knock knock.”
He looked up, smirking. “Come in.” Shuichi rolled his eyes. “I hate you.”
“No, you don’t, we’ve already established that,” Kokichi let out a soft chuckle.
Saihara run his fingers through Oma’s hair with his other hand, listening to the sound of waves. He looked at the short boy and noticed his eyes being closed.
“Hey, don’t fall asleep on me.”
Kokichi grumbled with annoyance, burying his face into the detective’s side. “S-shuichi,” He muttered.
“Yes?”
“I want to thank you.”
“T-thank me? For what?”
Kokichi looked at their clasped hands and smiled. “For everything. For your patience and affection. For accepting me for who I am.”
Shuichi shrugged his shoulders and chuckled. “Y-you don’t have to thank me for that…”
The leader’s voice dropped to a whisper. “It’s just that… No one has ever been this kind with me. Funny, how I’m the liar and still find it hard to believe that you actually like me.”
Saihara gently stroked his boyfriend’s cheeks, Oma now facing him.
“Kichi, please don’t be so hard on yourself. That’s what you tell me all the time, you should follow your own advice,” Kokichi’s face lighted up with a tender smile. They looked each other deeply in the eyes, the short boy rubbed Saihara’s arm with his finger.
Shuichi took a deep breath, his heart was palpitating wildly. He moved his gaze to Kokichi’s lips and inched closer. He looked him in the eyes, full of love and joy, Oma gave him a little nod. They both shut their eyes, Shuichi closing the distance between them. He felt Kokichi’s soft lips smashing into his own, he poured all his feelings into the kiss, giving him everything he desired. The short boy opened his mouth slightly, wrapping his arms around the detective’s shoulders, bringing him closer and deepening the kiss. Softly exploring, Shuichi’s tongue gently traced the inner rim of his partner’s mouth.
He broke off the kiss and pulled away, breathing heavily, looking into Kokichi’s eyes.
“W-wow…” Was the only thing Oma managed to say. He let out a gasp and mumbled, smiling widely. “This was worth the wait.”
“I love you, Kokichi.” A gentle smile appeared on Shuichi’s face.
Sudden tears came into the purplenette’s eyes, and he quickly wiped them away.
“I love you so much, Shuichi,” He said briskly before pulling Saihara into a tight hug. The tall boy kissed his forehead, and Kokichi whispered with happiness in his voice. “So, so much…”