incautiously | Folkmore inbox

"Do you want me to answer honestly or not?" Fingers are still entwined with Nanami's as they're walking, Haibara keeping track of their surroundings so he can find his way back if he needs to.

"Of—" Nanami stops himself as he realizes what Haibara must mean. He flushes some, red brightening his cheeks. "Anything else besides that?"

He snorts softly, the sound turning into a laugh. "You're so cute when you blush like that, Kento." Especially given his normal demeanor.

"We could find a place to watch the sunset after dinner." [ ]

Nanami turns away for a moment, but he looks back at Haibara quickly enough. Haibara may as well get to enjoy it if it's already happened. "Even Gojo never manages to get that reaction out of me," Nanami says. The teenage one here in Folkmore or the one he worked with as an adult.

"Tides is closer to the surface right now. It filters through the water if we get a good view all the way up top," Nanami thinks aloud. He nods. "We can get there through the public transit system."

"You were never in love with him and you never really let your guard down around anyone else, do you?" It's quiet but direct, Haibara's hand squeezing his.

"That sounds like a plan then, unless you have more interesting things we can see."

Nanami looks over at Haibara. "I never fell in love with anyone else," he says, "I had vulnerable moments, but they were always with friends. We knew not to press where it wasn't wanted. That we could only do so much." It was more vulnerable than he was at other times. Only because he trusted them that much, and Nanami thinks they trusted him in return.

It wasn't the same, but it was what he could handle. He squeezes Haibara's hand back. "The sunset sounds good."

"Of course you did. Everyone does when they have people they trust." At least enough to be friends. Haibara moves closer, releases his hand to wrap an arm around Nanami, settling against his side.

"Sunset it is then."

Every jujutsu sorcerer carries damage. They all have to find ways to carry on, to do the job, to protect people. He doesn't regret it because it carried far more meaning than making rich people richer (or poorer).

"Lets try this place," Nanami motions to a place offering noodles. It clearly has a mix of Asian specialties, but that includes Japanese. In a place where people come from worlds without a Japan at all, he's hardly offended by the mix.

"Works for me." He does separate from Nanami to follow him inside and sits across from when they're shown to a table.

"Can't go wrong with noodles."

"Well," Nanami disagrees slightly. There is one kind of noodle he cannot stand. They're his least favorite food in the world. "Noodles are not meant to be wide and flat. Udon is fine. Pappardelle may be the worst item of food on the planet. It cannot be salvaged or justified."

Fortunately, this place doesn't serve Italian pasta, and there's no risk of it.

"That's pasta. It's different." Haibara counters.

"It still should not exist," Nanami says with complete seriousness. No food has ever offended him so much. This menu, however, looks delightful. He orders an appetizer, a main course, and a drink. It's date night, and dinner won't get interrupted. That's time to enjoy it.

"Noted. It will never cross the threshold." He's teasing Nanami, but then he orders his own meal.

Nanami mostly suppresses an aghast reaction. "Indeed," he agrees. There are some dishes he simply doesn't make.

"What would you like in whatever housing we get here?" Nanami asks, returning to an older topic. He briefly looked at the housing options in Tides when he arrived, but he cares what Haibara wants too.

"That depends. Are we going to be entertaining here or is it just for a break from everything else?" Because it matters. He doesn't mind sharing space, of course, but it makes it easier knowing the situation.

Nanami frowns slightly. "I would say perhaps friends but not students, but honestly, I only really know the people from our universe well. It's been enough to keep me busy, and other than someone kindly avoiding us all and you, they are all students," he thinks aloud. "I would prefer for social visits only. Anything work related, I can leave Tides if need be."

Perhaps he needs to socialize more, but where is the time for that?

"So maybe one bedroom, comfortable living room, nice kitchen," Haibara considers.

"Doesn't need to be very big since we'll be spending most of our time in Satori Hills."

Nanami nods. "A small place might be nice," he says, thinking of other occasions at home. "It is just a getaway. The point is only for it to be more permanent and something above a hotel room."

"Exactly.

"We could even look at boats? They have boats you can live on too, right?"

"Mmm, the boats are in Nereid, rather than in Tides. I would rather live in Tides proper and not have to come down here and back while we're relaxing. If—"

Nanami stops. "If you don't have strong opinions for living on a boat. We can check those out too."

"I'll live wherever you want to live. As long as you're there, it'll be a home."

Nanami sighs softly. He is so used to that being Haibara's feelings, he's not surprised, yet he would respect any such time Haibara has a strong opinion because of that.

"A home with you is better than any home without," Nanami agrees. "We can check out the Lunar Flats and Reef Residences while we're here."

"That works." Haibara glances across the table, fingers wrapped around his glass.

"Tomorrow maybe."

"It's probably best to see them during the daytime," Nanami agrees, and they already have the sunset for after dinner. After that, they can retire to the hotel.

"No need to rush anything."

"Exactly." And they don't have to decide this time either, but it'll be good to start looking. The main thing about this though, is giving Nanami time to relax, to stop focusing on things that do him no good. Whether he's responsible for the teenagers or not, he still needs time.

And when the food comes, Haibara starts to eat.

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