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“You spent all morning running around,” Morgana said, glaring at the boy with glasses currently scrambling around the room. “You’ll be in no condition to see everyone if you’re dead tired later. You should go to sleep while you can.”
If Ren got a paycheck for every time he had heard that, he wouldn’t have to work a day in his life.
He and Morgana hadn’t been back in Leblanc for more than twenty minutes and already he was on the receiving end of a classic Mona scolding. All he did was suggest a few activities to pass the time until everyone else arrived. He couldn’t help it. Being in the café attic created this urge in him to fill his time with something constructive, whatever that may be. Phantom Thieving may be off the table for him now, but he could always finish up that book series he left behind, or maybe do some cleaning considering how much time had passed without him around. Maybe he could root around for some old crosswords? Or even do some pullups on the beams overhead? Though with every idea Ren proposed, it only allowed Morgana to make another denial.
After another half hour of nonstop nagging, Ren eventually relented to the commands of his feline partner and climbed into his bed. Morgana had said it was for his own good, but Ren didn’t miss the smirk that appeared on his roommate’s face as he leapt out onto the streets for a walk.
Ren grumbled, shifting himself against the wall and under a few blankets. It wasn’t like he hated sleep. Plenty of times he had collapsed into his sheets and refused to move for hours simply to avoid having to resume his daily life again. But that was back when every bit of his day was occupied with something to do. Now he was on vacation visiting his friends with all the time in the world. Why should he waste it sleeping?
He pulled out his phone to check the time. There was still a while until his friends were supposed to show up. Not enough time to go out and do something, unfortunately. Ren sighed to himself. It looked like Morgana was going to get his wish after all. Though maybe it wasn’t bad to submit to his whims now if it helped keep him quiet later.
Ren leaned back and shut his eyes. It would just be a quick nap, he thought. Just a little bit of rest and he’d be back in action once everyone showed up. He could hardly contain himself. A night full of fun was only a quick sleep away.
* * *
Running was not an activity Futaba normally indulged in. Her boots weren’t exactly made for sprinting through the streets of Tokyo, nor was her body in any condition to maintain top speeds for any longer than a few seconds. Running around in the Metaverse was one thing, but she didn’t have her Persona to carry her around in the real world. She knew that wasn’t anyone’s fault, but she still found herself cursing Prometheus under her breath with every step across the pavement. It would all be worth it, however, once she made it to Leblanc and found the attic occupied by its rightful inhabitants.
Futaba wouldn’t call herself clingy. Well, not in most scenarios. Ren Amamiya was simply a special case. Things just felt better with him around. Trips into busy areas became easier, long days seemed to pass faster, and then there was the joy of having him around to cook. She had no idea how she ever managed to luck into the perfect companion.
Heck, even without all that, he was still the closest thing she had to family outside of Sojiro. The world had taken a lot from her, but the fact that she got her brand new Leblanc family by the end of her hermit days was a better gift than she could have ever asked for. That’s why she was determined to make the most of Ren and Morgana’s limited time in Tokyo.
And if she chose to spend that time glued to Ren’s hip during everything they had planned, then that was her business.
Futaba leapt over a small puddle in the road in front of her house. It didn’t take her long to round the corner and skid to a stop in front of Leblanc’s door. She threw it open, not worrying about how Sojiro would scold her if he were around, and raced up the stairs…
Only to find Ren fast asleep on his bed and Morgana missing in action.
Ren’s head lolled to the side as his pillow sank a bit, folding in on itself with the odd position between his neck and the windowsill. He looked a bit like a doll about to fall from a shelf.
She had to resist the urge to stomp her foot. Who comes all the way from their hometown to visit and falls asleep before everyone else shows up? And to think she ran straight from school like a bat out of hell, all to find her precious key item completely KO’ed!
The only thing stopping her from pitching a fit was how exhausted she was. With the adrenaline wearing off, she was liable to collapse where she stood. Next time she would just call ahead to check if he was there instead of assuming. She would have thought of that this time if her emotions hadn’t been running wild. Stupid Ren, making her brain all fuzzy.
She wandered over to the back wall and leaned against it to give her poor heart a rest. Now much closer to him, she could every bit of his face as he slept. She noted how long his eyelashes looked from this angle. His hair was a mess as always, but it had an interesting swirl to it that made Futaba want to run her hands through it. She doubted he would care, but she resisted the temptation anyway.
It was unusual to get such a good look at him like this, especially with how active he kept himself. Futaba was used to looking up at him in more ways than one, but now he just looked like any other teenage boy lost to the land of dreams. She got a quick chuckle out of picturing him in old-timey pajamas, complete with an oversized floppy hat. A few sheep dancing around his head wouldn’t be too out of place either.
She wondered if this was how he often felt when he watched her sleep. This odd mixture of calm and gratitude. It was no surprise that watching someone sleep would put her heart at ease, but knowing that it was Ren getting a quiet rest made it even better. The gratitude came from a similar place. With all they had been through, they were lucky to be able to sit around napping in any capacity, Ren most of all. She hoped he didn’t have any nightmares as he slept.
Continuing to watch him brought a thought to the front of her mind. When was the last time that she herself had slept well? Waiting for Ren to come visit had her hopped up all week, evident in how low her snack drawer stock had gotten in the past few days. School had kept her busy too, only for the fact that she had a bad habit of putting off all her smaller assignments until the last minute when they had formed a small mountain on her desk. All-nighters were slowly becoming a staple of her work pattern. She would have to make a note to fix that. Later, she decided.
She placed a hand on Ren’s bed and instantly felt a wave of fatigue wash over her. Maybe he had the right idea with being asleep after all. She was here the earliest, therefore it was practically her right to get a quick snooze in herself. If anyone complained, she’d just blame it on Ren. He was the leader.
If she was going to sleep though, she should probably do it on the bed. There weren’t many other places to rest comfortably in the small café attic. That would also put her right next to Ren. Futaba shook her head to clear out any weird thoughts. It was fine, right? It wasn’t like they had never slept next to each other before. Sleepovers between them were common during his probation, so she had gotten pretty used to using him as a giant pillow. Once she got over the initial embarrassment, anyway. Now it was only a matter of getting comfortable.
She clambered over his mattress and took to his side, moving slow to minimize how much it shook under her. He was normally a light sleeper, so the fact that he wasn’t so much as stirring with her weight displacing his body surprised her. He must have really needed the sleep after all. Finally settled in, one of her fingers lifted towards his cheek. It probably wasn’t very nice to jeopardize his peaceful sleep just to sate her own curiosity, but she had seen too many anime series with cute napping boys to let an opportunity like this go to waste. Her finger got shaky the closer it got like a plane in turbulence. Seconds later, it met warm skin.
Nothing. No squish, no cute noise, no wacky slice of life shenanigans. Just a slight wince at the sudden pressure on his face. Phooey.
Futaba sighed and fixed herself to Ren’s side properly. Not only had her spontaneous plan failed, but there was no cat to cuddle either. Today’s disappointments just kept stacking up. Though, she couldn’t say it was all bad. A quick glance to the boy beside her brought back the fuzz in her brain. As someone who spent nearly every waking moment overthinking, it was nice to simply exist and give her brain a rest. There wasn’t much to worry about at the moment. Ren was here as she closed her eyes and he would still be here when she opened them later. She couldn’t ask for much more than that.
* * *
Let it never be said that Ryuji didn’t love his mother.
Why she gave him errands to do on a day he had been waiting for all month, he would never know. But with all the hell he had raised growing up, there weren’t too many things she could ask of him that he wasn’t willing to do. No amount of her telling him his methods of atonement weren’t necessary would change that. Besides, if nothing else, darting from Shujin to the store to his house to Leblanc made for some great exercise. And then there was the additional benefit of having a ton of curry to fill him up after working up a sweat!
Ryuji broke out into a grin as he reached the café’s entrance. Everything about the place was special to him. The food that mysteriously never needed to be paid for (despite the owner claiming he ran a serious business). The coffee that had a comforting warmth even if the taste wasn’t his favorite. The way the booths hugged you as you sat down, making you stay a while even if you only popped by to say hi. And of course, the small matter of his best friend welcoming him with open arms whenever he was home.
The grin on his face widened as Ryuji pulled the door open. He expected Boss to be around the corner armed with some smug remark, but the downstairs area was surprisingly empty. That meant the man of the hour was upstairs. Ryuji let the door shut behind him with a ring and sauntered up the stairs with his usual greeting at the ready. He would have called out with it as soon his head passed the railing if it weren’t for the fact that he heard snoring to his right. Ryuji moved further into the room to see if he had misheard, but no, the only people in the room weren’t even awake to notice his entrance.
Just his luck; he came all this way trying to be the first one to arrive for once, and the guy he hadn’t seen in months was knocked out cold! And Futaba was no better, curled up into a ball right next to him. What kind of celebration was this shaping up to be? He didn’t sign up for a sleepover!
The thought of smacking something in the room to wake the two up crossed his mind, but he let it pass. It would solve the immediate problem, no doubt, but it would also end with him pissing off the people he had to hang out with until everyone else arrived. He wasn’t about to willingly subject himself to that level of awkwardness.
When were the others supposed to show up anyway? He knew they all had some things to do before coming over, but the details of everyone’s afternoons were foggy at best. Honestly, he had mentally checked out of the conversation as soon as Ren had given the time of his future arrival to Tokyo. Ryuji thought they would have spent the time waiting for the others on fun stuff, like video games or working out or some old movies. But clearly his recently returned best friend found none of that as exciting as the inside of his own eyelids!
The blond huffed out a breath. In fairness, the guy did have a rocky relationship with sleep if he remembered right. The Thieves had heard many stories from Morgana about their leader dodging sleep to do more work all in the name of their mission. That wasn’t really a concern anymore, but old habits die hard, so there was a part of Ryuji grateful to see his buddy actually recharging for once. It seemed like a pretty good use of time. Especially when the rest of your company for the day had already confirmed that they would arrive late.
Ryuji peered over the railing back down the stairs. No one was walking in behind him. No bell jingles to be heard. No telltale slaps of shoes on linoleum flooring. The three former thieves were all alone and would be for the time being. He turned back to his friends to see they hadn’t moved an inch since he arrived. They really did look comfortable. Should he…
Ah, screw it. His rush to grab groceries and make it to Leblanc wasn’t exactly leisurely, so what was wrong with resting from such a strenuous afternoon? It would likely only be a little bit until someone else came in, anyway. Then they would wake them all up and the fun times could really get started!
Ryuji sat down on Ren’s bed with a yawn. Thinking about all this was tiring him out even more. He leaned back until his head met the mattress. It was weird how comfortable it could be sometimes despite there only being a bunch of crates underneath. Either way, it was exactly what Ryuji needed at the moment. He peeked up at Ren with one eye. He didn’t look any different than normal. Ryuji hadn’t expected him to or anything, but it was comforting to know that his best friend was really back, even if it was only for a little while.
So what if he had to spend a little bit of their time together asleep? It wasn’t a big deal or anything. Just because they were on the clock didn’t mean they had to rush. Being with the Phantom Thieves had drilled that lesson into him. It wasn’t an easy one to learn as a former track star and notorious bundle of impatience, but he learned it thanks to the people who had pledged to stick by him. In a silly kind of way, laying next to his best friend kind of made him feel like he was honoring that commitment. He could set aside what he wanted for a while if it meant being at his buddy’s side. Honestly, if there was anyone worth slowing down for, it was Ren.
* * *
Ann stuffed the last of her mochi in her mouth as she power-walked down the Yongen-Jaya streets. The sugar rush she was desperately hoping for was nowhere in sight, which did not bode well for her night full of plans coming off of a modeling session. She yawned into her palm, the scent of powdered sugar filling her nose. Maybe she was getting some sort of sugar immunity from all the sweets she had eaten in life? That was a scary thought.
Either way, she could just get the extra boost she needed from her favorite barista-in-training currently visiting from his hometown. Just thinking about seeing Ren again made her pick up her pace. She loved all of her friends in Tokyo, obviously, but with Shiho having moved away back during her second year, having Ren gone too brought some familiar loneliness back to the surface some days. It was bittersweet going to class every day without knowing he was behind her, always ready with a comforting word or reassuring smile when she needed it. Now who was supposed to console her when she bombed a math test?
No – Ann shook her head – there would be plenty of time to lament her loss of a venting buddy later. Today was a day for celebrating! Her hand rattled a bit when she grabbed Leblanc’s door handle. Just one solid pull and she could see him again alongside all her closest friends. This was going to be a perfect day!
Well, maybe less than perfect, judging by what she saw once she reached the attic. Three of her friends being totally conked out was not part of their plans, especially with the sun setting like a countdown timer on their supposed day of fun. Ann couldn’t find it in herself to be all that mad, however. The scene in front of her was a picture-perfect example of cuteness. Well, aside from Ryuji drooling into a pillow. She could have gone without seeing that. But Futaba hugging Ren like he was a mega-sized teddy bear more than made up for it. They were all radiating comfort like space heaters. Strangely, she started to feel left out the more she looked at them.
Thanks to the isolation she had gone through up until her second year of high school, getting invited to sleepovers with her peers was more of a pipe dream than anything. She spent countless class periods watching other people make plans with their friends and chatter about upcoming weekends. It was times like those that made her so glad to have Shiho later on. The few girls nights they had were some of the highlights of early teen life. However, there was only so much to be done with just the two of them. That’s why getting all sorts of new friends through the Phantom Thieves was a breath of fresh air for someone as socially inclined as Ann. It may have been late, but she was finally getting to make the kind of memories she had longed for since childhood.
She got to have slumber parties with the girls and play party games with the boys. She got to walk around festivals in a big group without having to worry about if everyone there actually wanted her around. She even got to do things as simple as being herself when it came to eating her favorite foods. It didn’t matter if she stuffed her face with three crepes in a row or chugged a milkshake as loud as possible. No one in the Phantom Thieves would judge her for it, or anything else for that matter. They were everything she thought she would never get the chance to have.
Ann’s smile grew as Futaba stirred slightly and huddled closer to her sleeping captive. Honestly, if she had known this would be what awaited her when she showed up, she would have tried to get to the café faster. She had never been one to discount the benefits of a good nap, so she certainly wasn’t going to decline her friends’ invitation to an improvised sleepover. Her mind was made up; she was taking a nap with everyone else. That would show all those catty girls from middle school!
Well, maybe not considering this wasn’t an actual sleepover. Nor was she technically invited, but Ann decided she was allowed to celebrate the small victories in life.
She crawled onto Ren’s mattress as softly as she could, navigating the tangle of limbs at the edge. Ryuji flinched a bit, but she had seen him sleep through worse, so she kept on her path. If he were awake, she probably would’ve made a big stink about sleeping beside him simply out of principle, but there was no need to keep up appearances with him being unconscious. Hopefully whoever woke them all up wouldn’t make some weird comment about what was going on. A part of her wondered what the next person to show up would think, though. She assumed they wouldn’t find the whole thing as interesting as she had.
* * *
Artistic inspiration could truly strike anywhere. Life was a nexus of such instances. Every part of one’s day, no matter how trivial it seemed, branched and crossed its way into a hub for all creatives to draw from. Much like Shibuya’s own complex web of transit systems, there were enough paths to fuel an artist’s spirit for an almost limitless amount of time.
The metaphor might have sounded quite dramatic to most, he was sure, but Yusuke wouldn’t cheapen his description when it so clearly applied. He was looking at a work of art in the making, even if the subjects of said work had no idea about it.
Half of the former Phantom Thieves lay grouped together on their leader’s bed in a peaceful – albeit disorganized – slumber. Arms were looped at the elbow, legs crossed in a lattice pattern, bodies rested against others in an awkward support like frozen dominoes. It was about as close to textbook as you could get for a nondefinite concept like messes.
Yusuke wasn’t bothered by any of that, however. If anything, said chaos only helped him to see the appeal of it all. Where others might act on some kneejerk reaction and turn away, he would take it all in. Let it wash over him so that he could see with fresh eyes. More often than not, it was that very experience that let him view things more deeply than those around him.
That ability was part of what made being an artist so rewarding, which made it all the more interesting that his friends were able to use it in their own ways. Rather than take things at face value, they too had a knack for looking deeper, for investigating where others wouldn’t bother. Their willingness to dig through muck and grime was the only reason Yusuke was standing tall now. Without them, he would still be in that shack, a slave to misguided notions of honor, responsibility, and the like. He would get to paint as he pleased, but he wouldn’t have been making art. Not really. He would have been stifling everything his soul cried out for in order to keep quiet and raise no trouble for the only father figure he had ever had. That was no way to live, and he was so very grateful for the dirty hands of the Phantom Thieves to pull him from his own mess. He owed them all more than he could every repay, so it did not bother him in the slightest to let everyone stay as they are without interruption. He was happy to simply share the space with them all.
He would have been content to take in the whole sight for a while longer, but he couldn’t fight the weight of his eyelids the longer he looked at everyone. Was this further evidence of art having the ability to affect one’s physical state? There were plenty of paintings that had evoked responses from him in the past; some reactions were stronger than others, but they always left him with something palpable to reflect on later. This instance was more of an immediate effect, like the combination of teenagers had formed a sort of energy siphon. As someone who usually slept alone, there wasn’t much experience he could put toward figuring out why that was. The easiest thing to do was just to follow suit, he supposed.
Unlike everyone else, Yusuke opted to seat himself away from the bed. He took Ren’s red chair and drug it out a bit, placing it closer to the bed so as to not look out of place. Though he pondered what the effect on the scene would be if he appeared separate from everyone. Would the disconnection inadvertently form a connection? Or would Yusuke be interrupting the composition of things with his isolation?
He would have loved to consider each possibility some more, but his eyelids were persistent in their attempted closure. He was starting to regret skipping out on both breakfast and lunch in order to save room for Ren’s cooking. It was of little consequence since he was going to sleep, though. His stomach would quiet eventually. Or at the very least, be drowned out by his snoring.
Yusuke shifted as far back into the chair as he could. The cushion wasn’t anything to celebrate, and the wooden back curved in a way that didn’t help his lithe frame. He could easily see someone else abandoning the idea of using it to rest. But Yusuke was a Phantom Thief, so he chose to find the value in it instead. It was far from the worst position he’d slept in, anyway. His resting form aside, he could find contentment in relaxing in the company of his friends.
He peeked back over at the bed. Quite the mess indeed, he thought.
* * *
With the café being eerily quiet as she entered, Haru was almost tempted to call out to see if anyone was actually inside. As soon as she made her way to the top of the stairs, she silently thanked whatever stopped her from doing so. Five of her dear friends were all asleep, scattered around the attic, but still close enough that it resembled the kind of group nap that grade-schoolers took. A hand flew over her mouth to suppress the giggles she felt bubbling in her chest. The sight in front of her was so precious, almost picturesque in a silly sort of way. It was just the kind of thing Haru loved about being with the Phantom Thieves.
Growing up with curated relationships had been hard for the young heiress. It was a constant headache having to discern who was genuinely being nice to her and who was trying to get in her good graces for the obvious connection to her father. She hated having to be skeptical of people. It didn’t suit her.
That same thought was the reason part of her still regretted how she had judged the Phantom Thieves when they first met. There was a lot going on at that time, and the situation with Morgana didn’t help anything, but it still pained her to think that she almost passed on joining up with such a wonderful group of people. People she could truly call her friends. Her newest family.
The comfort of knowing that meant more than she could ever express to them. Not that she hadn’t tried in the past. Her efforts were unanimously repelled, however, as no one on the team felt comfortable accepting the copious amounts of surprise gifts she tried to thrust upon them. She wondered how Ren got away with it when he did it. It didn’t upset her to be refused, though. She knew all of her friends were simply the kind of people that found joy in their bonds over all else. They didn’t need expensive presents as payment for allowing her to be in the group; they only asked that she come to them whenever she needed the support. It was an intoxicating feeling to be free of the isolation of her past.
It felt a bit dramatic to use the word isolation so casually, but it was in no way unfounded. What else could she call being surrounded by people in her own home yet ignored at every turn? She knew many people that had to return to empty homes every day and she could relate despite the packed mansion she returned to following school. It had been a long while since that mansion felt like a home, so much so that it scared her a bit that she found that feeling so easily in a dusty little café attic. Though she supposed she owed that more to who occupied the room than the area itself.
It hurt knowing she was the last to join them. The last to be accepted into the group, having to play catch up in regards to everyone’s bonds. There wasn’t much she could have done about it, but it stung all the same. She had technically been in Hawaii with most of them, but the only company she had back then were the crabs scuttling along the shore and the waves soaking her feet. Her so-called ‘vacation’ only amounted to a temporary reprieve from the minefield her father had left for her back home. She couldn’t even call that trip a distraction with how often her thoughts put her back under her father’s watchful gaze. Under Sugimura’s repulsive leering.
A quick shake of her frizzy curls shooed away such thoughts. She was free of all that now. Though she wished her father hadn’t lost his life the way he did, she wasn’t under any of those obligations of his any longer. Now the only people she would ever bend over backwards for were six rebellious teenagers and a cat that swore he was above such labels. She suddenly craved all sorts of new memories she could make with them.
It was selfish, she thought, to want even more when she was already so lucky to have what she did. The Phantom Thieves had been a blessing and here she was greedily reaching out for more. Despite their wealth, it was an Okumura family rule to not overextend. At least it was…until her father’s obsession with gain buried his sense of morality. That was the point where family rules became little more than suggestions for him. Haru felt it important to keep herself in check, lest she let her desires spin out of control as he had. Her friends would likely call her ridiculous for even considering something like that, but she preferred to view it as more of a mantra than a definitive way to avoid generating anything like a Palace.
Haru let out a quick sigh, the first sound to escape her since she came up to the attic. The pace of her train of thought had left her exhausted. No doubt being the odd one out amongst the others was feeding into that feeling as well. With that being the case, Haru couldn’t find much of a reason to stay awake herself. She was early, anyway, so what was the harm in joining her friends?
Hm, but where to sit? She didn’t want to throw off the feng shui they already had going. Her eyes flitted around the room. The bed was obviously out; too many of the Thieves had occupied it already. Yusuke had laid claim to Ren’s lone red chair, so that also wasn’t an option. Her gaze drifted to the left and settled on the only remaining place to sit. It was a perfect choice; there was just the matter of moving it without making any noise. Haru smiled to herself. It looked like all her heavy lifting in the Metaverse would finally come in handy.
* * *
Makoto sighed and rubbed her temples. She should have expected this, she knew, after taking so long to arrive. Scoping out clubs at her university took up more time than she thought, especially when paired with the trip to find an extremely old textbook she was required to have for a criminology course. Still, how could she have foreseen what was currently happening in front of her?
A muffled snore came from her right. She could just barely make out a blonde pigtail sticking out from underneath a pillow in that direction. Judging by the other pair of legs dangling off the bed, another of her friends was tangled in the mess as well. There was even a hint of black fur poking out between the blankets on the left.
Just what were they doing with themselves? They had each agreed on a specific time to meet up and specific things to do once they all gathered; none of which included a mass sleeping session.
Makoto knew she could be uptight at times. Despite the progress she was making, spontaneous plans still made her skin crawl in a way that better fit someone much older than she was. This, however, made her feel at least a bit justified. What was the point of taking the time to plan when the slightest of whims could alter everything about said plans? She had hoped the reappearance of their leader would keep everyone on track, but she had forgotten one damning flaw in that line of thinking. For better or worse, the former Phantom Thieves always followed Ren’s lead.
How had he convinced them to do this, she wondered. Was he feeling so tired after his trip that he requested some time to rest? Did he simply offer the nap as a means to pass time? Or was this some stealthy way of keeping everyone in check with little effort? Whatever the reason, Makoto couldn’t help but be impressed at how quiet the group was. It was the quietest she had heard them all be in…well, ever. She knew it didn’t really count in the grand scheme of things, but she was getting better at accepting technicalities.
Now the only question was what to do about it. Sure, her first instinct when she arrived was to clap her hands and get everything started, but she wasn’t quite in the mood to play drill sergeant. She could try waking them up one by one, but that too would be tricky without causing a chain reaction. Everyone was so close together that one wrong move would mean she got six grumpy young adults chewing her out. That certainly wasn’t the type of evening she had in mind. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like leaving them be was the best option. How long could they really sleep, anyway? Considering that she was the last to arrive, they all had to have gotten at least a fair amount of rest. The thought made her jealous all of a sudden.
Thanks to her student council roots, she had come in ready to organize and manage the night her friends had gathered for. But looking at everyone clustered together like this, casually snoozing the hours away…it was dragging her down with unexpected force. Her body felt heavier than it had coming up the stairs, and balance wasn’t coming easy the longer she held her posture. Against her earlier judgment, she suddenly wished she was doing the same as everyone around her.
And who could really blame her for it? College had been running her ragged for the past week and a half with endless essays and reading requirements that the professors wouldn’t dare do themselves if they hadn’t written the textbooks. Makoto wasn’t one to shy away from schoolwork, but even she had to admit when enough was enough. Her friends had taught her how to relax, after all, so it was up to her to know when and where to apply it.
Her gaze found Ren. He had his head down with his bangs slightly elevated by the glasses riding up on his nose. It was an awkward position to rest in, but there was no denying that he looked peaceful. She couldn’t remember the last time he had looked like that in his sleep.
In terms of being the biggest workaholic, the only one of her friends that could give Makoto a run for her money was Ren himself. How many times had she messaged him to spend some time together only to find out he was working one of his many parttime jobs or dashing around the city gathering supplies for their Metaverse trips? He always claimed it was simply the duty of a leader to handle the heavy lifting. Makoto had never really been a fan of that answer. It reminded her too much of how her sister was shortly after their father’s passing. Though logically she knew there wasn’t much risk of Ren falling into a similar mindset, it didn’t stop her from worrying about what too many responsibilities could do to him. The last thing she wanted was to lose any of what made him the amazing person he was. If it meant keeping Ren the way he was now, then she could shelve the ‘council president’ act and let everyone else set the pace for the day.
Makoto finally let her train of thought slow to a stop. It felt even quieter than when she had entered. The snoring had died down and gave way to rhythmic breathing, filling the air with a tranquility she couldn’t quite escape from. She wanted to collapse and let it overtake her completely, but decided that might be a bit much if she were to follow that line of thought literally. Getting off her feet did sound like a good idea, however. Her sleeping friends were certainly making a decent case for a lazy evening. She let herself take a seat before she could overthink it any longer.
Maybe it was okay to follow their lead just this once. After all, she knew no group better at the art of relaxation than the seven goofballs closest to her heart.
* * *
If there was one thing Sojiro had come to learn about the group of teenagers that had made Leblanc a second home over the course of the past year, it was that they clearly did not know the definition of quiet. They could be discreet, sure, especially where Phantom Thief business was concerned, but even then he could sometimes manage to catch an errant phrase or two being thrown around. For him to now be doing busywork with the café closed and not so much as a peep from his resident troublemakers? Sojiro’s skin felt like it had been pricked all over.
He craned his neck to hold his ear a bit higher. Nothing but the sound of his dishtowel sliding over ceramic could be heard. Heck, the sound of his own heart in his ears beat whatever was coming through the ceiling.
Sojiro sat the mug in hand down to his right. He must have absentmindedly washed the thing ten times over at this point. There was some irony in being unable to focus with peace and quiet finally achieved, but he was a bit too anxious to appreciate it. His eyes drifted from the sink to the wood of the ceiling again. What on earth could be going on up there that had them dead silent? The occasionally busy café owner in him was saying to leave it be, but the growing yet sometimes fumbling paternal instincts in him were louder, telling him to go investigate. Had this train of thought happened a year ago, he would have moved on to the next dish to wash. Though as it stood now, he was already trudging up the steps before he could think twice.
There weren’t too many scenarios on his shortlist of guesses for the radio silence of the teens upstairs, but seeing the reality in front of him made it very apparent that his imagination wasn’t cutting it.
Ren was still in the same position he had taken hours prior, slouched against the wall with several pillows under his back. Futaba was slumped over on Ren’s shoulder, one arm gripping his and the other draped around Morgana, who rested on both teens’ laps. To their right lay Ryuji and Ann, both of whom had somehow gotten tangled in the rest of Ren’s limbs that weren’t occupied. Given how prone to squabbling the two were, it was a little shocking to see them so close. Sojiro decided against bringing that up later lest he guarantee himself a noise complaint from the neighbors.
He looked to the left of the bed to see the others. The couch had been pulled up close to the end of the bed, housing both Makoto and Haru as they leaned into each other. It amazed Sojiro how proper the two looked even when sleeping, both with good posture and hands folded in their laps. It gave the group of a six at least some semblance of composure.
Wait, six? Sojiro did a quick headcount. From what he could see, there were six sleeping teens in his café’s attic, plus one cat that apparently was not a cat and hated being referred to as such. They were missing one, weren’t they? He felt himself squint, unsure if he was witnessing the effects of age on his vision or if their perpetually starving artist had gotten himself lost on the way over. He got his answer with a brief murmur from right in front of him. Sojiro had to peer over a mess of blankets at the foot of the bed, but sure enough Yusuke was there sleeping just as soundly as the others. The lower half of his body sat in the chair under the window while the upper part was folded over just next to where Futaba was resting. Sojiro chuckled; the kid must have tried to sleep sitting up and fell over partway through. He clearly was not as adept at the practice as his two senpai on the sofa.
Sojiro couldn’t help but shake his head at it all. “Sheesh, some welcome back party this turned out to be.”
He was in ‘fix-it’ mode before he knew what he was doing. A quickly thrown blanket on the sofa girls, an adjusting of Yusuke’s seat to close the gap between chair and bed, and a gentle rearrangement of pillows to prevent anyone from suffocating in their sleep. Ludicrous sounding, he knew, but he couldn’t put it past some of the group. His gut wanted him to wedge Futaba away from Ren a bit as well, but that was just the overprotectiveness talking. If she was going to cling to any guy in her sleep, he could accept it being the little punk that had wormed his way into the old man’s heart.
Maybe they all had though, judging by how Sojiro’s grin grew just looking at them all. He had barely been able to say he had a daughter a year ago, yet now he was watching over a whole group of youths that he would walk through hell for. He might not have fully understood the extent of their Phantom Thief activities, but he did know they deserved to take a day to laze away like normal kids.
Satisfied with his work, he began the trek back downstairs. If they intended to stay as they were, he would need to get started on dinner in Ren’s stead. Curry was a given, but maybe he could do something special for the occasion. He couldn’t let Ren suddenly become the best cook in the family. Aging or not, Sojiro still had his pride to maintain.
He realized the kids might accuse him of going soft if they all woke to a warm meal, but he could just as easily deny the intention behind it if they asked. Just like he would deny doing all the extra things he did after checking in on them. Whatever snarky little comments those brats had for him – and he was sure they would have plenty – he would keep the mask up and feign ignorance. He would repel them at each and every turn.
And though realistically none of them would have any clue about it, he would also deny taking a picture of them all together before he left the attic. That one was definitely going to stay his own secret.