May Bonding

[sleight_of_hand]

WHO: Tohru Adachi; open unless noted.
WHERE: Heropa unless noted.
WHEN: The month of May.
WHAT: Adachi had a brief visit back home, and he's taking it as well as one would expect.
WARNINGS: Mentions of police brutality, bodily injury in one thread; other warnings to come.

[ Returning Home | Heropa Porter | OTA ]
[ Number Eighty-two, inspection! Against the wall! ]

[ The words were still echoing in his head, even as he stumbled out of the porter at Cape Canaveral, his knees buckling and nearly dropping him onto the floor. The people tending to the porter seemed to understand why he reacted the way he did, at least one of the aids did. She was on him pretty quickly, holding him up and asking him questions. Did he need water? Coffee? Anything? He shook his head at her frantic questions, mumbling that he just wanted to go home. ]

[ It felt like forever before they finally let him port back to Heropa, during which time he somehow managed to keep standing on his feet, insisting that he was fine, that nothing was wrong, he just wanted to go home and rest. He managed to keep himself going until he got through the porter and to Heropa, managing to get outside where he thought he was alone... before he clutched at his stomach, zooming for a nearby bush to throw up. ]

[ He was an idiot. He was a fucking idiot. It may have just been for a day, but being back home, being back in prison where he was stripped of everything he was to the point where he was just a number that the bullshit cops could punch around when they felt like it. He had gotten so used to being able to live, to have his second chance, that-- ]

Fuck.

[ Stress Relief | Heropa Ice Rink | Viktor ]
[ The thought of going to his usual spot outside of the city to let Magatsu Izanagi tear stuff up had crossed his mind, but Adachi couldn't find the heart for it. He thought of going to a bar and drink until he got a visit from the Bad Ideas Fairy, but he didn't think his liver could stand that much drinking. So the only other option he had that could at least be productive with the emotions he was going through was to go skating. ]

[ He was pushing himself, and it was probably obvious to anyone that had been around on the ice that he was doing it while injured. He didn't care, though; he was getting used to ignoring people while being aware of them, skating around them as he tried to focus on practicing the basics. Once people started to empty out, Adachi switched it up, starting to work on the spins he had yet to actually complete without falling over. Of course, this led to him wiping out again, and again, and again... ]

[ Adachi was trying for the umpteenth time as the sky outside started to darken, not really noticing that there wasn't anyone left on the ice, nor that he had an audience of one at that point. He could feel his stomach ache, the bruising stretching out on his skin and making everything hurt worse than it was already. It made it hard to concentrate, so of course he wiped out again, flopping almost uselessly onto the ice. ]

[ He let out a frustrated groan as he stared up at the ceiling, before pressing the heels of his hands against his eyes. ]

[ Wipe Out | Heropa Ice Rink | Yuuri ]
[ "Don't skate beyond what you're ready for." "You need to learn how to walk before you can run." ]

[ Was Adachi going to listen? Nope; the moment he woke up the next day, he could already feel stressed out, and no matter how hard he tried to focus on work, focus on getting back into his usual rhythm, but he couldn't do it. He gave up after a couple hours of trying, gathering his things and heading right to the rink. ]

[ And he just skated. And skated. And skated; not caring how many times he wiped out, or hurt himself. He just got back up on his feet and kept going. ]

[ By the time Yuuri got to the rink, it was just the old owner there, kicked back in the skate rental booth like he usually was. He glanced up at him, raising an eyebrow, before waving toward the rink. ]

Good. Glad you're here. Watching him wipe out is only entertaining for a few hours.

[ Can't Keep Me Down | All Cities | OTA ]
[ The moment Adachi is let out of the hospital, he's just moving. He may not have been able to work out or skate anymore, but he had things to do. He needed to find a coach for himself, he had cases to finish up and move along so he could get paid, he had an apprentice he needed to work with and set him off on some of his own jobs. ]

[ There was no way he could keep dwelling on going back home for a day. Even though he was hobbling around with a crutch under his arm and an air cast on his foot, he couldn't keep stagnating in one spot. ]

[ Adachi can be found all over the porter cities, investigating, researching, and documenting what he can for his work. Though he's hobbling around as best he can, he does have to sit down more frequently, or catch a cab when he can't walk as far as he needs to. It's frustrating, but he's doing what he can to just keep moving forward. ]

[ Wildcard ]
[ Got something you want to thread with Adachi? Either post a top level, or poke me on plurk. ]

Comments

[fourlevels]

Ah, careful ...

[ Viktor slows, just in case, but keeps walking. It's good the housing is close now; he's starting to sweat with the effort of carrying Adachi. He's strong from all his training and Adachi is comparatively light, but even he can't do this indefinitely. ]

[sleight_of_hand]

[ This is why he said he'd take care of himself, Viktor! Not to mention he's almost positive that there were plenty of "Viktoru" fangirls lurking behind closed curt-- ]

[ ...oh dammit, he just realized what their fan name sounded like. Adachi almost groaned in exasperation, wrapping his arm back around him once he had his keys in hand. ]

[fourlevels]

What is it?

Rude not giving me a notif DW

[sleight_of_hand]

Nothing. Just realized our fangirls picked up on something long before I did.

[ He finally lifted his head after a moment. More importantly... ]

...how are we getting in the door like this?

[fourlevels]

Picked up on what?

—Ah, if I lean down, can you reach the knob?

[sleight_of_hand]

Did you notice the pairing name, or were you too upset you didn't bottom in any of those stories?

[ Adachi wiggled himself up a bit, getting a better grip with one arm so he could reach out with the other. ]

Yeah, go for it.

[fourlevels]

At the thing the other day? Which one? There were several that I remember seeing.

[ He scoots in as close as he can to the door, having to turn his head slightly to avoid hitting his face, bending at the knees to lower Adachi enough to reach the knob. ]

But they could have at least entertained the idea of me bottoming though. Honestly ...

[sleight_of_hand]

Our pairing name. 'Viktoru'.

[ He swore they left the "h" off on purpose. ]

[ He stretched out as far as he could, grabbing the knob, turning and shoving as hard as he could. The door swung open easily enough, thankfully. ]

I'm sure just because they haven't, doesn't mean no one has.

[fourlevels]

Ah! I didn't even notice until you said it out loud.

[ He laughs lightly as he steps inside, gently kicking the door closed behind him. ]

Which way to your room?

[sleight_of_hand]

[ Adachi shook his head, before waving toward the door with a "please knock" sign on it. ]

That one.

[ He paused, considering. ]

Here, I'll wrap a leg around you so you can have a hand free.

[fourlevels]

Oh, that'll be helpful.

[ He moves closer to the door first, then pauses and braces himself for Adachi to shift against him (which is not awkward AT ALL, really). Once he's set and Viktor can free his hand, he holds it out for the key. ]

[sleight_of_hand]

[ Awkward? This situation? Nah! It's not like Adachi's face has been bright red since the moment he had to wiggle against Viktor's back or anything. ]

[ Once the keys were passed off and the door was open, Viktor finally got to see Adachi's room. Which... wasn't much of anything, really; more of a place to store himself away when Adachi needed to sleep. There were boxes of storage for case files, a sparsely populated closet with very few changes of clothes, a desk with a typewriter on it, and a presentation board covered with a sheet tucked away against the wall. ]

[fourlevels]

[ Viktor glances around briefly, but his head pauses its turn when he sees the desk. ]

Oooh, a typewriter? How classic!

[ He moves over to the bed, carefully kneeling down again so Adachi can sit on the edge. ]

[sleight_of_hand]

[ Adachi let out an embarrassed noise at Viktor pointing out his typewriter, but didn't comment, instead plopping onto the bed once his butt was in range. At least that was over; he would have felt bad if Viktor had hurt himself carrying his scrawny ass around. ]

Thanks.

[fourlevels]

It's fine, it's fine~

[ Once Adachi is off, he straightens back up and stretches, swinging his arms around a bit while he looks around the room again. ]

So this is what it's like inside a detective's bedroom, hmm?

[sleight_of_hand]

Ah...

[ Adachi trailed off, his eyes lingering on the covered presentation board, before flicking back to Viktor. ]

...I guess I haven't really settled that much. Not every detective is like this.

[fourlevels]

I was thinking it looked a little spartan. You've been here a year already though, right? No personal effects?

[sleight_of_hand]

Almost two.

[ Adachi glanced away, not sure if he should be embarrassed or not. ]

...I kept expecting the porter to kick me back home any second, so I didn't bother. It seemed pointless.

[fourlevels]

[ He moves to take the bag from Adachi, unzipping it to take out anything Adachi brought with him to the rink. He keeps the rental skates though; he'll clean them at his own place. ]

And now?

[sleight_of_hand]

...I hope it doesn't do that again.

[ He really can't go back. He can't go back to just accepting his life was over, it was just a matter of time before it was actually ended. He let out a shaking breath, bowing his head. ]

Though I guess all I can do is hope.

[fourlevels]

[ Almost interrupting, tone firm: ] Don't think about it.

[ Then more softly: ] ... Do you have any medical supplies? I should clean the rest of your feet off and put some ointment on to speed up the healing.

[sleight_of_hand]

[ Adachi let out a faint noise. Of course he was going to think about it. Because if that thing could send him back for a day, what was keeping it from sending him back for good? What if it tried to pull him back, but he was already dead, waiting for someone to just cut down his li-- ]

[ It took an extreme force of will to stop thinking down that path and focus on what Viktor was saying instead. It didn't keep his voice from shaking though. ]

T-there should be something in the common area. Try the bathroom?

[fourlevels]

Ah, that would only be logical, wouldn't it? Br right back then~

[ But before he's even out the door, Viktor continues to talk, trying to distract Adachi from the obvious train of thought his mind wanted to hop onto. ]

How long were you practicing before I showed up anyway?

[sleight_of_hand]

Uh...

[ Adachi paused, pulling out his communicator and looking at the time. He was pretty sure he had told Dooku off around four...? ]

I think I got to the rink around four-thirty?

[fourlevels]

[ Judging from the sound of cabinets opening and items being moves around, Viktor found the bathroom. His voice is further away and softer, but he raises it to be heard. ]

Wait, so you were on the ice for over [x] hours? Did you even take a break during any of that??