retrospec | sketch 1。

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sketch 1。

Does anyone have any tips for consuming a burger roughly the size of a hubcap in 28.35 minutes? I felt I was hungry enough to attempt this task, but it seems I may have overestimated my own abilities...

[ There's a picture of a rather sizeable burger alongside a smaller, regular one for comparisons sake. Anyone who has visited Big Bang Burger in Tisse may recognise the ~~(completely obviously and definitely present in that picture)~~ outer space themed decor of the place.

It seems Yusuke has somehow found himself taking on the eating challenge offered at the chain.]

It is quite pleasant, I must admit. But I feel that even for a challenge, and even armed with an empty stomach this would be quite the arduous task for one person to achieve without drastic preparation ahead of ti--

-- oh, my apologies. The previous information is incorrect. I have just been informed I have 25.10 minutes left to complete this task.

[ somEONE help him.]

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i'm sorry to say that the this is a lost cause. i can help pay for half of the burger.

how does that sound?

[ pretend that comment about the price of the burger isn't there i forgot about the cheap deal. ]

... It was not overly expensive, thanks to some fortuitous timing.

But I don't see myself finishing this and would hate to waste food.

[ So that's a yes. ]

sweet. a free meal.

it's... what is it called? Big Bang Burger, right? consider me there.

oh yeah. do you have the tickets from Retrospec? might as well pick up some packages on our way back. i can bring your tickets over if you left it in our room.

[ IT'S TIME. ]

Yes, around Tisse.

Oh good point, let me check...

ah, yes. They are in my wallet! As we're out and about it would make sense to collect them, yes.

[ Persona 5 OST intensifies ]

[ It doesn't take long for Akira to make his way to Tisse. It takes sometime, but he's here at Big Bang Burger, checking out the space decor and how it kind of feels... Familiar to him?

With a wave, he approaches Yusuke and— ]

It's even bigger in person.

[ #yikes ]

[ He does get a wave in return, but it's probably clear by now that Yusuke is not gunning for the ultimate victory or the badge. He has been examining the decor as he eats, eyes focusing on the stars dotting across the ceiling. ]

They do not skimp when it comes to challenges, no.

[ he can't eat anymore, akira. help him. ]

If we can't finish it all, we can bring it home.

[ NO BIGGIE. Akira takes the plastic knife that's provided to them and starts cutting a burger pizza slice for himself. To him, this looks absolutely delicious because he's hungry. Not hungry to eat it all, but hungry enough to be grateful for food.

When that's properly prepared, he sits across Yusuke and starts eating. ]

How much did you pay for this again?

[ There's still something oddly fun about seeing this burger that's big enough to slice up like a pizza. Damn.

You eat that burger, 'kira. ]

About $5? There's a promotion in the evenings and the cost drops significantly. I would not purchase it at full price.

[ Akira just thinks it's more of a party meal than anything! The burger is not that bad—well, it's just a burger, after all. His eyes do light up at that steal, though. ]

Wow. That's pretty cheap for this size? I wonder how they won't go bankrupt with this kind of thing. [ munchmunch. ] Oh, yeah. What tickets do you have?

[ TIME TO SHARE ]

[ A thief with his eyes on a steal, what a shock. ]

I know it is only at certain times, but it must also be a limited amount otherwise it could not be sustainabe, surely.

[ Well, at least Akira is enjoying the food. If Yusuke eats much more he might explode and that would be no fun for anyone. ]

I.. haven't properly checked them, I've just been storing them in my wallet as I receive them in case I found a moment to pick them up. I think there are some clothes, though? And something about a painting, which I'm quite interested in.

[ Fox saw it first, though. Anyway, Akira rolls his eyes up to stare at the ceiling, trying to recall what his tickets indicated— ]

I think mine's just clothes. It says Christmas on it, too, so I'm dreading.

[ He's doing his utmost best not to react to Yusuke mentioning a painting. There's such a high chance that it wouldn't be... That painting. It could be any painting that Yusuke has done in the other world. Yes.

Taking another bite of the burger, he chews a little solemnly as his eyebrows furrowed. He can't just... betray Yusuke this way—they had this conversation before. ]

If it's the painting I'm thinking of... Then I would wait until you're emotionally ready.

'Tis the season. Perhaps they have thought to give you an early gift?

[ Yusuke leans his chin on his hand, his own eyes looking up at the ceiling and the little lights simulating stars across a dark, painted galaxy ceiling. ]

... If it's the painting we are both thinking of, then perhaps it is easier to just pull off the band aid than leave it there because I am too scared to find out what seeing it will reveal to me.

[ He looks back down at Akira. He'd had a memory of the painting before, but still had no idea how it had ended up in Madarame's hands - had this version of his mother been forced to sign over the rights to her work? Perhaps the only way to find out is to look at this painting, if it is that one, and see. ]

... Your mother is the real artist behind the Sayuri and your teacher—your foster father, Madarame, censored her work and took credit for it. You probably know about how he plagiarized and even made several counterfeits extra cash.

[ That's the easier part, it really is... But what comes to Akira's mind takes him a moment. Stealing Yusuke's drink, he takes a couple of sips without caring about germs or anything. He needs a pause and something to keep his mouth from going dry. ]

She had a seizure right in front of him and... He let her die, so it would be easier for him to get his hands on the Sayuri without issues. He even adopted you at the age of three so he make sure the secret is kept forever.

[ It's such a personal thing to learn about a friend, especially before said friend remembers it himself. He looks down to his food, rubbing his neck. ]

We defeated him, changed his heart, and he confessed to his crimes in reality.

[ you can't just steal a guy's drink while info-dumping his traumatic past on him, akira?? that's cheating?

To be fair though... when he starts talking, it feels like there are piece of a missing puzzle falling into place. Like gaps he knew were there and could have guessed what they were but the fog over them had been so thick he hadn't even considered.

His mother.

It wasn't like he didn't know loss. But after the loss, there had been him and his mother, together, against everything. Against her chronic heath condition; against bills to keep her alive and unstable income and not knowing whether there would be food to put on the table to feed a growing boy and a woman who needed her strenght to fight against her own body rebelling against her.

To know that, even if he hadn't experienced it personally, there was a version of him out there who had had nothing... hurts. And he knows now. Can feel that now-familiar wave of memories wash over him, leaving him dazed and confused, and this time around just cold.

Somewhere out there, linked to him deeper than he had initially realised, there was a Yusuke Kitagawa who had never know his father, had lost his mother too young to know how she smiled or the way her paintbrush arced across a canvas under her hand, and had been denied the chance to know second hand through her work. And the man who had filled the gap had seen him as nothing more than a ticket to more, and more money and fame. An arm with a paintbrush attached, nothing more. ]

...

[ he stands up, after a moment, pulling out his phone. ]

Please excuse me, for a moment.

[ because even though he knows she's okay here, as okay as she can be... he needs to speak to his mother. ]

Edited 2017-11-20 21:02 (UTC)

Yeah, no problem.

[ The first time telling Yusuke about his Phantom Thief identity went well—of course Akira went through bouts of anxiety, wondering if he did the right thing or not, but this time is feel different. He can feel the tension in the air... The misery and pain that emanates from this booth.

He thinks this over again. Was it right to disclose all of it? Would it have been better to hide at least half of it? He knows Yusuke asked for the truth before, but with each utterance it's met with forlorn emotions that were never originally theirs yet they feel so real. It's raw because they're memoirs.

Sipping the last of Yusuke's drink, his gaze falls onto the abandoned burger. Man, he lost his appetite over this, but that's the least of his worries. Anxious, he takes a peek to see where his friend went or any hint as to how he's doing. If there's something or nothing, he still patiently waits at the booth like a lost child, fiddling with his bangs to keep himself occupied. ]

[ he does come back, eventually. but he doesn't rush.

he has to talk to his mother, make sure she's safe, make sure nothing is wrong, downplay her concerns over his sudden phone call and then just soak in the sound of her voice over the speakers until the knot of anxiety in his gut loosens, even if it doesn't vanish completely.

when he comes back into the restaurant, he sits himself down a little heavily than he'd meant to, and lets out a heavy sigh. ]

I believe I have lost my appetite. Maybe now is a good time to consider picking up those tickets.

[ By the time Yusuke comes back, Akira has already gained more of a bad habit than an appetite. He kind of... Binge ate a quarter of the burger by now, but is sitting quietly in the booth, leftover burger already packaged in a couple of takeout boxes, waiting for his friend. He perks up when he sees Yusuke, but doesn't say anything just yet. His friend surely needs time—a good pace in a conversation.

They can start out slow. ]

Yeah... Why don't you take a five minute break? Then we'll head over.

[ He gives him an apologetic smile, remorseful till the end. Despite that, he urges himself to stay positive. It may be hard now, but this isn't the end for them. ]

[ At least that's one less thing for him to worry about? Half his purpose of being here was the potential for leftovers, and had Akira not been here he would... well he wouldn't have had these memories at all, so perhaps this line of thought is a moot point.

But he would have just left. Without coming back into the restaurant.

Yet, here he is. He stares at the surface of the table, and lets out a heavy, settling sigh. ]

Yes.

[ ... although one thing comes to mind. His awakening had come about because Akira had shared the details with him. His new knowledge of Madarame, and everything that man had done to his family, everything he had taken from him in the pursuit of his own greed and desires... had come from Akira.

It's enough to make him wonder. ]

... How many of our shared memories are you keeping in your head, Akira?

Who knows? [ He shrugs, making a joke, but drops into an actual answer. ] I have a couple, but not everything.

[ It's a vague and genuine answer. Akira has shared everything he knows about Yusuke with him so far, but... There is one memory he'll keep for some time. He scratches his cheek as he looks down at the table's surface, looking for an answer.

He's not sure why, but this situation is putting him in an uncomfortable position. While he knows he's not being purposely cornered, it feels like it. ]

I've been getting more as we spend more time with each other... But I never thought I would remember something like that.

[ Falling silently, he shuts his eyes as if to let them rest. He is still catching up from being lethargic and sick. ]

I'm sorry.

I am not asking to extract an apology from you.

[ he tugs at the edge of one of the polystyrene take-out boxes, tearing little grooves in the lip with his nails. ]

It would be more accurate to say I'm concerned.

[ At first he relaxes when he hears that Yusuke isn't mad at him or anything, but he was completely prepared to take that on. He had the words running through his mind, accepting whatever Yusuke had to say about it...

Never did he thought it would turn on him—that maybe this situation is worth concern. It makes him nervous, tinge awkward again. Goddamnit. ]

... Why? I'm more worried about you and everyone else.

[ His precious friends that have faced so much. ]

Because if these memories are hurting us when we hear them, you are the one carrying them around and speeding the process along for us.

[ like ripping off a bandaid, instead of watching as they slowly pick at the edges to uncover the emotional wounds beneath. ]

I cannot believe you are unaffected.

[ Instinctively, he reaches to his bangs to fiddle with as the uncomfortable topic pops up. Quietly, he processes all he remembers and how much they've weighed on his shoulders, how he felt about some of them... How they hovered over not only his, but their future. ]

Sometimes it's overwhelming to get a lot of memories back, but I'm fine. [ At least he thinks he should be fine. His voice is steady, calm and collected, as he slowly detaches himself from the conversation. ] If anything, I feel almost invincible with you and the rest of my friends by my side.

[ That, at least, is true. It makes him think that the whispers in the back of his mind, the small doubts that ail him... All of it is nothing. ]

[ Yusuke stares at him thoughtfully across the table. He's no stranger to hiding things for the sake of keeping friends and even family from worrying - this doesn't feel entirely the same, but perhaps the intent is the same. He's not sure. ]

As nice as that is to hear, it doesn't mean much when you apparently do not see the need to be honest if you are feeling overwhelmed.

[ he doesn't look mad, just a little... sad? ]

But perhaps that is fine too. I can at least reiterate that I am available if things are too much. Perhaps they would let us team up to defeat this challenge another day. It would be an apt distraction.

[ ... No, fox friend. Akira has been smiling to keep Yusuke smiling, but it falters when he sees his friend's droopy mood. ]

I think I can handle it.

[ It's his last word of comfort before he hooks arms with Yusuke, then leans against him. He does trust him dearly... Even if they've only become closer after a couple of months, he's comfortable around him and that's why he needs to look out for him. It's why he feels he should keep him and the rest of their friends safe.

He knows it's unreasonable and that he should open up, but it isn't so easy. ]

When it becomes too much for me, I'll definitely come tell you when I'm ready. I promise... Thank you for worrying about me.

[ And he's also sorry for being such a hassle. The last thing he wants do is weigh down on someone's mind. ]

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