Would you like to do some tests with me? Er... I mean... [Log]
Characters: Ichikawa Gaku, Nagase Kai
Rating: PG?
Summary: In which Nagase actually speaks more than a few words and Gaku is oblivious to the True Evil Purpose of something.
----
Gaku eagerly rushed over to the lab, ignoring anything and everything as his mind raced at twice the speed of his feet. Meeting with one's superior to work on scientific research hardly qualified as a date, but even so...
The evening would prove to be interesting. He hoped.
Nagase frowned as he swirled the liquid idly in a test tube he held before his vision. This could possibly be the most frustrating research he had ever had to conduct. Made worse, naturally, with his stupid father interfering at almost every step... far worse now that he had discovered about his new assistant.
As much as he really could not care what his father did with his 'mice', he would really rather keep this assistant sane for as long as possible; the boy did seem rather reliable.
He did not bother to look up when the door crashed open noisily. "Good evening, Gaku."
"Good evening, Nagase-buchou!" Gaku replied cheerfully.
He slowly crossed the room, sacrificing the bounce in his step for the caution of someone who knew that the slightest startling movement could cause a disruption. Even if Nagase seemed far too calm to be disturbed by anything of the sort, not even looking away from the chemicals to acknowledge his entry.
At such a close proximity, the blue-haired teenager knew it would not be long before he found it hard to concentrate on the work that lay ahead.
"What do you need me to do?"
"For now, find that one blasted ingredient I can't seem to pinpoint," Nagase sighed irritably and thrust the test tube towards Gaku, then added in a softer tone, "My notes are on the counter if you need them."
Ignoring the insistent throb in his temple, the Chemistry genius set about clearing up the mess he had created with his previous experiments.
Gaku took the tube and brought it up to the level of his eyes in one motion. He stared at its contents for just a moment before deciding it might be a good idea to check the notes. After he'd scanned the page he needed, the need for idle conversation took hold.
"I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet. I mean... for someone like you, it should be really easy, right?"
Nagase paused in his cleaning, eyes flicking over to the younger boy. A generous assumption, but a naive one nonetheless. "Research is never easy," he stated simply, before resuming his work.
It seems like he never smiles, Gaku thought, his mind more than just a bit busier than his hands. But at least he didn't look disappointed by the compliment.
"Maybe if we added less of this, and more of that...?" he mused aloud.
Having cleared the apparatus, Nagase returned to his seat and reached across Gaku for his notebook, paying little attention to the other's words. If the boy meant that as a question, he would repeat it after all. Flicking his pen tip out, he began scribbling equations in his notebook.
"Buchou..." Gaku said a bit louder. "I don't think we've tried changing the amount of these two yet. I don't know if it'll change anything, but what do you think?"
He indicated the chemical ingredients in question, holding them both out in Nagase's direction.
Nagase grudgingly lifted his head from his notes and studied the ingredients for a few minutes, then returned to his notes and ran the thereotical equation and yields through his head. Finally, he nodded curtly. "It might work."
As they continued conducting the various tests, Gaku began talking again. Not very surprising. "To think that this might help people once we get it right... And it's just the first thing I'm working on with you!"
Having moved only moments ago to stand next to the one who wouldn't leave his thoughts, he reached over to grab something and accidentally (or so he told himself) brushed his hand over Nagase's. "Ah.. I'm sorry.."
'Help people'.
Lips pursed in a thin line, Nagase focused on his writing as Gaku's enthusiasm washed over him. Why he felt the sudden annoyance, he did not know, but it was clear that the boy's innocent naivety- or 'ignorance' as his father would so term -had touched a nerve. It certainly wasn't guilt that led to such irritation... a son of Aizawa did not know the meaning of guilt. Whatever the reason was, Nagase did not like it.
Lost in his thoughts, he was surprised to feel a brief warmth against his hand, which vanished as quickly as it came. Ah, Gaku. "There's nothing to apologise for," he said, fixing a gaze on his assistant.
Blue eyes lifted and then fell again, almost nervously; he looked almost serious for a moment. But all traces of the previous expression faded away and were replaced by a grin as Gaku looked back at Nagase. "I'd apologize again, but I guess you'd just say the same thing, huh?"
"So long as you know." A smile touched Nagase's lips, before it faded quickly.
"You're a little different from the others," he remarked, more to himself than to the boy beside him. Without bothering to explain the strange statement, he returned to his notes.
He had smiled. It had been brief, but it had been there. How long ago did he Gaku himself if he would ever see such a thing? If his prayers were being answered... A kiss would be nice, too.
But that was a bit silly, even for him.
"What others?" he asked curiously, emboldened even more by the reaction to his previous statement.
Nagase's still gaze flitted over to Gaku once more. Odd as it was to have interruptions during his work- he was used to complete and absolute silence unless his stupid father was present -he found himself not the least bit frustrated by it. Perhaps somewhat amazed that this boy would dare question him, respected and feared as he was, but not frustrated.
"What others do you suppose I'm talking about?" he asked quietly.
Nagase's tone of voice unnerved Gaku a bit. Nevertheless, he answered the question swiftly. "Others that you work with, I guess? I wouldn't be surprised if they were all as quiet as you are..."
Yeah... Gaku had probably just been hearing things, he told himself, and it was probably just Nagase's way of talking. Nothing to get worked up about.
"Mm." Nagase raised an eyebrow at Gaku. This school, with workers as quiet as he? It was filled with nothing but gossip-mongers, stalkers and voyeurs. /Loud/ gossip-mongers, stalkers and voyeurs. "I was referring to the fact that you seem capable of holding a conversation without cringing like a frightened..." he paused, "mouse."
If other people reacted as mice, what sort of animal would that make Gaku? Mice run from cats, but a puppy will all too often stick its nose in where it's unwanted.
It wasn't recklessness or stupidity that caused his behavior, to be sure. If he spoke with Nagase, there was always the chance that he would start to open up. The desire to be closer to him fueled Gaku's actions, though not to an entirely illogical degree.
"Really, they do?" Gaku asked.
Does the sun rise in the east?
Either the boy was faking this naive facade- and if he was he was doing an excellent job -or he was truly unperceptive of the world around him.
Whichever the case, the simple question, asked with such wide-eyed innocence, served not only to surprise the young chemistry genius, but to cause a trickle of laughter to bubble up his throat as well. Biting back the chuckle before it streamed out, he simply smirked.
"Ask your friend, Hashiba Sora." He nodded towards the test tubes sitting patiently on the rack. "Get back to work now."
Gaku wasn't bothered by the comment and easily brushed it off. It only implied that Nagase had spoken with Sora, not that the two had any sort of relationship past that.
But mice. Nagase was constantly referring to mice. Was there something Gaku was missing, or was he merely paying too much attention to word choice? Sora was a mouse, people at school in general were mice, Aizawa tested things on his mice... (At least he'd been referred to as a puppy in Nagase's journal, which he religiously checked for updates - that must mean something, as well.)
Gaku would give the matter more thought later. As instructed, he reached for the test tubes and continued working.
Nagase bit back the sudden urge to ruffle the blue hair and chime out a soft "good boy". Truly a puppy. Flipping his pen expertly, he went back to his notes under the soothing sounds of a scientific research being carried out next to him.
Rating: PG?
Summary: In which Nagase actually speaks more than a few words and Gaku is oblivious to the True Evil Purpose of something.
----
Gaku eagerly rushed over to the lab, ignoring anything and everything as his mind raced at twice the speed of his feet. Meeting with one's superior to work on scientific research hardly qualified as a date, but even so...
The evening would prove to be interesting. He hoped.
Nagase frowned as he swirled the liquid idly in a test tube he held before his vision. This could possibly be the most frustrating research he had ever had to conduct. Made worse, naturally, with his stupid father interfering at almost every step... far worse now that he had discovered about his new assistant.
As much as he really could not care what his father did with his 'mice', he would really rather keep this assistant sane for as long as possible; the boy did seem rather reliable.
He did not bother to look up when the door crashed open noisily. "Good evening, Gaku."
"Good evening, Nagase-buchou!" Gaku replied cheerfully.
He slowly crossed the room, sacrificing the bounce in his step for the caution of someone who knew that the slightest startling movement could cause a disruption. Even if Nagase seemed far too calm to be disturbed by anything of the sort, not even looking away from the chemicals to acknowledge his entry.
At such a close proximity, the blue-haired teenager knew it would not be long before he found it hard to concentrate on the work that lay ahead.
"What do you need me to do?"
"For now, find that one blasted ingredient I can't seem to pinpoint," Nagase sighed irritably and thrust the test tube towards Gaku, then added in a softer tone, "My notes are on the counter if you need them."
Ignoring the insistent throb in his temple, the Chemistry genius set about clearing up the mess he had created with his previous experiments.
Gaku took the tube and brought it up to the level of his eyes in one motion. He stared at its contents for just a moment before deciding it might be a good idea to check the notes. After he'd scanned the page he needed, the need for idle conversation took hold.
"I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet. I mean... for someone like you, it should be really easy, right?"
Nagase paused in his cleaning, eyes flicking over to the younger boy. A generous assumption, but a naive one nonetheless. "Research is never easy," he stated simply, before resuming his work.
It seems like he never smiles, Gaku thought, his mind more than just a bit busier than his hands. But at least he didn't look disappointed by the compliment.
"Maybe if we added less of this, and more of that...?" he mused aloud.
Having cleared the apparatus, Nagase returned to his seat and reached across Gaku for his notebook, paying little attention to the other's words. If the boy meant that as a question, he would repeat it after all. Flicking his pen tip out, he began scribbling equations in his notebook.
"Buchou..." Gaku said a bit louder. "I don't think we've tried changing the amount of these two yet. I don't know if it'll change anything, but what do you think?"
He indicated the chemical ingredients in question, holding them both out in Nagase's direction.
Nagase grudgingly lifted his head from his notes and studied the ingredients for a few minutes, then returned to his notes and ran the thereotical equation and yields through his head. Finally, he nodded curtly. "It might work."
As they continued conducting the various tests, Gaku began talking again. Not very surprising. "To think that this might help people once we get it right... And it's just the first thing I'm working on with you!"
Having moved only moments ago to stand next to the one who wouldn't leave his thoughts, he reached over to grab something and accidentally (or so he told himself) brushed his hand over Nagase's. "Ah.. I'm sorry.."
'Help people'.
Lips pursed in a thin line, Nagase focused on his writing as Gaku's enthusiasm washed over him. Why he felt the sudden annoyance, he did not know, but it was clear that the boy's innocent naivety- or 'ignorance' as his father would so term -had touched a nerve. It certainly wasn't guilt that led to such irritation... a son of Aizawa did not know the meaning of guilt. Whatever the reason was, Nagase did not like it.
Lost in his thoughts, he was surprised to feel a brief warmth against his hand, which vanished as quickly as it came. Ah, Gaku. "There's nothing to apologise for," he said, fixing a gaze on his assistant.
Blue eyes lifted and then fell again, almost nervously; he looked almost serious for a moment. But all traces of the previous expression faded away and were replaced by a grin as Gaku looked back at Nagase. "I'd apologize again, but I guess you'd just say the same thing, huh?"
"So long as you know." A smile touched Nagase's lips, before it faded quickly.
"You're a little different from the others," he remarked, more to himself than to the boy beside him. Without bothering to explain the strange statement, he returned to his notes.
He had smiled. It had been brief, but it had been there. How long ago did he Gaku himself if he would ever see such a thing? If his prayers were being answered... A kiss would be nice, too.
But that was a bit silly, even for him.
"What others?" he asked curiously, emboldened even more by the reaction to his previous statement.
Nagase's still gaze flitted over to Gaku once more. Odd as it was to have interruptions during his work- he was used to complete and absolute silence unless his stupid father was present -he found himself not the least bit frustrated by it. Perhaps somewhat amazed that this boy would dare question him, respected and feared as he was, but not frustrated.
"What others do you suppose I'm talking about?" he asked quietly.
Nagase's tone of voice unnerved Gaku a bit. Nevertheless, he answered the question swiftly. "Others that you work with, I guess? I wouldn't be surprised if they were all as quiet as you are..."
Yeah... Gaku had probably just been hearing things, he told himself, and it was probably just Nagase's way of talking. Nothing to get worked up about.
"Mm." Nagase raised an eyebrow at Gaku. This school, with workers as quiet as he? It was filled with nothing but gossip-mongers, stalkers and voyeurs. /Loud/ gossip-mongers, stalkers and voyeurs. "I was referring to the fact that you seem capable of holding a conversation without cringing like a frightened..." he paused, "mouse."
If other people reacted as mice, what sort of animal would that make Gaku? Mice run from cats, but a puppy will all too often stick its nose in where it's unwanted.
It wasn't recklessness or stupidity that caused his behavior, to be sure. If he spoke with Nagase, there was always the chance that he would start to open up. The desire to be closer to him fueled Gaku's actions, though not to an entirely illogical degree.
"Really, they do?" Gaku asked.
Does the sun rise in the east?
Either the boy was faking this naive facade- and if he was he was doing an excellent job -or he was truly unperceptive of the world around him.
Whichever the case, the simple question, asked with such wide-eyed innocence, served not only to surprise the young chemistry genius, but to cause a trickle of laughter to bubble up his throat as well. Biting back the chuckle before it streamed out, he simply smirked.
"Ask your friend, Hashiba Sora." He nodded towards the test tubes sitting patiently on the rack. "Get back to work now."
Gaku wasn't bothered by the comment and easily brushed it off. It only implied that Nagase had spoken with Sora, not that the two had any sort of relationship past that.
But mice. Nagase was constantly referring to mice. Was there something Gaku was missing, or was he merely paying too much attention to word choice? Sora was a mouse, people at school in general were mice, Aizawa tested things on his mice... (At least he'd been referred to as a puppy in Nagase's journal, which he religiously checked for updates - that must mean something, as well.)
Gaku would give the matter more thought later. As instructed, he reached for the test tubes and continued working.
Nagase bit back the sudden urge to ruffle the blue hair and chime out a soft "good boy". Truly a puppy. Flipping his pen expertly, he went back to his notes under the soothing sounds of a scientific research being carried out next to him.
