how could i ever forget // outside the morning was cool and wet

[monoceroscaeli]

[It's not often Ajax finds himself getting his head slammed down onto the hood of a car, least of all a cop car. Usually it's him doing the slamming.

But today the young man finds himself denting the hood, the sound of metal caving in under his head ringing in his ears. Not exactly the ideal situation he was hoping for, but he figured sooner or later he'd have a run in with the cops due to the sensitive nature of his profession, but that doesn't mean he has to like how inconsiderate they are with him as they cuff him and throw him in the back of the paddy wagon. Not that he was considerate to them when he was discovered, as evidenced by the blood all over his clothing and knuckles from the fight he'd gotten into with them. How he managed to avoid getting shot is beyond him- plenty of shots were fired, but that hadn't stopped him from knocking a few of them out.

It's just too bad he'd been instructed that he couldn't kill anyone, or else he'd of gotten out of there without being caught.

The lights of the police station are bright, almost too bright from the contrast of how dark it was outside. Ajax squints as he's dragged inside, held tightly by two cops who hurry him through the station, but not fast enough that he doesn't catch a glimpse of the secretary behind the desk as they come in. Pretty, blonde, looking like she'd rather be anywhere else. Gorgeous eyes, ones that catch his attention almost immediately as he's being shoved towards the back, shining with a radiance that captures him instantly. His eyes lock with hers, feeling something silent yet powerful surge through him from this tiny, insignificant interaction. He doesn't even have a moment to think further on it, before he's so rudely interrupted.

Get moving.

The curt voice of the bigger cop on his right cuts through the moment, anger welling up in Ajax's chest and something dark stirs in his core. If he wasn't cuffed and being restrained, he'd turn that guy's face into a new work of art, something so abstract some insane art collector would gladly pay millions for it.

No sooner had Ajax been ushered in, he disappears from sight as he's taken back into an interrogation room, the mysterious blonde no longer in his sights, now getting shoved into a corner of a room.]

What's with this? Don't you even have the courtesy of giving me a chair to sit in, at least?

[From outside of the room, muffled noises of a scuffle as the cops lay into Ajax can be heard, the loudest of which is a thud of a body slamming into a wall, accompanied by a groan from the ginger kid. Though little do any of them know, their real problems haven't arrived just yet, waking from their slumber right outside of the city...]

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[monoceroscaeli]

[The feel of her foot rubbing against his leg makes his eyes half-lid as he gazes at her, feeling a fond buzz in his chest. It's a nice, warm feeling that makes his head feel a little lighter and channels his focus on her so much so that he doesn't notice the employee coming over to place their water glasses on the table until it's being slid across to him. That snaps him out of it for a moment, uttering a small thanks to them before returning his attention to her.]

I feel like I'm being held to some sort of higher standard. Now I'm nervous my surprise won't meet expectations.

[Chuckling quietly, he sips his water, not expecting food to come out to them soon. However, the waiter/employee returns immediately, serving the two of them the food they've ordered. It was made so quick, and it takes him by surprise.

He doesn't say anything to the waiter, accepting the food with a small nod, given how much the guy doesn't seem to want to talk to him anyway. He doesn't care- he's not here to talk to him or make friends, he's here for Yoimiya and a good meal.]

[niwabi]

[ The waiter's reaction... or lack thereof, doesn't go unoticed. Not a nod, not a "Hi! How are you?", not even much of an acknowledgment. It's a little offputting but Yoimiya brushes the quick interaction off. If Ajax isn't bothered then she doesn't need to let his curt behavior get to her. They brought the food in record speed so all's well that ends well. At the end of the day, they're here for food, not to talk to some waiter.

Besides... she'd much rather talk to the absolute snack sitting across from her. He's way more appealing than the waiter. ]

I didn't know nervous was in your vocabulary. Who would have thought that the big bad Ajax could second-guess himself...

[ Nervous? Pfft, she doesn't believe the man who oozes confidence for a second. A sly smile spreads across her lips as she gives him one last rub, suggestively running her foot across his calf before stopping at his knee. She dishes out one last wink as she pulls away to munch on a nearby potsicker. Oh! It's spicy, that chili oil doesn't miss. ]

Don't worry, I'm confident in your tastes. You haven't let me down once.

[monoceroscaeli]

I'm honored you have such confidence in me. I'll have to ensure I don't disappoint.

[As much as he'd like to concentrate on Yoimiya and her lovely way of flirting with him from beneath the table, the food is here. His sichuan boiled fish looks spicy, and he can't wait to try it. After blowing on it a few times to at least reduce the amount of pain he'll surely be in, he takes a bite of it, while also making sure to try the broth by itself with a soup spoon.]

Oh! Now that is different. Not bad either, [he comments, taking another bite of it.] I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's some other sort of unique taste to it, too. I guess I just didn't expect fish to taste like that.

[It won't stop him, though. He eats his food happily while sipping water in between. The warmth of the food in his stomach feels nice, and he feels more relaxed now that he's eating, all of a sudden.]

Want to try a taste? [He offers a bite of his fish to her.] In turn you wouldn't mind if I try yours, would you? It looks scrumptious.

[niwabi]

[ While Yoimiya watches Ajax dig in, she goes for the shriml after finishing a pot sticker. Immediately, her tongue is hit with a spice that packs a mean punch, she wastes no time chasing it down with water to cool her searing tongue. It's so hot... but so good!!! And now, she's especially curious about the sichuan fish. ]

Aren't you sweet? Please grab as much as you want, there's no way I can eat all of this and I kind of went crazy so both of us can try everything. Well... don't mind if I do!

[ Likewise, she takes a bite of the fish with the broth and whew! That is certainly some heat!!! Her eyes widen from the intense spice and she's immediately chugging down the nearby cup of water. ]

Goodness, it's all so spicy that it's kind of addicting. It's got a very comforting flavor to it...

[ She pushes her plate of shrimp, noodle soup, and pot stickers in his direction. ]

Here! Feel free to help yourself. I haven't had the noodle soup yet but the shrimp and pot stickers are to die for. I feel like I'm gonna need a nap after all this food...

[ In fact, she's starting to feel the yawns coming for her. She stretches and yawns, her body becoming a bit too relaxed with each passing second. ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[Ajax doesn't mind helping himself to a little bit of her shrimp first. He takes one and pops it in his mouth, chewing on it thoughtfully as he savors the taste. It's so good, and he quickly has a potsticker too before he's got to drink some more water to fight the spice. He only takes a small spoonful of the noodle soup, nodding to her to affirm that it's good, before he digs back into his boiled fish.]

It's quite a bit of food, so after we're finished there's no doubt a nap will be in order. The warmth of it in my stomach is already making me a little sleepy...

[Which means he's got to eat it before he gets too tired or it gets cold, whichever comes first. Spoonful after spoonful of the sichuan fish goes right in, drinking water when needed. He's gotten halfway through his bowl when he has to put his utensils down, letting out a big yawn of his own.

It's so good, so relaxing...he could fall asleep right here.]

Goodness, I feel as if I got so tired all of a sudden. It's difficult to keep my eyes open...

[A fact that surprises him as his eyelids droop. His mind begins to clear, thoughts emptying from his head as sleep looms over him. Ajax yawns one more time, stretching and slouching in his chair, more relaxed than he probably should be at a simple Liyuean restaurant.]

How about you...Yoimiya...

[niwabi]

[ The food tastes so good, like a slice of warm comfort during a cold winter. They might have ordered a little too much but that's okay! She is already making plans to take it home with them. So for now, she opts to finish the noodle soup, leaving the shrimp and potstickers for later. Taking another hearty spoonful, Yoimiya focuses on eating the rest of the soup before the noodles get soggy, taking bite after bite and drowning out the spice with cold water. ]

Mm... me too. The food is so comforting I could fall asleep right here.

[ The soup is halfway consumed when Yoimiya feels a wave of sleepiness hitting her. Each bite makes her feel groggier than the last and she can't stop her eyes from closing. Ajax's sleepy voice isn't helping matters, he sounds like he's about ready to pass out any second. ]

...A..jax...

[ His name is the last word uttered before she succumbs to the sudden exhaustion. She leans over and passes out on the table. ]

[monoceroscaeli]

[It's too late when Ajax realizes this isn't right. They're both so tired, and his vision begins to blur heavily as his eyes slowly become heavier and heavier. His body seems to sway involuntarily, and he watches helplessly as Yoimiya leans over on the table and proceeds to pass out. Alarm bells go off in his head, and his eyes lazily look over to two silhouettes approaching their table as he starts to fall asleep.

The food was drugged, he finally realizes. Not good...

Too sleepy to fight, Ajax's eyes finally close completely as he dozes off, into a sleep so heavy that he doesn't feel himself getting picked up and tossed over the shoulder of one of the men sent to retrieve the two of them. Yoimiya is also picked up, and they're both taken away in the blink of an eye by their mysterious kidnappers.]

---

[Cold is the first thing he feels when he starts to come to. The bed beneath him is hardly comfortable, and he feels like his back is all askew from however he was dumped down upon it. Ajax finds he's lying on top of the thin blanket provided with the bed, as his captors hadn't bothered to cover him with it. There's a bandage on his arm, covering the spot that looks like a needle hole when lifted. It's only a small amount of blood- whoever stuck him did an okay job- but it's a little sore regardless.

He groans, sitting up and holding his head, fighting off the grogginess that comes with waking up gradually from a deep sleep. With no idea where he is, he takes a look around. This room is a cell of sorts, and there's no way out of it that he can see. Nothing else is provided in the room but the bed, which makes him think that it was never something made for holding someone for very long.

Suddenly, he remembers the threatening letter Yoimiya got. It's possible that's who's responsible for this...but how on earth could they have gotten to their lunch so quickly? Were they followed?

It's too much to think about having just woke up. He sits on the bed, fuming that they'd gotten caught, but knows he needs to focus in order to escape. Where's Yoimiya...he needs to figure that one out too.]

[niwabi]

[ Her head feels like it's throbbing, synchronized with her heart that feels like it's pounding into overdrive. That's the first thing she's aware of as she slowly stirs. Yoimiya has no idea how long she's been out, she was out like a light, her body completely unresponsive the whole time. The last thing she remembers is Ajax dozing off before she also fell asleep at the restaurant.

Ah.

That's when it hits her. They were most definitely drugged. Now the behavior of the restaurant workers finally makes sense, they were probably plotting something nefarious from the moment they stepped foot into the establishment. Ugh, Yoimiya can't help but curse her carelessness as she rises from the cold, hard bed she was placed on. They barely even covered her with the blanket, the jerks...

There's only one logical conclusion to make from this, and it's that the people who kidnapped them have to be connected to the culprits who sent that threatening letter. How long did they know? What did they drug them with and how? Questions begin to pile up but there's only so much brain power she has in her until she's hit by another sharp pain. Looking down, she notices a bandage tightly wrapped around her upper arm. If she had to surmise, it feels like she got poked with a needle but gods, she doesn't even want to think about what they did to her while she was out. So instead, Yoimiya surveys her surroundings, noticing that she's held up in a cell.

Great... all she wanted was to enjoy a nice lunch with Ajax but seems like the universe has other plans for them. It's then, Yoimiya realizes that Ajax is nowhere in sight. ]

Ajax...?

[ Once her eyes are adjusted, she slowly lurches her way towards the bars. She squints her eyes, peering through the gaps to see if there's any sign of Ajax anywhere. ]

Ajax...!!!

[ Try as she might, there's no response. Looks like she's completely and totally alone. ]