Chapter Text
daisuke's leg bounced restlessly as he waited for the docking platform to lower. after a little over a year, he was finally back home.
back to his city, back to his mom, and back to you.
"chill out, kid. we've still got a few minutes," swansea sighed gruffly, seemingly used to the disembarking process of pony express freighter ships.
wringing his wrists anxiously, he turned to the older mechanic with a boyish grin, "how can i? she's waiting for me."
"she?" swansea lifted a brow. daisuke nodded, his cheeks flushing a soft pink as the image of you flashed in his mind.
"yeah. my girlfriend," he responded excitedly. jimmy scoffed, shaking his head, "no way she waited for you. a whole year without communication? no woman is that loyal."
daisuke frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "well, she did. I know she did. (y/n) promised to meet me here on the day I came back," he stated confidently, narrowing his eyes at the pessimistic co-pilot who'd been nothing but rude their entire journey.
jimmy rolled his eyes, but anya placed a gentle hand on daisuke's shoulder. "I'm sure she'll be here," anya smiled reassuringly, "if you're that confident in her, she must be pretty special."
his features softened at her comforting words and he smiled, looking down at the steel ring he fidgeted with on his pointer finger. "she is," he mumbled, the reality of how much he'd missed you starting to weigh on him.
finally, the gears of the platform began to screech with rust and it started to lower. daisuke unbuckled from the safety chair he'd been strapped to during their landing.
anya couldn't help but laugh to herself at how excited the young man was. his brown eyes seemed to glitter with anticipation as he failed to wait for the platform to fully touch the ground.
sliding down the metal dock, his boots landed swiftly on the concrete down below. men dressed in the pony express uniforms jolted in surprise at his sudden appearance. he gave them a friendly wave despite their confused looks of judgement.
ignoring the shouts of his crew, daisuke only cared about one thing: confirming that you'd kept your promise and waited for him. so, he took long strides towards the exit doors.
as he bounded down the carpeted hallways of the exit route, small flickers of doubt flared within him. jimmy was far more experienced as an adult than daisuke was. what if he was right? what if you'd gotten tired of waiting and found someone else during his year of absence?
he winced in pain when he pinched his arm. there was no way you'd do something like that. daisuke had known you long enough to see you stay loyal to your promises time and time again. feeling a little guilty for his mistrust, he continued forward.
nearing the final exit doors, daisuke passed by a window overseeing the waiting room. he backtracked to get a look at his crew's families.
it was surprisingly barren. an older woman who looked similar to anya sat patiently next to two kids resembling swansea.
still, as his eyes searched the small group of people, he didn't see you. anxiety spiked in his stomach and he shook his head, clearing the doubts gnawing at his mind.
opening the exit doors slowly, a few individuals looked up at the noise but deflected when they didn't recognize him. the smile on daisuke's face began to fade the longer it took him to find you.
as his doubts began to consume him, a man who'd been standing to daisuke's left stepped to the side and his eyes locked onto your figure.
preoccupied with a book as you sat calmly in a waiting chair, you looked slightly different than you had a year ago. your hair had grown and he didn't recognize the sweater you wore.
even so, it was you. you'd kept your promise. a flood of relief washed over daisuke and he felt like he was about to cry.
then, he was running. only a few long strides and suddenly you were wrapped in warm arms.
"daisuke!?" you exclaimed in surprise, dropping your book as the boy sank to his knees in front of you, face burried in your lap.
"you're here," he mumbled, words muffled. your shock made you freeze and you didn't know whether to hug him back or kiss him.
"of course I am. I promised I'd come. did you doubt me?" you asked softly, a little overwhelmed by his sudden appearance. none of the other crew had even arrived yet. he didn't respond for a moment and you heard soft sniffling.
a smile of endearment curved your lips and you leaned down to hug him. he hadn't changed. sure, his roots were beyond grown out and he was wearing a hideous shade of yellow that he'd never choose for himself; but he was still the same young man who'd cried a year ago when it came to saying goodbye.
"maybe a little...im sorry," daisuke replied hesitantly and you cupped his cheeks in your hands, forcing his watery brown eyes to meet yours. you couldn't even be mad at him as you wiped a tear away with your thumb.
feeling the warmth of your palms, seeing the familiar smile of endearment on your lips; he couldn't take it anymore. his hand reached up to cradle the back of your neck and he pulled you down for a kiss.
a little surprised by his forwardness, you laughed against his lips. daisuke smiled in response, a giddy happiness overtaking his arms as he pulled you closer.
his elated mood turned him blind to the stares around him. in that moment, daisuke's entire world consisted of you and the way the tips of your hair felt like feathers against his cheeks.
when you pulled away to smile down at him, a middle-aged man with a scowl suddenly stood before you. arms crossed over his chest, eyes forming a hardened stare, he looked just like a father about to lecture his kid.
"uhm," you mumbled and daisuke turned around to follow your gaze. his expression turned nervous as he looked up at the irritated man.
"hey, swansea," he greeted with an awkward laugh, arms still wrapped around your waist. swansea huffed, "you weren't supposed to leave yet. we still got a few things to wrap up." the two children who had been sitting nearby hopped from their seats. swansea gave them a little wave to tell them to sit back down. frowning, the kids complied.
daisuke gave you an apologetic look and you waved him off. "it's okay. I'll still be here when you're done," you smiled at him and daisuke squeezed you one last time before trailing behind swansea with his cheeks flushed in slight embarrassment.
>>>
after daisuke returned and introduced you to most of his crew, you explained that his mother was waiting for him at home.
"i told her I'd pick you up," you smiled as you drove. the route to his house felt almost nostalgic considering it had been over a year since you'd been there.
once you arrived, daisuke was greeted by family and a few friends. the welcome back party felt like it dragged on and on. you weren't all that close with anyone but his parents, so you sat to the side and gave him reassuring smiles when he searched for your gaze.
daisuke felt a slight guilt throughout the whole thing. while he was greatful that his family and friends came to welcome him, he just wanted alone time with you. after not seeing his girlfriend for over a year, why was three more hours so achingly long?
finally, people began to leave and he took this chance to pull you by the hand and lead you to his room.
"daisuke, your mom still wanted to talk to you-" you began but as soon as his door was shut, he pressed his lips against yours.
kissing him like this reminded you of high-school. the renewed butterflies in your stomach made you giddy as your hands made their way to his cheeks.
"i don't care," he mumbled against your lips and you laughed softly in response. his bedroom was dark and it was hard to see. stumbling back towards his bed in the corner, daisuke reached behind and fumbled for the chain of his side lamp.
when the warm light filled the familiar space, it really set in for him. seeing your face illuminated softly, the slight changes in your appearance that he hadn't been there for, a lump formed in his throat.
noticing the way his brown eyes watered, you kissed him again. you both fell back into his bed, laughing to yourselves.
daisuke's hands wandered your curves, feeling them like it was the first time. the patience it must've taken to wait for him made his eyes sting with tears.
"i missed you," he mumbled in a hushed voice, pressing soft kisses to your neck, "i missed you so fucking much."
"i missed you too," you laughed tenderly, weaving your fingers through his overgrown roots. the way his hands roamed your back, fingers playing with the hem of your sweater, displayed a neediness that made your heart squeeze.
"can I take this off?" he asked, conveying an unusual shyness as his brown eyes asked for consent. "you don't have to ask," you smiled up at him, pulling the knit clothing over your head.
it'd been so long since he'd seen you this way, daisuke almost didn't know what to do. what he did know was that his pants felt tight and a familiar heat was beginning to pool in his abdomen.
with shaky hands, daisuke pulled off his work shirt for the last time. while working on the tulpar really had been a great opportunity, there was no way he could ever be apart from you for that long again. the sensation of your skin under his fingertips only strengthened that fact.
with your back pressed against his pillows, daisuke leaned over your half-naked body to capture your lips once more. he knew that if he didn't, he'd start crying again.
so, as you pulled off your skirt along with your panties, he continued to kiss you. when your hands began to unbuckle his pants, daisuke felt his breath hitch.
pulling them off, he was a little embarrassed when you grabbed a condom from his nightstand as if it were muscle memory.
daisuke stretched it over his aching erection, eager to be inside of you already.
"I'll go slow," he mumbled as he lined himself at your entrance and you leaned up to kiss the mole below his right eye.
as soon as he entered you, reality hit him again.
"what's wrong?" you asked softly. his movements had stopped and the pained expression on his face caused you to worry. thats when daisuke realized tears were dripping down his cheeks. "I'm sorry," he mumbled in a weak voice, "it's just...I just..."
"hey, it's okay," you tried to reassure him, but your voice faltered as you felt tears prick at your own eyes. his sudden presence in your life after a year felt so comforting yet so overwhelming. it was honestly hard to even register the emotions you were feeling yet.
"no, it's not okay," daisuke shook his head, looking down at you with a combination of guilt and relief, "your hair is different. your makeup style changed. you got a new piercing. and I wasn't there for any of it. I missed out...on a whole year."
your expression softened as a tear slipped down to your temple. reaching up to cup his flushed cheek, you smiled gently at him.
"i know, and that's okay. you're back now. a year will eventually feel like nothing," you comforted him and he felt a mixture of adoration and admiration bloom in his chest.
how did he get so lucky?
he nodded, still sniffling. finally, daisuke began to move inside of you, making your back arch in surprise. as his movements started slowly, he mumbled, "damn...I almost forgot how good you feel."
your cheeks flushed at his sudden boldness, but you were just glad that his mood seemed to have lightened.
despite the indecipherable mixture of emotions within him, daisuke wasn't going to let that ruin his first time inside of you since last year. pulling you closer by your thighs, he picked up the speed of his thrusts.
"i really...really missed you," he moaned out, the sensation of your walls clenching around his dick fogging his mind. "me too, daisuke," you breathed, hands gripping his upper back.
his year-long abstinence seemed to have lessened his stamina. already, the waves of euphoria were tangling the knot within his abdomen until it began to feel unbearable.
reaching a hand down to your pussy, he shakily circled a finger around your clit. you moaned in surprise and daisuke felt your walls squeeze him in response.
"fuck...im not gonna last long," he whined softly, leaning his head down to rest against your collarbone. "t-then...go faster," you groaned, feeling the tip of his dick thrust against your sensitive spot.
daisuke's breath shuddered in satisfaction and he did as you said. timing his thrusts with the motions of his fingers, you felt your own oncoming orgasm.
"ngh..hh...(y/n), I'm gonna.." he groaned and you wrapped your arms around his neck to pull him in for a kiss. "come for me," you murmured against his lips.
you didn't have to tell him twice.
as soon as you whispered those words, daisuke's body tensed as he whimpered into your mouth. you followed soon after, fingernails scratching his shoulder blades as your vision went blurry.
daisuke slumped beside you, his breathing labored as his glossy eyes watched the rise and fall of your chest.
you helped him pull off the used condom and dropped it into the trashcan beside his bed. "thanks," he laughed, suddenly feeling a bit shy. you gave him a weird look and replied, "no problem."
for a moment, it was quiet. then, daisuke draped his arm over your bare waist while his hair tickled your neck. "(y/n)?" he asked softly.
"hm?" you hummed in response.
"promise me you'll tell me everything that's happened in the past year. I don't care how boring. I want every detail," he mumbled against your skin. you felt your love for him swell in your chest at his words.
"as long as you tell me about the ship. I wanna know about your time in space," you grinned down at him as his eyes flickered up towards your own. he nodded, grinning that boyish grin you loved so much.
"it's a deal then," he whispered curling against you. you nodded, "mhm. it's a deal."
as your eyelids grew heavy with fatigue, you heard him call your name once more.
"(y/n)?"
"yes?"
"i love you."
his words didn't surprise you, nor did they invoke instant butterflies. they felt natural; like they were meant to come from his lips. familiarity and warmth filled your chest. even after hearing it many times before, this felt a little sweeter.
"i love you too," you whispered back and felt his lips curve into a smile.
it seems that absence really does make the heart grow fonder.