"Of course I'm not kidding," said Hyuk-jae, and then he laughed as Nagisa compared his soup to magic. The fluffy-haired young man mentioned the bone soup fable and the Firebender nodded, smiling. His mother had told him the same story — though of course he'd been meant to understand that the moral was that when people helped each other, good things happened.

Speaking of… Hyuk-jae eyed Nagisa for a moment, smile softening. "I'll make whatever you like," he promised, "if I can figure out how. I like cooking." It was enjoyable and he hadn't had the chance or money to really do it for such a long time. He wondered idly if he still remembered how to make pie. Nagisa was a sweet person, someone who liked sweet things.

The young man kept up a steady stream of chatter, telling Hyuk-jae all about the things he liked. The Firebender almost wasn't sure how to respond — did he even know what he liked? He knew what he wanted, but… he wasn't sure, thinking about it. In theory he liked crime novels and sky-blue paint and playing the guitar. They washed and dried the dishes together and Hyuk-jae listened to the cadence of Nagisa's voice, pleased and quiet.

When asked if he'd like a nap, Hyuk-jae shrugged. "I need to mend a little more," he said, "and I think your apartment could use a little cleaning. Do you usually clean it?" He was sure Nagisa was going to say he used a cleaning service. It was hard to imagine the young man cleaning his own place. "I don't mind a nap, though. I feel like I could catch up on sleep for a long time."

Hyuk-jae shrugged. "You can save money if I do it," he said. "I don't mind." In fact, he could probably keep the place in very good order and, probably because of his previous living situation, the idea of having a place to clean was exciting. He was about to say something about cleaning the floors in that case when Nagisa grabbed his wrist, hauling him off upstairs to go to sleep.

Well, he wasn't complaining. Getting enough sleep was a luxury he hadn't been able to afford. The healers had stressed to him the importance of a regular sleep-wake cycle before, telling him that making sure he got enough sleep and slept at about the same times per day would help regulate the seizures. As Nagisa threw himself onto the bed, Hyuk-jae pulled his shirt off and folded it up, setting it gently to the side.

"We have got to get you some pyjamas!"

Laughing, the taller young man ran a hand through his hair. "I feel like that's a waste of money," he admitted. "I never slept in anything, even when I was little. Why waste money on clothes for bed? You just sweat in them and it's restricting." He waved a hand at his pants. "I just thought you would prefer I had on something." And he didn't actually have any underwear. Mentally he made a note to purchase underwear and socks when they got paid next, as well as some undershirts. Undershirts would make the nice, new shirts he'd purchased last longer.

Sliding in between the covers, he sighed. "Do we have a normal work schedule?" Hyuk-jae stared at the ceiling. "We always have to be there at a certain time? It's better if I regulate when I go to bed and when I am awake. Before I didn't really have the option, but now…"

He didn't care? With a sigh of relief, Hyuk-jae peeled off the trousers and dropped them out from under the covers and onto the floor. "Much better," he sighed, satisfied. When Nagisa gave him the run down on timing, he nodded. He'd have to work out a schedule for himself, then. Time for cleaning, cooking, and work.

Flicking his eyes over to meet Nagisa's, Hyuk-jae smiled faintly. "Yeah, well. Rich people." He shrugged his shoulders. In his time since leaving his parents, Hyuk-jae had met plenty of men who thought money bought them everything. "It makes sense. Those patrons keep the club going, especially if they are big spenders." He absently set his hand on Nagisa's head, thinking, his arm draped around the younger man. A big spender might be willing to pay a lot for private time, right?

That would make him quite a bit to put into savings. As for dressing up — "Ugh," he said. "I hope we don't have to do that often. I didn't like it." The kimono was ridiculous. Why couldn't he just, you know, wear normal clothing? He liked normal clothing. Plus, he'd just spent a small fortune on it… and there was the matter of new expenses, too.

About to ask Nagisa about the cost of rent and utilities, Hyuk-jae found himself cut off by his friend's sudden narcolepsy. Laughing to himself, he shook his head and closed his eyes, arm remaining around the curled-up Nagisa.

Sleep came quickly, no doubt due to a lack of it in recent months. When Hyuk-jae cracked his eyes open, it was dark. Quite dark, actually. What time was it? He moved to sit up and found himself pinned by Nagisa's arms, wrapped all the way around his stomach. "Ah —" he shifted a little. Nagisa had actually drooled on him a little in his sleep, which while slightly disgusting, was adorable. There was something in the way they curled together that seemed... different, special, somehow, and Hyuk-jae wasn't sure he understood his feelings. The Firebender carefully extricated himself from the embrace, sliding out of the bed and padding into the bathroom. Splashing cold water over his face he sighed, waking up.

A drink of water sounded perfect.

After dragging his pants back on, Hyuk-jae tiptoed down the stairs, carrying his shirts. Some of seams and buttons could do with reinforcing, and, curling up on the sofa, he set to it very quietly. Tea or coffee sounded perfect, but he didn't want to wake Nagisa. He wondered, idly, what they would do from one in the morning to... whenever they needed to go back to bed for work. Was he nervous about work?

The idea of flirting openly with lots of people didn't bother him, he knew that much. Perhaps it was the entertainment, the great scrutiny he knew he'd be under, that was giving him pause. Not so much pause that he couldn't pull it together, of course. Sliding the thread through his lips to make it more manageable, he hummed softly to himself.