fallen ✖ detective

And he never really strayed too far, although he did go to the police academy in Brilas before returning home to work before he ended up in Prava.  

"It’s weird for a big city."  He agreed, "But I can’t say that’s a bad thing."

He’d really been talking about the fact that the department operated differently than any other department he worked at before but he wasn’t going to push the subject, finding the small talk a bit awkward.  

Then again, it's not as if Art would have the chance to visit, anyway. Even if he was just a regular officer, he still found ways to work himself to unhealthy levels of exhaustion.

'Who said I was going to sing anyway?' 

It was right around the mention of Nice's employee discount that Art knew the chance to suggest another venue had come and gone. Monetary matters would be--for the most part--covered. Shaking his head slightly there was little he could actually do now. With Nice already taking a step toward the establishment, there really was no going back now; his fate for the evening was now sealed.

"Where’d you transfer from?"  He asked, curious.  Dojima himself had been through the transfer process once before and settling into the city was an experience to say the least.  There was definitely something lavish about the city’s precinct that was nothing like the small town one he’d started out at.

It was almost a joke how much money the police had here and the crime rate was ridiculously low for a popular urban area.  Prava was definitely different and unique when it came to its law enforcement.   “You settling in okay?  I know it’s kind of a weird place to be.”

"I transferred from the Yokohama Police Department in Japan," he said, setting his mug down on the adjacent counter. Although a transfer normally brought change with it regardless, Prava and Yokohama were two very different cities. He could go on and list the differences between the two cities, but there were probably more than he could actually count. "Are you originally from Prava yourself?"

Taking a moment, Art began to wonder about his current thoughts on the city. Presently, working for the Prava department proved to be a lot slower than Yokohama. Not too many cases were reported throughout the city, making his job a bit easier than what he would normally prefer. Even if there were days he could actually use to rest, Art still found himself back on the job a few hours after leaving. Actually, it was no wonder he'd been sent a notice earlier about desks not being the equivalent to a bed. Letting out a sigh at the drift of topic, he returned his focus back to the conversation at hand. 

And then Art was asking why he was out and really, Nice could have gone home a while ago— His shift had been over for an hour or so now. He shrugged, matching Art’s smile with a cheeky grin. “I was just walking around. My shift may be over but the night is still young. And since you’re out and alone maybe it’s safe to assume that you’re also off the clock?” 

“‘Cause if you are, then we should hang out and do something. Maybe get some dinner if you haven’t eaten yet?”

Eyeing the other male a bit suspiciously, Art deduced something was up with Nice's sudden shift in facial expressions. While he knew his intentions were not sinister in any way, knowing Nice, it would most likely have involved the officer paying for their said activity. Of course, Art had little issue with that; the two were friends, after all. However, the memory of Nice's remaining balance occurred to him--he had yet to pay the thirty thousand yen back. The lavender-haired male shook his head slightly; now wasn't the time to bring up such a matter. Before Art had a chance to speak, he found himself listening to the brunette once more. 

"Actually, scratch that, I have a great idea. I guarantee you’ll be having a fun night."

No, he was okay with Prava’s low crime rate, more than okay, but that didn’t make time go by any faster at the office.

He needed a break, the fact that he had been reading the same four lines over and over again was evidence of that, and so, with a grunt, Dojima pushed himself out off his desk and made his way towards the break room.

The coffee here was garbage but he wasn’t having a bad enough day to sucker one of the officers into fetching a decent cup for him and it wasn’t like he was looking for a coffee break anyway.  He just wanted a break.  The coffee was just bonus.  A shitty bonus, but still a bonus. 

There was one other person in the room and Dojima grunted a hello before making a beeline towards the coffee, pouring himself a cup, before turning around to lean against the counter top.  ”You look like you’ve been here awhile.”  He noted, looking over the files and wondering why the unfamiliar officer made a desk out of a break room table, “Don’t think I’ve seen you around though.  You new?”

"You look like you’ve been here awhile.”

"Huh?" Art paused midway into a word upon the crack of silence in the room. Lilac hues looked up to see another officer entering the break room for what appeared to be their fix of coffee. Looking down at his mess of papers, Art calmly compiled the sheets into a neat pile before placing them back into the file folder. Besides, there would be time to finish the markup later in a space that wasn't the break room. 

“Don’t think I’ve seen you around though.  You new?”

"Yes, I just transferred in about a week ago," he said, grabbing his mug before getting out of his seat. Art already finished his serving some time ago, leaving the inside with a thin film of the liquid. Walking over to the other other officer, he stopped right before the small coffee station to pour himself another serving. With more liquid sitting inside the confines of the mug, he added his preferred three packets of sugar to the mix. Giving his drink a quick mix, he left his mug to rest on the counter top. Taking a step forward to close the distance, a pale hand extended out to the other male figure. 

A mixture of surprise and relief hit Nice the moment he heard his name uttered by his old friend. And that was strange— old friend? He didn’t think he’d ever hear from, let alone see, the likes of anyone he knew from Yokohama. Especially Art, who was always so absorbed in his work and never seemed to take much needed breaks. Nice wasn’t bitter about that either, seeing as he was the one that left the city and his friends behind.

Closing the remaining distance between them, Nice moved to stand in front of Art, a grin on his face as he took in the sight of the man standing before him. It had been a while, and they were both older, but somehow a lot of things felt the same. It was comforting, thinking that maybe they both hadn’t changed that much at all. Nice hoped for that, already wanting to dive back into the ease that was once their friendship.

"And well— There are a lot of answers to that question. If you want me to give you the one I think you’re looking for, then I’d tell you I live here. In this city, I mean. I also work over there." The statement was followed by a vague hand gesture in the direction of Blue Star, which Nice had only mentioned since the place was there in walking distance. Hard to miss too, with the distracting lights and muffled sounds of patrons singing to their heart’s content.

Listening to the answers to his questions, Art gave a few nods of acknowledgement. It was a relief for Art to hear his friend was doing well; Prava was an entirely new--and possibly even larger--city. Following the motions, the officer turned around at a slight angle to catch a glimpse of the gestured establishment. Lilac optics widened out of familiarity as he recalled standing in front of the place not too long ago, puzzled and amazed at how someone could stand such blinding light. With another blast of music finding its way out, Art took a small step in the opposite direction to avoid subsequent bursts; it wasn't his desire to go deaf soon. 

"Now it’s your turn. What are you doing here?”

"I was transferred to the Prava Police Department for the time being."To be honest, Art found work to be surprisingly smooth; Prava was a quiet town with an incredibly low crime rate. In Yokohama, there was some form of contact with a trouble making member of society on a daily basis. Whether it be for arson or home invasion, he was always making trips around the city. It seemed as if he could never catch a break, despite the opportunities he had.