Chapter Text
“T-Thank you for all of this. It really means a lot to me, Aiki.”
Aiki.
Nakamura really called him that.
Aiki.
The cool summer breeze wafting through his thick, black hair.
Aiki…
The way he said his name was so…perfect.
Aiki…!
“Hiroseeeee-!!!!!”
Hirose’s head shot up from the wooden table. He wished he had stayed down though, because he was met with concerning looks from Takeuchi and Mukai.
“Dude, what’s gotten into you?! You’ve been acting strange lately!” Takeuchi said while slamming his cola on the table.
The three of them agreed to meet up at a new family diner that had opened up recently. Hirose wanted to spend his free time sleeping today, but he felt bad declining a hangout session again.
“Hey, calm down..! There's people staring!” Mukai put his hand over Takeuchi’s mouth in an attempt to silence him.
“S-sorry guys, I guess I didn’t really get some good sleep last night..!” Hirose said sheepishly.
“You said that the last three times we talked.” Mukai responded.
“And you haven’t even responded to my texts all summer!” Takeuchi added.
Hirose broke out in a cold sweat. He was usually a good liar, but his skills seemed to have failed him today.
“What’s on your mind, dude?!” Takeuchi asked.
“Yeah, you can tell us anything.” Mukai offered.
Can I, though?
The table seemed very interesting all of a sudden.
Should I tell them…about Nakamura?
The silence surrounding the table was suffocating. It has been a good while since he was put in a situation like this. Whenever he sat in silence with Nakamura, it felt comforting and he got used to that feeling. But now, he had no idea what to do.
What would they think of me? All this time I haven’t given a second thought about my crush on Nakamura, but what would they think? I forgot that two guys dating isn’t really the norm…
After a few more moments of awkward silence, Hirose opened his mouth and started to speak.
That is, before Takeuchi interrupted.
“Heyyyyyy, so you guys seen the posters?”
Almost in an instant, the mood had shifted back to usual.
“Eh-? What posters?” Hirose said, perplexed.
“Ohhh, you mean for the summer festival? Whoever’s been handing them out is going insane. I’ve already received two today.”
“Yeahhh-! That one! Say-”
Hirose’s mind went blank again. The summer festival! He forgot that such an event existed.
“-Let’s go with Hamaoka and her group! This could be my one chance to see her!” exclaimed Takeuchi.
“Aren’t you ‘dating’ her, though? What do you mean by one chance?” Mukai asked while nudging his shoulder.
“W-Well whenever I ask her on a date, she always asks if she can bring Kawamura and Okuda…”
“I don’t think she likes you.” stated Mukai.
“SHUT UP!”
“So you want us to go with you?” Hirose asked, finally snapping back into reality.
“PLEASE!” Takeuchi stood up and yelled while clasping his hands.
Mukai grabbed the back of Takeuchi’s shirt and yanked him back down.
“I don’t see why not.” Mukai said.
“THANK YOU, MUKAI!”
“Yeah, yeah, shut up. What about you, Hirose? You down?”
Summer festival, huh…
“Sure, why not?”
Takeuchi nearly shot up again in excitement before Mukai reeled him back into the booth.
“Yay!!!! We’re set then!” beamed Takeuchi.
“Actually… Can I invite someone?”
“SURE! But who? Oomori?”
Hirose tensed a little. He didn’t really know why.
“No.. I was thinking about inviting Nakamura…” Hirose whispered.
“N-Nakamura-? I mean, I don’t mind but-”
“But?”
“I dunno, doesn’t he seem a bit strange to you-?”
Hearing that sentence felt like someone shot a bullet straight through his heart.
“S-Strange…?”
“I don’t know, he’s just always staring at us and he doesn’t talk much..!”
Hirose got flashbacks to Nakamura on the verge of tears sitting next to him.
“I think he’s just a little shy,” Mukai added, which relieved the chestnut-haired boy.
“Hmmm… I guess you’re right! Plus, there’s definitely weirder people out there!” Takeuchi exclaimed.
Both Hirose and Mukai faintly murmured a “you” under their breaths before returning to the conversation.
—--------
The summer festival. A popular yearly event that almost everyone in town attended. Vendors lined up in the streets, lanterns spread out above you, fireworks engulfing the night sky in colorful lights. It was nice from what Nakamura remembered. He’s only gone a couple of times with his family and once with his sister, but those were a while ago. That’s why he was surprised when he received a text from Hirose, asking if he wanted to go with him. Of course he had to accept! He would be a fool if he didn’t. Although, it wouldn’t be just the two of them. While that made him somewhat sad, Nakamura wasn’t sure if he’d be able to survive a whole night with Hirose alone. Especially after their last meet up. Everything went perfectly fine that day, but he couldn’t help feeling guilty.
Did I push too much onto him? Idiot! Idiot..
Nakamura laid in bed hugging his pillow while staring up at the blank ceiling. He hadn’t talked to Hirose since that day. Besides sending each other good morning and good night texts, no other messages were sent. He convinced himself that he overshared, but the way Hirose held him in his arms was the one thing stopping him from believing that.
“I wish I could hold Hirose in my arms like that….”
Ah. Shouldn’t I be calling him Aiki?
Nakamura had said his name perfectly fine before, but for some reason he couldn’t spit it out.
“I-I can’t-! A-Ai…A-Ai…ki…”
…
“Sigh, My voice totally ruins his name…”
He laid there in bed defeated before Kana burst into his room.
“What do you wannttt..?” Nakamura asked sluggishly.
“Mom told me you were going to the festival tonight!”
“So?”
“Stay away from me tonight! I’m going with Tanaka-kun!”
“Isn’t that the one boy you like-”
Before he could get a response, Kana threw one of his pillows at him. That probably meant he was right. He didn’t feel like being mean today, so he changed the topic.
“Do you know what you’re going to wear?”
“I’ll just wear my old yukata from when we went last time.”
“Ohh… I don’t think mine fits anymore.”
“That’s because you’re fat!”
“I’m not!”
Kana stormed out of the room and slammed his door shut.
Geez, what’s up with her today?
Nakamura laid in bed once more staring at his ceiling. What exactly was he going to wear? The light green floral yukata he had laying around in his closet was too small for him. He didn’t think he had grown that much in a couple of years, but he was proven wrong very quickly when trying to get it on. Before spending any more money though, he decided to sneakily look through his dad’s closet. It wouldn’t be too hard since he was at work and his mom was watching some random drama in the living room. He quietly made his way towards his father’s room without Kana noticing. Navigating through his dad’s clothes was easy since it was mostly suits and formal wear for his work. Sure enough, Nakamura found a navy blue yukata sitting in the corner of his closet. He snatched it up quickly and ran back to his room. There was really no point in asking if he could borrow it because his dad was never home anyways. He wouldn’t notice if it was gone for one night, right?
The tall boy slipped into the slightly oversized yukata flawlessly. It was a little too long for him, but it was no problem. Nakamura rolled up some of the cloth at his waist, pinned it down, and covered it with his obi.
That’s how you’re supposed to do it right..?
When he glanced into his mirror it looked mostly right. Something was off, but he couldn’t tell what.
“Okuto-”
Standing in his doorway once again was Kana. She didn’t say anything right away. Instead, she gave him a blank stare for a couple of seconds before walking closer.
“You tied it wrong, idiot.”
Kana took hold of the kaku obi and undid it.
“See, you’re supposed to have it lower. Not too high up,” she explained.
Nakamura sat still while his younger sister tied it for him. While it did feel a tad bit embarrassing, he was really thankful for her. How was he supposed to remember how to tie it properly?
“Are you going with that guy you always hang out with..?” asked Kana.
“Huh? Hirose..?”
“The one with the light brown hair.”
“Yeah, I am. Why?”
“Just wondering. He seems nice, though.”
That comment caught him off guard. It usually took her a while to admit she liked someone.
“H-He really is!” Nakamura yelled, which resulted in Kana lightly smacking him.
“He bought me lunch when he came over last time. I kinda feel like I need to repay him or something,” she said while looking off to the side.
“...That sounds like him.”
The two of them sat in silence as Kana finished up tying his obi. It was good to know that she liked Hirose. Once she finished helping Nakamura, she stood up and made her way towards the door.
“I’m gonna go get ready now, I’ll tell you when I’m done.”
“Okay. Thanks by the way..”
“Yeah, whatever.” She crossed her arms and looked away.
“Can we take your bike?”
Nakamura gave her a thumbs up before she stormed off.
—--------
It was around 7 at night. Hirose was running through the city in his deep crimson yukata as he tried to dodge all the people around him.
Crap! I didn’t see the time..! I’m so late!
The summer festival that Takeuchi had invited him to was taking place near the outskirts of the city. Unfortunately for him, the quickest way to get there from his house was cutting through the city. He regretted not leaving earlier as it was oddly packed tonight and people flooded in from every corner. This would be the one time he was grateful about being so short and slim, though. Maneuvering his way through the crowd was light work, even if it was annoying. Eventually, he made it to the entrance of the festival.
“Hiroseeee! Over hereee!”
Hirose spotted Takeuchi standing next to their group, waving at him to come over. As he made his way over, his eyes stopped on the illuminating figure leaning up against a tree.
Nakamura… I-IN A YUKATA?!?!
It felt like his mind exploded on the spot. It wasn’t uncommon to wear one to a summer festival, in fact it was extremely common. But, seeing Nakamura in one was surprisingly something that hadn’t crossed his mind before. Nakamura’s dark navy blue yukata in contrast to his pale, snow white skin was blinding. It felt like he was a star shining bright, right there in front of him. Was it really okay to be this close to an angel like him?
“Where do you want to head first?” Mukai asked while laying an arm on Hirose’s shoulder.
“Uh..”
He wanted to greet Nakamura first. That’s what he wanted to do. He couldn’t escape, though, as someone else had entered his vision.
“We should totally go play some games first!” Takeuchi chirped.
“Wow, that’s surprising. Knowing you, I thought you would’ve wanted to eat first.” said Mukai.
“HUH?! WHAT DOES THAT MEAN-”
Hirose watched Nakamura from the corner of his eyes as the two meaninglessly bickered in front of him. The two of them haven’t interacted at all since their last date. Had he said something wrong? Nakamura hadn’t even glanced at him yet tonight. Instead, he sat there leaning up against that tree, talking to Kawamura. He knew getting jealous right now would be pointless, but there was this heavy feeling in his heart that he couldn’t just shake off. He wished he were in Kawamura’s place.
…
The group of students walked together through the festival. They had a decent amount of time till the fireworks would start going off, so everyone agreed on roaming around until then. Takeuchi, Mukai, and Hamaoka were all together near a booth trying to win some goldfish. Now that he finally had Takeuchi and Mukai off of him, he could go talk to Nakamura! His target was standing alone by a vendor staring at all the different masks that they had to offer. Now that they were both alone, it would be much easier to strike up a conversation. Hirose quietly approached the boy, trying his best not to startle him.
“Oku-”
“NAKAMURAAAA!!!! GUESS WHAT ME AND HIFUMI FOUND!”
Right before Hirose got the chance to say anything, Okuda ran up and dragged Nakamura away. Hirose stood there speechless with a hand in the air. The three of them huddled together all staring at a novel Kawamura had found. He wished he could catch a glance at the title, but it was impossible as she flipped the book open.
What novel could possibly be so important right now?!
He stared at the three of them enthusiastically discussing the contents of the book. They all looked so happy and blushy talking about it. Even Nakamura. The only time he had seen Nakamura with that face was whenever he was talking about his love for octopus. Was there something else that made him that joyous? Hirose didn’t know and it made his heart ache again. He didn’t really know that much about Okuto, did he? All he knew was that he was a little shy, likes drawing, and loves octopus. Of course there was probably more that he knew about the boy, but nothing else would come to mind in the moment he stood there.
Snap out of it Aiki!
He slapped himself lightly.
Stop having such depressing thoughts! It’s not the end of the world. I’m sure I can talk to him later…!
He turned back to the other half of the group. He’ll just try again later.
…
Hirose walked slowly, but diligently behind the group, analyzing all of Nakamura's actions and planning on when would be a good time to make his move. He never realized how well Nakamura got along with the girls. The whole night, the four of them were grouped together laughing and talking intensely about who knows what. Normally Hirose would be glad to see the usually timid boy interacting with someone other than him, but it was really annoying him tonight. He had already tried so many times to get his attention, yet nothing had worked. He would always get interrupted by Hamaoka or Okuda whenever he attempted to call out to him. Hirose, not knowing what to do, would just fall back into place at the end of the group. He was sure Kawamura had noticed him sighing pitifully and was quite embarrassed as she gave him a lot of worried glances.
There you go again Aiki..! Making your problems obvious and pulling down other people’s moods… Get it together!
He slapped himself again, this time with a little more force.
“Geez, dude! Why do you keep doing that? You’re scaring me!” Takeuchi exclaimed next to him.
He didn’t even notice him there.
“Sorry.. It’s nothing, really..”
Takeuchi looked at him unconvinced, although he didn’t pry any further.
“Hey, let's go get some food now! I heard the takoyaki here is really good~!”
Hirose felt his body move forward on its own as Takeuchi grabbed his wrist and ran off, bringing him with him. After running for a bit, the two of them stopped in front of a vendor.
“Here it is! Which one do you want? I’ll pay for you!” offered Takeuchi.
“Wait, what? You’re usually the one begging me to pay..”
“Do you want the free food or not?”
The smaller boy laughed and nodded his head. Maybe it was just Takeuchi’s way of showing he cares, and he wasn’t complaining. Free food is an absolute blessing! Soon enough, the rest of the group flooded around the two.
“Why’d you just sprint off like that?!” Mukai yelled while wrapping an arm around Takeuchi’s neck.
“We were hungry!”
“You were hungry…” Hirose chimed in.
“I’m not paying for it!” jeered Takeuchi while still being strangled.
“Sorry, sorry!”
Hirose rubbed the back of his neck while watching the other two quarrel.
These two…
They are a mess, but to be fair, that’s probably why he liked hanging around them. It’s been a while since the three of them just played around like this. Ever since he started talking to Nakamura-
Nakamura..!
He turned back to the group of girls huddled together. He wasn’t with them. Instead, he was off to the side, eating takoyaki on the ground. His chance! This was his chance to talk to him! Hirose forgot about the two idiots and ran over to where the black-haired boy was sitting. He wasn’t going to miss this opportunity. He wasnt-!
“ZOMBIE-KUN, IS THAT YOU?!”
Right as Hirose was about to yell, he got cut off by a certain occult member and two others. Aokiyama, Tamura, and Oomori were all standing in front of him.
“Nakamura! What a surprise!” exclaimed Tamura in his usual manner.
Really?
…How many more times is this gonna happen…?!
His face was visibly red as he stared at the three people blocking him from his goal. As much as he wanted to stomp up and push them all aside, the doormat side of him wouldn’t let that happen.
“Hirose?”
The chestnut-haired boy looked up to see his childhood friend standing in front of him with a concerned look taking over his face.
“You good-?”
“I’M FINE!” Hirose interjected.
The two words came out sharper than what he imagined. And apparently he had raised his voice quite a bit too as everyone around him was staring. Including Nakamura. The two made eye contact for a split second before Hirose broke it.
“Hey, Oomori? I think I need some time alone. I’ll text you later.”
Before Oomori could respond, Hirose dashed off and blended in with the massive crowd.
…
Hirose wasn’t a huge fan of festivals like this. Most viewed him as an extrovert, always striking up a conversation with someone to pass time. But in reality, he liked being alone. He didn’t have to worry about living up to anyone’s expectations if he were alone. He didn’t have to mask himself to fit the perfect role. He could just be himself, unguarded. If he could, he would definitely choose to spend more time by himself, but the mental feeling of being alone was a different story. A little break wouldn’t hurt, though. After accidentally yelling at Oomori, he needed to find a place to calm himself. He didn’t want to cause trouble for the others and to be honest, he really needed this.
…This should be good.
The young boy found himself in a small area with not many people around. He leaned up against the metal railing that stopped you from falling into the lake below. The view was nice. Aside from the rising moon reflecting off the water, you had a full view of the sparkling city in the distance. It would make a good date spot, that’s for sure. Hirose sighed as his grip tightened on the rail. Looking down, he could see his reflection.
No wonder everyone was asking if I was alright. I look terrible…
His eye bags were worse than ever.
Is that why Kawamura was staring at me the whole night? Maybe I scared him off too..
The only audible noise around came from his rapid heartbeat.
Did I weird him out that day too? Was calling him by his first name too much?
He hid his face in his hands.
Why am I so obsessed with him anyways? We only just recently became “friends.”
Tears started to well up in his eyes.
Right. He’s just another friend.
“A-AIKI…!”
Quick, heavy steps and muffled panting flooded into his ears. He knew who it was, but after trying (and failing) all day to talk to him, he couldn’t turn around to face him. That is, until the boy grabbed tightly onto his sleeve. Slowly turning his head around, he could finally see him and how tired he looked.
Nakamura Okuto.
Nakamura was crouched down with one hand resting on his knee and the other still gripping onto his sleeve. Hirose had never seen him from this perspective. He had also never seen that expression on him before. He didn’t even know how to describe it.
“Na-…Okuto? Heh.. what are you doing here?”
Hirose gave him a small grin, trying to cover up everything that just happened. They both knew that the smile was a lie.
“What’s wrong?!” Nakamura yelled desperately.
Hirose froze. He had brushed off that question all day long, but now that he was here with Nakamura he wasn’t sure if he had it in him to just ignore him. But how was he supposed to tell him if he was the reason behind all of this?
“It’s nothing-“
“It’s not nothing! You’ve looked miserable all day-!”
So he noticed too.
“I-I didn’t mean that in a mean way by the way..! I think you look very cute- NICE! Y-You look really nice tonight-! You know what I mean don’t you?!”
Seeing Nakamura’s iconic pink blush across his face again brought him unexpected ease.
“Pfft- Yeah. I get what you mean.”
Nakamura shot up and placed his hands on Hirose’s shoulders.
“Then tell me! Tell me what’s bothering you so much…!”
The two stared at each other for a moment.
“…I care for you, y'know."
Nakamura didn’t break eye contact. Not like all the other times he did. This time, his eyes remained steady and firm on the one boy in front of him.
Strained silence filled the air around them. How was he supposed to respond to that? His head was racing with thought after thought, until he felt his temperature slightly shift. Nakamura pulled him into a hug, just like Hirose did on their last outing. He practically melted into the older boy’s arms. There was no point in resisting it anymore.
“…I think I like you.”
“E-Eh?!”
Nakamura cartoonishly pulled back from the hug with a shocked expression. He had his hands in the air, almost like he regretted touching him.
I messed up didn’t I?
Hirose stared at Nakamura analyzing his every little move.
“Y-You said w-what now?” He was stuttering badly.
“Are you really going to make me repeat it..?”
“S-Sorry..! It’s j-just…”
It’s just what?
“L-Like friends…or…?”
Hirose shook his head slowly.
Nakamura looked down at the ground. He couldn’t see his expression anymore. His thick bangs that he’s touched so many times were blocking his view.
It’s over isn’t it? Everything we've done together-
The moonlight made the taller boy sparkle. It was agonizing. He didn’t deserve such an angel, did he?
Nakamura took both of his hands and lightly slapped his own face. At this point, Hirose was fine with just jumping off the bridge. He had probably made him uncomfortable, just like the many times he had before. Why did he keep hanging around him? Why-
Suddenly, Nakamura shot up again and placed his hands back on his shoulders. Before Hirose could react or say anything, Nakamura grew closer and placed a quick, but steady kiss on his lips. On the outside, it was nothing big, but to Hirose, it was everything. The faint taste of takoyaki coming from Nakamura lingered on his lips. Both of them gazed at each other. Hirose didn’t want to see the embarrassing expression that he was probably making right now. Although, it was fine as Nakamura didn’t look any better.
“AHHGH-! I-I’M SO SORRY…!” He took his hands off of Hirose and shoved his burning, red face into them.
“ISHOULD’VEASKEDFIRSTPLEASEFORGIVEMEOHMYGODIMSOSORRY-“
Hirose paused for a second to take in what was happening. Then he started laughing.
“Okuto! Okuto! It’s okay! ppfft- I’ve never seen you this red before..!”
Hirose placed his hands on Nakamura’s and gently pulled back, revealing his red, teary eyed face.
“A-Aiki….”
They both gave each other a warm and real smile.
“…I like you too-!”
The first round of fireworks went off in the sky above them. Sudden sparks of light filled the empty night sky surrounding them. The both of them looked up at the sky. A big explosion of blue and orange sparks combined caught their attention.
Hirose intertwined his hands with Nakamura and gave a small chuckle.
“I sure hope you do since you just kissed me on the lips…!” Hirose looked up at him with a slightly smug face.
With that small comment, Nakamura’s face somehow flushed an even deeper red.
They both ignored their phones ringing.
All that mattered right now was the two of them.
Laughing together as the fireworks illuminated the night sky.