Chapter Text
Tonight, Suo gets the single bed.
Nirei is already settled in his spot from yesterday when Haruka slips into bed. If Nirei finds this situation as awkward as Haruka does, he doesn't let it show (he did already spend last night next to Suo without complaint, so Haruka must once again be overthinking all of this). Haruka wants to get comfortable but it's not easy when he can't pull the blanket up all the way to his nose, and he is a little scared of sleeping in such close proximity to someone else — how is he supposed to make sure he won't end up on Nirei's side by morning?
Apparently, Nirei has no such qualms. "Goodnight, you guys," he yawns before he turns to his side, facing the wall. In a couple of minutes, he will be dead to the world.
"Night," Haruka mumbles, staring up at the ceiling. He can feel the warmth of Nirei's body next to him, and the pillow smells faintly of Suo's shampoo.
"Did you have a good day, Sakura-kun?", Suo whispers after a little while. Haruka is surprised he's not asleep already.
He thinks about walking down the mountain road and sitting under a tree with Suo. About Suo and Kiryu putting a finger down when asked if they had a crush on someone.
"… Wasn't bad," he replies quietly without opening his eyes, trying to clear his mind. "Uh, you?"
"It wasn't bad," Suo parrots, and Haruka can hear the teasing smile in his voice. Then, more earnest: "Our little trip to the park was nice."
Haruka's face feels warm, but he still keeps his eyes shut. "Mhm."
"Sleep well, Sakura-kun."
"Y-you, too."
"Happy birthday," Haruka mumbles as he slides the bag containing Kiryu's gift across the table. He hopes his friend will like what he got him, even if he wasn't able to afford much.
"Thank you, Sakura-chan," Kiryu takes it with a smile.
They're back at the café they went to on Thursday, the table covered in Kiryu's presents and plates of cake (Suo shocked everyone by actually ordering a slice as well, but Haruka is just glad he won't have to force feed the guy).
Kiryu peeks inside the bag and his smile grows wider. "Oh, this is so cute!"
He pulls out a small metal case that reminded Haruka of Kiryu's phone: It's pink with a hot dog print. When Kiryu opens it, he finds a bunch of differently shaped hairpins inside and immediately clips one into his hair.
"Very thoughtful, Sakura-san," Nirei comments, "Kiryu-san always needs more of those."
The others agree and nod along, and Haruka feels his cheeks heat up. He doesn't think his present is in any way on the same level as their other friends' — Tsugeura and Nirei gifted Kiryu a figurine of a character from one of those anime he likes, and Suo got him a fancy-looking bottle of cologne. His family will surely give him expensive gifts as well. In comparison, Haruka's little hairpin case looks pathetic, and he kind of wants to go hide in the bathroom.
A foot nudges his ankle under the table, and he looks up at Kiryu who is still smiling at him, a little plastic cherry now decorating his hair. "Thank you," he says again.
Haruka has to avert his eyes.
His gaze falls on Suo, who is actually, genuinely eating a piece of cake like it's the most normal thing in the world for him. It's hard not to stare at the way his lips wrap around the fork. This is the first time Suo's ever had food in front of them, and Haruka can't help but feel a little entranced. What the fuck is Suo's deal? What about his diet? This boy is an enigma.
"So, um," Haruka blinks when he hears Nirei's voice next to him. "When do you guys want to go to the festival? It starts at five, but obviously we'll have to change into our yukata before we leave."
The town nearby is having a firework festival today, so they decided to go there together later. Why didn't Haruka bring his fucking yukata? It's one of the few actually nice items of clothing he owns, and he didn't think to take it with him. Though to be fair, he really didn't know they'd be going to a festival. Memories bubble up inside his mind without his permission, of kids chatting about birthday parties that everyone was invited to but him, of being dressed in hand-me-downs from the orphanage and getting laughed at on the playground. He digs his nails into his palms.
"But Sakura-kun doesn't have one with him," Suo points out, and Haruka wants to die.
"We can buy one!", Kiryu says, his eyes lighting up immediately.
"Ya just wanna go on a shoppin' trip," Haruka mumbles, his face hot. Why is all the attention suddenly on him, when it's Kiryu's god damn birthday?
"So what if I do?", Kiryu grins. "On my special day, we should do whatever I want."
Not even an hour later, Haruka finds himself at a department store, in a shop that doesn't even sell kimono or anything of the sort, watching Kiryu, Nirei and Suo search the racks. Tsugeura has gone back to the hotel to work out.
"Sakura-san, come here," Nirei calls out.
Haruka approaches him, warily eyeing the several pieces of clothing in his arms. They're very colourful. "Hm?"
"I think these would look good on you," Nirei says with a smile.
Haruka thought they were here to buy a yukata. Does Nirei think he can afford all of this?
"You don't have to buy them," Nirei seems to have read his mind, "We can just play dress-up!"
"Fine," Haruka mumbles and receives the clothes from Nirei.
"Let's go try them on," Kiryu says, suddenly next to him with his own selection of clothes in hand, linking their arms and dragging Haruka off to the changing rooms.
"The fuck," Haruka mutters when he takes a closer look at what Nirei's picked out for him inside the cubicle. In his hands is a pink, sleeveless top with a heart on the front. It's short, very short. Did Nirei get the wrong size? This almost looks like it was taken from the women's section.
Whatever. He takes off his shirt and pulls the tiny pink monstrosity over his head. If it makes Nirei happy, Haruka will at least try it.
It is absolutely too short — the shirt doesn't even cover his belly button, the fabric stopping right above it and revealing his flat, pale stomach. The rest of it fits completely fine though, albeit a bit tightly.
"What the hell, Nirei," he grunts as he opens the curtains to his cubicle, his eyes searching for his vice captain.
Next to him, he hears a quiet thud, and when he turns, he sees that Suo is hurriedly kneeling down to pick up the clothes he's dropped.
"Sakura-kun," Suo says, his voice sounding strange, "You …"
Haruka has never seen a speechless Suo. But then he remembers his current appearance and suddenly feels like he's overheating despite the shop's AC, quickly covering his stomach by crossing his arms over it. "I know I look stupid, ya don't need to say it."
Suo clears his throat. "You don't look stupid."
"Sakura-san, wow! This suits you so well!", Nirei praises once he finally comes back from God knows where, carrying even more clothes. "Have you tried on anything else yet?"
"No." And he doesn't want to; this is already so embarrassing. Suo is still looking at him.
"The colour works well with your lovely blush, Sakura-chan." Kiryu has left his own cubicle and joined their little circle.
Haruka's less-than-friendly words die on his tongue when he sees what Kiryu is wearing.
"Oh, my God, Kiryu-san, this is so cute!"
"I know, right?" Kiryu spins in a circle, the skirt he's put on twirling around him, and Haruka can't stop staring. "What does Sakura-chan think?"
Haruka's eyes snap up from Kiryu's toned legs back to his face, and the boy is looking at him expectantly, a smile on his glossy lips.
"Wh-why's it matter what I think," he mutters, turning back around and pulling the curtains shut behind him to take off the stupid top. As if Haruka has any right to judge Kiryu's clothes or tell him what looks good or not — you can't exactly call him a fashion expert. It would never occur to him to check out the girls' section; he didn't know you could just do that. But of course none of this is stuff he'd ever wear anyway.
For a moment, he just sits on the little stool inside the cubicle, trying to tamp down his furious blush. Is he really that jealous of Kiryu's confidence or his figure? Haruka's stomach is in knots. To distract himself, he holds up another shirt Nirei picked out for him, and this one at least seems to be a normal length— it's bright green, though. With a heavy sigh, he puts it on. He guesses it looks alright.
When he comes back out, Suo and Nirei are standing in front of the cubicle, waiting for him. Don't they have their own clothes to try on? This time, Suo just smiles at him.
"You really look good in everything, Sakura-kun."
Haruka knows he's turning red again, but he can't help it. "Th-thanks."
He tries on a few more tops, receiving praise from his friends and blushing harder with each time. None of them are quite as scandalous as the first one, but he still doesn't feel particularly comfortable in anything he puts on. There's a reason why he tends to only wear clothes that don't make him stand out.
After a while, he says: "I thought we were gonna look for a yukata."
Kiryu chuckles. "Oh, right! We should probably do that."
Haruka obviously can't afford to buy any of the items Nirei chose for him, so he hangs them on a rack next to the changing rooms and follows his friends to the checkout. He hadn't even realised they'd tried on anything (he chooses not to think about Kiryu and the skirt).
There's another shop across from the one they just left which does sell traditional clothing. Haruka feels a little frustrated about having to spend money on something that he technically already owns, but he doesn't want to be the only one in their group who shows up to the festival in jeans.
They've already wasted way too much time for his liking, so he just wants to buy something simple and get out of here. But of course, it's not that easy.
"Sakura-san, which colour are you looking for?"
"Black. Or dark grey."
"Whaaat, but that's so boring!"
Then why ask for his opinion in the first place? Haruka plops down in an armchair in the middle of the store, resigned to his fate as Nirei Akihiko's dress up doll. Suo takes a seat next to him and smiles.
"Looks like you're really inspiring our Nire-kun."
"Mhm." Haruka wishes they could sneak out together like they did yesterday, just the two of them.
"We could go to the festival in our regular clothes," Suo says quietly. "If you don't want to buy anything. We wouldn't be the only ones. You don't have to put so much pressure on yourself."
"'s fine." He doesn't need Suo's pity.
After a minute, Nirei and Kiryu approach them, each holding a yukata on a hanger. The one in Nirei's hand is dark blue with some weird geometrical pattern, while Kiryu's is dark green with simple black stripes. It reminds Haruka of the one he has at home.
"I'll take that one," he immediately points at Kiryu.
"Told you so!", Kiryu sticks his tongue out at Nirei, who pouts.
"Will you at least try them both on, Sakura-san?"
Nirei and his god damn puppy eyes.
"… 'kay."
Haruka's face is still burning when he leaves the department store with the others, tightly gripping the handle of his shopping bag. At the register, Kiryu had made the other two restrain him to keep him from paying for the green yukata and swiped his own card instead. Haruka wishes it weren't common knowledge among his friends how poor he is.
They return to the hotel to get changed, where Tsugeura is already waiting for them in his jinbei. Nirei styles Haruka's hair after his shower, pinning it up to reveal his forehead. He can't decide if he feels silly or not, but both Suo and Kiryu compliment him, so he guesses it can't look that bad.
When Haruka gets off the bus, he's immediately impressed: There's even more stalls than at the festival in Shishitoren's territory, and quite a lot of people are here already.
"Let's check out the food and games before we go to the picnic area!", Nirei announces. "Sakura-san, can you help me win that big plushie over there at the shooting booth?"
Haruka would rather have some greasy noodles or takoyaki, but he can never say no to Nirei. "Sure …"
Once they've tried out all the games and Nirei has proudly claimed his prize in form of a giant dog plushie, they buy food and drinks at the stalls and head over to the big field of grass that has been cleared up for everyone to sit down and enjoy a clear view of the fireworks. Many groups of people have already gathered as the sun is slowly starting to set. Haruka didn't even realise Nirei brought a picnic blanket.
"Wait, you guys go on and pick out a good spot," Kiryu suddenly says before they descend the stairs together. "I, uh, I gotta speak with Sakura-chan for a moment."
Suo raises an eyebrow, but accepts Kiryu's food and drink.
"See you in a bit," Nirei says, carrying Haruka's box of noodles and leaving with Tsugeura and Suo.
Now it's just Haruka and Kiryu, and Haruka is a little confused and a lot worried.
"Sakura-chan?", Kiryu asks, holding out his hand. "Come with me for a second?"
Does … Does Kiryu want Haruka to take his hand? Nervously, he grabs it, and Kiryu smiles, leading him back through the crowd towards a small bench under a tree, far enough from the stalls that there's no other people around. Kiryu doesn't let go of him as they sit down.
"I'm really glad you came on this trip with us, Sakura-chan," Kiryu says. (But?, Haruka can't help but think.) "It would've been way less fun without you."
"Mhm."
"Did you enjoy yourself, too? I know we kinda pushed you out of your comfort zone a few times."
Kiryu's palm is so soft. Haruka stares at the ground in front of him; his face feels warm. "I … It was nice, I guess …"
Haruka is waiting for the other shoe to drop, for Kiryu to tell him that they'll never invite him on another trip again, that even though they had fun, he ended up being too annoying after all.
When Kiryu doesn't say anything else, Haruka looks up to meet his eyes, and he thinks the other boy is … blushing? "Uh, everythin' okay?"
Kiryu clears his throat. "Yes. Sorry, I just … I think you look lovely in that yukata. I'm happy we bought it for you."
For some reason, there's a swarm of butterflies in Haruka's stomach. "Th-thanks."
Is that all Kiryu wanted? Should they go back to the others now?
"There's … something else I wanted to talk about."
Here it comes. Haruka clenches his jaw. "Hm?"
"I, um …", Kiryu starts, averting his eyes, the blush of his cheeks growing darker. "Sakura-chan …"
Just say it, Haruka thinks. He doesn't even know what Kiryu is going to tell him, but it's not going to be good.
Kiryu looks back at him again. "Can I kiss you?"
The fireworks set off in this exact moment, the explosion of colour in the sky getting reflected in Kiryu's eyes.
What?
Haruka's mind goes blank. Somewhere in the distance, he can hear people cheer.
"Ah, shit, that's — Sorry, that's not how I meant for this to go," Kiryu stammers, letting go of Haruka's hand like he's been burned. His usual bravado is suddenly nowhere to be found. "I'm sorry, Sakura-chan, you just looked so beautiful just now —"
"The fuck?", Haruka finally gets out, "Wh-what are ya talking about?"
Kiryu hides his red face in his hands. "I thought it was quite obvious."
Why would Kiryu ever want to do … that with Haruka? Is this some kind of cruel prank? Haruka thinks he might throw up. But now he can't stop wondering how it would feel to kiss Kiryu.
"Can … Can we?" Is that allowed? Is Haruka allowed to have this, to get kissed by a pretty boy at a festival?
"Y-you want to?"
Haruka isn't really sure what he wants, but he nods.
Gripping his hand tightly again, Kiryu leans in, and Haruka holds his breath. Another round of fireworks paints the night sky, and Haruka's last coherent thought is how this whole thing is like a scene from a cheesy romance movie, before his mouth touches Kiryu's.
The butterflies inside Haruka go haywire. Kiryu's lips are soft, strawberry lip gloss smearing between them as they kiss, and Kiryu takes Haruka's face in his hands, gently caressing his cheeks and setting them on fire with his fingers. Haruka's own hands are clenched into fists in his lap; he doesn't know what to do with himself. Just add kissing to the long list of things he's not good at, he supposes.
After a moment, Kiryu pulls back and smiles at him, still holding Haruka. "How was that, Sakura-chan?"
"Again?", Haruka blurts out, and Kiryu laughs loudly, his hands slipping from Haruka's face to cover his own mouth.
"O-or not," Haruka mutters, ice-cold mortification quickly settling in his stomach.
"No, no, Sakura-chan, I — I liked it, too," Kiryu grins, eyes sparkling, and Haruka lets out a shaky breath.
And so Kiryu recaptures Haruka's lips, burying his fingers in his hair this time. Haruka gasps when he feels Kiryu pull, and Kiryu seizes the opportunity to lick into his mouth.
"Ah," Haruka sputters, pulling back. "I …"
"Sorry, was that too much?", Kiryu asks, immediately letting go of him. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable …"
"It's, uh, 's fine," Haruka mumbles, unable to shake the feeling of Kiryu's hot, wet tongue against his own. "'m not uncomfortable. I just …" He picks at his fingernails. "I dunno how to kiss like that yet …"
Kiryu chuckles again, and Haruka tries to suppress his embarrassment. "That's okay. Not everybody likes it."
The thing is that Haruka did like it — it felt so weird and foreign, and yet he wants Kiryu to do it again. But he would never admit that, so he stays silent.
"So, um, Sakura-chan …" Kiryu's voice is quiet. "If I … asked you out, what would you say?"
Ask him out? Ask Haruka out? Does that verb mean something other than what Haruka thinks it does, because surely, Kiryu can't mean —
Never have I ever had a crush on a classmate. Kiryu putting down a finger.
Wait.
"K-Kiryu's got a crush on me?", Haruka sputters, his face burning brighter than the fireworks.
With wide eyes, Kiryu says: "Sakura-chan, we just kissed."
"That could've meant anythin'!", Haruka yells, and he's glad there's no one else around to hear them, "H-how was I supposed to know —"
Kiryu bites his lip, probably in an attempt not to laugh again. "I … Fair enough, I guess I should've been more clear."
"W-why didn't ya say somethin' before?", Haruka mumbles after a moment of silence. He's aware Kiryu is waiting for an answer to his question, but he doesn't know what to say yet.
The blush returns to Kiryu's cheeks. "Um, honestly, I didn't want to get between you and Suo-chan. But I thought, today's my birthday, right, so maybe you'd humour me …"
"Huh?!"
"Are you telling me you don't have a big, fat crush on Suo-chan?", Kiryu asks with his eyebrows raised.
???
Maybe this is a shitty prank after all; maybe Suo and the others are just hiding behind a corner and listening to every embarrassing word Haruka says. Deep down, Haruka is aware they would never do that, but what other explanation could there be for whatever the fuck is going on right now?
Haruka? Having a crush on Suo?
"… How would I know if I do?"
Kiryu gives him a lopsided smile. "I think the fact that you're not vehemently denying it is proof enough, Sakura-chan."
Haruka opens his mouth, then closes it again when he realises he's at a loss for words. Fuck, is Kiryu right? Unwilling to think about this too much yet, he distracts himself by asking: "But … but what about you?"
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I just want you to be happy … Though of course, I wouldn't mind sharing, either," Kiryu grins, but Haruka is unsure of what to make of the expression.
"Sh-sharing?"
"You know, like, um, what's it called?" Kiryu scratches his chin. "Poly-, uh, something?"
"The fuck're ya talkin' about," Haruka grunts. His brain is already on the verge of exploding, and now Kiryu is pulling out the fucking dictionary?
"Like, when you have two boyfriends at once and stuff. Or more, I guess?"
"… What?" Haruka didn't realise that was a thing. Also, what the fuck? Why are they talking about boyfriends?
"A-anyway," Kiryu mumbles, fidgeting with his own fingers in his lap. "As I said, I didn't even really expect you to want to kiss me, so I'm more than happy already … But if you ever do feel the same, I'll be waiting." He looks at Haruka, his eyes big and sparkly.
Does Haruka feel the same? Does he want to be Kiryu's … boyfriend? What would that even mean? Haruka has never been in that type of relationship before, for obvious reasons.
"You … um, ya wouldn't wanna date me."
"Why do you say that?"
"I … I wouldn't be a good b-boyfriend."
"I know you'd be lovely," Kiryu smiles, and it looks a little sad. "Let me decide what I want, alright, Sakura-chan?"
Haruka doesn't know how to reply. It's almost impossible to look past his own inadequacy; he can't let himself imagine a world where someone wants him romantically.
"Can I … think about it?", he asks quietly. This has all been a bit much.
"Of course," Kiryu takes his hand again and gives it a gentle squeeze. "Wanna go back to the others?"
"Um … can we kiss again?", Haruka mumbles, almost hoping Kiryu won't hear him, but of course he does.
"As if I could say no to that," Kiryu grins and leans in to meet Haruka's lips with his own.