Chapter Text
Things were different now without Kazuya. A young couple moved into the former Miyuki residence, and Eijun no longer had a friend to bother. Everytime he looked over to that house, he couldn’t help but feel a throbbing sadness alongside the sharp memory of their friendship. He didn’t know if they would ever meet again. And he definitely did not want to think about it too much. He couldn’t tell himself that he would never see his friend again, so he wiped that thought off his mind before he could ever finish it.
After Kazuya and his father moved to Tokyo, the last contact the two families had was at the funeral. The funeral took place on a sunny day with blue skies, but it might as well have been a dark rainy one. Eijun and Kazuya did not say anything to each other during that somber time. They only exchanged brief glances. Neither child knew what to say to the other.
Kazuya cried almost nonstop during and after the funeral. It was the first time Eijun had ever seen Kazuya like that, and it made him feel scared. This was not the Kazuya that he was familiar with… He just wanted Kazuya to smile again. He wished he could make his friend’s painful tears stop, but he had no idea what to do or say. He only clung to his mother’s hand and hoped that Kazuya would be okay. He even felt tears well up in his own eyes and spill out when he saw how sad his friend was. Eijun couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to lose a mother. He didn’t know how anyone could go on. Looking up at his own mother with teary eyes, he broke into a heart-wrenching sob at the horrendous thought of his mom disappearing from his life.
After the funeral, Kazuya’s father never called Eijun’s parents again, and they never saw each other for the rest of middle school.
Eijun easily made new friends in middle school though, and he even became the proud ace of his beloved baseball team. He thought about his childhood neighbor less and less, but whenever he pitched during a game, memories of Kazuya catching for him buzzed back into his mind. He realized something with a tinge of sadness: he could not play baseball without remembering Miyuki Kazuya.
Everytime Eijun talked about baseball, he was also mentioning Miyuki Kazuya in his heart. He never talked about Kazuya out loud though. He only allowed his mind consciously wander to that person whenever he was alone with his thoughts and simply wondering what Kazuya was doing and if he was still as passionate about baseball as he was before. He wondered if Kazuya had new friends. Was he popular? How was he doing in school? Did he miss Nagano at all? Did Kazuya remember him? However, Eijun avoided admitting that he missed Miyuki Kazuya.
Eijun knew that the odds were against him; when would he be reunited with his childhood friend? There was no guarantee that they would see each other again. He had no idea where the Miyuki family had moved to in Tokyo. It had been a few years now too, and Eijun didn’t know if Kazuya thought about him as well. I know Kazuya has moved on with his new life, but does he ever wonder about me? Will he recognize me now?
***
Somehow, Eijun ended up going to Tokyo. He was skeptical. He didn’t like the idea of going to high school in Tokyo. Nagano was his home, and he wanted to stay there with his family. He also liked his group of friends and he wanted to keep playing baseball with him. They made many wonderful memories together, and he didn’t want to think about being away from them… There was still so much more they could accomplish! And Tokyo seemed way too far away from Nagano for his liking. The image of Miyuki Kazuya flickered in the back of his mind, as if it was a warning. He did not want to lose contact with a friend again.
However, he was scouted for Seidou High School and his parents and grandfather all insisted that he give Seidou a chance and at least visit the school.
So here he was, dragged along to a new city and a new school by Takashima Rei (who was confident that he would accept the school’s offer).
“Wait here for a moment, Sawamura-kun. I will be back soon,” Rei said as she gave him a little pat on his shoulder. She scurried off and left him waiting by the Seidou baseball field. He looked around the area, and then his eyes widened as he realized how nice the school actually was. Rei was not exaggerating when she boasted of the opportunities Seidou would provide for him. “So much equipment… Whoa…” he uttered in awe. “This is intense!” He was surprised and yet thrilled at everything he was seeing for the first time. He wondered if he could picture himself being here, even though it was far away from home. Can I play baseball here…? At Seidou?
As Eijun wandered a bit, checking out the Seidou field, Rei knew what she had to do. She was sure this would solidify his decision to attend Seidou. She knew Eijun seemed stubbornly against it at the moment, but there was something here that would change his mind.
Rei smiled and announced to someone, “Sawamura Eijun is here!”
“Wait, really--? Did he actually come? I thought you said he didn’t want to leave Nagano.”
“I convinced him to visit, and once he sees you, I’m sure he’ll be here to stay,” she said without hesitation.
“I don’t know...” the boy said in a low voice, staying calm but if anyone looked closely into his eyes, they would notice his nervous uncertainty. “I haven’t seen him in years. I don’t know if he’ll even recognize me.”
“You’re not easy to forget, Miyuki-kun,” Rei said as she started to walk away, expecting the catcher to follow her.
Soon, they arrived. Eijun didn’t notice them standing several feet behind him, since he was on the pitcher’s mound, clearly fantasizing about being the ace in high school. He could picture it, crisp and clear in his mind’s eye: Sawamura Eijun, the indisputable ace of Seidou High School. With the sun shining its golden rays down on him, he would stand on the mound. Crowds would cheer joyfully, and the sounds would reverberate all around him and filter into his skin, giving him greater strength. He was confident he could do it: Me, Sawamura Eijun… the Ace! I’ll be able to pitch so much in exciting games! It would be an awesome time, being the ace. He would never have to leave the mound! He would pitch fearlessly and strike out batter after batter… He could already envision the shock in the eyes of his classmates at this talented first-year who made it to first string and then the ace position. His eyes sparkled as he opened them, feeling great about Seidou. He wondered which new pitches he would learn, and how cool he would look standing on this mound during a real game. When Seidou wins a game, he would hear the cheers of his future teammates, and the proud clapping of their coach, and everyone would hug and cry tears of joy at winning… The goal was to go to Nationals and win, right?
Rei cleared her throat, and looked at Kazuya expectantly. He nodded, and called out, “Oi, Sawamura!”
Eijun snapped out of his pitcher fantasy, the images and sounds from his imagination dissipating in the blink of an eye. Eijun did not recognize the voice that cut through his thoughts. Who the hell at Seidou knows who I am…?
But when he turned around on the mound, he recognized the boy instantly. He was different, and yet the same as before. Eijun’s wide eyes locked onto the person before him, shocked into momentary silence. He could not tear his eyes away even if he tried.
Miyuki Kazuya. He still wore those thick-framed glasses, but now, they fit his face well; no longer were they awkwardly-sized television screens that took up half of his face. He still wore his baseball cap flipped to the side, like at the start of middle school, but it complemented his face better now. He lost his chubby cheeks; the baby fat was gone! His eyes were sharper now too, irises colored a rich honey-brown hue. And his hair color lightened as well… Did he dye it? Highlight it? Or did it just naturally lighten like that? Eijun had no idea but he thought the hair color and cut suited him. And Kazuya had sideburns now too; that was definitely new. And of course, he still had that familiar smirk plastered on his face. But he wasn’t that same scrawny little boy that Eijun remembered. Wait--?! Fuck. Did Miyuki Kazuya suddenly get hot?! Eijun swallowed. He definitely felt attracted to Kazuya now. But it didn’t make any sense. Maybe it was his voice…? His voice changed drastically too. It was deep now. Well, obviously!! He’s a teenager now! But then again, Kazuya’s face… But before Eijun’s mind wandered too much he shook his head fiercely to clear his head and say something.
“Miyuki Kazuya!!” he shouted and pointed straight at Kazuya’s face. “I had no idea you were at Seidou!” He wanted to ask Why didn’t you ever contact me?! You should have said something. Or at least, you should have visited Nagano. At least send us a letter or something; we never moved after you left! I’ve literally been at the same address. But he didn’t say any of those things.
“Well, here I am,” Kazuya said simply. “I got scouted, just like you, you know.”
Eijun grinned with a joy that saturated his eyes with a sunny brilliance, a brilliance reminiscent of his childhood. Kazuya’s eyes reflected the same facets of warm light, unspoken words telling him that he held that same happiness. Eijun stepped off the mound to walk toward Kazuya and burst out, “It’s great to see you again!” But then he noticed something and froze. Something was definitely off. Something was dreadfully wrong. He stared at Kazuya with a horrified expression.
“What? Is there something on my face?” Kazuya asked, suddenly feeling self-conscious. His smile turned into a frown when he wondered why Eijun was staring at him like that... He felt the worries peck away at his stomach as the silence grew.
After Eijun’s moment of shocked silence, he exclaimed, “Miyuki Kazuya, since when did you get so tall?!” He sauntered straight up to Kazuya and used his hand to measure his height against his friend’s. He was only slightly shorter, but shorter was still shorter. He could not believe that he, Sawamura Eijun, was suddenly shorter than Miyuki Kazuya. He went up on his tiptoes, and only then was he the same height as his friend. “You’re supposed to be the shortie!” he yelled with furrowed eyebrows.
Kazuya burst out laughing, and Rei tried really hard to keep a straight face. She wondered if the prospective high school student was truly so upset over this development. He was an interesting child indeed.
“It’s not funny!!” Eijun yelled, his face totally serious. “I am always taller than you!”
“Too bad, Sawamura. I got my growth spurt. So now, I’m the tall one,” Kazuya replied with another chuckle.
“But I got my growth spurt too!” Eijun argued. “Even my doctor said I had a great growth spurt!”
“Well, I guess that means you won’t be growing anymore. So now, you’re the short one,” Kazuya stated with a cheeky grin.
Eijun was fuming and about to come up with another comeback, but Rei interrupted: “Okay, boys. This is lovely and all, but we need to get going. I would like you to meet the coach, Sawamura-kun.” She had the feeling that Seidou would get a lot more interesting with Sawamura Eijun around and looked forward to seeing how he would develop.
***
“Ugh, Miyuki Kazuya, wipe that grin off your face!” Eijun yelled, clearly annoyed.
Kazuya responded with a chortle and made no effort to do as he was told. Eijun continued to yell at him, and then his roommate rolled his eyes, wondering if the noise would ever stop.
“Hey, Sawamura, Miyuki… Are you sure you two are childhood friends?” Eijun’s room mate, Kuramochi Youichi, asked with a cocked eyebrow.
“Of course we are!” Kazuya exclaimed, throwing an arm casually around Eijun’s shoulders. “I’ve known him since he was just a tiny toddler.”
“You’re just one year older than me! And back then, I was way taller than you,” Eijun huffed. “But yeah, we’re childhood friends. Even if he’s really obnoxious 99% of the time…”
“And you aren’t?”
“Shut up!”
“So rude… I’m the older, and taller one, you know. So you should call me Senpai~!” Kazuya said as he gave Eijun a teasing nudge. Eijun nudged him back and scowled. But he felt his stomach give a little flutter when Kazuya suddenly leaned on him. Youichi rolled his eyes, feeling more and more fed-up with with these antics by the minute. “Call me Senpai!” Kazuya ordered again.
“Ugh, no… And stop saying you’re taller. You’re not even that much taller. And I’ll call you what I want!”
“You should learn some respect. Call me Senpai like a good student~!”
Youichi rubbed his temples and butted in: “Miyuki, just leave! This isn’t even your room.”
“Yeah, and it’s already so late!” Eijun added, shrugging Kazuya off him and ducking away.
“Oh, so you don’t want me to catch your pitches?” Kazuya asked with a mock-innocent tone.
“Wait, you’ll do that right now?!”
Kazuya burst out laughing, in disbelief over the fact that Eijun actually thought he was offering to catch his pitches right at that second, even though it was midnight.
Youichi facepalmed and growled, “No, no pitching right now. Nothing is happening right now. Miyuki, you have to leave. Seriously, you were supposed to leave hours ago! Eijun, shut up and try to sleep. Shit… is it midnight already?! We have to be up early tomorrow, you know! Ugh...”
Kazuya sighed, “You don’t enjoy our company, Kuramochi?”
“Not at this hour, I don’t!” Youichi yelled, pushing Kazuya toward the door. “Get back to your own room already.” Kazuya made no effort to move, so Youichi had to shove him outside by force and slam the door. “Ughhh… Sawamura, seriously, you need to sleep. You don’t want to fall asleep in class again, do you?”
“I won’t fall asleep in class! Don’t worry!” And with that, Eijun hopped into bed and threw the covers over himself. “Good night, Kuramochi-senpai!” If he could get a good night’s rest, he would surely be able to stay awake for all his classes.
***
In the morning, Eijun woke up with a wide smile on his face. He stretched and then froze. He felt a heated blush cover his cheeks as his dream finally caught up with him. He’d been having these dreams a lot lately… He remembered his initial feelings of attraction to Miyuki Kazuya, but once he came to Seidou, he brushed those feelings off as his excitement over being reunited with his lost friend. But… he dreamed he was kissing Kazuya (and liked it, of course). He wondered what Kazuya’s lips were like… Are they chapped? Smooth? Do they feel as nice as they look…? Eijun covered his face with his hands and groaned.
Am I gay for Miyuki Kazuya…?!