Chapter Text
What made Sawamura Eijun realize that there seemed to be a misunderstanding going on and that he likes Furuya Satoru (and very much so) was a classic kabe-don. He's a shoujo manga fan through and through, that's why.
The evening after the Sousei High match, Furuya and Eijun were hanging out in the latter's room reading manga. Eijun had recently gotten Furuya to read some of his favorite shoujo manga, telling him it's for reference.
"Oi, Sawamura, can you go get us some drinks," Kuramochi said, not looking away from the screen. He and Asada were playing some video game which Eijun doesn't really get. "You can get the money on my desk."
Eijun sighed, but started to get up from his comfortable position (which was leaning on Furuya) on his bed. He knew it's better to follow Kuramochi-senpai's requests than to protest.
"I'll go with you," Furuya offered, standing up as well. "We'll get the usual."
The two pitchers went out and walked towards the vending machine in silence. Furuya offered to get the drinks from the machine so Eijun just stood by the side.
"Thanks, Furuya," Eijun said as he got the drinks from Furuya.
They started to walk back to the room. "Ugh, I hate it when I stop reading just when the manga is getting interesting. You know?"
Furuya just hummed.
"Right. I was just about to read the kabe-don scene too! Gah, I want that for my shoujo manga, Furuya!"
"Kabe-don?" Furuya asked.
"Yes! You know when the guy–" Eijun started to explain.
"I know what kabe-don is," Furuya interrupted. "But you said you wanted it?"
Eijun laughed. "What, I thought you didn't know about it! But yeah, it really is exciting when I see kabe-don so–"
Without warning, Eijun found himself backed up against some wall. He couldn't even think of where they were right now because OH MY GOSH, Furuya was standing too close, his right hand pushed against the wall near Eijun's head. Eijun instinctively raised his hands, holding the drinks between them.
A kabe-don.
"Like this?" Furuya whispered, but he might as well have yelled it when Eijun was very much aware of him with his senses heightened.
Eijun felt so warm, his throat dry for some reason. Is it the summer heat? He looked up and into Furuya's eyes which were boring into him with the intensity that is similar as when he gets on the mound. But there's something else in there, too. Something akin to hunger and desire. He gulped.
"Eijun," Furuya said his name oh-so-sweetly, almost like it's something he revered. The sound shot straight into Eijun's very core, shaking his entire being into realizing that yes, he very much likes Furuya.
This is how Sawamura Eijun, aspiring shoujo mangaka, found himself experiencing something like a heart attack. Or is it a heat stroke? He's not sure. His chest hurt from how his heart had been beating wildly, he had somehow had a hard time breathing, and he felt a bit weak on his knees.
Does this mean Furuya likes me? Eijun asked himself, his mind racing and thinking back over what happened between them in the past several weeks.
"Of course, I like you," Furuya said, frowning but he didn’t budge from his position.
Eijun didn't notice he had said it out loud. He opened his mouth but no sound came out, so he closed it again. Furuya continued.
"Did you think I would've said yes when you asked me out if I do not like you?"
"Wait, what?!"
Furuya flinched at Eijun's reaction, taking a step back with a stricken expression. "What are you– you said you wanted to write your own shoujo manga, and asked if I wanted to be your partner."
Eijun gasped.
"Furuya Satoru, I want to write my own shoujo manga. Would you give me the great honor of being my partner in this endeavor?" that was what he had said. Furuya even asked him why, to which he said "It can only be you." He even threw himself at Furuya afterwards.
And the things that happened after that— them spending more time together, the hugs, the handholding and how their classmates reacted. Everyone, everyone except himself, thought they were dating. Oh my goodness, I'm so stupid.
Eijun started to laugh, much to Furuya's confusion. "So all this time, we have been dating without my meaning to?"
"What?" Furuya's eyes widened, full of hurt. He took another step back as if Eijun just physically pushed him. The distance pinched at Eijun's heart.
"No, no, no, Furuya– no, Satoru," Eijun pleaded as Furuya looked like he was about to walk away. "Please, let me explain. But before anything else, can you hold these for me please?" He was handing the can of drinks which was on the way of what he wanted to do next.
Furuya, while confused, still took the cans from Eijun. He awkwardly held it between them, when suddenly Eijun was pushing him back against the wall, flipping their position.
Before he can even squeak out a protest, Eijun was already grabbing his head down and– oh my gosh they're kissing.
Eijun has no prior experience in kissing, but what he lacked in experience he made up for with his enthusiasm. It was clumsy and awkward but he supposed Furuya liked it as he gasped and leaned in on the kiss, as if wanting to get more of him. He was vaguely aware of how the drinks fell, barely missing their feet, and two cold hands held his face gently pulling him closer.
And oh gosh, it felt so nice. Furuya tasted like mint and all his hopes and dreams and just– Furuya. But as much as he wanted to continue, they had to gasp for air and finally broke off the kiss.
"Before anything else," Eijun started after gulping some air. "I like you very much, Furuya Satoru."
"Really?" Furuya's eyes widened yet again, but this time, he didn’t look hurt. This time, it was full of hope. (Oh my heart, he looks so pretty, Eijun thought). "But you said you didn’t mean to ask me out?"
"I did. But come on, let's get some new drinks. Kuramochi-senpai would kill me if I gave him this," Eijun picked up the can of drinks on the ground. "I'll tell you on the way."
And so Eijun told Furuya as they walked hand in hand, about his aspiration of writing his shoujo manga literally. And how Haruichi recommended Furuya because he has seen him draw before. He also explained how he was talking about starting their "activities" after Koshien, and apologized for being vague as Furuya interpreted them as future dates.
Furuya got embarrassed at how he had jumped to the conclusion that Eijun was asking him out. But to be fair, the entire class also thought Eijun asked him out when he said he wanted to write his own shoujo manga.
("Wait, you know that shoujo manga usually has male and female protagonists right? If it's two males then that's shounen ai," Eijun explained to Furuya. "So if I wanted to write my own manga, it wouldn't be shoujo anyways.")
Furuya then told Eijun about how their classmates were very supportive of their relationship, and about the Furusawa Protection Squad.
"Ah so that's why they were acting weird and protective, even talking to your admirers on your behalf," Eijun realized. "I have to thank them."
"Mm. Even Kanemaru was in on it. I thought you were aware of it," Furuya said.
"Kanemaru?"
"Yeah," Furuya affirmed. "Didn't you notice how nobody breathed a word about us in the team except for Miyuki-senpai. But not everyone is very open-minded about two boys dating,you know."
"Oh, I guess I also owe Kanemaru big time. How do you know all of this?"
Furuya shrugged. "I was just being observant."
"Ack! This is so embarrassing! I'm so stupid! How could I miss everything?"
Furuya chuckled and it sounded so good in Eijun's ears. "We're both stupid, so don't worry."
Eijun smiled, feeling a tiny bit placated (he's still not over it though). "But I'm the more stupid one, because I have been dating the Cool and Mysterious Guy™ all along and I wasn't even aware."
"Cool and Mysterious Guy?" Furuya asked as he got the drinks from the vending machine.
"Yeah, like the male lead of a shoujo manga," Eijun answered, grabbing to hold one drink and Furuya's hand on the other.
"So I'm your Cool and Mysterious Guy™, huh?" Furuya smiled at him again, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.
Ah, this guy will be the death of me, Eijun thought while nodding. He's sure he'll only let out a squeak if he tried to speak.
They proceed to walk back in comfortable silence, hand in hand.
Eijun stopped walking just outside their door and stole a quick kiss from Furuya. Eijun just stuck his tongue out before opening the door, pulling a slightly blushing Furuya inside.
"Kuramochi-senpai, Asada, we're back!"
"You were gone for so long, Bakamura! We're already done," Kuramochi complained, already lazing on his bed, but still received the drink from Furuya. Eijun handed the other drink to Asada who graciously took it.
"Sorry, it was my fault," Furuya interjected, before Eijun bites back and ends up getting wrestled. "I dropped the drinks and we had to get new ones."
Asada, being the innocent soul that he was, asked, "How did you drop it, Furuya-senpai?"
The two pitchers didn't say anything and just turned red.
"Oh my god!" Kuramochi sputtered, almost spilling his drink, obviously getting it. "Just don't do it in our room!"
"Ha? What did you think we were doing, Kuramochi-senpai?" Eijun protested. "We were just kissing!"
Both Eijun and Furuya just turned even redder, if that's possible. Asada can be seen mouthing an "Oh" and blushing a bit, too.
"Exactly, you idiot!" Kuramochi fired back. "I don't want to see you guys sucking each other's faces! And you'll scar Asada!"
"Oh, okay fine. You just made it sound like it's gross. I bet that's because you haven't kissed anyone yet so you wouldn't know that it actually feels nice."
And that was how one Sawamura Eijun found himself wrestled on the floor yet again by his senpai. It would seem Eijun had touched a nerve as Kuramochi can be heard grumbling about how Eijun is an upstart for getting into a relationship before his senpai. But thankfully this time, he has a lovely boyfriend (My knight in shining armor, Eijun thought) that helped him break it off.
"That's enough, senpai. You'll hurt him," Furuya said, sounding a bit angry while physically extricating Eijun from his hold.
"Tch, fine. You better keep a leash on your boyfriend. Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid," Kuramochi said, standing up as Furuya pulled Eijun up from the floor. "And, make sure you don't hurt him. You wouldn't want to mess with me if you do."
"Kuramochi-senpai, is this your version of a shovel talk? So you do care!" Eijun exclaimed.
Kuramochi blushed a little and mumbled a "Shut up" and "what do you take me for?"
"Of course," Furuya said resolutely. "I'll take care of Eijun."
Eijun couldn't restrain himself and threw himself at Furuya, extremely touched. Furuya automatically wrapped around Eijun to steady him. "Satoru, I'll take care of you, too!"
Kuramochi and Asada flustered at the display but didn't flinch or turn away. They do care about Eijun and it makes them happy seeing him happy.
"Okay, okay that's enough. You should go back to your room, Furuya," Kuramochi ordered after a few moments. "Our young Asada needs his sleep."
"Alright, come on Furu– Satoru, I'll walk you to your room," Eijun volunteered, already dragging Furuya to the door.
"Eijun," Furuya said as soon as they were out the door. "About your dream to write your shoujo manga—"
"Ah, don't worry about it, Satoru. I would be a jerk to hold you to that promise when I hadn't made it clear when I asked you."
Furuya stopped walking and faced Eijun. "No. I want to do it with you."
"Eh? Really? You want to do it?"
"Yes, I really do," Furuya took his left hand and kissed the back of it. Eijun gasped, heat creeping up his face. Seriously, this guy would kill him one of these days.
"Satoru, you're killing me."
Furuya blinked at him innocently. Too innocent. "How am I killing you?" he said as he took a few steps forward, making Eijun take a few steps back until he hit a pillar. "Like this?" he asked as he once again sandwiched Eijun in a kabe-don.
Eijun's brain was a little slow to realize that he was, in fact, being teased. Can't blame him, he was still trying to recover from how sweet (and hot) Furuya has been acting.
"Furuya Satoru, you jerk!" Eijun all but mumbled, giving his best to not shout unless he wanted to alert everyone of them having a moment right in the hallway of their dorms.
Furuya laughed at him, and oh what a beautiful sound it is. "I'm sorry, Eijun. But you're so fun to tease."
Eijun gasped in offense. "You're sounding like that tanuki-bastard right now! Give me back my Furuya!"
"Satoru," Furuya corrected and then smiling, eyes gleaming, bowed down to capture Eijun's lips in a kiss. It was slow and sweet, unlike the first one which was intense and awkward, but just as amazing (even more so, in Eijun’s opinion). This time, they took the time to feel how soft each other's lips were, or how sweet each other tasted.
Furuya broke off from the kiss first. He was panting a bit, just as Eijun was. "That was nice," Furuya commented. "Let's include it in your manga."
"Yes, let's include that in our manga," Eijun agreed, grinning widely. Ah, as loud as he is, he just ran out of words to express how happy he is.
"But first, Koshien."
Furuya nodded, his gaze changed into something serious and determined. "But first, Koshien."
Hand in hand, they're going to win it all.