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The fireflies buzzed all around him, twinkling little lights in the air, cheerful in the hot summer night.
Keiji’s cheeks were flushed red with the beginnings of a fever, sweat droplets streaming from his neck onto his back. He sat on the bench near the pond, away from the commotion of the festival, fanning himself with a random leaflet he'd been given.
His friends must be looking for him, Keiji thought vaguely. He watched the large colorful koi fish swimming in the circles in a daze. The largest was a black one with two white spots around his eyes. It was the only one with a dark coloring, so in a way, it was clearly set apart. Like the king of the koi fish, Keiji mused with a somewhat amused smile.
He couldn’t stop following it with his eyes, so focused that he only noticed the stranger when he was almost on top of him.
“Hello,” the stranger
Keiji blinked, his eyes widening slightly as he lifted his gaze up to the stranger. He had unnaturally beautiful eyes – unnaturally yellow eyes, in fact, though he would only truly register that much later when he thought back to this night.
“Good evening,” he replied politely.
He smiled at Keiji slightly, from where he stood just a few feet away from him, slightly leaning against a tree trunk near the bench. Aside from the eyes, he was seemingly ordinary, but although he wore traditional festival clothing, it was much darker than it ought to be, black and light grey just like his hair. “Are you not enjoying the festival?” he asked, his eyes bright and sharp like an owl, observing him.
“I am, but I’m a bit tired, that’s all.” Keiji smiled weakly. Before he realized, his fanning had quickened.
The stranger gave him a curt nod and stepped away from the tree, letting his arms fall to his sides and made his way to Keiji’s side.
Keiji barely registered the movement. His heartbeat throbbed in his ears and his face felt warm, too warm. He wished it was just because of the handsome stranger - who had just sat next to him.
“What’s your name?” His voice was just a whisper, intimate as if he was sharing a secret. If Keiji didn’t know better, he’d say the stranger was interested in him – though that would be another thing he would only recall later, with no shortage of nostalgia and even a bit of regret.
“Akaashi Keiji. What’s yours?”
“Kotaro.”
Keiji’s lips curled into a small smile, his eyes half-lidded, still staring into Kotaro’s.
Kotaro’s lips parted, his head tilted a bit sideways. “You’re not well,” he said with what sounded like a hint of surprise in his voice.
“I’m great,” he murmured, and it was not quite a lie. His body still felt hot and immensely heavy, however, it did feel like it was a bit far away from him. Like he couldn’t quite feel it as much as before. He'd dropped the leaflet at some point, though he couldn't remember when.
Kotaro’s hands were clasped together on his lap and as his eyes dropped to them momentarily, so did Keiji’s. He reached out to touch Keiji’s face, but he hesitated, his hand hovering in the space between them. He was waiting for Keiji’s reaction or permission, perhaps.
Keiji simply stared back, still enthralled by those beautiful eyes. He stilled for a moment when Kotaro’s fingers first brushed his cheek, but his skin was cold, and Keiji was too hot so he leaned into the touch and closed his eyes.
When he next opened his eyes, the stranger with the beautiful eyes was gone, but he found that he felt better, his mind clear and his body nimble and cool against the hot summer night.
It was a night that he would remember fondly over the years.