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If Eiji had to rate his love (romantic and platonic) for the people around him, the list would be something like:
- Ash, his boyfriend.
- Ibe-san, his guardian whilst they’re living in America.
- Shorter, Ash’s best friend.
Ash and Ibe are obvious (because Ash is his first love and Ibe is just like a father to him), but Shorter is a new addition. He and Shorter met through Ash, and he adores the friendship Ash and Shorter have, but recently he’s started to consider Shorter his friend too.
And friendship is important to Eiji for a simple, if very embarrassing, reason: he doesn’t have friends. He had friends in Japan, yes, but here in America, Shorter is his only friend.
But he doesn’t mean to be depressing, really.
Ever since he met Ash, he and Eiji have spent lunchtime at their high school sat in a hidden area behind some trees, and they sit and chat and eat in private. And now he and Shorter are friends, Shorter joins them too.
And Eiji has noticed that Ash and Shorter have the most hilarious conversations. They are so in synch with each other, and know how to bicker perfectly. Honestly, they could be a comedy act, they’re so funny.
One day when they discuss their upcoming chemistry exam (Ash and Shorter are both a year below him so they have classes together), Ash reveals he doesn’t know something Shorter considers simple, and Shorter starts laughing.
Ash glares at him. “Oh shut up. You’re clueless about everything, so you’re one to talk.
“I may be clueless, but I’m not an idiot. Being an idiot is your job,” Shorter says, grinning.
“You bastard,” Ash says.
And as the two best friends (two of the people Eiji loves) bicker, Eiji grins and enjoys the show.