Chapter Text
February 7th passed like any ordinary day. Shuu went to school, practiced kyudo, and returned home in time for dinner. The usual people spoke to him. The usual person wouldn't acknowledge him. But there was still somebody left he was waiting to hear from.
He retreated to his room after dinner and checked his phone for the first time all day. Sure enough, a barrage of unread text messages awaited him, all from the usual sender.
Shuu-kun there’s 1 more week until Valentine’s Day 💘
what kind of chocolates do you want
wait
how do we decide who gives chocolate on Valentine’s Day and who gives chocolate on White Day
what’s the rule when you’re both boys
do we get chocolate both days???
two times the sweets sounds really good
So that’s what’s on your mind today.
Valentine’s Day hadn't been on Shuu's radar. He hadn’t thought Ryouhei would expect him to go out and buy chocolates for the obvious reason that he was a man. Still, considering Ryouhei’s lack of attention to social norms and his bottomless stomach, perhaps Shuu should have expected it.
He chose to tackle the “What’s the rule when you’re both boys?” question first. That one had an obvious answer.
There is no rule.
Ryouhei was quick to reply.
so what should we do
Shuu typed what made the most sense to him.
We can just wait until White Day.
It was the obvious choice, given that they were both men, but Shuu also happened to prefer White Day anyway. The tranquil displays of white boxes in shop windows calmed him, appealing to his sense of aesthetics more than the garish Valentine’s displays. He also appreciated White Day’s uniquely Japanese origins.
Ryouhei’s next reply was a short one:
I see……
That was all that he'd typed, just two words followed by an ellipsis, but somehow that single brief message was enough to conjure an image of his disappointed face in Shuu's mind.
You don’t like that idea?
I was kinda hoping we could do something for Valentine’s Day too
but if you don’t want to that’s ok
As soon as Shuu read the first text he made up his mind.
If you were hoping to do something, then that’s that.
Shuu may not have seen the point in two men exchanging Valentine’s Day chocolate, but he was willing to go along with Ryouhei’s wishes. Money was no obstacle, his family’s considerable wealth allowing him to easily buy a gift for both holidays, but more important than any financial consideration was what Minato had once said: that it was nearly impossible to turn down a request from Ryouhei.
Shuu had taken those words lightly at the time, but they’d proven to be prophetic. Every time Ryouhei wanted something, Shuu found himself mysteriously incapable of saying no, even when the request was made over text. The potent memory of Ryouhei’s puppy-like stare was enough to gnaw at Shuu’s conscience until his defenses had crumbled.
Disappointing Ryouhei wasn’t an option. There was no choice.
But Shuu couldn’t complain about his side of the deal. Even if he didn’t care about Valentine’s Day, he did care about seeing Ryouhei. As they neared the end of their second year of high school, they were both busy, so it had been a few weeks since their last face-to-face encounter; far too long for Shuu’s liking.
When there was an opportunity to see each other, it didn't make sense to turn it down.
I’ll bring you chocolate.
What kind would you like?
Shuu sat back and waited to be bombarded with enthusiastic texts about different types of chocolate Ryouhei wanted to try, but oddly enough, that didn’t happen. The next message came as a shock.
I guess I don’t really need chocolate
Shuu narrowed his eyes at the screen, wondering if he’d possibly read that right.
Are you the real Ryouhei? What happened to you?
Before he could ask, two more texts appeared.
Sweets aren’t that important, I just want to see you again
let’s go on a date!
He blinked at his phone in surprise, heart suddenly beating faster.
A warm feeling spread in his chest.
So you didn’t just want me to feed you.
You wanted the same thing as me.
As his fingers moved to reply, Shuu felt himself smiling.
“When you see one of those hearts with an arrow going through it, doesn’t it make you want to shoot?”
It was February 14th. They’d paused in front of a shop downtown so Shuu could consult the GPS on his phone and make sure he knew where they were going. Ryouhei stood peering inside the window at all the Valentine’s decorations.
“I already shot through you heart,” Shuu replied, without looking up from his phone or feeling one ounce of shame.
Ryouhei laughed in surprise. “Oh yeah! I guess that counts.”
They’d been heading towards a café Shuu had chosen after some research, scrolling through photos and reviews until he found a place that looked like it had both a suitable atmosphere and a suitable menu. He hadn’t told Ryouhei which café it was, preferring to keep it a surprise, and Ryouhei had been fine with that, cheerfully trotting along after Shuu even though the weather was cold and it was taking a long time to reach their destination.
After making sure they weren’t going the wrong way, Shuu tucked his phone back into his coat pocket and led them off again.
“Did you get any special Valentines this year?” Ryouhei asked, teeth chattering slightly in the cold.
“Not this year.”
“But you have before, huh?”
“I’ve received a few, but not very many,” Shuu replied, which was the truth. His unusual looks, his family name, and his title as the kyudo club’s Young Prince were all things that attracted girls’ attention. Those same qualities also made him seem intimidating, however, an impression that wasn't helped by his stoic personality. Couple that with his history of rejecting every confession, and it wasn’t surprising that no one had tried to ask him out this year.
No one except for Ryouhei.
“I always thought it’d be fun to have a secret admirer.”
“You did?” Shuu asked, glancing at Ryouhei in surprise.
Ryouhei nodded. “I thought it’d be really cool to find an anonymous note left in my locker. Then I could ask Seiya to use his brains, and we could go on a detective chase to solve the mystery of who sent it.”
That’s why you wanted one? What kind of childish motivation is that?
Shuu felt disbelief, but a part of him was charmed as well. There was something very “Ryouhei” about that explanation.
What Ryouhei said next was even more charming: “But I don't want one any more. Shuu-kun is all the romance I need.”
“I thought you wanted one for the mystery, not for the romance,” Shuu said, pointing out the contradiction in Ryouhei’s words even as they tugged at his heartstrings.
“Yeah, but figuring out how romance works has been kind of like solving a mystery.”
“Have you figured it out yet?”
“Hmmmmmm.”
Ryouhei came to a halt in the middle of the sidewalk, humming and stroking his chin like he was deep in thought.
“I don’t know,” he said finally. “But just to make sure we both figure it out, we should do some more research together.”
Shuu smiled at him, and they continued walking. As he pulled out his phone to look at his GPS again, Ryouhei started telling him what his teammates had received for Valentine’s Day.
“We all got obligation chocolate from the girls, but Nanao got a bunch of other chocolates from his fanclub. His locker was so full, he couldn’t shut it.”
“There were that many?”
“He got a ton,” Ryouhei confirmed. “There were even two girls who fought about it, ‘cause apparently they used the same wrapping. They were making a big fuss and he had to calm them down.”
“That sounds troublesome.”
“Right? At first, I was kinda jealous he got so many sweets, but if people are going to fight and get upset over it, then I don’t want to get that many. Nanao was bragging about how popular he is, but I could tell he looked tired by the end of the day. I’m going to send him some frog videos to cheer him up later.”
At last, they came upon the entrance to the café Shuu recognized from the photos.
“Is this the place?” Ryouhei asked. Shuu nodded. “It looks really nice.”
The café he’d chosen was in fact a café gallery, located inside a Japanese-style house with a large traditional garden. The building and the garden were enclosed inside a black gate with a tiled roof, but the door to the gate was open, allowing them to see inside.
Ryouhei’s smile was bright and sunny, right up until he read the advertisement posted outside the gate. Then it slid right off his face and his eyes bugged out of their sockets.
“Woah, these prices are really high. I’m not sure I brought enough money.”
“I’ll pay.” Shuu had already looked up the prices online and made sure to bring enough to cover both of them.
“You don’t have to pay for both of us,” Ryouhei said, waving his arms around in dismay.
“I have more money than you do,” Shuu said bluntly. “Don’t worry about it.”
The conflicted expression on Ryouhei’s face was comical. As he struggled with himself over what to do, he looked like a labrador retriever trying to resist a treat. Inevitably, he failed.
“I’ll - I’ll pay for our next date,” he said, drooping his head in a puppy-like display of guilt.
“That isn’t necessary-” Shuu tried to wave him off, but as soon as the words left his mouth, Ryouhei was grabbing him by the hands, shoving his freckled face right up against Shuu's.
“I want to treat you!” he declared, golden-brown eyes shining with determination.
Shuu stood there and blinked for a few moments, blown back by the force of Ryouhei’s enthusiasm, before he slowly began to smile.
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
They entered the garden through the open door and followed along the stone path that lead to the building’s front entrance. Even in February, the garden was beautiful, but Shuu found his gaze pulled to Ryouhei instead of their surroundings.
Watching him in this environment transported Shuu back in time, to the day Ryouhei explored his family's garden. Ryouhei had looked comically out-of-place amidst the scenery that day, and equally out-of-place inside the house. Wearing jeans, a plaid shirt and a carefree smile, he didn’t look anything like the typical guest who passed through the Fujiwara home: well-dressed and rigid, severe and impersonal.
Even as he’d acknowledged how strange it looked to have Ryouhei in his home, Shuu had nonetheless been gripped by the unshakeable feeling that Ryouhei belonged there, anyway: in his home, his garden, his life. He hadn't understood where that feeling had come from or why it was so strong, but he couldn’t just ignore it.
Shuu had left the door open just a little, and Ryouhei had slipped inside, insinuating himself into Shuu’s life as well as his home. Ryouhei was the person who helped him rediscover his love of kyudo; the person he looked forward to hearing from at the end of each day; the person he could effortlessly talk to about things he’d never told anyone else.
It only made sense that someone like that would one day become irreplaceable to him.
Ryouhei ascended the stone steps and opened the door to the building, holding it open for Shuu with a smile.
“You first.”
“Woaaah,” Ryouhei said with his mouth full. “This is really good.”
The two of them had sat down at adjacent small tables in front of the windows, giving them a clear view of the garden as they sampled the café’s renowned kusamochi.
Shuu had to agree, even though he didn’t have any special affinity for sweets. The natural aroma of the mugwort paired nicely with the deep-steamed green tea they’d been served, and the café offered the perfect atmosphere to enjoy wagashi.
“The view is really nice, too. It reminds me of being at your house.”
The café garden was far bigger in square feet than the one at Shuu’s home, but it did give Shuu the same feeling. As a child, he’d whittled countless hours away gazing through the open doors out into the garden. It calmed him, the steady trickling of water into the sozu, the gentle rustling of grass in the wind. Even when autumn turned to winter and the air grew cold, he’d elected to spend much of his time outdoors.
“I just realized,” Ryouhei brought him out of his thoughts, “if we’re on a date and I’m the one being paid for, does that make me the girl?”
Shuu blinked at the strangeness of the question, before quickly falling back into their usual pattern of discursive conversation.
“If that’s the way you want to see it, I can start calling you ‘Ryouko,’” he deadpanned.
“That’d be really strange! It’s a cute name, though. That’s the name my parents almost gave my sister.”
“Really?” Shuu reached to refill his cup of tea.
“Yeah.” Ryouhei raised his own cup to his lips, took a long sip, and set it back down. Then he said thoughtfully, “I don’t think I’d look good in a skirt.”
“No,” Shuu agreed, “you’d look ridiculous.”
“I bet Nanao could pull it off, though.” Ryouhei paused. “Or you.”
Shuu narrowed his eyes. What are you implying?
“No one would possibly mistake me for a girl. I’m nearly as tall as you are.” He couldn’t quite keep the bitterness out of his voice when he said “nearly.”
“Yeah, but I feel like you could pull off anything because you’re cute. Especially when you get all huffy about something, like you are right now.”
Shuu sent him a reproachful look, but Ryouhei just smiled back, utterly immune to any sort of intimidation tactics.
It remained a mystery to Shuu why Ryouhei perceived him so differently from everyone else. People normally took one look at him and assumed he was cold and unfriendly, or worse, completely blank. Classmates, teachers, fellow kyudo club members, and even his own mother had all judged him in this way, for as long as he could remember.
Minato had been the first to treat him like he was normal: the first person who was happy to talk to him, who enjoyed learning alongside him, who wanted to be friends.
And then, years later, came Ryouhei, who also treated him normally. Just as Minato had blithely disregarded the barrier that separated Shuu from other people his age, so too had Ryouhei. Shuu’s family name, his reputation, the fact that he was on a rival team: Ryouhei didn’t seem to care about any of it. Shuu had chalked it up to an ignorance of social norms that was similar to Minato’s own ditzyness.
The difference was that Minato hadn't acted overly familiar with him to the point of being rude. Minato had never done things like tease him about his height, call him “cute”, or sling an arm around his shoulder and drag him around wherever he pleased. No one had ever treated him that way; most people wouldn’t dare.
He’d been baffled, irritated and taken aback.
He’d been happy.
Although Shuu had warned Ryouhei not to act overly familiar, in the end, he’d allowed him to do whatever he wanted.
One thing led to another, and this was the result: a relationship which brought Shuu happiness and vexation in equal measures.
“Ahhhh, that was the best.”
Ryouhei sighed happily as he finished clearing his plate. Shuu was still eating, deliberately going more slow than usual in order to savor the wagashi.
“You’ve got some on your face,” Ryouhei informed him.
Shuu reached for his napkin, but Ryouhei beat him to the punch, reaching between them to wipe the glob of sticky rice off with his finger, which he then proceeded to stick in his mouth.
“It really is good,” Ryouhei said, licking his lips clean.
“Even in a place like this, your table manners stay the same,” Shuu dryly remarked.
“I thought it’d be acceptable since I was only using my finger.”
Shuu raised an eyebrow. “Instead of your mouth?”
Ryouhei nodded. “I used to do stuff like that to Minato all the time when we were kids. Like if he got fried rice on his cheek I’d lick it off, or I’d finish his ice cream if it was melting too much. But now that we’re older he scolds me and tells me not to be gross.”
“I don’t blame him. Licking food off people’s faces is a behavior associated with dogs, not people.”
“But you did it to me the last time I was over at your house,” Ryouhei reminded him.
“I didn’t hear you complain.” Shuu smiled as he remembered leaning across the kitchen table to kiss a spot of manjuu paste off Ryouhei’s lips, a little thrill coursing through his veins from being so daring while the maids waited right outside the room.
“That’s cause my brain stopped working and I couldn’t think for a minute.”
Shuu felt a little flattered, but all he said was, “You’ll have to work on that.”
As endearing as Ryouhei’s reactions were, he needed to learn how to control them. Otherwise, Shuu’s plan to keep stealing kisses whenever he could get away with it was shot.
“Until you’re able to keep a cool head, I’ll keep kissing you again and again.”
That bold pronouncement caused Ryouhei to audibly gulp. “It almost sounds like you’re going to train me...”
Shuu smiled innocently. “You always said that my training was very helpful.”
“That was a completely different kind of training,” Ryouhei said weakly, cheeks glowing red beneath his freckles.
“You’re not interested?” Shuu asked, watching Ryouhei squirm on top of his cushion.
“I’m not not interested. I guess. I think.”
“Then I’ll be taking you home with me after this,” he decided.
Ryouhei gulped again, his eyes comically wide.
“That sounded super adultlike just now.”
But he followed Shuu back to his house just as willingly as he followed him everywhere else.
The first time Ryouhei set foot in Shuu's home, he hadn't even been invited. He simply invited himself over, camping outside the walls until Toujou-san let him in, and when Shuu arrived he found Ryouhei inside the guest room, playing board games with his family. It was a surprise, to say the least.
Ryouhei had been over many times since then. By now, the house staff had gotten used to his carefree enthusiasm and lack of formalities.
“Hi, Toujou-san!” He waved enthusiastically as they approached the entrance.
“Hello, Ryouhei-kun,” Toujou-san greeted him in return, looking a little bemused, but friendly nonetheless. “What a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know you were having a friend over today, Young Master Shuu.”
“We ran into each other at the library and he said he could use some help studying for exams,” Shuu lied smoothly, accustomed to covering up his secret relationship the same way he’d hidden Minato’s existence from his parents as a child.
Ryouhei, on the other hand, rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish smile on his face, clearly feeling guilty about the lie; just not guilty enough to do anything differently.
“I see. I won’t keep you from your studies, but let me know if you need anything.”
“Understood.”
After taking off their shoes, waving away the maids’ offer of slippers, and hanging up their coats, Shuu led Ryouhei to his room.
“Is Sae-chan at her violin lesson?”
“She is, but she may have returned by the time you leave.”
“Then I’ll say hi to her later,” Ryouhei said. Shuu felt a little spark of happiness at the thought of Ryouhei interacting with his little sister. They always got along, Ryouhei asking questions about her life with a tone that betrayed genuine interest, Sae returning all of Ryouhei's bright smiles with equally bright ones of her own. Shuu hadn't been surprised to find that Ryouhei was the type who got along well with children, one more trait he had in common with Minato.
They entered Shuu’s room and Shuu closed the door behind them. He’d intended to hang up his schoolbag, until he saw the way Ryouhei unceremoniously dumped his on the floor, proceeding to grab him around the wrist and try to tug him towards the bed.
Fine, if that’s how you want to play.
Ryouhei kissed the same way he did everything else: unorthodox and unrefined, but with enough energy and ebullience to make up the difference. The clumsy way he grabbed Shuu’s face between his hands and mashed their lips together betrayed his lack of finesse, but Shuu wasn’t concerned, knowing full well that when Ryouhei found something he liked he would practice and practice until he improved.
Unlike with kyudo, Shuu had no more experience in this area than Ryouhei, but found he enjoyed learning alongside him. Discovering how to draw out sounds from Ryouhei’s lips proved just as engaging as drawing out sounds from a bowstring or a target. Shuu tried to memorize Ryouhei’s mouth the same way he’d memorized the steps of hassetsu and found himself just as enthralled now as he had been years ago.
The more their lips sought each other, the hotter Shuu's body grew. He did his best to siphon off some of that heat so they could share it between them and both be warm.
They lingered close after separating, Shuu's face still framed by Ryouhei's hands, his wavy bangs brushing Ryouhei's forehead. He was quite content to stay like that, gazing deeply into Ryouhei’s eyes and enjoying the heat of their mingled breathing, but Ryouhei seemed to have other ideas.
“What are you doing?” Shuu asked when Ryouhei slid down his body and thunked his head against his chest.
“My heart’s beating really fast, so I wanted to see if yours was too,” he said, nestling his ear more firmly over Shuu's heart.
“It is.” Shuu’s heart had been racing from the moment Ryouhei first touched him. It had calmed a little after they stopped kissing, but Ryouhei's present behavior had made it speed up again. “Can you hear it?”
Ryouhei listened closely, his ear pressed flat against the cloth of Shuu’s shirt.
“I hear it,” he announced. “It sounds like a drumbeat.”
Shuu expected Ryouhei to pull away, sit up properly, maybe kiss him again. He didn't expect Ryouhei to take him by the shoulders, push him down on the bed and lie on top of him.
Before Shuu could question him, Ryouhei turned his head up, peering at him with his chin resting on his chest.
“Can I take a nap like this?”
Shuu blinked a few times as he processed that request.
“You’re heavy,” he complained.
“You’re smiling, though,” Ryouhei said, and that was the end of that argument.
After Valentine’s Day, Shuu picked up a discounted box of chocolates from a shop on the way home. On the 23rd, he texted Ryouhei at the usual time.
Happy birthday.
Thanks!!!!
It was a pretty good birthday
Everyone remembered at practice and my parents got me a cake
That’s good.
Shuu rang the buzzer.
brb someone’s outside our house
The front door opened. Ryouhei’s eyes went wide.
“Shuu-kun!”
“How’d you get here?” Ryouhei asked, once Shuu had joined him inside the genkan. He couldn’t stay long, but it didn’t make sense to stand around in the cold.
“You left your study notes in my room before realizing you needed them for a test tomorrow, so my driver brought me here."
“But I didn’t leave anything in your-” Ryouhei began, confused, before realizing, “ohhhh.”
Shuu took the box of chocolates out of his schoolbag. “Happy birthday."
Ryouhei’s eyes lit up. “Can I open it right now?!” he asked eagerly. Shuu nodded.
After he tore the wrapping off, Ryouhei beamed brightly. “You got me chocolates? Thank you!”
Shuu was so blown away by the force of that smile that he barely managed to say, “You’re welcome.”
“I’m so happy my wish came true."
Shuu raised an eyebrow. “You wished for chocolate?”
“No, I wished, ‘It’d be nice if I could see Shuu-kun on my birthday,’ but I thought that was impossible. I guess nothing’s impossible if you have a butler, huh?”
Shuu's heart throbbed in his chest. That was your wish?
“I wouldn’t go that far,” he said, but he was happy.
“I feel kinda bad that Toujou-san had to drive you to my house. At the same time, I kind of want a butler like Toujou-san now.”
“If that’s what you want,” Shuu said with a completely straight face, “I suggest marrying rich.”
“But who would I – ohhhhhh.”
Ryouhei blushed so vibrantly that Shuu smiled for the entire ride home.
Shuu was just about to turn off the lights for the night when he heard his phone buzz. He checked and found two new messages.
Shuu-kun, the chocolates were all really delicious
Thanks again
Shuu automatically began typing “You’re welcome,” but before he could hit Send, he noticed something that nagged at him.
They were all delicious?
He had a bad feeling about this.
Tell me you didn’t eat the whole box.
The message was marked as Read, but Ryouhei did not reply.