Work Text:
It was stupid.
No, he shouldn't say that. His feelings were valid, because they were his feelings. His own, burning a scorching hole through his heart and bursting out like a roaring fire. Is it love? Maybe, but most of all burning. Yearning.
Junpei had gotten used to Minato being there; staying in the pairs shared apartment, sitting next to him on the couch - close but not close enough -, seeing those bright eyes across the table, seeing them.
It was only going to be a couple of weeks before Minato got back from their business trip, but Junpei already missed them. Yearned for them, in a way he truly hasn't had to since high school. He had gotten used to the low simmer of seemingly unrequited affection, after all these years together.
Now, he was alone with this fire in his heart and mind. Waiting by the phone.
He didn't ask Minato to call, but he knows they will. They typically call Junpei whenever he's on a long trip to a game against a far off team, so he'd expect the same to be true in reverse. Junpei used to think those calls were odd, but now he gets it.
Maybe Minato misses him just as much when he's gone as he misses them now? Or is that being too hopeful.
Either way the couch feels just a little too wide, cold. Waiting like an ocean to swallow Junpei into its vast open seas of blue.
He wonders if Minatos re-dyed their hair yet, he remembers them complaining about it a fair few days ago. They couldn't be doing it on the trip, could they? Would Mitsuru be cool with that during a serious outing like that? Its probably easier without him standing over their shoulder commentating.
It's love isn't it.
Junpei paces absentmindedly, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth as he waits by the phone.
He can recall in his mind Minato smiling, behind their hand, at the kitchen table a day before they left. Junpei had spilled sugar all over the floor on accident, before slipping on said sugar and slamming into the aforementioned table. Oh, Minato was laughing. He had felt momentary anger - emotions were always hard for him to control - before he pushed it back down, forcing a smile to resurface on his face. His efforts rewarded with a pat on the cheek.
It was a small gesture, a lingering hand on the cheek was no concrete evidence of returned affections but Junpei was struggling to think of anything else. Memory a hazy mindfield that pulled him back to the present; that smile. Shining eyes and blue hair, the black roots showing, small laugh lines forming.
His phone buzzed and Junpei practically pounced on it.
"Hello?"
"Hey." Minato's voice was hoarse, as it always is. They were mostly nonverbal, after all, but thankfully Junpei was there to fill any lull in conversation.
"God, you don't know how good it is to hear your voice!" Junpei gushes, a pang of fear in his heart that he's being too emotional too open with his feelings. He coughs.
"Sorry, just, used to having you around, y'know? You've really pampered me, Minato. All that quality times made me miss you, I guess. That's weird huh?"
A humm of disapproval, and Junpei's heart is thrumming out of his chest.
"Yeah, you're so understanding, you know that? You get me, and I hope I get you too. People say you're a tough nut to crack, but I guess none of them see you as often as I do. You're pretty predictable honestly."
He sinks into that blue couch, letting it gobble him whole.
"You always get the same thing every morning, and go to bed at the same times. You nudge me every day, pull my hat down over my eyes every day, sit next to me. Listen to my talk, deal with me." Junpei trails off.
"Stop" Minato grumbles out and he can almost see him. For a second, he can see him speak those words. Across the miles and miles of space between them, for that brief moment Junpei could feel the other beside him. Worrying about him.
"You're right, i'm beating myself up for no reason. You don't deserve that-" a beat of pause. "-I don't deserve that."
Another hum, this time of approval, and Junpei's sinking even deeper into the couch.
"Y'know, what I weirdly miss the most is our fights. Or I guess, play fights really. The back and forths we do sometimes." He sighed, recalling a memory that felt so far away but so raw in his mind.
"-Like the placement of the damn salt." Minato let out a quiet breathy laugh at the mere mention.
"I'd always say its supposed to be on the left side of the pepper, but you thought it was s'possed to be on the right. So we'd just keep moving it and moving it, back and forth, till we just put the damn thing in front of the pepper."
Junpei laughed himself at the memory, slinging his free arm over his eyes. He can remember Minato's flustered face, part annoyed part mischievous, waiting for him to let go of the damn salt so they can move it again.
"How mad would you be if I moved the salt to the left while you were gone?" Minato huffed, which made him cackle. "I won't! I won't, I promise!"
"This is nice. This is good. I miss this, and before you say anything Arisato, I know it hasn't been that long." I still miss you. The words die on his lips, trapped somewhere between fear and longing to spill his heart out past his lips.
"I just never really had to experience you being gone, like how you had to deal with me being gone. No wonder you used to call me so much, I get it now. Past confusion rescinded, returned to sender."
"-Guess I can't really do what you do though; calling when it's late at night, in your timezone, and having me talk you to sleep. But, I get why you did it. The apartment does feel a little too empty now. Too, ugh, open. And it doesn't help that it absolutely reeks of you, its got your name all over this apartment."
"Miss you too" Minato croaks, and Junpei sucks in air through his teeth. He's burning, bright, alight with love. Yes, love, warm scorching love.
The phone line grows quiet, Junpei lost in his thoughts. Burning bright and warm in his head, in his cheeks. Flushed.
"S-Shit sorry, lost in thought! I was just thinkin' about what we should do when you get back, because we gotta do something. Somethin fun; maybe I should buy you a gift? I got a hefty pay upgrade cause of how good our season went, so maybe I can treat you to a nice dinner?"
"-We deserve it, or well, you deserve it. I swear, you deserve to be spoiled, dude. You already spoil me, watching all these shows I wanna watch. I mean we take turns, but I don't know it just feels like you treat me better. I need to step up my game."
Junpei's mind is working faster than his comprehension, spewing words before they've been checked. Chucking sentences out like an overrun conveyor belt, letting the buggy structures just pass on by in droves.
"Name your price, and I'll pay it. Make up for all the wasted time, all the time I didn't appreciate you and all that. I mean. I think I appreciate you a hell of a lot right now - dude, you don't understand how much I miss you. My rock, my home rock. Hell, maybe I should buy you a rock, some diamonds. We'd look amazing in matching rings, right? Man. Just thinkin about that makes me excited for you to come home-"
Minato makes a strangled noise on the other end of the line. Junpei falls quiet.
"Dude are you-" Furious rustling, followed by even more furious typing. Jabbing at the screen with a might that made Junpei's confidence plummet through the floor.
Then the message; ' From ♡bastard best friend♡: are you asking to marry me?'
Now it was Junpei's turn to make a strangled noise, sitting up in one swift motion to gasp loudly into the phones mic.
"I-I-Marriage? We haven't even gone out yet, Minato!"
another message; 'you were the one who said it, junpei'
"-I didn't mean! Holy shit, I really did say that huh? I guess I, I don't. Maybe we could. Build ourselves up to there? Someday."
'you are seriously asking me out'
'now'
'after you just asked me to marry you by accident'
Junpei was definitely going to chew through his lip at this rate. "Is that, a bad thing?"
'oh my god'
'i asvsme6$!ac$%#%#'kcmsn'
"Why're you keysmashing? Is that a no? Holy shit did I fuck this whole thing up" Sharp panic rose in his chest.
"No." Minatos voice was truly straining now to speak, dripping with an emotion they can't convey this way.
"No?" Junpei repeated, like an ever deflating balloon. They huffed. His phone buzzed.
'no, its not a no'
'i want to date you.'
"Holy shit." He reread the words, forming the words in his mind till they become a solid reality he can believe. "Holy shit."
They laughed at him on the other end of the line, and Junpei is transported back to that day. With the sugar. Seeing their shining eyes across the table he just careened into.
His bastard best friend, who slams back five hour energies too much to be healthy and will do almost anything for a dare. His confidant, whose practically nocturnal at this point and who Junpei has had cry wet spots into his shirts too many times to count. Now, his boyfriend.
"Holy shit! I'm losing my mind right now. We're really. We're really doing this." Junpei was most awake than he has ever been in his life, beaming from ear to ear like a little kid.
"Mhmm"
"Is it too early to say I love you?"
Another choked up noise, followed by the sound of rustling - they definitely dropped their phone this time. Past his bashfulness, Junpei was laughing his ass off.
'i am getting you back for that'
Junpei swallows. Well, he'll worry about that later, but he has a feeling whatever revenge they will enact won't be too bad.
"Does that mean you're going to say I love you back?"
Minato was practically a tea kettle at this point, high pitched whistling noises being the only thing coming out of their mouth anymore.
'i wasnt ready for that asshole!!'
Junpei was in love, truly, completely, indefinitely, to his no-survival-instinct, tired as all get out, boyfriend.