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Shigeo was bored. It was a cool, Saturday morning, a very typical day for him. He was laying in bed, wanting something to do. His thumb hovered over the call button on his phone, wanting to talk to Teruki. Shigeo wanted to see Teruki, spend time with him, just be around him. He had, apparently, obtained a crush. Shigeo sighed heavily. Closing Teruki’s contact, he called Tsubomi instead.
“Good Lord, what is it this time, Mob?” Tsubomi said upon picking up.
“Well it’s about... Hanazawa again…” Shigeo answered, biting his nails. He had been going to Tsubomi for relationship advice for a while now, as they’d rekindled their friendship after he confessed to her a while back. She had turned him down then, but Shigeo was happier that she did in the end. He was glad that him and Tsubomi were friends again, and he was glad that he had discovered his true feelings for Teruki. But what he wasn’t happy about was that he could never bring himself to talk to Teruki without getting flustered. Typical crush business. He hated it.
“Ah I see… What do you need help with?” Tsubomi said.
“I want to see him today, but I’m… not sure how to ask…” Shigeo said. He knew he was being silly, Tsubomi’s default response was always, “Come ON, Mob! Just ask him! You’re best friends, of course he’ll say yes!”, but Shigeo always needed confirmation; Shigeo always needed support. What surprised Shigeo was that Tsubomi had a different response this time around. She sighed.
“Listen, Mob. You know you like him. I don’t know if you’re dense or what, but if you’ve seen the way Hanazawa acts around you, it’s clear he likes you as well. So why don’t you just tell him?” Tsubomi had raised her voice slightly. Shigeo felt kind of bad; Tsubomi seemed a bit angry. Of course she wasn’t mad, She could never get mad at Shigeo, but they way she raised her voice at him made him flinch a bit.
“I really don’t think that’s the case…” Shigeo said quietly. He didn’t want to get his hopes up. Teruki was too good for him, at least that’s what Shigeo thought. There was a short pause. After a bit, Tsubomi spoke up.
“If you’re really so unsure, why don’t I hang out with you two? Tome and I already had plans today, but I’m sure she wouldn’t mind. It’ll be like a double date! Wouldn’t that be cute?”
Shigeo thought for a moment. Having other friends around would definitely put him at ease.
“I’d actually really like that!” he said. “The extra support would be really nice, honestly…”
“Alrighty! I’ll tell Tome about our new plans, and I’ll leave getting Hanazawa on board to you,” Tsubomi piped up. “We’ll meet at the park from when we were kids. See you then!”
“Bye…” Shigeo answered quietly, hanging up. He slumped against his pillows and sighed. He stared at his phone screen, Teruki’s contact reflected in his eyes. Shigeo took a deep breath and pressed the call button. It rang for a few moments before Teruki picked it up.
“Hello?” he said. Just hearing Teruki’s voice made Shigeo’s heart flutter. He exhaled.
“Hi, Hanazawa! Um… Tsubomi, Tome, and I were gonna hang out today... and I was wondering if maybe… you’d like to join us?” Shigeo said, surprised at how few tremors there were in his voice.
“Oh, of course I would! I can always make time for you, Kageyama,” Teruki answered. Teruki sounded excited, and that gave Shigeo a bit of hope. He allowed himself to breathe more steadily.
“Alright then! Well I’ll… meet you halfway, and then we’ll go find Tsubomi and Tome!” said Shigeo, sitting up in his bed a bit.
“Cool! It’s a date then!” This startled Shigeo. Hanazawa called it a date? Like what couples do? He felt he was overthinking, but it still flustered him a bit.
“Y...yep! See you soon!” he managed. He hung up, feeling his face heat up a bit. He patted his cheeks and huffed.
“It’ll be okay…” he told himself. He got up and walked to his closet, grabbing his green puppy sweater from its hanger. Pulling it over his head, he felt himself getting increasingly more anxious, though he didn’t know why. Him and Teruki hung out often, and this time wasn’t any different. God, why were crushes so difficult? He walked to his door and saw Ritsu down the hall upon opening it.
“Going somewhere, Shige?” Ritsu asked. Shigeo nodded.
“Hanging out with friends today,” he said.
“Have fun then.” Ritsu gave him a smile. Shigeo smiled back and walked out from his bedroom. He made it down to the front door and slipped on his shoes.
“I’m heading out!” he called into his house as he walked outside. He started his walk towards Teruki’s apartment, hoping Teruki would meet him quickly. He walked for a while before feeling Teruki’s familiar aura within range. Shigeo looked up with a smile. He spotted Teruki several meters ahead of him and started jogging.
“Hanazawa!” Shigeo called out. Teruki looked up and waved. They met each other halfway, and Shigeo was ready to start heading back towards the direction of the park, but Teruki surprised him with a hug instead.
“It’s so good to see you!” Teruki exclaimed, squeezing Shigeo a bit tighter than he intended. He released him and met Shigeo’s very flustered gaze. Teruki chuckled nervously.
“Sorry about that, I guess I got a bit excited…” he said, raking a hand through his hair.
“It...it’s okay…” Shigeo stammered, patting his cheeks. “Let’s... go meet Tome and Tsubomi.”
Teruki nodded, and the two of them started walking back towards the park. Shigeo looked down at Teruki’s hand. It swayed lazily at Teruki’s side, close enough for Shigeo to hold. He wanted to hold it, and almost reached his own hand towards it, but thought better of it. God, Shigeo hated having crushes. Feelings were still a bit of a new concept to him, and experiencing so many at once just by being around Teruki was extremely overwhelming. Shigeo looked up at Teruki’s face and took in every detail. His squarish jawline, the light freckles on the bridge of his nose, his beautiful blue eyes, everything. Everything about him was perfect. It took a few moments before Shigeo realized he was staring. He realized too late, and Teruki caught his gaze.
“Sorry, did you want to say something, Kageyama?” Teruki asked, turning to face Shigeo.
“No, it’s nothing…” Shigeo said quietly. Just you … he wanted to say, but thought better of it. He put his head down to hide the redness of his cheeks. The two of them walked for a bit longer in silence. They reached the park without a word. Shigeo wanted to say something, but he really wasn’t sure what. He was extremely tense, and he prayed to whatever god there was that Teruki didn’t notice. A familiar voice put him at ease, though.
“Mob! Hanazawa! You guys made it!” Tsubomi called from afar. Shigeo looked up and found her and Tome on a bench a few meters away. He gave a gentle smile and walked over to the two girls.
“So, what exactly were we planning on doing today?” Teruki asked.
“Well, Tsubomi and Tome already had something planned for today before…” Shigeo said, trailing off. He shook his head and continued. “Anyways, what did you two have planned?”
“Tsubomi wanted to go to karaoke,” Tome said, glancing at Tsubomi, and Tsubomi nodded. Teruki gave an excited smile.
“Sounds like fun!” he exclaimed, meeting Shigeo’s eyes. “Shall we, then?” Shigeo really didn’t like singing a whole lot; he sang rather well and was really shy about compliments, but there was no way in hell Tsubomi was letting him get out of this one. He simply smiled and nodded.
“Let’s go, I guess,” he said quietly. Tsubomi and Tome stood up from the bench and they all started their walk towards the karaoke place.
They arrived and all took a seat on a couch while Tsubomi and Tome chatted excitedly about what to sing first. Shigeo stared at the ground and slumped his shoulders. He wanted to lean into Teruki, just be closer to him, but he knew he shouldn’t. Then, Teruki placed a gentle hand on Shigeo’s shoulder.
“Hey, Kageyama, lighten up a bit! Today’s supposed to be fun,” Teruki said, giving Shigeo a warm smile. “Look, the girls are about to start singing!” Tsubomi and Tome had picked a popular, cheesy love song to sing as a duet together. Shigeo didn’t pay them too much mind; he was too focused on Teruki’s face. He observed every little detail again, taking in everything little detail he could see. The karaoke screen reflected in Teruki’s dark blue eyes, making them sparkle brightly. Teruki’s infectious smile was another thing Shigeo noticed. Seeing Teruki smile made Shigeo’s heart melt. Everything about Teruki was absolutely perfect.
“Hanazawa, I…” Shigeo spoke without thinking.
“What is it, Kageyama?” Teruki answered. Shigeo gave a glance at Tsubomi and shook his head.
“I have to… go to the bathroom,” He said, standing up.
“Well alright then. Be back quick, the girls are almost done with their song,” Teruki said. Shigeo nodded and walked over to the bathrooms. He just needed a breather. He felt overwhelmed being around Teruki for so long. Every second he spent near Teruki made his heart flutter. He couldn’t take it. Shigeo pulled out his phone and quickly texted Tsubomi.
Help. he had sent. He stood outside the bathrooms, tapping his foot and staring at the ground. Tsubomi walked over shortly after.
“Mob, what is it? You look really anxious…” she said, a concerned look crossing her face.
“It’s Hanazawa, Tsubomi,” Shigeo said. His stomach felt sick. Tears threatened, but he forced them back as much as he could. “It’s just… too much being around him and not being able to do anything more.” Tsubomi walked closer to Shigeo and put her hands on his shoulders.
“Mob, listen,” she began. “I get it. I understand. But you won’t get what you want if you don’t just tell him how you feel.”
“I don’t know how I’m meant to do that…” Shigeo said quietly. He met Tsubomi’s gaze, which was serious and full of concern. He didn’t see this look on her often.
“All you have to do is tell him! I’ll be here for you, don’t worry. And honestly, there’s a low low chance of him turning you down, trust me.”
The tears fell for real now. “Are you sure, Tsubomi…?” Shigeo said, sniffing. He wiped at his eyes with his sleeves, but it wasn’t doing him any good.
“Mob, I wouldn’t lie to you. I promise it’ll be okay,” Tsubomi smiled warmly. That smile of hers always put Shigeo at ease. He smiled back gratefully.
“Thank you, Tsubomi. That really helps a lot…” Shigeo looked at the ground again. He wiped the tears from his eyes and sighed. Tsubomi released Shigeo’s shoulders from her grasp and pulled him into a hug.
“You’ve got this, Mob,” Tsubomi said into Shigeo’s ear. They stayed like that for a few seconds longer, then Tsubomi released him from her embrace and gave him a gentle smile. “Are you ready to head back?”
Shigeo nodded and the two of them made the trip back to where Teruki and Tome were sitting. Teruki looked up and smiled.
“Kageyama, you’re back!” he said.
“Hi, Hanazawa…” Shigeo answered, not meeting his gaze. Tsubomi patted Shigeo on the back and mouthed a soft “come on”, and that was enough.
“I, uhhh…” Shigeo started, walking a bit closer to Teruki. He took a deep breath and continued. “I’ll just… get this over with now…”
“What is it, Kageyama?” Teruki said, a concerned look crossing his face. Shigeo took another step towards him. He took another deep breath.
“I… I love you, Hanazawa…” Shigeo said, less confidently than he would’ve liked. He looked up at Teruki’s face and found him a bit flushed.
“You’re for real?” Teruki asked, bringing his hands up to his cheeks. Shigeo nodded. He must’ve been about as red as a tomato at this point, but he didn’t care.
“Yes, it’s true, I…” Shigeo trailed off. Teruki had pulled him into a hug. His embrace was gentle, and it felt so warm in his arms. It was absolute bliss.
“Why didn’t you say so sooner? I would’ve…” Teruki said, pulling away slightly so he could meet Shigeo’s eyes. “I would’ve…”
“Hanazawa…” Shigeo couldn’t say anything else. He smiled at Teruki gently, hoping Teruki would return it. He would give everything to be able to see Teruki’s beautiful smile this close. Teruki smiled back at Shigeo, making Shigeo’s heart soar. Shigeo focused on Teruki’s face once again. He looked to his eyes, seeing them sparkle with admiration, his nose, the light freckles dotting his cheeks, and his lips, that smile of his that Shigeo would give anything for. Everything about Teruki was perfect. Everything about this was perfect. Everything, in this current moment, was absolutely perfect.