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Ever since they were kids, Chrome remembers being with Ginrou. Despite the loss of his parents and his interest in what they’d called sorcery, the blonde was always kind to him and listened to him go on for hours about the rocks and medicines he’d found despite never really understanding what he was saying. In return, Chrome would do his best to explain what scared Ginrou in a logical way so he wouldn’t have to be so scared of things. Their arrangement was always beneficial to both of them, since it gave a sense of companionship that neither of them ever got, spending most of their time on the very edge of Ishigami village.
Some people might have even called what they had “friendship”, though in all honesty it was simply two lonely kids seeking out comfort and companionship in one another. It wasn’t like his own adventures and squabbles he had with Kohaku or the warm summer days he spent in the flower field with Ruri, it was it’s own thing in itself. That fact doesn’t at all make whatever they had any less important, since being with Ginrou had been one of if not the most stabilizing aspects of his life before Senku had burst into their lives.
Though as they got older, they both began to drift apart with their differing personalities and desires.
Where Chrome wanted to explore and experiment, Ginrou feared and stayed back. The incompatibilities only grew more and more over time. It was sad but a reality that he accepted long before they were close enough to be considered companions due to how his other friendships ended. In spite of it all, though, he was still the person Ginrou would call for when he was scared and wanted an explanation to soothe his anxieties and fears.
Senku Ishigami is the driving force behind what sparked their new found friendship. Not the companionship of two lonely kids or a comfort blanket on cold days, but actual friendship and care and something . It had started when Ginrou called out for him in fear when Senku first arrived and decided to mess with him and Kinrou by blowing bubbles. The reminder of their arrangement had made him want to show the other “sorcerer” up for freaking out the blonde in a way that Chrome hadn’t seen in years, which pissed him off since seeing someone he cares for in distress isn’t something he enjoys. They hadn’t begun talking casually again at that point but he’d made sure to explain what caused the bubbles to both Kinrou and Ginrou before leaving.
To this day, Chrome feels a bit guilty for it, but manipulating Ginrou into his schemes with Senku was ridiculously easy. He knew damn well that the other boy would be tempted by the things he created with science, and shamelessly dangled the silver spear over his head so he’d play along and help in their endeavors towards saving Ruri. Thinking back, maybe he shouldn’t feel so guilty about using the silver spear to draw Ginrou in, since in the end it was what brought them back together closer than they had ever been.
See, after they created the silver spear for Ginrou so he could be their sensor when they went to get the sulfuric acid, and he’d been barely saved from dying a very painful death by the other, they started getting genuinely closer. But this time, it was as friends. Not because they were lonely kids sent to the outskirts of the village. Not out of necessity of the circumstances they were put in. It became their choice and desire to be friends, and they were finally allowed to say yes because Senku opened up the option of freedom and choice for them. (Out of everything that his science using partner and friend has done for him, giving him friends and people who don’t ostracize or ridicule him for being a sciencer is something he will always be grateful for.)
His choice in becoming friends with the tiny blonde is something he’s beginning to regret, though. Not because Chrome finds him annoying or useless, nothing like that at all. It’s quite the opposite, actually. Ever since they’ve gotten closer and he’s been freed from his worry over Ruri dying, he’s began allowing himself to explore and feel more than he had before. Which brings him to his current biggest issue: feelings. He’s always known he had a bit of an idealistic childhood crush on Ruri, but that had been a puppy crush to it’s core. Something that had built up and stuck until she got better and they were allowed to talk, and become friends again. After a few days of laughing and catching up together after a few years, he realized that they were better off as friends.
Meanwhile, his feelings for Ginrou continued to grow more confusing and complicated than he can process. Of course he’s happy that they can finally be friends of their own volition, but his feelings have already started speed running past mere platonic care and affection, getting dangerously close to actual romantic feelings.
(Who is Chrome kidding?)
(He’s already neck deep in his crush on Ginrou.)
He’ll admit, he’s always found Ginrou attractive. From his gentle smile, pretty blonde hair, how short he is, to his big green eyes, it would be hard not to admire how he looks. But physical attraction and romantic attraction are leaps and bounds away from each other, which is why the sudden desire to be something more than companions or friends so soon after just beginning to get close is so confusing and surprising. The way he feels for Ginrou is completely different from the feelings he had for Ruri. Rather than wanting to save him or remembering the time they spent together as kids, Chrome looks forward to the possibility of a future he could have with him.
Dreams of showing him the view of the mountain at night, of taking his hand and marching forward into an unknown future instead of craving a past and to return to memories that are long gone. Senku would call him a romantic for having such gooey and idealistic desires, like Kohaku called him a child for his puppy crush on her older sister.
Regardless, he’s almost certain that his feelings are unreturned anyways. So whether or not he’s able to sort out and understand his own feelings doesn’t matter much anyways. It’s not that Chrome thinks he can predict Ginrou’s feelings or the type of person he’s interested in, but based on what Gen tells him, he’s more of a close friend to him. Of course he’s more than happy to be even that much to him, but he’s unsure of what to do with himself or all of the feelings he has that are lying dormant in his heart among...other things. After all, admitting to them could jeopardize his newfound friendship with the blonde and make him uncomfortable with the knowledge that someone he considers a close friend may have ulterior motives with him.
All of his worries come to a halt when he hears a shaky knock come from the door of his hut, he tells the person to come in.
Ah, it’s the cause of all of his inner turmoil. Standing before him, trembling softly, breath coming out faster than it should, and hands wringing together like they do when he’s upset or anxious because of something he doesn’t understand. Reaching forward, he waits to see if he wants physical comfort, only intertwining their hands when Ginrou places his hands in Chrome’s own larger ones. Pulling the other forward gently, he thanks the gods that Senku decided to go on a hang out with Taiju and Yuzuriha instead of staying in. Sitting down on his blanket, he scoots over so the blonde can sit down next to him, their hands between them. He tries not to jump out of his skin when he feels the other squeeze his hand, choosing instead to rub his thumb over the back of his hand in a comforting manner he remembers Ruri doing to him when he was upset as a kid.
“That Hyouga guy was the worst, wasn’t he?” ...great going, Chrome! He thinks to himself, start comforting him by insulting (like a child) and bringing up the man that nearly killed his older brother. That’ll make him feel better! But, to his surprise, he gets an amused huff from Ginrou. His voice is soft when he replies, “He was! Did you see his spear? It wasn’t even sharpened or carved !”
They laugh together for awhile, hands grasping at the other like a lifeline, until they’re both out of breath, tears rolling down their cheeks. Soon enough, Chrome is looking the other way as he allows himself to finally let go of his stress and cry in the company of the boy he has a crush on, squeezing Ginrou’s hand softly when he hears him sniffle as well.
Things really are...a mess.