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"--and he blocked it with his own skateboard! Did you see that?!" Miya unbuckled his seatbelt as he sat up and pushed himself over the driver's seat to look Cherry in the eyes. The older put a hand out to push him back into his chair.
"Seatbelt, Miya!" Cherry shouted, a hint of a smile on his lips, "And yes, I did see that. We were all there."
"Why does he need to seatbelt? Aren't you supposedly the safest driver Japan's ever had on the roads?" Joe teased, crossing his arms as he caught eye contact with Cherry through the rearview mirror from the backseat.
"Are you stupid?! That's not what seatbelts are for! Miya, can you sit down?!"
Shadow turned his head to the back from the passenger seat to recount another crazy thing Langa did that night before Miya stood up completely instead of listening to the driver, and the whole car burst into angry albeit playful shouting again.
Reki turned his back to their rowdy group of friends, seating himself back on the floor of the trunk. A small smile lingered on his face even as his eyes shut, and the loudness in the car muffled itself in his ears for a single second. A head heavily fell on his shoulder and he pushed his eyes open to see Langa's whole body leaning onto him, his hands falling into his lap.
"The shining star of the night, King of S, Master of Skateboarding, the one and only Snow is falling asleep on my shoulder? What have I done in my past life to deserve such an honor?" Reki joked, his hand coming up to shake up the head of hair that reflected off the moon's light falling in through the car windows.
"I'm not falling asleep," Langa announced quietly as he brought his head up to look at Reki. There was a strange glint in his eye that Reki always had a hard time deciphering. He only knew that he had to look away. He had to.
Yet, sky blue eyes met amber ones, and Reki's mind shifted violently.
He felt his back hit asphalt again as his mind brought up the memory from earlier. Langa had crashed into him with a sense of need that he never knew someone could ever have towards him after crossing the finish line.
"Did I win?" Langa had asked him, one of his hands fisted tightly against his yellow sweatshirt as they lay flushed against each other on the S track. Reki could only smile, and he pushed himself forward to keep the other closer to his body.
"Yes. Yes, you did."
Reki felt selfish. In all honesty, he probably was. People were surrounding them, shouting at the disbelief that someone had beat the running champion of S, but Reki could only concentrate all his senses on one thing. There was a slow flame burning in his chest that he wanted to keep alive so very bad. He wanted Langa to stay laying on top of him then. He wanted to keep that moment frozen in time and never have to stand back up. But he knew that was selfish. He felt it. It was so, so loud.
Langa's heartbeat was pushed against him, and it ricocheted off his clothing and down through his skin and it made him feel like his body was freezing every time more sweat had rolled down his back. Adrenaline had never felt more like a drug until then. Was it selfish? If he had pulled Langa on his feet and told him to simply sprint the entirety of the S track with him just to keep his blood pumping quickly, just to keep his heart beating fast, just to keep his eyes on him, to look at him like that for as long as he could. Would it have been selfish?
Reki had stared longingly at someone he only, up till then, would have called his best friend, and the other had stared at him in the same way. But the air was heavy on them, and their hearts were racing with each other. And there it was again, a small pang in his chest at the thought.
Langa had just won. He's won a race that hundreds of others could only dream of. He was still excited, his eyes were still sparkling with a sense of exhilaration. Langa loved skating, and he loved winning, he loved racing and being a part of a competition. Even if Reki hadn't been there, Langa could have looked at anyone with the same look of love in his eyes. He felt Langa's fast heartbeat through his thick clothing, but this time it gave him a different feeling.
Reki wanted to be needed. He wanted to be wanted. He wanted Langa to want him. But as Langa stared at him as they laid on the dirty track, shouts of disbelief and victory around them, Langa's eyes hooded and his lips curled, Reki felt fear solidify in his throat. Once the moment was over, once Langa didn't have that tight swirling in his stomach anymore, once their heads cleared and the magic died off, Reki wouldn't be this shining light waiting at the end of the finish line anymore.
He'd just be Reki.
And Langa...
Langa would still be Snow. He'd still be the flying ace at S. When Langa's heart stops racing, he wouldn't have a reason to look at Reki like that anymore, would he?
"Reki?"
Reki flinched slightly, and once his eyes focused again, Langa was still staring at him. They were still sitting in the trunk of the car, and their friends, though now it was mostly just Cherry and Joe, were shouting insults at each other from the front.
"What's up?" Reki asked, shifting himself slightly to brush off the rush of thoughts that he completely submerged himself into.
"Can you say my name?"
Reki turned toward his friend, his head tilted in slight confusion, "What? Like... Langa?"
"Not like that."
Their eyes met again when Langa repositioned himself until his whole body was turned towards the other. Reki's breath hitched when Langa's eyes visibly focused in on him. Langa's white button up had a streak of dirt running up his left torso, and there was still dried up mud on the side of his jaw and scratches on his cheeks.
"How do you want me to say it?"
"The way you did during the race."
The car hit a bump in the road and Langa roughly shifted forward. Their faces were closer but Langa's eyes still held a sense of stability that Reki had a hard time keeping up with. I want him to want me.
"You want me to yell your name?" Reki laughed, looking away in a hurry to cover up the nervous sweat building at the back of his neck. "That's a little embarrassing."
"Oh," a dumb expression formed it's way on the other's face, "Oh yeah, we're in a car."
Reki cut him off. "Besides, it's an in the moment thing! I can't just yell your name out of nowhere! Why do you want me to anyway? That's a really weird request."
"I like listening to you."
Reki lifted a brow, "Yell?"
"No. Just when you talk to me. I like hearing you talk to me," Langa slumped a little forward, and their skateboards which were leaning against the walls of the car tumbled as the wheels of the vehicle hit another bump. A silence fell over them, and Reki's ears tuned back into the conversation at the front of the car.
"What happened to being a good driver, Kaoru?" Joe's voice mocked, and Cherry grumbled so loudly it felt like it shook the walls.
"I will throw you out of this car if you call me that again!"
"I'd like to see you try--"
Langa's fingers wrapped around Reki's clothed wrist and he immediately, on auto-drive, tuned everyone's voices out. His fingers and his palm were then pressed firmly against Langa's chest, and Reki short-circuited.
"Langa?"
"How do I get it to stop?" he asked him calmly, and the redhead looked up to meet the other's eyes. His hands felt the beat of Langa's chest again. It was still pounding, almost violently, and Langa started heaving for air.
"Are you... alright?" he asked him slowly, concern slightly lacing his voice. Langa let go of his wrist and Reki's hand fell into his own lap again. They were both now sitting completely facing each other, and Reki had to stop himself from leaning forward every time the car shifted.
"I want to do something."
"Like what?" Reki prompted. Langa's hands were pressed to his own chest now, probably trying to calm it as his eyes focused on the ground to the right of them.
"I don't know. I'm sleepy, and I feel like I can run a mile," Langa threw his head up, and the two pieces of stray blue hair fell in front of his eyes like always. Reki let out a small laugh, and brought his hand up to hit the other on the head.
"You're just in a post-high, Langa."
Langa rubbed the back of his head as he looked up at his friend, "High? Why would I have been high?"
Reki raised a brow and started listing things on his fingers, "You raced against someone you've been waiting for ages to race against. You almost died tonight. You won a tournament. Why would your heart not be racing?"
The other seemed to think about it for a moment, his eyes shifting back and forth on the ground as his head hung a little low.
"You missed something."
"I did? What? Was it the fact you pulled off a crazy skating trick to stop Adam from completely wiping you out like... a number of times?"
"No," Langa deadpanned, "You were there."
Reki smiled, and tilted his head slightly to the side, "I know I was."
"No," Langa repeated, "You were there."
A silence hung over them again, and Reki felt like he knew what the other was going to say. A twinge of panic started crawling up from his stomach, but before Langa could elaborate, Cherry's voice rung out towards the trunk.
"We're here, Reki!" Cherry shouted.
He turned his head to the window and spotted his house right outside. Something washed over him. Disappointment maybe. Relief?
"I thought we were gonna go drink or something?!" Miya complained, and Joe shoved the kid's hood over his face before opening his mouth
"Don't get your hopes up, little one. You've got a lot more years to go. The adults are gonna go drink. You three need to get home. Way past your bed time." Joe pointed his fingers towards Miya before turning to point at both Langa and Reki in the trunk.
"Hey, I'm not little!" Miya shouted.
Reki smiled softly before pushing the trunk door open to climb out and grab his skateboard.
"Thanks for the ride. Tonight was..." he struggled for words, "amazing."
"Anytime, Reki," Cherry said fondly from the driver's seat.
"You going too, aye?" Shadow scratched at the bandage on his head as he watched Langa climb out of the trunk too. Reki heard his shoes hit the ground, and he was too confused to say anything as Langa stood beside him on the driveway and pulled his skateboard from the inside of the car.
"Yeah."
The others shouted compliments at the star of the night, telling him how happy they were for him and his victory before Langa's ears turned red and he moved to shut the trunk of the car.
"Come over to my restaurant around 6 tomorrow, alright!? Let's have a proper celebration together!" Joe called out, right before Langa shoved the trunk closed.
A couple seconds passed before the car drove down the road and out of sight, and it left both Reki and Langa silently standing in the driveway of Reki's house. Reki opened his mouth to ask the reason on why Langa even got out of the car before the other simply turned around and made his way to the front porch.
"Langa, wait--"
"I'm tired. Can we just go inside?"
Reki, his head a little too fatigued and unfocused to argue, brought him over to where he left his bedroom window open, and they climbed up against the wooden plank, stepping over the window sill, before falling roughly on the floor of his room. Papers silently floated to the floor from his desk, and Reki felt a strange sense of relief wash over him as he laid on the wooden ground.
His ceiling looked way too high, and he felt that weird rush of blood hit his head as his eyes unfocused. He was so tired, his heart felt heavy as it slowed it's beating. So much had happened. That night, he had felt afraid, and he had felt hopeful, and confident, and assured, promised, alive, loved. At the end of it all, he ended up back in his room and worn out. It was unreal. It felt... like none of it ever happened.
The thought died in his throat as Langa sat up in the dark.
"Why did you look at me like that?" he rushed out. The slight frustration in his friend's voice made Reki slowly push his body to sit up, his back heavy and his head heavier.
"Like what?"
"Like you wanted me to stop talking when I told you what you forgot about."
Reki sighed, "Is that why you got out of the car when I did? You know it's a long walk back to your house, right? We could've talked about this tomorrow."
"But I want to talk about it now," Langa stiffly mumbled, and though he was never the type to talk that much, Reki had a weird feeling Langa never stopped talking once he knew what he had to say. Their make-up conversation at the skatepark nights before was a perfect example of that.
Reki roughly inhaled and placed his own pointer finger on his chest, "You were going to say because I, and specifically me, was there tonight, your heart raced, right?"
"Yes. I was."
"I didn't want to hear you say it. That's why I wanted you to stop talking."
"Why don't you want me to say it? It's true."
"Langa..." Reki pleaded, and his eyelids drooped slightly before he grabbed his sweatband from his head and pulled it off, his hand going through tangled red hair as Langa sat there, still and silent. Their eyes found each other in the dark of the room, and the way his best friend's eyes shone, the same way it had when he jumped into Reki's arms after the race. It felt real then. There probably wasn't anymore adrenaline in this musty room, was there? This was real, right? And Langa's eyes still gave the same look it had when he was on a rush.
Reki only smiled, a bit sad, but he let their eyes linger with one another. "This feels like false hope," he mumbled silently, hoping Langa was too focused staring at his eyes to hear what he said. Luckily, he was right, and when Langa shook his head to snap out of it, Reki was already standing up. He pulled his dark gray outerwear off and the yellow sweatshirt on him felt a little looser and more comfortable.
"Please, let's just talk about this tomorrow. I'm really tired, so just... you can leave whenever you want," Reki let out, and he collapsed onto the bed, his back hitting the mattress a little violently. Reki's legs were still half hanging off the edge of the bed, and he considered it a good thing since he realized he hasn't even taken off his shoes yet. His eyes caught sight of the digital clock on his desk before it was out of his point of view and he vaguely saw the numbers "2:56" in bold red. He mentally noted it, weirdly believing it was a time he wanted to remember some day. This was the time of day when you fell asleep. 2:56. The day Langa had won against Adam. 2:56. The day he held on to you. 2:56. The day you felt wanted.
Reki was still in dirty clothes, his yellow sweatshirt and his dark gray pants with the chain still attached made him sweat, but he could care less as his eyes lulled.
Minutes passed by, or maybe it was seconds, or an hour. Reki was slowly falling in and out of consciousness, as his eyelids blinked rapidly then slowly.
A small shadow towered over him in the dark, and he immediately felt as though someone poured cold water through his ears.
He froze as Langa fell straight onto him, his face coming into contact with Reki's neck and his body flushed against Reki's own as he pushed his eyes open, suddenly feeling wide awake. Flashbacks filled his head again like it had in the car home.
Asphalt and racing. The shake of his chest as Langa jumped towards him. The fast, almost concerning heartbeat against his own. That stampede of self-doubt and loneliness and fear as he heard people's voices repeatedly yell "Snow!" around him. Suffocating, yet comfortable.
Except, there was none of that here. They were in Reki's room, in Reki's bed. There wasn't a race around; there wasn't a finish line. There wasn't a crowd or a victory to celebrate. It was just them. And the most important thing--
Langa's heartbeat was slow.
Reki's eyes relaxed woodenly, and as he concentrated again on his chest against Langa's, he realized he was right. There wasn't anything fast or abnormal. The adrenaline was gone, and Langa was still holding onto him the same way he had hours earlier. Langa's arms were pushed into his waist, and it curled all the way underneath him as they rested on his back.
"Langa?"
"Let me stay here for the night," the other had said quickly, his breath and his hair tickling Reki's neck.
"I was going to ask why you were hugging me. I wasn't going to just kick you out or something."
"I wanted to hold you for longer."
Reki snorted, "I'm not going anywhere."
"I know."
His heart swirled with something warm at the words, and he quickly ran out of things to say. He wanted Langa to want him. He really, really did. That's all he knew.
Langa pushed himself off his neck to look Reki in the eyes, "Ask me again."
"Ask you what again?"
"When you asked me what it was I wanted to do."
Reki let out a small scoff at the randomness and replied, "What do you want to--"
It was probably supposed to be sweeter, but Langa stumbled forward a little harshly and their teeth clashed together as their lips met, Reki letting out a surprised muffle. Pain shot through his mouth, and Langa immediately pushed away and spouted an apology.
"Sorry!" he completely flushed red as he leaned back, his hand flying up over his mouth as his legs straddled Reki at the waist once he sat up completely. Reki laid pain-stakingly still, disbelief running through his head as he replayed what just happened. He felt Langa's legs move, probably trying to get off the bed and do whatever it was Langa did when he was clueless, and Reki realized he didn't have time to think about all this.
His hands flew out, and he roughly grabbed both the back of Langa's knees to keep him from being able to get off his waist. Langa tottered and his knees hit the bed at either side of Reki.
The redhead pushed on his elbows to sit up just a tiny bit, and Langa forced himself to look back at Reki with wide eyes when he stumbled forward again from trying to get up, now unable to move his legs freely. He had taken off his white button up earlier, and the black turtleneck he always covered contrasted greatly with his pale skin.
"Ask me again," Reki said a little smugly, using Langa's words against him.
"Huh?"
"When you asked me if you won. Ask me again."
Their eyes met, and when Reki saw the same glint that he's been noticing all night shine through, he stopped trying to think of excuses to call it fake. Pieces of Langa's hair fell softly in front of his eyes, pushing against his eyelashes.
"Did I win?"
"You did," Reki whispered, "You so did." Reki's smile widened, and he brought a hand up to Langa's chin as he pulled him forward. Their lips met again. It was still a little unsteady, but it was everything Reki had wanted in probably forever.
It took a while before Langa pushed his mouth back against him, and his arms steadily wrapped itself around Reki's shoulders as he shifted his legs forward. Langa was almost towering over him now, and Reki had to tilt his head back a stupid amount to keep their lips connected. His fingers never left Langa's chin as he held it firmly in place. They had to break for air a number of times, but they always found each other's faces again and Reki's eyes continued to float open and closed. He wasn't sure what he was focusing on anymore, and the grip he had on Langa's inner knee had loosened. Shit, it felt so good.
It felt stupid good kissing Langa. Maybe it was the fatigue, maybe it was the way Langa's fingers had softly moved to hold his jaw, but he didn't want to stop. Whenever Langa moved back for air, Reki pushed upwards to chase him, and whenever he needed air and pushed his lips away, Langa chased after his too. They didn't know what they were doing. They were inexperienced and messy, but it felt good, and it made Reki's stomach heat up in a way that it could only fit in his body by traveling up to his chest.
They broke apart for the hundredth time, and Langa slowly fell downwards before pushing himself into Reki's neck again, heaving for air. Reki stayed staring at the ceiling, his mouth open and gasping a little louder than he thought he would be, both arms steadied themselves at his sides, his elbows keeping him from collapsing onto his back on the mattress.
Langa's hand snaked itself underneath Reki's sweatshirt, and when skin met skin, Reki inhaled loudly before holding his breath. Langa trailed his palm upwards until it rested against Reki's chest.
"Your heart's racing," Langa noted, and Reki, too tired to keep himself upward any longer, let his elbows weaken as they both fell backward. Reki's back softly laid against the bed, and Langa's hands were still underneath Reki's shirt.
"I know," he mumbled, his forearm resting itself over his eyes as he tried to not concentrate so much on Langa's hand on his skin.
"You'll still want to kiss me when it isn't anymore, right?"
Reki laughed in disbelief. Langa having the same worries he's been feeling all night made him want to hold the other down and scream about how much he's wanted him until he could never think of anything ever again. Instead, Reki moved the arm that was covering his sight to grab the back of Langa's head a little harshly, pushing him downward until they were kissing again.
His fingers entangled themselves in the blue, and Langa hummed lowly into his mouth. The hand on his chest moved an inch or so and Reki's insides lit on fire.
When they broke apart, Reki let their foreheads lean against one another, their eyes still shut. "I'll always want to kiss you, Langa."
Langa only nodded against him, both of them way too tired for complex words and feelings. His head moved, and Langa was back to having his face pressed against Reki's bare neck.
"I think I love you," Langa mumbled, and as Reki lay there falling asleep underneath him, he knew he probably did too.
The rush in his chest slowed, and the fast beating of Langa's against him became steady and soft. The adrenaline wore off, and Langa was still there holding onto him. Reki wrapped his arms tightly around Langa's back, his face pushed down just a little. The adrenaline wore off, and Reki still wanted to kiss the other a stupid amount. Langa's hair smelt of winter air and grassy wind. The adrenaline wore off, and they were still pushed against one another. Reki smiled as he lay back, a warm blanket of air wrapping his skin. He never had anything to worry about, did he?
The adrenaline wore off, and they both still wanted one another.