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It wasn’t uncommon, since they’d started hanging out, to find Zac cuddled up on Orochi’s legs while the other hummed to themself, gently braiding the other’s hair. They would often have a hair tie in their teeth, their eyes narrowed in focus as they twisted blonde strands around each other, forming the beautiful pattern that would lay smoothly down Zac’s back. One earbud would be tucked out, the other staying in so they could hear the soft music they chose for the day. Zac never minded that. He knew silence was overwhelming for Orochi. It had been their system, their thing - at first Zac would question if Orochi was even listening to him. Their lips had only quirked up as they pointed to their headphones, immediately causing Zac’s cheeks to turn pink as he muttered an apology. Zac understood now that Orochi would always be listening.
Zac would speak to them. About anything. Whether it be about his day, his training, or the excitement in someone’s eyes as they recognized the pride flag bracelet on his wrist. Speaking of, he would be wearing two of them - one a rainbow, the other in shades of purple, blue, pink, and white - alphabet beads spelling out “he/him.” Today, though, the two of them were sitting in silence. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just strange - usually Zac had anything and everything to say. It wasn’t often that Orochi would have to be the one to carry the conversation. They didn’t ramble about things the way Zac did. It would usually take Zac asking questions to prompt them to say more. Orochi didn’t speak much, was all. Few people knew them behind their confident stage persona.
In beybattles, Orochi would smirk confidently, calling out to the crowd, hyping them up, making them cheer their bey’s name - and the satisfaction of the scowl on their opponent’s face was perfection. They always enjoyed putting on a show, whether it be gently thumbing the strings of a guitar in the band room at school, or them calling out to Odin in the heat of battle, sharing their song with anyone who came out to see it. People who never interacted with them outside of their shows may describe them as arrogant, or confident. Casting judgement without getting to know the one behind the song. Anyone who knew Orochi outside of battle(which wasn’t many) would know them as someone of few words. Definitely the polar opposite of the way they played themselves up on stage. There was rarely a moment where someone wouldn’t catch Orochi with their headphones in, always plugged into their phone, playing at the highest volume. Noise cancellers were barely enough to counter their sensitive hearing. It was a blessing, and a curse - they could easily immerse themselves into a beybattle, drowning out the screaming crowd through the sounds of their bey, and Orochi enjoyed every minute of it.
Other days the sound of a pin dropping could cause them distress.
Zac had learned to pick up on those days. But today wasn’t one of them.
Speaking of stage personas, Zac was a pretty interesting case. Nearly everyone in Japan knew Zac’s name. The superstar was incredibly popular, having exploded with fame in the first few years of his career. He was loud, impulsive, optimistic, and always had that signature smile on his face. Zac thrived off of attention. His personality on stage was peppy, innocent, a bit silly, even. Zac acted like a prince, and knew that he would be perceived as one. In battles, Zac was no pushover. He was strong, and he showed it. Zac had the force of thunder in his hands when he launched, just like the god residing in his bey, Zeus. Cheeky smirks and little quips, just to rile up the one he was facing. Zac surely faced his fair share of criticism for his childish stage persona, but Orochi knew it never really bothered him. Zac was happy to perform, he revelled in the cheers and screams of his fans, the beat of the music...outside of that, though? It was like you’d flipped a switch. Orochi had learned that Zac was petty as hell. He held grudges. Zac swore to the point that a sailor would be proud. He was pretty messy and disorganized, save for his appearance. Aside from all of that though, Zac was softer. Genuine, and kind. Orochi wondered how many people knew about him outside of his performances.
Honestly, it was a little bit funny. Someone like them, having Zac curled up like a puppy in their lap, sitting in almost pure silence while having his hair braided. Orochi didn’t ever expect to get to a point like this in their relationship. When Zac approached them asking about a spot on Superstars for the national tournament, Orochi thought they would never be more than teammates. Never friends, never close rivals, and never...whatever the hell they were right now. Needless to say they were pretty confused. They pushed the thoughts out of their head, taking the hair tie, and wrapping it around the end of the braid.
“Done.” It was the first word spoken in nearly an hour. Orochi ignored the way their heart clenched when Zac sat up, tucking the braid neatly over his shoulder. He smiled, blue eyes finally turning to meet Orochi’s own.
“Thank you, Orochi. It’s lovely.” He said. “I could have fallen asleep with how gentle you were being.”
Orochi resented the way their face turned a bit pink. They shrugged, wondering how they would have even gotten out of that situation.
“Quiet today, hm?”
“Says you,” Orochi responded, “you always have something to say.”
“Ah, well…” Zac leaned back on the couch, his arm falling just short of touching Orochi’s shoulders. “I had a long day. That’s all. Had to go through quite a bit of boring stuff. It wasn’t worth talking about, you know?”
“I would have listened.” Orochi said. Zac let out a little ‘hm’.
Once again, there was silence. Orochi’s neutral expression turned to a frown. They began twisting the ring on their index finger.
“Something the matter?” Zac questioned, eyes flicking down to Orochi’s anxious habit.
“What are we?” Orochi asked, pressing their hands into their thighs, pulling at the fabric of their jeans. “We’ve talked about it before, I mean. A while ago. You remember.”
Their eyes met. Orochi resisted the instinct to look away.
“I do…” Zac nodded. His tone of voice indicated that he wanted to avoid this conversation. “What do you think?”
“I don’t know.” Orochi had a hint of frustration in their tone. “That’s why I’m asking.”
“Sorry. Let me rephrase. What do you want us to be?” Zac asked, his hand hovering over Orochi’s own. “I mean...I have an idea. But I want to hear you out first.”
Orochi sighed through their nose. They knew what they wanted. Admitting it might be a mistake. After all, weren’t they content with where they were right now? The thought of them, together, with Zac as something more than teammates was unexpected. Now they were friends, gently pushing on the edge of what the definition of friends even met. Orochi could count the beats of silence between them. They hit the pause button on their music, taking out their earbuds and laying them aside.
“I know what I want.”
“Then tell me.”
“Could I show you?”
“Go on.”
Orochi reached for Zac’s collar. Zac instinctively leaned closer. Orochi could feel Zac’s breath on their lips.
They closed the short distance. The kiss started gently, at first, Orochi unsure how far they could push this. Zac answered that for them, as he started to kiss with more passion. Orochi’s face turned bright red, and they wrapped an arm around Zac’s waist. Zac laid his arms around Orochi’s neck. Their foreheads touched as they broke apart. There wasn’t a single spot on Orochi's face that wasn’t tinted red.
“Was that what you were thinking?” Orochi asked, breathless.
“It was.” Zac responded. “I’m glad we’re clear on that, now.”
“Yeah…” They pulled their face slightly back. They were smiling now, and Zac returned it with a toothy grin.
Their hands intertwined, held over their hearts. Their beat was perfectly in sync.