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“I have a boyfriend.”
Reki let out a choked sound and spectacularly spat out his soda all over Joe’s counters. The redhead punched his chest repeatedly, trying to fight a newly formed coughing fit while gaping at Miya.
Miya, like the little piece of shit that he is, smirked smugly at him. When the younger teenager had asked Reki and Langa to come to ‘Sia La Luce’ for dinner before going to ‘S’, because apparently, he had something important to tell them, Reki didn’t expect that. Honestly, he never knew what to expect when it came to Miya, but him coming out and announcing that he was in a relationship was shocking, to say the least.
Especially since Miya got his shit together, accepted who he is, came out to them, and started dating someone. Before Reki got the chance to do it. That was unfair. Miya was a child. A fucking child. How did he manage to beat Reki at that too? Jealousy crept at the bottom of Reki’s stomach. Someone had the balls to confess to Miya ? Did Miya have the balls to confess to someone ? Before Reki could ask his not-so-obvious-crush out?
Speak of the devil , “Reki!”, Langa rose from his seat and slapped Reki’s back. The blue-haired boy grabbed his glass from the countertop and placed it in front of Reki.
“Thanks.”, Reki croaked out and shot him an appreciative smile. Langa who was extremely happy that he could be of assistance returned the gesture. And wow. Just wow. He rarely smiled, but when luck was on Reki’s side and he got to witness such an angelic sight, his heart throbbed in his chest. Forget doki doki, every time that Reki stared at Langa while he was doing the bare minimum (you know, like breathing), his heart went ‘brrrrr’ like a jackhammer because why did he look so good?! Was this beauty even legal?! Because Reki would go to jail for Langa. Oh, he definitely would—
The uncomfortable burn in his throat forced him to return to reality. Drinking a few sips from the glass that Langa gave him –oh my god Langa gave me water! Is that how holy water tastes like?!– , he turned his attention back to Miya. And the feeling of pure jealousy and genuine shock filled him once again. He stared at the boy. Miya . Who likes guys. Miya likes guys. Wait a minute, Miya likes—
“You—You like guys ?!”, he yelled. Thankfully, the restaurant was empty because otherwise, he would have outed the most promising candidate of Japan’s national team to a bunch of gossiping people from all over the country (why was Joe’s restaurant so popular?!). Miya would have also broken his skateboard, which according to Reki, would be a lot worse than breaking his legs, arms, spine, or any other body member.
Since when did Miya like boys?! He never talked about guys or his crush in particular! They never discussed anything regarding the LGBT+ community too(do jokes about Cherry’s and Joe’s unresolved sexual tension count?). Now that Reki thinks about it, they never talked about anything else other than skateboarding. Didn’t Miya trust them? Didn’t Miya trust him ? Was Reki such an awful friend that Chinen felt uncomfortable around him? Oh, no. No no no no… The ugly, ugly feeling of jealousy evaporated into thin air and was replaced by guilt .
Miya’s smirk dissolved. His shoulders fell and he tensed slightly. The signs of discomfort were subtle, but after spending a big amount of time with the middle-schooler, Reki could easily recognize them.
“Is that— Is that a problem?”, Miya’s voice trembled. Reki wanted to cancel his annual subscription to life right then and there.
You idiot. You absolute moron. What the fuck is wrong with you?! Why did you phrase it like that?! You know that Miya cares a lot about your opinion. Stupid Reki. Stupid, stupid, stupid. How dumber can you get? You hurt Miya, you dumbass! It was surprising of course, but now he thinks that you don’t support him! You even got jealous instead of congratulating him! Stupid Reki. You’re a fucking idiot. Oh god, you’re taking too long to answer! This is not the time to feel betrayed you have to support Miya! Say something you piece of—
“No Miya, it’s not a problem. Thank you for sharing this with us.”, Langa replied, looking extremely calm about the whole thing, even though Reki almost had an aneurism.
How was Langa so chill about this? Did he know beforehand? Had he figured it out before him? Why didn’t he tell Reki? Did Miya tell him before he had told Reki? Were his suspicions correct? Was Reki actually such a shitty friend?
It doesn’t matter. Get your priorities straight. Well, as straight as you can. Miya looks like he is about to cry, say something! Say that you support him! Don’t stand there like an idiot! This is not the time for your feelings to get in the way! Say something! Be a good friend for once, for god’s sake!
“H-How are you so calm about this?!”
Fuck.
Why did he say that? Why the fuck did he say that?! Did he have the time to google ‘How hard do you need to bang your head on a kitchen counter to instantly die’?! Wiki-how, save him! Was it too late to start a fire as a distraction and run away from his stupidity? Do Langa and Miya think that he is homophobic?? Will Miya leave him?? Did he ruin the one chance that he had with Langa because his stupid mouth had a malfunction? He didn’t want to say that, he ruined everything once again, oh god he is a terrible friend and—
“Shouldn’t I be? I can’t think of any reason why you or I would freak out.”
Langa didn’t know . He learned the news at the same time that Reki did. Langa was right. He shouldn’t have reacted that way. Of course, the initial shock (and betrayal) that he felt was justified, because oh my god Miya likes guys and Miya has a boyfriend and they will probably go on dates, and Reki can stalk them and take embarrassing photos of Miya while he is blushing and blackmail him. He can take Langa with him too, and make him wear one of those long-ass trench coats, and wow, Langa would look so handsome in a trench coat, with the fabric hugging his broad shoulders and his—
Begone gay thoughts! This is not the time to think about how handsome Langa is! Not every hour is gay hour! You need to talk to Miya!
Reki slapped himself.
“Reki, what—“
“Chinen, I am so sorry for over exaggerating. Man, it obviously made you uncomfortable…”, Reki let out an awkward chuckle, “but I was too lost in thought to give you a proper answer, I’m such an awful friend…”, he sighed and hid his face in his hands. “I am…shocked is all… and a little jealous. You’re growing up really fast, dude…”, he looked back at Miya, who was crying – you made him cry, how dare you make this precious child cry, his parents will beat you up, fuck, Joe and Cherry will destroy you - “I am very happy for you, man.”
“You stupid slime! I am not accepting this apology!”, Miya whined, but let himself get enveloped in Reki’s arms nonetheless.
“Aww, this is so sweet, what’s the occasion?”, Kojiro said, having returned from the storage room and walking towards them.
“Joe, you won’t believe—“
“WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO MY COUNTERS?!”
“Reki did it.”, Langa and Miya said in unison.
“YOU SNITCHES!”
***
“Yeah, so pretty much that’s what happened.”, Miya explained, after a furious Joe demanded to know who the fuck ruined his restaurant. Shadow, who had arrived a while ago, was on the floor, dying of laughter. After giving Reki a warning, that sounded more like a threat, Joe grabbed a washcloth and started wiping the sticky liquid off the counters’ surface.
“HOW ARE YOU NOT SURPRISED?!”
“I figured it on my own a while ago.”, Shadow wheezed.
“I helped him ask out his crush.”, Joe said smugly.
“You got to help?! That’s unfair! I want to meet him!”, Reki whined.
“Absolutely not.”, Miya replied.
“Well, what’s his name?!”
“Like I would tell you, slime.”
“Why does Joe know him but you won’t tell me ?!”
“Cause I needed help and there is no way that I would ask you .”, Miya deadpanned.
“Wow, I feel betrayed. I didn’t even know that you’re gay!”, Reki threw his hands in the air.
“Actually, I am pan.”
“Who is a pan and how did he transform into cookware?”, Cherry asked. He stood in front of the entrance, dumbfounded and expecting an answer.
Shadow’s laughing intensified. Tears were rolling on his cheeks and ruining his make-up.
“No Cherry, I am pan, as in pansexual.”
“Oh, I apologize, I hadn’t heard the—“
“How stupid can you get, Four-eyes?”, Joe yelled, not missing the chance to pick on his friend (?).
“Even if I was stupid, I would still be smarter than an ape, like you!”
“What did you call me you—“, Joe jumped over the fucking bar and threw himself at Cherry.
“Hey lovebirds, keep it PG-13, there is a child here!”, Mia said while placing his hand over Langa’s eyes. The lovebirds in question jumped away from each other with an embarrassed look on their faces. The aura inside the restaurant changed almost automatically. The tension disappeared, and Reki felt like he could finally breathe.
Reki smiled. This scene , everyone being in a (mostly) good mood, Miya feeling better, Shadow still laughing his ass off, face paint smudged and hair messy, Joe and Cherry silently apologizing to each other, and Langa—
Oh, Langa looked breathtaking. His lips were curled into a small smile, there was a soft look in his beautiful blue eyes, his soft- oh my god it must be so soft -hair perfectly framed his angular face and then he turned his attention towards Reki and his eyes sparkled and—
And Reki is whipped for this man. He is so fucking whipped. And he has to do something quickly because his poor heart is going to explode. Because Langa looks ethereal and he cannot believe that someone could be so so so—
So fucking beautiful . That slight crease in his eyes when he smiled, to the way that he played with his fingers when he was nervous. When he scrunched his nose and his voice cracked because he was worried about his accent. The dust of freckles on his cheeks that appeared after spending so much time under the sun, and that beauty mark on his elbow, and those dimples that appeared when he let out one of those really cute chuckles. His stance when skateboarding, his never-ending appetite, and the look of excitement on his face when he learned a new trick. The way that his eyes sparkled when he was crying. The bored expression that he wore while in class. Everything about him is just perfect .
He needs to do something . Miya made the first step. Everyone accepts and supports him. Including Langa. He has shown no signs of discomfort so it won’t be bad if Reki comes out right there and then too, right? But what if Langa feels uncomfortable because it is Reki . His best friend . Will he still want to be as close as they currently are? Maybe he won’t want to hang out with Reki that much anymore and he will push him away and then—
No, you’re not going to chicken out now. You will have to say it eventually, why not do it right now? You know what they say, the sooner the better, right? Oh God, this is not good. What is the correct way to say it? Something like ‘Hey, I like guys too!’ or maybe ‘Do you have more room for another gay disaster?’. Is there even a correct way to say that he is—
“Reki, are you okay?”, Langa asked him.
And oh, Langa was concerned about Reki. He cared about Reki. His tone had a hint of worry in it. Langa cares, Langa cares, Langa actually cares, oh my god he is worried about him, he noticed that Reki was lost in thought and Reki was so happy, he felt warm and fuzzy because Langa cared. Answer him!
And in a brilliant moment of word association and bi panic,
“I’m bi.”, Reki blurted out, you know, like an idiot.
Oh, fuck oh shit oh fuck oh shit—
What the actual fuck is wrong with you today?!
Then Miya started giggling. He fucking giggled . Shadow, who still hadn’t bothered to get up from the floor – dude are you a carpet or something - was wheezing.
“This is the best day of my life”, he screamed, wrapping his hands around himself and shaking with laughter.
“Reki, was that supposed to be a secret?”, Cherry asked, laughing behind his fan.
“Kiddo, you are not subtle.”, Joe chimed in.
Reki desperately looked at Langa whose face remained surprisingly neutral.
“You guys knew ?!”, Reki screamed exasperatedly for the millionth time that day.
“Of course kid, were we supposed to think that you’re straight?”
Reki couldn’t form any words. His thoughts consisted of internal screaming, more internal screaming and even more internal screaming (and a little bit of Langa who was pushed to the side to make room for more internal screaming). Do they know?! How do they know?! Was it the crop top that he wore yesterday? Or was it that his ringtone was ‘Jenny’? Is he that obvious?!
“Yeah, I mean I was confused at his reaction when I said that I have a boyfriend cause you know, I expected him to be cool since he and Langa are dating—“, Miya was interrupted by a yelp.
Me and Langa what?!?!?! He covered his face with his hands, trying to hide how red his face was. Why would Miya think that? Was his crush that obvious?! Do the others think that too ?? Reki doesn’t mind—he doesn’t mind at all— but Langa is straight. He likes girls . Girls who are delicate and smart and twirl their hair around their finger, and bat their eyelashes cutely. And definitely not Reki who is clumsy, and stupid, and insecure, and his best friend.
Is that how they knew that he was bisexual? Do they actually think that he and Langa are dating or are they teasing him? Do they think that Langa would ever like someone like Reki? Would a relationship between them even work ? They could skate while holding hands like those couples at ‘S’ and they could go on dates at the skate park and then go grab something to eat because Langa would definitely be hungry, but not somewhere with too many people because he tends to feel more self-conscious about the way that he talks when there are too many people around. Then they could go at Langa’s and watch movies and cuddle under that really soft white blanket that Reki bought him for Christmas and he could play with his hair and see if it is as soft as it looks like and—
Reki was snapped out of his daydream by Cherry.
“Look, you made him uncomfortable! Miya, you should respect their privacy, they would tell us eventually!”, he scolded.
“That AI freak is right; you shouldn’t expose their relationship like that.”
“’ Kay dad, ‘m sorry.”
“We are not dating!”, Reki yelled, his face was redder than his hair, and he probably didn’t have to be so loud because Miya was startled and he must have looked suspicious but—
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU AREN’T DATING?!”, Shadow screamed, finally rising to his feet.
“You’re joking, right?”, Miya laughed at him.
“Pfft good one, kid. I know that you’re shy but you don’t have to lie.”, Joe sounded like a proud father that just discovered his teenage son’s deepest darkest secret.
“I’m sorry Reki, but I find that hard to believe. Carla!”
“Yes, Master?”
“Does Reki Kyan have a significant other at the moment?”, Cherry asked his skateboard.
“According to my records based on observations and statements, Reki Kyan’s significant other is Langa Hasegawa.”
“See?”
“What the fuck is wrong with your robot!”
“Reki, language!”
“Langa, tell them that we are not dating!”, Reki never believed that he would ever utter those words. Ever. He turned his attention to his best friend. Only to see that Langa looked really really confused. He wasn’t mad, he wasn’t disgusted, he didn’t even try to protest . What in the ever-loving fuck was going on?! Why wouldn’t he just say it! It was definitely going to damage Reki’s self-esteem, but the others needed to know the truth!
“Wait…We’re not dating?”, Langa asked. He didn’t say it. He asked . His eyes squinted as he looked at Reki for answers, and he was pouting .
What.
Excuse me, what?
Reki just stood there barbeque sauce on his tiddies trying to process what just happened.
Langa and he were dating. Without Reki knowing. When did that even happen? He was going to fry his brain while trying to find a possible answer.
Wait—
Does Langa think that they are dating? As in, it never happened but I’m going to assume?! That oblivious dumbass! Does that mean that he knows that Reki is in love with him?! Is Langa in love with him?! Does Langa even know what dating is??
Reki had so many questions.
“Langa, I think you broke him.”, Joe said and flicked Reki on the forehead.
“I’m sorry. Maybe he’s tired? I’m gonna go get him a protein bar. He mentioned that he hasn’t been sleeping well lately. I’ll be back in a bit”, Langa sighed. He got up, saluted the group, and casually walked out. Reki decided to reboot.
“What.”, Reki could only utter. The others were laughing like madmen.
“LANGA! YOU IDIOT! COME BACK HERE! WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN WE’RE DATING?! I NEED ANSWERS!”, he yelled, grabbed his jacket, and ran after his—what the fuck were they?
“Dorks.”
“They’re idiots.”
“I have to agree with Miya.”
“It is obvious that they are dating.”
“How did Carla know that anyway?!”
“It’s because she’s smarter than you, Gorilla!”
“You shitty Glasses!”
Miya turned his attention to Shadow who was, once again , uncontrollably laughing on the floor.
“Okay anyways so, his name is Takashi—“, Miya continued.