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Mayoi rubbed their hands together anxiously as they opened the door to the café, the familiar ring of the bell seeming louder than usual. Tatsumi invited them to lunch, which wasn't exactly the rarest occurrence. At first they declined, worrying about the amount of people. Tatsumi assured them over the phone that the café wasn't very popular, and just in case, he had paid the owner to close it from 11 AM to 1 PM, just for them. That's why Mayoi loved Tatsumi, he was so overwhelmingly generous and kind. They couldn't imagine a life without him. Their only- well, one of many fears- was that he didn't feel the same.
Mayoi had no trouble finding Tatsumi in the small café, he was sitting at a small table for two people near the wall. They joined him, avoiding eye contact. Mayoi's heart raced; but they weren't sure why. Surely this was just another one of their friendly lunches, as co-workers, right? There couldn't be any more to this. Mayoi let themselves adjust to the new environment and let out a sigh that had been pent-up since they left their dorm.
Tatsumi waited a moment before asking "How is Tomoya-san?" with a kind smile on his face. A genuine one.
Mayoi looked up at their beautiful companion and replied, "Aah.. Mashiro-san is wonderful. He's a good roommate, but I'm still struggling to talk to him..."
"Well, progress is progress, right?" Tatsumi reassured them with a short chuckle.
Mayoi felt their stomach drop. Even Tatsumi's laugh was beautiful, too pure for a subhuman like themselves, ahh... There was no way in hell Tatsumi liked them back, they only saw them as a friend. Nothing more.
"R-right..." Mayoi responded half-heartedly. They were really starting to regret this lunch trip.
Luckily, the waiter had arrived and asked them what they wanted to drink. Tatsumi ordered a black tea with cream, and Mayoi ordered a peach tea with ice, after a minute of considering the options. After they got their order, Tatsumi thanked the waiter, and turned back to Mayoi. He scratched the back of his neck, and mumbled something that sounded like "How am I supposed to say this..."
Mayoi felt a little worried. What was he going to say? Did he want to leave Alkaloid? Did he have a boyfriend already? God forbid a girlfriend!
"Mayoi-san.." Tatsumi said, "I.. I'm in love with you."
Mayoi couldn't believe their ears. Tatsumi... really was in love with them? They felt their cheeks get hot, and their already butterfly-filled stomach became even more fluttery when they looked into his eyes. He was blushing almost as much as they were, with an awkward and unsure smile on his face.
"R-REALLY?!" Mayoi blurted and quickly covered their mouth with their gloved hand, "There's- there's no way you have a crush on me Tatsumi-san.. I'm.. I'm not worthy of it..."
"Mayoi-san, you have no idea how long I've been in love with you, do you?" Tatsumi uttered quietly, "I've loved you since the day we met."
Mayoi simply stared in amazement. Really? Tatsumi loved them for that long ? "That's-" Mayoi stuttered, "I've loved you that long, too."
They began to cry, staring down at the table and trying to rationalize what just happened. Tatsumi gently wiped away Mayoi's tears with a napkin and leaned in closer.
"Please don't cry, mayoi-san," Tatsumi asked, "I.. I want to be your boyfriend."
Mayoi couldn't find the words to describe how happy they felt. All they could do was nod and continue wiping their tears.
"I want to be your boyfriend, too."