Being up all night was not something Seijuurou was used to —not when it does not concern his studies and extracurricular. 

Monday to Sunday, Seijuurou had always something to do, tasks to be done and schedules to catch up with, from school to extra classes and practices, tests and studies. There was never a dull moment, so to say. Not when one’s mind is fully occupied to even wander off. 

The times Seijuurou actually had time to his own mind was in a car from school or additional classes out of school—especially without his parents around. Usually, his father would use this time to ask him about his progress in school and extracurricular, his mother on the other hand would ask him about his friends and what have they been up to.

“Good.” was all Seijuurou answered his father. 

“Not much.” was all Seijuurou answered his mother. 

The afternoon ride home was none but the same that particular Saturday. The weather was fairly good, breezy as it looks and the neighbourhood was the same—that is except the house right across from his house with three moving trucks parked outside, a family van, a happy barking dog, adults going in and out of the house carrying bulky boxes and furniture, and oh— a teenage boy, brown mousy hair, red checkered flannel. 

“Ah, new neighbours.” said the driver, a glance at the rearview mirror and the view of the young master, seemingly intrigued, a little out of the ordinary. “I reckon he is your age.” he added. Seijuurou only looked away from the window. Head straight and poised, and just a moment he looked rather childlike with a little curiosity. 

࿐ ˚ . ☽

Sunday morning, just three hours before his piano lessons. Seijuurou tied his sneakers in and went for a morning jog. The neighbourhood was usually quiet at this hour, the October weather was refreshingly chilly along with the odour of the turning leaves. Then Seijuurou saw him, amongst the colours of brown and orange, mousy brown hair with eyes like a doe. 

Face to face, Seijuurou had not realised he had even slowed down and stopped. 

The teenage boy smiled—a smile so bright, his teeth glossed perfectly between his pink lips, lifting his cheeks to his eyes that seemingly sparkle. “Hi!” he greeted cheerily. 

“Hi.” Seijuurou heard himself reply. 

The other chuckled. “I just moved in. I’m Furihata Kouki.” he introduced himself freely. 

Seijuurou blinked, somehow the name registered to him rather differently—in a way that it seems to rhyme with the fallen leaves and gingerbread. A little odd to even have an image of a name. “Seijuurou, Akashi Seijuurou.” Seijuurou introduced himself, just when the other opened his mouth to respond, a beeping alarm blared from Seijuurou’s watch. 

“I have to go now.” Seijuurou said, followed by a single nod and jogged back to where he came from. 

࿐ ˚ . ☽

Monday morning, Seijuurou met Kouki again, this time in school at recess. Kouki was a new student and enrolled on a different class from Seijuurou. They spoke a little bit, getting to know each other by just the surface. Kouki was cheerful, a little shy, a little jittery, and yet Seijuurou gave Kouki his attention, smiling as he listened and nodding as he did and replied naturally and without even realising the time had passed until the bell rang. Seijuurou felt a little sad as he stood up to leave, but that didn’t last long until Kouki smiled at him. 

The next day, they met at the library. They sat together and instead of only sharing a table to resume their studies, they talked and talked, homework completely forgotten until the next bell rang. Seijuurou looked down at his opened book with contents only the day and date—an essay left untouched. 

Every day since then, they met at recess. They talked and talked until the bell rang, barely touching their lunches and barely touching their homework, but their smiles never faltered even. “See you tomorrow!” Kouki would say and Seijuurou had little courage to even say he couldn’t wait. 

࿐ ˚ . ☽

“ Walk? You want to walk? ” Kouki asked one afternoon when they met at the gate after school. 

Seijuurou was not sure what was so strange about walking, first, it was his parents that asked him as though he had made a strange confession, they eventually allowed him to. Seijuurou laughed. “Why not?” 

“Well,” Kouki hesitated. “Don’t you have a car? Why all of a sudden?” 

Seijuurou had never quite thought of it thoroughly even to himself. Embarrassment gave a certain glow to his fair cheeks. “I want to walk home with you.” Seijuurou said truthfully. 

“Oh.” Kouki whirled away. “Could have just said so.” Kouki chuckled. “Silly.” 

࿐ ˚ . ☽

From hanging out in recess to walking back and forth from home and school together, the two had grown close very quickly. Perhaps it was the lack of people their age in their neighbourhood, but it wasn’t like they couldn’t make friends in school either. They seem to prefer each other’s company. It makes Seijuurou a little sad every time they had to part ways, although they live only across from each other, it wasn’t like Seijuurou had ample time in his hands. 

“You wanna come in?” Kouki asked one day. Seijuurou sighed, “Can’t.” because in just half an hour he had private lessons, one after another, until night. Kouki only shrugged, his smile never faltered and Seijuurou had yet to dare to say he looked forward to spending time with Kouki again, even if it was just in recess and walking home together. 

࿐ ˚ . ☽

“A walkie-talkie?” Seijuurou asked when Kouki had surprised him one afternoon before they would part ways across the street. Kouki had gotten them a pair walkie-talkie. “Well, we only seem to hang out in school. So I thought, why not longer this way?” Kouki then spoke into his walkie-talkie and his voice crackled into Akashi’s. “ You could help me with my homework this way too. ” Kouki chuckled mischievously. 

After dinner, Seijuurou went back to his room, did his homework and put away his items neatly. Climbing up his bed to finally lay down, he stared up at the ceiling and everything was quiet. Until his walkie-talkie crackled to life— “ Hey, ” he heard the voice say. Seijuurou stared at it for a moment, it silent once again but not even a minute went by. “ You awake? ” 

Seijuurou picked up the clunky walkie-talkie from its charging stand. It was a little strange to be doing so, but he experimentally pressed the button on the side and answered. “Yeah.” 

Silence.

“Phew! I was afraid it wouldn’t work. Haha!” Seijuurou felt himself grinning as he heard Kouki’s laugh, even through a muffled line, he sounded angelic. “So, what’re you up to?” 

Seijuurou laid on his side with his walkie-talkie comfortably positioned. “Laying down.”

“ Cool—I—I mean—did I wake you? ” 

“No.” Seijuurou answered and continued, he rarely ever add anything else, especially such mundane details. “Just finished some homework.” 

Kouki laughed. “ On a Friday night? Who does that? ” 

“It’s best these things gets out of the way.” Seijuurou sighed. “I have a recital tomorrow and swimming class after in the afternoon.” 

“ Recital? Wow. Which one? Piano or the violin? ” 

“Piano , Sonata Pathétique by Beethoven. Heard of it?” 

“ No, I’ve heard Beethoven. ” 

Seijuurou laughed. “Unless you’re feeling sombre, I don’t suggest you do anyway.” 

“ But I would want to watch you perform though. ” Seijuurou smiled, heart fluttering for the first time. “ But I guess now I can only imagine the faces you would make. ” 

Confused, Seijuurou answered. “What face?” 

“ Oh you know, the sort of angry constipated lookin’ face. ” 

Seijuurou almost laughed aloud. “What?”

“ Yeah, I always see classical players making angry faces, like it’s the hottest summer, I mean I know y’all feelin’ the pieces and all, so I really wanna see you do the faces.” 

Seijuurou found himself unable to control his laughter as Kouki kept on talking, as his velvet voice echoed within his large room, it hardly even bothered him. 

“ But still….” Kouki’s voice softened a bit. “ Wished you could catch a break though.” 

Seijuurou sighed. It had never once crossed his mind, not that he even thought of having to want to do anything else, but the feeling of wanting to spend time with Kouki and not being able to, was making him a little sullen. 

“ What do you usually do anyway? ” Kouki asked after some silence. 

Seijuurou thought for a moment. “Read.” Seijuurou smiled, never actually crossed his mind either, but Seijuurou enjoyed reading, and ah — “And Shogi.”

Seijuurou smiled wider as he heard Kouki laugh. “ Hey, read to me then? ” 

“What would you like?” 

“ Anything. I love stories —oh except ghost stories—please no ghost stories.” 

Seijuurou laughed. He reached within the drawer of his nightstand and took out one of his favourites. With the dull glow from the bedlamp, Seijuurou began to read the first chapter of the story. 

The moon watched them as the cicada sang beneath the starless sky and Seijuurou’s voice lulling Kouki to slumber, just across the street.

࿐ ˚ . ☽

Day after day, they would walk to school together, spend time in school for recess, walk home together again, part ways and then comes the night when they would greet the other through the walkie-talkie, where they would talk and talk until there were only two hours until they would meet again in the morning to walk to school. 

One year later, their friendship had blossomed so much so that they would tell each other anything , from the gossips of their families to their worries and happiness. They could even read each other from the tone of their voices through their walkies. 

Even though Seijuurou has always been busy after school, he always looked forward to the night when he knew Kouki would be at his home waiting for Seijuurou to crackle Kouki’s walkie-talkie to life, and they would stay up all night.

“What took you so long?” Seijuurou asked. Kouki groaned. “ Gettin’ scolded by my mom —again.” Kouki sighed and looked out his window. “ Wished we could just….I don’t know….take a walk or something. ” 

Seijuurou looked up at the starless night sky. “Mmm.” He hummed. It would indeed be a beautiful night to have a walk, just the two of them. The mornings and afternoons were lovely of course. However, there is something about the night that seems to cast a certain spell — “What’re you thinking?” Seijuurou almost dropped his walkie-talkie, blush dusted his face and the moon hoovering above seem to be teasing him. 

As much as he had shared his thoughts with Kouki, he had never expressed his feelings towards Kouki, feelings which he had well nested within him and kept as secret. 

“ Hey, look, a shooting star! ” Kouki’s voice crackled from his walkie-talkie. “ Quick! Let’s make a wish! ” 

Seijuurou looked out the window and indeed a shooting star had just sprinted by. Seijuurou smiled at the image of Kouki closing his eyes as he made his wish silently. So Seijuurou closed his eyes as well and hoped his wish was aligned with Kouki.

࿐ ˚ . ☽

Seijuurou had always been obedient until he found out that his impatience does have its own limits and he was feeling a little more spontaneous.

“ Sneak out? ” Kouki asked surprised. 

“We’ve stayed up all night anyway, we’ll be fine.” Seijuurou assured him. 

It was at midnight when they snuck out. They counted together and simultaneously they popped their windows open and climbed down from there, although Seijuurou spent a little more time against the walls of his house because, unlike Kouki who lives in a modest double-storey, Seijuurou lives in a mansion. 

They met by the street and took off into the night in the city. They walked and as they talked and it was nothing they had ever experienced. “Let’s make a pact.” Kouki said, holding up his pinkie. “If my mom grills me, you’re getting seasoned too.” 

Seijuurou laughs. “ Trust me, my father would burn me at stake. Open fire, like a feast.” 

Kouki snorted. “See you in hell then?” 

Laughing as he did, Seijuurou curled his pinkie with Kouki’s. “Deal.” 

Unlike the morning and afternoon walks they had, the night walk was different. It was just the two of them, surrounded by the metropolitan glow, there were very few people passing by them. They weren’t in their uniforms either, just in sneakers, jeans and comfortable sweaters to keep the October chills away. The way they talked, the way they laughed, it was like the universe had stopped and the moon was their spotlight. 

They bought two cans of drinks from a vending machine and made a toast to their first night out together, hoping for the best when they get home and not get roasted by their parents, but even so, they probably would not have regretted a single thing. 

As their can almost emptied, they eventually made their way back home. In slow synchronized steps, prolonging their time together as neither wanted the night to end when they have to part ways again. 

Kouki stopped when Seijuurou did. Under the streetlight, the dull orange glow cast both their shadows across the pavement. “What’s up?” Kouki asked, both looking at one another. Kouki began shifting his eyes with the way Seijuurou was staring at him. Seijuurou took a step closer, and only did Kouki look back up as their eyes aligned. They were standing so close and Kouki dare not move an inch. 

Even as Seijuurou’s face blurred as their lips touched — soft, warm and chapped — a peck that sent tingles through both their bodies. It was innocent but both swatted away the sudden imagination and urge of a salacious version of it. They were too young — seventeen-year-old virgins that knew absolutely nothing about kissing. 

However, looking at Kouki under the warm light served to soften Kouki’s beautiful features, was more than enough for Seijuurou to appreciate his presence. 

Neither said anything. Kouki only took Seijuurou’s hand and intertwined his fingers and pulled him along to proceed their slow walk home, walking a little closer than they did before. 

When they reached in front of their homes, they parted ways from there. A soft goodbye and neither could sleep that Sunday night, thinking of that kiss and they would stay up all night.