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Langa loves summer storms. Preferring the slightly cooler ones that happened in Canada compared to the sticky humid ones of Okinawa. Yet it still was the same feeling that stirred in his chest. One of his earliest memories is of sprinting through the backyard in the rain. Squealing in delight as his dad chased behind trying to catch him. He remembers after then his mum holding him by the back of his shirt to keep him from wandering back into the rain.
Now he’s in Reki’s workshead watching the rain fall down onto the grass. Thunder booms in the distance, he can hardly hear it over the rain on the tin roof. And the screaming of Reki’s saw. You could never have a quiet moment in this shed. Something was always on and making noises or the crashes as something fell from the overpacked shelves. It was a safety hazard to be anywhere near the door. Wires were stretched everywhere. Langa was shocked that Reki was not dead when he emerged covered in bandages and bruises.
He turns around to look at his boyfriend. Feeling his cheeks turn red at the state he’s in. Reki’s taken off the usual hoodie he has on during the day. Revealing the blank singlet top he has on and the hickey that Langa left on his lower neck. He stares at the muscles in his shoulders as well, moving the saw makes his freckles look hypnotic. Langa swears he might drool at the sight.
Reki switches the saw off. Langa can hear the rain better. The small slaps and drips as the water hits the ground. He turns back to the backyard watching the lightning, thinking of a song his dad used to play in the car on the way to the slopes.
He jumps slightly when Reki wraps his arms around him. Settling down behind him with his chin resting on his shoulder. Reki kisses the side of his head.
“Whatcha doing?”
“Watching the rain. Summer storms are my favourite… I remember as a kid dad having to bolt after me cause I ran out in the rain. They used to have to hold me back by my shirt to keep me under the shelter.” Langa says.
Reki laughs, no doubt thinking about the whole ideal. Langa’s mum has shown Reki plenty of baby photos so he knows there’s the perfect image in his mind. He thought he was going to die of embarrassment or be stained permanently red. There were so many bath photos. So so many.
“If you really want we can go run around in the rain. Make your younger self jealous.”
This makes Langa laugh. Turning his head so he can get a proper kiss. Their lips meet and Langa feels Reki melt. He draped himself over him like a sticky blanket. That’s gross. The kiss is still nice. Langa pulls away to turn around and faces him properly. Climbing into Reki’s lap and cupping his face. Freckles are everywhere on his face and Langa wants to know the exact number his boyfriend has. Section them off and count them like how Reki taught him to count the stars when he couldn’t sleep.
He kisses him again. Soft and slow. Reki’s cheeks were still cupped in his hands. Reki puts his arms around his neck and pulls Langa in closer. He can feel the smile on his boyfriend’s lips. There are no more butterflies in his stomach when he kisses him like they did when all they could manage was a tiny little peck. Now all he could feel was the happy feeling that came with kissing Reki.
“I wanna dance with you,” Langa mumbles into the kiss.
Langa doesn’t know how to dance exactly. He just wants to have an excuse to be close to Reki. And maybe another reason to drag him into the rain laughing.
“Oh, I have the perfect thing for that,” Reki says.
He does a gremlin run over to the workbench. Grabbing his phone and coming back. Langa grunts as he sits down on his legs too harshly. His knees had been killing him for a while especially at night. Reki doesn’t seem to notice the noise as he taps at his phone. Music starts to fill the air. Langa has to strain to hear it over the rain still falling on the tin. Soft guitar comes from the speaker.
“I made us a playlist. I know you don’t like my music sometimes but these songs don’t mess with my sensory issues and I think it caters to your music taste.” Reiki turns the phone around.
Langa takes the phone. The playlist is titled ‘For me and him <3’. There’s not a lot of songs and most of the artists he’s heard of. It’s adorable. Reki smiles at him as he finishes reading each of the songs. Handing the phone back and kissing his lips again.
“Reki Kyan you are the cutest person on this planet. I love it. I love you.”
Reki blushes. It travels down to his neck and makes his ears a soft pink shade as well.
“I love you too. It’s just I wanted to make you something other than a skateboard. We can’t both share a skateboard but this we can. When you went to Canada I made it cause I missed you but I didn’t tell you until now cause I was a bit embarrassed cause it’s kinda stupid to have a playlist for your boyfriend I feel even-”
Langa stares at his rambling boyfriend. Watching his frantic hands flap around as he tries to reason with himself instead of Langa. He wants to kiss him so badly but he doesn’t know how Reki would react. The poor boy doubted himself when he rambled about anything. Langa liked listening to the long-winded explanations of his newest hyper fixation on a show or skateboard move.
“My love.”
Reki pauses mid-sentence to look at him again. Hands stilling in his lap.
“Come on. We don’t know when the rain will stop. I love the playlist so stop worrying about it.”
“Okay,” Reki says.
Reki connects his phone to the speaker dock he has in his shed. The music is louder and they can hear it over the storm now. Langa leads Reki out into the water-logged backyard. Their shoes create soft dents in the grass. Langa’s hair sticks to his face and he pushes the fast tangling knots behind his ears. They were going to be a nightmare to brush out later. Reki’s hair is now stuck on his face as well. He pushes his headband up more. Moving his fringe out of his face. Langa kisses his forehead making the other boy roll his eyes. Then stand on his toes to his kiss his forehead.
Younger Langa would have cringed at the thought of him doing something like that. Now he smiles whenever Reki and he do something so domestic it’s almost stupid.
“I don’t know how to dance.” Reki almost has to yell.
“I don’t either,” Langa says.
He raises his arm up inviting Reki to spin. It happens and they laugh. Dancing was never he was interested in. Trying to recall anything from the countless movies he’s watched with some prom or ball scene in it. The music coming from the speaker didn’t sound like slow dance music anyway. They swing each other around. Trying not to fall into the soft muddy grass below them. Langa laughs as they almost slip.
His body shivers from the water dripping down into his neck. Langa never wants to stop thou. Reki’s face is painted with pure joy. His smile is so wide it shows off all of his slightly crooked teeth. Water drips down his forehead and slides down his nose onto the ground. Shoulder heaving with laughter. Langa can’t help kissing him again. Reki laughs and kisses him back. Arms find themselves twisting around Langa’s neck. It’s a bad idea to put all of his weight into hanging onto Langa.
They fall. Yelling on the way down. Langa lands on Reki’s chest knocking the wind out of his boyfriend. Make him grunt. Langa thinks back to when he tackled him after the race. He had been so excited that he had almost kissed Reki then and there. He knew Reki would have been way too embarrassed and he wasn’t sure Reki liked him back yet. Langa wants to punch himself because of the way Reki had smiled… It was literally an invitation.
He can kiss him now. Leaning in to steal another kiss. Reki pushes him away, smearing mud on his cheek.
“No, don’t you dare. I will not be covered in mud because you want to be kissed.”
Langa pouts. Which just causes Reki to giggle. Smearing more mud on his face for good measure.
“Now I’m covered in mud. Why are you like this?”
Reki pushes him off into the mud. His back makes a wet slap as he slides into the mud.
“Cause I love you. I’m all muddy now you shithead.” Reki says. “I need a shower now.”
Langa turns his head, feeling the mud move into his hair. Yeah, he’s gonna need to wash his arm now as well.
“This was a mistake.” He admits.
Reki rolls over and gets on his knees. Rubbing his muddy hands on his singlet. His hair is stuck to his face and water dripping down his nose. Why does he look so hot in the rain?
“Babe, we need to go inside now. The storm-“
The lightning strikes across the sky. Thunder rumbles a few seconds after. The rain gets worse.
Both of them scramble up in the mud. Screaming and laughing as they run to the shed. Langa shivers. Water is dripping down his neck into his shirt. He cringes remember that his shirt is white, the whole back is covered in mud now.
“Okay, we need a proper shower. Not standing in the rain.” Reki has to yell over the rain on the roof.
Langa nods. His hair is gonna be gross if the mud dries in it.
*****
Reki walks into his room towelling his hair dry. He sits down on the bed next to Langa and cuddles into his side. Little water droplets spray his face. It’s easy to wipe them away. Reki’s hair still drips onto him.
“Great job of drying your hair baby.”
Reki grumbles and nips his neck lightly. Get yourself a boyfriend who shows love through physical touch and biting. It’s all fun and games till you are in pain from crash tackle hugs and bite marks. He’s a hypocrite with his thoughts, however. Langa can see the hickey he gave Reki the other day. Further down and it is very close to his sports bra. It’s a deep colour and he probably went a bit too hard. Reki seemed to be having a good time when it was happening. Till his sister knocked on the door and they jumped four feet away from each other. They would get busted kissing and would spring away from each other. Langa was okay with hugging him in front of family but kissing he got embarrassed about. It was weird.
“Says you with the wet patch under your head. You have so much more hair than I do.” Reki says.
“I know. I need to cut it soon anyway, it’s just getting too much.” He pulls him closer to his body.
Reki looks up and starts playing with his hair. He feels drips on his shoulder as Reki squeezes the strands between his fingers.
“I like it long. You’d look sexy with long hair.” He twirls it around.
Langa smiles. Trying to imagine himself with longer hair. Maybe like a man bun or something even longer like Cherry’s hair. He doesn’t think he could cope with hair like that. Brushing his hair now was a chore because of how tangled it would get when he slept. With hair like that he would have just let it just fester and become a literal bird’s nest. His mum would threaten to cut it constantly when he refused to brush it when he started to get long. When his dad died he didn’t brush it for a month because it was too much to look in the mirror. The memory makes him uncomfortable and he tucks his nose into Reki’s hair. Wet strands tickling his nose. Reki is his safe space and he doesn’t care how cringe that sounds. He loves him.
“I wouldn’t be bothered to brush it.”
Reki hums in agreement.
“I love you, no matter what you look like. Unless you look like Adam then I’d probably break up with you.”
Langa chuckles softly. “I love you too.”