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“So what’s up with you, Fujio-kun? You’re not looking for another fight, are you?” Murayama leaned down, slowly reaching out his hand before poking the boy’s shoulder rapidly. “Fujio-kun?”
“Murayama-san!” Fujio burst out suddenly, Murayama stumbling backwards at the outburst.
Fujio’s face was still in his hands, crouching on the ground. “Sorry for calling you out in the middle of your work…”
Murayama waved his hands. “Don’t worry about it, but more importantly- what do you want?”
Fujio whipped his head around to face Murayama, who leaned back.
Fujio’s gaze was strong as he asked “You’re gay right?”
“Hm? Gay..?”
Murayama blinked once, blinked twice, then staggered backwards.
“Haaaaah?” He jammed a finger at Fujio. “How did you know that?!”
“Ah, well, one of the senpais told me. But I’ve been hearing things, y’know.” Replied Fujio, looking sheepish.
Murayama scratched his head furiously, mumbling incoherently to himself. He seemed to go through five different emotions at once, mouth open then shut, brows furrowed then raised, eyes wide then narrowed.
Murayama squatted, then rested his arms on his knees. He hung his head.
“Maybe I am, so what.” He said lowly. “Did you call me out here to fight me cause of it?”
A few seconds passed before it was Fujio’s turn to stutter.
“H-ha? N-no! Not at all!”
Murayama raised his head to see Fujio waving his hands madly, eyes wide. “I don’t care that you’re gay! Well I do but- it’s for like- an entirely different reason!”
“A different…reason?”
Fujio scratched his ear, a blush evident on his face.
“…”
Murayama pointed his finger at him shakily, horrified.
“Y-you…you’re not gonna confess to me right…”
“What? No! No no, hell no!” Fujio spluttered, clearly taken aback by the notion. “You’re not even my type! Not even close!”
“That’s…Rude!” Murayama swung his palm to slap Fujio’s forehead with a loud SMACK.
“Ow, what- does Senpai have a crush on me?”
SMACK.
“Stop hitting me!” Wailed Fujio.
“Stop saying dumb shit!” Murayama stood up. “The hell did you call me out for, then?”
Fujio rubbed his forehead, gnawing at his lip. “Well, I’m… having some uh, troubles with love recently. I-“ he looked away, staring with a hard expression. “I might like a guy.”
Murayama blinked once, blinked twice.
Then crouched down next to Fujio.
“So that’s what it was, huh. “ His voice was quieter this time, not looking at Fujio but beyond the shadows of the overpass they sat under. Fujio’s gaze was fixed on it as well, jaw clenched and brow furrowed.
“I’ve never felt like this before.” Said Fujio.
“Like what?”
The younger man scratched his head. “Like I’m going crazy.” He went on. “Suddenly everything is about him even though we’ve known each other for so long. Feels weird.”
He picked a pebble off the ground, tossing it into a puddle ahead of them. It hit the water with a plop. “I wanna confess, but what if he hates me? I know him pretty well, though he doesn’t say much.”
Murayama perked up. “Quiet and keeps things to himself?”
Fujio pointed at Murayama. “Exactly. Acts like he doesn’t care when it really affects him. Unless something irritates him, since he’s a bit of a hothead. Not as much as me though.” Fujio sighed. “He’s too cool.”
He hadn’t noticed the way Murayama scratched his head.
The older man turned towards Fujio and leaned in.
“Ah…are you talking about Lion-kun?”
“Huh?”
“Sleepy lion, Tsukasa-“
Fujio stood up suddenly, eyes saucers as he reeled backward. He looked like a deer in headlights. “How did you-“
“Dude, it’s obvious when you say it like that.”
It was now Fujio’s turn to hang his head.
“It’s not like I was gonna tell anyone, so come back here.” Murayama reassured Fujio, gesturing to the space next to him. Fujio complied, sitting down on the concrete with a sigh.
“You probably have a lot of worries then.” Said Murayama.
“Yeah. If I ruin the friendship we have I won’t forgive myself.” Fujio scratched his chin, suddenly sheepish. “I mean, I beat him the last time we fought but I don’t think I’d be able to handle him hating me.”
“For being gay?”
“Yeah, well, most people think it’s gross, right? What if he thinks it is too?” A line appeared between his brows. “I don’t care that much about what others might think, but I don’t want him to think of me as any different.”
Murayama listened quietly. He then picked up a handful of pebbles, standing up.
“Y’know, I was in a similar situation.”
He threw one as far as he could, the rock bouncing into the light of the day beyond as he continued. “I knew I didn’t like chicks. I wasn’t dating anyone either, so I wasn’t worried about people finding out. If they did and they judged me for it-“ he showed Fujio a closed fist. “I’d just beat their ass.”
Letting his arm drop to his side, he continued. “It wasn’t till I got a crush that I started to do all that worrying shit. Not fun at all. I did a lot of thinking here.” He tapped his head. “And Furuya and Seki noticed something was weird. Weirder than usual. So I told them.”
“You told them?”
“That I liked a guy. I was expecting a fight, but once those idiots stopped being shocked they got all…” He scrunched his nose. “Excited. Furuya was all ‘so you have someone you like, Murayama-san’ all teary eyed and shit. He acts like my mom. Seki was more annoying, asking me if my crush was cute.” Murayama threw another stone.
“They’re good friends.” Said Fujio.
Murayama glanced at him, and seeing the smile on his face, he also gave a small smile. “Yeah. They are.”
“So, what happened with your crush?”
“I didn’t like thinking. So I got it over with. I took a cab to his place and confessed.”
“Eh, really? Just like that?” Said a wide-eyed Fujio.
“Yeah.” Murayama scratched his head. “It was starting to make my chest feel all weird. I didn’t like it. Furuya said I should get it over with so it’d feel less weird.”
“Is that so….then how did it go?”
Murayama scratched his head. “Well, I didn’t get rejected. Or beat up, like I was expecting. He accepted it.”
Fujio’s jaw dropped. “R- Really?!”
Murayama nodded, looking a bit embarrassed.
“Murayama-san, that’s awesome!” Said Fujio excitedly.
Murayama scratched his chin. “I guess it is. But!” He pointed at his kouhai. “My confession being accepted isn’t the point. The point is….”
He scratched his head, voice faltering. “Is….”
Fujio blinked.
Murayama pounded his head with a fist.
Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. “Is to have more faith in others!”
Fujio cocked his head. “Faith?”
“Be more confident in the people you trust. Not everyone is plotting your downfall, you know. They’re your friends, not mine though. So it’s up to who to judge whether or not they’re trustworthy?”
Fujio pointed at himself. “Uh, me?”
“Uh-huh. It’s not like you have crushes on all of them, they don’t need to know if you don’t want them to.” Murayama threw another pebble, the clattering of it’s landing echoing. “But don’t try to act like anything you’re not. If you don’t want the porn mag, don’t take it.”
Fujio opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, but closed it as he furrowed his brows. Murayama continued.
“And I know Lion- I mean Tsukasa-kun can be a little…” Murayama showed two fists and made a boxing motion. “But he’s your friend, isn’t he? It’s not like you’re confessing to a stranger.”
Murayama leaned down, hands on his knees. “Have some faith in him too.”
“Faith that he won’t hate me, right?”
“Yeah. You guys seem close anyway.”
Fujio seemed to think for a moment. “If I confessed that I wanted to date him- do you think he’d accept?”
Murayama shrugged. “Dunno. I barely know the guy, and I don’t have mind powers.” Seeing the slump in Fujio’s shoulders he quickly added, scratching his head “but my chances were a lot worse when I confessed, so you probably have a chance.”
Fujio leaned forward. “Are you guys still-?”
“Ah?”
“Going out?”
“Ah.” Murayama nodded. “Yeah, we are.”
Fujio’s eyes sparkled. “What is he like?”
Murayama raised his arm threateningly, Fujio scrambling away with a hand protectively on his forehead. He waved a finger at Fujio. “This isn’t about me.”
“I was just asking!” Protested Fujio. “You must like him a lot, Murayama-san.”
“Yeah, I do. Anyway, anyway-“
“Are they older, younger?”
“What did I just say-“
“Before you hit me, Murayama-san, consider this.” Reasoned Fujio, hands protecting his face. “You already know who my crush is, so it’s unfair I don’t know anything about your boyfriend!”
“Stupid-“ Murayama paused, arm freezing midair. He thought for a moment. “Oh. That makes sense.”
“See?”
“Hm. Let’s see, he’s…” He stuck out his hand, counting each thing on his fingers. “Handsome. Beat me up in a fight once. Rarely talks. Likes to drink alone. Bottles things up. What else…”
Fujio scratched his head. He leaned forward.
“Is he…the Cobra guy?”
Murayama teetered backwards.
“H-how did you…”
“The senpais were talking about how you got a bike from a guy named Cobra. Jamuo talks about him too, the biker leader of the S in SWORD and stuff-“ Fujio snapped his fingers. “He mentioned you were the closest to Cobra, didn’t think it was like that though.”
“Yeah, he’s got a gang further east.” Said Murayama, looking resigned at the fact he had been easily found out.
“Jamuo also said he’s….blond?”
“Yeah. Wait a sec.” Murayama scratched his head, muttering. “My Cobra is blond, your Tsukasa is blond…”
Their eyes widened as they looked at each other.
Then the two collectively let out a sigh.
“Blonds are stubborn, huh.” Said Fujio.
“It’s all the- Y’know.” Murayama gestured to his head.
“Bleach?”
“Yeah. You get it.”
“But who would have thought, huh. Leaders of the O and the S…”
Murayama sighed. “Too much trouble if everyone knows. Don’t tell anyone.”
Fujio put his hand up, declaring “I swear I won’t.”
“Thanks, Fujio-kun.” Smiled Murayama.
The younger boy beamed. “I should be the one thanking you, Murayama-san. You’re listening even though...”
He gestured to Murayama’s clothing. It was a convenience store uniform. His nametag read YOSHIKI in carefully printed letters.
Murayama waved him off. “It’s no problem. Did it help?”
“A lot.” Grinned Fujio. He stood up. “If it worked out for you, I have faith it’ll work out for me, one way or another.”
“Nice. Wait, is that it?”
“Huh?”
“I feel like I barely said anything meaningful, honestly…”
“Ah- nah , it’s all good Murayama-san. I feel more confident now. Thank you very much.” Fujio bowed.
“No problem.” Murayama pat him on the shoulder, a small smile on his face. “C’mon, I’ll treat you to a popsicle or something.”
“Really? Is that ok?”
“Let’s do it before I change my mind.”
——
Fujio was the first to notice him.
They were walking back in comfortable silence, when Fujio made an “oh?” sound that made Murayama pay attention.
And there he was, leaning on a bike rack casually with a cigarette laced in his fingers. He regarded Murayama with his usual stare, a small nod acknowledging their approaching presence.
Murayama jogged up, ahead of Fujio. “Why’re you here?” Is the first thing he asked. Tone neither hard or quiet, more of an honest question than anything.
“I was in the area.” Replied Cobra smoothly. He gestured behind him, at the convenience store that was Murayama’s workplace in the late afternoons. “You’ve been on break a while.”
Murayama winced as he glanced at the sign on the door, reading ‘ON BREAK, BE BACK IN A BIT. SORRY’ with a poorly drawn peace sign he had done in marker himself.
“Yeah, well that’s cause…” Murayama glanced back at Fujio, who gave a small wave.
“Who is this?” Asked Cobra.
“Oh, Fujio-kun, c’mere.” Called Murayama. Fujio walked up, his usual curious but harmless expression. “Cobra-chan, this is Fujio, full-timer at Oya. Fujio, this is Cobra, he’s-“ He glanced at Cobra for a few seconds, the blond quirking an eyebrow. Murayama cleared his throat. “He’s Cobra.”
Fujio bowed as he made an introduction. “Hanaoka Fujio, third-year at Oya Koukou, nice to meet you!”
Cobra returned the motion, speaking in a much quieter tone. “Nice to meet-“
“Please forgive Murayama-san!” Fujio burst.
Murayama stumbled back, Cobra looking at the bowing student then giving Murayama a questioning glance.
Murayama was busy blinking rapidly in confusion. “Fujio-kun, wha-“
“Murayama-san fulfilled my selfish request to hear me out, even while he was working. I’m the one to blame, so please don’t be mad at him.” Said Fujio, head still down while Murayama stood, dumbfounded.
Cobra blinked. Then, the faintest hint of a smile graced his features. “Raise your head, Hanaoka-kun.”
Fujio did so, meeting Cobra’s eyes with an apologetic look.
“I’m not his boss, but thank you for telling me.” Said Cobra, bowing his head slightly. “I’m not mad.”
Fujio beamed. He glanced back and forth between Cobra and Murayama, before giving a thumbs up. “I’ll leave you two be, then.” He bowed quickly towards Cobra. “Nice meeting you, Cobra-san!” He then bowed towards Murayama. “Thanks for everything, Murrachin! I’ll tell you how it goes!”
As Fujio began to jog away, he turned around. “Oh, and treat me to a popsicle some other time!” He grinned, before dashing away.
Cobra waved, Murayama’s mouth opening and closing as he raised a finger in Fujio’s direction. “Murra- it’s Murayama-san-“ He scratched his head. “Geez, that guy.”
“He seems like a good kid.” Remarked Cobra next to him, taking a drag off his cigarette.
“Pretty much is. It’s like he’s always, y’know.” Murayama waved his hands. “Sparkling.”
“Hm.”
Murayama then turned to Cobra. “So you…aren’t mad?”
“I’m not your boss.” Cobra repeated. “You should probably go back to work though, before actual customers start showing up.”
“Customers…” Murayama mumbled to himself, starting to head over to the door before stopping. “What are you gonna do?”
“When does your shift end?”
Murayama thought for a moment before he fumbled for his phone in his pocket. Checking the time, he counted on his fingers. “Thirty-eight minutes.”
“I can wait.” Said Cobra.
“You’re sure? Wait- gimme a sec.” Murayama grabbed the sign and unlocked the store with the key in his pocket. He hastily hurried inside as the automatic doors slid open, electronic chime ringing. After a few more moments, he poked his head out. “You can come in now, I put out a chair. Ah- but put that cig out. No smoking.”
An amused smile tugged at the corners of Cobra’s lips, barely noticeable but nonetheless flit across his usually stoic expression. He reached down and crumpled the cigarette on the front of his shoe before tossing it into a nearby trashcan.
“What’s so funny?” Said Murayama as Cobra slipped past him.
“Nothing.”
“Then why’re ya smiling?”
“I’m not.”
“Are too.”
“You’re imagining things.”
“Am not!”
The doors slid closed as they bickered.