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Cold. Dark. Empty.
Where he resided, no one else ever came near.
There was no excitement, no companionship, no joy.
Only him and his loneliness.
He held out his hand, though for what, he wasn't sure. Though all his previous attempts to relieve the ache in his soul had failed, his heart (at least, he was pretty sure he had one) told him that if he kept reaching out, he'd be able to find something, anything-
"...tsu. Ritsu…"
Hm?
"Oi, Ritsu! Wake up!"
Ritsu opened his eyes.
Ah, it was just a dream.
As his vision grew less foggy, Ritsu glanced up at the person who woke him, looking into the eyes of his ray of sunshine, his Maa-kun.
"Gee, you took even longer to wake up than usual," Mao said, shaking his head. "Once you get dressed and eat something, we can decide where to go first, okay?"
Oh, right. Somewhere within Ritsu's sleep-muddled brain, he remembered that he had agreed to spend the day going places with Mao. He made that promise with every intention to fulfill it, but right now Ritsu was filled with an overwhelmingly intense longing to be as close to his boyfriend as possible.
So he grabbed Mao's wrist and pulled him closer to the bed.
"Whoa, Ritsu?! What are you doing?"
"...Cuddle," Ritsu grunted.
Mao sighed. "Come on, Ritsu. I'm not going to let you sleep all day today."
In response, Ritsu tugged at Mao's arm so hard that he face-planted onto the bed.
"Ack! Okay, okay! We can cuddle for a few minutes before we leave." Mao lifted the blankets and crawled into bed. Ritsu wrapped him in a hug immediately, clutching his back tightly. As he settled into the embrace, Mao placed one hand on the small of Ritsu’s back and used the other to play with Ritsu’s hair.
Ritsu sighed contentedly. Mao was so, so warm, and his touch was tender and gentle. Being close to him like this was bliss, as if they belonged in each other's arms. Ritsu felt a lot better already, but some part of him still felt unsatisfied. He squeezed Mao even more, wondering if they'd become one if he held him tight enough.
"Can't...breathe…!" Mao wheezed, frantically patting Ritsu's back. Reluctantly, Ritsu let go.
"Ritsu, what's wrong?"
Of course. It was only natural that the boy who owned his heart would see right through him. Ritsu just buried his face in Mao's chest, unsure how to put his emotions into words.
"...Bad dream?"
Ritsu nodded.
Mao rubbed his back, and Ritsu melted into the comforting touch. "Do you want to talk about it?"
After a moment of hesitation, Ritsu gave in and let his worries spill out. "I just…don’t want to be left alone again, like I was all those years ago. You and everyone else that I love have brought so much light into my life, and I don’t want to lose that. I don’t want to lose you.”
Mao’s hands stilled, and a thoughtful silence filled the air. Holding his breath in anticipation, Ritsu closed his eyes and waited for Mao’s answer.
“Ritsu, look at me.”
Ritsu just pressed his face even closer to Mao’s chest.
“Ricchan.”
At that, Ritsu finally looked up, and he felt his face heat up from the loving way Mao gazed at him. Mao cupped Ritsu’s face with his hands.
“I promise you, I’m not going anywhere,” Mao reassured him gently. “I hope you know that you're a light in my life, too. I love you, and I'll always stay with you."
Ritsu's heart fluttered, unable to contain his smile. Mao pressed soft kisses to his forehead, his cheeks, and his nose. Ritsu giggled, warmth and affection blooming in his chest. Finally, Mao brought their lips together in a long, sensual kiss. Ritsu eagerly kissed him back, savoring the precious moment between them. When they finally pulled apart, they beamed at each other giddily.
"Feeling any better, now?" Mao asked.
"Mm-hm," Ritsu answered honestly. "I promise we can go on our date today like we wanted, but...can we stay like this for just a little longer?"
Mao placed one last quick kiss onto Ritsu's forehead, then enveloped him in a hug once more. "Of course, as long as you need."