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The feeling of fingers carding through his scalp, and gently brushing through tangles of dark, curly hair, is nothing new to Akaya; neither is the weight of a palm bringing itself up and down his head, petting him slowly as one would a cat. He has long since warmed up to Bunta's varied ways of showing his endearment, but his senpai's particular favoring of his hair has been a recent development.
He plays with it all the time — when they're cuddling in Akaya's bed and watching a movie, when Bunta has his arm around his shoulder as they're standing idly, when they're sitting next to each other on the bus — and he's always volunteering to tie it for Akaya when it gets in the way of practice, sticking to his neck slick with sweat from a hot day. Akaya enjoys the attention and it adds to his confidence, but when he would ask him why, Bunta wouldn't say anything substantial — he'd only nonchalantly redirect the conversation, and Akaya's attention span would usually let it slide until he remembers it again the week after, and the cycle would repeat.
One time, though, on one of their regular sleepovers, he'd sort of gotten an answer, when Akaya had decided to clock in earlier than usual. Bunta had helped him study for a test he had the day after and they'd played random old video games out of boredom and need for nostalgia, and his drowsy mind had decided that the best way to end the fun-filled day was by snuggling up to his senpai. His eyes had been closed and he'd been lying on his side with his back to Bunta, and the latter had been running his fingers through his fringe, breath warm against the top of his head, lulling him to sleep.
If Akaya had fallen unconscious a few seconds earlier, he wouldn't have been able to hear Bunta's fond whisper as he nuzzled Akaya's hair, causing a pleasantly ticklish sensation. He didn't know why it had struck him so much, and it had brought with it mixed feelings of both warmth and embarrassment, but even as sleep eventually won over him the word had stayed at the very forefront of his mind.
"Cool."
He'd pester him to say it again the next morning.