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Kojiro didn’t hate to wear formal clothes, but he didn’t enjoy wearing them either. The problem was that since his boyfriend started to wear yukatas more regularly, he felt underdressed all the time. They moved in together right after Kojiro returned from Italy. And even though in the privacy of their home Kaoru still liked to use oversized shirts and comfy hoodies, when they had to go outside, Kaoru would always wear the prettiest yukata of his wardrobe.
He got so used to seeing Kaoru wearing punk clothes all their teenage years, that when he came back to Okinawa and saw the change of style, it was like he was meeting a new person entirely.
But he loved it.
He loved that Kaoru looked so delicate and precious wearing his beautiful yukatas, knowing that nothing had really changed besides that. He was still a feral menace when he got angry; he still loved to listen to punk music and go to the concerts of his favorite bands.
Kojiro understood that with Kaoru’s profession and his popularity, he needed to be presentable and look formal all the time he was outside the comfort of their home.
But once again, Kojiro felt terribly underdressed at his side.
And maybe he could find an excuse to also start wearing formal clothes and impress Kaoru on the way.
Kojiro’s idea was to take Kaoru out to a fancy restaurant for dinner. He went this morning to buy an elegant black shirt that was slightly tight, making all his muscles stand out in the right places. He left the last two buttons undone, hoping it would make Kaoru go crazy at the sight.
Knowing it was Kojiro’s day off, Kaoru wouldn’t stay in the calligraphy studio as long as he usually did. And when he’d come back home, he’ll find Kojiro already waiting for him, looking more handsome than ever —or that’s what Kojiro wanted Kaoru to think when he’d see him—.
And like he predicted, Kaoru arrived home not long after.
“Kojiro, can we have carbonara for dinner? I’m starving,” Kaoru said, but as soon as he entered the living room, his gaze met immediately Kojiro, who was waiting for him in the middle of the room with a bouquet of roses in his hands. “What’s happening?”
Kaoru approached him, taking the bouquet with a slight blush on his cheeks.
Kojiro felt so nervous suddenly, like he was about to propose to Kaoru, and he really wanted to do it as soon as possible, but this was only a date, and he didn’t understand why he was so nervous. He had thousands of dates with him. Maybe it was because it was a fancy surprise date, and he wanted to woo Kaoru like he never did before.
Yeah, maybe he was nervous because of that.
“What happens, is that I’m taking you out on a date for dinner. So dress up nicely and we’ll get going.” Kojiro finally answered, smiling softly at his boyfriend.
Kaoru couldn’t tear his gaze from Kojiro; blushing even more now, and Kojiro smiled victoriously at his choice of shirt for tonight.
“I love the roses, thank you.” Kaoru said softly while he put the roses in a vase. “Where are we going?” He then asked.
Kojiro approached Kaoru to hug him from behind, kissing his neck slowly and tenderly.
“Somewhere fancy. And that’s the only thing I’m gonna tell you.” Kojiro said in a whisper.
“That explains your shirt.” Kaoru said, laughing softly.
“Don’t you like it?” Kojiro asked, trying not to sound too self-conscious.
Kaoru turned around, resting his hands against Kojiro’s chest. A wide smile blossoming on his face.
“Oh no, I love it. But I’ll love it even more when I see it on the floor as soon as we get back home.” He said with lidded eyes, making Kojiro groan in anticipation.
“We could stay home and go directly to that part.” Kojiro whispered against Kaoru’s lips.
Kaoru smiled mischievously.
“Yeah, we could,” Kaoru agreed. “But it’s not everyday that you take me out on a fancy date, so I’m gonna get changed. I’ll be right back.” He added, stealing a quick kiss from his boyfriend and leaving him there speechless.
Kojiro smiled to himself, thinking that at least that damn shirt got from Kaoru the reaction he wanted him to have.
Kojiro was speechless again. But this time it was for the yukata Kaoru choosed to wear tonight. It was navy blue with silver patterns on the obi and the edge of the sleeves. He looked so beautiful. The truth was that Kaoru always looked beautiful; nothing in this universe could compare to Kaoru’s beauty in Kojiro's opinion. That yukata made him look like a prince. And Kojiro was thinking again that proposing to him right now was a very good and possible idea. But no, unfortunately that has to wait for now.
“Ready to go?” Kojiro asked, offering his hand to his boyfriend.
Kaoru nodded, smiling softly at him while he took his hand.
They got into the car, and Kojiro had to roll up his sleeves to drive more comfortably, noticing how Kaoru’s gaze was glued to his forearms. Kojiro smiled proudly, not daring to say anything about it for now.
The restaurant was more fancy than Kojiro expected, but luckily after all the money he’d been saving to open his own restaurant, he could afford it even if it was just for a single night. He loved to spoil Kaoru as he deserved.
After they were served dinner and a good white wine, Kojiro couldn’t stop staring at Kaoru. The restaurant had views of the ocean, making the moon shine upon them; making Kaoru look so ethereal it made his heart ache in the best of ways.
“You look so beautiful.” Kojiro finally said, taking Kaoru’s hand and lacing their fingers together.
Kaoru smiled softly at him, taking a sip of wine to hide how much he was blushing. Kojiro loved to make him blush so much after so many years together. He hoped he could make him still react like that until the last of his days.
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” Was Kaoru’s answer, making him smile brightly. “But you always look good no matter what. You could wear the most hideous hawaiian shirt you own and I still would think you’re the most handsome man on earth.” Kaoru added, and now it was Kojiro’s turn to blush.
“Yeah? You really mean that?” Kojiro asked, feeling suddenly breathless.
Kaoru rolled his eyes, but smiled even more softly at him.
“Of course I mean it. Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror? If you saw what I see, you’d fall in love with yourself over and over again everyday.” Kaoru said that like it was a universal truth.
And Kojiro felt his heart do a million somersaults; thinking that there wasn’t a day that Kaoru didn’t make him feel like the most loved and luckiest man in the universe.
He really wanted to marry him right now.
Kojiro cupped Kaoru’s face gently, then kissed him deep and sweetly, trying to convey into that kiss how grateful he was for having him in his life.
“I love you so fucking much.” Kojiro said breathless against Kaoru’s lips, caressing his cheeks with all the tenderness his body was capable of.
Kaoru smiled, melting against Kojiro’s hands.
“And I love you, too.” Kaoru said back, caressing Kojiro’s hands.
After their fancy date, they went back home and Kaoru fulfilled his promise, unbuttoning Kojiro’s shirt as soon as they stepped inside the house, not caring where it ended up on their way to the bedroom.
Maybe Kojiro could still feel underdressed any other day at Kaoru’s side, but at least he now knew Kaoru never wouldn’t mind how he dressed; Kaoru still would love him and like him even wearing the ugliest clothes ever.
And how good it felt to know you could always be unapologetically yourself with the love of your life.