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i.
Natsume sighed to himself, checking the time on his phone once again, and then the bell schedule Tsumugi had sent him. He was sure he would die if he did something like this in front of Tsumugi’s class.
Sighing, he grabbed the wrapped lunch from the passenger seat. He was right. The Yumenosaki bell schedule had not changed and they were on lunch. They were having lunch and Natsume needed to get to Tsumugi’s class and out of this car before he stressed himself to death.
He got out of his car before he could overthink himself into the ground, making sure to lock the car before walking onto the campus.
It was odd to be on the campus again after graduating over a decade ago. He could hear the chatter of all students alike while they took their lunch. It was welcoming to hear that Yumenosaki still had such a budding community after how much he suffered when he went there. He was at his lowest in the Eccentrics, however he joined a family that he would never regret. Though he still didn’t enjoy what happened, no one did, and he still held a grudge against Tenshouin.
But that was something that would simply stay forever, even as the world of idols went on. He walked into the building with a smile, even as the community shifted and flourished, it was comforting to see the campus has stayed the same. Natsume still knew the building like the back of his hand, so it wasn’t much trouble to get to the classrooms.
However, he did struggle in finding Tsumugi’s classroom, it had only been mentioned in passing, so it was hard to really find. He knew that Tsumugi taught a second year class, so that thankfully brought down the choices, but it was still embarrassing to have to look around instead of just knowing.
And look he did, he tried to gaze as casually as he could into the classrooms before finally finding Tsumugi’s, and thank god he did. A smile broke out on his face, seeing his boyfriend so focused on his computer at his desk. He probably forgot he even had the option to eat lunch while the students were. Natsume never quite got him out of the habit of overworking.
Tsumugi’s hair had grown out quite a bit, and he had it tied back in a bun with a claw clip. Natsume could see he looked quite tired, however he was still as handsome as ever. Like that saying, Natsume believed he aged like fine wine, however that in itself was way too embarrassing to utter.
But, Natsume felt like a creep just watching his own boyfriend through a window instead of interacting. So, like a normal person, he opened the door softly, clearing his throat to announce his presence.
“AheM.”
He smiled as Tsumugi jumped slightly, so immersed in his work that he couldn’t notice Natsume. He looked to his side confusedly, tilting his head confusedly at Natsume but not saying a word.
“HellO??” Natsume smiled a bit awkwardly, confused himself however he only took a few steps closer to Tsumugi.
A smile covered Tsumugi’s face, “Natsume, what a pleasant surprise! What brings you here?” He turned in his chair to face his lover better.
Natsume sighed, “You left your lunch at homE, stuPID. Did you even notiCE?” He then cocked one of his eyebrows.
Tsumugi’s eyes widened, looking around his desk as if he’d find another lunch somewhere. “Ah,,, I guess I didn’t, haha, sorry. You didn’t have to deliver it for me…” He scratched the back of his neck.
The redhead rolled his eyes, walking to the desk and placing the lunch on the desk. He then crossed his arms, giving Tsumugi an almost-glare.
“I don’t carE. I’m not going to have you starvE. You need to take care of yourself morE.”
Tsumugi fidgeted a bit, nodding in agreement. “Sorry, sorry. I know, I’m trying. Thank you so much, moonlight.”
Natsume only sighed, his facial expressions softening. He couldn’t keep up a mean face to Tsumugi like he used to, he had too much of a weakness for him. “WhatEVER, I wasn’t doing anything anyWAY.
Tsumugi stood up from his chair, placing one of his hands on his desk as he leaned down slightly to kiss Natsume. “I’m sure you weren’t, but I’m grateful either way. Seeing you makes my day better.”
“Stop being sappY, but yeah I guess me toO.” Natsume looked away, kissing Tsumugi again and closing his eyes. The kiss lasted a bit longer than the last, Natsume bringing his hand up to cup Tsumugi’s face as they kissed. Tsumugi brought one of his hands to Natsume’s side, softly gripping his shirt and feeling the nice material.
After kissing for a bit, Natsume pulled away with a smile and half-lidded eyes. “Now take a break from worK, and eaT.”
He patted Tsumugi a few times on the cheek, stepping away from him. Tsumugi’s eyes widened a bit, composing himself again and trying to align his thoughts after Natsume pulled away so suddenly. It took him a bit to process what Natsume said, but he eventually responded.
“O-oh- yeah, yeah. Eating, lunch. Yeah. Thank you again Natsume.” The blush on his face didn’t die down, and Natsume couldn’t help himself from laughing fondly.
“No need to thank mE. I’ll be leaving noW, have a good rest of your daY, and I’ll see you at hoME.” Natsume placed one more kiss on Tsumugi’s cheek, feeling generous, before heading out.
“See you at home, lovely!” Tsumugi waved to him, sitting down with a dreamy smile. He really didn’t deserve Natsume.
ii.
Natsume sighed, looking out of one of the Yumenosaki windows at the sunset. It was beautiful, yes, and the lighting was wonderful, however Natsume was quite disappointed. His boyfriend had stayed late at work to grade work and get things done, and had lost track of time and stayed there for hours. Natsume knew he lost track of time, he knew his boyfriend.
Tsumugi overworked himself to the bone, and Natsume wasn’t (completely) bothered by the fact he stayed late per say, more of Tsumugi’s condition. The boy never gave himself a break, and Natsume had to make him take them all the time. Natsume worried for him, and seeing the eyebags under his eyes didn’t cure any of that worry.
He opened the door, knocking on it a few times to announce his entrance. “MugI.”
But, Tsumugi didn’t respond. He was too caught up in his work, continuing to type away at his desk. He looked to the next paper on his desk, reading it over and plugging grades into the program.
“TsuMUGI.” Natsume called out again, louder this time and tapping the door with his fingertips.
Yet, the man still didn’t respond. Sighing, Natsume tried one last time. “Tsumugi AoBA.” This time it was firm, Natsume glaring directly at Tsumugi’s head. To punctuate his sentence, he slammed the door to the classroom behind himself.
“AH!?!?” Tsumugi jumped, his head snapping towards Natsume. “Natsume! Oh gods, you scared me.” He laughed and smiled nervously.
“YeaH? And it taking me three tries in an empty classroom to get your attention scared mE. You need a breaK.” Natsume deadpanned, walking towards the desk.
“Thank you, but I’m alright! I’ve just got a few more papers and I’ll be ready t-” but before Tsumugi could finish, Natsume closed the laptop with a nice snap.
“No. You’re coming hoME. I did not take the train all the way here for you to continue to worK.” Natsume crossed his arms.
“Oh- I’m sorry, Moonlight. You didn’t need to come all this way, I’d be fine. I’ve been holding up!” Tsumugi tried to ease the tension, fidgeting with the sleeves of his coat.
“Don’t apoloGIZE. JusT,, come home, okay? I don’t care that you’ve been ‘holding up.’ I need you to take care of yourself. You worry me.” Dropping his quirk, Natsume placed his hands on his hips whilst frowning.
“O-okay. I’m sorry, I really appreciate all you do for me, I just- there’s been so much to do. We’re prepping for finals and there’s so much work to grade. I need to get these in on time before they print out reports.” Tsumugi sighed, placing his head in his hand.
Natsume just frowned more, he hated seeing Tsumugi so stressed out. He knew that Tsumugi loved being a teacher and that it was something he had wanted for a while, but he worried often. Natsume still did mostly music and acting jobs, so he couldn’t ever imagine what his lover was going through. A lot of the time Natsume wished Tsumugi had done what he had done and stuck in some sort of spotlight like they had been doing for a while. But he knew that wasn’t what Tsumugi wanted. He knew that Tsumugi was happier here.
Natsume hated change, that was a fact. He hated when the Eccentrics changed, he hated when Switch changed and disbanded, he hated the passage of time. But he couldn’t stop it. Life went on and things were different. Tsumugi was his constant that he could hang on to. No matter what he knew that Tsumugi would always be by his side.
Sora was a different case of course, as were his older brothers in the Eccentrics. They all stayed in contact very often, but Tsumugi was different. He saw Tsumugi every day, they woke up and went to sleep in the same house, no matter what time. It hurt so much to see him destroy himself, which he had really never gotten out of the habit of.
“It really is okaY. Please, let’s just go home. We can talk about this more whenever you’d like, and we can go get something to eat. How does that sound? We could make it a dinner date.” He smiled comfortingly at Tsumugi, placing a hand over his on the desk.
“Are you sure?” Tsumugi interlaced their fingers, holding Natsume’s hand softly. As if he was the one comforting Natsume and not the other way around.
“Positively. I’ll pay too.”
The older sighed, nodding his head. “Alright. Let me just… pack up my things, okay? I love you, moonlight.” Tsumugi brought their hands to his mouth, kissing the back of Natsume’s hand.
Natsume’s smile grew to be more genuine, happy Tsumugi was understanding but didn’t beat himself down more.
“I love you too, dumbass.”
iii.
Natsume bowed to the class of first years, smiling as the teacher spoke. “WeLL, I will be off noW. I’m very excited to see how all of you flourish as future iDOLS. I hope my teaching helPED.” With a smile and a wave, he then left the class, with the rest of the excited children saying their own goodbyes. He then set off down the hall.
Natsume had been invited for an alumni program at Yumenosaki for first years, along with a few other idols from his height. Eichi found it quite important that new idols interacted with the past and learned from their teachings, and especially since the idol world was just beginning to rapidly change when Natsume was with Switch.
He answered questions and taught a few of his own tips for around an hour to the class. The teacher had also decided to play a few of Natsume’s past performance recordings for the class just so they could see how he performed. Of course, all of them already knew about him and his idol work, but he guessed it was for informational purposes.
Eichi had also asked him to talk about his time during The War and The Revolution, and how he experienced it. Tenshouin believed that the newer idols also deserved to learn about the darker past of Yumenosaki so that they could make sure not to repeat the same mistakes. Natsume didn’t care much and was willing, so of course he accepted.
But, one thing he made sure not to do was tell Tsumugi. It wasn’t because he didn’t want him to know, but because he wanted to surprise him. So he intentionally kept it from Tsumugi for a few weeks just for this. The surprise really wasn’t anything big either, but he knew it would make Tsumugi happy. He just hoped he wouldn’t be interrupting him.
When he made his way to Tsumugi’s class, he smiled, watching him teach with such a satisfying smile on his face. His class looked engaged, which was surprising for highschool students. Natsume was so proud of Tsumugi’s ability to teach, he knew he had an almost unnatural skill.
Unfortunately while gazing at his class, his hands in his pockets, one of Tsumugi's students noticed Natsume. Their eyes widened, noticing him in the window, and Natsume had to quickly make a shushing motion before they ruined the surprise.
The kid glanced at their teacher, then back at Natsume, nodding quickly with a slightly nervous smile. Seems like lady luck was on Natsume’s side. He smiled back at the kid, giving a thumbs up before reaching for the door handle.
He rolled his shoulders, smiling before he opened the door. “Why hello thERE.” He gave a smooth smile to the classroom. The acting had really aided him in this sense, huh.
Tsumugi looked away from the whiteboard, smiling confusedly at Natsume. “Ah, Natsume? What are you doing here?” His look was nothing but fond.
“WhaT? I couldn’t visit my boyfriEND?” It was embarrassing to say that in a class full of teenagers, but it wasn’t like it was a secret. After Switch had disbanded they had announced their relationship, since neither were idols anymore. They were still celebrities, yes, however they were finally allowed to date as they’d like. Natsume still had an active contract with New Dimension, but Tsumugi not being binded by that gave them more freedom now.
Tsumugi blushed lightly, his eyes shifting to his class for a second before chuckling a bit. “I mean, of course it’s always welcome. I’m just? Confused?”
Natsume sighed, fake disappointment. “FinE, ruin the surpRISE. I came from teaching the first years for the alumni progRAM, and I decided I’d visit you before I left.”
Some kids in the class gasped, one calling out, “Mr. Aoba, could he teach us too?”
After that, more kids started voicing their agreement. The class grew loud with eager students, and Tsumugi had to quickly quiet them, slightly panicked. “Calm down! Calm down everyone, I’m sure Natsume could teach us some other time, but I’m sure he’s way too busy.”
Natsume glanced to the newly disappointed teens, then at Tsumugi, leaning in to whisper in Tsumugi’s ear. “Do you have the time? I’m willing.”
Tsumugi anxiously whispered back, his eyebrows knitting together. “Are you sure? I don’t want to waste your time.”
“Mhm, c’mon. Let’s give the kids what they want, you’ll pay me by making dinner tonight.”
They shared a quiet laugh at that, Tsumugi turning to his class with a smile. “Well then, it turns out Natsume is happy to teach us today! Let’s all be respectful of him for doing this on a whim, yes?”
The class nodded, responding with a bunch of ‘yes!’s and other positive reactions.
With that, Natsume proceeded to teach the class, just going over what he had rehearsed with the first years. But this time, he went into deeper depth with his work with Switch, Sora, and his time working with their teacher. The students were in awe listening to his stories and some even seemed to write down the tips he gave. They were overall very interested, which Natsume appreciated more than ever.
After all of that, Natsume decided to also have Tsumugi pull up a few videos of them performing together. They both made comments about the shows and music videos, going back and forth with telling stories about being backstage or on set. Many of the students were already a part of units, or thinking about making their own, so they were very interested in what it was like to be on an expensive music video set.
They cringed at their beginning work, but it was good to show how in just one year their basic unit outfits had changed so drastically. Seeing their growth right before their eyes as weird, but honestly very fun.
Afterwards, Natsume and Tsumugi both answered any questions the students had. Many of them never got the chance to ask their teacher about his past idol career, so they were all equally as excited that he had joined in.
But eventually, Natsume had to leave, bidding goodbye to the class and to Tsumugi. He couldn’t do anything really romantic, so he decided on blowing a kiss to his partner before leaving the classroom. The students ‘ooo’d or ‘ewwww’d, while Tsumugi just sat there waving for a few seconds, happy that he even saw Natsume for so long.
i.
Natsume was confused, not in a bad way, but definitely confused.
Tsumugi had invited him to visit his classroom. But the odd thing was the fact he did it during the middle of the day, not during a break or after school. He didn’t give much of a reason either, just telling Natsume that it was a surprise and he really wanted him to visit. The instructions also included the fact that one of his students would be standing just inside from the entrance to lead Natsume to the class.
Natsume already knew where his class was, that wasn’t an issue. Tsumugi knew that. There weren’t any important dates coming up either, not that he knew of at least. Maybe a weird holiday? But Natsume would know prior, his boyfriend didn’t even have a set belief or anything like that, so this was all just weird.
But nonetheless, here he was, walking into Yumenosaki in the middle of the school day around a month from the time he came for the alumni program. He quietly opened one of the doors, looking around to find a student he might recognize.
Thankfully, he only looked around a few times before a girl with a second year tie approached her. “Hello, Mr. Sakasaki! I’m the one who’s going to lead you to your surprise!” She giggled a bit at the end of her sentence, smiling joyfully.
Well, Natsume could tell she was definitely in on it. Along with probably the rest of her class. Her smile was so eager, and it seemed like she really just wanted to spill the secret to Natsume right now, but was holding herself back.
“Let me just send someone a quick text to make sure it’s ready! Then we can go!” Natsume watched her quickly open her phone, sending a text to probably one of her friends in the class. She tapped the sides of her phone impatiently, waiting for her friend to text back, until finally, after a painstaking 5 seconds, she got the OK.
“Yes!! Okay it’s ready, we can go up now!” She then grabbed Natsume by the wrist, leading him up to the class.
‘Ah. Wonderful to see kids at Yumenosaki are still way too comfortable with everything.’ Natsume thought to himself, amused at her behavior and smiling while he let himself be dragged.
When they reached the room, Natsume noticed that the windows were covered by some sort of paper. That makes sense, as to not ruin whatever was waiting for him.
The girl then knocked on the door, really making sure everyone was ready. Whilst waiting, Natsume realized he never got the girl's name. It felt kind of rude, but he guessed he didn’t have much time since before he knew it, he was being pushed in front of her and into the now open door.
He blinked, now being presented with one of Tsumugi’s students. Well, more like a good few of them. A lot of them were crowding the door, but what mattered most was that the particular student standing directly in front of him was holding a big poster. All the poster said was ‘Hello Natsume!’
The student then stepped away, revealing a student behind them also holding a poster. This poster said ‘We’ve been dating for many years’
Natsume was too confused to think on this much, but tried to keep up as that student stepped away as well. The next student’s poster said ‘and I love you so much.’
The redhead smiled reading the poster, he could already feel himself begin to get emotional at just this. Tsumugi was so charmingly stupid.
While lost in his thoughts, Natsume noticed that the next student had appeared, their poster reading ‘…and I’ve never been more sure of a decision.’
The girl behind him pushed him farther into the classroom, now that space had been made. She then took a spot on the sidelines while Natsume read the last poster. ‘So, I just have to ask. After you’ve put up with me for so long…’
The last student stepped away along with the others surrounding them to reveal Tsumugi. Natsume gasped at the sight of his boyfriend, one of his hands covering his mouth. He was down on one knee with a ring box opened in his hand. His smile was absolutely breathtaking, and his hair was brought into a low ponytail, neatly behind his head. He was also in a suit, a beautiful navy blue with white accents.
“Will you marry me, Natsume Sakasaki?” His voice was smooth, but Natsume could tell it was laced with anxiety. All he could do was nod repeatedly, feeling the tears quickly fall from his eyes.
He willed himself to take his hand off of his mouth, trying to verbally respond without his voice shaking. “Yes! Oh my god you dumbass yes! Of course.” Natsume’s smile was wide with fondness, gripping the cuff of his shirt with one hand as he watched Tsumugi’s smile widen. He stood up, making his way to be closer to Natsume as the class cheered surrounding them.
Tsumugi then lightly grasped Natsume’s left hand in his, kissing the back of it before placing the ring on Natsume’s finger. “It looks beautiful on you, Moonlight.”
Natsume didn’t say anything, it felt like he couldn’t with how many tears were flooding his eyes and falling down his face. All he could do was take his free arm and wrap it around Tsumugi’s neck, hugging him close to him and giving him a passionate kiss.
Unfortunately, they had to pull away quicker than Natsume would’ve liked, but neither of them wanted to make out in front of a bunch of teenagers.
After pulling away, they leaned their foreheads to rest against each other.
“You’re so fucking stupid. I love you so much you bastard.” Natsume spoke through his tears.
Tsumugi laughed, pulling away to get a better look of his fiancé. “Natsume, language. We’re still in front of my class.”
“I don’t fucking care. You’re stupid and cheesy and I’m so, so happy.” Tsumugi laughed again, kissing the tip of his nose and tucking the longer side of his bangs behind his ear.
This was by far the most embarrassing and wonderful day of Natsume’s life.