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“We finally get to meet the famous Sky, huh?” Bomb was grinning widely. Prapai had a protective arm around Sky as he greeted his friends.
“Play nice,” he warned, pointing a finger at Bomb.
“Sure, sure,” he laughed it off, greeting Sky politely. Sky returned the gesture, looking mostly calm, though Pai could see the nervousness underneath it, always at least a little present during the races. Art greeted him as well, smiling kindly, which seemed to reassure Sky a bit.
“It’s an exciting day for us,” Art explained to Sky. “P’Pai actually has a boyfriend.”
“Seriously,” Bomb chimed in. “You have no clue how surprised we were to hear that.”
“Enough of that,” Pai grouched, pulling Sky a little closer to him. “Don’t listen to them, Sky, they don’t know anything.”
“Actually, we know everything,” Art wiggled his eyebrows, grinning deviously. “Just ask us if you’re ever curious,” he offered.
“He can ask me,” Pai countered, offended.
“Who knows what you’d tell him?” Bomb fired back, jerking his chin towards Pai as he laughed. Pai’s mouth dropped open in offense, ready to respond before he felt Sky’s hand on his chest, soothing him. He calmed immediately, smiling softly at Sky and leaning in for a kiss.
“P’Pai!” Sky scolded, jerking back and looking around them. Pai sighed, planting a kiss on top of Sky’s head instead. Sky still blushed a little at that and refused to make eye contact with Prapai, instead looking in Art and Bomb’s direction. The two were trying to keep from laughing, and Bomb raised an eyebrow in Pai’s direction, looking vaguely amused.
“You’re really gone on him, huh?” Art asked, looking at the way Prapai was still wrapped around Sky.
“Whipped, you mean,” Bomb interjected, smirking at Pai, who just rolled his eyes.
“He’s not,” Sky defended him faithfully, causing him to beam and peck him on the cheek.
“It’s okay, baby,” Prapai reassured. “I am.” He didn’t mind when people said that kind of thing, instead he was glad they knew he’d do anything for Sky. Sky blushed deeper, causing Pai to sigh at how pretty he looked with flushed cheeks. Art and Bomb were shaking their heads and snickering at him when he turned his attention back to them.
“I can’t believe you’ve finally settled down,” Art said. “Good for you, though, he’s very cute,” this last part included a wink in Sky’s direction. Pai scowled, pulling Sky into his chest and wrapping both arms around him to protect him from enemy winks.
“He is cute,” Bomb agreed. “We’ll comfort you when he realizes he can do better,” he added cheekily, poking Prapai in the arm.
“Nobody tell him,” Pai deadpanned, miming as though he was covering Sky’s ears, who snorted and whacked his hands away. He wrapped an arm around Sky’s waist instead, pulling him in so his back was pressed up against Pai’s chest.
“Too late,” Bomb teased. “Now he’ll dump you and break your heart. Payback for all the hearts you’ve broken, I guess.” Art and Bomb both chuckled at that, and Pai tried to smile, despite the way he felt his stomach drop immediately at the words. Sky protested at Bomb’s words, but that just encouraged the teasing. “How’d you two get together, anyway? Did he kidnap you?” Bomb asked Sky in a tone of mock-seriousness, pointing a finger that Sky swatted away.
“Stop teasing him, P’Bomb,” Art reprimanded, nudging his friend. “Seriously, P’Pai, we’re happy for you.”
They continued the conversation, moving on to other things and welcoming Sky into the fold. Prapai should have been happy his friends were accepting Sky so easily, but he couldn't help but take their teasing to heart. His mind drifted to when Sky actually had broken up with him. That phone call had been heart-wrenching, his mind racing with thoughts of what he could have done differently, how he could have made Sky feel the same way that he felt. He knew now, of course, that it hadn’t been true, that Sky had been pushing him away purposefully. That didn't stop him from thinking about it, now or anytime something prompted it. It slowly ate away at him, that nagging feeling that some of what Sky had said might be rooted in truth. That maybe, deep down, he really was tired of Pai.
He knew he was more affectionate than Sky, that much was obvious. Physical closeness was important to him, and he ended up draped over Sky at every available opportunity. Sky hadn’t been as comfortable with the touching towards the start of their relationship, and still shied away from PDA, but had opened up a lot more to Pai’s casual touches. It was also true that he was head over heels for Sky, and he sometimes wondered if it was even possible for Sky to feel the same way about him. It didn’t seem very likely, and Prapai was usually happy to take what he could get, beyond happy with every little piece of Sky’s heart he was given. Honestly, he didn’t mind if there was a discrepancy between how enamored they were, he only worried that he might end up driving Sky away by being too infatuated with him, especially if Sky’s feelings weren’t as strong as his own.
His mind took him back to the night they’d first met, wincing when he thought about Bomb’s jab that he’d had to kidnap Sky. He’d just meant to flirt with Sky, and had been happy when he’d seemingly reciprocated. Knowing what he knew now, though, especially about Gun, he always wondered whether Sky had truly wanted him as well, or was just trying to get out of the situation any way he could. Sky had assured him that this wasn’t the case, but he couldn’t help but think that Sky might just be trying to assuage his guilt, or excuse it because Pai hadn’t known how he would react. He took a deep breath, steadying himself, and tried to move his thoughts to safer ground. He knew Sky loved him, that was what mattered most, he reminded himself, shaking his head firmly to dispel any remaining negative thoughts.
He dove back into the conversation, putting on a beaming grin. It felt false initially, but he felt it grow more honest after his friends made Sky laugh a couple times. Sky’s true, genuine laugh was a gift he always felt blessed to experience. This was especially true when his eyes scrunched up and his dimples chose to make an appearance. They hung around until the races finished, heading over to Rain and Payu and walking back to their cars together.
They said goodbye, Rain restarting his conversation with Sky several times, only separating after about four different goodbyes. Even then, it was only due to Payu fondly shaking his head and gently guiding Rain into the car. Rain rolled the window down, shouting the last bit of his story out to Sky, who looked fondly exasperated at his best friend.
Prapai opened the passenger door for Sky, pecking him on the cheek quickly before closing the door and heading around to the other side of the car. A few seconds after he’d turned the car on, Sky turned to him with an expectant look on his face.
“Are you...hungry?” He guessed after a beat, when it became clear that Sky thought he should know what the look meant.
“P’Pai…” Sky dragged his name out, raising an eyebrow meaningfully. “What’s wrong?”
Prapai dropped his gaze, fixing his eyes on the steering wheel in front of him. Apparently, he hadn’t put on as good of a show as he’d thought. “It’s nothing,” he tried for a casual tone, not wanting to upset Sky when the rest of the night had gone well. Sky sighed, leaning over to run a hand through Pai’s hair.
“Won’t you tell me?” He coaxed. “Please, P’Pai?” Absolutely unfair of him.
“It’s nothing big,” Prapai insisted. “Just…something Bomb said made me think…” Sky nodded at him, waiting patiently for him to go on. “About when we first met. And…when we…broke up.” He phrased it carefully, not wanting Sky to feel blamed for the breakup. Sky let out a breath, sadness coloring his expression.
“I am sorry,” Sky said softly, apologizing yet again.
“No!” Prapai’s head shot up. “I don’t want you to feel bad about it. I understand why you did it, and I know you didn’t mean what you said…”
“But…?” Sky prompted, tone still gentle.
“I guess I can’t help but think that you were right. Even if you didn’t mean to be.” He answered quietly. Sky’s breath hitched, and he paused a moment before he spoke.
“I wasn’t, though,” his tone was firm. “None of what I said was true. I was only trying to push you away, and I’m sorry. I never want you to believe any of that.”
“You don’t get annoyed with me sometimes?” Prapai couldn’t help saying. “I am head over heels for you, and I know it’s probably too much, and you don’t want to deal with me, and—”
“P’Pai!” Sky cut him off, shaking his head. “I’m head over heels for you, too. If you’re annoying, then so am I.”
“Never,” Prapai insisted immediately, causing Sky to huff out a laugh.
“That’s what I’m saying. About you.” Sky took one of Prapai’s hands in both of his own, running a thumb across the back of it.
“What about when we first met?” Pai asked, relishing in the warmth of Sky’s hands. Sky cocked his head, prompting him to go on. “I hate thinking that I…pressured you, or—”
“You didn’t,” Sky cut him off. “We’ve talked about this.”
“I know,” Prapai acknowledged. “But I don’t want you trying to protect me, or thinking I can’t take it. I just want to know how you actually felt.”
“I felt like you were a cocky asshole,” Sky replied bluntly, causing Pai to wince internally. Okay, fair. “But I made the decision to go home with you. If I hadn’t wanted to, I would have had no problem telling you to fuck off, and then leaving by myself.” Prapai let out a breath, trying to do so quietly in order to keep his relief subtle.
“Okay,” he accepted, bringing their clasped hands to his mouth to kiss the back of Sky’s hand. “Thank you,” he added, meeting Sky’s gaze and trying to convey his gratitude with his eyes. Sky gave him a soft smile, leaning in to kiss him gently.
“Thank you,” Sky returned, drawing back slightly.
“For what?”
“Telling me what’s on your mind. I always want to hear it, even if you don’t think so.”
Prapai couldn’t hide a smile at that, lighting up in the way only Sky seemed to elicit. Sky swatted ineffectually at his shoulder, turning him back towards the steering wheel.
“C’mon, let’s go home.”
"As you wish."