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"-and I love this dorm...no I don't, but I love the color of these walls and I love that fat plant- I water it from time to time to keep it from withering, but nobody must know about that! If Koga-kun knew he would probably tease me for it because one day I told him tha- oh and I love Koga-kun too! I love Koga-kun and Adonis-kun and,"
Rei sighed in amusement, tightening his hold around Kaoru's legs and bust as the blond worried about running his mouth. If only Rei had known that Kaoru would reach such a state after a mere - heavily diluted - glass of Martini he would have never suggested having a drink together.
The self-proclaimed vampire recalled Kaoru's words about not being one to enjoy alcohol, and he had found great enjoyment in watching, with a gleam in his eyes, the way Kaoru would drink his glass down little sip after little sip, chuckling at the evident signs of disgust displayed on his face. It was easy to guess that must have been Kaoru's very first drink...but Rei certainly didn't expect the small amount of alcohol he consumed to have such great of an effect on him.
And even if he did, even if the most rational and foreseeing part of Rei had already predicted the possibility of Kaoru getting drunk, he certainly hadn't expected...this.
Given his circumstances, Rei had assumed Kaoru would have been the sad kind of drunk, the type of person he would have offered a shoulder to cry on once the alcohol reached his brain and his repressed feelings resurfaced in waves.
He had psychologically prepared himself to be ready to comfort a sad Kaoru at worst.
So it was to his utmost surprise that Kaoru revealed himself to be the affectionate, talkative, clingy type of drunk.
The blond had probably hugged more people that night than in his entire life, and as adorable as it was seeing him being so lovely with everyone at the party, Rei decided that enough was enough when he spotted an overjoyed Kaoru stumbling his way towards Tenshouin from the corner of his eyes.
Taking Kaoru away from the party had been rather easy.
Keeping Kaoru from collapsing against every possible surface on the walk back to his dorm was another thing entirely.
Fatigued and the slightest bit tipsy himself, Rei had figured that scooping the man up in his arms and carrying him bridal style to his bedroom would have saved both of their time. Oddly enough, Kaoru didn't protest when he felt gravity leave him, but instead, he threw his arms around Rei's neck and leaned his head against his chest, much like a cat would. Secured as he felt, the words just came on and about from his mouth.
Rei's little sigh was all but bothered. A happy Kaoru was better than a sad one.
"-I also loved those cherry blossom sweets you bought us before recording! Why don't you bu-"
"You love a lot of things don't you, Kaoru-kun?" Rei decided to humor him.
"Of course I do! There are so- hick, many things to love in this world. I don't want to deny anyone my love anymore."
"You have matured a lot, I'm really happy for you. What else do you love, I wonder?"
"Hmm, I don't love men."
Rei barked out a chuckle.
"Uh uh, Kaoru doesn't love men? Who would have thought! But I asked you what you love, not what you used to despise."
"Yeah! But men are such gross creatures...and they smell bad compared to a girl!" At that, Kaoru stretched up and hid his face in the crook of Rei's neck, inhaling his cologne. Closing his eyes, his whisper tickled the side of Rei's nape, "...hm, you smell nice."
Kaoru sounded delighted by the recent discovery, almost reluctantly so, and Rei found himself trying to giggle his abashment away - or the goosebumps that arose from having the tip of Kaoru’s nose brush against his exposed skin.
"Kukuku...I'm starting to become rather fond of this cute side of you."
"Hmhm! Maybe I should drink more often if it will get Rei-kun to praise me like this!"
Kaoru's feet waddled a bit in the air - Rei's fingers pressed firmly into his flesh to stabilize him.
"Please don't, it's not good for your health. However, if that is really what your heart desires, I can praise you more starting tomorrow. But you always look so displeased whenever I do that, Kaoru-kun~..."
"Ah! That's because I don't know how to react to Rei-kun's compliments. You always sound like- hick, like you're tryin' to tease me and it makes me feel weird! But it's a good kind of weird! I think...I guess-" because of his continuous shuffling, Rei had to re-adjust his grip on Kaoru's body once more, tightening his hand around his waist- and Kaoru was suddenly very aware of the cold rings digging into his clothes and the heated fingers clutching his thighs, "have I told you how much I love the way you're holding me now? You should do this more often. Hold me like this more! Show me more love!"
Rei could feel himself grow a little hot under the collar.
They do say that people become more honest when drunk, but to witness it first-hand...it made him wonder if Kaoru really meant what he said, or if it was just the result of mindless rambling.
More than that, it made him feel like he was hearing something he shouldn't.
"Kaoru-kun really wants to be spoiled, huh."
"Hehe– being spoiled by Rei-kun doesn't sound bad at all...but don't tell him! That's embarrassinggg...ha..ha..." Torpor seemed to take hold of Kaoru's consciousness at last.
A part of Rei was thankful for it. Knowing that Kaoru would never say such things out loud made him feel like an intruder, as if he were stepping in on Kaoru's most private thoughts.
"I won't tell him. However,"
But…
"-when you're going to wake up, there won't be anyone to save you from Sakuma's grasp anymore. You will be prey to his affection for centuries to come, and his ears will be deaf to your pleas. Remember...that is what you wished for, Kaoru."
It also allowed him to be more sincere about his own feelings, aware that Kaoru won’t remember their conversation the following day.
By the time he reached the wing of Kaoru's dormitory, his fingers still locked protectively around the bundle in his arms, Rei could feel the blond's tranquil puffs of air land heavily on his chest. And after a bit of strategizing (Rei trying to understand how he should have both held Kaoru's body and found the freedom to knock on the door), Nagisa's face greeted him in all of its overworked glory.
"Good evening, Sakuma-kun. Is there– oh," a small sound akin to surprise escaped him the moment his eyes landed on the sleeping figure of his roommate carried in Rei's arms. The latter gave Nagisa an apologetic smile.
"Apologies for interrupting you in the middle of your work, Ran-kun. Kaoru-kun's alcohol tolerance seems not to be the best, so I took care of bringing him back to his dorm. May I...?"
The silent question made the silver-haired man snap from whatever trance he found himself lost in. Smiling back, Nagisa moved to the side as he held the door open.
"Of course, please make yourself comfortable. Yuta-kun has personal business to attend to, so he won't be coming tonight."
"What a pity...it's been so long since this old, wrinkly man got to hug his precious child."
"Fufu, I will make sure to have him know he was missed."
The two shared a knowing smile as Rei ventured his way inside the room. Locating his partner's bed proved to be easy, for Rei used to bother Kaoru in the middle of the night with childish games whenever he felt too bored for his own good - and all too soon his knees were brushing against the fabric of Kaoru's mattress. Kaoru stirred in his arms, mumbling something. Rei kept his voice low and soothing.
"Kaoru-kun, I'm going to lay you down now."
In lieu of a response, Kaoru released a small noise and pushed the crown of his head further into Rei's chest.
Externally, Rei's face betrayed no particular emotion besides his typical smile of convenience. Internally, Rei was possibly shaking from how adorable his partner was acting.
Slowly and carefully, he bent down to place Kaoru on the chilly sheets.
What he hadn’t anticipated, however, was for Kaoru to suddenly tighten his arms around his neck as if his life depended on it the moment Rei had tried to pry them off. Caught off guard, Rei gasped at the strong pressure as he was almost pulled onto the bed entirely, finding balance only thanks to a knee digging into the mattress' edge and his hands on either side of Kaoru's head, caging him under his body.
Kaoru was awake, and his face – his face carried an expression that was hard to look away from.
"W-wait- are you leaving me, Rei-kun? Why are you leaving me...? You are my partner! You...you aren't supposed to leave me!" his rambling was ever so often interrupted by a drunken hiccup shaking his frame. Seeing his blurry reflection in those greyish eyes stabbed Rei in ways he didn't think could ever pierce through him. Gone was his smile, a veil of bewilderment covering him whole as Rei tried, struggled to decipher the distressed look on his partner’s face.
The proximity mattered little when Kaoru seemed so oddly distraught at the thought of Rei leaving him.
"Kaoru-kun...this is only a temporary separation. We have rehearsal tomorrow- rehearsal, remember? I'm going to set your alarm, and I will need you to go to sleep and sober up, okay? I want you to feel better."
His voice carried the patience of a saint, low words whispered into the thin, shared air between them. Despite the urgency to fall prey to his reassurances and be lulled back to sleep, Kaoru shook his head slightly in negation.
"But I don't want to be alone..."
Rei gave him a small smile.
"You won't be alone. You have Ran-kun to turn to if you ever need something."
"Ran-kun...?"
Kaoru turned his head to the side at the mention of his roommate's name. There, he saw Nagisa sitting at his desk, body facing them as he was quietly - and not subtly at all - studying the whole exchange.
Nagisa gave a soft smile once his eyes met Kaoru's, holding up a hand and waving it slowly to make his presence comforting.
Kaoru's clutch around Rei's neck relented considerably. Rei allowed himself to breathe again.
"Oh...okay. But if you really have to go then let me first-"
And before Rei knew it, Kaoru's hands weren't behind his neck anymore but on the front of his purple coat, twisting the cloth between warm fingers as he dragged Rei closer to himself and landed a kiss on his cheek. Albeit forceful and clumsy, Rei could hear himself gasp softly under his breath at the texture of Kaoru's lips on his skin – those lips he was used to seeing twisting into sly remarks every day, those lips which released one of his most secretly beloved melodies, those lips which were soft...so, so incredibly careful and gentle, pressing over his cheek and just a few breaths away from Rei's half-opened mouth.
Rei, suddenly blind to his surroundings and burning with a newfound emotion never experienced before, could only hear Kaoru's soft giggle and fond "thank you," tickle his jaw, could only lose himself in the softness of Kaoru's honey-like eyes one more time before the blond released his coat and allowed his head to finally hit the pillow.
A few moments passed in which Rei hovered motionlessly over Kaoru's passed-out form, arms rigid on either side of his body.
Then, in a comedic, almost mechanical manner, Rei's knee left the mattress as he slowly straightened up, standing tall by the side of Kaoru's bed. He closed his mouth and blinked a couple of times, tentatively raising his fingers to brush the cheek that had been cherished.
Amused, Nagisa tilted his head a bit to the side.
"That is the most coloration I have seen on your face, Sakuma-kun."
And suddenly Rei wanted to kick himself and lock his body up into his coffin because how did he, Rei Sakuma of the Five Eccentrics and leader of UNDEAD, creature lurking in the night and representative of Rhythm Link, forget about the additional presence in the room? How did he of all people lose sight of his surroundings to the point of exposing such a vulnerable side of himself to curious eyes?
If Kaoru was too drunk to remember any of the events that had taken place that evening, Nagisa certainly wasn’t.
Mortified, Rei could only cover his red forehead with a hand and release a pleading, and not pathetic at all, little groan.
"Please...not a word about this to anyone, Ran-kun."
Crossing a leg over the other, the man giggled in genuine contentment before raising a cup to his mouth.
"Fufu, of course not."