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"Good work today, everyone!" Arashi said after Knights's rehearsals in the evening.
"Oh, wait! Before you all go, I have Christmas gifts for all of you!" Tsukasa rummaged deep into his bag to bring out four small boxes neatly wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper, then gave each one to its respective member. "I hope these are all to your liking. Merry Christmas, my seniors!" Tsukasa said sheepishly.
"Aww, Suo~! I love you! How sweet of you~! Ooh wait, I should give you guys my gifts too then!" Leo took out four paper bags that were just stapled closed and had a card slapped onto each of them.
"Wow, you actually remembered to get us stuff, huh?" Izumi teased.
"Shut up! I do love you guys enough to remember something like this, ok?!"
"Fufu. Alright, alright. That's enough bickering, you two. I'll give you guys my presents now too, even though it's still quite early to exchange gifts." Arashi interrupted by handing out similarly wrapped boxes as Tsukasa, except each gift had colored ribbons on top, each representing the other four Knights members.
"Ok, ok. I'll hand out my presents now too." Izumi said dismissively while bringing out another set of small, wrapped boxes to give to the other four.
"Aww! Thanks, Izumi-chan! I was worried you wouldn't get us anything anymore since we're always asking you to buy us stuff when you're abroad." Arashi giggled in delight.
"Hmph. Consider yourselves lucky then."
"Wahaha! Just be honest and say you love us, Sena~!" Leo teased.
"Um... Sorry guys. I don't have my gifts for you all just yet..." Ritsu apologized, looking like a guilty kitten.
"It's ok, Ritsu-chan! It's still the start of December, after all! Please don't feel bad!" Arashi comforted.
"Yes! And please don't feel pressured to give us something expensive. I would be happy to receive anything from you, Ritsu-senpai!" Tsukasa joined in.
"Mm. Thanks, guys. I'll still definitely try to get you all something nice, though."
Later in the evening, a few hours since the group said their 'thank you's and 'goodnight's, as Izumi was getting ready for bed, he suddenly received a text from Ritsu.
.
Kuma-kun: "Secchan, can you come shopping with me tomorrow?:))"
"Shouldn't you be asking me if I'm busy first?"
Kuma-kun: "but it's your day off tomorrow, right? you didn't mention having any plans either."
Kuma-kun:"but fiiine. so are you busy tomorrow?"
"No..."
Kuma-kun: "see? I knew it fufufu"
Kuma-kun: "so come with meee"
Kuma-kun: "please?"
"Ugh... What happened to that Maa-kun of yours, though? I would've thought you'd ask him to go with you."
Kuma-kun: "Maa-kun has a lot of work with Trickstar tomorrow, so I'm sure he can't indulge me this time around"
Kuma-kun: "so come on, at least you can personally pick out my gift for you fufu"
"That's not how it should work. I'm sure you're just too lazy to think."
Kuma-kun: "yes that's correct so please come and help me:)"
"Ugh. Ok, fine. I'll go with you."
Kuma-kun: "yayy hehehe"
"What time do you want to go?"
Kuma-kun: "hmm... after lunch? around 1?"
"Ok"
"See you tomorrow"
Kuma-kun: "yep see you. and thanks secchan<33"
"Yeah, yeah. Goodnight. Don't sleep too late now."
Kuma-kun: "mhm ill try. goodnight:))"
*sigh* "Well, there goes my day off..." Izumi thought to himself as he tucked himself into bed and put his phone on his nightstand.
The next morning, Izumi allowed himself to get up later than he usually did, since he was free during the morning hours, and left just enough time for him to freshen up and get dressed.
"Hmm... Should I go check up on Kuma-kun..?" he thought to himself while finishing up his facial routine. "It's true he's been more responsible lately, but I can't shake off the feeling that he's still not even up..."
With that last thought, Izumi immediately headed to Ritsu's room after confirming he "looked beautiful enough", and gently knocked on the door.
"Kuma-kun? Are you there?" Izumi called out.
No response.
"Kuma-kuuun~?" he tried once more.
Given that no one responded and the door being unlocked, he guessed Mika had already left for the day and that Ritsu was possibly already out and about, but just to be sure, Izumi slowly opened the door to check if he really had gotten up. However, much to his dismay, he found the older boy still asleep in his bed.
"Ku. Ma. Kun." Izumi strode over to Ritsu's bed and irritably enunciated each syllable of his nickname.
"Mm...? Ah.. Morning, Secchan..." Ritsu lazily rubbed his eyes while yawning like a kitten.
"'Morning', my ass! It's almost noon and you're still in bed?! Weren't you the one who made plans with me "after lunch"?!" Izumi berated.
"Mmh... Sorry... The cold weather makes me feel more cozy and sleepy..."
"Right, right. Now hurry and get changed so we can eat and then go!"
"Hmm...? You wanted to have lunch with me? Is that why you came to check on me?" Ritsu teased.
"Hah? I came here because I was sure you wouldn't have gotten up until who knows what time." Izumi retorted.
"Ok, ok. Well, I'm up now. I can meet you at the cafeteria in ten minutes."
"Fine, but you better not take any longer than that." Izumi groaned as he made his way out the door and closed it gently.
While Ritsu got dressed, he couldn't help but smile at the fact that Izumi didn't completely deny wanting to have lunch together and that he was also willing to wait for him. So much for supposedly not wanting to go out with him that day.
Less than ten minutes later, Ritsu arrived at the cafeteria and found Izumi using his phone while his untouched tempura udon sat on the table.
"Your food's gonna get cold, Secchan~"
"Only because you took so long." Izumi retorted while putting his phone away.
"I didn't say you needed to wait for me, though."
"*sigh* Just order your food already." Izumi tried to sound as dismissive as he could, but he was unable to hide the light blush that spread over his cheeks.
"Yes, sir~" Ritsu replied with a teasing glint in his eyes and a slight smirk.
While Ritsu looked through the menu and ordered through his phone, Izumi started to slowly eat his udon.
"So what did you order?" Izumi asked.
"Same as you."
"Huh? Why?"
"Mmm... I didn't wanna think about it too hard, plus it looks yummy anyway." Ritsu shrugged lazily.
"*sigh* You're hopeless..."
"Yet you love me~"
"Whatever you say, I guess. Come on, your food's here now."
The two continued their idle chatter as they ate their lunch for the next twenty minutes. Afterwards, they met up at the entrance once they finished getting ready their rooms.
"So where do you want to go?" Izumi asked while they walked out of the gates of Seisoukan Apartment.
"Hmm... The mall, I guess?"
"Alright. Just lead the way."
"Couldn't you help me a bit more, Secchan~?"
"I'm already helping you by being here. Now, come on, let's go." Izumi nudged the other boy on the arm.
"But it's so cold..." Ritsu whined.
"Haah? What do you want me to do about that then? You're not a kid anymore."
Without warning, Ritsu threaded his arm around Izumi's, leaving the latter stunned and stuttering to himself.
"That's better. Now we can go." Ritsu hummed satisfactorily.
"H-Huh..?! Wha- Hey! K-Kuma-kun..!"
Izumi continued to complain for nearly half of the walk, but notably did not try to push Ritsu away. Even when they entered the mall, Ritsu refused to let go despite it being significantly warmer inside than outside.
"If I'm not mistaken, there's a store here where I can get Suu-chan's gift. Let's go there first." Ritsu continued dragging Izumi around the mall with linked arms.
"Wow. You actually thought about this already? Do you know what to get for the others too?"
"Um... Nope. This is where you come in to help me. Fufu."
"Don't "fufu" me! These are supposed to be your gifts for them!" Izumi scolded.
"It's not like I won't try to think of what I can get for the others anymore; I just want your input, you know? Plus, I'm still using my own money anyway~."
"Ok, ok, fine. So what are you getting for Kasa-kun?"
"There's supposedly a stationery shop here that makes personalized items, so I want to get him a pen and clipboard with his name on them."
"Huh. That's actually a good idea."
"Right? But it's gonna be harder to make the rest of the gifts just as nice." Ritsu chuckled nervously.
"It'll be fine. I'm sure they'll appreciate whatever you'll get." Izumi assured while nonchalantly waving his free hand.
"Aww, it's nice when Secchan is affectionate. Oh, this is it." Ritsu teased as they entered the store.
Before Izumi could rebut or complain about Ritsu's comment, the latter had unlinked their arms and brisk walked deeper into the store, carefully browsing through their selections and leaving Izumi somewhat bewildered by the entrance.
Izumi felt a certain emptiness when the older boy had walked off by himself and suddenly missed the close proximity they had just moments prior.
"No, no, no! What the hell are you thinking?! It's not a big deal, just forget it!" Izumi scolded himself internally while slowly walking to where Ritsu now stood talking to an employee.
After a fifteen-minute wait, the two were shown the finished pen and clipboard and were left in awe with the quality and intricacies of the designs. The clipboard Ritsu chose was royal blue in color with his surname at the back and his first name at the front, both in white print. On the other hand, the pen was shaped like a sword with the sword's hilt as the cap and Tsukasa's name printed on it in cursive English.
"Fufu. I'm glad with how these turned out." Ritsu hummed happily while paying for the items.
"Mhm. I'm sure Kasa-kun will love them." Izumi nodded. "So whose gift do you want to get next?"
"Hmm... Do you think Natchan would want new jewelry?"
"Hmmm...." Izumi also took a minute to think about it. "Yeah, I think that's the easiest thing you can get since things like clothes and facial products are easy to mess up."
"That's true. Let's look for jewelry for her then." Ritsu said as he and Izumi left the stationery shop.
.
.
"What do you think of this one?" Ritsu showed Izumi a silver chain bracelet with small clover and flower charms on it.
"Hmm... Nah, I don't think that's the one." Izumi lightly shook his head. "Oh, how about this ring set?"
"Ooh, that's a good one. Well done, Secchan." Ritsu teasingly patted the other boy's head in praise.
"Stop petting my head!" Izumi angrily brushed the hand off his head. "Well, what about your second item?"
"Mm. I've been eyeing this necklace for a while now. What do you think?"
"Yeah, I can definitely see her wearing it - it's a good choice."
"Alright. I'll go pay for them."
The ring set Izumi chose had five gold rings, one of which was plain while the other four had different charms that dangled off them. Meanwhile, the necklace was also gold with a small star charm, making it a versatile accessory that Arashi could wear in almost any occasion.
"Hmm... Secchan, you've known Tsukipi longer than me, so do you know what he would want?"
"Hah? All he does is compose. It's always so hard thinking of what to get him every year."
"Hmmm... Oh, what if I get him a new set of colored markers? You know, for when he composes, maybe?" Ritsu pondered out loud.
"Wha-" Izumi was about to exclaim in shock, but quickly gave it some thought and changed his mind. "Actually, that's not bad. He did use colored markers often enough to compose when we were still in school. Maybe you could also restock his music sheets too, if you think the markers aren't enough."
"Mm. Sounds like a plan. To the bookstore~"
The two bought a pack of 24-colored markers and a pack of 40 music sheets at the bookstore, and just as Ritsu was about to take the paper bag for Leo's gift, Izumi wordlessly took the bag from the cashier first and carried it for him. Ritsu turned his head towards him in shock, but the silver-haired boy had already begun to walk off. As Ritsu caught up, he was almost certain he saw Izumi's ears were just a tad bit red, but decided to keep the teasing and giggling to himself.
"Now that we're done with everyone's gifts, what do you want for yours?" Ritsu asked.
"Um... Well, anything is fine, really." Izumi shrugged.
"Boo..." the older boy pouted. "Then is there something you've been needing to buy?"
"Hmm... I guess I need new clothes then? I haven't gone shopping for myself in some time."
"Great. Let's get you new clothes then~"
In the first store the two visited, Izumi didn't find anything he liked. However, in the second store, Izumi picked out a pair of black slacks, a white v-neck t-shirt, a navy blue polo shirt, and a beige cardigan jacket.
"Ok, it's time to pay~" Ritsu hummed while snatching the four clothing items from Izumi's arms and brisk walking away.
"I'm not gonna let you pay for all of that! Hey! Give them back!" Izumi gave chase to the older boy.
The two ended up running around the store with Ritsu trying to get to the cashier, only to have Izumi blocking his way and forcing him to head in another direction at every attempt. In less than two minutes, Izumi was able to close the distance between him and the black-haired boy and wrapped his arms around his waist in order to stop him without letting him get hurt by falling or hitting something.
"Ahh... You're too fast, Secchan..." Ritsu huffed while gradually catching his breath.
"I'm just clearly more fit than you, that was nothing."
Just as Izumi remembered why exactly their whole cat-and-mouse game began, he realized he still had his arms securely wrapped around the other boy's waist, but felt too embarrassed and didn't know what he should do or say first.
"Secchan~, are you taking advantage of the situation by hugging me oh-so-close to you?" Ritsu teased as he turned his head sideways to face him.
"Hah?! Hell no! I just didn't want you to trip or bump into something, that's all!" Izumi retorted angrily and immediately retracted his arms.
"Aww, so you do care~. That makes me happy~"
Ritsu was quick to notice the faint blush that had spread from Izumi's ears to his cheeks, and felt immensely satisfied and ecstatic whenever he got him to react that way.
"Anyway! I'm taking these two to pay for them myself! The other two can be your gift for me." Izumi grabbed the slacks and polo shirt from Ritsu's arms and nudged him towards the cashier.
"Ok, fine..." Ritsu finally relented. "Mm... This cardigan is actually really soft... Might steal it from time to time, fufu."
"Just get your own then...?!"
"But if this is gonna be my gift for you, then that means I can get it back from you."
"That literally makes no sense..." Izumi sighed in defeat and mild irritation.
"Fufu. So, do you want to get dinner after this?"
"It's a little early, but sure. At least there won't be many people in the restaurants just yet."
After paying for Izumi's new clothes, they agreed to eating ramen for dinner, despite Izumi's initial reluctance.
"Don't worry too much, Secchan~. It's not like we eat oily foods often~" Ritsu assured.
"*sigh* Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm only agreeing because it's cold outside and stuff."
"Fufu. Just enjoy it; it's not like it'll ruin your pretty little face~.
Izumi stiffened and immediately blushed at the last part of Ritsu's tease. Despite having an ego that was arguably bigger, or just as big, as the other four members of Knights combined, he constantly found himself at a loss whenever such words of admiration came out of Ritsu's mouth.
"Whatever..." was all he managed to say while he was still trying to calm himself down.
Ritsu, being the attentive observer that he is, immediately noticed the other's red cheeks and strangely bashful reaction, and, of course, had to take the chance to poke fun at him.
"Secchan~, do you like it when I call you pretty?"
"H-Haah?! No, I never said anything of the sort!" Izumi tried to defend himself.
"Fufu~. It's ok if you don't want to admit it, I'll just keep telling you that you're pretty."
"No! I'm not even asking you to?!" Izumi insisted, despite his blush slowly becoming darker and darker.
"But you are pretty~. Am I not allowed to express how pretty I think you are~?"
"....It's...embarrassing...." Izumi muttered while trying to hide his now tomato-red face.
It surprised Ritsu how easily embarrassed Izumi was that fay. He expected him to take pride in the compliments and ask him to keep going, so he wasn't at all prepared for his own heart to begin racing and for his face to slowly heat up.
"Cute..." Ritsu's mind thought before he himself realized what exactly he was even thinking. However, he still wanted to continue teasing the younger boy despite both of them - especially Izumi - being a flustered mess.
"Mmm... So is it embarrassing when anyone calls you pretty?"
"...N-not really...."
"Sooo, is it only embarrassing if it's me?" Ritsu only wanted to continue playing around with Izumi, so, once again, he didn't expect the response to cause him to short-circuit.
"...Yeah...."
"Huh....?" the reaction had slipped out of Ritsu's mouth before he realized it.
"Don't give me that! You fucking asked!" Izumi retorted angrily with his face still completely dark red from both frustration and bashfulness.
"Ah, r-right. Sorry..." Ritsu apologized, although he no longer knew if it was because of his constant teasing or his surprised and non-commital reaction just now.
"W-Whatever, we're here now. Let's go eat." Izumi muttered as they approached their chosen ramen joint.
Although the silence and tension between them was nearly unbearable at first, the two gradually returned to their natural atmosphere and flow of conversation after asking each other what they wanted to order. Even when the silence occasionally returned while they ate, it was fortunately no longer too awkward, although not entirely comfortable either.
"That was yummy~" Ritsu patted his stomach in satisfaction as they left the restaurant.
"Yeah, even I'll admit that was delicious. So do you still need to go somewhere before we leave?"
"Hmm... Nope. I'm good. We can go home now."
When they stepped out of the mall, Ritsu immediately shivered from the cold, but stifled it as much as he could so that Izumi wouldn't notice. Even though he didn't hesitate to cling to the younger boy while they walked to the mall in the afternoon, he couldn't bring himself to do it again - despite it being even colder now that it was nighttime - since he excessively teased Izumi earlier.
After a minute of walking, Ritsu suddenly felt the other boy wrapping his arm around his the same way he did earlier that day. Needless to say, Ritsu thought his heart was going to explode from the simple act of affection.
"You're cold, aren't you? I'm surprised you didn't cling to me right away when we left the mall." Izumi said while avoiding eye contact with the older boy.
"Hmm? So does this mean you wanted me to cling to you?" Ritsu couldn't help but make fun of him anyway.
"You-!"
"S-sorry, forget it. I know I've teased you too much today..." Ritsu hurriedly apologized.
"W-well, I'm cold too anyway, so...." Izumi muttered while looking slightly downwards to hide his flushed cheeks.
Ritsu abruptly turned his head to stare at the other boy wide-eyed in shock from the surprisingly honest statement. He only giggled in response, noticing how Izumi refused to even glance at his direction, and took the opportunity to gently pull him even closer and entwine their hands. Izumi's entire body jerked at the sudden contact, but he was able to slowly relax into it. Another minute passed, and he took the intiative to thread their fingers together and squeezed Ritsu's hand tight.
"Don't." Izumi said as a warning for the other boy not to tease him.
Although Ritsu could feel his heart beating out of his chest out of giddiness and glee, he simply let out a soft chuckle before squeezing Izumi's hand back. No words were exchanged between them for the rest of the walk back to Seisoukan Apartment, but the silence this time was much more comfortable than earlier.
When they arrived at the dorms, both were reluctant to let go of the other, so Ritsu shyly offered to walk Izumi to his room.
"Huh? But my room is all the way up on the third floor. Aren't you, I don't know, lazy to go up and then back down to your room?"
"Yeah, I am, but it's fine. I made you spend your day off with me, so I should do at least this much for you in return..." Ritsu scrambled to come up with a believable excuse.
"No, but I-" Izumi wanted to say that he didn't want him to repay him for today since he enjoyed their time together anyway, but immediately grew embarrassed and decided against expressing that thought. "N-nevermind, if you insist..."
"Fufufu. Ok, let's go then."
Ritsu purposely walked slower as they climbed the stairs going to the third floor to stall the moment they would have to finally let go of each other's hands, but even when they stopped in front of the door to Izumi's shared room, both of them still refused to let go.
"Ahaha, I...don't want to let go, to be honest..." Ritsu admitted softly while sullenly looking down at their hands.
"M-me too..." Izumi muttered while squeezing Ritsu's hand.
"Fufu. Secchan is so honest today, I wonder what's up?"
"N-nothing! You're just imagining things..."
Despite his words, even Izumi was surprised with himself for how open was being that day. It wasn't the first time Ritsu had made his heart flutter, but at that moment, he felt that he definitely needed to sort out what exactly he was feeling, as much as he wanted to avoid doing that before.
"Fufufu. Alright, whatever you say~. So, um, thanks again for coming with me today. I'll see you tomorrow~." Ritsu hummed lazily and loosened his grip on Izumi's hand, but the other boy stubbornly held on. "Uhh...Secchan...?"
Ever since the start of Ritsu's sentence, Izumi felt like his face was overheating and that he couldn't hear anything other than the sound of his rapid heartbeat. Suddenly, he pulled Ritsu closer by the hand and pressed a very quick kiss on his forehead.
"S-see you tomorrow.." Izumi mumbled in a hurry, let go of his hand, and tried to enter his room before Ritsu could get a word out.
However, unfortunately for him, Ritsu snatched his wrist in the blink of an eye and spun him around to face him. As if something had possessed him, Ritsu used his other hand to boldly, yet gently, cup Izumi's cheek, then leaned in to kiss his forehead back. It was firmer and longer than Izumi's shy, awkward kiss, leaving the latter completely flustered and red in the face. When Ritsu pulled back, he subconsciously stroked Izumi's cheek with his thumb while lovingly smiling at him. Although the younger boy didn't pull away, but rather, leaned into the touch, his eyes darted everywhere to avoid Ritsu's gaze.
"I, um, I'll let you rest now, fufu. 'Night, Secchan~." Ritsu hummed and slowly retracted his hand from his cheek.
"G-goodnight, Kuma-kun..." Izumi whispered while trying to finally look at the other boy.
"Mm. See you~" Ritsu took the bag for Leo's gift from Izumi's other hand, then turned and walked away while waving lazily at him.
Izumi stood in place and watched Ritsu walk down the stairs until he was out of sight before entering his room. Luckily for him, none of his roommates had arrived yet, so he had maybe around an hour or two before any of them might come back. He let himself fall backwards on his bed and could feel his face reheating as the day's events replayed in his mind.
"I....probably like Kuma-kun, don't I?"
Izumi began to dread seeing Ritsu the next day for fear of his heart threatening to cease on the spot upon seeing his face, but also could no longer deny how comfortable, happy, and giddy he felt around him. He had lots of thinking to do from that night forth.