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Ryuunosuke was never entirely sure what was running through his mind. It was evidently clear during his own trial as he scrambled to piece every bit of information together. Though the words that bounced around the walls of his skull aligned every so often, creating a stark statement in his brain; he must be in love with Kazuma Asougi.
There was no other explanation for it, was there? His burning cheeks, knotted stomach, fried brain, clammy hands…
“But it wasn’t supposed to be Asougi!” his thoughts would groan and complain. No, that’s right, he was supposed to meet a nice girl and raise a happy family and yet…
“-it was ginormous, that whale. Oh, I wish you could’ve seen it, partner,” Asougi recounted.
Ryuunosuke scoffed. “Surely, it couldn’t have been that grande…” He was stuck with this perilous attraction.
“Ah, you wouldn’t be saying that if you had seen it. It was a marvellous beast. I bet it’s the type of brute all fishermen dream of catching.”
The dinner service lightly rapped at the door; it sent them into a panic. Of course they knew it was risky to let Ryuunosuke out of the wardrobe so early but supposedly the whale story couldn’t wait. Asougi attended the door while Naruhodou ducked under the table, pulling the cloth enough to just graze the ground. He heard his friend slightly stumble with his words before wishing the crewmember a quick goodnight. Boots nearly kicked his shins as the other sat with a sigh, knocking on the face of the table when footsteps outside faded away. Ryuunosuke awkwardly crawled up from the floor, finding Asougi already dishing out a portion of food for him.
“That’s quite large, isn’t it?” Half the dinner plate was sitting in front of him, steaming hot and smelling delicious.
“I can’t have my trusty partner exploring London on a starving diet, now can I?” Asougi smiled.
The other huffed a laugh. “No…no, I suppose not.” He propped his head on his elbow. “Though, that still brings back my questions. Why go through the trouble to smuggle me aboard? I mean, we haven’t known each other that long, have we?” It was a genuine question. Ryuunosuke couldn’t exactly remember how long it had been since they’ve been friends. He was truly scatterbrained.
The one across from him forgot to bite his tongue. “Because I love you, of course.” Then, Asougi choked on his food, as if he wasn’t expecting it. In truth, he probably wasn’t. “I- Well- I mean that I, uh…”
Ryuunosuke blinked. “You…love me?”
A sigh. “Yes, perhaps…”
He was nearly giddy before freezing. “Is this…some form of comradery?”
“C’mon, Ryuunosuke, you’re a bright man. I watched you during that trial. Can’t you connect the strings?”
“W-Well what if I said I loved you too?” Naruhodou leaned back in his chair, a smug grin that shot him in the foot as he wore it.
“Then I’d say we ought to do something about it.”
“But it would jeopardise…well…everything! Your career, this study trip…are you willing to throw all that away?”
“If I’m an honest man, no, not at all. But I could try and balance both, couldn’t I?” Kazuma leaned forward. “It’d just be our little secret.”
Ryuunosuke raised a brow. Obviously. “I like the sound of that.”
He must admit, the mattress is much more comfortable than that wooden wardrobe.
—
What’s the saying? ‘Absence makes the heart grow fonder’?
One thing was clear as Ryuunosuke stared at the shackles on his wrists, cold eyes glaring at him from corners of the room; absence makes the heart beat louder.