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Kazuichi clenched his blue cap in his hands tightly, trying to calm his nerves without much success. As much as he tried to appear calm and relaxed, the truth is that he was a mess, he was sure that anyone who saw his face would be concerned to see him so anxious. Although it's not like anyone can see him right now. It was already quite late, the classes had finished about an hour ago and all the students went to the dorms or somewhere else.
Kazuichi was sitting at the fountain of the Academy's park, he knew that it was a place that was normally clear since Komaeda and the students from the Reserve Course used to walk there, but that hadn't happened for a while now and the area was practically left abandoned. That's good, somehow. It's not like Kazuichi had any kind of special connection to this place and it wasn't a place he used to frequent, which was a good thing since if *that* went wrong, then he won't have to worry about seeing this fountain ever again and remembering what happened, or rather what was going to happen. But if all goes well, then maybe this place would become a place with a really happy memory of him and...
"No, It's still too early for that, idiot!" Kazuichi shook his head quickly and slapped his cheeks to keep himself from getting carried away by his imagination. The truth is that he really wanted everything to go well and for that fantasy to come true, but he had to be realistic, there was a very high possibility that things would go wrong and he would end up hurt and crying in his bed that same night.
He sighed and looked up at the orange sky, letting the soft breeze ruffle his pink hair and caress his face, slowly calming his nerves. Then, the sound of footsteps made him look ahead and there he was, the person he was waiting for.
"Tamer of Automations?" Gundham arched his brow with a small expression of surprise, "Were you the one who dared to summon my cursed soul?" he asked, holding up his hand where a small piece of paper was neatly folded between his index and middle fingers.
Kazuichi felt embarrassed and his cheeks blushed when he saw that piece of paper that he knew perfectly well. He wasn't a brave person at all, everyone around him can say that he was the Ultimate Coward and he himself can't deny it. Especially since when he wanted to meet Gundham in a private place, the best thing he could think of was to write a little letter that said 'I need to tell you something important. Meet me at the park at XX:XX pm' and hide it in Gundham's locker instead of saying it to his face, hoping he would see it and decide not to ignore it.
Kazuichi clenched his cap even more, feeling his heart begin to pound against his chest from nerves and embarrassment, "Uhm... Y-Yeah, it was me. I'm so sorry if I interrupted you or something." He muttered, looking away from the man in front of him.
Gundham chuckled and crossed his arms, "Fear not, fool mortal. As I have no remaining quests that would prevent me from meeting with you," he said, placing a proud smile on his lips.
Kazuichi blinked as he translated Gundham's words into human language in his mind. So that meant he had nothing to do and that's why he agreed to meet with him, right? Well, it doesn't matter. Even though Kazuichi didn't understand half of what Gundham said, he wasn't there to fight him, but something more…
Gathering what little courage he had, he got up from the fountain and took a few steps until he was in front of Gundham, "Well, I guess you must be wondering why I asked you here." He murmured, still not daring to meet Gundham's eyes and instead looking at one of the many trees that were around as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.
"Your guess is correct, Tamer of Automations. It seems that you have some important matter at hands that you wish to discuss with me so I'm quite curious to know what seems to be troubling you," Gundham said, his deep voice carrying a hint of concern hidden in his arrogant tone.
"Yeah, well, the thing is that… Fuck, how do I say this?" Kazuichi looked at the ground feeling how his cheek began to blush even more.
"Tamer of Automations? Are you feeling alright?" Gundham asked.
"Yeah! I feel great! It's just- you-..." He bit his lips, "Look, I know we started off in the wrong way and well, I haven't been the best classmate or person with you, I know I've behaved like an asshole this whole time and for that I'm so sorry. The truth is that at first I couldn't stand you, I thought you were an idiot, self-centered and a- No, wait, that's not what I mean, damn it." He cursed and scratched his head, "It's true that I hated you at first- but I don't anymore! I mean- Well, now I think you're a pretty cool guy, you know? You're a really good person and it seems that you care a lot about animals and I think that's- Well, adorable? I mean!" He got even more nervous and started to stutter, "It's just that- I haven't been able to stop thinking about you lately and well, oh Atua help me- and I- You- I-... I-... Ilikeyouandiwanttogooutwithyou..." He said quickly, in a voice that was too low for him to even hear himself.
And it seems that Gundham didn't hear him either so he leaned a little towards Kazuichi, "What did you just say?"
Kazuichi growled and looked up, his pink eyes staring into Gundham's, "I like you, idiot! I'm in love with you and I want to go out with you!" He screamed.
Hearing those words, Gundham’s eyes widened and he unconsciously stepped back, "You... W-What did you just say!?" He exclaimed, abandoning his elegant manner of speaking for a moment.
Kazuichi clenched his lips and frowned, feeling at the edge of tears. Was that bastard really going to make him repeat himself again? Does he have any idea how fucking hard it was to say those words twice?
He took a deep breath and this time decided to be brave, without taking his eyes off Gundham’s, he said in a firm voice, "I like you. I’m in love with you."
"W-What? But-... Wait, weren't you in love with the She-Cat?" Gundham stuttered, looking at him with skepticism.
Kazuichi felt uncomfortable listening to Gundham talk about his old crush on Sonia but he can understand his concern so he decided to explain, "Well, at first I thought I liked Miss Sonia but... I don’t really have feelings for her, and I don’t think I ever did, I just wanted to lie to myself to make me think I liked a pretty girl... But I realized that the person I like is you." he confessed again, hoping to receive a proper response this time.
"Y-You-..." Gundham remained silent for a moment.
After not receiving an answer, almost all of Kazuichi’s bravery disappeared until he realized that Gundham’s face was beginning to blush in a very deep red color. "Gundham?"
"You... You’re such a fool foolish mortal! Have you finally lost your mind!? Why on heaven would you wish to be with a dark being such as myself!?" Gundham exclaimed, with an unusually shaky voice.
Kazuichi felt his heart sink into his chest, leaving a feeling of emptiness and sadness that almost made him start to cry. He couldn't help but take Gundham's words as a sign that he would be cruelly rejected. Of course, it was to be expected that Gundham does not feel the same way towards him and for better or worse, Kazuichi had already prepared himself for this so all he did was close his eyes and wait for those words that would break his heart and make him lock himself in his room and cry for hours.
However, those words never came.
"But... If you're so desperate to become my consort then... I think-... I think I could take y-you..."
"... Huh?" Kazuichi opened his eyes and looked at him in confusion, noticing that Gundham had averted his gaze away from Kazuichi, covering half of his blushing face with his scarf. He looked really...
'Adorable', Kazuichi thought for a moment.
"I-I said that... I could take you as my consort if that's what you wish for..." Gundham muttered with his voice shaking, still not daring to look at Kazuichi.
Kazucihi blinked, "Consort? What does that mean?"
That question made Gundham blush even more if possible, "... I-It means... S-Spouse..." he whispered the last thing against his scarf.
Fortunately or unfortunately, Kazuichi heard it perfectly and now it was his turn to blush even more, "S-Spouse!? What the hell dude!? I just confessed my feelings like 2 minutes ago and you already want to marry me!? I mean, I would love to! Of course! But you should invite me on a date first, you dumbass!" He scolded him, until he finally realized what Gundham's words meant and he went silent for a moment, his eyes widening, "Wait, does that mean that you... you feel the same way for me?
Gundham didn't say anything and just nodded shyly and Kazuichi felt that his heart was going to beat out of his chest.
"Are you serious? Isn't this a joke? I mean, I know you're not the type to make jokes but…" Kazuichi stuttered, unable to know what to say or do.
Gundham cleared his throat and finally looked up at him with a mixture of shyness and adoration that made Kazuichi's heart melt, "It seems you're concerned about the truth of my words... However I have not spoken lies, as I truly hold r-romantic feelings for you, Tamer of-no..." He took a deep breath, "K-Kazuichi..."
"Oh..." Kazuichi felt how his face burned when he heard Gundham say his name for the first time, until now he had always called him nicknames and Kazuichi had never had the joy of hearing his name coming from Gundham's deep and attractive voice, and if he was honest with himself... He liked it, way too much. "I-I see..."
"So... Uhm... May I assume that you accept to become my consort?" Gundham asked with some concern, as if he was afraid that Kazuichi would change his mind.
"Yes! I do! I mean, if you want me to, of course." He said quickly, noticing how Gundham's tense shoulders seemed to relax upon hearing his response.
"I would love that." Gundham smiled sweetly and Kazuichi didn't know if he could bear the way his heart was pounding so hard in his chest.
"Well, ehm..." Kazuichi hesitated for a moment. What should he do now? Kazuichi had never had a lover in his entire life and he had less experience than any of his classmates. Come on, even Komaeda had more experience than him since he used to date a student from the Reserve Course a few months ago but still, Kazuichi was nothing compared to him, so he didn't know what to do. Thinking for a bit, he decided that it might be good to try something he's seen Komaeda and other couples do, "Can I... Can I hug you...?"
That question almost made Gundham blush more, which at this point was not possible, the poor Ultimate Breeder had turned into an absolute blushing mess and Kazuichi could barely resist the idea of taking a picture of him. "Y-You! Even if you're now my dark consort, you must not forget that my mortal vessel is deadly poisonous and touching me might result in your absolute demise!"
"So I can not?" Kazuichi's smile dropped.
"...!" Gundham was silent for a moment, as if he were debating what to do next. After a few seconds he sighed and approached him, still covering part of his flushed face with his scarf, "If you want to embrace me so badly... Then I can put on a protection spell on you, at least until you awake your dark powers, although that may take some time, considering your low astral level..."
Saying that, Gundham closed his eyes and began to mutter a few words that Kazuichi couldn't understand. When he opened his eyes again Gundham finally reduced the little distance that remained between the two of them and moved his trembling arms towards him, encircling Kazuichi's smaller body and pulling him into his in an inexperienced hug. Shyly, Kazuichi wrapped his arms around Gundham's torso and let his head rest on his broad chest, listening Gundham's heart beat as fast as his own.
It felt very warm.
"Wow, this is... Nice..." Kazuichi muttered. He could not believe that all this was happening, he had really thought that he would be rejected, for that reason he chose this specific place to make his confession and for days he prepared himself to be able to cope with the rejection but in the end the unexpected happened, Gundham had reciprocated his feelings and now he was embracing him with such care and love that Kazuichi had never felt before in his life. The emotions he felt at that moment were so strong that he couldn't stop his body from trembling and tears began to slide down his cheeks.
"My paramour? What's wrong? Do you wish for me to stop?" Gundham became concerned as he realized that Kazuichi had started to cry and was about to pull away from the hug but Kazuichi held on tighter to stop him from doing so.
"No, it's not that, it's just that…I'm happy." He sniffed, raising his teary face to see Gundham's beautiful heterochromatic eyes looking at him with concern and adoration at the same time. Only Atua knew how much Kazuichi had dreamed of being seen like this by Gundham and finally, his dream came true. "Hey, can I kiss you?"
Gundham tensed again upon hearing that question but this time he didn't make a scene or refused, instead he nodded shyly and raised his hands to cup Kazuichi's face gently, as if he is the most valuable thing in the whole universe. Gundham admired Kazuichi's face for a moment and whispered, "So beautiful..."
Finally, Gundham leaned in, pulling Kazuichi's face into his, they both closed their eyes and their lips connected in a small kiss, soft and disastrous at the same time. Neither of them had kissed anyone before which was obvious, they were completely inexperienced and didn't know what to do and Kazuichi even ended up tearing Gundham's lips a bit with his sharp teeth for which he had to apologize many times, luckily Gundham decided not to care about it and they both tried again and again until they managed to find a rhythm that allowed them to enjoy the feeling of each other's lips, as Kazuichi's arms rose to hug Gundham's neck and Gundham's arms encircled Kazuichi's waist, pulling him closer to him.
After a while they both separated because their bodies needed to breathe and Gundham immediately leaned over to hide his blushing face in Kazuichi's neck who couldn't help but start laughing out loud at how shy his now boyfriend is. Still, he was happy. He finally has the person he loved in his arms.