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"When's your birthday, Aoyagi-kun?" Aoyagi Toya looks up from his translated copy of As You Like It, meeting the pair of golden eyes that had left the plants he was tending to a while ago. He had an inquisitive smile on his face, staring at Toya like a curious cat.
Two boys were sitting together at the edge of the planters in front of Kamiyama, Kamishiro Rui caring for the plants out front and Toya reading the book he recommended in his presence. Rui smiles at him, closing his eyes and sparkling with charm. Toya felt his face flush slightly.
He had a crush on his inventive upperclassman, his creativity and uniqueness drew Toya in like nothing else could. Not to mention he was one of the most attractive guys that he knew, unconventionally yes, but that seemed to be what Toya was most attracted to anyway. Every time Rui's eyes sparkled or he smiled his way, he looked absolutely stunning. It was as if Toya was the only one in the world who could see Rui that way.
"Why do you ask?" Toya inquires, his voice slightly muffled after sticking it back into the book. He hears Rui chuckle beside him, seeming amused. "Can't I know when my dearest underclassman's birthday is?" He reasons, his voice a warm and soothing melody in Toya's ears.
"It was last week, my birthday was on the 25th." The shuffling beside Toya stops, making him look up from his book again, he could hardly pay attention to it with Rui around anyway. Toya's eyes widen when he sees Rui's face, frozen in time with an almost distraught look imprinted in his eyes. Toya tilts his head slightly. "Kamishiro-senpai?" Rui turns over to him with the most pathetic looking face he's ever seen on the boy.
"Ah. I see…" he says quietly, smiling slightly as his eyebrows were still furrowed. Toya closes his book, turning to face Rui fully. "Uh, there's no need to feel bad, Kamishiro-senpai. There was no way you could've known." Toya says, going to put his hand on Rui's shoulder hesitantly. Rui stands up abruptly, startling Toya and leaving his garden tools scattered for him to then start cleaning up quickly. "I must take my leave now." He says, frantically checking if everything was with him.
Toya frowns, standing up with Rui. "Did something come up? Are you alright?" Rui doesn't make eye contact, already turning to leave. "Yes, I forgot to walk my fish! Farewell Aoyagi-kun!" He calls, running off the school grounds. Toya sits back down, the gates more interesting to him than Shakespeare could ever be. What the hell just happened.
☆
As the bell rings for his final class, Toya stands up slowly, his mind still on Rui from yesterday's interaction. To nobody’s surprise, Nene noticed. "Aoyagi-kun? Is something wrong?" They ask hesitantly. Toya looks up from the floor, allowing his confusion to shine through. "Sorry, Kusanagi. I've just been thinking about something Kamishiro-senpai said yesterday." He sighs. Nene wrinkles their nose slightly, crossing their arms. "Jeez, what did Rui do this time?" They asked, rolling their eyes almost playfully.
Toya smiles, Nene and Rui's relationship reminded him of his and Tsukasa's. It just seemed to be a lot more playful with them, Tsukasa was never really the type to playfully insult others anyway. He off-handedly wondered if Nene and Rui felt the same way about each other and Toya felt about Tsukasa.
"It's nothing crazy, don't worry. However, I'm a little confused about something he said." Toya explains, looking to Nene to get a cue to continue. Nene sits down at the desk next to Toya's, prompting him to speak. "Spill."
"Does Kamishiro-senpai have any pets?" Nene recoiled at the question, confused at the randomness of the content. "He has a cat robot the last time I checked, but no live pets. Why?" They ask in reply. Toya looks away, a bead of sweat forming on his face. "He said he 'had to walk his fish' when leaving yesterday-" Nene starts snickering, trying their best to hold in their laughter. "Mizuki would kill to know he said something like that." Toya chuckles slightly, "I guess it was a bit of a silly thing for him to say." He smiles.
Nene looks over at Toya with a sigh standing up and looking back at him to get him to follow. "Knowing Rui, he's probably planning something right now. Maybe check your locker for explosives." They advise, waiting for Toya to meet them at the door. They begin walking in the direction of Toya's locker. "Kamishiro-senpai wouldn't do something like that." Nene looks over at Toya to see his face filled with certainty. "Hm, I suppose you’re right, Rui has too much empathy to even squish a fly." They comment.
Toya smiles, a fond look in his eye. "He's really sweet, isn't he?" His green haired classmate shoots Toya an exasperated look, catching the dreamy sparkle in Toya's eyes and shaking their head. "Sure…" they mumble, the two first years stopping at Toya's small locker. Toya inputs his passcode and opens the lock, surprised to see a small note that seemed to have been slipped in by a person who must've known calligraphy.
"Well, go on, open it!" Nene pushes, watching Toya tear open the letter carefully. The writing inside was neat at first, but gradually got more messy by the end, hardly legible by the signature. It was almost as if the person was rushing, or maybe even panicking as they wrote the letter.
Dearest Aoyagi Toya,
I apologize for my abrupt departure yesterday, I must reassure you that it was not my intention to worry you. Furthermore, I must apologize for missing your birthday. I was most excited about the occasion this year and it's a tragedy that I missed it due to an oversight. I have something prepared to make it up to you, please meet me in front of Phenny Land at 19:00 this afternoon.
Yours truly,
Kamishiro Rui
Nene pats Toya on the back encouragingly. "Good luck, Aoyagi-kun." Toya looks at Nene with confusion. "With what?" He asks, causing Nene to smile slightly. "With getting yourself that man." They reply, eyeing the letter. Toya's face explodes with colour. "What? How did you-"
"You talk about him as if he's an angel descended from whatever god there is out there. I give you my blessing to date him or something. Even though you don't need it." Nene says, bidding him farewell and walking away, leaving Toya to stuff the letter in his pocket and make plans to sneak out that night.
☆
The anticipation alone was killing Kamishiro Rui as he waited at the gates of Phoenix Wonderland, dressed nicer than usual. The gate was already shut, so he had to wait outside for Toya to arrive, but he had a plan of entry. Phenny Land closes early on weekdays during the school year, so Toya and Rui would have the park all to themselves. Rui checks the watch on his wrist, five minutes past 19:00, Toya was late.
Meanwhile, Toya silently hypes himself up as he walks up to Phenny Land, turning round the corner to see the purple haired boy nervously playing with his fingers. He hadn't noticed Toya yet, he seemed to just be staring off into the distance. "Kamishiro-senpai?" Toya calls out, waving over at Rui as he walks up to him. Rui looks up quickly, a soft smile spreading over his lips. "Aoyagi-kun!" He calls back, Toya's pace picking up when he's recognized.
"You made it." Rui says, relief shining through his poor facade of neutrality. Toya nodded. "Of course I did. You don’t need to make up for anything, but I don't want to let you down since you've already gone through the trouble." Rui smiles at his answer and holds out a hand to Toya. "Shall we begin then?"
Toya didn't expect to be trespassing that night, but he supposed that he should know to expect the unexpected with Rui. They climbed over a fence and crawled through bushes to eventually get to the Wonder stage, which was decorated around the edges with fairy lights and multicoloured flowers. Rui steps onto the stage and smiles, holding his hand out for Toya again. Toya enthusiastically takes it, the world spinning around him as he's pulled up onto the stage and into Rui's arms.
Rui's cheeks were tinted with a pretty pink as he stumbled over his next words. "You had mentioned a while ago that you saw the way I danced during a show and wanted to learn, so I prepared this for you." He says quietly, smiling sheepishly. Toya blushes with him, he was right.
A while ago, during one of Wondasho's earlier shows, Rui had danced on stage with the Otori Emu for a scene. Rui had looked so ethereal during that dance, it made Toya's heart rate rise when he watched. After the show, Toya went up to Tsukasa and asked him if he could ask Rui to teach him how to dance like he did, and he guessed that Tsukasa had mentioned it to Rui off-handedly and they just never got around to it, until now that is.
Rui smiles and slides his hands out of Toya's, clapping them together twice as if he were signalling something. Toya's eyes widened with wonder as music started playing at the stage, the same music that played during the scene Rui danced in. Rui then gets into position, placing his hand on Toya's shoulder and prompting Toya to wrap his arm around Rui's waist. Toya hesitates, staring at Rui stiffly, who laughs at his rigid stance. "You want to learn the men's part, right?" He asks playfully. Toya smiles at his feet, his cheeks turning red again. "Uh, yeah, if that’s alright with you."
Rui sighs, and if Toya had been looking for it, he would've heard the longing in it. "I can still lead for a bit, but I'll let you take over once you've got the hang of it." Rui then takes Toyas hand and whisks him into the dance with a smile, counting out the beats and steps as they went around the stage in circles. It was rough at first, Toya kept stepping on Rui's feet, and he almost fell over after getting dizzy, but eventually he seemed to understand the steps. Toya pulls Rui closer until they're pressed against each other, meeting his beautiful golden eyes with a determined gaze.
Rui smiles back down at Toya and raises his eyebrows at hiwarsm, as if he were asking if Toya was ready to take over. Toya furrows his eyebrows, stumbling into the lead but quickly recovering and following the rhythm of the music. Rui hums quietly, his thumb rubbing Toya's collarbone. "That's it, you've got it." Toya smiles and spins Rui around quickly, Rui laughing as he's pulled along with the dance, a more beautiful melody than the one that played around them.
Suddenly Rui smiles playfully, mischief in his voice as he pitches an idea to Toya. "You should try the dip." He grins, Toya's heart leaping in his chest. He spins Rui around again before replying. "Are you sure?" He asks cautiously. Rui nods his head, signalling for Toya to take them to the middle of the stage. "Are you ready?" He asks, Toya held his breath and nodded in reply. In a flurry of reflexes, Toya catches Rui's back and leg, holding him down in a miraculous dip. "You did it!" Rui exclaims.
He spoke a bit too soon though and Toya lost his balance, causing the two to topple ungraciously to the ground with a loud thud. Toya suddenly starts apologizing frantically, gathering himself as he realizes he's fallen on top of Rui until he notices Rui’s laughter from beneath him. Toya stares as Rui laughs his heart out, the blue haired boy's cheeks burning at the ethereal sight. His head was between where Toya's hands had landed, his arms up and leaving himself vulnerable like a cat on it's back. Rui seemed to glow as he smiled up at him, and words seemed to tumble out of Toya's mouth before he could stop them. "Can I kiss you?"
Rui's smile fades and his face suddenly the colour of a ripe tomato, blinking up at Toya in surprise. Toya opens his mouth to apologize when Rui speaks up. "Please." He whispers, his eyes meeting Toya's as his arms wrap around his neck. "What?" Toya's eyes are as wide as saucers, his heart threatening to burst from his chest. "Kiss me." That was enough for Toya to crash into Rui's lips, feeling Rui's fingers find their way into his hair. He was hyper aware of every sense, the melody of the music and the lovely sigh Rui released, every kind touch Rui left on his scalp, and the strong scent of lavender and motor oil that Rui gave off. Everything was about Rui. Toya tilts his head to the side, getting impossibly close to Rui as he slid his arms around his waist and head.
The kiss was sloppy and inexperienced on both ends, and by far the worst kiss either of them will ever experience. But at the same time, it was exciting and beautiful, their first kiss taken by their first love. Rui's hands retract and he places his hands on Toya's shoulders, getting the split haired boy to get off of him so he could catch his breath. Toya smiled down at Rui as he struggled to breathe, looking back up at Toya with those sparkling golden eyes. "I forgot to breathe." He mumbles, causing the two of them to laugh together before Rui smiles. "Kiss me again." He demands, Toya leaning down to kiss him again, this time slowly and gently.
The second kiss didn't last nearly as long though, for a yell was heard from afar. "Hey! Who's there?" Rui and Toya scramble to get up, Toya looking at Rui for assistance. Rui grabs Toya's wrist and pulls him into the bushes next to the wonder stage, hiding from the security guard as he checks the set for anything suspicious and shakes his head. "Those kids and their crazy inventions turning on at night." He grumbles, walking away from the stage again.
Rui leaves the bush to check if the man was gone before smiling at Toya, quietly telling him to follow him to leave. With the snap of Rui's fingers, the music stops and the two boys sneak out of Phoenix Wonderland again, fingers intertwined and laughter echoing through the air. Then Rui stopped and placed his arms around Toya's shoulders, spining the two around while looking at Toya expectantly before the blue haired boy wraps his arms around Rui's waist and presses a short kiss to his lips. Rui smiles with satisfaction, pressing their foreheads together.
"Are we dating yet?" Toya asks suddenly, causing Rui's face to flush slightly. "Well, you haven't asked yet so-" Rui is cut off by Toya's next question. "Will you be my boyfriend, Rui?" He asks, dropping the honorifics and using his first name instead. Rui's blush spreads to his ears as he nods. "I would love to be your boyfriend, Toya." He smiles, and they kissed once more under the rising moon.