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In his 24 years of living, Shu has dated a few people, both men and women. He laughed, he cried, he loved and he got his heart broken, so you could say he’s not new to love. And yet there’s someone that makes him feel like a teenager talking to his crush for the first time. It’s not someone insanely popular or rich, in fact he always describes himself as a very ordinary person, but for Shu, he’s like a shining star that always brightens his days.
It all happened in a very normal way too, nothing too special. Shu was at a bookstore one day looking for a new manga he had seen on Twitter when he noticed a boy next to him that seemed to have trouble finding something. Shu asked him if he needed help in japanese, and soon realized the man was a foreigner when he looked at him with a confused expression.
“Sorry, can you go again?” The man asked with a thick aussie accent, but Shu was too stunned to speak.
You see, Shu’s a realist person, he doesn’t really believe in things such as “love at first sight”, but this guy, he made Shu’s heart almost beat out of his chest in one second. He wore a white shirt with some band logo on it, a black leather jacket on top of it. Dark blue ripped jeans hugged his legs perfectly and a pair of black and gold boots finished the outfit, making him look stunning under the old flickering light of the book store. Shu noticed he also had a golden necklace and a few earrings, but what left him breathless was his face. Tan skin, some freckles on the bridge of his nose and a pair of blue eyes that looked at him with a glint of interest, as if he too had been surprised.
“D-do you need help?” Shu stuttered, and he punched himself mentally because he must look so stupid right now, but the stranger didn’t seem to mind. Instead he beamed Shu a smile when he heard the ravenette speak english.
“Yes! I just moved to Japan recently and I’m still having some trouble with the language. Can you please help me find this manga?” He showed Shu a picture on his phone, and it must have been destiny because it was the same one Shu was about to buy. He told him he was interested in it too and guided the man to the section. Shu pointed to said manga, but when the blond grabbed it they both realized it was the only one left.
“Ah, It was the last one… You can have it.” He handed it to Shu with a smile.
“No, you have it. It can help you practice your reading.” Shu didn’t really mind, he could come another day and see if they brought more. But still, the blond didn’t seem satisfied with his answer.
“But you helped me find it… I feel bad taking it.” He pouted, and Shu had to stop his lips from curving upwards.
“It’s okay, I’ll come back next week to see if they have more.” He waved his hand trying to show the boy it wasn’t a big deal, but he still looked at him as if trying to think of a solution.
“Wait, I have an idea!” A lightbulb seemed to turn on inside his head. He looked at Shu with a big smile, eyes shining with excitement. “I will read it first, and then I’ll give it to you so you can read it too! Does that sound good?” He asked and tilted his head like a puppy, and there was no way Shu could refuse.
“Sure, I’m Shu by the way.” He extended his hand and the blond took it and shaked it.
“I’m Luca! It’s nice to finally have a friend here, I felt so alone.”
“Friend…? But we just met…” Shu was surprised again by Luca, this guy was weird, in a good way of course.
Luca released his hand, but the smile remained on his face. “I can tell we are gonna be good friends, Shubert.” He already had a nickname for him, and Shu didn’t know why, but he believed Luca was right.
-
After that encounter they continued seeing each other and actually became good friends. They realized they lived pretty close, and so they would often hang out, one day at Shu’s place and the next at Luca’s.
But after a year or so of friendship, Shu started to feel something weird. His long conversations with Luca at night started feeling more personal, his heart beat faster when the blond messaged him back, and one day Luca asked him something that made him realize.
“I’ve never been in love before, how does it feel?”
It was an innocent question, but it made Shu freeze, his gaze lost. Luca paused the game they were playing to look at him, asking if he’s okay. Shu nodded and said he’s fine, but he felt a weird sensation in his stomach. He looked at Luca, his lavender eyes shining bright, almost blinding him.
“It’s a weird feeling… It usually starts slow, you don’t even realize it. You wish conversations lasted a little longer, you feel your heart beating faster when that person messages you, even if it's just a short reply. Time spent with that person feels like a dream, and you find yourself going home with a bittersweet feeling, because even though you enjoyed the time you wanted it to never end. Things that didn’t matter before start seeming more important, and without realizing you can even start to feel a little jealous of your friends. “I wish they hugged me, I wish they smiled at me instead.” That usually happens the first time you fall in love, when you still don’t fully understand the feeling. But after the first weeks when the feeling of being in love is at its peak, it gets calmer. It’s like the sea after a storm, the waves have already crashed, and now all you have is the slow but constant movement of the waters. I think that’s the best part, because it's when you realize how much you truly love that person. When you look at them smiling and think “I want to protect that smile forever”, or when they talk about something good that happened today and you feel like you would do anything to see them happy forever. It’s the little things that make you realize you are in love, because if it was someone else you wouldn’t even notice, but when that special person does it it suddenly feels like it's really important and you will cherish the memory forever.”
Shu sighed, closing his eyes for a moment to collect his thoughts. Luca didn’t know, but what he just said is how he feels right now. He looked at the blond with a little smile, trying to not think too much about his own feelings. “Sorry for the ramble there.” He apologized softly, but Luca didn’t say anything at all. He seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. Shu gently tapped his shoulder, and the blond almost jumped from the sofa. ”Are you okay?”
“Y-yeah! I’m okay, don’t worry.” He waved his hands nervously, and Shu didn’t quite believe him but he decided not to ask more.
-
It took Luca a month since then to realize what he was feeling. It was subtle, but Shu noticed the little changes in his behavior. His hands seemed to accidentally touch Shu’s more often and he would always tell him good night and good morning, even if he was really busy. Shu also caught Luca staring at him a few times, and every time it happened the blond blushed and looked away. Shu didn’t wanna get his hopes up, but it was really hard when Luca acted like that. Should he confess? He thought about it many times, and every time he ended up with the same conclusion, yes. Why not? Luca is a good guy, even if his feelings aren’t reciprocated Luca wouldn’t hate him. Maybe things between them get a little weird, but it’s a price Shu is willing to pay. So after thinking about it and planning everything, Shu invited Luca to his place one day with the idea of confessing in mind.
What he didn’t expect was Luca at his door with a big bouquet of yellow and violet tulips and a bag with a handmade cake. Shu looked at him in silence, his eyes wide open.
“Um… I-I wanted to bring something…” Luca explained with a light blush, and it shouldn’t have made Shu’s heart beat so fast, but It did. The ravenette thought he couldn’t love him more, but Luca always seemed to prove him wrong.
Shu grabbed the flowers and brought them closer to him, breathing in the faint sweet scent. “Thank you, they are really pretty” He smiled, his eyes turning to crescents, and Luca’s heart accelerated like a race car. “Can you put the cake in the fridge? We can eat it later.” Luca nodded and made his way to the fridge. He’s been to Shu place so many times he knows it like it was his own.
And so the day continued like usual, playing games until they got tired and decided to watch a movie. Shu felt Luca was sitting closer today, his hand shyly resting on Shu’s thigh.
“Shu…?” Luca asked, his voice a whisper.
“Yeah?” Shu looked at him, his big amethyst eyes had a mix of fear and hope in them.
Luca shifted his position to look at him, gently holding Shu’s hands. He looked around nervously before his gaze stopped at Shu’s eyes. His hands trembled a little, his heart was racing and he felt out of breath even before speaking.
“Do you remember when I asked about being in love a month ago?”
Shu’s heart was about to beat out of his chest. “I do”
“Well, I-I think I’m in love with you!” He confessed, maybe a bit too loud, too nervous, but It didn’t matter for Shu. The ravenette listened carefully, his full attention on Luca now while the movie played in the background.
Luca felt his cheeks burning, sweat dripping down his forehead because god was he nervous. It took him a week to gather the courage to decide he was gonna confess, and now that he was finally doing it he felt his chest about to explode.
“Sorry if this is too sudden! It just felt like a good moment and y-you look so pretty so I uh… Agh I messed up!” Luca’s hands covered his face, the blush so evident it even spread to his ears. He closed his eyes and wished the earth could swallow him right there, but a certain sound made him come back to his senses and open the hand covering his face so he could see.
Shu was laughing. Amethyst orbs looked at him so fondly, his lips curved into a big smile as he softly laughed. There was a pretty pink blush on his cheeks, a sparkle in his eyes as he grabbed Luca’s hands from his face so the blond could only look at him.
“You beat me to it.” Shu giggled, and Luca didn’t understand a thing. “I was gonna confess to you today.”
Luca blinked quickly a few times, this must be a dream. “Huh?”
“Yeah, that’s why I invited you today. I had it all planned, but since you did it first-”
“You can still do it!” Luca held Shu’s hands tightly, his eyes shining with excitement.
“Eh?” Now it was Shu’s turn to be confused.
“You can still confess!” The blond said and unconsciously moved forward, his face way too close to Shu’s.
The ravenette rolled his eyes with a sigh, a bright blush on his cheeks. “You already confessed tho, so there’s no need for me to do it.”
Luca’s big smile changed into a big pout, and Shu already knew he lost. “Please Shu, I really wanna hear it from you…” The man looked at him like a kicked puppy, and Shu was only a boy in love. He looked Luca in the eye, feeling even more embarrassed when he saw how the blond stared at him with a serious face, like he didnt wanna miss a single detail.
“I love you, Luca.” He spoke softly, maybe even a little scared, but his heart raced when he realized Luca was now blushing even more than him. “Why are YOU blushing so much? It’s me confessing now!” He pointed out, feeling Luca’s hands sweating while they still held his.
“I don’t know, it’s just embarrassing!”
“Huh?! But you’re the one who suddenly confessed first!”
Luca released Shu’s hands, rolling on the sofa away from Shu and covering his face again. “Don’t even remind me! God why am I so embarrassing.”
“That’s one of the things I like about you, you always say what you think.” Shu caressed Luca’s head gently as if he was a puppy. He shortened the distance between them, making Luca sit down properly before giving a quick peck on the cheek. “Let’s continue the movie, shall we?” The ravenette smiled, and Luca swore his heart exploded from happiness.
-
“Shu? Are you paying attention?” The blond spoke softly, careful not to move around too much. Shu was sitting between his legs, wrapped around a blanket and spacing out.
“Eh? Did you say something?”
“The movie, are you watching it?” Luca paused it and moved the human burrito in his arms so he was facing him.
“Ah, sorry, I got distracted.” Shu apologized and took advantage of the new position to give Luca a kiss. He could feel the blond’s lips curving upwards as he kissed back gently, not wanting to break the relaxing atmosphere.
Luca played with some strands of black hair, admiring how cute Shu looked. “What's on your mind darling?”
“I was just thinking about the past, when we met and everything that happened.”
Luca raised an eyebrow. “That’s a lot to think about, since when were you not paying attention?”
“Umm… Since the beginning?”
“I knew it, the movie is so boring if you were actually paying attention you would’ve complained about it a while ago.” He said with a smirk when he saw Shu’s cheeks getting warm after being caught. “Can’t blame you tho, the movie sucks.” He turned off the TV and held Shu closer.
“It’s almost been two years since then, time flies by so fast.”
“They do say time passes by faster when you’re having fun, right?”
Shu giggled, letting Luca plant kisses all over his face. “Of course babe, how could I get bored when I have the funniest husband on earth?”
“H-husband?” Luca seemed to freeze for a moment before his face turned red.
“Well, when you finally ask me…” Shu spoke softly, looking at Luca through long lashes with his big shiny amethyst eyes. He knew Luca was weak to that look, and seeing his boyfriend fall for it once again made his chest feel warm. No matter how much time passes, Luca always makes his heart race.
“I will! S-soon!” Luca almost yelled, his face bright red.
Shu giggled, kissing his boyfriend once more. “It’s gonna be christmas soon, should I be waiting for a surprise then?”
Luca nodded, the smile never leaving his lips. “Mmm… Who knows, maybe Santa will give you a present if you’re a good boy.” He said playing with Shu’s cheeks like it was mochi.
The ravenette smirks, hands coming out of the blanket and resting on Luca’s chest. “Then I should start showing Santa how good I am, right?” He says with a lower tone, amethyst eyes star
ting to darken.
Luca chuckles, and he knows they won’t be finishing any movie tonight.
“Sure darling, show Santa you’re a good boy.”