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After helping to wrap everything up and saying their goodbyes to their friends and colleagues, Chris and Yuki made their way toward the station. The night air was cool, and their footsteps echoed softly against the pavement.
As they walked, their conversation naturally revolved around today’s show. At some point, they decided to go to Chris’s place to have some drinks and hang out. It had been a while since the last time Yuki came to his place.
Before they knew it, they had reached the train station entrance, tapping their cards at the turnstiles before heading down to the platform.
A few minutes later, the train pulled in and the doors slid open. They stepped inside, the carriage nearly empty except for a few scattered passengers. Yuki immediately made a beeline for a pair of seats, throwing himself into one with a satisfied sigh. Chris followed, sliding into the seat beside him and setting his suitcase under his seat.
As soon as they settled in, Yuki adjusted his glasses and took out his phone from his purse. He scrolled through his social media feed to look at a few posts before nudging Chris with his elbow. "Look, it looks like To-y-chan," he said, tilting his phone to show him a pic of a dog with eyebrows.
Chris huffed out a quiet laugh, shaking his head. "You always find the most ridiculous stuff." He adjusted his cap and leaned in slightly to watch Yuki swiping through funny and cute videos of animals that had both of them chuckling under their breath.
Chris crossed his arms, blinking sluggishly. The rhythmic hum of the train’s movement and the low sound coming from Yuki’s phone blended into white noise. He stifled a yawn behind his hand and turned his attention back to the phone.
"This one kind of looks like you, " he laughed as he watched a video of a ferret “dancing” as its owner made it move.
Chris chuckled, though it was a slow, tired kind of laugh. "That’s... funny." He managed, shifting slightly in his seat. The evening had worn him out more than he realized. Between the show and now the train ride home, his body was making it clear it wanted to shut down for the night.
Yuki grinned, his eyes flicking toward Chris with a knowing look. “You were so excited to go and drink together, but now you're barely keeping your eyes open. Should I go back home so you can sleep?"
“Of course not.” Chris scoffed, straightening his back as if to prove a point. "I’m fine. I can, and I’m going to handle it."
"Sure..." Yuki arched his brow, unconvinced. "But if you fall asleep, I'm going back home."
"Yeah, like you would waste the chance to spend the night with me just like that."
Yuki rolled his eyes but smirked. They kept watching the videos in silence—at least, Chris did. Yuki’s comfortable presence and warmth beside him proved to be an unfair advantage against his exhaustion. He barely noticed his blinks growing longer or the way his posture slouched as the minutes passed. His head dipped forward slightly before tilting to the side, coming to rest against something solid and pleasant—Yuki’s shoulder.
“Feeling comfortable?” Yuki teased as he felt Chris against him, waiting for a response until he felt a change in his breathing. He glanced down at the sleeping Chris and had to stifle his laughter. "Well, you’re indeed very comfortable," he muttered under his breath.
He leaned forward slightly, trying to get any reaction from Chris, but got none. Chris just slid a bit onto Yuki's back, now resting against it with his head hanging.
Yuki opened the camera and angled it just right to snap a quick picture. This was a rare sight, and he wasn’t about to let it go that easy.
He opened Instagram and typed out a caption with a smirk: 'Sleepy boy hides behind my back' and tagged him before posting it on his stories. He would tease Chris about it later.
Satisfied, he leaned his back against his seat and exhaled, shifting slightly to let Chris rest more comfortably against him, his head once again resting on Yuki’s shoulder. He could feel the faint rise and fall of Chris’ breathing, the way his weight pressed gently against him. It felt oddly nice.
Yuki stayed still for a few seconds until he angled his phone again to take new pictures; this time he was also in the frame, smiling and sticking out his tongue while Chris remained asleep, unaware of the situation.
It was only after a few minutes that Yuki began to notice the glances from other passengers. An elderly couple nearby were whispering, occasionally casting furtive glances in their direction. Further down the car, two young women covered their mouths as they giggled, sneaking glances before whispering excitedly to each other. Even an exhausted salaryman across the aisle glanced at them before looking away.
Yuki felt a warm flush creep up his neck. He wasn’t embarrassed, of course not. But he wasn’t used to being observed like this. Yeah, he was being observed almost every day in the ring, but this was different. This was something more… Intimate.
Still, he couldn’t blame them. It was probably an amusing sight—something pulled out of a romantic drama.
And the fact that Yuki wasn’t pushing him away and wasn’t waking him up? Yeah, that probably just added to the entertainment.
Yuki sighed, shaking his head with a small smile. It wasn’t like he was going to wake Chris up just because some people were looking at them.
He hesitated, then slowly—almost experimentally—tilted his own head, inching toward Chris’s just slightly. The idea formed in his mind before he could think it through. If he just leaned a little more, if he let his head rest against Chris’s for just a moment—allowing himself to simply exist in the moment and the warmth between them. He wasn’t quite ready to let go yet.
But his thoughts were interrupted by the automated voice chiming overhead, announcing the station before theirs. He didn’t have time to join Chris as he had to wake him up. He sighed and nudged Chris lightly. "Oi, sleepy boy. Wake up."
Chris mumbled something, shifting slightly before his eyes blinked open, unfocused and hazy with sleep. It took him a few seconds to register where he was—and even longer to realize who he was leaning against.
He jolted upright, feeling slightly embarrassed as he adjusted his cap. "Sorry.”
"Morning.” Yuki just smirked. “I’m glad I didn’t leave you here by yourself."
Chris groaned, rubbing his face. "God, how long was I out?"
“Just enough for me to get some pics."
"Wait, what?" Chris froze as Yuki took his phone again and opened Instagram. "Tell me you didn’t post them."
“Of course I did.” Yuki didn’t even try to hide his amusement as he showed him his story with a proud smile. "Everyone is talking about how you’re the cutest sleepy boy."
Chris sighed. He was too tired to be properly mortified, but he let himself fall back onto Yuki's shoulder, this time on purpose. "You’re the most annoying person in the world.” He murmured as he smirked, playing with his purse zipper.
Yuki blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the sudden weight against his shoulder. Chris was awake this time. Awake, aware, and still choosing to lean against him. This felt different. Before Chris had drifted off naturally, the weight of exhaustion pulled him into sleep. But now, he has chosen this.
Yuki swallowed, feeling the warmth of Chris's body through his jacket. The steady rhythm of his breathing was more noticeable now that he wasn’t lost in unconsciousness.
“Annoying, sure,” Yuki muttered, trying to inject the usual teasing into his voice. But it came out softer than intended, almost hesitant.
“Very annoying.” Chris just exhaled a slow, content breath. The train’s movement rocked them slightly, and Chris adjusted just a little, settling even closer, his arm brushing against Yuki’s in a way that sent a quiet buzz up his spine.
They stayed like that for a moment, enjoying each other’s company, until the automated voice chimed overhead again, announcing their stop.
"Don’t sleep. This is our stop." Yuki grabbed his purse and Chris’ arm, tugging him toward the doors as they slid open. Chris followed by grabbing his suitcase, still half-asleep.
They stepped off the train and made their way toward the exit, the cool night air hitting them as they walked through the street.
Neither of them said much as they left the station, but something between them had shifted. He could feel it in the way Chris didn’t immediately move away in the train, in the way his own body responded—aware of every inch of contact, of every weight shift.
This wasn’t the usual casual banter, the mindless teasing. It was something else, something more intimate, resting between them. The silence between them now felt charged, filled with something unspoken yet undeniable.
Chris adjusted his cap with his free hand as he walked alongside Yuki, both of them keeping a comfortable distance but still walking close enough to each other that every so often, their hands would brush against each other.
At first, it was small, almost unnoticeable, just the barest of touches as they walked side by side. But Yuki’s heart skipped a beat when their hands brushed for the third time, this time lingering for a fraction of a second longer than before. Chris glanced at him briefly, his expression unreadable. The sensation was there, like an unspoken invitation.
Before Yuki could say something, Chris reached out first, his fingers brushing once again against Yuki’s hand. A small, tentative touch, but it was enough. Chris’s fingers slid into his, their hands now fully clasped together.
“It’s okay, don’t think about it too much.” Chris said with his eyes fixed forward. “I can see the gears turning in your head.”
Yuki stopped in his tracks, completely thrown off by the comment—the fact that Chris had just effortlessly called him out like he could read him that easily. The sheer absurdity of it, of the whole situation, hit him all at once, and before he could stop himself, laughter bubbled up in his chest.
“I can’t believe you’re laughing.” Chris sighed dramatically, but it only took a few more seconds before he gave in, a chuckle escaping him. It was impossible not to when Yuki was laughing like that—completely unguarded like this was the funniest thing that had ever happened to him.
“Sorry,” Yuki said as both started to calm down. He looked at their hands, then up at Chris. "We are just idiots."
"Kind of." Their expressions softened with a small smile. Yuki just gave a slight squeeze to Chris’s hand as they continued walking. They didn’t say anything else for the rest or their walk; there was no need for words—just two friends, walking side by side, their hands intertwined as they made their way through the quiet street.
Neither of them needed to explain or address what happened. Not for now, at least.
Even if something had changed between them, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.