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For one entire second, Haku had enjoyed it. He'd managed the perfect off-hand delivery, slid into a normal morning conversation: "Oh, by the way, just letting you know, I'm gonna switch houses again."
One entire second of silence, and he'd bitten the insides of his cheeks to keep from smiling and looked as innocent as he knew how as he turned back to Subaru -
- who was motionless, and white as paper.
"Oh."
It was the tiniest, saddest, most lost little sound Haku had ever heard. His heart had immediately plummeted to the soles of his feet.
"If that's what you want," Subaru had started, and then Haku had seen the wetness welling at Subaru's lash line, and the whole thing had collapsed in on itself.
"Subaru - I was joking," he'd said, as quickly as he could, knowing it wasn't fast enough. "I was joking. I swear."
"What?" Subaru had caught his breath, shaky and uneven, and sat down hard on the bench behind him. It had suddenly occurred to Haku that he might genuinely faint. "Why would you -"
That was, in fact, a very good question. Why would he. "It's April Fools' Day," he'd offered, the hollowest of defenses.
"Oh. Of... course." And Subaru had visibly forced himself to smile, to laugh a limp, damp laugh that only made Haku feel seven hundred times worse. "Silly me. I'd completely forgotten. I suppose that makes me the April fool."
It made Haku the asshole, was what. He'd reached out a hand towards where Subaru was hugging his own upper arms to himself. "I'm sorry, Subaru. I didn't mean -"
"Of course you didn't. Just a harmless little joke. It's my fault for overreacting." Subaru had taken another, slightly better breath, and firmed up his smile a little, but he'd avoided Haku's hand as he stood up. "Come on. We'll be late for class."
They'd had to hurry, and there hadn't been time to talk about it; Subaru had kept his eyes on Dante the whole class, and headed off in the opposite direction from where Haku needed to go the instant the bell rang.
The whole rest of the day, the leaden feeling of having definitely, definitely fucked up sits in Haku's stomach and sours.
He's not sure what to do about it. It had only been a joke, after all. But there was no way it had felt like one. Does that mean flowers? Dinner? Flowers and dinner, and a grovelling apology? Does that overplay it?
Flowers would be a start. The campus store usually has some sad-looking carnations, and he could swing past Jabberwock on the way there to pick a few of the daisies Otonashi often has stuffed in his cardigan buttonhole, to jazz the bouquet up a bit. Not exactly ikebana, but an effort. He's most of the way to the Jabberwock gate when his phone buzzes.
He's probably too grateful to see Subaru's name at the top of the WickChat notification.
Could you please meet me in the reception room as soon as you can? There's something I need to discuss with you.
I'll be right there, he sends back, and just knowing that soon he can sort this out, he feels a little less awful. He'll apologise, better this time - it'll be okay.
The instant he lays eyes on Subaru, he knows it isn't.
Subaru doesn't look up, or smile, and nobody sits that straight if they have good news. And there's no cups of tea, no snacks - just a small stack of papers, half a dozen pages, on the low table in front of Subaru, and a small box on the floor beside him.
"Please have a seat," he says, quietly. Haku does.
Still without looking up at him, Subaru slides the papers across to Haku.
"This is for you, Kusanagi-san." Oh no. "It's your transfer request."
"My -" Haku's mouth hangs open.
"It's approved."
Finally, Subaru looks up.
Violet is a cold colour, Haku thinks, with a sense of deep bafflement. It's never been a cold colour before.
"You wanted to leave," Subaru says, and the words are so calm and reasonable that they almost feel like a different language. "I pulled some strings."
He picks up the box, and bows as he holds it out to Haku in both hands.
Haku's seen a box like this before. Twice. The rich velvety texture of the black cardboard and the logo embossed on the top are so familiar. He still doesn't feel like it's a real object, even as he takes it, and feels its weight and its precise corners, and flips the hinged lid back.
Inside is a neatly rolled Darkwick tie, in Vagastrom yellow.
Haku stares at it. "Subaru, I -"
Subaru's voice is firm. "Clearly you had the thought that this wasn't the best place for you. So I've made all the arrangements. You'll report to Mido-san in the morning. And you really don't need to worry -"
The door opens, again, behind them. But Haku can't look away from the tie, until the new set of sock feet have crossed the mats and stopped behind Subaru. There is the sigh of someone settling to their knees.
Haku makes himself look up.
Behind Subaru's shoulder, arms crossed tightly, wearing a stony scowl and a purple tie, is Sho.
Subaru says calmly, "I'll still have a vice-captain."
As though he is not part of his own body, Haku realises he's dizzy.
He's swaying, he thinks. He needs to ground himself.
He concentrates on the intricate damask pattern of the Vagastrom tie, the bright yellow against the black, the smooth side of the roll, spiraling all the way to its centre -
...It's creased.
He looks again, with eyes that feel suddenly sharper.
There, against the yellow, is a minuscule splot of red-brown.
Tomato.
He whips his chin up and stares directly at Sho.
Who is still glowering, giving Haku nothing, but very pointedly not meeting his eyes.
"Kusanagi-san." Subaru's voice is just a little too sweet. "Don't tell me you're rethinking your decisions?"
Subaru isn't quite smiling.
But with incredible poise, he looks down to the stack of papers on the table in front of Haku, until Haku follows his gaze.
One elegant gloved fingertip flicks the top sheet aside, letting it slip to the floor.
In red ink, the page underneath reads:
APRIL FOOLS
The dizziness surges, and he lets it have him; he groans with his whole soul, lobs the tie not very accurately towards Sho's head, and collapses, flat on his face, onto the floor at Subaru's knees.
"I am rethinking every single decision I've made today," he mumbles against the matting.
"Good," Subaru says, with very great feeling.
"I think I've been had." He can't quite manage to sound accusing, only exhausted.
"What gave it away?" Sho mutters, dry as the desert.
"I deserved this," Haku admits. He deserves the way his whole body feels, too, shaky and wrung-out.
But it's okay, because Subaru sighs, and pulls Haku's hands into his lap. "You did, a little."
Sho scoots out from behind Subaru, and looks Haku over in a way that tells Haku exactly how much Subaru told him. "You did, a lot. Be nicer to Subaru, dumbass."
"Sho-kun," Subaru chides gently.
"Sorry - dumbass-senpai." Sho is obviously not even a little bit sorry. It makes Haku want to laugh, for the first time all day. "My point stands, though."
"It does." Haku shifts his hands in Subaru's so he can squeeze Subaru's fingers. "I really am sorry."
Subaru runs his thumb over Haku's knuckles. "Please don't say things like that again. Unless you mean them."
"I didn't mean them at all. I can't leave Hotarubi." He tries to pull himself closer to Subaru, hoping to rest his head against Subaru's knees, but it's too hard. "For one thing, I can't even stand up. My legs don't work."
"Yeah, yeah, April fools," Sho says, but his tone is gentler too. "You think after all that you can con me into carrying you just because you like that I'm strong?"
"Don't carry me, then," Haku says. "I'm here. I'm staying here. Just hold me."
"Oh, Haku." And just hearing his first name again, in Subaru's soft voice, is all the forgiveness he needs.