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“So everything's cleaned up over here now, huh?” Hiiro picked up the basketballs, checking if they're properly cleaned.
He didn't mind helping out Aira, and since it was late, he would feel bad for leaving him alone. Cleaning gym equipment may not be the most interesting task, but it's better to do it with someone that you know, rather than by yourself.
“Yeah… I guess we can take these to the storage room now?” Aira sighed, wiping sweat from his forehead. They've been here for a while now, and both of them were getting tired.
“Huhh… Time to go home… Thanks for helping out, H- Hiro-kun… And I’m sorry for keeping you here, once again…” Aira put the equipment in its place, undusting his hands.
The storage room was dark, the only source of light was coming from the corridor of the gym, as they left the door to the storage room wide open.
“Umu! No problem, Aira!” Hiiro replied, looking around the storage room.
It was pretty spacious for a storage room, but packed with a lot of equipment at the same time, so there wasn’t really much room. “Should we go, then?” He asked for confirmation.
“Yes, su-”
The source of light was suddenly cut off, as the door shut loudly, causing a rumble.
“Eek-!” Aira squeaked. “What happened?!"
“The door closed, Aira. It’s nothing, we just need to open it again.”
Hiiro reassured him. He was better at seeing in the dark than Aira, so he decided to approach the door himself.
“... It won’t open.” Hiiro added, after trying to twist the knob. It wasn’t working.
“Huh?! What do you mean, it won’t open?! Uuu…” Aira questioned, letting out a whimper. “I’ll try myself, too…” He slowly approached, careful not to trip or knock something over.
Even after Aira gave it a try, it wasn’t opening. The door was undoubtedly stuck.
“Should I kick the door down?” Hiiro asked, his voice seemed serious, so Aira knew he wasn’t joking.
“Eh?! Hiro-kun, no! Don’t do that… I don’t want us to get in trouble, you know…” Aira’s voice got quieter. “What do we do…”
“Do you have your phone?” Hiiro questioned.
“My phone? No, I left it in the gym… Do you have yours?”
“... I left mine as well. I didn’t think we’d need it in the storage room.” Hiiro sighed.
“... So, what now…”
“Do we need to spend the night here?” Hiiro looked around, while Aira was still standing next to the door. “There is a mattress here, but I think this storage room will only fit one mattress at a time. I can sleep on the floor, if anything!” Hiiro added.
“...” Aira was quiet. Hiiro didn’t know why.
“Aira? Are you still here?” He questioned.
His vision in the dark wasn’t that good, to tell exactly where Aira was. But he could feel the heat radiating off of a human’s body, and he could sense his presence somewhere close.
“Uu, I’m here, Hiro-kun…” Aira answered quietly, as his feet shuffled across the floor, towards Hiiro. “I’m scared…”
Hiiro stayed quiet for a moment. “Are you scared of the dark, Aira?”
… No response, which Hiiro took as a yes.
“Wah-!” Hiiro could only hear a thud, as Aira made a strange noise. “Ow…” Aira whimpered, his voice getting shaky.
“Aira? What happened…?” Hiiro tried to find Aira in the dark, spotting him sitting on the floor.
“I tripped over… something…” Aira looked around, not seeing anything that could make him fall over, though. “I’m scared, Hiro-kunn…”
“... Does anything hurt?” Hiiro approached, helping Aira get up.
“My wrist… I think I landed on it weirdly…” Aira sniffled. “I want to go back home…”
Hiiro took Aira’s hand into his, and even though he couldn’t see it, Aira started blushing.
“H- Hiro-kun?” He questioned.
Hiiro started rubbing his thumb against Aira’s wrist. It was a nice feeling, except it was making Aira embarrassed. It was Hiro-kun, after all.
“I’m trying to make the pain fade away!” Hiiro answered with his usual optimism, making Aira smile as well, even if the situation wasn’t ideal.
“Thank you, Hiro-kun…” Aira’s pain had faded away, but he didn’t want to tell Hiiro about it.
He enjoyed Hiiro’s simple gesture, even if his heart was beating out of his chest.
“I’ll lay out the mattress now, okay? I’m sure it’s getting late.”
Hiiro approached the mattresses, taking one out of the pile, making sure the other ones won’t fall.
“You can sleep on it, Aira! I’ll take the floor. I don’t mind!” Hiiro put down the mattress. “Come over carefully, okay? Don’t trip!”
Aira approached the mattress, laying down. He was staring at the ceiling with teary eyes.
“It’s cold here… And scary…”
His body was shaking, both from the rollercoaster of emotions, and from the cold temperature. Both of the boys were just wearing their shirts, having nothing to cover themselves with.
“Are you okay, Aira…?” Hiiro questioned, even if he probably should’ve known the answer by now.
“Of course I’m not, stupid Hiro-kun…” Aira sniffled. “I don’t like being in the dark… And I’m freezing, I’m kinda hungry, too…” He was crying at this point.
He wouldn’t be bawling his eyes out over something so stupid normally, but something about all of this was just… making him feel more sensitive.
“Aira…” Hiiro was definitely worried, not knowing what to say.
“... Can I come closer?” Hiiro questioned, to which Aira hummed, giving him a quiet approval.
Hiiro scooted over, sitting next to Aira, at the edge of the mattress.
“What is it, Hiro-kun…?” Aira quietly asked.
He seemed to be tired, but restless. He would usually be watching idol lives if he was stressed or upset, but since he didn't have his phone, this option wasn't available.
“Are you still cold? Would you like me to warm you up?”
Aira's mind stopped working. What does that mean?! Warm me up?!
“What are you saying, Hiro-kun…?!”
Aira got up from the lying position, sitting next to Hiiro now, looking at his face in confusion, even if he couldn't see much.
“Umu, I mean, I could give you a hug? Maybe that could be warm enough…” Hiiro corrected himself, after which Aira sighed. So that's what he meant, huh… He needs to learn to phrase things better.
Without waiting for Aira’s response, Hiiro laid down next to him, trying his best to fit on the mattress together with the blonde boy. His hands wrapped tightly around Aira's waist, placing his forehead against the blonde's nape, breathing warm air down his spine. He seemed pretty relaxed, pulling Aira close to himself.
Aira felt himself heating up, not only from Hiiro’s warm body, but from the closeness of the boy. Aira was… pretty shy with physical touch, especially when it came to Hiiro. Everything the redhead did made Aira so flustered.
“Hiro-kun…” Aira whispered.
He was trying to loosen up Hiiro's tightly wrapped hands. He could barely breathe, but it was also the amount of shyness he was feeling at the moment, that was making it even harder.
It was dark, yes. He should be scared, but for one reason or another, if Hiiro was with him, he wasn't scared anymore.
He was… nervous of how the boy would perceive him. At least they couldn't see each other's faces right now.
“Oh, sorry…” Hiiro was talking quietly, to not startle Aira, since his mouth was close to his ear. Which only made Aira even more flustered. His voice was deeper, sending shivers down his spine, and giving him a twisting feeling in his stomach.
Oh, he was going to die here…
He could feel the redhead shuffling behind him, probably trying to get more comfortable in his position. This wasn't… ideal. Nothing about this was ideal, or even close to it. But did Aira honestly mind? Being so close to Hiiro was… a nice feeling. It was eerily quiet in the room when he wasn't speaking, though. His heart was beating fast, and he was worried Hiiro would pick up on it.
A part of him hoped someone would find them, but a part of him hoped they could stay like this until the morning.
“Aira…?” Hiiro spoke up again. “Are you asleep?”
“Nn, I'm awake…” Aira groggily answered, still getting startled by Hiiro's tone change.
It was rare for him to speak in a lower voice. He completely felt like a fanboy right now, for some reason. Hiiro fans would love an opportunity like this, huh… Was he worth this, then?
“I'm sorry that we ended up like this…” Hiiro continued.
“It's not your fault, Hiro-kun…” Aira answered honestly. “At least I'm glad I'm with you, you know…”
“You are?”
“Mm, you're my… friend, after all.”
… Friend, huh. For some reason, saying it hurt him. The word friend barely squeezed through his throat. He knew Hiiro was more than a friend to Aira, but he didn't know how the other boy felt. And that hurt, it hurt a lot.
“Umu, friend…” Hiiro murmured to himself, but Aira picked up on it. “Nii-san keeps calling you my girlfriend, some people keep calling us lovebirds…”
“...? Where are you going with this, Hiro-kun?” Aira, honestly, wanted to scream. Why bring up such a topic? Was he getting tired, or something? Not knowing how to carry a conversation? It was Hiro-kun, though! He always had various topics to talk about, no?
“Nothing, I'm just wondering!” Hiiro stopped, but it seemed like he had more to say. “But do friends really… sleep with each other like this?”
No, they don't. Aira thought to himself. And that's what was freaking him out so much. Friends don't do these things.
The blonde did have a crush on the redhead. He wasn't even hiding it anymore, and he realized it a long time ago. His heart rate would speed up whenever Hiiro talked nicely about him, and his cheeks would get covered in pink. Calling him a friend did… hurt him, at least a little bit. But they were used to it. Both of them.
And it's not like the redhead probably had any feelings for him, anyways.
“I like this, though…” Hiiro added, snuggling more into Aira’s nape, breathing in his scent.
“Y- You do, huh…?”
Aira's heart was speeding. He honestly wished they weren't friends right now. He honestly wished he could turn around, and look at Hiiro's face from up close, without it being a "strange thing to do". Creepy, even.
“Hey, Aira…” Hiiro didn't even give Aira a chance to reply.
The blonde could feel Hiiro's soft lips brushing his nape, pressing against his skin, burning it up. He pulled away shortly after, making a quiet kissing noise.
…?
“Hiro-kun?!” Aira quietly screamed, questioning the redhead. “W- What are you-”
He could hear the breathing from the boy behind him even out.
In such a moment, Hiiro fell asleep, still tightly clinging onto Aira, and apparently giving him a kiss as well.
They would probably have a lot to talk about tomorrow. But for now, Aira was going to enjoy this night, in a close embrace of his “friend”.