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As Nagi approached the empty bench by the tree, Nagi reached down into the pockets of his pants, his thumb brushing against the velvet box, reassuring him that it was still there and with him. The amount of hours he put into saving and working overtime as a college student only to lose it so carelessly would be enough to send him over the edge. He’d never been a particularly materialistic person, but when it came to Reo, his best friend since childhood, he had a different view.
He pulled the box out of his pocket and took a quick glance at it, before shoving it back into his pockets and letting out a sigh as he felt the cool air of spring lightly push past him. Nagi had wanted to do this for a long time, but Reo had seemed a bit distant lately; always busy with family matters as he said, but he never went into any further detail. Nagi trusted him, he knew Reo would be able to handle it, just like he always had. He was snapped back from his thoughts when he heard footsteps, looking up and seeing the familiar sight of uneven bangs and short straight hair, coming closer towards him with tired eyes.
“Reo- Reo, you’re finally here. It’s good to see you.” Nagi said with a small smile, despite the lack of outward enthusiasm, the boy was beaming on the inside. Reo took a few steps closer to the other, his eyes still wandering the ground before looking up at Nagi, offering a weak smile in return.
“It’s good to see you too, Nagi. You had something you wanted to tell me? Can it be quick? I really have to get back to this thing-” Reo was cut off by Nagi’s frantic nodding, surprised that the boy seemed to show excitement over whatever he was gonna say; which only drew in Reo’s interest as well. Nagi shoved a hand into his pocket, fumbling around as he tried to grip onto the small box in the right way, suddenly his arm suddenly going numb and his stomach swirling; he didn’t even realize he was capable of feeling like that.
“Yeah it’ll be quick, I promise, just-” Nagi cut himself off as he got down on one knee, taking the velvet box out of his pocket and covering it with his hands as he looked up at the other boy. “Reo, I may not be sure about a lot of things, but I am sure that I want to stay by your side forever. So…” As he finished his sentence, he held the box up towards Reo, opening it up and revealing a small diamond ring. As Reo seemed to take in everything that was happening, his eyes widened for a moment before his face fell.
Nagi wished he didn’t see it.
Nagi wished he didn’t see the way Reo’s face fell, a storm of emotions crossing his face. Guilt, sadness, and pity, Nagi didn’t want to see any of it. After a moment of tense silence, Nagi couldn’t take it anymore and finally spoke again.
“Reo… Reo, what’s wrong? Reo, say something please. You’re worrying me.” The words slipped out of Nagi’s mouth without any control, he wasn’t giving Reo any time to respond, nor was he giving himself any time to think. The other boy didn’t seeme like he was going to give a response any time soon. He seemed frozen in his own world, staring at the ring in Nagi’s eyes, until he finally cleared his throat.
“Nagi- I…. I can’t-” Reo started, forcefully swallowing back a lump in his throat as he blinked a couple of times. Nagi’s face fell, and his heart began racing even more than before. “You can’t? But Reo- why? I dont… I don’t understand.” Nagi rushed out, his eyes falling down to the floor, as if the grass would somehow give him the answers he needed.
“I can’t Nagi. I’m already engaged.”
Nagi’s eyes shot back up, meeting Reo’s glossy eyes as he felt his own face pale. Reo blinked back some tears, before taking his left hand out of his pocket, and revealing a large diamond ring on his finger, putting Nagi’s hard earned ring to shame. Nagi couldn’t help but admire the way the piece of jewely looked on Reo’s hand, how the diamond looked sparkly, but it looked much to big for Reo’s slim fingers. It didn’t fit Reo, it looked ugly.
Nagi looked back up from the ring to Reo, his once hopeful eyes filled with emptiness. “Engaged…? When? To who? Reo… I don’t understand.” Nagi said, before getting off his knee and sitting down on the pathway, closing the small box in his hand and rubbing his thumb against the velvet.
“A family friend. I don’t remember the date, it’s all been a blur. A few days ago, maybe.” Reo mumbled, before biting down on his lower lip, as if he was trying not to cry, which only seemed to confuse Nagi more. If Reo was already engaged, why was he upset? He wasn’t the one who just got rejected, it didn’t make sense to him. Nothing did anymore. How could Reo get engaged to anyone else but him?
Even though the two of them were never officially dating, they did everything together. Nagi was invited to every family vacation that Reo had, and they lived at each other’s places basically. Nagi couldn’t understand how this could have happened, how he had let this happen.
“Oh. Are you happy? The diamond is big.” Nagi pointed out, before looking down at his excuse of an engagement ring. He brushed his thumb along the edges of the boxes for a moment until he heard Reo let out a sob, his eyes instantly shooting back up at the other boy. “Reo…?” Reo wiped his tears away with his hand, sobbing for a few moments more before sucking in a shaky breath.
“Why didn’t you ask me sooner?”
Nagi’s eyes widened. “What?”
“I liked you for so long, but I didn’t know. I didn’t know if you ever felt the same for me, I couldn’t risk it. It’s not fair- it’s too late now, the wedding is in three days and it’s not fair-” Reo cried harder as he spoke, as Nagi’s eyes widened with each word. His head spun, taking in each word before standing up and wrapping his arms around the other boy, letting him sob softly into his shoulder.
“I’m so sorry.” Nagi whispered.