Archive of Our Own ^beta

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It was kind of pointless, really. The receptionist wasn't paying them any attention aside from the occasional glance in their direction, probably making sure they hadn't run off while waiting for the principal. Beat's hand crawled over, closing the few inches between his and Neku's. Neku didn't look, but he smiled just a bit, his ears still pink from embarrassment. Beat was sorely tempted to kiss him again, but maybe that was a bad idea when doing that was the entire reason they were there. But then again, whose bright idea was it to sit them next to each other?

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"Don't..."

His breath hitches and he buries his face against Neku's chest, wrapping his arms around his waist. Neku's hands came up, fingers reaching for hair, gently pushing his beanie back as if expecting to be stopped, until the hat fell completely away.

"Don't what?"

"Don't look at me..."

He couldn't. Not right now, at this moment. He'd love it, revel in it, usually... Because Neku did this thing - his face spoke volumes, and Beat understood every word, and right now... He couldn't handle it.

"Don't look at me like I'm worth it..."

Neku kissed him. "But you are."

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"Phones, what're you even going on about?"

"This stupid show!"

Beat blinked at him and Neku sighed.

"You'd get it if you actually watched it."

"Yeah, it don't sound like somethin' I wanna get into..."

"It's--" Neku tried to start, then gave up with a heavy sigh. He tried again. "A lot of people are taking this one scene out of context and saying it proves something stupid, but if you take it in context, it either proves the exact opposite or nothing altogether, and nobody is paying that any attention."

"...Yeah, I'm lost."

Neku scoffed. "Well, count yourself lucky."

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It took him a moment to adjust. Waking up alone was normal, so it took him a moment to realize the oddity of it. The extra pillow still smelled like Beat, and if he moved right, he could still feel the hickey on his neck. The unused futon greeted his toes as he stepped from his bed. Still confused he wandered into the kitchen, realizing smelled something cooking. And there Beat was, in nothing but his boxers, cooking rice and some egg thing, and Neku wondered if Beat had tried to get up early enough for Neku to miss this.

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If he shuffled just right, and avoided this and that, then get just close enough...

ZZP!

"Ow, fuck! Beat!"

He took off running down the hall, grinning wide. He could've actually outrun him, but that wasn't the point. He scurried just far enough away, ducking into an abandoned room at the end of the hall, knowing Neku could see him. It took Neku all of three seconds to catch him there.

They shocked on contact again. Beat laughed until Neku shocked his lips and shut him up with his own. If this was where fall was going, Beat didn't mind.

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It was an indie band, right? It couldn't be that big. That's what Beat had told himself that had gotten him into this. That, and a combination of good luck that a friend of a friend had extra tickets to see a band Beat actually knew of and knew Neku was into. And now it was loud, which Beat didn't like, and full of people, which Neku didn't like, and about two songs in they mutually agreed to bail.

Beat tried to apologize, but Neku pulled him into a hug, nuzzling at his neck. "Thank you for the birthday present."

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Neku dropped his bag onto the floor and himself into his chair with a very particular groan Beat had learned to translate.

"Joshua?"

"Joshua."

"I could punch him."

"You will get suspended."

"Might be worth it."

"Please do not."

"Aw, c'mon, Phones - y'know he deserves it."

"I'm quite certain he does, and you'd probably make a lot of people very happy, but please don't."

"That's no fun."

"Beat, if you punched him, you'd have to explain why you punched him, and that would get me dragged into it."

"No it wouldn't. I'd just say he's got a punchable face."