Chapter Text
The school year in Furin continued peacefully. Umemiya and Endo didn't waste their alone time, but the show in Furin had to go on. Yamato knew his group was troublesome, but he wasn't going to be standing around stopping every argument, which obviously ended in blows that they got involved in. He wasn't anyone's babysitter, not even Umemiya's, who in recent weeks had been at the center of every fight that broke out.
"And with today's, that makes officially four gangs that have disbanded to join Umemiya and his group in the last month." Endo was on the rooftop with his group during one of the long breaks. The place wasn't as disgusting as it had been at the beginning of the year, but they still couldn't sit on the ground. "By the end of the year, they'll have half the school on their side." Shakushi was the kind of strange person no one wanted to get involved with. Endo didn't want to get involved at first either. But then he noticed it was an observant strangeness, some kind of hidden interest perhaps. He didn't really care.
“Why do you think that happens?” Banjo asked, though he seemed distracted by a needle tugging at the skin of his calluses.
“Collective consciousness?” Hashirao suggested. For a second, Yamato wondered if the mention of Durkheim’s concept was intentional or just a coincidence. He saw the big guy as more of a would-be monk than a sociological analyst.
“Consciousness what?” Masuda asked, who, along with Sugichi, was staring into the abyss that was the other side of the fence.
“Collective, idiot.”
“Maybe… they’re all from Makochi,” Endo said.
“Damn it, I come to a school an hour from my house for worthwhile fights, and these idiots are trying to stop it. Why mess with a system that works?” Endo considered his classmates' complaints valid; he, too, had at least a half-hour walk to school. His other options were ten minutes away, but dwelling on it would be admitting his parents were right, and he wasn't about to do that.
"You only come here for the fights? With my failing grades, I had to choose between Furin or the high school in Sunaba. Furin is the closest," Terumi said.
Endo was aware that his first impression of them all was bad. Endo was terrible at judging people's character, so he had to start ignoring first impressions and observe others more closely. That's how he ended up with a group of seemingly useless individuals, but each one had their own unique skills. Banjo had a high pain tolerance, Hashirao possessed stamina and combat knowledge, Sakuchi was observant and always knew what was happening in other gangs, and the rest had their tricks up their sleeves. Masuda, for example, was a fast-handed thief.
Yamato only had eyes for Takiishi and above all else sought to provide him with spectacular fights, but lately everything ended too quickly, even the fights they had at night while wandering the streets. All this conflict distracted him from the conversation that was beginning to unfold.
"Speaking of Umemiya, there's a rumor going around that he has a girlfriend."
"You mean what you and the other two are saying?"
"A white head doesn't go unnoticed. I didn't see who the girl was because her back was turned."
"She was only a little shorter than him; she could be a boy."
"I'm just putting the facts together with what's already been said."
"Umemiya must..." It was the mention of the name that made him drift to another, more superficial concern. The outlook for their relationship was promising. Hajime had done everything he could to make his parents fall for his good-boy facade and give them more freedom to spend afternoons together. And they had taken full advantage of every opportunity; Yamato had to force his entire face to hide his smile.
Those who said that butterflies only lasted the first few weeks must have felt something completely different from what Endo felt. He had already theorized that he was in love with Chika, but the feeling of thinking about Hajime, of just seeing him, was a hundred times more intense, and he wanted more and more, to consume him completely. He was sure his boyfriend would do the same if given the chance.
The week before, Umemiya had been hearing about the school gossip; apparently, they were discussing Endo's sexuality and the apparent relationship between a girl and Hajime. Endo had learned to turn a deaf ear at school, but it weighed heavily on him to see his boyfriend with the same anxiety he had shown at the beginning.
All that more sentimental and human side came to the surface far too easily in front of Hajime—the side that didn't look for fights and just wanted a normal high school life. The only thing that made him wonder was, ‘Would there be a life without Takiishi?’
The answer had to be no. Or perhaps that would have been the fate of a Yamato who hadn't had the chance to worship such a god.
“...I swear to God, I'll smash his glasses the moment he gets near me.”
“We should do it, what do you say, Endo? We're itching for a good fight.”
He snapped out of his daze upon hearing his name, but there was no indication of what they were talking about. The only thing he noticed was a subtle, to the untrained eye, change in Takiishi's expression; suddenly they had become sharper, and flames blazed within his pupils. The beautiful hell to which Endo was enslaved.
Whatever the idea was, the one that had ignited that weakened, dying flame had to be acted upon.
“Let's do it.” Those were the words he would likely regret for the rest of his life.
Adrenaline coursed through his body; this is how Endo imagined it felt to jump into the abyss and not see the bottom. Or perhaps this was how it felt to leap to the top and fall back down, as if his body were traveling that distance.
At that moment, there was no room to think about when he had actually fallen from a great height onto some garbage bags. Yamato needed to be completely focused to ensure his legs didn't give way from the exercise he was doing. Hajime turned him over, giving his body a rest but without resuming the thrusts. Sweetly, as always, he began to shower his body with kisses, pressing firmly against his waist. He felt his breath quicken and found himself using his hands and moving his body toward the superficial sensation of pleasure.
His boyfriend seemed eager to resume, but even so, he pulled away and withdrew from Yamato. And before he could complain, Hajime interrupted him with a kiss. So intense that he felt his own brain go blank. Hajime gestured for him to turn around by the waist, asking gently, and Yamato turned his entire body. Although his legs struggled to respond, he settled into the position his boyfriend requested.
He felt his mind drifting as his back touched Hajime's chest, surrendering completely to the sensation. They finally reached climax, sooner than desired, but he didn't dislike it. He eagerly anticipated spending another night together, alone, in the house.
"Are you feeling okay?"
"Very good." Endo realized that while he enjoyed the pleasure of the act, Hajime was more interested in the warmth afterward. Yamato didn't mind, but he also wouldn't admit aloud how much he enjoyed the white-haired boy's gentle caresses.
Even after showering and changing, they didn't want to be apart, remaining lying on top of each other.
"What about you...did you feel good?"
"I always feel wonderful with you."
“Don’t make me look like a pervert, you’re the one with the ideas most of the time.” They shared the pillow, so they looked into each other’s eyes as they talked. They had to take advantage of the fact that Yamato’s parents worked until dinnertime.
“I like that you’re enjoying it.” The warmth of the moment kept them calm. “Tell me something else you’ve learned in those moments of obsession of yours.”
Endo searched his mind for topics unrelated to biology, some other random thought in his large brain. “Let’s see… have you read Edogawa Rampo?” He knew that Hajime liked books as much as he did, maybe even a little more.
“Yes, just a couple.”
“Well… did you know that his name is simply the Japanese pronunciation of Edgar Allan Poe?” He paused over each syllable of the English name to emphasize his point.
“Oh, I never realized that. It’s true they sound very similar if you don’t pronounce the phonemes correctly in English.”
Satisfied with having fulfilled the request, Endo claimed his mouth as a reward. The day seemed to favor the idea of staying there, but his boyfriend was too energetic; only when night fell did he become like a cuddly bear.
“If you see anything in my library that interests you, I can lend it to you,” he said, receiving a skeptical look. “I’ve seen you looking at my Conan Doyle collection.”
“I’ll accept the offer,” he replied. “Are you interested in any particular author lately?”
“Not really, I don’t have much time to read.”
Despite having gotten out of bed, when they were in the living room they sat back down on the floor, eating small sweets that Hajime had brought.
“Did you know that in third-year class three there are some guys who end up hospitalizing half of the people who fight them?”
“Yeah, I heard something about it. Apparently, they were suspended for the first semester or something.”
“Since they came back, the third-year guys –that were with me– have started acting way too violent again.” Yamato didn't understand why Umemiya was sharing this with him; it wasn't like he could do anything about it.
"Well... they're guys who've been at Furin longer. Even if your vision seemed good to them for a moment, they also know it's their last year and they want to enjoy it."
"That makes sense, but I don't understand why go back on their word." Well, they shared an opinion there.
"Those who can't keep their own word aren't worth it... not for your group, not for any other." Talking about Furin felt strange to him. The topic had never been off-limits, but Umemiya knew that Endo wasn't entirely comfortable with his initiative, and that's why they had created a small ecosystem where their external groups didn't matter at all. But he took advantage of the opportunity to clarify a doubt that had arisen.
"Don't you think it's not worth trying with people who aren't from Makochi? I mean, if someone doesn't live there, they won't really empathize with the people there."
“But when you go to Furin, you end up spending the whole day there. Do you cause a disturbance in the same store where you bought your breakfast hours earlier? No, it's like stealing. Besides, Hiragi isn't from the shopping district either, and he still likes this whole idea.”
“I guess you have a point.” Yamato was afraid the conversation would escalate into a debate; he didn't know how well they could handle tempers in a conversation like this. So he tried to distract him by putting his arm around him for a half-hug.
He realized it was openly reciprocated when the other arms wrapped around him, and he laughed at the thought of Umemiya's affectionate side coming out.
“What's so funny?”
“Nothing, I'm just comfortable with you.”
“I'm sorry I brought it up, but…I really want to know what you think…you're so smart.” With the compliment came a kiss on the temple that only lulled Yamato further, who was beginning to get comfortable, leaning back against the other's body and draping his legs over his. "After all... your friends are from other places too."
When he heard those words, Endo knew that was the point of the whole damn conversation. He carefully considered what to say; it would be a huge overreaction to assume that Hajime intended for him to manipulate his fighting partners. He wasn't in the mood to talk about philosophy; he didn't really want to have those kinds of conversations with his boyfriend.
"Hajime..." his boyfriend must have recognized the tone of his voice that clearly expressed his displeasure. "...none of them care about the town; they just mess with people. That's why we joined Furin. As far as I know, none of them fight in the streets of Makochi, but they probably do it where they live."
The white-haired boy partially rested his head on Yamato. He could swear that if he looked into his eyes, he'd be met with a blank stare that sent shivers down his spine. He thought about how he could change the atmosphere, even though it wasn't necessarily his responsibility.
"It's just... I feel like it's my responsibility."
"It's not," he bit his tongue, speaking impulsively. He hated sentimentality so much. "The... the best thing is to follow our convictions and just try to live our high school years as they come."
"And enjoy our youth." Hearing that, he laughed.
"You sound ridiculous."
"Sounds good." Even if the issue was never truly closed or resolved for them, Yamato preferred to leave it at that. Better to enjoy the calm before the storm arrives. They settled for enjoying each other's company.
Even so, the matter didn't leave Endo's mind. He felt a strange tightness in his chest every time he glanced at his boyfriend. He noticed the smile was forced, but if Hajime wasn't going to tell him, Yamato didn't want to press the issue either.
This continued until Hajime's inevitable return home. Although they could have said goodbye at the door, he decided to walk him to their usual meeting point. They were becoming more comfortable with public displays of affection, feeling safe walking together, not to mention a little too close, and making their usual stop in the alley.
It was at that moment that he crossed paths with, perhaps, the solution to his boyfriend's dilemma, because nothing could make Yamato happier than ensuring Hajime could sleep peacefully.
"I love you, see you tomorrow."
"I love you too... and... don't worry too much, I can keep those idiots under control." After saying that, he received another kiss that might have seemed like a simple one. But in that touch, Hajime was willing to give much more. It was evident in his grip, in how he leaned some of his weight on Yamato, and in the way that kiss transcended any other. Not wanting it to end, he tightened his arms around the white-haired man's neck.
Inwardly, Yamato begged any higher deity to delay the storm as long as possible; he would sacrifice even the most precious thing in his life to keep Hajime by his side. He gave him what he had always wanted; he loved him beyond anything Endo was capable of. Yamato had to stay out of Takiishi's way to have him by his side, but Yamato only had to exist to be loved by Hajime; he had no idea where else he could find something like that.