Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Break up with him.”

“No.”

“Oh, so you hate me?”

“Rin.”

“Break up with him.”

“Must we do this every week?”

“Do it.”

“No.”

Rin makes a hmpf sound and looks down at his drink. Him and Sae are at a cafe. They have a break in between their classes so they often get lunch together. Unfortunately for Rin, his brother decided to bring that pink pest he calls a boyfriend today. He excused himself to the bathroom a minute ago. Well— excused is a nice way of putting it. 

“I’ll be back Sae-chan! I gotta take a leak!” 

God, Rin hates him. 

“I hate him.” Rin tries again. 

Sae rolls his eyes, “Yeah, you’ve only told me about a thousand times. Ryusei doesn’t hate you, though.”

Rin’s eyes widen, “Ryusei? Since when?”

“…We’ve been together for eight months.”

“And? You hardly know him. It’s too soon for given names.”

Sae loves his little brother, really, but this is ridiculous. “Rin, he calls me by my first name.”

“He has to, otherwise it’d be confusing.”

“You are ridiculous.” Sae decides to voice out loud. 

Rin glares at him, “Break up—“

“Sae-chan!! Did you miss me?!” 

Rin’s eyebrow twitches. 

The man himself— Ryusei Shidou— walks with a pep in his step to his seat next to Sae. He plops down and plants a loud kiss on Sae’s cheek. Rin’s eyebrow twitches again. 

Sae doesn’t spare either of them a glance, scrolling on his phone, “Did you wash your hands?”

Shidou giggles, “Only for you, sweet cheeks. Is Rin Rin telling you to ditch me again?” 

“Of course he is.”

Shidou laughs loudly and smirks at the younger Itoshi, “Why you gotta do me like that, Under Lashes Junior? I’m gonna be your bro-in-law one day, so you better start being nice to me!”

“You are not going to be my anything. And I’ll start being nice when you cease to exist.” Rin says, his irritation rising. 

Shidou leans over the table, “Aren’t I, though? Your brother basically already said yes— I asked him the other day. Right, Sae-chan? You said you’d be with me forever?”

Rin knows he’s saying shit on purpose to rile him up. Ragebait is what Yoichi called it, he thinks. Rin wants to lunge at the annoying man so bad, but he knows Sae will be mad at him. He looks at his brother. 

“Tell him to shut the fuck up or I will jump across this table.” 

Shidou cackles, and slams his hand on the table, “Feeling froggy? Then leap, Little Rin!” 

Rin hates how easily it is for him to stand up, ready to punch the living daylights out of Shidou. The pink pest stands as well, fists ready, and wide smirk across his face. 

Sae sighs deeply, and ignores the other people staring at them. The staff don’t really care much, seeing as this happens often, and knows Sae always handles it. 

“Sit down now, both of you.” 

The two stare each other down as they sit back down in their chairs. Sae looks between them for a moment. 

“Stop riling him up, Ryusei. It’s annoying,” Sae tells his boyfriend. Rin nods in agreement, and Sae turns to him, pointing a finger, “And you. Stop listening to whatever bullshit comes out of his mouth. It’s not true unless I tell you myself.”

Rin rolls his eyes. “Whatever. But is it?”

Shidou pouts, exclaiming, “Sae-chan! You did say yes! I wasn’t dreaming that time!”

Sae glares at him, “No, you asked me about soccer, and I said yes. That had nothing to do with marriage.”

Shidou grins and hugs his boyfriend, squishing their cheeks together, “Ahhh, Sae-chan! That means when I do ask about marriage you won’t say no! Take that, Rin Rin!” 

The three spent the rest of the time talking— or, whatever you call talking when it’s them. Afterwards, Sae heads off to his last class of the day, his pink pest following behind. Rin is done for the day, though. He had gotten an email during their lunch from his professor saying class is cancelled today. 

Yoichi is currently in class, so Rin decides he’ll study until then. He finds a secluded spot in the library on the third floor and sends a quick text to his boyfriend to let him know. He puts on his headphones and gets to work. 

About an hour later, someone is throwing their backpack onto the wide table next to him and Rin doesn’t bother looking up, already knowing who it is. His headphones are being pulled off soon after and a kiss is being pressed on his cheek. 

“Hey, you.”

Rin quickly writes something down and finally looks up. Yoichi is smiling at him, his blue eyes shining like they always do when he’s around Rin. He’s so in love it hurts sometimes. 

“Hey. You’ll never guess how awful lunch was today.” 

Yoichi chuckles as he sits down, scooting his chair closer, their thighs nearly touching. “I think I can guess. Shidou was there today, right?”

Rin sets his pencil down and grabs Yoichi’s hand under the table, intertwining their fingers. Rin groans softly, “Ugh, yes. He tried to convince me that he and my brother were engaged.” 

Yoichi had begun taking his own study materials out of his bag one-handed. They refuse to part for even a second. It took a while, but after they started officially dating, Rin became the biggest teddy bear ever. Always wanting to be under Yoichi, or touching him in some sort of way. And when they spend the night at each other’s dorms, Rin seldom lets the other get out of bed to go to the bathroom. 

Yoichi loves it, though. 

Is in love with the younger. 

“You weren’t convinced, right? Or did you fall for his ragebait again, babe?” Yoichi responds, opening his laptop. He types in the password (Rin’s birthday) and, still one-handed, navigates his school tabs. 

Rin’s chest still hurts when his boyfriend calls him “babe.” Or when Yoichi is feeling extra soft, he’ll call Rin “baby.” Either way, Rin’s heart positively hurts. 

“…No.”

Yoichi smiles knowingly and fondly shakes his head. He looks over at his boyfriend, who is pouting now, and smiles wider. “Rin, that face won’t work on me. I told you—“

Rin’s pout had immediately went away, “I know, I know—”

“Hush, don’t interrupt me,” Yoichi softly glares at him. “I told you to stop letting Shidou do that. He keeps doing it because you react and it amuses him. If you stop reacting, he’ll get bored and leave you alone. Also, Sae won’t have to treat you both like kids if you do.”

Rin sighs and falls over to rest his forehead on Yoichi’s shoulder. The older’s free hand comes up to pat his head, and he kisses it. “Come on, let’s do my math homework. We learned a new module today and it looks like gibberish to me.”

Rin smiles small, “We don’t take the same math.”

“You’re in an advanced math class that I’ve never even heard of. This should be a walk in the park for you.”

“Multivariable calculus is not advanced.”

“To me it is. Now come on, genius.”

Yoichi kisses his head again, and Rin sits up, looking at the textbook. “What’s wrong with you? This shit is easy.”

Yoichi smacks his teeth together, “See?! Of course you’d say that! Now help me!”

“Say please.”

“Please?”

“…One more kiss.”

Lips press to his cheek. “Please?”

“An actual kiss.”

“You’re so stubborn.”

“Mh.”

Yoichi gently holds Rin’s chin and kisses him softly. Rin sighs in content, and Yoichi pulls away, smiling, “The math isn’t going to do itself.”

“You’re insufferable.”

“You love me.”

“….I do.”

They do Yoichi’s easy hard homework until he uses up all his brain cells. After packing up, they leave the library hand in hand, Yoichi gently swinging them back and forth. 

“My dorm or yours?” He asks, looking up at his boyfriend.

“Yours,” Rin answers quickly, “That pink bug is at ours.”

Yoichi chuckles and nods, “Okay. Let me tell Megs.”

He reaches into his pocket to fish out his phone, not letting go of Rin’s hand. They do a lot of things one-handed, simply because Rin likes touching him. Yoichi doesn’t mind, though; loves it, even. Before, he was a bit put off by it, and complained that he needed two hands to do everything. But Rin is stubborn. 

They make it to Yoichi’s dorm, which he shares with his best friend Meguru Bachira. They’ve been friends since middle school and practically inseparable. It’s blissfully empty when they enter. Yoichi didn’t ask him to leave, but he appreciates it. 

“I’m hungry.” Yoichi states, going into the kitchenette. The university dorms are akin to small, studio apartments. He opens the fridge.

“You’re always hungry.” Rin says, sitting on the couch and turning the tv on. 

“… Did you just call me fat?” Yoichi asks incredulously. He goes over to the couch with a sandwich in one hand and a bag of chips in the other. 

Rin snatches the chips away, opening them, “Is that what you heard?”

Playfully, Yoichi glares and sits right on top of his boyfriend’s lap, “Yes! Am I too heavy for you? Huh, Rin? Huh?” 

Rin just wraps his arms around the smaller boy’s waist, burying his face in Yoichi’s neck. Before he could react, Rin is pressing his lips against Yoichi’s neck, and blowing to make a fart noise. 

“Ahh! Rin, stop!” Yoichi shouts with glee, giggling as Rin does it again. 

“You’re not heavy.” Rin says before blowing another raspberry into his neck. 

Yoichi laughs some more, “I was joking!”

Rin finally stops and looks up at his pretty boyfriend. His pretty smile, pretty eyes; Rin loves everything about Yoichi. 

Yoichi stares back, smiling wide still, “What?”

“I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“Doubt it.” 

“Of course you do. Asshole.”

“Yours, though.”

Yoichi pecks his lips. “Mine.”

__________________

“You always do this, Sae! I thought we were past that.”

“You talk as if we’ve been together for years now.”

“But you finally started opening up to me, and that probably takes others years. We’re not other people!”

“Aren’t we, though? We’re like any other normal couple. If I don’t want to tell you something, I don’t have to, Ryusei.”

Shidou sighs, and rests his head in his hands. They’ve been arguing for the better part of an hour now, and they’re getting nowhere. Earlier, Shidou was using Sae’s phone since his own had died. Just as he was finishing up, a text notification popped up at the top of the screen. 

Luna: Sae Itoshi! Let’s grab a drink soon❤️

Shidou didn’t think much of it, he didn’t particularly care. Sae has friends, so what? But the heart emoji kind of threw him off. Shidou is no stranger to emojis and stuff. He sends Sae a bunch of hearts all the time. Though, he feels the colors have different meanings, especially the red one. Shidou tried to brush it off, it’s none of his business. 

But who is Luna?

Why has his boyfriend never mentioned them? They seem close, if the person was asking to go out for drinks. He had contemplated asking Sae, but decided against it. Things were fine after that. Up until an hour ago.

Sae had gotten a phone call. Albeit, he had multiple phone calls, but never answered until this last one. Shidou guessed he was pissed off. Sae had walked away, going into their bedroom to take the call. Shidou didn’t care, his boyfriend could have his privacy. Sae will tell him, anyway. 

Or, maybe not. 

When Sae came out the room moments later, his mood had soured. That set Shidou off, and he tried cheering up his boyfriend in the way he knew how: being annoying. That didn’t work, for some reason (Shidou had been confused).

“Ryusei, shut up. I’m trying to think.”

“Think another time! Let’s go do something!”

“No, Ryusei. I mean it. Leave me alone.” Sae had snapped at Shidou. Which is something he hasn’t done or will ever do. 

And Shidou hates it, but he’s into the habit of hurting others when he’s been hurt. 

“Was it Luna?”

That had set Sae off, and led them here. 

“I know, but I’m just saying I thought you would share this with me like everything else. What makes this different?” Shidou nearly pleads, but he doesn’t. He isn’t that desperate, but he does feel a little heartbroken. Why is Sae suddenly so secretive?

Sae sighs, and lightly shakes his head, “It’s different because everything else I told you doesn’t matter. This does, and I’m not telling you. I’m not obligated to, Ryusei. Drop it.”

“I know that, Sae, I’m not dumb—“

“I didn’t call you that.”

“It felt like it. But, fine, sure. Don’t tell me, I don’t care anymore.” Shidou relents, mainly because he’s exhausted. He really hates fighting with Sae, and knows the harder he presses, the more the older will close up. Though, he lied about not caring. He just wants to know everything about the man he loves, is that so bad? 

He gets up from the couch and heads toward the front door— he needs fresh air. Sae watches him, feeling conflicted. Shidou says he doesn’t care anymore, but his eyes say otherwise. If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t be leaving right now. Why is he leaving?

“Where are you going?” Sae asks, face remaining neutral. His eye twitches when his boyfriend doesn’t turn back to look at him. 

“Out. Somewhere— I don’t know. A walk.”

“You’re just going to leave, then? That’s it?” 

At that, Shidou turns sharply, glare set. Sae knows what he’s doing, but Shidou can’t leave. He can’t let him go. Why can’t Sae just say that, he doesn’t know. 

“What do you want, Sae? You all of a sudden wanna fucking talk? Then talk!”

You got the reaction you wanted, now what?

Sae doesn’t know. 

“… Why do you have to leave? Since you don’t care about Luna anymore. Is it me?” Sae makes a fist by his side, digging his blunt nails into his palm. Why can’t he stop?

Shidou looks confused for a moment, “What? Sae… be honest with me. Tell me what you want. Stop closing me out, and making me read between the lines! It’s exhausting!”

Ah, there it is. Sae knew it was coming one day. He’s surprised him and Shidou lasted this long. Others didn’t. Well, others before Luna, that is. 

“So, it is me. That’s all I need to know.” Sae says dismissively. His chest hurts, though, knowing that’s how Shidou really thinks of him. He actually really likes Shidou— loves him. No matter how many times he said no to going out with Shidou, the blonde man persisted. That’s what made Sae like him. Shidou is stubborn, so he always gets what he wants in the end. He likes how freely Shidou lives his life, only doing what makes him happy. That aspect made Sae often wonder why Shidou chose him, why be tied down. 

But then again, if he only does what makes him happy…

Sae sighs quietly. He knows he’s pushing Shidou away, but he doesn’t want to. Words are just hard, sometimes. But he knows he really fucked up now. 

Shidou scoffs, “Yeah, you are exhausting. But you know what, Sae? I don’t mind that. Wanna know why? Because I fucking love you. You also wanna know why I made this a big deal? Because I want to know everything about the person I love. Does that make me a bad person—“

“No,” Sae nearly shouts. He closes his eyes and gently repeats, “No, you're not a bad person, Ryusei. You could never be.” But I could, goes unsaid. 

Shidou walks closer to him, “I don’t like fighting with you, Sae. Look,” Shidou takes a deep breath, “Don’t tell me about that guy unless you want me to know. I’m sorry for trying to force you, but I’m not sorry about everything else I said.”

“No, it’s fine, don’t apologize. I may have overreacted. It’s just hard to talk about; unpleasant memories and all. And I don’t mean to be exhausting, it’s just…”

“Words are hard, I know. You’ve told me before.” 

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Shidou walks closer, standing face to face with him. “May I touch you?” 

Sae nods.

Shidou places his hands on Sae’s waist, making the older grip onto his forearms. Sae looks down at where they’re connected. “I don’t want you to leave. I said all that to keep you from leaving, to get a rise out of you.”

Shidou smirks, “Yeah, I figured. I wanted to hear you say it instead of making me read in between. Stop making me do that shit; give it to me straight, yeah?”

Sae nods, “I’ll try.”

“Good.” Shidou says, pulling him closer for a proper hug. Sae rests his face in his neck, squeezing him back. 

“I love you, too, by the way.” Sae whispers, kissing his neck softly. 

Shidou giggles, “Great! Come on, let’s cuddle, Sae-chan! I need a nap!” 

Sae smiles as Shidou drags him towards their room. 

_________________

“Have you broken up with him, yet?”

“Don’t start.”

“It’s just a question.”

“It’s not.”

“But have you?”

Sae rolls his eyes, “No, Rin. Stop asking. We got into an argument about three days ago, though. Does that appease you?” 

Rin stares his brother down. “About what?”

“… Luna called me.”

Rin sits up, glaring harshly, “Why the fuck is he contacting you?”

“I don’t know, Rin. Ryusei was using my phone, so I guess he saw the text. He called me after saying he wanted to grab a drink and catch up. I told him no and hung up.”

“Did you tell that pink roach what happened?” Rin asks, picking his pencil up again to continue his homework. He read the question and promptly put it back down.

The two brothers have been in a private study room that they rented for about 3 hours. They know their respective boyfriends will eventually come looking for them, though, so they’re trying to get as much peace and quiet as possible. 

Sae shakes his head, typing on his laptop while replying, “No, I don’t want to. It’s staying in the past. I’ve moved on.”

“Have you?” Rin asks, slightly unsure. He knows his brother. Sae doesn’t hold grudges, but he makes exceptions…

“Yes, Rin. I’m fine and happy with Ryusei. Do your homework, stop staring at it.”

Rin looks at his big brother for a second longer and lets it go. If he says he’s okay, then Rin believes him. He looks down at his worksheet and remembers why he stopped. He slides it across the table to Sae, and points to the question. Sae adjusts his glasses, finds a piece of scrap paper, and helps his little brother work through the problem. 

After another hour goes by, aforementioned partners show up. Shidou is as loud as ever, which is fine since the room is soundproof. Yoichi greets Sae politely as he sits next to Rin, the younger immediately grabbing onto Yoichi’s hand, and intertwining their fingers. 

Shidou sits next to Sae, throwing his feet up on the table, and placing an arm around Sae’s shoulders. He smacks a kiss onto the older’s cheek, “Whats up, sweetcheeks! Miss me? Ahh, I know you did!”

Sae keeps typing, “I just saw you a few hours ago.”

“Well, I missed you! And you, too, Isagi-chan! You're never around!” 

Yoichi and Rin looked over at Shidou, having been in their own little world. One with a glare and the other with a gentle smile. 

“Ah, yeah, classes and stuff! My schedule doesn’t really line up with your guys’. Maybe we could go out for a weekend? We haven’t been to the bar in a while, right babe?” Yoichi answers, giving Rin’s hand a squeeze. 

“We can go without that thing,” Rin says then looks at Sae, “Get rid of it.”

Shidou cackles as Sae says, “And where do you suppose I put him?”

“In the trash. Preferably immediately.”

“Rin-chan! Don’t be mean! Be nice to your big bro-in-law!” Shidou chimes in. 

Rin glares at him, “Shut the fuck up. Nii-chan, I am so serious, dump him. You don’t need trash like him in your life.” 

Yoichi thankfully steps in before things could get ugly, chuckling nervously, “Rin, relax, okay? Remember what I said the other day?”

Yoichi gently squeezes Rin’s hand, then runs his thumb over the knuckles. Rin squeezes back after a moment. 

“Fine, whatever. Can you keep him quiet?” Rin asks his brother. 

Sae nods, and hands Shidou a pair of headphones. “Be good and you’ll be rewarded.”

Shidou smirks and it’s wicked— he’s about to say something out of left field, Rin just knows it. 

“Will you suck my cock in the bathroom?” 

Yoichi just sighs deeply as Rin gets ready to stab Shidou with his pen. Yoichi stops him. Rin reluctantly listens. 

“Sure, but in your dorm instead. Deal?” Sae compromises. 

Shidou pouts, “Aww, but Sae-chan! I know you like doing it in public!”

Rin wants to kill him. 

Yoichi holds him back tighter. 

Sae shakes his head, “Take it or leave it.”

“Fine! But you’ll have to sit on my face afterwards.”

“Sure, whatever. Now shut up so we can do our work. Which you should be doing, but that’s the exact same thing as talking to a wall.”

“A wall would actually talk back because it’s smarter than it.” Rin quickly chimes in. Yoichi forgot to cover his mouth. 

Shidou looks at Rin, “You talkin’ to walls now, Rin Rin? You’ve gone crazy it seems. How about I knock some sense into that empty head of yours, huh?” 

“Ryusei.” Sae snaps at him. 

“Don’t ‘Ryusei’ me! That bastard started it! Your brother needs to learn to keep his mouth shut.”

Rin glares harshly, “Maybe I would if you were fucking normal for once. You’re so goddamn irritating I think you just like to hear yourself talk at this point. Newsflash, dumbass, no one wants to hear your annoying ass voice all the time.”

“Rin.” Sae grits through his teeth. He’s genuinely getting upset this time, and Sae is tired. 

Usually, Sae can keep his cool and remain calm when they fight. But today it’s pissing him off. 

Shidou stands abruptly, knocking his chair back, “I’m annoying? Okay, then I’m about to get real fucking infuriating.” 

Before anyone could react, Shidou is launching himself across the table, landing a solid punch on Rin’s cheek. The younger Itoshi’s head snaps to the side as he falls out of his chair. He’s quick to recover, successfully dodging a kick to punch Shidou in the nose. The impact is loud, but thankfully no cracks were heard. 

Before either boy could attack again, they’re being pulled apart. Shidou thrashes in Sae’s hold, but Rin relaxes in his own boyfriend’s arms, both of their harsh breathing echoing in the room. 

Sae stands in front of his boyfriend, glaring so hard to the point it looks like it hurts. “Shidou fucking Ryusei. Why don’t you listen to me? I told you to stop. You don’t always have to start a fight with him, just ignore what he says.”

“No, I won’t! I’m not going to sit there and let him talk to me like that. You spoil him too much, Sae!”

“I don’t. You didn’t have to fucking hit him—“

“No, you do. I’ve been around long enough to see it. He’s your brother, I get it, but he doesn’t need to be protected all the time! He’s an adult—“

“Don’t turn this on me,” Sae jabs a finger into Shidou’s chest, “You need to learn to control your anger. You don’t have to take the shit he says, but don’t go punching him. There’s no need for it!”

Shidou shoves his hand away, “There you go: spoiling him! Protecting him! How is it my fault for protecting myself? He needs to learn! He’s a grown ass man!” 

Sae feels his patience wearing thin, and he’s about to snap. He doesn’t get angry this often, never really has, so he’s never had to worry about going over the edge. However, this time he might. Especially if it’s for Rin. 

He doesn’t spoil his little brother. He doesn’t. But it is his duty to take care of Rin. It’s always just been the two of them— their parents worked a lot and barely had time for their own kids. And when Sae left, he felt an indescribable pain and guilt for leaving Rin all alone. Sae had gotten the chance to go to an elite soccer program in Spain for four years. Rin had been supportive, of course, but Sae knew deep down he didn’t want his big brother to leave. Sae didn’t want to, either, but it would’ve been good for him. 

He doesn’t regret leaving— he loved it and learned a lot about soccer. He only regrets meeting Leonardo Luna and allowing that older man to change him. So, when he came back, neither he nor Rin were the same. There was no bad blood, just awkwardness of getting to know each other again. 

Sae taking care of him hasn’t changed. It never did. 

“And you think that by treating him like a punching bag, he’ll learn? What type of fucked up logic is that, Ryusei?”

“Don’t twist my words, Sae. Why are you so adamant about this? If it’s not spoiling, then what is it? Tell me; you told me you’d work on this.” 

Sae huffs out a frustrated breath, “I’m not doing this right now—“

“No, you are. We are. Fucking talk to me, Sae. Please.” 

Sae looks up at him. Bright pink eyes stare at him with so much intensity and love. Yes, Shidou is angry, but not at Sae. Maybe upset, but not mad. 

“I don’t spoil him,” Sae says calmly. “I’m only taking care of him as I always have.”

“And that includes ripping me a new one simply because I hit him?” 

Sae gives him a mean scowl, “You were going to keep going if I hadn’t stopped you, so yes. Don’t get it twisted, Ryusei; I love you, but Rin is my priority. I’d choose him over you any day. Got it?” 

And Shidou wants to be upset at that, but he can’t. He’s not surprised. He expected nothing less from Itoshi Sae. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt a little. Shidou was never anyone’s first choice. Not his dad, who up and left when he was four without a single word. Not his mom, who truly loved him unconditionally, but couldn’t properly take care of him without his dad’s money. Not any of the kids at the orphanage or any of the kids at school. 

So, he made himself his first choice. He stopped caring what others thought of him and eventually started living freely like he does now. He puts himself first over others without any guilt. He’s thankful for the friends he has now, and will help them with anything they ask, but Shidou comes first. He’s here for a good time and a long time. He can’t do that if he’s constantly taking care of others; he’ll run himself into the ground. 

Sae is the complete opposite. 

So, Shidou nods slowly. 

“Yeah, I know.”

Sae stares at him, then nods once. “Good.” Then, he turns around to the other two boys in the room, going straight to Rin to make sure he’s okay. 

Shidou sighs and leaves the room quietly. 

____________________

The dorm is dark but only a percentage of it is illuminated by the light from the tv. It’s quiet, the movie they put on talking lowly in the room. Their gentle breathing is probably louder than it. 

A soft hand runs through dark green hair, the strands silky and smooth. Rin isn’t paying attention to the movie, focusing more on Yoichi as his head lies in Yoichi’s lap. 

He’s been thinking about the fight since it happened. 

It’s been two days already. Rin has ignored all of Sae’s texts and calls. He’s even been avoiding their shared dorm, opting to stay with his boyfriend. 

Rin needs to learn to grow up. 

He can’t keep depending on his big brother for everything. He doesn’t want to be a burden anymore. He wants Sae to be happy. And if it’s with Shidou, then so be it. 

Rin honestly doesn’t like Shidou as a person. He likes the blonde man more as a partner to Sae. Rin is wildly perceptive and he knows his brother like the back of his hand— Sae is happy with Shidou. He loves that pink antenna bastard. He knows not every relationship is perfect, but he’s never seen them fight until two days ago. Rin and Isagi used to get into arguments all the time at the beginning of their relationship because they were too much alike, yet polar opposites. They’ve mellowed out now, but his brother’s predicament seemed intense. 

Sae tells him whenever he and Shidou argue, but to actually see it? It changed Rin’s perspective because Sae made it all seem small; not important or detrimental to their relationship. Rin thought their fights were petty little things with the way they were explained, but boy was he wrong. He actually thought they were going to break up right then and there. 

If that’s the kind of shit Sae is dealing with, then Rin really doesn’t want to be a bother. 

“We’re never gonna fight like that, right?”

Yoichi smiles softly. “Dunno. Life is unpredictable.”

“I hate that answer.”

“But you know I’m right.”

“We won’t let it get that bad.”

“Hopefully not. This really shook you up, huh, baby?” 

Rin closes his eyes and wills the butterflies in his chest and stomach to go away. Stupid Yoichi. 

“…Maybe.”

“Mhmm.”

“… I actually thought they were going to break up.”

“Isn’t that what you want?”

“Well, yeah, but not because of that. Because of my brother.”

“How do you mean?”

“He can find better.”

Yoichi moves his hand down a little to caress the back of Rin’s neck, “And what if Shidou is better? Didn’t you tell me Sae had some bad relationships before?”

Rin turns his head to look up at his lover. Yoichi smiles softly and begins tracing the lines of his face. 

“Yeah, but there has to be something more. Someone more.” 

“Do you think there’s someone better than me for you?” Yoichi retaliates. Not because he’s questioning Rin’s love for him, but purely because he’s curious as to what Rin thinks. 

Rin’s answer is instant, “Fuck no. You’re the only idiot I can handle.”

That makes Yoichi giggle and it’s the most perfect sound Rin has ever heard. 

“Glad to know I’m an idiot.”

“That’s the only part you focused on?”

“Mmm no. Being the only one is nice, too.”

Rin grabs Yoichi’s hand, and kisses the palm. “Even if you’re lukewarm, you’re my one and only.”

Yoichi can’t stop the blush from covering nearly his entire face. His smile is wide as he gazes into Rin’s light blue eyes, the latter still kissing his palm. “You sure know how to make me swoon. Since when did you have rizz?”

Rin promptly bit his hand. 

__________________

It’s officially been five whole days of not talking to Sae. The older man stopped blowing up Rin’s phone yesterday. He uses that term loosely, though, because it is Sae after all. 

Rin currently sits in a science lab by himself, working on a project. He sets down the dropper he was using to adjust his goggles and write down some notes. He’s about to continue when the door suddenly opens. Rin doesn’t bother looking up.

“I’m using this room, so leave.” 

“Rin.”

Rin momentarily freezes at the sound of his big brother’s voice. He sets down his tools and glances over. Sae is standing a few feet away, his eyes intense. Rin gauges he might be mad. Oh dear. 

“What—“

Sae interrupts him, “Where have you been?”

“…Here.”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it.”

Okay, Sae is really upset, then. 

“I’ve been here, Nii-chan. At school.”

Sae steps closer, “You’ve been ignoring me. Why?”

Rin wasn’t hoping to have this conversation today. Or, any day, really. He was content to just let it be, but his brother has different plans it seems. He expected this, but he thought the chances were low. Apparently not low enough. 

“I don’t want to be a burden.” Rin explains. 

Sae’s eye twitches, “What does that mean?”

“It means what it means. I’ve been trying to give you space.”

“… Is this because Ryusei and I fought? Rin, I’m fine. It was a stupid fucking argument.”

Rin shakes his head, “No, I don’t care about that. I’m giving you space because I don’t want to be a burden. I don’t want to be some spoiled brat that you have to take care of all the time. I have to grow up, Nii-chan.”

Sae is taken aback by Rin’s confession. He didn’t think his little brother bothered to listen to a single word Shidou said that day. Sae can’t really blame him, or Shidou. 

“None of that was true. You aren’t a bother, Rin, nor are you spoiled. I take care of you because you’re my brother.”

“You don’t have to take care of me all the time. I can handle myself. I guess I just never realized what was happening because I was used to it. It was fine when we were kids, but now you can’t. I learned how to be by myself when you left and I can do it again.”

“You shouldn’t have had to,” Sae insists, his voice raising slightly. “I don’t regret it, but I shouldn’t have left you alone. I’m your big brother, it’s my job—“

“It’s not, Sae. I now realize that you’re just trying to make up for those four years,” Rin takes off his protective goggles and gets closer to Sae. “It’s okay, Nii-chan. I’m okay. You can still take care of me, but at a distance.”

Sae doesn’t get it. Being with Rin, taking care of him— it’s all he knows. He’s been doing it since Rin was born. Their parents never gave a shit about them— about Rin. He raised his baby brother on his own. And now Rin is saying—

“You don’t need me anymore.” Sae states, finishing his thought out loud. 

Rin sighs, “I’ll always need my brother, but you can’t hover anymore. No more helicopter parenting.” 

“I’ve been the only one who cared for you. I raised you when our parents couldn’t. I love you, Rin, and we’re our only family. If I don’t have you—“

“Nii-chan!” 

Sae stops in his tracks. His eyes burn and the edges of his vision are blurry. He can’t cry, can’t allow the tears to fall. He has to be strong for both of them. He has to. 

Rin looks worried about him. That is the opposite of what Sae wants. He doesn’t want Rin to worry about anything. He can take care of everything for Rin. Sae knows he sounds irrational, but he can’t help it. Old habits die hard. 

Rin’s face softens, “Nii-chan… I know. But you can’t keep… depending on me like this. You know I appreciate all that you do, and I… love you, too. But you have to let me go. I can stand on my own two feet, I promise, Nii-chan.”

Sae looks down at the floor. He knows Rin is right. Hell, Shidou was right. He knows this will be hard. Rin is all Sae knows. Being his brother, his parent— everything. 

“Okay… I’ll try.”

“Good. That’s all I ask. Thank you, nii-chan.” Rin says, stepping closer and placing his hand on Sae’s shoulder. 

Sae sighs deeply and nods. He hesitantly puts his own hand on Rin’s, and gently squeezes. “… Are we still on for lunch tomorrow?”

Rin nods, “Of course. Don’t bring—“

“Ryusei isn’t coming, don’t worry.”

“Good. I hate him so much.”

The corner of Sae’s mouth lifts ever so slightly, “I know, Rin.”

“…Break up with him.”

“No. Invite that boyfriend of yours tomorrow.”

“You’re lucky he’s available.”

“Yeah, okay. See you later, Rin.”

Sae turns and heads for the door. Rin nods once, “See ya.”

___________________

“….and that’s what happened.” 

Yoichi slurps his iced coffee for a moment, “Wow.”

Rin scowls, “That’s it?”

Yoichi sighs and puts his cup down on the table. They had shown up to the cafe early since Yoichi’s professor ended class earlier than planned. Rin had just told him everything that happened yesterday with Sae. 

“Calm down. I’m proud of you, Rin,” Yoichi smiles brightly and pinches his boyfriend’s cheek. Rin slaps his hand away, but can’t hide the reddening of his ears. Yoichi continues, “I’m sure Sae is, too. Now, you don’t have to worry about whether you’re annoying him or not. Shidou can do that.” He giggles softly. 

Rin rolls his eyes, “Yeah, I guess. He seemed… hurt, though.”

“Maybe, but it’ll be good for you both. Sae needs to start putting himself first, and he can do that now.” 

Rin nods slowly, playing with Yoichi’s fingers. “I don’t know. I feel like I broke his heart or some shit.”

“If you did, would he still be coming to lunch today?”

“Probably.”

“Rin.”

“He’d do it to spite me, Yoichi—“

“Who is spiting you?” 

Both Rin and Yoichi jump from the new voice belonging to Sae. The elder approaches the table and hangs his bag off the remaining chair. 

“You—“

“No one, Sae-chan! How are you doing?” Isagi interrupts his boyfriend. No need to start any arguments today. 

Sae looks between them and sighs, “It’s okay, Isagi. Don’t cover for my little brother. I’m going to go order.” 

He walks over to the register and Rin looks at Isagi, “Don’t tell him anything, or I’ll kill you.”

Isagi tries to hide a snicker, “Wouldn’t dream of it, baby.” 

Rin absolutely does not melt at the pet name. 

Sae comes back a few minutes later with his drink and a tray of snacks. He gestures at Isagi, and the man’s eyes light up. 

“Thanks, Sae-chan!” He exclaims and digs in. “Rin said I couldn’t get any food because I’m a fat ass. His exact words, too.”

Rin scowls, “Dammit, Yoichi, I told you—“

“Rin, how could you?” Sae says, playing along. “I’ll beat him up for you, Isagi, don’t worry.”

Yoichi giggles, “Thank you, my hero. He always says I eat too much, but we play sports, so I have to bulk up.”

“Yoichi, I didn’t call you fat. Stop spreading lies.” Rin says with a glare. 

Yoichi shakes his head, “No, I specifically remember you saying Yoichi stop eating so much, fat ass. And I cried that night in the mirror—mmpf!”

Rin had covered his boyfriend’s mouth, cursing him out. Sae watches with an amused face and suddenly feels a great appreciation for Isagi. He can tell they’re going to last for a long time. Which is good. Sae wants his brother to have someone by his side at all times, especially when Sae himself can’t be there.

He briefly wonders if he can say the same with Ryusei. At the moment, they’re fine. Which is… fine. They can be fine for now. 

“Alright, stop torturing Isagi. Let him eat in peace. You’re the one who needs to stop eating, Rin. You’re huge. Has mom seen you lately?”

The two brothers talk about their parents and Yoichi chimes in when appropriate. After about an hour or two, the three part ways. Sae enters his apartment and Ryusei is on the couch, playing a video game. 

He notices Sae and quickly glances up at him, “Welcome homeeee! How was it?”

Sae sits next to him after removing his shoes. “It was fine. Isagi was there, too.”

“Mmm, nice. Anything interesting happen?”

“Not really. I think they’re going to be around each other for a while.”

The tv makes a loud explosion sound and a game over flashes across the screen in bright red letters. Ryusei looks at his lover. 

“Yeah?”

Sae nods. “They have a good dynamic, I think. I’m happy for Rin. He’s going to need someone.”

Ryusei tentatively moves his hand to grip onto Sae’s. The older gently squeezes it. 

“We’re good, right, Sae-chan? If not, then let’s make it right.”

Sae looks confused. “I thought we were? Is something wrong? We’re fine.”

Ryusei sighs quietly, “That’s the thing: we’re fine. I want to be good— great even. Maybe not perfect, but ya know.”

“Is this about Rin? I told you, I talked to him. We’ve come to an agreement.”

“No, I’m talking about us. I’m sorry for hitting Rin, but you have to know how I feel.”

Sae nibbles on his bottom lip for a moment. “Well, I’m not a mind reader, Ryusei. Tell me how you feel.”

Shidou fully turns towards his boyfriend, and Sae does the same, indicating he’s listening. Shidou has never really had issues talking about his feelings and whatnot. It’s part of expressing himself. He won’t hesitate to let others know what he’s thinking. Sae… not so much. Getting him to admit he liked Ryusei was like pulling teeth. However, he’s starting to understand that Sae is more action than words, which is fine, but it’s nice to hear it every once in awhile. 

“I just feel like we’ve been arguing a lot more lately, and I hate it. And it’s always about the same shit: I express too much and you don’t express anything at all.” Shidou explains. 

Sae looks down at their joined hands. “You asked me to try and I am. It’s not gonna happen overnight, Ryu.”

“I know that, but I just want to remind you that I’m here to help. I love you, Sae. I’ve never loved anyone like this. Not to this extent.”

Sae really wants to ignore the pounding of his heart, and the heat covering his ears. He can’t; not when Shidou is looking at him like that and saying those words so sincerely. Sae loves him, too. A lot. So much so it’s scary. His past relationships have never invoked these types of emotions from him. Luna was different. Sae now knows that that wasn’t love, it never was. 

With Ryusei…

It’s love, and he’s sure of it. 

“… I love you as well. You know that. But what specifically do you want from me? What am I supposed to be talking about?” Sae admits. He wants to be closer to Ryusei more than anything. 

Shidou bites his lip for a moment. “I guess what I’m trying to say is… I want to know more about you. Like… your past. Childhood and all that. I just know you and Under Lashes Junior had a fight and that’s it.”

Sae’s response is quick, “It wasn’t a fight,” Ryusei gives him a look and he sighs. “It wasn’t. We just… grew apart. We’ve mended it now. But why do you need to know? The past is the past; I don’t care for it.”

Shidou can't help himself, he lets out a small chuckle. “Sae-chan, I care for it. What, do you have like PTSD or some shit?”

Sae remains silent. 

Shidou’s smile drops. 

“Sae.”

“Don’t.”

“Sae—“

“Ryusei, drop it. It’s fine. You didn’t know.”

“That’s exactly my point!” Shidou exclaims. He grips Sae’s shoulders, causing the older to startle a bit. “We’ve been together long enough to have a baby, and I’m just now finding out you have a disorder! Which, by the way, I plan on getting you pregnant at some point.”

Sae’s face immediately turns pink and he shoves his boyfriend away, “Shut up; don’t talk nonsense. Why do you want to know that stuff anyway? It’s not like you trigger it or whatever.”

“Because I love you.” Shidou leans forward to rest his chin on Sae’s shoulder, hugging the older’s arm. He has a sincere, gentle smile on his lips. 

Sae’s stomach feels queasy at the sight. He used to hate it, back when Shidou tried to “woo” him. Little did the boy know he already had Sae falling for him on the first day they met. Sae had denied it to himself plenty times, refusing to believe he could have feelings for someone of Ryusei’s caliber. Someone so free, someone who seems to not want to be tied down. Someone who lives life to the fullest. 

Sae has a lot of baggage that he’d rather forget about. And he has for the most part. Except his lover keeps bringing it up. Not that it’s a problem, per se… but like he said, he wants to forget it and let it go. 

Hopefully they can compromise…

Sae lets out a slow breath. “How about… I tell you things only if you ask the right questions. It can be some sort of a game. I’ll let you know if the questions you ask are correct or not. Do you accept?” Sae brings up his free hand to card his fingers through pink and blond hair. 

Shidou’s eyes light up at his words. Hook and sinker. 

“Do I get hints?”

“Mmm… Only three, so use them wisely.”

The tanned man sits up excitedly, “What do I get if I ask a good question?”

Sae’s eyebrow quirks up, “An answer.”

“Truthful answer, Sae-chan. No lying or beating around the bush!”

“Deal.”

“Can we start now?”

“Yes, but only three questions per day. Unless you wanna trigger my PTSD. That’d make you a bad partner.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure only three! Geez, Sae-chan you’re so demanding! You’re lucky you’re sexy and hot as fuck.”

Sae rolls his eyes, “Shut up, horny demon. Ask your question.”

Shidou smiles and kisses his cheek, “Love youuuu! Okay, okay! So my question is… Who is Luna?”

Sae’s eyes widen a bit, “Straight out the fucking gate, I see.”

Shidou nods with absolutely no shame. Since when does he ever have shame?

Sae scoffs and shakes his head, “Try again.”

Ryusei immediately pouts, “Aw what? I thought that was a good one!”

“Mh, it is, but not the right one.”

“Okay, okay, hold on.” Ryusei places a hand on his chin as he thinks. Sae thinks he’s adorable. “Quick question: when you answer will you give details?”

“…Sure. I guess it wouldn’t be fair if you had to waste your three questions on details.”

Ryusei does a quick fist pump, “Yes! Okay! What did Luna do to you?”

Sae regrets suggesting this game. 

But it’s his own fault; Ryusei is smarter than he looks. 

“I’ll tell you, but be patient with me, yeah?”

Shidou nods seriously, and gently holds Sae’s hands, lacing their fingers. Sae takes a deep breath. He hasn’t thought about it in years; hadn’t thought about him. He didn’t even tell Rin, his brother, the whole story. 

“When I was fourteen, I got the chance to play soccer in Spain with Re-Al. Unfortunately, I had to leave Rin behind and everything that happened… was partially why we drifted apart,”

Shidou looks at his boyfriend intensely, drinking in every word. He’s watching the way Sae speaks and how his eyes stare blankly behind Shidou’s head at the wall. Ryusei doesn’t feel bad about asking this question. The way Sae reacted last time Luna was brought up made Shidou’s sensors go off. Something wasn’t right, something he didn’t like. He wants Sae to be free of this person, and the first step is talking about it. 

Sae hasn’t continued. Ryusei gently squeezes his hands to remind him that he’s here and listening and that he loves Sae. 

He feels Sae squeeze back. 

“Getting to train with Spain’s best team was amazing. I thought I knew everything about football, but I was wrong. They taught me what it really was and what it could be. It was fun, despite the language barrier. And… Luna was nice to me. At first. He offered one on one training with me a lot. I would’ve been a fool to not accept. Sometimes, I wish I had been a fool,”

Sae stops again and Shidou studies him. His grip on Ryusei is significantly tighter and his eyes glossed over. He’s never seen Sae cry, didn’t think the man was capable. If he cries now, Shidou doesn’t know what he’ll do. 

For now, though, he rubs soothing circles with his thumb on the back of Sae’s hand. 

The older man takes another deep breath, “After about two months, I was pretty proficient in Spanish. And the training with Luna was good. I don’t fully remember what happened, but all of a sudden he started saying such… nasty things. Degrading me, saying what a waste of talent I was. That I don’t deserve to be a striker; that I’m not good enough. He said weird things about my body, too. It was light touches at first, adjusting my posture or whatever he said,”

Ryusei feels a surge of rage rush through his veins. Sae was only fourteen, a kid. They took advantage of him. He took advantage of Sae. 

“He told me loved me. I didn’t feel the same way, but at the time I didn’t know that. Despite everything, I still admired him. We never had an official relationship, but he was… territorial. Everything he did was all mental. He got into my head to the point I didn’t know who I was. We had sex when I turned sixteen because apparently that’s the age of consent in Spain. I didn’t want to, but I didn’t say no. I never did. How could I? I loved him and he loved me, right?”

Shidou is starting to regret asking just a little bit. He now understands why Sae wanted to leave it alone. He’ll make it up to the older, he swears. 

Sae’s teal eyes finally, finally look at Ryusei. Tears are threatening to spill over the edge. Ryusei wants him to stop. 

“Sae-chan… You can— You can stop—“

“He broke me, Ryusei. Made me believe I was only good enough to be a midfielder. Made me give up on my— our dream,”

Ryusei guesses he’s talking about Rin. 

“Made me believe in a love that didn’t exist. Hell, I didn’t know what love was until you. It took me years to piece myself back together. Years to fix mine and Rin’s relationship. I despise that man and I want nothing to do with him. There’s your answer.”

The entire time not one tear slipped past. Sae refuses to cry over this. He did that years ago, it’s over now and Leonardo Luna doesn't exist in his world. It’s only him, Ryusei, and Rin (Isagi is slowly inching his way in, honestly).

However, now that it’s out in the open, Sae feels a bit lighter. Only a little. Nothing drastic has changed, but he can feel the difference. Did Ryusei ask him about this on purpose? Or did he really just want to know?

Speaking of, Ryusei is oddly quiet. He’s just staring at Sae with such an intense expression. Sae shifts in his seat a little. 

“Say something, Ryusei. Don’t just stare at me like an idiot.”

Shidou shakes his head slowly, “Sorry, sweetheart, it’s just… Wasn’t what I was expecting. Luna is an asshole and needs to die.”

Despite himself, Sae lets a small chuckle slip past his lips. “Sorry, but him dying won’t solve anything.”

“Not if I can help it.”

“You can't and you won’t. It’s all over now. Pointless,”

Sae gets up from the couch and heads towards their bedroom. Shidou follows, of course, hot on his heels. “Sae-chan, you know I love you, yeah? I’d kill for you. And I mean that shit. I’m not sure I’ll get away with murder, but I’ll die trying for you.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. Come here,” Sae says as he gets into the bed. He pulls back the covers and holds them open. Shidou doesn’t hesitate. 

The blond rests his head on Sae’s chest and the older wraps his arms around him, tangling their legs together. 

“It’s not nonsense! I’m serious! Take me seriously, Sae-chan!”

“Mhmm.”

“Saeeee!”

“Hush.”

“Itoshi-san!”

“Nap.”

“Sae-chaaaan!”

____________________

The weeks come and go along with finals. Summer break is coming up and after a new semester. Isagi is ready to go to the beach and anywhere else that isn’t the college campus. 

If only his boyfriend was ready. 

“You have how many more days?! Rin!” Isagi whines, flopping himself over on Rin’s bed. They’re in the younger’s dorm room and Rin just told Yoichi the worst news possible. 

Rin has a final project due and he’s scheduled to be one of the last few for the presentation. Which is in four days. 

“I can’t do anything about that, Yoichi.” Rin says as he types away on his laptop. He’s just as upset if not more. His professor can go fuck herself, honestly. 

Yoichi pouts at the back of his boyfriend’s head. “Can’t you talk to her? Ask her to make you first. We planned a beach day for tomorrow!”

They made these plans last week, and had been looking forward to it. Yoichi more so than Rin. He hates the beach: the sand, the sun, the water, the people. You wouldn’t catch Rin dead near a beach. He’s only going for Yoichi. 

His sweet, adorable Yoichi. 

His kind, loveable Yoichi. 

His Yoichi, who invited Sae and that pink roach—

Rin sighs deeply. “I’ll try, but no promises. I refuse to let you be alone anywhere near that pink roach.”

That wipes off Yoichi’s pout and replaces it with a quiet giggle. “You make it seem like Shidou is gonna attack me.”

“I wouldn’t put it past him.”

“Oh relax, Rin. Hey, can't you just skip class tomorrow? It’s not like you need to be there for the other presentations.” Yoichi gets off the bed and goes over to Rin, who is sitting at the desk. He drapes himself over Rin’s back, resting his chin onto his shoulder. 

“….”

“Rin!”

“She says it’s mandatory—“

“Fuck your professor! You can miss one day! Come on!” 

Rin sighs and thinks for a moment. He really wants to be with Isagi, but stupid school is getting in the way. His professor made attendance mandatory for the presentations, but didn’t say that they’ll fail if they don’t show up. Rin just wanted to be on the safe side and go to class anyway. But with Yoichi begging so prettily…

“…Fine.” Rin says, turning his head as much as he can to look at Isagi. 

The bright smile that takes over Yoichi’s face makes Rin’s heart beat just a bit faster. Damn him. 

“Yes! Thank you, thank you! It’s gonna be so fun!” Yoichi exclaims, then presses a loud kiss to Rin’s cheek. 

The corner of Rin’s lips slightly lifted, a very Rin-like smile. Yoichi giggles and kisses his cheek again. “I can’t wait to see you shirtless and sweaty.”

Rin rolls his eyes, “Why wait until tomorrow when you can see that now?”

Yoichi smirks at that, resting his hands on Rin’s firm chest. “Baby, are you coming on to me right now?”

Ignoring the reddening of his cheeks, Rin says, “I’m just letting you know that there’s no reason to wait if you want to see me shirtless and sweaty.”

Yoichi gets closer to his ear, whispering, “Oh yeah? So, if I wanted to see right now…”

He leaves his sentence unfinished, knowing that Rin will finish it. He gently nibbles on Rin’s earlobe, and licks it slowly. He feels and hears Rin take a deep, shuddering breath. Yoichi loves that he can make his boyfriend’s control slip. Make him unravel slowly at the seams. Rin continues to fall apart as Isagi kisses his neck, little nips here and there. Using his tongue to lick a certain spot before latching on and sucking. 

Rin groans quietly, “Marking me knowing we’re going to the beach tomorrow? How bold of you.”

Yoichi chuckles as he finishes and licks the reddish purple skin. “People will know you’re taken. That you’re mine.”

“Possessive.”

“As if you aren’t the same. What were you saying earlier about Shidou jumping me?” 

The movement is quick but expected. Rin turns in his chair, gripping Yoichi’s chin harshly with a glare. Yoichi only smirks (well, as best as he can with his cheeks squished together).

“Don’t fucking mention that thing right now.” Rin says through gritted teeth. 

“Point proven,” Isagi says. “So, what are you gonna do? ‘Cuz Shidou offered—“

Rin squeezes his chin harder, and Isagi whimpers. “Shut the fuck up. You belong to me and to me only. But you knew that. Don’t piss me off, Yoichi.”

Yoichi whimpers again as his pants get tighter in the crotch area. He loves pushing Rin’s buttons, making him lose his temper and control. Usually Yoichi fights back, but today he’s not in the mood. 

“But you’re already pissed off. I only wanted to tell you what he said to me, Rin.” Isagi’s eyes soften, playing the victim. 

Rin’s glare doesn't let up. No— it only intensifies. “Tell me. Leave nothing out.”

Yoichi smirks in his mind. It’s so easy to rile up his boyfriend and he loves it (Rin does, too).

“He said that if you don’t satisfy me anymore, then I could go to him. He even offered a threesome with Sae.” Yoichi says. Shidou didn’t say those words exactly, but he might as well have. 

(“Isagi-chan! You’re kinda cute, ya know? Our door is always open if you—

“Shut up, demon.”

“Ah, thank you, Shidou, but I have Rin…”

“He has a stick up his ass! Sae-chan and I know how to have fun—“

“We’re leaving.”

“Oh, okay! Bye, Isagi-chan! Think about what I said! Hey, Sae-chan—!”)

Rin sneers, “I’m obviously better than him,” he stands up abruptly and Isagi barely catches himself from tripping over his own feet. “Bed. Now.”

He lets Yoichi go with a slight shove towards the bed. Yoichi complies, hiding a smirk into his shoulder. He lies back onto the pillow and watches with bated breath as Rin slowly crawls towards him; like a predator hunting their prey. 

“Are you? I’m not so sure about that. Have you seen his thighs? You know I gotta thing—“

“Shut the fuck up!” 

Yoichi gasps in surprise as his vision snaps to the side, his right cheek stinging. Though the shock barely lasts as his dick throbs and he’s moaning softly. Rin smiles, and it’s almost unhinged. Yoichi remains silent, squeezing his thighs together. 

Rin leans down to whisper in his ear, “Good. Now behave, or it’ll be worse next time.”

And Yoichi doesn’t hide the fact that turns him on even more. 

__________________

The next day finds the two couples safely arriving at the beach. Sae had rented a car to drive them, and they were subjected to Shidou’s terrible taste in music. 

(It wasn’t actually bad, Rin just hates him.)

Surprisingly, Shidou and Rin barely argued the whole way. But that could be because Sae gave them a very stern talking to before they took off. Isagi had been giggling the whole time. 

They all got out of the car when Sae parked. Rin and Sae head to the trunk to grab their things, Shidou following behind. However, he’s pulled back by Isagi. 

The other simply raises an eyebrow at him. Isagi chuckles innocently, but Shidou knows it’s anything but. 

“Rin, baby! Be a dear, and grab all our stuff, yeah? You too, Sae-chan!” Yoichi exclaims, ignoring their protests as he drags Shidou away. 

“Isagi-chan, what’s that little sprout of yours planning, hmm?” Shidou asks, lightly flicking said sprout on top of Yoichi’s hair. 

Yoichi lets him go once they get far enough onto the sand. “Nothing, nothing. Just need to find the perfect spot,” 

He sounds innocent, but Shidou doesn’t believe him. He’s intrigued now. “Perfect spot , huh? Why don’t I believe you?”

Yoichi chuckles, “Shidou, we really do need to find a good spot.”

Shidou smirks, “Okay, but why did you need me?”

“Four eyes are better than two.”

“Isagi Yoichi, if you don’t let me in on your plan this instant—“

“Okay, okay!” Isagi relents and huffs loudly. “I’m trying to piss Rin off. He doesn’t like when I’m around you, especially when we’re alone. He thinks you’ll jump my bones! Can you believe that?!” 

That makes Shidou cackle loudly, “If you wanted to fuck with Rin Rin you should’ve said so! It’s my specialty!” He stops laughing and smirks at Yoichi. “Also, if I weren’t with Sae-chan then I’d totally fuck you if it meant pissing Rin off. No offense.”

Isagi rolls his eyes, “None taken, I guess. So, you’ll help me?”

“Yeah, sure, but can I ask why? Oh, this looks like a good spot!” 

“Uhhh,” Isagi’s face turns red at the question, and it’s not from the sun. They stop at the spot Shidou pointed out. “Well, I don’t know how to say it… Oh, but don’t tell Rin, please?” 

Ryusei is loving this side of Yoichi right now. The shorter man is usually a goody two shoes, and generally just nice. It’s exciting to see that Isagi can be mischievous if he wants. 

“Don’t worry, Yo-chan! Your secret is safe with me!” 

“Okay, thanks— wait, Yo-chan?”

Ryusei chuckles, “I’d say we’re pretty close now since we’re sharing secrets. And have a mutual hobby of fucking with Rin Rin.”

“That makes sense. Anyway, I recently found out that he lets loose when he’s mad. Like, during sex. Not that he doesn’t do it good normally. It’s amazing every time, but he seems… scared? To be rough with me and stuff. But if he’s upset he’ll throw me around like a damn rag doll. I want to find a way to get that out of him naturally. But for now this is the best I can do.”

Ryusei lets out a low whistle, “Damn, dude, that’s rough. Is that where those hickeys came from? I didn’t say anything earlier because of Sae-chan!” 

Isagi covers his neck out of embarrassment, “Shut up! But… yes. Yesterday, I mentioned how you asked me about that threesome a few months ago, and he was pissed. So pissed he even slapped me. I was surprised I was able to get out of bed today.” Yoichi’s face is bright red now. 

He recounted this story to Bachira earlier this morning, every single detail, but for some reason telling Shidou the bare minimum is making him mortified. 

Ryusei laughs, “Oh, Yo-chan! Y’all are some freaks! I love it! I’ll help you, but I have to tell Sae-chan. Otherwise, he’ll get jealouuuus!” 

Yoichi chuckles, “That’s fine by me. Oh, they’re coming!” 

Ryusei turns and he’s right; the Itoshi brothers are approaching with all the equipment. When they get close enough they set everything down. Yoichi goes to stand by Rin, hugging his arm. 

“Thank you, baby. My big, strong man,” Yoichi teases him lightly and kisses Rin’s cheek. 

Rin scowls, ignoring the blush creeping onto his face, “Shut up. Did that pink bug do anything to you?” 

They begin helping the other two set up everything. Isagi mentally rolls his eyes, “No, Rin. Why would he?”

“I don’t trust him.”

“You trust him with your brother.”

“… I don’t trust him with you.”

“I wouldn’t let him, anyway. Let’s just enjoy our day, okay? No thinking about Ryu-chan, just us.”

Rin squints his eyes at his boyfriend in suspicion. He sets down the folding chair a little too rough, kicking up a bit of sand. “What did you just call him?”

Yoichi, who has his back turned, smirks to himself before turning around, feigning innocence. “Call who what?”

“Don’t fucking play dumb, Yoichi.” 

Yoichi tries hard to hold back a laugh. “Ohh, you mean Shidou? We’re pretty close now, so he said I can call him Ryu-chan. He calls me Yo-chan, too.” 

“And when the fuck did this happen?” 

“Oh relax, Rin. Isn’t it important that we get along? If Sae plans on keeping him around I think it’s best we all get closer.” 

Rin makes a tch sound. They finally finish setting up and Rin immediately takes out the sunscreen. “Yoichi.”

Isagi turns to him and smiles. He removes his shirt and plops himself onto Rin’s lap. “Will you go in the water with me?”

Rin pours the sunscreen into his palm and rubs it together. He starts covering Isagi’s back. “Maybe. I’ll think about it.”

“That’s not a no, so I’ll take it.”

“Whatever helps you sleep.”

“You help me sleep.”

“Shut up, that was corny.”

Isagi giggles and turns around in his lap when his back is done. Rin rubs sunscreen over his shoulders and chest. 

“You love it, though.”

“No, I love you. Not your dumb ass jokes.”

“My jokes are me so therefore you love us both.”

“I can’t stand you.”

“Good thing you’re sitting down, then.”

Rin glares and Yoichi kisses his nose. Rin finishes up and Isagi takes the bottle to help him now. The younger takes off his shirt and Yoichi whistles playfully. 

“Wow, Rin! Do you work out or what?” Yoichi starts rubbing sunscreen along Rin’s chest. 

“Why are you being annoying today?” Rin asks, leaning back slightly on his hands. 

“I’m just happy! I’m spending time with the love of my life and it’s a perfect beach day. Can’t I be happy?”

Rin looks off to the side, “Tch. I didn’t say that.”

Yoichi places his hands on Rin’s cheeks, turning him back towards him. “I know, baby. I can tell you’re happy, too.” He leans forward to give him a proper kiss. 

“Hey, lovebirds! Stop smooching and let’s swim!” 

The couple pull away from each other to look at Shidou; one with amusement and the other with contempt. Yoichi waves him off, “Hold on, Ryu-chan! I have to finish putting sunscreen on Rin!”

“If he touches you, he’s dead.” 

“Be quiet. You don’t want to go with me anyways.”

“Now I think I will. I doubt Sae is going anywhere near the water. I refuse to leave you alone with that pest.”

Isagi finishes up and pinches Rin cheek lightly, “Stop that. I’ll be fine. You’ll be watching us, won’t you?” 

“Duh, Yoichi.”

Yoichi rolls his eyes, “Whatever. I’ll be back, party pooper.” Isagi gets off his lap and goes over to Shidou, who immediately stops his conversation with Sae and drags him to the ocean. 

Once they’re far enough in, the water up to their waists, Shidou tells him, “I told Sae-chan your plan. He called it stupid, but was interested to see how it plays out. I can’t lie, Yo-chan, I’m intrigued, too!”

“It’ll all work out fine. You get to piss Rin off, and I get pressed into the mattress tonight. It’s a win-win.”

“You’re a little devil, aren’t ya! I wanna see more of this, Yo-chan!”

Yoichi chuckles, “Bet! He just told me that if you touch me, he’ll kill you. So, do the opposite!”

Shidou smiles wickedly, “No problem!” 

Next thing Isagi knows, he’s being picked up and tossed into the cold water. He barely has time to scream before he plunges in. He quickly swims back up, laughing loudly, “Ryu-chan! That wasn’t fair!” 

“Alls fair in love and war, Yo-chan!” 

The two continue to tackle each other in the water, and have splash wars. Ryusei makes sure to be touching Yoichi at all times, even when it doesn’t seem necessary. Isagi does so as well; clinging onto him and generally being in his space. They’re actually having fun, despite the plan.

The only one not having fun is Rin. 

“Your face will get stuck like that.” 

Rin ignores his brother, who had been silently reading a book. He didn’t have to look up to know his baby brother is glaring daggers into Ryusei’s head. Sae is slightly amused by it all. 

“Why do you only listen to me sometimes?” Sae tries again. 

“Shut up, I’m busy.” Rin snaps back. 

Sae rolls his eyes, “Rin, they’re fine. Leave Ryusei alone.”

“I’ll leave it alone when it keeps its hands off my Yoichi.”

“Please stop referring to my boyfriend as an ‘it.’ And your Yoichi is fine; they’re having fun. Why don’t you go play, too?”

Rin whips his head around so fast it’s surprising that he didn’t break his neck. His scowl is now directed towards Sae. “Play? Don’t forget: you fucking raised me. I only play football. Not whatever bullshit that is!”

And in the split second that Rin had his head turned, Isagi has somehow managed to climb onto Shidou’s shoulders. The blonde is holding Isagi by the thighs so he doesn’t fall, which is useless since not even two seconds later he’s tossing Isagi backward into the water. Yoichi screams, attempting to grip onto his hair, but ultimately fails. 

Rin’s eyes might as well be shooting lasers by now. 

“Oh, fuck this.” Rin mumbles, half growling. He’s about to get up, but a hand on his bare shoulder stops him. 

Sae had set his book down, “Don’t go over there, you’ll cause a scene.”

“I don’t care. He’s touching Yoichi more than necessary. I don’t want him touching Yoichi at all.”

Sae sighs. He didn’t think he’d have to be part of this dumb plan. “Rin, they’re just playing around. You expect them to only swim at the beach?”

“Yes,” Rin says truthfully. 

Sae rolls his eyes. “I should’ve brought some beach toys for you since you’re gonna act like a child. Fine, go over there. Don’t start any fights. I mean it, Rin.” 

Rin doesn’t respond, just gets up and speed walks to the shore. He barely feels its temperature as he goes deeper to where his boyfriend and Shidou are. 

Speaking of, Isagi is currently on Shidou’s back as he swims around, ducking under the water. Isagi laughs each time he comes back up because Shidou is attempting to swim deeper to “feel how a sperm cell does.”

“Ryu-chan, I don’t think you can go any deeper with me on your back.” Yoichi comments. 

“Nah, I can! I’m just not into drowning you.”

“Let me get off then!”

“No! I saw Under Lashes Junior heading this way. He’s gonna rip me a new one!” 

Yoichi giggles. “Sorry, but thanks for being collateral damage. I’ll make sure he doesn’t hit you.”

“I’ll consider it a win!” 

Shidou is about to go back under until he feels Yoichi’s light weight (courtesy of the water) being pulled off of him. 

“Rin! Let me go!” Yoichi shouts. 

Ryusei turns to see Rin holding the shorter man over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Isagi is thrashing around, demanding to be released, but Rin ignores him. 

Ryusei smirks. “Whatcha doin’ to my bestie, Rin Rin? We were having fun! Right, Yo-chan?”

Isagi smiles immediately. “Yeah, Ryu-chan! Rin, put me down now! Don’t be a party pooper!”

Rin is glaring at Ryusei as his grip on his boyfriend gets tighter. “Shut the fuck up. Keep your dirty hands off him.” 

“I can touch him however I want, Under Lashes.”

“I’ll fucking break your hands.”

Yoichi rolls his eyes and wiggles around to free himself. Eventually Rin’s hold slips and Isagi is released. He looks between the two boys. 

“Guys, don’t start. Rin, we’re just messing around and you know that. Besides, you have no room to complain. You didn’t even want to come into the water with me, and Ryu-chan did.”

Ryusei slings an arm over Isagi’s shoulders, “Exactly! Let him have it, Yo-chan!”

Rin’s eyebrow twitches, “Yoichi, are you seriously siding with that thing?”

“Ryu is not a thing, Rin. He’s my friend. I want you to start being nice to him—“

“When hell freezes over.”

Yoichi glares at him, “Don’t interrupt me. We’re friends whether you like it or not. So, you either play nice or just leave it alone.”

Shidou let’s out a whistle. “Daaaamn, Yoichi! That was hot as fuck! Hey, how about you get rid of Rin’s sorry ass, hm? Sae-chan and I could—“

Rin doesn’t let the man finish, shoving him away from his boyfriend. “Shut the fuck up. All you do is run your damn mouth and it's nothing but bullshit. Leave Yoichi alone.”

Isagi can’t lie: Rin looks so good right now. The water glistening on his broad chest, his wet bangs pushed back, and the killer expression on his handsome face. How did Yoichi get so lucky to be blessed by the beauty that is Rin Itoshi? 

But he can’t let his pretty boyfriend commit murder right now. 

Before Shidou could respond (with words or a punch, Isagi doesn't want to find out), the shorter man says, “That’s enough, you two! Rin, you know he’s joking. How about you just go back, hm? I wanna keep swimming with Ryu-chan.”

Rin feels an unexplainable amount of rage right now, but he would never take it out on his sweet Yoichi. Despite his Yoichi being the cause of it. His kind and loveable Yoichi doesn't deserve Rin’s wrath. Rin would rather die. 

“Yoichi. Come back with me. You need a break, anyway. And more sunscreen.” Rin tries, loosely gripping onto Isagi’s wrist. 

Yoichi’s heart melts at Rin’s soft expression. He knows Rin is upset, but isn’t showing it to him. Isagi guesses he can lay off the plan just a little bit. His boyfriend is so cute. 

Yoichi sighs, “Okay, fine. Sorry, Ryu-chan! We can swim some more later!” 

Shidou, who had been watching with amusement, just smiled widely, “That’s fine, Yo-chan! Hey, Rin Rin, let's race back!”

“No.” Rin responds quickly, taking Yoichi’s hand. 

“Aww, you suck!” 

The trio walks back to shore. Once they reach the point where the water is at their knees, Shidou gets an idea. He pauses his steps, waits for the couple in front of him to get a few feet ahead, and then dashes. 

“I'm hungry. What do you want to eat, Rin— AHH!” 

Yoichi barely finished asking his question when he’s suddenly being lifted into Shidou’s arms, princess style. The blonde man cackles as he runs, Rin hot on his trail. 

“Ryusei, what the hell! You scared me!” Isagi shouts, holding onto Shidou’s neck. 

“You fucking pink roach! Stop or you’ll drop him!” Rin shouts from behind. 

The culprit only laughs louder. “Gotta catch me, Lashes! Don’t worry, Yo-chan, I won’t drop ya! I’m stronger than I look!” 

“That’s not what I’m worried about!” 

“Relaaaax! It’s all part of the plan!” 

Yoichi rolls his eyes fondly. “Thanks, Ryu-chan, but I think we’re okay for now. You’ll know when I need you again!” 

They finally reach their spot, and Ryusei sets Yoichi down gently, breathing heavily. Rin arrives no later and stands between Shidou and Isagi, like a protective shield. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you? You could’ve dropped him and hurt him! Do you ever use that brain of yours? I’m starting to think it’s just there for decoration!”

Shidou waves him off, “Relax, dude! He’s fine. Have some faith in your bro-in-law! Sae-chaaaaan! I’m back!” He goes over to bother his boyfriend, who immediately dodges his hug by throwing a towel at his face. 

Rin scowls at him for a second before turning to his partner. “Are you okay?” 

Yoichi smiles softly, “Yes, I’m okay. I trusted him not to drop me. But that’s only because he probably didn’t want to start a fight.” He grabs Rin’s hand and leads them towards their beach chairs. Though, Isagi completely ignores his and sits in Rin’s lap. 

Rin wraps a towel around his boyfriend to dry him off. He says, “He’s been pissing me off all day.”

“We’ve only been here an hour.”

“I’m still pissed off.”

“Well, can you not do that? It’s the beach! Have fun, Rin!”

“I hate the beach and you know it.”

Yoichi chuckles, “I know, but you’re here anyway.”

“Because of you. You forced me to skip class and everything. Bad influence.”

Isagi scoffs, “I did not! I simply suggested it!”

Rin shakes his head, teal eyes filled with the amusement of the joke. “I should tell Sae that my boyfriend is a terrible influence on my studies.”

“Nooo! Then he won’t like me anymore!” Yoichi fake whines. 

The corner of Rin’s mouth quirks up a bit. “Make it up to me, then.”

Yoichi perks up, a smirk appearing on his face. “How?”

“Stay away from that pink bug.” 

Isagi’s expression drops into a pout. “Boo, you ruined it. You could’ve said something really sexy, but noooo!” 

Rin smirks, “Why would I? We’re in public, you nuisance.” 

“I’m literally in your lap.”

“So? Also, why are you on me when I brought your chair? Made me waste energy grabbing it from the car.”

“I’ll sit in it eventually. Are you complaining?”

“… whatever. Weren’t you hungry? Let’s go.” 

Yoichi makes an excited noise and gets off of his boyfriend’s lap so Rin can stand as well. They put on their sandals and Rin grabs his wallet from his bag. 

“Sae-chan! Ryu-chan! We’re gonna get food!” Yoichi tells the other two. 

Shidou is in his own chair and playing on his phone. Sae is in between his legs, laying against his chest with his book. They’re kinda cute, Yoichi admits. 

“‘Kaaaaay!” Shidou exclaims. 

“Nothing fried.” Sae says. 

Rin and Isagi walk off towards the docks where multiple food stands are. Sae watches them go and once they get far enough, he asks, “Did that dumb plan work?”

“Hmmm, I guess? Yo-chan said he’s done for now until he needs me again. Why, ya jealous?” Shidou smirks. 

“Absolutely not. I don’t see why he can’t just talk to Rin. My brother isn’t unreasonable.”

“Maybe their relationship is more complicated than that.”

“What’s complicated? I think communication is important, especially about sex.”

Ryusei chuckles, “Rich coming from you. You never wanna talk.”

Sae sits up and stares at his boyfriend. “Don’t start.” 

Ryusei shrugs, “I’m not starting anything. Hey, why did that bastard Luna call you last time?”

Sae startles from the sudden question, freezing on the spot. “…We’re doing this now?” 

Shidou shrugs. “Why not? The kids are gone and won’t be back for a while.”

Sae shakes his head. “Can’t this wait until we’re home? Let’s just enjoy the day.”

“I’ve been curious, though.”

“Be curious later. I’m not answering.”

Shidou pouts and wraps his arms around Sae’s shoulders from behind. “Sae-chaaaan! Will you really not answer? You said you would.”

Sae sighs, trying not to get annoyed. He loves Ryusei, really, but he can be so goddamn stubborn. “I know, but time and place, Ryusei. I’ll tell you later.”

Shidou buries his head into Sae’s neck, pressing a light kiss there, saying, “Fine. Only because I love you.”

The elder raises an eyebrow. “That’s the only reason? Half-baked.”

Ryusei giggles loudly and presses a wet kiss on his lover’s cheek. “Of course not, baby cakes! I respect your wishes!”

“I doubt that sometimes.”

The blonde only hums, hugging Sae tighter. It’s relaxing; listening to the waves of the ocean as they crash against the shore, the seagulls shouting as they fly by, and the other beach goers talking loudly as their kids scream in delight. Sae was never really a beach person. Always preferring to stay on the pitch with a soccer ball at his feet and Rin by his side. 

But now it’s fine. 

Ryusei’s arms around him are fine. The sun beaming down on them is fine. The multiple, innocent kisses on his neck and shoulders is fine. Ryusei’s tanned, toned chest against his back is also fine. Very fine, actually. Sae is content. 

He is finally able to relax again in his boyfriend’s arms. 

“I love you, too.” Sae mumbles, opening his book back up. 

“I love when you say that. You don’t say it often, but I think that’s what makes it special.” Ryusei mumbles against pale skin. 

Sae hates to admit that his brain momentarily short circuits. “Why are you suddenly being romantic? Shut up.” He hopes the blonde doesn’t see the red on his cheeks and just thinks it’s from the sun. 

Of course he doesn’t. 

Shidou gawks, excitedly shouting, “Sae-chan! Are you blushing?! Ahhhh! It’s not every day I fluster you! Awww, you’re so cute! I love you, I love you, I love you!” 

Shidou rocks them back and forth, squishing his cheek against Sae’s. Who, by the way, is turning redder by the second. He hasn’t gotten used to the funny feeling in his chest or the fact that it feels like he’s about to vomit. Sae has just dealt with it all these months. He knows it’s love, but the feeling of it is something he’s trying to be normal about. 

“You’re so annoying. Get off me.” Sae says with a scowl, trying to shove his partner away. Sae is by no means weak, but sometimes it’s like trying to move a brick wall. What the fuck does Shidou eat?

Shidou doesn't let him go, obviously. He only hugs the elder tighter. “Give me a kiss and I’ll let you go!” 

“No.”

“Then I’m never letting go!”

“That’s gonna happen regardless.”

“You’re right!” Shidou actually does let him go, but Sae can't stray too far, “Sae-chan, we have to get married!”

Sae glares, “What did I tell you about that? It’s too soon to be thinking of such ridiculous things. Focus on your football career.”

He says that, but Sae has caught himself at random times thinking of the future. And more often than not, Ryusei is there. When Sae lets himself imagine his future, it’s like the blonde has always been there; like he’s supposed to be a part of it. Sae’s brain refuses to let him remove Ryusei from the puzzle, like he’s glued into the bigger picture. 

And somehow, Sae is okay with that. 

These thoughts don’t scare him like he thought they would. When he was back in Spain, it was painful to even consider a future. Especially with Luna in the picture. His imagination was bleak, all grays and sadness. Sure, there was football, but Sae dreaded the idea of Luna being there. That man being in Sae’s future scared him. It’s the only time he’s ever truly been terrified. 

However, now thinking of it, he’s calm. He’s relaxed. No longer scared of a dim future that contained his worst nightmare. He’s hopeful, even. With Ryusei’s words, though, Sae might even be a little excited. 

He believes he should fear that Ryusei thinks that far ahead. They’ve only been together for eight months after all. Marriage is something to consider after two years at least. But then again, Ryusei is… Ryusei and Sae wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Shidou moves his hands from pale shoulders to still flushed cheeks, cradling Sae gently. His pink eyes flash with confidence and reassurance, but most of all: love. “Itoshi Sae, I am going to be the best striker ever with a hot as fuck husband. I am completely focused. And once I secure that, I’m gonna impregnate you. We’ll have at least six kids—“

“You’re spouting nonsense, Ryusei. Shut the fuck up,” Sae snaps at him, turning away in an attempt to hide his intense blush. It’s not that Sae is… opposed to starting a family. It’s just… how can Shidou say that so brazenly? So openly? 

And why is Sae completely on board with it?

God, this love shit is fucking up his brain. 

The action only makes the blonde cackle. “You like the sound of that, huh, baby! Yeah, that’s right, Imma let the whole world know who knocked you up!” 

“Do I wanna know why you’re knocking up Sae-chan?” 

“I’ll fucking knock him out. Just say the word, nii-chan.”

The couple look over to the other pair who just got back. They have multiple bags of food in their hands. 

Sae sighs, “It’s fine, Rin. Don’t start a fight.”

Rin glares at Shidou anyway. Yoichi shakes his head. “You two are insane. Well, if you guys are going to have kids, I can’t wait to be the best uncle ever!”

Ryusei goes straight into a spiel of what names he’ll give their kids as Isagi passes out the food. They eat with Isagi entertaining Shidou’s insane imagination with the Itoshi brothers rejecting every single idea. 

__________________

It happens on their way back to campus. 

After packing up the car, Yoichi insisted that he and Shidou sit in the back. Sae didn’t care, but Rin, of course, had his qualms about it. The shorter man took about five minutes to reassure his boyfriend. 

On the road, everything is fine. The two brothers don’t talk much, but Isagi and Shidou talk nonstop about this and that. Rin isn’t really paying attention to what’s coming out of their mouths, only really staring at them. It’s taken everything in him to not yell at the blonde to keep his hands off of Isagi when they compare hand sizes. Rin nearly bursts a blood vessel when Shidou starts playing with Isagi’s fingers absentmindedly as they talk. 

In the back, Isagi is giggling at almost everything. Shidou is pretty funny when he isn’t talking about knocking people up with his soccer. He’s also glad that his friend caught onto the plan when Isagi told him they would be sitting together. 

“My hands aren’t that big! Stop being mean, Ryu-chan!” Isagi whines playfully. 

Shidou smirks, “Wanna know what is big, though?”

“No—“

“My ego, duh! What did you think I was gonna say, hm, Yo-chan? You dirty dog!” 

Yoichi will not admit that he totally fell for it. Though, the blush on his cheeks gives him away and Shidou laughs. It’s cut short, however, when he gets an idea. He knows that Rin has been staring at them since they left the beach. Time to fuck with Under Lashes.

Shidou smiles all too innocently. 

Yoichi notices and mentally prepares himself for whatever insane shit his friend is going to say. 

“Hey, Yoichi?”

“Yes, Ryusei?” 

“I just wanted to let you know that I think you’re very handsome. If I weren’t madly in love with Sae-chan, I’d invite you into my bed. I could show you a good time,” Shidou says.

And just as they hoped, Rin snaps. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you, roach?! You’ve gone too damn far! I’m done playing nice!” Rin snatches off his seatbelt and turns around in his seat to get his hands on Shidou. 

Shidou laughs maniacally as Isagi tries to push Rin away. Sae’s eye twitches as he grips the steering wheel. He knew this shit was a bad idea from the start. He likes Isagi, but man is he stupid sometimes. 

“Come at me, Rin Rin! I’m just telling it like it is!” 

“I’m going to throttle you!” 

“Rin, stop it! Don’t let him ragebait you! We talked about this!”

Sae steps on the gas when the university dorms come into view. He’s so glad they were almost home. He may have broken a law or two as he swerves into the parking lot, and quickly parks in his designated area. 

The arguing is still going so Sae presses down on the horn. It’s loud and long, but gets the job done. The three nuisances shut up and stare in shock at Sae. The elder finally lets the horn go. 

“Get the fuck out of my car.” 

“… This is a rental.”

“Rin don’t fucking start. Isagi, get your shit together and just talk to him. Ryusei you get all the shit from the trunk by yourself. That’s punishment for going along with this stupid plan.” And with that, Sae exits the car.

It’s silent for a moment until Rin asks, “What plan, Yoichi?”

Shidou looks between the two lovers, sensing something is about to go down. As much as he wants to see this shit show, there’s a 100% chance Rin will punch him. So, he too, gets out of the car. The beach stuff be damned. 

Yoichi is mortified. Sae is right, he should’ve just been upfront with his boyfriend. He feels guilty and Rin doesn’t deserve that. Yoichi has never felt more disgusted with himself. 

“Yoichi?” Rin mumbles, looking concerned and worried. 

Isagi takes a deep breath, “I… I had come up with this— admittedly dumb— plan to make you jealous and mad. I asked Ryu— Shidou to help me because he got something out of it, too. Rin, I’m sorry, you don’t deserve this. I should’ve just talked to you. God, I’m an idiot.” Isagi murmurs the last part to himself, head in his hands. 

Rin is greatly confused by it all. He easily climbs into the backseat. “Yoichi, what are you talking about? Talk to me about what? Why did you do all this?”

“… For selfish reasons—“

“Tell me. Look at me.”

Yoichi slowly lifts his head, blue eyes wide and filled with embarrassment. “I… I, umm… It’s just that I’ve noticed lately that… you’re only rough with me in bed when you're mad. I want that to come out of you naturally, but that plan was the best I had at the time. It sounds fucking dumb, I know and I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Rin.”

Rin is trying to process his words but he’s heavily confused. Why didn’t Yoichi tell him? Why involve Shidou of all people? 

“Yoichi, don’t include that antenna freak in anything that has to do with us. It’s our business. Do you not trust me or something?” 

Isagi’s eyes widened as he vigorously shakes his head, “No! No, no, no! Never, Rin! I trust you with everything I have!”

“Then why?”

“I— I don’t know! I have no excuse, I’m sorry!” 

Rin sighs. He isn’t sure what to do. Yes, he’s upset about this whole thing, but is it really worth getting into an argument over? He doesn’t think so. Maybe this is an easy fix. 

“… Just talk to me next time, you lukewarm idiot. You love to run your mouth, anyway.” Rin says gently, grabbing onto Yoichi’s trembling hand. 

The shorter man looks down in surprise then back up into Rin’s teal eyes. “Oh… Okay. I’m sorry. I really am. Rin, you know I love you, right? I’d never do anything to hurt you.”

Rin squeezes his hand carefully. “I know, shut up. I feel like I should be more angry with you, but there’s no point in starting useless fights.”

Yoichi bites his lip. He thought that same thing. Rin definitely has a right to be mad about this. Obviously Yoichi wasn’t expecting him to yell or anything, Rin isn’t like that. He most likely would’ve ignored Isagi until he was ready to talk and be around Isagi again. 

“Do you want to talk about it now?” Yoichi asks quietly. 

“Let’s go to your dorm.”

___________________

The two sit on Yoichi’s bed, door locked and voices low so they don’t wake Bachira. They’ve already taken their showers beforehand to get rid of the sand and sun from their sticky skin. 

“What are you not satisfied with?” Rin asks, playing with his lover’s fingers. 

Yoichi makes a face. “Don’t put it that way. I am satisfied, and very happy with you. It’s just… are you, like, scared or something to hurt me during sex?”

Rin stares. 

“I don’t want to hurt you. That’s why I take my time prepping you—“

“No, no not that,” Yoichi says while shaking his head. “Like, manhandling me. Spanking me. Throwing me around.”

“I do—“

“No you don’t. Not unless you’re jealous and upset. If I asked you right now to do it, would you be able to?”

Rin thinks about that. He isn’t dumb, he knows about kinks and stuff. He just didn’t think his Yoichi would be into… that one. Also, now that Rin is thinking about it, any time they had rough sex, he was mad. Or jealous. Or possessive. Could he do it naturally? 

Of course he can. He’s Itoshi fucking Rin. 

“Tch. Damn right I can. What do you take me for?” 

Yoichi smiles with mirth. “Can you really? You know, I enjoyed that slap from yesterday. It surprised me. Can you do it again?”

Rin pauses for a moment. What?

“What?” He voices out loud. 

“What do you mean “what”? Don’t play innocent now, Rin.” Yoichi climbs into his lap, arms around Rin’s neck. 

What on earth is he talking about?

“Yoichi, what are you talking about? I don’t remember doing that.” 

That immediately wipes the smirk off Isagi’s face. “Huh? What do you mean you don’t remember? Come on, Rin! You remember we had sex yesterday, right? Look!” Isagi points to his neck where his bruises are now fading. 

“Yes, I remember that. I don’t remember hitting you. Why would I do that?”

Yoichi groans. This is the worst day ever. Rin had done something so kinky and so sexy that Yoichi didn’t even know he was into it until it happened.  

“You were seriously pissed off when I mentioned… you-know-who. I wasn’t expecting it, but I liked it.”

Rin looks down at his hands, then back up at his lover. “Why did you let me do that? Yoichi, I—“

Yoichi doesn’t let him finish, placing a finger over Rin’s lips. “Hush, babe. I just said I liked it. But if it makes you uncomfortable then we don’t have to do it again. We can do other things.”

“Like what?” Rin asks, his voice slightly muffled. 

Isagi removes his finger and says, “Like spanking and stuff. You seem to like choking, and I don’t mind biting. Is there anything you want to try? It’d be nice to spice it up a bit, don’t you think?”

Rin merely shrugs. “I guess. I’ve never really thought of it. I only just wanted you.”

Yoichi feels a blush creeping up and lightly smacks his chest. “Oh, shut up. That was cheesy and you know it.”

Rin’s mouth stretches the tiniest bit, a hint of a smile on his face. “But it’s true, cheesy as it is.” 

Before Yoichi can respond, Rin is laying him down on the bed, and hovering over him. The blue eyed boy chuckles quietly, cupping Rin’s face with his hands. “You’re dumb.”

Rin leans down to nuzzle into Yoichi’s neck until he’s fully laying on top of the shorter. Isagi giggles as he wraps his arms around him. 

“Don’t lump me in with you. Idiot.”

“You better not fall asleep. I can’t reach the light like this.” 

“Mh.”

“Rin.”

“Mh.”

“Fine.”

Isagi smiles softly as Rin’s breath evens out until he’s fully asleep. He turns his head slightly to kiss his temple, mumbling, “Goodnight. I love you.”

____________________

“I think I want to marry Yoichi.”

Sae’s chopsticks stop halfway to his mouth. He looks up at his little brother sitting across from him. They decided to have lunch in their dorm today with the promise of Shidou not being there (he doesn’t even live here).

Back to the matter at hand. 

“What.” Sae responds, setting his utensils down. 

“You heard me.” Rin says, eating as if he didn’t just say the most insane thing ever. On a Tuesday, mind you. 

Sae takes a deep breath. “How’d you come to that conclusion?”

Rin shrugs. “I think I’ve always known.” 

“How long have you guys been together?”

“It’ll be three years in a few months.”

Sae stares at his baby brother for a long time. After a while, he asks, “It’s not because he’s gone, right?”

Their break from school started two weeks ago and Isagi has been with his parents the whole time. They text and call, of course, but mostly Facetime. Rin likes looking at his boyfriend’s face. 

The younger Itoshi shakes his head. “No. I’ve been thinking about this for a few months.”

Sae doesn’t know whether to pull the big brother card or the parent card here. However, considering their history, what’s the difference? 

“Rin, don’t do anything stupid. At least wait until you—“

“Nii-chan, relax. I can wait. Our football career comes first. Do you think I’m that dumb? Lukewarm.”

Sae rolls his eyes. At least he has his priorities straight. “Does Isagi want the same thing?”

“I haven’t talked to him about it. It might scare him off.”

“I don’t think so. Isagi’s got a good head on his shoulders. I doubt he’d let three years go down the drain over this.”

Rin thinks on his words for a bit. His brother is most likely correct. Yoichi isn’t the type to give something up he’s been working hard for. Maybe it won’t go up in flames when he talks to Yoichi about it like Rin expected. 

Rin wants to keep Yoichi in his life for as long as possible. Maybe even forever. They don’t necessarily have to get married, but Rin likes the sound of husband being associated with his love. He likes the image of a ring on Yoichi’s finger. But he hooks it on a chain when he has a game. Rin would do the same, obviously. He likes the idea of coming home to his husband after a long day of practice or something. Even if they have different contracts, Rin would know that Yoichi is his and will come home to him. And during the off season, they’d spend all their time together. 

“I already found a ring.” Rin says. 

“Show me.” Sae says as he collects their empty dishes. He takes them to the sink to clean. 

Rin follows, taking his phone out. He finds it and shows his brother. It’s a simple, silver band with a gem embedded on it, the color a light shade of pink. 

“What’s the color mean?” Sae asks. 

Rin puts his phone away and starts rinsing the dishes to put away. “It’s the color of his birth flower. I was going to try to find one with my eye color, but that’s too cliché and lukewarm.”

“What if he buys a ring like that?”

“Then I’ll wear it like my life depends on it.”

“You are ridiculous.” 

They finish up the dishes and Sae goes into his bedroom. Rin follows. The elder lifts a brow in question as he sits on his bed. Rin makes himself comfortable on the bed, too.

“May I help you?” 

“Yoichi is busy.”

“And this concerns me because…?”

“Is the roach coming over today?”

“No. Why?”

Rin shrugs. “Just need to know if I need to barricade the door or not.” 

His brother rolls his eyes. “You two have to become civil at some point. Mom and dad like him, you know.”

“That’s because they don’t know how much of a dickhead he is.” 

“You’re just as bad, Rin.”

Rin glares at him and throws a pillow. Sae lets it hit his arm. “Don’t put me on his level of stupidity. God, what do you see in him?”

“Is that a real question?”

Rin opens his mouth to answer, but stops short. He can read his brother’s mind pretty well, but he has never been able to understand the attraction Sae feels for Shidou. It’s beyond him. 

“It is now. Tell me.” Rin says, sitting up. He scoots on the bed until his back is against the wall and he grabs the pillow he threw earlier to hug it.

Amusement sparks in Sae’s teal eyes watching his baby brother get ready for “story time.” It’s adorable, honestly, and Sae is quickly reminded of their childhood. He doesn’t resist the urge to reach over and ruffle Rin’s hair like he used to. 

Rin gently smacks his hand away with a small pout. “Stop that. I’m not five anymore, nii-chan.”

“Don’t be rude to your elders,” Sae ruffles his hair again, but stops before the younger could push him away again. “And I like Ryusei because he’s Ryusei. Unapologetically himself wherever he goes. He’s free in ways I could never imagine.”

Rin didn’t think he’d actually answer. That is different from what he expected the elder to say, but he can’t say it’s a bad thing. Rin likes that his brother is honest with him about his feelings. He’s always known Sae wasn’t the best at communicating his thoughts and feelings, but only because Rin was the same. He can see how they’ve both changed together and separately. Rin hopes they can have more conversations like this in the future. 

“As long as he isn’t lukewarm towards you. I’ll kill him.” 

“Ryusei is very sweet.”

“Those two words don’t go together.”

“He loves me, don’t worry, Rin.”

“Tch. I’m not worried.” Rin looks away at that and Sae saves his baby brother from the [further] embarrassment of pointing out his flustered face. 

“Okay, Rin. Now get out, I wanna nap.”

“Whatever. Shitty older brother. Just say you don’t want to hang out with me.” Rin complains as he gets up from the bed, taking the pillow with him. 

Sae smiles the slightest bit. “You told me to back off; you can take care of yourself, right? Also, bring back my pillow.”

Rin stops at the threshold of the door and turns to scowl. “That doesn’t mean— fuck you. No, it’s mine now.”

“Rin.”

“No.”

“Don’t be childish.”

“I’ll give it back if you break up with him.”

“How is that fair?”

“You must not want to be comfortable.”

“Give my pillow back.”

“Break up with him.”

“Rin, don’t start. I’m not doing that.”

“Just say you hate me and want me to die.”

“Rin.”

The door slams shut and Sae sighs loudly, mumbling to himself, “Little brothers…”