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Convincing Ram to go camping, just the two of them, was not hard. Or, rather, Ram agreed easily, but King's nerves had been frayed working up the courage to ask.
"There's supposed to be a rare comet flying by, but we can't see it in Bangkok, so we need to leave the city," King had explained, gesturing wildly with his hands.
Ram looked at him calmly across the table and nodded. "Okay. When?"
King slapped his hands down on the table loudly but Ram barely jumped. "You'll really go with me, Cool Boy?!"
Another nod. "P'King asked. So I'll go."
And wasn't that just enough to send King's heart spiraling.
Actually going camping turned out to be the hard part. King's bag ripped, so Ram took him shopping for a new one. Their train got delayed, so they missed the bus that was meant to take them to the campground. Ram bought them pork satay with sticky rice and encouraged King to eat until he stopped pouting about waiting for the next one. And the sky was so overcast that barely a star was visible, even away from the city.
"I'm going to scream," King announced blithely, staring at the sky from just outside the tent.
Ram lifted an eyebrow.
King motioned toward the sky. "Everything's ruined. We were supposed to see a once in a lifetime comet, but not a single part of this trip has gone to plan. This sucks." He crouched on the ground and hid his face in his knees. "What about my wish?" he muttered into the fabric of his pants.
He'd worked hard—emotionally—to get this far. Ever since their last camping trip, with the school, he had felt like he and Ram were in limbo. Ram remembered the kiss, and so did King. But they hadn't started dating. King was too worried about being rejected and Ram never said anything suggesting he wanted to take their relationship to the next level. It was driving King mad.
Then, this comet. A perfect opportunity. King would take Ram out to see the comet. He'd wish for the courage to admit his feelings for Ram, out loud, to Ram's face, and ask to date. Under the watchful gaze of a rare celestial event, his usual fears would seem small.
Except they couldn't see the comet. They could barely see stars. And with each step of the trip encountering a problem, it felt like the universe was telling King to keep his mouth shut.
Ram put a hand on King's shoulder and King lifted his head just enough to meet Ram's eyes. "Wish?" His voice was quiet, gentler than usual, with a whisper of hope at the edges.
Shaking his head, King said, "Never mind. It clearly wasn't meant to happen." He sighed, then did his best to smile. "Better luck next time, right?"
For a moment, Ram just looked at him. It was his searching, piercing look. The one that meant he was trying to see around King's rambling to his meaning. Usually, King had time to distract him, to change the subject. Tonight, the expression didn't last long enough. Or maybe King let it play out too long because he wanted Ram to figure him out. He was the senior, but he couldn't say the words.
"P'King," Ram said, his grip on King's shoulder tightening ever so slightly, his eyebrows pulling down in focus. "Can we…date?"
King blinked at him. "Date?" he repeated, lifting his head a little further from his legs. "Like, be boyfriends?" A nod. "Like, hug and kiss and cuddle and—"
"Yes," Ram interrupted, his cheeks visibly pink even in the dim light of the lanterns posted at each corner of the tent. Still, he soldiered on with more courage than King. "I like P'King. I want to be P'King's boyfriend."
It was too much. King hid his face in his knees, his whole body feeling like it was on fire. "Cool Boy!" he whined. "How can you just come out and say that?"
The hand on his shoulder moved to gently brush through his hair, over and over. "Sorry. I was waiting for you to be ready," Ram revealed.
He'd been waiting for King. Which meant the only thing stopping them from moving forward was King's own insecurities. Some great senior he was. He couldn't pretend to be better than his friends or tease them for their romantic failings, because King was the worst of them all. Luckily, he had a wonderful junior to help him along.
Heart warm in his chest, and thumping so loudly it was strange that Ram couldn't hear it, King again lifted his head to look at Ram—at his kind, loving gaze, encouraging King to be brave.
"I like N'Ram, too," King admitted, and was pleased to see Ram's blush return. "I want to be N'Ram's boyfriend." He released his legs with one hand to instead press the heel of his palm against his eye. "Augh. I'm sorry I took so long, when it was me who started all of this to begin with."
Shaking his head, Ram lifted King's chin, gently maneuvering King into an upright position instead of curled into himself. And King let himself be moved, trusting and willing. Then Ram leaned forward to press his lips to King's.
The first kiss was tentative, a question. But the moment King responded, Ram surged forward, deepening the kiss. King pressed back with the same fervor, answer Ram's uncapped feelings with his own. He felt Ram's hands in his hair, along his cheek, and grabbed Ram's shirt with both hands to pull the younger man closer.
His memory of their first kiss was hazy with alcohol, but it couldn't have been as good as this. This unbottling of emotion, the relief of knowing his feelings were returned, that Ram wanted him just as much as King wanted Ram. And it just kept going, King's desire for Ram grew with every press of lips, every caress of Ram's fingers. If he never had to stop kissing Ram, touching Ram, he would be happy.
Light made King blink his eyes open, and then what he saw had him pulling away in surprise. "Wow!" He used his grip on a still dazed Ram to turn the younger man toward the sky. "Look, Cool Boy."
The clouds had cleared just enough to reveal a brilliant blue and white streak across the sky. The comet had come out, but only after King drew up his courage. Like a prize.
For a few moments, maybe a minute, they watched the comet make its way. Then, with a nod, Ram turned his back on it. The look in his eyes was pleading and impatient, and made King laugh.
Wrapping his arms around Ram's shoulders, King grinned and said, "Alright, alright. Hurry up and kiss me again. N'Ram."
And he did. With gusto.
…
…
fin