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The afternoon had been nothing special.
Neo and Avoma were stretched out on a low concrete ledge near the street, half in the shade, half in the heat, watching people pass like they always did when neither of them had anything better to do.
Avoma had his hood up despite the weather, leaning back on his hands, long legs stretched out like he owned the sidewalk. Neo sat beside him, scrolling through his phone without really looking at anything.
“This is so boring,” Neo muttered.
“Then be less boring,” Avoma replied, not even opening his eyes.
Neo glanced sideways at him. “That doesn’t even make sense.”
“Most things don’t.”
Neo huffed quietly and looked up—and that was when he noticed it.
Across the street, bright and obnoxious, was a fast food place with a huge banner hanging over the entrance.
He squinted.
“…You see that?”
Avoma didn’t move. “See what.”
Neo tilted his head toward it. “That sign.”
Avoma finally looked, eyes narrowing slightly as he read it.
COUPLES PROMO — Buy One, Get One Free. Limited Time Only. Proof Required.
There was a pause.
Then—
“No,” Avoma said immediately.
Neo snorted. “I didn’t even say anything!”
“I know you were about to.”
“I wasn’t—”
“You were.”
Neo looked back at the sign, then at the people going in and out with drinks and bags, then back at Avoma.
“…It’s literally free food.”
“It’s literally a bad idea.”
Neo leaned back slightly. “Let's just walk in, stand next to each other, act normal, get the food, then leave. That’s it.”
Avoma raised an eyebrow. “Act normal?”
“Yeah.”
“Yeah, I can already see this failing.”
Neo nudged his leg. “Shut up.”
Avoma exhaled slowly, dragging his gaze back to the sign like he was weighing something.
“…They said proof.”
Neo shrugged. “We’ll give them proof, then.”
Avoma stared at him like he'd heard the stupidest thing in his life, which, he did.
Then Neo stood up.
“Dude, come on.”
Avoma stared at him. “You’re serious.”
Neo started walking toward the street. “Fine, you can stay here if you want.”
Avoma clicked his tongue under his breath—but stood up anyway, groaning.
“Stupid,” he muttered, following.
---
Inside, the place was louder than expected.
Bright lights, chatter, the smell of fried food hanging heavy in the air.
Neo stepped up to the counter first, like this was completely normal.
“Hey,” he said casually, nodding toward the banner. “The couples thing still on?”
The cashier glanced between them.
“…Yeah,” she said slowly. “But you have to show you’re actually together.”
Neo didn’t miss a beat. He reached back and grabbed Avoma’s wrist, tugging him a little closer.
“Yeah,” he said. “We are.”
Avoma looked down at where Neo was holding him.
Then at Neo.
Then back at the cashier.
“…Obviously,” he added, flat.
The cashier didn’t look convinced.
“Uh-huh,” she said. “So you won’t mind doing the check.”
Neo blinked. “The what now?”
“The couple check,” she said, like that explained everything. “We’ve had people fake it all day.”
Neo glanced at Avoma.
Avoma already looked like he regretted existing. "This is why I don't do anything with you." He murmured under his breath.
“…Uhm, what kind of check?” Neo asked.
The cashier smiled slightly.
“Just something simple,” she said. “Hold hands, hug… or kiss. Your choice.”
Silence.
Immediate.
Heavy.
Neo let go of Avoma’s wrist like it had suddenly burned him.
“…We can just pay,” he said quickly.
“Non-refundable once you ask,” the cashier replied, still smiling.
Avoma let out a quiet, disbelieving breath.
“Of course it is.”
Neo ran a hand through his hair, glancing back toward the door like he was considering escaping.
Then he looked at Avoma again.
“…It’s just a hug,” he said under his breath.
Avoma stared at him. “You brought me here.”
“For free food.”
“For free food.”
They pause.
Then Avoma stepped closer.
“Make it quick,” he muttered.
Neo hesitated—just for a second—before reaching out again, this time more careful, like he wasn’t entirely sure where to put his hands.
He settled for Avoma’s sides.
Awkward.
Way too aware.
Avoma’s hands hovered for a moment before resting lightly against Neo’s back.
It felt stupid, awkward, like a joke.
They were too close.
Neo could feel the warmth through Avoma’s hoodie, could feel the steady rise and fall of his breathing, could feel—
“Closer,” the cashier said.
Neo froze, glanced at her and blinked. “What.”
“She said closer,” someone behind them added, way too entertained.
Avoma huffed quietly. “This is ridiculous.”
“Just—” Neo started, then stopped.
Their eyes met.
For a second, neither of them moved—maybe out of awkwardness or something else.
Then Avoma’s grip tightened slightly, pulling him in just enough to close the space properly.
Not dramatic.
Not showy.
Just—
Close. Enough.
It was close enough that Neo forgot, for a split second, that this was supposed to be fake.
“Better,” the cashier said. “But you can do better than that.”
Neo pulled back slightly. “We’re not—”
“Kiss or no deal,” she cut in.
"Uhm.. On the cheek, right.?"
The cashier stared at him, raised a finger, and pointed it to her lips.
Neo winced at that.
Someone in line snickered.
Neo stared at the counter like it had personally offended him, which, probably might have been true.
“…This is insane.”
Avoma looked at him, expression unreadable.
“…Your idea, by the way, not mine. Can't we just leave? ”
"Dude, it's for the— What? No, we can't leave!..." Neo paused, eyes flickering back and forth between the British man beside him and the cashier infront.
His jaw tightened a little.
Then—
“…Okay, okay. Look, it's just a kiss,” he said quietly.
Avoma’s gaze sharpened slightly, brow raising. “Just a—You sure about this.”
Neo didn’t look at him. “Yeah. No. Yes.”
Another pause, then a reluctant sigh.
A brief pause hung between them, like something was waiting to snap into place.
Neo turned his head slightly, like he was still deciding if this was really happening.
Like he could still back out.
Neither of them did.
Then Avoma stepped closer.
This time, there was no space left to argue about.
Neo felt it immediately—the shift in distance, the warmth, the way it suddenly felt too real for something that was supposed to be a joke. His grip on Avoma's sleeve tightened slightly before he forced his hand to drop.
Avoma’s hand came up, slower this time, not grabbing, not pulling—just settling lightly at Neo’s side, like he was giving him time to back out.
Neo didn’t.
He exhaled quietly, almost like he was steadying himself, and tilted his head up just a little.
They hesitated.
Close enough that Neo could feel Avoma’s breath, warm and uneven against his lips.
Close enough that it would’ve been easier to just close the distance than keep pretending they weren’t about to.
They didn't know how moved first.
All they knew was that they really were getting into it now.
Their lips met softly, more careful than either of them probably expected. It wasn’t messy or rushed—if anything, it felt controlled, like they were both trying to keep it exactly what they said it was.
Just a kiss.
Neo stilled for half a second on contact, like his body had to catch up to what was happening. Then his hand lifted slightly, fingers brushing against the fabric of Avoma’s hoodie before settling there, uncertain but not pulling away.
Avoma’s grip tightened just a fraction in response, anchoring him in place.
The kiss lingered.
Not long enough to be obvious.
But longer than necessary.
Neo’s eyes had already fallen shut at some point, his shoulders losing a bit of tension without him realizing it. The initial awkwardness faded into something quieter, something steadier, like they had both slipped into a rhythm they didn’t mean to find.
It was still soft.
Still restrained.
But not entirely fake anymore.
When they finally pulled back, it wasn’t abrupt.
Their lips parted slowly, the distance returning in inches instead of all at once.
For a second, neither of them moved.
They stayed close—too close—like neither of them had fully decided to end it yet.
Neo opened his eyes first.
Avoma was already looking at him.
That made it so much worse.
Neo stepped back immediately after, like the moment had suddenly caught up to him.
He cleared his throat, dragging a hand briefly through his hair.
“…Great,” he muttered, voice just a little off.
Avoma let his hand drop back to his side, fingers flexing once before going still.
He didn’t say anything.
It was careful in a way that didn’t match the situation at all.
Like they were both trying not to cross a line—
And crossing it anyway.
When they pulled back, it took a second longer than it should have.
“Good enough,” the cashier said, already ringing something up like nothing had happened.
Neo stepped back first this time.
Cleared his throat, eyes darting away.
“…Uh, free food.?” he muttered.
Avoma didn’t say anything, simply stared down at the shorter man, their faces flushed.
---
They successfully got their free food, then left.
They walked a few steps down the street before stopping without really meaning to.
Neither of them looked at the other right away.
Neo stared at the bag in his hands like he had forgotten why he wanted it in the first place.
“Well… That was stupid..” he said finally.
“Obviously,” Avoma replied.
There was a short pause.
Then Neo let out a short breath.
“…Uh, wow. I... Didn’t think they’d actually make us do it.”
“That's because you don’t think ahead, you moron.” Avoma said.
“Oh, shut up. You-you're the one who kissed me first!”
"No, I wasn't!" Avoma retorted, hands gesturing wildly.
Neo shifted his weight slightly. “...At least we got the food, I guess?”
Avoma glanced at him.
“We?”
Neo's brows furrowing and back slightly leaning forward. He leaned back, shaking his head, on his face.
“Oh, goodnight. Yes, "we"!” Neo exclaimed.
Avoma squinted his eyes, pointing a finger at him.
"What, no?—"
They kept walking and bickering back and forth.
Like nothing had changed.
Except—
Neo didn’t open the food.
And Avoma kept glancing at him when things grew silent between them.
Neither of them mentioned it again.