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So they had their family discussion, as promised, later into the night.
As Harua had predicted, no one was really against it, in the end. That said, it wasn’t an easy-peasy five-minute thing, all agreed okay good job team sleep tight. They talked for a couple of hours, making sure everyone conveyed what they felt about the idea rather than sitting on any concerns and going with the flow.
They’d had a lot of practice at it, though, so however uncomfortable it got — and it did get uncomfortable, here and there — they stuck it out.
To everyone’s initial surprise, the biggest obstacle was K. The surprise was very brief, though, because it immediately made sense when he began to speak his piece.
It wasn’t that he’d never thought about it, or found the idea repellent. Quite the opposite. He wanted to have the option very much, but he was so, so afraid. Old fear with a new face.
“Because I’m the oldest, and a leader and everything, I feel like it might be harder for some of you to—”
Maki cut him off, and everyone else was glad, because he was the best person for the moment without question. “K-hyung, this isn’t I-LAND,” he said baldly. “We know you. We’re not scared of you. None of this would be working if we were. Do you really think any of us would let you hurt us without telling you, when we know how bad that would break your heart?”
K put his face in his hands. “No. Of course you wouldn’t. Sorry.”
Harua, sitting next to him, rubbed his back, and K slumped over onto his shoulder.
Nicholas, too, was wary, as one of the two who had experienced the group’s only real long-term discord, minor and mild as it may have been. Understandably, he was worried about the possibility of having to deal with that again. He was very inclined to physical affection, but he wasn’t as kissy as K or Yuma. So he hesitated.
Everyone looked to Yuma for this one. He ran a hand through his hair sheepishly.
“Look, can I confess something?” he said. “Super embarrassing but relevant.”
“Yeah, man, spit it out,” said Maki.
Yuma squirmed, wiggling his shoulders back and forth and grimacing. “Soooo you guys know how Nicholas and I were weird for a while there.”
Everyone nodded.
Nicholas abruptly looked twice as uncomfortable, ducking his head and rounding his shoulders a bit, which did not go unnoticed.
“A big part of that was that I got a little too close to doing something dumb to him — with him, I guess — and it freaked me out, so I pushed him away, and he got upset and tried to fix it, and I freaked out harder and got mad and told him to leave me alone, so he did, and I was too stubborn and embarrassed to talk about it, and the longer I let it go the harder it was to back down. So basically like. Uh.”
“Ohhh,” said several of the team together, and Yuma cringed.
“So like. That happened because we hadn’t had this talk yet and I was so scared to make a mess that I went and made a mess trying to avoid it. If that line hadn’t been there to cross, everything probably would’ve been fine. I think. Nicholas?”
Nicholas, red enough to clash with his rosy hair, looked up at K. “Like I said when you were sorting us out,” he said, “I wasn’t freaked out, and I didn’t really get why he was. You had to explain it to me. I think we could’ve figured it out easier if it wasn’t such a big deal. So I’m okay with it.”
K nodded. “That makes sense to me. Everyone?”
“I agree,” said EJ, and the rest followed suit.
“What about you, Juju?” Nicholas asked softly. “You gotta be honest.”
“I know,” said EJ. “It’s important, so I will be. I’m with Fuma-kun and Jojo on this, pretty much: I don’t know if I’ll want to do it myself, but I trust you all, so I don’t want to stop you if you do. As long as you’re careful and look after each other.”
EJ was sitting on the other side of K from Harua. K turned from Harua and put his arms around EJ, squeezing with profound affection. “Best leader,” he mumbled, and everyone agreed.
“I’ve been thinking about this,” Fuma said, and everyone sat up straighter to listen. “And I have a suggestion for how to test this out.”
“Oh?” said K.
“Taki,” said Fuma.
Everyone swivelled. Taki hadn’t actually said anything yet, they all realized in the moment, which was out of character for him. He didn’t look uncomfortable or upset, just kind of pensive, and unsurprised by Fuma calling him out.
Fuma continued. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think of all of us, Taki is the most sure he doesn’t want to go there himself.”
“Yup,” said Taki, nodding. “I love you guys so much, and I love that stuff when other people do it, but I can’t really imagine wanting to kiss anyone myself, I guess. So I want you guys to go for it, but I’ll stick to cuddles and whatever.”
“Perfect,” said Fuma. “So this is what I’d like to propose: we give it a month. We try it out. At the end, each of us talks to Taki alone and tells him how we’re feeling about it, honestly. Then he tells us all together if everyone’s still on the same page, without outing anyone who isn’t.”
“Oh, I like that,” said Harua. “If Taki’s okay with it?”
Taki nodded enthusiastically. “Sounds great! I really hope it goes well!”
An odd silence swept through the room, conversation suddenly feeling simultaneously finished and not. Current plot arc complete, but introduction to the next installment still in the wings.
“Soooooooooooo,” Maki said, drawing it out long enough that it became comical and they all laughed, the air of the room stirring back to life. “I guess we just gotta figure out who gets to break the ice this time, huh?”
“Oh, I can handle that. Jo-kun?” said Harua, reaching to his left to put a hand on Jo’s knee.
“Uhh?” said everyone together.
“Mm,” said Jo, nodding slightly and turning to Harua. “Sure.”
K screeched a little. “You can’t just give away your first so casually, Jo—”
Jo looked past Harua to K and frowned. “It’s not my first, though? And it’s not casual, either. It’s Harua.”
That shut K up right quick. He stared at Jo like he’d never seen him before. They all did, remembering too late that Jo had been very popular in high school and the type to sneak out at night to go have fun under the stars without adult supervision. Of course he’d gotten some kisses in.
How many, they all began to wonder in the moment before Jo answered them: enough.
Harua looped an arm around the back of Jo’s neck and closed his eyes, relaxing upwards as Jo came softly down on him, surefooted and resolute as he always was when he was confident that he was capable of doing whatever it was he was attempting well. Harua smiled into it a little. It was very gentle, and brief, but it wasn’t awkward, and it did the job.
They all felt the way things shifted beneath and between them as the moment ended. New spaces open in the world they’d woven around themselves. Expansion already happening.
“Good talk,” said Fuma jovially, and clapped, startling them. “Off to bed, now. Busy day tomorrow. Keep your heads in the game and don’t do anything too dumb.”
“A little dumb is okay though?” Yuma asked impishly.
Fuma nodded tolerantly with a poorly hidden quarter grin, and Yuma grinned openly back at him, fangs less prominent now after the braces but still wolfish enough to work.
“Within reason.”
—