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Ren excitedly walked up to Sho’s door, balancing the food he had bought with one hand while using his other hand to unlock the door with the spare key Sho had lent him.
JO1 rarely had days off, so Ren had planned on spending it with his… bandmate? Best friend? Boyfriend? Whatever the relationship between the two of them was.
He had wanted to surprise Sho with the food, so he hadn't told him that he was coming beforehand. Perhaps if he had, the whole incident could have been avoided.
Ren had walked inside only to find Sho and Ruki sitting on Sho’s couch. His eyes immediately dropped to their hands, which were interlaced. They were looking at each other intensely when he had walked in, as if they were about to kiss at any second.
Ren was so surprised that he dropped the bag of food that he was holding. He could feel the tears beginning to rise, and in his shock, he had failed to notice the scripts lying on the coffee table.
They both turned in his direction when they heard the noise, quickly letting go of each other's hands. Sho could tell by the look on Ren’s face that he had misunderstood what was happening between them.
He stands up quickly, rushing over to where Ren was standing. “It's not what it looks like,” he tries to explain, but before he has the chance to clear things up, Ren is already running out the door.
By the time Ren got back to his own place, he was already crying before he could stop himself. To the younger members, he may seem like the reliable, strong older brother, but the truth was that he was actually quite sensitive.
He supposes he doesn't technically have any right to be upset. He and Sho hadn't made things exclusive between them, in fact, they hadn't even put a label on their relationship at all.
But Ren had been so sure that Sho felt the same way that he did, with the way he always took care of him, even more than he did the others. Did all the time they spent together really not mean anything to him? Was the way he had been treating him just his idea of a friend?
And all those times when Ren could have sworn they were going to kiss, only to be interrupted by someone? Was it all just in his imagination?
And Ruki? Maybe if it had been someone else, someone who wasn't one of his closest friends, Ren wouldn't have felt so hurt. He knows some of their fans ship Sho and Ruki together, but he hasn't imagined that there was anything going on between them.
Ren heard his phone start ringing, and he had a pretty good idea of who it was, but he didn't have the strength to answer it.
He had work tomorrow, and he knew he would have to see Sho. Tomorrow he would have to pretend like his heart hadn't just been broken into pieces. But for now he just wanted to wallow in the heartbreak.
The next day, Ren had somehow managed to shoot down all of Sho’s attempts to talk to him, all while pretending he was fine in front of the other members. Despite his best efforts, it was obvious the others had noticed something was going on.
Ren tried to ignore their concerned looks and focus on working. The entire day, he could feel Sho’s eyes on him, as well as Ruki’s. Without really meaning to, Ren had also been avoiding Ruki as well. He hadn't done anything wrong, how was he supposed to know about Ren’s feelings for Sho? Either way, he just couldn't bring himself to face him. Not yet, at least.
Turns out he would have to face him anyway, whether he was ready or not. After they had finished for the day, Ruki had cornered him. Ren didn't have a good excuse to get away from him, reluctantly resigning to his fate.
“About what you saw the other day,” Ruki cuts straight to the chase, not even trying to bring it up subtly. “That was a misunderstanding. I've been working on my audition for a role in a drama that I'm trying out for. Sho-kun was just helping me practice my lines, nothing else is going on between us.”
Ren knows that he is telling the truth, Ruki is not the kind of person to lie, and he immediately feels embarrassed. Turns out he had gotten upset over nothing. “Oh,” he replies awkwardly, not really knowing what to say.
Ruki smiles at him sympathetically, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You should talk to him. He really likes you, you know?”
Ren blushes.
The next day, after they finished filming some content for their YouTube channel, Ren approaches Sho. “Hi.”
“Hi.” Sho looks a little nervous but also happy that Ren is speaking to him again.
“I'm sorry for being dramatic,” Ren says. “Ruki told me what happened.”
Sho doesn't get upset with him, he just smiles. “It's ok,” he says. He grabs Ren’s arm gently. “I'm not interested in Ruki because I already have feelings for someone else.”
Ren feels his chest light up with hope, but he doesn't want to jump to any conclusions. Especially after what happened last time he assumed things. “Who is it?”
“I think you know who it is,” Sho responds. Then he leans in to kiss Ren.
“Sukai!” The two pull away when they hear Syoya yelling. He's standing in front of them looking excited. “Mama and Papa aren't fighting anymore!”
Ren leans over to smack Syoya lightly. Syoya sticks his tongue out at him playfully and runs away to go find Sukai.
Ren turns back to Sho, a little embarrassed. Sho is laughing quietly at the exchange. “There's something I've been wanting to ask you,” he says, grabbing Ren’s hand. “Will you be my boyfriend?”
Ren kisses him on the cheek. “I would love to.”