Work Text:
‘I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride!’
‘What- where am I?’ Nakamura stared in front of him. Spotting the love of his life, Hirose, with Hana, they were dressed for their wedding.
‘Wait, that’s not-’ Nakamura froze as Hirose lifted the veil and slowly went in for the kiss to cement his marriage to Hana.
‘NO! HIROSE, WAIT!’ Nakamura tried to shout and run toward him, but invisible hands grabbed him from behind and pulled him back. ‘HIROSE!’
‘YOU WERE TOO COWARDLY!’ shouted a voice from behind the dark-haired teen. ‘YOU’LL NEVER MAKE HIM HAPPY, OKUTO NAKAMURA!’
‘NO, I CAN MAKE HIM HAPPY! I KNOW IT!’ Nakamura shouted,d but all that came out was just dry, coarse air. He freed himself from the hands and ran toward Hirose.
‘Hirose!’ Nakamura shouted, but Hirose didn’t answer as he leaned toward his bride.
‘Hirose!’
“HIROSE!” Nakamura shouted, sweat dripping from his face.
“Okuto, shhhhh!” Nakamura froze and turned his head and spotted Hirose, who was visibly annoyed at his shouting. “You’re on the bus!”
“OH…uh…” Nakamura looked around and spotted his classmates snickering and staring at him. “Sorry, sorry.” He turned his face forward and looked to the ground while playing with his thumbs.
“You okay, Okuto?”
“Huh? Uh, yeah, I’m fine…” Nakamura stared at Hirose, whose soft expression calmed him down. “Don’t worry, Hirose.”
‘I can’t get that nightmare out of my head…that’s the fourth time this week…’ He thought to himself, not realizing Hirose was pouting at him.
“What? I’m just tired from the bus ride, that’s all!”
“That’s not the issue, Okuto!” Hirose’s brow furrowed as he glared at Nakamura, who began to sweat from nervousness.
“Then…what is it, Hiros-”
“There!” Hirose pointed at Nakamura’s face. “You keep calling me by my surname again! Why don’t you call me Aiki? I mean, we have been dating for a few months already!”
“O…oh…” Nakamura began to turn bright red in the face as Hirose crossed his arms and looked away. “Sorry…Ai…a…I can’t do it!”
“Figures…” Aiki rolled his eyes and stared out of the bus window. “Oh, well! One of these days you’ll say my name! Or-” Aiki’s eyes narrowed, and he chuckled as he gently tapped his fingers against Nakamura’s knuckles.
“Or?” Nakamura watched as Hirose trailed his fingers up his arm, his gently soft fingertips causing the young man to melt under the light touch. “H-” Nakamura’s voice hitched as Hirose touched his cheek.
Hirose pulled Nakamura closer and slowly breathed outward,d causing Nakamura’s cheeks to burn hotter. “Or I can always tease it out of you.”
“I…I…uhhh…” Nakamura began to hyperventilate, his fingers furiously jittered in place, and his palms began to sweat. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath.
“I’m just kidding, Okuto!!” Hirose laughed as he slapped Nakamura on the back. “You’re so cute when you’re like this!”
“Y…yeah…cute.” Nakamura took a deep breath and watched as Hirose watched the bus drive past the various buildings and beaches of Kanagawa. Nakamura sighed and stared at the ground.
‘This was supposed to be a fun school summer trip…But I kept having that same nightmare over and over again…I love Hirose so much, he even accepted my confession at the start of our second year too…and yet.’ Nakamura gripped his chest tightly. ‘I’m…scared that I won’t be good enough for him…that I can’t make him happy like how he makes me happy.’
He opened up his bag, carefully pulled out his notebook, and began writing.
Date: xxxx
Had that nightmare again… you know the one where Hirose and Hana… at least I think it was Hana this time. I don’t know; it’s all a blur to me. It’s just a nightmare, nothing to it, but part of me feels like fate is against me again… like I don’t deserve Hirose… like maybe I’m just another phase to him…
Nakamura paused, pinched his nose, and glanced at Hirose, who was happily pattering the window, humming one of Aquapets' songs to himself. Nakamura let out a soft smile and stared at the notebook.
‘I should be happy, right? I mean…we’ve been dating for a few months; why can’t I call him Aiki normally? Why can’t I-’
The bus came to a slow halt as their teacher stood up and opened a book.
“We still have some free time until we check in. You are allowed to roam around as you please, but please do not go in any unauthorized vehicles or buses.”
With a united. “Okay!” from the students, the teens hopped off the bus and stretched their arms, eager to start their summer vacation at the famous beaches of Kanagawa.
Hirose stretched as tall as he could before turning to Nakamura. “Where do you wanna go first, Okuto?”
“First? Hmmm.” Nakamura thought about it and remembered that he had looked up a local aquarium close by and was eager to see it himself. “Oh, there’s a-” He froze, stopped himself, and shook his head.
‘No, stop being selfish, Okuto…I can’t think about fish buddies now…I should focus on making sure Hirose loves me. I can check out the aquarium another time.’
“Uh, I’m okay with whatever you want, Hirose.” Nakamura watched as his boyfriend stared at him for a few seconds and nodded.
“Okay, well, there’s a clothing store that I saw. I think there’s some new Aquapet merch I wanna check out. Let’s go!”
“Okay, sounds good!” Nakamura followed Hirose throughout the streets and marveled at how busy it was. It made sense that this was one of Tokyo’s most popular beaches. You could even see Mt. Fuji on a good day if you’re lucky.
“Come on, Okuto! Maybe we can get matching shirts to go along with our bracelets!” Hirose took Nakamura’s arm and led him inside. The pair browsed the various clothing selections in awe. Some were plain, others were colorful, and some were so extravagantly priced that both teens winced. Hirose grabbed a shirt and held it to his chest. “How do I look?”
“Adorable!” Nakamura smiled.
“Oh?” Hirose put on some sunglasses. “How’s this?”
“Cute!” Nakamura responded.
“Okay…” Hirose shifted his gaze and grabbed a jacket. “How about this?”
“Amazing!”
“THAT CAN’T BE AMAZING; IT’S UGLY!” Hirose shouted.
“YOU EXPECT ME TO CALL YOU UGLY, HIROSE?” Nakamura shouted back.
“No, but I expect my boyfriend to call me more things than cute…it’s embarrassing.”
“Oh, uh… well, it’s not my fault you look good in everything!”
“I told you to stop being so embarrassing, Okuto!” Hirose slapped him with a random shirt.
“But it’s true! You are so adorable!” Nakamura smiled as Hirose laughed at him.
“Okay, fineeee, you win!” Hirose put away the clothes he picked up and looked around for a bit before frowning. “Wow. All these clothes and not a single Aquapet shirt…guess merch is hard to come by these days.”
“Yeah, for sure. Like for me for instance-” Nakamura added, “Merch for Loveable Lunches is so hard to find yet there are new pop-up stores everywhere, every single week…I barely have the time or the money to get any.
“Right? Not to mention when they do have something good, it’s so far away!”
“Yeah! You get it!”
Both teens laughed as they continued shopping. Nakamura gripped his bag. He sighed, opened it, and grabbed his notebook, but stopped as he spotted his camera. “Oh, right!”
“Oh, a camera! That’s right! Oomori couldn’t come on the trip! He asked us to take pictures for him!” Hirose took Nakamura aside to a nearby mirror and giggled. “Let’s take a pic together for him!”
“Oh…uh, sure!”
“Wait! Let’s do a silly one…or maybe a cool one…or maybe-” Hirose kept talking and talking as Nakamura smiled at him.
‘I’ll do whatever it takes to make Hirose happy, because if he’s happy then I should be too, right? I can’t keep focusing on myself now.’
“O…kuuu…tooo!” Hirose giggled.
“Yeah- WAH!” Nakamura felt a hat land on him as he stared at what was a crab-shaped hat. “A crab?”
“Yep! And I got an Octobuddy to match!” Hirose giggled as he put on an equally silly octopus hat on his head. “Let’s take the pic now!”
“S…sure!” Nakamura grabbed his camera and quickly snapped a photo of them wearing the hats. He stared at the screen and laughed at how silly it was. “It turned out great! Maybe we should buy them.”
“Sure!” Hirose excitedly smiled. “Let’s see how muc-” Hirose froze as he saw the price. Nakamura couldn’t catch a glimpse of the price himself, but with how Hirose reacted, it was for the best.
“Guess, not then.” Nakamura giggled as he walked out of the store. “Where to next, Hirose?”
“Hmmm, how about we check out some music?” Hirose stared off as Nakamura nodded at him.
“Sure, that sounds good- whatever you want.”
“Hmmph…there he goes again,” Hirose whined to himself.
“Did you say something?” Nakamura watched as his boyfriend turned away from him.
“Nothing, let’s go!” Hirose grabbed Nakamura’s wrists and smiled as he dragged him along. “Maybe we can find some new Aquapet stuff we can listen to toge- OOF.” Hirose fell back as he hit something hard. “Sorry about that!”
“No, no, it’s my mistake!” A feminine voice called out, reaching for Hirose’s hand.
“You okay? I didn’t hurt ya, did I?” Hirose smiled as he took the girl’s hand and stood up.
“No, no, it’s fine.” She let out a light blush as Nakamura noticed she was eyeing Hirose.
‘Wait…WHAT IS SHE DOING, STARING AT MY HIROSE?!’
Nakamura went to speak up but froze as something crept up from the back of his mind.
‘Wait, this is- familiar…’ Nakamura continued to stand there as Hirose apologized to the girl whom he had bumped into.
“So-” The girl began to blush as she brushed her hair back. “Are you from around here?”
“Nope!” Hirose answered enthusiastically. “We are actually on a school trip, and we were just about to go to the music store to-”
“To listen to Aquapet, yeah?” She replied, causing Hirose to light up a little.
“You know them too?”
“Of course! I own all their albums!”
“Oh, that’s cool!” Hirose began to smile more. “What made you like them?”
“Oh, when I was down in the dumps, I found their music online and instantly fell in love!”
“Right? Their music is so good! Do you have a favorite song?”
“Oh, there are too many songs for me to choose from!”
“I see…” Hirose’s brow furrowed as he stared at her. “What about a favorite band member?”
“I like all of them!” She replied quickly.
“They are all pretty great…” Hirose looked down at the ground. “Did you catch their Japan-only tour?”
“Oh, no, I wasn’t able to! I hope to catch them again sometime soon! I just love that Japanese band!”
‘W…wait…Hirose…’ Nakamura’s stomach began to churn. ‘Why isn’t Hirose saying anything? Why can’t I say anything?? Come on, Okuto…do something, please…otherwise…’ The nightmare hit Nakamura hard once again. His breathing became erratic, and his palms began to sweat. Tears slowly formed in his eyes. ‘There’s no way they are flirting, yeah? Maybe I was right all along…I can never understand Hirose’s interest, let alone make him happy…I’m just-
“AH HA!” Hirose shouted, causing both Nakamura and the girl to jump. “AQUAPET IS A FOREIGN BAND! I KNEW IT! YOU’RE A FAKE FAN!”
“I, uh, misspoke! I’m kind of a fan! I don’t have many of their albums,” The girl stammered as she grabbed onto Hirose’s arm. “Maybe you can show me some more music over some-”
“STOPPPP!!” Hirose shouted as he pushed her arm away from him. He walked over to Nakamura and hooked his arm around his waist rather tightly. “I AM SPOKEN FOR!”
“What?! NO FAIR!!!” The girl blushed and ran away in a flash as Hirose waved her off.
“Can you believe that girl? Pretending to be a fake fan just to talk to me.”
“Hiroseeeee…” Nakamura whined.
“Yeah?”
“You’re squeezing my sides too tightly…” Nakamura wheezed as he took a deep breath.
“Oh, sorry, Okuto…you okay?”
“I will be…but…don’t do that again, please! It’s bad for my heart. You really should’ve said that we were together at the start.”
“Sorry about that, Okuto…” Hirose rubbed his own cheek with his finger. “I didn’t expect her to flirt with me like that…I thought she was an actual fan. Until she started to use vague answers. I really thought she was interested in being my friend over a shared interest.” He chuckled as he shook his head. “Guess I’m an idiot for not reading people.”
“YOU’RE NOT AN IDIOT, HIROSE!” Nakamura shouted, causing him to blush. “I…uh, you’re not one! You’re amazing, charming, and thoughtful of others! You’re also super friendly and kind and-”
“Stop, stop, I can’t handle any more, Okuto!” Hirose turned around quickly and began running. “Come on, let’s go to the music store!”
“Oh, uh, but the store is that-” Nakamura tilted his head as he watched Hirose speed off in a random direction. “Wait, Hirose, Sensei told us not to wander too far!”
Nakamura quickly followed Hirose, who stopped and waited for him. Nakamura wheezed and took a deep breath. “Why’d…you…run off like that?”
Hirose blushed and looked toward his left-hand side. “I…I don’t know; I kind of just walked without thinking.”
“You really are something else…” Nakamura laughed. He felt his stomach churn as he gripped it. He felt something in his stomach come forth till-
‘GRUMBLEEE!!!’
“Someone’s hungry!” Hirose smirked as he poked Nakamura’s stomach, who blushed in response.
“Y…yeah…shall we get a snack?”
“Now you’re speaking my language! What do you wanna get? I’m thinking cola! And maybe some popcorn!”
“Sure, that sounds good to me, Hirose!” Nakamura answered immediately, causing Hirose to frown at him. “What? Did I say something wrong?”
“You hate carbination!” Hirose shouted while pointing at his boyfriend.
“I, uh…” Nakamura held up his hands in defense, “I uh, you see- what I meant to say was, I don’t mind whatever you pick! I can always choose-”
“OO…KUUU…TOO!”
“YES!” Nakamura’s body straightened in response as Hirose crossed his arms at him. His glare pierced through his heart.
“Why are you letting me decide everything for us? Not once did you say what YOU wanted to do!” Hirose shook his head. “You can’t hide anything from me! I’ve been watching you the entire time! And besides, I know you were looking forward to the aquarium here!”
“How’d you-”
“Because I know you, Okuto!”
“I…I’m sorry, Hirose.” Nakamura looked to the ground in defeat. He was at a loss for words; he couldn’t face Hirose like this.
Hirose sighed and shook his head. “Fine, I’ll let it go; you’re so silly sometimes…But I guess that’s what I love about you.”
“Love?”
“Yeah, L-O-V-E, love!” Hirose grabbed Nakamura by the hand and gently kissed it. “What else can that mean?”
“A lot of things, actually…like family, a pet…friends.” Nakamura yammered on, causing Hirose to puff up his cheeks.
“Well, I LOVE YOU, NAKAMURA OKUTO, as in romantic love! I love you so much, I wanna spend time with you, I wanna kiss you, be there for you, everything!”
“I-” Nakamura’s face turned a bright red as steam erupted from his hair.
‘He loves meeee!! AIKI LOVES MEEE!!’
“I lub…you…tooo!” Nakamura shouted; his voice cracked in response.
“Hehe, so- what do YOU want to do now? What do YOU want the most, Okuto?” Hirose hugged Nakamura tightly and looked up with his beautiful brown eyes.
‘YOU,’ Nakamura shouted in his head. ‘I WANNA SPEND TIME WITH YOU THE MOST!’
“Y…yo…”
“Hmm?” Hirose raised his brow as Nakamura took a deep breath.
“You wanna go to the beach instead?? We don’t have our swimsuits yet, but we can walk along the beach!!! I hear it’s beautiful at this hour! I still need to take pictures for Oomori!”
“Sure, that’s fine! We can always eat something after!” Hirose smiled as the pair walked toward the beach.
The sounds of crashing waves, salty sea air, and the warm sun swirled around Nakamura’s body, easing his nerves. He took a deep breath and smiled while gripping Hirose’s hand.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it, Okuto?” Hirose leaned on Nakamura’s shoulder as they walked.
“Yeah, it is.” Nakamura smiled while staring at his boyfriend.
‘You’re beautiful, Hirose…’ As the pair walked, Nakamura thought back to what Hirose said to him.
‘What do you want the most, Okuto?’
‘What do I want?’ He asked himself.
“You know…” Hirose interrupted, “It feels kind of selfish of me.”
“Selfish how?” Nakamura replied, sounding confused.
“Well…we spent the entire day doing everything I wanted to do. But we didn’t even get to go to the aquarium or eat something…” Hirose’s voice dipped as he played in the sand with his feet. “Why didn’t you say anything, Okuto?” He looked at him with pleading eyes, which caused Nakamura’s heart to skip a beat. “Is everything okay between us?”
“Of course everything is okay, Hirose!”
“Then why do you keep calling me Hirose when I’ve been calling you Okuto this entire time!” Hirose raised his voice as tears formed in his eyes. “So what gives? What are you so afraid of? I can’t be the only one enjoying things. Isn’t your happiness important too?”
‘My happiness?’ Nakamura froze as he thought about the time he cried when Hirose was dating Hana… ‘Hirose’s happiness is mine…but maybe I should be more…I mean, I worked hard to be there for Hirose…I confessed to him months later…I deserve my own happiness too.’
Nakamura looked to the ground and sighed. “I’m sorry, Hirose. I was really dumb today.”
“You darn right you were.”
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN? AREN’T YOU SUPPOSED TO DISAGREE?”
“Nope!” Hirose smirked as Nakamura stood there, defeated. “But, again, these are some of the few reasons why I fell for you!”
“Really, now? Anything else?”
“Hmm, secret!” Hirose giggled again and took Nakamura’s hands. “Now let me ask you again.” Hirose looked deep into his boyfriend’s eyes. “What do you really want, Okuto?”
“I want…” Nakamura thought back to his nightmares, his notebook, his moments with Hirose…he took a deep breath and gripped Hirose’s hands tightly.
“I WANT TO BE WITH YOU, FOREVER, AIKI!”
Aiki jumped in surprise as Okuto shouted at him at full volume. He began to laugh and hugged his boyfriend. “That’s more like it! You sound cuter when you say my name, Okuto!”
“I…yeah…” Okuto laughed as Aiki took his shoes and socks off and walked along the cold water.
“Ohhh, it’s so cold…by the way…something’s been on my mind for a bit.”
“What’s that?”
“What made you fall for me?”
Okuto thought for a bit and held a finger to his lips. “Secret!”
“BOooo, no fair!” Aiki pouted as he walked further along the water, the waves splashing against his legs and shirt. “Fine, you win this round.”
Okuto brought out his camera and zoomed in on Aiki, who was kicking the water around him.
‘I fell for you for many reasons…you made me happy, seen, and most importantly, you made me realize what I want the most and that’s to spend my entire life with the guy I’m passionately in love with, my one and only-’
“What are you staring at, Okuto? Take the picture already!” Aiki laughed as Okuto smiled at him.
“Nothin', just the sun, that’s all.”
‘My Sun, My Aiki Hirose…’
