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Eijirou plans to propose this evening to Katsuki. He has been preparing for months now, searching for the perfect ring, finally deciding on what words to engrave, and choosing the best location. Eijirou decided on a hike on the first trail they ever hiked on together.
They will camp up at the top and head down the next day. It’s a long trail, so Eijirou wakes himself up early to get ready. Katsuki already packed their bags the previous day and made some food to eat on their way up. He intends on cooking breakfast for them, so Katsuki could sleep in a bit longer.
He makes two simple but filling sandwiches and smothers Katsuki’s with hot sauce. After he wakes Katsuki up and they both get ready, they eat on their way to the train station. Eijirou has booked the earliest tickets. He hopes they can make it up to the summit by sunset.
Eijirou remembers the pink and orange skies stretching over their heads, the forest blanketing the mountainside sweeping beneath their feet, the tiny towns dotting the horizon. Most of all, he remembers the fading light tinting Katsuki’s hair gold and highlighting his burning red eyes. Reliving that moment as Eijirou proposes is the goal.
The train ride and short bus ride to the rail goes by quietly. There are few people riding and no one recognizes them. It’s the perfect start to their relaxing hike.
As they walk up the winding path, Eijirou does his best to appear like this is a regular trip and not give away how his heart is pounding harder in his chest the further they ascend. He points out squirrels skittering past and the occasional deer grazing nearby. He takes more pictures of the wildlife and of Katsuki than usual however. Eijirou wants to remember everything about today.
About halfway up, they stop to eat. Katsuki prepared onigiris and pork katsu sandwiches for them. Eijirou supplied a few sweeter options in the form of store-bought pastries and gummies. After they have their fill, Eijirou checks the time. They have plenty of time, so Eijirou lies on the ground and pulls Katsuki down with him to cloud watch. There are plenty of fluffy white clouds in the sky today.
When Eijirou’s eyes blur a bit with drowsiness, he gets up and they begin moving again. Everything is going fine until he looks up at the sky again. Eijirou has a sinking feeling as more clouds gather overhead, gray and heavy with water. They are mere meters from the top, and as they reach the peak, the beautiful sunset Eijirou hoped for is ruined by the incoming storm.
As the first droplets hit their heads, Eijirou curses his luck while Katsuki drags him back down the trail to a rocky overhang to ride it out. He can’t believe he forgot to check the weather. He had this planned for so long that the amazing daydream of how this day would go is washed away with the rain. Eijirou can’t stop the tears welling up in his eyes. It took so long for their schedules to line up. This trip was delayed a couple of times already due to Eijirou falling ill the first time and Katsuki landing in the hospital with a broken leg the second.
As Katsuki turns to him, he notices the tears. He steps forward until he can cup Eijirou’s face, roughly wiping away the falling teardrops.
“What’s wrong?”
Eijirou shakily breathes in, opens his mouth and shuts it. He doesn’t want to explain the intended proposal. Just because today was a disaster doesn’t mean Eijirou can’t try again later. He wonders how many more months it will take before the stars align once more to give him a chance. Eijirou unconsciously reaches down and grips the ring box in his pocket.
Katsuki shoves his hand in the pocket after Eijirou doesn’t respond for a minute. Eijirou startles and yanks out the box by accident. As he realizes what Eijirou is holding, Katsuki stares wide-eyed, mouth open in shock. He shuts his eyes and his lips curve up as he says, “Guess I should’ve known this might happen. You’ve been acting weird for months. I just didn’t… realize it’d be for something like this.”
“You knew?! Or, I mean, knew that I’d been planning something,” Eijirou asks, face burning.
Eijirou thought he had been completely inconspicuous, giving nothing away. He did all his research on rings and potential locations on his phone so it would be harder to see if Katsuki or any of their friends snuck up on him, and he deleted his search history afterwards. He also planned his excursion to the jewelers during the days only he was off.
“It’s easy to tell when you’re hiding something,” Katsuki scoffs. His eyes flicker to the ring. He raises an eyebrow and intensely stares at Eijirou, chin raised. “So?”
Nervousness and anticipation send Eijirou’s heart racing again as he slowly gets down on a knee. He opens up the box and asks, “Katsuki, I love you so much. Even in our first year at UA, you’ve always pushed me to be stronger and to never give up. I became unbreakable due to your words, due to your belief in me. I want to support you like you’ve always supported me. And I want to do it for the rest of our lives. So…” Eijirou smiles brightly, “would you do me the honor of becoming my husband?”
Katsuki’s eyes teared up as Eijirou spoke. His lips tremble then a wide grin appears. “Yes. It’ll always be yes if it’s you.”