Work Text:
Seven men are down so far, but they just keep coming.
Suo feels a spike of annoyance as he knocks out another one of them.
The day had started with a normal patrol: the townsfolk greeting and giving them stuff, helping with mundane tasks, and stopping wannabe gangsters at the right time. Amidst fighting another one of those groups, however, one singular coward had bolted out of the area when everybody else had their hands full.
Unfortunately for him, Suo had just finished up. He ran after the escapee after informing his classmates, and chased him around the streets of Makochi.
And that might have been one of the greatest mistakes Suo has ever made.
The guy was slippery, turning corner after corner, and was somehow fast enough that Suo could barely catch up. But after entering a secluded alleyway, the chase had stopped.
And apparently, isolating Suo was their plan all along. Because the moment he turned the corner, dozens of men were waiting for him. And the man he was chasing? He looked confident now that he was with his allies.
“We’ve been waiting for this, eyepatch kid.” was what one of them said. Suo had recognized some of the men’s faces from last week’s squabble.
This… was bad for Suo. They’re in a secluded area. No civilian would see a bunch of thugs ganging up on a single Furin student and call for help. And he ran too far from his classmates, too.
Suo had tried to retreat, but several others blocked the way. They wouldn’t even let him try to reach for his phone because they all lunged at him at the same time. And so the fight began.
They are nothing to Suo. His only disadvantage is that he’s alone with so many of them. All he can do now is stall for time until his friends find him.
He punched and kicked. He shoved and threw his enemies. So far, things are starting to look better for him.
That is, until his eye catches something glinting on his opponent’s hand.
A knife..!
He’s about to dodge, but some of the men cling to both his arms and one of his feet. He forcefully shrugs them off with all his power, but he’s too late. The last thing he sees is shining silver, before his vision completely fades away.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.
It hurts. He tries to open his eye, but his eyelid is hurting like hell, and it’s forcing itself to shut close.
He can’t see. He’s surrounded by enemies, and he can’t see. They’re still there, just preparing to finish Suo off.
Fuck.
He tries to calm himself down by taking deep breaths, but to no avail. His breaths end up short and quick, and the warm liquid seeping from his face to his hand just helps to make his panic worse.
Then, for a second, he senses heavy, malicious intent from in front of him. He instinctively raises his other hand to shield himself from whatever is about to happen. And what comes to him is an unbearable pain sliced through his palm.
A wretched, ugly scream forces itself out of his mouth.
He blindly kicks in front of him, and it lands perfectly. The guy leaves the knife, but it only delays the inevitable.
This is it. He’s either going to die by blood loss or by these guys’ own hands. Both sound painful, but he doesn’t have much of a choice. Well, if he’s going down, then he’ll just–
“SUO!”
.
.
.
He’s tired. And hurt. Hearing Sakura’s voice has brought him so much relief that he momentarily forgets he’s still on the battlefield. His knees almost give in, but he stops himself from collapsing. Tears were starting to join the blood flowing from his eye.
“YOU BASTARDS! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!”
After that, it’s all aggressive shouting and the sound of fists landing. Suo hurriedly turns the other way to retreat.
He’s in no fighting condition. He’s only standing right now because he couldn’t afford to faint. He doesn’t like the idea of leaving Sakura alone to fight those guys, but he knows that Sakura is capable enough, and that he’ll only get in his way.
Unfortunately, one of the thugs sees the opportunity. Suo hears footsteps running after him.
He stops. Running is useless. He can’t see where he’s going, and it’s slowing him down. He readies his uninjured hand for an ungraceful hit. But then, he hears flesh colliding with flesh and maybe even a bone cracking in front of him. His opponent never arrived.
“SUO-SAN!” Another familiar voice yells in distress. Suo’s shoulders drop as tension leaves his body.
“Nirei…kun?”
A familiar pair of arms wrap around Suo. He hears sobbing and screaming of his name, but it is overlapped by a ringing that grows louder and louder. The last thing he feels is immense relief before he fully loses consciousness.
~😄🌸🫖🌸😄~
His right hand still hurts sometimes. At least, it’s more tolerable now than the first few days of agonizing pain. And his eye, well.
The cut is still considered shallow, despite how much blood it let out and how deep it felt to Suo at that time. The doctor says he’s lucky that it didn’t cause complete blindness in his remaining working eye. They said that he wouldn’t be able to see for a while because of the treatment, but it’ll only be temporary. Suo just has to make a full recovery before he can bounce back, good as new.
That’s why he’s in this hospital bed right now. Just waiting for the time to pass by.
All of this lying around has given him time to clear his head. He finally feels calm after that time of extreme anxiety, pain, and misery. And now, he has too much time on his hands.
He sighs as his mind drifts off to useless things. He puts his attention towards his weak, wounded hand, flipping it over and over to check again if it’s still functioning. Thank goodness anesthetics exist at this time.
Anger, fear, and frustration flare from the pit of his stomach. He forces these feelings to die down.
He’s aware that it will leave a scar, and it’s disappointing. A scratch to his otherwise flawless persona. If he hides it with bandages, will he have a more mysterious look? But, well, it's not like it would work on his classmates anymore. The whole class, or maybe the whole school even, already knows what happened to him. He’d rather have it covered, but it feels useless if everyone around him is aware.
Speaking of his classmates, it's almost time for them to arrive. They visit him every day, which is sweet of them. His room will soon be filled with noise now that classes have ended.
And right on cue, a couple of knocks sound somewhere in the space Suo is in. And then he hears a very familiar voice chirp.
“Suo-san! It’s us!” Suo smiles a little inside, telling them to come in.
Now, his lifeless hospital room comes to life when his classmates pour in. They update Suo on Makochi’s condition, the funny things that happened during school, and the class assignments Suo missed but would not want to skip. In that order, always, but unintentionally. It’s cute knowing where his friends’ priorities lie.
So they spend almost an hour letting Nirei yap away about today’s events, with the others either chiming in or entertaining themselves with Suo-doesn’t-know-what. Probably board games they brought or some co-op game on their phones.
Eventually, they had to move to the next topic: homework and actual learning. Those who are confident try their hardest to teach Suo about today’s lessons. And today, Sakura and Nirei had stepped up, on Math of all subjects. It’s a little hard to follow when he can’t see some illustrations, but he appreciates the effort his friends are making. So, he doesn’t say a word about it, just nodding along.
“–and then, you deduct it by 5 to get the answer.”
“That’s not right, weren’t you supposed to isolate x first or something?”
“I don’t think so. Sensei said–”
And when their little back-and-forths are going nowhere, Kiryu steps in to guide all of them to the correct path. Suo’s forever thankful to the class’s other mediator.
After they catch up with schoolwork, they eat dinner. Suo’s favorite time of the day. Another round of teasing Sakura about how he wants the bi-colored boy to hand-feed him.
But joking about it is one thing. Actually getting him to do it still embarrasses Suo to no end.
Now, a thing about being blind is that he can’t see anything, that’s a given. And it’s especially because he wasn’t born blind that he’s struggling with it so much. It’s also because he wants to be perceived as ‘perfect’ that he refuses help from his good-natured friends. It took two whole days for him to stop feeling helpless and full of shame, and just accept the fact that he can’t do anything alone. That includes getting food in his stomach.
It had broken his streak of not eating in front of others. But he’s in no condition to keep up the act. He literally can’t run away from it this time. So, he forcefully swallows the food he’s been fed until Sakura stops. Suo had tried to escape this once by saying he’s full after a few bites, but as stubborn as Suo is, Sakura is equally resilient. He called bullshit and didn’t leave until visiting hours were over, just trying to get Suo to finish his meal, and visiting hours ended pretty late in this hospital. Suo had felt very guilty holding Sakura up when he had to get ready for the next day and sleep. So, Suo had no choice but to finish his meals whenever Sakura was present.
After dinner, his friends go home. Some linger to hang out with Suo: talking to him, asking him questions, playing word games with him, seeking advice, etc. But they all needed to go eventually. That’s when the day truly ends. Suo would do his nightly routine to the best of his ability and then drift off himself. He’d eventually wake up the next day, hoping it was past noon so he wouldn't have to wait long for his friends to visit and make things lively again.
~🌸🫖🌸~
It’s his sixth day in the hospital, and it’s incredibly boring. It’s a weekday, so his parents are busy. His relatives are too, but it’s not like they’ll come and visit him. His friends are either out patrolling or messing around in their classroom, and Suo can’t even message them, nor call them, nor do anything. Because he’s blind and doing all of those requires being able to see.
His daily hospital routine goes as usual: A nurse helps him eat, checks his condition, leaves him alone, and he goes to sleep.
He wakes up in time for lunch. Another nurse assists him, and she asks if he would like to borrow their radio, since they apparently own one. Suo politely refuses in favor of sleeping the rest of the day off. He prefers peace and quiet. The birds chirping and the leaves rustling outside are enough for Suo to relax, doze off, and enjoy his afternoon.
Which turns out to be false when he finds himself unable to sleep. His mind is too active. It’s been hours now, but he couldn’t sleep. Did he eat too much during lunch? Was this the effect of the medicine he’s taken?
Anyhow, it is extremely inconvenient. He’s just waiting for time to pass, and his most convenient way to do so is not working.
*knock* *knock*
Two knocks. Sounds like how one would knock on the door of another’s home.
Suo would’ve celebrated this distraction, but he doesn’t recognize that pattern. Nurses give three. Nirei and his other classmates announce their presence. His family doesn’t knock at all.
Who is this person?
A million possibilities flood Suo’s brain. And all of them assume that this stranger is dangerous. That his overdue punishment has come to get him. That this person would hurt him at his most vulnerable state–
*knock* *knock*
No, an enemy wouldn't have knocked. But what if they’re checking to see if there are visitors? What if it's to check if Suo is awake? His “come in” would’ve been a dead giveaway that he’s conscious. Suo parts his mouth and relaxes his body. He feigns sleep. See what this guy is up to. He could catch this person off guard if they enter and get near. Suo should be able to sense masked ill intent if he focuses hard enough.
When there’s no answer, the mysterious visitor lets themselves in. Suo hears the doorknob turn, and the most silent shut of the door being closed. He hears footsteps getting closer and closer, until it stops on the side of his hospital bed. Suo braces himself for an attack that never comes.
Huh?
Why isn’t this person doing anything?
It’s as if time froze for a few minutes. With Suo still pretending to sleep and the other person standing still and doing god-knows-what, they’re trapped in a deadlock. It’s about time Suo reveals himself and demands an explanation.
But just as he decides to do that, the stranger sighs deeply. Suo senses something approaching, but it is slow and harmless by his standards.
A hand carefully sweeps Suo’s bangs away from his face.
He almost gasps. No one, and he means no one, holds affection for him that deeply to warrant that action. Not even his parents or his master, he thinks forlornly.
The hand continues to comb his hair back when Suo doesn’t give out a reaction, gaining confidence on their little mission. It eventually rests at the top of his head, petting it for a while.
This person must be a family member, or a friend who cares a little too much. He can imagine Tsubaki-san doing this to just about anyone likeable enough. Or, perhaps, it is his master. They were always strict with Suo, but he could sense some familial bond between them–
The weight on his head slows to a stop and slides down to his cheek.
Suo almost flinches. The hand is strong and warm, it’s clear now that it’s touching Suo’s skin directly. Definitely a man’s by how big and bulky they are.
What does this mean?
The person thumbs his cheekbones gently. Lovingly. They touch his temple, where his bandages are wrapped. But they don't dare touch Suo’s eyes directly, thankfully. Suo would punch them straight up if they did.
After rubbing that side of Suo’s face, the person’s hand shifts again. Down and down to Suo’s jaw. Their thumb caresses the side of his mouth.
Suo tries his hardest not to blush at the action. He’s actively fighting physical reactions his body is itching to make.
He’s confused. He’s very confused.
Who? What? Why? How? What the hell is going on here?
The warmth disappeared. Suo almost sighs in relief when the intruder is done with his face. But he's caught off-guard when his hand is held with the same gentle roughness as before. The person gives his hand a light squeeze, before lifting it up higher.
Then, Suo feels something soft kissing his knuckles.
That was the last straw.
Suo quickly lunges his hand upward, grabbing all he could grab of the stranger’s face. They yelp, but just as quickly, they try to dodge away. Their face is thrown back, and facial oil helps the slide, so Suo's fingers slip.
Tch. He should’ve grabbed them by the hair. This guy’s reaction time is fast, too. Suo wouldn’t have expected it. He should’ve gripped harder and used his nails.
“Who are you?” Suo growls with gritted teeth. He’s mad. He’s very mad for some reason. Is it the forced vulnerability? The thought of this stranger doing more had he been actually asleep?
“Taking advantage of me when I'm blinded? You could've just told me how you felt. Now, I'm deeply turned off.” Not that this guy would’ve had a chance with him, anyway. He just wants to wreck this unknown person’s morale.
Suo lifts his body up and off the bed. He has the entire room memorized. He had time. He practiced walking around blind when the nurses weren’t watching. He took note of what his visitors do during their stay and where they do it. He knows where all the things in his room are placed.
He chases the intruder. He hears the scrambling of shoes running away from him, and unfortunately, they head straight for the door and not around the room. This is bad, he’s at a disadvantage outside.
“Hey!” Suo shouts, but he hears the door swing open and slam shut, crushing any hope of finding out who his ‘visitor’ was.
Utter defeat. Suo clenches his fist. He dejectedly goes back to his hospital bed and quietly ponders about what had happened.
Minutes later, a different kind of knock is made on his door.
“It’s us, Suo-san! Are you awake?” A very familiar voice rings through the door. Suo tells them to come in.
“Hello, Nirei-kun,” He greets the boy with a gentle smile.
“Sorry we’re late. We visited Wanijima-san from Shishitoren. He had a terrible accident. We’ll tell you all about him later.”
Shishitoren’s Wanijima? One of their strongest? What could possibly have happened to him?
“It’s all right. Did you pass by someone when you got here?”
He hears Nirei pause midway, “Eh? Did someone visit you before us?”
A bust, then. Tch. He also doesn’t want to turn this into a big deal by asking for security camera footage.
“Yes, but I don’t know who. They didn’t speak to me.”
“Hmm… The nurses did say that you’re probably asleep when we passed by, so they advised us to be very quiet. Maybe one of them checked up on you.”
A male nurse. Suo can ask the others for a clue. The nurses he knew are all women, so it should be easy to pinpoint them.
He inwardly sighs. There's a lot of work to be done. But he's determined to find the culprit. Nobody… and he means nobody takes advantage of his weakness and gets away with it.
Another pair of shoes sounds in the area. Just behind the pair belonging to Nirei.
“Oh? Is that another guest I hear?”
“Y-Yo…” A voice he knows all too well stutters. Suo immediately cheers up.
“Hello, Sakura-kun.” Sakura is flustered for some reason today. Did a girl ask for his number again? Did someone go overboard with the compliments?
But what kind of friend would Suo be if he didn’t make it worse? He directs all his attention to Sakura to hear more of his sputtering and yelling. (He wants to replace those thoughts of other people with him. Only him.)
More and more of his friends have caught up as the hour goes by. And so, they start their daily routine.
Sakura was anxious the entire visit. He was less chatty with Suo, only answering when he was referred to specifically. There was minimal contact between them. It was as if Sakura was distancing himself while trying not to make it too obvious.
Did Suo go too far with the teasing? Had he spoken out of line? He didn’t even have the chance to apologize, because Sakura left with everyone else, and they were never alone in that room.
‘It’s fine,’ Suo convinces himself, ‘Maybe he’ll forget about it tomorrow.’
However, that day wasn't the only day Sakura had acted weird. After that time, Sakura had continued his strange avoiding.
He doesn’t feed Suo anymore, having passed the role over to Nirei or Kiryu. (He tried calling it out, but too much probing almost exposed him)
He never sits on Suo’s bed again. (He opts for the plastic chair that’s always available near Suo’s bed. When Suo had arranged it far away from him before the visit, Sakura had dragged the nearest one instead)
He doesn't visit alone anymore, and he never stayed with Suo until late at night again. So, Suo had never gotten the chance to talk it out. This situation is now rivaling the mysterious admirer-visitor in terms of being Suo’s number one concern.
But well, he’ll find out once he's discharged. After all, his eye is already healed. He’ll corner Sakura in school after he deals with the other problem.
Suo stares at the left eye he had almost lost. He tilts the mirror back and forth to assess the damage. The doctor said it’d leave a scar. But thankfully, it isn’t as bad as his first one on the other eye. He can still conceal this with a bit of makeup, still salvageable. It will also fade away with time.
Suo wraps his bandages back around his eyes. He wants to play blind for a few more days. He still hasn't caught his mysterious visitor.
The other nurses have given him the names of their male colleagues. But on that day, they were either off from work or were busy tending to the other patients. That’s one possibility down. The other possibility is that they’re a Furin student. He has talked to a lot of people there, so someone could’ve developed a crush on him. But Nirei said they haven’t come across another person from Suo’s room. And Nirei wouldn’t lie to him to cover someone else. If he did, it’d be obvious.
The complaint he gave is that the light hurts his eyes, so he’s not ready to be fully out yet. The doctor finds this claim reasonable. But that excuse wouldn’t last long, so he only has tomorrow and the day after before he’s discharged.
If his visitor had a conscience, they’d probably come clean before that happens. Better to confess your sins to a guy who can't see your expressions, right? At the very least, for them, Suo wouldn’t be able to know who they are, nor would he be able to land a punch. Suo just needs to buy time and have patience.
…And if they don't, Suo's last resort would have to be asking for that security camera footage.
*knock* *knock*
Suo's heart leaps out of his throat. It's the same exact knock from before.
*knock* *knock*
Are they finally revealing themselves? Have they come to admit their wrongdoing as Suo had expected?
“It's me.” A certain, bi-colored boy’s voice sounds from behind the room’s door.
…Or not.
“Hello, Sakura-kun.” He greets the other boy, patiently waiting for him to get comfortable beside his bed. He puts his business smile on, masking his disappointment. A warm-up for his eventual real one that always shows itself around Sakura.
It’s strange, he doesn’t hear other footsteps. There’s no chatter around, either. Could it be that Sakura came alone?
“Is it only you today? Where are the others?” He asks.
“Yeah… I went ahead of ‘em.” Sakura clears his throat a little nervously.
A teasing question makes it out of Suo’s mouth before his brain can process it, “Are you going to tell me something important?”
“Wh–How’d you know?!”
Suo’s smile drops, “Oh?” It was just a joke. Sakura never visited by himself anymore, so something must be up.
…And maybe he is curious about his sudden change in behavior these past few days. Maybe the other issue is about to fix itself first.
“Shall we go outside? This room is too stuffy for a serious conversation.” Suo suggests, bringing his smile back and softening his tone to lighten the mood up a bit.
“Are you free to walk around like that?”
“As long as I have a reliable guide, I should be fine.”
“Oh… okay.”
Suo gets out of his bed with ease, easily finding his way around the room for a neater and more presentable pair of hospital clothes. Sakura isn’t saying a word. He must be staring at Suo in shock… or wonder.
While Suo did have a few little stumbles and patting arounds, he eventually finishes getting ready for the outing. He stops right in front of Sakura and turns his head to, hopefully, where Sakura’s is.
“How did you do that? It's like you can see.” Sakura asks, voice low and almost quiet.
“I had time to practice. Lying down in bed tends to get boring after the first hour.” Suo answers, proud of what he achieved.
“You… geez. Let's just go. How do I…?” He imagines the other boy awkwardly shuffling, eyes looking everywhere but the person in front of him. Suo almost giggles.
“May I grab onto you, Sakura-kun?”
“Uhh… W-Where?”
“Your arm would suffice.” His hearing isn’t so supernatural that he could follow Sakura’s footsteps all the way. The outside noise would mess it up. And holding his hand would be too much, even for Suo. He almost blushes at the thought.
“Here…” Suo figures that Sakura is holding his arm up, so he reaches out. He feels the familiar fabric of Furin’s uniform under his palm, along with the warm skin underneath it. He adjusts his hold, looping his arm around his friend’s.
They start walking.
Sakura’s arm is stiff. Very stiff. Like he's nervous or something. It could be related to the important thing he’s about to tell Suo, or that he’s not used to the contact. Suo’s a bit disoriented himself. His friendship with Sakura was never the physically affectionate, often relying on words on Suo's part and acts of service from Sakura. The entire walk outside is silent, too. Sakura doesn’t seem to be in the mood for small talk, and Suo couldn’t find a topic to talk about even after racking his brain for one. He had been too preoccupied with overthinking other matters. He should apologize to Sakura later.
They finally sit on a bench in what Suo assumes is the hospital’s little park. He hears some faraway chatter around them. Probably some patients out on a walk with their friends or family, too.
“So? What did you want to talk to me about? Did you do something that might make Nirei mad?” Suo jokes, trying to lighten the mood. However, this conversation seems to be very serious, after all. As if Sakura came to say some horrible news, not for advice.
“It’s not Nirei who will be mad at me for what I did. It’s you.”
Suo couldn’t think of a scenario of Sakura doing something infuriating. Unless, well, he accidentally broke Suo’s table or chair back in their classroom. Or breaking Suo’s gift tea set. Rather, it’s Sakura who has the right to be mad at him for being so annoying and clingy towards him.
“Whatever you did, Sakura-kun, I’m sure I’ll forgive you.” Honestly, it couldn’t be that bad, right? It’s Sakura. He’s too mindful of others’ opinions. He’s too afraid to break his friendships to pull irritating stunts.
“You looked like you weren’t ready to forgive me when you grabbed my face and chased me out of your room.”
Grabbed his–?
Suo’s breath catches in his throat. Does this mean… He’s the one who…?
His mouth gapes, and he can’t keep his perfect posture still. He can’t… He can’t even get the words out. A spark of hope lights up at the bottom of his dark and heavy heart.
“I’m sorry! I thought you were asleep, and I couldn’t help myself. I thought I’d never have the chance when you’re awake, so I…” Sakura shifts uncomfortably on his seat next to him.
Haha… Suo was right. He knew the culprit would admit to it sooner or later. And if it’s Sakura who did it…
“I-I'm really sorry. I–! Wait! What are you doing?!” Sakura panics when he sees Suo taking off the bandages around his eyes.
“I need to look at you properly, Sakura-kun. It's unfair to have this conversation while I'm still blind, no?” He leaves enough to cover his right eye, securing it so it wouldn’t accidentally fall off.
“Wait!”
When Suo’s eye adjusts to the surroundings, he sees Sakura. Red-faced, teary-eyed, and horrified Sakura. He has his arms up in an attempt to cover his entire self.
What an adorable mess. It’s Suo’s fault he’s like this, so it’s only right that he fixes it. He scooches over a bit.
“Now, Sakura-kun. Can you tell me why you did that? I like understanding things clearly.”
Sakura violently shakes his head, “Don’t look at me…”
Suo catches both his wrists and gently tries to put them down. He puts on his softest expression, “Please?”
It takes a few seconds for the other boy to finally spill his beans.
“I-I’ve had feelings for you for a long time, now! And there’s no way I had a chance with you. My feelings exploded back then because I couldn’t keep it in anymore. I wanted to feel, even just for a while, what it’s like to be allowed to have you as mine.”
Suo feels giddy. Excitement rushes through his blood at this confession. His face is hot, his grin is wide, and all he wants is to just jump into Sakura’s arms and give him kisses. But he can’t have that. They need to clear things up first.
“Fufu, who told you that you aren’t allowed to have me?”
Sakura finally looks at him. He stares at him in confusion. Suo could practically see the question marks floating around his head. He leans closer to the scared boy.
“Now that I know it's you, I don't really mind anymore. But Sakura-kun,” Suo flicks his forehead hard. “That was no good, you know? Touching sleeping people without their consent, no matter how pure your intentions are, is a little…”
Suo trails off, shifting his expression to one he gives to people he lectures, “I was really spooked, you know? Having a stranger touch you like that, not knowing who they are. It was a scary experience.”
Sakura looks down guiltily, “I’m sorry.”
“Hehe~ I forgive you, Sakura-kun.” But the other boy wouldn’t look at him. He still has that regretful look on his face.
“Punch me. I deserve it. You don’t have to hold back. And if you don’t want to be friends anymore, then… I understand.”
Huh?
“Why on earth would I do that? I already forgave you. I’m not doing that!”
“I deserve it! I don’t even know why you’re not angry right now. I don’t know how you could forgive me that easily…”
Suo pauses, then blushes. He fiddles with the bandage on his hand abashedly, “Isn't it already obvious?”
Do I have to say it out loud?
Suo's only human. A very whipped one at that. His heart softened the moment he found out it was Sakura who gave him those affectionate touches. The one who kissed his hand like it was a love confession. To think his feelings were reciprocated, it washes away the anger and disgust he felt at that time.
“Sakura-kun, the things you did when you thought I was asleep… I want you to do it again.” This time, it’s Suo who couldn’t look at Sakura in embarrassment, “I already told you, I don’t mind if it’s you…”
A moment of silence, and then a hand reaches for his face. Sakura tucks Suo’s bangs behind the other’s ear. Then, he cups Suo’s face, and this time, Suo nuzzles against the hand and kisses its palm. They look at each other. Sakura, blushing heavily, flickers his gaze between Suo’s eye and mouth, taking everything he has not to pull him closer and–
Eventually, they have to pull away.
‘Aww,’ Suo thinks. He really thought that Sakura would give in. But his hand is lifted by Sakura’s shaking one, and he feels a soft, familiar pair of lips kissing his knuckles. Sakura looks at his eye with embarrassment, hope, and determination.
“I really like you, Suo. I don’t think I can bring myself to change that.”
Suo’s soul beams with joy.
“Mhm. Then don’t force yourself to change,” He smiles. The widest he’s ever given, “Because I feel the same.”
Suo guides Sakura’s hand back to hold his face, and they seal their new relationship with a sweet kiss.