Chapter Text
Sawamura headed over to Kanemaru's room with arms full of notebooks and textbooks. The two teens had set up a study schedule and now that exams were coming up Sawamura realized how much he needed to catch up on.
After shuffling all his books into one arm he knocked loudly.
“Kanemaru, it's time to study!” he shouted, somewhat enthused with getting some of his work over with.
However when the door opened it was not Kanemaru that stood before him.
How could he forget that Chris-senpai was Kanemaru's roommate?
“Yes?” calmly asked Chris as he leaned against the doorway.
“Hi, Chris-senpai!” shouted Sawamura in surprise. “Erm, is Kanemaru here?”
“Kanemaru? No, he had to go home for the weekend.”
“What?” squawked out Sawamura. “He was suppose to help me with my studies,” he added petulantly.
“Oh, I suppose he just forgot to let you know he would be gone.”
Sawamura didn't say anything, wracking his brain with what he was suppose to do now. The tests were in a few days and in no way did he feel prepared.
Chris just took in the desolate form in front of him and released a sigh.
“Would you like me to help you instead?” Chris offered. It wasn't really too much of a burden – it was more the thought that he and Sawamura would be all alone in his room without any interruptions that got to Chris, but he could never turn a blind-eye when Sawamura needed his help.
“Really!? Thank you so much, Chris-senpai! I promise I'll work very hard,” said Sawamura enthusiastically as he bowed as low as he could without dropping anything.
“I know you will,” responded Chris with a small smile, Sawamura's antics never failing to amuse him. He moved aside so Sawamura and his stack of books could enter the room.
Sawamura took his time to look around. It seemed like the room was cleaner and larger than his own, but that could be because Kuramochi always left his video games and consoles everywhere, making their room seem small.
The room had a few posters of baseball players and over each desk was a corkboard filled with notes and a calendar. Sawamura had only been in this room a couple of times, but Kanemaru was a vicious teacher and would not let him get distracted. Now that Kanemaru was not around, Sawamura took his time taking in the view.
The room was tidy, both beds made and no real clutter anywhere. In a way it looked unlived, but there were little bits of personal items here and there that added some personality to the space.
“Where should I put my things, Chris-senpai?”
“Go ahead and set them out on my desk. I don't have all night to go over material with you so I expect you to pay attention.”
“Of course!” Sawamura saluted after placing his belongings on Chris' desk. “I will be the most studious pupil.”
“Well at least you have enthusiasm,” Chris said with a chuckle. “Go ahead and take out the materials for the subject you're struggling with the most and we'll go from there. You can sit in my chair,” he said as he moved over and grabbed Kanemaru's chair.
Sawamura wasn't sure why sitting in Chris' chair made his stomach all fluttery, but the thought that he was sitting where Chris-senpai would normally sit, and touch all the personal things that belonged to Chris, well – it just made his head spin. He bit his lip and shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. There was no way he would be able to actually study if he kept thinking unnecessary things.
It was different studying with Chris-senpai than it was with Kanemaru or Haruichi. With the other two Sawamura felt that he could fool around and take breaks and oftentimes his mind just wandered but with Chris-senpai he felt that he shouldn't do those things.
Chris-senpai had taken time out of his day to teach him and Sawamura was going to make the best of it. It had taken a while to warm up to Chris, but something about him just made Sawamura want to try harder than he ever had. Chris was like someone he aspired to be but at the same time Sawamura was just happy being in his presence. Chris always had a calming affect on him, possibly because of Chris' soft voice and genuine praise.
“Here, this is what the teacher said was going to be covered in the science portion of the exam,” said Sawamura, pushing his thoughts aside. It was no revelation he felt calmer and happier when he was with Chris.
Chris took a few minutes to look over the material, trying to remember when he had last studied the concepts.
“I see, this is a little difficult but I have faith you can learn it.”
Sawamura could feel his stomach get all fluttery again like it always did whenever Chris praised him – inadvertently or not.
Chris sat right against him that their thighs would touch occasionally. Sawamura concentrated as hard as he could, but he could still feel Chris' warmth on his leg.
Chris wasn't faring any better. He had to admit that he liked the idea of spending some time with Sawamura outside of baseball, even if they were just studying. In a way it was like seeing a whole different side.
When he put his mind to it, Sawamura could really study. Chris knew that he wasn't dumb, it was just that Sawamura had trouble concentrating on things that did not interest him, which in this case was anything that wasn't baseball.
“I'm not too sure I understand this part, Chris-senpai,” said Sawamura as he leaned closer into Chris.
“Which one?”
Sawamura leaned even closer as he moved his book over to Chris. “This one here,” he pointed.
Sawamura looked up into Chris' face, not realizing just how close they were.
Chris' eyes widened in surprise as a small flush made onto his cheeks.
“Erm, maybe we should take a small break. We've been working straight for almost an hour now.”
Sawamura barely stopped himself from leaning further in, Chris' voice breaking whatever spell he was under. He moved back so fast that he lost his balance and was about to fall when Chris' quick reflexes caught him. He could feel Chris' large hands gripping his shoulders tightly, holding him in place.
They stayed frozen like that for what seemed a lifetime, staring into each other's eyes.
Sawamura could see Chris leaning in closer to him, pulling him forward.
“Are you okay?” asked Chris, his voice so soft it could have been a whisper. Sawamura could see the concern in Chris' green-hazel eyes as they searched to make sure Sawamura was unhurt.
“Uh, yeah I'm alright,” said Sawamura as his heart pounded in his chest. They stayed like that for a while but Sawamura could not stay still any longer. “Um, Chris-senpai?”
“Sorry,” said Chris hastily as he released Sawamura's shoulders. The chair toppled precariously for a while, but soon righted itself.
tbc