Work Text:
1.
"Yeah, I just arrived. Really, mom? Okay, fine. I will. Yes, I know. I will. Love you too." Sakura hang up the call with a soft smile on his face, pushing his luggages inside of his dorm room. His mother had kept him on the line ever since he left the home, afraid he'd get lost trying to find her way through the campus. Sakura kept reminding him that they visited the campus together and Sakura had memorized every road of it. But his mother had always been a worrywart and insisted that she wanted to stay on the line.
He let out a deep breath after closing the door behind himself. He was trying to get his heavy and filled to the top luggages away from front of the door when a coughing sound made him flinch. Sakura quickly turned around and looked at the source of the voice. There was a guy with short hair and sheepish expression on his face. Sakura also couldn't help but notice his build and how strong he looked, even though he didn't have that many muscles. Looking at how long his arms were Sakura was certain he was taller than Sakura.
"Hey," said Sakura, in the end, waving a hand. "Sorry if I disturbed you. This is my room, so… Oh! I'm sorry if that came out as rude! I just meant that we were going to be roommates." The guy just chuckled and Sakura fell in love. Was this the thing they called 'love at first laugh'?
"Yeah, I figured," The guy said. He got up from the chair and stepped closer to Sakura. Sakura looked between his face and the hand that was reaching out to him. Sakura didn't have enough time to register how tall the guy was before his big and warm hand was holding Sakura's. Sakura really believed he was short circuiting right now. There had to be a limit to being perfect. "I'm Momijikawa. Momijikawa Sakae." God dammit, even his name was perfect. Sakura blinked the awe in his mind away when he noticed the guy waiting for his name.
"Sakura… Haruka."
"Haruka, huh? That's a nice name."
"Thanks," Sakura said slowly. This was the first time someone had complimented his name. "My mom picked it out."
"She sounds like an amazing woman," Momijikawa said with a smile, letting go of Sakura's hand. "So? What are you studying?" Sakura plopped himself to the unoccupied bed before answering. The road to the campus wasn't that long, but carrying two full suitcases because his mother insisted he take a bunch of stuff he might need, tired him out. So he took a moment to relax and shake away the effect Momijikawa had on him.
"Veterinary. What about you?"
"Engineering," Momijikawa said, sitting back on his chair, his face turned to look at Sakura. "Looks like we both will waste our nights away studying, huh?"
"Like you're doing right now?" Sakura asked, eyebrow raised questioningly and stared at Momijikawa's desk. It was full of scraps and tools, Sakura was sure he also saw a few drafts about something but he didn't want to get close and invade Momijikawa's space when they had just met.
"Oh no," Momijikawa quickly turned around and tried to tidy around his desk. He laughed nervously before turning back and showing Sakura what he was working on. "It's just a hobby of mine. I like to do stuff with leftover metal or alloy wires from my family's shop." Momijikawa extended the thing he was working on to Sakura. Sakura slowly took it from him, careful to not ruin Momijikawa's hard work. "It's a swing." Momijikawa said, pushing the little seat to make it sway. Sakura looked at it in awe. He had seen stuff similar to this in some shops. They were more professionally done, of course, but seeing someone in his age do it comfortably filled Sakura with wonder about the boy in front of him. Sakura looked at Momijikawa's relaxed and proud face, and felt something spark in him. He had a feeling that him and Momijikawa was going to get along really well, and Sakura was saying this ignoring how handsome he looked and how he made him feel upon their first meeting.
2.
Sakura stood in front of his dorm room, to nervous to open the door. He took a deep breath and tried to fix his outfit to keep his hands busy. He knew it didn't matter and that Momijikawa already saw his lamest moments, but this was different. They were going on a date. Sakura hoped his heart wouldn't burst during their date. Sakura shook his head and took another deep breath. He reached for the door but just as he was about to grab the handle, the door flew open and Momijikawa stood on the other side, a huge grin on his face.
"What are you doing out there, Haruka? Did you forget how to enter your own room?" Momijikawa said with his voice laced with teasing. Sakura glared at him before pushing past and entering the room.
"I was just about to," Sakura said quietly while passing by. He dropped his bag next to his bed and decided to drop himself to his bed face first. Momijikawa quietly sat next to him.
"What's with you today? Did you bombed the exam?" Sakura sighed and turned on his back, looking at Momijikawa.
"I did excellent on my exam, thank you very much."
"Then what is it?"
"Well," Sakura said,sitting up cross legged on the bed. "It's not every day that my roommate drops the bomb on me by saying 'why don't we go on a date after exams tomorrow?'. Mind you, we didn't even talk about our feelings."
"I hope not," Momijikawa said with a grin on his face. Sakura threw his pillow at him. "Also isn't that the whole point of dates? Talking about our feelings? I mean, we've already talked about everything else these past months."
"You're right," Sakura sighed. "So? Where are we going on a date to talk about our feelings?"
"A cat cafe." Sakura immediately jumped from his bed, running to his closet.
"Why didn't you tell me to meet there?!" Sakura asked rummaging through his closet. Time was very precious when it came to cats and Sakura was wasting it here arguing with Momijikawa.
"Because I wanted to surprise you." Sakura heard Momijikawa say, his head still buried deep in his clothes.
"Well, I am surprised!" Sakura exclaimed, emerging from his closet with a bunch of clothes in his arms. "Be ready in five minutes or I'm leaving without you!" He yelled as he rushed to the bathroom. Momijikawa stood still for a few second before quietly laughing to himself.
Sakura was almost skipping from excitement as him and Momijikawa walked side by side. Sakura could see Momijikawa watching him from the corner of his eye, but he tried to ignore it for the time being. He was aware of what was going on, he wasn't dumb. He just needed to pet some cats before they start talking about the feelings.
When they arrived Momijikawa quickly stepped in front of him and held the door for Sakura. Sakura quickly muttered a 'thanks' and rushed inside, hiding his red cheeks. Inside of the cafe was everything Sakura hoped for and more. There was a special corner for cats that was full of toys and trees, and cats were scattered around making Sakura's heart swell. He noticed one of the cats sleeping in the very corner, hissing at other cats strutting by. Sakura slightly flinched when he felt Momijikawa's hand on his lower back, pushing him forward and away from the door. Sakura complied, eager to pet some cats.
While Momijikawa was ordering their drinks, Sakura made a beeline for the cat he saw earlier and hope it would let Sakura get close. He carefully walked through the toys and cats walking by. Sakura watched as the cat lifted its head and looked at him. Sakura couldn't help but smile softly when he realized that cat's eyes were the same color as Sakura's. Slowly reaching his hand out, Sakura waited for the cat to finish sniffing him before touching. When the cat didn't shy away from him, Sakura started scratching between its ears. "Hey, twin." He said softly as the cat started purring.
As he was petting the cat, getting it to be comfortable with him so that he could take it on his lap, he noticed Momijikawa watching him from afar with a soft expression on his face that Sakura rarely saw from him. Sakura quickly turned back to hide his blushing face and pet the cat for a little more, before letting it go back to its sleep. Sakura smiled softly once again when the cat stretched, making himself into a ball to hide his face. He slowly walked back to Momijikawa and grabbed the drink Momijikawa was holding for him.
"Why did you stop petting it?" Momijikawa asked after they sat down on one of the empty tables. Sakura was relieved to see that there wasn't a huge crowd in the cafe. He shrugged as an answer to Momijikawa's question, taking a sip from his drink.
"He looked like he wanted to go back to sleep."
"Hmm," Momijikawa hummed, leaning over the table to get a better look at Sakura's face. "He had your eyes." Sakura snapped his head to look at him, surprised he could tell from afar.
"You noticed that?"
"Of course, I did. I never missed anything that even slightly reminded me of your eyes." Momijikawa whispered and Sakura felt his whole body shiver. Sakura averted his eyes, not having enough power to keep looking into Momijikawa's eyes.
"We're jumping straight to it, I guess," Sakura muttered. He took a deep breath before turning back to face Momijikawa. If the whole purpose of this date was to talk about feeling, then talk about feelings Sakura was going to do. Momijikawa nodded, looking at Sakura expectantly. "So…" he started before closing his mouth again. He didn't know where to start. Sakura let out a sigh. He was being too scared for someone who had been sleeping in the same room as his crush. "Okay. We're both aware that we like each other. That's why you asked me out on a date and that's why I accepted it. Before we dive deeper in this feelings topic, tell me when. When did you start liking me? Or when did you realize you liked me?" Momijikawa leaned back in his chair, his eyes never leaving Sakura's. Sakura looked back at him, not averting his gaze. He knew his own answer. It was still vividly on his mind that the didn't even need to think back for too long.
"When I started liking you was probably the first day we met," Sakura stared at Momijikawa in shock. On the first day? Just like Sakura? "But when I realized it, was when you first invited your friends over to our room. You and your friends are really touchy bunch after all." Sakura couldn't believe what he was hearing. Them liking each other on the same day aside, Momijikawa was jealous of his friends this whole time? When Sakura was almost obsessed with him? Sakura couldn't help but start laughing at the absurdity of the situation. He tried to calm himself when he noticed Momijikawa's face.
"Okay, I'm sorry. Laughing wasn't very appropriate. And I didn't laugh because the feeling wasn't mutual, I swear. It's the opposite actually," Momijikawa was still looking at him suspiciously. Sakura cleared his throat and reached for Momijikawa's hand. He intertwined their fingers when Momijikawa put his hand in Sakura's. "I, too, started liking you on the first day we met. It was love at first sight actually. That's why I found it so funny that you were jealous of my friends, while I was in love with you." Momijikawa stared at him, mouth agape. Sakura chuckled.
"You're in love with me?" Momijikawa's voice was full of wonder, like he couldn't believe this was actually happening. Sakura took Momijikawa's hand between his own, playing with his fingers.
"Well, duh. Isn't that why we're here? So that we can confess our love and talk about our feelings?"
"That's… right." Momijikawa said slowly. "I love you, too, by the way. A lot." he added quickly, grabbing Sakura's hands. Sakura laughed.
"I would hope so, otherwise this would all be very weird for me." Sakura felt the weight lift off of his shoulders. He didn't even know why he was so nervous and scared. It was Momijikawa across him, the guy who laughed at his face for sleeping on top his notes and copy pasting his notes to his face, the guy who took care of him when he fell sick, abandoning his own school work to do it. And he was the one who asked Sakura out, so obviously he was in love with Sakura. It was just Sakura's anxiety trying to mess with his brain, which was now silent after everything that happened today.
3.
The walk back to their dorm room was a quiet one. For the most part of the road they walked side by side, a noticeable distance between them. It wasn't until when someone riding a bike sped past them that Sakura reached out and pulled Momijikawa close to prevent anyone crashing into him. Sakura was aware that deep down it was just an excuse, and he was looking for ways to pull Momijikawa closer ever since they left the cafe. So Sakura wasn't going to let this opportunity slip. Remaining of the road they were walking shoulder to shoulder, hands brushing against each other with each step they took. And Sakura was so close to grabbing Momijikawa's hand but before he could they had reached to their room.
Sakura left the bathroom after washing his hands to find Momijikawa sitting on his quietly, his back straight. Sakura sat next to him with his towel in hand. Sakura bumped his shoulder to Momijikawa's, waiting for him to lift his head. When he finally did after a few minutes, Sakura dropped his towel in shock. His hands hurried to grab Momijikawa's face, drying his tears.
"Why are you crying?" Sakura asked, his voice an octave high with shock and fear. "Did something happen? What's wrong?"
Momijikawa reached for Sakura's hands on his face without saying anything. He held on tight to them, unintentionally leaning against it. "Nothing's wrong," he said, but hearing the heaviness in his voice made Sakura doubt himself. was it possible that Sakura misunderstood everything? "Hey," Momijikawa said again, snapping Sakura out of his thoughts. "It's happy tears." Sakura looked at him questioningly.
"Happy tears?"
"Hm," Momijikawa let go of Sakura's hands and wrapped his arms around his waist, putting his head on his shoulder. "I'm just so happy that you love me too."
"I can't believe you," Sakura said with a chuckle, his shoulders slumping with relief. "Is it really something to cry over?"
"It is!" Momijikawa protested, tightening his hold on Sakura. "You have no idea how amazing you are! And how everyone is keep gravitating towards you! And how many admirers you have! Whenever I pass by your building, it's always 'Sakura this', 'Sakura that'! People love you!" Sakura sat silent for a moment, taking in what Momijikawa said. He sighed and put his head over Momijikawa's.
"Well. I'm sure mom would be proud."
Oh, She already is." Momijikawa said without missing a beat. Sakura lowered his head to look at him.
"And how do you know that?"
"Because we talk weekly?" Sakura grabbed Momijikawa's shoulders and pulled him away, staring into his eyes.
"What do you mean, 'we talk weekly'?"
"Exactly what it means." Sakura kept staring at Momijikawa with wide eyes. His mother and his roommate/crush/boyfriend(?) were talking weekly for… who knows how long. Sakura hid hid face behind his hands. His mother for sure told Momijikawa every lame thing he did as a kid… Sakura wanted to hide away, he wanted to bury himself and never come out.
"Why?" He asked quietly, not having any power to question him any further.
"'Why?'" Momijikawa hummed for a second before answering. "I need to keep in touch with my mother-in-law, that's why."
Sakura snapped his head towards Momijikawa, a protest on his tongue. "Your 'mother-in-'—" Sakura's protest was cut short when Momijikawa held his face and closed his lips on top of Sakura's. Yeah. Okay. Sakura was for sure short-circuiting right now. Momijikawa pulled back before Sakura could spiral any longer, not that it would help at this point.
"Stop stressing over everything, Haruka," Momijikawa said quietly, his breath washing over Sakura's face, sending him into another spiral. Sakura wasn't sure which direction he wanted his body to take. One part of him wanted to hide away until the embarrassment and the panic passed. The other part of him wanted to jump on Momijikawa to make him taste his own medicine. Momijikawa was still close to his face, his expression is one full of love and happiness. Sakura felt the thin thread holding him together snap as he kept looking at Momijikawa's face.
"Fine," he said harshly, before grabbing Momijikawa's face and causing him to fall backwards to his bed. A sick satisfaction washed over Sakura as he watched Momijikawa's expression morph into a shocked one, his confidence from earlier nowhere to be seen. "You asked for it." Sakura whispered before closing the distance between them, this time determined to savor the moment.
4.
Sakura was washing the dishes that couldn't fit the dishwasher when a pair of arms wrapped around his waist. He visibly relaxed and leaned back on Momijikawa's chest. They had decided to move in together right after college, not wanting to be separated. Though, Sakura was skeptical at first. He didn't want to leave his mother alone. She was getting older and was getting sick easily because of his age. Sakura wanted to be close to her to take care of her if something ever happened. His mother kept reassuring him, telling she didn't mind, that she actually liked her peace now that her rebellious son was out of home. Sakura had pouted upon hearing that, causing his mother and Momijikawa to spoil him to get his mood up.
It was after that whole ordeal that Sakura had agreed moving in with Momijikawa, on the condition of seeing her mother every other week. Momijikawa was more than ready to agree, also not wanting to leave his self-proclaimed mother-in-law alone for too long.
And now, here they were after two years, had just hosted their family and friends for an impromptu engagement party. But Sakura was sure Momijikawa had already planned it, if his cousins from miles away also being here was something to go by. Sakura wasn't complaining, he was glad they were here for him and Momijikawa. He would just rather that they had enjoyed the moment themselves before allowing others to join.
"I told you she was going to be my mother-in-law." Momijikawa whispered into Sakura's ear, earning himself an elbow to ribs. Momijikawa just chuckled, ignoring the pain Sakura's elbow caused.
"Yeah yeah, you did." Sakura said, putting away the last of the dishes to the drying rack. He then turned around and wrapped his arms around Momijikawa, hiding his face in his chest. Momijikawa kissed the top of his head and started combing his fingers through his hair.
"Tired?" He asked quietly, aware of their guests in the living room a few feet away. Sakura nodded.
"Good tired." He added. His eyes were burning because of all the happy tears he cried for whole day, but Sakura didn't mind. This was way better than his eyes hurting because of pain. Momijikawa started swaying them side to side without saying anything. At that moment, as if they knew what was going on in the kitchen, a slow song started to play from home speakers. Sakura chuckled without opening his eyes. He could bet money that it was one of his cousins who did this on purpose.
Momijikawa pulled away slightly to look at Sakura's face. There was a soft shine in his eyes that made Sakura melt on the spot. "Would you give me the honor to this dance, your highness?" Sakura playfully pushed his shoulder.
"Stop that." He said quietly, putting his head back to Momijikawa's chest. Momijikawa kept swaying them without stopping. It was kind of making Sakura sleepy but he didn't have the heart to make Momijikawa stop.
"What?" Momijikawa said with a laugh. "Do you want us to have our first dance on our wedding and embarrass ourselves in front of everyone?"
"When you put it that way…" Sakura muttered. He did have a point. It was going to be a small ceremony, not many people they'd like to invite, but Sakura knew his family and he knew his cousins would film everything and relive it in every family gathering. Sakura pulled away and held Momijikawa's hands. "Fine then," he said. "Let's dance."
Momijikawa smiled brightly and tightened his hold on Sakura's waist. His other hand moved along Sakura's face, neck and arm slowly before reaching for his hand. Sakura tightly held Momijikawa's hand, reaching for Momijikawa's waist with his other hand. "Now what?" Sakura asked. He didn't have any experience with dancing, not even keeping up with a rhythm so he had no clue what he was supposed to do.
"Follow my lead." Momijikawa started moving them slowly, they didn't have much space to move in their small kitchen. Sakura put his forehead on Momijikawa's chest, where his heart was beating steadily, feeling comfortable in his fiance's hold. The sound of Momijikawa's heartbeats, his steady and warm hold on Sakura, and the low hum of the song coming from inside was making Sakura more sleepy with each passing second.
Sakura's eyes were about to close when the song ended. He blinked his eyes open only to met with his mother's smiling face watching them from the door. His mom gave him a small wave. When Sakura noticed her tears, he squirmed in Momijikawa's hold, ready to go over to her. But she stopped him with a single move. Then Sakura noticed the phone over his mother's shoulder, a hand belonging to one of his cousins without a doubt. Sakura dropped his head back to Momijikawa's shoulder. He gave up fighting his mother, or his cousin, or sleep and decided to let himself fall asleep in his fiance's arms.
+1.
Sakura was fixing his suit in front of the mirror when someone knocked on the door. Sakura turned around to see his mother popping her head in from the small gap she opened. Sakura let a wide smile spread on his face, walking over to his mom. "Mom," he said, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close, careful of her dress and hair.
"My baby," she said her voice thick with unshed tears. Sakura quickly pulled back, looking into her eyes.
"Hey, why are you crying? Don't cry. You'll make me cry too."
"How can I not cry?" She muttered, reaching her hands to cup Sakura's face. "My baby boy grew up, became an amazing man and is now getting married to an as amazing man." Sakura held her wrists and snuggled into her hand, just like he used to do when he was a kid.
"Thank you, mom. For everything."
"That's what mothers are for, baby. You have nothing to thank me for."
"I do," Sakura insisted. He carefully picked his next words, not wanting to make his mother upset by reminding her unpleasant memories. "You took care of me all on your own, working overtime most of the time just to keep me happy. I wouldn't be this amazing man if it weren't for you."
"Oh, my child…" Sakura planted a kiss on her hand, and snuggled into it once again.
"I love you,mom."
"I love you, too, my baby. Now come, Sakae is waiting for you outside." Sakura kissed his mother's hand again before placing it on his arm. Sakura's eyes immediately found Sakae's as he stepped out of the room. Sakura's mom hugged Sakae without taking her hand off of Sakura's arm. She kissed Sakae's cheek, then turned around and kissed Sakura's cheek too. Sakura squeezed her hand before letting it go so that she could take her place inside.
When the doors closed after her, Sakura grabbed Sakae's hand. He squeezed it once and took a deep breath. Then he turned to look at Sakae. He was looking at Sakura like it was his first time seeing him. Sakura quickly blushed, pushing Sakae away with no power. Sakae intertwined their hands and straightened his posture.
"Ready, husband?" Sakura scoffed.
"We're not husbands yet."
"Details, details," Sakae waved his free hand. "Ready to do everything together for the rest of our lives?" He looked at Sakura with a confident smirk.
"You know I was ready yesterday for that." Sakae laughed, Sakura's chuckles accompanying it. Before they could say anything else, the first notes of the song they picked together for their entrance echoed in the building, followed by the doors opening to their future. Sakura took a deep breath and stepped forward with Sakae right by his side.