JE-united surprise fic for lady_aenea
Gift fic for lady_aenea
Title: Black tea
Pairing: Tetsuya/Tatsuya (Shiritsu Bakaleya koukou)
Rating: R
Warnings: -
Summary: Third year in highschool; Tetsuya and Tatsuya are studying hard for the university exams no one ever thought they'd challenge.
Notes: I've wanted to write a Bakaleya fic ever since it aired but never really got to it, so I'd like to thank my recipient for the opportunity. I hope you like it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
“I'm going to try for university.”
They had all quietened when Tetsuya stated his plans after high school, at first not believing him; then they had burst into laughter when Shouhei said that he had been thinking about it too.
“There's no way you'd be accepted,” Makoto had laughed, and Tatsuya had agreed, because really, as if any of them would make it any further than convenience stores or maybe coffee shops or something, unless they opened up their own business.
But Tetsuya had remained silent, a half-hearted smile on his lips and when he saw that, Tatsuya had realized that he had meant what he said.
-
“This is so difficult, I don't get it, what is this even about?” Tatsuya lets his head fall into his own hands with a loud sigh, ready to give up because he really, really doesn't understand these stupid equations and why does he even have to learn them because it's not like he'll use them at university anyway. “Can we take a pause?”
Tetsuya glares at him, mildly annoyed, but gives up at the puppy eyes staring back at him. “Keep it up while I make tea, at least.” For being the leader of Makada high, Tatsuya really knows how to play cute when he has to, and it works a little too well on Tetsuya. Too well for his own liking.
Of course, when he comes back, Tatsuya still hasn't solved even half of the problems they've scheduled for the day, but he actually has a pen in his hand and he's done with the one he was stuck on. Or at least that's what it seems like until he realizes that Tatsuya's eyes are focused on Tetsuya's solution to the same problem, and he draws a deep breath as he sets the hot cups of tea down on his living room table.
“I hope you're not copying straight off my notes because you're not going to learn anything from that.” He knows he's sounding stern and maybe even bitter, but when Tatsuya asked for help, said that he also wanted to at least take the university test, he had hoped that he was going to take it seriously.
“I'm not,” Tatsuya replies, voice shaking as though he just saw a ghost. “I solved it on my own.”
“And?” That doesn't explain why he's looking at Tetsuya's papers.
“And it's correct, that's what I was checking.” Tatsuya looks up at him, astonishment filling his eyes. “I did it.”
That actually makes Tetsuya laugh. Not the mocking kind of laughter that the group had made him go through when he first told them about his plans, but a happy kind, because Tatsuya is finally making progress and he's looking kind of adorable as he realizes it himself.
“Told you you could do it.” Still smiling he sits down next to Tetsuya, fist bumps him lightly when prompted to. “Now you even deserve that pause.”
The pause lasts for more than the fifteen minutes Tetsuya first decided on. They've been pausing for an hour when they fall silent, Tatsuya lying in the couch, phone in hand as he browses the internet, and Tetsuya is just looking at him when something he heard the other day floats up in his mind.
“Apparently the girls are whispering about us.”
“Huh?” Tatsuya looks away from his phone, his expression looking just as expected; happy and smug. “Because we're the handsomest guys at school?”
“No, err,” Tetsuya hasn't really thought through what to continue with. “They suspect that we're dating.”
“I don't have a girlfriend though. Neither do you, right?” Suddenly Tatsuya looks disappointed, like he thinks Tetsuya is keeping secrets from him. “Right?”
“No I don't.” If it wasn't Tatsuya, he would probably get irritated, but he's used to Tatsuya and him not being super clever all the time. “That we're dating. You and I.”
It's visible on Tatsuya's face that the words get all the way through this time.
“... But why?”
“I don't know, I haven't exactly discussed it with anyone. But Maya said Sayuri told him that the girls have been talking about it?”
“Weird. They didn't say things like that in the beginning. It's not like anything has changed.” Tatsuya looks confused, and Tetsuya can tell he's forgetting the fact that they're going home together every single day, straight to Tetsuya's place. “And why is Maya so close to Sayuri anyway?”
“... Let's just get back to studying.” Tetsuya gives up, because if Tatsuya is unable to see that Maya and Sayuri are definitely more than friends, there's no way he'll get why the girls are saying those things about the two of them.
-
The following day Tatsuya brings it up in school; only half of their gang is listening, with half an ear if he's lucky. Shohei, for example, is very busy looking through one of his adult magazines without being found out (he has put a fashion magazine cover around it, but it can't hide his stupid giggles).
“Who said that we're dating?”
A couple voices answer. “Who's dating?”
“I think Sayuri heard it from some of the younger girls?” Maya replies as he turns around to face the rest of them, then smiles at something behind them.
“Aren't her boobs too big?” Sayuri's voice comes from behind Shohei, and his face goes deep red as he slowly, slowly puts the magazine back into his desk. “So you're not dating?”
“We're just studying!” Tatsuya defends himself.
“Studying, huh.” It's hard to tell if she believes him or if she's just teasing, but then she winks towards Maya, who looks away with a pale blush on his cheeks and at least Tetsuya gets exactly what she's hinting at.
-
It's December, everything is cold and Tatsuya keeps his hands wrapped around a mug of tea while he studies. It's funny, he never liked black tea, but the more they study the more Tetsuya catches him drinking it. Tetsuya himself always liked it, assumes that Tatsuya started drinking it because it's basically what Tetsuya has to offer, but now that it's been months he notices that sometimes Tatsuya actually asks for it. To the point that when he heats more water for both of them he finds that he has run out of tea again; not a big deal because they have to go grocery shopping anyway.
Tonight is Friday night, and Tatsuya is staying at his apartment all weekend. On Sunday they have their last mock examination, the one that will tell whether they have a chance to pass or not. Tetsuya is confident enough, feels like he has most of it down, but Tatsuya is still working on all the subjects. Surprisingly maths, that he had huge problems with in the beginning, seems to be his stronger side now that he has understood what he has to do, when he has seen that it's actually pretty logical. Japanese and English are the worst ones at this point. He has a tendency to write as he speaks, and as it is right now Tetsuya has a hard time seeing him passing a report assignment in Japanese. English is just the same, only they have lower standards for it; it doesn't have to be perfect.
“Do you think I can call Yuuki during the exam? He should be able to tell me the answers, right?” Tatsuya whines, sets his mug down on the table and falls back against the backrest of the couch.
“You'd probably not be able to spell what he says, though,” Tetsuya points out, and reaches for the textbook to check the vocabulary for the chapter they're currently at. He's satisfied to find that he remembers the meaning of at least 75 percent of it; when he tries Tatsuya, he appears to have memorized about half of them. “Let's go get some food.”
The grocery shopping takes them less than half an hour and Tetsuya cooks while Tatsuya chops up vegetables; the apartment is a little bit warmer when the stove has been running, but they still hurry to eat before the food gets lukewarm from the cool air.
“Why is it so cold?!” Tatsuya groans as he finishes washing the plates once they're done, exaggerating how much he freezes as he throws himself on Tetsuya's bed, crawls under the covers, only his head peeking out.
“Because it's winter and I'm poor. Deal with it,” he laughs back. “Get out of there, we're not done yet.”
“I want to stay in bed all day and all night and forever,” is what he gets back, and this time Tatsuya's head also disappears.
“Okay.” Tetsuya's nonchalant answer earns him some curiosity, just an eye peering at him before it gets covered again. “But then we're studying in bed. The exam is in two days, damn it.”
“I know.” He knows Tatsuya has more or less started to give up, but Tetsuya still believes that he can do it.
“Come on. You'll probably pass the maths part, you're okay in Japanese as long as the tasks aren't super difficult. I'm a bit worried about the English, but I think what you lack the most is the vocabulary so if we study hard tomorrow as well, I think you can pass, since you didn't have a hard time with the rest of the subjects last time.”
“You sound like a homeschooling teacher,” he groans, but Tetsuya just shoves the English textbook in his face.
“Read this, and answer the questions below.” Tetsuya is aware that his own pronunciation is far from perfect, but he won't be tested on that anyway.
It's not until the next morning that Tetsuya realizes that they fell asleep while studying. And he wouldn't have woken up if it hadn't been for Tatsuya's warm breath way too close to himself, an arm slung over his waist in what is probably an unconscious attempt to leach Tetsuya's body heat, and whenever he moves, or breathes against his skin, Tetsuya feels his own nerves reacting, feels his face heat up and it's not because it's warmer in the room now than the night before. Quite the opposite.
“Tatsuya,” he tries to wake him up, tries to shake the arm away from himself; when he fails to do so he turns around. The sight has him cursing on the inside, because Tatsuya is peacefully asleep, and he's cute. “Tatsuya.”
“Shut up.” His voice is low and raspy, slow like the processing in his mind; Tetsuya suddenly feels like the same goes for himself when he doesn't react at all until Tatsuya has moved in and pushed his lips against Tetsuya's. There's a split second when they both realize what is going on, when Tatsuya stiffens to pull back but Tetsuya presses against him more firmly, kisses him back because that's what his brain tells him to do.
Maybe it's because of the hormones that comes with being a teenager (nevermind the fact that he only has two years left as one), or maybe it's the stress that's making both of them do things they normally would have refrained from, but Tatsuya follows in the slow, sleepy kisses and it doesn't feel strange at all until Tetsuya himself pulls back and looks his friend straight in the eyes.
“Sorry.” For some reason, that's the word that leaves both of their mouths as the same time. Tetsuya doesn't feel sorry, if anything he's feeling like more, but Tatsuya's hand is withdrawn as he pulls back.
“That was weird.” Tatsuya sits up as he speaks; Tetsuya follows him even though it's cold and he'd rather stay under the covers, but he doesn't like the feeling this is giving him.
“Weird how?” He does realize what it might sound like, like he'd have feelings for him or something, but he'd rather talk than remain awkwardly silent.
“We're friends.” Tatsuya pauses. “But I didn't mind. Isn't that weird?”
The uneasiness leaves Tetsuya's chest and he feels his muscles relax, muscles he hadn't been aware that he kept tense.
“Maybe,” he agrees, then shoves Tatsuya out of his bed in an attempt to force him to make breakfast. And tea.
They study until lunch, take a two hour break, then continue until Tatsuya's stomach growls, at which Tetsuya rises to start cooking. It's not his strong side but he has been cooking for himself forever, and Tatsuya is easy to please; groans about how good it smells, eats like he has never seen food before when the plates are set down in front of him.
“I can't study more, I swear, my brain is going to get fried and I'll fail tomorrow,” he whines as he eats, and to be honest, Tetsuya is starting to feel the same way.
“Just read the last text part of the chapter. Then we're done. But eat first.” Tatsuya makes an ugly crying face along with a sigh, but when they finish dinner, he picks up the textbook while Tetsuya cleans up in the kitchen.
Tatsuya isn't done with his chapter when Tetsuya joins him in the couch, so he picks up his history textbook and loses himself in it, so much that he doesn't notice Tatsuya moving until he's leaning heavily against his shoulder.
“What?” he asks as he turns his head to the side; his heart jumps when he sees that Tatsuya is looking right up at him with what looks like sleepy eyes. Then his book is pushed to the side and he has lips against his own, much like in the morning but stronger this time, not forceful but far from passive, and Tetsuya finds that he drops his book in favor of holding onto Tatsuya's hips when he straddles his lap.
“Weird,” Tatsuya whispers when he pulls back to breathe, but moves back like he has more to give, like there's more than just weird and be it experimenting or not, Tetsuya soaks in the energy that comes from him, tries to give some back but knows he comes off more hesitating than he maybe wants to.
But then Tatsuya parts his lips, only momentarily and in a way that makes it feel like he's holding back, like he doesn't dare to deepen the kiss; it's Tetsuya who flicks his tongue out to meet him and when he does, he gets an almost overwhelming response. Enthusiastic, yes, but he's also moving now, shifting in Tetsuya's lap, and then there's a low moan. Tetsuya acts without thinking, pushes Tatsuya off his lap, follows to keep their lips connected until he has to break away, knocks over a nearly empty mug of black tea in the process. There's confusion in his eyes when they meet, but only until Tetsuya guides him the few steps to his bed, pushes him down on it, feels his own breaths shake when Tatsuya tugs him back down by the hair.
“Weird?” he asks, nips on Tatsuya's lower lip while he waits for an answer that comes quickly.
“Good,” and then they're kissing again, Tetsuya's insides feeling like a hot, spinning tornado; it's a positive one, but it's chaos and he doesn't know how to let it out unless he can keep on meeting Tatsuya's lips and tongue over and over and over.
He can't keep track of the time but he just has a feeling that it's getting late; late and they have an important mock exam the following day. One that he'd like to skip if he could keep moving against Tatsuya, at least that's what his body tells him, but his brain tells him that it's a huge waste to not sleep properly and risk failing. And his brain always wins.
“We should sleep,” he groans against Tatsuya's neck when their hips grind together so lightly it's barely a grind at all, but he's so wound up that he feels it like electricity up his spine.
“Not yet,” and Tatsuya's voice is different; it repeats in Tetsuya's head and he hears the arousal. Then he feels it when they grind together again, a hardness in Tatsuya's pants (and he can't say anything about it because he's in the same state).
Before he knows it he's rocking down with purpose, and their kissing is not so much kissing anymore because they're both busy breathing, Tatsuya's grip on his waist strong as if he needs something to hold on to. And maybe he does, because Tetsuya feels just about the same when the currents of pleasure grow stronger and the next thing he hears is Tatsuya moaning out loud, hips jerking and when he realizes exactly what just happened, it pushes him straight over the edge and he comes like that, lips parted against Tatsuya's neck.
“Bathroom,” Tatsuya whispers and Tetsuya rolls off him, sympathizes because sticky underwear is not nice at all. He's only gone for as long as it takes for Tetsuya to look around his room and realize that his history book is soaked with tea, and he's still trying to save it when Tatsuya comes back out in clean underwear only.
“Shit damn it's cold,” he shudders, pulls a blanket around himself as he sits on the couch to take over the book-saving.
When he leaves the bathroom after having cleaned himself up, Tetsuya is feeling uneasy again, hopes that they haven't screwed up their friendship; again he is met by something over his expectations. Tatsuya is fast asleep in his bed, not on the couch, and the butterflies in his stomach are both pleasant and scary.
-
“Tatsuya!” he nearly shouts into his friend's ear as he shoves him out of the bed; there's only two hours left until the mock exam starts and it will take them at least one hour to get there by train.
“What?” Tatsuya's messy hair comes into view first, then his confused face as he squints up at Tetsuya.
“Go shower we have to leave in 40 minutes and I have to shower too.” Tatsuya blinks a couple times, like he isn't taking in the information, but then he's up on his feet making his way to the bathroom. The water is running within a minute, and Tetsuya gets up as well, pulls on a pair of sweats and a hoodie as he makes himself breakfast, finishes eating it the minute Tatsuya steps out of the bathroom.
They somehow make it to the exam on time, and it's not until he's walking out of the building the same afternoon that he remembers last night, realizes that what happened didn't change anything about how they interact with each other. A realization that's makes him feel as relieved as it makes him feel uneasy, and that's when he understands for real.
-
Tatsuya failed the mock exam on the English part. His small Japanese essay got a barely passing mark, but the English was a minor catastrophe. They end up having to ask Yuuki to help him, since Tetsuya has to focus on his own studies as well; luckily Yuuki doesn't laugh at them for trying, and it turns out that he's going to try for a technical school. Not as difficult exams, but he's going to continue studying after highschool, which means he doesn't make fun of any of them.
“Shouhei says he's going to work,” he informs them during a study session, “but I don't know where.”
“To be fair,” Tetsuya puts two cups of black tea down on the table by the couch before he goes to get his own, “I have a hard time seeing him doing anything serious.” The three of them laugh together, but it's not to mock their senpai, only simply because the mental image of Shouhei in a suit and neatly cut, undyed hair.
“Nah, I'm sure there's something he can do.” Tatsuya sounds like the leader he is, believes there's capacity in all of them. It's just a matter of how much capacity there is. “There's high-school drop-outs that get jobs, and he's not entirely useless anyway.”
“He could be a host, maybe?” Tetsuya finds the two of them staring at him like they're about to burst into wild laughter. “What? He likes girls, and he'd be even more handsome if he got a real haircut?”
“I guess...” Yuuki says, looks back and forth between the two of them, and then the words are tumbling out of him. “You've got something going don't you? The girls keep saying they can see it and you're together all the time and honestly even I could bet money on that you're dating and I barely have any money to bet.”
They both fall silent. For long enough that Yuuki definitely understands that they can't say there's nothing.
“That's... I thought you liked girls? Both of you?” Tetsuya nods at that. He does like girls. But he also hasn't really bothered to think about this thing he and Tatsuya has going. Not about the fact that they're both boys, at least. Never mattered to him. He's more concerned by the way something flutters in his chest when Tatsuya does something cute, like when he cuddles close in bed when he's still actually awake. They haven't really talked about it either. It just happens. And he's no expert in this area, but Tetsuya knows by now that what he feels is more than something casual.
So when Yuuki leaves, Tetsuya knows that he needs to talk. Just say something. Anything. He has to let Tatsuya know that there's more to it than just convenient pleasure. But to his surprise, it's Tatsuya who speaks first, staring into his empty mug while he does it.
“Are we dating?” Somewhere deep inside, Tetsuya wants to laugh, because does anyone ever really have to ask themselves that? Isn't that something you should know? Then again, he can't answer it either.
“I... I don't think so?” He takes a deep breath, feels the air shake his lungs, or maybe it's his whole body shaking, but he can't recall ever being this nervous. “Do you like me?” It's easier to ask. That way, he won't have to reveal his own feelings first. It'll be easier to take a no. Because he's sure it's going to be a no.
“I don't dislike you?” Tatsuya tries, and most of all it sounds like he's not sure about what he feels. “I like kissing you?” Pause. “I don't want it to end?”
That's good enough, Tetsuya figures. That means he still has time. “Me neither.” Just one more thing. “I like it.”
He can't bring himself to say you.
Nothing really changes from that point on. January passes, they're still fooling around when they finish studying, Tatsuya stays over the night more often than he used to. They've both made progress in every subject; there's actually chance both of them will pass the test for the university they're aiming for. Tetsuya is sure he will; he is still doubting Tatsuya's skills a little bit. He has undoubtedly gotten better, even seems to have the English down now, so it's really more constant reviewing for the following two weeks, then hoping that they both have good days when it's time for the exams.
-
They meet up at the train station on the day of the examination, both too nervous to talk until they get off, and when they do talk, it's about completely unrelated things, like how Maya skipped school the other day without telling the rest of them anything about doing so, and it only makes Tetsuya more distracted because he realizes that the same day, Sayuri was also gone and there's still no one whispering about them and that's weird. They walk so fast that when they get to the campus gate they stop abruptly and their conversation dies with their steps.
“We're here, huh.” They stare up at the main building, one that has well over ten floors and to them looks more like somewhere one would work, not study, and Tetsuya knows that when they go through the gate, they'll be feeling like they're taking their first step into the grown-up world.
“You're not going to say anything stupid, are you?”
“Like what?” Tatsuya probably would get what Tetsuya means, if his mind wasn't only on what's ahead.
“Like “will you go out with me if I pass the test?”, or something.”
“No.” Tatsuya answers in a heartbeat, and Tetsuya feels his heart sinking. Is this going to be the end? “Because to be honest, I don't think I'll pass. And I hope you'll go out with me anyway.”
Title: Black tea
Pairing: Tetsuya/Tatsuya (Shiritsu Bakaleya koukou)
Rating: R
Warnings: -
Summary: Third year in highschool; Tetsuya and Tatsuya are studying hard for the university exams no one ever thought they'd challenge.
Notes: I've wanted to write a Bakaleya fic ever since it aired but never really got to it, so I'd like to thank my recipient for the opportunity. I hope you like it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
“I'm going to try for university.”
They had all quietened when Tetsuya stated his plans after high school, at first not believing him; then they had burst into laughter when Shouhei said that he had been thinking about it too.
“There's no way you'd be accepted,” Makoto had laughed, and Tatsuya had agreed, because really, as if any of them would make it any further than convenience stores or maybe coffee shops or something, unless they opened up their own business.
But Tetsuya had remained silent, a half-hearted smile on his lips and when he saw that, Tatsuya had realized that he had meant what he said.
-
“This is so difficult, I don't get it, what is this even about?” Tatsuya lets his head fall into his own hands with a loud sigh, ready to give up because he really, really doesn't understand these stupid equations and why does he even have to learn them because it's not like he'll use them at university anyway. “Can we take a pause?”
Tetsuya glares at him, mildly annoyed, but gives up at the puppy eyes staring back at him. “Keep it up while I make tea, at least.” For being the leader of Makada high, Tatsuya really knows how to play cute when he has to, and it works a little too well on Tetsuya. Too well for his own liking.
Of course, when he comes back, Tatsuya still hasn't solved even half of the problems they've scheduled for the day, but he actually has a pen in his hand and he's done with the one he was stuck on. Or at least that's what it seems like until he realizes that Tatsuya's eyes are focused on Tetsuya's solution to the same problem, and he draws a deep breath as he sets the hot cups of tea down on his living room table.
“I hope you're not copying straight off my notes because you're not going to learn anything from that.” He knows he's sounding stern and maybe even bitter, but when Tatsuya asked for help, said that he also wanted to at least take the university test, he had hoped that he was going to take it seriously.
“I'm not,” Tatsuya replies, voice shaking as though he just saw a ghost. “I solved it on my own.”
“And?” That doesn't explain why he's looking at Tetsuya's papers.
“And it's correct, that's what I was checking.” Tatsuya looks up at him, astonishment filling his eyes. “I did it.”
That actually makes Tetsuya laugh. Not the mocking kind of laughter that the group had made him go through when he first told them about his plans, but a happy kind, because Tatsuya is finally making progress and he's looking kind of adorable as he realizes it himself.
“Told you you could do it.” Still smiling he sits down next to Tetsuya, fist bumps him lightly when prompted to. “Now you even deserve that pause.”
The pause lasts for more than the fifteen minutes Tetsuya first decided on. They've been pausing for an hour when they fall silent, Tatsuya lying in the couch, phone in hand as he browses the internet, and Tetsuya is just looking at him when something he heard the other day floats up in his mind.
“Apparently the girls are whispering about us.”
“Huh?” Tatsuya looks away from his phone, his expression looking just as expected; happy and smug. “Because we're the handsomest guys at school?”
“No, err,” Tetsuya hasn't really thought through what to continue with. “They suspect that we're dating.”
“I don't have a girlfriend though. Neither do you, right?” Suddenly Tatsuya looks disappointed, like he thinks Tetsuya is keeping secrets from him. “Right?”
“No I don't.” If it wasn't Tatsuya, he would probably get irritated, but he's used to Tatsuya and him not being super clever all the time. “That we're dating. You and I.”
It's visible on Tatsuya's face that the words get all the way through this time.
“... But why?”
“I don't know, I haven't exactly discussed it with anyone. But Maya said Sayuri told him that the girls have been talking about it?”
“Weird. They didn't say things like that in the beginning. It's not like anything has changed.” Tatsuya looks confused, and Tetsuya can tell he's forgetting the fact that they're going home together every single day, straight to Tetsuya's place. “And why is Maya so close to Sayuri anyway?”
“... Let's just get back to studying.” Tetsuya gives up, because if Tatsuya is unable to see that Maya and Sayuri are definitely more than friends, there's no way he'll get why the girls are saying those things about the two of them.
-
The following day Tatsuya brings it up in school; only half of their gang is listening, with half an ear if he's lucky. Shohei, for example, is very busy looking through one of his adult magazines without being found out (he has put a fashion magazine cover around it, but it can't hide his stupid giggles).
“Who said that we're dating?”
A couple voices answer. “Who's dating?”
“I think Sayuri heard it from some of the younger girls?” Maya replies as he turns around to face the rest of them, then smiles at something behind them.
“Aren't her boobs too big?” Sayuri's voice comes from behind Shohei, and his face goes deep red as he slowly, slowly puts the magazine back into his desk. “So you're not dating?”
“We're just studying!” Tatsuya defends himself.
“Studying, huh.” It's hard to tell if she believes him or if she's just teasing, but then she winks towards Maya, who looks away with a pale blush on his cheeks and at least Tetsuya gets exactly what she's hinting at.
-
It's December, everything is cold and Tatsuya keeps his hands wrapped around a mug of tea while he studies. It's funny, he never liked black tea, but the more they study the more Tetsuya catches him drinking it. Tetsuya himself always liked it, assumes that Tatsuya started drinking it because it's basically what Tetsuya has to offer, but now that it's been months he notices that sometimes Tatsuya actually asks for it. To the point that when he heats more water for both of them he finds that he has run out of tea again; not a big deal because they have to go grocery shopping anyway.
Tonight is Friday night, and Tatsuya is staying at his apartment all weekend. On Sunday they have their last mock examination, the one that will tell whether they have a chance to pass or not. Tetsuya is confident enough, feels like he has most of it down, but Tatsuya is still working on all the subjects. Surprisingly maths, that he had huge problems with in the beginning, seems to be his stronger side now that he has understood what he has to do, when he has seen that it's actually pretty logical. Japanese and English are the worst ones at this point. He has a tendency to write as he speaks, and as it is right now Tetsuya has a hard time seeing him passing a report assignment in Japanese. English is just the same, only they have lower standards for it; it doesn't have to be perfect.
“Do you think I can call Yuuki during the exam? He should be able to tell me the answers, right?” Tatsuya whines, sets his mug down on the table and falls back against the backrest of the couch.
“You'd probably not be able to spell what he says, though,” Tetsuya points out, and reaches for the textbook to check the vocabulary for the chapter they're currently at. He's satisfied to find that he remembers the meaning of at least 75 percent of it; when he tries Tatsuya, he appears to have memorized about half of them. “Let's go get some food.”
The grocery shopping takes them less than half an hour and Tetsuya cooks while Tatsuya chops up vegetables; the apartment is a little bit warmer when the stove has been running, but they still hurry to eat before the food gets lukewarm from the cool air.
“Why is it so cold?!” Tatsuya groans as he finishes washing the plates once they're done, exaggerating how much he freezes as he throws himself on Tetsuya's bed, crawls under the covers, only his head peeking out.
“Because it's winter and I'm poor. Deal with it,” he laughs back. “Get out of there, we're not done yet.”
“I want to stay in bed all day and all night and forever,” is what he gets back, and this time Tatsuya's head also disappears.
“Okay.” Tetsuya's nonchalant answer earns him some curiosity, just an eye peering at him before it gets covered again. “But then we're studying in bed. The exam is in two days, damn it.”
“I know.” He knows Tatsuya has more or less started to give up, but Tetsuya still believes that he can do it.
“Come on. You'll probably pass the maths part, you're okay in Japanese as long as the tasks aren't super difficult. I'm a bit worried about the English, but I think what you lack the most is the vocabulary so if we study hard tomorrow as well, I think you can pass, since you didn't have a hard time with the rest of the subjects last time.”
“You sound like a homeschooling teacher,” he groans, but Tetsuya just shoves the English textbook in his face.
“Read this, and answer the questions below.” Tetsuya is aware that his own pronunciation is far from perfect, but he won't be tested on that anyway.
It's not until the next morning that Tetsuya realizes that they fell asleep while studying. And he wouldn't have woken up if it hadn't been for Tatsuya's warm breath way too close to himself, an arm slung over his waist in what is probably an unconscious attempt to leach Tetsuya's body heat, and whenever he moves, or breathes against his skin, Tetsuya feels his own nerves reacting, feels his face heat up and it's not because it's warmer in the room now than the night before. Quite the opposite.
“Tatsuya,” he tries to wake him up, tries to shake the arm away from himself; when he fails to do so he turns around. The sight has him cursing on the inside, because Tatsuya is peacefully asleep, and he's cute. “Tatsuya.”
“Shut up.” His voice is low and raspy, slow like the processing in his mind; Tetsuya suddenly feels like the same goes for himself when he doesn't react at all until Tatsuya has moved in and pushed his lips against Tetsuya's. There's a split second when they both realize what is going on, when Tatsuya stiffens to pull back but Tetsuya presses against him more firmly, kisses him back because that's what his brain tells him to do.
Maybe it's because of the hormones that comes with being a teenager (nevermind the fact that he only has two years left as one), or maybe it's the stress that's making both of them do things they normally would have refrained from, but Tatsuya follows in the slow, sleepy kisses and it doesn't feel strange at all until Tetsuya himself pulls back and looks his friend straight in the eyes.
“Sorry.” For some reason, that's the word that leaves both of their mouths as the same time. Tetsuya doesn't feel sorry, if anything he's feeling like more, but Tatsuya's hand is withdrawn as he pulls back.
“That was weird.” Tatsuya sits up as he speaks; Tetsuya follows him even though it's cold and he'd rather stay under the covers, but he doesn't like the feeling this is giving him.
“Weird how?” He does realize what it might sound like, like he'd have feelings for him or something, but he'd rather talk than remain awkwardly silent.
“We're friends.” Tatsuya pauses. “But I didn't mind. Isn't that weird?”
The uneasiness leaves Tetsuya's chest and he feels his muscles relax, muscles he hadn't been aware that he kept tense.
“Maybe,” he agrees, then shoves Tatsuya out of his bed in an attempt to force him to make breakfast. And tea.
They study until lunch, take a two hour break, then continue until Tatsuya's stomach growls, at which Tetsuya rises to start cooking. It's not his strong side but he has been cooking for himself forever, and Tatsuya is easy to please; groans about how good it smells, eats like he has never seen food before when the plates are set down in front of him.
“I can't study more, I swear, my brain is going to get fried and I'll fail tomorrow,” he whines as he eats, and to be honest, Tetsuya is starting to feel the same way.
“Just read the last text part of the chapter. Then we're done. But eat first.” Tatsuya makes an ugly crying face along with a sigh, but when they finish dinner, he picks up the textbook while Tetsuya cleans up in the kitchen.
Tatsuya isn't done with his chapter when Tetsuya joins him in the couch, so he picks up his history textbook and loses himself in it, so much that he doesn't notice Tatsuya moving until he's leaning heavily against his shoulder.
“What?” he asks as he turns his head to the side; his heart jumps when he sees that Tatsuya is looking right up at him with what looks like sleepy eyes. Then his book is pushed to the side and he has lips against his own, much like in the morning but stronger this time, not forceful but far from passive, and Tetsuya finds that he drops his book in favor of holding onto Tatsuya's hips when he straddles his lap.
“Weird,” Tatsuya whispers when he pulls back to breathe, but moves back like he has more to give, like there's more than just weird and be it experimenting or not, Tetsuya soaks in the energy that comes from him, tries to give some back but knows he comes off more hesitating than he maybe wants to.
But then Tatsuya parts his lips, only momentarily and in a way that makes it feel like he's holding back, like he doesn't dare to deepen the kiss; it's Tetsuya who flicks his tongue out to meet him and when he does, he gets an almost overwhelming response. Enthusiastic, yes, but he's also moving now, shifting in Tetsuya's lap, and then there's a low moan. Tetsuya acts without thinking, pushes Tatsuya off his lap, follows to keep their lips connected until he has to break away, knocks over a nearly empty mug of black tea in the process. There's confusion in his eyes when they meet, but only until Tetsuya guides him the few steps to his bed, pushes him down on it, feels his own breaths shake when Tatsuya tugs him back down by the hair.
“Weird?” he asks, nips on Tatsuya's lower lip while he waits for an answer that comes quickly.
“Good,” and then they're kissing again, Tetsuya's insides feeling like a hot, spinning tornado; it's a positive one, but it's chaos and he doesn't know how to let it out unless he can keep on meeting Tatsuya's lips and tongue over and over and over.
He can't keep track of the time but he just has a feeling that it's getting late; late and they have an important mock exam the following day. One that he'd like to skip if he could keep moving against Tatsuya, at least that's what his body tells him, but his brain tells him that it's a huge waste to not sleep properly and risk failing. And his brain always wins.
“We should sleep,” he groans against Tatsuya's neck when their hips grind together so lightly it's barely a grind at all, but he's so wound up that he feels it like electricity up his spine.
“Not yet,” and Tatsuya's voice is different; it repeats in Tetsuya's head and he hears the arousal. Then he feels it when they grind together again, a hardness in Tatsuya's pants (and he can't say anything about it because he's in the same state).
Before he knows it he's rocking down with purpose, and their kissing is not so much kissing anymore because they're both busy breathing, Tatsuya's grip on his waist strong as if he needs something to hold on to. And maybe he does, because Tetsuya feels just about the same when the currents of pleasure grow stronger and the next thing he hears is Tatsuya moaning out loud, hips jerking and when he realizes exactly what just happened, it pushes him straight over the edge and he comes like that, lips parted against Tatsuya's neck.
“Bathroom,” Tatsuya whispers and Tetsuya rolls off him, sympathizes because sticky underwear is not nice at all. He's only gone for as long as it takes for Tetsuya to look around his room and realize that his history book is soaked with tea, and he's still trying to save it when Tatsuya comes back out in clean underwear only.
“Shit damn it's cold,” he shudders, pulls a blanket around himself as he sits on the couch to take over the book-saving.
When he leaves the bathroom after having cleaned himself up, Tetsuya is feeling uneasy again, hopes that they haven't screwed up their friendship; again he is met by something over his expectations. Tatsuya is fast asleep in his bed, not on the couch, and the butterflies in his stomach are both pleasant and scary.
-
“Tatsuya!” he nearly shouts into his friend's ear as he shoves him out of the bed; there's only two hours left until the mock exam starts and it will take them at least one hour to get there by train.
“What?” Tatsuya's messy hair comes into view first, then his confused face as he squints up at Tetsuya.
“Go shower we have to leave in 40 minutes and I have to shower too.” Tatsuya blinks a couple times, like he isn't taking in the information, but then he's up on his feet making his way to the bathroom. The water is running within a minute, and Tetsuya gets up as well, pulls on a pair of sweats and a hoodie as he makes himself breakfast, finishes eating it the minute Tatsuya steps out of the bathroom.
They somehow make it to the exam on time, and it's not until he's walking out of the building the same afternoon that he remembers last night, realizes that what happened didn't change anything about how they interact with each other. A realization that's makes him feel as relieved as it makes him feel uneasy, and that's when he understands for real.
-
Tatsuya failed the mock exam on the English part. His small Japanese essay got a barely passing mark, but the English was a minor catastrophe. They end up having to ask Yuuki to help him, since Tetsuya has to focus on his own studies as well; luckily Yuuki doesn't laugh at them for trying, and it turns out that he's going to try for a technical school. Not as difficult exams, but he's going to continue studying after highschool, which means he doesn't make fun of any of them.
“Shouhei says he's going to work,” he informs them during a study session, “but I don't know where.”
“To be fair,” Tetsuya puts two cups of black tea down on the table by the couch before he goes to get his own, “I have a hard time seeing him doing anything serious.” The three of them laugh together, but it's not to mock their senpai, only simply because the mental image of Shouhei in a suit and neatly cut, undyed hair.
“Nah, I'm sure there's something he can do.” Tatsuya sounds like the leader he is, believes there's capacity in all of them. It's just a matter of how much capacity there is. “There's high-school drop-outs that get jobs, and he's not entirely useless anyway.”
“He could be a host, maybe?” Tetsuya finds the two of them staring at him like they're about to burst into wild laughter. “What? He likes girls, and he'd be even more handsome if he got a real haircut?”
“I guess...” Yuuki says, looks back and forth between the two of them, and then the words are tumbling out of him. “You've got something going don't you? The girls keep saying they can see it and you're together all the time and honestly even I could bet money on that you're dating and I barely have any money to bet.”
They both fall silent. For long enough that Yuuki definitely understands that they can't say there's nothing.
“That's... I thought you liked girls? Both of you?” Tetsuya nods at that. He does like girls. But he also hasn't really bothered to think about this thing he and Tatsuya has going. Not about the fact that they're both boys, at least. Never mattered to him. He's more concerned by the way something flutters in his chest when Tatsuya does something cute, like when he cuddles close in bed when he's still actually awake. They haven't really talked about it either. It just happens. And he's no expert in this area, but Tetsuya knows by now that what he feels is more than something casual.
So when Yuuki leaves, Tetsuya knows that he needs to talk. Just say something. Anything. He has to let Tatsuya know that there's more to it than just convenient pleasure. But to his surprise, it's Tatsuya who speaks first, staring into his empty mug while he does it.
“Are we dating?” Somewhere deep inside, Tetsuya wants to laugh, because does anyone ever really have to ask themselves that? Isn't that something you should know? Then again, he can't answer it either.
“I... I don't think so?” He takes a deep breath, feels the air shake his lungs, or maybe it's his whole body shaking, but he can't recall ever being this nervous. “Do you like me?” It's easier to ask. That way, he won't have to reveal his own feelings first. It'll be easier to take a no. Because he's sure it's going to be a no.
“I don't dislike you?” Tatsuya tries, and most of all it sounds like he's not sure about what he feels. “I like kissing you?” Pause. “I don't want it to end?”
That's good enough, Tetsuya figures. That means he still has time. “Me neither.” Just one more thing. “I like it.”
He can't bring himself to say you.
Nothing really changes from that point on. January passes, they're still fooling around when they finish studying, Tatsuya stays over the night more often than he used to. They've both made progress in every subject; there's actually chance both of them will pass the test for the university they're aiming for. Tetsuya is sure he will; he is still doubting Tatsuya's skills a little bit. He has undoubtedly gotten better, even seems to have the English down now, so it's really more constant reviewing for the following two weeks, then hoping that they both have good days when it's time for the exams.
-
They meet up at the train station on the day of the examination, both too nervous to talk until they get off, and when they do talk, it's about completely unrelated things, like how Maya skipped school the other day without telling the rest of them anything about doing so, and it only makes Tetsuya more distracted because he realizes that the same day, Sayuri was also gone and there's still no one whispering about them and that's weird. They walk so fast that when they get to the campus gate they stop abruptly and their conversation dies with their steps.
“We're here, huh.” They stare up at the main building, one that has well over ten floors and to them looks more like somewhere one would work, not study, and Tetsuya knows that when they go through the gate, they'll be feeling like they're taking their first step into the grown-up world.
“You're not going to say anything stupid, are you?”
“Like what?” Tatsuya probably would get what Tetsuya means, if his mind wasn't only on what's ahead.
“Like “will you go out with me if I pass the test?”, or something.”
“No.” Tatsuya answers in a heartbeat, and Tetsuya feels his heart sinking. Is this going to be the end? “Because to be honest, I don't think I'll pass. And I hope you'll go out with me anyway.”