Chasing butterflies, chapter 5, AoixReita
Title: Chasing butterflies
Author: yukigafuru
Rating: PG-13 for now (will be adult)
Chapter: 6/?
Pairings: Aoi/Reita
Bands: Gazette
Warnings: none for now
Genre: angst, romance
Summary: Life is short. You try to catch it and it slips through your fingers. Life is also beautiful. It astounds you at every step. And it only takes one minute, one encounter to change it forever.
Chapter 5
The cab trip had been quiet and uneventful and before long they found themselves on the front steps of Reita's house. Which was huge, by Japanese standards: a two storied red brick monstrosity that reminded them of those Victorian houses they used to see pictures of in their history books. It even had a dog kennel and a garden filled with roses, even at that time of the year.
“Holy shit!” came Ruki's honest reaction which caused Reita to chuckle.
“Yeah, I know. It's been passed on through the family. My granddad was really successful after the war. Once we grew up, it got more difficult to maintain, but my folks refuse to change places. They like the sense of connectedness it gives them. And they want to pass it on to us when we grow up. I had a lovely childhood here and I always thought my children would too.” At the end, Aoi caught a blush on Reita's cheeks. He had always known his lover thought things through and had made plans about his future, but it was just now that he realized those plans involved children and well... with the two of them, that could be difficult. For once, he kept his mouth shut though, because there was no way they'd discuss a topic like that while being teenagers facing one of the most debilitating diseases there were.
Reita's mom came to greet them in a flustered manner and quickly let them in, fussing about her baby staying in the cold for too long and hugging an embarrassed Reita for minutes on end. The other three just smiled understandingly and waited to be invited to the living room, where they could already spot some fluffy looking couches. They didn't have to wait long, and they were sat down on the couches, that did turn out to be very comfortable, and treated with cookies and tea. At moments, it really did feel as if they had entered a Victorian house and not one in the suburbs of Tokyo.
“I wonder if Reita's sister wanted to go to London so she could experience the five o'clock tee thing.” Ruki commented, and Uruha, seated closest to him heard and smirked.
“Actually, no. It was the guys. She was crazy over foreign males since she was a little kid. You should see her gush. Trust me, no one was surprised when she got that scholarship. They had probably expected her to do that since she was 13 or something.” Uruha whispered back and Ruki grinned.
“Well, I have found that foreign girls are sexy. Don't you think so? With all those curbs and those big eyes. Wow!” Ruki was assuming of course that Uruha was straight, just as himself. After all, not all of his acquaintances were about to turn completely gay at the same time, were they?
“I had an exchange student in my class a few years back. She had this reddish hair, all curly and soft. Just lovely! And green eyes... I think I was in love with that girl for months. Never dared to approach her though.” Uruha shared with Ruki. They had been able to establish an easy friendship from the start and they both felt comfortable.
“Why not?” Ruki asked, although he wasn't the type to go chasing after the girls, either.
“Just scared, I guess. Figured she'd let me down.”
“With how good you look, I doubt it.” Ruki complimented him and Uruha this time just grinned.
“So how about you then? Go after girls' skirts often?” Uruha asked. He was indeed curious because Ruki certainly acted tough, but Uruha sometimes thought he saw insecurity and a need to be comforted in those deep black eyes. Of course, he could just be mistaken...
“No, actually they tend to throw themselves at me so I never need to do anything. Goukons work too...” He replied and they both jumped a bit when Aoi's voice joined their discussion. They hadn't expected the other two to listen in on their conversation.
“I keep telling him he should stop playing with their hearts because one day, it might just come back to bite him in the ass.” Aoi grinned.
“It's not like I'm playing with them. I mean they don't expect true love from the first date, do they? And it's not my fault they put out so easily.” Ruki blushed. Sometimes, he thought the same way as Aoi, more than often actually, and he dreaded the moment he'd fall in love. Therefore, he did everything possible for that not to happen. Of course, he had never believed in the love at first sight thing, but that was before Aoi and Reita's world-wind romance...
“Maybe they do.” Was Reita's mother's voice coming from just behind them and they all turned red as crabs instantly. These were not conversations meant to be heard by parents. “Oh, relax, dears. It's not like I wasn't young once. And since Reita is a boy, I'm used to almost everything you'd have to dish out. Funny though how between him and his sister, he turned out to be the romantic one. The other is just sowing the seeds in London, I imagine...”
“Mom!” Reita spoke out, embarrassed at his mother's choice of words. His mother could be a perfect lady at times, and at others...
“I hear you, honey. I just came to tell you lunch is ready, and invite you to the dining room.”
“We didn't mean to disturb you.” Aoi politely said, although they were all kind of hungry. Still, they were in his boyfriend's house...
“Nonsense. Now come along now, before it gets cold.”
The day only got better from then on and therefore Aoi and Ruki ended up leaving the house much later than anticipated. Before saying their own goodbyes, when reaching their houses, Ruki couldn't help commenting slightly on the day.
“Aoi, I truly am happy for you, you know?” Aoi cocked his head a bit. Ruki continued. “Today was nice. Even meeting Uruha, and I still think that man is too pretty but whatever...” He seemed to recover his train of thoughts and went on. “I just see what you and Reita have going on. It looks effortless, although I know it's anything but... I truly hope that someday it really will be effortless because you two make even romantic movies seem not that sappy.” Ruki finished on an amusing note and Aoi was grateful for his words. After that they ended up saying their goodbyes.
Two days later, as promised, he turned up at Reita's place again for their first date. The day in between had been spent planning the whole thing, talking to Reita on the phone more than he should have, and thinking about his boyfriend in entirely unhealthy quantities. So it was no wonder he was excited to be there.
Reita himself opened the door and Aoi was awed at the other's looks. He had never gotten to see Reita all dressed up and the chemo had not been easy to handle at the best of times, but now, Reita had more color in his cheeks, had dressed up in a daring outfit consisting of red leather, soft black silk and a few well placed chains. He wore a hooded sweatshirt underneath the jacket and used it to cover his head and all in all, Aoi thought he looked like one of those hip-hop artists in all their splendor and sex-appeal, materialized out of the blue in front of him. He actually became a bit self-conscious about his own looks because he hadn't thought to dress up more than usual.
He shouldn't have worried, he later thought, for Reita's appreciation of his person suddenly became evident when he was practically dragged in and passionately kissed right there in the hallway. The leather was soft under his palms while Reita himself, tensed in his excitement was hard and firm. Aoi loved the contrast.
“You look lovely.” Reita complimented him and Aoi found himself in danger of blushing. He had worn a beige soft sweater, complimented by dark gray fleece pants, with a checkered brown jacket. Apart from the outfit hugging him in all the right places, there was nothing special about his attire, although obviously Reita didn't think so. “So where are you taking me?” Reita asked, and under the circumstances Aoi couldn't help think that their roles might just be a bit reversed because Reita looked like the type to take him out. And who knows, maybe in the near future... He cut off his train of thought to answer the question.
“It's a bit early for dinner, so I thought we'd have a walk through Ueno, see the animals and then choose a nice restaurant and spend the evening there. But if there's something else you'd like to do...”
Reita seemed more than willing to get on-board with the plan though and in moments they had hollered their goodbyes and went out.
From Reita's house to Ueno, they had to change the trains several times and ride for about an hour and even though it wasn't rush hour, they couldn't always find available seats, so Aoi was worried from time to time whether Reita was growing tired or not. At times, he'd even glare at one or two travelers that rushed to the seats ahead of them. But each time he asked his boyfriend, he'd receive the same reply: he was fine, so eventually he stopped asking and decided on getting a bit of rest as soon as they got to the zoo.
Once they got there, however, Reita ruined those plans by quickly dragging him to the panda exhibit. It seems he had seen the announcement of the baby panda and he just couldn't wait to see the little thing. Considering there was a queue in front of the glassy cage, they had to wait for about half an hour to actually see the bears, but well, even to a concerned Aoi the view was more than heart-warming. It just so happened that when they got in front of the cage, both the mom and the baby were munching happily on some bamboo leaves while corking their heads at the weird creatures staring at them and taking pictures from across the glass. The baby was more than cute, with his big eyes and small ears and his curiosity towards everything that moved: more than once he approached the glass to get a better look at the people outside, point at which the mom would stretch out a paw and draw him in. While watching the pandas, Aoi wrapped his arms around Reita and enjoyed the warmth of the moment. Also, in doing so, he was able to support his lover who seemed to finally be losing his strength.
Leaving the pandas behind, they quickly made their way to a quiet coffee shop close to the entrance and savored their tea and cake while animatedly discussing the visit so far.
“So you haven't been here since you were a child?” Aoi asked his boyfriend, and Reita shook his head and dutifully answered.
“No. And they didn't have the pandas then. I don't remember if they hadn't acquired them or they had simply been lent to another zoo, but I definitely don't remember seeing them.”
“The story Chieko told you about me and the bears wouldn't have anything to do with your enthusiasm, would it?” Aoi was smiling upon remembering Reita's happy face that day in the hospital. The other chuckled.
“Maybe a bit. You obviously can't throw gummy bears at them though.” His grin morphed his face and Aoi was very happy to be the one that made Reita so happy.
“Not with those glass walls, no. Plus, I doubt gummy bears would appeal to them, unless they were bamboo flavored.” Reita laughed outright at his statement.
“So shall we see the other bears next?” He inquired.
“How about the elephants? I hear if you're lucky, they let you ride one.” Reita's eyes widened in excitement.
“Oh, I'd love that! Have you ever?”
“No, but I have wanted to go travel to Thailand or somewhere they let you do that. It must be even more exciting to actually travel on them while not in captivity.”
“I hate seeing them in these small cages.” Reita said and even though his smile hadn't disappeared, it was less wide than before. Aoi gave himself a mental slap for not thinking of that when suggesting the date, for not making the connection between imprisonment and cancer. Reita must have figured out his thought process for he placed his palm over Aoi's own on the table and gently said: “It's not like that, Aoi. Even if healthy, I'm sure a big part of me would still hate it. It's just that those cages are so small... But I also know that I'd never get a chance to see them in flesh and bone somewhere else -most of them anyway- so I don't mind the zoos. Some part of me actually thinks that because of zoos there's less poachers. Of course, it might have nothing to do with it, actually.”
“What's your favorite animal, Rei?” Aoi asked, curious but also wanting to take Reita's mind off the subject.
“Well, animal...” he pondered. “Maybe tigers. But I love parrots more though. I want one later on.”
“A parrot?” Aoi was indeed surprised at the choice. Tigers were also quite far off from what himself would have chosen.
Reita blushed but answered. “You know those pirates movies where there'd be a talking parrot and he'd scream things like:
or
or swear colorfully? Well, I always wanted one like that. I think it's brilliant.”
“So you want to teach your parrot to swear like a pirate.” Aoi guffawed. It was just too funny. They both ended up laughing at the thought.
The conversation from then on was equally amusing and revealing of their own personalities and time flied by. Pretty soon, Aoi was being dragged off his seat by an excited boyfriend and ending up seeing the elephants - they didn't get to ride them though-, then the bears -which were a bit more boring than Aoi remembered-, than the birds, making their way towards the petting zoo.
Once inside, Reita headed straight like an arrow to the small deers. Aoi took a picture with the camera when the other wasn't looking, a reminder of the cutest moment imaginable, when a baby deer was poking Reita's legs with its small horns.
“I've never been to Nara.” Reita later explained. On the other hand, Aoi, whose grandparents lived in Mie, was quite familiar with the Kansai area so had visited Nara a few times in his childhood.
“The species are a bit different though.” Aoi thought to say. Nara's were in general bigger than the ones at Ueno, which of course in Aoi's mind made them less cute. However, they were also free.
“I know. I want to go there soon.” Reita said and the “after the cancer” remained hung in the air between them and the silence.
In the end, they didn't have time to visit all the exhibits. The zoo was too big and it was getting late and they still hadn't had lunch nor dinner, if one didn't count the cake eaten earlier, so Aoi decided to steer the both of them towards the restaurants near-by. Among the surprisingly small assortment of restaurants in the area, they ended up eating at a lovely little Spanish restaurant that served paella. Neither had ever had the dish before so it was a wonderful experience to be involved in the serving process while watching the dancing show on the small stage.
By the time Aoi accompanied Reita home again, it was after seven in the evening and his boyfriend was practically dead on his feet. His tiredness however didn't stop Reita from collecting a fiery goodbye kiss from Aoi's more than willing lips.
“Thank you, Aoi.” Reita whispered before saying their goodbyes.
“There's nothing I should be thanked for. Today was beyond words. And considering first dates are supposed to be disasters, our perfect one sets a pretty high bar that's going to be challenging to surpass.”
“You don't need to surpass anything. Being with you is date enough.” Reita's honest eyes conveyed that even more persuasively and Aoi pulled the other close to his body, hugged him tight and inhaled the lovely flavor of cologne, sweat and Reita, a scent that for the first time since they had met was free of any medicinal tint. Aoi smiled with happiness. Soon, it would always be like this, he briefly thought, before pulling back. They said their goodbyes while exchanging suave kisses and finally managed to part when Reita's mother invaded their little world on the front porch.
A/N: Thank you for the comments. My bunnies were all ecstatic and offering squishy hugs over the high quality chocolaty treats, so they decided to treat you with a longer chapter, filled with fluff. Christmas and New Years are coming, so they figured they're going to spread the holiday cheer. My bunnies also want to bow to those that voted. They are still waiting for the votes on this chapter. Comments are chocolate and votes are carrots, so please choose one form to feed the poor defenceless creatures. (The button saying 投票 is the one to press to submit the vote)
Squishes to all
Author: yukigafuru
Rating: PG-13 for now (will be adult)
Chapter: 6/?
Pairings: Aoi/Reita
Bands: Gazette
Warnings: none for now
Genre: angst, romance
Summary: Life is short. You try to catch it and it slips through your fingers. Life is also beautiful. It astounds you at every step. And it only takes one minute, one encounter to change it forever.
Chapter 5
The cab trip had been quiet and uneventful and before long they found themselves on the front steps of Reita's house. Which was huge, by Japanese standards: a two storied red brick monstrosity that reminded them of those Victorian houses they used to see pictures of in their history books. It even had a dog kennel and a garden filled with roses, even at that time of the year.
“Holy shit!” came Ruki's honest reaction which caused Reita to chuckle.
“Yeah, I know. It's been passed on through the family. My granddad was really successful after the war. Once we grew up, it got more difficult to maintain, but my folks refuse to change places. They like the sense of connectedness it gives them. And they want to pass it on to us when we grow up. I had a lovely childhood here and I always thought my children would too.” At the end, Aoi caught a blush on Reita's cheeks. He had always known his lover thought things through and had made plans about his future, but it was just now that he realized those plans involved children and well... with the two of them, that could be difficult. For once, he kept his mouth shut though, because there was no way they'd discuss a topic like that while being teenagers facing one of the most debilitating diseases there were.
Reita's mom came to greet them in a flustered manner and quickly let them in, fussing about her baby staying in the cold for too long and hugging an embarrassed Reita for minutes on end. The other three just smiled understandingly and waited to be invited to the living room, where they could already spot some fluffy looking couches. They didn't have to wait long, and they were sat down on the couches, that did turn out to be very comfortable, and treated with cookies and tea. At moments, it really did feel as if they had entered a Victorian house and not one in the suburbs of Tokyo.
“I wonder if Reita's sister wanted to go to London so she could experience the five o'clock tee thing.” Ruki commented, and Uruha, seated closest to him heard and smirked.
“Actually, no. It was the guys. She was crazy over foreign males since she was a little kid. You should see her gush. Trust me, no one was surprised when she got that scholarship. They had probably expected her to do that since she was 13 or something.” Uruha whispered back and Ruki grinned.
“Well, I have found that foreign girls are sexy. Don't you think so? With all those curbs and those big eyes. Wow!” Ruki was assuming of course that Uruha was straight, just as himself. After all, not all of his acquaintances were about to turn completely gay at the same time, were they?
“I had an exchange student in my class a few years back. She had this reddish hair, all curly and soft. Just lovely! And green eyes... I think I was in love with that girl for months. Never dared to approach her though.” Uruha shared with Ruki. They had been able to establish an easy friendship from the start and they both felt comfortable.
“Why not?” Ruki asked, although he wasn't the type to go chasing after the girls, either.
“Just scared, I guess. Figured she'd let me down.”
“With how good you look, I doubt it.” Ruki complimented him and Uruha this time just grinned.
“So how about you then? Go after girls' skirts often?” Uruha asked. He was indeed curious because Ruki certainly acted tough, but Uruha sometimes thought he saw insecurity and a need to be comforted in those deep black eyes. Of course, he could just be mistaken...
“No, actually they tend to throw themselves at me so I never need to do anything. Goukons work too...” He replied and they both jumped a bit when Aoi's voice joined their discussion. They hadn't expected the other two to listen in on their conversation.
“I keep telling him he should stop playing with their hearts because one day, it might just come back to bite him in the ass.” Aoi grinned.
“It's not like I'm playing with them. I mean they don't expect true love from the first date, do they? And it's not my fault they put out so easily.” Ruki blushed. Sometimes, he thought the same way as Aoi, more than often actually, and he dreaded the moment he'd fall in love. Therefore, he did everything possible for that not to happen. Of course, he had never believed in the love at first sight thing, but that was before Aoi and Reita's world-wind romance...
“Maybe they do.” Was Reita's mother's voice coming from just behind them and they all turned red as crabs instantly. These were not conversations meant to be heard by parents. “Oh, relax, dears. It's not like I wasn't young once. And since Reita is a boy, I'm used to almost everything you'd have to dish out. Funny though how between him and his sister, he turned out to be the romantic one. The other is just sowing the seeds in London, I imagine...”
“Mom!” Reita spoke out, embarrassed at his mother's choice of words. His mother could be a perfect lady at times, and at others...
“I hear you, honey. I just came to tell you lunch is ready, and invite you to the dining room.”
“We didn't mean to disturb you.” Aoi politely said, although they were all kind of hungry. Still, they were in his boyfriend's house...
“Nonsense. Now come along now, before it gets cold.”
The day only got better from then on and therefore Aoi and Ruki ended up leaving the house much later than anticipated. Before saying their own goodbyes, when reaching their houses, Ruki couldn't help commenting slightly on the day.
“Aoi, I truly am happy for you, you know?” Aoi cocked his head a bit. Ruki continued. “Today was nice. Even meeting Uruha, and I still think that man is too pretty but whatever...” He seemed to recover his train of thoughts and went on. “I just see what you and Reita have going on. It looks effortless, although I know it's anything but... I truly hope that someday it really will be effortless because you two make even romantic movies seem not that sappy.” Ruki finished on an amusing note and Aoi was grateful for his words. After that they ended up saying their goodbyes.
Two days later, as promised, he turned up at Reita's place again for their first date. The day in between had been spent planning the whole thing, talking to Reita on the phone more than he should have, and thinking about his boyfriend in entirely unhealthy quantities. So it was no wonder he was excited to be there.
Reita himself opened the door and Aoi was awed at the other's looks. He had never gotten to see Reita all dressed up and the chemo had not been easy to handle at the best of times, but now, Reita had more color in his cheeks, had dressed up in a daring outfit consisting of red leather, soft black silk and a few well placed chains. He wore a hooded sweatshirt underneath the jacket and used it to cover his head and all in all, Aoi thought he looked like one of those hip-hop artists in all their splendor and sex-appeal, materialized out of the blue in front of him. He actually became a bit self-conscious about his own looks because he hadn't thought to dress up more than usual.
He shouldn't have worried, he later thought, for Reita's appreciation of his person suddenly became evident when he was practically dragged in and passionately kissed right there in the hallway. The leather was soft under his palms while Reita himself, tensed in his excitement was hard and firm. Aoi loved the contrast.
“You look lovely.” Reita complimented him and Aoi found himself in danger of blushing. He had worn a beige soft sweater, complimented by dark gray fleece pants, with a checkered brown jacket. Apart from the outfit hugging him in all the right places, there was nothing special about his attire, although obviously Reita didn't think so. “So where are you taking me?” Reita asked, and under the circumstances Aoi couldn't help think that their roles might just be a bit reversed because Reita looked like the type to take him out. And who knows, maybe in the near future... He cut off his train of thought to answer the question.
“It's a bit early for dinner, so I thought we'd have a walk through Ueno, see the animals and then choose a nice restaurant and spend the evening there. But if there's something else you'd like to do...”
Reita seemed more than willing to get on-board with the plan though and in moments they had hollered their goodbyes and went out.
From Reita's house to Ueno, they had to change the trains several times and ride for about an hour and even though it wasn't rush hour, they couldn't always find available seats, so Aoi was worried from time to time whether Reita was growing tired or not. At times, he'd even glare at one or two travelers that rushed to the seats ahead of them. But each time he asked his boyfriend, he'd receive the same reply: he was fine, so eventually he stopped asking and decided on getting a bit of rest as soon as they got to the zoo.
Once they got there, however, Reita ruined those plans by quickly dragging him to the panda exhibit. It seems he had seen the announcement of the baby panda and he just couldn't wait to see the little thing. Considering there was a queue in front of the glassy cage, they had to wait for about half an hour to actually see the bears, but well, even to a concerned Aoi the view was more than heart-warming. It just so happened that when they got in front of the cage, both the mom and the baby were munching happily on some bamboo leaves while corking their heads at the weird creatures staring at them and taking pictures from across the glass. The baby was more than cute, with his big eyes and small ears and his curiosity towards everything that moved: more than once he approached the glass to get a better look at the people outside, point at which the mom would stretch out a paw and draw him in. While watching the pandas, Aoi wrapped his arms around Reita and enjoyed the warmth of the moment. Also, in doing so, he was able to support his lover who seemed to finally be losing his strength.
Leaving the pandas behind, they quickly made their way to a quiet coffee shop close to the entrance and savored their tea and cake while animatedly discussing the visit so far.
“So you haven't been here since you were a child?” Aoi asked his boyfriend, and Reita shook his head and dutifully answered.
“No. And they didn't have the pandas then. I don't remember if they hadn't acquired them or they had simply been lent to another zoo, but I definitely don't remember seeing them.”
“The story Chieko told you about me and the bears wouldn't have anything to do with your enthusiasm, would it?” Aoi was smiling upon remembering Reita's happy face that day in the hospital. The other chuckled.
“Maybe a bit. You obviously can't throw gummy bears at them though.” His grin morphed his face and Aoi was very happy to be the one that made Reita so happy.
“Not with those glass walls, no. Plus, I doubt gummy bears would appeal to them, unless they were bamboo flavored.” Reita laughed outright at his statement.
“So shall we see the other bears next?” He inquired.
“How about the elephants? I hear if you're lucky, they let you ride one.” Reita's eyes widened in excitement.
“Oh, I'd love that! Have you ever?”
“No, but I have wanted to go travel to Thailand or somewhere they let you do that. It must be even more exciting to actually travel on them while not in captivity.”
“I hate seeing them in these small cages.” Reita said and even though his smile hadn't disappeared, it was less wide than before. Aoi gave himself a mental slap for not thinking of that when suggesting the date, for not making the connection between imprisonment and cancer. Reita must have figured out his thought process for he placed his palm over Aoi's own on the table and gently said: “It's not like that, Aoi. Even if healthy, I'm sure a big part of me would still hate it. It's just that those cages are so small... But I also know that I'd never get a chance to see them in flesh and bone somewhere else -most of them anyway- so I don't mind the zoos. Some part of me actually thinks that because of zoos there's less poachers. Of course, it might have nothing to do with it, actually.”
“What's your favorite animal, Rei?” Aoi asked, curious but also wanting to take Reita's mind off the subject.
“Well, animal...” he pondered. “Maybe tigers. But I love parrots more though. I want one later on.”
“A parrot?” Aoi was indeed surprised at the choice. Tigers were also quite far off from what himself would have chosen.
Reita blushed but answered. “You know those pirates movies where there'd be a talking parrot and he'd scream things like:
or
or swear colorfully? Well, I always wanted one like that. I think it's brilliant.”
“So you want to teach your parrot to swear like a pirate.” Aoi guffawed. It was just too funny. They both ended up laughing at the thought.
The conversation from then on was equally amusing and revealing of their own personalities and time flied by. Pretty soon, Aoi was being dragged off his seat by an excited boyfriend and ending up seeing the elephants - they didn't get to ride them though-, then the bears -which were a bit more boring than Aoi remembered-, than the birds, making their way towards the petting zoo.
Once inside, Reita headed straight like an arrow to the small deers. Aoi took a picture with the camera when the other wasn't looking, a reminder of the cutest moment imaginable, when a baby deer was poking Reita's legs with its small horns.
“I've never been to Nara.” Reita later explained. On the other hand, Aoi, whose grandparents lived in Mie, was quite familiar with the Kansai area so had visited Nara a few times in his childhood.
“The species are a bit different though.” Aoi thought to say. Nara's were in general bigger than the ones at Ueno, which of course in Aoi's mind made them less cute. However, they were also free.
“I know. I want to go there soon.” Reita said and the “after the cancer” remained hung in the air between them and the silence.
In the end, they didn't have time to visit all the exhibits. The zoo was too big and it was getting late and they still hadn't had lunch nor dinner, if one didn't count the cake eaten earlier, so Aoi decided to steer the both of them towards the restaurants near-by. Among the surprisingly small assortment of restaurants in the area, they ended up eating at a lovely little Spanish restaurant that served paella. Neither had ever had the dish before so it was a wonderful experience to be involved in the serving process while watching the dancing show on the small stage.
By the time Aoi accompanied Reita home again, it was after seven in the evening and his boyfriend was practically dead on his feet. His tiredness however didn't stop Reita from collecting a fiery goodbye kiss from Aoi's more than willing lips.
“Thank you, Aoi.” Reita whispered before saying their goodbyes.
“There's nothing I should be thanked for. Today was beyond words. And considering first dates are supposed to be disasters, our perfect one sets a pretty high bar that's going to be challenging to surpass.”
“You don't need to surpass anything. Being with you is date enough.” Reita's honest eyes conveyed that even more persuasively and Aoi pulled the other close to his body, hugged him tight and inhaled the lovely flavor of cologne, sweat and Reita, a scent that for the first time since they had met was free of any medicinal tint. Aoi smiled with happiness. Soon, it would always be like this, he briefly thought, before pulling back. They said their goodbyes while exchanging suave kisses and finally managed to part when Reita's mother invaded their little world on the front porch.
A/N: Thank you for the comments. My bunnies were all ecstatic and offering squishy hugs over the high quality chocolaty treats, so they decided to treat you with a longer chapter, filled with fluff. Christmas and New Years are coming, so they figured they're going to spread the holiday cheer. My bunnies also want to bow to those that voted. They are still waiting for the votes on this chapter. Comments are chocolate and votes are carrots, so please choose one form to feed the poor defenceless creatures. (The button saying 投票 is the one to press to submit the vote)
Squishes to all