"Daichan…" Mao whined as they were getting out of the taxi in front of the airport. "Can't we stay a little bit longer? Let's cancel the flight and go back!"
"Mao, we've already discussed this. I canceled our last flight and extended our stay a week for you, we need to go home now," Daisuke had the urge to roll his eyes; his patience already wearing thin and it was still early in the morning.
"Maokun, help me with the luggage, will you?" Daisuke requested as he pulled out one too many large suitcases and a duffle bag from the trunk. He wondered how they even fit in the small compartment.
"No. I'm mad at you," Mao replied curtly while crossing his arms and turning away dramatically.
"Fine," Daisuke huffed as he struggled to transport their luggage between the crowds. As they stood in line to get checked in, Daisuke heard sniffles and a muffled sob from his side. In his peripheral vision, he could see Mao wipe away tears as he cried. It irked Daisuke that his heart melted at the adorable sight and he could no longer resist the younger boy. He turned towards Mao and was about to put down the luggage and give him a big bear hug but the line started to move.
"Maokun," Daisuke started, already feeling close to tears himself, "don't be mad baby, I'll make it up to you. I promise I'll do whatever you want…just please don't cry."
Mao looked up at Daisuke with puppy-dog eyes and a pout, "Anything? So you mean we can stay-"
"Anything but that," Daisuke interjected quickly. Mao's eyes began to pool with tears again.
Daisuke was about to give in when Mao made a request, "Okay, fine…but can I buy some candy to make me feel better?"
Daisuke beamed. Candy, no problem!
He thought Mao was going to ask for something over-the-top like he usually did, and to be honest, after a two-week trip to New York with his extravagant boyfriend, he simply could not afford it. "Absolutely, Mao! As soon as we get home, I'll buy you all the candy your heart desires!"
"But I want it now," Mao insisted while stomping his foot like a spoiled child.
Daisuke was about to object but he was called to the desk for check-in.
"Tickets, please".
As Daisuke rummaged his pockets for their airplane tickets, he thought to himself that it would probably be a futile attempt to get his boyfriend to comply with him, but he would try to convince him anyway. He did not mind buying Mao candy, but airport shops overpriced things ten times over. Sure, Tokyo was certainly quite expensive as well, but he would still be able to get a better bargain at a Japanese shop than at an airport. He decided to try reasoning with Mao once they have checked in. He did not want to be ripped off.
Once they dropped off their luggage, Mao reminded Daisuke that he still wanted some candy.
"Baby, listen, once we're back in Tokyo I'll buy you as much candy as you want, but it's too expensive here. You know airports overprice everything."
"But you said you would do whatever I wanted," Mao protested with a scowl.
"Alright, alright…" Daisuke wondered why he even tried. There was no talking Mao out of something he wanted and it was too late to start now since Daisuke had already spoiled him rotten. "…but we need to make it quick or we'll miss our flight."
"Okay!" Mao said cheerfully.
What are a few candies going to hurt after all? It can't be all that expensive… Daisuke thought.
Once in the candy store, Mao hurriedly grabbed a bag and began looking at the selection of sweet treats.
"You can only get one chocolate." A mother with her young son said right beside Mao. The boy took one block of chocolate out of the adjacent bin and put it into his bag, looking at it dejectedly as Mao began to snicker. The child looked up at Mao, who smiled tauntingly at him, and the latter began to slowly put one chocolate after another in his own bag to tease the child. The look of envy on the boy's face was purely amusing to him.
Mao was taking longer than expected inside the candy shop and Daisuke decided to go in and hurry him up. He wandered around casually and a sign by the cash register caught his attention immediately as he walked into the store.
$6.99 per quarter lb
What the hell? Daisuke looked towards Mao to try to convince him to reconsider buying from that store and found that Mao's plastic bag was already half full. What's worse, it seemed that Mao was only choosing the typical candy selection: M&M's, pastel mints, saltwater taffy, and other candies that he could buy from any other shop at a fraction of the price.
Daisuke hurried towards Mao who was still deciding on whether to get chocolate-covered raisins or malt balls, and grabbed him by the wrist.
"Maokun, we're gonna be late, let's pay for your candy and hurry back to our terminal."
Mao was hesitant at first but went to the register with Daisuke anyway. He figured too much candy would give him a stomach ache.
At the cash register, the little boy and his mother were checking out and Mao eyed the child who was looking at a giant gummy bear longingly. Mao tugged Daisuke's sleeve, "Daichan, I want that gummy bear…" he said loudly as he pointed to the obviously pricey confection. Mao looked from the gummy bear to the little boy, to and fro, as he begged his boyfriend for it.
"Mao, those gummy bears don't even taste good. You have a lot of candy already…" Daisuke was going to continue his attempt to persuade his boyfriend when he noticed Mao's train of vision. He knew how competitive his boyfriend could get, and seeing that he was obviously rivaling the child, there was no way he could talk him out of buying the gummy bear.
"Yeah, okay sure," Daisuke surrendered before putting up a fight. Mao snatched the oversized candy from the register and laughed mockingly at the little boy who looked like he wanted to cry.
$51.95
Daisuke was about to pull his hair out in frustration when the cashier rang up the total, and Mao decided to drift away from him since he was obviously steaming. It scared him.
He walked to the corner of the shop and his face lit up when he saw adorable stuffed plushies hanging on a rack. He almost didn't notice the same little boy looking up at the stuffed animals as he sucked his thumb.
"So, which one is your favorite?" Mao asked the boy casually, and the child pointed to a stuffed cat. Mao quickly snatched the cat plush and looked at the youngster as he chuckled victoriously. "Too bad your mommy can't buy it for you, huh?"
When he was done paying, Daisuke started walking out of the shop, muttering curses under his breath and Mao stopped him before he could head out. "Daichan…" he said, pushing the stuffed animal into his boyfriend's chest, "I want this too! Please…"
Oh my Gawd! Daisuke looked to the side to see the little boy's pouting face as Mao stood in front of him with wide-eyes.
"Fine," Daisuke said through clenched teeth. It would be a hopeless case if he even tried. "But that's it, Mao!" he snapped.
"Okay, okay…sheesh…" Mao muttered. He felt kind of bad for asking for so much, but the look on the kid's face was hilarious. He smiled victoriously instead, waving goodbye to the child as he left with his mother.
…
Right when they got on the plane, Mao began stuffing his face with his sweet treats while he hummed in delight. Daisuke side-glanced at him with his eyes narrowed, "Satisfied?" he asked sarcastically. He was in still in a sour mood at being ripped off.
"Mmhm…" Mao replied with his mouth full. "Do you want some?"
"Yeah, sure…" Daisuke said while reaching into the bag to grab a handful, he might as well enjoy it also since he paid so much for it. Daisuke retracted his hand quickly as it was slapped away and he turned to Mao, shocked. "What was that for?!"
"You were about to take my candy!"
"You asked me if I wanted some!"
"Not you! I was asking Roku..." Mao pointed to the stuffed cat on his lap and rolled his eyes as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
What the hell? Daisuke thought. He shrugged it off since he figured Mao was playing make-believe again and didn't want to rain on his parade. The last time he did he ended up sleeping on the sofa.
"Want some candy?"
Daisuke was afraid to ask if Mao was talking to him or the toy again and looked out of the window instead. "Hello…earth to Daichan, I'm asking you if you want some candy…"
"Huh…uh, no thanks," Daisuke wasn't in the mood for the confections anymore. He opened his handbag and pulled out a book.
"Don't read now, pay attention to me…" Mao whined.
"Ugh…fine, Mao. What do you want to talk about?" Daisuke put his book back into the bag and turned to face his boyfriend with a scowl. Mao moved back, intimidated.
"You don't need to be so mean," he said with a pout.
Daisuke huffed out a sigh and forced a smile, "Okay, Maokun, what would you like to talk about?" he said with the sweetest voice he could muster. Mao smiled and wrapped his arm around Daisuke's while resting his head on his shoulder.
"I was wondering…since we moved in together recently…maybe it would be a good idea if we thought about…"
"…about?" Daisuke coaxed. He knew Mao was going to make some sort of request but wondered why he was being shy all of a sudden. He knew his boyfriend was never bashful when it came to asking for something.
"Maybe we should think about getting married." Mao said softly. He lifted his head and connected his eyes with a bewildered Daisuke.
"W-What?" Daisuke stuttered. Mao blushed deeply and turned away as he felt tears pooling in his eyes.
"Y-you don't want to marry me?" Mao's voice shook and his lip quivered. He felt rejected and wished he could run away, but since he was on a plane, there was nowhere to go but down, and he definitely wasn't that stupid.
"No! Mao, of course I want to marry you, you know I love you!"
Mao looked at Daisuke with his teary puppy eyes. "Really?" he asked.
"Really."
"Then why did you get all nervous when I brought it up?" the younger boy asked with a pout.
"I…was just shocked that's all…I always figured I'd be the one proposing…"
"I didn't propose to you, Daichan. I still expect that."
"Oh."
"So you're not against the whole marriage idea, then?" Mao looked at Daisuke with hopeful eyes.
"I would love to spend the rest of my life with you," Daisuke said romantically. He then brushed Mao's bangs to the side and kissed his forehead. Mao smiled at his boyfriend when they made eye contact again and Daisuke thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
All of a sudden, Daisuke paled when a realization occurred to him: how he would be able to afford Mao as a spouse when having him as a boyfriend was expensive enough? And what if they adopt kids? Daisuke's train of thought was cut short when Mao leaned in to give him a chaste kiss, pulling back with the same beautiful grin that took his breath away.
Daisuke smiled back genuinely. He may be spoiled but he's totally worth it. He's priceless.
All Daisuke had to do now was look for another part-time job.
End.
A/N: I thought it would be refreshing to have Mao being a spoiled brat for once instead of his usual obedient self. What did you think? Did you like it, hate it? I'd love to hear from you either way! Please drop a review, I'd really appreciate it^^