Len stood outside the laser tag building, waiting for Rin to arrive. They had agreed to meet there to celebrate their birthday together, as they did every year since they were young. They were neighbors and their parents were best friends, which meant that they spent a lot of time around one another. They themselves had grown to be best friends throughout the fourteen years of life that they shared. While Len wouldn't have it any other way, he did still find it bizarre that they had been born only minutes apart on the same day- even at the same hospital- and yet they were so close together. You'd think that people who had the same birthday and were not blood relation would be farther apart in distance and probably never even meet. Talk about a one in a million chance.
"I'm here!" He heard Rin before he even saw her. She turned a corner and ran up to stand in front of him, panting. Taking a few minutes to catch her breath, she then inhaled deeply before exhaling slowly. "Sorry I'm late," she apologized, a small smile playing at her lips. "I missed my bus, so I ran all the way here."
Len raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "You know you could have just texted me and waited for the next bus to arrive, right?" He saw her blush as realization hit her and he put a finger over her mouth as she opened it to respond. "I know how you are about wanting to be on time when we have plans, but you really don't need to worry so much. I just got here early, that's all. You're not late at all, I promise." He ruffled her hair, which in turn drew out a pout from the girl as she had to fix the mess he made.
Len ushered Rin into the building and they both sighed in content as they felt the warmth of the heater within the building. It was a stark contrast to the cold, cloudy weather that they had just been in. While it didn't snow where they lived, it was still extremely cold during the winter. Having a birthday in December had both its upsides and downsides, but neither of them complained too much about it since they preferred hot cocoa and wearing warm clothing as opposed to melting in summer heat. They greeted the worker and took a look around the place. There were no other customers other than the two of them, which didn't come too much as a surprise. Their birthday landed two days after Christmas; most families would either be relaxing at home or out at department stores for all of the After-Christmas sales.
"Guess this means we're fighting one-on-one," Rin mused, grinning in Len's direction. She shrugged off her coat and set it up on the coat rack that rested by the entrance, then watched as Len followed suit. Leaning in close to his ear she whispered, "I'm gonna wipe the floor with you," before laughing and walking off in the direction of the different colored vests.
Normally, Len would get riled up and shoot back competitive replies, but not today. Instead, blood rushed to his face and tinged his cheeks pink. He could feel his heart racing in his chest and he took a deep breath in an attempt to slow it. Today was the day. The day that he brought his feelings for Rin to light. He didn't want to be just friends anymore; he wanted to take things to the next level. He had felt this way for years, but far too many times did he chicken out with false promises to himself that he would tell her the next day or even the next week. He had let the fear of rejection overpower him, which was understandable considering she was such a big part of his life. Losing her would be like losing half of himself, and he didn't know if he could handle that.
Len was snapped out of his thoughts as he felt a vest slide over his head and down onto his shoulders. "Come on, slowpoke. What are you doing daydreaming at this time? We're burning daylight!" She strapped the yellow colored vest snuggly onto him and flicked his nose lightly, which made him crinkle it in response. "I'm going to run in first to hide. Don't leave me hanging, you hear?" It was a rhetorical question, but he nodded in response anyway. He watched her disappear through the drapes that covered the entrance to the battlefield and he shook his head to clear his mind. For now, he would focus on the game and worry about his feelings later.
Hours had passed with the two playing game after game. There were no new customers so it was just the two of them to venture around in the giant maze by themselves. Len could feel his bangs sticking to his forehead and his shirt was drenched with sweat. His legs burned from the constant running and kneeling he did to try and find Rin, as well as run away from her. Peeking from behind the pillar he was currently hiding behind, he saw a speck of orange from the light of Rin's vest in the dim room. Now was his chance, and he had thought of the perfect way to end off the game. He moved slowly on his hands and knees in the direction of the light, doing his best to keep as quiet as possible. The closer he got, however, the more anxious he grew.
Len sat crouched behind the last wall that separated them, and he could feel his heart beating in his throat. The sound was deafening to his ears in the silent room and he could only hope that Rin couldn't hear it from the other side of the wall. Psyching himself up one last time, Len quickly turned the corner to see Rin jump in surprise. Before she had time to react, Len used his free hand to grab hold of her wrist that held her gun and pinned her against the wall. The two of them stared at each other for a moment as they panted from exhaustion; Rin's eyes holding confusion while Len's held fierce determination. Taking no more chances to back out, Len closed the little distance between them and pressed his chapped lips against Rin's soft, orange-vanilla scented ones in a chaste kiss. The kiss only lasted about two seconds, but for Len it felt much longer. He poured all of his love into his first kiss, hoping to whatever God that existed that the love of his life would understand his feelings. When he pulled away to gauge her reaction, he saw that her face was beet red and her wide eyes seemed to silently ask him 'why?' Leaning toward her ear, he whispered "Happy birthday, Rin," before shooting her vest and walking away.
Walking through the drapes to leave the dimly lit battlefield, Len let out a breath that he didn't even know he was holding. He took the vest off and hung it back in place before placing a hand on the wall to keep his balance. His legs felt weak and his entire body was trembling. He did it. He finally did it. Now Rin knew how he felt about her and the uneasy feeling he felt from not knowing her feelings on the matter brought back the anxious feeling he had earlier.
Rin walked past the drapes fifteen minutes later, the expression on her face unreadable. She took her own vest off and placed it on its rightful hook. She walked past Len and put on her coat, refusing to make eye contact. Oh crap. He really messed up, didn't he? Grabbing his own coat and throwing it on, he followed Rin out of the laser tag building. He wanted to say something to her- anything that would fix his mistake and bring things back to normal, but he was at a loss for words. "Rin, I…" He began, but immediately trailed off. He couldn't even bring himself to give her a simple apology.
Rin stopped in her tracks to stand in front of Len and finally looked at him. Her brows were furrowed, as if she were angry. "Close your eyes," she demanded. He closed them obediently and braced himself. He was sure she was going to punch him- or even kick him- but he was prepared to face the consequences of his actions. He did end up stealing her first kiss, so it was only natural for her to be mad about it. He didn't feel sharp pain like he had anticipated though. Instead, he felt soft lips press against his for a moment, then a forehead press against his own. Opening his eyes, he made eye contact with Rin. His face burned with heat, and he saw a blush of Rin's own dust across her cheeks. "Happy birthday, stupid…" she mumbled as she backed away and punched him lightly in the shoulder. Len couldn't stop the laugh that escaped his throat and took hold of Rin's hand, intertwining their fingers together. Even though they didn't say it aloud, they knew. He loved her, and she loved him. That was the best birthday present either of them could ever ask for.
A/N: So this was a fic written for a contest one of my friends was holding on Vocaloid Amino and I wanted to participate and this was the result. c: It's based off of that one tumblr post that's like "take me laser tagging and then push me into a corner and kiss me. Then shoot me and walk away"