This was written for the Tenipuri Secret Santa for dearest nocapesnotights. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! c:
Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis nor its characters.
If Mukahi had to blame someone for his awful mood, he was definitely going to blame Shishido.
And, okay, Choutarou was partially to blame as well but no one could actually manage to stay angry at him for long. Shishido was a much easier target. So the next time Shishido flashed his cheesy smile and tried to not-so-discretely hold Ootori's hand, Mukahi began making wheezy gagging sounds.
"Can you shut up for one second?" Shishido said, levelling Mukahi with a glare. "Go eat lunch somewhere else if you're just gonna bug us."
"And go get a room if you're going to be making bedroom eyes at each other all day," Mukahi replied.
Nonetheless, Mukahi did leave. Hanging around Shishido and Choutarou only soured his mood lately. It didn't matter though; there were a million other great spots to eat lunch at Hyoutei Academy. No doubt Atobe was outside, dining at his own personal table and chair, eating fancy food cooked by a professional chef while Kabaji stood behind him wiping his face with a napkin every minute. Mukahi could imagine it already.
Normally Mukahi would be able to put up with it. He had sat with Atobe multiple times before because Atobe's professionally-cooked meals were actually really damn good. Except… he was sure Jirou would be there as well. And Atobe was a lot more open with his public displays of affection than Shishido and Choutarou were. Mukahi didn't think he could keep his food down under those conditions.
That and Atobe always forced him to use utensils.
Even the hallways of the school were brimming with couples. Mukahi fumed, storming down the hallway and ignoring the pairs all around him. It's fine, Mukahi told himself, it won't last, soon all these idiots will be fighting and breaking off with each other. That hardly made Mukahi feel any better. He was hungry and bitter and there was a girl giggling and holding hands with a boy nearby and it was really annoying. He walked faster, finding the empty hall in front of the library.
"Am I the only person in this entire school who's single?" Mukahi said out loud.
"That's highly unlikely, Gakuto," said a low accented voice.
And there he was, that bastard, coming out of the library with three novels under his arms. All of Mukahi's problems were all tightly condensed into that body standing only a few steps next to him. Everything was completely his fault, and that idiot was just standing there like all was nice and happy in the world when it wasn't.
"Mind your own business, Yuushi," Mukahi said.
Oshitari Yuushi apparently found that comment highly amusing. "Did you argue with Atobe again?"
"No. I argued with Shishido because he was being gross while I was trying to eat."
"Oh, don't be such a killjoy, Gakuto," Oshitari said, giving him a pat on the shoulder as he passed by him. "It's finally springtime. The weather's getting warm and sunny, and tennis season is about to start. Girls are showing off their bare legs again and awakening the hidden cravings inside the boys. Don't waste time wallowing in your misery."
Asshole, Mukahi thought at Oshitari's retreating back. Mukahi's shoulder tingled where Oshitari had put his hand on it. Mukahi curled up into his knees, groaning into the fabric of his pants. This really sucked. Nothing was worse than having a crush on a friend and sports partner while everyone else was busy being lovey-dovey around him. What made it worse was having a crush on Oshitari Yuushi, a guy who was more likely to swoon over a naked leg than to fall for Mukahi. Mukahi supposed he really was wallowing in his misery, as Yuushi so eloquently put it.
Mukahi recovered and got up, looking around the corner of the hall. Oshitari was already lost in the crowd of other students, his dark blue hair barely visible over the heads of others.
Mukahi found himself thinking that maybe he should stop with this self-pity fest. For once, maybe Oshitari was kind of right. He was spending all of his days in a perpetually angry state and arguing with half the members of his tennis team. Maybe he should just tell Oshitari how he felt and get the rejection over with, then they could go back to hanging out like normal.
Or maybe Mukahi should skip the confession and just go back to hanging out with his doubles partner. That worked too.
Yuushi was a horrible texter. Of all the damn people in the world Mukahi could have this stupid crush on, it had to be this idiot with the fake glasses and the Kansai accent. Mukahi couldn't have picked a lamer person even if he tried. Mukahi scrolled down his contacts list, pausing at Oshitari's name. It wasn't like they texted often. They saw each other every day, and besides Oshitari was one of those people who used chatspeak at every opportunity as if he wanted to prove that he knew modern slang terms.
Mukahi began the text with 'Hey Yuushi, do you-' and then paused. Was he being too familiar? He backspaced and wrote Oshitari's family name instead. Then again, that would be weirder since Mukahi was used to referring to him as Yuushi in person.
'Good evening, Oshitari. I am writing to you to inquire about your schedule and whether you would be available for a pleasant get-together at-'
'Yuushi, we're going to the movies tomorrow, be there at seven and I might let you pick the movie-'
'Hey fuckface, you better get your fine ass to the movies tomorrow night and stop being so damn attractive while you're at it-'
The amount of times Mukahi backspaced and re-wrote the message was alarming. He grew increasingly frustrated until he finally wrote a quick text and sent it before he could hesitate once more. He stared at his cellphone. A minute passed by and then two. He re-read the message he had just sent, one that said 'Yuushi, wanna go to the movies tomorrow?' and groaned out loud. He knew he shouldn't have written it so casually.
Whatever. It was done. All that was left to do was wait. Mukahi stuffed the cellphone in his pocket, found an old manga and lay back on his bed. Even when he tried reading the words, his eyes were just skipping over the sentences and the images. He pulled out his phone multiple times and each time it announced no new messages. Mukahi swore his phone vibrated in his pocket but a quick look at the screen showed that it was all in his imagination.
When Yuushi's reply finally came, it was nearly two o'clock in the morning and had Mukahi jolting awake from the shrieking ringtone. Mukahi rubbed his eyes, sitting up with urgency and opening the message.
'K.'
Mukahi nearly threw his phone out the window.
The movie theatre wasn't very full and nearly filled with middle-aged women. Oshitari had saved seats in the center and waved Mukahi over when the redhead entered the dim room with a bag of popcorn the size of his head. Already Mukahi was certain he was going to hate his movie, especially considering that it was Oshitari who chose it.
Mukahi took his seat on Oshitari's left. "It was nice of you to come with me. I've been meaning to come see this movie for weeks. It's gotten the best reviews so far," Oshitari said.
Mukahi didn't care. "Yeah, sure," he said, to indicate that he was half-listening.
Mukahi could feel how sweaty his hands were, which was stupid because this was only Yuushi, the same idiot he's been putting up with for nearly three years. He wiped his hands on his pants. He couldn't seem to keep his legs still and his knees jittered up and down. The movie hadn't even started yet and already Mukahi felt ready to jump up and run to the nearest exit.
Instead Mukahi reached into his popcorn and shoved a handful in his mouth. When his hand returned for more, it brushed against something that definitely was not supposed to be there. Mukahi jumped, pulling his hand back as if he had received a violent shock. He glared at Oshitari's hand like it had personally offended him.
"What are you doing?" Mukahi demanded.
"Taking some popcorn," Oshitari replied, one eyebrow raised.
Oh. Yeah, Mukahi had totally not overreacted. "Get your own popcorn," Mukahi snapped.
The lights dimmed and the screen turned on just in time. Great, Mukahi had already lost it once and the previews were only just starting. Mukahi didn't look over at Yuushi again. His leg twitched as he tried to force himself to watch the preview of some movie featuring giant robots and some buff Americans speaking dubbed Japanese.
Mukahi knew this was a bad idea since the second he had brought up movies. The previews took an eternity, meaning Mukahi was already nearly done his popcorn by the time the movie actually began. He fidgeted in his seat, wondering if it was socially acceptable to take ten bathroom breaks during a single movie.
A broad hand on his leg interrupted his train of thought. Oshitari's hand clutched Mukahi's knee, pressing it down firmly.
"Stop that, it's distracting," Oshitari said. The screen was reflected in Yuushi's glasses when Mukahi stared at him. Oshitari didn't let go, as if making sure Mukahi wouldn't start fidgeting again anytime soon.
This was going to be a long movie.
Mukahi wasn't following the screen as much as he was internally fighting to keep his body perfectly still. No, this was fine, this was totally cool. It was just Yuushi, sitting next to him and casually touching his knee. No need to blow a fuse over it. Mukahi wasn't sure how long Oshitari's hand remained there, but it was for a pretty long time. Oshitari only let go somewhere around the middle of the movie, as the main lead was dramatically breaking up with her lover. Oshitari only let go to fetch a handkerchief from his pocket and dab at the corner of his eyes.
What a crybaby, Mukahi thought. Normally Mukahi would've made fun of him; it wasn't like this was the first time Oshitari got emotional over some cheesy romance flick.
The movie ended with a long melodramatic kiss in the rain and a promise for eternal love. Mukahi never understood the appeal to these movies. They all ended in one of two ways: either the main characters ended up together, or someone tragically died. Mukahi preferred it when someone died.
"Ah, what a good film," Oshitari said, sighing in satisfaction. "When Asako ran away from Shouta… my heart just broke for him. I quite like that actress; I'll look her up and see if she's in any other movies. What did you think, Gakuto?"
"I have to pee," Mukahi said.
A movie. It had only been a movie, and here Mukahi was panting and sweating like he had just finished the most intense tennis match of his life. Hanging out with Yuushi used to be a relaxing, casual affair. Now here he was hiding in a bathroom stall, wanting to curl up into a ball and flush these feelings down the toilet.
This really wasn't fair.
"So… why are you eating in my classroom?" Hiyoshi asked, not taking his eyes off his lunch. The classroom held only second year students and most of them were staring at Mukahi. They recognized him from the tennis team, and also it was apparently very rare for a third year student to step foot in this classroom. Mukahi wanted to tell them to mind their own business.
Hiyoshi was pretty much his last hope for a normal lunch period. Hiyoshi was single, so there were no chances of sudden make-out sessions erupting in front of him.
Mukahi shrugged. "'Cuz I felt like it."
"Shishido-senpai is in your class," Hiyoshi said.
"Hell no. I'm not enduring one more second of his kissy faces at Ootori."
"Atobe-senpai has extra room at his table outside," Hiyoshi continued. Mukahi was beginning to think that Hiyoshi really didn't want him around. Nonetheless, Mukahi stayed put, shaking his head no. "And Oshitari-senpai's always in the library by himself-"
"No," Mukahi said firmly, "anyone but Yuushi." He practically spat out Yuushi's name with disgust. The movie yesterday had drained Mukahi of energy. He didn't think he could handle a long lunch period with Yuushi at this time. Even hanging around a grouchy anti-social jerk like Hiyoshi was preferable.
Hiyoshi suddenly snorted, hiding a smirk behind the back of his hand.
"What the hell's your problem?" Mukahi asked
"Oshitari-senpai rejected you already," Hiyoshi said. He said it like it was a fact, not a question.
Mukahi gaped, fighting to make his face not turn red. "No! Where the hell did you even here something so stupid?"
Hiyoshi shrugged. "I thought you finally confessed," he admitted. "You shouldn't. He'll reject you. Oshitari-senpai can do better."
Mukahi really hoped Hiyoshi choked on his rice.
He packed up his lunch and left, kicking Hiyoshi's bag out of his path. It wasn't Hiyoshi that bothered him; he had known for a while what a blunt dolt Hiyoshi was, and it didn't bother Mukahi because Mukahi also insulted Hiyoshi whenever he could during tennis practice. They had an odd relationship that occasionally bordered on friendship and sometimes took a dip into them both being dickheads to one another. What was now bothering Mukahi was how apparently obvious his infatuation was. If a dunce like Hiyoshi had noticed, than the rest of the team might have as well. And… maybe Oshitari knew too.
But if Oshitari knew of Mukahi's feelings and didn't say anything, then did that mean Oshitari wasn't interested? Mukahi felt his stomach twisting into knots.
Mukahi found himself outside the library, like he often did lately. Usually he didn't go inside but this time he did, hovering around the entrance behind an empty front desk. For a library, it was rather noisy. There were a few students seated with books, but others were chatting in pairs and discussing homework in loud voices. Oshitari was easy to spot, at a table separate from others. He was bent over a novel, focusing very strongly on the words as his glasses slid down his nose. No doubt it didn't matter since the glasses were fake… though Mukahi did have to admit they looked good on him. It certainly did help making Oshitari appear smarter, like a cool-headed mature guy.
Oshitari moved his head up just a bit and Mukahi stepped back, his heart pounding. For a second he thought he had been caught. He pulled out his phone, pretending to send a very important text as he wondered what excuses he could use to explain why he was in the library. I'm meeting a friend here or I have homework to work on sounded plausible, but anyone who knew Mukahi wouldn't believe that last one.
As it turned out, Mukahi didn't have to make up an excuse. He took his eyes off the phone, looking back through the corner of the eyes to see that Oshitari was still very much focussed on his book and had not seen Mukahi hiding in the corner.
Mukahi didn't linger long. He held up his phone higher and snapped a blurry picture and left.
By the end of the week, Mukahi was willing to admit that he had a serious problem.
It wasn't only because of the fact that he caught himself over a dozen times staring longingly over at Oshitari, half hiding behind a corner like he was some love-sick schoolgirl with her first crush. He hadn't really meant to take that picture of Oshitari in the library, but when he looked over the photo that night and realized how blurry it was, he had gone to the conclusion that he should take another one. His phone was awful at taking pictures. They always came out blurry and shaky. But still that was no excuse for now having over a dozen pictures of the blue-haired moron on his cellphone.
Mukahi realized how problematic it was after he finally captured a very good secret picture of Oshitari eating his lunch and considered putting it as his background image.
That was why he was now sitting in the overcrowded cafeteria, looking over his now small collection of Oshitari pictures on his phone with his finger hovering over the delete button. Really, this wasn't at all a big deal. He didn't need these pictures. He saw Oshitari every day during tennis practice. Hell, he got to see Oshitari naked on a daily basis thanks to the semi-public changing rooms!
Wait…
If he tried taking a photo of Oshitari while he was changing, would he get caught?
Mukahi shook his head franticly. No, no, NO, he was not going to go there. That would be far too obvious, and downright creepy. That was why he was going to delete all those dumb blurry pictures and move on from this period of stupidity.
His thumb brushed the delete button and then a window popped up asking him Are you sure you wish to delete these 11 images? and Mukahi lost his nerve, pressing the cancel option and feeling like he had just lost a huge tennis match.
This was seriously not healthy.
Mukahi was too busy groaning and digging his face into the lunch table to notice someone walking up behind him, swiping the phone neatly out of Mukahi's hand.
"That is a very unflattering picture of me," Oshitari said and Mukahi swore his heart actually stopped beating for a second. Atobe was there too, with Kabaji trailing behind him as usual, but that was an unimportant detail compared to the sight of Oshitari holding his phone.
"Give it," Mukahi said, jumping out of his seat and grabbing for his phone. Oshitari dodged, pulling the small device out of his reach. "Hey! I'm serious! Give it back!" Now was really not the good time to get into a frantic panic. He reached for it again but Oshitari twisted around, looking at something on the small screen. Mukahi felt his heart drop down to his stomach in a nauseating sensation.
"You have a lot of pictures of me," Oshitari said, his finger scrolling along the screen. "I didn't realize you were taking these."
"Shut up, I have pictures of the whole team on it. Give IT!" He jumped, somersaulting over Yuushi's head and making a wild grab for the phone. His fingers brushed the corner before Oshitari pulled away. "It's mine, you idiot!"
"You're not a very good photographer," Oshitari remarked.
Mukahi growled ferally, slapping it out of Oshitari's hand and not caring that it hit the ground with a shattering thud as the back cover broke off.
"Look what you did!" Mukahi shouted. The cafeteria was suddenly very silent, all eyes on him thanks to the outburst. Mukahi was fuming, so angry he felt wetness in the corners of his eyes.
Oshitari looked at him with a hard expression. "I was only teasing you, Gakuto."
"Well, don't!" Mukahi hated that he had to bend down and pick up the two pieces of his phone. He wanted to get out of there and run as fast as he could. He hated that his voice was cracking and that he was acting like a sensitive whiner baby. Oshitari's expression was unreadable and Atobe stood silent on the sidelines, looking far from impressed at Mukahi's attitude.
He didn't run, but he did speed walk out of the room, stomping his feet the whole way.
He supposed it was a good thing his phone still worked, but Mukahi couldn't even find it in himself to be relieved. Instead, he slacked off during math class and considered the consequences of skipping tennis practice that afternoon. He was supposed to play a doubles match with Yuushi today and every particle of Mukahi's being screamed at him that this was a really bad idea.
But unfortunately skipping tennis practice was not a good idea either. Most members of the club could skip no problem, but not the regulars. Once, last year, some third year regular had tried skipping and Atobe had ordered Kabaji bring him to the courts. Atobe had then annihilated that third year boy in a tennis match and given the regulars spot to Hiyoshi.
Maybe he could get one of the other regulars to take his place. Mukahi was fully confident that he could guilt-trip Ootori into taking his doubles position for a day, but now that Shishido was constantly around Ootori, the odds of that working were slim.
This whole thing just sucked. Tennis practice had always been a great way to get his mind off of things in the past. He had often taken out his anger on his opponents and the tennis courts were one of the few places where he could jump as high as he wanted without being gawked at or told to stop by his mother. On the court, his jumping abilities impressed nearly anyone.
Oshitari too used to compliment his jumping, back when they first started playing doubles together. Hell, Mukahi had even trained outside of school practices for weeks at the end of last summer when he realized his own lack of stamina was holding Oshitari back and hurting their doubles play. Mukahi still remembered feeling hurt when Oshitari took a singles position for one tournament, leaving him with Hiyoshi instead.
And now here he was after all that, brainstorming to find way to get out of playing doubles with Oshitari. How ironic.
When tennis practice came around, it was as awkward as Mukahi had anticipated. When he saw Oshitari, he began running laps. After he did twenty, he moved on the push-ups. Sweat was already running down his face by the end of the warm ups. Then it was time for the match.
Oshitari eyed him when they took their positions but said nothing. On the opposite side of the court, Kabaji served. Immediately, it was an ace. Mukahi shot an angry look back at Oshitari, silently berating him for not getting the serve. It happened again, more often than Mukahi liked, often because Mukahi thought Oshitari would get the ball while Oshitari thought Mukahi had it, but still he and Oshitari didn't talk. It was an awful way to play and the lack of communication didn't help them one bit. Their usual chemistry was gone, making way for silly fumblings and careless mistakes.
During the middle of the third game, Mukahi and Oshitari both tried hitting the ball at the same time. Their rackets clashed and the point went to Kabaji and Atobe again. Mukahi jumped back as if he'd been electrified.
"Watch it!" Mukahi snapped, saying his first words to Oshitari since that cellphone ordeal.
"Sorry," was all Oshitari replied and went to take his position again.
"Stop," Atobe said, holding his hand up and looking far from happy. As flashy as the Hyoutei captain usually was, he was every bit a responsible captain that wasted no time in tackling the team's weak links. "This is a waste of time. Kabaji, Oshitari, you both continue the match in singles. Mukahi, locker rooms, now."
It took a lot of effort for Mukahi to not slam his racket down in frustration.
This was a bad idea. He should've skipped practice, regardless of the consequences. Mukahi shut the locker room door behind him, nearly slamming it into Atobe who followed him inside. Beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks.
"Sit," Atobe said, commanding. Mukahi obeyed instantly. Atobe took his place on the royal purple couch that was there for some unknown reason. No one bothered questioning why Atobe placed certain bits of furniture in various rooms around the school. "I have half a mind to give Oshitari a singles position after this practice."
Mukahi sighed. "What, you want me to beg you to not kick me off the team? Fat chance," he said. "Whatever, I'll just… team up with Wakashi. You have no one else for doubles." That sounded a lot more threatening than Mukahi wanted. He knew Atobe was not above kicking his friends off the regulars; heck, even Shishido, whom Atobe had known since the first year of middle school, had gotten kicked off once. "Or just give me a singles position. Anything you want, captain."
"You don't have the stamina for singles," Atobe said, "and you know it. If you want to be off the team that badly, then just say so. I have two hundred club members who would kiss my feet for the chance to have your position."
Mukahi hung his head. "No. I… I don't want out."
Atobe crossed his legs, nodding. "Then stop with this ridiculous feud. You and Oshitari make a fine pair when you synchronize rightly. If you let your personal feelings get in the way of the team, then I will have no qualms about getting rid of you."
"Will do, captain."
"By the way, most people act a lot nicer around the person they like. You should try that method," Atobe said pointedly.
"What the hell, does everyone in this school know?" Mukahi said. He groaned, scratching his palm into his face. Was he really that obvious? Or did Hiyoshi tell everyone? Hiyoshi was kind of an asshole but even that was a bit beyond Hiyoshi's regular level of assholey-ness.
Atobe smirked, apparently very satisfied with himself. "Ore-sama is particularly skilled in insight, which includes noticing minor details about my surroundings. The signs were very easy to spot," he said. "Either way, you should not dawdle with such petty feelings. The sooner you tell Oshitari, the sooner you will stop bothering every single person around you. Shishido tells me you've threatened him with murder more often than usual as of late."
"Like you're the one to talk, captain. It took you like two months for you to tell Jirou of your feelings," Mukahi retorted. This was really not the conversation he wanted to have with his egotistical captain. "Look, I know I've been… kind of a dick lately. It's just… first Shishido and Ootori start getting it on, then you and Jirou too and it sort of made me realize that I'm pretty much alone. I'll stop fighting with Yuushi. I dunno when I'll tell him I like him, but I won't continue arguing with him."
Atobe nodded, apparently satisfied enough with that answer. "Good. Now get back to practice. You're on swing practice for the next hour."
Swing practice was awful. Mukahi's arm was cramped before the first dozen minutes were up. The only other members attending swing practice were first years who had never played an actual tennis game in their lives. They all looked at Mukahi with glittery eyes and one kid even started hyperventilating when Mukahi stopped to tell him his form was completely off. It was flattering, in a way, but it was also annoying as hell.
Mukahi didn't really pay attention to the inexperienced first years though. He was busy thinking up of ways to make-up with Yuushi. He supposed the easiest way would be to say sorry and offer to buy Oshitari a book or a soda.
When practice was officially over, Mukahi ran to catch up with Oshitari, leaving the first years to pick up all the balls by themselves. He caught up to Yuushi just outside the locker room, grabbing him by the arm. Mukahi let go the second Oshitari looked at him. His courage nearly abandoned him on the spot.
"H-Hey Yuushi, umm…" Mukahi stood there feeling like an idiot, kicking at the ground with the tip of his shoe. Just get it over with. "About today… sorry about… you know…" Mukahi made incomprehensible hand motions.
"Is Gakuto apologizing to me?" Oshitari said with an exaggerated gasp. "Where's the real Gakuto and what have you done with him?"
"S-Shut up, stupid! Atobe's making me apologize so be quiet and listen," Mukahi said, cringing when the insult flew out of his mouth. "No, I mean… shit. Sorry. Look, can you just forget about everything that happened today? I was being a jerk and took it out on you." Mukahi had trouble looking at Oshitari's face. "Sorry," he added again for good measure.
"Apology accepted," Oshitari said, sounding far too amused.
Mukahi let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. "Yeah, thanks. If you want, we can go somewhere and I'll buy you a soda or something. My treat."
"How rare." Oshitari was thoughtful for a second. "Sure, I am craving some caffeine. Would you want to come over afterwards? You haven't come to my house in a while and my parents have been asking about you. I think my dad's making chicken for supper."
Every part of Mukahi's brain was screaming at him that that was a really, really bad idea. "I dunno. I have a lot of homework to do so…"
"Let's do it together then," Oshitari said.
Damn it, going to Oshitari's house had never been such a big deal! Mukahi had never made excuses not to go. He used to go there nearly every day, often showing up on the weekends completely unannounced too. Mukahi's own house had his noisy siblings and annoying parents, which were an absolute nightmare when he had to get work done. Oshitari's house had always been like a nice safe haven from all that, and Yuushi's parents were nice in a weird sort of way. Mukahi had no reason to decline the invitation.
"Sure," Mukahi said and hoped he wouldn't regret this later.
Eating supper at the Oshitari household was nice. Yuushi's mom did appear happy to see that he was doing well and took the time to tell Mukahi he was always welcome over. The casual homework study date turned into a long supper (which was really good because Yuushi's dad was a great cook and they had leftover chocolate cake) where Oshitari's parents asked him about school and tennis and how Yuushi was doing at school. Mukahi assured them that Yuushi was still being a total recluse by hiding in the library all the time.
"Oh, but you must stay the night, Gakuto-chan," Oshitari Kazumi said. "Here, give me your uniform, I'll wash them for you and have them pressed by morning."
It was hard to argue with Yuushi's mom. She was nice and was very insisting and practically pried Mukahi's jacket off.
So Mukahi was soon wearing spare clothes that he was certain belonged to Yuushi's younger sister as he sat on Yuushi's bedroom floor with books spread out on the small table in front of him. Oshitari joined him after helping his mother clean up, bringing up a tray of tea in the process.
"I told you my mom liked you," Oshitari said, laying the tray down. "Sorry, this was supposed to be a study date but we haven't done much studying yet."
"It's fine. Homework's not much fun anyways," Mukahi said and then sighed. "But I guess we do need to get started on it now. It's due tomorrow." He glared at his math textbook and finished drawing random lines along the margins of the heavy book.
He missed this. This was just like how it was before Mukahi realized he had a crush on his friend. Maybe he had been overthinking things. He felt at ease now, just sitting around on the floor, not really paying attention to their homework as they talked about dumb rumours floating around the school or discussing whichever manga Mukahi was currently engrossed in. The conversation came effortlessly.
Mukahi hated that he had put up a barrier between him and Oshitari all because he had a little crush on his friend. All of those issues felt long gone now.
Right as he thought that, Oshitari just had to bring up something that made all of Mukahi's unease come dashing right back.
"Hey, sorry for stealing your phone earlier," Oshitari said. Oh god. Mukahi wished Oshitari would just forget the entire cellphone business and pretend it had never happened. "It was a breach of your privacy and I shouldn't have looked."
"It's fine," Mukahi said even if everything really wasn't fine at all. He pretended to be deeply immersed in his work. "What did you get for question eighteen?"
"I got sixty-three point eight. Are you still mad at me?"
"Shit. I got the wrong answer," said Mukahi. "And just forget about the phone thing. It's in the past."
"Ah, do you want me to help you?" Even if Mukahi said nothing, Oshitari took it as an invitation to slide up next to him, looking down at his notebook filled with doodles and wrong answers. Mukahi froze. Oshitari laughed. "You know Gakuto, I think I know why you got question eighteen wrong. It might have something to do with the fact that you are still working on question twelve."
Hearing Oshitari laugh made Mukahi's stomach do funny things. He thumped his math book shut, nearly slamming it down on Yuushi's hand in the process. "I hate math. Let's do an easier subject," Mukahi said.
"How about we work on Japanese classics then?" Oshitari asked.
"Nah. I'm like four chapters behind. I'm gonna look online for summaries. It's such a boring book."
"Okay. Then how about you tell me why you've been taking pictures of me?"
Mukahi frowned. "I told you to drop it."
"It didn't break, did it?" Oshitari continued. "Your phone, I mean."
"No… it's still working. The screen cracked in one corner though."
"Good. That way you could continue looking at that hideous picture you have of me."
Oh, fuck him. "I deleted it," Mukahi said. It wasn't true… yet. Mukahi was definitely going to delete all of those images the second he wasn't around Oshitari. "Maybe it's not the picture that's hideous; it's ugly because it has your face on it, stupid."
Yes, calling Yuushi hideous was definitely one of the least romantic things Mukahi had ever said to him. Mukahi was going to kick himself over that one later for sure.
"I'm wounded," Oshitari said, sighing dramatically.
"Shut up, drama queen."
"No, I believe Atobe still holds that title," Oshitari replied. "I'd prefer to be known as the cool genius of Hyoutei. And you can keep your title of Tennis Player with the Horrible Haircut, Gakuto."
"Poking fun at my hair now?" Mukahi said. "That's so mature." Oshitari's comment hardly bothered him, but he did feel hints of irritation like he always did whenever anyone made fun of his hair.
"Oh, don't take it personally," Oshitari said, bumping Mukahi's arm with his. "If it makes you feel any better, you have the nicest legs out of all the players here."
"Great. So now I'm the Tennis Player with the Nice Legs?" Mukahi said sarcastically. That was a compliment, he thought. It was a weird compliment, but that didn't change the fact that Oshitari liked at least one aspect of him.
If he was lucky, all Mukahi would have to do was rub his legs all over Oshitari to make him fall in love with him. But things were never that easy.
"And you have nice…" Mukahi paused, about to say 'and you have a nice everything'. Mukahi decided to narrow it down a bit. "…collarbones," Mukahi finished lamely. He didn't know why that slipped out of his mouth. It probably had something to do with Oshitari sitting right next to him and Oshitari being taller than Mukahi meant Mukahi was practically at eye level with his collarbone.
Oshitari laughed lightly. "I admit, I've never heard that one before," he said. "Since you like my clavicle so much, I could let you touch it," he said, "on the condition that you tell me the story behind the pictures of course."
Mukahi was the one to bump at Oshitari this time; only it was more of a hard push that nearly sent Oshitari toppling backwards.
"Over my dead body," Mukahi said. "Now help me solve question twelve."
The clock blinked 5:10am when Mukahi woke up. It was the worst time to wake up; it was too early to get up and do anything productive but too late to fall back asleep. Not to mention Mukahi had stayed awake for a very long time tossing and turning before he had finally managed to fall asleep. It didn't help that he was in Yuushi's house with the weird vanilla-peach smelling pillows and the lacy foam-green curtains.
He laid in bed for a long time, until finally the light behind his curtains began to lighten. It was just a bit past six o'clock, and by the sounds of it, some members of the household were awake. Mukahi padded his way downstairs, finding Yuushi's mother in the midst of preparing breakfast.
"Can I help you with anything, Oshitari-san?" Mukahi asked.
"Oh, what a helpful boy you are," Oshitari Kazuma cooed. "I'll manage just fine here. How about you go wake up Yuushi? That boy has a hard time waking up in the morning. He spends half the night awake reading those novels of his!"
So Mukahi sluggishly went back up the stairs, hoping that Yuushi was already awake. His hopes were dashed went he stood outside Yuushi's room, tapping his knuckles on the wooden door and waiting. No sound came from inside. Mukahi did it again and still had no success.
He twisted the knob and pushed the panelled wood with his palm, slipping inside with discretion. The room was as it had been last night, with school books layered all around the floor and desk. The sun beamed in through slits in the curtains, shining on the motionless lump on the bed.
Yuushi was still fast asleep with a thin paperback book next to his head and his glasses laying on the nightstand. His arms were extended, his face tipped to Mukahi. Oshitari looked completely serene, his breaths coming out slow and steady. His brow was peaceful and his hair scattered across the pillow, looking softer than silk. His lashes quivered in sleep, his fingers clenching and relaxing in rhythm. Only a single bed sheet covered him, only it didn't do a very good job of it. His shoulders were naked and his collar visible; only the rest of his bare torso was hidden by the cover.
Mukahi sucked in a breath. He shouldn't be here. He had to leave and get away from this; away from the bare skin and long lashes and that tranquil, unknowing face. Mukahi took a step back and bumped his back into the door, breaking the silence. He didn't have the time to pray for Oshitari to remain oblivious because Oshitari blinked awake that same second.
Oshitari stretched, the sheet sliding down and Mukahi could not look away. Oshitari sat up, yawning , stretching his arms over his head and fingering his hair, letting out a moan of satisfaction bordering on obscene. The bed sheet pooled down around his waist, making every inch of skin above that line visible. Yuushi's entire torso was a tanned golden hue, his stomach hinting at hidden muscles.
And that was when Yuushi spotted Mukahi.
The red head was a statue along the door. Oshitari blinked, his eyes still rather lazy from sleep, but so bright and so intense without his glasses. Mukahi swallowed thickly, feeling his heart racing at a thousand beats a second.
"Gakuto?" Oshitari mumbled, sleepy.
"B-Breakfast is ready," Mukahi squeaked, forcing his eyes to look down at the carpet.
There was no reply, only the sound of the covers being scuffled around. When Mukahi looked back up, he found Yuushi lying down again, facing away from him.
"Oi, didn't you hear me?" Mukahi said, irritated. Still no reply. "Hey! You'll miss morning practice if you don't hurry up. Your tea will get cold." He approached the bed. "Yuushi, get up." He gave an experimental poke to the back of Yuushi's head. That didn't give him any response. Mukahi then pulled his hand back, readying himself to give Oshitari a well-deserving smack.
That plan was interrupted when Oshitari came to life and snagged Mukahi right off the ground. Mukahi let out a high-pitched yelp. Oshitari had grabbed him by the waist, hauling him onto the bed. For a second Mukahi was above, only an inch away from Oshitari's little smirk, and then Oshitari was rolling them over.
Mukahi was horribly confused, realizing that Oshitari was above him, his eyes dark and deep and his lips quirking up in amusement. As it was right now… Yuushi's naked chest was hovering above him, within easy reach. Mukahi's head was lying back on Oshitari's pillow. Mukahi realized quickly that he'd been tricked. Normally Mukahi would have been very angry and would not have been above kicking his doubles partner to get out, but he was having a hard enough time finding proper words to say. Oshitari was still staring, as if awaiting his reaction.
Mukahi felt the heat creeping up on his cheeks. "G-Get off," he said weakly.
Oshitari leaned in. "Gakuto," he said, sending a shiver down Mukahi's spine. "Tell me, why do you have so many pictures of me?"
Mukahi was about to retort with a very creative line of insults when he saw the look on Oshitari's face.
Oshitari was smirking, a knowing expression on his face. Mukahi's eyes widened, realizing right there that Yuushi was teasing him. Mukahi didn't know how it was possible but Yuushi somehow knew. He supposed he really was just that obvious.
"You… don't play dumb," Mukahi said, his voice dropping down to a whisper. "You know why."
"Maybe I do," Oshitari said, eyes softening. "To tell you the truth, I was hoping to hear you confess. You've thoroughly disappointed me."
Yuushi was so close he barely had to move at all to push their mouths together. It was a quick, fleetingly soft press of lips and ahh, Mukahi felt all his muscles turning into mush on the spot. Oshitari's hair tickled his cheeks and when Oshitari dragged his lips back, Mukahi felt hot breath flowing into his open mouth.
The back of Mukahi's hand reached up, covering his mouth. Mukahi thought his face must be as red as his hair at the moment.
"I hate you," Mukahi mumbled.
Oshitari sat up, finally tearing his gaze away to grab his glasses from the nightstand.
Mukahi wanted to kick Oshitari out and curl into a ball. He wanted to grab Oshitari's hair and kiss him again.
"Be nice," Oshitari said. "It's a lovely morning, isn't it?"
Mukahi groaned. "How did you even know…?" It was way too early for this. His heart was doing actual somersaults in his chest.
"It's a secret," Oshitari said, lying back right beside Mukahi. "Can I kiss you again?"
Mukahi nodded, "Yeah." He knew he sounded a bit too eager, but honestly who could blame him at this point? He held the back of Oshitari's neck and kissed him fully on the mouth. It wasn't as smooth this time, not with Oshitari's glasses digging into the corners of his face, but then Oshitari circled his arms around him and Mukahi had never felt so warm.
Jirou was wide awake and gasped so loudly that Mukahi was certain the entire school had heard him. Jirou then jumped up, pointing at Mukahi and Oshitari's linked hands. "Whoa!" Jirou exclaimed. "You're together now? That's soo cool! I'm so happy for you!"
Mukahi immediately shook Oshitari hand off. He had told Oshitari off about the hand-holding earlier. Already a bunch of people had been whispering and staring as they walked around school but Jirou's exclamation was the last draw. "It's not a big deal, Jirou," Mukahi said.
"Thank you for your support," Oshitari said.
"And pipe down before they hear you all the way in America," Mukahi said.
"Or not," Oshitari said. "If people know you are taken, that's not necessarily a bad thing, Gakuto."
Fantastic. They've only been together for one day and already Mukahi wanted to tell Oshitari to shove all that romantic crap up his ass. Oshitari only laughed at Mukahi's grumpy face and took his chin in hand, leaning in to kiss him.
Then Shishido interrupted by loudly choking as gutturally as possible . Ootori actually looked concerned for a second until he realized Shishido was doing it just to ruin the moment like the jerk he was.
"Shut up Ryo," Mukahi said. "Why do you have to be such a douchebag most of the time?"
"Well you're lame all the time," Shishido replied.
"Go choke on a dick," Mukahi told him. Hiyoshi actually snorted at that one while Ootori gasped.
So Mukahi didn't know who decided to have a tennis group lunch, but clearly it was the worst idea ever. At least the food was good, as was expected from Atobe's greatest caters. Jirou only stayed awake for half of it and then promptly fell asleep on his plate. Atobe sighed and had Kabaji clean Jirou's face free of food. Atobe looked satisfied afterwards when Jirou was snoozing on his shoulder instead.
Most of them ate and left soon after. Ootori actually congratulated both Mukahi and Oshitari before Shishido dragged him away by the hand, pausing only to tell Mukahi that it was about damn time he got a boyfriend. Hiyoshi said he had other club activities awaiting him and also left.
"How about we get going too?" Mukahi asked. Yuushi nodded and this time Mukahi didn't protest when Yuushi took his hand. Mukahi felt like his hands were clammy and cold, but Oshitari didn't seem to mind.
When Mukahi had suggested leaving, he had thought they would go to somewhere more private for some nice alone time. Instead, Oshitari dragged him to the library. Mukahi grumbled as Oshitari tugged him along.
"I have to return some books," Oshitari said.
Oshitari did return two books, but then he only went in search of others. Mukahi followed him into the aisles filled with more dust than books. Mukahi was sure only Oshitari came in this section of the library. It was full of dated romance novels and even older classics that no one liked. It was way too quiet for Mukahi's liking.
"Are you done yet?" Mukahi asked for the dozenth time. He was certain Oshitari had already read over half of these. "Let's go somewhere else." He tugged at the back of Oshitari's shirt. "I hate the library. I need to get out of here. I may actually go crazy if I don't."
"You poor miserable soul," Oshitari said.
Fine then. If that was how things were going to be, then Mukahi would just take things into his own hands. Mukahi didn't spend agonizing weeks crushing on his friend to meekly stand next to him in a quiet library when they were officially a couple now.
Mukahi pushed Oshitari away from the shelf, standing up on his tiptoes to kiss him. He liked kissing Yuushi quite a lot and Yuushi seemed to replicate the feeling, as was obvious when Oshitari immediately dropped the book he had been holding to pull Mukahi flush against him. Oshitari's glasses often got in the way and sometimes their teeth clacked noisily, but they were quickly working those flaws out of their play. Mukahi grazed his teeth along Oshitari's lower lip, giving it a sharp bite.
Mukahi was still relatively new to the experience, regardless of how enjoyable it was. That was why it shocked him a bit when Oshitari's arms encircled him and lifted him off the ground. Mukahi wrapped his legs tightly around Oshitari, like a koala attaching itself to a tree.
"You're light as a feather," Oshitari remarked, his head just a bit under Mukahi's now.
Mukahi growled, seeking out Yuushi's mouth again. Mukahi tried to remind himself that he normally did not like people tossing him around because of his small stature, but Yuushi's mouth was hot and enticing and something hot curled in him as he felt how easily Yuushi was able to pick him up. Yuushi opened his mouth too and suddenly Mukahi felt the other's hot tongue sliding up against his own. That was new. It was odd and slimy at first but then Oshitari groaned and Mukahi decided that he liked it very much.
There was something solid along Mukahi's back and Mukahi didn't know if it was the wall or a bookshelf but he didn't find it within himself to care. Whatever it was, Oshitari was pressing him along it, that lean body was pleasingly solid under Mukahi's fingers and cradled between his thighs. When Oshitari pulled back for air, Mukahi allowed him barely a second of respite before he was back for more.
"You are very demanding, you know that?" Oshitari said against Mukahi's lips.
Mukahi's breathing felt much too loud in the library. Oshitari let him back down easy and Mukahi had to catch himself with a hand of the dusty shelf. He was breathless, his limbs turned into goo.
"That," Mukahi tried saying. "Again. We should do it again." Mukahi wanted to do it a lot more. Every day and every hour. Oshitari too was trying to catch some air, nodding at Mukahi's badly-phrased suggestion.
"Yeah," Oshitari said. "Let's do it again soon."
They returned to the section of the library with tables and chairs for reading. Mukahi took his seat on top of Oshitari's lap, ignoring all other seats available. Right now Oshitari was warm and wasn't being as irritating as usual. Mukahi leaned back into Oshitari's chest. Oshitari scuffled around uncomfortably, placing his book down.
"Your ass is bony," Oshitari said.
"Too bad," Mukahi replied. "This is what you signed up for the second you figured out I liked you. Deal with it."
"I hardly figured it out myself," Oshitari replied. "Hiyoshi told half the tennis team that you liked me."
Mukahi stopped, feeling a seething anger clawing its way inside him. Wakashi, that bastard… Hiyoshi looked all quiet and uncaring but he was a real asshole and apparently liked ruining other people's lives. Though in this case Hiyoshi hadn't exactly ruined it… but Hiyoshi didn't need to know that. The last thing Mukahi wanted was to be indebted to Hiyoshi.
"I won't brutally murder him this time then," Mukahi said.
"Don't kill anyone else either. I believe Hiyoshi started it by telling all the second years at practice, which Ootori overheard. Ootori then told Shishido, who told Jirou, who told Atobe, who then sent me a very informative text before our study date," Oshitari said.
Forget Hiyoshi. Mukahi was going to very painfully kill his entire tennis team.
Well, almost all. Oshitari was the exception because he was now higher up than the others on the scoreboard thanks to his kissing expertise.
"You and me are soon going to be the only two regulars on the team left," Mukahi informed his partner. Yuushi hummed, having picked up the book again and was now flipping over to the second page.
Mukahi sighed contently, leaned back, and began daydreaming about jumping on the heads of every single person on his tennis team.
.