"Where the Sun Never Dies"

The sun never completely rose in my town.

Maybe it was at a weird angle that the light would hit the buildings, casting a strange orange glow over everything. A feeling that nothing ever truly began settled around the people the same way sand would encase the feet of beach wanderers walking down the lanes beside the ocean.

Close to the water's edge, I stood still, my feet sinking into the cool sand dampened by the ocean's gentle strokes. A miniature tidal wave brushed against my shins, a trace of cold stinging my skin, but I couldn't make myself move from the spot. I did not wish to move. I did not want the morning sun to rise and blaze a new trail across the sky.

That day, it was March. I was fifteen.

I stood on the brink of the final phase of my childhood, and I was terrified. High school was weeks away, and the school that I was soon leaving--this little hideaway in the corners of Chiba--had been cherished.

One last chance, one final gathering, under that ever-watchful beacon sun, was ours as classmates and teammates. During a brief pause in busy schedules and lives, time was unmoving under a sun that also never moved. It was our time.

Though I faced the ocean, I could hear them behind me, talking and laughing. Our time of glory at Rokkaku was ending. Nearly all of us would move on, following an unattainable sun. There was only one voice, however, that I listened for. But I didn't hear it. Amidst all of the noise created by my teammates, the silence of one was deafening.

When I turned to look at him, a pair of sharp gray eyes gazed at me. Both of us were motionless as we knew what was soon in coming. I would leave. He would stay. That would be that.

I waded back onto the dry sand. Each long, almost laborious step was closely watched by those metallic eyes. There was an outstretched hand before me which I saw before I realized that it was my own.

"Davide?" My voice sounded distant. "Come on."

What the invitation was for, I didn't know. But I didn't care as Davide reached for my hand. He started to get up, but as an odd look of defeat crossed his face, he dropped back onto the sand. The creases between his eyebrows waxed solemn. He was too quiet. I sat beside him, and despite my mentally urging him to say something--even one of his stupid puns--I also said nothing.

I leaned back on my arms and inhaled a deep breath of salty air, laughing a little as I watched Aoi and Ryo drag Itsuki into the water.

"Kurobane."

The statement was felt more than heard. When I looked at Davide, he sat as still as a statue, arms resting on his knees, face obscured by flyaway strands of red curls. I told myself that it was my imagination that saw the shimmering lines of gold mixed in the red, colors that could only be caused by the eternally dawning sun.

"Amane." He said his own name like a sigh. "They rhyme."

"Yeah...they do."

He finally spared me a glance, but I had not expected the strong gaze, the scrutiny. I didn't know what to say, what to think, how to respond. I only stared at those blue eyes like the struck dumb teenager that I was.

"The team?" I only assumed that it was a question.

"I suppose Aoi will be captain again. You'll have to find a doubles partner for next year."

He noticeably stiffened, and I immediately regretted my words.

"Hey." I tried the fix the damage already inflicted. "You can try singles instead. You'd do great in either."

Davide looked down at the sand, as though my second statement went entirely unheard.

"I don't want a new partner," he said softly.

Those stormy pools regarded me with so much earnestness, and I swallowed nervously. I knew what he meant, but I told myself that I didn't. I knew why he had grown attached to me during his first year of middle school. I knew why he had tried to leave anonymous valentines which didn't remain anonymous long after I discovered the littering of puns inside each card. I knew why he had asked to kiss me when Aoi had informed the team that kissing one's best friend was good dating practice. I also knew that I was incapable of speaking at that moment.

So, I did what the most logical thing in my fifteen-year-old male brain was. I kissed him.

I could taste the surprise melting into contentedness on his slightly chapped lips. Immobile at first, Davide soon moved in response, shifting closer to me and kissing back. As my hands clasped onto his arms, searching for something to hold, we were distracted by cheering. We quickly broke away, our faces tinted dark with embarrassed heat. Maybe it was the lighting from the sun that caused such color to grace our cheeks. I ignored the idea and instead stared incredulously at my applauding teammates.

"Does this mean you're officially a couple?" The question came from Saeki.

"It's about time," Ryo said teasingly.

Aoi seemed distressed. "What?! I thought for sure that Bane-san was straight! Am I the only guy on this team who likes girls?"

He suddenly looked thoughtful which I found surprising considering the situation.

"Ittchan!"

As our freshman captain ran off to fetch whatever ally he could find, a laugh ripped from me as I once again leaned back beside Davide. He looked as solemn as ever, but I noticed something deeper reflecting in the shape of his eyes, the movement of his mouth, the gradual leaning of his body toward mine.

"Sorry for interrupting you lovebirds," Saeki called, despite the looming irony of his words as Shudou wrapped his arms around the shorter boy's waist.

Grinning and saying something about leaving us "lovebirds" alone, the spectators turned their attention to other things. The sound of the waves hitting the golden-dyed banks cushioned the echo of my friends' retreating footsteps. Although the sun had streaked the auburn sky all day, I could feel in my gut that it was late, and the perpetual sunrise would eventually morph into a dying light.

For a short while, Davide and I were alone under the floating guidance of the sun. Our next kiss was clumsy, noses bumping before my hand gently tilted his face while I turned mine. It was tentative--one small second of contact, a taste and not much more. My fingers gripped his fiery locks when we drew close again. Two pairs of knees collided as I pressed against him, swallowing him whole. There was a burning sensation left by his fleeting touches up my bare arms. Locked in a dream detached from our surroundings, I was only aware of him--the way he felt and tasted.

We were lying flat on the sand when I became conscious again. The sky had darkened to a smoky red above us. He was close to me, and my hand was pressed securely against his muscles stretched taut against his rib cage. His eyes looked sad like those of a dog scolded by his master, but his knuckles brushed against the edge of my jaw with a featherlike gentleness.

"I never said you needed a new partner, Davide," I murmured. "You'll just need one for next year, for the team."

I caught the hand near my face, feeling some grains of sand clinging to the rough calluses. I pulled him close to me, relishing the shared warmth and intimacy of skin upon skin. My eyes squinted at the sky as I wondered about the future and what would happen. The sun would set only to rise upon a new day. I would leave. He would stay. That would be that.

"I wish I knew where a new partner is," I heard Davide say.

"Huh? But I just said--"

I saw his face, a smirk tugging the corners of his mouth up.

"Ah, you're an idiot."

There was neither malice nor irritation in my voice as I ruffled his hair and laughed at his panicked reaction. Time was about to move again, but we wouldn't change. Maybe in a town where the sun never completely rose, it never completely set either.

At least, I was willing to believe that.

END

a/n: The title was originally a song by Blindside. Yes, I shamelessly borrowed it.... But anyway, I thank you for reading. :D