A.N.: This will be the beginning of a new series of Free! one-shots/drabbles that I'd like to start. Basically, I got this adorably sweet book of Disney quotes for Christmas last year, and most of them reminded me of Free! stuff. But of course, I had to start with Reigisa. I don't own Free!, but I hope you guys enjoy! R&R!
It isn't until three minutes have passed, and Rei still can't comprehend the exact color of eyes that Nagisa possesses, that the bespectacled teen fully realizes that he might be, sort of, maybe more interested in blonds with indescribable eyes than fireworks.
They're waiting for the fireworks to start for the festival, and Nagisa has requested that he and Rei wear color-coordinating yukatas; they already have matching swimsuits, and Rei agrees whole-heartedly. Because the latteri had already chosen a deep purple one five months ago, Nagisa opted for a light green one, with Rei's initial approval, of course.
The garment was actually quite nice; it was checkered in paler greens and beiges, with tiny white leaves encased inside some of the boxes. If he looked good in that shade of green, Rei might have even picked it himself.
When Nagisa first met up with Rei that night, the blue-haired teen immediately thought that the blond seemed smaller than usual.
In a good and endearing way, of course.
Nagisa's height is perfectly compatible with Rei's, currently. At this height, if they wanted to, Nagisa could easily fit the top of his head underneath Rei's chin.
If they wanted to. If they hugged. If. Hugging Nagisa tonight, if put into perspective, holds a less-than-favorable percentage. Perhaps a quick hug from the blond, an excited action because there are shimmering, snapping clouds in the sky, but not an actual hug.
And certainly not a romantic and head-under-the-chin sort of embrace.
Rei's hopeful for the second kind of hug, but he's not stupid. Nagisa usually gives sincere hugs once a week, and Rei already received his for setting a new personal best on his butterfly stroke. To ask for another hug would only be selfish.
Dismissing these thoughts, the bespectacled teen glances over toward his friend's direction.
Nagisa only seems slightly bored, waiting. He's naturally impatient, and his hands pick and wring at the edges of his sleeves, but he's otherwise calm. But he looks over toward Rei and smiles, eyes closed and face bright.
"You're not getting tired, are you, Rei-chan?" he asks, taking a step toward the taller swimmer. "Did practice wear you out too much?" His face is innocent, but his tone is mischievous.
Rei's eyes widen, and he shakes his head; if he were acting under normal circumstances, he'd be offended, to a slight degree. But tonight, when the fireflies are blinking around the pair, casting a golden glow across Nagisa's face, Rei can't find the words to portray annoyance.
He's lucky if he doesn't stutter the whole night through.
"No," he responds, perhaps a bit too shakily, lacking his normal confidence, "I'm just wondering if you're bored…"
The smaller teen seems to contemplate the question for a few moments, then looks at Rei. Honestly looks at him. And Nagisa's eyes are illuminated by the streetlights and the bugs and simply the blond's captivating nature; and Rei's mouth is dry.
"Not with Rei-chan here."
Rei stares at Nagisa's form even after the swimmer turns away to get a good look at the crowds of people. Rei is studying, observing, noting things; mostly, he's trying to decide on something.
After three minutes of agonizing over the matter, Rei decides on watermelons. Watermelons. Nagisa's eyes are akin to the inside of an expensive and unimaginably delicious watermelon. Rei thinks so but refuses to say as much; that would just make Nagisa unnecessarily confident.
Clearing his throat perhaps a decibel louder than truly necessary, Rei turns his head, glancing at a street full of vendor stands. There are an array of games to be played, and the blue-haired teen suspects that Haruka-sempai and Makoto-sempai are spending the majority of their time there instead of waiting for the fireworks to begin.
But Nagisa insisted on fireworks, and Rei too enjoys appreciating the flashes and booms of well-choreographed pyrotechnics.
"Thank you."
Nagisa makes a noise of acknowledgment, but quickly grabs for the sleeve of Rei's yukata. "Ah, Rei-chan! They're starting!" The blond bounces up and down about four times before settling beside the taller teen. They're close, almost touching, and Nagisa is radiating the kind of warmth that Rei imagines is just a plethora of built-up energy swirling inside a tiny body; but he can't be too sure.
The first few fireworks are more of a practice test, Rei observes. They're light, almost pale enough to be white (but are, in fact, yellow), and they crackle into the night sky. Even so, Nagisa's face lights up at the sight.
The sounds that the blond makes are heartwarming, to say the least. He's amazed by the display, yet has been introduced to fireworks plenty of times before.
Normally, Rei would wonder how someone could see something so many times and still be enthralled by it at every glance; he then glances over at the smaller swimmer, whose face he has been acquainted with on too many instances to account for, and he retracts his former question.
Nagisa is spectacular, always.
The show picks up, and a burst of red breaks through from the sky. It bursts outward and develops into shimmering lines before fading; as soon as it vanishes, a stream of white glides from the ground into the air - it opens to an array of blue dots decorating the black sky.
There's another bounce from Nagisa; Rei smiles and hopes that Haruka-sempai and Makoto-sempai stopped playing festival games to watch this.
Multiple, tiny pops emit from the dark, and the delicate lines of the fireworks that ensue seem almost soft to the touch; again, they're arguably white but more yellow in Rei's opinion. The fluffy lights are joined by orange dustings and purple circles.
The purple ones, the circles, have tiny streaks inside, it seems. They erupt into the loudest noises out of all the fireworks; the lines brighten then retreat.
Nagisa looks up, and Rei looks down, and the blond looks almost shy. "Thank you for coming, Rei-chan."
"It was my idea to come," Rei replies quickly, adjusting his glasses out of his nervous tic. Nagisa's expression warms into his defaulted light smile; this time, his head taps gently against the side of Rei's arm before straightening into a normal position. Slightly, almost imperceptibly, Rei moves his arm toward Nagisa. "They're beautiful."
The finale begins, and the beauty increases. Near the ground, an array of white (this time, they are white) fireworks begin in a sort of machine gun formation; they wave back and forth across the sky in a fluid motion, curving when they change direction. Accompanying them is a combination of greens and blues and oranges and reds all popping against the black backdrop behind them. Higher in the sky, yellow fireworks soar and explode into large clouds, coating the air in a muted fog. Luckily, it's not too thick so that the rest of the show cannot be seen.
The number of cracks and pops is increasing, and Rei almost squeaks when Nagisa's hand grabs his. The blond looks worried for a moment and spares a glance at the taller teen. Rei is flushing and sputtering, but he squeezes back, and Nagisa relaxes.
"It's kind of magical tonight, Rei-chan. All these colors are so bright. Especially your face. That's bright, too." He says the last comment so flippantly that Rei almost forgets to be upset. Almost.
"That's not exactly the best thing to say when you're holding my hand," the blue-haired swimmer counters, almost feeling deflated once the last yellow firework dissolves into the sky. The crowd of festival-goers simultaneously clap in appreciation of the display, and Nagisa releases Rei's hand to follow suit.
After the noise dies down, Nagisa begins walking ahead; he's slow, so that Rei can easily catch up. "Did you enjoy them?" the blond asks.
"Of course I did. What was there that I wouldn't enjoy?" Rei is mostly referring to the hand-holding, because that was definitely his favorite part, and he strongly wishes that they could resume the action soon.
Nagisa nods and turns.
"Do you believe in magic, Rei-chan?"
The question catches the addressed teen in question for a bit. "Logically? No. Such a thing does not exist. Of course, there arehistorical accounts of witchcraft being practiced in a myriad of places, and there are natural occurrences which would almost seem impossible to happen under normal circumstances yet are completely able to be explained by science. Such a question would require me to acco-"
Rei stops rambling once Nagisa's lips are on his own. At that point, there are fireworks exploding in his mind. Pink ones, that have small white dots in them, embedding themselves in the rose-colored lights like watermelon seeds. And there are purple fireworks that seem to collapse into themselves before pushing outward, fanning out and condensing into light streamers before dissipating.
He hopes Nagisa sees the same thing. Only perhaps the purple fireworks might be a tad more impressive in Nagisa's mind. That would be ideal.
Nagisa's face is passive. "I'll ask you again, Rei-chan - 'Do you believe in magic?'" Rei dares not to disagree.
he nods slowly, then quickly, biting on his lip in an awkward action before mumbling, "Yes, I do."